4 Star

Alien Sci-Fi Superhero Sequel.

Guyver: Dark Hero is set one year after the first film, and this time it has had the full Steve Wang (Bill & Ted Face the Music, Drive) treatment as he co-wrote and directed, this now enhanced (and original) release from the new Toy Robot Blu-ray version. Expect plenty of monsters, blood and martial arts. So good I watched both versions back-to-back.

Sean Barker (David Hayter, X-Men, Watchmen (writer)) has wiped out the Kronos Corporation, and one year later it still haunts him and this causes the breakup with his girlfriend Mizky. Now he is drawn to Utah, and an archaeological dig, where there has been sightings of a ‘werewolf’ and strange cave paintings, that are very similar to those he draws in his sleep.

He hitches the hundreds of miles to Utah and gets out at a store, where he inquires about the dig site. Fortunately for him, he meets Cori Edwards (Kathy Christopherson, Kamen Rider: Dragon Knight (TV Series), Lucifer (TV Series)) the daughter of Marcus Edwards (Stuart Weiss, Dead Giveaway, Schlock) the dig supervisor. He shows her his etchings, and eventually she takes him to the dig site, and gets him into the cave labyrinth that holds the paintings and a lot more.

The reason he came out here is back, trying to find the werewolf. This time he brought a journalist, to get a scoop, but when Sean hears the screams he rushes in to get the ‘bear’ away from them. This arouses suspicions in one of the team, Atkins (Christopher Michael, New Jack City, The X-Files (TV Series)) who is a government agent. He is not the only one that is keeping a secret, as when Sean went up against the ‘bear’ as The Guyver, he discovered that he did not destroy all the Zoanoids (shape-shifting early humans, altered by aliens), in Los Angeles, they are all part of a global company.

The cave paintings depict monsters and alien craft, and the Zoanoids believe there is one somewhere near, so they can take over with the weapons inside.

It’s the Guyver against the rest, either in its original form or the enhanced form The Guyver: Dark Hero is a cracking jaunt into the ridiculous, as the high kicks and aerobatics come at a furious rate.

Guyver: Dark Hero is available on Blu-ray from Toy Robot/

SPECIAL FEATURES:

Three new audio commentaries including one with director Steve Wang
New interviews with producer/director Steve Wang, actors David Hayter, Kathy Christopherson, Screenwriter Nathan Long, Composer Les Claypool III and other members of the cast and crew
Behind-the-Scenes footage from the original shoot
Trailers
Photo Galleries including sketches