Where Does Turboranger Possibly Stand Among Power Rangers Fans Checking Out Super Sentai?

Power Morphicon is getting more Super Sentai guests huh? What even surprises me is that Kamen Rider Decade's actor, Masahiro Inoue, is also guesting. I still think Decade has to be the worst Kamen Rider from the Heisei era. I still call it the spiritual successor of Saban's Masked Rider. This surprises me that Kenta Sato was invited instead of Yuji Kishi. If I'm not wrong, the rumor that Gekisou Sentai Carranger "saved" Super Sentai was also from Rangerboard. Yeah, there are so many rumors disproven now such as the Power Rangers Lost Galaxy rumor in Japan. Right now, it might only be a matter of time before Turboranger gets an official Shout! Factory release. 

The concept of teenagers with attitude wasn't all that ready yet

Turboranger was practically the Trope Codifier of Recruit Teenagers with Attitude. I guess that's why the show didn't immediately click. The production crew (which also involved Takeyuki Suzuki) and the head writer Hirohisa Soda had no idea what it wanted to do. Writer burnouts do happen and when they do - things go haywire. I even watched Kaiju No Kami's review on Turboranger and I wasn't surprised he HATED IT. I guess that's what happens after watching Denji Sentai Megaranger and Carranger. I could even say that Carranger has better characters. Sure, the rumor about Carranger saving Super Sentai is fake but whatever. Megaranger also made teenagers with attitude more believable. 

Trying something new can result in INITIAL FAILURE. I guess Japanese audiences weren't ready to accept a team of teenagers with attitude. I could imagine Peebo from Chodenshi Bioman would probably chastise Dr. Dazai if he were in the show. "Not teenagers!" was practically something Alpha Five had the right to say to Zordon way back in Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers. Super Sentai usually treats its shows as their own continuity instead of that expanding Universe that some people love to imagine exists. Despite that, I still don't want to rewatch Mighty Morphin' after watching Turboranger.

Turboranger did play out the threefold rule without stating it. I think it's a writing flaw that Dr. Dazai never told them the threefold rule. Maybe, it was filmed and it was deleted due to time constraints. I could imagine Dr. Dazai telling the Turborangers to never use their power for personal gain, never escalate a fight unless the Bouma forces them to, and never let anyone know they're the Turborangers. Why the scene was never played is something. I believe it's a deleted scene that would've probably taken a little more time. 

The Turborangers tend to be pretty basic. I guess it's because it's the 1980s so we don't get to know their parents either. We don't get much of a backstory except for a few characters. The only one that felt developed as Yohei Hama with his late younger brother (who got into a hit and run) and the backstory with Kirika (which sadly got forgotten). They're good but they could've been better. I guess there are times Super Sentai prefers not to give too much of a backstory. The Megarangers tend to have been given more details. Well, it's 1997 vs. 1989 so there's room to explore what went wrong and how to do it right. 

The controversial midseason change 

I may be a Turboranger fan BUT I'm not going to disagree with Kaiju No Kami's view on the Hundred Bouma Tribes. I couldn't help but laugh when Kaiju No Kami called the Bouma tribe members poor personifications of evil. Sure, some Super Sentai villains operate with EVIL as their motif. Kagaku Sentai Dynaman's Jashinka literally translates into Evil Evolution or Dai Sentai Goggle V has the Deathdark Science Empire. Those groups were operating with For the Evulz. Heck, Carranger made it more blatant when the Bowzock Gang was blatantly evil. However, I think Turboranger had no idea on what it wanted to do with For the Evulz.

The midseason had the controversial Bouma Realignment Arc. Unlike most Super Sentai - most villains tend to stay until the finale arc. I guess not so many heard of how Himitsu Sentai Goranger actually had generals replacing the fallen ones. By now, people should know that was also done with Seijuu Sentai Gingaman because Captain Zahab saw how they sabotaged each other. Turboranger just presented what I might call making the villains Stupid Evil. Kaiju went on to discuss how Ragorn's a one-dimensional villain who just got locked up for being as evil as he could get. The Bouma generals fare no better. Rehda's the biggest waste of the late Masashi Ishibashi. Zimba had a bit of a backstory but ended up rather generic. Jarmin's modus operandi is simply how bitchy she can get. I even agree with Kaiju's assessment that maybe Soda made the generals as lame as they could be so he could write them off. Although, there's always the management. Then again, it's possible that the Bouma General actors HATED the show because of how lame their characters could get.

