Hikari Sentai Maskman: Not Underappreciated, Just Less Appreciated

 

Maskman turned 30 last 2017 and 35 this year. The cast reunion (above) is a charm. I wonder about the private lives of the others such as who married who? I viewed some of Kaiju No Kami's reviews where he seems to give Gekiranger and Dairanger scores higher than Maskman. Kaiju No Kami gave Maskman an average 3/5 Grown Ups In Spandex score which means, "It's not that good but you still need to watch it." Besides, I even heard how Maskman wasn't originally well-received though older fans loved it. Was it the same thing that happened with Timeranger? I feel Kaiju No Kami probably represents that population of Power Rangers fans checking out the Super Sentai franchise. Their choices may differ especially if you're dealing with the pre-Zyuranger era - shows that came before Mighty Morphin' helped Toei Ltd. get a chunk of the American market.

Flashman was most likely a tough act to follow

I think Maskman had a brave direction by trying to become darker than usual. Sure, Flashman had the rangers return to the lost galaxy. Maskman introduced the more mature element of a love story between Takeru and Ial. The cast itself is likable. Though, I'm afraid the heroes are overshadowed especially with the language barriers. I don't think the show may get a Shout! Factory DVD release any time soon either. I feel the show might still be underappreciated for various reasons even after it had fansubs. Non-Japanese speakers probably watched it though there may be other Super Sentai seasons that overshadowed it. Both Kazunori Inaba and Mina Asami made a guest appearance in Flashman before they became regulars the following year. I think Flashman's popularity was a tough act to follow one way or another.

However, I really want to believe that Flashman was more popular than Maskman in Japan. One can dismiss the rumors that Lost Galaxy was more popular than Gingaman in Japan. Among American fans? Yes! Among Japanese fans? No! So, I can respect the Western fanbase if they think Lost Galaxy is better than Gingaman. Though, I think Flashman may have become more preferable to the Western fanbase than Maskman ever will be. Flashman has that cookie mad scientist (who's a walking spoiler), that android assistant with a round head, and the space theme that might get the Western fanbase to prefer it. 

Jetman's love story is better written than Maskman

I remembered seeing both Jetman and Maskman. Maskman is the seed of the love story - something that hasn't been too explored these days. Canalo's futile search for a bride is played for laughs (though it gets REALLY ANNOYING) and I'm glad Yodonna kicked him very hard. Maskman had a random encounter with Takeru and they started what might be a whirlwind romance. Though, it was because Ial started to see that the surface dwellers weren't evil in contrast to what Emperor Zeba wanted her to believe.

Jetman has its love story established before the series began. Ryu and Rie were already dating prior to the incident. I think Ryu's paternal grandma is being insensitive about trying to get Ryu to marry quick. Hasn't his paternal grandmother even realized her beloved grandson just lost his girlfriend and hasn't recovered? Even worse, Kaori has a crush on Ryu (which he doesn't return) while Gai has a crush on Kaori. Talk about the complex! I'm still among the shippers who felt that Gai should've had Kaori and Ryu should've been able to succeed in rescuing Rie. But we know how Radiguet seems to be written as a character that's For the Evulz. Radiguet rejected every chance at redemption he got from the show presumably because he felt the need to be evil for evil's sake. Didn't he offer Maria the power to become the Queen of Evil?

The love story of Jetman really and will always have that sentimental side. Sure, it didn't end well but it developed Ryu more. Ryu even went to break down when he was able to rescue Rie only to lose her to Radiguet. The insanity really broke him down that Gai had to beat some sense into him. I don't blame Gai for doubting Kaori's words about Ryu getting over Rie. Ryu may have failed to rescue Rie (which I think adds some realism) but it sure was a well-written tragedy.

Dairanger and Gekiranger manage to take Maskman's concept to a better level

I guess Zyuranger isn't the only season that Dairanger has overshadowed. Maskman would definitely be into it too. Maskman was the seed also the seed of the martial arts series. However, it would be safe to say that Dairanger managed to improve its concepts a few years later. Interestingly, Inaba showed up in the show as the Media Magician. Sadly, Inaba didn't guest-star in Gekiranger presumably due to his retirement from show business. It'd be interesting if Inaba showed up as Jan's father Dan instead of the legendary Kenji Ohba. I felt Ohba should've guest-starred in Dekaranger instead as a completely separate character from Gavan.

