Saban's Masked Rider and Kamen Rider Dragon Knight

Just me giving my different views on both of the shows and their counterparts.

 

Saban's Masked Rider

Kamen Rider counterpart - Kamen Rider Black RX

No wonder why we haven't seen a Kamen Rider adaptation since Saban's Masked Rider.....cause it just flat out sucked. I guess I'll start with that Saban treated the show as if it were a sitcom! And if you add the Black RX footage to that, things just get worse! All I have to say is that compared to this series, it was a full 180. Aside from the team up with the Power Rangers, there was nothing redeeming about the show. All the characters were annoying, especially Ferbus......dear god I wanted to shoot him everytime I saw him! The villains were stupid, the cut editing was so bad that you can actually see the face Dex's Japanese counterpart, Kotaro Minami, not to mention they were using other Kamen Rider variations, Kamen Rider ZO and Kamen Rider J; and the atmosphere itself is like a TGIF sitcom (Full House, Family Matters, Step by Step, etc). It's with this that I show a lot of animosity towards Saban. I would understand him adapting Super Sentai for Power Rangers because Sentai is usually comedy with a touch of melodrama. But for Kamen Rider, the tone of the story is dark...like in a Batman/Spiderman sort of way, pretty much turning a dark drama into slapstick comedy. I've seen Kamen Rider Black RX, and I'll say I liked it, but it's not my favorite. Hmm, I wonder how much hate I'm going to get for that.

 

Kamen Rider Dragon Knight

Kamen Rider counterpart - Kamen Rider Ryuki

Well you see, it was exactly one week I found out about this show before it even aired. I was soo excited about it. I absolutely love this show! I'm not gonna lie. The acting is bad, but atleast it's tolerable. People, especially the Ryuki purists, say that KRDK is a disgrace to the Kamen Rider name when it doesn't (guessing they haven't seen SMR). The Wang Brothers are Kamen Rider fans. Kamen Rider Dragon Knight, while not a direct adaptation, is loosely inspired by the Showa era Kamen Rider series by Shotaro Ishinomori, the creator of the series who died before Ryuki came out. It gives honor to his work. You'll notice the similarities between Xaviax and Shocker/Destron/Gorgom/etc....as well as original bike props. Most hate DK's storyline. Hating it's storyline is like hating Kuuga, Agito, Faiz, Blade, the Showa era Kamen Riders and even Shotaro Ishinomori. Ryuki's plot is based on a highlander concept. Not saying it's a bad thing, but it's a weak story and ending.

 

What I really liked what Kase/Siren. I'll admit, she's very attractive....probably one of the most attractive people on the show. I didn't like how most of the riders didn't get much screen time, like Incisor, Camo, and Thrust. I also didn't like how Kit was just getting developed by the ending, and we just go back to Adam and he's Dragon Knight again. Also, I didn't like the ending....but I liked it more than Ryuki's. And I HATED how CW4Kids dropped the show after Ep 37! But atleast I was able to see the rest on YouTube.

So....if there were to be another Kamen Rider series adapted, I would most definitely want to see either Kabuto or Kiva. Possibly even Kuuga. But for now, it seems as if Kamen Rider isn't just as popular as Power Rangers is. Maybe that's why there wasn't another adaptation.