Kamen Rider Agito
"Awaken the Soul"
Conceived as a follow up to the previous year's Kamen Rider Kuuga, Agito has the police developing the G3 Powered Armor Suit, which is piloted by insecure, unconfident police officer Makoto Hikawa, in order to fight off enemies like the Grongi should they appear again. Unfortunately, the new enemies, The Unknown, are far more powerful than the Grongi, committing impossible murders in broad daylight and targeting very specific families. However, Hikawa is not the only Kamen Rider to face this foe; There is also Shouichi Tsugami, an amnesiac gardner and all-around house husband, who suddenly finds himself compelled to face the Unknowns wherever they appear and transforming into Kamen Rider Agito, and then there's former swimmer Ryou Ashihara, who's own painful transformations into Kamen Rider Gills serves to drive away all those near him. This, more than anything else, is the story of these three men and how they were all connected by one single incident...
First off, my favorite character without question is Sumiko Ozawa, Hikawa's superior and creator of the G3 suit; she is just so damn smart and in your face and will not take your bullshit no matter who you are. Oh, and when it becomes abundantly clear that the G3 Suit just isn't up to the task, what does Ozawa do? She goes out, gets absolutely hammered, and then designs the G3-X suit, which if anything is TOO perfect for normal humans to use. Goddamn, she is so freaking badass.
Second, I like all the characters. Yes, even Houjou, the asshole rival cop who, at least for the first half of the show's run, seemingly has the sole purpose and function and purpose of trying to screw over the G3 Team because Hikawa got to wear the suit and not him. Fortunately, he mostly keeps his actions in the realm of the realistic and doesn't become too annoying, and he does give Ozawa someone to spar against while the boys are busy killing the Monster of the Week.
Third, the pacing is very good, with only one episode of filler, which was handled by a different writer from the rest of the series. Plotting is very good and tight, save one moment where Shouichi recovers his memories halfway through the series...and then loses them for no apparent reason because otherwise that tightly constructed plot just won't work. Oh, and speaking of, it is extremely unlikely that this was intentional, but the better part of the plot does seem to draw upon the Shin Megami Tensei series of games, which is awesome.
Unfortunately, the show does not end on nearly as good a note as it started out on; in particular, the last five or six episodes see the introduction of three/four plotlines that are both poorly thought out and implemented; sure, the very very ending is still good and fulfilling, but in the wake of all the dross that the show puts you through just before it, it's not as fulfilling as it could have been. Furthermore, there are certain questions raised relatively early on, that never get answered, which is always annoying.
So, its a very good show, but the weakness of the endgame segment really drags it down.
Conceived as a follow up to the previous year's Kamen Rider Kuuga, Agito has the police developing the G3 Powered Armor Suit, which is piloted by insecure, unconfident police officer Makoto Hikawa, in order to fight off enemies like the Grongi should they appear again. Unfortunately, the new enemies, The Unknown, are far more powerful than the Grongi, committing impossible murders in broad daylight and targeting very specific families. However, Hikawa is not the only Kamen Rider to face this foe; There is also Shouichi Tsugami, an amnesiac gardner and all-around house husband, who suddenly finds himself compelled to face the Unknowns wherever they appear and transforming into Kamen Rider Agito, and then there's former swimmer Ryou Ashihara, who's own painful transformations into Kamen Rider Gills serves to drive away all those near him. This, more than anything else, is the story of these three men and how they were all connected by one single incident...
First off, my favorite character without question is Sumiko Ozawa, Hikawa's superior and creator of the G3 suit; she is just so damn smart and in your face and will not take your bullshit no matter who you are. Oh, and when it becomes abundantly clear that the G3 Suit just isn't up to the task, what does Ozawa do? She goes out, gets absolutely hammered, and then designs the G3-X suit, which if anything is TOO perfect for normal humans to use. Goddamn, she is so freaking badass.
Second, I like all the characters. Yes, even Houjou, the asshole rival cop who, at least for the first half of the show's run, seemingly has the sole purpose and function and purpose of trying to screw over the G3 Team because Hikawa got to wear the suit and not him. Fortunately, he mostly keeps his actions in the realm of the realistic and doesn't become too annoying, and he does give Ozawa someone to spar against while the boys are busy killing the Monster of the Week.
Third, the pacing is very good, with only one episode of filler, which was handled by a different writer from the rest of the series. Plotting is very good and tight, save one moment where Shouichi recovers his memories halfway through the series...and then loses them for no apparent reason because otherwise that tightly constructed plot just won't work. Oh, and speaking of, it is extremely unlikely that this was intentional, but the better part of the plot does seem to draw upon the Shin Megami Tensei series of games, which is awesome.
Unfortunately, the show does not end on nearly as good a note as it started out on; in particular, the last five or six episodes see the introduction of three/four plotlines that are both poorly thought out and implemented; sure, the very very ending is still good and fulfilling, but in the wake of all the dross that the show puts you through just before it, it's not as fulfilling as it could have been. Furthermore, there are certain questions raised relatively early on, that never get answered, which is always annoying.
So, its a very good show, but the weakness of the endgame segment really drags it down.