Kamen Rider Spirits

Kamen Rider SPIRITS
Cover of Volume 1 by Kodansha
仮面ライダーSPIRITS (Kamen Raidā Supirittsu)
Genre	Adventure, Horror, Science Fiction
Manga
Written by	Kenichi Muraeda Shotaro Ishinomori (Original Story)
Illustrated by	Kenichi Muraeda
Published by	Kodansha
Magazine	Magazine Z (Former) Monthly Shōnen Magazine
Demographic	Seinen, Shōnen
Original run	2001 – 2009
Volumes	16
Manga
Shin Kamen Rider Spirits
Written by	Kenichi Muraeda Shotaro Ishinomori (Original Story)
Illustrated by	Kenichi Muraeda
Magazine	Monthly Shōnen Magazine
Demographic	Shōnen
Original run	2009 – present
Volumes	10

Kamen Rider SPIRITS (仮面ライダーSPIRITS, Kamen Raidā Supirittsu, trans. Masked Rider Spirits) is an ongoing manga adaptation of the popular Kamen Rider franchise by Kenichi Muraeda. The focus of the story is on the original ten Kamen Riders with shifting focus on main characters. The original series ended when Magazine Z ceased publication and was then revived in Monthly Shōnen Magazine under the title Shin Kamen Rider SPIRITS (新・仮面ライダーSPIRITS, Shin Kamen Raidā Supirittsu, New Masked Rider SPIRITS).

Synopsis

Taking place after the end of the Kamen Rider Super-1 television series, Kamen Rider Spirits begins by following the lives of the original Kamen Riders in various stand-alone stories. The manga then introduces the tenth Kamen Rider, Kamen Rider ZX, ignoring the events of the Birth of the 10th! Kamen Riders All Together!! television special and providing an alternate origin story. The manga also ties up loose story ends from the various TV series, such as how Riderman survived the Pluton Rocket Explosion and why Stronger's partner, Tackle, was never acknowledged as a Kamen Rider.

Arc summary

Kamen Rider Spirits is composed of three different arcs, each focusing on different Kamen Riders. The first arc is composed of several stand alone stories that focus on the original nine Kamen Riders who, no longer a team, have all gone their separate ways. After discovering suspicious activity going on all over the world, the Kamen Riders realize that a new evil is rising.

The second arc of the manga, known as Kamen Rider ZX: Forget Memories, focuses on the new Kamen Rider, Kamen Rider ZX, and gives the character an alternate story, ignoring his origin in the Birth of the 10th! Kamen Riders All Together!! TV special. The second arc also introduces the Badan Empire, the story's main villains.

The third section of the manga, known as Kamen Rider ZX: Dragon Road, focuses on Kamen Rider ZX joining the original nine Kamen Riders and facing the evil Badan Empire together.

Chapters

First tankōbon

1. Skyscraper Gale
2. The Lone Battlefield 1
3. The Lone Battlefield 2
4. Pride of the Hot Sand 1
5. Pride of the Hot Sand 2

Second tankōbon

6. Memories of a Right Arm
7. Sea of Destruction 1
8. Sea of Destruction 2
9. Tears of God 1
10. Tears of God 2

Third tankōbon

11. The Stray Thunderbolt 1
12. The Stray Thunderbolt 2
13. Promises of the Sky 1
14. Promises of the Sky 2
15. Legend of the Stars 1
16. Legend of the Stars 2
17. Legend of the Stars 3

Fourth tankōbon - ZX: Forget Memories

18. Assault
19. Darkness
20. Encounter
21. Escape
22. Rage
23. Rumi

Fifth tankōbon

24. Attack
25. Thorn
26. Demon
27. Contact
28. Redemption
29. Target
30. Flash

Sixth tankōbon

31. Henshin
32. Secret
33. Battle
34. Judo
35. Remembrance
36. Separation
37. Lies
38. Revenge

Seventh tankōbon

39. Cult
40. Rescue
41. Conquest
42. Invasion
43. Coup
44. Shinjuku
45. The Greater Leader

Eighth tankōbon - ZX: Dragon Road

46. Arrival
47. Sacrifice
48. Clash
49. Name
50. Prologue
51. Syndrome
52. Participation 1
53. Participation 2

Ninth tankōbon

54. Union
55. Journey
56. Unit
57. Capital
58. Shield

Tenth tankōbon

59. Spirit Union
60. Number Fourth
61. Rush
62. Ice Fang
63. Graveyard

Eleventh tankōbon

64. Light Fang
65. Labyrinth
66. Hell Car
67. Teacher
68. Training

Twelfth tankōbon

69. Whirlpool
70. New Finisher
71. Ocean Battle
72. Belt of Life
73. Immortal Man

Thirteenth tankōbon

74. Inherit
75. Get Back
76. Moving
77. Evolution
78. Next Evolution
79. Final Evolution

Fourteenth tankōbon

80. Warrior's Essence
81. Surpassing Greed
82. Return
83. Fiery Giant
84. With the Soul
85. Setup
86. Father

Fifteenth tankōbon

87. Shift
88. The Shadow's Trump Card
89. Friend
90. Garanda
91. Love
92. Strength

Sixteenth tankōbon

93. Warrior of Justice
94. The One Who Will Rule
95. Mixture
96. The Fang of Dual Sovereignty

Shin Kamen Rider SPIRITS

First tankōbon
1. Solitary
2. A Revived Pulse
3. Portrait of a Name

Second tankōbon
4. The 7 Kamen Riders
5. End... The Result
6. Finished Bonds
7. Gasp and Redemption

