W 38 released

[Phoenix512]

Philip learns a shocking truth about himself while Wakana finds herself in a life changing decision.

Spoiler

Yes yes yes, let's not go "It was so obvious about Philip being a Sonozaki." We all pretty much knew that. Now I didn't expect Wakana becoming all gothy and evil all the sudden. I thought she would probably die from trying to leave the family or at least Philip and Wakana managed to escape together. Poor Philip, first learning that he's a Sonozaki and now his sister/lover has turned against him. It will be a long battle for Philip.

Too bad that the Hopper Dopant died by the assassin cat known as Mikku but his previous assignment is still alive though. I wonder what is Foundation X is exactly and now the messenger saved Saeko from dying in the water. Saeko is quite powerless at this point with no Taboo or Sonozaki Driver now. I wonder if she will get a new Memory which she has to use a connector.

[Catastrophe]

Everyone said they had a Faiz vibe from the last episode. I have a Kabuto one from this one.

1) Super Fast Rider taking on a fast insect kajin. I like how Ryu prepped his attack for when she landed, using his brains for once. Also, I recall Mick in his dopant form being quite quick, Trial vs Sumilidon I'd quite like to see. Also, when the Hopper memory broke, her clothes where her usual ones vs the police ones.

2) Those black clothes Wakana was wearing, like those executive worms. I wonder how she changed personality so quick? Perhaps Ryubee did something? Sister being of the enemy is another thing that is similar as well.

Also, I'm going under the assumption that Saeko still has the Nasca memory, so she could use that, although her driver is broken so maybe she can't lol.

Really liked this episode. The only gripe I have is that the Dopants have to take hostages/be really fast in order to be on par with Xtreme/Trial. Hopefully they remedy this.

[Archon Divinus]

The big reveal about Philip was infuriating, but it was mitigated by the big change in Wakana. I didn't see it coming, and I hope we get an explanation sooner rather than later. It'd also help if she got a new form that I can take seriously. Clay Doll is just so goofy looking

[Leonite Rider]

Poor Phillip. Poor poor Phillip. I really like his character and now this happens to him, so fresh after he learns his identity. Just imagine if he had stayed a little while longer, Phillip could've talked a little with Wakana, offering her sactuary at the Detective Agency with Shoutarous help, but eventually deicding to go on the train with her when Ryuubei suddenly shows up, cue XTREEEEEME henshin, battle, Wakana tries to get away, and Double likely gets curbstomped... great, nothing would change then.

On the upside, Fang was used again! on the down side... WHY HAVEN'T THEY USED OTHER FANG COMBINATIONS?

Mr. Drops-a-lot (Until he gets a Dopant name, I'm calling him that) seems to be an interesting character, we know very little about him,or his actual motives, or his orginization. and he's helping both Dopant sides.

[Hyper_Kabuto]

thnx for the subs!

The revelation of Philip's identity was not a surprise...but Wakana's sudden change in personality was quite intriguing. Did she change herself on purpose or is it Ryubee's doing...this is the question i had in mind during last few minutes of the episode.

[DrinkItDown]

I think I said a few episodes back that I think that they are going to pull a "Josh Kirby Time Warrior" on us, and all of the bad guys are going to have actually been good all along, and the good guys have been messing it up for the bad guys. The thing that makes me think about it is everything in reference to Wakana's "Mission" and Ryuubee saying "The fate of the world is in your hands" and stuff like that. Its only going to get more interesting from here.

[Leonite Rider]

Now that my heads clear, I think I know why Wakana is acting like this. She's had hypnotic sleeper suggestions planted in her when she was a child, so that she could have the illusion of freedom while Ryuubei prepared her as a second option if Saeko betrayed him.

[Spiegel]

I think I said a few episodes back that I think that they are going to pull a "Josh Kirby Time Warrior" on us, and all of the bad guys are going to have actually been good all along, and the good guys have been messing it up for the bad guys.

If the bad guys had good intentions, why would they be murdering "traitors" left and right? Then theres the fact that they constantly unleash dangerous dopants.
There's no way getting random people hurt or killed is part of the good guys plan to save the world or whatever, Ryuubee is evil, he wants money and power, that's it. There's no way to present him or Saeko as good guys.

[Silent_X]

I think I said a few episodes back that I think that they are going to pull a "Josh Kirby Time Warrior" on us, and all of the bad guys are going to have actually been good all along, and the good guys have been messing it up for the bad guys.

If the bad guys had good intentions, why would they be murdering "traitors" left and right? Then theres the fact that they constantly unleash dangerous dopants.
There's no way getting random people hurt or killed is part of the good guys plan to save the world or whatever, Ryuubee is evil, he wants money and power, that's it. There's no way to present him or Saeko as good guys.

Yeah, I don't think they could be "good" guys, but they could still be well intentioned extremists.

[PHurricane]

I think there's some accidental irony at work here. The first time Philip has someone call him Raito to his face (by his eldest sister): W didn't air an episode the next week. The first time his other sister calls him Raito to his face: again, W doesn't air an episode the next week. I wonder if the writers actually consider factors like that when they're doing long-term planning or if it really is a coincidence.

Well. Nothing quite turned out like I would have guessed. I would have bet that the the Professor was going to pass away in the middle of saying the name and the writers would milk that subplot for a few more episodes. Looks like they needed to dispose of that mystery to move onto bigger stuff.

