Abare Killer NEARLY Killed Super Sentai?!

Granted, this year is Bakuryu Sentai Abaranger's 20th anniversary. Heck, there's even an upcoming 20th-anniversary special fir Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers. I feel both feel weird and I'm not interested in too many reunion specials myself! Though, Power Rangers has been the guiltier party over Super Sentai in doing the throwbacks too often. This would be a pretty piece of interesting information though. That is one of the best villains in Super Sentai that may have nearly killed the franchise... FOR STUPID REASONS! 

Sometimes, villains end up saving the show. Kosoku Sentai Turboranger crashed with the ratings. Kaiju No Kami mentioned in his review that Turboranger's villains are mostly one-dimensional compared to Yamimaru and Kirika. Chikyu Sentai Fiveman had Chevalier saving the ratings. Just running across this video that says Abare Killer nearly killed Super Sentai is a shocker.  Maybe, that explains his last-minute redemption or the plot twist that some parts of the Evorian God was in him. Mikoto Nakadai came in as a villain for most of the season. Later, Mikoto is practically just easily forgiven in spite of the trauma he caused the Abarangers. It'd be better if Mikoto's redemption was a midseason thing. So what happened?

This is pretty weird (actually) when an evil ranger could've nearly caused the franchise to be canceled. In the 1980s, we had Kamen Rider BLACK with the first official evil Kamen Rider in Shadow Moon. Shadow Moon's concept got so popular that Kamen Rider Ryuki created the first Rider War (and no, we NEVER had a Writer War) with several evil Kamen Riders. Ryuki even launched the first truly evil Kamen Rider in Kamen Rider Ouja. Ouja, unlike Shadow Moon, can be summarized as Bilgenia from BLACK with the Kingstone. Unlike Jun Yoshida (if I'm not wrong, he's now a teacher), Takashi Hagino managed to stay until the show ended. Then we know Ryuki got hit by an executive meddling towards the end. Come on, it's too obvious tha Yasuko Kobayashi intended to massacre everyone. Toshiki Inoue wrote the alternate finale with deaths and an unclear ending. I guess it's become, "THINK OF THE CHILDREN."

I think it's because of the sudden shock Super Sentai received. If you've seen Mirai Sentai Timeranger then you might understand what I'm talking about. Timeranger was trying to be more serious than the average Super Sentai. Okay, it's no secret that I have my blatant favoritism for it and it's my favorite Super Sentai with Kobayashi as the head writer. Still, I could understand why some people choose Samurai Sentai Shinkenger and Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters (preferably because of the Power Rangers RPM vibe it sees to have) over Timeranger. After Timeranger, Super Sentai started to get less and less serious. Fight scenes done by the main cast were toned down to near PG-7 levels. Even the suit fight scenes are toned down to near PG-7 levels. Blood, alcohol, and cursing are somewhat kept low enough that it nearly passes for TV-Y7-FV if they were dubbed or edited.

Ninpuu Sentai Hurricanger is quite serious but not too serious. However, never as serious as Chojuu Sentai Liveman. Compare the massacre at the Ninja School (students turned into talismans and never to return) in contrast to the massacre in Liveman. Liveman's massacre was brutal to the core. I'd even dare say that Great Professor Bias is even more cruel and intimidating than Tao Zanto. Hurricanger had some wacky episodes. Nanami Nono was more bright and cheery than Megumi Misaki. Sure, we saw Kagura and Shurikenger die. However, these deaths are too tame compared to what Liveman had to offer us. 

 The video mentions Naruhisa Arakawa intended to make Mikoto evil from start to end. Interestingly, 2002 was the year when evil Kamen Riders took Shadow Moon's concept to a whole new level. Takeshi Asakura was showing his psychotic games without mercy as Ouja. 2003 was the year when Kamen Rider Faiz also came. Faiz also had who I'd call one of the evilest characters ever - Masato Kusaka. Kusaka was a habitual backstabber who could be even more evil than the Orphnochs. Kusaka himself was pretty much like Captain Ryuuya in Mirai Sentai Timeranger - a self-serving manipulative bastard who died a non-epic death. Captain Ryuuya was accidentally shot by Ayase in a struggle. Yuji Kiba broke Kusaka's neck out of anger. The evil Kamen Rider concept was working so WHY NOT THE EVIL RANGER CONCEPT?

I guess the higher-ups never liked the idea. I heard fans like Mikoto as a villain. Yet, it seems Toei Ltd. ended up meddling for some reason. Was it parental complaints right after Super Sentai got softened since Hyajakuu Sentai Gaoranger?  The toning down was carried out by writers Sho Aikawa and Atsushi Maekawa. Sure, I'm still a fan of the drunken adventures of Gougou Sentai Boukenger. I still feel the better episodes of Boukenger were written by Kobayashi and Arakawa. Many times, Boukenger tends to get tonal shifts, especially with how Ryuon and Yaiba can get stuck in comedic moments. 

If this is really true then this is what. I could understand if Kamen Rider BLACK RX caused that hiatus for 11 years. Though, I feel the hiatus was planned by Toei Ltd. all along since they bothered to make BLACK RX a yearlong show. Unlike Saban's Mashed Rider, BLACK RX does get Vindicated by History even if it's the failed sequel of the hit BLACK. Fiveman had poor toy sales and poor ratings. Ratings were bad from Choriki Sentai Ohranger to Gekisou Sentai Carranger. However, both series had decent toys that are cooler than what Fiveman offered. So why was Abare Killer, if ever, even berated and nearly caused the franchise to lose support? 

IMHO, it can be the executives (and Bandai) were too afraid to allow such a concept. Like WTF? If they could allow evil Kamen Riders to be there when why not a ranger villain in spandex? Come on, we've had Evil Ranger teams (termed as Psycho Rangers by TV Tropes after the term in Power Rangers in Space). We've had the Nezirangers in Denji Sentai Megaranger. I guess it's because Mikoto appeared with the expectation that he would join the team eventually. Who can forget when Burai appeared in Zyuranger when he was practically Green with Evil in his badass introduction? Burai gave out a chilling Evil Laugh that never sounded like Dr. Evil but a cold-blooded killer. Mikoto gave out an Evil Laugh that made him live up to his name. I guess executves didn't like the idea that Mikoto would be evil all throughout. Hence, I beleive that's why the show gave hm a Last Minute Redemption all for the sake of it. 

Pretty much, I felt that the move to nearly cancel Super Sentai because of Mikoto was rather just douchy. Not that executive meddling is all bad. Come on, Power Rangers Time Force did manage to save Eric Myers from supposedly dying! There are times that violence needs to be toned down. Instead, my issue is that Mikoto's redemption was rather forced and the timing was rather illed IMHO.