We’ve had a lot of Kamen Rider movies and shows aimed at adults, from the original Kamen Rider Shin in the 90s, Kamen Rider The First / The Next in the 00s, Kamen Rider Amazons in the 2010s and now in the 2020s we get Kamen Rider Black Sun. This time remaking the series Kamen Rider Black with Kamen Rider Black Sun. In general it feels fairly similar to Amazons and heck it could be in the same continuity if you wanted though it’s a different storyline with a similar plot so it feels weird putting them together.
I have mixed feelings on these adult Kamen Rider series, in general I feel that they rely too much on gore to say they are for an older audience but at the end of the day it’s a silly concept and you can’t hide that. You can make it for an older audience with great writing but in general the writing just tends to be a bit too wordy and having adult discussions that aren’t interesting to any audience. I hope more emphasis is put there in future shows since that’s something that is lacking here.
We are told that Kaijins are the monsters in the world and they’re persecuted against like mutants in X-Men. You have Gorgons who are the bad guys who don’t have the clearest intentions. I do like that Shadow Moon is officially a Kamen Rider here. The mini-series can be very violent so not or everyone. They also don’t tell you the story straight and it’s a bit show while they slowly tell you more details. The fights are not as fun at first and there aren’t many of them. When we get some good ones they’re usually short though they’re usually great.
The show in a way does remind me of Kamen Rider Shin and more of Shotaro Ishinomori’s original vision since the first henshins are more bug-like which is fine. We do eventually get a more Kamen Rider like armor for Black Sun and Shadow Moon and it’s glorious. The actual creation king plot and Kaijins isn’t too compelling, it’s a bit convoluted and contradicting. While the story can be a bit contradicting if you ignore certain parts you can definitely feel the rivalry between the siblings and the emotional aspects, some of the actors are just fantastic.
The suits no matter what still look silly, especially when everyone is playing it so damn straight and yet you have these goofy ass anthropomorphic animals running around. The music and main theme work wonders in the show. The show definitely needed more fun, it drags a bit too much but when it gets fun right it gets it right. For all the flaws the show has, I was left at the end satisfied because of said parts.
Kamen Rider Black and Black RX have been loved by fans for ages so I was excited when Black Sun was announced. Originally I thought It’d be a sequel series but I’m glad that it’s a straight up reboot just like Amazons was, They feel very similar as I mentioned in this 10 episode mini-series. With that said I’d love to see a Kamen Rider Black Sun RX but we’ll see.