Ranking your 2010s Toku shows
 

Thought it'd be appropriate to make one to see how do you rank a decade worth of annual Toku shows.

I didn't start following the shows from the start so my lists are going to be a bit of short:

Kamen Rider:
01- Zero-One (16 episodes yet it quickly became top fav)
02- Ex-Aid
03- Ghost
04- Build
05- Zi-O

Super Sentai (minus ToQger because I skipped it):
01- Zyuohger
02- Lupinranger vs Patranger
03- Kyoryuger
04- Ryusoulger
05- Kyuranger
06- Ninninger

Power Rangers:
01- Beast Morphers
02- Dino Charge
03- Ninja Steel

I'm just going to do Kamen Rider.

1: W
2: Build
3: Gaim
4: OOO
5: Amazons
6: Zi-O
7: Wizard
8: Drive
9: Ex-Aid
10: Fourze
11: Ghost

I haven't watched Zero-One yet, thus no ranking.

Interesting topic.

I think my show of the decade is, you won't see it coming: Kamen Rider Gaim. This is where it all started for me. Where the love for Godzilla movies I had growing up was rekindled and finally given form.

Is it the best ever? No, I have seen better Tokusatsu shows since. But that's the one which defined this decade in Toku for me, I will never forget how all of this first started. With a fabulously gay guy in spiky, green armor.

Special shootout to Ultraman though, that was my second renaissance concerning Toku this decade. It’s really, really good. I can’t mention one show without feeling bad for putting it above the others so I‘ll just say "Ultraman" in general.

Oh, before I forget: Chances are high I will be the only one in this thread remembering it, so I want to at least mention Thunderbolt Fantasy. I really liked local puppet theater productions as a kid so this was kind of insane to witness. It’s really not for everyone, but I highly recommend giving it a try. It’s on Crunchyroll, check it out.

EDIT: I guess I'll post a list ranking Kamen Rider since that can easily be done. Missing Fourze because I haven't watched that one yet. I don't care enough about Sentai to bother and Ultraman I don't want to rank for reasons stated above.

1. Build
2. Ex-Aid
3. Gaim
4. OOO
5. Drive
6. W
7. Wizard
8. Zi-O
9. Ghost

I haven't seen Goseiger so I unfortunately won't be able to rank it, but I can do the rest. So this should be... interesting. Ranked from best to worst in descending order.


Kamen Rider:-
1. OOO
2. Build
3. Fourze
4. W (can this go here? I mean about half of it aired during 2010, so... eh?)
5. Ex-Aid
6. Drive
7. Zi-O
8. Wizard
9. Ghost
10. Gaim

Super Sentai:-
1. Go-Busters
2. Gokaiger
3. Toqger
4. Zyuohger
5. Lupinranger vs. Patranger
6. Kyoryuger
7. Kyuranger
8. Ninninger



I know it didn't air in the 2010s, but since it's so close and it's the only non-2010s Sentai I've watched; might as well say Shinkenger slots in between Toqger and Zyuohger. As for Zero-One and Ryusoulger so far? ... I guess I'm liking them more than Zi-O and Kyoryuger? Very difficult for me to rank before they're fully completely done though. But again, still enjoying them.

Not even gonna try and merge these lists together because it'd be a disaster. Go-Busters would probably be between Build and Fourze but that's all I can say.

In any case, most of these shows I still liked at least to some degree. Wizard and Kyuranger are pretty low in these lists but I still found a lot to like; and even Ghost and Gaim have certain elements I really enjoyed even if on the whole I disliked them. Ninninger is the only one here I can outright say I just don't like at all, but even then I don't hate it.

Haven't been into Toku that long but already it's given me just... so much to love and so much to adore. Here's to another great decade

I haven't watched much of the Toku that came out in the past decade, having only only relatively recently gotten into Kamen Rider and Ultraman. So my list is gonna be pretty short.

SSSS.Gridman(yes it counts, shut up)
Power Rangers Hyper Force
Kamen Rider OOO
Godzilla in general
Kamen Rider W
Power Rangers Ninja Steel

I have actually made lists like this,I might have to just stick to the main 3 to make it readable!

Super Sentai:
1.Gokaiger(2011-12)
2.Kyuranger(2017-18)
3.Toqger(2014-15)
(Akibaranger 2012-13)
4.LupinRanger VS PatRanger(2018-19)
(Super Sentai Strongest Battle 2019)
5.Ryusoulger(2019-20)
6.Ninninger(2015-16)
7.Zyuohger(2016-17)
8.Go-Busters(2012-13)
9.Kyoryuger(2013-14)
10.Goseiger(2010-11)(Unfinished)

Power Rangers:
1.Dino Charge+Dino Super Charge(2015-16)
2.Beast Morphers(2019-20)
3.Ninja Steel+Super Ninja Steel(2017-18)
4.Samurai+Super Samurai(2011-12)
5.Super Megaforce(2014)(Unfinished)
6.Megaforce(2013)(Unfinished)

Kamen Rider:
1.Zi-O(2018-19)
2.Gaim(2013-14)
3.OOO(2010-11)
4.Build(2017-18)
5.Ex-Aid(2016-17)
6.Zero-One(2019-20)
7.Drive(2014-15)
8.Fourze(2011-12)
9.Wizard(2012-13)
10.Ghost(2015-16)(Unfinished)
11.W(2009-10)(Unfinished)(You can put Ghost as my last if you want,I couldn't finish either!)

