Kamen Rider Saber X Ghost
 

I may have been unreasonably hyped up for this thing, as anyone who has ever seen me express an opinion on either Saber or Ghost could easily guess.

I had a really good feeling about it, you know? It was glaringly obvious to me this wouldn't be some quick cash grab to bait people into buying a TTFC subscription, because I guarantee you there was not an overwhelming demand for this crossover from Rider fans. It really came off to me more as something Takurou Fukuda probably wrote on a whim, as though he were making fan-fiction of his own shows, that miraculously escalated to the status of real thing, with returning actors and Sakamoto directing and everything! Even the way this wasn't split into two shorter, staggered parts like most of these specials have been up to now speaks to how it's not really trying to command anyone's attention too hard. It's just like Toei randomly going "Here's Saber and Ghost together! Watch it maybe, we guess!"

Well don't mind if I do!

I loved pretty much everything about this, and it's the kind of straightforward team-up I wish more Rider shows could get. There's no huge crisis or melodramatic infighting, because -- especially with these two shows -- there doesn't need to be. You can totally have Takeru on some random case that Touma happens to get involved in, and that's more than enough. I'm here to see a fun meet cute scene between two of my favorite Riders where they pick each other's dropped collectable items off the ground, and that's exactly what I got!

It seriously is just about everything I hoped for, especially in terms of Ghost fanservice. I mean, you've got Takeru's awesome BGM kicking in as soon as he makes his appearance; you've got Javert trying to waste another Gundari all these years later; you've got Takeru introducing himself to Touma with the show's most iconic quote, delivered with the exact same cadence as ever. It's not all here, obviously, as there are some huge limits on what you can do with only three returning actors in 22 minutes, but within that context, there's so much going on here that made me so insanely happy. Just little moments like having Takeru know Touma from being a fan of his book, too, are all so warm and delightful. I say this feels like Fukuda writing a fan-fiction because if it were me writing it instead, that is exactly the kind of stuff I'd be putting in as someone who loves both these series.

Bringing in elements from the Specter V-Cinema to make this feel like a true continuation of the show's narrative from where we last saw it is also a nice touch, especially since that movie is something of a high point for Ghost, but of course, it doesn't amount to much... on its own anyway. The cliffhanger ending is something I can definitely take or leave, but then, it also comes after the credits, as though encouraging the viewer to take or leave it as they so choose. Isn't that generous of them! (And yes, I do praise Ghost *this* compulsively, apparently.)

It genuinely isn't a huge deal though, as a simple plot keeps the focus tighter. I mean, most of it is legitimately generated entirely by Kanon wandering around saying onii-chan a bunch; I think Fukuda was pretty conscious of what he was doing here. It's just enough story to give proper context, which kinda proves how little of that you need to justify Desast doing anything. He's half the reason Touma and Mei get involved, and as ever, this is merely something he's doing to stave off boredom on that particular day. I'm poking fun, but it really is accomplishing everything it needs to, which is just giving that trim cast of characters some time to shine. Touma letting himself get beat to heck entirely to reach out to Kanon was especially great -- exactly the sort of climax I expect from either of these series.

The action sequence wrapping everything up is suitably celebratory in its execution. I honestly can't hate the explanation for Saber's new form being that Takeru's family has apparently just always had a Wonder Ride Book specifically about Ghost sitting around the temple somewhere, and it was awesome that they thought to get Musashi Damashii in there on top of Grateful. And it was also awesome seeing Grateful! Sakamoto already directed a couple REALLY good fight scenes back in Ghost that ended with Grateful Damashii doing a Rider Kick too, so it's good to see that tradition carrying on here... and with Saber getting in on it! You guys!

I can try and qualify this all day, but as you can definitely guess from reading the above disjointed rambling, I'm mostly just still really, really freakin' happy to see that this is a thing that exists that I actually got to watch? Like I said at the start, Saber X Ghost is NOT a special I think most fans will be fawning over, but for someone like me, basically the exact target audience, this was an amazing treat for something so simple.

I've yet to see any subs go up but I absolutely agree with all these points in this opening post! It was a fun special. They really nailed the Javert stuff in this, I especially loved that they continued the gag from the Final Stage where he yells for Gundari's to come but he can't bring them out because, 1 he's human, and 2 they're all dead.

Though honestly compared to most TTFC endeavors and their teasing... this one feels like, more deliberate? Like the thing is we sort of solve the dilemma and everything in these shorts even if there's like the one off teasing but like... we didn't here?

