Masked Rider - The First

Having never seen any of the Japanese Kamen Rider shows, this was a good buy. I first became aware of Kamen Rider via Saban's Masked Rider, though I was not aware at the time that it was based on anything. ( I was fifteen at the time and had no real clue about live action imports of anything from Japan beyond the Godzilla film series)However I later learned of the Japanese Kamen Rider concept when I saw that Kamen Rider: Dragon Knight (which still has yet to have a DVD release, sadly), listed in its opening credits that the show was based on a show called Kamen Rider created by a man named Shotaro Ishinomori. Since I liked Dragon Knight I recently began researching the concept on wikipedia and TVTropes and a few fan sites. (This research has led me to create my own novel series inspired by the concept) I learned of Masked Rider The First via Wikipedia, and while I was leery of the name, expecting it to somehow be related to Saban's adaptation, I was more than pleasantly surprised.From all I have learned, The First is an attempt at a condensed retelling of a 1971 show by the name Kamen Rider (literally translated, it becomes Masked Rider, as Kamen is the word for Mask and Masked in Japan), which revolves around a man named Takeshi Hongo, who is abducted by a terrorist organization called Shocker (which is apparently actually an acronym for Sacred Hegemony Of Cycle Kindred Evolutional Realm. Yeah, I don't get it either.) and transformed into a super powerful cyborg initially called Hopper since his armored mask is designed to look like a grasshopper, and brainwashed into becoming a willing servant of Shocker. He breaks free of his mind control and begins to oppose Shocker, using the powers they themselves gave him. This prompts the creation of a second Hopper, Hayato Ichimonji, who is betrayed by and in turn betrays Shocker outright.These two characters, though never explicitly called Kamen Riders, proceed to battle Shocker's forces over the last half hour of the movie in an attempt to save a girl who is the love interest of both men, and who has seemingly gained an affection for Hopper/Rider 1. Ironically, the second Hopper, Ichimonji, was her fiance until he was apparently killed and later resurrected by Shocker as Hopper/Rider 2.If the movie is this good (and it is. The ending song, Bright! Our Future is all kinds of awesome even if I don't understand a word of it since the song wasn't subtitled) the series must have been something else for being a show made in 1971. Well worth the money if you can find a copy.

I'll describe the product in the order I saw it. Firstly, the title on the actual DVD is "Masked Rider the First", not "Kamen Rider the First" as shown/as it should have been.Upon getting it, I was disappointed, but not surprised, to find the supposed 2-disc set was, in fact, one DVD.The special features are surprisingly well-put together, featuring the trailers (without subtitles), trailers for other projects from years back that the company that released this DVD has apparently acquired (as is frequently done with import releases), and, shockingly, a very in depth and detailed behind the scenes feature that I really enjoyed and that was actually subtitled.The film itself has an acceptable subbing job, and I was pleased to find that there was no poor dubbing to suffer through, I suppose they finally ran out of monotoned voices to lazily read out lines.Picture quality is a bit off, but that might be due to transfer stuff (though I don't know why, Japan uses NTSC too), subtitles are clear and easy to read, and the sound quality is excellentHighly recommended for the Kamen Rider fan or even just someone who has been looking for a good piece of tokusatsu to show to a friend in the hopes of getting them interested too. This flick also makes a surprisingly good date movie, it has action and romance, some slow bits where you can easily get away with a bit of making out, as well as some unintentionally funny bitsNOT for kids though, there is totally a naked dude in part of this film, parents'll want to take a look at this before showing it to the kids. Also, parents'll want to figure out if their kid is really ready to read and watch a film at the same time.

The item came fast and without any problem. It worked like a charm, sounded great, looked great. An amazing addition to my collection from back in the day. Definitely one to pick up with Shin Kamen Rider edging its way around the corner.

I use to love watching the Masked Rider when I was a kid in the mid 1990's. I recorded some episodes because I loved it so much.

Hi I'm really looking foward to get this DVD as i thought these old tv programs wasn't ever released on DVD and can't wait to watch it i have seen this on the internet ITS AWESOME AND I LOVE IT looking foward to getting it thanks

Great, for time it took to get to me was great

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