[Xtreme RX]

Some more thoughts:

I love everything about this. The first episode didn't feel as rushed as previous debuts in recent memory. Hopefully they pace things well. They didn't even feel the need to show off a form change right off of the bat.

Mainly we were focused on Aruto Hiden and how he ended up becoming CEO of Hiden Technologies. I think he will be a likeable protagonist. He initially didn't want to take the role since his dream was to be a comedian. Unfortunately, he's awful. But by the end of the episode, he realizes he can make people smile by inheriting his grandfather's will to become a hero and save others. It's a great character motivation and we get to see it materialize in a believable way in just the first episode. But this is just the beginning. The story is going to presumably follow a lot of company drama (especially with the jealous Vice-President) and I'm excited to see how its handled.

As for other characters, I really like Izu and I can already see how her dryly explaining Aruto's crappy jokes will be a fun running gag. Not much shown of the AIM's squad but we get a few details - Fuwa doesn't care much for orders and is hell-bent on destroying the Humagears, and Yua doesn't have much power despite her rank. Will be interesting to see how that dynamic plays into their character arcs when they become Vulkan and Valkyrie respectively.

The MetsubouJinrai.net faction seems interesting. Horobi seems to be more serious while Jin has child-like curiosity. The scene where he executed the Magear while laughing was chilling. Interesting that their base of operations in "Daybreak Town" seems to be a flooded megapolis walled off from the rest of the city. Based on what they say, it appears that A.I had reached a "singularity" in the past before too.

The first episode had great world-building and I can already see the potential for mystery. What happened in the past at Daybreak Town? Is Fuwa's hate for A.I related to it? What about Aruto? Why did he call that Humagear during the flashback his father? And what was that explosion that killed him? I am really intrigued.

Action-wise, this episode did not disappoint. You can tell Zero-One is portrayed by a new actor because he's so agile. I love Takaiwa, but he was definitely starting to show his age coming up to the end of Heisei. Nawata is proving to be a worthy successor. I love the emphasis on jumps and speed. And it was really neat that they explained how Aruto being connected to Zea gave him A.I-like processing speed in order to read an instruction manual to learn how to use the Zero-One Driver. Kind of subverts the trope where the Rider magically knows how to fight from the first henshin. Attache-Slasher is a little ridiculous but looked pretty cool in action.

Also loved the special effects. The Magear transformation looked pretty menacing and disturbing with a lot of skeleton imagery, and Zero-One's transformation looked hella extra too, with the satellite beams and giant robotic grasshopper. Plus, CGI was pretty sparingly used and when they used it, it was pretty creative (Zero-One jumping through the bus). Plus that Rider Kick is awesome. A little brutal to see the innards of the Magear though, blue blood and all. Definitely felt sorry for that guy. He just wanted to make people laugh. I really expect the show to make us feel for these Humagears throughout its run. I see the potential in it getting really tragic.

Music is great, as expected from the composer behind Ghost. Plus, we have a baller insert theme and opening song.

Based on this first episode alone, I think we are in for a stellar first entry into the Reiwa era. Sure, it's not exactly a huge stylistic or tonal change from Heisei phase 2, but they are only airing a week apart. I just expect more of what Kamen Rider is best at and that's watching suited bugmen turning jumps in the sky into Rider Kick's, so Zero-One has my attention.

I guess I probably won't go too much in-depth with my posts going forward, but I was definitely highly impressed with this debut and will continue watching the series with enthusiasm.