| “ | Did you really think you'd get away with it? That we weren't listening? | „ |
| ~ Strike taunting Torque for his ineptitude. |
| “ | Remember how Xaviax promised you the world if you helped him? No? But how about the other part? Do you remember what he promised you if you failed him? Well, you failed him. And Xaviax always keeps his promises. | „ |
| ~ Strike reminds Drew of Xaviax's promise after venting him. |
| “ | Kit... be careful. There are snakes in the grass. | „ |
| ~ JTC warning Kit about the traitor among the group shortly before being presumably vented once again in the novel. |
James "JTC" Trademore, also known as Kamen Rider Strike or Strike, is the secondary antagonist of the TV series Kamen Rider: Dragon Knight. He was a hacker and UFO specialist wanted by the whole US government that became General Xaviax's right-hand man in his plan for world domination and his primary enforcer.
He was portrayed by Scott Bailey.
Biography[]
Background[]
James Trademore once had a brother that was arrested and put in prison for a crime he didn't commit. While James believed that he should just accept his situation and do his time despite being innocent, his brother tried to escape multiple times, which landed him on life without parole.
Becoming a Rider[]
Some years later, James Trademore became a hacker wanted by the US government, when the feds finally managed to imprison him, he was met with General Xaviax, who helped him escape, allowing him to become Kamen Rider Strike and participate in his plans for world domination as his right-hand man. He was Xaviax's earliest known recruit and sometimes helped the general while recruiting other Kamen Riders, as seen when he appeared in front of Brad Barrett to show him the kind of power he would have if he also became a Rider.
Under the alias of JTC, James contacted Maya Young, an amateur journalist that was trying to investigate the mysterious disappearance of several people, not knowing that James was working for the man reponsible behind it. Knowing that Maya was close to Kit Taylor (Kamen Rider Dragon Knight) and therefore Len (Kamen Rider Wing Knight), James stayed close to Maya and pretended to help her as a way to obtain more information on what the rogue Riders were up to.
After gaining the trust of Maya and knowing more about Dragon Knight and Wing Knight, He quickly spreaded false information about them on anonymous internet websites, which causes their localization to be public. Later on, he informs Xaviax that Drew was planning to make an alliance with Brad Barrett, this makes Xaviax furious and orders Strike to vent both Drew and Brad in order to erase this fake alliance, and if possible, to try and get Dragon Knight on their side, thus starting a Rider Gathering.
2Worlds 1Heart[]
In the novel, multiple things are added onto JTC's backstory. First it is revealed that JTC did indeed had an older brother named 'Billy' who was accused of a brutal crime that he didn't commit, at first, James tried to help his brother, even trying to tell the cops to take him instead of Billy, however, due to being just a child at that time, he didn't do much more and eventually give up and told his brother to just accept his fate until he could finally be put on freedom. Sadly, this didn't work out, and his brother ended up in life without parole.
Later on, JTC is found on a mental hospital, having lost his marbels after what happenned to him and losing his memories, with him not having a way to make a new life now that he was trapped. He talks with Kit, Maya and Trent, with the latter saying that he was a broken shell after all due to what happened to his brother, hence the reason as to why he became so obsessed with power and being on the 'right' side of the game, so in that way, he doesn't end like his brother. Despite this, JTC heavily disagrees with the statement, with him admitting that he had this coming for the things he did and for his hipocrisy.
Eventually, JTC manages to overcome this situation and become a Rider once more, with him recovering all of his memories and having a neutral side on the conflict this time until his apparent demise at the hands of some clones made by the Trick Vent.
Personality[]
| “ | You can't beat Xaviax. You think I'm on his side cause I like him? He is the winner, the world will be his. If you stand against him, you won't be around much longer. Be smart. You're a survivor, man. Survive! | „ |
| ~ JTC explains to Danny why he joined Xaviax. |
True to the suit he wears, JTC is a snake, having no qualms with betraying the people who trusted him. Strike joined Xaviax not only because with the general he was given the ability to travel through mirrors but he also believed that Xaviax was on the winning side of the conflict, being fully aware that he sold his soul, but not caring as long as he can stand by Earth's new ruler. Despite his choice to side with Xaviax being seemingly a pragmatic one, James visibly takes great joy in fighting other Kamen Riders and even venting them, mocking Brad Barrett before venting him and laughing after doing the same to Drew Lansing.
