#the number of toku actors showing up was also fun

[number-one-toku-robot-lover]

you finished ketai sosakan 7!

thoughts?

But, in more seriousness...

I loved it! The eldritch machine horror, the looming question of humanity's capacity to engage with intelligent life beyond ourselves, the precious and adorable little cellphones! (´▽`ʃ♡ƪ)

I was pleasantly surprised by how much the show made me care about Takimoto through Seven! Mr. Haunting the Narrative...Mr. Literal Ghost in the Machine...

The more episodic episodes were (as usual with longer series) a little hit or miss? The show does drama a bit better than comedy generally, and the characters that are mainly in the comedic segments do suffer a bit from that, but that's not the end of the world to me. When the show gets it right, it gets it right. It's a lot like Robot Detective K in that respect.

I wonder if it would do well in a shorter form animated series, like Kikaider. I feel like it's so intensely 2008 that you couldn't do it now though.

[dangerouscommiesubversive]

for the writer meme: 📚🎬?

🎬 If a movie or show were based on your fic, which fic would you choose and who would you fancast?

I don't think I really have any fic up with sufficient legs to make a movie or show, although if I have to pick one I'd say "Thomas and the Fucking Tiger in the Living Room" could make a fun short movie. Unfortunately, I don't know enough about current actors to do any kind of fancasting.

📚 Is there a fanfic or fanfic writer you recommend?

Oh, man. I actually don't read a lot of fic myself, or at least I haven't until recently, when I got into MDZS and other danmei and apparently plunged right into the depths of hyperfixation hell. But yes! I have recs, here are some recs.

For toku fic:

Ihasa (@timetoddddavis) is absolutely a favorite of mine, and this is entirely separate from us being friends. Start with The Nerve or A Delicate Procedure.

oryx (@kabutoraiger) is another favorite author. Start with corner of the sky, which brings me joy whenever I read it.

serves two by insectoid_demigodess (@si-siw) is a beautiful story about Shou Ronpou, Spada, and soup

a million-zagin smile by Laylah is possibly the world's cutest sex pollen story, about Doc and Gai

have your cake by renquise is up there on the list of "funniest stories I've ever read," apart from being very very sexy

For fic about various danmei and their associate dramas:

giraffeter (who is also @giraffeter here) is excellent--I highly recommend An Elegant Solution for a start.

seularen (@redundare)--I was just recommending (i've got) trouble in mind earlier, but I also have a bunch more of their fics open in tabs to read through and I'm excited about that.

99_9 is excellent, go read all of WWMMD? at your earliest convenience. And then read their KinnPorsche fic next.

Ariaste (@ariaste) is fantastic, and I have read an act too often neglected a perhaps-unseemly number of times.

A Pavlovian Approach to Honesty by Stratisphyre is...tremendously funny. Perhaps the funniest. I love it.

raw silk and uncut wood by hisevilforest may in fact be the best SongXueXiao I've ever read.

Speaking of SongXueXiao, Composite Animals by newredshoes is the fascinating biopunk AU that I legitimately never knew I needed until a few days ago.

One Step Forward, Three Steps Back and its sequels, by hollybennett123, are very good, very sexy Word of Honor fics, and include Han Ying, which makes me go ❗ like a Metal Gear Solid guard but in a good way

Waltz, Tango, Foxtrot by ladyofrosefire and ritualist is that most rare and extraordinary of pleasures, a Competitive Ballroom Dance AU, and it starts with Xie'er and Ye Baiyi doing a drunken tango at a party of Wen Kexing's. It's a treat all around.

[reversemoon255]

Ultraman Z

So I finished my first Ultra Series! It's not that I haven't tried before; I've tried watching the original series, Nexus, Geed, and R/B. I can't put my finger on it, but there's always something that puts me off from Ultra stuff, which is weird because I love a lot of their ideas. They have a united continuity that spans through the series, not just the movies. They have a reoccurring cast of both Kaiju and heroes. Each series is sequentially followed by the next. They're all issues I've had with other Tokusatsu series in the past that are well executed here.

While I find it hard to suss out what typically doesn't agree with me, I think it's the writing. Either the comedy, or the juxtaposition between that and its serious moments, or its characters. It's actually really hard to pin down. Hopefully writing my opinions on the series will help me sort out those feelings.