The fact that this isn't split into two parts immediately. That there's this hooded dude around the 1:23 mark that we get no elaboration on. That we only dealt with one of Danton's disciples with the other two making a getaway with Kanon, and the fact that Kanon is still messed up in the head. It makes me sort of confident that there's going to be a continuation to this compared to all the others. Especially given it had a post credits scene and these usually never do.

I'm the kind of nerd who will nitpick that Takeru wrongly used his regular catchphrase during that finisher instead of Grateful's! : P

Anyhow, maybe that cliffhanger will get resolved in the Super Hero Senki film. Referencing events from a weird one-off crossover in another weird one-off crossover just feels fitting to me

Jabel the menacing general reduced to comedy relief kisser. Kanon seems out of character with Fetish and cliffhanger. Though it might expand streaming service talk despite two bad decade vs zio. They might do a shinobi sequel with montage of what he been up to sort of like gobuster vcinemw tropes .

Well yeah that was explained in the special, Danton's disciples seemed to have captured her and did some sort of memory reprogramming to get her to seek out Makoto.

Speaking of! I suppose that it's time to start my extended thoughts on this because subs just came out a few hours ago! So I guess Makoto walking alone on that path at the end of Specter's V-Cinema is an actual literal thing! I thought it was just him going for a walk but nope. It seems as though he's been MIA for quite a while given that Danton's disciples want to use Kanon to find Makoto. Guess the Specter V-Cinema shook him up enough to where he decided to go full hermit. And most likely in the human world too.

Can I just say that I'm still surprised we're following up these plot beats. I do like how the Ganma World is considered too developed now to actually conquer so the disciples try to do Danton's plan with Earth instead. I also found it cute how Takeru see's this and is like "I won't let you make Chloe sad!" like bless his heart, he found love, and it's absolutely adorable.

I also just love how they found the perfect way to bring Touma and Mei into this, a stroll to their chief editor ends up being derailed by seemingly a Megid plot. Desast was very much the perfect choice on the Megid side to bring Touma and Mei in. He's an established dangerous character, and he's the kind of guy who would do this kind of stuff. As twitter has established, he's a guy who just wants to live life and roam around. So of course he'd see someone not human calling out for their brother and be like, "Well I'm not being bored today", and jumping on that chance. I found it really endearing how Desast is like "Hey you and me, we're alike, let me be your brother." and then he proceeds to get the crap kicked out of him.

Also just genuinely how wholesome Takeru and Touma's interactions end up being is something great. They meet up on accident, inspect their toys, and then come to the sudden realization later via yells they already met and that they're Kamen Riders. Again, it's a simple special, but it honestly makes use of the cast they were given greatly.

But yeah no, there has to be a followup of some kind coming after this. There's way too much left hanging compared to the usual TTFC standards here. The fact that two of the three villains introduced just bugger off, and with Kanon too who's mind is still messed up. The fact this wasn't split into two parts like prior productions like this when they normally are, not to mention that it was a post credits cliffhanger which I'm pretty sure is a first. Oh and Mr. Hooded Man at the very beginning who, while I can't read Japanese characters, I'm pretty sure has a ???? credit when the credits roll.

All I have to say is that I'm grinning ear to ear watching this. It's quite frankly the best TTFC content we've gotten imo. Ghost may get alot of flack but generally people really like Ghost side content. And on that topic the show I want next to get an official english release would be Ghost because it will let both new people who never seen it to give it a chance. And secondly it might even give peole who didn't like Ghost a 2nd chance.

Also Desast got surpisingly depth with his feelings of being an artifical being and how his persoanlity and emotions are fake. And how he hates innocence for some reason.

Also Fish man you must freaked out over seeing Brave Dragon so much again. :lolol

Three separate transformations and everything! It was great!!! :p

I was surprised by how much this crossover focused on Desast. He's kind of like Rintarou, but without a sense of morality. They're both orphans looking for a family. Rintarou found his with Team Saber, now Desast wants to be a big bro to Kanon, relating to her as a fellow orphaned artificial lifeform. Like maybe what Desast needs in his life isn't more excitement, he has enough of that in his blogs, but to find some people who care about him. Maybe he's just secretly really lonely and tragically misunderstood. We finally get to see his alleged rivalry with Touma for the first time and it reminds me a lot of Ghost's and Specter's fights during the first 99 days deadline, with Desast mocking Touma for his innocence and not understanding what it means to live in Hell. That's a really clever parallel to increase sympathy for him and I totally need to start giving Fukuda more credit. This here, Takahashi, is how you write a crossover between your two shows! Desast needs a hug.

