I’m going to level with you here, I’m not terribly knowledgeable when it comes to Japanese pop culture and watching this trailer for Shin Kamen Rider, I’m not terribly the wiser of what I am actually watching.
I’m happy to be schooled on what is apparently Japanese ‘tokusatsu’ but this is a motorcycle website so let’s stick to the two wheels…
That said, I wasn’t that much wiser about the mechanical wares on display either in this curious trailer showing a customised Honda with plenty of fast zooming, leaps and gear changes homage to classic Asian cinema.
OK, so we might need more information for some context but a little light research (erm, Wikipedia, please don’t judge…) reveals: “College student and motorcycle enthusiast Takeshi Hongo is abducted by the evil organization Shocker and converted into a cyborg as part of their plans for world domination. Before they can brainwash him to do their bidding, he escapes and uses his new enhanced abilities as Kamen Rider to wage a one-man war against Shocker”
So somewhere between Spiderman and Star Trek? OK I may be showing my ignorance here but either way, Shin Kamen is a throwback from a 1970s Shin Kamen Rider TV series, where motorcycles form a fairly significant part of the casting.
After numerous teasers and curious shots of said motorcycle - named Cyclone - it has taken some time for even the most die-hard of enthusiasts on various forums to work out exactly what it was thanks to its ostentatiously barmy, but also rather cool custom appearance that takes the ‘neo-retro’ term to a whole new level.
We now know there is a Honda lurking underneath and a bit of digging suggests this is actually a Honda CB650R, albeit in skeleton rather than skin.
There are seemingly two versions of this model, one with a funky quad-headlight front-end, while the dirt-orientation adds a round LED headlight more in-keeping with its donor.
Better still, the Cyclone can do more than just get Shin Kamen to his crime fighting scenes on time and in style… it also does its bit to retain law and order.
OK, I’m invested now… we look forward to the 2023 (?!) premiere date!
