The eagerly awaited US version of Kamen Rider hit the airwaves over the weekend and not even a crappy network (CW 4 Kids) showing a million commercials could ruin the buzz. Kamen Rider had me at hello. A giddy and surreal mix of Power Rangers and The Matrix, the show is genuinely cool and the effects are a lot of fun. The secret weapon to the show’s success is Steve Wang. He has cherographed and directed everything from Power Rangers to the underrated feature films Guyver: Dark Hero (live action) and the underrated gem called Drive. Wang keeps the fights surreal and fast-paced.
The story of Kamen Rider is fairly basic and cliched. Its about a troubled teen (with Daddy issues, of course) who is sucked into a world he doesn’t quite understand. His Dad is missing and he starts having visions of his father telling him to search for a dragon. Some kind of mystical object called an “advent deck” triggers a transformation into a Kamen Rider. He meets another Kamen Rider along the way (breakout star/martial artist Matt Mullins) and a cutie named Maya (adorable but bland Yvonne Arias) and the episode kind of ends mid-fight. The second part of the episode airs when the series returns January 3rd at 11:30am.
Kamen Rider: Dragon Knight promises epic fights set to banging faux heavy metal pop. This is the show Power Rangers fans have been waiting to see. Unlike the campy VR Troopers or the obnoxious and unwatchable Masked Rider, Kamen Rider: Dragon Knight has a real chance to be a worthy heir to the Power Rangers throne. Its a fun way to blow 30 minutes every Saturday morning and I can’t wait to see where the series goes next. Maybe the show can restart the trend where little kids beat the crap out of each other while watching the show……that would totally rule. The right wingers would get all upset and the show would get some much-needed attention in the mainstream media.
Series Grade (based on the premiere episode only): B+
Here’s the theme song set to clips that someone posted on youtube.com, LETS RIDE !:
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Wank
Jan 16, 2009 -
Nice review expect for that right wingers comment.
eternaleye
Aug 6, 2009 -
anyone who has seen the original can clearly see that all the moral ambiguities and character development has been chucked aside to make room for better special effects. i could go into detail about everything that is wrong with this series but instead i’ll simply say that this makes me angrier then the dragonball movie.