WARNING: The following contains spoilers for SSSS.Dynazenon Episode 9, "What Are These Overlapping Emotions?" now streaming on Funimation.
Chise Asukagawa isn’t the most utilized member of Team Dynazenon, but in Episode 9 she finally gets her shining moment. Dynazenon’s goal is to defeat kaiju, but in recent episodes, their philosophy has been challenged. Now Chise is befriending her own mysterious kaiju, and it saves the day in magnificent fashion.
SSSS.Dynazenon Episode 9 begins with Chise having a weird dream about her alienation. It starts with a school-like setting and then transitions to the Dynazenon pilots. Chise doesn’t pilot a piece of Dynazenon here, and having more of a support role leads her to feel isolated from the rest of the team.
Since the end of Episode 1, Chise has been holding on to a mysterious white orb that proves to be a source for kaiju. As explained earlier in SSSS.Dynazenon, kaiju grow from exposure to human emotions. When Chise wakes up from her dream, she's greeted by a golden kaiju that resembles a dragon and has the ability to change the size of physical objects.
Chise befriends the kaiju as if it’s a pet. However, having it around would be antithetical to Dynazenon’s goals at the moment, so she resolves to keep it a secret from the rest of the team. In the time she spends with this new kaiju -- which she names Goldburn -- Chise realizes it listens to her instructions and emotions.
Then a major crisis breaks out. The Eugenicists have got their hands on an even more powerful kaiju. Team Dynazenon is unable to respond because at the same time, Yume is dealt a heartbreaking blow in her own investigation into her deceased sister. Kano’s ex-boyfriend provides yet another dead end and corroborates the official police report. Yume’s ensuing depression sidelines her from the battlefield. Instead, she goes to the top of the building at the flood gates.
Chise finds Yume and shows concern for her emotions, and Yomogi appears soon after. However, a small accident leads to Yume falling from the top of the structure. Her sister’s memorabilia, a puzzle toy she always keeps with her, falls off -- and Yume reaches for it. In the end, it’s Goldburn who saves her from plummeting.
After rescuing Yume, Chise and Goldburn join the main battle against the Kaiju Eugenicists. Goldburn even saves Gridknight from apparent doom. After pleading from Chise, Gauma and the others decide to trust her new kaiju. Dynazenon, Gridknight, and Goldburn combine to form Super Dragon King Kaiser Gridknight. Dynazenon defeats the Eugenicists yet again with the help of a new ally.
SSSS.Dynazenon's inclusion of Goldburn calls back to the evolving conversation over the last couple of episodes. The nature of kaiju is still a mystery and so far, they are neither good nor evil as an entity. They're capable of mass destruction when left alone, but can also be a very powerful ally. This is the first time Dynazenon knowingly teams up with a kaiju.
The case could also be made that Chise nurtured Goldburn by keeping the kaiju source with her the entire time, so it was born from only her emotions. There is still much to learn about SSSS.Dynazenon’s universe. Regardless, the existence of Goldburn could mean that Dynazenon changes its approach towards kaiju.