On the Ghost side, since of course this is also a crossover with my fourth favorite Heisei Rider show so I feel obliged to mention something about it, I thought it was great just to see Takeru and the gang again and Jabel trying to reason with Desast like how Onari did to him, even though it didn't work here. He probably just needs to train some more to get on Onari's level. I like how Takeru acted as a sempai Rider to Touma as well as declaring himself a fan of his book, they get along real tight as people who appreciate the wonder in the world and the stories of people who give them inspiration. Looks like my speculation about Danton's followers was correct. They're using Kanon to get to Makoto. He's the key to recreating the ultimate lifeform. I'm excited to see where the post-credits scene leads!

Bahahaha, I love how everyone here just seems to agree that Desast was in a sympathetic position here. Even Desast's twitter post referencing it is him sadly going 'It's not like I need friends or anything, but I could have made friends with another nonhuman...' It makes his confrontation with Touma sorta come off as, geez Touma, no need for the personal attack about Desast's feelings >;P.

It's funny, for a wolf-beetle-skeleton monster, he just doesn't feel like he's actually evil in any serious sense.

I mean aside from the killing people, which really his kill count is like... 3? He... doesn't really care to be villainous, yeah he likes to fight the good guys, that's about it. Dude just wants to live his life and I can respect that.

It's why I hope he survives the series.

Yeah, and at least one of those you kinda have to go 'fair...' since he offed the guy so he could get his own book back, and stop being used as his minion. Then the other two were barely characters. And hey, he's only gotten more chill since he got the chance to after retrieving his book. Just a real decent guy, that Desast! Or at least closer to neutral ;P

What I wonder about after Charybdis showed up is if Desast had to grow up the same way we've seen (currently very little of) with the former? If Desast had three dads as terrible as the Megid trio, it would explain a lot about why he is the way he is!

Finally got around to watching this. It was alright! Not fantastic, could have been a lot better; but heck with it, I had a fun time for 20 minutes. Worth it just to see more of the Ghost cast honestly!

Not only that, I wanna see Sayo Ooharu/KiramaiPink return as well as the other Kiramagers. I'm so certain they're gonna rescue Kanon Fukami from those who kidnapped her. Now, what would be the interactivity between Kanon and Sayo looked like? We need more answers from Mio Kudou.

This was what I was holding out for too. I don't really know Ghost as a series, having only ever seen that one movie with bulky Ichigo, but I felt this was a bit... lacklustre? I didn't realise it was going to be so short, either. There will be a part two, I hope? They're not just going to leave it like that? What I really did like is how much Desast was in it, I thought he was especially interesting in the role he performed and his motivation during events.

Hopefully a follow-up will provide further clarity. *cough* and also has Buster in it too. :p

(Probably don't need a whole separate thread for this if we're still using the same news thread.)

So, despite that cliffhanger, I honestly did not expect there to be a Kamen Rider Specter X Blades following on from it. Like, there comes a point where it has to be too good to be true, right? I have to thank Toei for announcing this thing like a minute before it was released so I didn't even have time to get hyped, because I don't think I could've handled this kind of anticipation a second time around. I mean, now I also get a spin-off starring Rintarou and Makoto? And Kanon is a Kamen Rider!? This just keeps getting better and better!

And that's pretty much the story with this one, because I think I liked it even more than I liked the first part. For someone with a not entirely undeserved reputation for clunky series plotting, I'm amazed by how tight Fukuda's script is here. There's such a natural flow to how every line of dialogue is moving the plot forward while smoothly working in all these fun quirky character interactions and bits of exposition and whatever else the story needs to be the best it can be. Mei especially is like the MVP when it comes to keeping the conversations light on their feet, and it's written in a way where you could approach it strictly as a fan of just Saber or just Ghost and not be too lost. Rintarou gets to mention his whole no family deal early on so you know how he's looped into the themes, and the way he discusses the subject with Kanon unaware of the literal plot machinations of the Specter movie actually works way better to make you feel the emotional stakes, because it makes things about more than sci-fi clones created by mad scientists. In contrast, you still do get informed about all those plot details, so if you didn't watch the Specter movie (which you definitely should!), you can still follow along.