Kamen Rider:
01- Zero-One
02- Build
03- Ex-Aid
04- Gaim
05- Zi-O

Super Sentai:
01- Gokaiger
02- Zyuohger
03- Go-Busters
04- ToQger
05- Kyuranger

Ultraman
01- Geed
02- Taiga
03- Orb
04- R/B
05- X

Kamen Rider:
1) Gaim
2) Build
3) Zero-One
4) W
5) OOO
6) Drive
7) Ex-Aid
8) Zi-O
9) Fourze
10) Wizard
11) Ghost

Super Sentai

1) Gokaiger
2) Go-Busters
3) ToQger
4) RyuSoulger (might change depending on how the show ends)
5) Lupinranger VS PatRanger
6) Kyuranger
7) Zyuohger
8) Kyoryuger
9) Ninninger

Ultraman: This might be cheating since I list some movies, but ehh whatever.
1) X
2) Geed
3) Orb
4) Taiga
5) Ultraman Zero stuff with one exception
6) R/B
7) Ginga S
8) Ginga
9) Ultraman Saga (one of the lookest cooling Ultra, yet terrible movie it made me messed up my spelling)

Power Rangers:

5) Dino Charge
10) Beast Morphers
100) Super Samurai
101) Samurai
200) Megaforce
300) Dino Supercharge
400) Ninja Steel
500) Super Ninja Steel
600) Super Megaforce
Fuck this era. Though I would rank Dino Charge in between Ginga and Ginga S.

Here’s my list, which I will not bother to filter at all.

1) Kamen Rider Gaim
2) Ultraman Ginga
3) Power Rangers Ninja Steel
4) Shuriken Sentai Ninninger
5) Ultraman Orb
6) Kamen Rider Zi-O
7) Tensou Sentai Goseiger
8) Uchuu Sentai Kyuranger
9) Kamen Rider Ghost
10: Kishiryu Sentai Ryusoulger

The rest I haven’t seen yet or don’t care enough to list.

A chance to indulge in my obsession for ranked lists? Yes, please!

I'm going with five in each category just to preserve my own sanity.

By franchise:

Kamen Rider
1. Kamen Rider W - Still one of the gold standards for me. Amazing show from start to finish with great characters, excellent suits, and fantastic music.
2. Kamen Rider Ex-Aid - Proof that a good story and likeable characters can make up for some of the worst visual designs in the franchise's history.
3. Kamen Rider Zero-One (probationary) - I hesitate to rank Zero-One so early, but it has a strong pedigree in the creative department and I've been consistently blown away by pretty much everything its done so far. I don't see it ranking lower than this unless Toei pulls a complete Hibiki on it for some reason.
4. Kamen Rider Gaim - I still think this show is really overrated and that tends to make me like it less, but I can't deny that it's a very strong show overall.
5. Kamen Rider Fourze - This could maybe be OOO or Drive instead if you asked me on another day, but I find this show to be a load of fun with really likeable characters (who aren't Yuki). I have problems with its pacing, but I tend to overlook them when I think back to what I liked about the show.

Super Sentai
1. Gokaiger - Still the best anniversary series Toei has ever put out. Great concept, great characters, no real complaints other than the fact that it ended.
2. Akibaranger - Not every gag landed for me with this show, but when it was on-point it was fantastic.
3. There is no 3-5. I've only finished two other Sentai series made this decade: Gobusters and LuPat. Neither one really did much for me. Some shows I made it about halfway through (Zyuohger, ToQger) and some I dropped within a couple episodes (Ryusoulger, Ninninger). Ultimately, I'm just not really that into Sentai.

Power Rangers
I have seen maybe ten episodes total of the various different PR series this decade. Next.

Ultraman
1. Orb - Amazing series. Really good mix of nostalgic revisits to the past, homages to other shows (mostly Zubat), and its own unique flavor. One of my favorite series in general of the decade.
2. X - I feel like this show has been a little forgotten following the one-two punch of Orb and Geed, but it was a really good series.
3. Geed - I technically still haven't finished this one, but I've seen enough to say that it's very consistently great.
4. Ginga S - Another show that I feel gets overlooked. It was short, but it packed a lot of great stuff into its run.
5. That's actually it for now. I probably need to give Taiga more of a look, but R/B really turned me off and I can't think of Ginga as anything but a low-budget novelty.

Garo
1. Makai Senki - Fantastic and unexpected follow-up to the original series.
2. Zero Dragon Blood - Short but sweet with some interesting subversions of the original show's character dynamics. Still really impressed with the show's major plot twist.
3. Makai Retsuden - Innately a little uneven due to its nature, but it was still a ton of fun to revisit characters from all the different eras of the franchise.
4. Gold Storm Sho - the stronger of the two Ryuga series. It still lacked a little in terms of the visual effects, but the plot worked really well and I liked the main characters a lot. Jinga got overplayed really badly after this point, though.
5. Makai no Hana - Visually, this is the most impressive series in the entire franchise. There are so many cool and crazy things that happened in this show. It's just a pity that it's built around a weak central plot and underdeveloped characters (and I'm being charitable with the term "underdeveloped" here).

Here's my list for Kamen Riders:
1. Fourze - I was surprisingly fond of the characters and loved the premise of the story. The outfits were a bit of a miss for me, but I loved the series so much. "Saite" is still one of my favorite Kamen Rider songs.
2. Giam - Another surprise for me, but the storyline turned out to be one of the most captivating and heartbreaking of any Kamen Rider I've ever seen. Despite the odd concept and hit or miss outfits, I definitely plan to rewatch it!!
3. OOO - I loved ever single character! The bad guys were interesting, the secondary riders were lovable, and the love/hate relationship between the three main characters was just so good. Plus when the ballad version of "Anything Goes" comes on, the waterworks start.
4. Wizard - It was okay. I actually liked the outfit and concept of magic, but too many of the side characters were annoying. The only side character I kinda liked by the end was Nito (Beast).
5. Ghost (only 13 episodes in) - So far, I like the idea... but I've heard that the show falls short in the end. Hoping it's not as bad as everyone said.
6. W - I liked the main riders (still scream when they pop up in movies with that "count your sins" line) and Accel is pretty cool, but Akiko... Akiko is a huge miss for me. She was just so annoying from the start and I hated her even more in the OOO x W movie.

