Rider Time - Kamen Rider Ryuki
 

Seen Episode 1.

It's cool for the old vibes the suits give. The plot feels like it will be Brother and Sister centered again.
But. Am I the only one bothered by the way it was filmed ? Is it just me or the cam feels really shaky during all the battle scenes ? Feels like a huge mess when you try to follow.

what are your thoughts on this 1st ep ?

I thought it was pretty fun! It's just nice to have Ryuki have the spotlight again, even if it's for a special. It's great seeing all the suits again together, and it was good to see Another Ryuki for a brief moment. High hopes for the other 2 parts.

So, Part 2. Yeah, did NOT expect that scene.
I with producers would stop putting fanservice for the sake of...fanservice.
Actually, was this even fanservice? It was more uncharacteristic and traumatising really.

How many different threads do we need for this special

I don't quite get what you mean as the fact this special exists at all is fanservice for Ryuki fans. Though I'm assuming you're talking about Tezuka and Shibaura kissing and sharing a bed, which really isn't traumatizing at all, especially compared to the murders and cannibalism (I think a Ryuki novel had Asakura develop cannibalism actually, wonder if it's meant to be a shout out to that). Considering these characters never interacted in Ryuki and nobody but Asakura have their memories, it's hardy out of character or anything. If anything it shows how brutal the war is, friends and lovers can be forced to become enemies due to circumstances.

Also this looks pretty cheap which you know what, feels kind of nostalgic for Ryuki considering it's nearly 2 decades old. Damn shame it's clear that the Ryuki suit is falling apart. The idea to have the same cast but make them remember nothing is pretty cool as it lets us see how some characters would react under certain circumstances, like Goro working for Asakura.

Also dick move Toei you can't say Abyss is canon to Ryuku and give him 2 minutes before forgetting him

Made this one first as a general thread, but then someone made one specifically for Ep1 and probably didn't notice this one because it was low on the list already. There's no harm.

I would not call it fanservice, because that's not something people wanted or expected in particular.
I admit it caught me off-guard. I didn't expect that. I don't particularly like it myself, but the idea itself of it happening in a Kamen Rider series, even very short like this, is really brave from Toei's part.

it's one of my favorite suit of all Kamen Riders. But yeah as a 3 episodes thing it was bound to happen.
The only thing that makes me sad is that it replaced Femme. I wanted both Abyss and her to be in the 13 count.

So we now have our first gay Kamen Rider(s).
Looks like they beat Brain by a week...or two?or whenever it's airing.
Going off topic, I'm glad they didn't make a big song and dance about it like other pieces of media do nowadays. Something like this should not really be a big deal.

Holy crap, Another Ryuki is literally murdering people non stop outside !

Is this kamen Rider Kuuga now !?

And holy shit, Toei had the balls to go full gay ? No hinting, just full on.

Forgetting Bravo?

How could I forget, damn.

EDIT: Thank you DecoyBlackMge

Bravo was never directly stated to be gay though, for the most part he was just a specific japanese stereotype character, but they are not always gay.

Even Fullmetal Alchemist has that.

Finally got around to watching episode 1.
One thing I found interesting was that they said "how many riders have died", so it seems like there are actually more than 13 riders this time around, the story just starts at a point where there are just 13 left

If you were to tell me back when I originally watched Ryuki that Tezuka and Jun would have an explicitly gay relationship, I would have told you to put down the pipe. It's definitely an....interesting development. They couldn't have picked a weirder pairing for it, though but I like the idea of two lovers being forced to kill each other due to the circumstances of the war. Props to Toei though for just going all out with it instead of just "hinting" at it like they did with Bravo.

I absolutely loved Shinji and Ren partnering up again for the first time in like, what, 16 years? Even though neither character has full memory of the other, it feels like their dynamic is exactly the same, with Ren just being less antagonistic towards Shinji.

Asakura is awesome as ever and I really enjoy this dynamic of Goro being his servant while also being Zolda himself. I get the feeling he's going to betray him though, and I think he has a vague memory of serving Kitaoka during his tenure as Zolda.

And of course...Ryuga, who has never looked more badass. While we saw Ryuga kill quite a few people in Episode Final, we never saw him do while possessing Shinji. And we know from Zi-O that Dark Shinji is the manifestation of the repressed negative emotion from within himself, so yeah....things are pretty damn dark.

This is definitely a worthy successor to the original show so far. Can't wait to see how it concludes.

Oh damn I just caught how damaged the Raia suit is too. Goddamn does it suck to see these suits barely stay together

I do not remember Gai from the series being this important to anybody other than being Ouja's first kill. I mean if Tezuka was gonna do the deed with anyone, you'd all think it would be Shinji, right?

Anyhow, looking forward to the next part. Though I feel like Zi-O is just gonna solve all the problems.

