Release Date:  November 2025 RRP: 11,000 yen If there's one thing you can guarantee about Bandai Tamashii Nations (or any toy company that has any sort of business sense really) is that if a particular release is popular, they're going to milk it. The original S.H. Figuarts Shinkocchou Seihou Kamen Rider 1 figure released all the way back in 2017, but returned once more (albeit it with a slightly altered colour scheme) in 2021 as a "50th anniversary editon". Now it's back once more in the form of the  S.H. Figuarts -Shinkocchou Seihou- Kamen Rider 1 (Legendary Showa Masked Riders Edition) , once again slightly updating the deco whilst bringing it more in line with some of the more recent Showa era Kamen Rider releases. 

Release Date: September 2025 RRP: 9900 yen While any veteran S.H. Figuarts collector will tell you that preordering can often be a bit of a nightmare, for the most part most figures aren't too difficult to track down (or expensive) on the aftermarket following their release. There are some exceptions though, with one of the best examples in recent memory being S.H. Figuarts -Shinkocchou Seihou- Kamen Rider 1 Sakurajima Ver. . Originally a Tamashii Nation 2018 event exclusive, this costume variant of the original Kamen Rider quickly became a highly sought after item - with a price tag to match. Last year it even won a poll of which Shinkocchou Seihou figure should be reissued the most, despite event exclusives rarely ever getting second runs. However Bandai Tamashii Nations could clearly see there was money to be made, and eventually revealed (the lengthily titled)  S.H. Figuarts -Shinkocchou Seihou- Kamen Rider 1 Sakurajima Ver. (Legendary Showa Masked Riders Edition) - a...

Release Date: December 2024 RRP: 9900 yen In 2024 Bandai Tamashii Nations began a countdown to their 100th Kamen Rider S.H. Figuarts Shinkocchou Seihou figure, with fans all over the world speculating on what this milestone release could be. The reveal itself was one many had considered, but perhaps never thought would be reality. All the way back in February 2008 the S.H. Figuarts line began, and now its very first figure has been reborn in Figuarts' premium "true bone carving" range. S.H. Figuarts -Shinkocchou Seihou- Kamen Rider 1/Takeshi Hongo ( Kamen Rider: The Next ) breathes new life into a figure that has been long forgotten by many, despite being the foundation for everything the line has done since. If that's not the perfect reason to make it the 100th Kamen Rider release, then I don't know what is. A Tamashii web exclusive release, the lead Rider from 2007's Kamen Rider: The Next is a new twist on a classic in a number of ways.

Release Date: November 2022 RRP: 8250 yen A lot of the time Tamashii Nations event exclusives can be fairly predictable. For example, if there's an all-black form in a series it's more than likely to show up here. But sometimes Bandai Tamashii Nations like to throw fans absolute curveballs, and much like  Kamen Rider Diend back in 2019 the Kamen Rider S.H. Figuarts Shinkocchou Seihou entry for 2022 is a bit of a head-scratcher. Very nearly coinciding with the 50th anniversary of the franchise, it's fitting to go all the way back to the beginning with S.H. Figuarts -Shinkocchou Seihou- Kamen Rider 1 (Old Version) , but surely this is something that would have sold like hotcakes as a retail or standard Tamashii web exclusive? This figure is based on the first appearance of Takeshi Hongo as the original Kamen Rider, from the very first episode of Kamen Rider back in 1971 all the way up until its 13th episode.

Release Date: March 2023 RRP: 7700 yen The 50th anniversary of the Kamen Rider franchise brought along plenty of new exciting projects, but arguably the biggest of them all was the announcement of the next instalment in Hideaki Anno's series of unrelated "Shin" films - Shin Kamen Rider . A retelling of the original 1971 series, the film has not only found success in Japan but also worldwide - receiving a number of limited screenings across the US before releasing worldwide on Amazon Prime earlier this month. But moving back to the film's initial Japanese cinema release in March,  Bandai Tamashii Nations were on the ball with the release of S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider ( Shin Kamen Rider ) to coincide with it. Despite technically being a figure of Kamen Rider 1 , with Takeshi Hongo as the main character of the film the figure simply been billed as "Kamen Rider" - the first hero to adopt that name.

After retelling the origin story of double Riders Takeshi Hongo and Hayato Ichimonji in Kamen Rider: The First , Toei decided to push on with the story of this cinematic reboot - releasing Kamen Rider: The Next in 2007. The film was once again written by Toshiki Inoue , with both Masaya Kikawada and Hassei Takano reprising their roles as Hongo/Rider 1 and Ichimonji/Rider 2 respectively. This time around though the film was directed by Ryuta Tasaki , a regular to the world of tokusatsu who continues to direct episodes of both Kamen Rider and Super Sentai to this day. As well as continuing the story of the double Riders, The Next also brings Shiro Kazami aka  Kamen Rider V3 into the mix - portrayed by actor  Kazuki Kato  (Daisuke Kazama/Kamen Rider Drake in Kamen Rider  Kabuto , as well as Blue in the Sentai parody series Kanpai Senshi After V ).

Release Date: September 2010 RRP: 2750 yen Back in early 2008 Bandai Tamashii Nations started up a brand new action figure range with the tag line of “simply style and heroic action”. That line was S.H. Figuarts , and 13 years later it’s evolved and expanded far beyond what collectors dreamed of at the time. And to think it all started with figures from Kamen Rider: The Next . However it wouldn’t be for another two years that the reimagined double Riders would be reissued in their Kamen Rider: The First   looks. The release of S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider 1 (THE FIRST Ver.) was a very different time for the line - one where preordering wasn’t such a mad rush, and the figures themselves were far more affordable.

