Kamen Rider V3
Kamen Rider V3 is a Japanese tokusatsu television series. It is the second installment in the popular Kamen Rider Series, and the direct sequel to the original Kamen Rider. It was a joint collaboration between Ishimori Productions and Toei, and was shown on Mainichi Broadcasting System and NET from February 17, 1973, to February 9, 1974.
Every episode of Kamen Rider V3 begins with the following opening narration: "Kamen Rider V3, Shiro Kazami, is an altered human. Mortally wounded by Destron, he is rebuilt by Kamen Riders 1 and 2, reborn as Kamen Rider V3."
Plot
Shiro Kazami accidentally witnesses a murder by the evil organization Destron, making him their next target. In their first attempt, they planted a bomb pebble into his coffee, but the attempt was foiled when Shiro's sister, Yukiko, surprised him, causing him to spill his coffee. In their second attempt, they attacked him while practicing motorcycle racing with Tobei Tachibana. In their third attempt, a Destron soldier, disguised as a doctor, tried to put a poison shot in Shiro, while he was being transported to the hospital, but Shiro regains consciousness and kills the soldier. Meanwhile, a young woman named Junko Tama stumbled upon Destron's base. Suddenly, she was attacked by Destron. While trying to escape, she ran into Shiro, who was heading home on his motorcycle, but Shiro didn't see the Destron soldiers. Surprised, Junko fainted and Shiro took her home. While Junko was being taken care of by Shiro's family, Shiro reported her story to the police. When he returned home, he found his family being murdered by the Hasami Jaguar, a jaguarlike monster with blades for hands. Hasami Jaguar then prepares to kill Junko and Shiro, but is stopped by Shiro's high school teacher, Takeshi Hongo, who transformed into Kamen Rider 1. Shortly after he drove off the Destron forces, Kamen Rider 2 shows up, but too late. A vengeance-fueled Shiro asked the Riders to turn him into a cyborg, but the Riders refused, explaining to Shiro what would happen if he did get turned into a cyborg: he wouldn't be able to live up to his family. Then the Riders asked Junko for the location of the Destron base she stumbled upon earlier. The next day, the Riders infiltrate the base, only to find no one inside until they heard the voice of their old foe The Great Leader Of Gel-Shocker who revealed that the Gel-Shocker Leader was just one of his forms. To make matters worse he attempted to kill the Double Riders with the Cyborg Disruptor Ray, Until Shiro shows up and saves their lives, but gets injured in the process. The Riders had no choice but to turn Shiro into a cyborg. When the Riders were attacked and almost killed, by Kame Bazooka, Shiro shows up as Kamen Rider V3. Now, Shiro uses his new power to protect humankind against Destron. Later on, he is joined by Jōji Yuki, a former Destron scientist who fights as Riderman to get his revenge on Destron for being accused of treason.Characters
Kamen Riders
- Shiro Kazami/Kamen Rider V3 is a cyborg who fights Destron. When he encounters a Destron monster, he intones, Henshin... V3!, and transforms into Kamen Rider V3. He is host to 26 special powers that he uses to fight Destron; V3 doesn't know what all of his special powers are, but most of them are revealed during the course of the series. Among his powers are Bulletproof Muscles, the V3 Hopper and the V3 Reverse Kick. Others, including the V3 Thunder, were revealed in stage shows, manga and magazines of the time. His nuclear-powered motorcycle is named "Hurricane"; it also has a variety of special abilities.
- Jōji Yūki/Riderman: A Destron scientist who is betrayed by Marshal Armor. His right arm is burnt off and replaced by a special mechanical one, which gives him special powers. Initially, he distrusts V3, but eventually becomes an ally. V3 declares him to be "Kamen Rider No. 4" in tribute, after sacrificing his life to protect Tokyo from destruction. Riderman appears in some of the sequels. How he survived is not fully explained in the TV show, but it is explained in detail in the Kamen Rider Spirits manga.
Allies
- Tōbei Tachibana: Shiro's mentor and advisor. This character appeared in the original Kamen Rider and also appeared in three later Kamen Rider series.
- Junko Tama: A young woman who has a crush on Shiro. Shiro is aware of her crush, but refuses to let her get close to him, to protect her, because he lives such a dangerous life. Despite this, she assists Shiro, often watching the communications station, and eventually becomes a close friend to Shiro. She often gets into dangerous situations, requiring V3 to rescue her.
