Sean Akizuki's Super Sentai Blog

Kaiketsu Hunter Omegahorn IsKaiketsu Hunter Omegahorn Is Part Of Gavan Infinity's Continuity (Concerns)

noreply@blogger.com (Sean Akizuki) — Fri, 28 Aug 2026 14:37:02 +0000

It's Power Rangers day, isn't it? The recent news that Power Rangers' planned reboot is crashing on August is really something. My reaction towards that show has changed course overtime. I used to like it a LOT as a child. However, I view it as just "fitting into the playground". However, the older I got, the more accessible the Internet became, and I discovered Super Sentai. Sure, I learned how and why localization DOES HAPPEN in the international market, as America and Japan are two culturally diverse worlds. That's why Power Rangers was born, although I just grew to dislike it at a PERSONAL LEVEL. Over time, I just decided I prefer Super Sentai to Power Rangers for rather PERSONAL reasons. I guess I was on the "winning side," even if Super Sentai is anything but perfect.

I wrote my "controversial rant" HAMMERING IBC-13 after Super Sentai ended. I was actually expecting a 50th Super Sentai series for 2026, but we had Project RED instead. RED means Records of Extraordinary Dimensions. However, No. 1 Sentai Gozyuger showed every sign that Super Sentai was ending with that giant Megazord Graveyard. Even more, the finale signs already began flashing in neon lights for five seasons, starting with Kikou Sentai Zenkaiger (45th entry). Avatar Sentai Donbrothers didn't shy away from Ranger History Lessons. Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger didn't shy away from being a festival. The "diet" Bakuage Sentai Boonboomger gave us some more Ranger History Lessons. Those were clear signs that Super Sentai was going to end.

Reexamining the history of Power Rangers

I looked back at the history of Super Sentai and Power Rangers. I even watched The Toys That Made Us episode about Power Rangers to understand the vocabulary. However, it was also there that truly cemented my further dislike for Power Rangers. I wrote an article where I talked about how Power Rangers was actually better for the American audience. However, stuff like the overextension of Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers for three seasons, Power Rangers Zeo as a mere continuation, Power Rangers Turbo as a mere continuation, and well, I must admit Power Rangers in Space felt overcrowded no matter how much of a franchise saver it was. Sure, Power Rangers started with a "short era" of less focus on Mighty Morphin'. However, other issues like Disney's 38 episodes down to 32 episodes format made me annoyed.

Super Sentai kept its format in such a way that even if theoretically the entries can belong to a single timeline -- I can choose to watch them in any order. I was even hesitant to watch Himitsu Sentai Goranger as it was 84 episodes long, while Dengekitai JAKQ was pretty much rushed with just 35 episodes. There was a year-long hiatus before Battle Fever J. 2013-2015 were those times when I chose to watch more older shows since the newer shows "felt boring". I watched shows that I missed at my OWN PACE. So far, I remember watching Doubotsu Sentai Zyuohger while watching up on Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger (which is an action-fest), and Ressha Sentai ToQGer, as well as Shuriken Sntai Ninninger.

The Nickelodeon disaster that may have accelerated Power Rangers' limbo

Nickelodeon, a station I used to like so much before, worsened it with the SUMMER BREAK FORMAT. Saban managed to buy back Power Rangers in 2011, and that's when the summer break mayhem began. Honestly, the format is so stressful that I felt, "Why am I even torturing myself here?" It was really proof of Power Rangers getting worse and worse due to one word: MISMANAGEMENT. I could understand if I could write terrible stories on MY OWN since I'm not being scrutinized by a producer or director. However, Power Rangers is supposedly handled by professional adults, just like Super Sentai. I have to ask, "What in the world are these executives thinking."

Super Sentai didn't go for that summer break. Instead, from 2011-2025, the franchise always went for the yearly release with SUMMER EPISODES. However, Power Rangers had missed the opportunity thanks to Nickelodeon's bad scheduling meant these as opportunity losses for these shows:

Ressha Sentai ToQGer
Doubotsu Sentai Zyuohger
Ucchu Sentai Kyuranger
Kaito Sentai Lupinranger vs. Keisatsu Sentai Patranger
Mashin Sentai Kiramager
Kikou Sentai Zenkaiger
Avatar Sentai Donbrothers
Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger
Bakuage Sentai Boonboomger

If I'm not mistaken, the royalty fees that are involved could cost around USD 10 million to USD 15 million per show. Just think of the opportunity cost is around USD 90 million to USD 135 million has been becasue of the bad scheduling. Sure, there was some mish-mash like using Baron Nero from ToQGer to Cosmo Royale from Power Rangers Ninja Steel. However, all the mish-mash may have cost a staggering opportunity cost that huge for Toei. After all, the deal's contractual now, isn't it?

That Great Leap Backward when Power Rangers Beast Morphers (during the Hasbro tenure in 20189) was based on Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters from FREAKING 2012. Honestly, I felt that was already a red flag. The series got too focused on choking in several continuities than operating with soft continuity. Mentioning Rita Repulsa to Galvanax? Honestly, then we had Power Rangers Dino Fury which if I must admit, made Kishinryu Sentai Ryusoulger a little more "watchable" regardless of how I feel the show's not worth watching. We had the mini-series Power Rangers Cosmic Fury which was just a mini-series. Honestly, YAWN, and Lord Zedd returning just for the sake of nostalgia and ratings was all about the Mighty Morphin' overdose SINCE 2011.

In fact, after 2011-2022, Super Sentai was somehow ready to just say goodbye. I thought about how Beast Morphers was stuck with its 2019 up to 2022 schedule, when it should've ended in either late 2019 or 2020. I thought about how Super Sentai was willing to finally close the book. King-Ohger happened in 2023 during Mighty Morphin's 30th YEAR. Beast Morphers had Jacqueline Scislowski was just "there" in Beast Morphers (bare minimum approach in a MODERN SHOW) while Erica Murakami was given something better to work with. I mean, Jacqueline CAN ACT and I bet she could've made a good Himeno for King-Ohger too if she could speak Japanese.

The issue was that Power Rangers chose the "easy approach". I mean, I must admit I was laughing at how OLD people can become. Watching Mighty Morphin' Once and Always ends up being torture for me. Nostalgia fever? Well, I must admit that Ninja Sentai Kakuranger had a 30 years after story but it was on MIDDLE AGE STRUGGLES. Mighty Morphin' Once and Always felt more like a bailout especially with the release of a Robo Rita's Revenge game. Kakuranger 30 Years Later had no follow up video game or anything. Even the 20 years later films for Tokusou Sentai Dekaranger and Bakuryu Setnai Abaranger where merely fun tributes that even a newbie could watch them first without getting lost. Sure, I'm also skeptical over the Super Sentai reunion movies but they don't look like they're bailouts -- just sideline projects.

The difference came eventually. Gozyuger became the final Super Sentai. Super Sentai was slowly preparing to move away from the TV screens. However, Power Rangers was somehow "stubbornly pushing" even after the series was mismanaged too much. I think about it that seriously, the brand that once allowed Toei to get money from the Western market is STUCK IN LIMBO while Super Sentai, the source material, just had a dignified retirement.

Kaiketsu Hunter Omegahorn IsKaiketsu Hunter Omegahorn Is Part Of Gavan Infinity's Continuity (Concerns)

noreply@blogger.com (Sean Akizuki) — Thu, 06 Aug 2026 09:07:41 +0000

Kaiketsu Omegahorn's second episode has a DIRECT link to Gavan Infinity. Historically, Toei has the habit of making shows either a direct soft sequel OR making shows in separate continuity. Most Super Sentai series usually exist as self-contained, except in rare instances. Super Sentai crossover movies usually depict themselves in ways that contradict the show canon -- basically a series of what-if scenarios!

However, the Space Sheriff Trilogy was all part of an expanding Universe. The Metal Hero series began with Ucchu Keiji Gavan, followed by the direct sequel Ucchu Keiji Sharivan. The final installment of the series was Ucchu Keiji Shaider. The three Space Sheriffs were soft sequels to each other -- each preceding hero taking a step back. Shaider was the last one and didn't feature the first two heroes within the series. The Metal Hero franchise later spewed mostly self-contained entries for shows like Kyoju Tokosou Juspion, Jiku Senshi Spielban (where Hiroshi Watari acted as the main hero, different character), Chojinki Metalder, Sekai Ninja Sen Jiraiya, and Kido Keiji Jiban. The Rescue Police Trilogy entries Tokkei Winspector, Tokkyu Shirei Solbrain, and Tokosou Exceedraft were soft continuities. Tokosou Robo Janperson up to Blue SWAT should be treated as separate continuities. Juuko B-Figher had a special finale (52-53), which was thankfully not brought up in the soft sequel, B-Fighter Kabuto.

Basically, it seems Project RED as a franchise is still testing the waters. Gavan Infinity ended in 23 episodes. However, it seems that the "premature end" was probably to see how fans may react to it if Omegahorn's continuity shares the same continuity as Gavan Infinity. That's probably why we had that cameo in the second episode.

A mixed approach might be the best way to handle things. Remember how people can both have the desire for a continuity AND a fresh start. Super Sentai seems to operate with "Fresh start is usually better." Kamen Rider once had that soft continuity approach during the Showa Era. However, it seems that most Kamen Rider series since Kamen Rider Kuuga up to the present use self-contained continuities for better innovative writing. Innovation often requires BLANK SLATES more often than not.

Toei's decision to test the waters might be to see how Project RED can work. They're probably planning some series that would be soft sequels to each other. Future entries of Project RED may be self-contained. It might be a case-to-case basis as soft sequels and self-contained continuities have their own charm.

Main Concerns For Project RED After Seeing "Kakusei Hunter Omegahorn's" First Episode

noreply@blogger.com (Sean Akizuki) — Thu, 30 Jul 2026 08:43:41 +0000

Previously, I wrote that Project RED could truly replace Super Sentai. The toy sales have dwindled which may have caused Super Sentai's five-year finale. I had my concerns when Gavan Infinity wrapped up in just 23 episodes instead of going for a full year. It was like WUT? It's because Kamen Rider Zeztz is blatantly hitting its ending (and honestly, I'm under Kamen Rider taste fatigue).

Remembering the Super Hero Time schedule (which was given its name in 2003)

The trend where Super Sentai and Kamen Rider would be an early year thing, started in 2000. Kamen Rider Kuuga premiered on January 30, 2000. On the other hand, Mirai Sentai Timeranger aired on February 13, 2000. The two tend to be together. Timeranger had lower toy sales than its predecessor Kyukyu Sentai GoGoFive. Kuuga was the first new Kamen Rider series that broke away from the late Shotaro Ishinomori's continuity in favor of a fresher formula. Honestly. I find most of the Showa era Kamen Rider shows not my style. These days, I simply look at Kamen Rider BLACK and its inferior (but still fun) sequel Kamen Rider BLACK RX as some kind of transition. BLACK RX introduced several stuff that actually spilled over to the Heisei era and Reiwa era like multiple forms, a car, and civilian friends who actually get involved in the lone hero's journey. Kuuga managed to learn HOW to do that.

Basically, think about how each show ran with a near-tandem towards each other. Super Hero Time was a programming block in 2003. That happened to be the 10th anniversary of Mighty Morphin'. 2003 was the year when Bakuryu Sentai Abaranger and extremely overly depressing Kamen Rider Faiz (Toshiki Inoue started showing signs of burning out).

Super Sentai's long history had a considerable change in 2009. Who can remember when Kamen Rider Decade only had 31 episodes with an indefinite conclusion? Kamen Rider W premiered on September 6, 2009. I assumed that Decade got cancelled because it was just terrible. I even called it the "spiritual sequel" of Saban's Masked Rider. Even better, the crossover with Samurai Sentai Shinkenger was miles better than "A Friend in Need" in Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers. Unlike Saban's Masked Rider, we get to see Tsukasa Kadoya in the crossovers and not get the flak. Decade was vindicated by history, unlike Saban's Masked Rider, which got retconned out entirely. Basically, I made a mistake thinking that Decade got cancelled due to really bad ratings!

Instead, Kamen Rider would always premiere during the -ber months. This was called the Heisei Era Kamen Rider Phase 2. This may have prevented the toy overload that may have persisted even in the 2000s. This was the formula that went from 2009 until 2025. Apparently, it allowed Bandai to avoid stressing them out when toy sales were the issue. However, Super Sentai toys had an ongoing decline compared to the Kamen Rider toys.

That makes me think of how Omegahorn's late July 2026 premiere could clash with Kamen Rider eventually

I don't think Super Sentai is just "on break" but retired for good. The 2026 exhibit felt like a proper farewell. Omegahorn came in this week on July 26, 2026. Gavan Infinity ended with a typical "police drama ending". We ended up having Omegahorn so soon in the place of Gavan. It makes me think of the possible toy sales cannibalization.

Sure, the upcoming Kamen Rider My-Th is still due in September 2026 (fall). However, we had our Gavan Infinity toys to be followed up with Omegahorn toys. I can't be certain what toys Omegahorn would have after the Gavan Infinity toys. I even heard there's some DEAD INVENTORY and they might end up in Toy Kingdom or SM Toystore (which has been downsized) soon. Can new toys launched in late July 2026 end up cannibalizing any upcoming My-Th toys?

Hmmmm... leaves room for thought!

My Thoughts Projs Project Red Ultimately Become Super Sentai" Overall As A Possible Kickstarter For Project RED (Spoilers)

noreply@blogger.com (Sean Akizuki) — Mon, 20 Jul 2026 05:59:15 +0000

Gavan Infinity has just concluded in 23 episodes. This reminds me of the time when Toei Ltd. released some old-school Toku shows that didn't last a year. Kamen Rider Amazon was cut short by 24 episodes, probably due to the violence. Several Kamen Rider shows didn't last a year during the Showa era. Dengitai JAKQ only lasted 35 episodes. Gavan Infinity ended this year -- the same year that Kenji Ohba died. It seems that Toei had planned the whole episode count of 23, and not because of my speculation that Ohba's death this year caused the cut.

How does Gavan Infinity hold up? Honestly, I want to call it an experiment of sorts. The whole story separates itself from Uchu Keiji Gavan (thankfully) despite carrying the same title. The story tends to mix elements from previous works, such as:

Monsters of the week are humans who use Emorgear, the same way that Dopants in Kamen Rider W and Zodiarts in Kamen Rider Fourze get defeated and revert back to human form instead.
The use of serialized storytelling from TV drama is used. Kamen Rider is an entire year of serialized storytelling. However, Gavan Infinity's short length reminds me how J-Dramas were never meant for an entire year run. I've been watching a lot of shows on Netflix, and it seemed Gavan Infinity wanted to mimic that format. So yeah, I wouldn't be surprised if Kamen Rider would soon go from a year-long thing to finally becoming "A J-Drama worth 20+ episodes with much tighter storytelling" instead of "The show with multiple tight arcs" to meet a year's demand.
There's no central mafia, but the problem of negative feelings resulting from Emorgear Use. The Dark Gavan plot is also linked to the concept of Azaloth, a supernatural darkness that plagues the Multiverse.

