A Comparison Between Super Robot Wars and Gokaiger In Handling Massive Crossovers
I feel like it's time to try and differentiate two massive crossovers namely Gokaiger and Super Robot Wars. Each one is a massive crossover but they were handled differently.
Super Robot Wars series
First I would talk about the Super Robot Wars franchise. Super Robot Wars involves the super robot shows made by Toei together with other mecha shows not by Toei (ex. Gundam is by Sunrise, Macross is by Studio Nue) and lately, Super Sentai and Kamen Rider also get the same treatment in crossover video games. Super Robot Wars' style is making several what-if scenarios that actually crams all the Super Robots into one HUGE show.
When playing Super Robot Wars, there's really no explanation on how heroes and villains are there together. You might see the impossible happen like the Boazanians teaming up with the Galrans because in the game, they were not defeated yet. You might see Voltes V and Golion side by side even if in Golion the Earth was extinct in the year 1999. You might see Dairugger XV and Combattler V side by side even if neither side really were part of each other, take note Dairugger XV happens in the Year 2,200 A.D. (by then, a lot of people have died of old age or other causes) and Combattler V happens in an unspecified period in time. You just get the creative imagination of the writers and producers in imagining them all in one huge universe and in the same year and time... let's say the story happens in the Year 2,200 A.D. (Dairugger's year) but super robot shows that took place in the 80s (story-wise) end up getting a huge time leap and two, none of the evil organizations were destroyed yet.
In short, the Super Robot Wars approach is really a series of what-ifs. That is what if in the Year 2,200 or any time period, this was the crisis. What if we decide to cram in all the Super Robot shows into one era? What if all the evil organizations helped each other? What is enjoyable about ignoring the continuities and two, imagining them in one scenario creates a lot of alternate events. I guess this was in the mind of Toei in doing Super Sentai - make crossovers yet they would soon have a different approach in doing Super Sentai crossovers in contrast to Super Robot Wars.
Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger
Gokaiger itself has a different approach that instead of cramming all Super Sentai into one year and setting, it creates its own Super Sentai timeline. That is, the imagination power goes to say what if all the Super Sentai series from Goranger up to Goseiger were part of Gokaiger. Normally, Super Sentai series just operate independently from each other. Remember that Super Sentai and Power Rangers operate very differently due to cultural differences. Although I still credit the fact that Gokaiger's creation of its own Sentai timeline is a creative way of celebrating an anniversary.
If you notice how the previous Super Sentai are shown in Gokaiger, you might really think that they are introduced as predecessors instead of having them crammed into just one year and setting. The huge what if is is that, before Gokaiger, you had all the 34 Super Sentai ahead of them. You have that before the Zangyack attacked the Earth, there were others that attacked it. The theme was used during the crossover events of Gaoranger vs. Super Sentai and Boukenger vs. Super Sentai. Both films were crossovers that cannot fit in the continuity of their respective series. The huge what if then had the previous Super Sentai fight in the Legend War... which ignores the fact that the Flashmen can no longer return to Earth and many of the groups have disbanded. The first episode had teachers talk about Goranger even if in reality, there is really no Super Sentai timeline unless you are talking about the VS. Continuity which Gokaiger is crammed into.
Even with the return of other classic cast members like Toshihide Wakamatsu, remember that even if Toshiki Inoue wrote it, he can always choose to carry Gai Yuki's death even to other possible continuities in Super Sentai. Gai Yuki is verified died in more than just one ending of Jetman - he is verified dead by first the Super Sentai Encyclopedia written by Inoue (where Ryu and Kaori named their son after him), in the Jetman Manga sequel that wasn't written by Inoue (where Ryu and Kaori had a daughter instead of a son so it's very out of continuity with the Jetman series) and in the Gokaiger episode (which does not acknowledge the Manga-only Jeffrey Kensaki). In huge crossovers, continuity and non-continuity elements get jumbled up into one setting. Like if you played the Marvel vs. Capcom series, Marvel vs. Capcom keeps the continuity element that Onslaught is a corrupted Professor Xavier while it also adds some stuff out-of-continuity for the side of Marvel and Capcom (ex. Ryu able to use Ken's moves, Zangief having a Mecha version of himself and Megaman's Hyper Megaman form are all out-of-continuity).
Meanwhile you might want to actually blame Kamen Rider Decade right? Decade's presence was in the continuity of Samurai Sentai Shinkenger and wherever he appears, instability happens as it did in the Shinkenger/Decade crossover. I wasn't even a bit surprised to have Super Hero Taisen (UGH, I hate mentioning that title) had Decade going against Gokaiger and Gobusters as part of the VS Universe. So really, has a Super Sentai timeline been established not ever since Decade appeared? Share your thoughts!
