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in: Hikonin Sentai Akibaranger, Hikonin Sentai Akibaranger episodes

Ep. 11: The Replacement is Cool, Not Lame

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Icon-akibarangerThis article is about an episode in Hikonin Sentai Akibaranger.

The Replacement is Cool, Not Lame (二代目はサワヤカ無痛戦士 Nidaime wa Sawayaka Mutsū Senshi) is the eleventh episode of Hikonin Sentai Akibaranger. The episode heavily breaks the fourth wall as it establishes the Akibarangers world as being a television show.

Synopsis[]

As the Akibarangers bid farewell to Nobuo Akagi, Hakase's half-brother Takuma Tsuzuki takes on the role of AkibaRed. As Nobuo is preparing to leave Akihabara for the United States, he comes to a shocking revelation about their world.

Plot[]

Shortly after Takuma introduces himself as the new AkibaRed, everyone at Café Himitsukichi bids their farewells to Akagi, who hands his MMZ-01 unit to his replacement before heading off to The Pentagon. Meanwhile, Doctor Z restructures the Stema Otsu Corporation into the Delusion Empire, much to the surprise of ©Na as Delu-Knight summons the organization's first Mosoborg, Drill Cyclops. Takuma, Mitsuki and Yumeria—now wearing colored jackets, sortie out to confront Delu-Knight and Drill Cyclops, despite their initial concern of triggering Hiroyo's curse with their MMZ-01 units.

Meanwhile, ©Na and a Droan are seen walking by a park when Akagi accidentally collides with them. After a brief argument, ©Na explains the change of atmosphere in her organization. Hearing this and thinking of his departure from the Akibarangers, Akagi realizes the events around him are parallel to episode 23 of Taiyo Sentai Sun Vulcan and deduces that he is inside a TV show. To prove his theory, he folds his Atsugi Base gate pass into a paper plane and throws it off the bridge, only for it to be picked up and thrown back to him by a police forensics agent collecting crime evidence at the river below. Suddenly, an American Secret Service agent and two soldiers appear and open fire at them, killing the Droan while Akagi and ©Na run for cover. As they enter a tunnel, ©Na tells Akagi to rejoin his comrades while she uses herself as a shield against the soldiers.

Back in the battle, Hiroyo and Kozukozu upload data on Drill Cyclops' weak point to AkibaRed, who uses it to help his comrades destroy the Mosoborg. The Akibarangers then force Delu-Knight to retreat to a car park. There, they meet up with Akagi, who tells them that they are all inside a TV show called Unofficial Sentai Akibaranger. As further proof, he stops an advertisement banner scrolling on the bottom of the viewer's screen while Mitsuki and Yumeria read it aloud. He then points out that Hiroyo's curse and Takuma's appearance are indicators of a mid-season change. Takuma receives a text message from Interpol confirming Akagi's theory and tells everyone and Hiroyo that Akagi is correct. The lights at the café suddenly turn on and Hiroyo's curse disappears. Just as Delu-Knight appears to confront his new rival, Takuma hands his MMZ-01 unit back to Akagi before speeding off on his motorcycle, leaving the Executive Director in frustration. At the Delusion Empire headquarters, a wounded ©Na pleads for Doctor Z to return to normal. He does so, but the viewer's screen flickers and he reverts back to his evil self, shooting at her before she leaves his office. Akagi, Mitsuki, and Yumeria return to the café, now pondering on how to deal with the fact that their lives are in a TV show.

Cast[]

Suit actors[]

Tropes and References[]

  • During the opening, Hiroyo (as the narrator) states that the opening would be changed the following week.
  • The Akibarangers receive their team jackets, a tradition of Sentai series.
  • Hakase wears the uniform that resembles Commander Aya Odagiri from Chojin Sentai Jetman.
  • There are references to Juken Sentai Gekiranger in this episode:
    • The roll call is similar to the Gekirangers, with a phrase followed by an English phrase before the ranger's name. It is also the first time where Yumeria states her ranger name instead of something related to cosplay. The roll call goes AkibaRed, AkibaYellow, and AkibaBlue, the same order the Gekirangers did their roll call.
    • As Akiba Red, Takuma Tsuzuki performed the Heart Tiger (ハートタイガー Hāto Taigā) attack, projecting his energy as a tiger; this is similar to Jan Kandou's "Hou Hou Dan" technique projecting a bullet in the spirit of a tiger. Furthermore, he uses the element of "Heart", which is that of Ran Uzaki, completely avoiding any connection to his actor's twin brother's role as Retsu Fukami.
    • The "Triangle" of Body, Heart and Technique from Gekiranger is used but in a different distribution, with Takuma as "Heart" and the Red, Moegi as "Technique" and the Yellow, and Aoyagi as "Body" and the Blue.
  • While the roll call is similar to that of Gekiranger in reciting a line and attribute, the phrase they say appears on the screen, similar to that of Gaoranger's role call. The "Kagayake!" ("Shine!") call towards the end is the exact same call-out for Sun Vulcan.
  • The scene where Nobuo bids farewell to the team in the café is deliberately composited badly, with Nobuo's shots in the cafe being separate from the rest of the team. When Nobuo and Takuma interact in the shot, it is two shots composited in the middle. This refers to several TV series' styles of patching up video when a character has left the show and no video is usable.

Songs[]

DVD/Blu-ray releases[]

Hikonin Sentai Akibaranger Volume 4 features episodes 10-13: Ep. 10: The Bitter Curse of Z ― A New Chapter Begins, Ep. 11: The Replacement is Cool, Not Lame, Ep. 12: Lame-ale: Farewell, Deluded Sentai, and Ep. 13: Recap! It's Okay to Not be Lame!.

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