Recap: Kikai Sentai Zenkaiger, Episode 44 – SD Equals Small Plus Deformed?!

Bokkowaus is venting to Gege that his rage stemming from making no progress to take over Earth as well as the presence of traitors within their ranks has subsided to apathy. Bokkowaus has even noticed that Gege hasn’t been asking for attention lately.

In that case, Gege wants to ask a favor regarding a certain Tojiru Gear.

Down on Earth, Vroom and Gaon run into the Goldtsuikers as they enjoy some discounted takoyaki from Mr. Tako. But their afternoon snack is interrupted by the appearance of… SD World!

SD World shoots at the people in the area and turns them into SD forms. Zox quickly henshins with the possibility of Ricky and Cutanner’s curse finally being broken.

Kaito, Zyuran and Magine arrive and henshin. They help fighting off Kudakks, but Kaito for some reason tries to get Zox to slow down. That distraction allows for SD World to send the previously-turned SD figures flying into the sky. SD World then shoots at Zyuran and Magine, also turning them SD.

Flint tries joining in by shooting at SD World and instead almost gets shot herself if it wasn’t for her brother knocking her out of the way. Zox’s Geardalinger, however, does get hit and shrinks down to SD size.

Secchan tells Kaito to use Dairanger Gear to summon a train to whisk them away to safety in a secluded alleyway. Here, “Stacey” pops in and admits that it was he who sent SD World out. He had figured out the SDtopia Gear was what they needed since all Kaizokutopia inhabitants are human. Yet the twins are in the form of another world’s, SDtopia.

Zox may not completely trust “Stacey,” but he knows this might be their only chance to liberate SDtopia anyway. Flint and the twins are ready to fight alongside their brother, but Zox wants them to stay back. He says it is his responsibility as the head of the Goldtsuiker Clan.

Secchan calls to say that the SD-turned people are in trouble. So Kaito goes around to collect them all and safely place them into his bag. He is able to find Gaon and then runs into Zox on a rooftop. Kaito asks why he insists on fighting alone.

Zox says his father died protecting him in a battle that was commonplace on Kaizokutopia. So now, it is his duty to protect the family as well as a matter of pride. Zox says if Kaito wants to repay him for saving Papa Goshikida, he can do so by minding his own business.

As Kaito tries to save Vroom who is floating away attached to a balloon, Zox manages to leave.

Up on the ship, Zyuran and Magine ask Flint and the twins about allowing Zox to fight on his own. The siblings understand where their brother is coming from and they believe in him. But they are also worried and wish they could help.

As the rain pours down, Zox finds SD World who is confident since Zox cannot henshin without his Gearalinger. Zox, however, is confident in being the captain of his ship and proceeds to battle SD World raw.

SD world summons Kudakks and Kudaiters to outnumber Zox. But Kaito and the others all arrive as well. They assert that SD World is also their enemy. Zox says they are just ignoring all the victims scattered around Tokyo. But Grandma Yacchan and some neighborhood friends are helping by going out and gathering the SD people as well.

The rain begins to subside in Tokyo and a rainbow appears. Kaito says Zox can do whatever he wants while the Zenkaigers will take care of the rest, including saving everyone else.

The Zenkaigers henshin and battle the Kudakks and Kudaiters. SD World tries to shoot at Zox, but his brothers fly in to shield him. They can absorb the attack since they are already SD. Flint arrives with the SDfied Geardalinger as well as a mini-Gear.

Flint says she’ll stay out of the way and leave everything to her big bro.

Zox is able to henshin and goes full power against the Tojitendo. The Zenkaigers are also able to use their small size to finish off the other Kudakks and Kudaiters.

Zox goes Super Ohren and with the help of his brothers, they deliver a Super Power Star Knuckle finisher to finish off SD World. Everyone is back to normal.

Dai SD World appears. But Zox is a bit worn out from his full power attacks. The others form Zenryoku Zenkai-Oh, but they get shrunk into SD size as well. The Goldtsuikers fly in just in time, however. And together, they are able to finish off Dai SD World for good.

With SDtopia now free, it’s time for the Goldtsuikers to leave for it and hopefully return the twins to their normal bodies. Kaito tells Zox not to do anything crazy when they get to SDtopia.

Grandma Yacchan gives the siblings some treats for their journey. Vroom is surprised after realizing this really is goodbye. But Flint promises Grandma Yacchan that they’ll come back when they’ve completed their mission.

Zox’s parting message for Kaito is that they can’t trust Stacey for now.

The Goldtsuikers bid them farewell as they fly toward the sky.

“Stacey” watches from a nearby rooftop. He also says goodbye to kaizoku-kun as he tosses Kaizokutopia Tojiru Gear into the air and shoots at it, also freeing that world.
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Episode Thoughts

So, getting the nitpicking out of the way first. Similar to other supposedly big episodes during this last half of the season, it’s like the show remembered they had introduced a plot point early in the season and decided to just pull it out now as they approach the finale. Sort of like a “Oh I just remembered this…” and threw it in for this episode.

Seriously though. When was the last time the Goldtsuikers talked about or did anything to find a way to retrieve the SDtopia Gear? If they did recently, it was merely in passing. And that’s probably one of my biggest critiques of the season. That for all the great ideas and potential stories, the lack of urgency and care to solve a particular problem/predicament dilutes the impact of said ideas. The other big examples of course are Mama and Papa Goshikida’s disappearance and finding. And I fear that will also be the case for whatever will happen with Stacey as well.

It’s just disappointing for me because I feel like the show could’ve done a lot more with the foundation they were able to lay early in the season. But instead, the show relied too much on the silly and fun rather than balance it out with actually good story. Even when all the pieces were there.

And then the fact that this is supposedly a farewell to the Goldtsuikers (including Zox who isn’t even officially a Zenkaiger), it just feels a bit anticlimactic and underwhelming. Heck, we don’t even get to see the twins return to their normal form. Plus, Atsuki Mashiko deserved a big, dramatic scene where he could truly play up Zox. Especially with the character’s pirate pedigree.

Anyway! I guess I raised my expectations a bit too high for what I had hoped would be a big wrap-up for the Goldtsuikers’ story at least.

But despite that, the episode still had some great action. You can’t go wrong with fighting in the rain of course. And when you just look at the episode on its own without thinking about what led up to it, it was a good episode. I guess. It fits into my preference of wanting to see more serious Zenkaiger while still balanced with the goofy stuff (like people getting turned into key chain-sized figures … coming soon to Premium Bandai, I assume lol).

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