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One thing that you have to note is that, unless you have at least a basic idea of the overall story of the Showa-Era Kamen Riders, then you might be pretty lost for a bit.

The story is sort of a really amazingly badass retelling of the movie "Birth of the 10th! Kamen Riders All Together" in which Kamen Ride ZX was introduced.

This darker interpretation is very very cool, the art is absolutely fantastic, and the story is insteresting as hell.

The arc about Kamen Rider Super-1 even caused the shedding of some Manly Tears.

If you want an action filled story about heroes fighting for justice go ... no further!

and remember

"Even if there is no god or buddha, there is Kamen Rider."

What a gem this is to stumble upon! As a fan of the metal hero genre of tokusatsu, I was delighted to run into this anime, which captures the spirit of it very well indeed.

The story isn't anything terribly complicated. The jist of it is, boy transfers to school, angers the local rowdies, saves girl from rowdies, evil monsters from another dimension attack, transfer student transform into super powered hero of justice, kicks ass, saves day, rides off into the sunset like the badass he is. Cool. Like I said. Nothing complicated but for what seems to be an animated tribute to the Uchuu Keiji ... series, no problem there at al.

The art is a bit dated by todays standards. But then this is fairly old. Whatever I dig it. The transformed hero, Gakuen Tokusou Hikaruon reminds me alot of Jikuu Senshi Spielban and also some Uchuu Keiji Sharivan thrown in for good measure. No idea what I'm taling about? Wikipedia or Henshin Justice Unlimited is your friend.

I really liked the characters. Their pretty basic, and not alot of character development is done, since this was only one episode.

For enjoyment purposes, I think it great. A bit fanservicey at times, but thats not really much of problem. If one can throw away their seriousness and let loose that part of them that longs to be a true hero of justice then you can join be for a ride!

Thats my two cents and I sticking with it.

I'll be straight foreward about this one. Not quite my cup of tea. I went into this expected hip hop samurai antics and thats what I got.

I'll be frank, the story is kind of cliche. I liked the idea of the headbands though. But other than that, the idea was terribly cliche and i've seen it done better elsewhere.

The art style was utterly phenomenal. There are few anime that truly impressed me with the level of artistry. It was fluid, it was unique, and it captivated me. They way that the characters looked was gorgeous.

The soundtrack while not normally what i listen to (Serious ... Metalhead here) It fit the overall feel of the piece. No complaints here.

The characters were pretty damn interesting for the most part. The main character was a bit stereotypical of the Samurai Vengence Super Swordsman type, but everyone else was pretty damn neat to me. Especially the Teddy Bear samurai and Justice. Oooh Justice was cool.

Despite all that I really enjoyed about this anime, something was off. I never could place my finger on it, but something failed to click with me in any cohesive way. It felt...rushed I suppose one could say. Something was missing. Maybe it could have stod to be a little longer, I dunno. It didn't feel right after all was said and done.

Overall, I give it a five simply because that feeling of incompleteness was so profound to me that it seemed to almost mar everything else about the series to me. I just couldn't shake it. Stunning visuals, awesome characters a cliche but still interesting story, fitting soundtrack, and I still couldn't seem to enjoy it.

Thats my two cents and I'm sticking to it.

Ah Daiguard. What to really say? This is less of a mecha anime than more of a comment on the plight of the working stiff dealing with the corporate world. Working for a corporation myself, I see first hand the red tape and paperwork and hoop jumping that seems to involving doing absolutely anything.

If the corporation can make a form for it, you get to fill it in triplicate and woe beunto thee if you write with anything but black pen.

The mech action scenes themselves are simultaneously awesome and hilarious. Daiguard is trying so hard to be a super robot, but it just isn't. But ... hey, theres nothing some hot blood and yelling can't fix.

The characters themselves are highly believable and likeable, unless you're not supposed to like them and then they were simplely bastards. There were several scenes that I actually wept during because A. They were touching and B. I'm deep down a softy. But tell no one.

In the end, Enough Super Robot Hot Blood Action with just the right amount of Drama and corporate parody to make this a worthwile romp.