The Good: Where to begin? The overall plot was a good one. A handful of episodic one-offs in between story progression. We've got a parasitic entity running around, originally only sticking to one host and moving on to more important ones as the series hit its stride, eventually ending up in one of our main characters. We have Jugglus Juggler as the leader of STORAGE and his plans, the sublimation of STORAGE into another organization. It's not a lot, but it's also a 25 episode series, so it feels like the right amount considering the filler episodes.

The characters were also very fun. Haruki could be a little annoying with his repetitive dialogue, but was heroic and a good person. His small arc in the middle of the show after fighting the Red Kings ended fantastically with his meeting with his father, and was definitely an emotional highlight. Seeing Jugglus Juggler come back in a major supporting roll was cool. He definitely proved he was a good guy, despite his chaotic nature. It was also cool that, when his identity was revealed, the team still trusted him. I like Yoko. As someone not as familiar with the human characters in Ultraman as the aliens, having her be the main pilot of the robots fighting off Kaiju was cool. I know other season have had combative female characters, but it's not normally toe-to-toe with Kaiju in the way Yoko was. Also, her possession at the end of the series, while sad she couldn't participate in the final fight, added a lot of personal stakes for the characters and worked very well. Yuka was ok. She didn't leave a big impression on me, and was definitely the weakest character in my eyes. As far as I know, this was Bako's first Ultra Series appearance, but it felt like there was this huge inside joke about him that I wasn't aware of. Still, I liked him. He was probably the most consistently funny character among the cast, and was a great actor that brought a lot of depth to a more minor character.

And the action in this series was great. I've watched several of the movies from the Ultra Series, but seeing it done for a televised format was really cool. The series I have the most experience with are the original from the 70s, and Nexus which took place on a naturalistic, earthy set. As someone who does work with miniatures, the set design for the monster fights was spectacular. Leaps and bounds above what Super Sentai normally does (as blasphemous as it is for me to say). They did a great job portraying the scale, with tons of fairly well-executed effect perspective shots. The actual choreography and use of effects was great, too. The episode with Ultraman Ace in particular was a sight to behold. As long as Tsuburaya keeps putting their shows up on YouTube, I'll probably keep watching for the action alone.

The Bad: Going in the same order, while the overall plot was fine, and the episodics were ok, they were hampered by the heavy inclusion of clip shows. Out of 26 episodes, 4 of them were clip shows, meaning the total number of episodes were significantly less than at first appearance. Also, those writing issues I talked about before were still here. The humor falls a lot flatter than other Toku series, and the characters, while they had stand-out personalities, didn't go through much development over the course of the series. After the Red King arc half-way through the show, Haruki stops growing as a person, and after getting Delta Rise Claw he stops developing as a hero. That isn't necessarily a bad thing, but I think it's because this show was so short that I feel this way. If a Red Ranger stops developing his character 10-15 episodes before the end of the series, then we would have still gone through 35-40 episodes of growth, but here it's half.

Also, I can't help but question what the budget for this series is. They have quite a number of sponsors, but they only really filmed 21 episodes if you take out the clip shows, and only a handful of costumes were new. There were only 4 new Kaiju designs, and 6 Ultras. Are the sets really that expensive? I know I'm just comparing them to Sentai and Rider, but they typically have 4x that in 2x the episodes.

Overall, I did enjoy this series. It has some of the best action I've seen in a Tokusatsu series. However, when it comes to investment in characters and humor I still prefer the other series I'm familiar with. Maybe in time, and as I watch more season, I'll gradually warm up to it more. Until then, I'm enjoying the weirdness that is Absolute Conspiracy, and eagerly await whatever's next.

[biomic]

Best of Toku 2018

zali tagged me in this so here are my 100% correct toku opinions of 2018

Best New Show of 2018 - ultraman r/b!!!!!!! i wanna wait until it’s finished to really decide but it’s probably my favorite ultra Best New-to-You Show of 2018 - i was gonna say timeranger but i watched like half of it in 2017 so i’ll go with kamen rider hibiki, or at least the first half i’ve seen so far. it’s incredibly refreshing compared to other rider/toei shows, the slice of life stuff is so well done. it’s just a very cozy show  Best Rewatch of 2018 - rewatching abaranger and faiz back to back with skillz was one of the smartest ideas i’ve ever had, it’s the ideal way to watch both shows Best Movie of 2018 - kyuranger vs space squad!!!! yall know im mega weak for anything kyuranger related, and this movie finally gave hammy her time to shine. the returning villains were fun and it managed to get me super invested in mele despite not even watching her show, and the sentai actor cameos were nice too (tsuruhime!!). probably my favorite sentai movie overall, and not just because they announced winspector’s return in the post-credits scene Best Male Lead Character - the love of my life sento builds Best Female Lead Character - her <3