- Shigeru Tama: Junko's kid brother and a member of the Boys' Kamen Rider Squad. He sometimes acts as Shiro's liaison with the Shonen Rider Scouts.
- The Boys' Kamen Rider Squad: Also known as The Kamen Rider Scouts. They are young boys who assist Kamen Rider V3. They have members throughout Japan. They wear medallions which are shaped like the head of Kamen Rider V3. The medallions contain radios which allow them to report suspicious activity to Kamen Rider headquarters.
- Ken Sakuma: A Destron Hunter, from Interpol, who helps V3 for a few episodes. He is Destron Hunter no. 5, and is the last surviving Destron hunter.
Destron
- Great Leader of Destron - Another form of the Great Leader of Shocker from the original series, originally thought to have died in a failed kamikaze attack against Kamen Riders 1 and 2. In the earliest episodes he led directly; later he let one of his generals lead for him. His cyborgs are patterned after a combination of a manmade object and an animal. In the last few episodes, he appeared in person for brief periods of time, but he wore a robe with a hood which hid all of his features. When his robe was pulled, a man with his head covered by white bandages and a smiling mask was revealed, but he quickly escaped. In the final episode, he was revealed to be a monstrous skeleton with a living heart, calling himself God of Death. V3 destroyed the monster's heart, apparently killing him, just to hear his voice again, from a tape player inside the skeleton's head. He congratulates V3 for finding his true form, but reveals that V3 would die alongside himself. Immediately afterwards, the Destron headquarters self-destructed, but V3 escaped.
- Doktor G / Kani Laser - Destron's first general in knight armor from Germany in charge of Japan. He wields a battle axe, a short sword, and a knife. In the comics, his scorpion-shaped helmet could transform into a deadly scorpion, but this didn't happen on TV. Most of his monsters are cyborgs that are the same type as Destron Leader's cyborgs. He pronounced his enemy's name as "Kamen Raaaaider V3!". After numerous failures, Doktor G summoned the spirits of his dead, evil warriors to transform him into Kani Laser for his final battle with Kamen Rider V3. Despite putting up a heroic battle, he was destroyed by V3's V3 Tailspin Return Kick.
- Baron Kiba / Vampiric Mammoth - The leopard-skin wearing witch doctor from Africa, second general of Destron, and leader of the Fang Clan. He wields a spear which could fire explosive charges. His powers are magical in origin. The monsters in his Fang Tribe are mutated forms of wild animals with fangs or tusks that are empowered through blood sacrifices of innocent victims by Baron Kiba. After his Fang Tribe was wiped out by Kamen Rider V3, Baron Fang later called on the spirits of Doovoo to give him the power to transform into the Vampiric Mammoth so that he could take revenge on V3 in his final battle. He was destroyed by V3's V3 Revolving Triple Kick.
- Archbishop Tsubasa / Shibito Bat - The robe-wearing general from Tibet. The monsters in his Wing Unit are all mutated versions of flying animals with the exception of one plantlike monster. He wields a bird-headed spiked staff. Archbishop Tsubasa later takes on his true form called Zombie Bat in his final battle with Kamen Rider V3. He was destroyed by V3's V3 Mach Kick. Marshal Yoroi later revived Archbishop Tsubasa's Zombie Bat form in order to ambush Kamen Rider V3. He was defeated by V3 with several punches.
- Marshal Yoroi / Zariganna - Destron's final general in plated armor who comes from Mongolia. Most of his monsters in his Armored Division are mutated versions of armored animals. He wields an oversized spiked mace in one hand and practices dark magic. Pronounces Destron as "Deeestron". He frames scientist Joji Yuki for treason, fearing his position in Destron is in jeopardy, creating a rival in Riderman. Marshal Yoroi became Zariganna in his final battle against Kamen Rider V3. After being defeated by Kamen Rider V3 and despite surviving the encounter, Zariganna was destroyed by the Great Leader of Destron for failing. In Kamen Rider Spirits, he's restored in a new Crab Inhumanoid body and seeks to eliminate his former rival Riderman. He was ultimately destroyed by Riderman's Machine Gun Arm.
Special guest characters from ''[Kamen Rider]''
- Takeshi Hongō/Kamen Rider 1
- Hayato Ichimonji/Kamen Rider 2
- Colonel Zol
- Doctor Shinigami
- Ambassador Hell
- General Black
Episodes
- Rider No. 3: His Name is V3!