Like the future of the Museum and Wakana. I didn't see a happy ending for her - I thought she was as likely to die as she was to become a loyal Museum commander, but I wasn't expecting her to become that loyal that quickly. And since the meeting point was helpfully located next to clock, we know that she went from trying to abandon ship to being the person in charge of the Museum in just over a half an hour. And it sounds like she knows a lot that she was in the dark about before.

Wakana's worn a couple different faces over the course of the series, but this latest one doesn't feel natural. It's possible that she made a choice to work with her father after he explained things to her, but her mannerisms are off-kilter enough to cast doubt that her change in personality was completely natural. Plus, she abandoned Healing Princess, which was her pride and joy.

Sad news about no Healing Princess, but it's kind of cool at the same time. The whole reason I watched/listened to it in the first place was to see what references might cross over from the main storyline to the radio program. I'd say that Wakana being unavailable to do her recording is a significant reference to the main show's events.

Philip had a rough episode, but it gave his actor time to shine. I really enjoyed his petulant reaction when Akiko was ordering him not to go to Wakana. Even better was Shoutarou refusing to back Akiko up, because his half-boiled heart understands why Philip is so torn between going to Wakana and staying with his "family", but he was still relieved when it sounds like Philip was choosing to stay with them.

A couple cool post-production elements: (1) Playing Nobody's Perfect was a good decision during the scene where Philip finally makes his decision to abandon Fuuto and go with Wakana. (2) The visual and audio effects used while Philip and Wakana are having another of their face-to-face telephone conversations made the mood that much more tense. (3) Are we supposed to believe, based on the timing, that one blast from Clay Doll forced FangJoker to power down? That's pretty ominous, if true.

Ah, and looks like Kazu-kun is here to stay. Even though it's pretty obvious that he's plotting against the Sonozakis, I'm having a hard time caring about his character since he'll probably end up like Kirihiko and Isaka before him.

The only quibble I have with the episode is the ending. After so many serious revelations, the typical humor at the end felt out of place. They toned it back a little by focusing on the photo - which was good, because it called back the theme of 'family' as well as the first scene of this arc when Akiko was trying to set up the website, but the wacky BGM really killed the mood.

[Kamen Rider Raven]

And the plot thickens.

I'm thinking Ryubee did SOMETHING to Wakana. I'm not sure what though. Seems she got a power boost as well, since she forced FangJoker to power down so easily. Unless it was done for dramatic effect.

Foundation X. Definately mysterious. Though I'm hoping that they don't upend the Sonozaki's as the main villians.

I'm really digging the story. I'm very impressed with pacing and such.

[Tuss4]

isn't she, technically speaking, still under the influence of Isaka's experimentation.

They've been dropping those hints of Phillip's identity since the beginning, just another reminder that it's a japanese kid show, lol.

I really like the sound effects that were playing during Phillip's indecision.

lol "love lift us up where we beloooooooong"

[Map]

Everyone said they had a Faiz vibe from the last episode. I have a Kabuto one from this one.

1) Super Fast Rider taking on a fast insect kajin. I like how Ryu prepped his attack for when she landed, using his brains for once. Also, I recall Mick in his dopant form being quite quick, Trial vs Sumilidon I'd quite like to see. Also, when the Hopper memory broke, her clothes where her usual ones vs the police ones.

2) Those black clothes Wakana was wearing, like those executive worms. I wonder how she changed personality so quick? Perhaps Ryubee did something? Sister being of the enemy is another thing that is similar as well.

Don't forget the counter kick from Double FangJoker.

I don't really like Nobody's Perfect, but it's been stuck in my head whenever I'm going to bed lately. Is that normal? I'm a little surprised that Double seems to be starting to set stuff up for the final episodes already, the last couple of series didn't really do anything of that sort this early.

[Anime_freek22]

Wincest, wincest, wincest....
Wakana as a villain, that's some intense stuff. Although I wonder if Ryubee told her that he ordered Phillip's memories erased. If she finds out, what is she supposed to blame the betrayal on? Also, I really want to see if Wakana and Saeko end up fighting. That would be great.

[Guardian07]

..................my mind's in a mess right now. So many things happened I can't believe it was just one ep. Arrgh!*going nuts*

Another great ep. Now I can never decide which arc I like best, because there's so many great ones, this included. We all had guessed Philip's true identity long before, what's left is to see how it is going to be revealed and it's impact on the characters, and the series didn't disappoint. Nobody's Perfect worked perfectly(pun intended;P) in that scene!

I don't believe Wakana just decided on her own to change sides. Ryubee definitely did something to her, only time will tell what. Not to mention she managed to beat FangJoker easily. I maybe am just deluding myself, but I think that clock's purpose is to show how unusual it is that Wakana had changed so much in a short span of time. Alas, doesn't seem that it's going to end happily.

A real challenge for Philip's actor here, and he performed well. His brooding throughout the episode, the sad face during the transformation instead of the usual finger on the lips, and the scene after detransformation; brilliant.

Great fight scene with Hopper Dopant, and when Mikku/Mick killed her, I went "WTF ..." for more than a few moments. Really looking forward to Trial vs Smilodon.

My only peeve in this episode is the funny scene in the agency. Everything was set up as serious as possible, then suddenly it did a 180 turn I honestly did not how to react other than "huh?...okay...". I guess they purposely planned it that way since it was funny.

Other things to mention; loved the deep characterization of this arc's client without sacrificing story, considering they're only keeping him for two episodes. Akiko looked really good in that shirt, hope she'll get similar wardrobe treatment in the future.