The recurring antagonist examined

The closest thing to a main villain was Tenshin Mikage aka Death Gavan. I remember how Gokaiger vs. Gavan made fun of the world bootleg by creating Gavan Bootleg. In form and substance, Gavan Bootleg was an ILLEGAL REPRODUCTION in the story text. In this case, Death Gavan was legitimately a Gavan who went rogue after discovering the overarching antagonist Azazorth. Azazorth is practically a malevolent force that can never be defeated. This guy was distributing the Negative Emorgears around the Multiverse. This guy kinda reminds me of the Rescue Police Trilogy villains more than the typical super-powered villains. In this case, Tenshin reminds me of Ryuichi Takaoka in Tokyu Shirei Solbrain.

However, I also felt Tenshin lacked the complexity that Takaoka had in Solbrain. I mean, I seriously wished this guy just committed suicide like when Takaoka drank poison before he could be arrested! I believe my wish became impossible due to changes in censorship. I mean, think of how the 1990s Toku atmosphere had a higher tolerance for violence. However, Japan's new censorship laws probably caused Death Gavan to be killed in a CGI way rather than him ending his own life. It would've been poetic, but I thought that censorship didn't allow it.

The ending mimics a traditional police drama

The ending doesn't have the "happily ever after" trope. Instead, it shows that EVIL NEVER SLEEPS. We have talks about Azazoth followers, an official revealed to have the mark of Azazoth on his wrist, and the fact that human negative emotions would never go away. The Gavans of the Multiverse know that their work had JUST BEGUN. Defeating Death Gavan wasn't the end but the beginning of a new career. In Super Sentai, the team usually disbands because the extraordinary threats are gone and leave the ordinary threats to the ordinary defense force. However, in Gavan Infinity, the extraordinary threat of the Emorgear and the like are ordinary threats in a world where the policemen used superweapons and space travel is life.

It somehow mimics many crime dramas. Sure, a crime drama could end to prevent narrative stagnation. However, many of them often give that "open-ended feel". A criminal is caught? Good. However, we also get the impression that evil never sleeps. Gavan Infinity is choosing to end at 23 episodes, and the heroes doing their jobs does that.

My Thoughts Projs Project Red Ultimately Become Super S Overall As A Possible Kickstarter For Project RED (Spoilers)

noreply@blogger.com (Sean Akizuki) — Fri, 03 Jul 2026 11:49:28 +0000

Source

I don't know if I should be shocked that Cho Ucchu Kejiji Gavan Infinity isn't even lasting an entire year. I read the new hero series Kaikuketsu Omegahorn will premiere next month. These are the details:

It has been revealed that the second installment of the new tokusatsu series "PROJECT RED," titled "Awakening Hunter Omega Horn" (TV Asahi, Sundays at 9:30 AM), will begin airing on July 26th. The main visual has also been released, featuring a giant beast with roaring horns (a horned beast) and a red hero standing with a megaphone-like item in his hand, accompanied by the tagline "Raise your voice!"

Furthermore, a teaser PV titled "-Awakening-" has also been released on the YouTube channel "PROJECT RED" and the Toei Tokusatsu Fan Club (TTFC). The video features a hero in a red cap awakening a giant red beast with large horns, and also includes shots of many more horned beasts lined up together.

The protagonist is Shout the Flame, a treasure hunter living hand-to-mouth. Shout is well-versed in ancient scripts, deciphers ancient texts, and sets out on expeditions, making a living by selling the artifacts he unearths. One day, he encounters Enkaku, the "Horned Beast King." This encounter with Enkaku, who can also take on a human form (a demi-human form), will drastically change Shout's destiny. Shout and Enkaku, now fast friends, engage in "hunter battles" with a variety of unique hunters they encounter along the way.

Project RED, where RED means Records of Extraordinary Dimensions. However, IRL, the term "Project Red" could also refer to a red-alert emergency project. However, it seemed to be only done with Gavan Infinity. The next series, Omegahorn, might focus on fighting monstrous threats that could end humanity as we know it.

Toei Ltd. is probably doing some "cost-cutting". Gavan Infinity has a lot of CGI used. I thought Super Sentai was undergoing a clearance sale. Instead, this photo shows that Super Sentai got enshrined as a relic instead of undergoing a clearance sale. The exhibits honored Super Sentai in what might be the most dignified way to end a franchise that had been dwindling in toy sales EVENTUALLY.

My speculation right now is that Project RED's decision to have Gavan Infinity end after its initial February 15, 2026, release is all about CAUTION. It's all about cost-cutting and making sure that the toy sales, not just ad revenue from commercials, make up for it. The focus may have shifted from QUANTITY (toy mountain model) to quality. After all, think that toy stores may have shrunk over time. This might've explained the sudden cut. Toy sales were also getting lower with some "temporary boosts" that may not have helped the franchise.

At the same time, Power Rangers was indeed getting weaker. True, Power Rangers was part of the finance engine. However, the American franchise got overly reliant on nostalgia or on bad business decisions -- such as the Nickelodeon summer break model or the Disney rushed era model. I felt like Power Rangers was a sunk cost from a business perspective. Sooner or later, if Power Rangers may become no longer feasible then Toei might as well end Super Sentai. The whole Power Rangers franchise suffered from backlogs of possible Super Sentai to adapt for Americans because of the summer break model! That means I'm NOT blaming Power Rangers for the cancellation, as things felt rather planned than sudden.

Toei's cancellation of Super Sentai wasn't at a whim. There are times I feel that Robotack's final episode, "Robotack Dies at Sea," when the HERO DIDN'T DIE, was a formal farewell to Metal Heroes. In the case of Super Sentai, the long-running show may have chosen a five-year farewell. I mean, think that Avatar Sentai Donbrothers and Bakuage Sentai Boonboomger were having some Ranger History Lessons. Usually, a post-anniversary show doesn't do that. Heck, Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger even chose to link Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger. Those felt like clear signs that Toei was "clearing things out" and preparing to enshrine Super Sentai. By 2025, No. 1 Sentai Gozyuger even dared to present a Megazord Graveyard -- a symbol that toy sales were no longer recovering. So yeah, I refuse to blame Power Rangers no matter how I don't like the franchise.

Right now, I feel Toei might not know how to replace Super Sentai yet. Hopefully, Project RED would be the start of replacing Super Sentai. Maybe the name Project RED would be dropped and hopefully, Universe Heroes would become the franchise umbrella. Super Sentai now might be best enshrined than worn thin by another five to 10 years -- when the franchise itself may have been exhausting itself. I even confess that one way or another, Toei would need to create something to replace Super Sentai and it may have happened as I wanted.

Bioman's Magne-Warrior: A Prototype Sixth Ranger Before X-1 Mask From Maskman?

noreply@blogger.com (Sean Akizuki) — Thu, 02 Jul 2026 14:41:25 +0000

It's sad but true. Yes, actor Hikaru Kurosaki had passed away just recently at only 64 years old. It's sad, but it's confirmed. His wife Yuko Asuka died on December 15, 2011 at only 56 years old. The two met during Hikaru's guest role as Shota Yamamori in Chodenshi Bioman. It was in episodes 35-36 when a prototype sixth ranger was created. But yeah, that was the Hirohisa Soda era. I called Soda's era as the head writer as the "era of experimentation". However, take note that episode 39 of Hikari Sentai Maskman titled "The Mysterious X-1 Mask" was written by Toshiki Inoue. I believe this is a concept worth revisiting.

Episodes 35-36 have Doctor Man planning to create a super soldier. Mason (first half) and later Farah (second half) were in charge of gathering the Magne meteorites. It's also here that the Biomen run into Shota. The Biomen were looking for the cause of the strange fluctuations caused by meteorite rocks. Doctor Man wanted to find the Magne Meteors at Mt. Nekura -- which I think is actually Mt. Iwafune. The Biomen believe they were about to get a sixth ranger, but they were dead wrong. It turned out that despite Shota's powers -- he has ZERO Bio Particles in his body!

It was an interesting test of what the actor Hikaru could do. Episode 35 has the scene where Shota fought the Mecha Clones, unmorphed. It was most likely a test of his main star abilities. Sure, I enjoy unmorphed fight scenes in Super Sentai. This scene also explored the limits of the human body. The hilarious black eye is one instance. Seeing Shota's dagger break or him trying to imitate the Biomen is plain funny. However, he had the potential to be a warrior. Farah took note of it and deceived him into becoming the Magne Warrior.

It gets interesting how a romance even developed between Hikaru and Yuko during the villainous encounter. Doctor Man wanted to produce an army of super warriors, with Shota as the EXPERIMENTAL DRIVE. Farah used her deceptive ability by using a disguised Faracat. It was interesting to have Hikaru fight against Yukari Oshima aka Cynthia Luster (a name she used in the Philippines). So yeah, talk about one JAC legend fighting another. The result was creating the Magne Warrior which could potentially destroy the Biomen.

However, the weakness was that the Magne Warrior had to be supercharged with the Magne Megas' energy -- something Doctor Man failed to foresee. Jun Yabuki took advantage of that weakness to free Shota from the mind control. After the battle, Shota tried to propose marriage to Jun but was turned down. It was kind of a fun arc before Silver showed up in episode 37 -- raising the stakes!

Thankfully, Hikaru's talent didn't go to waste. He was later given a promotion with Kyojo Tokosou Juspion -- the only Metal Hero who fought against giant monsters unleashed by the Megabeast Empire. I didn't find myself particularly fond of Juspion though. However, it was nice to see Hikaru get to become his own protagonist after his experimental role in Bioman.

Pretty much, I'm reminded how Metal Hero was long defunct but still remembered. Right now, Metal Hero is enshrined with Super Sentai, too.

King-Ohger Inspired By The Corona Aurora Plot From Operation Overdrive? (Spoilers)

noreply@blogger.com (Sean Akizuki) — Sat, 27 Jun 2026 12:42:51 +0000

I wrote a post where I raised my ever-changing opinions on Gougou Sentai Boukenger. Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger aired in 2023 -- the same year as Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers' anniversary. I even felt King-Ohger probably felt that it was going to be that signal that Super Sentai was getting ready to be enshrined at Toei HQ as a museum relic. I decided to revisit the Corona Aurora plot from Power Ranges' Operation Overdrive. It was all because of King-Ohger's 18th episode, where the Founder's Crown was introduced as a plot device. It's a relic of Shugoddom that was introduced sometime later as a moving plot device. Still, I can't get over how the concept was almost from Operation Overdrive.

The Battlizer that Kuwagata-Ohger dons (the King Kuwagata-Ohger) may remind some of the Operation Overdrive Battlizer. The difference was that Red Overdrive Ranger merged with Sentinel Knight to create the Battlizer. This Battlizer seems almost unintentional. After all, James MacLurcan actually met the Engine Sentai Go-Onger cast in 2008. King-Ohger was pretty much 15 years later. The Battlizer here is more polished than what was from 2007. After all, one's a concept, and the other's a reinvention. It's like taking a past concept and then fixing it.

Operation Overdrive, IMHO, introduced an ongoing plot that had potential. However, I felt that Operation Overdrive's Corona Aurora became a distraction instead. King-Ohger managed to fix it by putting the crown as a power-up to bring the Red Ranger Battlizer. Yeah, I felt the Battlizer got overused for a couple of episodes, presumably to sell a new toy. Sure, it's not overpowered but I wonder why the King Kuwagata-Ohger got overused?

Later on, it's established that the monarchs held the King's Proof, which goes with the Founder's Crown. They are a series of heirlooms that were handed down from one generation to the next. They all contained some destructive power. These heirlooms or Royal Symbols are:

Tombo-Ohger's earring has the power of lightning and electricity. This could power up but also damage technology.
Kamakiri-Ohger's tiara actually bears the ability to drain life force, in contrast to the healing powers of Ishabana.
Papillon Ohger's bracelet has the ability to freeze anyone without prejudice.
Hachi Ohger's necklace has the ability to generate fire, which is necessary for agriculture but can also destroy agriculture.
Spider Kumonos has a jewel, which was later used to defeat Grodie. In the finale, the life force of several people was used to create a replacement.

Those who have tried watching Operation Overdrive may remember these jewels, which were:

Brownbeard's Pearl, which was the Black Jewel.
The Toru Diamond, which was the Yellow Jewel.
The Blue Sapphire, which was the Blue Jewel.
The Star of Isis, which is the Red Jewel.
The Pink Emerald, which is the Pink Jewel.

For the finale arc, the Royal Symbols were to be taken by the people of Chikyu. It was just in case the monarchs would lose against DagDEAD Dujardin. They contain so much power that the monarchs couldn't risk them falling into the hands of Dagded. Dagded's other Jesters (save Kamejim) were already defeated, but as said -- why risk letting them fall into his hands? The monarchs knew they needed all the power they could to defeat Dagded. However, losing Jeramie's power to defeat Grodie was why they needed a REPLACEMENT. That replacement was soon revealed in the finale. The united front of Chikyu gave their life force, so all six elements can be used to create the ultimate power to defeat Dagded once and for all. It was to allow all the Shugods to form a last-minute Ultrazord to defeat a god-tier threat with Dagded.

This differs from what Operation Overdrive did during the finale. The hype built with the Corona Aurora was effectively stripped off with how the finale turned out. Flurious supposedly attained a new, more powerful form. Sure, it was OG American footage, but I felt the way Flurious got defeated by Red Overdrive Ranger Battlizer Mode felt anticlimactic. After all, the Corona Aurora was supposed to be the Crown of the Gods. I felt that the Operation Overdrive Rangers should've all fought him together -- not just the red ranger vs. the final villain. Yeah, that scene also made me think why I also didn't like Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger's finale, too. Sure, Daigo Kiryu got powered up by the Earth's Melody, but it felt anticlimactic IMHO too. Speaking of which, King-Ohger was also linked to Kyoryuger's continuity. That's why I speculated that Super Sentai was certainly going on hiatus or even planning a definite end any time soon.

In this case, Dagded finally got what he deserved. I felt the final battle had that imperfect yet somehow satisfying narrative. Dagded's two-thousand-year curse and manipulation had finally ended. I was expecting to see Gira turn into a real boy using the Founder's Crown. Episode 40 revealed Gira wasn't a real boy. I guess the whole idea was skipped probably because it wouldn't fit into the bigger picture. Instead, somehow, Gira was left as an artificial construct created by Dagded -- all the while he ironically led against his own creator's defeat.

