Remembering It's Friday In California, In Memory Of Hiroshi Tsuchida's Untimely Demise

 
I often wonder if there's a Super Sentai curse, too. Kenji Ohba's death was around 2026. Now, it's the death of Ninja Blue's actor Hiroshi Tsuchida. The cause was heart failure at only 54 years old, and the family deserves its privacy. The funeral was held privately as it should be. I thought about other deaths, like Hector Ramirez died of colon cancer at only 59.

The character Saizo in Ninja Sentai Kakuranger was described as talkative, easily flattered, tends to overestimate himself, and the butt monkey. Yes, the butt monkey meant he was always unlucky. The character Saizo was unlucky for laughs. I even watched Kakuranger Act 3 that was a strange 30 years later reunion. That film focused on new types of Youkai and became a self-aware parody for several people. 

Kakuranger Act III was a fun reunion film two years ago. That was the last chance since the Kakuranger cast got together. Unfortunately, 2024 was also the year when actress Yuka Motohashi of Gekisou Sentai Carranger died of cancer — an incident that never ceases to remind me of Thuy Trang's UNTIMELY car accident. The film addressed how the Kakurangers were in their 50s and still fighting to keep the world safe — even for a world that has moved on in 30 years. 

So yeah, it was good that they had one last move together. However, who'd have thought that Hiroshi would've died after he contributed his later years as a dubber? Honestly, it's as if Saizo's character being so unlucky translated into REAL LIFE. So yeah, Hiroshi gave us a character many fans laughed at. However, Hiroshi became too unfortunate to have died so soon, too.

RIP NINJA BLUE!