Emu Hojo

Emu Hojo (宝生 永夢) is one of the main characters and the main protagonist of Kamen Rider Ex-Aid. He is a 24 year-old trainee in pediatrics working at Seito University Hospital and a genius video gamer who goes by the alias M. He was given a Gamer Driver and the Mighty Action X Gashat by Asuna Karino to become Kamen Rider Ex-Aid (仮面ライダーエグゼイド) and destroy the Bugster viruses, to save his patient's life.

Childhood
When he was only eight years old, Emu was involved in an accident, leaving him critically injured. After receiving an emergency surgery, Emu was given a WonderSwan handheld video game device by one of the doctors as a reward for hanging on. This event would inspire Emu to become a doctor and help children like the one who saved him, Kyotaro Hinata.

During his childhood, he was doubtful with the career as a doctor and decided to take up the interest of playing games. He as well created the concept of the Mighty Brothers XX, stating that he does as such to lessen the burden of being alone.

Teenager
Emu would later on win numerous gaming tournaments under the gaming alias of M. Sometime in 2010, Emu participated in a gaming tournament and trained himself for it but this cost him his own health. He was soon operated by the Next Genome Institute but during that time, their leader Michihiko Zaizen created the very first Bugster Viruses and used Emu's comatose body as their first victim. The experiment caused the Next Genome surgeons to vanish while Emu was treated shortly after without any recollections. Following the incident, he decided to take serious in his entrance exam and interest as a doctor but leftover Bugster in his body would create a split personality that represents his gaming interest. His infection predated the massive Bugster outbreak Zero Day in the year 2011.

Sometime later, his fame as "M" would earn the interest of Asuna Karino as a potential candidate for using the Gamer Driver.

Becoming Kamen Rider Ex-Aid
Sometime later, Emu went on to become a pediatrics intern at Seito University Hospital. He soon come across Sota Suyama, a patient who had an unusual disease and was restricted from knowing his condition by the director Haima Kagami. Wanting to cheer the patient, Emu brought Sota to the release of Mighty Action X but it was then where his illness transformed the boy into a golem-like monster. Emu finally got Asuna to explain Sota's condition: he was infected by Bugster a computer virus threatening humanity, which could only be stopped by someone capable of using the Gamer Driver and destroying the virus. Determined to save his patient, Emu took the driver (and the accompanying Mighty Action X Gashat) without permission. Much to Asuna's surprise, not only was Emu able to become a Kamen Rider and extract the Salty Bugster from Sota, but he was in fact "M", the gamer she was looking for. After transforming into Action Gamer Level 2, Emu defeated the Bugster, saving Sota's life. After checking on the boy, Asuna finally allowed Emu to access CR, and revealed her identity as Kamen Rider navigator, Poppi Pipopapo. She christened Emu as Kamen Rider Ex-Aid, and stated that he must become the super doctor to save humanity from Bugster.

As the battle against the Bugster Viruses continues, Emu would later met several Kamen Riders like him, such as the genius surgeon Hiiro Kagami (Brave), former CR acquaintance Taiga Hanaya (Snipe) and the coroner Kiriya Kujo (Lazer). Although the three Riders as well fought against Bugster threats and infections, Emu is constantly at odds with them as each had their own viewpoints and ulterior motive. He also faced against Genm, a Rider who allied himself with the Bugsters and at the same time adding another Gashat, Gekitotsu Robots to his arsenal. In the final battle against Graphite, Emu acquired the Drago Knight Hunter Z and is able to work in synchronization with the other Riders through this power. During Christmas Eve, Emu and the others learned of Genm Corp.'s CEO Kuroto Dan being Genm's true identity, proving Kiriya's innocence after being fooled once by Parad. It was also at that time he renew his trust on Kiriya after going through several lies and obtain the Shakariki Sports from Genm but their renewed friendship cuts short when Kiriya was killed by Genm Zombie Gamer Level X in hopes of preventing the truth from being revealed.

Birth of Mighty Brothers XX and Becoming Double Action Gamer Level X and XX
In early 2017, Emu was promoted to the surgery intern by Haima Kagami himself. Kiriya's death affected his prowess in fighting the Bugster and was suspended by Hiiro to transform after the latter confiscated his Gashats. Parad approached Emu and gave the young intern his incomplete Gashat, which transform into the Mighty Brothers XX Gashat, giving him the strength to counter Genm Level X with the same rank. He as well renew his trust with Hiiro, but was cut short when both the latter and Taiga attack him due to being a Game Disease patient. His combat data as Mighty Brothers XX was utilized by Kuroto to create the Gashat Gear Dual that Parad utilized to assume Kamen Rider Para-DX, whose level outclassed even that of Genm and Ex-Aid.