My Ever-Changing Views On Boukenger, Revisited 20 Years Later

noreply@blogger.com (Sean Akizuki) — Fri, 26 Jun 2026 04:24:46 +0000

Gougou Sentai Boukenger would have a reunion this year, which is something. Yes, Super Sentai is on hiatus, but it can't be denied that somehow, it's still "in the memories". I thought Super Sentai was having a clearance sale, but it turns out that it wasn't. Yes, we're having Super Space Sheriff Gavan Infinity and it's going to be replaced with Kaikusetsu Omegahorn. I decided to think about how Boukenger was the 30th entry and how my views changed with this series over time. Granted, Super Sentai was just a hobby and blogging is just a hobby, you can't expect me not to shift opinions overtime or shift gears too fast!

Personally, I feel Boukenger gets too much credit at times. Sure, I still enjoy it, but it's just that I don't think it's all that great after some time. Infamously, I once used Boukenger to bash out the already unpopular (and probably still is) Power Rangers Operation Overdrive. However, it's no secret that I later labeled the Boukengers as a bunch of drunkards. The series had its crazy moments where it seemed everyone drinks and drives -- something that adds to the comedy of the show. Satoru can be sober in one moment (outside the field) BUT he threatened to drop Masumi into the lava earlier on. We have Sakura who's a strategist, but she would hand a gun over to the emotionally immature Natsuki. There are many moments characters are sober in one moment and then act high in another. Probably that's what Hikonin Sentai Akibaranger was aiming for when alcoholism got linked to Boukenger.

The Operation Overdrive factor

Boukenger probably only got more recognition because Operation Overdrive sank hard. What advantage did Boukenger have over Operation Overdrive? Sure, the storytelling's not all incredibly epic or perfect. However, the real issue was that Boukenger had better acting and pacing. It's not a five-star acting since the cast was relatively young. However, I felt that the actors were able to deliver the "fun adventure" vibes as intended. I always felt every exaggerated face done by the cast fit perfectly -- whether it's Sakura getting annoyed, Satoru's recklessness, Masumi's scowl, or Natsumi's childish behavior, it was actually funny for me. Operation Overdrive tried to run things in just 32 episodes -- something that wrecked the story writing. Operation Overdrive carried over the multiple factions. Boukenger has 49 episodes, actually giving the three factions more room to work with.

Not to mention, Boukenger kept its VS. Movie as a What If continuity. Operation Overdrive relied on putting most Power Rangers shows into one continuity. I believe that Power Rangers' use of the continuity model is mostly because of how American shows run. To be fair, let's discuss Operation Overdrive's crossover first. "Once a Ranger" was meant to be within the show canon. That alone creates a lot of narrative clutter -- such as the return of Alpha Six and Adam Park (whose black ranger powers, are somewhat unexplained). I even felt Thrax, the son of Rita Repulsa and Lord Zedd, it's hard to fit him as an adult unless stuff like time travel or magic growth were explained. Instead, Thrax became an timeline and story anomaly. This again shows the pitfalls behind Power Rangers relying too much on timelines. I mean, doing the math, Thrax should probably be just an elementary school student! Operation Overdrive just crashed a huge meteor on itself even with "Once a Ranger".

Now, I know some people don't like Boukenger vs. Super Sentai. For me, it's an okay show. However, we need to look at Super Sentai crossovers like the Dragon Ball Z movies. They exist within some kind of What If continuity where concepts are explored WITHOUT having to blend into the canon. This movie presents the VS. Movie only villain, Chronos. There's a lot left unaccounted for like, "How did the guest stars get involved?" Instead, one can simply sit down and enjoy the show. One doesn't need to reconcile Hyde Gene from the Boukenger movie as the cause of the dinosaurs' death vs. Asuka from Bakuryu Sentai Abaranger. Nanami showing up like that is no issue. The whole series doesn't need a logical explanation except, "It's just a What If movie." In short, any event that happened WITHIN the movie never affected Boukenger. That is Boukenger as a series must be judged by the events WITHIN the series. This short film can be skipped entirely and you're NOT MISSING MUCH.

Other factors that affect my preferences for the show

Now, putting Operation Overdrive aside, it's known that I tend to prefer the "more violent" era of Super Sentai. Yes, the 1990s era where Kyoryu Sentai Zyuranger would be too violent to pass through TV-Y7-FV! That's why Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers was a localization (better term, since we're changing content for a different culture, but it's still an ADAPTATION, business-wise) made for Americans. It's also because Power Rangers is better than its source material for the American audience. I thought watching other older series from the 1980s (especially the pre-Zyuranger era) and anything after that era, especially shows after Boukenger, could alter my mind.

There are times I felt the different villain factions in Boukenger is more of an aesthetic facelift for Vyram from Chojin Sentai Jetman. More often than not, I remember comparing Ryuon and Gaja to Radiguet and Tranza from Jetman. The Ashu seem to be an extension of the Demon Gods' short-term arc in Jetman. However, the toning down can be seen that prevented Ryuon from becoming full-on cruel and was more like Radiguet Lite. Yaiba of the Darkness was a truly menacing figure to Masumi's past, while constrained by the post-2000s censorship. However, rewatching the Metal Hero series Tokosou Robo Janperson makes me think the different factions of Boukenger may not be too well-implemented. Maybe it's because Janperson knew how to handle it better or that Janperson belonged to the more intense era.

I was thinking of several things that affected my enjoyment of other Super Sentai series. One could argue that Sakura, despite her coldness, was actually more likable than Yuuri in Mirai Sentai Timeranger. However, there are times I tend to think of Yuuri more than Sakura. Eventually, things can get more awkward, especially since Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger was practically a huge anniversary fest. My opinions between both Gokaiger (which I find overrated, but I understand the hype is deserved) and Boukenger often flip-flop. However, I feel that Boukenger is more enjoyable than the later series such as Doubotsu Sentai Zyuohger (which, right now, I feel like was too reliant on the pretty girls to bail it out) and yawn, honestly, I still can't get myself to really enjoy Kikou Sentai Zenkaiger despite its rather interesting concept. However, other series that were non-anniversary can lower Boukenger, such as Jyuken Sentai Gekiranger. Until now, I feel Gekiranger is still one of the best Super Sentai series ever. Maybe, add Samurai Sentai Shinkenger, which gave audiences eye candy and a good story.

These days, I view Boukenger more as a "stress relief" Super Sentai series. Perhaps it has entered into that category of "I enjoy it even if it's not a masterpiece." Boukenger is a fun show that has a special place in my heart, even after 20 years. My view today is that, "It's not the best, it's not the worst either."

Carranger's Fresh Start VS. Power Rangers Turbo's Narrative Clutter (Some Spoilers)

noreply@blogger.com (Sean Akizuki) — Fri, 12 Jun 2026 12:03:19 +0000

Some time ago, I wrote about why I prefer Choriki Sentai Ohranger over Power Rangers Zeo. As this year is Gekisou Sentai Carranger's 30th anniversary (and sadly, Yuka Motohashi has joined Thuy Trang so soon after she lost her battle to cancer) -- I wanted to write this one. Sure, I wrote about how Power Rangers is better than Super Sentai for the American audience. Now, I thought about revisiting Carranger and Turbo on one aspect: the LATTER'S NARRATIVE CLUTTER.

One of the many reasons why I don't like Power Rangers is the NARRATIVE CLUTTER. Some people may remember how Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers actually had three seasons; Zeo was just a continuation of Mighty Morphin' Season 3 (and it made the teenagers look like they would never graduate until Turbo). Then of course, there's the really atrocious Power Rangers Turbo movie, which would connect into the TV series. I remember watching that film back in 1998 before I learned about Carranger's existence. The Turbo film had Amy Jo Johnson and Austin St. John (who got into a similar offense like Junya Ikeda) resume their roles. It was also hinted that Jason and Kimberly are a couple now.

Now, we think of how Carranger started with its plot

Every Super Sentai seems to get mandated to get a breath of fresh air. It's probably because Kamen Rider BLACK RX's hero recycling just didn't work. Sure, Toei had a few "direct sequels," but every direct sequel usually featured a new hero. For example, Tokkyu Shirei Solbrain was a direct sequel to Tokkei Winspector but we had a new cast despite having Chief Shunsuke still calling the shots. B-Fighter Kabuto was a direct sequel to B-Fighter but used a new cast, unlike BeetleborgsMetallix. However, it seems Super Sentai's mandate is usually to start almost every series (except for a few) self-contained from each other. For example, Ohranger was in 1995, but the show's setting is in 1999, and the finale has the plot where Baranoia took over the Earth for six months.

Carranger's cast is 100% fresh. The story starts with a new cast of characters. Sure, it's not a masterpiece, but the fresh start AND definite end is what makes Carranger more easily replayable to me than Turbo. I don't need to watch Ohranger to understand Carranger -- even if hypothetically they take place in the same Universe. However, the way Carranger vs. Ohranger unfolded showed that the VS. Movies are meant to be NON-CANON. The contradictions aren't a bug but a feature that keeps them as purely WHAT IF scenarios. Several of the plots in the Super Sentai VS. Films just couldn't be sustained in canon, and some of the crossover-only villains are merely explorations of, like, "What if Baranoia had a surviving MOTW?" It's meant to explore a fun possibility without ruining the actual canon.

The cast of characters isn't all like, "Huh?" Instead, they were never people who survived Baranoia's attack. Kyousuke, Naoki, Minoru, Natsumi, and Yoko enter the scene OBLIVIOUS of Ohranger's events. The reason is that the heroes aren't like, "Remember Baranoia?" or a group of civilians with PTSD. Instead, the whole show

It should be interesting how the show actually ended. On its own, the finale can be viewed as rather rushed as Carranger only had 48 episodes. It's like the show had to cancel soon at 48 because the ratings barely rose up! I find it funny because Kosoku Sentai Turboranger still reached 51 episodes! The series had a definite ending. The show had the heroes exit stage right as intended.

However, it wasn't the same with Turbo

As mentioned earlier, we had that REALLY DULL MOVIE that got connected into the series. The narrative clutter exists because there wasn't really a reason to change to the Turbo powers. If I must admit, as much as BLACK RX had that clutter (but the series managed to actually minimize it), there was a GOOD REASON behind the upgrade. BLACK RX IMHO was an experimental entry for the Kamen Rider series and it was meant to close the Showa Era for good. Now, the Comics Book Resources even talks about 10 questions Power Rangers left unanswered, which can become loads of clutter. Here's something about Turbo and I agree with it:

The first few seasons of Power Rangers, which followed the same team with members individually switching out as the series progressed, there was always a natural explanation as to why the Rangers were given new powers. The Rangers losing their powers at the end of Mighty Morphin' in order for the series to switch to Power Rangers Zeo was very well handled, but the next power upgrade left a lot of questions unanswered.

In Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie, the Rangers are given the Turbo powers from Zordon for no reason at all. The team never lost their Zeo powers, so many fans wondered why they switched to the new suits at all. From a production standpoint, it was done so that the series could move on to the next Super Sentai adaptation, but from a narrative perspective, there was no explanation given for why the Rangers stopped using the Zeo powers.

That was just one point. The big problem was that Turbo had the clutter. Well, even Zeo had so much narrative clutter from Mighty Morphin' Season 1-Season 3! For a bit of a review, we need to think about how the Super Sentai counterparts, flawed as they may be, actually had an edge by FINISHING THE SHOW:

Kyoryu Sentai Zyuranger ended with a resolution. We got to see Bandora's forces resealed again in a jar and as much as I found it among the questions Super Sentai may never answer, is what happened to Bandora and her gang? However, because most Super Sentai are self-contained, there's really no reason to think too much about some of Zyuranger's craziest plots at the ending like giving a child the dinosaurs that just hatched. Yeah, Zyuranger is a show that I felt like I'd probably never appreciate if I didn't like Power Rangers!
Gosei Sentai Dairanger probably has the strangest ending of all. I felt Shadam's status as a mud puppet was never given an official explanation. I feel it's best left unanswered for fans to decide. Dairanger had an ending that even had a 50-year-later plot where the grandchildren of the original team fought the new Gorma 50 years later.
Ninja Sentai Kakuranger's plot makes it impossible for Daimaou and Prince Junior to be part of Bandora's family tree, unlike in Mighty Morphin with Rita Repulsa being Master Vile's daughter and Rito Revolto's sister. Kakuranger ended with the rangers finally sealing Daimaou. They even had a bizarre reunion film 30 years later.
Ohranger was also a show that had its own fresh start and final end. The show didn't have Zeo's clutter. Zeo was infamous for cramming in the old group where Lord Zedd's band of Evil Space Aliens became narrative clutter. I even felt the plot where Goldar and Rito Revolto became amnesiac to be a real problem. Ohranger may be a flawed series, but it had a definite start and end.

The clutter from Mighty Morphin' Season 1 up to Zeo carried over to Turbo is something. The show still had four out of five of the Zeo cast. Justin Stewart was an interesting concept that went nowhere. I even felt like Justin was a mishandled concept after watching Dairanger. Kou was given character development vs. Justin. The clutter meant like one could get lost on, "So really, how did this happen?" unless one watched every single predecessor in order.

The midseason had a cast change -- except for Justin. Kat, Tommy, Tanya, and Adam were replaced by Cassie, TJ, Ashley, and Carlos. It was stepping away from the familiarity zone, BUT the clutter was still there. In fact, the finale revealed that there was still HUGE CLUTTER to carry over to Power Rangers in Space. Turbo's finale was actually a precursor to Space. Justin was left behind and the others had to don the Space powers to fight the rather cluttered United Alliance of Evil.

That clutter makes me think Carranger gets the better replay value than Turbo.

Them Old Bandai Toys Overload In The 1990s Philippine Toystores

noreply@blogger.com (Sean Akizuki) — Thu, 28 May 2026 12:21:28 +0000

It's almost the month's end in May, and summer vacation memories are coming to an END. The Super Sentai hiatus made me rewrite IBC-13's bad scheduling. I didn't realize that a short trip to Toy Kingdom suddenly reminded me of another childhood of lies -- them old Bandai merchandise overload in the 1990s! A trip to Toy Kingdom at my current age made me think of the Toys R Us jingle. I could talk about the older merchandise that hit the toy stores like the once huge SM Toy Store, the now-defunct Nova Fontana, and SM's very own Toy Kingdom.

It was the 1990s, and I thought about the toy overload. A 1990s child might remember the "joy" was that running and hurrying home to watch that Sunday kiddie show on IBC-13. One may have remembered screaming and crying over a missed episode. One may remember talking about the excitement that was the hero saving the day. Sadly, IBC-13 treated the shows like they were "forever status quo" even if the shows were meant to have a finale. Who can ever forget some shows were canceled so soon yet Cartoon Network aired them in a loop anyway? I remember when Galtar and the Golden Lance actually had the PROMISE that Galtar would one day beat Tormac. It seemed IBC-13 actually thought, "Well, kids will never notice!" and that's what happened.