Third tankōbon
8. Zero, the Threshold of Evil
9. The light of Ancient Times
10. Friends, Kamen Rider Amazon is Here for You
11. There are Friends in the World
12. Devastation

Fourth tankōbon
13. The Crack in High-Tech
14. Beast
15. The Blinding Light
16. Vision

Fifth tankōbon
17. The Child of Nebuta
18. Sincere Kuroki
19. Lance and Shield

Sixth tankōbon
20. The Temple Without Tranquility
21. The Crow's Cry
22. Storing of the Dragon
23. The Flying Burning Car

Seventh tankōbon
24. Curse of the Dragon
25. Five Hands
26. Deep Pleasure
27. The Demon Conquers the Town

Eighth tankōbon

Ninth tankōbon

Tenth tankōbon

Characters

Main

• Ryō Murasame / Kamen Rider ZX
• Takeshi Hongō / Kamen Rider 1
• Hayato Ichimonji / Kamen Rider 2
• Shiro Kazami / Kamen Rider V3
• Joji Yuki / Riderman
• Keisuke Jin / Kamen Rider X
• Daisuke Yamamoto / Kamen Rider Amazon
• Shigeru Jō / Kamen Rider Stronger
• Yuriko Misaki / Electro Wave Human Tackle (in flashback)
• Hiroshi Tsukuba / Skyrider
• Kazuya Oki / Kamen Rider Super-1

Supporting

• Kazuya Taki / Taki Rider - An FBI agent and an old friend of several Kamen Riders, including the first. In the first chapter, the absence of a Kamen Rider in America causes Kazuya to take matters into his own hands wearing a motorcycle outfit and skull-logo helmet.
• Annrietta Birkin - An Interpol agent and member of an anti-Destron task force, she supports the Kamen Riders. She apparently likes Yuki. Taki calls her "Anri".
• Tobei Tachibana (written as Heiei Tachibana) - The mentor of Rider 1, Rider 2, V3, Riderman, X, Amazon, Stronger and, later in the story, ZX.
• Kanji Yada / GanGan G - Skyrider's sidekick.
• Genjiro Tani - The mentor of Skyrider and Super-1.
• The Junior Rider Squad - The Kamen Riders' comical kiddie sidekicks.
• Dr. Mami - Hayato's companion in the civil war-torn country called the Republic of Gamon who works as a doctor in charge of a hospital for injured people.
• Dr. Kaido - friend of Ryo's father and also Ryo's mentor.
• Rumi Ichijō - The daughter of a doctor who was killed by the Badan Empire.

Villains

• Father Petrescu - A seemingly kindly preacher dedicated to ridding the world of sin. He is actually a vampire and a serial killer. He is killed by Kamen Rider 1's Denko Rider Kick.
• Marshal Armor - A former Destron officer who transferred his consciousness into a massive crab-like beast. He attacks his old enemy, Riderman, in the jungles of Oceania. Eventually killed by Riderman after being hit in the same spot on his shell one too many times.
• Dead Lion - a former high-ranking member of Black Satan. he appears in chapter 43 of the manga.

