Greatest In The World Unfortunate Cameraman

Amazing. Moving. Powerful. Magnificent.

It could possibly be one of the greatest things to grace television screens this year. No doubt it will be discussed all week long, throughout the nation and beyond, by children and their parents. It not only matched expectations, but it exceeded them.

Truly, these months of anticipation have paid off indeed. Every rumor, every tidbit of information and leaked photo has confirmed what we knew all along: this was gonna be the big one.

We're on the verge of starting one of the finest stories of good vs. evil ever crafted by human hands, and the best part is it's still only just the beginning. There is so much more yet to come.

But enough about preview for the new series of Pretty Cure. Let's talk about the show that came on before it.

Kamen Ride: Spoiler Warning!



Kamen Rider Decade Episode 1: "The Great Rider War"
Written by Aikawa Shô
Directed by Tasaki Ryuta

Well, that was pretty good, wasn't it? I had a feeling it might be, given the fact that, you know, this is a celebration of the last 10 years of Kamen Rider in a concentrated, freshly-squeezed series form. But this one little episode was even better than I was expecting it'd be. Like, at the risk of sounding like I'm in a state of hyperactive euphoria and completely bowled over, unable to see the cracks from the quality... I'd say it's pretty hard to find fault with this.

Maybe it's not the best first episode ever, but it's on the high end of the scale. And for what it's setting out to do— establish a new hero in a series which is all about recalling past ones— it's almost flawless. Like a shark, it's nearly perfect at what it does.

The opening sequence will no doubt go down as one of the most memorable moments of the series. The episode title wasn't kidding! It's utterly bonkers and upon first viewing I had some trouble figuring out just who was fighting who, but a subsequent rewatch cleared it all up. It's all-out war as characters from the 9 previous Rider series show up to do battle with some unseen force. Yes, I was surprised that they weren't all just fighting each other in some knock-down drag-out fight to the finish, but it really is everybody together, up against...



Decade. I'll get back to him later. All I can say is you could make a drinking game out of trying to pick out everyone here, and get smashed within seconds. It's like a fanfic, but of the best kind. Kuuga and Kaixa lead an army of Riotroopers. Ryuki rides atop Castle Dran with Kiva. Hibiki tools around on a giant green gorilla. Zolda doing his finisher on top of the Zero-Liner. Blade & Garren lead a flying charge of... well, pretty much everything that flies.

And so much more. It's the kind of thing which, up until now, only happened in my head. Although the version in my head adds a few more Riders and a lot of monsters, but hey, they have to save something for the movie or end of the series. This is pretty boss, as they used to say.

And of course it ends the only way things could, with everything basically blowing up and our first view of Decade himself. It's a classic entrance. I'm sure some will have issues with the fact that the hero's first act in the show is to basically wipe the floor with 9 series' worth of predecessors, not to mention the overall "Decade vs. everyone" feel of the OP credits, but I have faith that this is all leading somewhere, and isn't just fighting for the sake of fighting. Decade has the power to destroy all the other Riders... and probably to unite them.

And how about those OP credits? Gackt is one of those artists I know more by reputation than anything else. I know a lot of people who like him. So I can't comment on his other stuff, but he delivers here. It's a good song. Not sure if I'd call it a great one yet, but if tradition holds, I'll buy the single and love it by the end (Kiva's grew on me considerably.) As for the visuals, those are hella cool.

I particularly like when Tsukasa takes that cube with the photos and pushes it aside. And there's that look. I like Tsukasa as you'll soon see. I'll get to him in a minute. I also have to say I love how heavily the past Riders are involved here. The show really is as much about them as it is Decade himself.



Okay, finally. Decade himself. Or firstly, Kadoya Tsukasa, our hero for 2008. Inoue Masahiro upholds the proud tradition of me not knowing who the hell he is prior to being cast in the role, but I have to say that, like Wataru before him, I like him. But in a rare change of pace from the last few series, he's won me over as of episode 1. That quickly!

I honestly had no idea what to expect with this guy. The early rumors were all over the place, but aside from the "villain with amnesia", none of them really struck me as notable. An otaku? I don't want to watch a show about any fanboy heroes who aren't me. Mr. awesome king of the school? Likewise, especially since I'm not in school anymore (and dammit, I selfishly kind of want Kamen Rider to grow old with me. I remember thinking how cool it was that I was Takumi's age, just about.)

So what do we get? Well, it's hard to say just yet, but I like it. There's strong hints in there that Tsukasa may indeed be more than even he realizes, although whether it's in regards to his past or his future, we still don't know.

One thing that's important with me is that each lead is different than his predecessor. There should be commonalities of course— a strong moral center, an innate kindness, an underlying loneliness, ever-present potential for darkness, and slight neurosis. But in general, I like being able to break down each Rider into a couple characteristic or traits particular to them.