It's honestly some top notch writing from Fukuda, covering all the bases in a way that is so overkill for a "mere" TTFC spin-off. The thing that especially elevates it a bit above Saber X Ghost for me, which is strictly personal preference because they're both great, is that it leans more into genuine drama rather than focusing on the straightforward fanservice. I absolutely did not see character development for Kanon coming in 2021, but here we are. It's kind of amazing to me that she actually feels like Kanon, too, and not just Sayo with an Eyecon. I feel like Kanon's whole character concept of being the cute kid sister means it'd be tricky to figure out what she should be like years down the line, but they seriously pulled it off, between Fukuda's script and Mio Kudou's performance. She's still got that specific sort of subdued kindness, but she's clearly more mature now (which is down to Kudou's talent), and her whole drive here is take more responsibility without relying on onii-chan so much (which is down to Fukuda's).

And then like, she gets to transform and fight bad guys??? Be still, my beating heart! The climax is spectacular. I mean, let's run down the list here. You've got a new form for Blades where he puts on a Specter coat, embraces his inner Makoto, and sheathes his blade to just start wailing on a Ganma with his bare fists, which, like, awesome! You've got Kanon Specter, an adorable design pulling from my beloved Mugen Damashii, and using a generic sound from the Ghost Driver for the transformation sound just so it's hypothetically possible to make that Eyecon for the DX toy someday, because they're just that nice (or already have plans), which, like, awesome!!! And then you've got the man himself, Makoto, coming back and using his Mugen-inspired look, my favorite V-Cinema form ever, Sin Specter, back in action for one more awesome Rider Kick when I assumed I'd only ever see the one, which, like, awesome!

I know I said this one was better because it didn't focus on the fanservice as much, but don't take that to mean the fanservice wasn't just as great as ever. I mean, they've even got Kanon using Alain's catchphrase instead of ripping off Makoto's, which is such a nice wink and nod to, uh, the novel, was it? See, I don't even totally get all the fanservice here! That's how deep it goes! And on top of all of that, it's still fundamentally a nice standalone adventure where Rintarou gets to be his heroic self, fighting for the simple and noble goal of keeping a family together, because nothing could matter more than that. It's the second time I've said this, but this was an amazing treat for something so simple.

Somehow I didn't entirely comprehend how unreal this whole special felt until I was seeing new foootage of Sin Specter doing his movies like Gluttony Bite or Lust Bullet. It's like wow, what a treat for big fans of Specter ReBirth who still think about that movie to this day, which probably only includes me and like five other people on the planet.

The very last shot showing our rider's gimmick items on hand just like Ghost always did put a really big, stupid smile on my face too.

Oh, is that why she said that?! I just thought they figured 'might as well' if Necrom himself is not gonna get the chance to get in on this nostalgia-fest.

Considering Yuujou burst is being sold along with Kanon and Blades' new stuff, along with that tease at the end, they're next. Hopefully along with Espada!

Speak of the devil… https://p-bandai.jp/item/item-1000159485/

Yeah, I saw that news within literal minutes of posting that, which was pretty hilarious. :lol

How do you all see an Espada x Necrom teamup?

Subs are out!

This was an absolute treat to watch even though I mostly understood what was going on the first time.

It's mostly in the dialogue, like you have great moments like:

Kanon: The girl you met was my sister.
Rintaro: You look very similar. Perhaps you two are twins?
Kanon: To be fair, there's five of us.
Rintaro: Quintuplets?!

And also Desast continues to be a riot with his attempt to try and be a brother again, to the point where when all four Kanon clones show up, he looks around and calls out: "I can have four sisters now?!"

Real good stuff in regards to the dialogue.

But also it's just such a nice continuation of the Specter ReBirth plot line, to the point where I'm curious who the mysterious guy played by a wrestler is and what his stake in all of this is. Mostly because this seems to wrap it up mostly neatly, like aside from him still getting the dramatic stinger.

The idea of tying Rintaro and his whole family complex into this was also genius. He was definitely the perfect guy to help push the themes together. I also love that the Specter Ridebook just overrode his usual sword wielding persona and had him just throw hands with his opponent.

Kanon was also good here, trying to take matters into her own hands, and just seeing her as a fairly competent fighter in her own right is great. It's really cool seeing her pull off those moves. And just seeing her team up and perform combination attacks with her brother is also great. To the point where I'd like to say I really like the work that Yuki Miyazawa does in regards to her suit roles, her performances as Sabela and Kanon Specter are real good and I hope she gets more female rider suit roles as she goes further in her career.