Did I get it right that Asakura implied Kitaoka is dead already? Well he did have a terminal illness so it wont be surprising if the reason he's not here is that he already succumb to his illness.

Asakura did say "Kitaoka must be rolling in his grave". That's a pretty good indication. That, or he's referring to the other timelines of the battle since he seems to be pretty much the only one with memories.

Watched episode 2, and overall I thought it was a big improvement over the first episode. The pacing felt much better here, less rushed and gave the setting and characters time to breathe. But I like that it gave an in-story explanation for the rushed feeling it has, it was a good way of working in a story reason to accommodate the natural time limitations of a 3-episode special.

Of course the big talking point of this episode for everyone is Tezuka's and Jun's relationship, which really surprised me with how respectfully it was handled. Gay characters in many Japanese shows, Kamen Rider included, are often portrayed as a specific stereotype so this was a very welcome change of pace. This reveal actually works really well in general for Tezuka, as it offers a totally new perspective for his relationship with his pianist friend from the original season. When viewed from this lens, it adds a lot more emotional depth and meaning to his desire to avenge his friend there, as now we can see that he was probably much more than just a friend. So I like this development a lot and it makes me appreciate his story from the original season more.

Despite that though I still think Tezuka's personality otherwise is majorly screwed up, he's so violent and scheming, it's insanely out of character. I did like that at least he expressed remorse after regaining his memories as he was dying, and tried to make up for his actions. But it just doesn't make any sense at all that he became such a different person without his memories, everyone else except Asakura lost lost their memories too but their base personalities are still intact. So I still strongly dislike a lot of what they did with Tezuka here, but it doesn't bother me as much as it did in episode 1 now that I know he at least gets his real personality back, even if only for a brief time.

The real highlight of the episode for me though was Shinji and Ren, it was great to see them back together and their scenes and dialogue felt just like their interactions in the original season. I was happy to see Shinji get a chance to talk about his desire to stop the fighting and try to work things out peacefully, as that was what made always made him such a great character in a series where he's surrounded by people who just want to kill each other.

So overall I thought this was a significant step up from episode 1 and I'm excited to see how it concludes, hopefully it can keep this positive momentum going.

One thing to consider is that this Tezuka isn't the Tezuka of the original timeline. This is a Tezuka that was presumably manipulated by Jun (Jun tried to do that a lot in the original timeline), and without the main motivation to end the Rider War that he had in the original series.

It's also conceivable he'd turn out to be a different person after 16 years in the post-Ryuki timeline.

Was the two gay back in ryuki though? I don't remember any hint. I was like wtf when the sex screen happen.

This is certainly possible, but it's just such a drastic personality change that I think I would have tolerated it better if the show itself had provided an explanation for it (Maybe like you mentioned, something happened in 16 years between the original and now), especially since no one else is so radically different.

I think a lot of my annoyance with it though is because Tezuka was one of my favorites in the original. After losing someone close to him as a direct result of the war and Asakura's actions, he has every reason to give in to his anger and throw himself into a desire for vengeance, but he overcomes it and still hopes for a peaceful solution. I really liked what he brought to the show and how he was an example of a truly good person in a show full of characters who were either morally gray at best or just outright villains.

Seeing him here as such a cruel and vicious person is frustrating to me because I liked his portrayal so much in the main season. I don't think I would have had nearly this much of a problem if it had been almost any other character, Tezuka just happened to be one I liked a lot and I hate to see one of my favorites turned into basically a different character entirely.

Some actors really aged worst than the rest. Also, very typical inoue style of causing random drama for the sake of drama. The guy have a change of heart with just one line from ryuga and survived a final vent manage to drag his way out of a forest. The choreograph is off , but I guess they can't afford higher budget.

So, with Ryuga being a corrupted ryuki this time around, that means there's at least one person (maybe two depending on how they do Odin) in the war we haven't seen yet who was in the mirror room they all started in. Possibly Femme? Alternative? Someone new?

The two characters flatout never interacted, Tezuka's debut was after Asakura killed Jun

Also amazing point at the point of Tezuka's friend and Jun's manipulations

Too much for 1 eps to tackle even if it's inoue. What was the point of embracing and accepting your dark side in zio mirror world arc now if we are doing this now? They're even pulling ohja getting betrayed based on the preview for next week.

Given the end credits showing the Riders, I highly doubt Femme and Alternative are a part of this. We've seen at least 5 Riders die now, Imperor, Raia, Tiger, Abyss, and Scissor. That leaves Ryuki/Ryuga, Knight, Gai (unless I forgot he died), Ouja, Verde, Zolda, and Odin.

Gai was killed by Ryuga at the very end of Ep 2

Odin can be anyone though, so it would be funny if Ren ends up becoming him for beating Ryoga.

They could always go with the random hobo method again.

