Touch... Touch!!... TOUCH!!!

So, you now have the Decadriver and can transform into the 9 previous riders and use their alternate forms. Too bad you can't transform into their ultimate forms...or can you?

Nope...you can't. With the way the series was going, however, you knew that there was going to be some gimmic involving the ultimate forms. In episode 20, you finally catch a glimpse of the "Final Kamen Terminal K-Touch" and it's involvement in granting Decade his "Complete Form." One thing led to another (I'm a sucker for DX henshin toys, even if the series wasn't the greatest) and today I would like to share a look at Bandai's "Final Kamen Terminal DX K-Touch."

In the package, you get the "DX K-touch", a belt clip and 2 cards. 2 AAA batteries are required and are not included.

First, the K-touch. From the printed markings, I'm guessing this was supposed to be a touch-screen phone of some sort. The "Decade" influence is obvious with it's resemblance to his helmet and the faux green LED next to the speaker. Except for the power switch on the button and a transparent release button on the top, there are no other visible external buttons or toggles - the clear window in the center commands all the attention.

Power it up and a 3x3 grid of LEDs light up and you are greeted to a tune that resembles the start-up jingle of a Macintosh. It's very relaxing. On the screen are 12 "buttons", that is 12 spots where unique contact is detected. Pressing or holding any of these will result in an audible "click" and one of 13 lightshows. The exception is the button in the lower right hand corner, which will always function the same way, whether either card is inserted and even when there is no card inserted. This is essentially a 2 stage volume switch and holding this button will play the start up tune again, but at a lower volume. From this point on, all sound effects will be played at the lower volume until you use the switch again or you restart the k-touch.

The belt clip lets you attach the Decadriver and use it's functions by pushing on it, rather than rotating it in the buckle. This frees up the buckle for the K-touch. To fit it, you have to pull the handles apart to rotate the link and just snap the K-touch into place. To release the K-touch, press on the large transparent button at the top of it. The belt clip fits the K-touch as well.

Onto the cards. One card has a number pad (rather odd positioning of numbers if you ask me) and the other has the emblems of the 9 previous primary riders, as well as Decade's emblem, an "F" and a "C" key. Unlike other Kamen Ride cards, these are made of rigid, transparent plastic. The details are printed right onto it. These cards do not function with the DX Decadriver (due to the lack of working barcodes) and give an error when inserted. It is also safe to assume that these cards will not function with the Ganbaride arcade game. Instead, the cards have a notch cut into the upper or lower right hand side. This is how the K-touch "reads" the cards - the cards are inserted into the K-touch notch side first and will determine what sound effects the K-touch plays. Inserting either card will give you the familiar start up tune. The sound for a card's removal is recycled from the Decadriver.

We'll get the number-pad card out of the way first, before we move onto the Decade Complete card.

The number-pad card delivers exactly what it promises...it's a number-pad. Next to either side of the "0" is the "enter" and "cancel" key. The K-touch says any number you press on the pad. Punching in the year of a Heisei rider's show makes the K-touch announce that Rider's name with the "Final Attack Ride" stutter. For example, when you punch in 2+0+0+0 and press enter, K-touch says "two-zero-zero-zero...Ku-Ku-Ku-Kuuga." Alternatively, you can hold any digit and it will do the complete sequence ending with that digit. Holding "1" gives the same results as punching in 2+0+0+1 manually. Pressing or holding "enter" when an invalid combination (or no numbers) are entered results in a short ring-tone..and that's all you're getting out of this card.

Onto the Decade Complete card. Press any of the Rider's emblems (other than Decade's) and K-touch will announce their names. The emblem becomes illuminated and will flash continuously. This stops after a couple of seconds and K-touch goes back to idle. You can continue to press and light up all the emblem to start the Decade Complete Form transformation. Once all 9 emblems are lit up, a ring tone plays and all the lights flash. Press Decade's emblem to complete the Complete Form transformation with the light and sound action from the show. Summoning riders is done the same way as in the show. Press any of the Rider emblems and then the "F" key above Decade's emblem. The K-touch will then announce that Rider's Ultimate form and play a sound. So, for Kabuto, it says "Kamen Ride...Hyper."

A couple of tidbits - you can skip pressing any or all emblems and press Decade's Emblem to start the Complete Form transformation. Also, you can press any number emblems and then press the "F" key to summon the Rider whose emblem was pressed last. You can also do this after all emblems are lit up and the ring tone is playing. Pressing the "C" key plays a variation of the start-up sound and returns the K-touch to idle mode. Pressing the "F" key now will give an error sound (same sound as if no emblems were pressed).

So now that you have the details, just how is the toy?

That depends...I really like the touch screen~ish feature and it's connectivity with the Decadriver. It sounds good and feels very playable. Unlike the Decadriver, it seems to have all sounds from the show. The volume switch was a nice addition i didn't expect. The belt clip was nice too and gives you something else to do with your Decadriver.

On the other hand...it quite a bit different from the show's counterpart. Because Tsukasa never uses the K-touch in his civilian form, it is sized for Decade's buckle. This would mean the K-touch is scaled down for the smaller DX Decadriver. When compared to the show's prop, the screen and emblems are much smaller. The screen indents a bit while, on the show, it is flush with the front of the K-touch. Also, the screen uses pressure to detect contact and you cannot slide your finger across the screen to activate emblems, the way Decade did in episode 20.

Other than that, it's not bad. Like many other "upgrade" items from the DX henshin series (for example Hyper Zecter), the features are quite limited, compared to the "signature" DX item (Kabuto Zecter). However, they stand by themselves and do not require the "signature" item for enjoyment, although any enthusiast who purchases an "upgrade" item is likely to have the "signature" item anyway. As far as maintaining Decade's "Theme" goes, this piece feels a little out of place, compared to other items from the series. The only connecting feature is the card, which does not function with the Decadriver or the Ganbaride arcade game.
So, if you like the show, this is a definite buy. If you simply like Kamen Rider toys, but hate the show, it's still a worthwhile item (mainly because of the touch-screen gimmick and the references to older Riders). Otherwise, it's an easy pass.