- Last Testament of the Double Riders
- The Execution of V3
- V3's 26 Secrets!?
- Snake-Man with a Machine Gun!
- Enter, Hammer-Jellyfish! V3 Unleash Your Killing Technique!!
- The Fury of Rider V3's Special Training
- Watch Out, V3! Beware the Terrifying Buzzsaw
- What is the Destron Hell Squad!?
- Secret of the Double Typhoon
- The Claws of Evil Reach Out for V3!!
- Junko Becomes a Mutant's Bride?!
- Terrifying Commandant: Doktor G!!
- Secret Memento of the Double Riders
- Rider V3's Deadly Weakness!!
- The Missile-Carrying Gecko Inhumanoid!
- The Devil Spray is the Reaper's Weapon
- V3, Beware the Evil Traitor!
- Blowfish-Apache's Operation Torpedo!!
- Destron's Shikoku Conquest Operation
- The Double Riders Live
- Camp of Terror! Mystery of the Underground Canal
- Terror! Vampire From the Graveyard
- Mysterious! Cockroach Manor!!
- Mysterious!! The Destron Ranger Corps
- Inhumanoid Heater-Cicada's Mummy Operation!!
- Zol, Death, Hell & Black Rise from the Grave
- The Five Commandants' All-Out Attack!!
- Doktor G's Final Challenge!
- Doktor G! The True Form of Evil is...?
- Enter, Baron Tusk: Commandant of Curses!!
- Spectre of Onibi Swamp: Rider Scouts Annihilated!?
- V3 in Danger! Riders One and Two Return!!
- Critical Moment! Baron Tusk vs. The Three Riders!!
- Baron Tusk's Final Transformation
- The Winged Corps: Demons of the Sky
- Mysterious Temple: Curse of the Musasabi Clan!
- Lone V3 and Cub: Deadly Skydiving!
- Terror of the Carnivorous Fauna!!
- Sudden Death! V3 Mach Kick!!
- Oh! People Are Melting! Enter, Marshal Armor
- The Snail-Man's Human Experiments!
- Friend of Foe? The Mysterious Riderman
- V3 Versus Riderman
- Destron's Christmas Present
- Riderman, Where Will You Go?
- Ambush! The Destron Leader!!
- Look! The Face of the Destron Leader!!
- A Gunshot Rings Out! Shiro Kazami Falls!!
- A Little Friendship
- You are Kamen Rider 4!!
- The Last Day of Destron
Movies
- 1973: Kamen Rider V3: A movie version of episode 2.
- 1973: Kamen Rider V3 vs. Destron Mutants
S.I.C. Hero Saga
Published in Monthly Hobby Japan magazine from May to August 2003, the S.I.C. Hero Saga story Masked Rider V3 & Riderman: Riderman Another After featured an alternate history of Riderman's creation. It featured the new character called the Destron Rider.;Chapter titles
- God Station
- Attachment
- Destron Rider
- Jōji Yūki
Manga
Kamen Rider The Next
As of 2007, a reimagined Kamen Rider V3 appears in Kamen Rider The Next, a movie loosely based on the TV series, following the reboot of the franchise started with the 2005 movie Kamen Rider The First.Cast
- Hiroshi Miyauchi as Shiro Kazami
- Akiji Kobayashi as Tōbei Tachibana
- Hizuru Ono as Junko Tama
- Hideki Kawaguchi as Shigeru Tama
- Takehisa Yamaguchi as Joji Yuki
- Jōtarō Senba as Doktor G
- Eiji Gō as Baron Kiba
- Sachio Fujino as Archbishop Tsubasa
- Bunya Nakamura as Marshal Yoroi
- Ken Kawashima as Ken Sakuma
- Gorō Naya as The Great Leader of Destron
- Shinji Nakae as Narrator
Songs
- "Tatakae! Kamen Rider V3"
- *Lyrics: Shotaro Ishinomori
- *Composer: Shunsuke Kikuchi
- *Vocals: Hiroshi Miyauchi and The Swingers
- "Shōnen Kamen Rider Tai no Uta"
- *Lyrics: Saburo Yatsude
- *Composer: Shunsuke Kikuchi
- *Vocals: Ichirou Mizuki and the
- *Composer: Shunsuke Kikuchi
- *Vocals: Masato Shimon and the Columbia Yurikago-Kai
- *Episodes: 43-52