Kamen Rider Ex-Aid Episode 8 Live Reaction

Kamen Rider Ex-Aid Episode 8 Live Reaction – Gentleman, Fly High!

This episode has a special edition opening for the Movie War. I still can't believe the Big Bad of the Movie War is literally Pacman. If this is the first you've heard of that, I'm not joking. The villain is LITERALLY someone wielding the power of Pacman. That's the kind of crazy awesome only Japan is capable of.

Episode begins with Emu thinking over the previous episode's events with Kujo. He tries to put it in the back of his mind and deal with Yoshio, who's still in trouble as one of the Bugsters is still loose and thus he's not fully cured.

Shiori explains to Asuna elsewhere that her father owns a small factory that's not doing well and she was only trying to help. Asuna explains that Yoshio was trying to push her away so she's follow her own dreams and not remain stuck on his. Taiga watches this from afar.

Back with Yoshio, Emu explains the situation to him and questions if he's got another source of stress, since well the Bugsters MO is targeting things to stress out their host more. Asuna arrives back and correctly guesses the factory, which is losing more and more employees. Of course the Bugster chooses this moment to begin attacking said factory. With MISSILES. Well, it is a Jet Combat game. In fact, that's it's ACTUAL name and it's a Shoot 'Em Up.

Taiga arrives and transforms to get his Level 3 Gashat and goes to Level 2 as Emu and Asuna arrive and help the employees escape the now burning factory. Taiga manages to overwhelm the Bugster and literally snipes the Gashat out of it's head! Well he IS a sniper.

Without a Gashat in it's head, the Bugster reverts back to a normal Collabos Bugster...and Snipe CAPTURES it and uses it as a HOSTAGE to force Emu and Hiiro to fight him with their Level 3 Gashats on the line if they want to save Yoshio.

...So he's endangering an innocent person just to complete the set of Gashats...Snipe is officially a Dark Rider, at least in my book.

In true gunslinger fashion, he tells them to meet him at high noon tomorrow.

Hiiro is TICKED to find this out, seeing it as a sign Zero Day and his freaking girlfriend's death meant nothing to Taiga and agrees to the challenge because he wants the guy taken out of the game NOW.

I personally don't blame him.

However, his father orders him to calm down and explains as a FATHER that he's worried about Hiiro and that he can't let Taiga get under his skin...but Hiiro leaves in the middle of his speech.

Yoshio does NOT take his factory being wrecked well and basically decides to give up...but Emu asks him to visit the factory the next day before he decides. While Asuna freaks out, Emu points out the factory being wrecked ALONE wasn't enough to let the Bugster win...so there's something else holding him up.

Taiga meanwhile basically comments that they only need him and flashes back to him losing his license and Rider status on Zero Day. Yeah, given how immoral this guy is, I'm honestly having trouble seeing this as anything but him having a bruised ego or envy over being replaced. The guy doesn't DESERVE a medical license if he'll endanger an INNCENT PERSON'S LIFE out of selfish reasons.

Okay so Hiiro and Kujo's first highlight episodes made them sympathetic to me, Taiga's is just making me see him as more of a jerk. Not a BAD thing mind you, but just something I'm nothing.

Meanwhile, Kuroto and Pallad talk about the Prototype Gashat he uses as Genmu and Pallad explains that while the Prototype IS stronger, they have one giant design flaw: they ruin the user's body. Graphite overhears this and for some reason Kujo calls him.

The next day, Yoshio is brought to the factory...and finds his remaining employees trying their best to fix things up and are GENUINELY LOYAL to him. Emu correctly guesses he's worried about his WORKERS, not the FACTORY and that he needs to get well FOR THEM.

The workers confirm this and Shiroi arrives and the two reconcile.

Well that's finished, all that's left is to kill the Bugster.

Hiiro and Emu arrive to face Taiga and both explain their reasons for showing up: Emu wants to save the patient and Hiiro rightfully feels Taiga doesn't deserve to be a Rider.

I agree with both those reasons.

Meanwhile, Kujo meets with Kuroto and questions Kuroto on who Pallad is. When Kuroto won't listen, Kujo decides he'll beat the answer out of him and both of them go straight to Level 3 (of course Kujo has no choice in the matter).

The other three have gone to Level 2 and are fighting, and predictably Snipe isn't doing well two on one. I admit, I enjoyed seeing Snipe get a bit of a pounding here. Hiiro rightfully calls him out on becoming so corrupt as to use a patient's life as a means to get what he wants, but Taiga replies that since he's not a doctor anymore, he's not 'obligated' to save anyone now.

Okay, Hiiro is ALSO kinda 'it's my job to save people', but the thing is the guy still has pride in saving people and WANTS to save their lives. He doesn't see it as an obligation.

Snipe goes to Level 3 and his transformation jingle is a Jetman shout out. Nice. His Level 3 form is also pretty freaking cool, with a jet theme and freaking gattling guns. He also shrinks down the Collabos Bugster so they can't just bypass beating him and blow it up.

Emu and Hiiro go to Level 3 themselves, but aren't doing so well against a FLYING opponent they can't hit and Brave goes down with Taiga swiping his Level 3 Gashat...then releases Collabos to let Emu fight him...so he can prep his finisher and actually try to KILL Emu.

“This world only needs one Kamen Rider.”

Okay, first off, there are a LOT more Kamen Riders than you four, and I'm pretty sure most of them would utterly demolish you.

And second, I don't care WHAT happened to you on Zero Day, NONE of this is justified or sympathetic (to be fair, I don't think it's SUPPOSED to be). It isn't always about YOU. If down the line he has a Heel Face Turn, I hope it involves a massive Break the Haughty.

That said, Jet Combat's Critical Strike is pretty awesome. It's basically a massive Alpha Strike. Emu is smart and throws Collabos in the way of the attack so it takes the brunt of it, but Emu's still hit hard enough to lose his Level 3 Gashat.

On the bright side, Yoshio is cured, much to his worker's and daughter's celebration.

Meanwhile, Lazer and Genm are still duking it out and seem pretty evenly matched until both use their Critical Strikes with bladed weapons and have a Single Stroke Battle ending in a huge explosion.

While the smoke clears, Graphite is snooping around Kuroto's office for something.

Turns out both emerged pretty much unscathed and Kuroto claims he just wants to find out what caused the Bugsters to enter the world. Which of course is a lie, given he's WORKING WITH THEM, but Kujo doesn't know THAT.

Back with Taiga, Emu tells him the Gashats are tools to save patients, not toys. Taiga replies THEY don't know what it means to use the Gashats and back with Kuroto, we learn something interesting:

There's a compatibility surgery that's needed to become a Kamen Rider, which all of them went through...except for one. Emu.

Well that's freaking ominous. Emu apparently thinks so too, at least in regards to what Taiga said.

Meanwhile, Graphite reveals what he found: a Prototype Gashat: Drago Knight Hunter. Which he promptly drives into his chest and laughs evilly as something begins to happen and he transforms.

All in all, good episode with lots of cool fights and some plot twists. But I admit, Taiga is one of those characters I sincerely hope eventually gets a HUGE serving of Humble Pie, because at the moment he's nothing but a self serving jerk who I Love to Hate.