Kamen Rider BLACK #14

"Red Bull..."

"...gives you wings!"

Kamen Rider BLACK #14 is about energy drinks. No joke. Really, it is about energy drinks.

Whilst the majority of energy drinks don’t use actual taurine nowadays and instead use a cheaper, synthetic alternative (which makes life considerably easier for vegetarians like myself) the Coca-Cola manufactured Relentless continues to use tuna derived taurine and the substance also turns up in certain types of cat biscuits… so, I can’t help but think that what Mammoth Mutant should have actually done is popped down to Sainsbury’s and done a little food shopping.

Certainly it would have saved Golgom the task of having to steal mountain loads of fish. See kids, this is the kind of thinking that goes on behind crazy, apocalyptic mutant cults with a love of invasive surgery. Be warned!

Kamen Rider DCD #27 Review (SPOILERS)

[SPOILERS - major ones actually]

There was a lot of unnecessary melodrama in this episode – of course there was also a lot of melodrama for all the right reasons as well. The emotional resonance of Yuusuke losing Natsumi, just as he once lost Ai, should have been really moving but it never quite came across as convincing. Even with the idea that Natsumi may well indeed be dead (until the movie/next episode/next scene/delete as applicable) the facts never quite coalesced into the dramatic moment that should have been on screen before us.

Regardless, there’s also a lot to recommend this episode, so don’t let one misplaced subplot put you off.

A while ago, myself and Mister Watts were talking about the nature of Kaito’s ‘summoning’ skills. I never quite managed to work out whether he was creating puppets of the characters based on the details on their cards or if he was actually pulling them out of their respective universes. As of this episode, I’m going to have to say he summons them…otherwise there’s no way this episode can work.

It should be noted that in episode #18, Kaito summons Momotaros who very much, like Black here, exhibits his own personality. It should also be noted that it was Yonemura Shoji who wrote both of these arcs. This may possibly mean that the role of Kaito’s ‘summons’ is subjective and open to change depending on each writer.

Whatever the case (and who really cares, I’m sure you’re thinking), in this episode Black teams up with Black RX, Double Rider Kick and all.

Now you see them...

One thing I find myself missing though is the old Final Form Ride sequences, weird and disjointed as they might have been. Having skipped a block of episodes, I haven’t been able to get used to Laminated Card Mode or whatever it’s called and, if I’m honest, having a guy sellotape playing cards to himself and summon an echo of a past Heisei Rider doesn’t have the same kick or originality as two (or three) Riders teaming up for a last ditch attack against an evil foe.

Just saying.

This episode’s final scene with Minami Kotaro (and I’ve just noticed he managed to keep his whole original name as well as the original actor who played him) and Tsukasa is heart warming. It’s the kind of scene I watch these shows for. It’s a scene about heroes.

Now you don't!

So…next episode! I’m really excited! I have a soft spot for Amazon and, even though it definitely looks like a new actor will be playing him, I’m confident that it could still be a lot of fun (as long as Inoue stays out of the picture). It does seem an odd choice though. Considering that DCD is supposed to be ending with #30 or #31, it seems strange to spend two episodes in Amazon’s World before wrapping up the Rider War threads in the last episode or two.

Unless, of course, Toei are planning on running W and DCD concurrently come September.

Either way, I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.

Kamen Rider DCD #26 Review (SPOILERS)

[SPOILERS...for the one person who might be expecting this]

I must admit it did take me right until the end of this episode to really get into this and part of that came with the transition from Black RX to Black. That sounds like I’m already complaining doesn’t it? Well, I am. Black RX is the proto-Heisei, which isn’t such a bad thing as, by default, it is very much the blueprint for Kuuga, but it does mean that it is something of a series with ‘two masters’.

As the absence of my curmudgeonly reviews will attest, I’ve been away from the series for a while. I did watch #24 but had absolutely nothing to say about it so saw little point in trying to update about it. The other two post-Hibiki episodes…well, I’m trying my best to forget them in all honesty.

"Who's Bad?"

I love the internet in that it obviously connects people and allows for the almost instantaneous passing on of information and data. Sadly it also allows, at the click of a mere mouse button, for the casual nostalgic to discover what became of icons of his or her rose-tinted youth. Seeing Battle Hopper’s weather-worn form amongst the dead of the Tokusatsu Graveyard was a defining moment for me. Knowing this, I found myself somewhat cynical when this episode was announced and it was revealed that DCD and RX would be fighting Fangries and Imajin.

Still, some classic period monsters are represented, the most notable, for me at least, being Black‘s Rhino Mutant (or Rhino BASTARD as I began to call him during Super Hero Retsuden). It will be interesting to see just how many classic monster suits are present in the forthcoming film and how many are newer creations or new suits modelled on older villains.

There’s a lot of emphasis on the Yuusuke/Natsumi pairing in this episode with Yuusuke getting one of his best scenes of recent times (and a Kuuga transformation to boot) in order to attempt to  rescue Natsumi from the poisonous attack of X‘s Apollo Geist. Little scenes like this went a long way to smoothing over some of the dislocation I felt from not being familiar with the previous post-Hibiki arcs.

One character who hasn’t evolved sadly is Diend, who still seems to be acting like a dick despite not having much of a reason to do so anymore. I’m strongly believe this is a case of the writers/staff not really knowing what to do with him and I must admit to feeling a tiny bit disappointed with this.

Other than that, it really is the transition to ‘Black’s World’ that has me excited. Kurata Tetsuo has obviously aged, there’s no point in trying to deny it, but it is nostalgic seeing him throw all the old moves. I’m not sure why the two shows have been fragmented into separate worlds but I’m not going to argue as, technically, all the Showa Riders are supposed to have been a part of the same continuity and thus, to get any kind of mileage out of the DCD formula, you need to take liberties. So fair enough, things will be broken down piecemeal but, hopefully along the way, it means we’ll also get a chance to see some fairly unique team ups – like the next episode’s Black/Black RX Double Rider team – and that certainly makes things at least interesting.

"I'm looking at the Man in the Mirror!"

Part of me is hoping we’ll now get to see a lot more of the Showa Riders in upcoming episodes but, realistically, I fear all of this is just a lead in to All Riders vs. Daishocker.

Feel free to prove me wrong, Toei!