, also referred to as or (after the main character), is a Japanese

tokusatsu is a Japanese term for live action film or television drama that makes heavy use of practical special effects. ''Tokusatsu'' entertainment mainly refers to science fiction, War film, war, fantasy, or Horror film, horror media featuring such te ...

television series created by

Shotaro Ishinomori was a Japanese manga artist who became an influential figure in manga, anime, and , creating several immensely popular long-running series such as ''Cyborg 009,'' the ''Super Sentai'' series (later adapted into the ''Power Rangers'' series), an ...

and the sixth program in the

Kamen Rider Series The , also known as ''Masked Rider Series'' (until Decade), is a Japanese superhero media franchise consisting of tokusatsu television programs, films, manga, and anime, created by manga artist Shotaro Ishinomori. ''Kamen Rider'' media genera ...

. The series was a co-production between Toei and

Ishinomori Productions is a Japanese production company that develops works created by, and also serves as the literary estate of manga artist Shotaro Ishinomori, headquartered in Yoyogi, Tokyo. Such works include ''009-1'', ''Kikaider'', ''Inazuman'', '' Ganbare!! Rob ...

. The series aired every Friday at 7:00 PM on

MBS MBS may refer for: People * Mohammed bin Salman (born 1985), crown prince and prime minister of Saudi Arabia * Mohan Bikram Singh (born 1935), Nepalese politician Places * MBS International Airport (IATA code: MBS), Freeland, Michigan, US * Mari ...

from October 5, 1979 to October 10, 1980. The 1979 series was intended as a revival of the original 1971 series of the same name, going back to the basic, essential themes established in that show.

Story

Doctor Keitarō Shido, an acclaimed scientist, has been kidnapped by the terrorist organization Neo-Shocker to exploit his expertise in robotics technology. Desperate to escape, he convinces Neo-Shocker's command to allow him to operate on an injured camper. Explaining that he can turn the camper, Hiroshi Tsukuba into a powerful Neo-Shocker warrior, they allow Doctor Shido to operate. However, he quickly turns the tables on them, transforming Hiroshi, not into a

kaijin is a Japanese media genre that focuses on stories involving giant monsters. The word ''kaiju'' can also refer to the giant monsters themselves, which are usually depicted attacking major cities and battling either the military or other monster ...

, but the powerful warrior Sky Rider, using his newfound abilities to combat the evil Neo-Shocker menace.

Characters

*: A gliding enthusiast caught in a conflict with Neo-Shocker after one of their agents murdered his friends. He ended up being caught and turned into a cyborg by both Keitaro and Neo-Shocker after he was mortally injured in an attempt to save Keitaro from Neo-Shocker, before he and the scientist managed to escape from their captors and use his newfound powers as to fight the terrorist group. *: A scientist targeted by Neo-Shocker who was responsible for Hiroshi becoming Sky Rider. To keep a low profile, having hang glided in his youth, Shido founded the Shido Hang Glide Club and last aided Sky Rider in disarming a Plus-Alpha Bomb before leaving the country to join the Anti-Neo-Shocker Committee. *: Shido's aide. *: A member of the Shido Hang Glide Club. *: A member of the Shido Hang Glide Club. *: A photojournalist who is looking for a good story, usually losing consciousness when he is about to stumble into a fight between Sky Rider and Neo-Shocker. *: A senior of Hiroshi's and a friend of Shido, Tani owns the Blanca Coffee Shop that serves as Sky Rider's new base of operations. Having lost his family to Neo-Shocker in the past, Tani is eager to help Hiroshi take the organization down. * * * *

Neo-Shocker

Shocker is once again reformed as the organization, playing a role in numerous disappearances and terrorist attacks against the Japanese government. Spreading their influence across the world, their goal is the genocide of about two thirds of the current human population on Earth with them as the dominant majority. Though the other branches are succeeding unopposed, only the Japanese branch is making no progress due to the interference of Sky Rider. * : A giant

dragon A dragon is a reptilian legendary creature that appears in the folklore of many cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depicted as ...

who is the leader of the Neo-Shocker organization. Destroyed in a bomb explosion by the combined efforts of all previous Kamen Riders. * : The first chief of Neo-Shocker's Japanese branch, armed with a cane. Eventually promoted, Monster underwent a modification into Yamorijin, a

gecko Geckos are small, mostly carnivorous lizards that have a wide distribution, found on every continent except Antarctica. Belonging to the infraorder Gekkota, geckos are found in warm climates throughout the world. They range from . Geckos ar ...

cyborg. Due to a recent failure he was presented with the red eye, which signals that if he fails for a final time he will be terminated. He was executed by Admiral Majin after he was defeated by Sky Rider's Sky Kick. He is revived by the Badan Empire in Kamen Rider Spirits vol. 8, kidnapping people in Sapporo. He was eventually destroyed by Kamen Rider ZX's Rider Spin Shot and crashed into Admiral Majin. * : The second and final chief of the Neo-Shocker organization. He was the only Neo-Shocker member with no kaijin form. He was executed by the Great Leader after being defeated by Kamen Rider #2, Kamen Rider Stronger and Sky Rider's triple kick. He is revived by the Badan Empire in Kamen Rider Spirits vol. 8, confronting Sky Rider in Mashu Lake, but is eventually destroyed by Sky Rider's Dragonfly Chute and crashed into Yamorijin. * : Gingaoh is the main antagonist in the ''Sky Rider'' movie, a mechanical alien invader that Neo-Shocker formed an alliance with. He was destroyed in his spaceship explosion. * :

Ant Ants are eusocial insects of the family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from vespoid wasp ancestors in the Cretaceous period. More than 13,800 of an estimated total of 22 ...