Dr. Pac-Man vs. Ex-Aid & Ghost with Legend Rider
It is revealed in Heisei Generation film, that the Bugsters was actually born 16 years ago from the body samples of their very first victim and future Kamen Rider, Emu Hojo. Their birth from Emu's samples was the result of unrecorded experiments on Emu's body to breed stronger Bugsters before Emu obtains a Bugster antibody from Kyotaro Hinata's surgery on the young boy.

Personality
Emu Hojo is a very clumsy and yet a serious doctor to take on his job. However, his thirst for playing video games has a problem of Emu being absentminded at times. An example of this is he sometimes fails to remember his work schedule properly and it makes the nurses scold him. He also has a habitual quirk of tumbling down in various comical ways.

As "M", his alias that he uses when playing video games, he shows a completely different side of himself. He displays a focused, calmer, and more confident demeanor. His Grammatical persona also changes from 僕 into 俺, proving to be extremely skillful at video games, to the point where he has come to be known as the "genius gamer" who never leaves any game unfinished. This carries over to his battles as Ex-Aid, as his knowledge of video games has proven to be a definite advantage. Originally, when shifting to his Genius Gamer M personality, a wind blows throw his hair and he makes a cocky smile. But during episode 10, Emu's eyes instead flash pink before turning a less intense, glowing red, after which, his eyes turn back to normal. Though he still makes the same cocky smile as before, showing that he can actually shift into his gamer persona at will. However, as noted by Nico Saiba in episode 14, Emu in the past was not as polite as he is now, hinting at a possibility that it may have been the reverse and that "M" may very well be his true personality.

Emu has a very idealistic attitude towards being a doctor: he invests himself in the well-being of his patient, hoping to help them both physically and personally. He will always try to help a patient in need, even if they are a criminal, an enemy, or refuse to get help. For him, a life is a life and it's worth saving, fitting the morality of a true doctor and their devotion to the. This mindset helped him connect stress as a catalyst for Bugster infection, but also hinders him if the enemy is smart enough to threaten the patient's life. His firm idealism has led to clashes with his fellow CR Rider, Hiiro. Hiiro views Emu as naive and inexperienced, while Emu openly opposes Hiiro's detached and callous approach, going as far to say Hiiro is not a real doctor.

However, Emu is not without a dark side. When pushed too far, Emu can lose control of his temper and when that happens his Gamer side becomes as vicious and selfish as his rivals. This was shown when Kyotaro is infected by Graphite. Emu become so frustrated into believing that he's the only one who can save Kyotaro, to the point that he'll do anything to capture the Hunter Gamer using a stolen Gashacon Sword. While this shows, that Emu takes pride in his beliefs as a doctor, at the same time it demonstrates that as a Gamer he shares Genm's and even Taiga's ideals to some extent. However, after some enlightenment from his idol, Kyotaro Hinata, Emu decides to trust his fellow doctor Riders, although only Kiriya did believe in him so far.

Powers and Abilities

 * Skilled Gamer: Emu is a masterful gamer, particularly in terms of platform gaming. He has extensive knowledge of games in other genres, including Bang Bang Shooting and Bakusou Bike and can adapt easily when playing a new game. These skills are further enhanced when he enters a state of emotional rage or frustration, as shown when he effectively, in separate occasions, outmaneuvered both Genm and Snipe who are both at their Level 3 forms while Emu is only on Level 2.
 * High Interpersonal Skill: Despite his clumsiness, Emu's kindness has allowed him to connect with all of his patients.
 * Natural Game Disease Immunity: Unlike all other Riders who had undergone a compatibility surgery to be immune from the Game Disease and able to transform into a Kamen Rider, Emu is capable of utilizing the Rider System even without the intervention of said surgery and seems to be unaffected by Bugster infection agents. Kiriya discovered the real reason behind Emu's condition but was silenced by Genm before he can reveal the truth. This unusual immunity is also what enabled the creation of the Mighty Brothers XX Gashat, as the blank Double Gashat injects a massive amount of the Bugster Virus, which will normally kill a Rider when used in the Gamer Driver, even when the Rider has already been immune to the Game Disease. He was the first person to be infected with the Bugster Virus as a kid, and was experimented on by Dr. Pac-Man to develop the later, more recent version of the virus, which is why he has natural antibodies for the virus and such can use the Gamer Driver without the need for an immunization operation.
 * Separation: Due to the Bugster Virus in Emu's DNA, he is able to separate into two different Riders.

Devices

 * Gamer Driver - Transformation device.
 * Rider Gashat - Transformation trinkets.
 * Kimewaza Slot Holder - Carrier strap for the Rider Gashats.
 * Robot Gamer - Ex-Aid's Level 3 support robot.
 * Hunter Gamer - Ex-Aid's Level 5 support robot.

