Kamen Rider: Black Sun (2022)

The Kaiju Transmissions Podcast

Byrd, Matt, Kevin and first time guest host Lux Edwards (tokusatsu fan and vocalist for the metal bands Wraithstorm and Soulmass) have a lengthy discussion on the recent Amazon Prime mini series, Kamen Rider: Black Sun! Conceived to celebrate the 35th anniversary of the original Kamen Rider Black (1987), this big budget, adult-oriented reboot has proven divisive for its unsubtle allusions to real social problems such as government corruption, minority oppression, and social prejudices. The series tells the story of a society in which human/monster hybrids called kaijin, who are fighting for their rights in a prejudice society. As civil rights activists and government entities clash, a young girl finds herself befriending kaijin superheroes Black Sun and Shadow Moon, who end up with different ideas on how to fight for coexistence. The show had a who's who of remarkable talent in front of and behind the camera, such as director Kazuya Shiraishi (The Devil's Path), effects director Kiyotaka Taguchi (Ultraman series), designer Shinji Higuchi (Gamera Trilogy, Evangelion, Shin Godzilla), and stars Hidetoshi Nishijima (Drive My Car) and Tomoya Nakamura (Like Father, Like Son). We'll discuss the show as well as give some history on the real life social issues it is addressing. So what side of this divisive series did we all on? Listen and find out!