Kamen Rider Ryuki

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Kamen Rider Ryuki
Title screen.
Genre	Superhero action/adventure
Running time	23-25 minutes per episode
Starring	Takamasa Suga, Satoshi Matsuda, Ayano Sugiyama
Country of origin	Japan
Original channel	TV Asahi
No. of episodes	50
IMDb profile

Kamen Rider Ryuki (仮面ライダー龍騎 Kamen Raidā Ryūki), translated as Masked Rider Dragoon, is a Japanese tokusatsu television series. It was the twelth installment in the Kamen Rider series of tokusatsu shows. It was a joint collaboration between Ishimori Productions and Toei, and it was shown on TV Asahi from February 3, 2002 to January 19, 2003.

1 Plot Synopsis
2 13 Riders
- 2.1 Rider Equipment
3 Cast
4 Notes
5 Theme songs
- 5.1 Opening theme songs
- 5.2 Ending theme songs
6 Episodes
7 Movies & Special
8 References

[edit] Plot Synopsis

"One who does not fight will not survive."

Thirteen Advent Card decks were created for thirteen Kamen Riders. They make Contracts with monsters from the mysterious Mirror World, drawing on their strength in exchange for feeding them the life force of the creatures they destroy. The creator of the Advent Cards has only one rule: that there can be only one Kamen Rider. The others must be killed, and the sole victor will be granted a single wish. This is the Rider War.

All over the city, innocent people are being abducted, never to be seen again. During his investigations of these incidents, Shinji Kido- an intern at the online news service ORE Journal- discovers one of the Advent Card decks at an apartment where every reflective surface has been covered by newspaper. He is soon sucked into the Mirror World, discovering the terrifying truth behind the disappearances: people are literally being pulled through mirrors by the monsters of the Mirror World so that they may feed. He is about to be killed by a powerful dragon named Dragredder when he is saved by Kamen Rider Knight- Ren Akiyama.

Ren seeks to win the Rider War at all costs. He works with a young woman named Yui Kanzaki, who seeks her missing brother: the master of the Rider War, Shiro Kanzaki. Seeing Ren's strength, Shinji enters the Rider War not for the prize, but so that he may protect innocent people from the threat of the Mirror World, and stop the senseless fighting between the Kamen Riders.

With Dragredder as his Contract Monster, he becomes Kamen Rider Ryuki.

He will discover that there are some people who cannot be saved. That you must sometimes fight in order to stop the fighting. The extent to which you must go if you want your deepest wish to come true, and the sacrifices that you must make.

In the end, there can be only one Kamen Rider...

[edit] 13 Riders

The notion of 13 Riders is apparently a homage to the original Kamen Rider manga published in 1971, which contains a chapter called The 13 Kamen Riders. Ironically only 10 Kamen Riders were featured in the TV series. Femme, Ryuga and Verde appeared exclusively in the movie Episode: Final and/or the TV special 13 Riders.

Kamen Rider Knight
Kamen Rider Ryuki - main protagonist
Kamen Rider Scissors
Kamen Rider Zolda
Kamen Rider Raia
Kamen Rider Gai
Kamen Rider Ohja
Kamen Rider Tiger
Kamen Rider Imperer
Kamen Rider Femme - officially the first female Kamen Rider
Kamen Rider Ryuga
Kamen Rider Verde
Kamen Rider Odin

The show also featured two Kamen Rider clones, called Alternatives:

Alternative Zero
Alternative

[edit] Rider Equipment

Though each rider was different in many aspects, they all had some fundamental similarities and used similar equipment.

V-Buckle (Vent Buckle) - The Rider's henshin belt, when the Vent Deck is put up against a reflective surface. The belt materializes and attaches to the individual.
Vent Deck - This deck contained each rider's advent cards. Each rider's deck had their corresponding crest on it and the color matched the rider's outfit. Putting the deck in the slot on the belt transforms them into their rider form.
Advent Cards - These cards are one of the main tools the riders used throughout the series. Each card had its own function. Some summoned offensive and/or defensive weapons, others provided special abilities. There were some standard cards that every rider had; calling their contract monster, and performing their special attack with their contract monster.
Visor - Each rider had a visor that was modeled after their contract monster. The visor's main function is a card reader. Each rider would insert cards into their visor to "summon" weapons, their contract monster, and special attacks. Some riders' visor also doubled as their weapon.
Ride Shooter - These vehicles were what the riders would use to travel from the real world to the mirror world. Once a rider would pass through a mirror or reflective surface, they would then be riding in a Ride Shooter as they were traveling through a portal to the mirror world. The Ride Shooter would then shoot out of the reflective surface in the mirror world.
Specifications:
- Length - 3.25m (Approximately 10'8")
- Height - 1.4m (Approximately 4'7")
- Width - 1.12m (Approximately 3'8")
- Top speed - 930km/h (Approximately 577.88 mph)