Weapons

 * Gashacon Breaker - Standard sidearm weapon, can be a hammer or a sword.
 * Gashacon Sword - Brave's primary blade weapon that Ex-Aid borrows.
 * Gekitotsu Smasher - Robot Action Gamer Level 3's personal weapon.
 * Trick Flywheels - Sports Action Gamer Level 3's personal weapons
 * Gashacon Key Slasher - Double Action Gamer Level X(X)'s personal weapon.
 * Daidaimaru - Gaim Gamer's personal weapon
 * Handle-Ken - Drive Gamer's personal weapon.

Vehicles

 * Kamen Rider Lazer Bike Gamer Level 2/Bike Gamer - Lazer's Rider Machine Mode that Ex-Aid can use to ride. Until his death, shortly after a dying Lazer gave Ex-Aid his Gamer Driver and Bakusou Bike Gashat for Ex-Aid's use as his personal Rider Machine.
 * Sports Gamer - Secondary Level 3 support robot/Rider Machine summoned by the Shakariki Sports Gashat. Formerly belonged to Kamen Rider Genm.

Ghost Eyecon
This Eyecon makes an appearance in the finale of Kamen Rider Ghost and in Kamen Rider Heisei Generations: Dr. Pac-Man vs. Ex-Aid & Ghost with Legend Rider. This Eyecon allows Ghost to transform into Ex-Aid Damashii.

Relationships

 * Seito University Hospital CR
 * Asuna Karino/Poppy Pippopapo: Asuna is a close ally for Emu and mostly like his main assistant nurse. He stills calls Asuna by that name even when she is Poppi.
 * Hiiro Kagami: Emu and Hiiro develop a rivalry relationship as both have polar opposite ways on taking care of patients. Hiiro also becomes the second reason why Emu decided to not quit for becoming Ex-Aid. Hiiro in return sees Emu with animosity and sees his presence as an Intern and a No Thank You. However, Emu indirectly helped Hiiro to regain his confidence in his skill as Genius surgeon, while Hiiro also acts as a senior to Emu, once helping him to escape from Genm Zombie Gamer Level X's Critical Dead (but he still takes Emu's Gashats away as punishment). Emu also appears to have gained some respect for Hiiro when he agreed to help perform cancer surgery on a patient while he was curing the same patient's game disease.
 * Haima Kagami: Haima is a senior for Emu. Although Emu respects him, Haima initially acts tough towards him, although this is only a coy.
 * Taiga Hanaya: Emu and Taiga also developed a rivalry. However, Taiga is the only doctor that Emu won't get close into unless they encounter the same problem. Taiga also seems to despise Emu, although he does call him by his title, Genius Gamer. Taiga is one of the first to discover that Emu has game disease.
 * Kiriya Kujo: Emu was initially reluctant to get close to Kiriya. But ironically, Emu is the only one who believes Kiriya despite the many lies he'd given to him, which was for Emu's own benefit. Emu eventually felt that he got to understand Kiriya, but due to his death, Emu became enraged when he realized that Kuroto stole Kiriya's weapon for his own use.
 * Genm Corp.
 * Kuroto Dan: Emu had great trust towards Kuroto, unaware that Kuroto is his nemesis, Genm, until he finally revealed himself once he gathered all battle data from the doctor Kamen Riders, as Emu and three other doctor Riders are too late to notice and stop Kuroto's scheme. Later, Emu acts hostile towards him because Kuroto kills Kiriya.
 * Graphite: Emu has been seen as Graphite's number one nemesis as Emu is the only Kamen Rider who is mostly able to take care of Bugsters easily. Especially, when Graphite infects his idol, Kyotaro Hinata. Ultimately, Emu destroy Graphite by the help of fellow Doctor Riders.
 * Parad: Parad took an interest in Emu. He at first mocked Emu that life is like a game and once humans die, it's game over for them (they can't come back). However, upon seeing Emu's determination to save lives, Parad gives him a blank Gashat, wanting to observe his fate. After Emu created Mighty Brothers XX Gashat, Parad said that Emu is really exciting.
 * Ministry of Health
 * Kyotaro Hinata : Emu highly respects Kyotaro, to the point of debt-like respect. Because he's the one who saved his life 16 years ago. In return, Kyotaro helps Emu by giving him some advice regarding his Doctor idealism.

Portrayal
Emu Hojo is portrayed by Hiroki Iijima (飯島 寛騎). As a child, Emu is portrayed by Rai Takahashi (髙橋 來).

As Kamen Rider Ex-Aid, his suit actor is Satoshi Fujita (藤田 慧) in Level 1 & X, Seiji Takaiwa (高岩 成二) in Level 2, 3, 5 & XX R, and Jun Watanabe (渡辺 淳) in Level XX L.