Kamen Rider Amazons - The Last Judgment (2018)

I went into this with really high hopes, having enjoyed season one but wanting for some closure after the fairly mediocre second season. For the most part, this was an utter mess. While the plot started off decently, making it seem as if Alpha and Omega were being hounded in to a final, climactic battle, the majority of the film ended up dealing with a grim yet unremarkable arc that would've fit better some place in season one, rather than in the supposedly dramatic conclusion- and then having the two main Amazons fight to the death as a seeming afterthought. I was looking forward to seeing Neo-Alpha in action, but, despite his interesting design and concept, he too was a disappointment- he didn't receive nearly enough action time and his agenda seemed weak and inconsequential in the face of not only the two main Amazons, but of the series as a whole. Furthermore, he literally had no background whatsoever, the writers having bypassed the need to explain him with flimsy plot devices that went unquestioned throughout the film.
Ignoring the film's lousy pacing, weak character interactions, the huge lack of music (which helped set the atmosphere in the first season) and the fact that you just didn't care when characters died, the greatest issue at hand was that it didn't fit in at all with Kamen Rider Amazons. Yes, the angst, suits, characters, gore and subdued colors were all there, but it all felt hollow- the depth of the first season and even parts of the second season was nowhere to be seen. Death, humanity and morality were all important themes in the series- what does it mean to be human? Are monsters deserving of life? Who are the monsters? The film briefly mentioned and played with these ideas before tossing them right out of the window- when Haruka and Jin reunited and then proceeded to start tearing each other into shreds, seemingly on a whim, I didn't feel any gravitas or tension whatsoever- frankly, it seemed like it was bordering on (rather poor) farce. Speaking of which, the attempted inclusion of comedy in the conclusion was utterly out of place, and was completely needless.
When Haruka got on his bike and rode off at the end, one thought entered my mind. "Is that it?"

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Don't Dive Into This

Holy moly what a letdown. After a fantastic Season 1 and a difficult Season 2, the movie wraps it all up by being probably the worst of it all. This feels, in all honesty, like it is trying its absolute hardest to not connect itself to the previous Season. They literally handwaive an incredibly important change to one of the characters with a snarky retort, that's how shoddily they treat Season 2. The only recurring reference to it is a single sentence and the visuals of Nanaha being deceased, but the latter could honestly be assumed through offscreen shenanigans or a timeskip between Season 1 and the movie. And as rough as I felt Season 2 was, I think avoiding any connection to the season is worse than sticking to your guns and continuing to reference the season. The plot is absolutely ridiculous - you're telling me the monsters who can easily overpower and kill and actively eat humans would be something that anyone at any point would think is a good idea to have as a form of cattle? Why did Tachibana think this is a good idea? Is he stupid? It reminded me of the story The Promised Neverland but at least in that story the villains are the creatures that overpower humans and not the other way around. It really didn't make much sense to me. The new character with his Neo-Alpha transformation ability was not explained - you're literally told "it's against the rules for me to tell" and then I guess everyone including the scriptwriters thought to themselves "I guess it would be rude for us to say anything else about it then". But like, the ending of Season 2 mentioned a new Sigma project as the stinger for further stories? Was he the new Sigma? But he wasn't Sigma, he was Neo-Alpha? What the hell is this?

I think the only thing that I liked about this movie was both Jin and Haruka crossing their personal borders to continue their fights - Jin killing a Human and Haruka eating a... Wait, Haruka didn't eat a human being, Haruka ate an Amazon. Is that the same thing in this world? I mean they're obviously meant to be humans but like, humans are eating Amazons, so are they not? If they are, did it satiate Haruka? What does this imply for any of the Amazons in the prior seasons? Did any of them try to eat each other?

This movie just ends up leaving so many questions, and not good ones. Really rough way to end a story.

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