Recap / Avataro Sentai Donbrothers Ep 44 White Revealed Black Revealed

White Revealed, Black Revealed

Original Airdate: January 15, 2023
Written by: Toshiki Inoue
Directed by: Ryuta Tasaki

Summary

After all this time... It comes down to this.

Sononi: Humans worry.
They suffer...struggle with their desires.
Those are the kinds of emotions we Nōto are unable to comprehend.
And we most likely never will...

The time has finally come for Tsubasa to confront the Crane Jūto, but with the conflicting information he received from the other Donbrothers and Sononi about Jūto, he begins to wonder if he's truly saving Natsumi with Murasame.

Add in one Tsuyoshi wanting to protect his wife, and you have a bag of reveals and plot twists just waiting to unravel...

Tropes

• Anti-Climax: With the way the episode's premise of the six Donbrothers finally coming together to transform, you expect it to be an epic moment... But when it actually happens, it's more akin to a casual transformation.
• Back from the Dead: Sononi gets revived thanks to Kaito using Tsubasa's Kibi Points.
• Blinded by Rage: Tsuyoshi is so caught up in his anger at Tsubasa for trying to kill Miho with the Ninjarksword that he mortally wounds Sononi, who did nothing wrong to hurt Miho in any way.
• Cannot Spit It Out: Although Sononi apologizes for trying to trick Tsubasa she doesn't elaborate why (that she's fallen for him and wanted Natsumi out of the way but decided that was too cruel at the last minute) making it just seem like a whim of her's resulting in Tsubasa not wanting anything further to do with her.
• Chekhov's Gun: The fact that Tsubasa has been fighting as a Donbrother for so long without knowledge of how things like Kibi Points work has allowed him to accumulate enough to the point where he's able to use all but two of his points to revive Sononi.
• Delayed Reaction:
  • Tsubasa does this in the narration for this episode's preview.
    Tsubasa: Don't get in my way, Kijino — no, Kiji Brother! Wait, Kiji Brother!?
  • Haruka also has this regarding Tsubasa's identity as Inu Brother at the end of the episode.
• Didn't Think This Through: Sononi could have told Tsubasa sooner that Natsumi will die if he attempts to kill Miho/Crane Juto in the real world using Murasame while the latter is still imprisoned in the Forest of Slumber. Even worse, she inadvertently widened the rift between Tsuyoshi and Tsubasa, with Tsuyoshi thinking that Tsubasa had once again attacked his wife, and Sononi had to take the bullet meant for Tsubasa before things could spill out of control.
• Dramatic Irony: In their initial discussion over the Jūto, Tsubasa assumes the gang are playing superheroes and warns them to stay out of it, under the assumption they aren't powered to deal with them like he is. After he leaves, they lament over him keeping matters to himself as if he's the one playing superhero.
• Hypocrisy Nod: Both Sonoi and Sonoza try to kill Sononi for her bonding with Tsubasa, but both ultimately can't as they realize they've done the same thing with Taro and Haruka respectively.
• Internal Reveal:
  • After 43 episodes, the Donbrothers finally learn that Tsubasa is Inu Brother, and he learns the same vice-versa.
  • Sononi reveals to Tsubasa that killing a Jūto in the real world while the human that they copied from is still in the Forest of Slumber will cause the latter to die as well.
  • Tsubasa learns that Kaito is the Donbrothers' administrator, and requests for his help to use his Kibi-Points to save Sononi.
• Mood Whiplash: After Sononi and Tsubasa's last scene, it cuts to Haruka finally realizing Tsubasa is Inu Brother, having the usual hammy reaction.
• My God, What Have I Done?:
  • Tsuyoshi is left horrified when he nearly kills Sononi of all people.
  • Sononi herself. Despite having fallen for Tsubasa, she couldn't bring herself to let Tsubasa kill the Crane Juto at the expense of Natsumi's existence. And had to use herself as a human shield, twice — by preventing Tsubasa from killing Miho and taking the shot meant for Tsubasa while the latter and Tsuyoshi are once again fighting against each other.
  • After Sononi tells the truth about the Jūto, Tsubasa himself reacts in horror as he realizes that he indirectly caused Sayama's death by killing the Cat Jūto.
• No Time to Think: Once gathered, the Donbrothers immediately transform to face Choudenshi-Ki, not taking any moment to acknowledge the fact that Tsubasa stood among their ranks to transform together with them.
• Roaring Rampage of Revenge: Tsuyoshi attempts to do this against Tsubasa after learning from Miho that he was the one that injured her, only to be stopped by Sononi Taking the Bullet and Choudenshi-Ki making an ill-timed appearance.
• Snow Means Death: Subverted. Sononi appears to die of her injuries as snow falls around her, but she comes back to life due to Tsubasa and Kaito's help at the last moment.
• Something We Forgot: After the heat of the climax, Haruka has a nagging feeling she has forgotten something major while she has her dinner. It wasn't until she went to bed that night did she suddenly realise Tsubasa is Inu Brother.
• Status Quo Is God: Played straight with Sononi surviving her injuries via the Kibi-Points that Tsubasa spends, but it's finally subverted in the regard that Inu Brother's identity is finally revealed to the team.
• Taking the Bullet: Sononi pushes Miho out of the way of Tsubasa before he could slay her with Murasame, having realized lying to him was a mistake. She later takes another shot from Tsuyoshi as he's about to kill Tsubasa.
• Throw the Dog a Bone: Kaito uses Tsubasa's Kibi-points to revive Sononi... though he's still not too happy with her given her lies.
• Wham Episode: Sononi realizes the gravity of her lie and stops Tsubasa from slaying Miho, injuring herself in the process. While she ultimately gets healed, the other Nōto generals are mad at her for falling for a member of the Don Clan, and Tsubasa is not happy at her since she lied to him. Also, the other Donbrothers finally discover Inu Brother's true identity.
• Wham Shot: Jiro shows Tsuyoshi a picture of him with Rumi... except Tsuyoshi doesn't see her at all when he looks at it.
• What the Hell, Hero?: Sonoza and Sonoi are not happy that Sononi fell for Tsubasa. But like with Sonoshi, they both can't bring themselves to kill her, as they point out that they've done the same with their interactions with Haruka and Taro respectively.