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Kamen Raida - Akuma no Resura Pirazaurusu / Kamen Raida - Ringu No Shito Taose! Pirazaurus
episode 16 & 17 / Wrestler of the Devil, Pirasaurus / Kamen Rider - Death Match in the Ring: Defeat Pirasaurus
Japan 1971
produced by Seiji Abe, Toru Hirayama for Ishinomori Productions, Toei/TV Asahi
directed by Itaru Orita
starring Akiji Kobayashi, Takeshi Sasaki, Jiro Chiba (= Jiro Yabuki), Linda Yamamoto, Wakako Oki, Katsumi Nakajima, Yasuharu Miura, Yoko Shimada, Taku Fujiki, Riki Harada, Anne Mari, Kazuya Watanabe, Akira Oizumi, and the voices of Goro Naya, Isao Yatsu, Shinji Nakae
written by Masaru Igami, created by Shotaro Ishinomori, music by Shunsuke Kikuchi
TV-series Kamen Rider, Kamen Rider (original TV show)
review by Mike Haberfelner
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Evil organisation Shocker try out their latest cyborg Pirasaurus
(voiced by Isao Yatsu), a poisoned gas spewing dragon-like creature, in a
bus - and are semi-successful, as Pirasaurus manages to kill all the
passengers on the bus but also dies from its own poisoned gas. So Shocker
figures they need a stronger man as basis for Pirasaurus, a man like
championship wrestler Noboru (Taku Fujiki), and thus abduct him and turn
him into Pirasaurus. Thing is, Noboru has a little brother called Kiyoshi
(Kazayu Watanabe), and he's best friend with Goro (Yasuharu Miura),
resident boy at Tachibana's (Akiji Kobayashi) motorcycle club, members of
which are of course the chief enemies of Shocker Hayato a.k.a. Kamen Rider
(Takeshi Sasaki) and FBI agent Kazuya (Jiro Chiba), and if nobody else
cares much, Kiyoshi is quick to notice his brother has disappeared.
Now shortly after the disappearance of Noboru, a new character turns up
in the ring, American wrestling sensation Red Mask, and despite him being
masked (hence the name, Kiyoshi recognizes his eyes being those of his
brother. Soon enough, Red Mask tries out the poisoned gas on a discotheque
and it's a roaring success, all the guests but himself die. So it's
planned to use the poisoned gas at a wrestling match that's also attended
by a lot of dignitaries next. And to throw Kamen Rider off the track, a
false Red Mask is sent out to lure him off the track, but since Kiyoshi
sees through the disguise, Kamen Rider manages to get to the wrestling
match just in time to challenge Red Mask just in time and see to it that
the arena is evacuated, so actually nobody's poisoned but Pirasaurus's own
handler, pretty Maya (Anne Mari), and once Kamen Rider has wrestled
Pirasaurus down, it turns back to Noboru, and everything ends happily.
Despite the wrestling backdrop and everything that gives this one an
almost lucha libre vibe, this is a pretty average double episode of
Kamen Rider, essentially because too many plot devices seem
forced, and the all-too-clever kid characters are a bit on the annoying
side. At least though the monster of the week is properly grotesque and
it's tendency to mass murder disturbing, which provides some entertainment
even if it doesn't save the story as a whole.
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