Tojima Wants to Be a Kamen Rider

Episode 12

This week's episode left me with a question: Has the novelty finally worn off? Honestly, I think it has. These past two episodes have really felt like the series was treading water. Oh, sure, there's the looming threat of Thunder Raiko, Spider Man, and Bat Man, but they haven't done anything in the past few episodes—not to mention that none of our heroes are even really aware of the true threat beyond Yukarisu.

Of course, that's what gets us the fight of this episode—though it's a lackluster one. There are no real stakes to the fight, and the outcome is a foregone conclusion. As was previously established, the stronger you were before becoming a Shocker combatant, the stronger you are as one. Obviously, Nakao, a yakuza enforcer, would have no issue dealing with a normal high school girl. Likewise, once our heroes get involved, there's no way they can't beat down a single combatant, no matter how skilled—especially after finishing their own training/tournament arc. Thus, everything in this episode feels like paint-by-numbers at best and a total waste of time at worst.

The only moment of the episode that felt even the least bit engaging is Ichiyo's confession—not the first or second ones (where he is shot down by a kick and a flat denial respectively) but the third one. The first two times are self-centered. He likes Yuriko and wants to know if she feels the same way—which she does not. The third time, however, the confession is about her—but what's most important are the words he uses.

Ichiyo doesn't say that he's in love with Yuriko but with Tackle. This shows her that she is Tackle in his mind—that she has achieved her lifelong goal of becoming Tackle. His gushing about her strong points validates her obsession and all the hard work it took for her to reach this point. This is why she's much more subdued and embarrassed by this confession. Those are the words she's always wanted to hear.

But other than that moment, this episode is just a group of people drinking and eating, followed by a brief and largely pointless fight. The series now feels aimless, where the only real goal of our heroes is a nebulous one about fighting Shocker. It doesn't even feel like we're nearing a climax. Thunder Raiko and the monsters could show up next episode or a dozen from now. The series is just meandering at this point, and I can't help but wish it could pick a destination and start heading for it.

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Tojima Wants to Be a Kamen Rider is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.