Sean Akizuki's Super Sentai Blog

While watching Zyuohger, it's time to review on the eagle swordsmen. So here's the list aside from Yamato Kazakiri. Let's get started shall we? Takayuki Hiba/Vul Eagle II The tale of two eagles made Sun Vulcan feel it was two shows. Ryuusuke Oowashi left the set and the much better Takayuki Hiba took over. What contribution did Takayuki give to to Super Sentai? It's all about them red rangers who fought valiantly with swords . I felt like Sun Vulcan's first half was pretty boring and Ryuusuke wasn't all that interesting. I preferred Takayuki with his cool use of his katana against the Black Magma. Not even one of my favorites Takeru Shiba as a red ranger got as cool as he did. A lot of cool sword moves were introduced especially the Hiba Turning Slash. It was the start of a revolution for the sword arena. Plus, we had legendary stuntman Kazuo Niibori from Goggle V up to Jetman. He was an expert swordsman and red ranger stunt double. A lot of stunts wer...

Zyuohger has been a very enjoyable treat to the point I'm not that excited for Kamen Rider Ghost's next episode (I'd watch Kamen Rider Kiva over it). I'll admit, this week's episode was The World's redemption but we're yet to see him officially as a sixth ranger. When I looked at the first episode he made his appearance as some human experiment by Genis (Flashman shoutback?!), I think about some other episodes in Super Sentai. Super Sentai anniversaries tend to throw older fans years back at times. Gaoranger had returned several veterans for its crossover. Boukenger had an encyclopedia. Gokaiger had a lot of cast members resuming their roles. While I don't expect Gokaiger's feat and glory in Zyuohger but I'm expecting a couple more throwbacks to different eras. I'm just launched back to 1984 when the concept of a sixth ranger was still experimented on. Bioman had that episode where Shota Yamamori (played by Seiki Kurosaki) was tested...

While Grown Ups In Spandex is subbing Changeman and Flashman, I felt like the popularity of space-based science fiction like Star Trek, Star Wars and maybe some Marvel Comics series have inspired some characters. Then we had Power Rangers in Space and Power Rangers Lost Galaxy which took Power Rangers into space. Taking Super Sentai into space during the 80s...  Dengeki Sentai Changeman Some Super Sentai powers were taken from alien sources like Denziman and Bioman. Denziman was the start of space themes, Bioman was more on the science theme while having extraterrestrial technology. Changeman then had both space technology and military hardware at their disposal. Their mission is to stop Star King Bazoo from making Earth its next target. Bazoo has a "united alliance of evil" from different planets whom he rules over with an iron fist. The Changemen's severe training soon awakened the Earth Force. The five survivors of the Gozma's initial attack managed...

Considering that Zyuohger is an anniversary season, I guess the series now takes place in the VS. Universe instead of being standalone. This does pose some problems because in Super Sentai, dinosaur extinction varied from show to show. Zyuranger has it as Bandora's fault. Abaranger has it that the dinosaurs were merely transported into another dimension so they're not really extinct. Boukenger has it as Hyde Gene's fault. Go-onger has it as Horonderthal's fault. Kyoryuger has it that the virus, cold and heat trio of the Deboss killed the dinosaurs. So I wonder how are events supposedly reconciled in the whole VS. Universe or are they treated the same way as Super Robot Wars games?! Back to the three mentors and the Zyuohgers. After reading the news from JEFusion  that the three anthropomorphic mentors namely Doggie Kruger, Sha Fu and Torin showing up for the movie, I'm not too surprised either. There's some details that one could see when it came to Tokusatsu...

Considering that Misao Mondo/Zyuoh The World is an anniversary Super Sentai sixth ranger, I thought of writing this post concerning his predecessors. The appearance of yet another sixth ranger having the power of three in Zyuohger is no surprise to me at all! Misao is powered by three Zyumen and has a wolf, crocodile and rhino as part of his symbols. Let's take a look back at the others who have the power of three as well. Shirogane/Gao Silver (25th Anniversary) Gao Silver is the very first sixth ranger who gets a combining mecha instead of a regular non-combining mecha. This may be because Gaoranger is the start of the multi-gattai era and the may be the beginning of a new era of Super Sentai. The Gao Hunter is a combining robot composed of Gao Wolf, Gao Alligator and Gao Hammerhead. He's the very first sixth hero to have not one but three assigned mecha at once. Fair enough, the Gaorangers were getting more than one Gao Animal in their inventory so the sixth rang...

So I read from Tokusatsu News Network a couple of days ago that Jetman, not Carranger saved Super Sentai . I still remembered the shock I had when I realized this fact: Fiveman wasn't well-received and the show was problematic during its airing. I even think that as much as I want to see Fiveman all over again, I still think that GoGoFive is miles better as a family-based Super Sentai. There was the Hirohisa Soda era where he served as the head writer for Goggle V, Dynaman, Bioman, Changeman, Flashman, Maskman, Liveman, Turboranger and Fiveman for nine consecutive seasons. He started to show signs of burning out during Turboranger and met his inevitable burnout during Fiveman. Fiveman nearly cancelled Super Sentai so I guess Jetman was meant to be a "finale" but instead, it opened up another era. Producer Takeyuki Suzuki soon worked with Toshiki Inoue for Chojin Sentai Jetman. The Soda era came to its closure with the great writer meeting his inevitable burnout. I...

