The Dark Days

What can I say? There are so many "so-and-so is shocked/surprised at this revelation" moments in this episode that it might as well have just been titled "!".

A cave full of Spoilers ahead.



Kamen Rider Kiva Episode #38: "Devil: Reunion of the Mother & Child"

Kiva gets blasted back into human form while Kivat and Tatsulot talk about the revelations at the end of the previous episode.

Everybody's shocked. Taiga demands to know why Wataru is Kiva. Wataru runs off in disbelief. He can't wrap his head around it. Why is Mio Queen? Why is Taiga King? Wataru screams out to the sky, and faints. Jirô appears to carry him away...

Taiga yells at Bishop in a meeting room. He wants to know why his so-called subordinate kept the truth from him. But Bishop is smug. Kiva must be destroyed, that's all that matters, isn’t it?

Taiga begins to realize the truth... and Bishop confirms that his own mother (Taiga’s, I mean) is involved. Bishop believes Taiga will become the greatest King of all…

Mio wonders about Wataru as well. Bishop appears, before her, ranting away (that guy sure gets around.) He demands that she destroy Wataru for the future of Fangire-kind. He wants her to be the best Queen as well. She breaks down in tears.

Wataru awakens to find Jirô chillaxin' at his home. He thinks it was all a dream, but Jirô says that it wasn’t. Wataru is in denial. He rants away about how it must be a dream, so Jirô smacks him one good. He needs to wake up and face reality. Jirô talks about the past between him and Wataru’s father...

1986. Otoya meets Yuri in the hospital, wondering what's gotten into her lately. Yuri wants answers about their relationship and what’s the deal with Maya. Yuri's ticked off at the recent changes Otoya has undergone. She throws various things at him, which he catches... except for the flower vase. I thought he’d start juggling to be honest.

2008. Megumi wonders what Kengo will do as IXA. As usual, Kengo is a complete bastard! Suddenly, Nago appears, giving him one of his newly made 7-5-3 T-Shirts. Nago has vowed to be Kengo's coach. Kengo wonders what the 7-5-3 means. Nago explains it(Nana-Go-San.) Disgusted, Kengo pours his drink over Nago. He doesn't have the time for this nonsense.

A new monster, the Mantis Fangire appears, creating a triangle of energy in the air which he uses to reassemble bits of shattered Fangire into a coffin. An old adversary will be given new life…

Taiga goes to meet Maya in the cave.

"It's been a while... mother." He shakes off her embrace though. He doesn't like his mommy much. She is a human-loving traitor, after all. But he wants to know more about her past... He demands an answer, ordering her as the King to spill the beans. He puts his hand to her neck, and she begins to steam.

1986. The past King does the same, but Maya then was much stronger, and simply shrugs it off. King wants to kill off threats to the Fangire. The biggest one being the user of the IXA system: Otoya. Maya has other ideas...

2008. Wataru goes to talk to Mio. (Check out the message in the sky. Thanks for letting us know again, guys!) Mio believes she can't see Wataru anymore, since he's Kiva. There's a lot of angsting around, and then Taiga shows up. He asks for Wataru to come with him to find the answers they all seek.

1986. Bishop is rockin' out an organ in a church somewhere when Maya appears. Bishop is not pleased with her consorting with a human, although he can’t act against her directly. But he strongly implies that she’s walking on thin ice.

2008. The Mantis Fangire shows up to confront Maya when she gathers some water. He reassembles the shattered glass bits into the Warthog Fangire, who chases Maya.
Taiga takes Wataru & Mio to find Maya at the cave. She's there. Wataru and his mother are finally reunited. Unlike Taiga, Wataru is happy to see her again.

The ‘Hog goes on a rampage, but Kengo appears. He calls the Fangire his “rivals”. He turns into IXA, and it's on. Kengo’s Henshin is… interesting.

Nago appears to "coach" IXA, but is ignored. He tries to tell him to punch, but he kicks. When he tells him to kick, he punches. On his loudspeaker, Nago expresses frustration with Kengo’s lack of discipline. IXA shoots at Nago, destroying his loudspeaker. Nago tells him to go Rising, which he does.

Rising IXA uses his gun, and destroys the monster with a kick after the gun blast freezes him (oh yeah, it does that doesn’t it?) Nago tries to rate Kengo's performance, but gets punched out again. I have to say I actually feel really sorry for Nago here. Yes, he was a bastard months ago, but I don’t think even he deserve this.

Wataru wants to know more about Maya. Why did she leave him? We get a flashback where she takes him to their home, asking him to live alone from now on. Back in the present, she shoves him away. He can't be near her... Taiga appears, and addresses her as his mother. Wataru’s world gets rocked again.

"Wataru... you and I are like brothers." Taiga explains that Wataru's mother is the Fangire Queen of the past. Wataru is part Fangire, and Taiga is Fangire as well. Wataru tries to go to Maya, but she stops him. Mio is shocked that Wataru is of Fangire descent too. I like that she just assumed Kiva was something else entirely (which isn't entirely untrue.)

Before things can get even more shocking when Taiga reveals that he is also Wataru’s son from the future AND actually an alien, the Mantis Fangire drops in to recreate a couple more old monsters. Hey, the Moose is on the loose again! They attack the trio and Maya. Taiga tells them to stop, but they disobey his orders. They are being controlled like puppets, immune to the word of the King. So clearly it’s time to get Medieval.

Taiga & Wataru summon Sagarc and Kivat, and become Saga & Kiva. Maya hoofs it while the Riders fight the revived monsters.

1986. Jirô is walking along when a massive dark version of the Kiva series logo appears! King shows up, addressing him as the last of the Wolfen. He summons Kivat-Bat the second, and transforms... into a dark version of Kiva. Who is named, aptly enough, Dark Kiva. He’s got a cool-looking transformation. And even though the suit is clearly taking Kiva, changing some colors, adding some bits here and there and the like, I like it.

The fearsome new Kiva walks menacingly towards our wolfy friend.

2008. The Riders fight the monsters, and Kiva goes Emperor of course. Saga does in one with a new finisher where he stabs the monster right through the middle, and pulls his whip out, destroying it.

Emperor blows up the other two with the bigass sword. Sorry, the Zanvat Sword.

1986. Garulu gets his butt handed to him by Dark Kiva, who throws him around like a ragdoll, bouncing him off another big ol' logo. Things don't look good for the Wolfen. Well okay, we know he’ll get out of this one. But will it be as himself, or as a delightful DX saber available in all fine toy shops across Japan?

NEXT TIME: Well... nothing, since Kiva skips a week. The week after that, all hell breaks loose and Kiva & IXA fight once again, this time in their strongest forms.

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