Shinkalion Change the World Ep 26 Review: Return to Rei(Zero)
After the confirmation and revelation in the last episode, ep 26 of Shinkalion CTW take us to the past – where everything started for Reiji – the pilot of the Shinkalion Zero – of how he came to join ERDA and becoming best friend with Ina. And we also see that even though he looks like a gentle ikemen, maybe he wasn’t as perfect as we thought.
Reiji is a very model big brother type of character. He’s quite mild-mannered and is very polite, and seems to be quite level-headed. Although his common sense is a direct contrast to Ina’s hyperactive attitude. She’s so straightforward it’s kinda off-putting at times lol. Both Reiji and Kacchan was overwhelmed by her enthusiasm which is really funny. And in a certain way it’s good that she was “kidnapped” cause she’s much more tamed now than when she was a JK. But still, her personality can be compared to that of Ueda in the original series, just much more tech savvy.
And this is probably the 2nd time where we get a character with a tragic past in Shinkalion. First was Abuto in Z, and now it’s Reiji. His parents both passed away in one of the cruelest way possible. He lost his father and soon after, his mother. The feeling that you just lost a parent but still have the other, only to have the remaining blood relative passed away soon after as well, is probably one of the worst feeling imaginable. And they did make Reiji a sort of mirror to Taisei – since both inherited a wish from their family with the hopes that they will “become a cool person”. Then that family member vanished from their lives. The difference is that Reiji eventually became the Hades driver, while Taisei kept pushing forward to be a good person. We still don’t know why Reiji turned out like what he is now, but this reason will be the keystone for Taisei’s development.
And this is probably the 2nd time where we get a character with a tragic past in Shinkalion. First was Abuto in Z, and now it’s Reiji. His parents both passed away in one of the cruelest way possible. He lost his father and soon after, his mother. The feeling that you just lost a parent but still have the other, only to have the remaining blood relative passed away soon after as well, is probably one of the worst feeling imaginable. And they did make Reiji a sort of mirror to Taisei – since both inherited a wish from their family with the hopes that they will “become a cool person”. Then that family member vanished from their lives. The difference is that Reiji eventually became the Hades driver, while Taisei kept pushing forward to be a good person. We still don’t know why Reiji turned out like what he is now, but this reason will be the keystone for Taisei’s development.
The past ERDA isn’t too bad as well. I really like Kacchan being the Shinkalion Zero driver. That means adult can drive Shinkalions in this world as well. And Kacchan really is a good character, he is strict but not overly frigid and can be flexible when needed, as well as being 100% supportive of his students and comrades. And we get introduced to the actual creator of the Shinkalion, and I got Shinichiro Miki jump scare again. I swear he kept getting roles where he’s obssessed with mecha and creating it. First was SRW OG, then Megaton Musashi, and now Shinkalion (while he’s not busy being a charismatic bad guy of course).
And then we get to the current commander, which was the command centre head back then. He’s actually quite tolerable and reasonable, which is very different from the current one. Maybe what happened to Reiji has changed him, turning him into a more extreme version of himself with merciless policies. I do feel that in Shinkalion, there’s no absolute evil, but rather misunderstood character. We’ll see if this guy will get some sort of redemption in the future.
And then we get to the current commander, which was the command centre head back then. He’s actually quite tolerable and reasonable, which is very different from the current one. Maybe what happened to Reiji has changed him, turning him into a more extreme version of himself with merciless policies. I do feel that in Shinkalion, there’s no absolute evil, but rather misunderstood character. We’ll see if this guy will get some sort of redemption in the future.
And finally we get the Shinkalion Zero fight scene. It was actually quite basic and not at all flashy. The Zero Blade was pretty cool however. The twin swords when separated really resemble gladiator swords as well as two hands on a clock. And of course, the combinable Shinegraymon sword looks nice as well. The basic combat is probably to show that the 0 was an early model and hasn’t gotten developed to the point of the current Shinkalions yet. It’s at least 10 years out.
Ina show use this ep why she cared so much about Reiji – because in a way, it was her that get him involved with ERDA and the Shinkalion in the first place. Her over-eager and curiosity made her discovered the Railway Club the coincidence at the school gate basically linked them all together. Ina probably thought it was fate that brought them together so she might feel responsible. And of course the striking similarity between their “brothers and sisters” as well as their opposite personalities definitely magnetted them together. In the next episode, we might discovered what happened in the past that led to the present situation.
=Aaron=
Ina show use this ep why she cared so much about Reiji – because in a way, it was her that get him involved with ERDA and the Shinkalion in the first place. Her over-eager and curiosity made her discovered the Railway Club the coincidence at the school gate basically linked them all together. Ina probably thought it was fate that brought them together so she might feel responsible. And of course the striking similarity between their “brothers and sisters” as well as their opposite personalities definitely magnetted them together. In the next episode, we might discovered what happened in the past that led to the present situation.
=Aaron=
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