(I haven't seen Drive, Ex-Aid, Build, Zi-O, or Zero-One yet)

1. Kamen Rider OOO
2. Dobutsu Sentai Zyuohger

Annnnnnnd list done.
Honestly, those were the only two toku series this decade that really, truly made me feel like a kid again, giddy to watch the next episode.
W, Ex-Aid, and Gaim are great Rider series, and...Uh...Shinkenger and Gokaiger weren't offensively bad, I guess :lol

Kamen Rider had a fairly strong decade. While I skipped out on a lot because Ghost and Build didn't interest me in the slightest, and I never finished Drive or Zi-O, from what I hear, the only hurdles were Ghost and Zi-O. It was really just a bit of burn out on my end, though, watching old and new, along with the currently airing, but from the beginning half of the decade, I can already tell they ramped things up after the trainwreck that was Decade.

Sentai, though...Ouch...Shinkenger wasn't for me, but it's not bad, per se. Gokaiger is a bit one note, but it's very flashy to be called bland, at least. Goseiger also at the very least gave us one of the best villains in Brajira. Otherwise, Zyuohger was the only Sentai I could call "Good" without having to worry about possibly misleading someone :lol
LuPat tried something new, but let the marketing team lead the way and ruined the whole thing, GoBus did absolutely nothing for me, Kyoryu could literally have axed the rest of the team besides Daigo and nothing would change, while Ninnin and Kyu were just so...Damn...Annoying to watch.

I personally would add Wizard but that’s still only 3/10, 7 entire shows were either good at worst or great at best, that's a very satisfying statistic.

Having only seen shows past and including Ninnnger, yes. "Ouch" indeed. Ninninger sucked royally, Kyuranger was offensively bad, LuPat is wasted potential incarnate and Ryusoulger is so blatantly decent it’s sad.

Zyuohger was the only one I’ve seen I would call "good", I agree.

Honestly, I'd still say Wizard wasn't bad. It's certainly not in my top 10, but I feel it gets a bit too much hate and at worst it's just a little dull at some points (they REALLY needed to work on their plot pacing). For the most part though it's a fun, very motw-focused series with a few fun ideas and arcs. What's going on with Phoenix and Medusa stand out to me in particular; with the latter's story giving me my favourite take on a revenge plot I've ever seen.

Hell, I don't even hate Zi-O. It was... a THING... but when it was good, it was really good. Zi-O II's debut is still an absolute standout for me and it mostly knew how to have fun with the returning cast, especially Tsukasa. It's one of those things where I'd struggle to call it good, but I'd also struggle to say I didn't enjoy it.

I'm trailing pretty far behind, by choice I might add, so I'll include the 2009-2010 series just to add some meat to the lists. I just finished watching Ninninger and am partway through Ghost so I'm about halfway through the decade.

Super Sentai:
1. Go-Busters - This series just worked for me. I liked the story, I liked the setup, I liked the characters. It had a rough start and when I heard about the characters' "bugs" I groaned but I found that they didn't focus all that much on it so it only bothered me when it actually came up. It's also one of, like, three or four tokusatsu series that have made me cry properly so it's definitely got that going for it. It also has the best team-up movie ever with the Kyouryugers.
2. Kyouryuger - Another series that just flat out worked for me (and the only other Super Sentai that made me cry properly... twice, even. Three times maybe, even?). I loved the character, I loved the villains in particular and they even included an actual romance, as stilted as it was.
3. ToQGer - Perfectly fine monster of the week show up until the big reveal at which point it got a lot more serious and engaging for me. Another show with a really good cast of villains too, loved them so much. I didn't like the suits as much nor the whole switching gimmick thing, it felt a bit... bleh, honestly. Like none of their powers were unique. But the story kept it engaging.
4. Goseiger - Pure monster of the week, it had very little in terms of story and I absolutely loathed the later mecha designs. I can barely remember any of the characters and outside of that one villain, the villains were absurdly forgettable.
5. Ninninger - A lot of people hated this one. And I did too. At least in the beginning. The "Red is all mighty"-syndrome was particularly strong with this series. But I found that my opinion changed a little before the halfway mark. It became a lot easier to digest and they toned down Takaharu a lot. In my opinion, Yakkun was a way bigger drag on the series throughout than Takaharu was. Not sure exactly what it was but everything just got... a bit better. Like they got all of the really bad stuff out of the way then got to move on. I still didn't like the mecha at all but it had kickass monster designs through and through.
6. Shinkenger - The series that sort of started the decade, didn't gel with me at all. It probably didn't help that I had to put it aside midseries to go watch Decade which meant I had to catch up on a ton of old Kamen Rider series but the characters just... didn't really do it for me. To be fair, I saw this series a long, long time ago and it's on my "need to rewatch"-list but... no fond memories of this at all.
7. Gokaiger - Yeah, I know, total mark against the newbie but Gokaiger just wasn't... good. At least, to me. The anniversary aspect felt shallow at best and glorified the Gokaiger more than the old teams, I don't even remember if there were consistent villains and outside of Gai and Don, the cast felt bleh. In short, not for me.

