Kamen Rider (1971– )
"Kamen Raidâ" (original title)

A grasshopper-like, motorcycle-riding cyborg (joined by another one later in the show) fights the evil organization that transformed him for their evil deeds.

Creator:

Shôtarô Ishinomori

Stars:

Akiji Kobayashi, Chieko Morikawa, Yôko Shimada

Cast

Series cast summary:
Akiji Kobayashi	...	Tôbei Tachibana (8 episodes, 1971)
Chieko Morikawa	...	Ruriko Midorikawa (7 episodes, 1971)
Yôko Shimada	...	Hiromi Nohara (7 episodes, 1971)
Gorô Naya	...	Shocker (7 episodes, 1971)
Hiroshi Fujioka	...	Kamen Rider 1 (6 episodes, 1971)
Ritsuo Sawa	...	Chameleon (2 episodes, 1971)

Storyline

This series debuted 2 Kamen Riders. Kamen Rider 1, and Kamen Rider 2. This 98 episode series depicted Hongou Hayato's battles against Shocker, and Rider 1 and 2 had allies, specifically, FBI Agent Take, played by Sonny Chiba's brother, Jirou.

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Plot Keywords:

kamen rider | cyborg | biker | tokusatsu | motorcycle | 

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Drama | Horror | Sci-Fi

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Details

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Release Date:

3 April 1971 (Japan)

Also Known As:

Kamen Rider

Filming Locations:

Osaka, Japan

Company Credits

Production Co:

Ishinomori Productions, Toei Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

30 min 30 min (98 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

As with Ultraman: A Special Effects Fantasy Series, this series, created by manga artist Shôtarô Ishinomori, gave birth to another popular type of modern Japanese superhero: The "Henshin" (Japanese for "transformation") Hero. These are normal-sized superheroes who transform into a cyborg, android or mutant by performing a "henshin pose," and usually fight their enemies with martial arts, minimal weaponry and a finishing attack (usually a flying kick). The Sentai Series (starting with Ishinomori's Himitsu sentai Gorenjâ), Metal Heroes (starting with Uchû keiji Gyaban) and hundreds of other contemporary Japanese superheroes were an offshoot of this historically-important genre.

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Quotes

Takeshi Hongô: [his finishing attack, while jumping into the air] Rider-Kick!

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Connections

Referenced in Tokusatsu Bouken Katsugeki Super Hero Retsuden (2000)

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Soundtracks

"Ronrî Kamen Raidâ"
(Lonely Masked Rider)
Performed by Masato Shimon
Lyrics by Tôru Hirayama (as Mamoru Tanaka)
Music and arrangement by Shunsuke Kikuchi
(Third ending theme episodes #89-98)

User Reviews

What every superhero should be like!

The first Kamen Rider series, titled "Kamen Rider" is what every american superhero series should be like. It's dark, it's action packed, it has a gloomy atmosphere. All the Kamen Rider movies and shows are like that, but this series went under fire for the excessive violence. This show is great, Hiroshi Fujioka and the rest of the cast do a great job in this 98-episode saga against Shocker, and Gel-Shocker. The action is great, but gets better as the show progresses. Hiroshi Fujioka did most of his own stunts in and out of costume, but got into a stunt accident early in the show, and left for a while. So they brought in a couple new characters, Special Agent Taki, and the next Kamen Rider, Kamen Rider 2!