Unfortunately I must admit based on initial impressions without having seen an actual episode Super-1 doesn't look as great as some Showa ones to me and I may actually prefer the Indonesian theme song to the Japanese this time, I just like to not pick a side when it comes to Showa vs Heisei and just judge individual shows but I admit I don't know much about it and maybe when I do finally get round to it I might be surprised!

I?'ll point out that this was happening all over the place in Tokusatsu at the time. Parents were asking the producers to tone down the violence in response to Kamen Rider Amazon, Ultraman Leo, Supaida Man and JAKQ Dengekitai having high levels of violence. (Which seems stupid I know, they were years ago at the time) and "not enough uplifting messages for the kids"

Just watched the Zero-One stage show. It was cool. Nice to see Ansatsu-chan get his kind of closure with MBJR.net. Also it was pretty funny to see how stubby Naki looked.

I'll definitely stick up for the first half of Super-1; I had alot of fun watching it. Way more than I did Black or Black RX. When it comes to the second half, while I am still having enough fun to keep going, I can definitely see why others wouldn't like it much.

Ignorant parents strike again. Ignoring the stint on violence, since that's a very subjective thing overall, the "has no uplifting messages" thing couldn't be more wrong. Heck, the overarcing message of Super-1 in general is "Work hard and keep your mind open to new ideas, and you'll be able to overcome almost anything." But nah, not uplifting at all /s

It's also a shame to hear that bit about Kazuya's' actor. He did a good job playing the titular hero. But in terms of that I can atleast take the same mentality I do any other time this sort of thing happens; Separating character from actor. I know that's tough to do for alot of people, especially in terms of live-action stuff, but it's something I recommend everyone attempt to do to keep enjoying the shows and characters you love.

I know it shouldn't, but hearing about Super-1 crashing and burning partway through makes me want to watch it. Every time I watch something because I think it sounds amusing-bad though, it normally just turns out to be painful-bad. Except Ohranger, that was hysterical.

If I remember correctly, Super-1's time slot changed about halfway through its run. If I read a reason why, I don't remember what it was. I know the ratings tanked, but I don't know if that was because of the time shift or the reason why it shifted. I know that the show did poorly enough that there wasn't a follow-up for years. I'm sure there's a YouTube video or podcast episode that covers the full story of Super-1.

Personally, I could never get into the show. Even though I love the main suit, it's the one Showa series that just never gripped me past the first couple episodes.I'm with tomos on the theme song, though; that thing sucks.

Did Skyrider do much better?

Kamen Rider Ghost Episode 5

https://i.imgur.com/xKDwJeW.jpg


I watched this episode a couple days ago and had nothing to say!

I kinda dragged my feet on this one because there's just not a lot I can offer, I think -- not because there was no meat on the bone, but because it's an episode that kind of speaks for itself. It's raising the stakes; it's truly introducing a new threat; it's showing more friction and dynamics between the villains; it even takes the opportunity of an episode not focused around a new Eyecon for once to show what else is going on with the Ganma's plans! Great stuff all around, very well-done plot episode. ... but it's a PLOT episode, and I just don't have an awful lot to say about those? It's all about the structure of the medium through which a story and emotions are communicated, and I don't have a lot to offer there. Except that maybe Specter having Tutankhaman should have been treated with a bit more weight than it was; like "holy shit he has two of the eyecons I need?!"

So I ended up rewatching this episode today just to see if I could get a bit more of a post out of it -- and I suppose third time's the charm, because I like a lot of what's going on here! First of all, god, I didn't realise how much I missed Kamen Riding. It's weird that it's the paranormal show that has a lot more spotlight for motorbikes than say, a story playing tribute to 20 years of Kamen Rider or a story specifically about advancing technology that's meant to be the start of a new era of Rider; but I ain't complaining because it rocks what they do with it. It's not just a generic drive down a road, there's a ton of dynamic action and a lot of wonderful symbolic shots which is more than I ever expect. Use bikes more! Please! While I'm at it? AL CAPONE GANMA. Crazy goddamn concept for a monster of the week and everything he does is a joy to watch.

How many times have I let action talk get away from me now? Regardless, I like what's going on here with Takeru being forced and pushed into being more decisive. It follows on from last episode bringing up what he values and whether he's pursuing saving lives or his own -- and I think it's very smart that in both this episode and the last, it still treats him as indecisive but absolutely has him ultimately make the choice to prioritise saving the lives of others over grabbing another eyecon. It's something very Kamen Rider; to have this much conflict but still know in your heart what's most important.

From what I can tell, the first half wasn't that well regarded at the time, so they made some changes for the second half. I've seen people on a YouTube video say they think the second half was weaker. I personally was unable to download past the first 4 episodes of the second half, so it's difficult to say. On one hand, they've actually got past Riders back instead of simply having a young Bin Shimada dub over a rubber suit. On the downside, Skyrider's flying has been dropped in favour of 'the powers of the 7 Legendary Riders' (which is never really defined) and I'm not as fond of the new OP/ED as I was for the old ones. (Though the second ED is still pretty good).

He's not an ant this time around, but I have to say, I've always loved the Ganma for unabashedly Showa they are. The monsters of the week are goofy and out-there, the foot soldiers are featureless and utterly non-threatening, they've all got belts... it's great stuff! Machine Gun Ganma here even has smoke coming out of bullet holes represented by cheap tissue paper glued to his body, which is the kind of insanely unconvincing way to accomplish that effect I'd expect out of 70's tokusatsu. Like, it's so unconvincing I never even knew that's what it was supposed to be until reading about it years later. It probably doesn't sound like I'm praising the show anymore, but I seriously wouldn't have that any other way. This isn't a gritty, realistic murder mystery show like Kuuga or Agito, you know? The silliness of a lot of the early Ghost monster suits fits the overall vibe of the show perfectly.