Podcast
Righteous Kicks
Hosted by Iori Kusano and Brandon O'Brien · EN
Righteous Kicks is a podcast hosted by Iori Kusano and Brandon O’Brien, two science fiction writers determined to geek out about Kamen Rider, a Japanese science fiction television mega franchise. In each episode, Iori and Brandon ramble at length about the good, the bad, and the absolutely silly parts of a show about men in spandex bodysuits who kick evildoers to death in abandoned quarries until they explode. Now, shall we begin the experiment?
8episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
733. Kamen Rider Black Sun (2022-) — Righteous Kicks #9
Apr 5, 202301:16:43Tap to summarizeGovernment experimentation, political death-cults, and 80s fashion, oh my! Brandon O’Brien and Iori Kusano are joined by cult expert Sarah Hightower to discuss Kamen Rider Black Sun, and its touchstones to both the history of Japanese politics and modern-day marginalizations! Thanks for listening. We hope you enjoy the episode! Show Notes: Send us your comments, questions, and suggestions! Kamen Rider: Black Sun (2022-)(IMDb) Sarah’s Stuff: Twitter Patreon If you have a question you’d like us to answer, feel free to shoot us a message on our contact page. Our new intro and outro music comes from Holy Mole. You can support his work at patreon.com/holymole. See you later, navigator!
Transcribe →437. The State of Kamen Rider 2021 — Righteous Kicks #8
Sep 3, 202100:44:40Tap to summarizeStreaming services, really awesome toys, and new shows, oh my! Brandon O’Brien and Iori Kusano strap in for a wide-reaching conversation about the state of Kamen Rider in 2021! Together, they talk about new announcements from Toei, the struggles of being an international fan, fansubs and conflict, and so much more! Thanks for listening. We hope you enjoy the episode! Show Notes: Send us your comments, questions, and suggestions! If you have a question you’d like us to answer, feel free to shoot us a message on our contact page. Our new intro and outro music comes from Holy Mole. You can support his work at patreon.com/holymole. See you later, navigator!
Transcribe →426. Kamen Rider Fourze (Ep. 17-32) — Righteous Kicks #6
May 25, 202100:55:46Tap to summarizeHighschool shenanigans, friends inside satellites, and secret identities, oh my! Righteous Kicks is back! Brandon O’Brien and Iori Kusano put on their spandex bodysuits and head to even more abandoned quarries to kick evildoers until they explode in their continuation of Kamen Rider Fourze (Ep. 17-32)! Together, they talk about the show’s progression, the wild world of Japanese high schools, what it means have a secret identity in a school with a Kamen Rider club, favorite characters and storylines, and so much more! As always, you have homework for next time: Episodes 33-48! These may be streaming on one of your preferred platforms. Otherwise, check out toku.fun or do a quick Google search. They’re easy enough to find outside of Japan! Thanks for listening. We hope you enjoy the episode! Show Notes: Send us your comments, questions, and suggestions!Kamen Rider Fourze on the Kamen Rider WikiFourze at KRDL.moe If you have a question you’d like us to answer, feel free to shoot us a message on our contact page. Our new intro and outro music comes from Holy Mole. You can support his work at patreon.com/holymole. See you later, navigator!
Transcribe →Righteous Kicks #5: Kamen Rider Fourze, Episodes 1-16
Sep 30, 201901:17:30Tap to summarizeWelcome to Righteous Kicks — the podcast where two science fiction writers geek out about men in spandex bodysuits who kick evildoers to death in abandoned quarries until they explode! This month, because you all voted for it, Iori and Brandon begin Kamen Rider Fourze! Deep space and high school drama collide! We note that this is essentially every American teen movie if they were all partially set on the moon, we have intense feelings about all of these silly teenagers, and we realize that the monster metaphors here are actually pretty dark for a show about a boy who just wants to be friends. Plus, we briefly discuss the upcoming Reiwa Era series, Kamen Rider Zero-One — the first series to have a female Rider in the main roster?! Next time: we continue with episodes 17 to 32 of Fourze! Who is that man with a meteor for a head doing kung fu? What are the villains’ master plans? And will Gentarou actually befriend everyone at school? Be Transformed, and Stay Righteous! Show Notes: Kamen Rider Zero-One on the Kamen Rider Wiki Kamen Rider Fourze on the Kamen Rider Wiki Gentarou demonstates the best reason to befriend someone Fourze at KRDL.moe If you have a question you’d like us to answer, feel free to shoot us a message on our contact page or email Righteous Kicks at righteouskickscast @ [gmail.com]. You can also find the hosts on twitter: Brandon O’Brien and Iori Kusano. The intro and outro music for Righteous Kicks is ‘Kamen Rider Love Song’ by Berserk, which has been slightly modified to include sound effects and for length purposes.
