[GuardianAngel87]

For something different, I ended up watching the Super Hero Taisen Net Movies. They are very fun and entertaining to watch and I especially got a real kick out of the Rider and Sentai murder mysteries.

[AkibaSilver]

Kamen Rider Outsiders - Episode 1!

Yep, that sure is another Rider fight. Makes me think all the way back to the last time they did this... Rider Time Zi-O. Which I guess was still four years ago, so not super-recent, but still, "Let's redo the Battle Royale" applies just as much here. Someone who's properly watched Ryuki can do a better job picking on Asakura's character work here, but we finally got Ouja Survive, so that's cool.

As for everyone else, it's little more than a cameo. Kaitou back is somewhat surprising, given Tsukasa's apparent status of "Dead after that Zi-O Crossover until Magenta man comes back again", but as someone brought into Kamen Rider via the OOO and Fourze years, it is good to see someone reviving the idea of Foundation X... even as they revive Dezast. Somewhere in here is a metaphor for Toei digging up these dead characters to pit against each other in a battle royale arc, but I ain't got it.

Final thoughts - not too bad as an individual opener, definitely a Ryuki nostalgia fest, but it barely feels like a cohesive part of a larger story.

[Enchilada645]

Given how Episode 0 felt like an episode of Genms I'm not too surprised that the Ouja story was mostly just like... Ouja and not much on anything else.

It definitely seems like Outsiders is a branding to where they can do anthology pieces of various Riders and characters with the only real connective tissue being ZEIN.

Speaking of though, it definitely feels like we're back in a more heavy crossover boat compared to Ouja's given all the characters showing up for Episode 2.

[AkibaSilver]

I guess my fundemantal problem is that Ouja isn't a very interesting character? As an obstacle to someone's empathy, as a funny murder man, I get it, but here, as the protagonist, he lacks any depth or nuance. His motivation is "Kill", and he fights. I thought they were maybe going to do something where Reborn Asakura has a Joker "OnE bAd DaY!" moment after being betrayed, where we see him regress, or be taunted by the memories of the man he once was who shouldn't be real, but instead w';re on Geats rules where touching your driver just brings you right back. I'm not cynical enough to think you can't do "Bring back a legacy character for fanbait" and "Tell a compelling story", I've seen GoRiders, but while the action here is solid, I feel hanging the debut part of this on Ouja alone and not having any other returning actor cast to bounce off of is a missed opportunity.

[Switchblade]

I have not being paying attention to this line of miniseries and I honestly don't feel like I'm missing out.

[Kurona]

It's sorta just stuff that happens, yeah. The appeal is Ouja getting a final form and if that's what you want, it definitely happens

[Enchilada645]

Having watched it myself, yeah I agree that Asakura doesn't exactly have the correct character (he's better as an antagonist/obstacle) to have an entire special focused around him. It's cool that we got Ouja Survive though.

That being said, at the end of these days, these specials are basically fanservice at their base form.

Though I suspect that Episode 2 will be a lot more enticing to digest given just... everything in it.

[Mesnick]

Speaking of The Outsiders, I think it's the type of story that would be better taken as a whole, rather than broken into episodes. Therefore, the idea of ​​showing it with an interval of a couple of months is very controversial. As for Ouja, I found it amusing to see Asakura not killing, but it was obvious that he would be reverted back to his original behavior. Still, this is not his solo special. Also I don't understand:
a) Why is the costume actor so thicker than the original?
b) The Survive cards were the two wings of Odin. Why another one for Asakura? But the design is nice, although I would have preferred less gold.

[AkibaSilver]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mesnick

b) The Survive cards were the two wings of Odin. Why another one for Asakura? But the design is nice, although I would have preferred less gold.

So this is a big reference to an old magazine photo of Odin with three Survive Cards on his visor, which I am struggling to find, combining the two wings with a "Survive Mugen" phoenix card to make the entire phoenix. This would be referenced properly in Rider Time: Ryuki, when Odin pulls it off and it supposedly grants him immortality. And now it's here again, to combine with the other fan desire of "Ouja Survive".

[DreamSword]

The middle Survive card is in Ryuki proper, it's just never used.