Best Male Supporting Character - ushio minato, most datable dad of 2k18 Best Female Supporting Character - tie between sawa builds and asahi from r/b

Best Villain - another tie between evolt and aizen. evolt is now my number one example of the villain you love to hate, he’s SUCH a fucking bastard. and aizen is just the perfect goofy, over the top antagonist. it would be so easy for him to come off as obnoxious but he makes every scene he’s in hysterical. i think it helps that he’s played a villain on a kid’s show before (in miracle tunes) so by the time he got cast for r/b he knew exactly what to do  Best Returning Past Character - takeru ghosts. i still can’t believe ghost got the best tribute episode in zi-o so far, but maybe im biased Best Actor - atsuhiro inukai. the scene where sento visits the place where aoba died......... Best Actress - kaho takada. the scene where she reacts to kazumi dying (dumb gag stuff aside) broke me because she made it feel so real :’( Toku Crushes of 2018 - sawa, keiichiro, tsukasa, r/b dad, and... ugh, woz Best Writer - shogo muto owns my ass, my computer, my phone, my dog, my Soul, now and forever Best Director - kazuya kamihoriuchi, obviously Best Suit Design - RABBIT! TANK! BEST MATCH! Best Weapon - the ruebe kourin, or the halo with knives in r/b. it’s a halo............... with knives

Best Mecha - patkaiser babey!!!!!! Best Fight Scene - when ryuga’s magma gets fucked for the first time against evolt. alternatively, any time the lupinrangers and patrangers teamed up to fight a gangler Best Dramatic Scene - all of build 21, the one where sento has to deal with the aftermath of killing aoba Best Comedic Scene - all of lupat 27, where sakuya and touma take a dance class together. literally the funniest toku episode we’ve had in years Biggest “WTF did I just watch?” Moment - everything i’ve seen on my dashboard about the jinga show Best Song - lupin/patren x’s theme, “M A X Power” Best Piece of Merchandise - sentai plushies Biggest Surprise of 2018 - takahashi and ohmori having nothing to do with ryusoulger lol

Award for Single Worst Thing in 2018 Tokusatsu - literally everything about how the narrative and taiga himself treated nico in brave and snipe. also what the fuck that came out this year??

i won’t tag anyone else but if you wanna do this go wild

[furederiko]

Time is of the essence here! That's why we shouldn't waste another day, and hurry ourselves for the recap-view of Kyuranger episode 25!!!

