Recap: Kamen Rider Gaim, Episode 44 – Two People's Visions of the Future

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Peco and Chucky are running to the Garage when they spot Kota’s unconscious and bloody body in a warehouse. They hurry in and get him back to the Garage.

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Meanwhile, Mai continues travelling through time and arrives in what Sagara says is an alternate world. Only when the future is decided here, Mai will be able to return to her own.

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Minato and a frazzle haired Kaito return to the operating room where they and Mitchi see Mai’s dead body glowing before it disappears.

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Sagara pops up again and says she is not dead, she has just transcended her humanity. She went back in time and became lost in a parallel world. Sagara then reminds Kaito that Mai had already visited him in the past. As the Woman of the Beginning, she decides who will receive the Golden Fruit.

Kaito is very interested, but Mitchi says what’s the point. Mai-san, as a human, is gone now. As good as dead.

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Kaito grabs Mitchi by the collar and says he can give up and continue sulking around on the floor. But he is different. Kaito will never stop fighting.

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Sagara is fascinated by Kaito’s resolve.

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At the Garage, Akira, Chucky and Peco see Kota’s wound is quickly healing. How could that be?!

Inside Kota’s head, he meets red-eyed Mai. “I’m sorry, Kota,” she says, “I wasn’t able to change fate.”

Mai says she never wanted them to get hurt and suffer. Now all she can do is watch everything end in vain.

Kota tells Mai that she shouldn’t shoulder all the responsibility. Didn’t Mai once tell him not to carry a burden alone? He’s been able to get through all this because of his words. Now it’s his turn to tell her, “Don’t suffer alone. I will fight with you.”

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Mai says she only took this power so Kota wouldn’t end up like he is now. Kota replies while they have gone through so much, these are the paths they chose to take. And the future hasn’t been decided yet.

That’s how Kota’s always thought, Mai says. But that future is being threatened by Kaito and his alternate view of the future, a future that cannot coexist with Kota’s.

Mai disappears.

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In a dark warehouse, Minato feels up Kaito’s arm. His wound is completely healed! Rather, he has completely fused with Helheim. Now, Helheim’s poison is his power.

Minato is ecstatic that her instincts were right.

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“Why do you follow me? What is it that you seek?”
“I seek a king,” Minato replies. “I want to give birth to the king and watch the way he lives his life. And that’s you.”

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“My king is Kumon Kaito. I’ve picked you.”

Are you sure, Kaito asks. “What if the king you have given birth to is the devil that destroys the world?”
“I’m sure,” Minato answers, “Is that a problem?”

Kaito smirks.

They head out to the city where they are found by Zack, Oren and Jonouchi.

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Zach and Jonouchi start to run over to Kaito, but Oren stops them. He senses that Kaito has changed a great deal since last they saw.

Kaito waves his hand and out pops two evolved Inves through the Cracks. The Inves kneel at Kaito’s feet.

Kaito says he will use Helheim’s power to destroy the old world. Looks like Kaito could use a spanking, Oren says. He walks forward. Minato meets him. “And what about you?”

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Minato attacks, they fight. “Kaito will be the king of the new world,” she says as she uses Ryoma’s Genesis Driver to henshin.

“You’re drunk on power,” Oren says to Kaito. He’s seen his fair share on the battlefield. He and Jonouchi henshin and they fight Minato and the two Inves.

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Oren tries to get Minato and Kaito to wake up, but Minato says she is wide awake. Jonouchi calls to Zack to help.

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“Why Kaito!?”

Kaito waves his hands and summons vines to hurl Oren and Jonouchi across the plaza. They don’t understand what just happened.

Kaito shows them by transforming into his Overlord form.

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Kota wakes up just as that happens.

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Zack, Oren and Jonouchi are in shock. “I will obtain the Golden Fruit and recreate the world!” Kaito says, “I won’t let anyone get in my way.”

Oren and Jonouchi resume fighting Minato and the Inves.

“Are you serious about destroying the world?!” Zack yells over to Kaito.
“What will you do if I am? I told you before. Win your future with your own hands. What future do you seek?”

“I…” Zack looks over to Oren and Jonouchi then takes his Lock Seed out to henshin.

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Zack runs over, but instead of helping out Jonouchi, he attacks instead. “I’ve made my choice. I will follow you Kaito,” he says.

He knocks Jonouchi into the air and Minato delivers a finishing blow toward Jonouchi’s belt. He comes falling to the ground, his Driver and Lock Seed fried.

Oren charges toward Kaito who takes him out with just a mere couple of swipes. His Driver and Lock Seed are also destroyed.

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Kaito, Minato and Zack de-henshin. “Tell the others,” Kaito says, “If you stand in my way, you will be shown no mercy!”

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Oren and Jonouchi hurry back to the Garage to tell them Monsieur Banana’s gone mad and that Zack has betrayed them.

Kota gets up from the cot. Oren holds him back. Kota should not be so reckless in his condition. But Kota insists. He has to stop Kaito before he does something that cannot be stopped.

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Zack and Minato are with Kaito on a rooftop as he summons dozens of Inves to create an army that they will use to finish Zawame and extend beyond the city limits.

