Masked Rider is an American adaptation of the Japanese television series Kamen Rider Black RX, the ninth in a line of series in the popular Kamen Rider Series franchise. It was produced by Saban and aired on FOX part of the Fox Kids program block from September 16, 1995 to August 31, 1996 and then in syndication from September 9, 1996 to September 1997.
The main title character of Masked Rider was featured on a 3-part Power Rangers episode, "A Friend in Need," one week before his own series debuted. The Rangers themselves were never mentioned in the Masked Rider television series, however, as Saban reformatted the series to sever links with Power Rangers, because the popularity of that series was declining at the time. The Rangers did, however, make a guest appearance in Masked Rider's short-lived comic book adaptation.
Like the early seasons of Power Rangers and VR Troopers, Masked Rider's battle and villain scenes were taken from Japanese stock footage – specifically Kamen Rider Black RX, (with a few exceptions, they'd occasionally have the American actors interact with the Japanese villain footage like with the episode "Exit Nafaria, Enter Barbaria", which seems to be filmed with American footage. Episodes also occasionally had Ferbus interact with Combat chopper and Magno (which were Japanese stock props) but also the two Japanese Kamen Rider movies Kamen Rider ZO and Kamen Rider J.
Story
The series began with the main character, Dex, escaping the Plague Patrol with a small group of Edenoites rebels, before leaving for Earth, the next target of his sinister uncle Count Dregon, who ruled Edenoi with an iron fist after displacing Dex's grandfather, King Lexian, who also gave Dex the Masked Rider powers (where the powers came from is a mystery, although apparently they have been in use for some time by Edenoi's champions). Arriving on Earth in a massive crater, Dex finds himself in the care of the Stewarts, a multiracial family consisting of a white father and daughter (named Hal and Molly respectively), an Asian wife (Barbara), and an African-American son (Albee). The addition of an extra Stewart was not noticed by anyone (although, according to Albee, he and Molly are adopted) in Leawood, the town where the series took place in. Dex defends the town as Masked Rider from Count Dregon and his vicious Insectovores.
Edenoi was mentioned in Power Rangers as the planet where Alpha 5 (and presumably the Alpha line of robots) was created, though not one single building or factory to be seen on the planet surface of Edenoi; it is largely assumed that Count Dregon's domination of the planet was absolute and rendered it a dying husk. Indeed, the original storyline saw Dex being dispatched to Earth by his grandfather as Edenoi was prepared to explode, ripping into an aspect of the Superman mythology. The scene in which Dex is given his powers by King Lexian (a scene which differs from the televised version) remains in the title sequence, possibly one of the few remaining aspects of the original pilot.
Dex's Masked Rider armor was also eventually given upgrades to change into "Masked Rider Super Gold," a gold-and-black variation equipped with a powerful laser rifle, the Ecto-Ray, and "Masked Rider Super Blue," a blue-and-grey variation with the power of liquified teleportation and a powerful saber, the Blue Saber.
Edenoites are descended from insects, not apes. Dex is not aware that humans did not evolve from bugs (as he discovered in an episode where he gives a report about how humans evolved from insects). Edenoites also possess telepathic abilities that are focused through a gem in the forehead, which can be hidden telepathically, though in times of stress can become visible. The gem is capable of focusing mental energy, as well as creating mental imagery that can be shared with others. Dex apparently possesses the knowledge needed to detoxify Leawood's rivers using solar-powered lasers.
Dex had a furry friend named Ferbus, a small bear/duck-like creature that followed him to Earth. Ferbus was kept hidden by Molly and Albee because Hal was allergic to fur. Ferbus is eventually revealed to the entire family during the course of the series.
Dex is a loquacious individual. In the first episode, Molly and Albee told him to speak like a regular person, and that he could learn how to do that by watching TV. Sadly, Dex misunderstood and spoke like a television show announcer.
