Kamen Rider Ryuki is arguably one of the most important entries in the franchises history. While at the time controversial amongst fans for its deconstructive take on the franchise that for some felt a bit too far. But when looking at everything that Ryuki brought to Rider that are still around, collectible gimmicks, rider vs. rider. Evil purple riders. Kuuga may have brought Rider back onto T.V, but you really can't ignore the impact Ryuki had going foward. And you know for what was not suppose to be a rider series and for how controversial it was. It did okay for itself. Ratings wise it only did slightly worser than Kuuga a whopping .2% and in terms of the merchandise, it was the best selling Heisei rider until W came at at the end of the decade. I bring up a lot of this because 555, really doesn't have much interesting in the production aspect, the trademark for the show was filed in October 2002 and it looked like their was no real issues on the production, aside from the fact that the main character was still in high school at the time so he really couldn't show up much for the first episode. Also 555 was a notable series for Kamen Rider since every episode of this show was written by Toshiki Inoue. A feat for toei tokusatsu not repeated until Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger by Riku Sanjo a whole decade later.
I guess the other... elephant in the room is this show's reception which can be quite divisive. For some this is one of the best seasons of the show due to the plot, characters and aesthetics. Others, mostly people outside of Japan are... mixed on whether it is good, okay, or really bad. And I just have to say whatever you think of this show... that is your opinion and more power to you because I know for a fact people are going to be making this a fire storm.
SYNOPSIS
Yuji Kiba lives a mostly peaceful life, he lives with his parents, has a girlfriend and things could not be any better. Unfortunately he and his parents have a meeting with Truck-kun who kills all three of them... okay it kills Yuji for a bit but he gets better. Upon awakening he finds that his girlfriend has left him for his cousin and that his home has been sold by his uncle and cousin to cover for their gambling debt. Enraged by his cousin's callusness in regards to his situation, Yuji transforms into a grey scale horse monster who proceeds to kill him and disintergrate him to nothing. And if this day couldn't get any worse he soon learns that he is technically dead, reborn as the next stage of human evolution the Orphnoch. This... is not our main character... okay he is one of our main character but not the main rider.
Happening at the same time as this, a young loner is following a woman believing that she has his bag. The woman Mari, is travelling to Tokyo to meet up with her alumni from the Ryusei school after retrieving a mysterious belt and motorcycle from her adopted father. During the evening she is also attacked by an Orphnoch and attempts to use the belt to transform but is rejected by it. With no other options she slaps the belt on the loner, who in the next episode we get to know as Takumi Inui, and he is able to transform. Good thing that just happens because it would've been real awkward if it didn't work, shortest season I have ever seen. Takumi really wants nothing to do with this whole thing but after a whole bunch of mixed up bags and defeating more orphnochs. He becomes the unofficial user of the Faiz gear in the fight against the orphnochs and Smart brain, who are run by orphnochs who intend to make them the dominant species on the planet. They are soon joined by Keitaro Kikuchi, a dry cleaner who wants to make everyone happy and later the survivors of the Ryusei school most notable Masato Kusaka who becomes the user of the Kaixa gear. Meanwhile Yuji is not so deadset on the whole killing other people thing and would rather try to coexist and is joined by Yuka Osada and Naoya Kaido as they try to find a means of coexistence.
Essentially, 555 is split between the plots of Inui and Yuji's group, as they uncover the truth behind Ryusei school and Orphnochs, though the story... its fine, their are really great moments throughout it that pay off, though like a good chunk of Inoue works, there are just as many plot points that go nowhere or are completely forgotten. 555's main focus is on the character drama as the many characters personalities and personal issues. This... this is going to be the thing that makes or breaks the season, how much do you enjoy the characters and the drama, that and the shows tone. Because if you thought that Ryuki was really dark... then 555 may just be as dark and even darker. Look early Heisei was not the brightest of times, not that it was bad but it was clear that they tried to make Rider more for n older crowd. Between the mass murdering of the Grongi and Unknown in Kuuga and Agito, the much more morally grey nature of riders in Ryuki. But I think that something that helps in those series are things they have good levity, Yusuke's positivity, Shouichi and his more family sitcom portion of Agito and the ORE journal crew helped to alleviate at times how dark things could be. 555... has... we will get to it.
