Sean Akizuki's Super Sentai Blog

Jyuken Sentai Gekiranger hit its 10th anniversary last 2017 and it has its 15th anniversary this year. Not surprisingly, Gekiranger happened on the 20th anniversary of Hikari Sentai Maskman - the first attempt at a martial arts themed Super Sentai followed by Gosei Sentai Dairanger in 1993. I did write about how Ninpuu Sentai Hurricanger might be that failed attempt to introduce serious Super Sentai all over again . I guess Toei Ltd. may have some issues with how modern viewers tend to prefer Lighter and Softer over Darker and Edgier. I guess that's why some Power Rangers fans prefer the newer series.  It seems that Gekiranger may be on the list but wait... it's actually a contrasting sequel and a contrasting prequel. It had not one but TWO crossovers with a series that's more known for wacky antics. The first was with Gougou Sentai Boukenger (which I enjoy just how high these guys can get )   and the other is Engine Sentai Go-Onger  after it. I think the series was proba...

Here's an interesting Thursday Throwback. Gekiranger was known to have given tribute to the martial arts legends in the form of the Fist Saints . What slipped off me is why would a series that took place so much last 2007 give tribute to a 1978 film too? One film was called the Five Deadly Venoms by Shaw Brothers which is currently taken over by the Clear Water Bay Company. I haven't seen the film yet but it does look pretty interesting.  The film involves five main antagonists who also have the same motifs as the Gekiranger's Five Venom fists. They wore Mexican-wrestler type masks and their motifs are Gecko, Snake, Scorpion, Centipede and Toad. It involves the plot where the dying master of the Poison Clan sends its protagonist Yang Tieh against the rogue members of the clan -- who are causing havoc with their special powers.  Here's a rare English-dubbed scene (though I wish I can get its original audio with decent subs) where the master explains the fiv...

Ah yes, Gekiranger. I always find this a challenge because I tend to have extreme favoritism towards the series. No don't worry I won't be bashing Jungle Fury here considering I NEVER saw it nor do I intend to watch it. I'd put Gekiranger as it should be - Gekiranger. I'm giving some thought on how I may not be able to write more top ten favorite episodes because some things else tend to catch my passion. Without much ado, here's my top ten list. Lessons 3-9 Otherwise known as the "Venom Fist Ken" arc. While I don't find the opening of Gekiranger to be allt that good (and I think Dairanger still did it better) but I think this is were things start to get strong for an introduction. We are introduced to five new warriors as the monsters of the week each with a different challenge. There are various lessons in this arc that are taught like how simple tasks can help achieve great things. Personally, I think this is a strong way to make up for the not...

After Timeranger was the last Super Sentai for the 20th century and the 21st Century began with Gaoranger, Super Sentai started to go for lighter and softer to keep itself alive. Gaoranger was so much of a fun ride, Hurricanger isn't as serious as Liveman, Abaranger isn't as serious as Zyuranger and Dekaranger aren't that serious of a cop-themed show compared to the Rescue Police era of the Metal Hero franchise. But there were two seasons from Gaoranger to Gokaiger that tried to return back to their more serious roots. Jyuken Sentai Gekiranger From Gaoranger up to Boukenger, fans have been having a load of fun after the rather depressing blockbuster Timeranger ended. A lot of Super Sentai seasons have become less mature and more kid-friendly as time went by. But there was one show that tried to return to the roots of the 80s and 90s spirit namely Gekiranger. While Hideaki Tsukada as the chief producer couldn't ask for more budget for the action scenes (Gekira...

Happy Chinese New Year! It's time for me to talk about Chinese-based Super Sentai. You might be wondering why Hikari Sentai Maskman isn't here. Maskman used mixed martial arts from both Chinese and Japanese influence. What's so strange about Super Sentai is that while it's a Japanese series, it utilizes more foreign themes. After so many Western themes, they also decided to do Chinese themes. Gosei Sentai Dairanger Dairanger happens to be the first Chinese-themed Super Sentai . Compared to Maskman, the Dairangers used Chinese style fighting. These fighting styles happen to be based on Chinese martial arts namely Ryou uses Dragon Fist, Daigo uses Hung Ga, Shoji uses Long Fist, Kazu uses Drunken Fist and Rin uses Eagle Fist Style. Although most of the Dairangers were presumably Japanese but we have both Ryou and Rin as the first half-Chinese members of a Super Sentai team. Rin spoke a few lines in mandarin but it's obviously memorized. Ryou hasn't spoken any ...