- Why is the Horologium Kyu Globe so important? According to Tsurugi, it governs TIME throughout the Kyuranger's universe. With said ability, it will enable the team to travel back in time and figure out what truly happened in the previous fight against Don Armage. Basically, it's the most powerful Kyu Globe of all, right? - As shown in the preview, this episode also serves as a Kotarou focus episode. And it doesn't waste time to get into that side as well, as the young boy immediately shares to his big bro Stinger about his desire to see a special person from the past: his mother Akemi Sakuma (played by Mizuho Hata, who previously portrayed Mugi Grafton... a.k.a. the third former yellow in this show!). He reveals that she had passed away not long after his little brother Jirou was born... Aaaaaaaw -_-. Dang it, do we really have to start an episode in such a melancholic way? Even Stinger is on the verge of breaking down... NOTE: For the record, Kotarou's mother is never addressed by her actual name throughout the episode. Her name Akemi is featured in the credit, thus I'll be using that for convenience purposes. - Remember the closing bit of episode 24, with Spada and Raptor alerting the ORION to follow them to Planet Tocky as soon as possible? Is it because Tecchu has already arrived and is attacking them? Not really. The 'distress call' was more about solving the planet's peculiar 'system'. Which is where this episode gets really NEAT. NOTE: Starting this episode, I'll be writing the name of the Rebellion spaceship in all capitals. Just to further separate it from Tsurugi's comrade Olion, the other survivor of the legendary battle in the past. Beside, I just found out that 'ORION' actually stands for 'Offensive Resistance Interstellar Orbiter of RebellioN'. Yes, took me 25 episodes to land on that information! LOL. - Apparently, the flat-shaped planet contains 12 keys placed in 12 different, clock-wise locations. Basically, it's a giant CLOCK when observed directly from above the ground. These levers need to be activated within 30 minutes from one another, in order to make it work and bring out the hidden Horologium Kyu Globe. Failing to set them up on time, means restarting from scratch. Yes, as if borrowing that pesky time-based puzzles from the "Tomb Raider" rule book! Clearly Spada and Raptor alone are TOO shorthanded to get this job done. No way they can each trigger 6 keys in time. Hence they have no choice but to call on the other members! Fun fact: Horologium is the Pendulum Constellation, which is usually depicted in form of a giant clock. The planet's name Tocky/Toki, is clearly derived from the Japanese word 'Toki', that literally means 'Time/Hour'. As a verb, the word 'Toku' also means 'To Solve/Untie', which itself plays out as a nice pun for this episode's clock-themed contraption. Over-Time might be using Tocky as their choice of translation, as a reference to 'Tick-Tock', the onomatopoeia or sound produced by a pendulum clock. - Each Kyuranger departs towards their respective hand number, which is a truly neat little touch. So Lucky goes to #1, Stinger to #2, Spada to #9, Kotarou to #11, and so on. Unfortunately, things might not be as easy as it seems. How so? Because specters from their past/memory begin materializing to confront/distract them from their goal. Sort of like mini-bosses, if you prefer to compare it to video games. - And they are? In order of appearances: Eridrone for Lucky, Scorpio for Stinger, Gonessy for Hammy, original Madako for Spada, Kuervo for Tsurugi, Supreme Commander Big Bear for Commander Xiao, Virgo-Garu for Garu, Naga for Balance, Professor Anton for Champ, Otome game-esque Suitors for Raptor (nope, NOT kidding XD), and last but not least... Akemi for Kotarou. The last one shouldn't be a surprise, considering the boy was indeed thinking about her just before they arrived on the planet. - Before we proceed, let's do a quick analysis. There are THREE type of 'Memories' that come into play in these scenes. Pure comic-reliefs, in the case of Garu and Raptor. Clear cut antagonists, like the case of Lucky and Stinger. And the third is important/precious people of the past, like what's happening with Xiao and Kotarou. Some intersect one another. Intriguingly, there are TWO specters that are acting... somewhat oddly out of character: Prof. Anton, and also Kuervo! We know that both should've been allies, yet they end up attacking Champ and Tsurugi as if... they are antagonists. I know this might not mean much, and it can very well be a plot inconsistency at best. On the other hand, I also can't help but wonder if it's actually... foreshadowing about future developments? Just think about it. Perhaps, one of them (particularly the latter) might have been the true face of Don Armage all along? Hmmmm.... - Leo Red, Scorpius Orange, and Chamaeleon Green are the first to eliminate their obstacles. The others begin to follow suit one by one, through various kind of difficulties. For example, while Balance pretty much gets to his key without ANY resistance, Dorado Yellow is having tough luck due to Madako's regenerating ability. Ouch!!! To make things worse, Tecchu sends out another actual clone of the Octopus assassin. Precisely, Otaku-Madako (the version that I think is everyone's instant favorite... LOL) to basically 'annoy' the team with her... devoted love for Moe-Hammy (and later the whole team). How on Earth Tecchu was able to obtain her body part, is beyond me. But that can't even be compared to Naga, when it is revealed that NOBODY showed up in front of him. It's a personal heart-breaking situation for him, who immediately wonders if his lack of heart is the cause to that. This one's clearly foreshadowing to what's going to happen to him... soon. Which once again... brings the case of Prof. Anton and Kuervo into question. - Kotarou is having a different kind of dilemma on his own. He can't turn on the key, because that means his mother is going to be gone again! Aaaaawww. I think anyone who has a heart, would have no trouble relating to this situation. I mean, what will you do if you're given another opportunity to spend a second chance with the loved ones you've lost, right? Tsurugi notices this, and his response is admirable. He's leaving the decision in Kotarou's hands. And boy oh boy, not only Kotarou steps it up by fully understanding what he must do, he also proves his strong resolution for it. Seriously, Kotarou might be the youngest member of the team, but he is certainly one of the stronger (if not THE strongest) character in this show. He might be small, but what a big heart indeed! And it helps that his actor truly sells it organically. As I've said over and over again, this boy is going to be HUGE moving forward! - Time for a 12-members transformation and roll call scene then! Yep... it might be a tad long (from 14:25 to 15:29), but also as grandiose and thrilling as one would expect. I personally love how it shows a close up shot from both side of Reds. Really stylish! Moreso, to think that it's already happening in episode 25 when previous seasons saved it for the last few episodes, only makes me wonder: what else will Kyuranger have in store for its second half?!! NOTE: For comparison sake, Kyoryuger waited until episode 39 to debut their glorious all 10-members transformation scene. While Zyuohger saved its 7-members transformation until episode 45. - The team is then separated into two. First half (Reds, Orange, Black, Green, and SkyBlue) deals with Tecchu. While the second (Commander, Blue, BN Thieves, Pink, and Yellow) sends Otaku-Madako back to where she truly belongs... the Comicket. Ahahahaha. And then everyone join hands to put down Tecchu for good, with their "Ultimate All Star Crash!". WHAT. A. COOL. FINISHER! All the while, Akemi watches as her son gallantly fights as savior for the universe. She might not be real, but I'm sure she's feeling really proud nonetheless. - Of course, why stop right there, eh? The great Kyutamajin is summoned, and this time around, EVERYONE gets to be brought onboard. Yes... just the way it's supposed to. And yes, it's undoubtedly a glorious and exciting sequence that would make any Super Sentai fans geek out and lose all sense of sanity. Just look at how those Kyu Globes light up, while their pilots can be seen behind them. STUNNING! The formation is 'effective' now, as different limbs can perform even stronger feat thanks to each cluster governing them. The Kyu Globes can also detach to their own Voyagers to give air support. Don't forget its over-powered "Ultimate Meteor Break! Super Galaxy!" finisher move. Suffice to say, this is one great mecha battle! Definitely the best one that the show has delivered so far. Farewell Tecchu, we barely knew ye... - We got our thrills, and a heavy share of amazing action... so it's time to end the episode, in a sentimental note. Yes, Kotarou needs to turn his key as the last piece of the contraption. Which means... it's goodbye time. His mom entrusts her eldest son to the team, asking them to watch over him. At this moment, I'm sure all the mellow-hearted audience (like yours truly) is beginning to lose their ability to hold back the tears. Rightfully so, because it's nothing short of a moving scene. Dang it, first Stinger and now Kotarou. Why does this season keep on giving us all these feels? - Horologium Kyu Globe is finally obtained, so what's next? Discovering the truth. It won't be easy though, because Don Armage has decided to send out... not one, but BOTH of his remaining Vice-Shoguns, Kukuruga and Akenba. Looks like dark times are about to loom over the Kyurangers fairly soon...