CHARACTERS
As a protagonist, Takumi Inui is unique, instead of a rather nice young man wanting to save people, we get a much more acerbic and cold person, in the first couple of episodes keeps trying to get out of the story, just get his bag back and move on. But everytime he has to fight he chooses to do so, take up the belt to fight against the orphnochs, he makes a good boast in the 8th episode about how he may not know about dreams or have them, but he will be the one to protect those dreams. I initally liked Takumi, for the first half. In the later half and even a few times in the first half I kind of got annoyed by his moodiness and... ugh, we are really going to get into this... alright, lets talk communication.
So one of the things many detractors of 555 will bring up is that no one communicates, that most of the drama of the season could be solved if people just talked out their problems. But the things is people talk in this series... they talk a lot and I mean a lot throughout the season, and some of those issues, like the Yuji and Faiz issue make sense as its not something that easily comes up in conversation, hey I am an undead horse monster or I transform with a phone and kill your kind. Its secret identity and the two are more aquaintences rather than friends. When their secret identites are revealed, it actually seems like they will talk out their issues, they ask Yuka and Mari about the other and then talk with one another and come to understand each other and seems like they are going to work with one another. And then Kusaka does his... Kusaka things and drags out the plot far longer than it needed to be. My issue is not with the misscommunication... okay maybe definitely it is. But more so it is with pacing issues it causes. The whole Takumi Yuji conflict had a good ending with them taking out an evil orphnoch, but it gets extended out and its not the first time the plot feels like its reaching to make the most out of a plot point. The whole Kusaka Inui conflict after Kaixa is introduced really ends up nowhere initally since Kusaka leaves to do his own things for a bit off screen, yes it develops Takumi's character to fight for whats right even if their are good Orphnochs, which does add complexity... if we got good orphnochs besides the renegades. But that is my biggest issue with the season, it drags its least intersting plot points out to the detriment of other more interesting ones.
I know I went on a long diatribe but it is the big thing that is brought with 555, and this next section is not going to be too long because Mari really has not much. She's the main girl who gets captured a couple of times and has people who want to date her. Which is a shame because they show her trying to transform only to end up getting shocked everytime.
The last of the main trio Keitaro is meant to serve as levity, being one of the more positive character in the series, and he doesn't really do the job the writer intended to do.. Most of the comedy he is at the heart of falls flat and despite a few moments like when he steals the belt back from Naoya and tells Takumi he is Faiz, and less to an extent trying to keep the status quo after Takumi is revealed to be an Orphnoch, he is never enough to lighten things in terms of tone.
On the other side of the main trio in the Renegade Orphnochs, Yuji is probably my favorite character for this season. The fact we get to see things from someone who has recently transformed and how they really would not continue down this path of killing others and try to find a way to live peacefully with them. Ultimately his story is a tragedy, while he tries to find some common ground and a way to coexist, everything seems to stand in his way, from humans unwilling to see orphnochs other than monsters, and his own kind desiring supremacy. Its that certainty of what he wants that is the reason Takumi gives him the Faiz gear when he is searching for what exactly he is in the grand scheme of things. Making him the best hero but also the best villain. As the world finally caves in on him. the example of possible orphnoch coexistance becomes its greatest threat heralding the arch orphnoch. And he really does transition well from good guy to bad guy with his costume and how he acts. He also kills Kusaka so that gets a bunch of brownie points in my world.
The other two renegades, suffer similar problems to their human counterparts, Yuka, despite having a shockingly cruel backstory, like jesus this is messed up. Mostly is a lesser damsel in distress who doesn't really do muchh, until the end when she dies to further Yuji's fall to the dark side and the incident I mentioned earlier. While Naoya is the other part of the levity, who spends much of the first part of the season wish washing on whether he wants to be a bad guy or if he wants to be a good guy, and that's when the show doesn't want to barely attempt to be comedy sometimes with Keitaro sometimes trying to be a casanova and failing. And he's the only one of the renegades to survive, yes the others die but he survives even he may end up doing other things because he just seems to be that kind of stupid.