A review of the 1990s TOY BLOAT

I could talk about the toys having been born in the 1990s. I confess part of me tends to relive the sourgraping era. Yes, I'm not gonna like but there are times I still wish I had a Super NES as a child, even if I'm enjoying Pac-Man World REPAC or that the PlayStation series gave me "greater joy" than the Nintendo system would. Yes, that's why I'm purposely putting this screenshot on, because I had that "Super NES trauma" even if we had played through all the PlayStation series and the Internet gave me walkthroughs that I couldn't access as a child. It made me think about how the Super NES was also that "must-have toy" in the 1990s, the 1990s Turbo Man, because people were compelled to buy it to play the REAL Super Mario World game -- which had a horrible bootleg by JY Company.

Now, to rethink the toy load. Maybe some people could remember some older stuff like the Transformers cartoon (1984) or the G.I. Joe cartoon (1983). One may think about the He-Man and the Masters of the Universe toyline along with the spin-off series She-Ra: Princess of Power. The same went for Toei and it was the 1990s. That means these were a series of AGING PLASTIC. These pieces of aging plastic would soon have to compete with trends like the X-Men toyline or the Marvel Action Hour action toys -- both shows done by Saban Entertainment.

I could remember the advertisement where Hikari Sentai Maskman was also called "Bioman 2".That was the analog age, which left me in total shock when the early digital age arrived. The show was dubbed over as Laser Squadron Maskman. Please, hikari doesn't mean laser. There was this cool Great Five robot was advertised alongside Regent Cake. I remember how some toy stores were still selling some Maskman and Bioman toys. There was still the Great Five robot where the Megazord was supposed to look cool. However, it was a Megazord from 1987.

Credits to Worthpoint

Who can remember the Rider Hero Series, which I secretly wanted and openly denied. It made me think of how IBC-13 was endlessly looping Kamen Rider BLACK as Mask Rider BLACK. Yeah, that was before Saban created the even crazier disaster called Saban's Masked Rider. It was a show that even Haim Saban felt was too big a mistake! The toy stores sold the Kamen Rider toys, and they were mostly BLACK to BLACK RX. Not all the Kamen Rider toys were there like Ichigo and Nigo from The First Kamen Rider. Instead, we had BLACK and BLACK RX -- the latter never aired in the Philippines. Instead, the Philippines had Saban's Masked Rider aired in the Philippines in late 1996 on ABC-5. Saban's Masked Rider had a toyline that got sold alongside the Kamen Rider toys. The Kamen Rider SD toys were also sold in 1997 -- meaning the inventory was like FOUR YEARS OLD?! The salesperson even confused Kamen Rider with Masked Rider when both MEAN the same thing. Except these days, I prefer the term Kamen Rider now! I learned the term Kamen means Masked from a Questor magazine.

Worthpoint

What got funnier was how Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers toys were sold BEFORE the shows were aired. The 1994 era had ABC-5 air the Mighty Morphin' commercial during the runtime of Ucchu Keiji Gavan (and sadly, Kenji Ohba died this year) and Chikyu Sentai Fiveman (aired as Fiveman World Defense Force, which is actually more accurate than Laser Squadron Maskman). The toy commercial was given the sensation that made people go to Toys R Us. However, a timeline assessment would reveal that any toys linked to Mighty Morphin' Season 1 were, well, going to be a year old by 1994, and two years old by 1995. Mighty Morphin' Season 3 was in 1995! They were there at the mall before the show even aired on Philippine television!

The hilarious event was that Mighty Morphin' toys made it into the Philippines BEFORE the show aired. That means the toy stores were selling AGING inventory from Mighty Morphin' Season 1 was most likely sold at surplus. That was during the toy department days where the Power Rangers action figures vs. the Super Sentai older stock were side by side. Naturally, the action figures sold faster because children tend to care more about "being the coolest kid with the coolest toy" -- something Jingle All the Way made fun of.

Of course, no one should forget the LOADS of Dragon Ball Z toys from the 1990s. Any 1990s kids might remember the Super Battle Collection series. However, a lot of the Dragon Ball Z toys sold back then were practically dead inventory. I remember Dragon Ball Z was airing on RPN-9 under that really SH*TTY SCHEDULING where 5:30 PM can mean 5:00 PM. By 1997, some toy stores were already filled with DEAD INVENTORY. The biggest culprit of the bloat was the Buu Saga. The Buu Saga released a lot of cool toys that ACTUALLY FAILED ON SCREEN. Who can remember the hype built up on the FUSION TECHNIQUE and the Mystic Gohan transformation -- only for Super Buu to absorb them and defeat them all? Also, most children probably never figured out that the Dragon Ball Z movies were purposely made non-serial films.

What happened was that toy stores began displaying a whole lot of items. It becomes a source of dopamine that made me think, "Why do I have to grow up one day? I want those toys!" It was an on/off frustration, as the toy display meant a DOPAMINE RUSH. Honestly, I wished my parents just bought me all that old inventory. Sometimes, I wish I could go back in time and get the ones I want while leaving the rest behind. If I'm not wrong, many of the older items were sold at surplus prices while Toy Kingdom (and other toy stores) were slowly adjusting to the newer era. As the old toys disappeared, I simply had to face the fact all over again that I can't keep singing the Toys R Us song. The lots of toys that kept entering were for the NEXT GENERATION.

Closing words

Right now, I feel that the toy bloat was over because marketing tools have become more predictable. Bandai probably realized they made lesser gains because toy stores had to buy at wholesale by the boxes. Toy stores in the Philippines were probably still "testing the waters". Eventually, the old stock was gone. I was forced to grow up under these circumstances.

These days, I pass by a toy store and say, "Childhood is over. You can't return to the past." The translated lyrics of BLACK's ending theme still speaks to my heart, whenever I miss the Bandai merchandise bloat with these words:

The land covered in green

The flowers that bloom in the four seasons

The white sandy dunes and

The lovely rosy seashells

People still had

Warmth in their hearts

Back when the sea still had

A cobalt blue color

Good old times

Long long ago, 20th Century

The blessings of nature

Bring people and the cities together

The trees grow luxuriously along the road

Along with the towering skyscrapers

Men still longed

For freedom

Back when women

Were still gentle

Nostalgic times

Long long ago, 20th Century

The land covered in green

The flowers that bloom in the four seasons

The white sandy dunes and

The lovely rosy seashells

Instead, I think about why I ended up preferring BLACK RX's ending, which BLACK RX practically closed the book of the Showa era Kamen Rider series, giving the hiatus it needed, and allowed the Kamen Rider Kuuga revival in 2000:

When you're spent after fighting a lonely battle

And feel like sinking

Close your eyes, look up

Just listen closely

Lonely Lonely Heart

The wind will go on whispering

Lonely Lonely Heart

You're not alone

Somebody loves you

Somebody believes in you

Somebody is looking for you

Somewhere Somewhere

[Instrumental]

When you're hurt and you fall upon your knees

And when you feel sorry about your faraway dreams

Don't look back, look up

Just keep your eyes fixed at the path you'll take

Lonely Lonely Heart

Earth is a planet where love dwells

Lonely Lonely Heart

You're not alone

Somebody loves you

Somebody is searching for you

Somebody is gazing at you

Always Always

Somebody loves you

Somebody believes in you

Somebody is looking for you

Somewhere Somewhere

Always Somewhere

Hopefully, I can bury my longing to return to those nostalgic times, in exchange for the future that speaks to the lonely heart's relief, instead of clinging on to nostalgia.

Belated Flashman's 40th Anniversary Tribute: How The Series Makes Me Think Power Rangers Lost Galaxy Is Overrated (Some Spoilers)

noreply@blogger.com (Sean Akizuki) — Sat, 16 May 2026 14:27:49 +0000

Last year, I made a post where I mentioned how Dengeki Sentai Changeman made me see Power Rangers in Space as an overrated gamble. Super Sentai being off-air made me think that my IBC-13 post should've been the "swan song" of this blog. However, Super Sentai's hiatus is the standard of "never forgotten" even if the franchise had its closure with No. 1 Sentai Gozyuger. However, Shogo B'Stard's current Chikyu Sentai Fiveman marathon made me want to do some random rants. I wanted to do a Flashman marathon with my own crazy twists. Instead, I decided to do a crazy rambling to talk about what can be an unpopular opinion. Power Rangers Lost Galaxy is widely praised by the Power Rangers community. However, I'd like to share my own post (with some spoilers) how I felt Flashman, a show from 1986, made me feel like Lost Galaxy was overrated clutter.

I. The Lost Galaxy theme was played into Flashman's storyline better IMHO

Lost Galaxy was hyped into the Power Rangers franchise. I didn't mind the comparison during the time I saw Seijuu Sentai Gingaman -- the source material. I talked to someone who said Lost Galaxy is overrated and felt like a weird blend of Star Trek and Gingaman. I was watching Flashman and the narration where five children disappeared into the edge of the Universe before the events of the series. It really makes me think of the Lost Galaxy. Planet Flash? I wanted to call it Planet Mirinoi! The Flashmen decided to go to Earth to fight the Reconstructive Empire Mess. Planet Flash and its four moons had basic special effects. CGI was rather expensive. However, the storytelling was what got me thinking Lost Galaxy had a budget, but may not have won storywise.

The difference between Super Sentai storytelling and Power Rangers storytelling can be cultural. Those who have tried watching Power Rangers since Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers may notice how the series tend to interconnect. Lost Galaxy carried some elements from Power Rangers in Space, such as Alpha Six and the space station. Heck, even Karone (Astronema) returned. However, Flashman did none of that with Changeman. We don't have Shiima from Changeman returning. Instead, Flashman acted more or less independently of Changeman. Flashman didn't carry the baggage with the Shuttlebase converted into a museum, like the Astro Megaship was turned into a museum for Lost Galaxy.

We were introduced to Mag in Flashman. However, Mag doesn't exist in the line of a series of robots. Sure, Peebo from Chodenshi Bioman was practically a precursor to Alpha Five. Mag started off as a security droid without a personality. However, the Flashmen realized that the robot didn't have its proper data. The difference was that Mag wasn't part of an assembly line of similar robots. Peebo was the childlike robot from Bioman. Mag was the more serious, mature robot mentor for Flashman. The Flashemn had Mag as an entirely separate robot -- not from an assembly line of Alpha robots that were named Peebo and Mag. Making Mag and Peebo exist as two separate robots in two separate shows gave us two different robots. That's what I felt went wrong with Alpha 6 during its implementation -- cool concept, but almost too visually alike from Alpha 5.

One of the most chilling concepts was the Anti-Flash Phenomenon. Flashman carried the plot that being raised in their Lost Galaxy would alter their biology. The show proceeded to introduce the plot midseason, and it developed towards the finale. My favorite part of the show was how Baraki brought in the Titanboy to become the secondary Zord when Flash King, the Megazord, was temporarily defeated. The show even had to create a bittersweet finale. The Flashmen defeated the last of Mess, the final villain Lee Keflen offered a chance to be cured (but I believe he just wanted to enslave them), and the Flashmen refused the cure from such a wicked machine. The Flashmen leave once again for the Lost Galaxy, where they were raised. It's a bittersweet ending if you ask me. It makes the idea of Lost Galaxy go full circle.

The mad scientist that actually gave us a PLOT to deal with, not a leftover mad scientist from a previous season

This is even a bigger Walking Spoiler. Yes, Professor Tokimura is the father of Sara, the yellow ranger. That revelation was withheld until towards the finale. We are introduced to the mad scientist who didn't have a narrative baggage with the Changeman as an eccentric scientist who was obsessed with aliens. However, he wasn't like Professor Phenomenus (and now both their actors, Jack Banning and Akira Ishihama, died of natural causes), who was just there to be comic relief. Instead, every eccentric act he has is because he wants to find the child he lost in Mess's alien abduction.

Episodes 8-9 gave us the introduction. It seemed like Tokimura would be forgotten. However, episodes 29-31 have the mad scientist returning. What becomes amazing is that he goes from just an alien-obsessed professor to actually even helping FIX MAG -- a robot whose technology he's not supposed to understand. Yeah, it's kind of a plothole, really, but such logic exists in Super Sentai as a superhero show. Tokimura embodies almost everything about how to do a mad scientist ally. Tokimura's progression is because he becomes more and more vital.

In fact, Tokimura played an important role in the finale. Tokimura was kidnapped by Sir Kaura to build a Gene Synthesizer. The slow-burning revelation that one of the Flashmen was his child was another. The revelation that Sara was his child was indeed a hurt revelation. True, Professor Phenomenus had that last-minute heroism, but writers seem to enjoy torturing him 90% of the time. It's sad, really, that Phenomenus was frequently battered up as comic relief yet again. The show ends with the bittersweet note before proceeding to the next season.

It's imperfect but it gave some closure. I felt that keeping Tokimura in Flashman alone was for the best. Tokimura didn't need to show up in future seasons just to say, "Remember the 1980s?" Instead, Tokimura was left as a footnote. Fans can now imagine if the Flashmen do return someday. It was best left that way to avoid bad writing. However, I still want to call Tokimura as "Phenomenus" because I felt he's what Phenomonus should've been.

II. Examining the Reconstructive Empire Mess

As said earlier, Lost Galaxy's biggest weakness for me was the narrative baggage. For example, Trakeena herself exposed that the Astronema she was seeing was actually the redeemed Karone. However, Flashman had no narrative baggage from all previous seasons. Changeman ended with the destruction of Great Star League Gozma's leader, Star King Bazoo -- the ONE TRUE DARK SPECTER. The next thing to happen was that Mess came to well, mess up the Universe with its evil experiments.The series would have a few devastating revelations.

Ra Deus as a genetic mess vs. Scorpius, a possibly messy prop

Ra Deus is the recurring villain. Ra Deus is a genetic mess that came to life. Ra Deus is aided by the evil right-hand scientist Great Doctor Li Keflen. Scorpius was written off too soon. It's not explained why but it seems handling Scorpius was too much. Trakeena seemed to be the easier villain to handle. However, I ended up feeling that Ra Deus' development was better than Scorpius. In fact, Ra Deus becomes the plot device that somehow, slowly but surely, he made it to the finale while Scorpius didn't. I just wonder what the rationale was to get Scorpius out of the way? Lack of popularity? Trakeena just getting more popular because she was a manipulative spoiled brat?

Ra Deus had a slight running gag where his mask cracks. There's an eyeball under that crack. Ra Deus exists as a messy blob. Ra Deus' true origins are that he was born from a mass of genetic fluid and became a messy blob-like monster. Ra Deus' origins as a lifeform that came out of the mess is a common cliche that would influence characters like Dr. Giba from Kidou Keiji Jiban and Ransik from Power Rangers Time Force -- to name a few. Ra Deus' case was that he was born out of a genetic mess of several life forms across the galaxy. Talk about a children's show where the villains are actually born from horror movies. Well, just think that Toei made a few references to adult movies and somehow toned them down. In the case of Ra Deus, I wonder if he was inspired from The Blob or any cosmic horror show not for children? I felt the same was true for Scorpius -- who was unfortunately victimized by the writer's pen to be written off too soon.