He is the son of the sun, Kamen Rider Black RX!

Review sample provided by Angolz.com.

Follow hot on the heels of the Kamen Rider Black, Kamen Rider Black RX is the first true sequel series in the Showa era of Kamen Rider. The basic setup is after the defeat of the Golgom, Kotaro Minami now faces the extra-terrestrial threat of the Crisis Empire. Black is heavily damaged in his first fight against the Crisis forces and is thrown into space where his broken King Stone splits into two new gems with the help of the sun's rays. Black was reborn as Kamen Rider Black RX!

Both Black and Black RX have been given S.H. Figuarts toys, as these are two of the most prolific Rider designs in the franchise. Also, the release of these toys was quite well timed with a guest appearance by actor Tetsuro Kurata who reprises his role as Kotaro Minami in an episode of the crossover-tastic Kamen Rider Decade.

Much like the Black S.H. Figuarts, RX is a high quality action figure who is mostly hard ABS with diecast feet. It features numerous points of articulation included double-jointed elbows and knees, fully functional feet, and many more. Due to the nature of the original costume design, RX is a little stiffer with regards to his range of motion. Most notably the bug-like collar prevents the toy from turning its head to the side, which is accurate to the series.

I am the child of the Sun! Kamen Rider Black! R! X!

RX is not nearly as black as his previous incarnation. The new green areas are done in a sparkly plastic that fits well with the bare black parts of his body. His double King Stone belt is very basic, but the paint applications are sharp and well done.

Much like Black, RX features the same compound eye gimmick where the entire front part of the face is cast in clear red plastic and then placed over silver eyes on rest of the head. The figure comes with eight hands: two fists, two karate chop hands, two open hands, and two hands for holding the Revolcane.

Every detail is represented on this figure. From RX's chest logo to his funky rider bracelet. Next I will talk about the Revolcane.

It's not that kind of jaunty cane...

RX's signature weapon is the Revolcane. Its name is derived from a portmanteau of revolution and hurricane. Taking his cue from one of his forebears, Kamen Rider X, and the influence of the Space Sheriff series, RX draws forth from his belt a deadly laser sword.

The weapon looks great and fits snugly into either hand.

RX's primary means of attack with the Revolcane was to stab his opponents mercilessly.

RX KICK!

This is one area where the figure's more restricted range of movement prevents RX from bringing his feet together for this attack. He looks more like he's taking a ride down a water slide.

Despite some minor hang ups, RX is another great Figuarts Kamen Rider. Having RX along with Black makes each figure feel a little more complete. Now all we need are toys of RX's alternate forms, Robo-Rider and Bio-Rider!

All it takes, to become Bandai's 10th Heisei Kamen Rider, is this belt...oh and cards...lots of cards.

The tenth Heisei Rider, Kamen Rider Decade, is an anniversary show that revisits previous Kamen Rider continuities. It is also a marketing opportunity for Bandai to revive interest and sell items related to past shows.

So….Happy 10th anniversary, Kamen Rider! As Toei and Bandai’s resident money maker, they didn’t hold back on merchandising their tenth Heisei Rider… Good thing, too, otherwise we wouldn’t have gotten so many awesome toys.

First a bit of background – Kamen Rider is a Japanese superhero show/franchise aired in 1971 (referred to as Showa era), starting with “Kamen Rider.” Since then, a new Kamen Rider show has been released yearly. The show took a break in 1990 and came back in 1999 (starting the Heisei era of shows) with “Kamen Rider Kuuga.” While there have been so many shows, the premise remains relatively unchanged – motorcycle riding costumed superhero (Kamen Riders) fights evil organization of rubber-suit monster. The gimmick of the show is that a particular theme/motif dominates the Rider’s appearance, abilities and items. Almost all Riders transformed from a civilian guise to their hero counterpart using a transformation item, referred to as a henshin device, such as the item on today’s menu: the Henshin Belt DX Decadriver.

Used by the protagonist of the show to transform into Decade, this is the henshin device of the titular character. The plastic belt is small, fitting only 48-68cm waist, which is expected from a toy marketed to children.

Excluding the 3 components that are part of the waist strap, the actual “toy” is the buckle which consists of 2 separate components.

Everything has a nice sturdy feel with decent heft. There is very little in terms of paint apps and most parts are molded in color. There are exceptions such as the faux green LED above the clear window and the 9 Kamen Rider logos around the silver ring. Construction is clean and the flash from where the plastic was cut are in discreet spots. The toy also comes prepackaged with 10 cards, each representing a primary Heisei Rider.

Essentially, the Decadriver is a belt with a movable buckle. Pulling on the grey handles on either side of the belt rotates the white “box,” which is an electronic card reader, revealing the card slot.

Pushing the handles together returns the “box” to its original position.

To avoid redundancy, the original position will be referred to as “closed” and the turned position (giving access to the card slot) as “open”.

Just like in the show, power up the Decadriver with 2 AAA batteries and flip the power switch on the bottom (okay…maybe unlike the show).

To activate the belt’s functions, you “open” the buckle, insert any of the included cards, and “close” the buckle. Every action you do is accompanied by light and sound actions, which mimic the show’s belt. The card you insert also affects the sounds the belt makes. Also, the light effects are minimal compared to other Kamen Rider Henshin toys (2 red LED inside the sealed buckle provide the entire light show), but there are a lot of sound effects. Hearing it all in action - from opening the buckle, inserting a card and letting the card idle a bit/removing acard, and closing the buckle – is very satisfying.