Hongô is a bit more straight-laced and serious than Ichimonji, but the latter took things more personally whereas the big H had that mask of grim humor in the face of the villains. Shôichi is a bit more spacey and haunted than Godai was, but in a way also more tender and personal. Tendô is a confident guy who could rub others the wrong way, Ryôtarô is the kind, soft-spoken guy who often flustered others with his inability to be heroic, and both of them changed along the way. This is all over-simplifying it, but then the best characters can be broken down like that and still come across as three dimensional.

So after Wataru, a good guy cursed by his past who eventually found the strength to overcome it and become something better (thanks in part to his friends and, most importantly, his father), we have Tsukasa. Who is, and I say this because I lack a better way to word it, a secret badass. No really, that's what comes to mind.

You see, the thing I noticed about him upon watching the episode over again... he's a bit of a blank slate on the surface, but he's still somehow not lacking in personality. When we first meet him, he's so concerned with his photography that he's completely unaware of the fact that some unsavory characters are ready to kick his butt. But it's not just haughty arrogance; he's literally in his own little world. As he says to Natsumi later, "this isn't my world either". He's a space case, yet it's not just eccentricity for eccentricity's sake.

There's definitely something more going on with him. If you want a good counterpoint to that above scene, check out his reaction later (as Decade) to the same people being dead (a pretty ballsy move. I know they're incidental characters, but I was not expecting that.) His reaction's kind of perfect: distant, but not cold. He accepts it and drives on. I kind of love this for some reason.



I like the deadpan humor he's got. Watch how Inoue plays the bench conversation, and then the later bits once everything goes to hell. His pre-Henshin line is a classic. He can save the world... probably. His reaction to Wataru's comment about the cards is pretty awesome too. I like how much of the humor is in the dialogue. This might go over the heads of a lot of people, but hopefully whoever subtitles it picks up on this fact.

I also like how, even though he questions his actions later on as Decade, it never stops him. He rolls with it. As soon as he sees the belt, he knows what to do. He doesn't know why he uses the cards, but he still does. It's a pretty neat way to go about the origin story: he's already Decade before he actually becomes Decade. He's a hero all along, even when he's not sure why. He's not quite cocky or confident, but he still leaps into action. It's like a "Well, here goes nothing..." attitude, and I like that.

So I like Tsukasa. How about Decade? We don't directly see him do much as himself, but he does do something really important: he rides his bike! Glad to see that in there, and generally I don't expect to see the motorcycles really in action until episode 2, or more often, 4. But here we go. We also get a pretty good idea of how Decade's powers work, but let's go through those in order.

The Henshin scene is great. Once again, the past Riders are monumentally important in regards to Decade and his transformation. These aren't simply cameo appearances to help progress the story; the story itself is rooted in these guys. They have to show up (and they do, and will again, although not like you might expect) for this to all work. I love his belt. I'll talk about that more in-depth when I review the DX toy version (which came out the day before the episode aired, natch.) But it's nifty and the belt voice this year has what I can only call "infectious enthusiasm".

Ah, cards again. Well, I liked cards in Ryuki, I liked them in Blade, and I like them here. Decade uses them to change form, as he does here, and they really did a great job with that. Using bits and pieces of the Riders' real Henshin scenes, including appropriate sound effects, it's pretty neat. The show wallows in nostalgia, no doubt about that. We get Kabuto, Faiz, and Hibiki here. Yes, Hibiki. Guess we all know where Toei still stands on him, huh? Not that mind, being enough of a Hibiki fan to kinda want to get that upcoming Complete Selection Tuning Fork.



I loved seeing Auto-Vajin back! And Clock Up, even though having to use a card for it might put him at a disadvantage later on. Well, probably not, thanks to trusty old Rider Time™, where everyone waits patiently for you. Unless they're Doktor G or Asakura with a lead pipe.

Oh, and I almost didn't notice that the Ride Booker gets used in Sword Mode by Kabuto. I guess he doesn't get the Kunai Gun, although you'll note that when in Hibiki Form, he can still use the drumsticks. I'm not sure how some of the powers are going to work for Decade (as Ryuki, he's pretty much screwed) but I'm sure they'll think of something clever to cover for it.

The idea that he loses the powers soon after (and has to reclaim them by traveling to the different worlds) is a neat one, and a great merchandising opportunity to boot. It adds something new. It's like if you gave the hero his upgrade toy... and then took it away, or he suddenly forgot how to use it.

And as for Decade's design: I liked it from the start, I like it even more now. I never got the watermelon/ZX/Spider-Man/your dog/Kitchen Sink comparisons. If anything, the fact that he doesn't quite look like anyone before him just seemed to blow everyone's minds so much they tried to latch onto something familiar. Okay, maaaaaaybe you can say he's got a similar profile to Delta, but even that's pushing it. It's a strange, new, creative look, and I like it.

I do think the pink color is another indicator that Toei really really really wants to just give in and do a female Rider, and is still being held back by some silly reason. But hey, whatever. It works on Decade. with the white and black and those neat green eyes. And again, I love that belt.



