Kamen Rider Zero-One (The First 16 Episodes)

     As a preface, for those woefully uninformed: Kamen Rider is a long-standing series from Japan that fits into a broader genre known as "tokusatsu", one usually identifiable by low-budget special effects, impressive physical choreography, and its plethora of iconic acting suits. Zero-One marks the series' first entry in what is known as the "Reiwa era", with each era being denoted by whoever is the current emperor of Japan at the time (Reiwa, Showa, etc.). The central premise of each Kamen Rider series involves an average human who transforms into a masked, motorcycle-riding hero (hence the name, roughly meaning "Masked Rider") with a multitude of different forms to fight against a colorful cast of monsters typically as a broader battle against an evil organization bent on taking over the world or otherwise generally engaging in evil activity.

    With that out of the way, Zero-One's first 16 episodes.

     I chose these 16 episodes to review because they feel very much like a complete mini-arc within the broader series. If not for a few hanging threads, you could probably stop watching after episode 16 and feel like you got a very condensed experience of pure tokusatsu cheese. That's really the main appeal of this kind of series; cheesiness. The suits are refreshingly real compared to the CGI monstrosities we're regularly exposed to in modern media (though even Kamen Rider isn't immune to dipping its foot into some truly ugly computer generated nightmares), the fight choreography is often fantastic, and there's a kind of childish glee one can feel well up inside them whenever the protagonist shouts the series' iconic "Henshin! (Transform)" only to don the silliest suit of neon-colored plastic armor over black spandex you've ever seen and then proceed to beat the living daylights out of the monster of the week (or, rarely, another equally-ridiculously dressed Kamen Rider). I think one of the most important things to keep in mind is that, with the exception of the painfully obvious, everything being shown on screen is done by a real person. Those suits aren't animatronics: there's a real person doing kung-fu under tens of pounds of rubber at another person doing kung-fu under tens of pounds of plastic, and watching everything unfold with that layer of immersion really sells the experience.

    Stepping more into the events of the series itself, it follows 22-year old Aruto Hiden, a failed comedian who finds himself inheriting the role of president of this world's leading AI development company. This position of power also comes with the responsibility of donning the mantle of Kamen Rider Zero-One to protect both his company and the world from an uprising of rogue AI seeking to wipe out humanity. It's incredibly fast-paced for these episodes, especially if you're familiar with other tokusatsu series, with new forms and gadgets designed to be sold as toys being introduced every episode, to the point where what initially seems like it might be Aruto's "super form" (a staple of the genre that typically represents the character's strongest level) being upgraded even further only two episodes later with little-to-no foreshadowing. That being said, the rapid pacing does do quite a bit to keep the series from getting stale, as there's always some new thing to look at or some new major development just a few minutes away in each episode.

    To name another strength of this particular entry: The core cast is incredibly small, consisting of Aruto, his AI assistant Is (or Izu), the two rogue AI terrorists known as Metsubojinrai.net, and two supercops who function as the series' secondary Riders. This tight-knit cast helps to balance each other out, with the overly-serious supercops having good chemistry while also bouncing well off the tryhard comedic stylings of Aruto, who then impresses his mannerisms upon Is, whose naivety mirrors the younger of Metsubojinrai's members' childlike demeanor, while the elder member's malice and hostility towards humanity contrasts the optimism of Aruto that humans and AI can live together in harmony, as exemplified by his relationship with Is. Furthermore, the character acting for each of the central cast members is handled very well, with the standout being Is and her fantastic physical comedy to compliment Aruto's canonically terrible jokes... at least, to everyone but one of the supercops. That being said, if you have a weakness to cringe, then Zero-One may not be the series for you.

    All this aside, do I recommend Kamen Rider Zero-One? If you're someone who grew up watching Power Rangers and have fond memories for it, like me, then it's a definitive yes. If you're a newcomer who has little to no experience with tokusatsu, I might suggest looking for a slightly different jumping off point than Zero-One, as I feel like some of its characteristics require a bit more familiarity with the genre to truly be appreciated (That said, I highly recommend Kamen Rider W as a gateway to the franchise). If you're someone who turns their nose up at low production values or cheesy character acting, then Kamen Rider probably isn't the series for you.