On the show, Decade uses many different cards and their functions range from transformation to performing signature attacks. This is where the merchandising genius at marketing HQ becomes apparent – your initial purchase yields you 10 transformation (Kamen Ride) cards, which the protagonist uses to transform into Decade and any of the previous 9 Riders. However, there are also special attack and weapon (Attack Ride) cards, cards which allow Decade to assume all but the ultimate form of any rider 9 previous Riders (Form Ride), cards which unlocks forms to past Riders (Final Form Ride), and cards for signature/finishing moves (Final Attack Ride). These other cards are packaged with different toys or bought off of vending machines. To further add to the collecting incentive, all cards function with the “Kamen Rider Ganbaride” arcade game. Conversely, all cards used for “Ganbaride” can be used with the Decadriver as well. The Decadriver cannot read all cards, but will play generic sounds with any “Ganbaride” card it does not recognize. Also, the Decadriver will give an error buzzer when a non-“Ganbaride” card is inserted.

The Decadriver is an awesome toy. As a role-playing item, it represents its on-screen counterpart very well. In terms of scale, the buckle is very close to the prop’s size while the protagonist is in his civilian form. Once transformed into Decade, the show’s buckle becomes noticeably larger and the clear window takes on a red hue.

There are a few details that bother me, though. Unlike the show, the toy does not announce any of the special attacks or form changes. Instead, the belt replaces the name of the attack or form with the name of the rider that uses it. Using Attack Ride – Slash, for example, the belt says “Attack Ride…Decade!” while it says “Attack Ride…Slash!” on the show. Because of that, all Attack Ride cards used by the same rider make the same sound. The same applies to Form Ride cards as well - using Form Ride – Faiz Axel, gives you Form Ride – Faiz. Also, if you intend to collect all the cards, you will be spending a lot of time and money buying additional toys or card.

Two words come to mind when I see an Advent Cycle: racing bullet. By that I mean it is silver and rounded like a bullet and the reclined seat inside emphasizes its speed, but that is imbued in a high-tech racing motorcycle.

Video review included!

This toy appears here courtesy of Bandai America.

. . .

Ventara is an alternate dimension that exists behind all mirrors. For everything that exists on Earth, there is a copy of it on Ventara as well, and more. The alien General Xaviax invaded Ventara and began a war to conquer it. To defend themselves, the Ventarans created twelve armored superheroes, the Kamen Riders, who use individual Advent Deck cards to command powerful Contract Beasts for attack and defense. Xaviax defeated all but one of the Kamen Riders and stole their Advent Decks, eventually conquering Ventara as well. Unfortunately, because the Ventaran Riders had all been defeated & Vented (banished forever into the Advent Void), Xaviax had to find the genetic equivalents on Earth since the Advent Decks were DNA-locked. Finding specific humans on Earth, Xaviax disguises himself as a different person each time, and tricks them into serving him. One Advent Deck, however, fell into the hands of a young man on Earth whom Xaviax did not choose, named Kit Taylor. Working together with Len, the mysterious original Kamen Rider Wing Knight, Kit reluctantly uses his own Advent Deck to become Kamen Rider Dragon Knight in order to find his disappeared father, and stop General Xaviax and the ten other corrupted & selfish Kamen Riders from conquering Earth.

. . .

“Kamen Rider: Dragon Knight” is based on the original TV series, “Kamen Rider Ryuki” (仮面ライダー龍騎, "Masked Rider Dragon-knight"), which aired in 2002 as part of the long running Kamen Rider franchise in Japan. It is produced by newcomer Adness Entertainment, Ltd. in close association with Ishimori Production, Inc. and Toei Company, Ldt. [both of which make the original tokusatsu franchise].

Even though Bandai is making the toys for “…Dragon Knight”, they are all completely new remolds from those that they originally released during “…Ryuki”, and so they will all differ in size, features, and materials from their Japanese counterparts.

Kit Taylor first appeared in Episode 1- “Search for the Dragon”, and is one of the two lead protagonists of the series. His father disappeared when he was 17yrs old, and he was placed into foster care. During this short time, he had several run-ins with the law for minor crimes. Always, he saw visions of his father, urging him not to fear “the dragon”. When he turned 18, Kit found an Advent Deck sitting in his father’s old apartment. This brought him to the attention of Len, the last-surviving Kamen Rider from Ventara who tried to take the Advent Deck from him. As they struggled, they fell into a mirror. While Len transformed into Kamen Rider Wing Knight, Kit- still possessing his Advent Deck- was changed into a non-contracted/blank-form Kamen Rider. They both arrived on Ventara after traveling safely through the Advent Void, and eventually were confronted by a red flying dragon.

In Episode 2- “Contract with the Dragon”, after they escaped the dragon on Ventara, they returned to Earth, though Len still urgently wanted Kit’s Advent Deck. After becoming separated, Kit was attacked alone at his apartment by the same dragon- originally a Contract Beast called Dragredder. Kit formed a new contract with Dragredder, thus becoming the new Kamen Rider Dragon Knight, and pulling him reluctantly into the struggle against General Xaviax and his corrupted Kamen Riders.

As the red & silver-colored Kamen Rider Dragon Knight, Kit draws on the power of his Contract Monster- a fast and powerful flying dragon called Dragredder. Some of his Advent Card attacks include Sword Vent and Guard Vent, which use pieces of Dragredder to form melee-type weapons for Kamen Rider Dragon Knight. To activate his Advent Deck cards, he slides them into the Dragvisor card scanner always mounted to his lower left arm.

Kit Taylor is played by actor Stephen Lunsford.

Advent Cycles are partially-enclosed vehicles which transport a Kamen Rider safely through the Advent Void between Earth and Ventara once they have made a Contract with a Contract Beast. They can carry only one occupant at a time, and can be easily driven on roads in both worlds. They are not designed for combat and carry no armament, but provide limited forward &back protection within their donut-like chassis. Once a Kamen Rider arrives at their destination, the curved windscreen and reclined driver’s seat will gently rise upwards for easier disembarkation. To ensure further safety, the Advent Cycles feature locking bolts which attach to mounting points on a Kamen Rider’s back and Advent Belt.