Badan Empire

Main article: Badan Empire

• Great Leader JUDO (大首領 JUDO, Dai Shūryō JUDO) - The main antagonist of the series, he is the same "Great Leader" who was the supreme leader of all the evil organizations the previous Kamen Riders faced in the past. He currently leads the Badan Empire and is worshiped like a god by his followers. His preferred forms are a giant silver skull and a golden version of ZX called Susanoo (スサノオ), with the ability to transform into nine Showa Kamen Riders akin to Kamen Rider Decade's ability to transform into the nine Heisei Riders. He has his own language, which he can telepathically compel others to understand.
• Colonel Gamon / Ambassador Darkness - The nominal leader of the Badan Empire and twin brother of Ambassador Hell of Shocker. The two brothers were once known as General Damon and Colonel Gamon, who fought for the independence of a small Southeast Asian nation later christened "Gamon" after the supposedly deceased Colonel, who in fact joined Badan. Far more powerful than his brother, Ambassador Darkness cannot be killed by physical means, and can regenerate wounds as grievous as being cut in half in a short period of time.
• Dr. Lars Bohmann - A renowned Norwegian geneticist and former scientist for Badan. In his younger days, he deliberately injured his two children in a plane crash and modified them with cybernetics. When his son, who became Mothroid, discovers this, he uses his poison to burn his father's skin from his body.
• The Last Battalion - A variety of cybernetic monstrosities kept by Badan on various floating islands. Only the Cyborg Elite can control them.
• Badan Vortex - A black hole-like construct used by Badan to suck up "sinners," sparing the Cyborg Elite. The only known way to destroy one is to attack the magic runes used to summon it; doing so appears to cause Ambassador Darkness pain.
• The Cyborg Elite - The self-styled "chosen ones" of the Badan Empire, they believe that they will inherit the Earth once JUDO cleanses it of "sinners." Each is a human given cyborg enhancements that allow them to change into a monster at will.
  • Needle / Yamaarashiroid - Leader of the Cyborg Elite. In human form, he is a mild-mannered, bespectacled man with blond hair. He possesses the ability to produce quills to attack as well as various other effects. After most of the Cyborg Elite fail, he goes after ZX himself, only to be defeated. Afterward, he quits Badan, believing Ambassador Darkness now wants his head for failure.
  • Combatroids - The lowest-ranked of the Cyborg Elite, often used as grunt fighters. They are led by commanders in all black.
  • General Nguyen / Kumoroid - A celebrated military man of the Republic of Gamon, he seemingly leads the defense of the country against guerillas, but in reality is playing both sides of the war; the guerillas are Combatroids in disguise. Killed by Kamen Rider 2, after which peace returns to Gamon.
  • Vega / Takaroid - A young Egyptian street punk who became a cyborg in exchange for Badan aid to his destitute family. He now rules a Badan cyborg factory in the form of a black pyramid. After he makes the largely innocent robot in charge of the factory cry, he is killed by V3.
  • Rosa / Bararoid - Rosa was once a young flamenco dancer who, with her husband, was chased off a cliff by superstitious villagers. She was made into a cyborg by a silver skull in the ocean and returned to haunt the village she died in, especially her father-in-law Greco. She possesses the ability to manifest a person's worst fear out of a pool of water; for the final battle with X, the water takes the form of King Dark. Both she and the silver skull are killed by X, though the skull is later found and reassembled by the Combatroids.
  • Salamander / Tokageroid - One of Needle's three chief lieutenants. In human form, he is a Peruvian assassin codenamed "Salamander." He is sent to kidnap a young cyborg, Victor, and lure him to Badan with promises of command over the Last Battalion. When that plan fails, he is turned into a mindless monster by Needle and killed by Amazon.
  • Eisuke Mikage / Tigeroid - Interpol detective and later henchman of the Badan Empire. Believes that there is no point in saving the world, and so only works to further himself. After taking a grievous wound protecting Ryo Murasame, the future ZX, both are modified by Badan. Mikage becomes Tigeroid, with the ability to produce a wide variety of artillery from his body.
  • Freyr "Poison" Bohmann / Dokugaroid - An effeminate male cyborg who is one of Needle's lieutenants. He is actually Dr. Lars Bohmann's son, whom he injured in order to upgrade him with cybernetics. He was modified to secrete the most powerful poison in the world. Killed by Skyrider after killing his father for using him. Named for the Norse god Freyr.
  • Freya Bohmann - A good-natured female cyborg and sister to Freyr, she was injured in the same accident engineered by their father and modified to secrete the most powerful antidote in the world. Though she admits she is a monster, her monster form is never seen. Named for the Norse goddess Freya.
  • Asuma / Amenbaroid - A large cyborg and Needle's final lieutenant who attacks Super-1 when he discovers a mysterious crater made by Badan on the moon. In his effort to safeguard the secret, he massacres all but a small squadron of the crew of Super-1's moon base. Killed by Super-1.
  • LaMoore / Chameleonroid - A Badan assassin sent after ZX after he defects. His human form is that of a grubby street person. Like the animal he is based on, he can climb walls and blend into backgrounds, and he has a long sticky tongue which he uses as a weapon. After killing a homeless man befriended by ZX, he is seemingly killed by ZX himself. Although he survives, he is shattered both physically and mentally. After threatening Rumi, he is killed by ZX for good.
  • Jigokuroid, Kamakiroid, Kaniroid - The personal attendants of Ambassador Darkness. Though they have human forms, appearing as a motorcycle gang, they do not interact with humans and thus do not have human names. Antlionroid, the leader, appears a stereotypical rebellious teenager. He is attracted to Mantisroid and sees Ambassador Darkness as a father figure to be revolted against. He can create sand pits and survive grievous wounds, but afterwards he takes on a naked and vulnerable form for a time. Mantisroid appears as a beautiful woman in her twenties or thirties; she seems to be attracted to Ambassador Darkness. She can release a chemical from her fingernails that immobilizes people. Crabroid appears as a little old man with a walking stick. He never speaks apart from an insane cackling while in monster form. The three can combine with each other, and in this form they are dismembered by ZX after JUDO's influence is purged from his body. A backbone from each survives, but they are killed by Needle before they can regenerate.

External links

• Kamen Rider Spirits (manga) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia