Iroki's Rebellion
- Original Airdate: November 19, 2023
Written by: Minato Takano
Directed by: Kazuya Kamihoriuchi
Summary
The Ohsama Sentai's quest to liberate their kingdoms continues, and the next target is Toufu, now ruled by Grodie. However, he has used his powers to bring back a familiar face: the former queen, Iroki, who is now hoarding food from the rest of the world.
Can Kaguragi take the kingdom from her, as he did seventeen years ago?
Tropes
- Anachronism Stew: Suzume's outfit in the flashback is a mix of traditional Japanese clothing with a Sailor Fuku.
- Back from the Dead: Grodie brings Iroki back from the dead to help him in ruling Toufu.
- Bait-and-Switch: After Kaguragi reinforces his resolve to dirty his hands to protect Toufu, he draws his OhgerCalibur and shouts "Ohgai Busou!" as if he's about to cut Iroki down like he should've in the past, complete with a montage of his past self drawing his katana. He battles Grodie instead; knowing that defeating the necromancer will kill Iroki too.
- Blood from the Mouth: Iroki coughs up blood when it's revealed that the rice she hoarded and ate was poisoned.
- Broken Win/Loss Streak: This is the first time a Jester has been defeated with an actual Finisher from one of the heroes, rather than ending the battle by slinking away before a conclusion.
- Call-Back:
- At one point, Grodie decides to feed the other royals some rice, but Hymeno stops them as she recognizes God Scorpion's venom on it.
- Grodie calls the rice he planned to feed to the monarchs "Suzume's Tears."
- Casting Gag: Grodie and Iroki’s interactions stem from the fact that their actors (Kousei Amano and Akiko Hinagata) are married in real life.
- Cerebus Retcon:
- Much like the last two episodes, another initially-quirky joke on the show's part (Kaguragi's bizarre Wild Card tendencies) is given a new perspective here. Because he was too emotionally-compromised to strike Iroki down himself per the woman's resolve to stoop to any and all lows to protect one's people, Kaguragi came out of the event a Shell-Shocked Veteran and transformed into a Lovable Traitor; all to compensate for the one seemingly-villainous act he needed to commit that day.
- To a lesser degree, the monarchs being obsessed with Toufu's food. During Kaguragi's inaugural episode, it played out as a comedy skit. Here, the monarchs are ravenously hungry and it almost gets Gira and Yanma killed.
- Curb-Stomp Battle: When Kaguragi interferes in the battle between Grodie and the other Kingohgers, Grodie is seemingly-powerless against Hachi Ohger's mobility and Confusion Fu; sliced in half with an Ohger Finish.
- Did You Just Flip Off Cthulhu?: Played for Laughs. Iroki orders Grodie to go confront Kaguragi upon realizing he's arrived in Toufu. The Jester tries to re-assert that he is her master, but she's not having it and shoos him off.
- Eating Optional: When Hymeno asks if Jeramie needs to eat, he explains that living for 2000 years has ceased his need for sustenance. He compares it to reading - delightful but optional.
- Evil Costume Switch: Lady Iroki was initially draped in red clothes and make-up. As the tyrant she became during the Fury Of The Gods, she wears all black.
- Flashback B-Plot: The episode's B-plot focuses on Kaguragi's ascension as well as the true nature of Iroki's death.
- Foreshadowing:
- As Rita charges to face Grodie, an unidentified individual that sounds suspiciously like Goma yells "Substitution Technique!" and whisks them off. They don't show up for the episode's remainder.
- When Grodie first attacks the team, he has to force himself to walk and even after showing his true form barely moves from the spot he emerged from. When Hachi Ohger fights him later, it's his fancy footwork that gives him the edge against the Jester.
- Good All Along: Iroki turns out to be this: it's revealed that she discovered the rice supply had been poisoned by Grodie and hoarded it to keep everyone from dying. Knowing that the truth would hurt Toufu's reputation, she made it look like she did it out of greed and died a villain.
- History Repeats:
- Just like what happened in the Fury of the Gods seventeen years ago, Iroki hoards all the world's food to herself, with Kaguragi having to defeat her to reclaim Toufu.
- The reason for Iroki's hoarding is also revealed to be Grodie poisoning Toufu's rice supply, which the latter promptly repeats in the episode.
- I Cannot Self-Terminate: Subverted. In the past, Iroki asks Kaguragi to kill her to bolster his ascension to the throne. Kaguragi finds himself unable to fulfill her request, so the fire within the Takitate Castle along with God Scorpion's poison kills her instead.