Overall a fun special and a surprising treat for us fans of Ghost and Saber.

Necrom/Espada special next? :P

Most likely. Although a part of me wishes for an Onari VS Buster.

Touma geeking out over meeting Takeru and Makato makes me really excited for Superhero Senki where Touma gets to meet not only all the Main Riders but all the past Reds too.

Very surprised how much I liked this one!

My expectations were kinda low after Saber X Ghost, I gotta say -- though not in a bad way! That special I felt was mostly just fanservice without a lot of meat on the bone, which is fine; sometimes all you need is a Rider teamup where they have some fun exchanges and beat up a bad guy. Literally all you need in life sometimes!

But then this one went so much further than I expected by leaning very heavily into Ghost's V-cin story in a way that allowed a side character to have grown into a main character? And I mean, it's hard for me to really process the weight of it all until I've rewatched Sin Specter later this year; but I absolutely love how this special cleverly uses the leftover elements from that, ties it into Ghost's themes of family and human connection AND allows Kanon to become the main character of the piece. It's almost too perfect! Like... reaching out a hand to synthetic humans, treating them as their own people; a wonderful extension of Ghost's overall ethos and messages -- how DOES a series about humanity react when given artificial humans? By accepting them into your family too, of course!! Making them Kanon's little sisters - and focusing on that rather than their connection to Makoto despite the name of the special - was also a genius move in showing how a side character has grown in these last five years and how she would take everything that happened in the show to heart. She was the one being shown kindness and love and familial acceptance and self-sacrifice years ago, and now she gets to pass that on to her own family. It's so on-point for Ghost in such a subtle way and it's wonderful!

Taking that even further by allowing her to actually transform and be a badass hero and protector of the weak in her own way? EVEN BETTER!!! Putting aside for a second how much I love this form being pink and sparkly since it parallels Kudo's most recent role that I loved so much; this is one of the best Female Riders... ever? Like no, seriously; even though that's not a hard bar to clear, it's centred on her determination and her drive to protect others rather than the other way around that it usually unfortunately is; and man that is such a great breath of fresh air. She actually gets to stand on her own as a Rider, which makes seeing her teamup with her brother feel so much more legitimate and just downright fucking cool!

I guess if there's any downside, I think there wasn't as much runtime as there could have been which also led to elements like the Saber characters feeling sidelined? Granted they are pretty sweet, and I say this with the clarification that I'm not a Saber fan in the first place; but I just didn't get much from their appearance here? Rintarou's lines about family and how that connects to the special is decent, but it mostly feels like he stood around confused while Kanon regaled V-cin lore until Makoto handed him a power-up. I think there was potentially something there, but it needed a bit more room to breathe and ultimately felt more like he's just there so the title could say "a teamup of two secondaries!". In a similar manner, Takeru and Touma showing up at the end was... was a bit out of nowhere and weird? Like, hey guys! Where've you been? You've just sort of been hanging out now?? Oh, and... I really could have done without that reminder of Makoto's really weird dream sequence. Especially coming off the Shindai rubbish it's not something I wanted to see.

Still! Those are all more or less minor quibbles in what I felt was a wonderful continuation to Ghost 5 years later that basically done everything it needed to and more. Very tight script, very solid character work, just a great special all around! When I finish my Ghost rewatch later this year, I will not be unhappy at all to have this be its last stop.

Bring on Revice X Extremer :lolol

Or strictly for the LOLs, Kickhopper X Kenzan like I suggested in another thread. :lolol

Naturally, I really liked that bit! I kind of viewed it as their way of making sure we get to actually see Takeru and Makoto back on-screen together for at least a scene after another few years since Zi-O, but without bloating the narrative too much by outright turning it into Specter × Blades × Ghost. As a quick bit of fanservice with them doing their whole punch-catching routine again while letting Touma be even more of a dork about other Riders, I thought it was a cute way to wrap things up.

In terms of like, in-universe logic, yeah, it's maybe a bit odd, but on a narrative level I think it made total sense.

While I was watching Kanon henshin to a rider, a thought struck me: if I'm not mistaken Mio Kudo just became the first actress to be both a sentai heroine and a kamen rider. There has been a few female riders and as far as I know none of them even appeared on super sentai. So we just witnessed history with this special.