-like foot soldiers in black. * : Skull-masked elite guards who wield swords and crossbows. * Neo-Shocker Scientists: ** : A friend of General Monster. After General Monster died, he was sentenced to death by Admiral Majin and killed by Shibirayjin. ** : An authority on brain surgery. Killed by Kamen Rider Stronger's Electro Shock. ** : He repairs or scraps Ari Commands in a dock disguised as a pediatric clinic. ** :

Termite Termites are small insects that live in colonies and have distinct castes (eusocial) and feed on wood or other dead plant matter. Termites comprise the infraorder Isoptera, or alternatively the epifamily Termitoidae, within the order Blattode ...

-like scientists who assist in the conversion of humans into cyborgs.

Episodes

# (Original Airdate: October 5, 1979) # (Original Airdate: October 12, 1979) # (Original Airdate: October 19, 1979) # (Original Airdate: October 26, 1979) # (Original Airdate: November 2, 1979) # (Original Airdate: November 9, 1979) # (Original Airdate: November 16, 1979) # (Original Airdate: November 23, 1979) # (Original Airdate: November 30, 1979) # (Original Airdate: December 7, 1979) # (Original Airdate: December 14, 1979) # (Original Airdate: December 21, 1979) # (Original Airdate: December 28, 1979) # (Original Airdate: January 4, 1980) # (Original Airdate: January 11, 1980) # (Original Airdate: January 18, 1980) # (Original Airdate: January 25, 1980) # (Original Airdate: February 1, 1980) # (Original Airdate: February 8, 1980) # (Original Airdate: February 15, 1980) # (Original Airdate: February 22, 1980) # (Original Airdate: February 29, 1980) # (Original Airdate: March 7, 1980) # (Original Airdate: March 14, 1980) # (Original Airdate: March 21, 1980) # (Original Airdate: March 28, 1980) # (Original Airdate: April 4, 1980) # (Original Airdate: April 11, 1980) # (Original Airdate: April 18, 1980) # (Original Airdate: April 25, 1980) # (Original Airdate: May 2, 1980) # (Original Airdate: May 9, 1980) # (Original Airdate: May 16, 1980) # (Original Airdate: May 23, 1980) # (Original Airdate: May 30, 1980) # (Original Airdate: June 6, 1980) # (Original Airdate: June 13, 1980) # (Original Airdate: June 20, 1980) # (Original Airdate: June 27, 1980) # (Original Airdate: July 4, 1980) # (Original Airdate: July 11, 1980) # (Original Airdate: July 18, 1980) # (Original Airdate: July 25, 1980) # (Original Airdate: August 1, 1980) # (Original Airdate: August 8, 1980) # (Original Airdate: August 15, 1980) # (Original Airdate: August 22, 1980) # (Original Airdate: August 29, 1980) # (Original Airdate: September 5, 1980) # (Original Airdate: September 12, 1980) # (Original Airdate: September 19, 1980) # (Original Airdate: September 26, 1980) # (Original Airdate: October 3, 1980) # (Original Airdate: October 10, 1980)

Special

''Immortal Kamen Rider Special'' aired on September 8, 1979. Tobei Tachibana visits a Kamen Rider museum where he talks to some children about the Kamen Riders. Scenes from ''

Kamen Rider The , also known as ''Masked Rider Series'' (until Decade), is a Japanese superhero media franchise consisting of tokusatsu television programs, films, manga, and anime, created by manga artist Shotaro Ishinomori. ''Kamen Rider'' media generall ...

'', '' X'', ''

Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon (company), an American multinational technology c ...

'' and '' Stronger'' are shown. He's about to introduce a new Kamen Rider when some of the kids remind him that he forgot

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 o ...

. Clips from the movie ''Kamen Rider V3 vs. Destron Mutants'' are shown. After the movie clips, Tobei Tachibana introduces Sky Rider, with previews of ''New Kamen Rider''.

Movie

The Movie ''Eight Riders vs. Gingaoh'' (仮面ライダー 8人ライダーVS銀河王 Kamen Raidā: Hachi'nin Raidā Tai Gingaō) was released on March 15, 1980 and features Sky Rider teaming up with the previous 7 riders.