If a Kamen Rider becomes advanced enough, they can learn to transform their personal Earth-based motorcycle into an Advent Void-traversing vehicle as well without having to use an Advent Cycle.

Two words come to mind when I see an Advent Cycle: racing bullet. (Yes- I did get that term from the 2008 Super Sentai series, “Engine Sentai Go-Onger”, but it just felt like an apt description...) By that I mean it is silver and rounded like a bullet and the reclined seat inside emphasizes its speed, but that is imbued in a high-tech racing motorcycle. There is no real bumper to speak of on the front wheel, but the chassis is wrapped around it rather than from above like you would ordinarily expect. The back wheel is completely hidden beneath the back-half, and is only visible when you turn the toy over. The back wheel, unlike the front one, is very wide, and this allows the Advent Cycle to rest upright on its own without a kick stand or completely falling over even with a 4” figure placed inside. A set of four rectangular exhaust nozzles along with small tech details are on either side of the back-half. Inside, the black PVC control column is sufficiently detailed with a blank display panel and braking levers. The footrests have lined grips molded in, and there is a thick drive-shaft column running from beneath the handlebars to under the seat. The rounded windscreen itself is darkened translucent ABS.

All silver, yellow, and red on the Advent Cycle itself is painted on, as the toy was molded completely in black plastic.

. . .

For movable features, there are only two. The first is, obviously, the two wheels, which let it glide easily across any hard flat surface. The other is the windscreen, which snaps shut, but will rest comfortably with friction in the upwards position. Unfortunately, neither the canopy nor driver’s seat move in synchronicity like they do in the series.

The original Japanese version in “Kamen Rider Ryuki”, the DX Ride Shooter, was far larger (12”-long) and featured die-cast metal. It had a spring-loaded canopy which, when triggered, then popped the seat upwards.

Though not a feature in the show, three separate transparent-yellow ABS flowing-energy effects are provided on a tree that need to be cut off, and they can be optionally attached to the sides and back. [By the way, these are the exact same effects which are used on the Kamen Rider Dragon Knight with Dragon Cycle (#33952) and Kamen Rider Wing Knight with Wing Cycle (#33953) sets.]

Though called "Kamen Rider Blank Knight" on the packaging and in promotional materials, this is simply Kamen Rider Dragon Knight in his [thus-unnamed] pre-Contract form. He is weaker in this state, but can still access his Advent Deck. When he used the Sword Vent card, a basic katana appeared which was not very strong against even basic Mirror Monsters. It is not until Episode 2, when Kit makes a Contract with Dragredder that his suit changes to red, and gains its dragon-like decorations, including the evolved Dragvisor on his left arm.

While a Kamen Rider Blank Knight figure (#33906) was made, the one provided here is specifically made to fit into the Advent Cycle, and so has some significant differences:

• The head is made of translucent ABS, with a window in the back (see below for the reason why).
• The new PVC-only arms are redesigned to have the fists opened and turned at an angle so that they can only grip the handles on the Advent Cycle’s handlebars. While still poseable at the shoulders in the same way, the hands are not molded as a single piece with the rest of the arm.
• New legs have been designed as a single PVC piece. They are posed specifically with the knees bent almost 90-degrees, and the thighs pointed slightly outwards. Therefore, he cannot stand on his own, but will fit more comfortably into the Advent Cycle.

While the coloring and decoration are slightly different between Dragon Knight and his pre-Contract form, the molds between this version of the figure and the one used for the Kamen Rider Dragon Knight with Dragon Cycle set is more-or-less the same.

. . .

Here is why Bandai made a unique altered version of the Kamen Rider Blank Knight figure…

On the Advent Cycle, just behind the windscreen’s mounting on top, is a black square button. When this specific Blank Knight figure (and no other 4” figure made to-date) is placed in the seat, the button can be pushed, and a red LED in the headrest of the seat will shine brightly through the translucent back of the figure’s head… lighting-up his veiled red eyes!

If you watch the show, the only time that Dragon Knight’s eyes glow is when he is seated in the Advent Cycle; that is why this feature is in the Advent Cycle set only. Unfortunately, even though you can awkwardly place other 4” figures [such as Kamen Rider Torque (#33904), as seen here] into the Advent Cycle’s seat- the thighs are shaped differently from the provided Blank Knight’s- they cannot have their visors glow because the back of their heads are not translucent. (Besides, no other Kamen Rider has visible eyes other than Dragon Knight. I don’t know why that is, other than that he is the hero of the show.)

Ironically, though all other 4” Kamen Rider figures have holes on both sides of their Advent Belts, the Advent Cycle offers no attachment levers or posts to fit into them; the Blank Knight’s belt has no holes at all!

All “Kamen Rider: Dragon Knight” toys carry a unique Advent Deck card related to the character they are packaged with. Then, when you purchase the electronic Kamen Rider Dragon Knight Dragvisor role-playing set (#33971, sold separately), you can take the Advent Cards and insert them into it to create one of 15 unique sound effects!

For this set, you get a Survive Advent Card, which--

Well… truthfully, I don’t know what it does. As of the time this review is being written, I haven’t seen this specific Advent Card used yet. It does not seem to be linked to any Kamen Rider in particular, but since it is provided with Dragon Knight in his pre-Contract form, I suspect it may belong to him.

(When I get the Dragvisor, I will demonstrate the Survive Advent Card then.)

