English Dub Review: Tojima Wants to Be a Kamen Rider “Tojima Wants to Be a Kamen Rider!”

Overview (Spoilers Below):

Tanzaburo Tojima has always idolized Kamen Rider, to the point of wanting to be him.  He turns 40 this year…

Our Take:

We all have that one part of our childhoods where we wished to become like our favorite fictional heroes on television.  While that specific moment might be behind us for some, others are still willing to make that dream a reality, whatever means necessary.  One example of the latter is Tanzaburo Tojima, who was inspired to be an actual Kamen Rider after watching the show, despite being 40 years old.  Fortunately for him, his dream is about to come true upon witnessing a series of crimes committed by criminals inspired by the show’s fictional terrorist organization known as “Shocker”.  The person leading the charge is a gangster named Naoki, whose fascination with Shocker puts him on a dangerous path that results in his men attacking the festival.

The episode showcases that this series is part of an iconic “Kamen Rider” franchise, which involves a group of superheroes with insect motifs battling the Shocker organization.  However, instead of taking place in the same universe as the franchise, Tojima Wants to Be a Kamen Rider adopts a meta approach that celebrates the fans’ inspiration from Kamen Rider, particularly from Tojima and a woman who’s also eager to become a Kamen Rider.  Notably, it seems that it’ll also focus on the dangers of specific people’s lack of understanding of fiction versus reality, particularly the criminals copying the heinous actions of Shocker.  If that’s the case, then the first episode has shown that we’re in for an action-packed treat, particularly in terms of its animation style, well-paced plot, and Patrick Seitz’s commendable performance.  Additionally, this is my first exposure to the Kamen Rider brand, so we’ll see if future episodes can impress me well enough to consider myself a fan as well.