I'm not saying they will appear, it just fits with the line in the first episode hinting that some riders died before the special started. Episode one starts on day four after all.

I hope they give a good explanation how Zi-O gets the Ryuki Ridewatch next episode instead of the usual 'convenience'.

Wow, I'm very impressed by Toei just casually putting that in an episode and (as far as I'm aware) didn't make a huge statement about it. Mad respect, this is how shit like this ( on both sides of the coin, straight and LGBTQ+ alike) should be done.

I've seen quite a few people going WHY DID THEY DO THIS, THEY WEREN'T GAY IN 2003 WHAT? HOW? I'M SCARRED etc etc. And I'm honestly confused as to how people could even like have an issue with this?

It fleshes out these characters that honestly didn't have much going on in Ryuki itself and honestly shows that Toei is willing to be more progressive in ways that aren't just "LOOK AT US, WE HAVE AN LGBTQ+ CHARACTER." Like ALOT of other companies do, which is nothing more then a disgusting attempt to pander to a demographic to get more money.

Episode 1 and 2 are pretty damn good, liking the feel of it.

They don't really say that they're not....and this actually further contextualizes Raia's motivation for trying to end the Rider War because his friend might not have just been his "friend"....

I just finished episode 2 and had a serious moment where I thought I was watching a Garo series. Incredibly surprised, not that the lovers scene was there, but it's been a minute since I've seen an adult geared rider series. I forgot how ahead of the curve Ryuki was.

I'm having a lot of fun seeing these characters again, but holy crap everyone is so old. I know it's been a long time, but it's really weirding me out (mostly since, unlike Faiz or Blade's actors, I haven't seen most of them in anything since Ryuki).

It's better than shinobi. Shinobi was too short. Based on raw and description, I thought the main heroine had a crush on her brother without knowing that's her brother. Turns out she had a crush in shinobi without knowing its her bro. Then we learn she's "adopted". Very basic first episode. There's only 15 min for this one. I'm curious if brains' rider time for toku fan club streaming service will be a 3 parter or v cinema length. Curious to see who will be back since the main hero and heroine gotten pretty big in drama and movies as well.

Damn it, Japan, is no form of media safe from the fucking brother/sister stuff? Was having it be a feature in half of all modern anime not enough?

Pedo is worst. Hentai hs harem and ecchi old man. Look at roshi in dbs

Don't forget junior idol event, gravure idol event, maid cafe, and Pen15 festival. Wtf japan isn't a stereotypical joke when they're self aware and embraced it. It's weird outside of geeky otaku net akihabqra as well with ropepongi night life. Serious adult innuendo stuff as inside joke in alot of anime and toku.

What a shitty ending inoue
Pulling yui/odin, zio/another ryuki, and ryuki running off to check on ogawa was wtf of an ending. He remembers, but he's alone. The fight choelography, jump cut, and editing feel outdated on purpose for nostalgic reasons?

Having now watched episode 3, I think this one was my favorite. It still had noticeable flaws, but I think the things it did right make up for it. In particular, Shinji's and Ren's scenes together were the clear highlight of the episode, just as they were in episode 2. It felt like a very natural continuation of where their development concluded originally, and I liked the role reversal of Shinji being the one to comfort his dying friend this time. Ren sacrificing himself for Shinji's sake was a great culmination of his relationship with Shinji and how much it had changed by the end of the original season, when he finally accepted that Shinji was a close friend.

That being said, while I liked their dynamic in that scene, from a plot standpoint it was handled kind of weird. It felt like there wasn't a good way to fit it in naturally, so it was decided to just have Asakura randomly run out from nowhere to kill Ren before dying himself. It also slightly undercut Goro's big moment, a scene I liked a lot since he finally got to carry out Kitaoka's will and avenge his own death from the first time around. But it felt like some of the weight of the moment was lost since Asakura just keeps going for a while anyway. But on the other hand I guess it's extremely in character for Asakura to ensure he takes down at least one more person before falling himself.

I also felt like Odin's inclusion was really forced and unnecessary, which is unfortunate because Odin is so cool and I was hoping to see him effectively utilized. But he just felt shoehorned in with no explanation and his presence only served to make things more confusing, especially since he says Yui's name as he disappears. The only thing that would make sense of that is if he's a Kanzaki puppet again, but then that doesn't make sense within either the story of this special or the context of the original season's ending. So it just really didn't work at all.

Ultimaltey I felt that this special as a whole was okay, but also had potential to be a lot better than it was. It had all the Inoue hallmarks I'd feared when I first read he was writing it: messy and confusing plot developments, characters behaving inconsistently, awkward pacing. It was far from his worst work, and did plenty of things right as well, but I just wonder how much better it could have been if almost literally anyone else had written it. I'm still glad we got it though, Ryuki was one of my favorite seasons so regardless of my issues with this special, it's awesome that it exists at all so many years later.