[Kimballwv44]

Getting ready to watch Kamen Rider X from early 70's...hope it will be decent

[Mesnick]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kimballwv44

Getting ready to watch Kamen Rider X from early 70's...hope it will be decent

I really think X deserves more attention than he gets. The show just had the misfortune of being caught between V3, which due to its direct connection to the original still feels like the start of the franchise, and the absolutely insane Amazon, so it feels a little boring at times. Plus, the name is not at all memorable. But this is the first rider with his own weapon, and the plot there is, if not smarter, then at least more thoughtful than that of most of his peers.

[Switchblade]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kimballwv44

Getting ready to watch Kamen Rider X from early 70's...hope it will be decent

It?s probably my favorite of the original five.

[Sh Ranger]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mesnick

I would also like to note separately that the film does not yet have a good translation, so my viewing was brightened up by the subtitles, where Kusaka was called Saka, Mari was Marisa and Marinade, and Takumi was a craftsman dog. Considering that the film disappointed me, this is rather a plus.

I think I'll wait for higher quality subs to upload before I watch this.

Quote:

Originally Posted by AkibaSilver

Kamen Rider Fourze Episodes 31 and 32 - Director's Cut

There was a Director's Cut?!

Quote:

Originally Posted by AkibaSilver

And finally, the new suit. I realised something while watching this - the base Fourze and Meteor suits looks great. Every upgrade, somehow, is a let down, and honestly I've never been the biggest Cosmic States fan? The rocket sword is fine, if very obviously a toy, but the Decade Complete chestplate and electric blue colour scheme, right after the blue Meteor Storm, is an odd choice. Nice debut fight though, guarantee we're gonna see that Switch mixing power used maybe once more before they forget all about it.

Now that you mention it, I think it's a little weird how there's a white Primary Rider and a black Secondary Rider, yet both of them have blue Final Forms. Maybe that's supposed to be symbolic of their friendship or something.

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Originally Posted by GuardianAngel87

Watched several more episodes of Gaim and I am already up to the start of the Helheim Invasion arc.

Quote:

Originally Posted by DreamSword

I've started my watch of Gaim; Current up through episode 11 including the HBV, the Wizard crossover movie, and Gaiden: Duke.

Interesting how you guys decided to watch at the same time.

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Originally Posted by DreamSword

And so far my opinion is... eh?

Like, I don't dislike it, but for all the hype surrounding this show I just don't really feel any strong feelings towards it one way or another. I don't even so much as have a favorite character as of yet.

I recall people often praised it for the edge, but I personally thought it was gratuitous in execution. Even before the start, I heard that Urobuchi already had a reputation for this and it was worse than I imagined. If I had to name a favorite character, it's probably Zack (Kaito's SIC) or Mai, since pretty much everybody else is an a**hole.

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Originally Posted by DreamSword

The worst case of this is Mitchy

Agreed. He's a terrible human being.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mesnick

Well, it's a common belief that the first episodes of Gaim are uninteresting/unsuccessful/preparatory. Personally, I agree with this your characterization of them:

The first 9 episodes were painfully slow for me. Way too much time spent on setting and exposition with an unimaginative delivery.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mesnick

I really think X deserves more attention than he gets. The show just had the misfortune of being caught between V3, which due to its direct connection to the original still feels like the start of the franchise, and the absolutely insane Amazon, so it feels a little boring at times. Plus, the name is not at all memorable. But this is the first rider with his own weapon, and the plot there is, if not smarter, then at least more thoughtful than that of most of his peers.

While I haven't watched the OG Kamen Rider, I think X isn't quite as good as other 70s seasons. The important word here is "quite" though. I'd still totally recommend X to anybody who wants more Showa Rider. The second half is much better than the first and the theme song is pretty catchy. There's a lot more to enjoy about this show than only the Starfish Hitler meme. The name may sound simple, but it's also a clever pun: X -> Greek letter Chi -> Kai -> Ocean.

[AkibaSilver]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sh Ranger

Now that you mention it, I think it's a little weird how there's a white Primary Rider and a black Secondary Rider, yet both of them have blue Final Forms. Maybe that's supposed to be symbolic of their friendship or something.

Part of me imagines it's blue for the night sky, but that could be a reach.

[GuardianAngel87]

Quote:

Interesting how you guys decided to watch at the same time.

Funnily enough, I started watching Gaim a few weeks ago and I am currently down to the show’s final ten episodes. Still haven’t any of its Gaiden films yet.

[DreamSword]

Now up through episode 23 of Gaim, including Gaiden Zangetsu and Gaiden Baron.

I will say that I have definitely liked this second chunk more than the first, though it's still not anything super amazing or perfect.

There are a few bits that I personally don't care for, such as Pierre's' unneeded antagonism, Kota not entirely dealing with the truth behind Yuya, and the odd logic behind torching Zawame City if a single Inves got through the crack in the bridge.

But, I do consider all of those things relatively minor. One big compliment I can give the show is that it has a rather good handle on its atmosphere, never once introducing different tones at ill-placed times. The gradual escalation of the stakes of the plot have been solid too.

Even more important than that is that this arc has gotten me a bit more into the cast than the first one did. Infact, to my surprise my current favorite character is actually Mai, who's just a delight to be around, with episode 18 in particular being my current favorite episode in Gaim. The street dancing routines themselves might not be all too great, but it's an aspect of the show that I wish was retained throughout the whole show instead of getting gradually phased out.

The Gaiden specials were also alot of fun. Was not expecting Takatora's' dad to be Terror Dad from W, and I really did feel for him in terms of the backstory introduced in that special. On the other end of things, I was not expecting Baron's' special to be Gaim's' version of the most (in)famous two-parter of Blade, with it being ever bit as fun too.

So, yeah. Gaim is picking up. Nothing close to being one of my favorites, but it is a show I'm starting to enjoy more, and I hope that upswing continues.

[GuardianAngel87]

Up to episode 43 of Gaim now with 4 episodes to go after that. I might be able to finish this series this weekend after all.

[AkibaSilver]

Kamen Rider Fourze Episodes 33 & 34 - "Chaos in Old Kyoto" and "Sky Hole Counter Offensive"



So remember last time I made my point about them not leaving the school and how that keeps things grounded? Well, here's the school trip episode where we go to Kyoto, and I'm not huge on how it turns out. This being the episode where they Horoscopes decide to move the plot along, there's a big disconnect between introducing a whole new enforcer (He's a lion! He's some random tough guy! That's it!) and the student of the week plot about her falling for Gentarou and wanting him to stop fighting and enjoy himself. Throw in a little "Kengou learns about his past" and it's got good individual elements, but a haphazard plot overall that doesn't have much of a need to go to Kyoto.

Also, thought we were totally losing Tachibana at the end in exchange for Leo-breaker, glad he's sticking around as the Deus Ex Machina to rush out all 12 zodiac signs before the show is up. What would we do without him!

[DreamSword]

Oh right, that girl. Couldn't stand her.