Kamen Rider Gavv Episode 22 Recap and Thoughts

In the last episode, we saw Hanto get mad at Shoma after it was revealed that the latter was a Granute. Shoma managed to tell Lakia the truth about his identity but struggled to tell Sachika about it. He then passed out after he left Hapipare to buy food. Meanwhile, Dark Shoma is rampaging, searching for foods that create his gochizos. He managed to create the Sparking Gummy gochizo and faced off against Hanto. The latter struggled against the dark version of Shoma when Lakia joined in on the action.

Recap

After dodging Bitter Gavv’s attacks, Vlam noticed that Bitter Gavv was strong, prompting him to switch to his Purujelly form. The form’s invisibility allowed Vlam to land multiple hits with his Vlam Breaker. He was about to finish him off when Valen fired a shot that stopped the attack. Seeing an opening, Bitter Gavv barely managed to escape.

Lakia and Hanto detransformed, and Lakia immediately questioned why Hanto stopped him. In response, Hanto fired back, asking why Lakia had engaged in battle with Bitter Gavv when they were supposed to be teaming up with Shoma. Lakia chuckled at the irony and asked, “So what happened to fighting the Granutes, including Shoma?” Hanto contemplated the question, noting how he was confused about everything that happened.

Shoma woke up near a cave where his granduncle Dente lived. Dente told him that he passed out because a lot of gochizos got stuck in his stomach. Typically, Shoma creates gochizos after eating snacks, like the Elegan Macaron gochizo he created after eating macarons with Sachika. However, he was stressed about keeping his identity after Hanto discovered he was a Granute, which caused his sickness. Despite not using his human form, Dente managed to rescue him after he passed out.

Knowing this, Shoma got worried that rumors might have spread about another Granute roaming around the city. Shoma looked on the Internet for updates when he saw an evil clone of himself hurting people. Sachika also caught wind of the news.

Hanto arrived at Hapipare, feeling concerned about Sachika’s safety. However, she ended up kicking him out. Sachika expressed that she felt angry when he revealed Shoma’s secret, and she’d rather have him leave. Despite knowing that Shoma is a monster, she still believes that the Shoma she knows will do his best to make everyone happy. Hanto left Hapipare, realizing that deep down, he still wanted to believe in Shoma. I really love how Sachika defended Shoma, especially considering his personality. It touched me emotionally.

Meanwhile, Lakia noticed in his fight earlier that the Bitter Gavv has a black Gavv, which means he wasn’t Shoma. Lakia’s gochizos told him that he could be a copy of Shoma. He suspected that Nyelv had created him but couldn’t contact him after he defected from Stomach Inc. He then remembered someone connected to him, hinting at a potential lead in his investigation.

Meanwhile, Dark Shoma was gobbling food. He had been instructed by someone to eat and sleep a lot to recover before trying to find a new gochizo.

Shoma tried to visit places where his darker clone went on a rampage. After someone saw him, he hid, fearing someone would identify him. Sachika then called him, worried about his safety, especially after the news about his evil clone came out. She reassured him that she didn’t think he was responsible for the attacks and promised to listen to anything he wanted to share.

Meanwhile, Dark Shoma spotted a truck full of food. He transformed into Bitter Gavv and sent it crashing into the tunnel. He then opened one of the snacks inside and quickly ate it.

Shoma kept visiting the places where his dark clone had attacked when Hanto came across him. Hanto asked if he wasn’t the one attacking when Shoma interrupted and apologized for lying to him. Hanto also apologized for punching him in the last episode.

Shoma shared with Hanto the details of his mother’s situation and the reasons for his conflicts with his siblings. He recounted his experiences in the human world, describing how he enjoyed delicious snacks and met kind people throughout his journey. Additionally, he explained that, unlike his siblings, he doesn’t wear a human disguise because he was born human. He also showed Hanto his Gavv, which is his secondary mouth, a feature he possesses as a Granute.

Shoma revealed that he had hidden his identity to avoid frightening people. Hanto realized that his hatred toward the Granutes was why Shoma felt the need to conceal who he was. Shoma apologized once again for lying to Hanto. In response, Hanto reassured Shoma that he was a good person but acknowledged that his hatred had blinded him. He also apologized to Shoma for his mistake. Hanto then promised to trust Shoma from now on.

Dark Shoma visited a candy warehouse and was overjoyed after tasting a hard candy that created Vrocan Spicy Gochizo. He continued to indulge in more candies until Shoma and Hanto stopped him. At that moment, he struggled to recall his identity, pointing his fingers dramatically like a certain person. He revealed his identity as Bitter Gavv and fought both of them together.

Suga was responsible for creating Bitter Gavv while cleaning his room. When Lakia arrived, he tried to hide the trash. Vlam asked if he could contact Nyelv, but unfortunately, Nyelv’s relationship with Suga was one-sided. Suga was also aware of Lakia’s betrayal. Lakia questioned why Suga was allied with Stomach Inc. Suga replied that he has no true allies; he works with anyone, researching as he pleases.

Meanwhile, Bitter Gavv managed to keep up with both Gavv and Valen despite the numbers disadvantage. He also has an incredible fighting style, as he managed to do a fake out against Gavv. Bitter Gavv also showcased the feature of his Bitter Gavvgablade after he caught a flying Popping Gummy gochizo after being hit by its car. The Gavvgablade absorbed it, allowing Bitter Gavv to use the sword like a whip.

As they had trouble fighting Bitter Gavv, Gavv switched to his Caking form, while Valen transformed into his Domaru form. Their teamwork overwhelmed Bitter Gavv, who struggled to keep up with their attacks. I also liked how a donut was filled with cake icing to deal damage to Bitter Gavv.

Gavv then transformed into his most powerful form, Gurucan, while Valen returned to his base form. Together, they unleashed a finishing blow with the help of Gurucan’s Bakucan cannon, overwhelming Bitter Gavv, even though he attempted to counter with his Sparking Gummy End finisher.

The recoil of the attack launched Shoma near a body of water. Hanto saved Shoma, but this incident reminded Shoma of what happened to Hanto’s mother.

Final Thoughts

This was a super emotional episode. I really admire how Sachika defended Shoma despite knowing his identity. That scene solidifies Sachika as a genuinely great person and an ideal friend. She’s the best girl in Kamen Rider gavv.

I also loved how Shoma and Hanto reconciled, acknowledging their mistakes. This scene shows that the cast is emotionally intelligent. I love the restraint in not causing unnecessary drama between the characters, considering what Hanto knew about Shoma before knowing his human identity.

The resulting fight scene after the reconciliation is great. I love how Valen’s Domaru form supports Gavv by providing them with platforms to jump on. I also liked the synergy between Caking and Domaru, especially when Gavv put cake filling on the donut.

One thing that intrigues me, though, is Suga’s endgame. While we now know that Suga is just his research partner, his motivations beyond research remain unclear. Creating Bitter Gavv was likely a step toward developing a powerful organism. Will he be the final boss of the season? Only time will tell.