KR Ex-Aid 19 released

[ViRGE]

While this wasn't as intense as the previous episode, it was very enjoyable. Seeing Hiiro grow a bit and actually embrace some of the gaming aspect of the doctor-rider thing is a good bit of development. And I love that he can summon mooks.:p

Gamer M is a bit of an idiot. Given that the show is getting increasingly confident in dropping hints that M is the human personality and Emu is the Bugster, that creates a neat paradox. Emu (the human being) is essentially having his body being jacked by a Bugster most of the time. However it makes him a much better person. So really you want his body to continue getting possessed, but then he's being robbed of his free will...

Meanwhile the revelation that Dan needs data from all 10 of the original Bugsters means that Poppy is going to be in real trouble here. And while I'm going to assume that M isn't from one of the 10 games, we haven't worked out what Parado is from, so he may be at risk as well. That could be a bit of a brutal arc.

Finally, the guest actress of the week was great. She does a killer Robot. (And Hiiro you idiot, you cured her, so she's no longer your patient. Go watch the nice lady dance!)

Also, can't believe we got cockteased twice this episode with Hiiro transforming into Ex-Aid. What a letdown.

Agreed. It was bad enough the first time, but then they did it again and I fell for it a second time. Arg!

[Philip Aldraine]

Wow. I really enjoyed this episode a lot. The fact that M could transform to Level 3 AND be on par with the Level 30 Bugster is cool. (Well, sorta on par. He did have to use Muscle Up) I'm mad that Hiiro didn't get a chance to use Mighty Action X. That would've been neat to see.

[Cyborg-Lucario]

A really great episode and a kick ass upgrade to Brave. Though I doubt Hiiro will use it that much due to the after effects it seems to have on him.

[Alessar]

Oh boy, Hiiro looks like he's succumbing to the strain of transforming too much.
Hopefully a Bugster wasn't also just placed within him, but with ~29 more episodes to go, who knows what will happen.
Let's hope the episodes continue this streak of being better.

I find that a bit unlikely. That would break the premise of Riders being immune to the bugster virus.

I wouldn't count on them being permanently immune to the virus. The procedure they described is essentially a vaccination. And as viruses mutate they overcome the immunity that is created when people are given a vaccine. After all the principle of vaccine is to introduce a weak version (usually a killed version of the infection) thus giving the body a chance to create an appropriate offense to it. In the last couple years there's been quite an increase in whooping cough. Part of the reason for that is lapsed vaccination boosters, but part is there's newer stronger strains that the old vaccine is not as good at stopping.

And let's talk in a meta-context. Most Kamen Rider series involve people who get powers from the enemies they're fighting in someway, and it is extremely common for those powers to come with the price of being corrupted into the same thing you're fighting. When that doesn't happen then usually the powers put an extreme strain on the body and at least a couple people die from it.

However I'm more interested in discovering that Hiiro is a Tsundere. >:)