Hello there bloggie.


School work has been crazy and without realising it, Kamen Rider Gaim has aired its final episode more than a week ago.
And it has left me with such good impression that I still feel compelled to write a review about it even until now.


To be honest, even as a fan of Kamen Rider (since I first saw bits and pieces of it in the late 90s to early 00s in Black RX and Kuuga) and started watching it seriously since I came to Singapore in 2006 with Kamen Rider Kabuto, I never would have expected Gaim to be such an appealing show.

Having watched all the Heisei rider series, from Kuuga to Kiva, I struggle to pick a favourite (though I'm slightly biased towards Kabuto series because Sasword is in there).

Decade was the turning point, because it was like the bridge between the Heisei rider series and the Neo-Heisei rider series which begins from W.
And I have to say that the series started to lose its appeal on me.
I still watch it regularly tho, it's just that I didn't really look forward to a new episode each week anymore.
I thought that either I'm starting to get tired of watching a show that is probably still meant for kids, and that all the series as a whole grow out on me.


Until Gaim started.


'till now I still can't find the exact elements of the series that got me so hooked. It's probably the lead writer Gen Urobuchi.
Maybe some of these include the fact that they break out from the 2-week episode arcs, which was present since Decade.
I don't really like this arrangement of episodes. Sure, it gives me new stuff every couple of weeks, but this also tells me that each problem (or bad guy) gets eliminated every 2 episodes too, which is nothing like a big deal.
It also doesn't help that the arch enemy is already clearly defined from the start, more or less.

Gaim, however, presents a much more thrilling story.
They pretty much dropped the use of 2-week episode arcs, so I couldn't really anticipate what would happen the next time round.
The series also include a lot of riders, which I really appreciate.
It has always been two riders at every series (not including their movies) since W began.
Also, I love that they don't really have a constant arch nemesis in the story line. It was always portrayed by different beings (or at least not really defined until much later).

Also, I enjoy the process of watching each major character grow in the series in their own ways. Some grew for the good, some for the bad, some through sheer hard work, some through underhanded means, some fell into despair, some skyrocketed into power, but most of all, I love how the two main characters stood for what they believe in, even if the choice they had to make to do it meant sacrificing things that they held dear.


Well, now it's time to say good bye to such an excellently-produced series.
Not sure if Kamen Rider Drive would be as good, but I'm looking forward to it nonetheless, for now at least.



Finishing through Kamen Rider Gaim rejuvenate my fondness towards the Kamen Rider series, which I am probably still going to enjoy for a long, long time.

12:47
Up, up, and away!