I do not think Ghost is good, but I think there are a surprising amount of aspects of the show that have a lot of merit. Alain and his arc were very good, my only real issue with it is how he gets sidelined after it finishes. I actually think Akari and Onari are really excellent supporting characters. Cubi is perfect and he should have been around more. It is an odd show where I definitely think it is bad and even mockable, but I don't really have any resentment towards it?

I think it got a bit too much hate, which I think is also to do with it being the season that's on at the time -- it can make flaws of a season stand out way more if it's The show on for the whole year that everyone's talking about and etc. I feel this way about other seasons like Zi-O, Saber and Revice; when they're something you can go back to on your own they're really not that bad.

I think Ghost was a fine season, not incredible but had strong thematic pulls and didn't have much that was offensively bad aside from the stuff with Takeru and Makoto's dads (which were mostly in the movies anyway). I came away from a rewatch really liking it but feeling it could have been done a fair bit better

This statement comes off as kinda disrepectful to me. Like it insinuates that people don't actually like Ghost for any legitimate or personal reason, that they only like it in a guilty pleasure "haha it's bad" kinda way.

Ghost was, and arguably still is, over-hated because fans of anything love having an easy punching bag for jokes. I think Saber has overtaken it a little by virtue of being more recent, but it's still there.

And fwiw, I'm by no means a Ghost-uberfan, but Alain's arc is great, it has some great suits, Takeru is a gem of a protagonist, and it gave us "I AM EDISON." There's plenty to talk about and discuss, even in the context of why something didn't work. Nothing is more dishartening to new (or older) posters than wanting to talk about something only to be hit with sneering derision.

Eh, i think Saber actually has overall better reception than Ghost, i remember that in chinese tokusatsu rank Saber manage to slip into top 3 and over here at my place, i see more people saying Revice is worse than Saber but that's a topic for another time.

Ghost is dissapointing but tbh, i still like it overall.
Sure the show run out of gas too soon, but the moment it deliver something it manage to do it pretty well like everyone favorite Alain arc and Akari as a heroine, seriously she is better than even most of female rider and that's saying something.

I also really like all the form because hoodie is cool and Grateful was amazing super form, i mean summoning the forms (granted is not really form but it's close) you use before to fight alongside you? Hell yeah!

Yukari Taki was in an episode.

The Necrom Driver voice.

Um.

It wasn't longer than the average Rider series.

...

There was part of the series where Alain didn't wear a lime green fishnet poncho.

That's all I got.

I think Saber gets a bit more leeway due to being developed during the COVID pandemic (not that it's fully behind us but still).

Revice, well, writing certainly went a bit downhill after a while but i thought it was still pretty decent. The hate is a bit unwarranted IMO. Kind of wished they did Daiji a bit better though.

Ghost's writer has certainly improved, although I think it's safe to say that his writing style is not exactly suited for the four cour format.

"Ghost isn't nearly as bad as people say it is, and here's some reasons why-"

"WOW TRASH TASTE, SO BAD. PEOPLE ONLY LIKE IT FOR A GUILTY PLEASURE"

That is exactly it. It's not hard to look for positives in a piece of media. Difficult, yes, impossible, no. Even shows that I watched personally but gave up on like the She-Ra reboot or the 'Rise of the TMNT' sound like they have some positive things going on with them.

Ghost isn't perfect. I don't think there really is any 'perfect' media. What people will like won't be the same for others. But Ghost isn't nearly as bad as people make it out to be. The suit designs are great, the actors do a great job with what they're given, and the Alain arc is by far one of the best story arcs in a show ever.

Man, a Ghost's discussion can still pop up here and there in these past couple of years, huh? I will say in retrospect Ghost isn't as bad as many people will say. For me, it was a bit frustrating in my experience watching Ghost. It was a series, up until the recent Zero-One, where I could think of plenty of ways for the show to shine and maximize its infinite potential. Some of them are:

- Grateful SHOULD have been the Final Form for Ghost. I know Fish said Mugen was the perfect Final Form for Ghost thematically in the series. But I just wish Grateful, the culmination of the show's gimmick, was the perfect end for Ghost's power-up. It would be a pleasant surprise to have Takeru donned a new driver to access a Final Form not unlike Aruto.

- Takeru is a weird character as protagonist. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy Takeru in the series runtime. However, it struck me why Takeru was better utilized in the post-series media. Takeru is more like a beacon character, a character that let people shine and propel them to the next level. It was a great feature of him that worked well with his juniors outside of the series. However that was a bit detrimental in his own series because that let other characters shine TOO much that made Takeru was having a hard time to be the central of the series. Many people will remember Ghost because of how strong Alain, Makoto and Akari were in the series. But only a few people will say : "Takeru was the biggest selling point in Ghost".

