Chojin Sentai Jetman: That Moment Super Sentai Took A Daring U-Turn From Hirohisa Soda's Style

Granted, this year, 2021 will be Chojin Sentai Jetman's 30th anniversary. Last 2011, it was Jetman's 20th anniversary. Jetman is the series that's hailed as the series that saved Super Sentai when Chikyu Sentai Fiveman nearly ended it. Fiveman actually had issues such as Hirohisa Soda's burnout considering that he started with Dai Sentai Goggle V and didn't have a break from being a head writer. Soda's work from 1983 to 1991 as a head writer was pretty exhausting so most of the Fiveman episodes by him weren't as good as his previous episodes. There was secondary writer Kunio Fuji and Toshiki Inoue. Yes, Inoue, the guy who experimented with several concepts such as the anti-hero Ryo Asuka/X-1 Mask in Hikari Sentai Maskman. Soda's era came to an end and it was time for a transition. Before the late Noboru Sugimura - there was Inoue in his one-shot deal with Super Sentai. He would still be doing writing jobs for later projects but a shame that he wasn't given any more tasks as the head writer of any Super Sentai series. Instead, he got stuck in Kamen Rider and ended up burning out during Kamen Rider Kiva.

Granted, I've watched most of his series from start to end with English subtitles save Kosoku Sentai Turboranger. The one common denominator with Soda's writing was that most of his episodes love to put a lesson of the week. Fuji did to a certain extent but I can't really think of anybody who did it better than Soda. Soda was writing on heroes who were likable, ideal role models, or were basically good examples for most of their part. True, Soda wrote in some womanizers but none of them beat Gai Yuki. Soda also wrote some rebel-type characters (and experimented on that concept with Mika Koizumi) though Mika simply wanted to continue her late brother's work. Sadly, Mika joined her late brother too soon thanks to some dispute between Yuki Yajima and Japan Action Club (JAC). Soda made a lot of clean-cut heroes and just loved to insert a lesson of the week. Many lessons were blatantly placed by Soda for almost every episode he was in. For me, that made Fiveman still memorable even if it nearly became a Franchise Killer. Jetman decided to take a daring u-turn one way or another.

The introduction arc really starts to take a u-turn 

Jetman in itself starts to really do some daring approaches. Do you remember how the introductory arc goes? You can see how the heroes aren't always a team. Four others could've been Jetmen if it wasn't for Radiguet's For the Evulz action of destroying the Skybase. There's a date with destiny of four unexpected heroes - a wandering lone wolf, a farmer, a rich heiress, and a high school student. The four just didn't expect to get what was coming to them. Ryu has to gather them in order to defeat the Vyram. Ryu must learn to adjust to these guys who didn't get the professional training he did. The four of them are unexpected heroes. Bioman did that with five characters. Jetman did it with four. The heroes tend to have trouble working together.

How does it go? It has the more "realistic, mature" approach. The heroes don't really learn to be the heroes immediately. Aya-Chan had to teach Kaori, Raita, and Ako how to fight and made them dress in karate suits. It's because the Jetman suits don't teach them to fight. Also, there's the training with the Jet Birds and the formation of both Ikarus Phoenix and Jet Ikarus. They had to learn how to operate those machines, unlike most rangers before or after them. These guys aren't as toughly trained as the Changemen so they had to undergo military training. I still feel that the realistic, mature approach for mecha is hardly appreciated these days - something that was done in other post-Jetman series. I mean, just see how early the Megazord gets formed these days in contrast to here. I still feel like Kosoku Sentai Turboranger does really get bonkers with how teens with attitude manage to save the day from the Bouma or even fight out-of-suit at times.

Rather than write a lesson for the week that Soda usually does - Jetman decided to go for a new approach. The lesson is rather slowly built up with its cast of characters. Sometimes, the lesson is learned only after a couple of episodes. It doesn't have Soda's "academic style" of writing. Instead, it built itself with some soap opera elements. 

Take the famous rebel Gai Yuki as an example of that daring u-turn

I felt that Inoue really was cruel to let Gai Ikari not see Gai Yuki. Jetman's heroes pick four civilians to join a professional soldier. Ryu is the typical nice hero. Gai Yuki was clearly a revamped X-1 Mask and made into a full-time ranger. Though, X-1 Mask would also eventually influence Burai in Kyoryu Sentai Zyuranger the following year. Gai Yuki isn't so clean-cut, unlike the other Super Sentai womanizers before him. Gai Yuki himself is hinted to be some kind of lone wolf, we know nothing of his past but he's the last person you'd want to be with or expect to be a hero. Gai Yuki is the kind of person who defies destiny. Gai Yuki isn't a role model either unlike most of Soda's heroes or HIS TEAMMATES. Raita works hard to feed mankind. Kaori is a philanthropist. Ako, not really, she's kind of a spunky girl. Ryu is a clean-cut soldier. Gai Yuki smokes, drinks (though he hasn't shown evidence that he's a drunkard), and has shown more signs he's not clean-cut! The guy makes Masumi of Gougou Sentai Boukenger look like a saintly character. There's not much moral of the week with the guy either.