Kamen Rider:
1. OOO - My favorite tokusatsu show of all time at this point. This show made me cry so hard and the ending is one of the best/saddest of all time. I thought the gimmick was genius and made me look forward to all the various combinations and the hype when you got to see the full color combination. Such a strange setup but it worked magic and Ankh and Eiji is one of the strongest couple ever. God, just thinking about those two give me chills.
2. Gaim - I was so put off by this show in the first few episodes but it evolved so quickly and it became impossible to put down. Such a teen drama and yet so capitvating. Good themes and despite what was a relatively corny theme (fruits), they had some of the strongest designs so far. Don't think the monster design was as strong but that's a very minor flaw since they were rarely the focus.
3. Drive - Another show that I hated at first but quickly came to love. The humor was very hit and miss and at first the wheel changing was very off putting but everything surrounding them quickly overpowered the bad. Also another show that had something resembling romance even if it was handled very childishly at times but the presence is always appreciated. Good drama too, much enjoyed.
4. Fourze - Ha, high school drama that actually worked. The initial focus on getting the gang together worked absolute wonders and the American influences gave it a very unique look and feels which I liked a lot. I also found Gentaro to be impossible to resist, I'd be his friend any day. I even found the teacher endearing and I normally hate that kind of character.
5. W - It's been a while since I saw this but I remember liking it a lot. Shotaro and Philip were wonderful and Ryu became quite enjoyable the more the show continued. The big, black, festering mark against this show, though, is Akiko. I just... don't like these types of characters at all and she never seemed to learn anything. How she and Ryu ended up together I'll never... EVER understand. The gimmick was badass, though.
6. Ghost - I don't hate this series and if it continues as it is, it'll probably rise a whole lot on the list but for now, I'm not far enough in to make anything resembling a good judgment.
100. Wizard - Hate this show. It took me forever to claw my way through this show. Each episode was slow, dull and at times even painful. The humor just never hit home for me, the damned donut stuff was like pulling teeth and the mayonaise... why? It wasn't FUNNY... at all. Like, this show never made me laugh and it so clearly tried hard to make people laugh. Just... pure awful. I don't wear rings, I hate it, so the gimmick was outright offputting and the fact that the rings were so damn big was... ewww. And his last form was... outright hideous. The one, sole bright spot in this show was Nito who actually ended up becoming pretty damn cool and interesting (but was utterly screwed over after his heroic sacrifice so I choose to believe that last cross over movie never happened). But Haruto? Hated him. Koyomi? Boring. Shunpei? Urgh. Rinko? Nope! The villains? Pretty cool until Wiseman took the lead and they literally kicked the most interesting villain into the sun. Super cool and interesting concepts were in there somewhere, muddle in... all the absolutely awful stuff. I've seen Kuuga up to Ghost and Dekaranger up to Ninninger and I've never felt like quitting a show as much as during Wizard. It was pure perseverance that got me through this one. I haaaate Wizard. And I don't hate tokusatsu easily.

I still gotta make a list for this thread, despite not seeing Zi-O or Zero-One yet and possibly feeling physically tortured by deciding how to rank Gaim/Drive/Fourze (oh god oh god don't think about it yet you're okay you're doing okay), but let me add a big (or, Big) thumbs up to the Wizard villain spotlight episodes. It can get frustratingly same-y for a lot of its two-parters, but the Phoenix, Medusa, and Gremlin two-parters are extraordinarily good. As long as we're on the topic of ranking things, I'd probably throw the Phoenix story as my #1. It's a very empathetic story in its first half that has such a killer twist at the cliffhanger, setting up a super exciting high-octane second half.

Thanks for bringing those up!

Wizard is just the most vanilla Rider series ever conceived. It lacks any real distinct feel for itself and made me and many others despise the two part format.

It is, but so is pretty much every Sentai. It was fine for what it was; we're just used to Rider being a lot more serialised and focused.

Kamen Rider
1. Gaim
2. Build
3. Ex-Aid
4. Drive
5. Amazons (Don't know if side shows count)

Super Sentai
1. Gokaiger
2. Go-Busters
3. ToQger
4. Kyuranger
5. Zyuohger

Yeah, I'd say it counts even if it does not make the "Main 20 Heisei Rider" roster.

It's still a Tokusatsu show that aired in the 2010s.

Sorry in advance for this list! It's only Kamen Rider, since that's all I watch, and I haven't done Zi-O or Zero-One yet.

10. AMAZONS: As a full series, I thought it was pretty bad. The first season was enjoyable, largely down to the cheerful, charismatic face Jin put to genocide, but the second season confused shock value for compelling stories, and the movie was a total waste of time. At the end, it felt like a series that mistook gore for profundity.

9. GHOST: I talk a lot about it here. (Maybe too much!) I thought it wasn't as bad as some folks say, and not as great as other folks say. It made a ton of mistakes for me in the first rush of episodes, but righted the ship as the series progressed. Thematically, it picked something incredibly difficult to dramatize (emotional connections, spiritual wellness, empathy at all costs) but stuck to those themes so thoroughly that good stories grew from it. A deeply flawed series that rallied enough to keep me watching.

8. WIZARD: I didn't enjoy much of the experience of watching it, but I'm really glad I finished it. Over-reliant on two-episode monster-of-the-week plots to the detriment of incremental enjoyment, but a terrific series-long plot with a breathtaking final run of episodes. Too bad the middle section is soul-crushing in its averageness. The villain spotlights are an If You Only Watch One Thing From This Show delight, and the Net Movies kill. I never cared much for Haruto as a Rider, but there's some solid storytelling going on under the hood.

7. GAIM: A weird one, for me. One of the things I like in Kamen Rider shows is how it subverts Western superhero concepts, how it's for an audience with different cultural expectations. Like, most Kamen Rider heroes have a "with great responsibility comes great power" origin, where their innate heroism and selflessness sees them become the recipient of special powers. Kouta isn't that at all? He gets powers by accident, uses them for his own benefit, and eventually learns to use them for the good of others. It's a very Spider-Man origin, which I wonder if that's maybe why some Western fans really dial into Gaim as a series. It was kind-of the opposite for me, where it seemed too familiar. Still, the overall plot was well-done, with a steady progression to the finale. Some of the Woman of the Beginning stuff felt badly conceived, and Peko just sucks hilariously bad, but Baron's one of the greatest secondary Riders of all time, and the ending battle is epic. A really fun series that maybe didn't work for me as well as I was expecting it to.

