[Switchblade]

All right, this is the one I've been waiting for. I know Kiva has some (misguided) fans here, but I think I can make a compelling case for why he doesn't stand a chance here.

The thing that's great about this match-up is that these two are really similar. Kiva's base forms are a direct recreation of Kuuga's, right down to the color schemes: balanced red, fast blue, strong purple, gun-wielding green. The thing is, though, that there is very little that Kiva can do that Kuuga can't. And all of those things Kuuga can do better.

Garuru form gives Kiva a speed boost, but he doesn't because as crazy agile and maneuverable as Dragon form Kuuga, who can literally leap tall buildings in a single bound. Dogga Kiva is stronger, but he lacks the nearly invulnerable armor that Kuuga gets in Titan form. Bassha Kiva may not have Pegasus form's time limit, but Pegasus Kuuga is the ultimate sniper. His sense and reaction time are so highly tuned that he can take down enemies with superspeed at over a mile's distance. And that's Kuuga's normal forms. He can also increase all of those forms exponentially by going into their Rising versions.

That just leaves Kiva with Emperor form and, in terms of power, Kuuga can easily match that with Amazing Mighty or, if that's not enough (and it probably is), Ultimate. Whether or not you buy the idea that Ultimate Kuuga can destroy the world with a Rider Kick, you can't deny that the ways Kuuga's forms work (each tier being exponentially stronger than the prior) still makes Ultimate form the strongest final form in Rider history.

Ah, but Switchblade, you may be thinking, Kiva does have some tricks that Kuuga doesn't. Kiva has Castle Doran, a giant flying castle dragon. Kuuga's Rising Mighty Rider Kick can take out an entire city block (that's not information from a guidebook, that actually happens on camera in the show). One building isn't that big of a threat. And before you argue he can't reach it, he can use the Gouram to fly up to it or just leap in Dragon form.

Okay, but what about Kiva's crazy and nonsensical phoenix form? Yeah, that's just target practice for Rising Pegasus.

How about the Zanvat sword? Kuuga's strongest forms aren't armed. Well Go-Gadoru-Ba, the last Grongi on the show prior to N-Daguve-Zeba, not only had a sword but also was a total match for Kuuga's Rising forms in terms of power and skill. Yusuke smoked him with no trouble in Amazing Mighty form. There is nothing Kiva can bring to the table that Kuuga can't cope with.

tl;dr: Kuuga is a cool guy and Switchblade really over-thought this.