Overall: This was the kind of episode that made Kyuranger such a fun show to follow. It had great action, thrilling spectacle, the right amount of humor, but more importantly, it had heart. It boldly showed why a large set of characters just simply works. But at the same time, it still managed to include a powerful heart-tugging moment for the youngest member of the team. Whom, in case you forget, also serves as the surrogate for its intended audience. I came expecting this episode to be a total tearjerker fest, but I got a rollercoaster of emotion instead. That's wonderful! Also, this episode was all kind of smart. Debuting a Clock-themed Kyu Globe as some kind of celebration to having 12-members (who can represent each number)... was undeniably brilliant. Yes, it could've been more 'perfect' had it took place in episode 24 (get it? 24 hours?), but we know the circumstances that prevented one (remember those Golf delays that happened twice?). So it's an amazing feat nonetheless! Interestingly, and I've repeatedly said this before: we're only at the halfway point of the show (coincidentally, only around 48 out of 90-plus Kyu Globes -around half- have been used in the show/movie until now). Yet it feels like so many things have happened! Naturally, the major question would be: what more can we expect from this show? I guess we'll just have to continue tuning in and find out... Next week: Is having emotions truly a good thing? Go ask Naga about it...

Episode 25 Score: 8,3 out of 10

Visit THIS LINK to view a continuously updated listing of the Kyutama / Kyu Globes. Last Updated: August 15th, 2017 - Version 2.10. (WARNING: It might contain spoilers for future episodes)

All images are screencaptured from the series, provided by the FanSubber Over-Time. "Uchu Sentai Kyuranger" is produced by TOEI, and airs every Sunday on TV-Asahi. Credits and copyrights belong to their respective owners.

