Axess: Cross-Fusion for All!

Plot Synopsis
While out for cookies, Lan accidentally stumbles upon a hidden dimensional area in an abandoned warehouse, where mettaur viruses are shuffling around dark chips. Luckily there happens to be a ramp nearby, so Lan thrusts himself into the dimensional area cross-fusing into MegaMan. Lan busts up the dark chip operation, and the Net Agents seize the warehouse.

Everyone congratulates Lan on a job well done, and he starts to let the success go to his head a little bit. He runs into Chaud, who tells Lan that he should have followed the viruses to the Dark Chip factory... because... you know... viruses can travel outside of dimensional areas...

Anyway, Lan and Chaud split up to look for the factory. Lan gets lured into a trap, and Chaud gets lured to the factory... which also turns out to be a trap. Traps for everyone! The factory gets blown up with Chaud in it, and Lan gets stuck in a room that fills up with sand! That's only half the problem though, as a darkloid named DesertMan is thrashing MegaMan about, and is now setting up a dimensional area to take out Lan as well.

Even though Lan puts up a good fight in Cross-Fusion, DesertMan has too much of an advantage being surrounded by sand, and he hits Lan hard enough to break the Cross-Fusion. Just as Lan is about to be done in by DesertMan's attack, Chaud shows up in his own Cross-Fusion with ProtoMan and saves the day!

How did Chaud escape the collapsing building, know where Lan was, and break through the dimensional area? Well you see...

Critique
How do you take a decent show and make it more boring? Why by adding boring villains! Not boring enough for you? Let's start kicking around Chaud as a main character, who seems to have lost even more personality since the last time we saw him!

This episode isn't bad per se, but it's the tip of the iceberg that's about to crash into this show. More Cross-Fusion, more Nebula, more Chaud, and just wait till they turn up the melodrama! I get that putting Lan in danger this way adds some excitement, but it also cheapens the show to me to have him basically fighting monsters every week, and now we've got Chaud, who you can put money on is going to be a prick about being better at Cross-Fusion than Lan.

What works this episode though is Lan being an arrogant numb nuts, and getting put in his place, a formula that usually goes well for this show. While Nebula is making me beg for even Grave at this point, at least Lan is the shining beacon holding this episode together, and for that, I'll give him a thumbs up!

Rating: Thumbs up!