Do Kamen Rider series really ever end, or do they simply enter a new chapter of their lives? Such a thing could definitely be said about Kamen Rider Gotchard 's V-Cinext movie, which sees the cast graduate from their highschool days and takes their first steps into adulthood. Despite Toei  opting to skip over the usual Winter crossover movie for Kamen Rider Gavv 's tenure, Gotchard still receives its epilogue with Kamen Rider Gotchard: Graduations . Written by Gotchard Hyper Battle DVD writer Takahito Oonishi (with supervision from series co-head writer Hiroki Uchida ) and directed by Kyohei Yamaguchi , the story picks up around six months after the events of the series.

If there's one important thing for a modern Kamen Rider fan to learn, it's that a series ending is never "the end". As finite as an ending may seem, between subsequent Winter crossover movie, V-Cinext releases and any other spin-off Toei might want to throw out in the not-too-distant future you can guarantee that all your favourite Riders will be back a good few times long after the final episode has aired. Kamen Rider Geats is no exception to this of course, with the stars of the Desire Grand Prix back once more for their first V-Cinext/epilogue outing in Kamen Rider Geats: Jyamato Awaking . Keeping things in-line with the show's continuity series head writer Yuya Takahashi returns once more to provide the story, with the film directed by tokusatsu veteran Koichi Sakamoto .

One of the great advantages of the Kamen Rider V-Cinext (formerly V-Cinema ) epilogue movies is the opportunity to focus on the extended cast of a series - characters that might not have had quite the development they deserved in the show itself but still have plenty to offer. When it comes to Kamen Rider Revice , there's quite an extensive roster of Riders and that could be said for plenty of them. But for the first of Revice's V-Cinext releases the spotlight is cast on what are perhaps the two most obvious candidates. As its name suggests,  Revice Forward: Kamen Rider Live & Evil & Demons focuses on Hiromi Kadota and Daiji Igarashi , along with the latter's demon Kagero . Timeline-wise the film takes place after the events of Kamen Rider Geats x Revice: Movie Battle Royale , was written by Nobuhiro Mouri (who served as a secondary writer on Revice , among many other shows) and directed by Koichi Sakamoto .

When it comes to Kamen Rider , there's no such thing as a happy ending. No matter how cleanly the series itself may have ended, you can almost guarantee that the battle isn't over yet – and in some cases, the threat the Riders face in their V-cinema/V-Cinext film might just be the worst of them all. Now the story of Kamen Rider Saber continues in Kamen Rider Saber: Trio of Deep Sin , with head writer Takuro Fukuda returning to pen the film after largely leaving the latter half of the series to other writers. In what's one of many departures this V-Cinext release takes, the story focus on protagonist Touma Kamiyama as well as supporting Riders Rintaro Shindo and Kento Fukamiya .

One of the greatest joys about the Super Sentai franchise is that no one's ever really gone. Even when a series has completed its year-long run, that team will likely return for both a Versus movie the following year and cameos in future productions. A select few have even been lucky enough to get a new V-Cinema film ten years later. Super Sentai may be celebrating its 45th anniversary in 2021, but that also means its celebrating the tenth anniversary of its 35th anniversary series - Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger . And to mark the occasion the pirate Sentai are back in Kaizoku Sentai: Ten Gokaiger - a brand new film continuing their  story as well as debuting a whole new selection of Ranger Keys . The film was written by Gokaiger's head writer Naruhisa Arakawa , and directed by Shojiro Nakazawa .

Earlier in the year  Kamen Rider Zero-One dropped what was perhaps the biggest cliffhanger since Diend turned his gun on Decade (or the Rider War began depending on which version of Decade you're watching), as Kamen Rider MetsubouJinrai destroyed the bodies of its four Humagear hosts and set out on a new path of destruction. Now several months after the release of Zero-One Others: Kamen Rider MetsubouJinrai the conclusion of the story is finally here, as the A.I.M.S. Riders take to the stage in Zero-One Others: Kamen Rider Vulcan & Valkyrie . Although the Kamen Rider Genms -The Presidents- special is technically set afterward, for the time being it's also fair to say this acts as the main end to the Zero-One story. Like the previous film, it was written by the show's head writer Yuya Takahashi and directed by secondary writer Masaya Kakehi .  (WARNING: Spoiler discussion will be particularly heavy in this review)

Both the series itself and its epilogue "summer" movie might have now passed, but it isn't quite the end for Kamen Rider Zero-One just yet. Now it's time for the true epilogue in the form of its direct to Blu-Ray V-Cinema releases, which in typical fashion focus on the various other Kamen Riders of the series. The first of these films is Zero-One Others: Kamen Rider MetsubouJinrai - thrusting the formerly villainous members of Humagear terrorist group Metsuboujinrai.net into the spotlight. The film was written by Zero-One head writer Yuya Takahashi, and directed by the show's secondary writer Masaya Kakehi .

