[Kamen Rider Die]

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Originally Posted by GrandComplete

Saber a show I really vibe with. But yeah even I agree the pacing for this episode once the action starts was really wonky. I remember sitting their watching this live and thinking "Man Covid really did a number on this show I hope it gets better."

And for me it did.

That's great to hear! While I much prefer a striking and immersive debut episode (Geats just had a pretty terrific one), these shows are a marathon, not a sprint. Shows can stumble out of the gate - I remember having a rough time with Blade's premiere - and slowly move themselves into being a real delight. There's tons of precedent, and I'm glad to hear that my optimism isn't misplaced.

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Originally Posted by Deepsea

Honestly I dont mind the headswords, but that may be a me thing.

I feel like headswords are going to be a 50/50 thing? I've seen enough people praise them over the last couple years that I'm not expecting a groundswell of support for my hot take.

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Originally Posted by Layton13

Touma and Mei immediately just grabbed me as insanely likable characters. They seemed so... hugable that my cheeks hurt from smiling after the episode. I had a blast with episode 1!

That's the main reason why I'm optimistic about this show's potential: the core actors/characters are really enjoyable. You can correct pacing issues fairly easily (it honestly just takes airing a few episodes before professionals say Oh God We Gotta Fix That), but if you've conceived of your characters badly, or cast the wrong actors, the series can only ever get so good, so fast. (Zi-O kinda took a few minutes to figure out how to best portray Sougo's... well, to portray Sougo.) I liked so much of the chemistry between Touma and Mei, though. Definitely the right ingredients for an entertaining show.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kiwami

I think your threads are among the best this forum has to offer, but due to me being a lazy bum who cannot be bothered to keep up with much over an extended period of time, I feel like I could never follow one of these adventures to the end, and just hopping in and out seems disrespectful to me so I stay outside most of the time. It's okay, just leave me be.

Ha ha, oh god, thanks! And don't ever worry about just dropping in when the mood strikes! Much like Touma's poor time-management in Episode 1, it's absolutely fine to only contribute when the muse makes itself known.

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Originally Posted by Kiwami

"Is Kamen Rider Saber's helmet design inspired by Chainsaw Man?"

God knows I don't read enough interviews with the producers to ever know what their inspirations were for the many decisions it takes to make a Kamen Rider series, but, boy, it sure seems like this is a real possibility. The timeline works out (the manga had been underway for over a year by the time Saber debuted, so it could've been an influence in the planning stage), and the usage of a headsword is so weirdly specific that it's maybe the best explanation for the recurring motif. If anyone knows the definitive answer, please share it!

[Kamen Rider Die]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DreadBringer

actually as he recounts countless times in the intro, he wants to restore his physical body by collecting 15 Eyecons

I mean, firstly, the monster detonating was his pathway to restoring his physical body, so I'm going to count that as a singular motivation; and secondly, I feel like Would Rather Not Be Dead is so ubiquitous in the human experience to be considered less of a motivation and more of an autonomic process. "Survival" is the baseline expectation for a fictional character's daily checklist!

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Originally Posted by DreadBringer

And for Touma, there's an intelligent tactic of him as human using the fire hydrant to save himself and Mei from the giant monster.

This was a great touch, yes! I liked Touma's problem-solving here, and how it had the charm of a fairytale.

[Androzani84]

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Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

God knows I don't read enough interviews with the producers to ever know what their inspirations were for the many decisions it takes to make a Kamen Rider series, but, boy, it sure seems like this is a real possibility. The timeline works out (the manga had been underway for over a year by the time Saber debuted, so it could've been an influence in the planning stage), and the usage of a headsword is so weirdly specific that it's maybe the best explanation for the recurring motif. If anyone knows the definitive answer, please share it!

Finally, something for me to talk about. Since I don?t have a regular feature for this thread. (Wait for the next one)

But I do have an extensive knowledge of some behind the scenes facts.

Touma?s outfit was inspired by the wardrobe of Ernest Hemingway

And the show was originally just your standard Rider battle show for the umpteenth time, but given COVID and the lack of available studio space it brought with it, they realised that they could only have two sets (the book shop and xxxxxxxx xxxx, and that peopel probably don?t want to see a show where the heroes are fighting each other in a time where everyone would want to stay together.

And for some casting fun, since that?s one thing I?ll always do, Zoous (the bad guy with no sleeves) is played by Koji Sakawa, who was previously he MC in the beauty contest episodes from Fourze. And he?s the only one of the trio of actors who doesn?t have American ancestry (he was born in Hawaii, but his parents moved back to Japan before he learned to talk).

