The More I Watch Super Sentai, The More It Becomes Harder for Me to Appreciate Power Rangers!


If there's one thing as a Super Sentai fan, I end up choosing Super Sentai most of the time over Power Rangers. While I don't hate Power Rangers as of current compared to the past, I can go from love to like (my most common emotion to it) or to plain dislike for Power Rangers (my current status). So what's the real deal between Super Sentai and Power Rangers for me as of current?

I would be honest that the more I watch Super Sentai, the more I end up thinking, "Super Sentai is better." In what way? Remember I'm biased considering I'm am Asian guy with Chinese descent. So why do I think Super Sentai is better than Power Rangers? Why do I like the former better than the latter? I compare Super Sentai to spicy food and Power Rangers to non-spicy food. In a way, there are times I don't watch Power Rangers without ill feelings for it, or my opinions will change throughout the way. This is just my opinion so no flaming. You can still like both franchises though there will always be a choice you like better than the other.

For me, it's really just a personal bias. If Sentai can't click to America BECAUSE of cultural differences, Power Rangers doesn't fit to me that well because I'm Asian. But putting that aside, I really find Super Sentai to be more superior than Power Rangers in every way. I find the storylines, humor, musical scores, characters, writers and producers better than that of Power Rangers. Power Rangers for me usually has poorly written stories, just plain bad humor, annoying music, mostly one-sided characters and most of the time inferior to Super Sentai. I even feel annoyed with all the 'hiyaaaaa!!!!!" with the American accent. In fact, I don't really care if Power Rangers is more popular, I think Super Sentai is mostly better.


My classic example would be Kyoryu Sentai Zyuranger and Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers. Personally, no matter how popular MMPR was, I think the series itself is one huge mess. No proper writing, a lot of bad humor (Bulk and Skull for instance) and the music ain't all that great. While I do like the MMPR theme song but Zyuranger's theme song IMO is better. Most of Zyuranger's music is better. Take for example "Hey Rita" vs. "The Song of Witch Bandora". For me, Bandora's song in Zyuranger beats off the miles. Story-wise and writing-wise, Zyuranger is superior for me. Bandora may have a comical side but unlike Rita Repulsa, she's not evil for evil's sake. Rita just wants to be evil, Bandora's evil is directed towards Earth's children. I can go blah blah blah all the more. Zyuranger has way more action than MMPR like Kimberly never fought Scorpina while Mei fought Lami.

How did I feel about Zyuranger when I finally watched it with subs? Although my hatred for Power Rangers had long disappeared, I still cannot deny it becomes hard for me to rewatch MMPR. Everything about Zyuranger is just WAAAAAAY better for me. I felt like watching an entirely new show. No Bulk and Skull, better stories, better humor... and Bandora's got a real storyline. I felt like that Zyuranger knew how to deliver more solid stories, way better stories than Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers. I felt like everything from plot organization to every detail was better than it was like Burai is way better than Tommy. My bigger bias is this... Zyuranger had a finale while MMPR overextended. I wanted MMPR to end by episode 40 as an adult. I didn't mind too much about its overextension as a kid since I was so into Kimberly BUT growing up, I felt like finales wrap things up. In fact, I choose to pretend at episode 40 of MMPR that the series ended. In fact, I don't really feel too much of the urge to rewatch MMPR except for guilty pleasure.


On a more biased side, while there are Power Rangers seasons that are watchable (and I'll admit, Power Rangers is not exactly my cup of tea), but there's also of inferior copy/paste to the point it's an inferior show. While I may discuss about Operation Overdrive and Boukenger but with the Disney era gone, I want to focus on Neo-Saban. The more I watch Power Rangers Samurai, the more it really numbs my brain. It's just too much copy/paste with all the bad acting. I even feel like the writer has no creative direction... why is he not modifying the story to fit for the U.S. like come on, they are NOT Japanese! So almost everything about Shinkenger wins for me, hands down! On the other hand, Mako became part of my superficial admiration during its earlier run. You can read here about one HUUUUGE stupid reason why I like Mako.

I will also admit this, I wasn't all that excited about Power Ranger Samurai either. Maybe it's because Shinkenger was so great. So Saban is back but somehow I felt like a real disaster was coming. It was disappointing. I'll also admit that whenever I'm done watching Super Sentai first, I really don't have too much of a heart to watch the adaptation. I tend to watch Super Sentai a lot more than Power Rangers. And I have developed some personal biases without ill feelings towards Power Rangers... because Toei is still part of it. Although if a Power Rangers season has something much different to offer or a pretty white girl, then I would watch it... hehehehe!


Backtracking to other eras of Power Rangers, Disney stared its own fair share of the ruin. So Ninja Storm was decent but it's not all that good for me. Now I can say that I do have a stupid bias which is because I still think Nanami is hotter than Tori. I do find Tori cute but Nanami is really smoking hot. Moving on, Disney's era for me was a huge mess during most of the Kalish Era I wanted Saban back, Saban returns but it just got worse. Disney era was so unwatchable I couldn't even go beyond one episode with mostly horrible acting, bad plots and just everything I don't like about the modern world of Disney that time.