I gotta say this- I am almost immediately reminded of the Light Cycles from the cult-classic American film, “Tron” (1980), when I see this high-tech motorcycle, even though it only vaguely resembles the early-CGI vehicle. That image is certainly enforced by the trans-yellow effects along the sides and back! (If the effects had been a spring-out feature, I might have balked because they were built-in and would have always been visible.) The toy keeps its balance so well that you can’t intentionally lean it to either side, or pose it in a wheelie position. And the LED is bright enough that, when activated, it will actually shine through some of the paint apps on the figure’s head! As with all other “Kamen Rider: Dragon Knight” sets released thus-far, the level of detailing is quite good despite the overall size of the toys! One thing that bugs me, though, is how the vehicle interacts with other figures. I get the distinct impressions that it was specifically made to accept only the provided Blank Knight figure, and that’s it… which should absolutely not have been the case at all! I have to fight with my Kamen Rider Torque figure to get him in there; most-notably with the thighs not spreading to accommodate the lower torso. Most- if not all- Kamen Rider figures should be about the same shape and size, and this toy should have been able to accept most of them without too much of a fuss. Additionally, while it’s nice that the canopy cover can pop off if too much pressure is applied, because of its shape it hangs kinda loosely; annoying, but not discouraging. While having a movable seat would have been cool, I can see how that might have hampered getting figures in-and-out of there. But, the LED through the back of the figure’s head was a nice touch. (Now, if only some of the other figures’ eyes could also light up, it would have been less of a problem with just this one.) Overall, the Kamen Rider Blank Knight with Advent Cycle set is a good one, with few-to-no problems. I recommend getting one… or two for displaying some of your other Kamen Riders at the same time.

For a simplified version of the Contract Beast, I think a little more effort could have been put forward, and then I would have been full of praise. But, other than a lack of show-accurate features, I can’t really find anything outstandingly-wrong with this set.

Video review included!

This toy appears here courtesy of Bandai America.

. . .

Ventara is an alternate dimension that exists behind all mirrors. For everything that exists on Earth, there is a copy of it on Ventara as well, and more. The alien General Xaviax invaded Ventara and began a war to conquer it. To defend themselves, the Ventarans created twelve armored superheroes, the Kamen Riders, who use individual Advent Deck cards to command powerful Contract Beasts for attack and defense. Xaviax defeated all but one of the Kamen Riders and stole their Advent Decks, eventually conquering Ventara as well. Unfortunately, because the Ventaran Riders had all been defeated & Vented (banished forever into the Advent Void), Xaviax had to find the genetic equivalents on Earth since the Advent Decks were DNA-locked. Finding specific humans on Earth, Xaviax disguises himself as a different person each time, and tricks them into serving him. One Advent Deck, however, fell into the hands of a young man on Earth whom Xaviax did not choose, named Kit Taylor. Working together with Len, the mysterious original Kamen Rider Wing Knight, Kit reluctantly uses his own Advent Deck to become Kamen Rider Dragon Knight in order to find his disappeared father, and stop General Xaviax and the ten other corrupted & selfish Kamen Riders from conquering Earth.

. . .

“Kamen Rider: Dragon Knight” is based on the original TV series, “Kamen Rider Ryuki” (仮面ライダー龍騎, "Masked Rider Dragon-knight"), which aired in 2002 as part of the long running Kamen Rider franchise in Japan. It is produced by newcomer Adness Entertainment, Ltd. in close association with Ishimori Production, Inc. and Toei Company, Ldt. [both of which make the original tokusatsu franchise].

Even though Bandai is making the toys for “…Dragon Knight”, they are all completely new remolds from those that they originally released during “…Ryuki”, and so they will all differ in size, features, and materials from their Japanese counterparts.

Drew Lansing first appeared in Episode 4- “A Rider's Challenge”, but is formally introduced in Epsiode 5- "The Power of Two". He is a con-artist on Earth who was recruited by Xaviax to convert other Riders for him. Because he was under threat for his crimes on Earth, Xaviax held that against him to insure his loyalty. If Drew served faithfully, he would become a general in Xaviax’s army after he had conquered Earth. One of his first assignments was to trick newcomer Kit Taylor into thinking that the last surviving Ventaran, Kamen Rider Wing Knight, was actually the enemy of Earth, and that Xaviax was in fact trying to help them all.

As the green & silver-colored Kamen Rider Torque, Drew draws on the power of his Contract Monster- a slow but heavily armed minotaur called Magnugiga. Some of his Advent Card attacks include Launch Vent and Shoot Vent, which use pieces of Magnugiga to form larger-sized projectile weapons for Kamen Rider Torque. To activate his Advent Deck cards, he slides them into his hand-held Magnuvisor blaster gun.

Drew Lansing is played by actor Christopher Foley.

Magnugiga is 5” tall, and is composed of green & silver ABS plastic, with PVC plastic only in the head. As a Contract Beast, it is expected that it should be bigger than a human. Its bulky and sharp-edged armor mirrors that of Kamen Rider Torque’s, again giving it an industrial, heavily-reinforced look like a military machine would have. Though it has the golden horns, bulky [re: muscular] chest, and black angular hooves of a minotaur, the similarities end there. While both shoulders and upper arms are the same, the left arm has a giant pair of silver claws with a gold-painted multi-barrel cannon in between, while the right arm ends in a long single silver & gold cannon barrel. Paint apps are rather sparse, with only silver, black, and gold represented.

. . .

For a 5” figure that serves only as an accessory to another set rather than as a stand-alone, I suppose the restriction on posing is to be expected. The neck, both shoulders & elbows, and the claws are all free-turning single-axis joints.

While a plain-clothes version of Drew Lansing is also provided (see below), this set’s primary function is to augment the 4” Kamen Rider Torque action figure. Like all Contract Beasts, Magnugiga separates parts of itself when commanded to by Torque’s Advent Decks cards in order to provide its master with additional weaponry. For example, the Shoot Vent card turns Magnugiga’s legs into large over-the-shoulder cannons; the Launch Vent separates both of its arms to form a long under-the-arm artillery cannon. All Contract Beasts do this for the Kamen Riders- detaching parts of themselves to augment their masters’ abilities- though this is done in different ways. Sounds cool, right?

Well, the problem is, this set does none of those things! The only augmentation you can accomplish is to separate Magnugiga’s head from its body, fold down a little green cover, and then attach the green peg to Kamen Rider Torque’s right vambrace armor on his lower arm. This, supposedly, gives Torque a crossbow-like shooting weapon… which he does not have in the series [nor in the Japanese version of the series]!