Ra Deus, like Scorpius, doesn't become the final villain. However, Keflen managed to turn Ra Deus into a bioweapon during the finale. Keflen became the second-to-the-last opponent. Keflen even used Ra Deus' genetics to create The Demoss as the final enemy.

Keflen as the series' most most evil character

Keflen exists as the secondary antagonist who slowly climbs up the ladder in the finale. The Flashmen don't get to meet him until the finale becasue he as a dirty coward. The show presents Keflen as a mad scientist who was obsessed with playing with life. Spoilers, Keflen was recruited by Ra Deus as a baby three centuries ago and he became a 300+ year old something mad scientist.

It becomes more and more apparent that Keflen has arrogance that slowly but surely brewed over the series. The show reveals that Keflen may have been from Earth but he's probably the evilest character in Mess. Sure, Ra Deus can be viewed as Pure Evil for having no conscience. However, Ra Deus was a cosmic mutation and an unnatural being. Keflen was a human with agency. Keflen had the free will to search on his past. Instead, Keflen rejected even his own past to become more and more monstrous.

Keflen was established, early on, as the creator of Ley Wanda, Ley Nefel. Ley Garus (who died midseason after his upgrade experiment), and the duo Wolk and Kit. What I truly enjoyed about Keflen was how, slowly but surely,he was even cold towards his own experiments. It should be disgusting to think how this guy would risk and sacrifice his own comrades. This really leads him at odds with Sir Kaura of the Alien Hunters. What makes him even more evil was that he even started using the Alien Hunters to create more and more monsters. Keflen has almost no morals as the series goes on.

One of the best things I like about how Keflen died was this. It was a karmic circle when Ra Deus used several Great Doctors to become the ultimate being. Just that Keflen happened to be the most competent one. In fact, Keflen managed to betray Ra Deus and become the true final villain. In the finale, Ra Deus even offered the Flashmen that he would fix the Anti-Flash Phenomenon. However, knowing Keflen, accepting such a deal is a major no-no. The Flashmen had known too much to accept Keflen's death. Yellow Flashs shot the Gene Synthesizer and it triggered an alarm. Apparently, Keflen used the final moments to blow up the whole base hoping to kamikazee the Flashmen with him. I felt those moments made me think, "Trakeena was dangerous but somehow, I prefer Keflen's late 1980s personalized kamikazee than Lost Galaxy's reckless assault finale."

Never mess with the Alien Hunters

Sure, Flashman also had the villain bloat. The Alien Hunters enters in as part of Mess. However, unlike Captain Mutiny from Lost Galaxy (who was a third wheel too late), Sir Kaura and his crew show up as early as episode 15 to cause trouble. Kaura has his quirky mini-boss squad with Kerao the gunner, Baura the scythe wielder, Hag the the sole female member with a bow and arrow, and Hou the boomerang wielder. Captain Mutiny only showed up late in Lost Galaxy for some reason. Here? The Alien Hunters showed up showing THEY MEAN BUSINESS. Their first order? Well, cause the Flashmen's Megazord, Flash Titan, to be defeated.

Keflen brought interesting things on the table. Sure, there's this crazy out-of-place effect that should happen ONLY in cartoons. However, what interested me is that Kaura himself had a sense of honor as a villain. Kaura was getting disgusted at Keflen's growing lack of morality. Perhaps, one can say we can "excuse" Ra Deus for being a villain born otu of accident. However, Kaura sooner or later used the Alien Hunters to create monsters towards the finale. This felt more personal than bringing Captain Mutiny into Lost Galaxy's equation. IMHO, Lost Galaxy could've just forgotten about the Captain Zahab footage entirely because Trakeena was already doing her job. I felt Keflen's development was that he brought in more conflict than Captain Mutiny's late arrival could. This guy wasn't afraid to clash with Keflen.

I felt that Keflen was also better written than Villamax -- the Sanbash counterpart in Lost Galaxy. Sanbash was written too soon. Lost Galaxy made Sanbash an ascended extra and an honorable villain. Villamax took part in Trakeena's character development from a spoiled brat who becomes more and more dangerous as the series happens. However, I felt that Keflen's character was better written as an honorable bounty hunter. It's because a lot of actions Keflen did like his final attempts actually revealed Sara's true parents. Keflen was disgusted when he saw his own comrades tunred into monsters by Keflen. I'm afraid but Villamax was just a "random tutor" compared to Keflen's vicious connections to people within the show. Kaura even kidnapped Tokimura because the latter could create a Gene Synthesizer for him to use towards the finale.

The Alien Hunters in Mess played a tight role too. Later on, Keflen's longtime ally Bo Gardan arrived late in episode 43. However, some stakes somehow justified this mistake. Gardan showed up in episodes 43-48 to play an important role. Kaura was a villain but he had a sense of honor. Kaura was disgusted with his men turned into genetic experiments. Heck, Garden was later forcibly turned into The Gardess by Keflen. Keflen got too disgusted that he decided to do a good deed to spite Mess. Keflen revealed Sara's true parentage. I felt that the Alien Hunters, as villainous as they were, were in fact, terrifying yet mor honorable.

Final words

For me, I felt what made Super Sentai better for my taste was that it couldn't pass through TV-Y7-FV standards. I always felt Flashman was one of those shows that would scare the American censors. Sure, I understand that Power Rangers was needed because the American market. This is just me expressing my personal opinions how watching more Super Sentai affected by views of the American adaptation overall.

Ohranger vs. Carranger: Which Super Sentai Season Was The Rightful 20th Anniversary?

noreply@blogger.com (Sean Akizuki) — Thu, 14 May 2026 09:09:19 +0000

Super Sentai may be on hiatus, but I felt like still giving it the honors every now and then. This photo can be so sad, just thinking of how Yuka Motohashi (who played as Natsumi Shinohara in Gekisou Sentai Carranger) left us so soon due to cancer. Carranger's 30th anniversary happened this year, and that show could've been the anniversary. Instead, there was the contender because Choriki Sentai Ohranger was actually the 20th anniversary of Himitsu Sentai Goranger. The references were hard to dismiss like the military trend with Goranger, Dengeki Sentai Changeman, and Ohranger. It was also on 1995 when Goranger became more recognized as the first true Super Sentai series!

Apparently, there was some kind of identity crisis. Should a Super Sentai series celebrate its anniversary by year or by entry number? Do the mathematics. Ohranger was the 20th birthday of Goranger. Carranger was the 20th Super Sentai entry. There was some kind of crisis. Not to mention, Carranger also hit the milestone of airing the 1000th episode. There was a milestone that couldn't be ignored. Carranger somehow hit marketing limbo of sorts.

Ohranger was a toy-heavy season. Toys popped out more often. Yikes! I remember not wanting to grow up seeing the Power Rangers ZEO toys (and well, there were some Ohranger toys too). The more the Ohranger mecha are shown on screen, the more they share a similar vibe with the Buu Saga of Dragon Ball Z. Yes, who can remember when the Buu Saga introduced many cool toys that barely did anything? Gohan becomes Mystic Gohan only to be absorbed by Super Buu. Super Saiyan 3 Goku is cool, but ends up being more of a liability to the main character. It was probably because the show ended up changing tones. The first few episodes were rather grim but ended up going to Lighter and Softer, and some were Denser and Wackier. It was because of the Great Hanshin Tokyo Earthquake and the Sarin Gas incident caused by the Aum Shinrikyo.

The approach somewhat changed during Carranger. Carranger went out to be a year-long parody of sorts. Carranger did away with the primary robot and the secondary robot, combining. Instead, we had two Megazords, namely the RV Robo and the VRV Robo. The Victory Trailer, which brought the components of the VRV Robo, was a short return to the Carrierzords that were often used since Battle Fever J -- a giant Zord that carried the Zords. It was more balanced, though one way or another. It didn't feel like a festival. Instead, the Carranger's use of Zord felt more "corrective" to me. The new toys didn't become an overload. The results were that the Zords really cooled better IMHO than what Ohranger could've given us.

Looking at both series again, I felt it this way. Ohranger wanted to celebrate 20 years of Super Sentai (since Goranger, but there was a hiatus in 1978). However, Ohranger wasn't lucky because it got hit by the Great Hanshin Earthquake and the Aum Shinrikyo Incident. Basically, Ohranger was a celebration marred by two major bad events. However, Carranger was a year where, while bad things happened, there was some sense of relief. Hashin was being rehabilitated. The people behind Aum Shinrikyu were already facing trial. However, it was also that time when Shoko Asahara was a "messianic figure". Still, there was some sense of relief when te Aum Shinrikyu culprits were arrested, and the Japanese system isn't easy to outsmart.

I would view Carranger as the CORRECTIVE anniversary. Ohranger was a show that became an unfortunate victim of sudden stress. Carranger had a sense of calmness that allowed it to remain consistent. Sure, the ratings didn't normalize until Denji Sentai Megaranger. However, I'm still going to be among the people who say that Carranger is a MUST WATCH.

ONORE IBC-13: The Toku/Anime 90s Scheduling Betrayal REVISITED

noreply@blogger.com (Sean Akizuki) — Wed, 25 Mar 2026 23:00:00 +0000

Super Sentai may be on hiatus. However, it doesn't mean that history can be forgotten. We don't cling ot the past, but we don't forget it either. I'd like to let off some steam with this rant post. Some Filipinos may remember IBC-13.

There was the catchy theme song, "Pinoy Ang Dating" (The Filipino Feel). It was played on loop on that network. It could serve as a good memory for 90s children. Was that memory really a good memory or a good memory based on a LIE? Read and find out!

Remember the "good old 1990s" and how it may have also stung in the present

The 1990s may have some fond memories. Some people born in the late 1980s or early 1990s could remember the "good old days" before harsher reality kicked in. The Philippines had underwent a transition from the Marcos Empire to a rather flawed democracy under the "best constitution" in the world. There might be what I'd call an information black hole coupled with some fond memories. I mean, who can remember some memories like:

Some children remember the time when the Super NES (known as the Super Famicom in Japan) was the thing. I remember the time when I got so mad over not owning a Super NES back in the day! However, some people may find their childhood haunted by the Nintendo subscription model. Some of my friends who had an SNES don't own any Nintendo stuff now.
The indoor amusement parks such as SM Storyland, SM Fun World, and Glico's. Today, such places are already DEFUNCT.
Some children may remember Capcom for being responsible for their favorites like the Mega Man series or the Street Fighter series. Some may remember playing the Marvel vs. Capcom series. Some games to remember are X-Men vs. Street Fighter or Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes. The big problem is that Marvel vs. Capcom 3 and Marvel vs. Capcom Infinite are pretty much a step backwards.
Some people may remember Adobe programs in the 1990s before the SH*TTY SUBSCRIPTION MODEL HIT. Adobe provided the wondrous program called Adobe Photoshop -- the get-go for photo manipulation that did what MS Paint couldn't.
Some people may think of the good old days at the arcade. However, one should NEVER deny that the arcade machines were actually QUARTER EATING MONSTERS. Yes, a 1990s child may want to think about how much money they wasted at the arcade.
The closed Nova Fontana store was probably the happy place for a lot of 1990s kids. I remember Nova Fontana, and my heart is still somewhat hurt thinking about that toy store.
I should still mention Power Rangers as it was once a huge thing for kids in the 1990s, myself included. Who could remember the catchy theme song "Go Go Power Rangers" when Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers aired on television? The toy sales, the toy lines, etc., were all the hype. Decades later, the whole series' direction, done by professionals, left me wondering if the show was even going to survive. I really feel that Power Rangers has been getting worse, and my dislike for it feels rather justified. Yup, all I'm seeing now is, "Remember the 1990s?" than how to make Power Rangers relevant again in the PRESENT.

That's just a few, and IBC-13 was in that list. The 1990s gave some good memories. However, with every good memory, there can also be bad memories. However, what's more dangerous than an obvious bad memory (like getting into trouble for CHEATING IN YOUR EXAM) is RADIOACTIVE NOSTALGIA. This is nostalgia that felt good, but was it really a truly good memory?

IBC-13 produced that dopamine surge and excitement with FALSE HOPES

A 1990s Filipino kid may remember a trip to Jollibee or to McDonald's on Sundays. There's that kiddie show Sunday spirit that many 1990s children may have felt. There was also the Saturday weekday schedule. As far as I remember it, IBC-13 had this schedule as far as I can remember during the early 1990s:

Saturday evenings showed Ucchu Keiji Shaider (never finished), Hikari Sentai Maskman (was left only up to episode 50 aired), and Kosoku Sentai Turboranger (which only lasted up to 31 episodes).
Sunday mornings had Chodenji Machine Voltes V and Chodenshi Bioman. This is bad timing for many Filipinos, who are attending Sunday worship services IN THE MORNING.
Sunday evenings showed Kamen Rider BLACK, followed by Seiun Machineman.

However, IBC-13 had some legal trouble in the 1990s. Some people may have experienced that IBC-13 no longer had a signal for local cable TV providers. Imagine the nightmare of the Kiddie Show Sunday cut short. A child may scream hard. What happened to all our favorite shows and marathons? Some parents may have danced. IBC 13 was able to spread outside Manila AGAIN sometime in 1996 or perhaps if someone had Sky Cable or a better Cable TV provider.

I remember the summer vacation timeslot. Here are a few kiddie afternoons and kiddie weekends. They had a CLUTTERED SCHEDULE that was a kiddie show from 4 PM to 5 PM. Children ran indoors to watch their favorite shows. Right now, I'm just recalling these shows BY MEMORY, such as:

There were times when weekday afternoons were back-to-back with Maskman and Bioman.
However, it felt like a roulette because you could be seeing the following taking over:

Kidou Keiji Jiban (never finished)
Tokyuu Solbrain (never finished)
Tonde Burin
Yu Yu Hakusho (GMA-7 was the one to FINISH IT like the network did with the Dragon Ball Anime)
Time Quest
Adventures of Dai

I also recall the back-to-back Saturday broadcast of Chojin Sentai Jetman and Chikyu Sentai Fiveman. ABC-5 may have played them on a loop, but not a fragmented one. Well, people saw the finale. ABC-5 probably did the loop until they found something to replace the shows!

My memory's already getting foggy. However, I'd like to say that some of these shows were scrambled over the weekdays, too. I remember Jiban was on Wednesday evening and Solbrain on Monday evening. Yes, those days that should be devoted to studying are now compromised with rushing over homework or watching TV when you HAVE AN EXAM THE NEXT DAY. I feel the network should've been held liable for distracting children from study hours. Not that I salute the Philippine education system either since it's as toxic as Volt in Chojuu Sentai Liveman.