After watching GoGoFive's finale arc and remembering Fiveman's finale arc, I thought I might bring up the topic of Empress Meadow and Grand Witch Grandienne. So how were both handled in their respective series? What you see might be my severe and harsh criticism of some of Fiveman's weaker sides as a Super Sentai series. Then again, GoGoFive has its own series of weaknesses too. As said, I'm having a much easier time comparing GoGoFive to Fiveman since Lightspeed Rescue has a much different approach with its team members.  Warning: Spoilers ahead! Read at your own risk!

So there's been a couple of seasons already which had a recurring theme of negative energy and positive energy. In Ultraman 80 and note I'm not an Ultraman fan, it was said that negative energy gave birth to the monsters in the show. It was also done in Kamen Rider Black RX where the Crisis Empire was apparently born from humanity's evil. In Kamen Rider Black, the "Creation King" of Gorgom claims he'll return as long as evil exists in the hearts of humans. I think Jaspion also had that idea of negative energy involved. Let's talk about it in the world of Super Sentai. Super Sentai ends up as a franchise where a lot of ideas end up getting mixed and recycled. Sometimes, it deviates from the old formula for the new. Then we have the concept of negative energy getting into it. Some seasons had focused on the battle of positive energy vs. negative energy to a certain extent. While it may not necessarily be the running theme of the show but it's there f...

After seeing Zyuohger's 16th and 17th episodes and there's some silliness yet again. I mean are the Deathgaliens somewhat stupid not to know a Zyuman from a mascot? I guess this is really meant to address a message that Super Sentai is primarily aimed for children or just for laughs. But after some good laughs, there's a creepy scene where the sixth hero is being empowered by what could be three dead Zyumen. I don't know what came into the mind of the producers involved. Granted, it's with Takaaki Utsunomiya who was involved with Shinkenger, Gokaiger, Kamen Rider Wizard and ToQGer so I guess he wanted to add some "cryptic feel". ToQGer was more of a comic show (and a failed one at that) while Shinkenger was a fun show with some occasional nightmare fuel at one way or another. Shinkenger had a few scary scenes so is some degree of nightmare fuel all that necessary? Well maybe yes, maybe no. Carranger and Go-onger were both comic series but a few scene...

It's been some time since I thought about Shout! Factory releases and giving my thoughts about it . We've had Zyuranger, Dairanger, Kakuranger and now Ohranger's coming in. But I remembered this statement from Shogo B'Stard concering Ohranger: How bad is Ohranger? Practically everyone who worked on the show, who had been with the franchise for numerous years, walked after that year. How bad is Ohranger? Super Sentai fan and Nerdiest Idol of the Nerds Shoko Nakagawa doesn't like it. How bad is Ohranger? Power Rangers fans consider the Power Rangers season which used Ohranger footage, Power Rangers Zeo, to be superior. Power Rangers Zeo, aka the season where they opt to focus more on Bulk and Skull becoming defective detectives than they do on any Power Rangers action, because that's what little choice Ohranger left them. I can't determine how well the Ohranger's reception will turn out for Power Rangers fans as of recent since time changes. Sometimes...

There's the claim that Kimberly Hart is the first crush of every 90s kid. But is that really the case? Not always. She may be one of their crushes back in the 90s but she's not necessarily the first. If you're in Japan, you might have had other first crushes and I guess I'll bring up my very first Tokusatsu crush: Hikaru Katsuragi . She's probably another character that Toku fans claimed was every 90s first crush. For some yes but for all the 90s kids, no. There were other Toku girls that became their first crushes. I remembered watching the Bioman English dub before even learning of the name "Super Sentai". I only knew their real names during my late teenage years. Back then, I only knew Hikaru Katsuragi in her dub name as Kimberly. She never had her family name mentioned in the Bioman English dub. I'll admit the Bioman English dub today is one of my old shames. After watching Bioman in Japanese with subs, I can't deny that part of me still ...

What can I say? The mission has been completed. It's time to get it over and done with with another review. After watching the series, I don't have much reason to compare it that much to Lightspeed Rescue since both shows had their own merits and writing styles. Lightspeed Rescue wasn't about a family that fights together but the bond of friendship that happens in any superhero team. GoGoFive was more focused on the theme of family bonds like Fiveman and Magiranger. But I guess I'll compare GoGoFive to Fiveman. As for Magiranger, GoGoFive is miles better than that show. So where do I start with this review considering it's official... I've got the mission complete status with GoGoFive! Years ago, I can't forget how easily I have my biases for Super Sentai whenever a theme gets repeated or anything that came after Timeranger. I guess you know the three times or more I wished Super Sentai actually ended with a certain season . Never mind really that Carran...