Recap / Kamen Rider Ex Aid Ep 39 Goodbye Me

Goodbye, Parado.

Written by Yuya Takahashi

Directed by Kazuya Kamihoriuchi

In order to deprive Ex-Aid of his transformation abilities, Cronus decides to target Parado directly. Para-DX without Emu is still not perfect, so he is beaten easily. Even so, Ex-Aid cannot stop chasing Cronus. However, Cronus was planning an underhanded scheme. Nico's game disease, which just started to show symptoms, belongs to that of Gamedeus, the Last Boss of Kamen Rider Chronicle! In order to defeat Gamedeus, Ex-Aid has to defeat both Graphite and Parado. Just then... Parado's hands begin to shake violently.

Episode Tropes:

• Big Brother Instinct: When Taiga indirectly learns about Nico's Gamedeus Virus, he immediately leaves his bed to go down to the CR. Hiiro however forces him to stay, and tells him he isn't the only doctor for Nico now.
• Call-Back:
  • Cronus gives Emu the Toki Meki Crisis Gashatrophy as an advance payment, answering fan questions on its whereabouts since Episode 32.
  • Nico makes good on her promise in Episode 29 by apologizing to Emu about her antagonistic attitude towards him.
  • Emu remembers his accident years ago, and it's revealed that he had infection headache that had him stumble onto the road, resulting in said accident.
• Curb-Stomp Battle: Para-DX gets trashed by both Cronus and Hyper Muteki Ex-Aid in this episode. The latter fight leads to his own death.
  • The Worf Effect: There are two main reasons for this. 1) Para-DX doesn't have any Energy Items to improve his stats (Cronus took them all away in the last episode), and 2) he's suffering a Villainous Breakdown.
• Cutting the Knot: Emu asks Kuroto if destroying Cronus's Master Gashat will permanently stop Kamen Rider Chronicle and remove the Gemdeus virus from Nico. Kuroto doesn't confirm it at first, but admits it can when Ex-Aid prepares his final attack against Para-DX.
• Early-Bird Cameo: Johnny Maxima and Machina Vision are mentioned by Masamune in this episode. Both elements play a big part in the upcoming summer film.
• Foregone Conclusion: Even if Emu believes killing Parado means losing his Rider powers, he's shown battling Cronus as Ex-Aid Muteki Gamer in the next episode's preview.
• A God Am I: When Masamune is looking at Machina Vision's website, Johnny Maxima's corporate philosophy is prefaced by "I AM GOD" in all caps.
• Ironic Echo: Remember when Parado wanted to give Emu the ending he deserved after losing to him in Episode 30? Well Emu says the same thing word for word before killing him.
• Mook Horror Show: Parado's fight with Muteki Ex-Aid is this, due to a combination of Emu being completely serious and waltzing through everything Parado can throw at him, and Parado being scared to death.
• No-Sell:
  • Ex-Aid just shrugs off everything Parado throws at him like it's nothing.
  • Graphite reveals in this episode that the Gamedeus virus inside him has evolved him to be unaffected by Cronus' "Pause" ability.
• O.O.C. Is Serious Business: Emu's overall behavior in his fight against Parado is unsettling to say the least. He isn't letting Parado get off easy, and clearly isn't listening to his pleas of mercy.
  • The same goes for Parad, who spends the majority of the episode terrified out of his mind of Cronus—and more specifically death—losing his usual suave attitude. Even Graphite notices.
• Pay Evil unto Evil: Emu brutally beats up and seemingly kills Parado.
• Pull the I.V.: Part of Taiga trying to leave for CR after getting to know Nico is in trouble. Partially justified as he knows what it means for him and just ignores it like all the other risks.
• Pyrrhic Victory: Emu kills Parado at the cost of becoming Ex-Aid... only for a short while though. And Nico is still infected at the end of the episode
• Sadistic Choice: Just to show more of Masamune's Kick the Dog moments, he gives Emu this; Either he saves Parado and his ability to transform, or he cures Nico of her game disease that he just infected her with. Unlike his situation with Hiiro, Masamune gets what he wants in the end.
• Villain Has a Point: As callous as Kuroto's attitude toward the situation is, he's technically correct in that if Nico dies from the virus they can just restore her as a Bugster like Kirya and himself are and that if they lose Muteki Ex-Aid there's probably no way to stop Cronus from wiping the floor with the lot of them.
• Villainous Breakdown: Parado full stop. He doesn't want to die (remembering how Lovelica's death shook up his belief that Bugsters are immortal), and begs Emu not to kill him. Emu doesn't listen.
• Villains Want Mercy: Parado begs Emu to spare his life. Emu doesn't.
• What the Hell, Hero?:
  • Admittedly calling Kuroto a "hero" is a big stretch, but everyone calls him out on his callous behavior towards Nico's condition (he suggested that she succumb to the virus and be revived as a Bugster). Kiriya is the most vocal of the group.
  • Kuroto calls out Emu over his apparent killing of Parado as it means they just lost their only way to defeat Cronus.
• What Were You Thinking?: Kuroto is outright furious as he chews out on Emu for apparently killing Parado, knowing that doing so will cost him the ability to transform.
• Xanatos Gambit: Masamune infects Nico with Gamedeus' virus knowing that Emu is going to be more concerned with making sure Nico's game virus is gone, and is willing to risk his ability to transform in order to do so. In the end, it worked out for him because regardless of how it happened, Emu can't transform into Ex-Aid anymore... or at least that's what he thinks.
  Gashat Count: Ex-Aid: 9 (Continue?) Brave: 5 Snipe: 3 Lazer: 10 Genm: 2 Poppy: 1 Nico: 1 Para-DX: 1 (Continue?) Cronus: 2
  Gashatrophies Collected: 12
  Genm's Continues Left: 70