It's just like it's already known I don't like Power Rangers SPD even if Syd's being annoying is more of her character and not the actress. Maybe it's because I was still in purist mode when I heard of it. Dekaranger for me is far superior to SPD. I started to make some biased comparisons like Hoji doesn't whine about his designated color, Umeko may be a ditz but she isn't vain or that Ban would never skip an obstacle course. Also, production crew was responsible why poor Sam was a ball of light. SPD did get dubbed by Dekaranger's cast so my hatred for the show just turned into dislike. I still don't like Power Rangers SPD.

However I do appreciate some seasons of Power Rangers. For example, Lost Galaxy and Time Force are decent seasons. Lost Galaxy can be credited for not copying/pasting too much from Gingaman, making it stand on its own. Time Force by adding Ransik and deviating from Timeranger - while it only keeps the time motif that makes it stand out on its own. When Power Rangers does something different from its source - I tend to think that it becomes worth a watch. Otherwise, copy/paste wouldn't do any good. I can still respect people who like Time Force over Timeranger and Lost Galaxy over Gingaman. In my case, I usually pick the Super Sentai sources out of cultural reasons. However does that mean I hate Power Rangers? No, I just don't like it and I can ignore it all the while I understand why Toei allows it to exist. A non-fan doesn't necessarily hate the show. If I don't like it then I don't watch it.

Maybe I can also raise the issue of Japanese vs. American standards. One of the reasons that made me hate Power Rangers was because of American TV standards. Common sense really... how can a villain attack cause minimal damage to a city and nobody gets hurt?! Common sense really okay? Fortunately Power Rangers managed to get a little more serious without crossing the line. Soccer moms are a real problem. It made me think of how Power Rangers is of lesser quality because of American TV standards. MMPR got overextended, then the Zordon Arc came thanks to the American TV standard. The overextension of the Zordon Arc made me want to bang my head on the desk many times. On the other hand a few seasons are watchable for me but they're still not as great.

All I can say is, I still respect Power Rangers but I can't like it as much as Super Sentai. Still, don't worry this is not a Sentai purist blog either. All I can say is, Power Rangers will still have a special place for me even if I like Super Sentai more. That is, even if I won't continue watching it, I'll still respect it nonetheless as part of Toei's family.

Comments

  1. This is coming from a Westerner, but I agree that Super Sentai is definitely superior to Power Rangers when it comes to the storylines, characterization (for both goodies and baddies), and action scenes.

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    1. Well thanks for sharing your opinion on that. In my case, it's a combination of culture and quality.

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  2. I used to be a big fan of Power Rangers when it first came out as a kid. I used to be hype about the next episode and the action....until I think it was around Wild Force I only watch the introductory episode and the finale since everything in between was cut and paste. (and this was before I discovered Super Sentai). When the next season comes up I just stick to hearing the theme song and watch something else. I started watching Super Sentai later than most people like I know it exist when I watch Dino Thunder (even before but I wasn't paying attention much back then). I got a glimpse during Go-Onger but again I didn't truly grasp on to it because of shitty internet connection. It wasn't until Gokaiger I fully watch it from beginning to end. Then I started watching every single Super Sentai episodes nonstop from Episode 1 of Gorenger to the latest ToQger. I even watch Gokaiger for the second time because it was epic. I decide to see what's up with Power Rangers during the NeoSaban era. I didn't even bother watching Samurai 'cause I hate the opening theme song. I try to watch Super MegaForce assuming it would be like a shorter version of Gokaiger (because it has fewer years). Piece of crap. No story, no explanation, and the previous season was so rushed to an over-hype bad fanfiction. I hate how the actors are just memorising their script and the red ranger was soooooooooooo boring. When it came to the so called "legendary war" I thought it was going epic and almost movie like.....turns out it was nothing but a Tommy-centric episode. I have no problem with Jason David Frank (he is still my favourite Power Ranger but I wish Saban....hell even himself stop worshipping Tommy like he is some kind of God.

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  3. I kinda feel the same way right now, considering the disaster that was Megaforce/Super Megaforce (I haven't watched the other seasons from start to finish, so I'm curious if I will still feel the same way after watching them); I just hope Dino Charge will be better.

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  4. "I really find Super Sentai to be more superior than Power Rangers in every way. I find the storylines, humor, musical scores, characters, writers and producers better than that of Power Rangers. Power Rangers for me usually has poorly written stories, just plain bad humor, annoying music, mostly one-sided characters and most of the time inferior to Super Sentai. I even feel annoyed with all the 'hiyaaaaa!!!!!" with the American accent. In fact, I don't really care if Power Rangers is more popular, I think Super Sentai is mostly better."

