Miniseries REVIEW: Kamen Rider Drive Saga: Kamen Rider Brain

Like many Japanese shows Kamen Rider has been known to put out some great April Fools' jokes over the years, but no matter how great they'd be as a real thing they usually stay as just that – a joke. However clearly the power of Kamen Rider Drive shouldn't be underestimated, as the 2017 joke has now become reality with the release of Kamen Rider Drive Saga: Kamen Rider Brain. Originally "teased" to be coming out in 2035, this two-part Toei Tokusatsu Fan Club exclusive fulfils the Rodimude's comment about eventually becoming a Rider himself at the end of Drive Saga: Kamen Rider Heart as well as technically making him both the last of the Heisei era Kamen Riders and the first Reiwa era Rider.

Movie REVIEW: Kamen Rider Drive Saga: Kamen Rider Mach/Kamen Rider Heart

When a Kamen Rider series draws to a conclusion, rarely is it truly the end. Not only does that Rider make a return alongside the current one in next year’s Movie Wars release, but in recent years the additional Riders have shared the spotlight in their own V-cinema releases. This trend initially kicked off with Kamen Rider W’s Accel and Eternal movies but has recently been revived with Kamen Riders Gaim, Drive and Ghost. In terms of Drive movies Kamen Rider Drive Saga: Kamen Rider Chaser, may have been a side story taking place during the course of the film but the second – Kamen Rider Drive Saga: Kamen Rider Mach/Kamen Rider Heart acts as a true epilogue to the show, bringing back Gou Shijima/Kamen Rider Mach and the Roidmude Heart for one last outing.

Movie REVIEW: Kamen Rider Drive Saga: Kamen Rider Chaser

With the success of both the Kamen Rider W Returns movies and the more recent Kamen Rider Gaim: Gaiden releases, Toei seem to have confirmed to both themselves that direct to DVD/Blu-ray V-cinema releases starring the shows' secondary and tertiary Riders are both popular and profitable. Just as current series Kamen Rider Ghost has jumped on this early with its The Legend of Hero Alain blu-ray bonus miniseries, previous show Kamen Rider Drive is refuses to stay down with a number of feature-length V-cinema entries. The first of these is Kamen Rider Drive Saga: Kamen Rider Chaser, naturally starring Chase - the prototype Roidmude whose appeared as both Proto-Drive and Mashin Chaser before joining Drive as Kamen Rider Chaser.