S.I.C. Vol. 50 Kamen Rider Kiva Part 1

Kamen Rider Vampire
Before the last posting on Magnetic Scout Gundam (M.S.G.) capsule toy set, I think it would be good to introduce the next item to be reviewed here:


S.I.C. Vol. 50 Kamen Rider Kiva. It was first released in August 2009, a few months after its show finished in Japan. Personally, I love the story of this Kamen Rider as well as its design very much. The idea of having 2 stories of different time lines running concurrently within each episode is very interesting to see, and I believe the production team of the TV series did a brilliant job in editing the stories so that not only is the switch between the past and present not confusing at all, but the events were connected very well. ^^ You can tell that the writer had put in all the effort to avoid any time paradox issue, and you do get to see the cohesiveness of the stories of Wataru and Megumi at present days, connecting with their respective parents, Otoya and Yuri in the past.

In terms of reception, I think "Kamen Rider Kiva" will always be overshadowed by its preceding series "Kamen Rider Den-O" and its successor "Kamen Rider Decade". The concepts of time line differences and monster servants to summon for form change in "Kamen Rider Kiva" aren't too different from time traveling and form change through possession used in "Kamen Rider Den-O". Momotaros Imagin is a hugely popular character. Comparing him and all the other Imagins with Wataru's monster servant team of Jiro, Ramon and Riki, I would say "Kamen Rider Den-O" is the winner in terms of audience connection. That's why there are always new movies featuring Kamen Rider Den-O coming out after the series ended a few years back, even till this year ("OOO, Den-O, All Riders: Let's Go Kamen Riders" will be released this year), but nothing new for Kiva. I can't stand some of the overacting moments of those imagins, but they sure are entertaining. ^^; On the other hand, I feel that Otoya is a really fun character to watch, but the story couldn't be done to just focus on him alone.

In terms of extremeness, "Kamen Rider Kiva" is still pretty modest and follow the mold set by "Kamen Rider Den-O". Because of that, when you have various Kamen Riders from different series appearing in "Kamen Rider Decade" as part of its story, Kiva became so "normal" and less outstanding in comparison to the earlier. ^^;

In terms of its design, I always love the details of Kamen Rider Kiva. The horns that stretch backward from its goggles, the pair of fang on the mouth, the Gothic engravings on its armors, the high collars, claws instead of fingers, chains and extra plate armor on the right leg are very good design features in my opinion. Just give the guy a cape to wrap the whole body with and you can just call him Kamen Rider Dracula. ^^

For a story that uses Vampire and other classical monsters as its theme, its image is totally justified.

I always knew that Kamen Rider Kiva will make a very nice S.I.C. figure. The series is well known to give new interpretation to all the details, and in many occasions, the S.I.C. version is very radical-looking as compared to the actual figure. Shadow Moon is a good example of that. With Kamen Rider Kiva however, the actual character has quite elaborate amount of details on its armors already, as mentioned earlier on. Before its actual release, I expected it to have less deviation than the TV series's design as compared to most other S.I.C. releases, and that was the case and I'm very happy for that. ^^





Almost all its accessories can be seen through the box's window.


This is the first batch release version that comes with a special prize: a die-cast Kivat-bat the 3rd.




Very fitting with Kamen Rider Kiva's image in the show, there are plenty of chains on all sides of the box.





Introduction of the figure on the back of the box.
All the rose pedals are not included. ^^;


Box open.
From the bottom this time. ^^




Content.



Limited die-cast Kivat-bat is attached on the back of the plastic tray.




Manual included shows how the chain on the right leg is to be removed for the "Darkness Moon Break" finishing move.


One part of the manual showing the position of each Fuestle on both sides of Kamen Rider Kiva's belt.
Good luck for those who don't read Japanese. ^^;


The backdrop is a yellow moon with Kamen Rider Kiva's insignia on it.
Very fitting to be used when performing the finishing move.




More images of the various accessories on the plastic tray.


For a singular Kamen Rider release, quite a lot of strings are used to hold down all the parts. ^^;
More images of the figure, as well as its accessories will be covered in the next posting.