Because, if you'd read everything, I've watched the first fifteen or so episodes of W about five times in my attempt to get into the series, and never made it. As such, there is really no point in watching the ENTIRE thing again (some of us work for a living, so it actually saves me a lot, to know there are six episodes I can miss already), even if my memories are only a bit foggy. So I'm gonna skip over what isn't entirely necessary.

Well sorry for station a an opinion on skipping episodes in general...
Yeah, I didn't read all of it (because I really didn't feel like reading a site full of huge posts at 7 a.m.), okay, but no reason to act like you're the only one with a thing to do in their life. I didn't intend to attack you, you know? I just stated that everyone should watch each episode at least once.
But I don't see why you still ask whether you can skip them if you have already watched them multiple times. Just read a summary of the first few eps to refresh your memory and keep going...

Well if it wasn't a personal attack, cool, I just take offence to being told that skipping a couple of episodes of a kids TV show is 'stupid'.

Although I remember pretty much this entire arc I enjoyed watching the fifth episode of W anyway. Honestly I enjoyed it so much, I might go back to the start and suffer through the T-Rex bobblehead and horrendous giant stuff just to get the most out of the show. No one can get me to watch Heavens Tornado again though.

A big part of the reason I loved this episode so much, is how fresh the whole show feels. It tackles complex human emotions, it doesn't just try and pigeon hole emotions into two completely black and white categories.

And although most Rider puts emphasis on story and character, this is even more true of W in the best possible way. I love seeing Shotaro actually save people, before he actually transforms, and him and Phillip working day and night to get to the bottom of the case and to try and stay one step ahead. It actually makes good use of its two parter, case of the week, narrative. Usually the Riders concentrate entirely on the fight, never think of the collateral and answers are a single jump cut away.

I also like how it only concerns a single town, it's a lot easier to swallow than when they go on about 'the world' and they are fighting in the same vague warehouse for the same vague goals. Plus in my ways, it makes the Sonozaki family more evil, that they are willing to kill people simply because they think the tower makes their town ugly.

Agito 34-An amazing episode! I love the interactions between Shouichi and Ryou and have been waiting for them to be like this for a long time. I like how they are friends and how Ryou doesn't want to feel sorry for himself. I like how Mana, Hikawa, and Ryou all helped Shouichi get through his loss of confidence. I love how he became Burning form too. This Talking Unknown is very strong can't wait to see how he is taken down. I loved Hikawa's answer to why he fights the Unknown, to protect people. Great episode can't wait for more next.

That is a strength of W and Gaim as well. Fuuto and Zawame are well defined cities, and not just generic anywhere Japan.

Agito 35-More mysteries appear here and finally get to meet Kino, who is Another Agito. I was waiting to meet him, he definitely has a mystery to him. The mystery guy from the beginning screaming Agito was ominous a bit too. Hikawa and Hojo's talk is definitely helping the police figure out the Unknowns a bit more. I love Shouichi is back home it's just a lot of fun. Gills needs to step it up, I know he can kick the shit out of these Unknowns. Also Burning Form's sword weapon is totally badass!

Yup.

And because the Sonozakis are people who run legitimate organizations as well as illegal ones and have personal lives, it's much more understandable why they aren't full time villains. And because W is a self-made hero of the people and not a "chosen one" it makes sense they don't focus all efforts on him early on. One man is that much of a concern when you're running a city. And with both identities secret, there's no "just go to their house and wreck up the place."

All this talk about W is making me want to give it another try. I checked out the first 8-ish episodes a year or so back, and I was not at all impressed. Although, a few weeks ago I watched Movie War Core and was blown away by how cool Skull was.

Knowing it gets better makes me feel bad for abandoning it, but those first few episodes did not inspire much confidence.

W takes a while to get into it, but once you get into the world of W, it's super-amazing.

I didn't like it much either after the first few episodes, but it got better and better ^^

Like I said, W is easily the most unassuming series when it begins. Maybe do what Locke did and start with the Decade crossover movie than go on?

Definitely start with Begins Night. It's so good.

sounds like a plan! Begins Night it is...

But not till after I finish Ryuki.

Locke, you are right, this thread is so overwhelming... I'm like, hmm... do I want to have a social life or do I want to watch every Kamen Rider series at the same time? haha

This is what I ask in my diary every night. :lol During the summer after uni I was quite literally watching four shows at a time. That was how I finished Kuuga, Wizard, OOO and Fourze plus a bunch of sentai.

I wonder if my job will let me take the summer off to watch tokusatsu series. :lol

:lol work has been my main hurdle in finishing up stuff. Still managed to finish Dairanger, Goseiger and Kouga's portion of GARO but that's over like 8 months, so you can see the slow down .

Right there with you. I was (f)unemployed over the summer, and I mowed through Shinkenger, Goseiger, Gokaiger, Go-Busters, OOO, and the first half of Fourze.

Since I've had my job over the last 9 months I've watched the second half of Fourze, Kiva, and 13 episodes of Ryuki (and, of course, the weeklies).

