Kyodain
By Jeffrey Couto

Introduction

I had never heard of the tokusatsu show Kyodain until a couple of years ago, when one of my friends showed me a picture of the main characters. Many months later I heard several comments from tokusatsu fans about it and how it was one of the weirdest/strangest Japanese shows they have ever seen. The one thing that everyone seemed to bring up was the editing, which apparently was all over the place (or so I gathered from the comments I heard/read). Everything that I heard from my fellow fans sparked my interest in the show for some reason, which brings us to this review. I must admit that the editing in the program is some of the craziest I've ever seen, but I think that it actually adds to what is already a very strange hero show.

The Story

The Robot Army Corps from planet Dada have invaded the Earth and kidnapped Dr.Hayami and two of his three sons Jouji & Ryuji. A year after the kidnapping of Dr.Hayami the Robot Army Corps start a new offensive against Japan and its newly created Earth Defense Force which cannot do anything to stop the machines' progress in the battlefield. However when all seems lost an unidentified spaceship lands in Japan carrying two mysterious robots, who identify themselves as Sky Zero and Ground Zero. Shortly after arriving the two metal brothers manage to not only stop the current attack, but also to destroy the general in charge of this force.

It is not till after this first battle that we come to learn that Sky Zero and Ground Zero are in fact programmed with the individual characteristics of Kenji's older brothers Jouji & Ryuji. These robots were created by Dr.Hayami to watch over his youngest son Kenji and to make sure that the Earth is protected from the Robot Army Corps. Soon Sky Zero and Ground Zero along with their robot helper Gombess become allies of the Earth Forces and quickly become the planet's last hope against the invaders.

My Opinion

Wow! I don't think I have ever been as amazed as I was after watching Kyodain! This show will really challenge your senses and make you wonder how someone could even envision such a production. I really don't even know where to start describing this show as there are so many things I would love to write more about.

Ok, let's start with the main characters of Sky Zero and Ground Zero. Their costumes are actually really neat with Sky Zero's having a jet theme and Ground Zero having a tank/car hybrid theme. Besides their regular forms they can also transform into vehicles with Sky Zero becoming a giant jet/missile and Ground Zero becoming a giant car/tank. I would like to point out that while they are in their transformed state their mouths are animated (in a puppet-like fashion), which looks just as weird as you might be thinking.

One thing that really grabbed me about the two metal brothers is that when things get rough they can combine their powers to increase their individual strengths. The reason this amazed me is because when they power up their energy (according to an on-screen graphic and a very excited narrator) it increases by a factor of 100,000,000,000!!!! When I saw this happen in episode two I could not believe what I was seeing. Come to think of it while I was watching the video I could not believe most of what was happening on the screen.

The Kyodain Brother's enemies, the Robot Army Corps are some of the most ridiculous I have ever seen on any hero program from any country.  They are made up of various robots, which include the Main Generals/Robot Enemy of the week and their foot soldiers. The main robots featured every week seem to be based on various real world vehicles and objects like bazookas & tanks and typically at the end of each episode they transform into whatever it is that they are based on which to fight Kyodain.

The foot soldiers were probably my favorite part of this show as they are impossibly ridiculous! First of all they can't seem to run or walk like most evil henchmen, they either assemble themselves when they arrive at their target location or (and my favorite!) they walk into a scene while moving their hands straight up into the air and alternating each one while going "kai", "kai", "kai". I can't even begin to describe how ridiculous this looks, which is why I will be posting a video clip shortly to this review so that everyone can see what it is that I am describing. This only gets better when you see how they edit it.

The editing in this program is what I think really makes it a memorable tokusatsu show. Characters go back and forth in the same scene for no reason, henchmen appear out of nowhere and the fight sequences are mixed up together in a seemingly random fashion, which accomplish a very dizzying effect onscreen.

Conclusion

Kyodain is not a show for everyone, especially people who get dizzy when they watch movies like the Blair Witch project or play games like Doom. Kyodain is an older program that lacks a lot of polish and has several rough spots, but if you love older tokusatsu special effects or just want to see something very different I highly recommend it. The action scenes are actually pretty long (at least in the first round of episodes) and feature some pretty exciting sequences, which many fans are sure to appreciate.

I really liked Kyodain and hope that those of you who pick it up or have a chance to see it like it as much as I did.

Jeffrey Couto