The 50th anniversary celebration of the Kamen Rider franchise may have revealed that Hideaki Anno's Shin Kamen Rider will be releasing some time in 2023, but all the way back in 2005 there was another attempt at retelling the original 1971 series story in movie format. Kamen Rider: The First   was written by Toshiki Inoue and directed by Takao Nagaishi , starring Masaya Kikawada (who would later play  Kishiryu Sentai Ryusoulger's Master Red) and Hassei Takano ( Kamen Rider Ryuki's Miyuki Tezuka/Kamen Rider Raia and Ultraman Gaia's Hiroya Fujimiya/Ultraman Agul) in the lead roles of Takeshi Hongo and Hayato Ichimonji respectively. The film was followed up by a sequel, Kamen Rider: The Next , in 2007 and currently remains one of the only pieces of Kamen Rider media released on home video in the US. Media Blasters released the film on DVD in 2007, although sadly the title is long since out of print.

Release Date: December 2017 RRP: 6480 yen The Shinkocchou Seihou range of S.H. Figuarts is the cream of the crop. The best of the best. So far it's given birth to a wide selection of Kamen Rider figures that were desperately in need of an update, a main Rider that's been missing from the lineup for far too long and later this year will begin to venture outside of the Kamen Rider franchise. So after the end of another successful year, it makes sense   to round it off with the one that helped start it all. S.H. Figuarts Shinkocchou Seihou Kamen Rider 1 was one of Bandai Tamashii Nations' final releases of 2017, alongside S.H. Figuarts Takeshi Hongo as the perfect partner piece.

Release Date: December 2017 RRP: 6264 yen From the second it was first revealed at the 2016 Tamashii Nations event, S.H. Figuarts Takeshi Hongo was a figure that was sure to get everyone talking. All of a sudden affordable articulated figures of Kamen Rider  civilian forms didn't just seem like a pipe dream, igniting the hope that maybe one day other Riders would receive similar treatment. Of course the trouble with Tamashii Nations events is that not every figure seen at these events is going to definitely see release, but if one figure felt like it might eventually see the light of day it was this one. Jump forward to the end of 2017 and Bandai Tamashii Nations capped off the year with a trifecta of iconic tokusatsu heroes in their civialian guises - kicking off with Ultraseven's Dan Moroboshi before moving onto Space Sheriff Gavan's Retsu Ichimonji before finishing off with Hongo himself. Not just the perfect way to end another year of S.H. Figuarts, but the ...

The 45th anniversary of Kamen Rider was one Super Hero Year ’s biggest milestones, and in celebration Toei produced Kamen Rider 1 – a film that saw Hiroshi Fujioka reprise his role as Takeshi Hongo and team up with the cast of Kamen Rider Ghost against the new threat of Nova Shocker . The film introduced a redesigned suit for the original Rider, presumably having made improvements to himself over his years of fighting. Of course new design meant that an S.H. Figuarts version couldn’t be too far behind, with the 2016 Kamen Rider 1 joining the line as a mass release figure in October.

With Super Sentai and Kamen Rider celebrating their 40th and 45th anniversaries this year, Toei have dubbed 2016 as “ Super Hero Year ” with very good reason. But while the former franchise might seem like it’s been slacking a bit on the celebration front, the same can’t be said for Kamen Rider . In addition to the Amazon Prime exclusive Kamen Rider Amazons series, a legendary hero has also made his return to the fold. Kamen Rider 1 sees Hiroshi Fujioka reprise his role as Takeshi Hongo/Kamen Rider 1 , crossing over with the cast of Kamen Rider Ghost in a feature-length celebration. Fujioka himself was actively involved in the development of the film, writing it alongside prolific tokusatsu veteran Toshiki Inoue . While both Rider 1 and Fujioka have made various reappearances over the years, this film sees him once again in the leading role – complete with a brand new look to go with it.

If there’s one thing you’ll constantly see Kamen Rider fans question it’s why the franchise has never received some sort of anime adaptation. Whether it be an adaptation of the popular Kamen Rider Spirits manga or something wholly new, there is definitely an eagerness to see what Kamen Rider could do without the limitations that come with a tokusatsu series. After all – if it worked for Kikaider it can certainly work for Kamen Rider too. What many people don’t mention however is that Kamen Rider HAS in fact received an anime version in the past – albeit not in the way many people would have hoped. Kamen Rider SD is a one-shot OVA from 1993, based on the manga series of the same name. As the name suggests, it stars comical super-deformed versions of the various Kamen Riders battling against a unification of their enemies working under the name ‘GranShocker’.

The S.H. Figuarts line is getting closer and closer to releasing all of the main Kamen Rider heroes, so in order to keep the line going strong and steady Bandai are also going back and revisiting some old favourites to fill in some gaps. And in terms of the Showa era Riders, the biggest of these gaps is of course their motorcycles (after all, they are Kamen Riders ). But rather than just release the bikes for those collectors clamouring to make their collection more "complete", Tamashii Nations is also giving fans a second chance to get these classic characters with two-pack releases with their respective Rider or reissues to accompany those single pack bike releases. Now I'm not usually one to collect the bikes - there's a whole lot of Riders out there and I simply don't have room for everything . But when it came to a 2-pack of Kamen Rider 1 & the New Cyclone , I just simply couldn't pass it up. If any Kamen Rider figure in my collection deserve...

It's always nice when I have a different toy line to review rather than the same five ones over and over again, and this latest candy toy line from Bandai is something I've been looking forward to for a long time now. Dubbed 66 Action  due to their average height of 66mm, this line is dedicated to bringing fans tiny yet poseable figures of their favourite Riders from the Kamen Rider franchise. After a brief delay the first wave finally hit at the end of February, consisting of our first four mini heroes - Kamen Rider Gaim (Orange Arms) , Kamen Rider OOO (TaToBa combo) , Kamen Rider Decade and Kamen Rider 1 .