I am a failure! I hate being a grown up! :cry

Being a grown up ain't so bad, you can have pizza for breakfast.

Debating on if I want to keep watching Dragon Knight or not.

I still need to get back to watching Kabuto. I was in the middle of a Ryuki rewatch, and also just started rewatching Fourze. It's both kinda nice and kinda odd to be watching a season of Kamen Rider without having to read, I almost prefer having subs at this point simply because I've gotten so used to everything I watch lately being in Japanese. I'm not that far in, just a couple episodes so I still feel like it's not fair to just dump the whole series at this point but man I am not liking it.

I'm 15 episodes in on DK and in my opinion, it didn't get any better.

And you can pee literally wherever you want to.

Anywhooaaargkhlarughfugrarlhydaurg... in Kiva: Wataru's shirt totally just says "Stupid."

Maybe this show IS self-aware?

What episode are you on?

I'm totally not asking for avatar creating purposes.

17

Most visible when he's on the beach.

Is it weird the more people bash on Wataru, the more I start remembering how much I love Wataru?

It is weird that you love Wataru, yes.

I'm not really bashing him. He's honestly one of the better parts of the show.

But he's... he's a weirdo, and I don't want to retread the lengthy deconstruction of hero types just to come to the same conclusion that he's an unheroic hero in a non-deconstructive way.

And what I love about that is he grows into being a hero.

Lol I am a very weird person.


I understand that but there are more elements that make a hero a hero. I agree Wataru grows so much within the series, he is wonderful.

I feel like his name Wataru was meant to say What are you, and the journey of learning what Wataru is.

Ugh.

Yeah, dunno that I want to waste my time then. Probably not going to just power through it, maybe watch an ep here or there instead of just one after the other. I hate to not finish something I start. Then again, I still haven't watched more than a few episodes of OOO or Kiva.

Dragon Knight is a show that gets progressively better. 15 episodes is before they even integrate Siren/Femme as a main cast member.

I guess I can continue to slog through it. I do at least find it interesting seeing how they incorporate the footage from Ryuki.

Also, I really do dislike the henshin in this show. I know that "henshin" doesn't quite work as well with an american audience..I guess, and "transform" would be a tad boring, but "Kamen Rider"..really? That would be like if instead of "It's morphing time!" we got "Power Rangers". Plus I don't really like how the advent deck spins around in the belt and all that. Oh and I complained about the sound effects before (seriously, why did they redo the sound effects for Darkwing and Dragredder?), but man I hate the voice they went with for the visors.

But yeah, I'll continue to give the show its fair shot. Hell, if I get through this maybe I really can give OOO another chance.

This and this.

I find it funny that people bitch when an adaptation changes stuff. Then bitch when it doesn't. Make up your minds, you can't have your cake and eat it with these things.

I think what people want are changes to the story, and I'm fine with changes as long as they aren't weird, and I wasn't whining. I just agree with him.

I only saw an episode of Dragon Knight as a kid. IIRC my reaction was:

"They look cool but what the hell is going on?"

I'm mostly find with changes in adaptations like that, particularly in regards to not just being a retelling of the exact same story but with different actors (because at that point they may as well just sub it or dub it instead), but something like changing the sound effects for no real reason (namely in regards to the contract monsters, since I can at least see why they changed the sounds from the visor so it wasn't spouting out engrish, but they got a really bad voice for it). And again on the story front, I'm fine with them doing something different, but what they decided to go with is just..I dunno, not what I would have done with it I suppose.

Kamen Rider Ep 01

Yes, I am watching every KR starting from the very start.

And wow the sixties :lol The episode was amazingly well written, and I love Hongo already. And the Henshin sequence was that sixties low budget that ends up being awesome. And that sums up the whole episode. You can see in this what they try and do now, like this is the blueprint.

Surprising to see the Shockers wearing berets and face paint instead of their traditional masks and such :lol

Kamen Rider was 1971.

I definitely want to get around to watching the original series at some point. I think I'll make it the first Showa season I watch.

I Loved the first episode of Kamen Rider too, sadly I learned it wasn't finished subbed yet, so I am waiting for that to finish before I do. I really want to see Hongo and Ichimonji so bad though.

Agito 36-Well Kino reminds me of if you crammed the Good parts of Date with the bad parts of Nago and hit blend lol. Definitely a layered character and crazy so far, so I am definitely intrigued with him. Glad Hikawa figured out the link between Unknowns and The Akatsuki-Gou intrigued to see where that goes. Shouichi's cake scene for comedy was fun and I see we've gone Emperor Kiva right now with just transforming into Burning Form. Also great to see Gills back in top form with saving someone from an Unknown and taking it down with Agito. Sadly this was the last of the Nihon episodes so I am onto the other subber who hasn't looked bad from episodes I watched of this on Youtube. Also the New Theme and intro is pretty cool too.

Also expect more Riders in my Sig after this series.