If Dairanger wasn't enough, Gekiranger is another series that is very Chinese inspired. Like Dairanger, its basis are on chi power, martial arts but they use real-life animals, not mythical ones. Yet the whole season is also very Chinese-inspired in terms of theme, martial arts and concepts. The whole show seems to run also on Chinese mythological concepts. Gekiranger like Dairanger, has the concept of positive and negative energy. Gen Juken and Rin Juken are like the Daos and Gorma but in a different way. Both schools are like the harmony of the Yin-Yang sign of Taoist philosophy. Both sides must achieve that balance or Tao with each other. The rivalry of Jan and Rio is one that shows the battle of positive energy and negative energy. Yet both energies are needed to turn around the cycle. Miki Masaki who is the head of SCRTC is a master of jaguar fist herself. The entire organization is dedicated to the use of Chinese martial arts. Master Sha Fu's name may be derived fr...

Gekiranger had a one episode Christmas special which featured a boy named Carl and some focus on Ken Hisatsu. Carl is a boy who hates Christmas (we hardly have white guests in Sentai). So what's the whole episode about? Well Carl has a traumatic memory since his mother died on Christmas Eve in a car accident. Poor Carl.I can understand his dislike for the holiday but he doesn't have to spoil the others. The episode had Ken do some service for the boy. This episode also has Shuen, a Sun Wukong-styled monster do some chaos on his own.  Ken also does some cool martial arts moves. I thought it was also cool how Ken manages to get Carl back to like Christmas in spite of the tragedy. It's also interesting how the episode ended with Ken's designing.

Juuken Sentai Gekiranger... well I would confess I didn't immediately want to check this out after too much adventuring with Boukenger a series I either still like but not as much as I used to.  Now for Gekiranger, I was thinking of its possible mixed reaction.  I got some information from Fantasy Leader on the popularity of each season.  Here's the link  to Fantasy Leader's list for the 2000s Sentai. So what did I think of Gekiranger?  If I can recall, I was actually 27 or 28 when I first saw the series and it felt pretty nostalgic (in a way) while it had new school elements.  I really loved how Sentai got back to its serious roots with this series (then again, Gobusters failed to amuse me as much).  I just love how Gekiranger had its own set of really, really darker stories and more serious villains.  The Rin Juken weren't focused on half-brained schemes, rather they really knew how to get the job done and the Gekirangers fought their way out...

Gekiranger was the first Michiko Yokote trio headwriting job and it's a pretty good series (sadly Goseiger fell apart).   This was one season that had two major writers namely the Michiko Yokote trio (24 episodes) and Naruhisa Arakawa (11 episodes). Michiko Yokote (main writer) : 1-6, 10-11, 15-16, 19-21, 24, 28, 32, 34-35, 37, 40, 44-45, 48-49 (24 eps) Lesson 1-2 introduces us to the basics of Gekiranger.  Apparently here, the Michiko Yokote trio had a proper direction in their writing.  I just love they manage to introduce the story's Gekirangers as well as Rio and Mele.  We know something about them for two episodes, which is really a cool introduction.  I just love how Jan is realistically written (in a way) that he even acts more uncivilized because he's a jungle boy.  For Jan, he is still unsure of where his parents are. Lesson 3 shows a lesson for us in cleaning.  Jan doesn't see it at first but it allows him to defeat the Buffalo Ken ...

If there was any series I realized I love so much from last decade's Sentai, it's Gekiranger. Now first, I still like Dairanger better than this series overall, this series had issues for me like the CGI usage BUT still, this series. It's not shallow, it's very deep and you can get a lot of plot here. Well there's others with good plot back last decade or good storytelling but IMO, this show stands out. But feel free to tell your own series! Now for my favorite plot elements in this series and this can also tell why I love this series so much: The main characters and their storyline. For the Gekirangers, I think they are a very dymanic group from Jan, to Retsu who is my favorite of the original three and Ran who is the brains of the group (I love having women as the brains more than the guys in any group hero shows). Later we are introduced to Gou who is Retsu's older brother, which had a sibling rivalry at first but they got better. Ken, well he's coo...

Okay I haven't written in awhile due to other passions that tend to make me drift away but I'll write whenever I can.  Now for my "ki to inner power" in Super Sentai which I was "inspired to write" by these lines from Chris X's "Super Sentai vs. Super Sentai: Another Time, Another Takeru"... "Momoko, something is bugging me." Takeru, while on the way walking with Momoko, suddenly spoke, "That hand stance… what was that? Why does it make people feel a little better?"  "It's my meditation gesture." Momoko explained, "It symbolizes self-healing. I suppose it is better than nothing for the moment with them. We used that as a power to fight… known as Aura Power."  "You're teaching my team your Aura Power?" Takeru asked, confused.  "Inside a human body, a mysterious power is hidden. With training and discipline, an infinite power can be obtained." Momoko said, "That is...