- The villains are not so exceptional... The best villain I could pick for the series was Igor and Javert. Remember how they used Takaiwa as Gyro for less than 5 episodes? Or do you still remember Saionji? Even with Adel as the main villain of the series, it was bit of chore to see him on screen. He was the perfect anti-thesis and the perfect villain in the series for Takeru and the others. But I don't think they really maximize the usage of Adel. Most of the times he was just plotting for the next 4/5 episodes before start doing something. There was also Demia Project which had overstayed its welcome as a plot for the villain in the series.

- I'm still quite peeved off on how the show handled Mugen's emotional attacks and Takeru's growing emotion in the series. I dislike how even with Mugen's appearance in the series, the show kept doing two-parter episodes with random VoW. There are 7 emotion in Mugen's finishers! Takeru also HAS 7 close friends! Rather than wasting time with unnecessary random person, they could have just given more spotlight to our main casts. If they want to use random people, they could make it link back to our casts, like with Shibuya and his mother. Poor my boy Narita... He was robbed the spotlight that he should have gotten. It would pleasantly to see not only Takeru grew his emotions but his friends also grew even better with him.

Well there's more criticism that I could make for Ghost. In spite of that, I still don't regret watching Ghost in its airing. There were still plenty of positive in the series. Alain, Akari and Makoto were the central positive in Ghost and I hardly find people argue with that. Onari, Shibuya and Narita were all a pretty nice addition to the series; a bit over-the-top but the series would have been less sweeter without them. Takeru's relationship with his Eyecons Heroes, especially Musashi, was honestly a blast to see. In addition, when the show REALLY put a huge emphasize on its characters, instead of the plot, they really stick the landing with flying colours.

If I would rate Ghost would be 6/10. Need a lot of improvement here and there to maximize its potential. It was a bit frustrating to see those potentials not be utilized to its peak. However, for what the show had done, I thought it was still a good piece of media. I must also thank you Ghost for giving Fukuda some experience in writing as series that gave birth to the AMAZING Saber in the later years.

Concerning this, I perfectly understand the concept of wanting the final form to be a culmination of everything it came before. In terms of design, however, it made sense for Mugen to be the final form; each form represents a different stage of a Buddhist funeral, specifically a Japanese Buddhist funeral:

Mugen (shroud)
Grateful (hearse/altar)
Toucon (cremation)
Ore (bones)

The forms reflect Takeru coming back to life. Also, in Buddhist funerals, there is usually an altar that is decorated with photos of the deceased. I'm not an expert, but I think Grateful Damashii's icons are supposed to reflect this? Like, it's not invoking Takeru, but the altar imagery is still there.

Ghost is a show with Buddhist themes after all, so some things might fly over the heads of those who grew up in a Western culture. Doesn't really excuse some of the glaring plot holes in the show though.

Most significantly is that Mugen is about Takeru realising his own power and not relying on the Damashii at this point. It's the same kind of thing as Den-O Liner

I do... I do have to say something negative. I cannot for the life of me understand why people like Makoto. He didn't seem to have much personality to me, and mostly seemed to serve as more of a plot device than a character. He's there to have conflict with Takeru. He's there to make Alain have character development. Yet he doesn't actually get to do all that much as a character himself in my eyes. By the end of the show when he's just going around killing at his clones I had absolutely no idea what they were even trying to do anymore. I'm not trying to bash on anyone who does like him, but I think he's one of the most pointless secondary Riders.

Yes, I would not say that Makoto is very different from Terui, Ryusei or Hiro. The same type of serious and dark secondary rider with personal drama, who starts as an enemy, becomes a friend, gets a power-up and fades into the background. I bad remember the moment with the clone, but it seems to mark the end of the Makoto arc. Like, he started as an egoist (because his sister is the only person close to him and he was eager to save her, even contrary to her words), and ended up sacrificing himself for someone completely alien (as far as I remember, everything is played out there in such a way that it is impossible to say exactly who disappeared - Makoto or his clone). Well, personally, I really like the concept of a rider with the powers of the seven deadly sins.

I felt he was a kind of weak character with some interesting spots throughout the series, though nothing I could get too attached to. His V-Cin made him a lot more interesting imo

To speak something nice of Ghost, I really enjoyed Alain's plot. His moments with Fumi were quite nice and her passing got me right in the gut.
I also liked how the show addressed the power creep, with the 15 ghosts acknowledging that they're obsolete and Takeru has outgrown them, but Takeru pleads for them to keep fighting by his side.

One thing I like about Ghost aside from Onari is the idea behind his power-up process being the reverse order of a Japanese funeral. And seeing how it ties in with Takeru's condition throughout the show it's interesting how they play around with that idea.

https://twitter.com/VANLEPPARD/statu...44414756904962
Hey question, is Kiva way more popular then I thought? It doesnt get talked about much, so I've no idea.

Destiny's Play and Supernova is GOAT that's for sure. :lolol

Kiva's fans are not open-mouthed, because they are waiting for the year 2031...

