Thread by @Exalted_Speed

Welcome to the second Part of the Kamen Rider thread the secret stuff I had planed.....ALL THE WEIRD extra related crap that would distract from talking about the main stuff the first thread is 101, this is more 201. So lets get to the next semester.

Now let's talk about MOVIES. I decided to skip a couple riders for various reasons because the tv shows are the main meat of the franchise and the face, this is more extra, short, and supplemental, also....I'm going to be talking about certain....things.

First up after RX ended Kamen Rider went on an extended hiatus during the 90's, and so no new tv was made....but there were 3 movies made, one feature length the other two half that length,these are often lumped together.

Shin Kamen Rider. A more monstrous rider similar to the incredible hulk was the focus of the movie Shin Kamen Rider Prologue, a movie meant to lead to other projects this one didn't do well and so we only have the first movie of what was plan to be a bigger project.

the problem movie is that the effect and shin himself are amazing, but the movie overall is just not that great, while it tries to build a dark tragic plot, it fails to really create a great movie all the way through and is honestly kind of indulgent.

a lot of the reason people come to this movie is the unique ideas of What Shin is, but sadly it's a rather weak film. I think the film would have done better with more action just so we can really see Shin in action.

now lets get to the highpoint of the trilogy as it were. Kamen Rider ZO, a back to basic approach but a good one, directed by Keita Amemiya it's one of the best pieces of Kamen Rider media you can find, though it is basically Terminator 2 plot wise.

and Kamen Rider J, while it isn't bad, it's weaker then ZO, it's most famous aspect is the final Battle where J goes to Ultraman scale in his final fight. ZO and J would also team up in a small special called Kamen Rider world. Not bad but more eh.

After that were doing the 2000 movies Kamen Rider the first is a movie reboot of the First Kamen Rider series, there are MAJOR differences but it does incorporate some manga elements and changes the story to be more modern and dramatic.

The movie were written by writer Toshiki Inou who is a bit infamous, he was the head writer of several rider series and episodes, but his traits are love it or hate it, the first I will say I feel is a good movie even though it takes a bit to come together.

and then we Have Kamen Rider the Next. A movie that tried to adapt V3, this one is more.....okay this movie is kind of a mess at points, I feel like this COULD have worked but it's a mess. For one it tries to be J-Horror and doesn't handle it the best.

While the movie says it's a V3 adaption he really really gets the short end of the stick and is VERY different from his original form. Plus the J-Horror stuff feels out of place and gives the movie a weird identity crisis, making it hard to watch.

Now those are the Original Kamen Rider movies, let move to the other tv shows. Kamen Rider Amazons was a streaming original(on Amazon natch) reboot of the original Amazon tv show and I felt it was better placed here.

Amazons was also in production during the time of Kamen Rider Ghost and Amazons took ghost's budget away from it causing some issues there. I did consider putting Amazons on there but it is very much a side project.

Inspired by Tokyo Ghoul and the Netflix Marvel shows, Amazons is a streaming show meant for adult audiences with gruesome battles, dark subject matter, and the like and is perfect for the edgelord rider fan in your heart.

The show can be overbearing, while it's themes and idea are interesting the fact that it kind of just has to go for the darkest story choices make it a little tiring to watch, but I think it's overall good at least the first season, and has some great fights.

Season 2...is more questionable, some people REALLY like it others don't. This is more Amazons but it does have a new focus and if you want the other characters you have to wait a bit. THe show works if you find Chihiro compelling.

Last Judgment is the final movie for Amazons cutting off this branch of the franchise for now. Like season 2 people are split on it, it has some decent action but I do like the ending of season 2 better myself.

But alas we can't stop here.....for now we go to the movie Zyuranger VS RX, PLUS KIBARANGER......okay yes I'm going to talk about Masked Rider.

Masked Rider was an attempt by Saban to make Masked Rider for an American audience similar to what he did with Power Rangers, take the Japanese action footage and just film the non suit scenes with original American footage.

Now here's the thing Black Rx was lighthearted so it wasn't the worst idea to make the show like that....except the show is kind of every weird tv sitcom plot you can pile in. Dex is an alien who lives with a family while secretly fighting his Uncle's evil empire.

even compared to PR it's cheesy as fuck, and maybe more so...it does have some charm, as weird as it sounds, but this show is more famous for it's editing blunders then anything else....and Ferbus.

Knowing my followers if I don't talk about Ferbus they will Lynch me. Ferbus is a werid duck/gopher/nightmare alien thing that is part of the show and take up episodes. You will learn to either embrace the ferb or hate HIM WITH THE POWER OF A THOUSAND SUNS.

The show has some messed up editing in hindsight as well. For one they mixed up the Rider names when they had to adapt that crossover, leading to the rather infamous I am Amazon.

yes I will post the clip....

Anyway the show is probably the worst Saban production supposedly it was so bad that it tainted the Masked Rider name over here which is why we use Kamen Rider. Still This WAS my first exposure to the franchise in any form. So there is a little nostalgia and....

when I say a youtube video of Kamen Rider Kabuto transformation, his design actually reminded me of Masked Rider so I looked into it...and here I am.....So at the very least I had enough nostalgia to check out the franchise.

Now it isn't the only American Adaption, Dragon Knight is an adaption of Kamen Rider Ryuki and while it changes the story hard, it's still honestly kind of good, this was directed by the guys who did the Guyver movies and they were given a lot of freedom overall.