6. FOURZE: Best opening string of episodes in any Kamen Rider series I've seen yet. Best ensemble of any Kamen Rider series I've seen yet. I would maybe die for Miu. Grafting the sci-fi monster fighting of a Kamen Rider show to a high school dramedy is probably one of the smartest decisions this franchise ever made. The plots generate from every angle, the stakes feel personal and also universal (no pun intended), the mixture of action and empathy never feels out of balance... it's a smart, funny, fast-paced show. I don't love the suits, and there's a point in the last dozen episodes where the producers realize they are a few stars short of a constellation and just start burning through developments, but that beginning is perfect and the ending nails its themes. "The Breakfast Club, but they fight space monsters" is a Hall Of Fame idea, and this show proved it.

5. W: I'm not sure there'll ever be as strong a Rider team as Philip and Shotaro. The booksmart/streetsmart thing, it's a timeless concept, but this show makes it seem fresh. The mysteries are fun, the theme song is fantastic, and the suit designs are gorgeous. I never really loved Accel, Akiko is occasionally too broad to tolerate, and the stuff with Wakana in the ending makes my blood boil when I think about it even now (I DON'T UNDERSTAND THAT CHARACTER CHOICE AT ALL), but all of the main Double stuff makes those complaints feel minor. A terrific show that nails the fundamental week-to-week storytelling.

4. BUILD: I talk a lot about it here. (Definitely too much!) Okay, there is a stronger Rider team, it's Banjou and Sento. That relationship, the friction-giving-way-to-respect-giving-way-to-friendship-giving-way-to-brotherhood, it's worth a hundred other shows. Add in Evol(t), Grease, Rogue, Misora, Sawa, the Hokuto War arc, this goddamn scene...

https://challengerscomics.com/images...isorasento.gif

...it's a superlative series, blessed with outstanding performers. So why isn't it #1? Well, the war framework gets a little repetitive (it definitely needed a break between the Hokuto arc and the Seito arc), and there's a weird amount of retconning/expositing for the pre-show developments. Also, Buildad is just not a good idea. Overall, it's a show I love, and I couldn't blame anyone for calling it the best Kamen Rider of the decade.

3. DRIVE: THIS THEME SONG!

[youtube]ToWdmzTEHK0[/youtube]

(Okay, also how great the main actor is, how sympathetic the "monsters" become, the Chase/Go love story, all of the great suits, the exciting season-long story, the always entertaining week-to-week plots, it's a nearly perfect show. My few quibbles are that the stuff with Shinnosuke's dad in the middle of the season doesn't work that great, and that Kiriko is distractingly beautiful. It's a brilliant show!)

2. OOO: I frequently describe OOO as a show that isn't the best at anything, but it's good at everything. There are shows with better suits, better villains, better relationships, better plots and reveals and songs and conclusions and all of it. There's not one thing I'd point to OOO for and say they did it best. But they screwed up nothing. They dropped the ball never. It's literally a flawless show. It's my favorite Kamen Rider show, without question.

1. EX-AID: But I have to put Ex-Aid at the top of this list. (Or, uh, bottom of this list.) Ex-Aid was my first ever Kamen Rider show. If it wasn't for the suit aesthetics of Ex-Aid that I saw on TokuNation figure reviews, I'd've never started watching the show. If it wasn't for how addictively fun and surprisingly emotional Ex-Aid was, I'd've never watched other Kamen Rider shows. Emu, Poppy, and the alpha male assholes of the Cyber Rescue team, it's like I can't ever be mad at them for anything. It would be churlish to nitpick a show that ignited an obsession in me. If it wasn't your first show, I can't imagine why you'd call it the best Kamen Rider of the decade. But it was mine, so it's always going to be number one. Thank you, Kamen Rider Ex-Aid.

Wizard I'm indifferent on. I found it bland and dull, much like the donuts Wizard loves.
That said, I felt it had some noteworthy moments, though the subplot with the main girl was a total waste. I think Phoenix, Medusa, and Beast really kept the show from dropping beneath "Stale" for me. I think the combination of a weak lead and a nonsensical plot that would make Kabuto proud keeps it from me personally calling it good, but others apparently enjoyed it.

Sentai, though...Good god. Shinkenger was boring, though inoffensive. Goseiger was just...Well...Brajira and Gosei Knight were cool :lol
Gokaiger was rather one note with no substance, but just like eating a mouthful of whipped cream, still enjoyable. GoBus did nothing for me, and I just couldn't find the drive to care. Kyoryu was the culmination of Red worship dialed up to 11, and featured one of the most insufferable reds to go with it. ToQ wasn't awful, but I felt it was far, far too basic and uninteresting. I think I'd be willing to pair it with Gokai and Shinken in "Not godawful." Ninnin and Kyu were so goddamn annoying that I just couldn't stand them. LuPat is basically the poster child for wasted potential, and Ryusoulger is just so very bland, it just feels like a constant "Been there, done that" with an unhealthy dosage of red focus once more.

I do really need to get to Amazons and Akibaranger, though. They seem to be universally praised, I just need to find the drive.

2010 picks

01 Toqger
02 Kyuranger
03 Ryusoulger
04 Kyoryuger
05 Ninninger
06 Go Busters


Even after I start Lupin Pat this may not change much.

Currently watching To Quger - Ryusoul in order on DVD.