I wouldn't say that Kiva has some sort of secret popularity. It's always been a divisive series plot wise, but on most other fronts (Designs, soundtrack, choreography, etc) most people will lean towards the positive.

People out there speculated about Shinobi being the 2022 series. Meanwhile intellectuals like us are waiting for the Kiva sequel. :lolol

I loathe Kiva but to this day I cannot get over how dang cool the Fangires look. The show was great on the visual front, that's for sure.

As time passes by, a Kamen Rider series gets less remembered for the show and plot and more for the suit design, lead character (especially if they show up in post-show cameos), music, and lasting themes.

Since the 10th anniversary of Wizard, I've seen an outpour of Japanese fans sharing how they named their child Haruto, how Life is Showtime has stuck with them as an inspirational song after all these years, and how the idea of Hope vs Despair has influenced their lives.

In hindsight, it's easier to overlook the minor gripes and failings of any given series. People hated Decade during its run and ending, but now Tsukasa is a charming prick and the show is remembered as being a wild showcase of heisei phase 1.

Okay I needed to laugh out loud.
Thanks for this one!! Lol

Personally, it seemed to me that Wizard has always been, although not super popular, quite well received, at least in Japan and at the time of broadcast. That is, it has an average episode rating better than Fourze and Gaim, which is a success in my opinion.

I think the distaste towards Wizard was always on the West's end. Like, the only real common criticisms I've seen from both languages was that the Koyomi plot wasn't that good.

For every westerner I've seen that felt Haruto was bland, I've read translated posts from Japanese fans that loved the character and felt he was charismatic and cool.

I loved Kiva. Did it have issues? Sure. But so does every series. I also strongly disagree with the "Emperor was overused" criticism. I don't get why some shows insist on continuing to use weaker forms when a stronger upgrade is available (other than to sell more toys). It just made more sense to use Emperor more.

Anyways, I have a question.

What is the wordplay in Ex-Aid's name? I remember realizing it one day, but I cannot, for the life of me, remember what it was... I think it was that the katakana was a combination of words involving gaming and rescue, with Ex-Aid being an English reading of the katana? But that's as far as I can get now. Can anybody help me out?

Hmmm...That's different from what I had in mind. I felt like it was a portmanteau of loan words or something like that? I dunno. Thanks though.

I just want to ask, why is Zero One so popular?
Because I just see the show as decent at best, nothing to write home about in the long run and I just think other Kamen Rider shows are better. But the subreddit makes it seem like it's the best show ever, and if you ever say you didn't think it was that great, criticize the show or point out the shows flaws, you get raked through the coals and get called an idiot.

I have no idea, but from other sources (See: Here, Twitter, Youtube comment section), I don't think it's as popular as some Redditers try to say it is.
Like, while there are some aspects that are universally praised (People love Izu, Fuwa, Horobi, the suit designs, and the action sequences), there's just as much stuff that is near universally criticized (The slog that was the job arc, Gai's lack of a satisfying comeuppance and an undeserved redemption, Aruto).

I honestly consider the series mid at best, with it poorly telling a story about robots and ethics.
If the subreddit goes that far if you criticize it, then it's just a circlejerk that you can't do anything about.

I like Zero-One a lot personally, but it has a lot of flaws for sure. The real issue might simply be the fact you were on the Kamen Rider Reddit.:lolol

Apparently, this is the difference between Redit's tastes and this site. It seems to me that the reason is that Zero-One is already a good point to plunge into the franchise for those who are not prone to nostalgia and want something ultra-modern. That is, even in Build and Zi-O, the special effects are such that they are quite difficult to perceive for a person who is not used to tokusatsu, and the first episodes of Zero-One look quite at the level (or even higher) of SyFy and CW science fiction series. And thanks to this show, for many, it became their very first Kamen Rider, whom you don?t want to scold at all. Well, who can say that the first rider he completely reviewed was the worst? I think even if there are, they don't follow the franchise.

Yeah, I kind of saw an inverse with Revice, it seems like the west was kind of eh on Revice, but Japan and Asia like turbo hated it.


Edit:
To link these two ideas, doesn't reddit like Revice quite a bit?

Yes, I noticed that too.

*Coughs in Decade being the first series I watched front to end*

I'm not sure what inspired this thought, but I have a feeling that if Nitoh/Kamen Rider Beast ever visits France he might be banned from eating in public or something.

Reposting here.

I think it's quite neat that the entire English dub of Wizard has been recovered. Makes me curious if we can do more for the others. From what I've read, only Gaim and onward haven't been dubbed, so there's a good 15 series we haven't uncovered.

Well after US Dragon Knight I decided first chance I got to watch the Rider line as soon as I had an open window to do so.

US Dragon Knight got me curious for the Rider shows so I saw the first episode from a few on You Tube and instantly liked them all. I was thinking dang another Toku I can see. This could be fun. Rider was one of those crazy ones that was an instant fave the moment I finished Episode 1 of what I started. That's rare.