Kamen Rider 01 Episodes 26-27 - Fighting The Fires Of Arrogance And Prejudice

Well, this is another of those combined episode reviews, right? I would like to comment the competition between Hiden and ZAIA seems to have gone "forever" IMHO. Maybe, Toei has a good reason for letting it be that way. Maybe, they want to expand on how Gai should be as a corrupt capitalist while Aruto is the good capitalist. Lives have been in danger more often than not in the competitions. Lives are really getting at stake since the HumaGear lawyer vs. ZAIA Specs lawyer arc. Now, it's a firefighting one. Granted, it's fire prevention month in the Philippines so I think the timing has NEVER been so perfect, right?

Conflict of interest now builds up. Gai continues to show he's such a sleaze who'd do anything for power. The two contestants are Fireman Takeshi Homura who uses ZAIA Specs and the HumaGear fireman 119-Nosuke. How both view their employees would show itself. Gai wants to win so badly that he orders Yua to hand over the Raid Riser to her. This would be to make 119-Nosuke turn berserk. Is Gai that DESPERATE to bite more than he can chew?

What started out as just a simulation literally catches on fire. Yup, a Mysterious Raider appears out of nowhere. What really ticks me off is how Gai can be so calm, treating human lives to be just replaceable. Meanwhile, Aruto values his employees where they are HumaGear or human alike. This really placed a HUMAN at risk just for the sake of winning, right? Gai probably is the reason why the Metsubo Jinrai rose in the first place. The way he smiles suggests that he's probably been responsible for all the chaos the show had to go through. Yua better make up her mind already!

What I find to be truly heartwarming is how Aruto rescues 119-Nosuke. It was also nice of Takeshi to really forfeit winning for ZAIA. 119-Nosuke is reduced to his skeletal remains saving the lives of the others in the failed simulation. Jin appears to retrieve Homura's key. After all, Jin can be considered Homura's son, right? Jin reveals just how disgusting humanity can get. Considering Gai tampered with The Ark - I wonder what's Gai's ultimate plan then? Both Jin and Gai transform into Thouser and Jin into Falcon. The fight between Thouser and Falcon ends with a draw.


Is it me or is Gai really that cruel? He doesn't even care about his subordinates. Daiki Kyogoku who is the head of Research & Development for ZAIA is caught redhanded by Isamu. I love how Isamu manages to uncover a lot of dirty secrets in several episodes. It's really something that Gai is trying to hide evidence. Isamu himself is about to start a fight with Gai. Gai tries to destroy any possible incriminating evidence against him one way or another. If anything, Gai is one amazing villain who makes the show interesting to watch.

Meanwhile, Horobi gets his key back from Jin. I just wonder how things will be as the conflict goes three ways. It's Hiden Enterprise vs ZAIA vs. Metsubo Jinrai. I just hope the writers and producers will find a way to flesh out all three sides of the conflict.

Well, I can't wait to see the final part of the five-part job battle challenge. Personally, I wish it just ended some time ago all the while I'm enjoying the action here a lot!