Even in his young years as a hacker, he was shown to have the same arrogance as his current-self, with him not doubting in accepting Xaviax's offer just because it was convenient and safe for him. Later on, he shows to have an small concern for Danny Cho after he loss his brother, however, due to Xaviax's orders, James decided to not help Danny in his "revenge plan", something that cracked his "friendship" with him and resulted in him venting Danny, While JTC does express regret for venting Danny later, he says that "he shouldn't have vented a great fighter to save a wimp" like Kit Taylor, confirming that he doesn't regret losing Danny himself as a person but rather the great fighter he was during the conflict as a whole.
He is also shown to be an expert manipulator, something that even Xaviax is surprised of, one of his best manipulative plans was to film Kit's dad injured body to force him into arriving at the place where JTC, Danny and Albert were hiding, and when he reveals himself as a traitor to Kit and Maya, both were visibly shocked by the betrayal, since they genuinely eated all of JTC's lies, and when Maya tries to convince JTC to not work with Xaviax, he simply says that he is not interested in hearing her and that she wasn't his type of girl.
Thanks to his ability to lie and deceive others in an easy manner, he quickly turned into Xaviax's favorite Rider and Right-hand, stating that James was essentially a 'mini him'. There were times in which Xaviax would unironically refer to James as his son in some of his dialogues with other Riders (curiously, Xaviax also does this with Kit just to act more Affable in front of him), despite being so loyal to Xaviax, this is just a facade made by JTC, since he genuinely told Danny and Albert that he didn't liked Xaviax as a person, specially due to his cruel and selfish treatment towards his pawns (which is ironical, considering that JTC is just the same as him in that regard).
Strike is also known for openly disliking Dragon Knight and Wing Knight, with Xaviax himself confirming that if it wasn't for the fact that he needed to keep Kit alive for his plans, Strike would have already vent him long ago. In his final appearance as a Rider, he tries to distract Wing Knight by pleading him to not vent him, pretending to have a change of heart and at the same time indirectly mocking Wing Knight by saying that him venting Kase was an accident, which obviously just makes Wing Knight more angry. In his last moments, Strike tries to charge at Wing Knight in anger, but he ends up failing as he finally is erased from the human world and sent to the Advent Void.
Overall, unlike many other villains, Strike didn't have many breakdowns nor notorious defeats over the show, with him only having one in his "death", despite this, his manipulative persona still remained with him even after getting his memories of the Rider War erased, this means that he will likely not change his ways even without being a Rider, and now, he continues to work as a hacker without knowing his true parade, just like his former brother.
Quotes[]
| “ | You can run Lansing, but you can't hide! [...] You can't talk your way out of this one, Drew. Which is too bad cause I don't think you're good enough to fight your way out of it either. | „ |
| ~ JTC before attacking Drew Lansing. |
| “ | Sorry Barrett, looks like you lost your sponsor. [...] So long, Brad Barrett. | „ |
| ~ Strike before venting Brad Barrett. |
| “ | And Brad Barrett crosses the finish line! | „ |
| ~ Strike mocks Brad after venting him. |
| “ | Strike: Nice place to get vented. Torque: Isn't it? When you get there send me a post card. |
„ |
| ~ Strike and Torque before their final fight. |
| “ | You know what burns me up? Guys like you who think you'll never be held accountable for your lies. Until... now. | „ |
| ~ Strike explains his (hypocritical) dislike for Drew. |
| “ | So long, con man [...] Hahahahaha! [Laughter continues to echo] | „ |
| ~ Strike after venting Drew Lansing. |
| “ | When the feds imprisoned me it was Xaviax who took me out through a mirror. I've been free ever since. There isn't a room I can't walk into, there isn't a secret I can't learn. That kind of truth and freedom are worth fighting for. | „ |
| ~ JTC reveals his reason for joining Xaviax. |
| “ | I once had a brother too Danny... He went to prison for something he didn't commit, that wasn't right, but he couldn't put it aside and just do his time. If he had... He would have been out in three years, instead he was stubborn like you. | „ |
| ~ JTC reveals the truth about his brother to Danny while trying to convince him to keep working with Xaviax. |
| “ | Sorry Danny, but that's not gonna work... [Sword clashes with Claws] it's either his way or the highway. | „ |
| ~ Strike while fighting with Axe. |
| “ | Strike: Have you learned your lesson yet?