No matter how finite a Kamen Rider series ending seems these days, a V-Cinema sequel is pretty much a certainty. After Kamen Rider Build quickly restored the memories of its cast in its NEW WORLD duology, it's now time to see where the characters of Kamen Rider Zi-O are headed next in Kamen Rider Zi-O NEXT TIME: Geiz, Majesty . When we last saw the gang Tokiwa Sougo had used the powers of Oma Zi-O to rewrite time, creating a world where he and his friends live an ordinary life in the present. As its title suggests, the film focuses on Myokoin Geiz  as well as featuring guest cameos from a number of secondary Kamen Riders.

It's been over a year since we saw Sento Kiryu save the world and defeat Evolto , but Kamen Rider Build is still going strong thanks to a selection of V-Cinext (formerly V-Cinema ) releases. After first being introduced to the show's brave new world in the Kamen Rider Cross-Z movie , the second instalment in the Kamen Rider Build NEW WORLD series focuses on the third of its Riders to be introduced. Kamen Rider Build NEW WORLD: Kamen Rider Grease reunites Kazumi Sawatari with Akaba, Aoba and Kiba – the trio of farmers turned soldiers known as the Hokuto Three Crows . As is typical for V-Cinema releases the film also debuts a new final form for Grease, with the DX Grease Perfect Kingdom transformation device bundled in with its physical releases.

Everyone should know by now that the end of Kamen Rider series is never the last we see of its characters. Besides the various crossover movies that will keep bringing back characters for years to come, for the past five years or so each series has consistently received one or more V-cinema sequels focusing on some of the other Riders that appeared. That trend has followed through to Kamen Rider Build , which puts the spotlight on fan-favourite Ryuga Banjou in Kamen Rider Build NEW WORLD: Kamen Rider Cross-Z . The film enjoyed a brief theatrical release at the beginning of 2019 before arriving on Blu-Ray a few months later, with a special edition bundled with Cross-Z's new Muscle Galaxy Fullbottle .

Despite being a tentpole piece of Toei's tokusatsu line up during the 80s and 90s, the Metal Heroes franchise doesn’t quite have the presence it once did in comparison to the likes of Super Sentai or Kamen Rider . That began to change a few years ago following a few movies and cameo appearances from Space Sheriffs , and then last year Gavan rose to the occasion once again as he teamed up with the Dekarangers in Space Squad: Gavan vs. Dekaranger . The end of that film's tease about recruiting further heroes to the team didn't turn out to be an empty promise either, and the story now continues into a second film – Uchu Sentai Kyuranger vs Space Squad . As well as seeing the 41st Super Sentai team into the fold, this film also prominently brings back the new generation Space Sheriff Shaider as well as characters from the seventh Metal Heroes series Sekai Ninja Sen Jiraiya .

The realisation that Engine Sentai Go-Onger came out ten years ago might be making some fans pretty old right now, but there is one silver lining to this reminder of just how quickly time can pass. After both Ninpuu Sentai Hurricaneger and Tokusou Sentai Dekaranger reunited for special V-Cinema releases a decade after their original appearances, it's now time to go at full-throttle mach speed once again as the 32nd Super Sentai team return for Engine Sentai Go-Onger: Ten Years Grand Prix. So grab your Engine Souls and get ready to 'met on once again, as all seven team members are back for one last adventure.

First Kamen Riders Brave and Snipe had to face the revival of Lovelica and Saki. Then Para-DX and Poppy fought back against a mysterious Parado clone and the revenge of Dr Pacman's daughter Saiko Yaotome. Now the grand finale of the Kamen Rider Ex-Aid V-Cinema trilogy arrives with Kamen Rider Ex-Aid: Another Ending – Kamen Rider Genm vs Lazer. Not only have the previous two films been building up to this confrontation, but Genm vs Lazer (for the time being anyway) also acts as the final chapter in the Ex-Aid story. As well as sharing a long and chequered rivalry, both Riders have also previously held the title role in their own spin-off specials. The Kamen Rider Genm special showcased the Legend Rider Gashats whilst also acting as a prequel to Heisei Generations, while the Kamen Rider Lazer Hyper Battle DVD saw the Bakusou Bike Rider return once more prior to his permanent resurrection by Kamen Rider Cronus.