Transcribe →Righteous Kicks #4: Kamen Rider Drive, Episodes 33-48
Jun 21, 201900:59:30Tap to summarizeWelcome to Righteous Kicks — the podcast where two science fiction writers geek out about men in spandex bodysuits who kick evildoers to death in abandoned quarries until they explode! This month, Iori and Brandon wrap up the final episodes of Kamen Rider Drive! Heroes and villains resurrect from the grave, old cases are finally solved, Gou’s worst fears are finally realized, Iori delights in the reappearance of the fake-dating trope, Medic takes care of a dog, and Chase even finally gets his driver’s license. Now, it’s time for a new series — and we’re putting the choice in your hands! Which interests you more, based on very little information: Kamen Rider Kiva, which has ~vampires!~, or Kamen Rider Fourze, which is all about ~space!~? To vote in the poll, go to What Should Righteous Kicks Watch Next?! Be Transformed, and Stay Righteous! Show Notes: Kamen Rider Drive on the Kamen Rider Wiki Chase is really proud to get his driver’s license, everyone Tomari’s response to being asked if he’s in love is failing to drink water Drive at KRDL.moe If you have a question you’d like us to answer, feel free to shoot us a message on our contact page or email Righteous Kicks at righteouskickscast @ [gmail.com]. You can also find the hosts on twitter: Brandon O’Brien and Iori Kusano. The intro and outro music for Righteous Kicks comes from “Shinigami” by XTaKeRuX (CC BY 4.0), which has been slightly modified to include sound effects and for length purposes.
Transcribe →Righteous Kicks #3 – Kamen Rider Drive, Episodes 17-32
Apr 27, 201901:14:30Tap to summarizeWelcome to Righteous Kicks — the podcast where two science fiction writers geek out about men in spandex bodysuits who kick evildoers to death in abandoned quarries until they explode! This month, Iori and Brandon discuss the latest developments of the middle batch of Kamen Rider Drive. Heroes and villains change allegiances, Shinnosuke learns something curious about his cop father, corruption slithers into the police force, the show’s only OTP reveals itself briefly, and Otta Genpachiro is finally cured of his pesky difficulty pronouncing the word ‘Roidmude’. (Although we don’t blame him.) Next time, we finally close out Drive with its final sixteen episodes. Will the show respond to its latest tragedy by finally making Shijima Kiriko a Rider? We still hold out hope… Be Transformed, and Stay Righteous! Show Notes: Kamen Rider Drive on the Kamen Rider Wiki a very short video of Harley Hendrickson telling Krim Steinbelt to shut up Drive at KRDL.moe If you have a question you’d like us to answer, feel free to shoot us a message on our contact page or email Righteous Kicks at righteouskickscast @ [gmail.com]. You can also find the hosts on twitter: Brandon O’Brien and Iori Kusano. The intro and outro music for Righteous Kicks comes from “Shinigami” by XTaKeRuX (CC BY 4.0), which has been slightly modified to include sound effects and for length purposes.
Transcribe →Righteous Kicks #2 – Kamen Rider Drive, Episodes 1-16
Mar 31, 201901:23:27Tap to summarizeWelcome to Righteous Kicks — the podcast where two science fiction writers geek out about men in spandex bodysuits who kick evildoers to death in abandoned quarries until they explode! This month, Iori and Brandon talk about the first sixteen episodes of Kamen Rider Drive, the only hero in the franchise with the word ‘Rider’ in its name who never rides a bike once. We snicker about toy cars, constantly insist that Shijima Kiriko should have been the heroine the whole time, and muse on the fact that sometimes the literal monsters aren’t the actual monsters. Also, Iori teaches Brandon that sometimes fansubbers make changes to translation for the audience’s own good. Next time: we continue with episodes 17 to 32 of Drive! So many mysteries yet to solve, at even faster speeds… Be Transformed, and Stay Righteous! Show Notes: Kamen Rider Drive on the Kamen Rider Wiki a .gif from Episode 1 Drive at KRDL.moe If you have a question you’d like us to answer, feel free to shoot us a message on our contact page or email Righteous Kicks at righteouskickscast @ [gmail.com]. You can also find the hosts on twitter: Brandon O’Brien and Iori Kusano. The intro and outro music for Righteous Kicks comes from “Shinigami” by XTaKeRuX (CC BY 4.0), which has been slightly modified to include sound effects and for length purposes.
Transcribe →Righteous Kicks #1 – Introductions
Feb 22, 201900:35:08Tap to summarizeWelcome to the first episode of Righteous Kicks — the podcast where two science fiction writers geek out about men in spandex bodysuits who kick evildoers to death in abandoned quarries until they explode. Here, we plan to ramble at length about the good, the bad, and the absolutely silly parts of the Japanese science fiction television franchise, Kamen Rider. Hopefully, we’ll introduce you to a series you’ll love to watch. For our introductory episode, Iori Kusano and Brandon O’Brien give a brief overview of Kamen Rider‘s beginnings, their introductions to the franchise, their favourite elements of the series they’ve seen so far, and what they look forward to discussing in future episodes. Next episode: we dive into the first 16 episodes of Kamen Rider Drive, the only Rider who gets a car instead of a motorcycle. He gets a lot of cars, in fact. Sports cars that talk. Toy cars that fight. Technically, his suit is a car… it’s wild. Be Transformed, and Stay Righteous! Show Notes: Kamen Rider on Wikipedia and the Kamen Rider Wiki A .gif from the Iron Chef episode of Kamen Rider Kabuto The Kamen Rider Guide Kamen Rider Drive on the Kamen Rider Wiki Watch Kamen Rider fansubs at KRDL.moe
Transcribe →