Axe: No! |
„ |
| ~ Strike threatening Axe after defeating him. |
| “ | You forget, I have friends too. Pick a card, any card. | „ |
| ~ Strike mocking Kit before trying to vent him. |
| “ | Strike: No. Please just... wait a minute. Stop, maybe I'm changing my mind. Xaviax is bad and I see that now. I wanna be with you guys. Wing Knight: You should've thought of that before you vented Kase. Strike: Wait, that was an accident. Wing Knight: LIAR!! Strike: No, wait, wait. Xaviax tricked me, just like he tricked Chris and Kit. I'm a victim too. |
„ |
| ~ Strike pretends to have a change of heart to attack Wing Knight. |
| “ | Strike: Hahahahaha. All that fancy new armor but you still can't beat the Advent Beasts, and I got three of them. Wing Knight: And I've got a new one of my own. Strike: Big deal, I can fly too. |
„ |
| ~ Strike confidently charging into what would be his demise. |
| “ | Strike: No! No! Wing Knight: Say bye, Strike. Strike: Arghhhh! |
„ |
| ~ Strike's last words after being vented. |
| “ | Ha ha ha, Nice place to get vented! | „ |
| ~ One of Strike's lines before starting a fight in the videogame. |
| “ | Forgive me. | „ |
| ~ Strike after venting a Kamen Rider in his arcade mode |
Trivia[]
- He was one of two evil Riders (along with Torque) who knew the true nature of Xaviax and his objective, yet decided to join him anyways.
- Surprisingly, unlike the other Riders, James does have multiple similarities with his Ryuki Counterpart (Takeshi Asakura):
- Both are sadistic but clever Riders that serve as the main obstacle for the protagonist
- They escaped from prison as soon as they were introduced thanks to the true mastermind (Although meanwhile JTC was arrested for hacking and coercion activities, Asakura was arrested for serial murder)
- They have the highest body count in the series, with them also being considered as the most evil rider the protagonists had faced for now.
- James actually took down one more Rider than Asakura, with a record of five against four.
- Both have siblings that after a traumatic experience, ended up disappearing from their lives.
- They both "died" under similar circumstances after getting tricked by their Nemesis, with them attempting to do a suicidal attack on them even knowing that they were about to die (James got desintegrated while charging at Wing Knight even though he got advertised by Xaviax to not move or he would be banished quicker, meanwhile, Asakura died after attempting to charge at some police officers just to end up getting shot to death)
- However, despite the similarities they both have, it is important to note that JTC isn't as insane nor unstable as Asakura and that unlike Ouja, he never hurted nor killed his family relatives, which means that Asakura is even worse than JTC
- Despite JTC rejecting Maya, his ventara counterpart and current Kamen Rider Strike (Pryce) ended up dating with Maya.
- In Strike's first on-screen appearance, his voice was deeper and slightly robotic compared to how he sounds in the next episodes, this is due to the producers wanting to keep Strike's identity as a mystery until more chapters were released, since if they had him be normally voiced by Scott Bailey, it would've been obvious that Strike was JTC, but this didn't last long, since eventually Strike sounded more and more like JTC later on in the series.
- In the Kamen Rider Dragon Knight novel, JTC is mentioned a few times, with his origins being more extended, with Eubulon and Maya revealing that JTC became an illegal hacker after graduating in an unnamed university thanks to his gift for computing programming and technology knowledge alongside his advanced analytical prowess.
- This could explain how he managed to easily steal, hack and manipulate information from the whole US government without getting caught for such a long period of time.
- However, even with this information, it is still unknown how old is JTC in the series, however, it could be especulated by his looks that he is in his 20's.
- In Strike's story mode for the Nintendo DS videogame of Dragon Knight, he ended up turning against Xaviax, betraying him after being convinced by Kit and Len about how much of an abusive figure Xaviax was and also because of the fact that JTC realized that if he kept being on Xaviax's side, he would ultimately become a "loser" due to a numbers disadvantage, due to this, Strike ends up Killing Xaviax and indirectly saving the world, shortly after this, it is mentioned that Strike ended up becoming popular worldwide, gaining an internet cult that praised him as a legend. With all of this said, this version of JTC could be considered as a Karma Houdini, unlike his series counterpart.
- This also shows once more that JTC doesn't care about Xaviax, and the only reason as to why he follows him is because he thinks Xaviax is in the Winner's side. This was also shown briefly in the series, with James admitting to Danny that if he wanted, he could betray Xaviax.
- In Strike's story mode for the Advent Master stage, it is left heavily implied that JTC was a decoy of Xaviax for a short time.
- This also shows once more that JTC doesn't care about Xaviax, and the only reason as to why he follows him is because he thinks Xaviax is in the Winner's side. This was also shown briefly in the series, with James admitting to Danny that if he wanted, he could betray Xaviax.
External Links[]
- James Trademore on the Kamen Rider Wiki
[]
 Villains
| ||
|
Xaviax's Army | ||