Super Robot Wars series
First I would talk about the Super Robot Wars franchise. Super Robot Wars involves the super robot shows made by Toei together with other mecha shows not by Toei (ex. Gundam is by Sunrise, Macross is by Studio Nue) and lately, Super Sentai and Kamen Rider also get the same treatment in crossover video games. Super Robot Wars' style is making several what-if scenarios that actually crams all the Super Robots into one HUGE show.
When playing Super Robot Wars, there's really no explanation on how heroes and villains are there together. You might see the impossible happen like the Boazanians teaming up with the Galrans because in the game, they were not defeated yet. You might see Voltes V and Golion side by side even if in Golion the Earth was extinct in the year 1999. You might see Dairugger XV and Combattler V side by side even if neither side really were part of each other, take note Dairugger XV happens in the Year 2,200 A.D. (by then, a lot of people have died of old age or other causes) and Combattler V happens in an unspecified period in time. You just get the creative imagination of the writers and producers in imagining them all in one huge universe and in the same year and time... let's say the story happens in the Year 2,200 A.D. (Dairugger's year) but super robot shows that took place in the 80s (story-wise) end up getting a huge time leap and two, none of the evil organizations were destroyed yet.
In short, the Super Robot Wars approach is really a series of what-ifs. That is what if in the Year 2,200 or any time period, this was the crisis. What if we decide to cram in all the Super Robot shows into one era? What if all the evil organizations helped each other? What is enjoyable about ignoring the continuities and two, imagining them in one scenario creates a lot of alternate events. I guess this was in the mind of Toei in doing Super Sentai - make crossovers yet they would soon have a different approach in doing Super Sentai crossovers in contrast to Super Robot Wars.
Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger
Gokaiger itself has a different approach that instead of cramming all Super Sentai into one year and setting, it creates its own Super Sentai timeline. That is, the imagination power goes to say what if all the Super Sentai series from Goranger up to Goseiger were part of Gokaiger. Normally, Super Sentai series just operate independently from each other. Remember that Super Sentai and Power Rangers operate very differently due to cultural differences. Although I still credit the fact that Gokaiger's creation of its own Sentai timeline is a creative way of celebrating an anniversary.If you notice how the previous Super Sentai are shown in Gokaiger, you might really think that they are introduced as predecessors instead of having them crammed into just one year and setting. The huge what if is is that, before Gokaiger, you had all the 34 Super Sentai ahead of them. You have that before the Zangyack attacked the Earth, there were others that attacked it. The theme was used during the crossover events of Gaoranger vs. Super Sentai and Boukenger vs. Super Sentai. Both films were crossovers that cannot fit in the continuity of their respective series. The huge what if then had the previous Super Sentai fight in the Legend War... which ignores the fact that the Flashmen can no longer return to Earth and many of the groups have disbanded. The first episode had teachers talk about Goranger even if in reality, there is really no Super Sentai timeline unless you are talking about the VS. Continuity which Gokaiger is crammed into.
Even with the return of other classic cast members like Toshihide Wakamatsu, remember that even if Toshiki Inoue wrote it, he can always choose to carry Gai Yuki's death even to other possible continuities in Super Sentai. Gai Yuki is verified died in more than just one ending of Jetman - he is verified dead by first the Super Sentai Encyclopedia written by Inoue (where Ryu and Kaori named their son after him), in the Jetman Manga sequel that wasn't written by Inoue (where Ryu and Kaori had a daughter instead of a son so it's very out of continuity with the Jetman series) and in the Gokaiger episode (which does not acknowledge the Manga-only Jeffrey Kensaki). In huge crossovers, continuity and non-continuity elements get jumbled up into one setting. Like if you played the Marvel vs. Capcom series, Marvel vs. Capcom keeps the continuity element that Onslaught is a corrupted Professor Xavier while it also adds some stuff out-of-continuity for the side of Marvel and Capcom (ex. Ryu able to use Ken's moves, Zangief having a Mecha version of himself and Megaman's Hyper Megaman form are all out-of-continuity).
Meanwhile you might want to actually blame Kamen Rider Decade right? Decade's presence was in the continuity of Samurai Sentai Shinkenger and wherever he appears, instability happens as it did in the Shinkenger/Decade crossover. I wasn't even a bit surprised to have Super Hero Taisen (UGH, I hate mentioning that title) had Decade going against Gokaiger and Gobusters as part of the VS Universe. So really, has a Super Sentai timeline been established not ever since Decade appeared? Share your thoughts!
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