Sean Akizuki's East Asian Drama and Movie Blog

  Sorry for the delay. Some things have happened (which is rather personal) so I'm really going to do my post for Kamen Rider Saber . I can't be too sure if I'm excited for Kamen Rider Revice (which was featured in the special episode after the finale) not ever since one of its cast members did the blackface scandal. Yes, that whole picture of Subaru Kimura and his racist blackface incident is there. Well, now it's time to think about how I had a rollercoaster ride with Saber .  I nearly dropped the show because of all the initial flak it got. I confess that the whole rushing to sell Bandai merchandise was really there. It was all, "Must sell toys! Must sell toys!" It's important to innovate but lousy execution can be a problem. It's like trying to introduce too many new dishes at once to the point that you end up not making a profit. I felt watching the earlier episodes was like being introduced to too many new dishes every week in a restaurant. Just ...

After I had some issues with Kamen Rider Saber early on - I think the plot twist such as the current Master Logos' betrayal (and his plan to achieve the Omniscient Tome) is getting things more interesting. What a cruel twist of fate that the current Master Logos is the true antagonist (for now) and not the Megiddo. The puppeteering of both sides of the coin is really interesting. Meanwhile, I think the mantle of Kamen Rider Calibur is now tossed around, nearly similar to how Kamen Rider Faiz did with the Kaixa belt or how Kamen Rider Kiva passed around the IXA Belt.  Is it me or is it THAT PREDICTABLE that Touma survived? It's not the 1980s anymore where contracts seem to be lose such as the mysterious case of  Diane Martin in Battle Fever J when she left midseason, Yuki Yajima with Chodenshi Bioman when she only had nine episodes, the three generals in Kosoku Sentai Turboranger , or maybe who can forget how Jun Yoshida was eventually written off in Kamen Rider BLACK ? In this...

  Well, I'm still Kamen Rider Saber though I decided to drop off episode reviews (again, this is NOT a Kamen Rider blog) since I'm watching other older and newer stuff. So, it turns out that the big betrayal that everyone has been gossiping about for quite some time isn't that of Daichi who became Kamen Rider Calibur but the incumbent Master Logos?  I was thinking about how suspicious things were getting especially when Reika Shinda acts so bitchy towards the protagonists. I think Reika's appearance gives her off too easily that she's really a villain. I wish Toei made those villain appearances less obvious such as make them more innocent-looking! Rika's words are the words of Master Logos? I'm thinking about how this might be a throwback to Yodonna's role as Emperor Yodon's right-hand woman and host body. So, the big betrayal happens within the Sword of Logos organization? Reika has been receiving orders in person with the current Master Logos. The ...

  I was thinking about the flak that Kamen Rider Saber has been receiving . Right now, I feel it's rightly so considering that a lot of stuff that is best "saved for last" is suddenly thrown at full decibel. How in the world are we suddenly getting this and that?  Until now, I do agree with what  Dryed Mangoez  has to say about Saber : I think Saber‘s biggest problem right now is its inability to juggle all these characters and all the different plot threads they’ve started, but have yet to expand upon. The villains are very underdeveloped. There’s no real endgame even being teased. And all we have so far is all these characters who are likeable, but are thrown into very convoluted situations that either don’t make sense or don’t illicit any strong feelings. I do agree the characters are likable. It's what actually gave a changed mind over Ressha Sentai ToQGer - something that didn't happen immediately probably due to taste fatigue. Right now, I think I may have K...

Right now, I don't know if I should really still continue doing Kamen Rider Saber reviews. For one, I do feel like Daichi (to a certain extent) in wanting the eternal truth. Though, I don't like what Daichi did in becoming the current Kamen Rider Calibur to do so. I'm wondering how I'd do episode reviews. The current story of Daichi as Calibur really feels rushed. Suddenly revealing the current Calibur was indeed the previous Kamen Rider Saber should've been saved for later! Kento thought that his father was Calibur but it's Daichi. Daichi's story in the past has him saving Touma (as a child) from danger. As an adult, Touma now faces that his childhood hero has become Calibur. I thought about how the mantle of a Kamen Rider can go from good to evil. In Kamen Rider OOO - the previous OOO himself was a villain and a greedy man. Fortunately, Eiji managed to use the OOO mantle for good to combat the Greeed. In this one, the previous Saber becomes a villain for a...