What may have caused the looping schedule of IBC-13

It's time to look at IBC-13's history. It should be interesting that Executive Order No. 11:

CREATING THE BOARD OF ADMINISTRATORS FOR BANAHAW BROADCASTING CORPORATION (BBC), RADIO PHILIPPINE NETWORK (RPN), AND INTERNATIONAL BROADCASTING CORPORATION (IBC), TELEVISION AND RADIO STATIONS, DEFINING ITS POWERS AND FUNCTIONS, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

WHEREAS, the Chairman of the Presidential Commission on Good Government had requested the temporary sequestration of the facilities, property and equipment of BBC (Channel 2), RPN (Channel 9) and IBC (Channel 13) located in Broadcast City, Capitol Hills, Quezon City, because substantial resources of government financial institutions were utilized in their acquisition and expansion by the owners who remain unidentified and in order to properly maintain the assets and ensure continuous dissemination of true and accurate information to the people pending investigation by the Commission and until the question of their true ownership is determined;

WHEREAS, the Minister of National Defense issued Ministry Order No. A-003 ordering the sequestration of BBC, RPN, and IBC television and radio stations, including their properties, funds and other assets (the “seized assets”), and the taking over and assumption of the management, control and operation of the business by a task force to be later constituted;

WHEREAS, on March 2, 1986 the Minister of Information constituted said task force consisting of a head and four members;

WHEREAS, the task force has started implementation of the sequestration order and has recommended that the control and custody of the seized assets and the operation and management of the business be vested in a multi-sectoral board in order to achieve an independent, impartial and efficient administration of the operations.

The Filipino First Policy placed IBC-13 in a limbo. Both the Marcos Empire Constitution and the 1987 Constitution of the Philippines demanded that all media in the Philippines should be PENOY PRAYD only. That is foreigners can't own even a single share of the media. This may have caused some financial problems. That means IBC-13 may have had problems trying to purchase the rest of the tapes. That may explain why a lot of shows they aired, were only aired halfway or they probably never had the finale. However, I'm still prone to believing that IBC-13 HAD THE FINALE but chose to keep it hostage.

Due to the lack of funding, IBC-13 started to use the shows as the FILLER and the commercials as the MAIN EVENT. Sure, commercials are needed for TV stations to survive. However, since IBC-13 had become a government-sequestered network. They were relying on ad revenues from Regent, Pee Wee, cooking oil, shampoo, detergent, etc. They didn't think of other ways to gain money, bring the finale, and then move on. If the Japanese studios sold the rights of the show by volumes (ex. Vol. 1 contains episodes 1-10) then IBC-13 was paying by volumes. That may explain why so many shows were either halfway through OR never hit the finale after the second the last episode.

A TV station earns money via commercials, block time with outside producers, and sponsored content. IBC-13's problems were probably with being sequestered. The debts were piling up one way or another. The station became a black hole. The Space Sheriffs were to judge it to be in a black hole. The Special Police Dekaranger would delete the company. Rita Kaniska of Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger who declare the network frozen. Either way, IBC-13 shouldn't b considered a genuine sweet memory.

Conclusion

This is the great exorcism that I should've written years ago! IBC-13 was giving false hope. Thankfully, IBC-13 no longer airs Anime or Toku today. They probably had financial troubles that caused the shows to go on a loop. IBC-13 should no longer be a cherished childhood memory but a painful reminder of bad business practices.

s FIVE YEAR Cs FIVE YEAR CEREMs Shadow On Post-Gokaiger Anniversary Seasons

noreply@blogger.com (Sean Akizuki) — Mon, 16 Mar 2026 14:53:00 +0000

It feels kinda sad, really, to think that it's 2026 and it could've been the 50th entry for Super Sentai. Instead, we have Gavan Infinity, which may ultimately replace Super Sentai as the franchise had ran for too long. Super Sentai had its FIVE-YEAR CEREMONIAL FINALE, which started in 2021 with Kikou Sentai Zenkaiger and finally wrapped up with No. 1 Sentai Gozyuger.

I had a feeling that there's an "anniversary curse" That didn't happen with Hyajakuu Sentai Gaoranger (which felt more like a REBOOT) for the 25th season. Neither did it happen with 30th season is Gougou Sentai Boukenger. Gaoranger had the Gaoranger vs. Super Sentai non-canon film but the main series was still self-contained. Boukenger vs. Super Sentai was obviously another what-if movie. The Super Sentai Encyclopedia in Boukenger was never meant to be part of the show canon. Boukenger carried over designs that mimicked past Zords in Super Sentai with various Monsters-of-the-Week (MOTWs) and the main villains. Both seasons can be fun to rewatch without thinking too much about watching all Super Sentai before them.

However, Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger came and somehow, caused that INCREDIBLY TOUGH ACT TO FOLLOW for anniversaries

I would like to call Gokaiger a very tough act to follow. In what way? You may need to look that Gokaiger was almost like a grand finale. I even had a nagging thought about how Gokaiger may have been the "best time" to end Super Sentai on a high note. However, that wasn't the case. It's because Gokaiger is a year-long crossover. You had a lot of alumni barging in. Come on, how cool was it that Toshihide Wakamatsu made Gai Yuuki a GHOST just for the Chojin Sentai Jetman episode written by TOSHIKI INOUE? Sady, Toei never thought of assigning Inoue as the secondary writer for Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters.

The whole series was just too GIGANTIC to be contained. You could think that almost every episode wasn't just a nostalgia trip. A newbie Super Sentai fan may discover the broad history of Super Sentai. Sure, newbies didn't need to watch everything from Himitsu Sentai Goranger up to Tensou Sentai Goseiger just to understand the show. It was nostalgic yet accessible. The show ended, and everyone went "reboot mode". Of course, one may think that a certain group of people still thought, "I watched Gokaiger therefore I know all of Super Sentai without watching the older shows!"

Trying to stay afloat during the post-Gokaiger era can be tough. The shows went for the rather diet Go-Busters, which was expected. I confess that I love Go-Busters' concept, no matter how flawed it was. Newer Super Sentai entries after Gokaiger can be a hit or miss. Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger is what I call a watchable mess on the 20th annivesary of Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers. It was also in 2013 when Power Rangers Megaforce came out. Yeah, that show was so bad it's worse. In fact, Gokaiger ended up STANDING OUT SOME MORE thanks to Megaforce ruining itself way too many times.

What truly became problematic was how to deal with the 40th and 45th Super Sentai entry

Gokaiger was a grand entry. The show went for a more conservative outlook. Zyuohger went for the cube design approach. I called the Zords there, and they were designed straight out of Minecraft. What became not-so-surprising for me was that the GOKAIGERS became the guest stars for Zyuohger. Was the whole event a bailout? The anniversary felt bland to me. Junko Komura just felt like she wasn't the right person to write anniversaries. It made me wonder why Ucchu Sentai Kyuranger didn't become the anniversary season despite it looking way more festive.

The next problem happened on the 45th. It was a bad time, especially with the LEGACY VIRUS PANDEMIC. Zenkaiger had an interesting concept, but rather FLAWED execution. I wanted to enjoy it, but Komura just SUCKS at anniversaries IMHO. The whole show yhad good ideas but just sucked. This made me think that 45th was still compared to 35th. Even worse, Gokaiger had a reunion movie that may have been necessary because Zenkaiger wasn't making the cut.

Toei probably realized, "We can't risk another Gokaiger comparison." That's probably why they chose to end Super Sentai at the 50th year of Goranger instead. It might feel empty now without a 50th entry. However, for me, it also became a good way to save money. Now Gavan Infinity may be what Toei needs to move forward for good.

s FIVE YEAR Cs FIVE YEAR CEREMs Shadow On Ps Shadow On Post-Gokaiger Anniversary Seasons

noreply@blogger.com (Sean Akizuki) — Mon, 09 Feb 2026 07:13:00 +0000

Super Sentai is practically Toei's LONGEST-running show, ending its broadcast yesterday. Yes, the No. 1 Sentai Gozyuger finale happened. It happened after Super Sentai had a series of "reboots", not relying on Nostalgia Goggles (which sadly happened with Power Rangers more often than not), and every step of the way was to keep the series fresher than usual. Of course, there would be a LIMIT to how long creative thinking goes. Innovation keeps a product living longer. It made me think of how Super Sentai managed to go on from the 2000s and the 2010s, but FAILED to complete the cycle in the 2020s as we're having Gavan Infinity instead.

I remember asking myself, "How long CAN Super Sentai last in the 2010s? Perhaps until 40?" It was because we've had significant milestones. I felt that its 30th anniversary Gougou Sentai Boukenger was more of an Easter Egg hunt and acknowledgement. That would be five years after Hyajakku Sentai Gaoranger. There was no "reboot treatment" with Ninpuu Sentai Hurricanger and with Jyuken Sentai Gekiranger. However, it felt like Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger was really one huge finale. Who could deny that Gokaiger was almost a giant reunion? The "reboot" happened with Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters. Doubutsu Sentai Zyuohger (which had low ratings) came and we still got Uchu Sentai Kyuranger. Most of the shows were actually "staying afloat" by not giving too many Ranger History lessons. Any Ranger History lesson that happened up to that time was "invitations to watch an older show" instead of requiring people to watch the older show.

However, things started to be different during the 2020s. I already felt like that Kishinryu Sentai Ryusoulger was a desperate attempt -- why go back to dinosaurs so soon?! It was also in 2020 when the world was hit by the Legacy Virus. Super Sentai went past the 40th season and was about to enter the 45th season. Then I believe that we actually entered the FIVE-YEAR FINALE CYCLE.

The Legacy Virus Pandemic reality of 2021 to the slowly recovering world of 2022

I remember having the hype for Kikou Sentai Zenkaiger due to the more "unusual and unorthodox team" of one human and four robots set up. However, I ended up feeling the hype wasn't all that worth it. If there's anything I could say right now -- I actually enjoyed Kamen Rider Saber despite its ups and downs. Both series were produced during the pandemic world, and 2022 was the year when Avatar Sentai Donbrothers showed up.

Zenkaiger had a very finale feel one way or another. Countless Super Sentai worlds found themselves contained by Tojitend. It was an exciting concept, IMHO but either I was too depressed during the Legacy Virus Pandemic or I just don't think Junko Komura is cut out with anniversaries. I was able to enjoy Kaito Sentai Lupinranger vs. Keisatsu Sentai Patranger for its interesting complex dynamic -- despite the fact the ending was kind of WTF. Back on track, Zenkaiger understandably had a finale feel. But something happened next by next year...

Toshiki Inoue returned to Super Sentai as a major writer AGAIN. I thought that Inoue should've been integrated as Go-Busters' secondary writer instead of Kento Shimoyama. Inoue may have been "cruel" to Gai Ikari BUT that cruelty would've done wonders for Go-Busters IMHO. Donbrothers sets itself as a totally different world from Zenkaiger because Donbrothers Kaito isn't the Zenkaiger Kaito. However, the Ranger History Lessons were still there as Easter Eggs. One can ask if several post-anniversary seasons, like those from the 2000s-2010s, like Hurricanger and Gekiranger, actually had Ranger History Lessons. The answer is there was NONE except for Kyuranger, which had a VERY SOFT one. Hurricanger perfectly ignored Gaoranger within the series context. Gekiranger never raised up any previous series like Gosei Sentai Dairanger or Hikari Sentai Maskman -- even if there were subtle nods such as the use of "Aura Power". That always made me think that Inoue should've been involved in Hurricanger and Gekiranger as a second writer -- all before taking a nice long break or screw up due to burnout.

Both shows had their own merits. I preferred Donbrothers' characterizations over Zenkaiger's characterizations. Sure, it lacks the grit Inoue placed into older shows like Kamen Rider Agito or the highly divisive Kamen Rider Faiz (especially how executives may have forced Yasuko Kobayashi to write a reset button ending for Kamen Rider Ryuki) and how he was forced to write a rather fluffy show with Kamen Rider Kiva. IMHO, Kiva is still far better than Kamen Rider Ghost in terms of writing. Kiva was practically true to a dramatic heart -- just that Inoue was overworked and you know, overworked people SCREW UP HARD!

Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger felt like the red carpet for a graceful exit?

Unlike Kamen Rider Saber, King-Ohger was already operating in a post-pandemic world. Super Sentai got overly ambitious in 2023. It felt like a celebratory show if you give meaning to 2023. The numbers were practically adding up. 30 years since Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers allowed Toei to enter the American market. The show's Toys R Us cameo of Geoffrey the Giraffe was probably a nod to the establishment's involvement in Toei's marketing success. However, success in the past doesn't always equate to success forever. King-Ohger felt like a huge breath of fresh air. However, there was still that "nagging" Ranger History Lesson stuck with it. Sure, it's not as overwhelming as what Power Rangers Beast Morphers did, but it seemed to "fit in" given Power Rangers' 30th birthday. IMHO, this could've been the best year to end Super Sentai but Toei probably wanted a "perfect number".

There were many ways to acknowledge Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger's 10 years after. However, the show decided to go with the soft continuity approach. Sure, it doesn't force the seven-year-olds from 2023 to watch Kyoryuger to understand it. However, I felt the alternate universe argument could've still worked. But why did Toei decide to put King-Ohger in the SAME CONTINUITY as Kyoryuger? It feels like tht this was another step to "cleaning up the house". I wouldn't be surprised if Kyoryuger props were in a clearance sale that year.

Thankfully, King-Ohger had a finale in mind when it was written. It didn't end up with the problem of several American shows being canceled too soon without a proper end. Instead, it managed to fix what Mystic Knights of Tir Na Nog couldn't. However, the way things played like DugDEAD Dujardin annihilating life to its really crowded finale with what could be the biggest stage role call -- it made me cross my fingers Super Sentai was on the finale road.

Bakuage Sentai Boonboomger was "back to basics," but it felt like the show was like a yearlong intermission number

Boonboomger went back to Japan. I thought it was just going to be, "Well, let's just sit down and enjoy the show." However, the Ranger History Lessons kicked in AGAIN. Yes, everything went back as early as episode 12 with Sosuke's guest role from Engine Sentai Go-Onger -- a show I ended up disliking after seeing Gekisou Sentai Carranger. It also had a Ranger History Lesson with Ressha Sentai ToQGer -- which is kind of understandable given the 10 year anniversary. Towards the finale, Joe Gibken from Gokaiger entered all before Shashiro's overly predictable fake betrayal.

Why did Toei go into THAT direction? I always felt that the Ranger History Lessons were where cues of Super Sentai going on hiatus. Well, that announcement was loudly made with...

