1975, 1985, 1995: When Rangers Were Militarily-Trained Rangers

I couldn't come up with a good ramble. I had recent thoughts considering that I'm FREAKING AS OLD AS DENGEKI SENTAI CHANGEMAN. However, I've treated Super Sentai more like a side hobby like everything else in the entertainment world. I'm proud to say that I've actually watched a lot of the older entries and the newer ones. Yes, that's why I ask how many old shows have you tried watching. Not everyone can truly watch the older seasons and some older fans may drop Super Sentai for other stuff. Heck, I've been contemplating that for the nth time. However, No. 1 Sentai Gozyuger and Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger were kiddie shows that don't ignite my Kiddie Show Sunday Spirit. 

Anyway, let's define the word ranger. The word ranger usually means a keeper of the British royal park OR a body of organized armed men for law enforcement. Overtime, the term ranger has been popularized for Power Rangers. Super Sentai eventually kept using either ranger or the shortcut -ger as the suffix for most of the shows. Gone are the days when -man was used as the suffix huh? The last we had it was in Seijuu Sentai Gingaman. After that, well we know the term "ranger" simply got too popular for the franchise. After all, the suffix ranger was used in Himitsu Sentai Goranger or alternatively spelled as Gorenger. I prefer Goranger since Gorenger is just weird. The kanji for ranger is "レンジャー" which means both Goranger and Gorenger are acceptable. But I prefer the former because "ranger" may be more acceptable.

Before watching Goranger (which is 84 episodes) -- I watched Choriki Sentai Ohranger (now with an official DVD release) then Dengeki Sentai Changeman. Back then, I only read episode synopsis and wrote an incredibly awful story as a result. I bit off more than I could chew. Nothing good comes out of biting more than you could chew. Some PSX games were that awful because of that. Technically, Chojin Sentai Jetman has a military theme BUT the other rangers weren't. Tokosou Sentai Dekaranger is more of a police unit. Funny enough, none of the Metal Hero franchises used a full-blown military theme like Super Sentai. I mean, one needs to think that some Metal Hero entries in the 1990s were actually far more mature than Super Sentai or Kamen Rider. I bet that direction wasn't so welcome by the kiddies!

Now, let's celebrate the 50th, 40th, and 30th anniversaries of these military rangers! Although take note that the term evolved -- making it acceptable for rangers because the heroes are armed in combat!

Goranger was probably trying to take the term Sentai too literally

Super Sentai means squadron, taskforce, or fighting unit. Yes, Super Sentai teams today are still a team of rangers making up a fighting unit. However, most of them aren't rangers by legal or military definition. They're warriors but not rangers by military definition. It should be noted that Goranger and Dengekitai JAKQ weren't really added until Ohranger.

The show's beginning can be way too brutal -- something that wouldn't pass TV-Y7-FV nor make it by today's Super Sentai standards. Watching the Gorangers defeat the first five Monsters of the Week responsible for the massacres they survived -- was satisfying. However, the show began to move more into the typical toy sales direction. Yeah, some older Super Sentai barely develop the villains. Just think that a lot of older shows never told you why (insert main villain) became evil. That's why I tend to point out to Witch Bandora in Kyoryu Sentai Zyuranger to have a plus. We're told why Bandora's idiotic plots are aimed at children. Goranger doesn't provide that rationale at Black Cross Fuehrer's insane schemes. Black Cross Army is practically For the Evulz. The villains were focused on being evil for the sake of it

It was back when there was no giant Megazord yet. That honor went to Battle Fever J. That was when Super Sentai as a title game. True, Battle Fever J had a general for its commander. However, the rangers didn't have the hardened military training of the Gorangers. Instead, the show had the Zords simply do typical errands. It can go from doing aerial surveys to beating off the enemy's military vehicles. It was probably because Toei had no idea how to implement the Megazord yet. 

Dengeki Sentai Changeman was when Super Sentai was starting to experiment more than just toys

Super Sentai is a toy commercial. However, it may have some older fans involved. It may also be because they wanted children to think deeper beyond getting entertained -- something that can be overdone. Hirohisa Soda's era started out basic with Dai Sentai Goggle V and Kagaku Sentai Dynaman. It's too bad that the Soda era can be less appreciated due to generation gaps. Some Power Rangers fans may prefer anything after Mirai Sentai Timeranger. My hunch is that because those series after Timeraner are mostly easier to enjoy.