So, the negativity that he has can be traced to some earlier episodes before he gets better. Who can remember how he shows pessimism and saying that humanity should just be left to die? He's the hesitant hero and he challenged Ryu to a motorcycle race - X-1 Mask style. However, he starts to show more signs of heroism when he doesn't honor his bet seeing Ryu's humanity. You may consider how he ended up falling for Kaori and why it's a fan-preferred ship for many. I felt that Kaori brought the best out of Gai Yuki. In earlier episodes, he was challenging Ryu's authority even before the love polygon intensified. He can also be seen as flirting with other women. However, I always found it funny that he NEVER attempted to flirt with Aya Odagiri who was obviously an attractive woman. I guess Gai Yuki may not be a clean-cut professional ranger BUT he knows better than to hit on his superior. Also, what might be ignored is that he may be a passionate romantic but he never dared violate Kaori at all. Yup, that's what made him more honorable than most womanizers - he was WILLING to change his ways for a girl he likes. Also, he ends up growing to respect Ryu though that moral lesson took several episodes before it could fully materialize. 

However, nobody can deny that while he loves a fair fight - he'd still play dirty. I can't forget his infamous moment when he had Tetraboy tilt the casino to save his friends. Again, Grey was also playing dirty since he could predict where the roulette ball will hit. So, he had to improvise. However, he ended up his fight with Grey more fair and square. He still keeps some of his trademark techniques such as the crotch grab (which was weirdly NOT censored in the Philippine awful dub) even after he grows to respect Ryu. He still keeps some of his trademark weaknesses even after he develops as a character. One strength he always wants to deny though is that he's very self-sacrificing. While he's not really a role model due to his vices - he still ends up doing heroic deeds which may tell you not to judge a book by its cover or that there's still some good in some people. 

Maybe, I need to talk about Gai Yuki's death in the finale. I always felt it was a lame way to die. However, it turned out (and I'm shocked) was that actor Toshihide Wakamatsu arranged for it. Though, I wonder if Shinichiro Shirakura (who worked alongside Takeyuki Suzuki at that time) also played a part in it? Suzuki was the main producer while Shirakura was the secondary producer. True, superhero invincibility is NEVER a trope in Super Sentai BUT I felt seeing heroes die even in-suit is MORE THAN ENOUGH to send that message that they're just human. Yet, the actor arranged for his death and I think he probably talked with Inoue and Shirakura about it. Shirakura probably loved the idea and we got what was a rather weird way for Gai to die. Though, the concept was somewhat placed with Naoto Takizawa in Mirai Sentai Timeranger when he died at the hands of a lone Zenitto soldier's bullet. I felt Yasuko Kobayashi decided to pull an Inoue even if the guy only wrote two episodes of Timeranger. 

Vyram was another daring direction... especially Count Radiguet

The Vyram were quite deviant from how Soda did his villains. Soda loved to have the typical format and sometimes placed mysterious villains whose identity get revealed later on. Sadly, Soda didn't really do much to establish a backstory for Great Professor Bias in Chojuu Sentai Liveman like he did with Doctor Man in Bioman. In here, the Vyram are all fighting for the right to rule the throne. Call it the Game of Thrones where they all seek to occupy leadership. A few contenders also included the short-lived Juuza (because Radiguet is just your favorite villain) and later Tran when he becomes Tranza. The power struggle is definitely real and I feel the villains do have human traits.

I felt Radiguet has to be one of the fan-favorite villains. In fact, he's MY favorite villain to the point I inserted many of my negative values into him in one of my Old Shames. Many fans even consider him the most morally destructive villain ever. I think he somewhat starts to reflect on human negativity such as his desire to enslave them because of how rotten it is. Truth is, Radiguet does speak a degree of truth and his behavior does somewhat reflect on self-righteous villains who try to justify their actions. Radiguet may seem to be For the Evulz while he still justifies his wrongdoings. Radiguet is portrayed as the main villain who must struggle with his comrades. I'd say that he's one scary villain and it's all due to the excellent work of the late Masaki Tachi. It's so sad really Tachi never showed up that much except for a few roles. I even felt it was a wrong casting decision to have Rintaro Nishi as Shadam in Gosei Sei Dairanger instead of Tachi. Nishi did a good job but Shadam was pretty much like Radiguet in almost every way. Though, it's somewhat debatable if he really lusted after Maria or he just viewed her as a puppet that he owns. He did offer Maria the chance to be his queen of evil in the finale which may hint he did really lust after her. 