Gozyuger was a huge farewell party to celebrate half a century, rather than the 50th entry

Was this premature celebration done on purpose? The Superhero Festival in Japan felt like a big farewell party for the Super Sentai franchise. Gozyuger's finale was well kinda meh for me, actually. However, the ring battle is still continuing and the Universe Warriors made some kind of role call. Some people feel like blaming the tabloid Shunkan Bushun over what happened with Maya Imamori somewhat late into the show. Talk about running what could be Toei's "longest garabe sale ever" and I bet the costumes above are now getting auctioned... OR NOT! Regardless, Gozyuger was already a finale vibe!

The beginning scene shows Tega Sword (a pun on Megazord) on top of the giant Megazord. Toei probably chose to celebrate Goranger's 50th anniversary to acknowledge the real long history or not. King-Ohger happened during Mighty Morphin's 30th anniversary. IMHO, I always felt that King-Ohger was the way to go. However, putting all the Megazords in one place in a graveyard was probably a message: "Megazords aren't as feasible as they used to be." The days when long lines happened just to get the Megazord had fizzled out over time. The show became a huge Battle Royale of sorts, which almost reminds me of a CLEARANCE SALE. I felt the whole series was meant to be a clearance sale to make way for Gavan Infinity or anything new Toei had at the works.

Basically, Toei did these to give Super Sentai what may be that far from perfect yet somehow touching wrap-up. First, they celebrated the 45th season to prove that they were able to reach up to 45 entries for Super Sentai. Second, Donbrothers felt like some padding that would prepare people for the inevitable. Third, Toei were able to celebrate 30 years of Power Rangers since 1993-2023. Boonboomger was sort of the "easing stage". Gozyuger in 2025 was pretty much like, "Super Sentai is 50 years old!" -- hence the name Half Century Cafe. This would've been the symmetry that was achieved -- imperfect but able to carry out what Toei wanted to do!

Counting Down To "Gavan Infinity" As "Super Sentai" Takes What Might Be A Badly-Needed Hiatus

noreply@blogger.com (Sean Akizuki) — Wed, 21 Jan 2026 14:36:00 +0000

I once thought that Universe Heroes was a renaming of the Super Sentai franchise, but I later realized it was a hiatus. Instead, since last year, it was announced that Universe Heroes is taking over the Super Sentai franchise since last year. Even the very way No. 1 Sentai Gozyuger may have had a dead giveaway. Megazord Graveyard at the beginning was just the beginning. Celebrating Super Sentai's 50th birthday instead of the 50th entry? Those were crazy signs that I felt weren't

I already thought that the Super Sentai franchise needed a break ever since the end of Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger. The post-Gokaiger era had its creative direction's ups and downs. It was a rollercoaster ride for me (but I never rode a rollercoaster, weak stomach) when I was critical about Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger after Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters. It took me some time to appreciate Ressha Sentai ToQGer given that I had an overload. The series had its ups and downs. In fact, I even remember LAUGHING when the caption "The history of Super Sentai! It's ever!" appeared during the Doubutsu Sentai Zyuohger vs. Shuriken Sentai Ninninger (based on two shows that I felt were BEAUTIFULLY POINTLESS) crossover. I had my thoughts that Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger's finale gave me a thought that Super Sentai's hiatus (or even possible cancellation) could be close. That finale ALMOST felt like a huge farewell. Gokaiger's finale was a huge farewell too!

I had to get my head together when Gavan Infinity's cast members were finally revealed. Now, it's time to look into the plot.

The production announcement event revealed that the series will feature three Multiverses, and each Multiverse has its own Gavan and support team. These Multiverses are: Multiverse Earth Α0073 (Alpha 0073), Multiverse Earth Λ8018 (Lambda 8018), and Multiverse Earth Ι5109 (Iota 5109).

This one features the Multiverse Concept -- a common trope in classic superhero lore. You may find the concept similar to that of the Marvel Universe, where certain characters may come from the Mainline continuity, the Age of Apocalypse continuity, the Askani Future, etc. The details I got seem to indicate NOTHING about the 1982 Ucchu Keiji Gavan, as this might either be an AU Gavan or a complete reboot. If it's a soft reboot then the chances are we'd see Kenji Ohba despite his AGE.

Multiverse Earth Α0073 (Alpha 0073) main characters

Details for the main hero:

Reiji Doki/Gavan Infinity (played by Kouhei Nagata) is an investigator belonging to the Documents Division of the Galactic Federal Police's Earth Branch. Filled with a passionate sense of justice, he is honest about his anger. Influenced by his master, he joined the Galactic Federal Police. After being exposed to a special form of Emorgy, he gained the ability to transcend dimensions.

Using the "Documents Division", a dead end department as cover, he will travel across dimensions, to any universe where an Emorgear incident occurs on the infinitely numerous multiverse Earths. Each time, he meets someone calling themselves "Gavan" from that universe, and while they are sometimes misunderstood and sometimes hit it off, they pursue "Emogear criminals" and engage in joint investigations, eventually forming a strong friendship with the "Gavan" from another universe.

The shade of red for the main hero, Gavan Infinity, reminds me of the direct Gavan sequel (but soft sequel), namely Ucchu Keiji Sharivan. I preferred Sharivan over Gavan in terms of characters. The new organization, Galactic Federal Police, is a direct take on the Galactic Union Police Force from the original series. However, it's really clear that the series

Apparently, these Emorgears might actually be similar to the Alienizers in Tokosou Sentai Dekaranger. Dekaranger even had a movie with Ucchu Keiji Gavan. Gavan also got tangled up with Super Sentai in a few turns. It looks like these Emorgears might actually be the label for generic criminals rather than a central organization. The term Alienizer was used to label ANY criminal in Dekararanger, whether they were aligned with Abrella or not.

Colonel Daisuke Date (played by Arihiro Matsunaga) was Reiji's classmate at the police academy. He always speaks and acts calmly, and has a gently demeanor. He is able to control even eccentric people (including Reiji). As the head of the Documents Division, he supports Reiji in his investigations. Since his student days, he has believed and researched the existence of the multiverse "Cosmo Layer". Because he does not have a special constitution like Reiji, he is unable to leave the Cosmo Gavarion when on business trips to other universes. He hopes that one day he will be able to roam freely across the multiverse Earths, and he continues his research to achieve this.

This might actually be a huge handicap. What's about this special constitution like Reiji? Why is he unable to leave the Cosmo Gavarion when on business trips to other Universes? This might actually be an interesting plotline.

AGI (played by Kohana Arisaka), is an autonomous AI and an all-purpose assistant for the Documents Division created by the Colonel. Her name stands for Artificial General Intelligence. She acts by anticipating the Colonel and Reiji's thoughts. She has a physical form like a human, and can transform her body into particles and infiltrate anywhere. When necessary, she also assists Reiji in his investigative activities across the multiverse. She can also transform the particles that make up her body and change her costume at will.

This makes me laugh, thinking about android women. Most AI women were usually meant to be non-robotic. So what's Toei doing with another female android character character here? Her concept reminds me of Kyoju Tokosou Juspion's Anri -- a robot girl that served as the assistant to the main hero Juspion. We also had Izu from Kamen Rider Zero-One.

Rikiya Wanibuchi (played by Hiroto Yasuda) and PatRun (voiced by Takehito Koyasu) are a duo of elite investigators from the First Investigative Division of the Galactic Federal Police's Earth Branch. They boast that the First Investigative Division is the star department, and always treat the Documents Division as a dwarf, and are completely unaware of their true nature. Both were classmates with Reiji and the Colonel at the police academy. PatRun is an alien from the planet Hyakuto.

The new duo of eliteinvestigators. This looks like the kind of "necessary conflict" or "necessary foil" like Hoji Toru was in Kamen Rider Agito. Patrun happens to be that "cute mascot character" that might be needed for the Bandai merchandise. How does this plot fuel things with someonewho doesn't realize that the Documents Division have been saving the heroes behind their backs? It looks like we're going to play on secret identities again.

Carel Qom Vigiles (played by Yuta Hiraoka), the head of the Security Bureau of the Galactic Federal Police's Earth Branch. A man of unknown age and a mysterious character, he is said to have been involved in the founding of the Documents Division. Despite being a high ranking official in the organization, he secretly supports the Documents Division's investigations.

The name Qom almost feels like a throwbak to Commander Qom from the original Gavan. What's this guy's motives for supporting the Documents Division in secrets? Hmmm....

Multiverse Earth Λ8018 (Lambda 8018)

Setsuna Aikokuin/Gavan Bushido (played by Ryuga Akahane) is the Gavan from the Multiverse Earth Λ8018. In this dimesion, Gavan is the captain of the Special Forces of the Public Order Maintenance Headquarters. He is a silent warrior who values the code of honor. In fact, he is an artificial human created for war, with the ability to automatically repair wounds, and has lived for thousands of years.

Over the years of traveling to various planets, he has become interested in human emotions and has learned to control his facial expressions, but he is unable to cry because he is not equipped with the ability to shed tears. He admires the act of crying.

This one creates another non-human hero. His interest in human emotions makes me think of Naga from Ucchu Sentai Kyuranger. However, he's actually an artificial human that has lived for thousands of years. He's probably a result of a genetic experiment 1,000 years ago, before the series began. This makes him the oldest known character!

Rui Amou (played by Anna Iriyama) is the head of the Public Order Maintenance Headquarters of the Multiverse Earth Λ8018 and is Setsuna's superior. She is calm, confident, and a capable boss who trusts Setsuna very much. She looks just like the woman from another planet who gave Setsuna her name long ago, but Rui is not yet aware of this.

At this point, this could be a mystery of, "Is she or is she not?" We've got a lot of doppelgangers walking around in the Earth. I even feel like hundreds of people might bear my face on this planet! This could create an interesting mystery!

Multiverse Earth Ι5109 (Iota 5109)

Kiki Iwai/Gavan Luminous (played by Kokona Sumi) is the Gavan from Multiverse Earth Ι5109. The Gavan in this dimension is an unusual detective who is recognized as Gavan, despite being in the Forensics Department. She excels in deductive and analytical skills, but has an otaku-like nature and is completely focused on what interests her.

Her joy is "knowing", and is particularly interested in Emorgear. She can understand the language of the Emorgear. She accurately analyzes situations and seeks solutions with the optimal equipment.

This would be a bring back for classic female sidekicks in the Metal Hero franchise. There were a few cases of transforming sidekicks like Diana in Jiku Senshi Spielban. Female secondary Kamen Riders have become more and more of a thing -- despite having no female lead as a titular hero. Female characters may usually be put in a female secondary market. It's not like Sailor Moon franchise where the main target was the female demographic. In my case, I felt that having a woman who excels in deductive and analytical skills might be the badly needed lifesaver for the male heroes! I always felt that, despite lacking female leads -- the female sidekicks are the necessary balancers! However, I feel her concept feel smore likeshe should be a non-transforming sidekick that provides the badly needed BTS support.

Kotobuki Takanari (played by Lana Tanida) is Gavan Luminous' investigation partner. Skilled and active, she excels in weapons handling and martial arts. She has been best friends with Kiki since high school, and has always been the straight man to Kiki's laid-back attitude.

On the other hand, we've go thte action oriented female. I was thinking about the striaght woman to Kiki's laid back is the perfect balancer. It's kinda funny to see Kotobuki as the sidekick instead of Kiki. I mean, I would've probably recommended her over Kiki. But it seems the show wants to break some tropes!

Other details

Now for the voice cast, Toshihiko Seki (Kamen Rider Den-O, Mobile Suit Gundam Wing) will voice the Gavarion Trigger and Cosmo Gavarion's system, while Ayako Kawasumi (Fate/stay night) will voice the Emorgear and will narrate the series.

Lastly, May'n will perform the show's theme song, "LOVE IS THE STRONGEST". As previously reported, Atsuhiro Tomioka (Bakuage Sentai Boonboomger) will serve as the show's head writer, with veteran tokusatsu suit actor and action director Hirofumi Fukuzawa serving as director. Veteran Toei tokusatsu special effects director Hiroshi Butsuda will serve as special effects director, while Kentaro Sonoda (KonoSuba) and Yuki Nara (The Legendary Hero is Dead!) will both compose the show's music.

Super Space Sheriff Gavan Infinity is set to premiere on February 15th at 9:30pm JST only on TV Asahi.

This reminds me that it's going to be close to the Lunar New Year. I'm also feeling old thiking how Super Sentai was 50 years old in 2025. The hiatus chose to happen that year instead of one more season to close the circle. Boonboomger's head writer would also be involved. Hopefully, this will be a new franchise that might pump more fresh ideas into Toei Ltd. Super Sentai's fate is best resolved depending on how the market will be in the future.

The Feeling Of Watching No. 1 Sentai Gozyuger, Knowing Universe Heroes Is On The Way

noreply@blogger.com (Sean Akizuki) — Thu, 18 Dec 2025 11:23:00 +0000

This is one post I couldn't write immediately. It's hard for me NOT to connect the GREED and No. 1 Sentai Gozyuger. Next year should've been the 50th Super Sentai series. What may have NEVER surprised me was that there would be no Super Sentai series in line -- or the first time from 1979 up to 2025! After all, there was a ONE-YEAR hiatus between Dengekitai JAKQ (which rushed everything in just 35 episodes and Battle Fever J (where Super Sentai became the annual tradition). I'm still watching Gozyuger, but there's a nagging thought -- there wouldn't be Super Sentai next year. I wouldn't be surprised if there's a clearance sale for some Super Sentai items now to recover from losses!

At first, I thought that Universe Heroes was merely a rebranding. However, I had a mixture of relief and anxiety. Instead, we're getting Project RED: Super Space Sheriff Gavan Infinity. Instead, Universe Heroes is a new franchise! This reminds me of what went on when Toei bit more than it could chew. Theoretically, Toei could still have had a Kamen Rider series after Kamen Rider BLACK RX in 1990. Instead, Toei chose to prioritize Metal Hero all before its cancellation with Robotack. Kamen Rider went for an 11-year hiatus. It wasn't until Kamen Rider Kuuga that the franchise entered a new era, one that broke away from the late Shotaro Ishinomori's ideas while still honoring him.

There was this now-defunct site called Sentai Forever. It was a fan site where I discovered more of Super Sentai back in the 2000s. Super Sentai may be the longest-running Tokusatsu franchise by Toei -- I even wrote about it last 2016! I could remember how I had this on/off dislike (or even hatred) for Power Rangers -- until I studied more of the international market!

Going beyond the 25th-45th Super Sentai entries was a challenge

Kaizouki Sentai Gokaiger felt like a gigantic finale. What followed after that felt like a reboot treatment with Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters. Well, even Hyajakuu Sentai Gaoranger felt more like a reboot than an anniversary celebration IMHO. Mirai Sentai Timeranger felt like a finale -- the final chapter of the 20th century! The post-Gokaiger era can be viewed as a time of testing. Will Super Sentai still last? I even felt critical about Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger and I find Shuriken Sentai Ninninger to be plain unwatchable. Well, the anniversaries were GETTING AFFECTED for me.