[tokupedia]

Kamen Rider 45th Anniversary File: Gaim

*ominous chimes sound followed by the sound of marching drums* ♫ Got it, Move~ Wooow~ ♬

2013

After a long hiatus with clipshow series to tide fans over, Tsuburaya finally creates a brand new Ultraman Series and Ultraman to celebrate the company’s 50th anniversary: Ultraman Ginga

Neo Ultra Q bring the original Ultra Q concept into the modern day as its “second season” and airs on satellite  TV.

Kyoryu plus Humans! After almost a decade, the fandom’s favorite motif of Dino Sentai returns! HEAR OUR ROAR! The invincible superstars of the 37th Sentai, Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger debut! Perfect-de gozaru!

DokiDoki! PreCure runs alongside the Strongest Braves and Armored Riders as the Pretty Cure series of that year.

Garo: Yami o Terasu Mono debuts on TV and stars a new Makai Knight: Ryuga Dougai.

Kouga returns for one last outing as the original Garo in Garo: Soukoku no Maryu. This film takes a more dark fantasy approach akin to 1980s Jim Henson as it is less about the scares and boobs and more of a gothic Wizard of Oz/Alice in Wonderland tale that the whole family can enjoy with only a little blood here and there.

Gatchaman becomes a live action movie....with disappointing changes made to the source material that upset the fans, resulting in a box office flop as it made it to #6 on the charts for only its first week and then fell hard straight to the bottom in the following weeks. Fans consider it one of the top 10 worst live action adaptations of an anime. 

Another dud was the film re-imagining of the 1960s hero Tiger Mask starring Eiji Wentz.

On the more raunchy side of things, Hentai Kamen debuts on the silver screen.

Koichi Sakamoto does two solo film projects: Travelers, a sci-fi action flick starring Nao Nagasawa and Ayumi Kinoshita and 009-1, a movie that commemorated the 75th anniversary of the birth of Shotaro Ishinomori (And haunts my nightmares!)

Nuligumar Z, something that slipped past even my radar. It is a film about a Magical Girl henshin superheroine who fights zombies!

When it came time to plan the next season, Producer Naomi Takebe had an interest in breaking away from the formula a bit as the Kamen Rider series had fallen into certain patterns such as only 2 or 3 heroes each season. The first idea that came about in the Toei studio was that there would be more Riders, akin to Ryuki. The next idea was that each would have a motif unique to each of them, at first the team passed around the idea of birds and insects but Bandai suggested something completely unorthodox: Fruit.

Naomi loved this idea as it was something that was never done before and would give a unique look to each Rider to match their personality. The Toei staff test marketed kids to find out what kinds of fruit they liked, with the most popular being oranges. So they decided to make an orange fruit samurai as the main lead! 

In terms of music, Avex got a band outside their record label, reggae group Shonan no Kaze, to perform some of the songs of the show and movies with the actors who play the main heroes doing their own themes. Ei Ei OH!

As for the trinkets, the staff wanted it to be like OOO where the device was easy to swap out. (And because OOO was the highest selling Kamen Rider toys on record to date and they kept trying to get those numbers again despite OOO being a lightning in a bottle happenstance.).

Naomi had one idea about “unlocking potential” and after some brainstorming, the staff came up with the idea of using padlocks as a gimmick and enhance it with the fruit motif. But the staff decided it needed a bit more pizazz so they chose to set the show it in a “Sengoku-like setting”, thus the concept of armors came about. To add more flavor, no pun intended, they chose not just armors from ancient Japan, but ancient China, European Knights, Norse Vikings, ancient Arabian archers and a Roman gladiator!

To add to the sheer bizarreness of this mixture they added a guy famously known for a show about killing young girls in a dark deconstruction of the magical girl genre as its head writer:

Gen Urobuchi, dubbed by fans of his work as “Gen the Butcher” or “The Urobutcher.” A self proclaimed nihilist in terms of his dark style of writing, Gen’s involvement caused quite a stir in the fandom and excitement built up. This happened because the voice of Kivat the 3rd from Kiva, Tomokazu Sugita, worked with him previously and introduced him to Naomi Takebe.

