Sean Akizuki's Super Sentai Blog

I still have my Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger hype. However, I caught up with Bakuage Sentai Boonboomger which I dare call the "necessary return to simpler-looking designs". This week has made me more familiar with the Japanese number 119. Yes, 119 works the same way as 911 in America. 119 in Japan is an emergency rescue number. Boonboomger carries the motif of a lightspeed delivery service. I'm warming up to how a ranger team of "mostly unremarkable civilians" are proving themselves worthy to handle the powers of lightspeed. This is coming from me who thinks that lightspeed rescue technologies are best handled for those who do rescue work for a living -- not non-professional civilians!  The scene almost feels like an upgrade to Ressha Sentai ToQGer's Imagination Power. I confess the show felt boring -- it was at that time I had franchise fatigue! Taiya originally wanted to be a firefighter but never got to that point. It seems Taiya was probably prohibited by hi...

Am I excited for the Ninja Sentai Kakuranger 30th anniversary movie (because they can be so rare) OR am I just looking for something to nitpick ? I even said  Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers: Once and Always was proof that Power Rangers was too stuck in the past.  An update I got from UkiyaSeed reveals that Ninpou Sentai   Hurricanger and Shuriken Sentai   Ninninger will be part of the movie's continuity . Most Super Sentai entries are usually self-contained or take place in some other dimension -- unless specified. There are times when the convenient portal or "It's just a special." plot device is pulled during certain crossovers. Most Super Sentai crossover movies are like the Dragon Ball Z movies -- they probably just exist as some form of distraction or a fun What-If scenario.  I have a bit of my hypothesis for the return of three seniors. Kohei Yamamoto was born in 1980, Nao Nagasawa was born in 1984 (her husband Koji Nakata was born in 1979), and Hideya Taw...

I may have some issues with reunion movies these days . Despite its popularity in Japan, I was glad Samurai Sentai Shinkenger didn't have a 10th-anniversary reunion movie. I may be a fan of Bakuryu Sentai Abaranger but I wasn't too flattered at a 20 years after movie. I have mixed feelings about the news of a Ninja Sentai Kakuranger reunion movie. Some reunion movies may no longer be possible due to cast members who have died such as Tatsuya Nomi in Gosei Sentai Dairanger , the most recent demise of Yuka Motohashi from cancer, or having some sickness such as Kenji Shibata's brain tumor in Kyukyu Sentai GoGoFive.  Kenichi Endo will resume his role as Prince Junior/Gaskadokuro -- something I think is built on nostalgia. Prince Junior was pretty entertaining. I'd dare say that while Prince Junior was crueler than Rito Revolto -- he also managed to be funnier at the same time. I still find the skeletal design to be funny. It wasn't explained why Kenichi left the show m...

SuperSentai2023 Instagram Super Sentai was trying to stay afloat more than once. The reboot treatment has been working wonders as long as it caters to children . What I never noticed is that Super Sentai tried a new plot with the lovable nerd heroine. Power Rangers fans may raise Kendrix Morgan due to her wearing glasses. The difference is Kendrix wore spandex and fought bad guys. However, most of the lovable nerds here minus Yayoi Ulshade aren't ranger-type characters. Maybe, three out of four of them have really bad eyesight -- not good for battles! However, they made up for it with their intellect. Yes, not all heroes go out into the battlefield and fight. Some are the BTS encouragers like Alfred Pennyworth in Batman . Miho Nakamura was the laboratory assistant at Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters . The show does have some similarities to Power Rangers RPM like having a sentient virus Big Bad. I like how the Energy Management Center gave a commander in Takeshi Kuroki (too bad the actor ...

I may not be doing episode reviews (so I could focus on other stuff). However, I felt like doing this episode because of the return of Norio in a semi-comedic episode. I guess there wouldn't be any more overly somber episodes like episodes 14-15 -- which were probably tributes to the late Yuka Motohashi. As I was watching this episode -- I realized that Norio was from episode 1. Yes, that same episode where Mira was almost forcibly wed and I think she's too young to be a bride. So much for that Lightspeed Rescue! I never expected Norio to get into a future episode. Most possible love interests simply fizzle out and never get heard from again. One can talk about Canalo's long list of unrequited romances . One-shot love interests were a common trope during the Hirohisa Soda era. Mai in Dengeki Sentai Changeman fell for a scientist for one episode. Kenta in Hikari Sentai Maskman was pretty much into that. Kasumi in Chikyu Sentai Fiveman also had a one-shot love interest acted...

  The passing away of Shelley Duvall a few days ago made me rewatch one episode of  Faerie Tale Theatre . I rewatched the episode "The Nightingale" which had white people play as Chinese characters. The episode was aired on May 10, 1983, and Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger premiered on March 5, 2023. It was Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers' 30th anniversary. It was the 25th anniversary of Power Rangers in Space , Man in the Iron Mask , and Mystic Knights of Tir Na Nog -- which may explain the show's awkwardness.  The more I look back at the earlier episodes -- it becomes obvious that Chikyu has some very Western-like civilizations. I could always get over N'Kosopa and Toufu getting played by East Asians. However, it's blatant that Shuggodom (from the Japanese words protect and kingdom), Gokkan (Midwinter), and Ishabana (coming from the words doctor and flower) are based on Western civilizations. We've got a bunch of cosplayers (and the joke was well-carried int...

It's been some time since I REACTED to an update. As a reminder -- I prefer to react to updates than to give them. I just leave the updates to sites like JEFusion (which I stopped guest-writing for them so I can focus on other stuff) or UkiyaSeed. I'd like to give my first impressions of Sakito Homura or Bun Violet. Bakuage Sentai Boonboomger uses more simplistic, almost retro-style designs while keeping in mind we're in the digital age. I love some good old retro stuff while accepting new technology.  I'd like to emphasize some problems I had with the newer Super Sentai . One of them involves the sixth ranger showing up too soon. I could remember one of my problems with post-Gokaiger seasons was the sixth ranger pacing. Sure, I'm a fan of Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters but I think Masato Jin's episode 14 arrival was, "QUICK! WE GOTTA SELL MORE TOYS!" Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger gave us Utsusemimaru in the NINTH EPISODE. I may have enjoyed Ohsama Sentai King-Oh...