Heisei Kamen Rider Poll, Discussion, and All-Around Good Time.

[CheetahLynx]

Update: After watching Drive, I just have to give it a point. I just love the car theme to goddamned much and I also find the characters pretty endearing.
Cars and detectives are a very nice combo for me, and you can't go wrong with a rider who has a mighty wing on his head

My new top 3 are W, Fourze and Drive

[Catastrophe]

Drive is pretty great. Its main issue is thematically, it is too similar to Double with the investigation theme. Doesn't help that Sanjo wrote both.

[darkmage02]

Boy, it's so hard to choose! Harder than choosing my least fav 3 hahaha but I guess that's good. There are different aspects from each show that I love & hate, so choosing a top 3 is just plain difficult but here's my pick.

3) 555 - I know most ppl hated 555 for how its ending was rushed and it got nowhere close to a satisfying conclusion, but I personally loved the characters, their motivations, the backstabbing & bitching (mostly on Kusaka's part) and the tragic story of Kiba & friends. The suits are cool & sleek, and I like that Faiz didn't abuse his final form & only use it as an absolute last resort. It's the 2nd Rider series I've watched as a kid (after Ryuki) so there may be some nostalgia biasness in this, but I remember the series quite fondly and to this date is the only series I've rewatched about 4 times and still love it.

2) Agito / W - This is quite a tie for me. I really couldn't decide which one I like better, but I assumed W is going to crush it at the votes so I voted for Agito in the poll, just to show him some love. Both Agito & W have great characters, great suits, and overall great storytelling. I'm a huge fan of darker, more gritty Rider series so Agito takes the cake here for me. The fights feel so raw, especially when it involve Kamen Rider Gills. The mystery surrounding Shouichi's lost memories got me hooked & intrigued and it's been a great ride throughout the 51 episode run. As for W, the chemistry & dynamic between Shotaro & Phillip sold it for me from episode 1, and I'm particularly fond of the detective-style of storytelling (imo W did it way better than Drive, in which its titular Rider is an actual cop). There were many great character moments, and even the comic relief characters are enjoyable. Philip's death was a real tearjerker (until they pulled an asshat and revived him in the next episode, which minus some major points for me but still is an overall a great series).

1) Gaim - I have never felt so invested in a Rider series as I did Gaim. While it started off as a typical Rider series aimed at selling toys, shit got real real fast when the writers moved past having to push toys and you can evidently see the story took a major darker turn. The stakes were raised, major character deaths, and the best part for me is that the deaths all meant something and lead to something. They weren't undone, even after Kouta got his godlike powers. It's also the first series where I felt the main Rider, the secondary Rider and the female lead were all major players in the overall plot, unlike more recent series where the female lead & secondary Rider wasn't even properly fleshed out (looking at you, Zi-O!). I'm especially fond of how they built up Kaito to be the final villain of the series proper - and yet, you can also look at him as a tragic hero who got fed up with the world and wanted to change it in the way he saw fit. By the time the finale rolled out, I didn't feel shortchanged. My investment in the characters got paid out, and for that very reason Gaim will always remain as my number 1 until something better comes out.

[Hanadi Sensei]

I always love W for it's plot and likeable characters. Not to mention those guests that appeared in the show, man, I would see it again for the 5th time!w What makes it my favorite is perhaps how realistic the villains can be. Civilians turning into monsters is awesome (same thing with Fourze) and the music is great! The OP and the BGMs for each forms... Also, the henshin sequence is something you can't get off your mind. CYCLONE! JOKER!!!

Second choice is Drive, same as W, the characters are someone to love until the end. I love the crime/detective theme as much as W.

Then there's Kabuto. The rider kick, the aesthetic, the opening song and the henshin!

If there's a 4th and 5th choice, it will be Ex-Aid and Blade.

[hiro9796]

A question for those who voted OOO as one of their favourite Rider series, do you actually support the idea of underwear being your tomorrow's hope?

[BreadToku]

A question for those who voted OOO as one of their favourite Rider series, do you actually support the idea of underwear being your tomorrow's hope?

Look, hope comes in all shapes and sizes.

[Dengar]

It's a metaphor of there being a tomorrow in the first place.

[ryujin]

Going against the favorites of others is how I go. I think Ghost was trying too hard and needed a little more grim. At least the Ex-Aid hybrid looked cool.

