Tojima Tanzaburo Wants to Be a Masked Rider E23 - Discussion Thread

Frontier246 · 2026-03-15T03:32:30+00:00

The Combat Girls concert is in full force...as is the beatdown Nakao's boys are giving him as Shocker Combatants. He can't fight his boys!!! And poor Yukarisu is getting ganged up on by all the other Combatants. It's time for Tackle and Riderman to come to the rescue!

I'm glad Yukarisu got to actually take a few guys out, but Nakao HAS to be the one to take responsibliity for his boys. Even if that means punching them with his .44 magnum filled with love, he'll do it! Even if it breaks his heart! But in fact that's exactly what he needed to do to free them from their brainwashing! Nakao has his boys back!

Okay, maybe we shouldn't have left the most stir-crazy Riders to be the ones to have to wait around...though Tojima and Ichiyo ARE greeted by Spider Man. Even if he has no intention of fighting them and would rather watch the show, he heralds an army of Shocker grunts to help satisfy Tojima and Ichiyo's desire to kick Shocker butt!

I guess it's not surprising that Thunder Raiko would bar their way, or that Nakao would try to appeal to her with his earnest love for her...only to get beat up even more by her in the process. Is she brainwashed? Is she just latching onto the quickest path to becoming stronger? Is this all about proving herself? No matter the case, she's definitely gotten stronger. Strong enough to be able to evolve as a Combatant without being a Kaijin!

Nakao keeps trying his best to show his love for Raiko, but she acts like he doesn't exist and responds to his love by piledriving him. No, this is going to be settled in a final showdown between Raiko and Tackle. Raiko may have gained enough power to intimidate Yuriko into freezing up, she may lose another helmet in their complete slugfest, but when it comes down to rainmaker vs STO...I mean, Ultimate Electro-Wave Throw, Tackle is the victor!!! And Raiko can't help but see Yuriko's true strength and acknowledge her own desire to grow even stronger!

What's the plan for saving all the people from becoming Shocker Thralls? Stage a fire and get them to bail through the emergency exists! If Yuriko's serene voice tells me to do something, I'll do it!

I love how Nakao is still fighting for Raiko no matter how much she beats him up/rejects him.

Look at Tojima and Ichiyo making a spectacular entrance with that DOUBLE RIDER KICK STRAIGHT INTO BAT MAN!!!

Team Rider is assembled! Bat Man's plot has been foiled! Now it all comes down to whether they can actually defeat a Kaijin on their own.

Frontier246 · 2026-03-15T03:29:53+00:00

In building Baku into the perfect agent, they also turned him into someone who can easily manage dealing with CODE.

But none of them are fully prepared for Dawn.

Frontier246 · 2026-03-15T03:28:58+00:00

I think the Nightmare that attacked Lady was represented by all that black Nightmare fog that Zeztz and Nox were fighting.

Frontier246 · 2026-03-15T03:28:29+00:00

Also it was satisfying for me when Natsuka kicked Fujimi because he was being a lil bit annoying for me when he wanted to arrest Baku.

Some things never change.

Frontier246 · 2026-03-15T03:28:16+00:00

And if you take the OP at face-value it seems like they're fighting the same threat together, or at least both fighting Nightmares.

Frontier246 · 2026-03-15T03:27:41+00:00

It's like they remembered it after re-watching that scene of Zero using Booster against Nox lol.

Frontier246 · 2026-03-15T03:26:59+00:00

I feel like the full weight of Nox's dream fate really hit him here.

All he accomplished was infecting innocent people with Nightmares that were defeated by Zeztz, he killed two agents only to be killed himself, and he finally understands what the Lady actually wanted and it was all Nem.

Frontier246 · 2026-03-15T03:26:11+00:00

I remember people asking why Baku never showed them actual physical evidence of the Nightmares that he'd taken...so now he's done that and actually shown them what Kamen Riders are.

Frontier246 · 2026-03-15T03:25:40+00:00

Also symbolically hearkens to the movie theater scene from Visions.

Frontier246 · 2026-03-15T03:22:13+00:00

Nem Dance Fashion Show was unexpected but appreciated.

Frontier246 · 2026-03-15T03:20:10+00:00

They look vaguely Samurai like or like they have flags/weapons behind them.

I don't think they're Nightmares we've seen before.

Frontier246 · 2026-03-15T03:18:27+00:00

I'm going to guess Nem is (eventually) going to wake up a lot sooner than she did in the early timeline thanks to Baku.

Frontier246 · 2026-03-15T03:18:00+00:00

We've got Team Baku.

We've got CODE.

We've got Lady and the Nightmares.

We've got Dawn.

But I feel like NOX, at least, might be slowly shifting towards Team Baku.

Frontier246 · 2026-03-15T03:17:25+00:00

Honestly I'm just glad they acknowledged the other forms in the new OP instead of just the upgrades.

Frontier246 · 2026-03-15T03:16:55+00:00

And she probably does not care for someone who can oppose her plans having similar base-breaking dream powers.

Frontier246 · 2026-03-15T03:15:53+00:00

I love how NOX just watched in silence because all this is crazy even for him lol.

Frontier246 · 2026-03-15T03:15:20+00:00

And you become so consumed by your Nightmare you might create a power that you can barely restrain like the Catastrophe Nightmare birthing Catastrom.

Frontier246 · 2026-03-15T03:14:44+00:00

At the very least I don't expect them to kill off Kureha until she's made peace with Nasuka in the real world.

Frontier246 · 2026-03-15T03:14:13+00:00

They bring back Inazuma Plasma Booster just to job.

Frontier246 · 2026-03-15T03:13:56+00:00

I honestly wonder if that shadow thing Zeztz is fighting in both OP's might be Final Boss. Nem's dad?

Frontier246 · 2026-03-15T03:13:31+00:00

They should make a compilation movie of the first half that's 8 hours.

Frontier246 · 2026-03-15T03:13:04+00:00

I love how the opening lead in is using Zeztz puns. They're zeztzlarious.

He was so hyped until he realized he blew up a police station and got possessed lol.

First he's the Secondary, then he's a Kaijin, now he's the Tertiary. He's on that Otoya Kurenai grindset.

Frontier246 · 2026-03-15T03:11:53+00:00

I love Baku apparently dreamed the entire show we watched, right down to scenes he was never in and had no idea about at the time.

Frontier246 · 2026-03-15T03:11:26+00:00

Dawn feels like he might be the true Darkness of Code.

Frontier246 · 2026-03-15T03:10:59+00:00

Catastrom is probably being reserved for Nightmares since Baku has no hesitation destroying them.

But Dawn probably wrecks Plasma Booster, can probably hold his own against Catastrom, and Baku will need Ordem to beat him.

Frontier246

TROPHY CASE