Despite seeming out of place for this type of thing, Gen was a huge fan of Kamen Rider, having read Ishinomori’s Black manga when he was a teen and favorites like Ryuki (which may or may not have inspired Puella Magi Madoka Magica) as well as universal fan faves like the Kamen Rider Black TV Show.

Gen also saw this as a challenge, as he had been in a rut doing nothing but anime for a while and needed a change of pace. He was instructed to make the series like “Early Showa Era” Kamen Rider, which only made fans want to see it more.

Then we saw the costumes.....and the fandom had a schism form as some thought Kamen Rider was “ruined 4everz”.

But Gaim is now one of the more highly praised Kamen Rider shows of recent memory. Many enjoying it for going into darker territory at times, having characters you root for, a few deaths and a genuine sense of danger if the heroes fail in the later parts of the season. Also, a plot that neatly threads together (more or less).

Granted, it also had a few hiccups, like the summer 2014 film that was more or less a forced tie-in to the 2014 FIFA World Cup, Kamen Rider Taisen’s plot and the awesome but forced and disrupting-a-story-arc Kikaider crossover episode to plug the movie Kikiader Reboot.

The praise was so high for the show that internet geek fan website Den of Geek proclaimed it as the best tokusatsu show in years. (I’d like to think Garo deserves that title at least once in a while and every toku franchise has its day when it hits it outta the park, but I’m just a Fox with opinion) I’d say go into Gaim with expectations leveled, as you are automatically setting yourself up for possible disappointment if overhype clouds your judgement.

If you think it is as great as everybody says, great! If you don’t like it, there are (currently as of this post) 27 other shows of varying styles and tone you can try out or other franchises of the toku genre that may be your cup of tea.

But enough yammering...It’s Lord Kouta’s stage now! ORAAAAA!

(Mr. Kazuraba circa 2013)

Real Name: Kouta Kazuraba

“Pluck the fruit of Heaven. That the world may be dyed in your image. Is that the glory you seek? Is that burden one you can bear? Know this. The lives of men are not ours to control, not even our own. We cannot defy the inexorable current of fate that carries us. But what if fate itself were to call you... To change the world? To turn the course of the future? You cannot defy your fate. But the fate of the world is in your hands!”

In a bustling planned community called Zawame City, the Yggdrasil Corporation provides everyday needs, from healthcare to housing to schools. Zawame used to be a small town, but Yggdrasil moved in and made it a pet project. With a large corporation running everything, people in Zawame feel it is like a “castle town” of the Sengoku Era of old.

And in this town, they call home, everyone hails to a Beat Rider song. Beat Riders are special dance groups that lift the spirits of the citizens. Beat Riders also engage in competitions for turf with other Beat Riders dance groups in Pokemon-like battles using Lock Seeds to summon monsters from another dimension called Inves. One former dancer is Kouta Kazuraba, who has given up his life as a member of Team Gaim and fun to basically adult. (I know that feeling all too well). This has caused a rift between his friends such as Mai as he no longer has time for them and after spending time with Team Gaim’s leader Yuya, goes back to his adult life.

Yuya later talks to a Lock Dealer named Sid, who offers him something to turn Team Gaim’s luck around after their loss to Team Baron...

Kouta later gets a text from Yuya, telling him he found “something good” with an image of a strange device sent as an attachment. Mai and Kouta then encounter a dimensional tear and go inside it, After Kouta picks some strange fruit from the dimension, a larger Inves appears and attacks Mai. They find the device lying on the ground and no sign of Yuya anywhere. Kouta puts on the device, as it looks like a belt buckle and it causes the fruit he was carrying to transform into Lock Seeds. The Inves finds them and chases them again back into their world, and after distracting it, Kouta uses the belt and a Lock seed to become what would later be dubbed an “Armored Rider”.

During his battle with the Inves, a mysterious blonde woman appears to warn Kouta that what he chooses next will determine the course of his fate. If he continues to continue, he will be forced to fight until the very end. Kouta kills the Inves and then goes down a winding path of mysteries, alliances, betrayals and revelations of the dark truth of both Yggdrasil Corp. and the Inves.

Looking back on it, that was when the gears were just starting to turn. But, we didn't realize anything at all. We didn't know that our fates were already written in stone. We just wanted the power to reach our dreams. We thought that helped shape us. That's what we all believed. In the endless war that was yet to come. We would discover that for ourselves.