Okay, how about the rest of the cast? Well, we haven't really gotten to know many people yet, but let's talk about those we do meet. Or meet again. For the first time.

I like Natsumi. The story is kind of built around her in a way, and given that she gets to be privy to things even Tsukasa doesn't know (like the name Decade) it's clear she'll be fairly important. I like her fashion too. And it's kind of nice to have a female lead again where I (admittedly) like them for something other than just their acting ability and characterization. Mmhmm. Right. Moving on...

Her grandaddy has some of the strangest hair I've ever seen, but he's funny and fulfills the requisite "old guy" role.

Wataru! Well he's not a priest, he's not Tendô, and I'm not sure if he's still Kiva (although there's a little hint of it when he first appears.) But he's back, channeling every plot exposition-spouting mystery guy ever. I really hope this isn't the last we see of him, or of other past actors (given the current buzz that recasting's all the rage at the moment.)

Oh, and how great was it to hear him saying "Kamen Rider" finally? I'm glad they name-checked that.

We don't see much of Onodera Yuusuke, the new Kuuga (who I've still got to figure out a good name for.) But in the little snippet we do get, he comes off pretty well. No, he's not Godai, but I don't think he's meant to be. Not quite. The Rider Worlds Decade travels to are more like pastiche versions of the series; they take bits and pieces you remember and remix them. I'd argue that they're almost like the revamp movies for the original Riders, except far more faithful and there's no damn pop stars running around. At least this Kuuga still fights Grongi alongside the police!

Speaking of which, we have his Ichijô stand in friend. I'll just hold off on talking about either of them until next week, when it looks like they're pretty important. The episode is called "Kuuga's World", after all!

Of course, in addition to that big battle, we still get tons of neat little allusions to the past. There's Ryuki's brief cameo, complete with "Mirror World Sounds", which is ridiculously nostalgic.

And then there's all the old villains.

The CGI guys really had their work cut out for them here. Not just at the beginning, but with the madness later in the episode. This is like, end-of-the-year stuff right here! Massive armies of Makamou, Mirror Monsters, and more. When it's just guys in suits, it's even better. Nice to see they hang onto all those old costumes!

One of my earliest praises for the episode was how actually scary it made the villains too. There was this sense of dread before each old group turned up; the duplicate Natsumi was a definite "Oh shi-" moment. What's more, I don't think the Makamou were ever more terrifying than they are here. Perhaps it's that there's so many of them, perhaps it's seeing them en mass in an urban setting. It's basically the nightmarish scenario Hibiki & co. were always fighting to stop.



And even the Imagin, probably the goofiest group of Rider villains ever (I mean, the Whale guy alone...!) But here? Pretty damn creepy, the way they chase after Natsumi like that. It's an interesting idea; in the original Den-O world, they freaked people out, but you could still have a conversation with them until they went back in time and went bananas, and even then they're never as scary as some of the other Rider villains over the years.

Put them in a setting with people not used to how they work, people who are also going to be experiencing Undead and Grongi attacks, and suddenly, they can be played a whole lot more disturbingly. I can only wonder how the good Imagin are going to work out in this one.

And hey, nice to see some movie Undead! The liberal use of movie monsters and Riders should probably be an indication that anything's up for grabs now. It was great to see Caucasus again, if only to laugh at how the onetime STRONGEST RIDER EVER!!1! got blown away by the new titleholder. And you just know poor Decade will be dethroned eventually. Such is life.

And lastly:

I talked about the theme song already, but how about the rest of the music? It's a good mix, sort of echoing past series styles all at once. I do hope we get a couple classic riffs in there, all-new or stock music. The sound effect mix was great too, although I'm not sure what to make of the "tincan" sound Kuuga had at the end (but not the beginning.) I guess it's cool, but I've never had a problem with Riders just speaking normally through their helmets. It's one of those things that I just take for granted!

Action was all pretty good, and once again the CGI was stunning for TV. I mean the sheer amount of it! The Kuuga Henshin at the end looked a bit off (the stunt guy's a lot taller than Murai, I think) but they'll probably get that down again by the end. Kuuga does have one of the more "involved" transformations, with the bit-by-bit armor.



And how about that ending? Trippy. Consider me intrigued.

So all in all, a pretty awesome start. 2009 looks to be a good year for Kamen Rider, and this is just the tip of the iceberg. I should end by saying that I have heard the still-debatable "news" that the series is going to only run 30 episodes. I'm skeptical because while there is a source, it's still a bit sketchy, so I'm withholding comment at the moment. Other than that Amazon was a mere 24, and that still rocked.

Until then, I'm going to just enjoy the ride.

Next Time: Decade meets Kuuga! How will this pan out? What do the Grongi have in store for our heroes? Who is the mysterious guy with the glasses? What is the vision of Decade fighting the dreaded black-eyed Ultimate Form? What the heck are the Hoppers doing there? All this and more next week!

Coming later: I finally talk about the end of Kiva.

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