gimmicks being overdone in kr?
 

it seems like after kiva they started overdoing the gimmicks with cards, memories, medals, switchings, rings, lockseeds, and toy cars, i mean the only series i think the gimmicks werent so overdone was double, but after that it was toy after toy were it just wasnt fun anymore in my opinion.

i can understand it's about money and collecting but how it's done in the show i think they are really overdoing it. i miss those days where in kr black you didnt need a bunch of toys to have fun with the belt and with the show.

you just strap on the belt and enjoy yourself while watching kamen rider black. now and days, it's all about gimmicks plus buying more stuff to enjoy it and it's just not fun that way.

what are your thoughts about it?

I dig it, some times it is over done like in Gaim when they Henshin and like you hear the Henshin Arms Sound Line go over the lines such as... ORANGE ARMS/BANANA ARMS KNIGHT OF ON THE STAGE!! Stuff like that only really bugs me, for W it was all right, Decade I dig since it felt epic or cool in a sense, Drive is pretty cool to plus who doesn't like Machin Chaser Gun sound?

I know what you mean, but I don't have the same feeling about it.

I don't think I enjoy my Fourze Driver less because I just have 5 switches, to be honest. It really depends in what you want from the toy. I mean, I'd like to collect more, but I'm also fine with my basic stuff so far.

Of course it's a bit hard to collect all the stuff, especially if it is relatively exensive, like the Lock seeds, but on the other hand, you are not forced to buy everything. I just buy the stuff I like and than leave it at that.

Yes, there is a bunch of gimmicks but then again, it also gives you a wide variety of things you can do with the toy once you have them.

I like to view the first 9 years of the Heisei Rider era(Kuuga ~ Kiva) as a trial period.
Kamen Rider had a 11-year sabbatical after Black RX, and Toei was pretty much working from scratch when they did Kuuga.
And after 9 years, I like to assume that based on the accumulated data from toy sales, show ratings, internet and media feedback, etc. they ended up with what I like to call "phase 2" of the Heisei-era Kamen Rider franchise as a solution to better the franchise.
And so far it has done wonders for Bandai in terms of sales, and I noticed the overall complaints regarding the stories have subsided to a certain degree, which is good compared to the days when writers except Kobayashi were hated so much.

Regardless of whether it is overdone I think it is fine for now. But I would like to say that after we get our 20th rider and we hit Heisei Rider no.21, they should come up with another new set of rules to keep things fresh.

Yeah, the shift into Neo-Heisei is notable in this alone. It helps business, but I thoroughly believe you can take any gimmick & make it into a good story. However I can tell just from looking at what little I've seen of Gaim, Wizard, Drive & Fourze that those seasons are gonna have issues based on the fact that they have too much merchandise. Gaim especially as I thought we would have a rather even distribution of power due to the war feeling it gave but there was actually a lot of missed potential with Gaim's mechanics. Like each of the four main characters had access to both a Sengoku Driver & Genesis Core at multiple points in the show & only Kouta used Jimber Arms. Plus Wizard's numerous forms with hardly any differences between them was annoying as well as Fourze, & I'm sure eventually Drive, having more Astro Switches/Shift Cars than they know what to do with, resulting in many being forgotten. I enjoy gimmicks & toys as much as I can, they're lots of fun. Especially the ones I've seen KR utilize. But there is such a thing as too much of a good thing. I feel the gimmicks need to be spread out across a good amount of the cast with proper use of the items of power from said cast instead of just having them act as extra Wizard Ring Holders or Shift Car Holders. Over-saturation can lead to ruin & while I don't think KR is quite at that point yet it's easy to get there from where they stand now.

I think there's a big difference in reaction to the gimmicks when they fit well in the story, or when the writer is compelled to throw them to our face.

I agree with you, I found out Gaim was ok in this regard, you know early where the lockseeds came from, new introductions were less frequent in the last 2/3rds. As there was many riders, it didn't feel they had too much forms/arms, aside from Kouta who is the flagship of the show.
I made a comment on Drive ep.5 thread that the shift cars annoy me (but the show is still good !).

You guys all realize that without gimmicks there is no Kamen Rider, right? The show, and Super Sentai, both exist for one reason. Toy Sales. And nothing pushes toys like a gimmick. Just look at the sales for the AC stuff if you want proof.

We're more than aware of that. We just wanna discuss thoughts & feeling about them. Like I said I enjoy good toys, but I feel as good as the sales are they could actually be a little better if done correctly in the show. It's not like Bandai & Toei really need to since they're content with what they're doing at the moment. But everyone likes to look at businesses like the greedy, villainous companies media portrays them as. And I think part of that is because some are. And if Bandai & Toei are then why not go for even more cash than they already make? Like I don't know stats or anything like that, but let's just say hypothetically Wizard Rings made about $5 million. If there weren't as many complaints about the merchandise being overstuffed or Haruto just stealing all the goodies for himself then maybe Wizard Rings could've pulled around $5 & 1/2 million. Maybe $6 million but I feel that's pushing it. You're always gonna get the core audiences' money (mostly children & adults from Japan but I believe they make good money overseas as well, just not nearly as much as the homeland) since KR has been such a consistent product from Kuuga onward. So if you avoid having as many missteps as possible with your show you can get that extra $500,000 or $1 million or however much from casual fans or people that don't buy the toys & just watch the show. But like I said they seem okay with what they got. I'm just confused as to why any business would be content with anything & why they wouldn't try to reach that possibly unnecessary extra cash. Perhaps there's just business stuff we don't know about. I would've guessed resources were scarce but given all the suits we got in Wizard & Gaim I think saying they don't have too much of a limit on resources is an okay guess. If that's not it then what? Maybe they're not as bad as people make all these companies out to be. I don't know. Sorry that I rambled like this, habit of mine. ^^;

Unless there is a major change in people's shopping habits otherwise the makers and sponsors will keep the old rules going.

Tell that to the Showa era.