It has more detail than the "DX Ixa Belt" that was released at the time of broadcast, and it is definitely for "adults"! The props used in the filming at that time were based on the DX belt size and had fine paint added to the details, so this CSM is more "authentic" and I'm excited to think that we can deliver this to many users. Ixa (save mode) that Otoya transforms into is dressed like a knight in all white. It's very cool, and I like the design of the Ixa knuckles and Ixa belt.
I listened! They prepared a lot of material for me in the recording booth, so it was very helpful when I tried to reproduce the fine intonation. But it's difficult to speak the lines exactly as they were back then! It might be better to make the impression exactly the same as before, but I made some adjustments so that customers who have the product in their hands don't think, "Huh? He's bad at it" when they listen to Otoya's lines. This time, there was no video, only audio, so if I was too particular about speaking in the exact same way as back then, the expression would have been "thin". So rather than precisely reproducing the lines from back then, I tried to emphasize the intonation, exaggerating them in some cases, and expressing large, easy-to-understand emotions.
One line I remember well from back then is, "Two hours isn't enough, three hours, no, until late at night. Night lessons are more fun" (Episode 2). It's a morning show, who wants me to say something like that? (laughs). "Life is short, but the nights are long" (Episode 1) is also memorable. I also like the line he sang when Director Ishida (Hidenori) told him to "sing," "My performance is worth a billion dollars a song, I don't need fishing" (Episode 3). If you keep picking up lines like this from the beginning, there'll be no end to it (laughs).
One of the lines I improvised was when I told Yuri (played by Takahashi Yu) my phone number: "The last four digits are 0108 (Otoya), so it's really easy to understand" (Episode 5). I wasn't told "You can do whatever you want," but I did it anyway (laughs). The other staff members also encouraged me, like "Go for it, go for it," and they created that kind of environment, so I was able to do whatever I wanted. I also improvised when I called Jiro (played by Matsuda Kenji) "Puppy" (Episode 14), and when I transformed into Ikusa for the first time, I said "It's quite comfortable" (Episode 13), and then added "It feels good," which was a phrase that came to me spontaneously after watching the performance of the suit actor, Okamoto Jiro.
In episode 25, when he had his "fateful encounter" with Mayo (played by Saki Kagami), he ad-libbed the line, "The first time was a coincidence, the second was a miracle, the third was inevitable, the fourth was destiny..." This was a line that was spoken while he was walking, so he spoke quickly to fill in the gaps. He added all sorts of things to the lines that were in the script on set. The staff were laughing out loud, and he didn't think that he should not have said such things, so in a sense he just kept ad-libbing without reading the atmosphere.
When he says to Nago Keisuke (played by Kato Keisuke) from the past, "If we really fought, I think you'd be stronger. But you can't beat me" (episode 28), he adds, "Why?" on his own. Also, when Yuri, jealous of Maya, pulls his ear, he says, "Ouch! Ouch! Yes, it hurts. It hurts, even if you read it backwards, it hurts" (episode 28), which was also ad-libbed. If you read the script from back then, you'll understand right away, but I added so many lines that you'll think, "That's a lie." I just expressed whatever came to mind on set as I felt it.
The lines written by Toshiki Inoue (scriptwriter) were very lively, so it was easy for me to add words on the spot. In episode 29, when Jiro, Ramon, and Chikara asked me to "give them a hand," I replied, "Wait a minute. Monsters should solve their own monster problems," and I immediately thought of a weaker way to say it, "W-wait a minute! Wait a minute, please wait a minute," and changed the way I said it.
Otoya says a lot of good things, like "When you have swallowed your sadness and grown up, she will be there" (Episode 45) and "A man fights to protect what is important" (Episode 46). "From now on, do only what you really want to do. Listen to the voice in your heart" (Episode 18) is also good. I think it's great that Otoya treats everyone equally, regardless of whether they are adults or children. The only difference is that he gives more weight to women than men (laughs). The line "Every human being plays music in their heart. I want to protect that music" (Episode 35) also really hits home.
"The rain will stop soon" (episode 46), the line Otoya says in the pouring rain as he says goodbye to Yuri, is particularly unforgettable. It means that the stormy time Otoya has lived through will soon come to an end, and that Yuri will be freed from her sadness. There are many meanings embedded in those words. The series of scenes in which Otoya, nearing the end of his life, conveys his final words to Yuri, Jiro, and Maya, remains strongly in my mind as the "culmination of Otoya," which I worked so hard to create together with Director Ishida.
In the "Modern Story", Nago Ikusa holds the Ikusa Knuckle "horizontally", but in the "Past Story", Otoya holds it "vertically". In episode 14, he took a transformation pose while holding the Ikusa Knuckle in his hand, paying respect to Fujioka Hiroshi, who played Kamen Rider 1/Hongo Takeshi. So, if you pay close attention to Fujioka's movements, Otoya's transformation should look cool and Kamen Rider-like. I used to enjoy watching Kamen Riders who were active in the "Showa" era, such as Kamen Rider 1, 2, and V3, on video with my father, and Otoya himself is a man who lived in the era of 1986, or "Showa 61", so I think there will be no problem with Otoya Ikusa's transformation as long as it has the spirit of the "Showa" era.
If you buy this product and play with it, you too can become a "one in a thousand geniuses"! ... or so I guess (laughs). As Ikusa was active across two eras, it contains plenty of lines for both Nago from the modern era and Otoya from the past, so I hope you enjoy it to the fullest. It's a great item to have as a collection, but the best thing to do is put on the belt and take a video of yourself transforming!
© Ishimori Productions, Toei