- I Did What I Had to Do: Played With. Kaguragi did not in fact do what he had to do on the fateful night he became king: cut Iroki down (by request) to cement the narrative that she was a tyrant that needed deposing to protect Toufu's wider reputation. She had to let the fire she started burn her away because he was too emotionally-compromised to comply. In the present day, Kaguragi is Older and Wiser and has been finally taken to heart the lesson he needed to learn that night; drawing his OhgerCalibur to demonstrate his willingness to kill Iroki like he should've done back then. However, he doesn't actually have to cut her down a second time - cutting Grodie down kills her too. Thus, Kaguragi is able to remain the Lovable Traitor he is while putting the ghost of his past to rest with his own two hands.
- Idiot Ball: Enforced. Despite Grodie being the Jester associated with poison, death and decay, Gira and Yanma are so hungry that they nearly poison themselves accepting his "kindness." This gives Kaguragi time to confront Iroki without outside involvement.
- Meaningful Echo: Iroki's Last Words to Kaguragi was to angrily call him a traitor when he falters at having to kill her. Seventeen years later, when Kaguragi defeats Grodie and breaks the latter's hold over her, she calls him a traitor once again as she passes on, this time in affection.
- Moment of Weakness: Kaguragi found himself unable to kill Iroki after she asked him to do so. When the two meet again in the present, Iroki calls him out for it, but Kaguragi is now Older and Wiser.
- Not What It Looks Like: Kaguragi emerges from the burning Takitate Castle with blood on one hand and a sword in the other, causing everyone to assume he killed Iroki and freed Toufu from her tyranny. The truth, of course, is a bit more complicated than that.
- Older and Wiser: In the past, Kaguragi was so honest that he couldn't commit to Iroki's Zero-Approval Gambit and strike her down to cement his ascension to the throne; forcing her to perish in the fire she started. In the present, Kaguragi has long attained the resolve to stoop to all lows to protect Toufu and its people, allowing Iroki to pass away with a smile on her face after Grodie is dealt with.
- Origins Episode: This episode details Kaguragi's rise to power in Toufu and the true story behind his connection to Lady Iroki.
- Out of Focus: Everybody outside of Kaguragi, Iroki, and Grodie aren't given much attention outside of a few minor scenes.
- The Reveal: Grodie poisoned Toufu's rice crops during the Fury of the Gods using God Scorpion's poison. In order to protect Toufu's people and the country's reputation, Iroki hoarded the rice and made herself into a despot.
- Rule of Symbolism:
- When Iroki first met Kaguragi and Suzume, she's seen wearing red lipstick and bright makeup, showing her status as a benevolent ruler. When Kaguragi then later confronts her during the Fury of the Gods, she now wears black lipstick and dark makeup, showing her apparent turn towards tyranny.
- Between a burning building and a vassal betraying their leader, Iroki's death evokes the imagery of the Honno-ji incident, with her as Oda Nobunaga and Kaguragi as Akechi Mitsuhide.
- When Kaguragi gets ready to transform in front of Iroki, the visuals are those of his past self drawing the katana he didn't in the past, demonstrating his commitment to "dirty his hands."
- Shell-Shocked Veteran: Kaguragi has a multitude of traumatic flashbacks from the revolution that led to his ascension, stemming from the intense guilt caused by witnessing Iroki's death.
- Ship Tease: Grodie and Iroki get a somewhat sensual scene in the beginning when Iroki orders him to take care of the others. The chemistry, of course, is aided by the fact that their actors are married.
- Shoo Out the Clowns: Downplayed. The other King-Ohgers are distracted by the appearance of Grodie and because of that never meet up with Kaguragi, who spends the episode being forced to relive and confront the trauma that defined the man he is now. Rather than being dispelled from the plot however, they're just seldom cut away to.
- So Proud of You: Iroki is happy that Kaguragi had taken her lessons to heart after he reveals that like her, he's now willing to sully his own reputation to protect Toufu and its people. Once she passes on for good after Grodie's defeat, she looks out the balcony with a smile on her face.
- Thousand-Yard Stare: After Past!Kaguragi emerges from Takitate Castle, all he can manage is a wide, distant stare. Suzume takes charge and proclaims him the new ruler of Toufu.
- Used to Be a Sweet Kid: In his past, Kaguragi's honesty and idealism were almost on-par with Gira's, his sister's presence the only thing keeping him grounded. After his unwillingness to strike Iroki down however, he transformed into a schemer that took the idea of doing anything for his people to the extremes he does now.
- Zero-Approval Gambit: Iroki's tyranny during the Fury Of The Gods was an elaborate one of these. Realizing that Grodie poisoned the nation's rice, Iroki knew that if the rumors of poisoned food got out, other nations would stop buying from Toufu and would adversely affect Tikyu's economy. Thus, she hoarded all the tainted food and allowed herself to be deposed as a despot; knowing that both the tainted food and the rumors it would spread would die with her.