Well, I have to admit to thinking whether or not I'm going to continue doing every other week reviews or what with Kamen Rider Saber . Just my thought that the show is getting so much flak after eight episodes . I wanted to give it a chance and maybe, defy netizens then maybe they are right - the show is GOING TOO FAST. Now, for episode 9 and episode 10 to what really is going on. So, it turns out and yes, NOT surprisingly that Tetsuo Daishinji is Kamen Rider Slash. Shouldn't it be surprising? No, he was already part of the whole crew so him becoming Slash is no surprise. However, other Kamen Riders that showed up like Kamen Rider Slash and Kamen Rider Buster seem to be just come and go allies. I admit that while he has a cool debut - I'm wondering if he will be another wasted potential. So much for my excitement that was actually killed by MERELY eight episodes. His story has the Ugly Duckling involved. What am I complaining about this time? Well, Slash turns out that he ...

  Well, I do usually make the mistake of riding upon other people's opinions and preferences - such was the mistake when I pre-judged Super Sentai from 2013 to 2015. Then again, some people's opinions encourage me to finally SPEAK UP when I feel that a show isn't getting its worth.  So, the same can be said about Kamen Rider Saber when it's said by Daisuki Toku that Japanese netizens are now expressing unhappiness towards it . What can be seen based on the article are the following complaints: Too many Kamen Riders may cause an accident. It feels more like a 30-minute toy commercial and the content is shallow. The pace is getting too fast to sell more Bandai merchandise that it's boring. A lot may happen in the 30-minute airing but it feels empty. The fact it's written by Takuro Fukuda contributes to the hate. Kamen Rider Ghost is considered the worst Heisei-era Rider ever. Some worries were proven right. So, what are my issues? For a guy who actually ended up ...

Well, here's another Kamen Rider Saber review which I'd like to review the Avalon Arc. The story this time combines King Arthur with the story of Perseus with the Medusa monster. The two weeks are dedicated to finding the power of Excalibur. Episode seven is connected to episode six where Touma wants to find the gateway to Avalon. As it turns out that Avalon is another dimension. 13 stories are connected together which would lead to the mystical land. If you ask me - I'm really ready to kick down Kishinryu Sentai Ryusoulger to another level of low after watching the Avalon Arc. On the other hand, Rintaro has visions of his mentor acted by Masashi Mikami - also in blue! Throwback to Boukenger? Well, I guess Boukenger is probably still causing hype even after ten years. I mean, Masashi did guest-star in Kamen Rider Drive with Haruka Suenga (who married before making the guest role).  The story also links to Medusa who also has her two other sisters. In Greek mythology, Medusa...

This episode features the arrival of Ren Akamichi. TBH, I just wonder if I should watch the Kamen Rider Shinobi spin-off at this point? Well, it's an interesting debut that may start to give Kamen Rider Saber a more mature spin even when it thrives on children's fairy tales. Ren is introduced as the new Rider. Kentaro introduces Ren to the show's protagonist, Touma. This also has Ren and Touma argue about strength and knowledge as the perfect combination for justice. Of course, we need both brains and brawn to win a battle, right? I still think about how Super Sentai tends to emphasize the need for both. So far, Ren still has a lot to learn about developing his head too. A new reference to the King Arthur folklore is made. Touma's sword is stuck in its belt. Does that remind you of the story of The Sword in the Stone by old-school Disney back in 1963? Well, the King Arthur tales will further go forward with the need to go to Avalon.  Zoous reveals something he terribly ...