Changeman was another game changer -- pun intended! I heard it was supposed to be named Cosmoman -- hence the Carrierzord that's a space shuttle! However, the theme went for military presumably to save money. However, it may also be because of Goranger's 10th anniversary at that time. The rangers aren't space explorers BUT military men. 

The first episode doesn't shy away from shoving the military theme. Commander Ibuki organized the Earth Defense Force as a military organization. The EDF was created to defend the Earth when the United Alliance of Evil ahem the Great Star League Gozma would arrive. The Changemen are all presented to be in some devilish training exercise. It kinda blends Saturday Morning Cartoon humor -- something that's quickly rained on when the Gozma begins its attack. Dead soldiers that walked away from the training are there. The Gozma massacre was nothing to laugh at!

Was it a good thing that Changeman decided to go with the military theme? Maybe, maybe not. It's probably a reference to some Hollywood movies where the military battles an alien invasion. That was probably in the mind of Shotaro Ishinomori when Goranger was conceived. I can only imagine what Takeyuki Suzuki and Soda had in mind with Changeman. 

The Gozma's aim was to take over the Universe. However, it seems that For the Evulz was also the Modus Operandi. It's revealed that the Dark Specter ahem Star King Bazoo had Planet Merle destroyed -- as it could pacify Bazoo's desire for evil to reign supreme. The villains were forced to serve the Grand Monarch of All Evil -- usually blackmail. Bazoo already makes it clear thathe would destroy their planets IF they fail him. It's not that Bazoo intends to let them return. This storyline manages to provide basic framework on giving villains more depth beyond For the Evulz. Bazoo is pretty much For the Evulz while the others are simply forced into evil. Bazoo probably just does that because he wants to be as evil as he could. 

Ohranger was the last of the militarily-trained rangers

Sure, we could have police training BUT it's different. I still dare to say that Ohranger's been a better treat than Power Rangers Zeo for me. It's a fresh start without me having to watch a lot of previous entries to understand it. This show can be controversial because of how the Sarin Gas incident caused it to flip-flop. Ignoring Zeo, I can see the jarring shift from overly serious to episodes that are plain downright silly. The finale arc got serious again. The show had some philosophical debates. 

However, these philosophical debates are often overshadowed by Bandai merchandise overload. Introducing so many weapons and Zords at once is something. It's pretty much like the Buu Saga. As a 1990s child -- I remember wishing I had all those shiny toys. However, after watching the shows, I'm glad I didn't have all of them. Who can remember when the Buu Saga in Dragon Ball Z introduced one new stuff -- only for it to contribute to ALMOST nothing to the plot. Was it even necessary for Ohranger to put similar Megazord types? Come on, it's blatantly obvious that Oh-Blocker is supposed to be some kind of tribute to Muteki Dai Shogun in Ninja Sentai Kakuranger. I love the Oh-Blocker design, but too bad it got overshadowed whenever it was used in the King Pyramider Battle Formation. 

Ohranger had some potential in the story. The Baranoia Empire was pretty much a revamped Anti-Bio Union from Bioman. The idea of a family of villains was great -- showing a deeper understanding of Even Evil Has Loved Ones. The Baranoia's development even went to Empress Hysteria towards the finale. Hysteria sacrificed her life to save her grandson Buldont Jr. The Ohrangers couldn't even bear to shoot a helpless Baranoia baby. However, I feel that Bomber the Great was nothing more than a nuisance, I was glad to have been written off. Bomber the Great was Bio Hunter Silver in Bioman gone wrong. Heck, I even compared Louie Kaboom to Bio Hunter Silver back in the 1990s! Silver was far more threatening and developed. Bomber the Great was simply meant to be a plot device.

The show suffered due to unforeseen circumstances. Fortunately, the show did get Vindicated by History. The show is Goranger's 20th anniversary. It wasn't perfect and it's average for me. However, it's still worth checking out to see what went right and what went wrong. However, it may also be the reason why no more fully military-trained rangers are used these days. XP

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Just another random rant!