    This paragraph is basically the exact feelings I share about PR and Super Sentai!! You've heard me talk about my first Sentai show was Magiranger, and from that series, I disowned everything PR!! I do love Time Force, so much, even though Ransik did annoy me at times. In Space, Lost Galaxy, and Ninja Storm were enjoyable to me, overall I hate everything PR!! and I'll tell any PR fan that, using Super Megaforce as the PRIME EXAMPLE!!!

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  5. This whole entire article makes you come off as a Sentai purist, I'm sorry. Zyuranger isn't "better" than MMPR. Super Sentai isn't "mostly better" than Power Rangers either. Also, Super Sentai isn't more superior to Power Rangers.

    Saban couldn't adapt the story from Zyuranger, they just couldn't. Which was why they made their own original story which was made MMPR work so well. And the music from Ron Wasserman isn't annoying either, I'm sorry.

    Zyuranger didn't even do all that well in Japan when it originally aired because it came right after Jetman which is still considered to be one of the best entries in the Super Sentai Series to this day.

    And I'm going to entirely disagree with what you said about MMPR. Going back to what I said about the original story and Saban choosing not to adapt Zyuranger, you have to remember that this was in the early 90s, and everything in the 90s was considered cheesy, but there was something about teenagers from that era having the chance to become superheroes and fighting monsters in a giant freaking robot that just made the show so unique.

    Bulk and Skull definitely evolve over the course of the Zordon era as well, and how somebody like yourself can't like them is just beyond me.

    "Maybe I can also raise the issue of Japanese vs. American standards. Somehow, one of the reasons that made he hate Power Rangers was because of American TV standards. Common sense really... how can a villain attack cause minimal damage to a city and nobody gets hurt?! Common sense really okay? Fortunately Power Rangers managed to get a little more serious without crossing the line. Soccer moms are a real problem. It made me think of how Power Rangers is of lesser quality because of American TV standards. MMPR got overextended, then the Zordon Arc came thanks to the American TV standard. The overextension of the Zordon Arc made me want to bang my head on the desk many times. "

    The Zordon era didn't come from the American TV standard, it came from the huge popularity of MMPR. Also, you can't even try to bring common sense into this because you just won't find any in Power Rangers as a whole. But I will definitely agree with you about the issue with the soccer moms though, they wrote so many complaints to Saban about the show being "too violent" for the kids here in America which is just absolute nonsense.

    Mighty Morphin was originally going to end with 40 episodes and they had originally planned to use the footage of the final story arc of Zyuranger for the finale, but because of the fact that the show had become such a smash hit with the Fox Kids Network as well as the entire country of America, they decided to change the story of what was supposed to be the 2 part finale and Saban ordered more original footage from Toei for not only the additional 20 episodes, but the first portion of the second season of MMPR while Saban was still working with Toei to get the rights to use the mecha and monster footage from Gosei Sentai Dairanger.

    And I wouldn't say that Power Rangers is of lesser quality because of American TV standards because that has absolutely nothing to do with it. It really comes down to different television standards between Japan and America as well as the cultural differences between the 2 countries.

    This article makes it very hard to believe that you still somehow respect Power Rangers even though you're making yourself sound like a Super Sentai purist even though those aren't you're intentions.

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    1. In my case, I tend to go neutral on Power Rangers that is not watch it. I can always dislike a show without hating it.

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    2. //but there was something about teenagers from that era having the chance to become superheroes and fighting monsters in a giant freaking robot that just made the show so unique.//

      Honest opinion: Not really. That's pretty much Voltron and a lot of mecha anime in the 80's and 90's.

      I'm sorry, but that doesn't really make it unique in any way. MMPR, like you said, just popularized it. (If anything, Mazinger Z popularized this in the 70's).

      Bulk and Skull - 50/50 for me to be honest.

      But ultimately I agree with you on the TV standards.

      I stopped respecting PR because the creator is a political extremist in general.

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  6. And Super Sentai girls much pretty than Power Rangers girls (especially the pink ranger). I mean have you seen the girl who will play the pink ranger in Dino Charge? Lol she's look like Nicki Minaj before plastic surgery!! geez. It seems they pick random black girl to fulfill the demand of Power Rangers fan who want black girl to play the pink ranger, but come on! at least find someone hot/pretty

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    1. Not always for me. For example... I find Kimberly that hot, Gia is hotter than Moune and Luka for me.

      Yes I've seen the one who will play as pink in Dino Charge. I have no comment on it.

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  7. You do know that Bandora and Rita are actually one, right? :)

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  8. the brainless jewnited puppets of israel just a bunch of brainless idiots and failed clowns parasites thieves and frauds of tokusatsu. the jewsa inferiority complex towards Japan is total

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  9. I disagree about spd being inferior to dekaranger as their both equal

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    1. special police dekaranger , spd. brainless jewsa idiot and clown. tokusatsu thieves and frauds. thats jewsa. inferiority complex rednecks towards Japan .

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  10. Yeah, I prefer Sentai over PR, I really like the rawness of personality of Sentai reds like Matoi over syrupy watered down personalities of Tommy, Jason and Rocky. The seasons of PR that I've been fond are PRLR and PRTF

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