[edit] Cast

Shinji Kidou / Kamen Rider Ryuuki (城戸真司 / 仮面ライダー龍騎 Kidō Shinji / Kamen Raidā Ryūki) - Takamasa Suga (須賀貴匡 Suga Takamasa)
Ren Akiyama / Kamen Rider Knight (秋山蓮 / 仮面ライダーナイト Akiyama Ren / Kamen Raidā Naito) - Satoshi Matsuda (松田悟志 Matsuda Satoshi)
Yui Kanzaki (神崎優衣 Kanzaki Yui) - Ayano Sugiyama (杉山彩乃 Sugiyama Ayano)
Shirou Kanzaki (神崎士郎 Kanzaki Shirō) - Kenzaburo Kikuchi (菊地謙三郎 Kikuchi Kenzaburo)
Shuuichi Kitaoka / Kamen Rider Zolda (北岡秀一 / 仮面ライダーゾルダ Kitaoka Shūichi / Kamen Raidā Zoruda) - Ryohei (涼平 Ryōhei)
Gorou Yura (由良吾郎 Yura Gorō) - Tomohisa Yuge (弓削智久 Yuge Tomohisa)
Takeshi Asakura / Kamen Rider Ouja (浅倉威 / 仮面ライダー王蛇 Asakura Takeshi / Kamen Raidā Ōja) - Takashi Hagino (萩野崇 Hagino Takashi)
Masashi Sudou / Kamen Rider Scissors (須藤雅史 / 仮面ライダーシザース Sudō Masashi / Kamen Raidā Shizāzu) - Takeshi Kimura (木村剛 Kimura Takeshi)
Miyuki Tezuka / Kamen Rider Raia (手塚海之 / 仮面ライダーライア Tezuka Miyuki / Kamen Raidā Raia) - Hassei Takano (高野八誠)
Jun Shibaura / Kamen Rider Gai (芝浦淳 / 仮面ライダーガイ Shibaura Jun / Kamen Raidā Gai) - Satoshi Ichijou (一條俊 Ichijō Satoshi)
Satoru Toujou / Kamen Rider Tiger (東條悟 / 仮面ライダータイガ Satoru Tōjō / Kamen Raidā Taiga) - Jun Takatsuki (高槻純 Takatsuki Jun)
Mitsuru Sano / Kamen Rider Impalor (佐野満 / 仮面ライダーインペラー Sano Mitsuru / Kamen Raidā Inperā) - Takashi Hyuga (日向崇 Hyūga Takashi)
Kamen Rider Odin & Visor (Voice) (仮面ライダーオーディン＆バイザー (声) Kamen Raidā Ōdin & Baizā (Koe)) - Tsuyoshi Koyama (小山剛志 Koyama Tsuyoshi)
Daisuke Ookubo (大久保大介 Ōkubo Daisuke) - Kanji Tsuda (津田寛治 Tsuda Kanji)
Reiko Momoi (桃井令子 Reiko Momoi) - Sayaka Kuon (久遠さやか Kuon Sayaka)
Nanako Shimada (島田奈々子 Shimada Nanako) - Hitomi Kurihara (栗原瞳 Kurihara Hitomi)
Megumi Asano (浅野めぐみ Asano Megumi) - Chisato Morishita (森下千里 Morishita Chisato)
Sanako Kanzaki (神崎沙奈子 Kanzaki Sanako) - Kazue Tsunogae (角替和枝 Tsunogae Kazue)
Eri Ogawa (小川恵里 Ogawa Eri) - Mahiru Tsubura (つぶらまひる Tsubura Mahiru)
Hajime Nakamura / Alternative (仲村創 / オルタナティブ Nakamura Hajime / Orutanatibu) - Junichi Mizuno (水野純一 Mizuno Jun'ichi)
Hideyuki Kagawa / Alternative Zero (香川英行 / オルタナティブゼロ Kagawa Hideyuki / Orutanatibu Zero) - Satoshi Jinbo (神保悟志 Jinbo Satoshi)

