[Byg42]

So, with Zeztz recently revealed, wanted to rank the aesthetics of all the Reiwa Riders so far.

1. Gotchard: Gotchard's designs hit a very specific sweetspot for me of being both cool and fun. The forms often have these sleek, metallic sheens to them, but they also aren't afraid to get silly, like plopping a whole UFO or T-Rex onto a body. One thing that stands out for me is how Gotchard utilizes its motifs, from obvious ones like how the forms embody their chemy characteristics, to more subtle choices like how all the Gotchard Riders have some sort of solar furnace on their chest. I like pretty much all the designs, even the ones that are heavy retools cause I find that they are pretty smart about how they're reused.

2. Saber: What I like about Saber aesthetics is that all the Riders are fairly distinct from each other while still feeling cohesive. For example, they all share the same "head with a sword sticking out" design motif but each of them utilize and present it in their own unique way. It makes the designs feel varied while still looking like they come from the same show.

3. Zero-One: As the first Reiwa Rider show, Zero-One feels like it's going back to a simpler, animal based aesthetic but with a modern edge, and I think it pulls it off pretty well. I also like how each Rider system for the most part has their own specific aesthetic to them. The Zero-One forms have a sleek bodysuit like look, the Shotriser Riders have more armored designs, and the Forceriser Riders have a more thrown together, patchwork look.

4. Gavv: For having a theme as silly as food and snacks, I think my chief issue with Gavv designs is that they aren't silly enough. Like the food motif is an inherently ridiculous concept, so I feel it's much better for the designs to completely lean into that. However, forms like base Gavv and Vram feel like they're trying to ground the designs by adding this element of tacticool with the silver undersuits and such, which just feels off in my opinion. That said, I do like a lot of the latter designs, in particular I think all of Gavv's upgrade forms do a better job at invoking the food motif and embodying that inherent silliness.

5. Geats: This will probably be my most contentious placement so let me explain. There was a quote by Shirakura where he said that a design being a little weird and strange makes it more memorable than if it were generically cool. I feel Geats designs are that latter example for me. Geats designs are for the most part "cool" and because of that, none of them are all that memorable to me. There's nothing particularly wrong with them, but there's not anything that really stands out for me. I also have hang ups on certain choices, like Geats being the only one who has a full body for his base form among the main riders.

6. Revice: While I don't hate any of Revice designs, my issue is just that they are largely very hit or miss. Most of the base forms are excellent but the further you go after that, it can be a bit of a toss up. Like Demons for example has a great base design, but the further Demons designs have somewhat diminishing returns. I think the core issue is mostly just the colour schemes. The designs most of the time are fine, they just sometimes have weird and perplexing colour choices. Like Revice Thunder Gale's colour scheme is an acquired taste to put it nicely, so I think most people prefer the Shin Revice colours from the stage show.