-Kouta Kazuraba

During one adventure, he met his predecessor Kamen Rider Wizard, who bestowed the title of Kamen Rider to him and the two fought an evil sorcerer alongside the other Heisei Riders.

Gear:

Sengoku Driver

Lockseeds

Lockseed Holder

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Lock_Vehicles

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Armor_Parts

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Musou_Saber_Holster

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Musou_Saber

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Daidaimaru

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Ichigo_Kunai

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Pine_Iron

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Suika_Sojinto

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Sonic_Arrow

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Genesis_Driver#Genesis_Core_Unit

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/DJ_Gun

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Senyo_Joint

Powers:

Enhanced Strength from the various armors, skilled weapons user with various weapons at Gaim’s disposal which is further enhanced by his final form.

The Jimber Forms give Kouta a specific enhancement: Super Hearing in Jimber Peach, Super Speed in Jimber Cherry and Enhanced Power in Jimber Lemon. Kachidoki Arms generates fire from the war flags that Gaim carries and has an AWESOME Gun that turns into a Zanbatō!

When the “Madoka moment” happens in the show, Gaim basically becomes a demi-god. He has florakinesis, teleportation, spirit mediumship, telepathy, attack nullification, exorcism, healing powers, dream walking, reality warping, time travel (by way of the golden fruit), portal creation, resurrection ability and a healing factor. Kouta also possessed the power to terraform an environment as large as an entire planet.

Even if his Lockseeds are damaged, Kouta can regenerate them to working condition as long as he is alive and bears the power of the fruit.

Kiwami Arms can summon multiple Arms weapons which Kouta can manipulate via telekinesis to attack his opponents (as seen in the game All Kamen Rider: Rider Revolution).

Weaknesses:

Before the “Madoka moment”, all one needed to do to defeat Gaim was destroy his driver as he was an ordinary human or swipe away all his Lockseeds. He also was susceptible to mind control and “Dark Henshin-ed” once in to a black version of Gaim.

As a demi-god, it is shown that while Kouta is a formidable opponent, certain beings can drain his power away rendering him human again and thus able to be killed (Ex. Megahex). If the “back-up” of his genetic data inside the Kiwami Lockseed is destroyed, then Kouta would be dead and gone forever as he would have no means of reviving.

He also can be overpowered by stronger beings, though ones of such god-like cosmic threat level are few in the Kamen Rider universe.

Given his near God-tier status now though, it is a difficult task to even make a dent in him for the average Rider.

Enemies:

Inves

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Inves

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Advanced_Inves

Inves are beings from another dimension who at first are like Pokemon to the people of Earth, a fun harmless pet they could summon to fight battles in called the Inves Games from Lockseeds. However, it becomes apparent after the first episode that they are far from innocent, as they are wild beasts who feed on the fruit of the Helheim Forest/Lockseeds to grow even stronger and evolve into larger monsters and attack people. However, despite seeming to be mindless, there is a dark secret as to what exactly they are.

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Category:Over_Lord_Inves

Some of the Inves posses sapient-level intelligence and these are classified a the OverLord Inves. They command the feral and savage members of their race.

Yggdrasil Corp.

(Riff: Yggdrasil, a subsidiary of EvilCorp Conglomerates United and Amalgamated Cheese.)

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Yggdrasill_Corporation

Yggdrasil is a major multinational corporation run by the Kureshima family. They set up their new HQ in Zawame seemingly out of interest in a city development project, but have a more serious ulterior motive in stopping a mass outbreak of the Inves that they believe will wipe out humanity.

Despite this seemingly noble goal of saving humanity, Yggdrasil’s means of doing so are morally questionable at best and outright horrifying at worst.

Word eventually gets leaked that they were going to let 6 billion humans die as they could only save 1 billion in the event of mass outbreak if the Helheim Forest spread. They are then labeled as terrorists by the UN and after a domino effect, including a siege of the Zawame Branch by the Inves, the company went into bankruptcy.

However, its former CEO does try to repent for his company’s sins by helping rebuild Zawame and protecting it in Kouta’s absence.

(Though the Melon Lord wasn’t a bad guy to begin with, just a bit arrogant and misguided in believing there was no other way to save humanity and things went out of his control as the series progressed. Kouta eventually got through to him and the two became friends.)

That’s all for now, I leave you to bask in the metal mustachioed glory that is Kachidoki Arms!

#RiseUpYourFlag!