Oh damn, I forgot about this thread! I guess as long as it's active for 5 more seconds... I ended up watching some Ultras!


1. Geed
2. X
3. Saga
4. Orb
5. Ginga S
6. Ginga
7. Zero movies
8. Orb Origin
9. ULTRAMAN (Netflix anime)


Yet to give my thoughts on it like most others on this list, but Geed kinda came out of nowhere and utterly had me fall in love with it. I'll be surprised if any Ultra tops it for me (though Tiga and Nexus look very promising) and even though it's only been a few weeks it remains incredibly memorable to me. Following it up is X being a superb series in every way with so many single episode highlights that had me like the characters so much more than I thought; Saga being a beautiful movie about the extents humanity will go for each other; and Orb being a lovely if odd little season that ultimately has quite a bit to say about it being okay to move past your trauma. Ultra's given me a lot to love so far!


Heck, while I'm here, why not update the lists I already gave?

Kamen Rider there's not a terrible amount to say -- Zi-O and Ghost got a little higher. Zi-O is, I'm sorry, just an awesome show that's absolutely crazy at both its best and worst. I recall once saying about Decade that like... during the Hibiki episodes, I realised that at the point you've got Momotaros charging at oni while Ouja summons a giant crab and Tsukasa's using Ax Form to play bull; I really can't hate that? At all? And all that goes tenfold for Zi-O. So much stupid stuff is happening every two seconds and I'm so into it.
Ghost, meanwhile... I think it's mostly me realising I liked its strengths more than Wizard's. Also, my girlfriend and some others doing a fair bit to win me over on it. Kinda wanna rewatch it at some point, see what I think a second time around!

Sentai though is hugely different from what I posted before. Still stand by my bottom tiers and that Ninninger is the only show here I straight up dislike, but I had to be honest with myself at some point and say that Zyuohger and Gokaiger are just the two series that resonated most with me and that I keep going back to my head. Both are just very nice seasons with casts that I always keep coming back to and finding more to love -- and I've got very similar praises for Shinkenger and Toqger! Go-Busters... fell a lot, which is really down to me realising I don't actually remember much about the cast. Like, I still love a lot about it! I love the integration of the mech fights; I love how it's structured; I love Enter; I could go on and on... but ultimately what makes a series for me is the main characters, and so I'm realising I just don't love Go-Busters as much as I thought I did.
Oh, right, and Ryusoulger ended up being awesome! I daresay one of the best Toku shows in the past few years (though, I mean, Build and Ultraman are really REALLY good at fighting for that title) and one that only got better as time went on.


As for currently airing series... Kiramager is a lot of fun though I have troubles keeping up with it for some reason; Zero-One seems very intent on crushing any good will I had for it; and Z is. A whole goddamn heap of awesome. Right now I think it might just be behind Geed as my second favourite Ultraman and I don't think many would contest me on its quality! Tsupro chose an EXTREMELY good entry to start simulcasting on!

Super Sentai

13) ToQGer:
The only good thing was Wagon and the soundtrack. Everything else either sucked or was mediocre.

12) Kyoryuger:
It's been said many times but I have to agree that King insisting "We're a team!" sounds pretentious cause he's always carrying them. However, it's not his fault that he's too strong. The worst character is Amy whose entire love triangle with King and Yayoi happened out of spite. Kenjin Torin isn't as wise as his surname implies. Ian is probably the most relatable character and has an emotional arc. There's a lot of good moments in this show but I can't ignore its mistakes.

11) Gokaiger:
Other than the tributes, it's kind of an average season and a little overrated. I don't have much bad to say about it but it didn't do a lot to impress me, except the final showdown between Marvelous and Basco.

10) Ninninjer:
Ninjas are awesome! Not the best ninja season but it's worth watching for Starninjer alone.

9) Kyuranger:
Despite a bumpy start and obnoxious characters like Lucky and especially Raptor, the premise is very similar to Assassin's Creed (in space) and Balance and Naga are a very likable duo with an emotional arc.

8) Gobusters:
A darker more serious Sentai but not short of comedy, especially once J shows up which is when the story picks up the pace as well.

7) Kyoryuger Brave:
A major improvement over Kyoryuger with Juyong being a leader who actually leads instead of a 1-man army. Dohee is 1000000x better than Amy. Juyong and Juhyeok have an emotional arc. Pretty good for only 12 half-length episodes.

6) Akibaranger S2:
Just as humorous and enjoyable as its predecessor but the story isn't as good and the ending is pretty bad.

5) Akibaranger S1:
One of the most humorous Sentai in history. It's unofficial but a great tribute to the franchise and there's a lot of fun in trying to spot all the references.

4) Lupinranger VS Patranger:
A very original idea with a moral that not everything is black and white and sometimes people feel they have no choice but to do the wrong thing. Kairi is a cool and stylish red with a heavy conscience who secretly idolizes Keiichirou, the hot-blooded cop who prioritizes peace and happiness for all. There are some interesting dynamics between the two Sentai.

3) Ryusoulger:
Kou is one of my favorite reds in recent years. He's a master of epic speeches, determined, brave and likes to have fun. There's a lot of themes about chivalry of knights and even the samurai honor code of Bushido with the whole "our souls are one" line referencing how samurai souls would live on in their swords.

2) Goseiger:
Written by Yokote who previously wrote Gekiranger, this show had to be great and the rangers have a lot of cool Dynamics (haha, get it?). Similar to Long, Brajira is also a very interesting and mysterious villain who wouldn't seem out of place in a Kamen Rider show.

1) Zyuohger:
After years of mediocrity, this show tries to be something more. People praise Yamato for not being a "screaming red" but I think he's pretty average. What I love about this show is the Zyumen and Misao and the surprisingly dark backstory about Zyuland that Bud reveals, as well as the implications of a human becoming a Zyuohger which results in a lot of guilt for the two humans.

