Zero-One Others: Kamen Rider MetsubouJinrai (2021)

A shockingly bleak Zero-One follow-up, quite exciting.

*pulled from my LB review*

Adds more information on some of the lingering threads of Zero One, partly illuminating, partly further complicating the culpability of who is to blame for Ark, MetsubouJinrai, why Jin was originally revived, etc. Feels like a bit of a reiteration of some of the war profiteering stuff touched on in the series proper, but made a bit more succinct here (albeit after some convoluted explanations early on in the film).

Now it is better framed as a bigger, badder dude above Gai contributing to the creation of Ark which relieves Gai—a character with a somewhat muddied history and awkward redemption arc (or lack thereof)—of at least a bit more of the blame, as Lyon Arkland’s unrepentant megalomania makes him a much cleaner target for a lot of the bad stuff happening.

With this revived conflict too, it is now staged after MetsubouJinrai’s own turn to good at the end of the series, their continued attempts to make amends and fight off any emerging new Arks to save HumaGears and humanity both making them more noble and sympathetic, only for Lyon Arkland to drive in the self-doubt further in them, as if their existence being made to eradicate humanity can never be escaped from. And so, with that doubt and Lyon currently exploiting Sold type HumaGears for his war games, MBJR acts as a martyr to free the Sold types from Lyon’s control, fully becoming Kamen Rider MetsubouJinrai and overriding their control, embracing the Mass Brain system, and becoming a final clear evil themselves.

Alas, this ends on a cliffhanger, so I’d honestly advise any Zero One watchers to wait on the Valkyrie and Vulcan V-Cinema to come out first. That’s honestly the bigger concern than knowing the context of the film preceding this, RealXTime, which hasn’t been subbed yet.

Kinda familiar, some of the explanations are a bit convoluted, and the fights in this aren’t that great, mostly just some suited fisticuff brawls really, little in the way of weapons, elaborate choreo or many special attacks and such. Nonetheless, the added humanizing for the MetsubouJinrai gang, how the story and context adds on a palpable feeling of guilt and self-doubt and all the complications that arise from that along with making some of the war profiteering and complicated ZAIA threads a bit more clear is nice, not bad.

Also big props for all the Canadian representation - Jai West while a bit corny in some places, brings some of his welcome twisted charisma for a fun villain of this V-Cinema, and the Monkey Majik closing track is pretty sweet.

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