Kota arrives and tries to reason with Kaito. Kaito tells him Mai is lost in time and the only way he can see her in the future is to obtain the Golden Fruit. And the only people who can obtain the Golden Fruit are him and Kota.

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Kaito says he will destroy this world then obtain Mai and the Golden Fruit. He wants to settle this now.

Kaito henshins to plain banana and charges toward Kota who still tries to reason with him. Kaito tosses Kota aside, landing near Zack.

Kota henshins to plain orange and he and Kaito battle. Kota goes Kachidoki, but Kaito is still somehow able to get the upper hand. That is until Kota whips out the Hinawadaidai-DJ-ju and sends a finishing blow that forces Kaito to de-henshin.

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Kota also de-henshins, but Kaito merely gets up like he wasn’t even scratched. He smirks again before going Overlord.

“Kaito… I can’t believe you’ve become like me…”

Kaito sends Kota flying and they take their fight into a factory. Kota feels a pain in his wound.

Kaito says Kota better give him everything he’s got if he wants the Golden Fruit. But Kota reminds him that he said if Kaito can save the world, he can have all the Golden Fruits he wants.

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“I have no obligation to the world to save it. In fact, I don’t care if the world is destroyed as long as I obtain Mai.”

If that’s the case, then “I will stop you!” Kota says. He henshins straight to Kiwami Arms and they resume battle.

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Kota’s gets the upper hand on Kaito, but his wound acts up and that gives Kaito an opening. The tables turn and Kota is in trouble.

Zack watches, hesitates, then charges forward. He henshins and takes on Kota. He tells Kaito to let him help. But as they are out of Kaito’s earshot…

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“Fall back for now,” Zack whispers to Kota. Kota is shocked.

Zack punches Kota further away from Kaito, forcing Kota to de-henshin. He gets up and runs off. Zack de-henshins and turns to Kaito, apologizing for letting Kota get away.

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None the wiser, Kaito tells Zack that was a duel between him and Kota and Zack shouldn’t have butted in.

An exhausted Kota collapses outside and wonders just what Zack is up to.

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Episode Thoughts

Messy Hair Kaito eh. It is really interesting to see Kaito’s journey. From being cynical about a world that destroyed his family to being power hungry and strictly adhering to a survival of the fittest mentality, seeing him now with his frazzled hair as an Overlord and dead set on crushing the world and apparently wanting to live in the post-apocalyptic wasteland with Mai is absolutely fascinating. And insane! (Like most of Gaim has been. In a good way.)

This episode maybe highlighted how much Minato’s character has unfairly been shortchanged and underdeveloped. Waste of such a talented actress who would’ve easily handled much more material than was given to her.

We’ve seen her explicitly show how turned on she is by Kaito’s quest for power (like literally, she gets touchy feely and even flirty with him), but sometimes it came and still comes across kind of off. Like, we’re missing something. There are plot points that are great left ambiguous. But in this case and even with Mitsuzane sometimes, I would’ve welcomed more exposition and having their stories be more direct and straightforward. Especially since neither of their goals or what they were doing were secrets anyway, unlike a Ryoma or Kaito or Sagara, for example.

Anyway… I was definitely shocked when Zack first attacked Jonouchi. I honestly did not see that coming. But then after that, I honestly did not expect him to whisper to Kota. Craziness. And awesome.

It’s another example of something Gaim has done well. And that is to fully use the supporting characters well (that is, if you’re not named Minato Yoko lol). They’ve made use of the greater ensemble. We saw Rat and Rika held hostage, Peco and Chucky running around the city and eventually being the ones who find Kota. And now Zack, who started out seemingly only being Kaito’s goofy “BANA.. BANA… BANANA!!!!” sidekick to becoming a Rider himself and now possibly the guy who will help take down his once best friend, now bedhair megalomaniac. Now that’s great character development.

I don’t even know where to begin with Sagara and Mai and alternate timelines. What is this? Super Hero Taisen? Movie Wars? A Super Sentai versus movie? I’ll just set that aside and let Mai figure that one out on her own. (lol)

But anyway. I don’t want to sound too negative. Because I still loved this episode, even if there was plenty of deja vu. It was a very slight breather of an episode, but still kept the train moving full steam ahead to the finale.

3 thoughts on “Recap: Kamen Rider Gaim, Episode 44 – Two People's Visions of the Future

  1. I would agree that Yoko’s character was rather unexplored, but considering the sheer amount of material that Gaim managed to tell in just 44 episodes, I would gladly forgive the series for it. Though, I must add that I am not a fan of those three filler episodes (Kikaider, Toqger and the whole prequel thing for the movie), those eps could have been devoted to the story instead. But eh, what can I do with yearly tradition?

    As for Kaito, I am still pretty much of the belief that Kaito battling for the Forbidden Fruit is not really of him seeking power to rule the new world, but of him looking for a way to free himself of that “Power is the only important thing in the world” mantra of his. It’s as if he is not looking to defeat Kouta, but for Kouta to defeat him instead.

  2. I felt disgusted by the fruit because whenever someone eats it it makes a squishy noise and it has goop. Any the whole story behind the show is that it’s a friggin love story. But I like Kaito but he went a shitty rampage for Mai just like Micchy. Also How did Yoko not get jealous? She has a friggin crush on Kaito!

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