I liked Specter more though, that "Dive Too Deep" henshin sound effect was so boss than Takeru's.

[Hoshinger]

Going against the favorites of others is how I go. I think Ghost was trying too hard and needed a little more grim. At least the Ex-Aid hybrid looked cool.

I liked Specter more though, that "Dive Too Deep" henshin sound effect was so boss than Takeru's.

That's understandable because secondary riders always add something the show. Look at Rider 2 and that his henshin pose became a part of the next few riders. Makoto was cool, but he could've asked for help or followed the evil doctor to look for the next round of suckers to obtain the Eyecons. Even a cultural fair could allow for a full round of powers to be obtained in no time.

[Kogashi]

Right had forgotten to say my order of favs.

3) Faiz. I realize this is a rare take *looks at 'worst' votes* but partly because of it being one of the first, partly cause Takumi, in all his cynical put on 'no I don't wanna hero leave me alone' grumpiness, is my spirit animal at times, partly cause of the Rider and monster designs, partly cause there was so many moving parts cast wise every episode, and partly cause even when someone else was using the belts (which, yea happened a ton) I could feel the different characters and how they fought as the different Rider forms. I just have a lotta love for this series, even if it's about how much these people are complete failures.

2) Fourze. I love my high school friendship club Riders. Love the music. And I love how thinking back on some scenes, can still get me teary tied despite it effectively being a comedy through and through.

1) Gaim. Gen knows how to write stories I like. I admit it, I am a mark for Gen Urobuchi, for his disaster humans and pure childs dragged through the mud. For fights not just being cool action scenes but for advancing characters. His sense of style lines up with what I find cool, and honestly? While the worst episodes, even the movie tie ins are weirdly fun in how just, dumb they are compared to the rest of the story.

[GaMa7]

I voted for Agito, Kuuga and W.

Kuuga was an absolute blast for me: I watched it after Faiz (my first Heisei) and Blade and I was really taken by the simplicity and straightforwardness of the show. Yet it gave off such an air of mistery, almost an horror in some parts, reminding me of the Showa era that will always be in my heart, being my first exposition to riders with V3. I loved the simple yet efficient designs, the violent fights, the choreography (not to mention the nice use of bikes) and the low budget feel. They seemed to have not much funds and resources but really seemed to get best out of them. I liked the story, it reminded me a lot about of Devilman, and the Grongi language, while a tad overused, was a nice gimmick. The music was something memorable too: that OP..wow! And the soundtrack is equally good too, that great guitar at the end of the first couple of episodes: so melanchonic! The characters were nice but lacked a bit more of depth and backstory: they were fun and amiable but you want to know more and the story doesn't give you any. Godai, surprisingly, it's the weakest character for me. I get that they wanted a very positive hero, someone that has that purity and willpower to resist to the ordeal of becoming Kuuga and battle the Grongi but maybe they overdid him quite a bit. I would have loved to see him crack a bit more and cope with the ordeal, really showing his purity and willpower, and not using his thumb-up to resolve everything. There are such moments but they are so sporadic that they came out as almost tacked on while featured in really emblematic episodes.Still, I don't have the character. I like him quite a bit instead, but I feel Godai could have been better. And that's when Agito comes up.

Agito really surprised me: I wasn't the biggest fan of Faiz and I was dubious about both series having the same writer. Instead it came out as probably my favourite Heisei series along with W. Agito is so much packed with story, themes and great characters and, quoting a reviewer whose idea §I concur with, Shouichi is a well-done Godai. A man that march to his own pace, a unique and gifted person, but still a man with his weaknesses and whose quirks can easily get on the nerves on some people. Hikawa was one of my faves too: he's the most "normal" man yet, because of this, he looks like to me like the one that deserve the title of "hero", like Ozawa rightfully say in the final battle when he stand up and beat two Lords. A man with his limits but incredibly brave and kind hearted, with an incredible willpower. He get beaten badly trough the whole series but never gives up and when he start to win some battles you can't help but cheer for him. Ashihara is nice too: a man with a curse that wrecks his life and his character, like a lot of riders of the past. An interesting character that slowly works in the dynamics of the other two but add it's own, enriching the story. Anyway, I would have preferred if they wouldn't repeat some events in his story: one time was enough. Kino really brought even mor of an old school vibe to the show, he really felt like he could be in a Showa era show with no problem. His arc and motivation was interesting, I just wish that he could have had more episodes to be explored but that's a statement for the whole series. There is such a vast lore and themes to explores that the series almost seemed cut short even if the resolution is quite nice (while with a really low budget feel compared to the rest of the series, yet epic in it's own way). The support cast was really amazing too, providing their chunk of story and not being just there to become hostage-fodder for the enemies or provide comic relief.I just wish that the final arc with Kana would have featured Mana instead, in the same role. It would have been perfect to give more resolution and resolve more of her arc. It felt so pointless to add another character at such time when there were already so much. The costumes, damn! Such variety! From organic riders like Gills to the AMAZING Another Agito, to more Kuuga-like designs like agito, passing trought he fantastic Burning form and Shining. The enemies had such iconic designs too, I just couldn't had enough of them. Not to mention the creepy effects used to illustrate their killings. Top notch for me.

