Hero

A hero (masculine or gender-neutral) or heroine (feminine) (Ancient Greek: ἥρως, hḗrōs) is a person or main character of a literary work who, in the face of danger, combats adversity through impressive feats of ingenuity, bravery or strength, often sacrificing his or her own personal concerns for some greater good.

The concept of the hero was first founded in classical literature. It is the main or revered character in heroic epic poetry celebrated through ancient legends of a people; often striving for military conquest and living by a continually flawed personal honor code. The definition of a hero has changed throughout time, and the Merriam Webster dictionary defines a hero as "a person who is admired for great or brave acts or fine qualities". Examples of heroes range from mythological figures, such as Gilgamesh, Achilles and Iphigenia, to historical figures, such as Joan of Arc and Gandhi, to modern societal heroes like Rosa Parks.

Etymology

The word hero comes from the Greek ἥρως (hērōs), "hero, warrior", particularly one such as Heracles with divine ancestry or later given divine honors. (literally "protector" or "defender") Before the decipherment of Linear B the original form of the word was assumed to be *ἥρωϝ-, hērōw-; R. S. P. Beekes has proposed a Pre-Greek origin.

Kamen Rider

Kamen Rider (仮面ライダー, Kamen Raidā, Masked Rider) is a tokusatsu superhero television series and weekly science fiction manga created by manga artist Shotaro Ishinomori. It debuted on television on April 3, 1971, and ran until February 10, 1973, airing on the Mainichi Broadcasting System and NET TV (now TV Asahi). The manga adaptation was also featured in Shōnen Magazine around the same period. The series has evolved into a franchise with many subsequent annual iterations. The cultural impact of the series in Japan resulted in astronomer Akimasa Nakamura naming two minor planets in honor of the series: 12408 Fujioka, after actor Hiroshi Fujioka, known for his portrayal of Takeshi Hongo/Kamen Rider 1, and 12796 Kamenrider, after the series itself.

Story

The series takes place in a world plagued by Shocker, a mysterious world-wide terrorist organization. To further its plans for world domination, Shocker recruited its agents through kidnapping, turning their victims into mutant cyborgs and, ultimately, brainwashing them. However, one victim named Takeshi Hongo escaped just before the final brainwashing. With his sanity and moral conscience intact, Hongo battled Shocker's minions as the grasshopper-themed altered human (改造人間, kaizō ningen) superhero Kamen Rider. Another victim of the altered human process, freelance photographer Hayato Ichimonji, became Kamen Rider 2 after Kamen Rider, who renamed himself as "Kamen Rider 1", saved him from Shocker's brainwashing. Assisted by motorcycle race team manager Tobei Tachibana and FBI agent Kazuya Taki, the Kamen Riders fought in both solo and partnered missions against Shocker and its successor organization, Gel-Shocker.