Cast

Hiroaki Murakami is a Japanese actor. He specializes in ''jidaigeki'' roles, and has also taken parts in ''tokusatsu'' and modern productions. Career Born in Rikuzentakata, Iwate Prefecture, he enrolled in Hosei University but withdrew when he successfully audi ...

as Hiroshi Tsukuba *

Kimiko Tanaka Kimiko is feminine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *Kimiko Burton, former San Francisco Public Defender *, professional tennis player * Kimiko Douglass-Ishizaka, German pianist and weightlifter * , Japanese swimmer * ...

as Midori Kanō * Naoko Fushimi as Michi Sugimura *

Kaori Tatsumi Kaori ( "scent/aroma, fabric/weave" and occasionally rendered "perfume", ) is a feminine Japanese name, Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *Kaori (voice actress) (born 1976), Japanese voice actress and singer *, musician ...

as Yumi Nozaki * Ryūmei Azuma as Imata Tonda *Mie Suzuki as Naoko Itō *

Sayako Eguchi Sayako (written: 清子 or 紗冶子) is a feminine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: * , a former princess of the Japanese Imperial Family, daughter and youngest child of Emperor Akihito * , Japanese television personali ...

as Aki Ozawa *

Jin Takase Jin is a toneless pinyin romanization of various Chinese names and words. These have also been romanized as Kin and Chin (Wade–Giles). "Jin" also occurs in Japanese and Korean. It may refer to: States Jìn 晉 * Jin (Chinese state) (晉國), ...

as Numa *

Kōji Shiratori Koji, Kōji, Kohji or Kouji may refer to: *Kōji (given name), a masculine Japanese given name *Kōji (Heian period) (康治), Japanese era, 1142–1144 *Kōji (Muromachi period) (弘治), Japanese era, 1555–1558 *Koji orange, a Japanese citrus ...

as Shigeru Kanō *

Tomaru Katsura The Tōmaru () is a Japanese list of chicken breeds, breed of long-crowing chicken. The crow may be sustained for some 25 seconds. It is one of four Japanese long-crowing breeds, the others being the Koeyoshi, the Kurokashiwa and the Tōtenkō. ...

as Kanji Yada *

Gorō Naya was a Japanese actor, voice actor, narrator and theatre director from Hakodate, Hokkaidō. He and his brother were two of seven children, and was a drop-out of the legal education division of Ritsumeikan University. He was connected to Theatre E ...

as The Great Leader * Shinzō Hotta as General Monster *

Yōsuke Naka Yōsuke, Yosuke, Yousuke or Yohsuke is a masculine Japanese name, Japanese given name. Possible writings Yōsuke can be written using different combinations of kanji characters. Here are some examples: *洋介, "ocean, mediate" *洋助, "ocean, ...

as Admiral Majin *

Takashi Tabata is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings The name Takashi can have multiple different meanings depending on which kanji is used to write it. Some possible writings of the name include: *江詩 - "estuary , inlet, poem" *隆 - "prospe ...

as Keitarō Shido *

Nobuo Tsukamoto Nobuo (written: , , , , , in hiragana or in katakana) is a masculine, Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese basketball player *Nobuo Fujita (1911–1997), Warrant Flying Officer of the Imperial Japanese Navy *, J ...

as Genjirō Tani *

Shinji Nakae , known by the stage name , was a Japanese actor, voice actor, and narrator from Kōtō, Tokyo. He graduated from Kamakura Gakuen Senior High School, and was affiliated with Aoni Production at the time of his death. He was married with fellow voi ...

as Narrator

Songs

;Opening themes * **Lyrics:

**Composition & Arrangement:

Shunsuke Kikuchi was a Japanese composer who was active from the early 1960s until 2017. He specialized in incidental music for media such as television and film. Kikuchi was regarded as one of Japan's most highly demanded film and TV composers, working princi ...

**Artist:

Ichirou Mizuki , better known by his stage name , was a Japanese singer, lyricist, composer, voice actor and actor best known for his work on theme songs for anime and tokusatsu. For over 50 years, he had recorded over 1,200 songs for Japanese film, televisio ...

and Kōrogi '73 **Episodes: 1-28 * **Lyrics: Shotaro Ishinomori **Composition & Arrangement: Shunsuke Kikuchi **Artist: Ichirou Mizuki **Episodes: 29-54 ;Ending themes * **Lyrics:

Saburō Yatsude is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Saburō can be written using different kanji characters and can mean: *三郎, "third son" *三朗, "three, bright" The name can also be written in hiragana or katakana. People with the name ...

**Composition & Arrangement: Shunsuke Kikuchi **Artist: Ichirou Mizuki and Kōrogi '73 **Episodes: 1-28 * **Lyrics: Saburō Yatsude **Composition & Arrangement: Shunsuke Kikuchi **Artist: Ichirou Mizuki and The Chirps **Episodes: 29-54

References

{{Kamen Rider 1970s Japanese television series 1980s Japanese television series 1979 Japanese television series debuts 1980 Japanese television series endings Skyrider Mainichi Broadcasting System original programming