W is kind of like Agito for me in the way I came to watch it: it was after Decade, I series that I wasn't really a fan of and I din't felt like watching it so much but...that almost Kikaider-esque design, so simple, so effective. It drew me in and, wow, I was in for a feast. Like Agito, it isn't a perfect show but is so full of extremely nice ideas, likable characters and fun adventures yet it has its touching moments. The "double riders" idea was genius and in some way, for me, it made W the "Rider series that end Rider series", because I didn't found an idea and concept as nice as this in the subsequent series, that focus more in showering the characters and viewers with collectables, a bad habit that sadly W contributed to create. The overall design, from the characters to the suits, was absolutely amazing: it has that outlandish ideas of the Showa era married with some more sleek, modern concepts. It's a mixture that usually explodes but it was handled majestically. The music was amazing, again a mix of old and new, so fiting with the overall theme. The overall mod was great too: yeah, it has its up and downs but it boils up to a really enjoyable show, I never felt like abandoning the show, nor I felt the two-episodes mechanic tiring. I just breezed trough it. That's probably thanks to how the characters were wrote but especially thanks to the actors, that pulled off some great interpretations. From Soukichi super-manly man, to Philip smart and quirky, passing trough Terui bravery and stubborness yet capability to evolve (like his actor, that really improve tremendously trough the series) to, for me, the gem of the series: Shotaro and his actor, Renn Kiriyama. The guy really made me appreciate the series even more if it was possible. To me, playing such a character is even more difficult that playing one that has a violent, tortured, nightmarish past. In that case, you have a lot of elements you can grasp on, in the case of Shotaro you have to make him likable even when he's on his super flamboyant sides and choose poorly in terms of actions. And he does, in spades. A really normal man that tries to fight a world that's really out of it's reahc in terms of power, but... he suceed nonetheless, due to his bravery, compassion and heart. I may be an old geezer, but that defines a Kamen Rider to me. And he's also one of the reason why A to Z is one of my favourite movies (and least favourite in some way, but I digress): when Joker appears, with that BADASS, personal theme, I couldn't help but cheer like when I was a child. I liked the Showa feel of his fights and all the nods to the beloved Black (even the fist trembling and pose when preparing the Rider Punch!), I just was in awe.

Well, I'll stop now. I'm gushing too much and I doubt anyone would read such terrible wall of text XD
Again, those shows are far form perfect but I don't judge what I like totally by a technical standpoint. Mainly I have sort of a "rewatch meter", easily pointing toward what series I enjoy the most. And in the case of these three series the meter is going crazy!

[hiro9796]

So the top 3 best riders voted are as follows:
1. W
2. Gaim
3. Build

All of them were Neo-Heisei

[takenoko]

People really like that W. Guess it's just really solid as a show?

[Catastrophe]

I feel like it's a combination of things. First, like you said, it is a really well written show. Sanjou was the type of writer they needed to breath a bit of fresh air into the series. I'd argue most of the first half of the Hesei era never really hit stride at all, and W being really enjoyable following Decade elevates it. W oozes with theme and style, which I don't think any other Rider series ever replicated.

In addition, it really cements the format that most of the following series utilise, but as its the first time it was done feels fresh.

[hiro9796]

Here I thought, most of everyone here voted Gaim, a series that make every other series before and after it feel like garbage. But again, I was not much of a W fan, only because I felt like having two people becoming a Kamen Rider is a stupid idea. However, applying this with crime and mystery theme, it turns out splendid.