Miho Kirishima / Kamen Rider Femme (霧島美穂 / 仮面ライダーファム Kirishima Miho / Kamen Raidā Famu) - Natsuki Kato (加藤夏希 Katō Natsuki)

Itsuro Takamizawa / Kamen Rider Verde (高見沢逸郎 / 仮面ライダーベルデ Takamizawa Itsurō / Kamen Raidā Berude) - Arthur Kuroda (黒田アーサー Kuroda Āsā)
Koichi Sakakibara (榊原耕一 Sakakibara Kōichi) - Keiichi Wada (和田圭市 Wada Keiichi)

[edit] Notes

At a conceptual level, the series is more adult and character driven that the earlier Kamen Rider series, considering the nature of time, predestination, whether fighting can be morally justified, what price people must pay for personal catharsis and the redemption of those they love, etc.

Some of the monsters in this series are portrayed as hungry creatures which prey on humans and other Kamen Riders for survival, rather than as the evil kaijins of the preceding shows. But the majority of the monsters are contracted allies and the power source for most of the thirteen Kamen Riders, building their power by absorbing the energy of those who are defeated.

Despite the idea of 13 Kamen Riders facing each other, all 13 Kamen Riders never really faced each other in one huge battle. The most number of Kamen Riders in one battle is 6, in the TV series, where Knight, Ryuki, Zolda, Ohja, Tiger, and Alternative fought each other, only to be interupted by Imperer's advent monsters, and 11, at the 13 Kamen Riders Special. Kamen Rider Raia was killed earlier by Kamen Rider Verde's Death Vanish Final Vent. Despite activating the Guard Vent, Kamen Rider Scissors was killed by Kamen Rider Ouja's Veno Crash Final Vent. The remaining 10 Kamen Riders fought on the final match of the special, with Kamen Rider Ryuki and Kamen Rider Knight facing off against the remaining 8, led by Kamen Rider Odin.

Takashi Hagino who plays Takeshi Asakura/Kamen Rider Ouja also starred in Choukou Senshi Changèrion. Changèrion's suit actor was Jiro Okamoto, who also plays Kamen Rider Ouja in-suit. This is one of the rare cases where both the actor and their suit actor played different characters together.

Hassei Takano is famous for being the first actor to play two different Kamen Riders. He played Kamen Rider Raia in Kamen Rider Ryuki in 2002 and in 2005 he portrayed Ichimonji Hayato/Kamen Rider Nigo in Kamen Rider The First, which was a remake of the original comic book and series. His first Tokusatsu role was in Ultraman Gaia as Ultraman Agul.

Hassei Takano is not the only Rider in Kamen Rider Ryuki that was previously an Ultraman. Jun Takatsuki played Ultraman Neos in 2000 who later on played Kamen Rider Taiga in Ryuki.

Takeshi Kimura, who plays Masashi Sudou/Kamen Rider Scissors, is in a band called The Lantern.

In a recently-released article by Reuters ([1]) ([2]), it is stated that four actors dressed as Japanese superheroes (Kamen Riders Ryuki, Faiz, and Kaixa among them) who were promoting a new superhero show coming to that country were detained by Thai soldiers for breaking a decree against commercial promotion in front of tanks, but were released without charges.

[edit] Theme songs

[edit] Opening theme songs

Alive A Life by Rica Matsumoto (松本梨香, Matsumoto Rika^?)
Alive A Life (Advent Mix) by Rica Matsumoto (松本梨香, Matsumoto Rika^?) - Episode Final Theme

[edit] Ending theme songs

Boundless Life (果てなき希望(いのち) Hatenaki Inochi) by Hiroshi Kitadani (きただにひろし Kitadani Hiroshi)
Into the Eternal Flame (果てしない炎の中に Hateshinai Honō no Naka ni) by RIDER CHIPS featuring Keiko Terada (寺田恵子 Terada Keiko)
Revolution by Hiroshi Kitadani (きただにひろし Kitadani Hiroshi)