Moving on from the main 6, we have the other humans and starting with... Kusaka. Let's be clear here, Kusaka is a terrible human being, who is only an anti-hero because he is fighting people more evil than him. Though considering some of the things he does, he may be a villain since he causes more problems than solves them. Though I guess if that is a positive, he's consistent, never wish washing, he knows what he wants and is perfectly fine with screwing with other people. And the actor really, really sells how slimy he is, like I want to punch you in the face kind of slime, which I also can bring up the acting is really good across the board, their is no bad performance in the show in my opinion. And as stated, his death is probably the best part of the show, though really whenever Kusaka is getting beaten up is the best part because of how much of an awful human being the guy is and what he does. And the less said about the novel the better. But while people may love to hate the guy, he causes more story issues than solves them. Also this is just a personal thing, but I do think that secondry riders are at their best bouncing off the main character personality wise, Ren to Shinji, Date to Eiji. Having both riders being jerks but different kind of jerks that have a heart of gold and one who... has a heart of jerk just is not interesting. As much as I barely remeber... who used delta, their was... little to bounce off of.
The other Ryusei school students... exist, though only really 3 of them have a lasting, Rina Abe, though it is more for the fact that of the inital students she sticks around till the end while the others... die. She, is there she really doesn't do much besides kind of being Shuji's sidekick, I would've like see more of the other girl Saya stay around a bit longer, she is shown to kick ass with the delta gear, she has actually better chemistry with Takumi and Keitaro than Mari in my opinion, and I would've liked to know her more before she also... dies, so the delta gear can begin jumping around like crazy.
It ultimately ends up in the hands of... ugh... give me a... god I am just having trouble remembering his name, Shinji... Shunji... think his last name starts with an M. If you couldn't tell, Syuji is barely a character, the belt and suit has more character than this piece of wet bread who spends the inital parts of the series whining about not wanting in on his friends stupid weirdness. Only really giving up when its clear he can't get out of it. Straight up, keeping it with Kitazaki would've been the call or you know keeping Saya alive, it just feels like a character who exists because they didn't know who to give it to.
Oh yeah we get these two cops who are investigating the numerous orphnoch murders happening around the city. Its ummmm... more attempts at levity tht mostly fails.
Over on the villain sides the orphnochs are lead by Murakami who runs smart brain and lucky clover, the four strongest orphnochs who act as his enforcer. The first one Jay really doesn't get much. Mostly he serves as an early enforcer that comes back a few times because... he has three additional lives. but instead of being like the cat orphnoch since you know... cats appearently have multiple lives he is instead the crocodile orphnoch... Unless their is some myth about crocodiles having multiple lives. Mostly the silent type with a soft center because of his care for... a chihuahua, dude really. Of all the dogs you could've given him, not a shiba, or a corgi or something that is actually cute and not an abomination. Gah I never am going to look at you seriously.
Takuma does have a good start, being a lot more cunning and intelligent and a big threat upon his introduction. And he is shown to be the brains for them, though he takes more a backseat to the other three lucky clover members we get
Of the villains, Saeko was probably my favorite, she can be cold blooded when she needs to be and oddly motherly when the time calls in regards to Takuma, I liked how she tried to get to know Takumi during his stint in lucky clover for all of... an episode. But she was easily the most competent member of Clover, I would've liked to gotten backstory on her but that is just an issue of we don't really learn much about who the orphnochs were beforehand or how they were discovered. That is the biggest issue, their is no backstory for them.
Then we have Asazaki... I mean Kitakura... I mean, Kitazaki. Yeah if their was any case of trying to recapture lightining in a bottle, Kitazaki feels like it, he really is trying to be this season's Asakura and he mostly pulls it off. An early appearance of Garo's Rei, he does a good job of playing the psychotic teenager, though he lacks the intelligence that Asakura was capable of, that still makes him a threat often. Once the heroes get stronger forms and more powerful, then he is more just a beatstick that hits hard. And like most teens he is hit with the reality that he is not as great as he thought he was when the true final boss rears his ugly head.
I like Aki's addition as givingsomething personal for the Ryusei student with one of their own betraying them. Though I do wish he was slightly less cold and stoic as a way to differentiate himself from Kitazaki, he does less focus on his own entertainment and getting the job done as a means of separating him from the other one. but a lot of his character is trying to let go of his humanity by killing Mari, and after he does that. Kind of feels like they don't know what to do and just have him wish-wash until he dies a traitor's death, though still forgiven because Mari just has a saints heart.