Power Rangers

7) Beast Morphers S1:
Pretty decent and original story and some cool characters but it has a few subplots I'm not invested in and I don't like Zoey.

6) Super Ninja Steel:
Ninjas are awesome! Dimensions In Danger was an awesome crossover but the rest of the show doesn't match the quality of its predecessor.

5) Ninja Steel:
Ninjas are awesome! If you liked Juyong's and Juhyeok's arc then Brody and Levi have basically the same arc only a few months later but it's just as emotional and has more mystery.

4) Super Mega Force:
Legendary Battle Extended Edition with the rangers using all their powers to defeat Mavro was awesome. Orion had a tragic backstory.

3) Mega Force:
"Take a good look. Do you see any tears?" Bad*ss! Robo Knight is a great source of comedy. Other than the big crossover, most of the stuff I love about Mega Force happens in this first season.

2) Samurai:
Similar to Wild Force, it stays faithful to its source show Shinkenger but improves on some parts such as the rivalry between Jayden and Deker and how Antonio is actually a likable character, unlike Genta. Although you're welcome to disagree.

1) Super Samurai:
And the final battle against Xandred with Jayden even using Shogun Mode outside the cockpit! Lauren also shows up here in the final arc as his sister which I think was a more interesting dynamic than what happened in Shinkenger.

I already have a ranking for every main Heisei Rider show except Blade so I'll just take Heisei Phase 2 and add Amazons S1 and S2.

Kamen Rider

12) Gaim:
Every Rider is either a villain, antivillain or antihero except Knuckle. The first 9 episodes were slow as hell. The final episode sucked since Haganeya wrote it. The episodes written by Urobutchi were better but that's a low bar and it was too dark and edgy, like the Agito movie. There was no Drive cameo.

11) Amazons S2:
The first episode was slow as hell. Chihiro isn't a very relatable or likable protagonist for the first half of this season but all the amazing gore and violence is still there.

10) Amazons S1:
The first episode was slow as hell. The rivalry between Haruka and Jin is exciting and the best thing about Amazons in general is the amazing gore and violence, a quality you won't find in any other Kamen Rider content except maybe The Next.

9) EX-Aid:
Pretty decent but there's no transition between the Genm X arc and the Kamen Rider Chronicle arc which makes them feel disconnected like watching two different seasons. I think the quality peaks in the first half.

8) Zi-O:
It gets confusing and has so many time travel plot holes. However, there are a lot of really cool episodes such as the OOO arc, the Day of Oma arc and the Kiva arc. The movie is amazing with Barlckxs being a mysterious and cool villain Rider similar to Eternal, although their goals are different.

7) OOO:
It's very average, but in a good way. A typical Kamen Rider show and a good start for newcomers to the franchise.

6) Wizard:
Some of the best CGI, especially in the Underworld. The characters are good, yeah even Shunpei, although you're welcome to disagree. There are a lot of surprising plot twists.

5) Drive:
All the same intriguing mystery of Double with a complex protagonist and sympathetic villains. It's technically the first show where the Primary and Secondary Riders are brothers, although not by blood.

4) Double:
An intriguing detective show with a 2 in 1 Kamen Rider. Their dynamic is very memorable and leads to a very emotional final arc. The movie gives us Eternal, one of the coolest villain Riders ever.

3) Ghost:
For all of its problem, it does so many things right. I think Takeru is the most heroic protagonist in the history of the franchise and the show has a wealth of inspiring morals thanks to the legendary heroes and more importantly from Takeru himself, as well as Alain who has his own very emotional arc. The stakes are high since people die and Takeru is literally racing against a clock to revive himself.

2) Fourze:
The characters make this show. The members of Kamen Rider Club are all so unique and likable and they never cared about each other at the start which really shows the power of friendship through the way they clash and develop around Gentarou as he brings them together.

1) Build:
Sento and Ryuuga are a Best Match. This show is second only to Faiz on my Heisei ranking with a genuinely smart and intimidating villain and a duo who are virtually polar opposites and still have a lot of chemistry. Similar to Faiz, this show manages to perfectly balance comedy and drama.

Satria

2) BIMA:
Indonesia's debut Tokusatsu in collaboration with Ishinomori Production. The characters are likable and the story gets really good after Ray obtains Power Stone Biru from Topeng Besi. His God Helios form is impressive. Gackt, the AR Riderman and singer of Journey Through The Decade, has a guest appearance as BIMA Legend speaking in fluent Indonesian.

1) BIMA-X:
Black RX + Kuuga = BIMA-X. I haven't watch either of the Blacks but the protagonist of those shows has a guest appearance speaking in fluent Indonesian. This show is the same length as an average Kamen Rider and has the same quality as the second half of its predecessor. Ultimate Dark Mode is awesome!

Congratulations, Kurona, I think you just found the single saddest sentence I've heard in my life. You have no idea how much I wish I had the free time right now to act on my sudden urge to make a "Fish Sandwich rewatches Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters" thread entirely out of... concern, I guess?

Which is like, totally selfish on my part, but man, it's times like this I'm just so happy loving things is not a zero-sum game to me, which is why you're unlikely to ever see me actually make a top whatever list like this. The closest I can do is having the occasional breakaway favorite.

Oh, and speaking of which, just to load this post with as much glaring personal bias as possible, your girlfriend sounds awesome. :p

I mean, hey; her favourite sentai is Go-Busters too, so of course she is!