[edit] Episodes

The Secret Story of Birth (誕生秘話 Tanjō Hiwa)
Giant Spider Counterattack (巨大クモ逆襲 Kyodai Kumo Gyakushū)
School Ghost Story (学校の怪談 Gakkō no Kaidan)
School Ghost Story 2 (学校の怪談2 Gakkō no Kaidan Tsū)
The Antique Store's Monster (骨董屋の怪人 Kottōya no Kaijin)
The Mysterious Rider (謎のライダー Nazo no Raidā)
A New Species is Born? (新種誕生? Shinshu Tanjō?)
The Fourth, Zolda (４人目ゾルダ Yoninme Zoruda)
Shinji's Captured!? (真司が逮捕!? Shinji ga Taiho)
Knight's Crisis (ナイトの危機 Naito no Kiki)
The Mysterious Unmanned Train (謎の無人電車 Nazo no Mujin Densha)
Ren Akiyama's Sweetheart (秋山蓮の恋人 Akiyama Ren no Koibito)
That Man Zolda (その男ゾルダ Sono Otoko Zoruda)
A Day of Revival (復活の日 Fukkatsu no Hi)
Iron Mask Legend (鉄仮面伝説 Tetsu Kamen Densetsu)
The Card of Destiny (運命のカード Unmei no Kādo)
The Grieving Knight (嘆きのナイト Nageki no Naito)
Jailbreak Rider (脱獄ライダー Datsugoku Raidā)
Rider Gathering (ライダー集結 Raidā Shūketsu)
The Traitorous Ren (裏切りの蓮 Uragiri no Ren)
Yui's Past (優衣の過去 Yui no Kako)
Raia's Revenge (ライアの復讐 Raia no Fukushū)
Changing Destiny (変わる運命 Kawaru Unmei)
Ouja's Secret (王蛇の秘密 Ōja no Himitsu)
Combining Ouja (合体する王蛇 Gattai Suru Ōja)
Zolda's Attack (ゾルダの攻撃 Zoruda no Kōgeki)
13 Riders (１３号ライダー Jūsangō Raidā)
Time Vent (タイムベント Taimu Bento)
Marriage Interview Battle (見合い合戦 Miai Gassen)
Zolda's Lover (ゾルダの恋人 Zoruda no Koibito)
The Girl and Ouja (少女と王蛇 Shōjo to Ōja)
The Secret Data Gathering (秘密の取材 Himitsu no Shuzai)
The Mirror's Magic (鏡のマジック Kagami no Majikku)
The Battle of Friendship (友情のバトル Yūjō no Batoru)
Enter, Tiger (タイガ登場 Taiga Tōjō)
The Battle Ends (戦いは終わる Tatakai wa Owaru)
Sleep is Awakening (眠りが覚めて Nemuri ga Samete)
Targeted Yui (狙われた優衣 Nerawareta Yui)
A Sign of Danger (危険のサイン Kiken no Sain)
Memories of an Older Brother and Younger Sister (兄と妹の記憶 Ani to Imōto no Kioku)
Impalor (インペラー Inperā)
Room 401 (401号室 Yonhyakuichi-gōshitsu)
The Hero Fights (英雄は戦う Eiyū wa Tatakau)
The Happiness of Glass (ガラスの幸福 Garasu no Kōfuku)
The Twentieth Birthday (20歳の誕生日 Hatachi no Tanjōbi)
Tiger's a Hero (タイガは英雄 Taiga wa Eiyū)
The Determination of Battle (戦いの決断 Tatakai no Ketsudan)
The Last 3 Days (最後の3日間 Saigo no Mikkakan)
The Request Which We Would Like to Grant (叶えたい願い Kanaetai Negai)
New Life (新しい命 Atarashii Inochi)

[edit] Movies & Special

Kamen Rider Ryuki-Episode Final (Theatrical Movie)
Kamen Rider Ryuki-Episode Special: 13 Riders (TV Special)

[edit] References

Kamen Rider franchise created by Shotaro Ishinomori
TV series (Ishinomori-era)	Kamen Rider \| V3 \| X \| Amazon \| Stronger \| "New" Kamen Rider \| Super-1 \| BLACK \| BLACK RX
TV series (Post-Ishinomori)	Kuuga \| Agito \| Ryuki \| 555 \| Blade \| Hibiki \| Kabuto
Films and specials	ZX \| Shin Kamen Rider \| SD \| ZO \| J \| Kamen Rider World \| Kamen Rider the First

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Category: Kamen Rider