Anyway, Saber itself. It?s a show that actually got me to buy the toys with semi-frequency (the only major ones I?m lacking are the two mid-season forms and he movie/spin-off forms), so I?ll probably be sharing some videos where apropos. But overall, I had a slightly better time with this show than the two shows it?s either side of, so I?ll be mostly positive this time (except for something when we get to episode 13. Hoo boy am I gonna whip up a sh*t storm there).

[Mesnick]

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Originally Posted by DreadBringer

I'd say, Touma's one of the most disliked MC in Kamen Rider afaik, just like Takeru.

I wouldn't say that, especially on this site. There were claims against Tukeru for being a crybaby, but Touma doesn't have that. No, he's clearly not a fan favorite, but the biggest complaint about his character is that he's a "boring good guy". And he shares this claim with Aruto and Ikki, and unlike them, Touma has an excuse that he is the main character in a fairy tale, and not an office or family drama.

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It's good actually, but it can still be used to claim that character types like Touma "don't have anything other than wanting to do good to others".

But does the magic knight need more, especially if he is surrounded by other knights? Oh, and in general, "the guy who just wants to do good" is literally Kuuga, that is, the one who brought back the Kamen Raiders. So it's not surprising that the type is popular.
And in any case, it's better than Tendo, whose whole character consists of listening carefully to his grandmother.

[Mesnick]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

The timeline works out (the manga had been underway for over a year by the time Saber debuted, so it could've been an influence in the planning stage), and the usage of a headsword is so weirdly specific that it's maybe the best explanation for the recurring motif. If anyone knows the definitive answer, please share it!

I think the source of inspiration is much closer:

[AkibaSilver]

Oh yeah, it's Sabering time! It's a show I have mixed feelings about, but overall I came away enjoying a lot of the individual elements that go together into it, even if the storytelling choices it makes are somewhat flawed imo. And episode one has a decent chunk of that - it goes too fast, having to establish a status quo before upending it, and the centering around Touma magically pulling a sword isn't disimilar to other series having its heroes be empowered - Ghost dying and coming back to live in Ep 1 is probably the first that comes to mind, totally not because of all the other Ghost mentions - but it's a lot to take in.

[Deepsea]

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Originally Posted by Enchilada645

This is amusing to me because if I'm thinking of what you're thinking of. I was planning the same thing lol. I had dug through tweets to grab pictures and videos while dating them correctly to post them correctly alongside keeping the machine translated parts because those are too funny.

Oh! You seem to have done a lot more work on this, I'll let you post em then, cause I was just gonna post the tweets. Sounds like you actually know Japanese and all that, so that should help.

[Enchilada645]

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Originally Posted by Deepsea

Oh! You seem to have done a lot more work on this, I'll let you post em then, cause I was just gonna post the tweets. Sounds like you actually know Japanese and all that, so that should help.

Oh I don't know Japanese, I'm using the Google Translate on twitter which is machine translate. It's hilarious for one reason. But yeah, sorry if I like stole your thunder though.

[Kamen Rider Die]

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Originally Posted by Androzani84

Touma?s outfit was inspired by the wardrobe of Ernest Hemingway

"Inspired by"... man, it looks like Touma is wearing Hemingway's actual clothes, from the way he's swimming in them.

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Originally Posted by Mesnick

I think the source of inspiration is much closer:

Ha ha, maybe! That connection is so strong it's making me cry!

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Originally Posted by AkibaSilver

Oh yeah, it's Sabering time! It's a show I have mixed feelings about, but overall I came away enjoying a lot of the individual elements that go together into it, even if the storytelling choices it makes are somewhat flawed imo. And episode one has a decent chunk of that - it goes too fast, having to establish a status quo before upending it, and the centering around Touma magically pulling a sword isn't disimilar to other series having its heroes be empowered - Ghost dying and coming back to live in Ep 1 is probably the first that comes to mind, totally not because of all the other Ghost mentions - but it's a lot to take in.

I would've loved the clunky shift in storytelling - from Touma's terror and awe at being in a fairytale world of book monsters, to his hypercompetence and flashy combat skills - if the show'd just said Oh He's Super Genre-Savvy. Like, have Touma realize, when the sword is blasted down from the heavens, that he's the protagonist in this superhero story. I feel like that would've solidified a lot of the pros and cons of fiction that the show's hinting at in Episode 1?

[weedle013ZiO]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

I would've loved the clunky shift in storytelling - from Touma's terror and awe at being in a fairytale world of book monsters, to his hypercompetence and flashy combat skills - if the show'd just said Oh He's Super Genre-Savvy. Like, have Touma realize, when the sword is blasted down from the heavens, that he's the protagonist in this superhero story. I feel like that would've solidified a lot of the pros and cons of fiction that the show's hinting at in Episode 1?

Yeah, that would have helped out a fair bit. I think maybe they expected us to know that piece of info since he’s a writer