Dairanger introduced two sides of the coin yet again with the positive energy of Chi and the negative energy of the Gorma. The Gorma's negative energy might be comparable to the Negative Aura of Emperor Zeba. However, Gorma XV is nothing more than a lame duck of an emperor while Lt. Col. Shadam was a remake of Radiguet. I think the late Daisuke Tachi was supposed to be Shadam but he was probably too disgusted with acting as another Radiguet-like villain. I guess that's why Rintaro Nishi played Shadam. If my speculation is right then maybe the rumors that Tachi felt disgusted about Radiguet killing Saki may be true. Both sides fought with martial arts and the use of Aura Power.

The concept was later revived in the late 2000s with Gekiranger. Sure, we've got a jungle boy like Cole in Jan. However, the show was more focused on martial arts than wild animals. The Gen Juken and Rin Juken schools are also opposing forces. I think Gekiranger had richer lore than Maskman to a certain extent. Sure, I prefer the action scenes of Maskman. However, Gekiranger, in spite of all its toning down to near PG-7 levels, may have a lot of improved concepts. What would be more interesting is that Gekiranger was on Maskman's 20th anniversary and Wild Force's fifth anniversary. I guess that's why you have a jungle boy AND martial arts. I think Jan was better written than Cole and Gekiranger does try to make some concepts from Maskman better. 

When another Takeru just ends up overshadowing the first

Honestly, I think it's AMAZING how Tori Matsuzaka, a guy whose acting is closer to Red Hawk (Kotaro Tanaka) gets tons of praise while the other Takeru (Inaba) doesn't seem to get that much appreciation. It's not underappreciated but just LESS appreciated. I think Inaba has better acting but he left show businesses so soon. Matsuzaka just got married last year to Erika Toda (which somewhat disappoints me because I wanted him to marry a Filipino woman too) and is still acting. I think it's just weird really (or not) how Takeru Shiba overshadows the original Takeru as well as he's a kagemusha who overshadows the true head Kaoru Shiba (and she's a nice person, don't worry). 

Granted, Shinkenger got fan-subbed first before Maskman so exposure may have played a role in it. If American fans saw Shinkenger first then I guess it's only normal that the other Takeru just won't get that attention. Maskman later had subs but I think the American fanbase probably only saw it as an important stepping down but not as some big masterpiece. Kaiju No Kami's scoring of Shinkenger as higher over Maskman is probably just one good example. I still can't get over how Kaiju No Kami says that you need to watch Maskman in order to see how it all began. I guess some people view Maskman more as a must-watch than a classic. I guess Maskman is the original hamburger while Shinkenger is the improved deluxe hamburger that people are after. 

The other characters may have played a part except for Kotoha and Genta. Kotoha is more like another Ako from Jetman as a school girl who has no choice but to be a ranger. I wonder if Chiaki's more rebellious appeal ends up making him more appealing than Akira from Maskman? I wonder if Ryunosuke's comedic appeal may have worked better than Kenta from Maskman? Honestly, I felt Ryunosuke was nearly closer to Billy Cranston with samurai training. I felt Ryunosuke's episode of Mako was a rewrite of "A Different Drum" from Mighty Morphin'. I did bash Mako a few times (early on) because Rin Takanashi's acting isn't as good as Kanako Maeda. I felt Rin Takanashi, like Amy Jo Johnson, gets the job done but just doesn't deliver it that well. Then again, what's important is that it's not mediocre, right?

The generation gap will just get bigger

I guess the generation gap with Super Sentai is something to deal with. Right now, I'm trying to watch Goranger and JAKQ and I'm reminded of why I don't like some old-school shows. One reason why I don't feel like rewatching some older shows like The Transformers is the LONG episode count. I kinda prefer how Takara dealt with its trilogy by having a definite start and a definite end. Transformers Victory gave us a start and an end where Star Saber defeats Deszaras. I may still dislike Transformers Masterforce but it did the right thing by having God Ginrai defeat Devil Z once and for all. I also ended up disliking Mighty Morphin' because of its overextension and no clear finale. The Zordon era is another reason why I just don't like Power Rangers. 

I think generation gaps will get bigger and bigger. Goranger aired in 1975 and it would be 20 years in 1995, 30 years in 2005, and 40 years in 2015, and it'll be 50 in 2025. I wonder how many children will be interested to watch their grandparents' Super Sentai? Some may even want to call Peggy Matsumaya the grandma of pink rangers because she's indeed the original. Maskman has developed a 35 years gap which means that most children today may not even be going to be too interested in it. Some may just check it out of curiosity and may end up dropping it. I guess there's that blurry line in Super Sentai generation gaps that can't be resolved huh?