Fortunately, Turboranger didn't get that "Let's rush a finale!" treatment like some of the older shows. Who could remember some older Kamen Rider seasons that got rushed? Another would be Dengekitai JAKQ which was just 35 episodes. The Nagare Bouma, Yamimaru and Kirika, became the focus in the place of the lame Bouma Generals. I still find it funny (and annoying) to keep Zulten around. I guess Ragorn just needs a punching bag or the show needed a comic character. I can understand why some people hate that fart joke episode. The Nagare Bouma had more personality. Heck, Yamimaru even had EVERY RIGHT to question Ragorn for not recruiting him in episode 31! Come on, Yamimaru used Zimba to disable the Turbo Robo. Not so many Super Sentai villains these days have disabled a Megazord like that! Kirika enters the second half and provides some development for the Nagare Bouma. Overall, the two villains weren't one-dimensional, unlike the original cast. 

I guess that's why Ragorn was shelved and eventually given a disgraceful finale. Ragorn was later written off. I may think Red Turbo vs. Ragorn was one badass fight. However, it seems to be a dirty finger on Ragorn one way or another. Ragorn does return as Neo-Ragorn. Neo-Ragorn may be more powerful but his defense stats are pathetically low. Neo-Ragorn got defeated so easily by a combination that he previously outmatched. Also, Zulten's death in the final episode was just too standard. Zulten leading an assault and then getting shot down was too basic stuff too.

I guess this caused better contractual agreements. One can think how the 1980s did have some sudden cast departures. Goggle V had both Igaana and Zazoriya leave the show by episode 15. Well, both of them were so generic that it wasn't such a loss. There's also the controversial cast departure in Chodenshi Bioman with Yuki Yajima. I simply assumed that the Bouma Generals left due to a contractual dispute. At least they all got written off with good battle scenes. I even enjoyed how Rehda's fight scenes that felt like Michael Bay directed them. 

A character that probably gets Turboranger some appreciation

I would like to disagree with Kaiju's bad assessment of Dr. Dazai or the Turborangers to be meh. Menawhile, Kaiju does mention how Misa Yamaguchi might be the best character in the show. Mighty Morphin' also had a homeroom teacher Miss Appleby. Yamaguchi has a lot of development. Yamaguchi has a personality that would make Bulk and Skull think twice before causing trouble. Every episode she shows up - she's practically that strict teacher that you'll grow to love. 

Misa wonders why the Turborangers just shrink out and if they're hiding something. The third rule is to never let anyone know they're the Turborangers. Another episode had Misa with her sister Mika. Mika later discovers who the Turborangers are but never tells her sister. I guess Dr. Dazai made Mika swear not to tell anyone. Later on, Misa still wonders what the Turborangers are hiding. Then the big reveal happens that Misa eventually discovers they're the Turborangers all along!

Turboranger's finale felt like a Doomsday arc. Sure, Kyoryu Sentai Zyuranger had it too. Misa goes out there and she's looking for the heroes. She discovers the heroes for who they are and TALKS TO THEM VIA COMMUNICATOR. That's really one badass move. Just imagine the homeroom teacher talking to the Turborangers to get the job done. Misa practically becomes the biggest hero of the show. 

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I guess Turboranger is still Vindicated by History. I feel it may get a DVD release soon. Maybe, it's going to be in the So Okay It's Average rank. I guess it'll never be at the same level of love as Carranger. Pretty much, I don't expect most pre-2001 Super Sentai series to get that much appreciation. Most post-2000s Super Sentai tend to have a Lighter and Softer tone to them. Turboranger just has too many eyebrow-raising moments that can make one ask, "Wait, they show this to kids in Japan?!"