And you totally shouldn't do a Go-Busters thread, because you've done ones for like... Kuuga and Ghost at this point, right? And that's a lot of commitment, and I can see how much care and work went into each one! You really, really shouldn't do all that over again for Go-Busters. Even though it'd be very fun. And probably make you like Go-Busters even more. And get interesting discussion from other people. And show yet others why you love it so much. And perhaps turn some people around. And reminds others like me why they liked it so much. And you'd get to see your favourite Sentai all over again. Plus the movies, right? Those are so much fun too! My point is, definitely, DEFINITELY don't do this!

Actually, the thread I made for Ghost only involved fully rewatching a few episodes (the series hadn't been over that long at the time), which is just one of several reasons that's way up there with Go-Busters as a show I'd love to go that insanely in-depth on one day.

There's like a million shows I'd love to give that same treatment as Kuuga, in fact, but, honestly, even ignoring the time commitment, it takes a lot to work up the self-confidence to do something that huge. If you want to really motivate me to (not) do it, you could always try making your own Go-Busters thread first where you open by dunking on old-school Doctor Who. It worked for Die! :p

I would never do that! Never.


It wasn't written my Moffat yet!

Writing so badly about Kuuga that it forced to Fish to make the definitive Kuuga Appreciation Thread is my second favorite thing I've done on these boards since joining them last year.

Oh how I wanna copy and paste a certain quote of a certain Mr. Witwicky. :lolol

I don't know whether you're saying you prefer it or the opposite but I've always preferred older Doctor Who even though it obviously wasn't my era, I do still watch new series episodes now and again but just the format of the original is more my cup of tea and when it got to Matt Smith's 2nd series I just couldn't be bothered to watch every week, sorry! The Sarah Jane Adventures was actually more my kind of thing. I'm still not the biggest fan of Sylvester McCoy though, the rare times I actually seek out Doctor Who I'm most likely to watch either Tom Baker or my favourite Jon Pertwee!

Not too sure if it's me you're responding to... but if so, I'm a fan of both modern and classic Doctor Who! Between my sensibilities and getting into it when it soft rebooted in 2005, I tend to go for modern and have watched every episode of it yet. I'm just a... very not big fan of where Moffat's writing went after his second season. And even though Jodie's got her moments, I'm still waiting for this series to be as good as it once was...

Classic I've seen a bit of a random grabbag of, just depending on which DVDs I picked up for cheap. Seen a bit of all 8 original doctors, and of them I really really like 7 and 1! The movie, as well, despite being... y'know, not amazing; did give us a good look at what kind of doctor we could have had with 8 and I liked him quite a bit.

I'm only gonna do Kamen Rider cause I've skipped more Sentai than I've actually watched. and since its 10 years I'm doing best to worst

10: Drive
9: Zi-O
8: Fourze
7: Wizard
6: Zero One
5: Gaim
4: Ex-Aid
3: OOO
2: W
1: Build

im not listing Ghost cause its an absolute train wreck of a show, The craziest thing about my list is that I dont actually feel like the shows at the bottom are just absolutely awful, its just that the top 6 are so good and they put the bar so high that its hard to rank those ones any higher

A Kamen Rider Ghost Rewatch thread is totally something I'd contribute to. Just saying!

note if I had to rate I'd put Gaim #1 overall and Ninninger at the bottom now if you were too ask me to throw Power Rangers in the mix Super Megaforce would be at the bottom

Am I the only one whose thinking Build gets rated way too high on these threads like it's good but I can think of 4 rider shows that aired this decade that are better TBF that's mostly due to the fact the pacing DROPS HARD once Evolto debuts(complete with them blatantly stalling to keep up with the toy release schedule) and there's a plot twist that felt like it came right the f--k out of nowhere/felt like a borderline asspull every episode after he debuted also kinda felt like they confused shocking with good storytelling (also the Hazzard arc basically copying Gaim 22-23 beat for beat nearly but going on for 8 episodes didn't help in my opinion)

Kamen Rider or at least what I've seen this decade (So W/Fourze/Zi-O/Zero One are all out which is a bummer cause I'm told W is GREAT)
7. Ghost(let's just say there's a REASON I'm skeptical about Saber despite how promising the trailer looked)
6. Wizard
(We leave the bad shows and enter good show tier after this)
5. Build NOTE just because I think something is overrated doesn't mean I find it bad like until Evolto came into the picture(I mean he technically always was but like when he became the main bad guy) it had a strong case for being top tier In my books(Copy pasting Gaim not withstanding) it's just everything that happened after episode 29
4. OOO
3. Drive Consider this the most underatted series
2. Ex-Aid NOTE honestly think Sentai should take notes from Emu/Sento since the Red hero has to be funny to appeal to kids, make them quirky/goofy but still feel competent not an annoying idiot who gets way too much screentime, and at the very least said quirkyness/goofyness gets toned down when the plot needs it, Takaharu/Right would be screaming their catchphrases/acting goofy when the toku equivalent of the Thanos snap is happening
1. Gaim (not praising how great it is here but I'm shocked this is seen as love/hate as it is nowadays, I Remember when I got into Toku this was the gold standard everything was compared (Sometimes unfavorably) too until Ex-Aid came out and for good reason)
(I'm told Fourze is also a love or hate show like I know people who LOVE Wizard,

NOT Rating Sentai the unholy stretch of Kyoryu/Toqu/Ninnin killed any interest I had in Sentai Though I'm told Kirameiger is good and I kinda want to watch Zyuohger honestly told Red is more like Emu/Sento which I'm on board with)(if they want Sentai being light hearted with Rider being darker I'm fine with that but at the very least don't make me feel like it's an annoying jacka--s red screaming his annoying catcphrase every 5 seconds )OK I did try Kyuranger only to drop it like 6 episodes in 1. what's the point of having 9 rangers if they can only field five at a time(other than toy sales/marketing) 2. YOSHA LUCKY every 5 seconds