. . .

While separating pieces of itself is a downplayed gimmick in the series (and with the toys), all Contract Beasts can be summoned for a powerful and unique finishing attack, called the Final Vent- where they help their Kamen Rider master destroy a specific target in an overwhelming combined-effort assault.

For Kamen Rider Torque’s Final Vent, Magnugiga appears in front of him, and deploys all of its available weapons. Then Torque plugs his Magnuvisor laser gun into the Contract Beast’s back and pulls the trigger- unleashing an alpha strike of missiles, lasers, and cannon shots.

While all of the other Vent weapons cannot be recreated, the Final Vent can be because it requires nothing to be separated from Magnugiga’s body. Both lower arms are pointed forward, and the claws are opened. Next, a pair of cannons folds out from inside its lower legs. Then, Magnugiga’s silver torso armor opens up to reveal an array of 56 micro-missiles! And finally, you can take the Kamen Rider Torque figure and have him plug his Magnuvisor into Magnugiga’s, well… backside. This is Kamen Rider Torque’s Final Vent, and it is the only arrangement from the show that can be successfully implemented with these two sets.

(FYI: in Japan, there were larger 6” versions of Kamen Rider Zolda and Magnugiga which could swap parts like in “Kamen Rider Ryuki” to resemble the various Advent Card attacks.)

The 3” plain-clothes version of Drew Lansing has him in a dark green t-shirt which shows off his muscular build, and he’s wearing black pants & shoes. Though all Kamen Riders carry their Advent Deck holders on their person at all times, the Advent Belt is not visible. However, here Drew’s blank Advent Belt is visible, with two holes on the side for- um… whatever you want to plug in there.

The figure has only three points of articulation- free-turning single-axis joints at his shoulders and neck. None of the figure is meant to pop-off, so if something comes off, it’s stayin’ off!

(You can tell that the head is the only customized part on this whole figure- the body is generic for use by other characters in other sets. How do I know this? Simple- Drew is not that muscular in the show! He also… doesn’t look much like… Captain Kirk?)

All “Kamen Rider: Dragon Knight” toys carry a unique Advent Deck card related to the character they are packaged with. Then, when you purchase the electronic Kamen Rider Dragon Knight Dragvisor role-playing set (#33971, sold separately), you can take the Advent Cards and insert them into it to create one of 15 unique sound effects!

For this set, you get Kamen Rider Torque’s Guard Vent Advent Card, which provides an additional 3000 defense points against any attack. To use the Shield Vent card, Torque removes it from his Advent Belt and places it into his Magnuvisor gun. This commands his Contract Beast, Magnugiga, to separate the front of its torso to become a giant shield for Torque.

(Regretfully though understandably, they did not make a full-sized version of Torque’s Magnuvisor gun, only Dragon Knight’s Dragvisor. So, when I get the Dragvisor, I will demonstrate the Guard Vent card then.)

The only reason you want to buy this set is because the Contract Beast can interact with the equivalent 4” Kamen Rider action figure. The human figure is only a small bonus, but is too generic-looking to be of any significance beyond simply having the plain-clothes version of a Kamen Rider. If it would have allowed the Contract Beast figure to be more versatile, I would gladly have sacrificed the second figure to get those extra Vent accessories! Why else would you have those Kamen Rider figures with all the extra unused holes if not to attach stuff to them!?

The biggest disappointment for me, by far, in getting this set was that Magnugiga couldn’t separate parts of himself to attach to Torque! I was concerned less about posing since it doesn’t move about much in the series to begin with. While it’s good that you can recreate the Final Vent pose, not being able to recreate the Shoot Vent or Launch Vent really irked me to no end. With a little ingenuity, I’m sure it could have easily been pulled off for the same price! I mean- what in the hell is that head-weapon supposed to be anyways??? If Bandai ever gets around to making a larger version of Kamen Rider Torque and Magnugiga someday in the future (most-unlikely since this is a villain character), I hope they read this review before they start designing it. Despite bashing the Drew figure, I thought the Advent Belt and pants were well-sculpted. (I’m not gonna say anything at all about how that soooo doesn’t look like Drew’s head. Clearly casting for the character had not been completed when they started working on that head…) For a simplified version of the Contract Beast, I think a little more effort could have been put forward, and then I would have been full of praise. But, other than a lack of show-accurate features, I can’t really find anything outstandingly-wrong with the Magnugiga and Drew set.

The look of Kamen Rider ZO foreshadows the popular SIC line that would come many years later.

Kamen Rider ZO (仮面ライダーＺＯ) comse from the less-popular movie of the same name, 1993's Kamen Rider ZO. There just doesn't seem to be a lot of love for this rider, as evidenced by the overall lack of merchandise and it's low-key place in the rider panthenon. The rider has a grasshopper-like appearance, looking more insectoid overall than some of the previous riders.

The look of Kamen Rider ZO foreshadows the popular SIC line that would come many years later.

This toy is your typical Rider Hero series vinyl. Its about 6" tall, and features articulation at the arms and waist. Originally this figure would have come window boxed, but sadly, the box was thrown away years ago by some young Japanese child.

This is going to be one of those reviews that isn't so much of a review, rather a placeholder to say that this toy exists.

This is going to be one of those reviews that isn't so much of a review, rather a placeholder to say that this toy exists. I got this toy in a big box of toys that had been obviously played with by a Japanese kid sometime in the early 90s. With each piece there is kind of a feeling of history - these were toys that a child played with - possibly loved.

Kamen Rider BLACK RX (仮面ライダーＢＬＡＣＫ　ＲＸ) comes from the show of the same name, which aired on Japanese television from 1988 - 1989. The notable thing about this show, as far as the US is concerned, is that SABAN imported this series as Masked Rider in the USA. Unfortunately, the show was a flop.

This is just one in a series of low-cost toys bandai issues in the Rider Hero series. Each toy has similar packaging and proportions, making for a nice collection if you get a lot of them. Articulation is limited to the shoulders and waist.