It was brought over to Japan and did well for itself, gaining a sequel novel and an ENTIRE FIGMA line where they got EVERY RIDER, it's a good option if your a Ryuki or dragon knight fan who wants a nice set of all the riders.

Anyway that's all the weird tv shows...okay let's talk about Kamen Rider G. Kamen Rider G was a special done with help of the boy band SMAP, a parody of Kamen Rider this special has been traded around by fans since it only aired once on tv.

It's honestly a fun special but due to the fact that it was made for a tv show with commentary you can't watch just the special to enjoy. Still it has good effects and is a fun watch if somehow manage to catch it. Also fuck Johnny and Associates.

Now this bring us to the first Kamen Rider anime SD Kamen rider it's a fun special that is meant for the HARDCORE...fans. Anyway it's a parody and it probably better served if your more familiar with the franchise.

now...that is done....wait....there's manga...OH GOD.......

Hi if you just followed me because I'm talking about Rider I should mention that I tend to be...a comic twitter. AND MANGA COUNTS AS COMICS. So I'm going to talk about the translated manga by fans and professionals over here now.

Now the first manga and the one that gets the lionshare of focus is Kamen Rider by creator Shotaro inshinimori, Shotaro made a BUNCH of manga connected to shows he helped in but he only made a few rider manga. The first one is a bit of a weird beast.

Similar to the Getter Robo the manga is a bit more violent, okay maybe a lot if this panel is any indication. So Rider it also had to switch leads due to the show and boy it's weird how it went about it. But it is legally available and will soon be out in Hardcover here.

the next manga Inshinimori did is Kamen Rider black, this like the original Rider manga is very different then the show, for one the manga has a more monstrous tranformation and a darker ending. This one inspired Gaim.

Kamen Rider ZO was a manga colab with Shotaro, done by Kazuhiko Shimamoto, his work includes titles like Blue Blaze which was turned into a drama, and the character designer of G Gundam. His manga tend to be VERY hot blooded and fun. I check it out.

Next up is the big one Kamen Rider Spirts, the first a retelling of the ZX story and more, this manga is tribute to the showa Rider and basically does it's best to make them FUCKING COOL AS POSSIBLE and fill in story gaps....it's a fun manga that is even easy to follow.

If you ever saw parodies of these pages that is where those come from. There is always more Rider to enjoy.

A recent manga that is getting some traction is the reboot of Kuuga, this manga retelling does a lot of different things, and apparently later chapters connect it to Agito. It got a cameo in the Zi-o movie.

Another manga is Fuuto Detective a continuation of W this one seems to be getting an anime adaption soon so be on the look out out of all these I have not read it but I felt like I should point it out.

*Hey what about the crossover movies....
No.
*Aw...
another time.

Those are A CAN OF WORMS AND DEBATES I DON'T TO DEAL WITH RIGHT NOW...So something special.

were going to talk about Skullman. The manga was what got the ball rolling on Rider and so this shared DNA means Skullman stuff get referenced every so often and honestly....if I'm going to talk about him might as WELL PUT HIM IN THE RIDER THREAD.

Skullman was when I first heard of him touted as the frist manga antihero, which isn't true but he was one of the first. This manga focused on his quest for vengeance and how he would stop at nothing to get it even harming innocents along the way.

the big twist of the story is him finding out that he was actually against his grandfather, and they killed his parents, but his sister was still alive, it ends tragically, and while it would never be more then a one shot it did get continuations and adaptations.

the first is the 90's manga by Kazuhiko Shimamoto while made as a sequel and intended that way, during production Shotaro Ishinimori died during it and it turned into a tribute manga to the man's work later in the run.

For one the final arc revolves around making a Kamen Rider. Yup and there are cameos by Many other major characters from other works by Ishinomori, Cyborg 009 gets a major cameo here as well.

Shockingly the skullman was brought over by tokyopop and you can find the volumes though they are out of print, plus there might be questionable translation choices.

Now Skullman did get an anime and like the manga is more a tribute piece. Made in a wave of productions dedicated to the mans work. It contains several homages to his work and is a has a fun twist with Cyborg 009.

Skullman would get PLENTY of homages in Rider, in Spirits Kazuya Taki a support character in the original rider took on a skullman like look when he became a rider, and of course Kamen Rider skull.

Now let's go into Blassreiter, it's not a Kamen Rider show..but it kind of is. For one the writers have all worked on Rider before, and I figure I can give a shout out here to check it out since it does not come up often anymore.

Now this is by Gonzo and the CGI is not the worst of it's time. It's honestly a good show, and the multiple views points give you a bit to chew on. A lost classic that while it's not a rider show officially it's the closest to a full anime out there RIGHT NOW.

and Ghost Rider.....because I KNOW AT LEAST ONE OF YOU WANTS ME TO MAKE TO COMPARISON. But yeah they are weirdly comparable with being given the power of evil and using to try and fight for good, it's not just being called Rider.

weirdly enough with both, when the car season Kamen Rider Drive came out the Ghost Rider with a car came out. Besides that it's kind of a joke in both fandoms.

and Kamen Rider also gets a lot of homages in Japanese media. to list EVERYONE..is kind of crazy, but Skullomania and and Justimon are two such examples.

and that's mostly it for now, on what I cover. This is mostly meant to help people and give some basics, and I hope you enjoyed. There is ALWAYS to talk about ,but I hope my....well big field guides help. Rider is a fun series to get into, and I hope you can see that.