Episode 17 begins with Hishou showing the other Angels childhood photos of himself with Masato. We see a brief flashback of Hishou protecting Masato from bullies. Ace tells them that he also knows Masato from the past.
At that time, the blue-haired female demon has two other demons which are playing some kind of dice game to determine who gets the next mission.
The Angels leave Hishou's as Tsubasa waves goodbye.
Inside the dark house, the frog type demon that won the dice game enters throw a water spout as liquid, but reforms into a frog. We see Ace standing alone at the empty open-air stadium when bright lights suddenly come on. At the opposite end of the stadium is Masato, whom is shown transforming into Reideen Phoenix (his costume is a mixture of red, green, and gold, with four slim trailing 'tail feathers', and a very elaborate helmet). Phoenix attacks, and Ace flies into the air using his metal wings (not in full Reideen form). Phoenix punches him. We see a flashback to when Ace headed a street gang of which Masato was a member. They're attacked by something and there's an explosion. Ace reaches for Masato, but he's apparently dead. Back in the present, Phoenix produces his bass, which changes into a double-bladed axe. Fire comes out of it (not sure if the attack had a name yet) and is about to hit Ace, but Hishou suddenly appears between them and takes the hit. He says something to Phoenix, then falls, and the other two fly down to catch him. Phoenix gets there first and holds Hishou in his arms as he lands, de-transforming.
Change of scene to some kind of tv event which entails the three remaining Angels wearing costumes and pinned to targets while people throw things (eggs? Ping-Pong balls?) at them. They're complaining to each other, probably about the fact that Ace and Hishou aren't there to take their share of it.
The frog demon is making its way around Hishou's home. Tsubasa wakes up and wanders into the room. She steps on part of the frog, yawns and goes back to bed, not noticing anything unusual.
In the other room, Masato is lowering Hishou onto his bed on his stomach--his back is badly burned. Masato pushes Ace out of the way so that he can heal Hishou, something he begins to do by holding his glowing hand over Hishou's back. He's unable to finish because the water puddle that is the frog demon comes out from under the bed and reforms, grabbing Hishou in its long tongue. The other two boys are about to transform but the demon warns them not to. It pushes them both down and disappears into the ceiling in water form, taking Hishou with it. Ace grabs Masato by the collar and yells at him. Masato pushes him away, they argue. Ace turns away and grows his metal wings again, leaving. Masato thinks about Hishou and their past, grows his own metal wings and leaps out the window.
Reiko, Hishou's mother, Tsubasa, and the other Angels look at the mess of the room the next morning. The frog is waiting for Ace and Masato at the deserted concert site, still holding Hishou in its tongue. Ace arrives and transforms into Reideen Condor. The female demon rises out of the puddle on the ground, throws a blast of power at Condor but misses him. As she tries again, she's thinking something to do with God Reideen. She orders the frog to do something to Hishou, which distracts Condor long enough for her to hit him with her water blast. The frog lifts Hishou into the air and starts squeezing with his tongue. Slams him to the ground repeatedly. Condor can do nothing more than watch. Phoenix arrives. The frog shoots green slimey goo at him from the spots on its back. It hits Phoenix on the wing and he falls. Condor goes to help Phoenix, but the female demon blasts them both with an ice attack, trapping them inside an iceberg. Hishou is laying on the ground and the frog whips him with its tongue. Condor hurls himself against the inside of the iceberg while the frog continues to whip Hishou. The roof of the iceberg starts coming down on top of them until they're crouched low to the ground holding it up, still arguing. Condor tells Phoenix what he remembers of that day they were attacked. Phoenix begins to channel heat through his body up into the iceberg. It cracks and they escape. Condor uses Condor Lance to cut the tongue of the frog. He picks up Hishou. The woman tries to blast them but misses. The frog mutates a bigger, uglier demon. Phoenix uses an attack that sounds like Phoenix Saucer, which is a thrown ring of fire. It hits the monster in the mouth. Phoenix summons his bass and uses an attack that throws a fireball off the end of the double-bladed axe. He changes into his bird-plane form that looks like a bird completely made of fire, flies through the demon and destroys it. Phoenix is about to go for the female demon, but she's between himself and Condor and Hishou. She disappears. Ace, having de-transformed, watches Phoenix heal Hishou as he'd begun to do in his bedroom, using the heat through his hand. He flies away as Hishou and Ace watch.
The female demon returns to Luche, who is not impressed with her failure.
Meanwhile, Ikazuchi, Ginga and Hayate are yelling at Ace and Hishou for skipping out on the demeaning tv show (even Reiko and Tsubasa get into it). They all throw the same things at the pair that had been thrown at them.