Kaito, Vroom and Gaon are all interested in getting to know Zox and befriending him. But Zyuran and Magine are a little more cautious. Zox says he doesn’t mind a lively bunch, but he’s hungry at the moment.
They head back to the shop where Zox, his sister Flint and their twin siblings Ricky and Cutanner enjoy some delicious food. They introduce themselves as the Goldtsuiker Family of pirates.
Gaon comes in with some special kashiwa mochi for their guests. Magine had been saving them for a special occasion so she takes one to eat for herself. As does Gaon and Flint.
Secchan asks if the Goldtsuikers are somehow related to the Gokaigers since Twokaizer looks exactly like them. Flint says she just stole the design while they were in Gokaiger World since they looked cool. Kaito asks if she also made the Gears, but she does not answer.
The twins explain that they are originally from Kaizokutopia where everyone who lives there is a pirate. Zox adds that they travel to parallel words to pillage.
The Goldtsuikers take their leave, but not before they steal everything in the shop. They’re pirates after all.
Grandma Yacchan arrives and is shocked to find everyone tied up and the store empty. After she unties them, they chase after the Goldtsuikers who decide they will be staying in this world for a while.
If that’s the case, Kaito challenges Zox to a duel. If he wins, then the Goldtsuikers must pay their bill at the shop and promise not to plunder and pillage this world. Zox laughs that Kaito thinks he can take him on. But Kaito vowed to protect this world and now he has a chance to be the first to ever defeat world pirates.
Despite Flint saying they have nothing to gain from this, Zox tells Kaito they can meet tomorrow.
Over at the Palace, Stacey demands Ijirude explain why he never warned him about Twokaizer. Ijirude says he never knew either. Gege is surprised that those pirates “from before” would not only show up again, but actually be able to henshin. Bokkowaus demands answers from Ijirude who promises to come up with plan immediately.
Stacey wonders what Gege meant about the pirates “from before.” When he and Ijirude leave, Barashitara assures Bokkowaus that his own plan is running smoothly.
Next day, the Zenkaigers accompany Kaito as he meets Zox for their duel. Kaito is prepared to play rock-paper-scissors. But Zox as a pirate only fights with firearms. Both Zox and Kaito henshin and they battle.
Zox asks if Kaito also stole the Gears from the Tojitendo. Kaito explains that after the Tojitendo invaded Kaizokutopia, he and his siblings invaded the Palace to grab some trinkets of their own.
Kaito is interested in asking Zox about being able to step foot inside the Palace. But Zox is more concerned with the battle.
Meanwhile, Magine and Gaon as well as Flint begin desperately craving kashiwa mochi and the run into the city where they join a horde of people also looking for the delicious treat which is being sold out everywhere. The twins are confused as to why Flint is acting this way. But it turns out Kashiwa Mochi World is behind it. Barashitara explains to Bokkowaus that people will crave kashiwa mochi and will do anything to get it, including fighting each other.
Back at the quarry, Kaito uses a Denjiman Gear to counter Zox’s power. Secchan calls the Zenkaigers to tell them what’s happening in the city. Zyuran and Vroom hurry back.
Kaito asks Zox for a timeout, but Zox wants to keep going. That is until Ricky appears and informs him about his sister.
Kashiwa Mochi World bribes the hungry people into attacking Zyuran and Vroom in exchange for some kashiwa mochi.
Kaito and Zox arrive. Zox sings a little song as he confronts Kashiwa Mochi World. He proposes that whoever between him and Kaito defeats the World will win their duel.
Zox uses an Ohranger Gear which has Ricky turning into his power-up armor. He then uses a Shinkenger Gear which has Cutanner turning into a power-up as well.
But Kashiwa Mochi World manages to knock Zox back with an attack. Kaito is able to hang on to Kashiwa Mochi World’s kashiwa (oak) leaf and yanks it off when he gets blown away.
Kashiwa World Mochi tries a kashiwa clap attack, but it doesn’t work. That gives Zox an opportunity to use a Shinken Strike finisher to destroy the World’s initial life. That releases everyone from their kashiwa mochi cravings.
Kaito celebrates the defeat, but then realizes he was also defeated in his duel with Zox.
Just then, a Kudaitest appears and steps on the Gear to turn into Great Kashiwa Mochi World. Zyuran and Gaon henshin and combine into Zenkai-Oh ZyuraGaon. They make quick work of the embiggened World even with its red bean paste and koinobori attacks.
Back at the shop, Kaito apologizes to his grandmother for losing the duel and in turn not getting paid for their stolen inventory. But Zox walks in saying he is here to pay.
Zox explains that Kaito technically won the duel because it was he who defeated Kashiwa Mochi World. Once Kaito ripped the oak leaf off, the World became merely Mochi World. Thus, it was Kaito who defeated Kashiwa Mochi World.
Zox hands Kaito some money. But it is pongi which they have no idea what in the world it is.
Kaito smiles after seemingly making a new friend.
Episode Thoughts
It was great to get to know Zox a little more, as well as meet his siblings. But the episode itself was a little bit meh compared to last week. I wasn’t really excited even though it was an okay episode.
Zox is a great, fun character so far. And even in this episode, you can see that he might be a showy pirate like some old friends we used to know, but he also has a softer side as well. I hope they do give Zox and his family a good backstory arc later on. Them infiltrating the Tojitendo Palace is an interesting moment, but I’m not sure it will really mean anything beyond explaining how Zox got his Sentai Gears.
I also very much enjoy Zox randomly bursting into song. It’s a whimsical little aspect for the season.
It will be interesting to see what they do with Stacey moving forward as well. The way they’re positioning him, he’s certainly not a 100% Tojitendo loyalist. He’ll probably break away at some point later on. Especially with the conflict with his father.
So there’s really lots of nice potential for this season. It’s early, so we still have a long way to go. This week wasn’t the most amazing episode so far, but it was alright and it did its job of helping to set the stage for the coming weeks.
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2 thoughts on “Recap: Kikai Sentai Zenkaiger, Episode 9 – World Pirates, Happy Twokai!”
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Agreed. The introduction of Stacey and Zox is definitely making things very interesting.
The Kikainoids are fun. But having “human” characters like Stacey and Zox definitely just have a different feel and have more potential I think.