After casting the spotlight on Kamen Riders Brave and Snipe in its first instalment , the Kamen Rider Ex-Aid V-Cinema trilogy now turns its attention to CR's benevolent Bugsters in Kamen Rider Ex-Aid: Another Ending – Kamen Rider Para-DX with Poppy . While this is the first time Poppy Pipopapo has received her own title story in the series, Parado more recently featured as the star of the show's second Televi-kun Hyper Battle DVD . The DVD also acted as a lead in to the Another Ending  trilogy – not only being referenced in the films but also concluding with Kuroto's escape from his digital prison.

When Toei said that "the game is forever", they sure weren't joking around. Not content with just ending Kamen Rider Ex-Aid through the series itself and the True Ending movie, the 2016-2017 Kamen Rider series has returned once again for a trilogy of V-Cinema releases – rather appropriately titled Kamen Rider Ex-Aid: Another Ending . Like previous post-series V-cinema entries these movies each focus on a pair of Riders from the show's expanded cast rather than Ex-Aid himself, however unlike the others these three films also tie together into an overall plotline. Kicking off the trilogy is Kamen Rider Ex Aid: Another Ending – Kamen Rider Brave & Snipe , featuring arguably the two most prominent of the show's other Riders. This isn't the first time either Rider has had the spotlight either, with Brave previously taking centre stage in the Let's Survive! Revival of the Beast Rider Squad!   special and Snipe's back story being uncovered in the E...

Both Kamen Rider and Super Sentai have enjoyed a steady stream of V-cinema releases for some time now, but while Kamen Rider tends to use this as an opportunity to shine the spotlight on a secondary/tertiary Rider Sentai movies have always remained a team affair. However that’s all about to change with Uchu Sentai Kyuranger: Episode of Stinger . The 41st Super Sentai continues to make history with the first spin-off film focusing on a single ranger, following Stinger/Sasori Orange ’s brief departure from the team along with Champ/Ouishi Black between episodes 13 and 15.

Crossovers can be a strange thing. Sometimes they can pair up the most unexpected of things (take the recent DC Comics/ Looney Tunes crossover for example) and others are such perfect match ups that you can’t believe they didn’t happen sooner. The pairing of Tokusou Sentai Dekaranger and Space Sheriff Gavan definitely counts as the latter. After the roaring success of their 10 Years After special, the space-cop Super Sentai team are back once again and teaming up with the new Gavan , Geki Jumonji – who took on the mantle in the 2012 Gavan movie and subsequently appeared in Super Hero Taisen Z as well as the Next Generation Sharivan and Shaider movies. Space Squad: Gavan vs. Dekaranger isn’t just a match made in heaven, it’s one with its sights set on the wider Sentai and Metal Heroes universes as well.

While Toei tokusatsu hero crossovers have become fairly commonplace these days thanks to the annual Super Hero Taisen movies, every so often one rolls around that promises something really special. The Tokusou Sentai Dekaranger   and Space Sheriff Gavan crossover Space Squad: Gavan vs. Dekaranger is undoubtedly one of the most anticipated events in sometime – bringing together these space-faring heroes in a crossover that not only sounds good on paper but also makes perfect sense continuity-wise as well. But before we get onto the main action there’s also Girls in Trouble: Space Squad Episode Zero – a prologue V-cinema release starring Jasmine/Deka Yellow and Umeko/Deka Pink as well as the new Space Sheriff assistants Shelly , Sisi and Tammy .

While many will argue that Kamen Rider Ghost is a series that suffered from a number of problems, even its fans often agree that Makoto Fukami  could have been handled far better. After initially making a strong debut opposing Takeru’s collection of the Eyecons, Kamen Rider Specter quickly fell into the background as he joined the heroes’ side – lacking in personality and only highlighted by an often confusing evil doppelganger subplot. But even though the show’s now over there’s still a chance to salvage his character in Kamen Rider Ghost RE:BIRTH: Kamen Rider Specter – a V-cinema release following Makoto and Alain ’s continued mission in the Ganma world following the show’s conclusion.

It's amazing how fast time flies. Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger 's  big 35th anniversary bash was a whole six years ago, which means now Super Sentai's 40th anniversary has now passed us as well. That said, Doubutsu Sentai Zyuohger still has a few last hurrahs left in it - not just presumably from next year's vs. series movie but also their obligatory epilogue movie, Doubutsu Sentai Zyuohger Returns: Give Me Your Life! Earth Champion Tournament ! When we last left the Zyuohgers quite a lot had changed for planet Earth, and we rejoin Yamato, Leo, Sela, Tusk, Amu and Misao as part of this brave new world.