This toy obviously has a lot of play wear, and the antenna are broken off, but that's the price you pay for play.

The last talker in my collection, the Kamen Rider 1 review has been delayed since I couldn't find it's box...

Kamen Rider 1 (仮面ライダー 1号) was included in both the vintage and modern run of talking vinyl figures produced by Masudaya. I picked this up in Japan at the same time as Mirrorman, at the Nakano Mandarake. I'd have to say that I like this one better than Kamen Rider V3, maybe because the character of V3 seems a little bit done to death.

Kamen Rider 1 stands 15" tall and is articulated at the hips, shoulders and neck. The sculpt and paint is pretty typical of the series, but the red scarf adds a neat touch. The real downside to this one is the quality of the talking feature. It broke right out of the box the first time I pulled the string. Now it may or may not retract in again, but it usually screeches and doesn't always talk right. Granted, the thing just sits on the shelf and adds to the general mosaic of my toys, but if you're gonna pay money for something, you'd sort of like it to work, even for a little while. Fortunately, I only paid about 3,000yen for it, if I remember correctly.

Nothing really else to add, actually. Other than the scarf and being a different character, this toy is the same as the rest in the series. If you're into hero vinyls, talkers are neat because they are a bit bigger and have a gimmick. Just cross your fingers and hope the gimmick actually works. It's been said that vintage talkers are much more reliable, but of course, they'll tend to be much more expensive, too. I guess as a modern collector you'll have to ask yourself what you want. Something that works but costs a lot, or something that just looks neat and is cheap? At this point in my collecting "career", I gotta go with cheap. ;)

“The train of time, DenLiner. Will the next station be in the past? The future?”

--opening narration from “Kamen Rider Den-O” (2007)

Ryoutarou Nogami is perhaps the most unlucky person in the world. Everywhere he goes, he unintentionally gets into trouble, or bad things always happen to him. He seems fated to a life of despair and constant injuries regardless of how he tries to push through with a good heart. But when he picks up a lost Rider Pass off the ground- the key to summoning the time-traveling train DenLiner- his life becomes even more confusing! He learns that monsters from the future, called Imagin, have traveled to the present in order to change the past and conquer everything afterwards. The only one who can match and stop them is a Singularity Point- a being that can exist outside of time itself, and can resist the temptations of the Imagin. With support of the tomboyish-but-lost Hana-chan, and the impulsive and aggressive turncoat Imagin Momotaros to help him, Ryoutarou reluctantly uses his Rider Pass to become the defender of our present and past- Kamen Rider Den-O!

“The train of time, DenLiner. Will the next station be in the past? The future?”

--opening narration from “Kamen Rider Den-O” (2007)

The DenLiner is a passenger train that travels through the great desert of time, operated by the mysterious, time-knowledgeable Owner. Only with a Rider Pass can someone board it, and they can reach the DenLiner when they step through any door at the matching hour, minute, & second in a day (ex: 12:12:12). Although in Ryoutarou’s case, as a Singularity Point he was also given special access to the Den-O System so that he could henshin (“transform”) into Kamen Rider Den-O. After determining the time in the past that the Imagin has flown to, Den-O sets a new destination of the DenLiner for that specific time and place. But sometimes, after Den-O has already destroyed an Imagin, it will go out of control- losing its perspective and forgetting its mission to destroy time- and will dramatically change and grow into a much larger Gigandeath monster, which average the size of a large office building. When this happens, Den-O takes direct control of the DenLiner using the Machine DenBird motorcycle as a control interface, separating it from the main passenger cars so that their occupants are not injured, and taking it directly into battle. Then, DenLiner Gouka is activated- the four forward segments (including the train engine) opening up to become large artillery platforms to destroy the Gigandeath.

The DenLiner is styled after a modern-day bullet train. Though in the series it is well over 10 cars in length (not including the more-streamlined engine at the front), only the first four cars are represented in the DX DenLiner Gouka set; the others just being standard passenger cars. Indeed, the Gouka cars (as is Kamen Rider Den-O’s Sword Form) are centered around the Japanese legend of Momotaro.

GouCannon (back)- This is the train engine that drives the DenLiner through both time and three-dimensional space. The large red sensors on the front of it resemble the eyes of the Sword Form of Kamen Rider Den-O. When pressed into battle, a quad-cannon turret pops out of the middle of the engine and fires lasers at Gigandeath monsters. It serves as the cockpit where Den-O and his Machine DenBird rest in battle. The GouCannon, in particular, represents Momotaro himself.

Doggy Launcher (back)- This car is pulled directly behind the GouCannon. When pressed into battle, nearly two-thirds of the car’s structure shifts left to form a large dog’s head, which can fire tongue-shaped Doggy Bark missiles from its mouth. The Doggy Launcher, in particular, represents the talking dog that Momotaro befriends on his journey.

Monkey Bomber (back)- This car is pulled directly behind the Doggy Launcher. When pressed into battle, the top and left sides of the car flip up to reveal a monkey’s head and large hands, which lob multiple Monkey Bombs. The Monkey Bomber, in particular, represents the talking monkey that Momotaro befriends on his journey.

[Car #4] (back)- This car is pulled directly behind the Monkey Bomber. When pressed into battle, the top of the car flips up & backwards to reveal a missile launcher that fires Birdie Missile(s). [The fourth car]- well, more specifically the Birdie Missile within- represents the pheasant that Momotaro befriends on his journey. (I should note that the fourth car is the best example of what the non-transforming passenger cars look like.)

[You just know that there have to be a few jokes out there that start, “A dog, a monkey, and a pheasant walk into a bar...”]

The Kamen Rider™ franchise in Japan is well-known for being dark, moody, and more plot-oriented that its more-colorful and clichéd cousin, the long-running Super Sentai™ saga, which caters to the younger audience. However, the slowly-but-steadily-declining ratings of the last five Kamen Rider series, perhaps influenced Bandai, PLEX, and Toei Co., LTD. to reach for that younger demographic with their most recent series, “...Den-O”. And it shows in the Action Liner Series.

