I just finished episodes 3 and 4 of Kamen Rider X. The fights in this show can get pretty brutal when he starts smacking people around with that Ridol Stick. It just looks painful. The enemies are pretty vicious, too. Killing, trying to kill, shoving a lady and her kid into a car compactor... It's not ridiculous like the public casualties in Kuuga, it fits.

Also, as cheesy as they are, I really like the monster outfits in this series. They're crude in their execution compared to what has been turned out in recent years, and there is a fundamental difference in the design aesthetics in these older shows and the monsters of today. It really makes for an interesting change, visually.

They use miniatures quite cleverly, too. The music is also entertaining and, I'm guessing, representative of its time in Japanese television production: lots of horns and dramatic male voices.

Though, I do have to admit, in reference to these specific episodes, Medusa went out like a chump. :lol

Sort of. But then that begs the questions about the Stone? Like where did it come from/who created it? I just feel like there are far more questions left unanswered by the end than those answered.

Yeah, I agree with you here. But then, the dude is thousands of years old, so no matter who likes him is a reverse pedo. :lol

They explained this in the middle of the series. The Battle Fight was to determine which species would become the dominate one on Earth.

I have no idea what to start next Kabuto or Hibiki..?? I really love the design of both suits, but I've heard a equal amount of good and bad from these riders.

Kabuto is probably the worst Toku show I've seen. You could try watching their pilots, I guess, though I hear Hibiki starts out reeeeeeeaaally weird.

Hibiki's not really weird, just very very different.

See my post directly above yours. My main concern is that yes it's to determine the dominant species, but why? The Stone is never explained.

If you don't know which to start, why not just get to both of them in order and roll with Hibiki first?

I like that sense of mystery, actually. Why should the stone be explained? How would knowing what the stone is and where it comes from improve the story or alter your opinion?

Kabuto is a pretty solid show if you can get past the kinda douchey protagonist. Hibiki is, like said, a very different show, but if it clicks for you you'll probably love it (at least until episode 30).

For some reason it doesn't seem to have its own thread, but we watched the ToQGer vs Gaim special today and did Toei not have anyone who actually works on Gaim even write this thing? Kouta was completely out of character. Mai was even more useless than ever. And the villains were crap. THe ToQGers were just, ARGH!!! Annoying is the best way to describe it. I haven't watched ToQ since episode 4, but this made me not want to watch 5 and 6. However, like I said, the whole Gaim thing felt forced and no one seemed to be the way they are on the show. Then there is the whole appearance of Ichigo, NIgo, and V3. They were cool for the whole 30 seconds they appeared, but then the whole, "We don't help Heisei Riders" thing was also completely out of character. Yes, I know this special was meant to be hype up the VS movie, but it made them look like jackasses.

The only thing I can really give praise to was the awesome scene with Zangetsu on the phone as the mech battle was going on outside. That was hilarious but damn, the Yggdrasil building has some of the best sound and shock proofing ever. Everyone in the world should be using those materials.

As a cross over, it was bad. As a ToQGer episode, it was bad. As a Gaim episode, it was terrible, the worst Gaim episode ever. The fights were subpar. The characters felt off, especially from the Kamen Rider side, and the fights were not even that good. I hope Toei never does something like this again.