Them Limited Snake-Themed Rangers In Super Sentai

 

Here's an artwork by Nick Peppermint. I can't match Nick's drawing skills. Snake-themed characters are often evil. Japanese entertainment has inspiration from American entertainment. Toei might be one of the most notorious for doing so. Toei is no exception to the rule. Toei would use snake-themed monsters every now and then. Kamen Rider started using snake-themed monsters. Super Sentai and Metal Hero followed suit too. It's expected given the amount of popular culture Toei gets into their shows!

I decided to write this since this Chinese New Year 2025 is the Year of the Snake! Two rangers in Super Sentai have a snake theme. It took some time. Were snake-themed villains more popular than snake-themed heroes? I'd like to give interesting trivia. Did you know that Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book portrayed Kaa the Python as a PROTAGONIST? That's why I went "HUH?!" after realizing that Kaa in The Jungle Book Anime by Nippon Animation presented Kaa as a PROTAGONIST. Disney had some Adaptational Villainy too -- presumably due to some cultural context! 

Readers by now know that I dislike Tensou Sentai Goseiger. It can be understood given that Samurai Sentai Shinkenger AND Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger sandwich it. Talk about being overshadowed by two great shows! The interesting snake trope enters with Agri. Agri is from the Landick Tribe. Agri's twin Moune has a TIGER motif. Why was Agri given a SNAKE theme for his main motif? I wonder if this clicked well or not. Agri probably only got Vindicated by History due to how AWFUL Power Rangers Megaforce got. Otherwise, I feel Goseiger is plain forgettable!

Ucchu Sentai Kyuranger revisited the snake theme with Naga Ray. The mythical Naga is part human and part serpent creature. The Hebitsuki voyager has a serpent and humanoid form -- presumably due to the Naga being part-man and part-serpent. Kyuranger mostly operated on mystical animals BUT that doesn't mean Naga isn't snake-themed. I don't care about whatever negative perceptions people may give Kyuranger. Naga's more interestingly done than Agri for me. Sure, Kyuranger can be hard to follow but it was fun seeing Naga's time when he got Brainwashed and Crazy. 

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Just a few thoughts!