The four cars of the DenLiner Gouka set are simple in detail, but the reward is in the special feature found in each car. The train cars each have four small dark gray ABS wheels. They are each connected to the next by the same type of joint system (more on that later). However, the range that each car can pivot side-to-side is severely limited to, perhaps, 2-degrees either way from center! Thus, you can’t really turn it around on the floor, and you more-like have to take it apart in order to turn it around. Obviously, real bullet trains can’t flex too much when they’re moving at speeds over 60mph, but this is ridiculous! Fortunately, this is the only really low point in the set. In the series, Den-O [Sword Form] rides his DenBird into a compartment between the two long red ‘sensor’ eyes. There is a narrow black panel that folds up to admit a very tiny transparent-red PVC figure of Den-O Sword Form riding on the DenBird. It inevitably slides around inside, but at least it fits!

Underneath the fairly-well detailed bottom of the GouCannon engine [“gou” is a rumbling sound like thunder] is the On/Off switch for the Light-&-Sound feature. And when the white antenna on top is pressed, it makes four sounds taken directly from the show:

• DenLiner passing by normally
• DenLiner roaring by at high speed
• A single electronic bell rings once (it sounds more like brakes squeaking to me...)
• The same electronic bell sound, but played faster and repeated two more times

I may be wrong about the last two, though; I can’t quite place them from the show. The second and fourth sounds are basically a repeat of the first and third sounds, but sped up a bit to make them go faster and change their pitch. The sensor eyes have one red light each and they flash in various patterns when activated. I’ll say this much, though- that speaker on the left side is loud!

In Episode 2- “Ride On Time”, the DenLiner is instructed by Kamen Rider Den-O Sword Form (the red-colored possessive mode for the Imagin Momotaros) to go to December 24th, 2004. After finding the Bat Imagin, Den-O uses his modular DenGasher weapon to slice and dice the Imagin (which Momotaros calls his “Hissatsu Attack, Part 2!”). But moments later, the Imagin rebuilds itself as the Gigandeath Heaven- a large white bird/wasp creature that fires explosive thorns. Den-O Sword Form quickly gets on the DenBird and docks it with the DenLiner. Then he separates the Gouka section from the passenger cars and deploys the weapons, which quickly batter and destroy the Gigandeath Heaven.

The special feature of the Action Liner Series is the ability to deploy each car’s weapon form. While each car can be activated separately, the [more fun] way to do it is when they’re all connected together. When the button just above the cockpit panel is depressed, an amazing change takes place within just two seconds... and DenLiner does it all by itself!

• When the GouCannon is activated, two doors up top fly open and a spring-loaded turret pops-up from inside.
• When the Doggy Launcher is activated, the mid-section of the car spring-shifts left and flips its mouth open.
• When the Monkey Bomber is activated, the top and left side of the car spring upwards in one motion
• When the fourth car is activated, the roof flips up, and a second panel springs up and into position.

The key to the transformation is in the attachment joints between the cars- when all are connected together, and one is activated, a domino effect retracts the joint which in-turn presses the front car against a trigger on the next car, and activating its own feature.

The cannon turret on the GouCannon can snap-twist every 45-degrees, but the two cannons on either side free-rotate up and down. The transparent-red Doggy Bark missile looks like a tongue inside the Doggy Launcher, and is launched by depressing a trigger behind the head. While the mouth is always held open by a spring inside, the Doggy Bark missile has the best range at 1’. The two transparent-red Monkey Bombs sit on small hand-shaped catapults, and are launched when separate trigger buttons are pressed on either side. Their range, however, is quite pitiful, and they only go about 3” before they land! The transparent-red Birdie Missile scarcely does any better. When the trigger directly behind the missile is squeezed, it actually shoots upwards rather than just straight ahead, which gets it out to 1’ in range. Putting the Birdie Missile back in is a bit tricky- requiring that you squeeze the trigger when you replace it atop its perch. With the sole exception of the poseable GouCannon turret, the other three cars’ weapons systems only orient to the left side of the train; just like in the series.

“Kamen Rider Den-O” marks the first time in the franchise’s 36-year history that a large mecha has been used, or the concept of monsters enlarging themselves after having been destroyed the first time. I can see that even though this was designed by the famous Toei/PLEX/Bandai cooperative that makes the Super Sentai franchise, it also shows that this is a first step in expanding the reach of Kamen Rider. It is very simple to use and looks simple. It was the auto-change feature that really grabbed my attention. And since there’s a tab on the front of the GouCannon, and another joint behind the [fourth car], then you just know that there will be more collectible cars coming in the Action Liner Series that can auto-change. Things I would have changed? Perhaps increased the power of those spring launchers, particularly on the hilarious Monkey Bomber; and I would have turned the volume on the speaker down just a hair. This is a good start to the Series. I recommend getting the DenLiner Gouka set.

All of the deluxe-sized DenLiner car sets from the Action Liner Series can be purchased online from HobbyLink Japan.

General Monster was the main bad guy in New Kamen Rider (aka Skyrider). I really am not a big Kamen Rider fan, but I picked up this guy because his name is GENERAL MONSTER.

General Monster was the main bad guy in New Kamen Rider (aka Skyrider). I really am not a big Kamen Rider fan, but I picked up this guy because his name is GENERAL MONSTER.

GENERAL MONSTER

Do you hear me, GENERAL MONSTER!

The figure is the same size and style as the old Kenner Star Wars action figures (whis is what Popy was trying to do with this line. See the World Heroes page for more details). It features 5 points of articulation, and has holes on the feet. The stand shown in the images is NOT included. I just couldn’t get him to stand up due to some slight warping in the feet.

Also typically included with these figures are cards, stickers and a catalog, but this figure is missing them.

Say it again with me – GENERAL MONSTER!