Kamen Rider V3

Kamen Rider V3 (仮面ライダーV3) is the second entry of the 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 on NET from February 17, 1973, to February 9, 1974, with a total of 52 episodes.

Every episode of Kamen Rider V3 begins with a statement: "Kamen Rider V3, Shiro Kazami, is an altered human. Mortally wounded by Destron, he is rebuilt by Kamen Riders 1 and 2, reborn as Kamen Rider V3."

Plot
Shiro Kazami accidentally witnesses a murder by the evil organization Destron, making him their next target. In their first attempt, they planted a bomb pebble into his coffee, but the attempt was foiled when Shiro's sister, Yukiko, surprised him, causing him to spill his coffee. In their second attempt, they attacked him while practicing motorcycle racing with Tobei Tachibana. In their third attempt, a Destron soldier, disguised as a doctor, tried to put a poison shot in Shiro, while he was being transported to the hospital (after Destron's second attempt), but Shirou regains consciousness and kills the soldier.

Meanwhile, a young woman named Junko Tama stumbled upon Destron's base. Suddenly, she was attacked by Destron. While trying to escape, she ran into Shiro, who was heading home on his motorcycle, but Shiro didn't see the Destron soldiers. Surprised, Junko fainted and Shiro took her home. While Junko was being taken care of by Shirou's family, Shiro reported her story to the police. When he returned home, he found his family being murdered by the Hasami Jaguar, a jaguar monster with blades for hands. Hasami Jaguar then prepares to kill Junko and Shirou, but is stopped by Shiro's high school teacher, Takeshi Hongo, who transformed into Kamen Rider 1. Shortly after he drove off the Destron forces, Kamen Rider 2 shows up, but too late.

A vengeance-fueled Shiro asked the Riders to turn him into a cyborg, but the Riders refused, explaining to Shiro what would happen if he did get turned into a cyborg: he wouldn't be able to live up to his family. Then the Riders asked Junko for the location of the Destron base she stumbled upon earlier. The next day, the Riders infiltrate the base, only to find no one inside until they heard the voice of their old foe The Great Leader Of Gel-Shocker who revealed that the Gel Shocker Leader was just one of his forms.

To make matters worse he attempted to kill the Double Riders with the Cyborg Disruptor Ray, Until Shirou shows up and saves their lives, but gets injured in the process. The Riders had no choice but to turn Shiro into a cyborg. When the Riders were attacked, and almost killed, by Kame Bazooka, Shiro shows up as Kamen Rider V3. Now, Shiro uses his new power to protect mankind against Destron.

Allies

 * Tatsuji Kazami
 * Aya Kazami
 * Yukiko Kazami
 * Tobei Tachibana
 * Junko Tama
 * Shigeru Tama
 * The Boys' Kamen Rider Squad
 * Ken Sakuma
 * Kamen Riders

Destron

 * Great Leader of Destron
 * Doktor G/ Laser
 * Baron Kiba/Vampiric Mammoth
 * Archbishop Tsubasa/Zombie Bat
 * Marshal Yoroi/Zariganna
 * Colonel Zol
 * General Black
 * Doctor Shinigami
 * Ambassador Hell

Cast

 * Shiro Kazami (風見 志郎): Hiroshi Miyauchi (宮内　洋)
 * Tobei Tachibana (立花 藤兵衛): Akiji Kobayashi (小林 昭二)
 * Junko Tama (珠 純子): Hizuru Ono (小野 ひずる)
 * Shigeru Tama (珠 シゲル): Hideki Kawaguchi (川口 英樹)
 * Joji Yuki (結城 丈二): Takehisa Yamaguchi (山口 豪久) (Played as Satoru Yamaguchi (山口 暁))
 * Doktor G (ドクトルＧ): Jotaro Senba (千波 丈太郎)
 * Baron Kiba (キバ男爵): Eiji Go (郷 鍈治)
 * Archbishop Tsubasa (ツバサ大僧正): Sachio Fujino (富士乃 幸雄)
 * Marshal Yoroi (ヨロイ元帥): Bunya Nakamura (中村 文弥)
 * Ken Sakuma (佐久間 ケン): Ken Kawashima (川島 健)
 * Great Leader of Destron (デストロン首領): Goro Naya (納谷 悟郎)
 * Narrator (ナレーター): Shinji Nakae (中江 真司)

Suit actors

 * Kamen Rider V3 (main), Kamen Rider #1: Tetsuya Nakayashiki
 * Kamen Rider V3 (episodes 1-2 only), Riderman (stunts): Hiroshi Nakamura
 * Riderman: Akatsuki Yamaguchi
 * Riderman (stunts): Hiroo Kawarazaki
 * Riderman (stunts): Keisuke Chiyoda
 * Kamen Rider #1, Riderman (stunts), Monsters: Kazuo Niibori
 * Monsters (Squid Fire et al.): Masaru Okada

Songs

 * Opening theme
 * "Tatakae! Kamen Rider V3" (斗え！仮面ライダーV3)
 * Lyrics: Shotaro Ishinomori
 * Composer: Shunsuke Kikuchi
 * Vocals: Hiroshi Miyauchi and The Swingers (ザ・スウィンガーズ)


 * Ending theme
 * "Shonen Kamen Rider Tai no Uta" (少年仮面ライダー隊の歌)
 * Lyrics: Saburo Yatsude (八手 三郎)
 * Composer: Shunsuke Kikuchi
 * Vocals: Ichiro Mizuki and the Columbia Yurikago-Kai (コロムビアゆりかご会)
 * Episodes: 1-42


 * "Hashire Hurricane" (走れハリケーン)
 * Lyrics: Sukeo Nōmi (能見 佐雄)
 * Composer: Shunsuke Kikuchi
 * Vocals: Masato Shimon and the Columbia Yurikago-Kai
 * Episodes: 43-52

Manga
A manga adaptation was made by Mitsuru Sugaya during the run of the series.

S.I.C. Hero Saga
Published in Monthly Hobby Japan magazine from May to August 2003, the S.I.C. Hero Saga story Masked Rider V3 & Riderman: Riderman Another After featured an alternate history of Riderman's creation. It featured the new character called the Destron Rider (デストロンライダー).


 * Chapter titles
 * 1) God Station (神ステーション)
 * 2) Attachment (アタッチメント)
 * 3) Destron Rider (デストロンライダー)
 * 4) Joji Yuki (結城丈二)

Kamen Rider The Next
As of 2007, a reimagined Kamen Rider V3 appears in Kamen Rider The Next, a movie loosely based on the TV series, following the reboot of the franchise started with 2005 movie Kamen Rider The First.