I'm not sure how official this is, but I've heard the idea a few times now that Ryuki was originally meant to be a Metal Heroes series before Agito proved that Kamen Rider was popular enough for Toei to keep around annually.

I love Ryouki as I've said many times. Yeah, Zolda looks like he escaped from Winspector / Solbrain! Henshin Grid has an incredibly brief bit about the influence of Metal Hero on Heisei Rider design. I think that's one of the things I love, being that I love Metal Hero, too. Although the newer series are so massively plastic and toyetic, it's gone beyond that influence. Never got sick of Gaim's plastic armor and, especially, the Sengoku Driver clanking around as if made from heavy metals.

...which definitely has nothing to do with the designs, given the whole Ryuki/eyes Knight/mouth Zolda/antenna dividing of Kamen Rider 1's design they did.

Unless secretly Zolda was based on some unused concept sketch or something, assuming that rumor is true. I've never really heard that before myself.

I don't necessarily think Ryuki was a Metal Heroes concept before Agito proved Rider viable again. A lot of Metal Hero asthetics and concepts have absorbed into Rider since MH was gone (IE G3), so I just think that is just how the people creating the shows keep the spirit alive without having to bring back an entire brand and worry about its success.

Which is probably why trying to revive Metal Hero is kind of redundant. Though I'd love a "Heavy" Metal Hero reboot with a larger focus on the sci-fi elements.

Ryuki Ep-11: I like how nicely everything ties together. Kanzaki Yui investigating her older brother, the reporter from ORE Journal investigating the mysterious train where she runs into Kanzaki Shirou's former professor while it seems that Ren's lover was Kanzaki Shirou's labmate, I think.

The Mirror Monster in this episode was especially smart. Using a boomerang to knock out Ryuki's sword in midair? Definitely tactical. Of course, Ryuki using Strike Vent to distract the Mirror Monster while picking up his sword then breaking the Mirror Monster's boomerang and then finally finishing it off with Final Vent was tactically brilliant. Why can't we have similarly good fight scenes anymore, Toei? I don't know about anyone else but I really enjoyed this fight scene.

By the way, this happened in one of the earlier episodes, but Zolda has the best looking Advent Monster.

And Ryuki's opening is pretty kickass.

Isn't it just? I'm also extremely fond of the insert themes myself. Seeing Ryuki do that Rider Kick is never NOT cool.

I still say Ryuki is a Top 3 rider show. Only real weak part of it is Yui (also the early 2000s Rider CGI but w/e).

I said, almost three months ago.

Oh well.

Well, I'm back at it now at the very least. Just finished watching episode 1 of Black, and what an interesting one it was. The show as a whole has suit, set and effect work leagues above any other Showa series I've seen has, and even by modern standards none of it is too shabby. The first half in particular was striking. Camera work, use of lighting, it was all pretty interestingly put to use, making it all feel unique not only among Showa series but the franchise as a whole.

Second half was somewhat more traditional, but not bad. Looking forward to seeing how the whole Shadow moon plot develops.

I will always maintain that Black has the best first episode of any Rider series.