Sean Akizuki's Super Sentai Blog

It's already known I don't like Power Rangers . I'm not GOING TO KEEP PRETENDING that I like it. However, Power Rangers was born out of a NEED because the American market is WAY DIFFERENT than the Japanese market . That's what I wrote in JEFusion before I decided to leave it while still endorsing it!  It's like a certain group of people who talk like a certain cop (warning: LOTS OF CRAZY STUFF).  Here are Shirakura's words, regardless of how I feel about Power Rangers : Shirakura observed that he joined Toei in 1990, when the company was planning the 1992 series Kyōryū Sentai Zyuranger. The staff back then thought that it might be the final Sentai entry. So, the younger staffers wanted to try something different, and introduced a sixth regular member mid-story for the first time in the franchise. Shirakura mused that Zyuranger becoming the loose basis for the global phenomenon Power Rangers was divine intervention (literally, "kamikaze") that led to ...

People can say that I'm against innovation or Draconian. Innovation is wonderful but it can also be mismanaged. As Toei plans to either go on hiatus or perhaps close the book on Super Sentai (I prefer to believe the hiatus, and hopefully Japan will have a population boom once the old gens like myself, inevitably leave this world) -- Super Sentai may start anew! Now, I'd like to look into the latest episode which introduces Sumino Ichikawa's new form -- acted by Kohaku Shida ! There were other alternatives that could've and SHOULD'VE been considered. IMHO the most logical step was to turn Oto Ichikawa into the new Gozyu Unicorn! Maya Imamori's DISMISSAL (instead of work suspension) felt super unfair IMHO . Instead, the "new solution" was to keep Sumiko BUT give a magical explanation after Kohaku replaced Maya. It all feels WTF as it replaces the more serious Sumino with the more mischievous Kohaku. The approach just feels way too OUT OF PLACE IMHO.  Thi...

  Yawn! Bored? I can't be sure. I was thinking about how No. 1 Sentai Gozyuger was overshadowed by Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger for two years . Right now, I have decided to write this post for fun. It's no secret that I've compared both Kamen Rider Saber and later King-Ohger  to Mystic Knights of Tir Na Nog . I looked into the show and thought about how Mystic Knights failed (and it was a huge, ambitious project) vs. how King-Ohger (25 years later) managed to fix things. In fact, it seems Toei had seldom made "pseudo-sequels" for Saban Entertainment sometime later . Now, it's time to dig into the essay... I. The technological era (the 1990s) mismatched the ambition of the  Mystic Knights of Tir Na Nog There were some criticisms about Power Rangers being lazy or that Saban should create his own show. There are times I ride with that since I don't like Power Rangers . However, anyone who understands the basics of international marketing WOULD AVOID  talking like...

It's no secret that I've lost my fervor for No. 1 Sentai Gozyuger despite its innovative thinking. I was looking forward to what it could do -- such as how the Tega Sword concept, the Battle Royale theme, etc. could work out in Super Sentai . However, late last month, it was the news that Super Sentai would any any time soon . Other reports say Super Sentai might be rebranded as Universe Heroes or Universe Heroes would be a totally different franchise. In my case, I'm actually OPEN to see what Universe Heroes could do after Gozyuger ends. Now, I'd like to address one problem -- THE GREED!   Let's do a bit of a history lesson. Super Sentai anniversaries are usually celebrated by ENTRY NUMBER . What's also interesting to see is how Super Sentai seems to honor Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers' anniversary every decade since 1993 . That means there are some festival seasons and some "basic palate cleanser seasons" like last year's Bakuage Sentai B...

The recent termination of Maya Imamori is something I consider ALL TOO EXTREME . I pointed out the problem that No. 1 Sentai Gozyuger may have been a result of a premature celebration. If we look into the cycle, G ozyuger is actually Super Sentai entry NO. 49 NOT ENTRY NO. 50 ! The celebration feels very PREMATURE. If we need to take a look back, we had anniversaries ALWAYS by entry number and NOT by Himitsu Sentai Goranger's birthday. Some Super Sentai series will and DO get overshadowed. In this case,  Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger didn't just cause a two-year time skip . King-Ohger also created the scenario where it actually created a TWO-YEAR SHADOW. Looking at the festival vs. fasting entries I thought about the number of times that a festival got followed by the badly-needed "diet plan", which I'd include the Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers' anniversary celebration : Hyajakuu Sentai Gaoranger was a huge festival.  Ninpuu Sentai Hurricaneger followed up with...

I must admit that I've been left SPEECHLESS and perhaps NOT IN A GOOD WAY! It turns out that Kohaku Shida is GOING TO BECOME SUMINO ICHIKAWA! This information from UkiyaSeed made me WTF through and through: Shida will replace Maya Imamori for the role of Sumino Ichikawa/Gozyu Unicorn starting on the show's 40th episode, which will air on November 30th. As previously reported, Imamori stepped down from the role due to her agency dropping her because of underage drinking.  My reaction to this is like, "WTF are we thinking Toei?" Kohaku was previous cast as Haruka Kito in Avatar Sentai Donbrothers . This was a reaction to Maya Imamori's termination because of underaged drinking . This casting makes me raise the concern. Was this solely done because of whatever charm and impact that Kohaku had while she was in Donbrothers ? Maybe yes, maybe no. I should still wonder how Gozyuger's creative crew will explain Sumino's SUDDEN FACE CHANGE since Kohaku will FREAKI...

I heard about the shocking incident a few days ago. However, I had NO ENERGY to write about it. It totally caught me OFF GUARD at that really happened! Y es, it's official that Maya Imamori was actually FIRED after her underage drinking incident . That means NO new No. 1 Sentai Gozyuger episode to be aired UNTIL. FURTHER. NOTICE. Imamori’s talent agency also released a statement on its official site: “It has been confirmed that our talent, Maya Imamori, engaged in underage drinking despite being under 20 years old. As this constitutes a serious breach of contract, we have decided to terminate her management contract as of today after careful deliberation.” The agency offered its apologies to fans and those concerned and pledged to strengthen compliance education and management systems to prevent similar incidents in the future. Born in Miyazaki Prefecture, Imamori won the Grand Prix at Miss Magazine 2023 and gained popularity as a gravure model. Her role as Sumino Ichikawa / Gozyu ...