Maria is another villain that starts off with a mystery. I still can't forget how her love story with Ryu really ends in tragedy. Why producers decided not to let Ryu have Maria and Gai have Kaori is something. Maria started out as Rie Aoi though audiences probably still didn't know that she was Maria until hints are dropped. Maria would later see her memories slowly coming back to her such as the piano and playing the tune that she used to play for Ryu. Maria ends up getting into a healthy relationship with Grey while Radiguet possessively holds on to her for some creepy reason. The concept of a brainwashed and evil Super Sentai villain starts with her. The concept was later redone in Bakuryu Sentai Abaranger with Jannu or Mahoro who earned her happy ending. Rie herself ends up in tragedy especially when she allows herself to die to redeem herself. Rie also literally backstabs Radiguet which leads to her untimely death. I still feel her death to be one of the best-written tragedies. I don't blame Ryu for going berserk after she died. 

Grey is also another noble villain. He and Gai Yuki both have that rivalry on the battlefield. So what makes him a unique villain is that while he's evil - he still has the most sense of honor. He may be 100% robotic but he's the most human of the Vyram. Grey was Maria's constant protector and was more than willing to let her go. I always felt that he probably deserved a redemption arc than to die in a final battle with Black Condor. Though, the death was actually ripped straight from Dengeki Sentai Changeman when Buuba decided to challenge Change Dragon to a final duel. Unlike Buuba, he decided to die as he had nothing to live for and decided to die a warrior's death was the best way to go. Though, I felt that Grey should've done something like try to stop Ryu or die at Radiguet's hands instead. Maybe, have Grey get severely injured while trying to save Ryu and request Gai Yuki for one more cigarette before shutting down. Then again, we know how Inoue handles his finale arcs, right? 

Tran is probably the attempt of a child villain who can prove children can be cruel. He's already shown signs that he's truly dangerous even before force-growing himself to be an adult. So, it's safe to assume that he's actually an adult in a child's body. Many times, Tran has prove himself to be dangerous and proved he can be twice as dangerous when he became Tranza. His cruelty got amplified as he practically made Radiguet, the show's most cruel villain, declare him as emperor. However, he seems to show the slow lesson learned trope here. Tranza decides to get even with his comrades only for it to backfire. Radiguet finally manages to give Tranza a fate worse than death. Radiguet could've brutally murdered Tranza after his defeat. Instead, Radiguet decided to let Tranza live as a mental patient for the rest of his life. In the non-canon Manga, Radiguet would later dominate Tranza's body. The rivalry between them may have inspired Gaja vs. Ryuon in Boukenger. 

Jetman's legacy after its series

Super Sentai was in danger of cancellation with Turboranger and Fiveman. Low ratings really hit both series and Fiveman really hit even lower. However, Jetman really ended up taking that daring u-turn that really gave way to a new era. Next year, the new series Kyoryu Sentai Zyuranger was eventually presented at the end of the credits. Was Gai Yuki's death meant to make you think Super Sentai was having its last season? I felt it might have been there to troll audiences into thinking it's the final Super Sentai THEN the Zyuranger announcement popped in. Yup, X-1 Mask was going to be rewritten as Burai!

The series itself would have already faced its fans and lashers. Now, it even has a Shout! Factory DVD which came way after. The first DVD release was Zyuranger but only because it was localized into Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers for the American audiences. I heard Jetman was supposedly among the series that would be the source material for Mighty Morphin'. Though the series also has its own backlash sooner or later from American fans checking out Super Sentai. Some of them may have been too used to the lighter and softer post-Timeranger series that Jetman could suffer as a result. Others also still think of Inoue as the guy who gets infamous like Frank Miller did. Inoue was so good then got so bad. Though, I still blame some mismanagement as to why Inoue fell off and gave up. Though, I'm still a fan of Kiva for all its silly antics mixed with occasional scares. Inoue was also responsible for Kamen Rider Agito - a series I hear gets unfairly maligned 'cause Inoue. But does Jetman have to be really hurt 'cause Inoue? 

I also think Jetman gets maligned when you've got fans who still prefer watered-down Super Sentai. Post-Timeranger series are considerably less violent and more family-friendly. You may consider how somebody may say that Samurai Sentai Shinkenger is Yasuko Kobayashi's Magnum Opus over Timeranger. Some even say it's Ressha Sentai ToQGer though I beg to disagree while respecting that view. You may also meet someone who'd think that Abaranger is better than Zyuranger (which I do) but only because it's actually much less intense. Though, I'd also blame the generation gap between older Super Sentai and newer Super Sentai. I'd even dare say that older Super Sentai may not be for everyone either. I still feel that not so many may be willing to watch Himitsu Sentai Goranger from start to end either. Some may have even dropped off Super Sentai completely (which I feel I might) to pursue other newer stuff in the digital age. I think Super Sentai fans belong to several age groups which in turn may affect the way they think. It's possible to enjoy both older and newer but the degrees can vary. I still feel that most post-Timeranger Super Sentai will never be as good as the pre-Gaoranger ones. This series is but one of the many series that, at least for me, is on that level.