[Tokumonkey]

Now that Shinkocchou Seihou Accel has been announced (yay!), there seems to be a pattern of sticking to specific SS Rider properties. Initially, I'd have expected the line to keep iterating the main Rider of each series, but that hasn't been the case.

I originally wrote it off as a tendency toward easy repainting / parts re-use - and I'm sure that's an element - but I'm starting to think it's something else. N Daguva Zeba and Accel don't appear to use any significant parts from their respective main Riders.

Many people have noted that it's been some time since a new primary Heisei Rider was announced. Instead, we've seen more forms/characters either released or teased from Kuuga, W, Decade, and Kabuto. My guess is that Bandai is being deliberately conservative with the release of new Riders in this sub-line. I gather Hibiki didn't meet sales expectations, since there's been no hint of Ibuki or even Hibiki Kurenai. (I'm not ready to draw conclusions about Agito, yet.) They seem increasingly bold about releasing forms and supporting cast for the I-assume-successful SS Riders, teasing Skull, the Hoppers, Naszca, Diend, etc., but less bold to dip their toes into new series.

I guess part of that has to do with how they've already released Figuarts of practically everyone (with the one notable exception,) and many of them like Den-O and Ryuki still hold up relatively well.

As for the Shinkocchou Seihou Kamen Rider 1 that was teased, I suspect Bandai might view him as a sure seller, but like anything teased as Tamashii Nations, there's no guarantee of a release, although it seems likely.

Since I'm already indulging speculation, I had a couple more Kiva thoughts: considering Hibiki, W, and Decade, I'm starting to realize just how complex a Kiva release would be. So far, the Shinkocchou Seihou line has established an expectation that the Rider will come with just about every appropriate accessory imaginable. (Well, within reason given the limitations of package space.) W comes with scarves, Gaia Memories, and the ability for them to interact with the suit/driver as in the show. Decade comes with all the Ride Booker's forms, swappable driver, a zillion cards, etc. Hibiki had everything I could have reasonably asked and more. (There was no room left for extended claws or an alternate head.)

And what would a Kiva base form need? A removable Kivat, which likely means two of them. A replacement leg for his emo "wake up" finisher. Fuestles. If it's going to be as full-featured as other SS figures, they'd need to be able to interact with Kivat. The Gaia Memories are incredibly tiny, and these'd be worse, and fiddlier. There'd be the question of whether to use a real chain for the leg, and whether to include a violin and bow. Assuming the above, you'd be looking at fists, fuestle-holding hands, relaxed, "horns" hands, hands for the violin... oh, yeah, and a stand for Kivat.

That's a significant series of design challenges. Multiply that by Bandai's likely uncertainty of his popularity (he could sell like Hibiki, assuming Hibiki sold poorly) and production cost questions, and... yeah, I can see why it's taking a while.

...ohhh. And suddenly, I'm realizing how OOO would also be a challenge: the medals. Actually, Wizard would be a more significant challenge, as doing what they did with Gaia Memories with Wizard Rings seems highly impractical. Moreover, they'd want to get the silhouette right without sacrificing articulation, so the robe can't pooch out at the hips at all, and has to be able to hang straight down. So is it soft goods? Swappable? How do they avoid literally every problem with the fist release? Oh, and they wouldn't want to release a Wizard less full-featured than the original. And if "a better release than the original Figuarts version" is a factor in Bandai's decision-making, that'd... complicate... SS Ryuki.

All of this yammering, of course, is me speculating on which main Rider they'll release next and how long it'll take. I'm starting to suspect the answer to the latter is "a while," and the next Rider? Maybe Faiz, with his reasonably-sized accessories.

In the meantime, I'm looking forward to Accel and pretty much everything they've teased so far. I sympathize with people waiting for misc_Rider_in_need_of_an_update, though.