*note: i watched this movie more than 4 times, maybe 5
"I like the darker and gorier take on Kamen Rider in the first season of Amazons. And upon rewatching the second season I have a greater appreciation for it, despite being even more darker and gorier plus adding some teen angst between a five year old and a dead girl.
But what in the name of Dan Kuroto was Toei thinking with The Last Judgement? Aside from "we have to make it even more darker and messed up!"?
I understand now why The Last Judgement isn't on Amazon Prime here in the states."
S2 bugs me because of Chihiro's unfounded obsession with Iyu (the recycled crow sfx with Iyu driving me nuts), but everything else surrounding that, including Iyu's story linking to Haruka's and how Jin's actions led to her death. That was wild. Jin being a blind warrior, & how his fightstyle switched up to accommodate his blindness, eerie efficient warrior this man is.
The movie? It was Directed too much like a Tv exclusive, not cinematic enough. A "filler" episode as Beaverjuk stated.
*Otherwise a decent second ending to the story, Season 2 being the first ending.*
Narratively, enough was wrapped up for it to be a definitive ending, it just didn't feel like one at first. I watched the film last night (as of 2024), watched it multiple times actually, it's a solid ending.
But in reality it reads like a Kamen Rider Black episode, precisely beat for beat, an Amazon farm cult overtone and everything, pure KRB writing.
Which is not an L. KRB had it's ham, but that shit was good tv.
If they remade Kamen Rider Black faithfully but with Amazons or Black Sun's budget & gore tone, ***my god.***
As Kurosaki stated: it wouldn't end unless the Omega & Alpha were disposed of.
Jin was spiritually exhausted & clearly wanted Haruka to end him "Only one of us can survive...will it be me?", and stating that if he lives, more Amazons will be born.
Suggesting that Haruka do what needs to be done. Haruka got the message, doesn't mean jin gave the w to the kid. Nah.
(notice how Haruka somewhat gently places Chihiro on the ground vs Jin downright merging Haruka with the molecules of the floor lmfao)
Jin at this point was just a zombie, before attacking those kids you can see the pain in his eyes over what he feels he has to do, even while talking to the Nanaha illusion he was cracking, stating those kids were like his own children.
Haruka was the only person he could leave the world to, the only one he'd allow to kill him if Haruka survived him, and he did.
And it's a testament to his power that he tanked all that damage from Neo Alpha AFTER being chained up for 2 years & living off only blood and then immediately fights Haruka.
# Alpha. One of the grittiest Riders ever- to this day.
The herbivore children are now with Mizuki; Who no longer has a place with 4C.
Reika is in charge, meaning by proxy Mizuki's situation is in good hands. The Chairman is still technically in charge but he's no real active threat to the Mizusawa's, he's insane but he has a method of how he see's the world. Survival of the fittest, plain and simple. Reika will succeed him eventually anyway. Tachibana's dethroned. Mido's dead.
Haruka is now going the Kamen Rider Black route and just roaming about on his bike, helping those who need it.
Though technically this Amazon thing isn't over because he's still alive, which begs the question "How the hell did Mido imprison Jin to begin with?" Which is a gaping hole in the plot that bugs me.
The Extermination group didn't really have any arcs, they just took up some screentime but it was good to see them back up Haruka one last time and they go about their way, possibly to team up with him on other occasions.
For they were a significant part of his life growing up (let's not forget he's only 9 years old and the span of the story is 7 years, so we got to see a good 80-90% of Haruka's entire life)
Jin can finally rest, with his remaining Amazon kids not being psychopathic monsters which he himself acknowledged, and with him gone, no more original bred Amazons can be created (that is if his corpse isn't farmed for samples by black markets, which is unlikely because that village is out in the middle of nowhere & the only person who would know he's out there & have the power to farm his body is Tachibana but he's not in charge anywhere).
Though because Jin's genes were unique- it's not confirmed if one could make more Amazons from Haruka the same way.
But since he's eaten of another person, and beaten the Alpha- he's not the same Haruka anymore, dude is only going to get stronger. The one limit he had, is gone. The one person who could match him is dead. Though I wish their final 1v1 was extended with some more finishers in there. But what we got fit the narrative that they were both wounded animals fighting for keeps.
Haruka's the third new type of Amazon & the last of the strongest, the last rider. Omega meaning "End", riding off on a lone road, the spirit of the Masked Rider. Even Shin Kamen Rider tapped into that in it's ending.
About as definitive an ending as it can get.
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