Fun episode. Characters seem good and the whole aesthetic is charming. Not getting super excited yet because I've learned in the last few years first episodes aren't always a great indicator, but I am eager to see more.

No amount of retro charm can justify that level 1 Bugster though. That thing was hideous and I'm not looking forward to more of that. Honestly I'm not a big fan of the whole level 1 thing in general but I don't think it'll last the whole series anyway.

I want to see a Level 1 free-for-all battle. Because that would just make my life. :lol

Seriously though, the Level 1 form doesn't bother me. I get it. It's supposed to be like an 8-Bit fighter, and Level 2 is more like your 16/32-bit type of hero.

Blowing in to the cartridge was perfect though.

I know I'm probably the only one, but I didn't like this episode and if Ex-Aid is going to be like this all season I'm not going to like it, but I doubt that. The writers seem capable of another Gaim and that's my favorite season and I hated the first episode of that too. I'll hold judgement until episode 20 (yeah, I don't do 10). Also, PLEASE GET RID OF THE CGI POOP MEATBALL MONSTERS! They are worse than Kuuga (yeah, I went there) Thank you. Anyway, blowing into the cartridge was a cool touch and shows that they're paying attention to detail (can there be an episode where the Gashat doesn't work because of the blowing? :p) and I really like Ex-Aid's suit (save the driver), especially when it's in action and looks beautiful with the bright magenta in the lighting, and the driver makes a lot of cool, catchy sounds like always. Despite the driver looking terrible, I think the gashats are really cool and I'll probably get the driver just for them and I don't hate Lvl 1 as much as I thought I would. I don't think I really like EXCITE yet, sounds more pop.

Tl;dr, Ex-Aid, please don't be like Mighty No. 9. Be like Megaman X (my favorite video game BTW)!

You mean like this?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K783SDTBKmg

I'd say that's an inevitability. Given the budget involved in such things it'll probably be like the train fights in Den-O or, if you're really lucky, the CGI poop monsters in Gaim. This was just one of those first episode showoffy things, most likely.

Not bad. I like how it all flowed together. Love the added touch of Henshin becomes Transform.

This is going to be my first time watching a Kamen Rider season as it airs! I enjoyed this episode, it had style and I get the impression the plot could get very interesting. Of course I'll have to give it a while yet to really figure out what kind of season this is, but color me intrigued.

Rewatched the episode with Excite's subs. I forgot to mention this last night, but I'm really enjoying the action so far. I always felt that Ghost had really lackluster action scenes, so I'm hoping Ex-Aid can keep up this level of quality moving forward. I still have no idea why the mooks were all dressed as chefs, though.

One thing I can tell is going to bug me, though: it really annoys me how this show - and most shows, honestly - seems to think that video games still operate the way they did in the late 80s/early 90s. I know we only saw a quick glimpse of it, but the in-show game, Mighty, looks really damn basic for 2016. And what's up with the handheld system that only has an analog stick and two buttons? I know they aren't going to use official products, this ain't OOO and its omnipresent iPad, but at least make the system look modern for fuck's sake.

But yeah, that aside I'm still enjoying this episode a lot. It really feels like the show has a clear idea of where it's going and a lot of potential to be great.

It's hard to judge a show from the first episode, but I found this one pretty dang charming! I like this array of characters, the world feels sufficiently populated (a huge criticism I have with Ghost, and a number of sub-par Rider shows, is that it often seemed like the 6 main characters were the only people who existed in that world), I love the aesthetics (suits, attack graphics, and sounds are all great!), that action is GREAT, I'm into the tone, and the actors seem capable.

Level 1 was the aspect I was most worried about going in, but it's the one I came out of the first episode most impressed by! I feel like kicking myself for not realizing this sooner, but the Level 1 form is like regular Mario and the Level 2 form is like Super Mario. I thought the way Level 1 moved was fresh and interesting and justified the super-deformed, cartoony look. I know budget limitations will mean that cool Level 1 scenes will be limited after the first few episodes -- but for now, they add to the texture of the show, as opposed to detracting from it like I feared they would.

I'm probably gonna wait until there are a few more episodes out in the world before I go any further, but so far so good!

Because IP infringement. Realistically the game looks like an 8-bit platformer in the old Double Dragon engine, that most would just run as an app on phone. I think the prop used is just because they can't actually advertise a version of a phone or I device without getting beat over the head.

Personally, I liked the side by side, it made it a little more relevant to the action going on.