  While I usually wait for an arc to be over - I thought this week deserves a bit of a specail focus. Okay, I may soon drop reviewing Kamen Rider Saber episodes weekly altogether (that is if other new passions will soon put me on a break from Toku entirely). The focus this week is on Kamen Rider Espada. Well, Juzo's actor from Samurai Sentai Shinkenger makes yet another Kamen Rider appearance. Mitsuru Karahashi was also Naoya Kaido/Snake Orphnoch in Kamen Rider Faiz before he became Juzo. I guess they wanted a bit of Shinkenger reference there since Juzo was a wandering, traitorous swordsman.  It's also interesting to see that Zoous who controls animals does have a form similar to that from... GARO? Well, I do see a bit of the Ashu all the way back from Gougou Sentai Boukenger . The design is somewhat funny and scary at the same time. The Piranha Megids monster (and there's more than one) is the current threat. So, I'm getting a bit of vibes from the R-18 horror movie H...

Well, as said, I would definitely prefer reviewing Kamen Rider episodes after an arc is over or when I feel like it. So, pretty much this is a two-parter. This time, I'm introduced more to Japanese folklore with the Hanzaki. Meanwhile, we do have Ryo Ogami/Kamen Rider Buster with his son Sora as the main focus instead of Kento. Yes, Kento the guy who arrived in a magic carpet last week and a childhood friend of the hero.  Most Kamen Riders aren't parents, right? But in this case - there's one who's got a kid on-screen. So far, a lot of Heisei era Riders weren't parents. Technically, Shinonosuke and Kiriko had a child from the future in the Kamen Rider Drive movie. However, Shinosuke and Kiriko never showed their child in the present state and the last we know is that they got married. Apparently, Ryo is a single father and maybe his wife died before the show begun.  There's the power of the promise. Okay, I was thinking it's been some time since we'd had...

  Last week's episode (though please don't expect for weekly reviews from me) had the mysterious warrior arriving. Turns out that it's Rintaro Shindo (Kamen Rider Blades, not to be confused with Kamen RIder Blade) arrives as the warrior of water. Rintaro requests for the sword and book back from our hero Touma. However, it turns out that Rintaro has been chosen to become Kamen Rider Saber. They do enter into the Northern HQ which exists at... the North Pole? Well, Santa Claus did appear in Kamen Rider Wizard and has appeared in some Super Sentai series with different variations in Ninja Sentai Kakuranger and Engine Sentai Go-Onger . So, I wonder if we'll see another variation of Santa Claus to appear here sooner or later. Then again, what if Santa Claus chose the Kamen Riders here? The character Sophia provides the badly-needed exposition about the Greater Book. She is a protector of the books in the Sword of Logos organization. I'm getting RPG vibes looking at her ...

  It's the first week of September 2020 and we got our second Reiwa Rider namely Kamen Rider Saber . I remembered writing my initial reaction before the show began . Kamen Rider Zero-One had ended last week and fortunately - no one-week hiatus. There are even some jokes in the credits with ZAIA Enterprise and Hiden Intelligence. So, the theme is once again related to knights. Wait, didn't we get knights and dragons in Kamen Rider Ryuki ? Except for this time, the power of Western fairy tales and knights come to life. So, we might be getting some Mystic Knights of Tir Na Nog vibes considering the RPG elements. Hopefully, it'll actually succeed where I think Kishinryu Sentai Ryusoulger failed. The main hero Touma really puts some tribute back in 2009 with Shotaro from Kamen Rider W  attire-wise. The world of books is here and I'm wondering should I actually rewatch The Never Ending Story movie series as well as The Pagemaster ? I'm actually willing to give Takuro Fuku...

Well, it's confirmed that Kamen Rider Zero-One has indeed done its filming. Right now, I'm even wondering about the future of my episode reviews since I don't intend to do them forever. Also, remember I don't give magazine scans or updates - I REACT to updates like I'm doing to right now. So there are five more episodes of Zero-One left and September 6, 2020,  will be the time for the arrival of the new Kamen Rider Saber . Yes, the second Reiwa era Kamen Rider will be born. The plot and details are given by UkiyaSeed : The series will focus on two worlds colliding due to the actions of the enemy faction named Megiddo. These two worlds are our world, and a world based on fairy tales and fantasy.  Touma Kamiyama (played by Shuichiro Naito) is a novelist and the owner of the Fantastic Kamiyama Bookstore. Passionate about books, he can't stop talking about it once he gets started. He also has a heated side and values a promise above all else. He becomes Kamen Rider...