Though I would take Lucky Clover as the main villain rather than Smart brain's CEO, Murakami is such a non-entity, just a generic take over the world antagonist for a series that makes for probably the least interesting character in the season, and that is saying something. Though I would take uninterest over whatever smart lady is, the other attempt at levity who is just the annoying kind of kooky spice that makes her so aggravating.
Oh yeah, almost forgot Hanagata, the ryusei's goat dad, he... exists, not much of an entity and more of a background character who the characters try to find and understand what he wants from them. Also Minami, Minami... is like jerk number 1500 who makes Yuka's life even more hell and I am trying to understand why he exists, to show that Murakami doesn't care for orphnochs by letting them be experimented on, he is around for a few episodes and forgotten after Yuji kills him in the second most satisfying kill of the season.
AESTHETICS
While the show itself is rather meh to outright bad, the one thing that is consistently good is how the season looks, the main suits for the riders are all really good, having this nice futuristic sleek design to each of them with the way they light up from the photon. Even if the belts are bit on the bulky side, the way the characters slap them around them waist really feels satisfying, I've realized in watching I prefer belts that just don't form when the driver is put around the waist and its something they put on physically. The theming is pretty excellent being the product of smart brain and how they have all these ways of teaching people how to use it.
That being said, something to bring up in regards to Inoue is... he hates toys. More explicitly he hates the set up for toys. Yeah you can give him things that they want to sell to people. But he is not going to build them up. Case in point, Faiz axel form, Kusaka just tosses him the watch and he activates it. Where did he get, when did it come into existence. Not important to the story. Faiz robot motorcycle or Kaixa's Ed-209 bike, who cares. Even the final form just... happens, like it does happen during Takumi's crisis of faith arc but he just puts the belt on to protect Mari and she hands him the briefcase. We at least learn it was sent by Hanagata but again, how was it made where did it come from, why doesn't smart brain shut down the satellite that empowers him. And the new forms do look... fine, I like what they can do but it is just a color choice, I think Axel looks too monochrome and the color inversion for Blaster, doesn't work, I don't know I just think the red underbody clashes poorly with the silver and black.
The orphnochs are less striking, I think the idea of the monochrome color scheme was initially a decent idea, if the scenes are not lighted properly they kind of blend in and makes it hard for them to stand out. Granted once the main threat becomes just lucky clover with very few new ones its less a problem since we get familar with them, but it is kind of hard to have a favorite here since many don't stand out.
555 soundtrack does also well to match, with many moody songs that fit the tone, the main theme is really solid establishing the kind of show that we are about to see, maybe with imagery that feels a bit too... artsy, like yeah Ryuki was very much out there with the imagery for the opening but some things here are just... bizarre.
EPISODES
Favorite: Episode 7-8, I would say this is one of those arcs that really works well. I like the tragedy behind it and the acting is quite well. The ending fight of episode 8 is easily something I can say sticks with me for what a rider is.
Least Favorite: Episode 29-33, Look I know some people are going to tell me that I don't get it and the whole miscommunication thing is not that bad, this entire arc is a microcosm of everything 555 is at its worst, boring, snails pace drama that doesn't feel naturally, because it isn't, it was created by the worlds biggest douche and now we have to deal with an arc that could've been two parts and changed the dynamic, but no. We get 3 more parts before a final battle that has no real decent pay off for it.
Favorite: 10-13, as much as the character may be divisive for me, the intro to the Kaixa gear is actually really well done, with the introduction to the new gear and the Ryusei school, shame that they don't really develop beyond sacrificial lambs.
Least Favorite: Episode 44, god did the actress do something to Inoue, between how much she goes through and suffers, Yeah the people who did it to her deserved it, but its such a yank the chain moment you see coming because if this show has taught you anything, no one can be happy.
CONCLUSION
Kamen Rider 555 is one of those shows that is by all accounts, going to hit differently. Some may really like the season, others are really not going to like it. And I am amongst those. Look, I tried with this, I saw some moments of brilliance and a show that I may enjoy. But 555 suffers from being far too dark for its own good. A cast that never has any kind of consistency in how they act, a pace that feels molasses slow at the worst of times. Its saving grace is that this season's aesthetics, but that can't help it for me. I didn't enjoy my time with 555's and if you don't agree with me on that, that's fine. We all are unique and like and hate different things. Again people will have different opinons that vary. But for me, I don't really want to come back to this for a long time
FINAL GRADE: ABSOLUTE TRASH
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