In Super Sentai, there have been some entries that have been quite Asian themed. Now moving on my short thoughts on them on their Asian influence. For some reason, I would like to consider Hikari Sentai Maskman as the first Asian-themed Sentai. Why? Well the whole theme focused on Asian martial arts. It mixed both Chinese and Japanese fighting styles. Gosei Sentai Dairanger instead of using Japanese themes, used Chinese themes in almost all the stuff from suits to mecha to the enemies instead of Japanese themes for some reason. To an extent, some characters were actually half-Chinese- Ryou and Lin. Kou, well he may have been pure Chinese himself. Ninja Sentai Kakuranger was the first that used purely Japanese themes instead of Chinese themes. It also battled the supernatural based on Japanese myths as well. Ninpou Sentai Hurricanger is the second ninja-themed Super Sentai. It was for me a fusion of Kakuranger and Liveman. Liveman in a sense of the first three members, betrayal,...

Well just take a wild guess why this is the entry. :-P Bwahahahaha! Emperor Ragorn- He is the emperor of the 100 Bouma Tribe. It's kind of ironic that Riki Honoo/Red Turbo was able to defeat him in a one-on-one duel. He was killed twice. Dai Satan/Lokar- It's not surprising he's named Dai Satan, after all he rules the Netherworld. He's the ultimate evil in Zyuranger with whom Bandora sealed a deal with. Like Ragorn, he was defeated twice. However he only appeared in episodes 30-31, 47-50. He was first defeated in episode 31 by Kyokyoku Daiyzujin. In episode 50, his physical form was destroyed. Only if he could just get rid of Hercule in Dragon Ball Z for using his name in vain. LOL. Daimaou/Master Vile- His name literally means Great Demon King. Funny he shares the same name with the antagonist in Akazukin Cha Cha. N-Ma- He was the ruler of Infershia. Although he was initially fragmented, he however managed to assemble himself back together. In the end, it ...

Power Rangers wasn't the only franchise with really muscular men. Well there were some hunky muscled males in Super Sentai. Here are they: Ryou of Dairanger was among a few Sentai males to have really big muscles and be that good looking. He fought topless in episode 27 and was topless in episode 47. By judging at his build, I think he can definitely beat other red rangers in an out of suit combat IMO. Also, I think he can definitely beat Cole Evans in hand-to-hand combat both out of suit too even if his muscles are not that big being a certified true martial artist. Tetsu Aira was one of those few Sentai males who had really big muscles. I felt like he really beats Tommy Oliver off the scale. Oh yeah, I felt like Jasmine Reimon should have been the one to have gotten that unfortunate incident above. Gou Fukami of Gekiranger also has huge muscles. He was featured topless in Lesson 24. However he's not as good looking as the Jungle Fury hunks. Takeru Shib...

This crossed my mind just recently. Ha ha ha. Silly me I overlooked this. With Star Wars, Super Sentai also had some father vs. son moments. Here they are: I think Doctor Man the main villain in Bioman counts as a Darth Vader. Why? He tried to convince his son Shuichi to join the dark side which he refuses, which causes a serious clash in their relationship. Although not really emphasized and shown only for a few episodes namely episodes 25-26, 43-44 and as Bioman was about to end (47-51). In the final end, Junichi like Luke Skywalker begs his father to remember who he was. Like Darth Vader, Doctor Man dies too from his injuries after reconciling with his son. In Dairanger, Ryou's father had fallen into the dark side in the past. He had no idea Zhang Liao (not the historical figure) was his father making him the only red ranger to be half-Chinese. Like Luke Skywalker, Ryou grew up not knowing who his father really was until in episode 8 when Master Kaku made the rev...

I'll do another villain spotlight. Hee hee. So anyway, Long is another character that has entered into my favorite villain list. He's a scheming, manipulative schemer who could actually be considered by some more dangerous than Radiguet or Shaddam, or maybe even planet destroyers like Bazoo and Vulgyre, in the cosmos of the natural and the supernatural. So what's the deal? Many say he is immortal and can't be killed so he's a real threat that has been lurking around the world. Although he only started appearing in episode 23 but even his not-so-long stay was more menacing. How cruel is he? To start with, he doesn't care about anybody but himself, he's a total snob. He has a murderous history where he actually killed the families of Rio and Jan, hoping to use them. Rio was driven to the dark side, Jan became a Gekiranger, but he did use Jan's father Dan and trapped him into his service- the same way Star Wars' very own Sith lord Palpatine di...

Sibling rivalry is really a big issue isn't it? Heroes and villains, you got it! I could relate to this article because I have a lot of relatives suffering from that same disorder, I've experienced it too! The Igam twins had their rivalry at the beginning for one reason- Princess Igamu hated the fact her twin sister Ial fell for Takeru who was a surface dweller. This led to Igamu bearing a grudge against her twin sister to the point she would kill her to carry out Zeba's imperial mandates. In the end, they united and Zeba's dark particle wave was ceased before the final battle. (no picture, SORRY :-( ) In Turboranger episode 18, two monsters were siblings known as Ice Bouma and Fire Bouma. Fire Bouma counted Ice Bouma as weak because Ice Bouma became good. The two fought although Ice Bouma had concerns for his brother. In the end, the two were reconciled. In Zyuranger, before Burai became a hero, he hated his younger brother Geki with a passion. It had something...