Fantasia ’25: Garo: Taiga

This is sort of the Tokusatsu (Japanese genre-action series) analog to Mustafa: The Lion King. In the original Garo tv series. Taiga Seijima had already been killed by the student who betrayed him, leaving behind his son Kouga to succeed him as a Makai Knight—the mystical warriors who bravely battle the so-called “horrors,” or demons that have assumed human bodies. However, that fateful day will not be today. During this prequel, Taiga Seijima is still young, cocky, and very much alive. To celebrate the franchise’s 20^th anniversary, series creator Keita Amemiya rewinds back to the senior Seijima’s early days (which look very much like the current day) in Amemiya’s prequel feature Garo: Taiga, which had its world premiere at this year’s Fantasia International Film Festival.

Sure, the basic concept of brotherhood of secret warriors sworn to protect the world from evil supernatural forces maybe sounds a little familiar, but Amemiya has been doing this for twenty years now. Before that, he created the Zeiram franchise and made significant contributions to Kamen Rider, so he knows Tokusatsu.

At this point, Seijima and his talking skull ring are tearing it up as horror hunters, but their next case (after the prologue) will be much more difficult. Evidently, a seriously powerful horror blew into town, on a mission. “Snake Way” intends to consume the four “Sacred Beasts” and take their powers, even though a horror ordinarily cannot gobble up elemental gods. Yet, they can swallow up humans. Inconveniently, Byakko, the wind deity, has a habit of breaking out of his mystical safety-deposit box to enjoy the simple joys of assuming human form.

As a prequel, Garo: Taiga is relatively accessible to newcomers, but it helps to have an appreciation of the Tokusatsu aesthetic. Basically, it is a cut above the non-Shin theatrical Ultraman movies that traditionally conclude each season. It is undeniably cheesy to watch Taiga strut through the city in his big hair and long white Adam Ant-ish duster, but it is a polished cheese.

Indeed, Shoichiro Kitada has the right blend of corniness and righteous badness as Seijima. Likewise, Toshiko Seko is fabulously flamboyant and shamelessly dastardly as Snake’s Way. Plus, Kazuki Namioka has some surprisingly endearing moments as the mischievous Byakko.

Garo: Taiga is flashy and fun. It is definitely a throwback, but Seto and company embrace the madness. Most importantly, a great deal of skill and experience went into the supercharged martial arts and swordplay sequences. Recommended for fans and anyone in the mood for outlandish action, Garo: Taiga had its world premiere at this year’s Fantasia.