After Masayoshi reveals his identity to the press, Joji arrives in his Red Axe suit. He tells everyone that the members of the press will be busy, and cell phones start ringing like crazy. The gathered reporters learn that a large object has suddenly appeared in Tokyo Bay. While the members of the media try to figure out what’s going on, Joji takes Masayoshi into an airship that arrives on the scene.
Masayoshi learns the large object belongs to From Beyond, a group that provided King Torture with his power. As they talk, the large object sends out waves that cut off broadcast signals. Joji also receives a call from the Prime Minister, and gives his authority to let the Samurai Squad Flamengers intervene.
Joji takes Masayoshi to Samurai Base, which is the home of the Counter Secret Organization Agency. Joji informs Masayoshi that he has been chosen to be Flamen Red and lead the Samurai Squad Flamengers. When they go to meet the rest of his team, Joji discovers they’re dead. An enemy named Ugly Toxic Poison appears, and he has toxic abilities that he’s using to take down people inside the base. Joji and Masayoshi are able to escape, while guards try to take on the enemy.
When they get away, Joji contacts the four members of the Flamengers Super Team, and tells them and Masayoshi to assemble. When they assemble, they find that they’re all Flamen Red. Masayoshi and the others argue about who the leader is, and Joji slips out. Masayoshi follows and asks for an explanation. Joji tells him that of this group, he is the Reddest Ranger. When Masayoshi joins the others, a guy named Soichi says he’ll be Red today because he’s been Joji’s assistant for 10 years. However, something happens that ultimately sees Masayoshi becoming Flamen Red and leading the group in battle.
In true Super Sentai style, the five members have different colors: Red, Black, Blue, Green, and Pink. They also have five vehicles that can combine into one giant robot. When Ugly Toxic Poison enlarges and becomes a big monster, the robot pulls out its sword and defeats Ugly Toxic Poison. When I saw this section, it so made me think of series like Beast King GoLion and Armored Fleet Dairugger XV, the two shows that became Voltron in the United States. When the robot formed, it made me think of Dairugger, except it’s made up of five vehicles instead of 15. And as soon as that sword was drawn, I couldn’t help thinking of the Voltron catchphrase, “Form Blazing Sword!”
The one thing that was a little disappointing to me in this episode is the fact that of the four new characters that appear in this episode, we only learned the name for one of them. Hopefully the next episode will provide us information on the other three members of the Flamengers.
I have to say that between the King Torture arc and now the From Beyond arc, it’s gotten harder for me to take this series anywhere near as seriously as I did in the beginning. And with this being the halfway point of the series, it looks like the second half is more than likely going to be along these lines than the earlier episodes. Oh well, I’m still getting some enjoyment out of the series, so I’ll stick with it.
This episode is definitely setting the stage for the next section of Samurai Flamenco. From this episode, I get the impression that the Flamenco Girls are basically out of the story, and that Hidenori’s role will be reduced. Speaking of Hidenori, in the scenes he appeared in, he looked a bit off-model.
According to Crunchyroll, Episode 12 won’t be available for premium members until January 9, 2014, and for free users until January 16, 2014. So it looks like I’ll have to wait a couple of weeks in order to find out how this Super Sentai angle will play out in the series.
Additional posts about Samurai Flamenco: