Kamen Rider Gaim

Kamen Rider Gaim
The logo for Kamen Rider Gaim
Genre	Tokusatsu
Created by	Shotaro Ishinomori
Written by	Gen Urobuchi
Directed by	Ryuta Tasaki Takayuki Shibasaki Satoshi Morota Shojiro Nakazawa Hidenori Ishida Osamu Kaneda
Starring	Gaku Sano Yuumi Shida Yutaka Kobayashi Mahiro Takasugi Yuki Kubota
Narrated by	Hōchū Ōtsuka
Opening theme	"Just Live More" by Gaim no Kaze
Ending theme	"E-X-A (Exciting×Attitude)" by Kamen Rider Girls
Composer(s)	Kousuke Yamashita
Country of origin	Japan
Original language(s)	Japanese
No. of episodes	Ongoing (List of episodes)
Production
Producer(s)	Motoi Sasaki (TV Asahi) Naomi Takebe (Toei)
Running time	24-25 min. (per episode)
Production company(s)	Toei Company
Distributor	Toei Company
Broadcast
Original channel	TV Asahi
Picture format	1080i (HDTV)
Original airing	October 6, 2013 (2013-10-06)
Chronology
Preceded by	Kamen Rider Wizard
External links
Website

Kamen Rider Gaim (仮面ライダー鎧武（ガイム）, Kamen Raidā Gaimu) is a Japanese tokusatsu drama in the Kamen Rider Series, the 15th series during its Heisei run and 24th overall. The series, written by Gen Urobuchi, directed by Ryuta Tasaki and produced by Naomi Takebe, began airing on TV Asahi from October 6, 2013, replacing Kamen Rider Wizard in its initial timeslot and joining Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger then Ressha Sentai ToQger in the Super Hero Time programming block.

Story

In the once suburb city of Zawame (沢芽市, Zawame-shi), a large company known as the Yggdrasill Corporation setting up shops in the whole city, it now feels like everyone is living in a jōkamachi (城下町^?, castle town)

rather than a bustling city. To escape this feeling, young people throughout the city have formed dance crews called Beat Riders to bring joy back into their lives. Another rising popularity are the Lockseeds used in the Inves Games involving the conjury of creatures called Inves. Kouta Kazuraba, a member of the dance group Team Gaim, is trying to find his place in the world, torn between his loyalty to his teammates and his sister's insistence that he find a real job. When Team Gaim's captain disappears after informing Kouta of a strange belt he found, Kouta discovers that the Lockseeds and Inves are actual items from an alternate dimension known as the Helheim Forest. When he is attacked by an Inves that enters the real world, Kouta uses the Sengoku Driver belt and the Orange Lockseed to transform into a samurai-armored warrior to destroy the Inves, and he discovers a mysterious girl who bears a striking resemblance to his close friend Mai Takatsukasa who warns him of his new fate in life as an Armored Rider. Kouta dubs himself the Armored Rider Gaim, but soon becomes embroiled in a battle for dominance in Zawame between the other Beat Rider teams who also get their own Sengoku Drivers, seemingly manipulated by the Yggdrasill Corporation. Kouta as Gaim, Mai, and Mitsuzane Kureshima, who becomes the Armored Rider Ryugen for Team Gaim, must deal with rival Team Baron's leader Kaito Kumon who is the Armored Rider Baron, Team Raid Wild's Ryoji Hase as Armored Rider Kurokage, Team Invitto's Hideyasu Jonouchi as Armored Rider Gridon, former soldier turned pastry chef Oren Pierre Alfonso as Armored Rider Bravo, and the mysterious Armored Rider Zangetsu whose true identity is that of the head of the Yggdrasill Corporation and Mitsuzane's older brother Takatora Kureshima in a Sengoku period like brawl for supremacy. As the series progresses, the Yggdrasill Corporation's goals change paths from their apparent hand in the Inves Game and Armored Rider rivalry into using their new Energy Lockseeds and Genesis Driver using Armored Riders to turn the tide of battle in their favor, beginning with Takatora's transformation into Zangetsu Shin.

Episodes

Films

The Fateful Sengoku Movie Battle

Kamen Rider × Kamen Rider Gaim & Wizard: The Fateful Sengoku Movie Battle (仮面ライダー×仮面ライダー鎧武＆ウィザード　天下分け目の戦国MOVIE大合戦, Kamen Raidā × Kamen Raidā Gaimu Ando Wizādo Tenkawakeme no Sengoku Mūbī Daigassen) will be the annual winter "Movie Wars" film, featuring a crossover between the cast and characters from Kamen Rider Gaim and Kamen Rider Wizard. A short teaser of the film was first shown during the screening of Kamen Rider Wizard in Magic Land,^[1] with a new teaser shown after the finale of Wizard, with the release date revealed to be December 14, 2013.

Kamen Rider Taisen

Heisei Riders vs. Shōwa Riders: Kamen Rider Taisen feat. Super Sentai (平成ライダー対昭和ライダー 仮面ライダー大戦 feat.スーパー戦隊, Heisei Raidā Tai Shōwa Raidā Kamen Raidā Taisen feat. Sūpā Sentai) will be shown in theaters on March 29, 2014.^[2] It was first hinted at in a trailer after The Fateful Sengoku Movie Battle. The film's website reveals that it will be released in Japanese theaters on March 29, 2014. Many previous series' leading actors will be returning for the film, with Masahiro Inoue of Kamen Rider Decade, Renn Kiriyama of Kamen Rider W, and Kohei Murakami and Kento Handa of Kamen Rider 555, initially confirmed, with a subsequent trailer for the film also showing Shunya Shiraishi from Kamen Rider Wizard. Kento Handa, on his Ustream channel, announced that he had been on set with Ryo Hayami of Kamen Rider X,^[3] and Hiroshi Fujioka of the original Kamen Rider was announced as being on the cast.^[4]

Production and development

The lead character Kamen Rider Gaim in his standard form known as "Orange Arms". The design of this form comes from Japanese armor and the orange.

Trademarks on Kamen Rider Gaim were requested in May 2013, and the show was officially announced on July 25, 2013.^[5] The series producer, Naomi Takebe, wanted Gaim to return to the style of early Heisei era series, in which multiple Riders are featured. Drawing inspiration fron the Sengoku period, Bandai presented the idea of using fruits as a core theme to Takebe, which led to the creation of the Arms Change. Takebe approached Gen Urobuchi, known for Puella Magi Madoka Magica and Fate/Zero, to serve as the series main writer, and Ryuta Tasaki, who had previously worked on Kamen Rider Agito and Kamen Rider Ryuki, to direct. In an interview, Urobuchi states that Takebe requested that the series not follow the two-episode structure of recent series, as well as saying that he hopes to create the same kind of excitement he felt from Kamen Rider Black to a new generation. Urobuchi's company Nitroplus also assisted with designs.^[6]

The show's lead role went to 2011 Junon Super Boy Contest Grand Prix winner Gaku Sano, portraying Kouta Kazuraba. Sano said that he grew up wishing he could be the character from Kamen Rider Kuuga, and now that he will portray Kamen Rider Gaim he hopes that he will inspire a new generation of boys.^[7][8] Rounding out the main cast are Yutaka Kobayashi as Kaito Kumon/Kamen Rider Baron, Mahiro Takasugi as Mitsuzane Kureshima/Kamen Rider Ryugen, Yuumi Shida from idol group Yumemiru Adolescence as the heroine Mai Takatsukasa, and Yuki Kubota as Takatora Kureshima/Kamen Rider Zangetsu.^{[7][8][9][10]}

Cast

• Kouta Kazuraba (葛葉 紘汰, Kazuraba Kōta): Gaku Sano (佐野 岳, Sano Gaku)
• Mai Takatsukasa (高司 舞, Takatsukasa Mai), Mysterious girl (謎の少女, Nazo no shōjo): Yuumi Shida (志田 友美, Shida Yūmi)
• Kaito Kumon (駆紋 戒斗, Kumon Kaito): Yutaka Kobayashi (小林 豊, Kobayashi Yutaka)
• Mitsuzane Kureshima (呉島 光実, Kureshima Mitsuzane): Mahiro Takasugi (高杉 真宙, Takasugi Mahiro)
• Takatora Kureshima (呉島 貴虎, Kureshima Takatora): Yuki Kubota (久保田 悠来, Kubota Yūki)
• Hideyasu Jonouchi (城乃内 秀保, Jōnouchi Hideyasu): Ryo Matsuda (松田 凌, Matsuda Ryō)
• Ryoji Hase (初瀬 亮二, Hase Ryōji): Atsushi Shiramata (白又 敦, Shiramata Atsushi)
• Oren Pierre Alfonzo (凰蓮・ピエール・アルフォンゾ, Ōren Piēru Arufonzo): Metal Yoshida (吉田 メタル, Yoshida Metaru)
• Chucky (チャッキー, Chakkī): Kanon Tsuyama (津山 香音, Tsuyama Kanon, Lucky Color's)
• Rica (リカ, Rika): Miina Yokota (横田 美菜, Yokota Miina, Lucky Color's)
• Rat (ラット, Ratto): Ren Ozawa (小澤 廉, Ozawa Ren)
• Zack (ザック, Zakku): Gaku Matsuda (松田 岳, Matsuda Gaku)
• Peco (ペコ, Peko): Saku Momose (百瀬 朔, Momose Saku)
• Akira Kazuraba (葛葉 晶, Kazuraba Akira): Rika Izumi (泉 里香, Izumi Rika)
• Kiyojiro Bando (阪東 清治郎, Bandō Kiyojirō): Tomohisa Yuge (弓削 智久, Yuge Tomohisa)
• Lock Dealer Sid (錠前ディーラー シド, Jōmae Dīrā Shido): Kazuki Namioka (波岡 一喜, Namioka Kazuki)
• DJ Sagara (DJサガラ, Dī Jei Sagara): Tomomitsu Yamaguchi (山口 智充, Yamaguchi Tomomitsu)
• Ryoma Sengoku (戦極 凌馬, Sengoku Ryōma): Tsunenori Aoki (青木 玄徳, Aoki Tsunenori)^[11]
• Yoko Minato (湊 耀子, Minato Yōko): Minami Tsukui (佃井 皆美, Tsukui Minami)
• Sengoku Driver Equipment Voice (戦極ドライバー各種アイテム音声, Sengoku Doraibā Kanren Aitemu Onsei): Seiji Hiratoko (平床 政治, Hiratoko Seiji)^[12][13]
• Genesis Driver Equipment Voice (ゲネシスドライバー各種アイテム音声, Geneshisu Doraibā Kanren Aitemu Onsei): Shin-ichiro Miki (三木 眞一郎, Miki Shinichirō)
• Narration (ナレーション, Narēshon): Hōchū Ōtsuka (大塚 芳忠, Ōtsuka Hōchū)

Suit actors

• Kamen Rider Gaim: Seiji Takaiwa (高岩 成二, Takaiwa Seiji)^[14]
• Kamen Rider Baron: Eitoku (永徳)^[14]
• Kamen Rider Ryugen: Daisuke Satō (佐藤 太輔, Satō Daisuke)^[14]
• Kamen Rider Zangetsu, Kamen Rider Zangetsu Shin, Kamen Rider Bravo: Jun Watanabe (渡辺 淳, Watanabe Jun)^[15][16]
• Kamen Rider Gridon: Kazuya Okada (岡田 和也, Okada Kazuya)^[17]
• Kamen Rider Bravo: Yasuhiko Imai (今井 靖彦, Imai Yasuhiko)^[18]
• Kamen Rider Duke: Kenji Tominaga (富永 研司, Tominaga Kenji)^[16]
• Kamen Rider Marika: Minami Tsukui,^[16] Satoshi Fujita (藤田 慧, Fujita Satoshi)^[19]
• Kamen Rider Sigurd: Tatsuya Kaneko (金子 起也, Kaneko Tatsuya)^[16]

Theme songs

Opening theme

• "Just Live More"
  • Lyrics: Shoko Fujibayashi
  • Composition & Arrangement: Shuhei Naruse
  • Artist: Gaim no Kaze (鎧武乃風, Gaimu no Kaze)

  Reggae group Shōnan no Kaze provides the series' theme song, performing under the name "Gaim no Kaze".^[9] Red Rice felt honored that he would join the ranks of famous artists who have performed the series' theme songs. Shock Eye revealed he had long been a fan of the series as a child, and even in adulthood. Wakadanna spoke of how he liked the motorcycles and as a child wished he had one as well, as the show seems to have instilled a fighting spirit in those who watch it. Han-kun was jokingly critical about the show's fruit motif, but then said that he knew children would love the show.^[10]

Ending theme

• "E-X-A (Exciting×Attitude)"
  • Lyrics: Shoko Fujibayashi
  • Composition & Arrangement: tatsuo (of everset)
  • Artist: Kamen Rider Girls
  • Episodes: 3, 5, 11
• "Never surrender"
  • Lyrics: Shoko Fujibayashi
  • Composition & Arrangement: Junichi "IGAO" Igarashi
  • Artist: Team Baron (Kaito Kumon, Zack, & Peco) (Yutaka Kobayashi, Gaku Matsuda, & Saku Momose)
  • Episodes: 8

References

External links

• Official website at TV Asahi
• Official website at Toei Company