Doubutsu Sentai Zyuohger was the 40th installment. I thought Super Sentai was ending after that. Heck, anybody who saw Doubutsu Sentai Zyuohger vs. Shuriken Sentai Ninninger should remember the line, "The History of Super Sentai! It's over!" I thought 40 was the last but Ucchu Sentai Kyuranger came. Things went well and good. However, I felt that going back to dinosaurs with Kishinryu Sentai Ryusoulger was an act of greed and desperation. The low toy sales of Kaito Sentai Lupinranger vs. Keisatsu Sentai Patranger were a reality.

Kikou Sentai Zenkaiger was practically the 45th entry. The series felt like a finale to me. The new unorthodox line-up of one human member and four non-human members was interesting. This was during the second year of the Legacy Virus pandemic. I was hoping for some improvements. In inner child wanted the Zenkaiger toys. However, Zenkaiger hit the LOW TOY SALES ZONE! It was followed by another unusual team called Avatar Sentai Donbrothers -- which had me worried because of how often writers tend to be overworked. Toshiki Inoue returned, but the guy became mixed when it came to lighter and softer work.

Given the situation, we had our 47th entry with Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger. This is one series that probably cast a huge shadow that lasted for two years. It was also in 2023, which was 30 years since Power Rangers was born. Right now, I still wonder if King-Ohger was meant to be a finale or not. Instead, Bakuage Sentai Boonboomger was released as a "palate cleanser" of sorts. I felt this year's move could've benefited from "another palate cleanser" than a festival like Gozyuger. Instead, Gozyuger came in and launched what I call a PREMATURE FEAST. That move may be the reason why we're not getting a 50th Super Sentai series next year.

Right now, I feel like my heart has been prepared for that time. There were times I felt Super Sentai either needs to end (like what happened to Metal Heroes) or it would go on hiatus. Right now, I have mixed feelings like, "Why am I not surprised?" while feeling some disappointment as well.

Shinichiro Shirakura Acknowledges Power Rangers' Role In Super Sentai's Longevity?

noreply@blogger.com (Sean Akizuki) — Tue, 02 Dec 2025 05:39:00 +0000

It's already known I don't like Power Rangers. I'm not GOING TO KEEP PRETENDING that I like it. However, Power Rangers was born out of a NEED because the American market is WAY DIFFERENT than the Japanese market. That's what I wrote in JEFusion before I decided to leave it while still endorsing it! It's like a certain group of people who talk like a certain cop (warning: LOTS OF CRAZY STUFF).

Here are Shirakura's words, regardless of how I feel about Power Rangers:

Shirakura observed that he joined Toei in 1990, when the company was planning the 1992 series Kyōryū Sentai Zyuranger. The staff back then thought that it might be the final Sentai entry. So, the younger staffers wanted to try something different, and introduced a sixth regular member mid-story for the first time in the franchise. Shirakura mused that Zyuranger becoming the loose basis for the global phenomenon Power Rangers was divine intervention (literally, "kamikaze") that led to Super Sentai lasting another three decades.

Asahi observed that even Kamen Rider and Ultraman had hiatuses, whereas only Super Sentai among the tokusatsu franchises has had a nearly continuous half-century broadcast run. Shirakura dryly noted that Super Sentai's success defies reason — its origin was a fluke, born from a failed attempt to make a project with five Kamen Riders assembling to fight together. That failure led Kamen Rider creator Shōtarō Ishinomori to develop Himitsu Sentai Gorenger — the first Super Sentai show. The franchise only added giant robots after the once-popular giant robot anime shows ended their continuous broadcast run in the 1970s. The third (or first, depending on who is counting) Super Sentai show, Battle Fever J, took over the Tōshō Daimos robot anime's timeslot after it was cut short.

Power Rangers as Toei's ticket to the Western market

The claim that Power Rangers is a parasite isn't true. If one studies contracts and obligations -- one must think of the arrangements done between Saban (the franchisee) and Toei (the franchisor). Whoever holds the Power Rangers brands bears the responsibilities of the contract. Saban, Disney, or Hasbro NEVER got anything for free. Back in the day, Saban's request for extra Zyuranger footage was granted by Toei Ltd. -- although I believe the latter could've recommended a much different approach so the Gosei Sentai Dairanger model could be sold next.

That means whoever has the Power Rangers contract must abide by royalty fees used for stuff like:

The right to use the costumes
The right to use the licensed footage that will be blended with American OG footage (Zyu2 existed as a request from Saban)
The use of the form and substance

Sure, I find the use of stock footage in Power Rangers to be strange. I always thought that the American-only, unmorphed fights getting replaced with the Super Sentai footage felt funny. It's a good thing I decided to watch the Toys That Made Us episode on Power Rangers to understand the international market. This is why I think Toei actually acknowledges Mighty Morphin's anniversary every 10 years -- such as Bakuryu Sentai Abaranger, Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger, and I want to put Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger.

I might be annoyed at Power Rangers, but I realized my annoyance has to be with the implementation itself. Why should I pretend to like something that I don't and write a fanfic story that's so bad as a result? Sure, I won't get into hate fics (bad move) but it doesn't mean that I don't have the right to, at least, speak my mind of what I hid in the closet! Right now, the Minimal Continuity Approach could've worked. However, Super Sentai usually kept itself going before Power Rangers by using a self-contained approach. It's a cultural difference that Power Rangers uses the continuity approach more than Super Sentai does. My bigger issues are usually with how Mighty Morphin' got overextended up to Power Rangers Zeo, and how I had to watch Power Rangers Turbo to make sense of the events in Power Rangers in Space.

The problem behind Power Rangers' ACTUALLY GETTING WORSE could've contributed to a lack of revenues for Toei

I dare say Power Rangers has been getting worse, NOT because it's an adaptation (or localization, given the change of content for an AMERICAN audience) such as the Disney overly rushed era (and that's why I'd watch Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters over Power Rangers RPM), the ridiculous SUMMER BREAK, and the Mighty Morphin' nostalgia. The Disney era paid yearly despite the 32-episode format that felt rushed. The Disney 32-episode format started with Power Rangers Mystic Force and ended with RPM -- the last Disney show. Saban came back, but FOR THE WORSE. Turning the show from a one-year run to a two-year run significantly delayed toy sales -- which may have delayed revenues. Even worse, Power Rangers' overreliance on Mighty Morphin' nostalgia -- such as Rita's Rewind and MMPR: Once and Always can be viewed as a stuck-in-nostalgia mindset. These are plainly BAD FOR THE MONEY!

It made me think of how much money was lost along the way because:

Disney chose the Mighty Morphin' Remastered path in 2010 over a Samurai Sentai Shinkenger adaptation. The remastered was SO BAD that like WTF.
Saban came back in 2011. Power Rangers Samurai became a mediocre adaptation with bad acting and UNNECESSARY Mighty Morphin' linkage. This was the beginning of the two-year run cycle. Which meant a lot of shows that could've been adapted, were ADAPTED OUT!
Power Rangers Megaforce is a bad mix of Tensou Sentai Goseiger and Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger footage. This was another two-year mix. If both shows were adapted separately then there would've been MORE MONEY from the likeness and stock footage royalties!
Power Rangers Dino Charge had potential but again, two two-year mix.
Power Rangers Beast Morphers was basically another going backwards quality -- this time under HASBRO!
There's a lot of lag footage, meaning more opportunity costs with Toei because these were NEVER adapted thanks to the SH*TTY two-year cycle. The shows are Ressha Sentai ToQGer, Doubotsu Sentai Zyuohger, Ucchu Sentai Kyuranger (and only a few of its footage was used in the AWFUL Power Rangers Cosmic Fury), Kaito Sentai Lupinranger vs. Keisatsu Sentai Patranger, Mashin Sentai Kiramager, Kikou Sentai Zenkaiger, Avatar Sentai Donbrothers, Avatar Sentai Donbrothers, and last year's Bakuage Sentai Boonboomger. This would be a total of NINE series that could've given Toei extra revenue via likeness and stock footage!

After all, the following could've been IF the yearly run was done, and if Disney DIDN'T create Mighty Morphin' remastered. There were some creative alternatives, like skipping Gokaiger entirely because of its abundant content of the pre-Power Rangers era. A yearly run could've generated a better revenue stream. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem that Toei Ltd. has any control over where Power Rangers air in the American market either. It's really a bad business decision. It may not have affected Super Sentai production at first. However, when Toei starts running out of extra money, it can become a huge problem!

___________

Update: December 9, 2025

Is The Sumino Ichikawa Facelift, Innovation Gone Wrong?!

noreply@blogger.com (Sean Akizuki) — Mon, 01 Dec 2025 04:27:00 +0000

People can say that I'm against innovation or Draconian. Innovation is wonderful but it can also be mismanaged. As Toei plans to either go on hiatus or perhaps close the book on Super Sentai (I prefer to believe the hiatus, and hopefully Japan will have a population boom once the old gens like myself, inevitably leave this world) -- Super Sentai may start anew! Now, I'd like to look into the latest episode which introduces Sumino Ichikawa's new form -- acted by Kohaku Shida!

There were other alternatives that could've and SHOULD'VE been considered. IMHO the most logical step was to turn Oto Ichikawa into the new Gozyu Unicorn! Maya Imamori's DISMISSAL (instead of work suspension) felt super unfair IMHO. Instead, the "new solution" was to keep Sumiko BUT give a magical explanation after Kohaku replaced Maya. It all feels WTF as it replaces the more serious Sumino with the more mischievous Kohaku. The approach just feels way too OUT OF PLACE IMHO.

This is No. 1 Sentai Gozyuger and NOT Avatar Sentai Donbrothers. It feels out of place to have a new Sumino who carries the Haruka Kito vibes. I'd like to say that EVEN IF Toei had already planned to end Super Sentai (which may explain the Gozyuger finale feel) -- a graceful exit is always better than a cluttered mess of an exit!

How "Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger" Fixed "Mystic Knights Of Tir Na Nog" (Some Spoilers)

noreply@blogger.com (Sean Akizuki) — Fri, 28 Nov 2025 14:09:00 +0000

Yawn! Bored? I can't be sure. I was thinking about how No. 1 Sentai Gozyuger was overshadowed by Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger for two years. Right now, I have decided to write this post for fun. It's no secret that I've compared both Kamen Rider Saber and later King-Ohger to Mystic Knights of Tir Na Nog. I looked into the show and thought about how Mystic Knights failed (and it was a huge, ambitious project) vs. how King-Ohger (25 years later) managed to fix things. In fact, it seems Toei had seldom made "pseudo-sequels" for Saban Entertainment sometime later.

Now, it's time to dig into the essay...

I. The technological era (the 1990s) mismatched the ambition of the Mystic Knights of Tir Na Nog

There were some criticisms about Power Rangers being lazy or that Saban should create his own show. There are times I ride with that since I don't like Power Rangers. However, anyone who understands the basics of international marketing WOULD AVOID talking like a certain group that talk like a CERTAIN COP. The show itself was overly ambitious if it wanted to butt heads against Hercules: The Legendary Journeys and Xena: The Warrior Princess. Those two shows BELONG to an older demographic while Mystic Knights was a show designed to be some kind of RPG-ish show. The show itself had some kind of identity crisis.

We need to think about the 1990s. One may want to recheck some original Power Rangers footage from the 1990s. It's clear as day that these effects were ON THE BUDGET. Many things like CGI graphics, green screens, etc., were still D*MN EXPENSIVE AND INEFFICIENT at that time. Any 1990s child would remember how Beast Wars was a huge step up -- but it was also SUPER D*MN EXPENSIVE AND INEFFICIENT TO MAKE. One may notice that Beast Wars had a lot of toys that NEVER showed up on television! The answer had to do with the BUDGET IN ITSELF! That would've been VERY EXPENSIVE TO PRODUCE BACK THEN. Mystic Knights was no different TBH.

I could be wrong, but Mystic Knights was probably more expensive to produce than a Super Sentai entry back then. Given the 1998 scenario -- it was Denji Sentai Megaranger. Megaranger was also the era when a PC was more expensive. In fact, Megaranger had scenes that showed how the electricity bill rose for their secret club. Now, for some comparisons on possible costing:

Super Sentai was usually running on low-budget alternatives. Some blatant examples would be the use of rubber suit monsters (mostly meant to be unrealistic), STOP MOTION sequences for the Zords (and repeated use of stock footage for combinations), the infamous poseable doll on top of the Dragon Caesar in Kyoryu Sentai Zyuranger, and the CGI was blatantly fake. These were all low-budget alternatives back then.
Mystic Knights was probably throwing things too much. Going to film in Ireland could just be one costly BUT NECESSARY MEASURE. Having to go for realistic castle sets was another as CGI sets weren't developed at that time. The use of CGI monsters was used during certain episodes of the series. The show even aimed for a 50-episode run -- hoping to get ANOTHER 50 episodes. However, that all crashed, and Saban Entertainment moved the budget to Power Rangers Lost Galaxy and the English Digimon dub -- presumably to recover from the losses. After all, Toei decided that "the show must go on" for the Power Rangers franchise and allowed Saban to dub Digimon. Saban had to recover the money and probably chose to let people forget that Mystic Knights ever existed.

II. Now, we can check on how King-Ohger practically FIXED the problem 25 years later

Much can change between 1998 and 2022, right? It was the time when the Legacy Virus Pandemic was starting to wane in 2023, and activities started to go back to normal. Basically, a lot of technological limits during the 1990s and beyond started to make dramatic leaps, such as:

A PC used to be a luxury in the 1990s. Now, a PC has become more accessible than ever. A PC that cost a lot more (and crashed more) is now more affordable and efficient. I changed PCs several times, and each new PC I got over a course of 5-10 years, made me enjoy the power. My latest PC allows me to surf ADS INTENSIVE PAGES without much of a slowdown unlike my older PC, which I had to replace.
Because PCs are no longer more of a luxury -- perhaps high-end PCs have become more accessible, allowing better CGI to be done at a LOWER COST. That would mean green screen technology has become cheaper to produce.
The early 2000s had Super Sentai switch Zord footage from stop-motion (the common practice) to CGI ever since.
One may notice how Super Sentai villain suits are now more elaborately done these days!

However, technological upgrades weren't enough. Mystic Knights operated with the American TV show mindset in mind -- that is, a show can go for several seasons. The Japanese model tends to differ that it actually chooses to end a show ASAP. In some cases, a DIRECT SEQUEL would totally present a new protagonist and a new antagonist. A good example is how the Takara Trilogy in Transformers gave each installment a DEFINITE ENDING. You may notice that Transformers Masterforce and Trasnformers Victory are under what might be called the Minimal Continuity Approach -- where a show can be a direct sequel WITHOUT requiring you to watch the previous show to understand it. I culd watch Victory first and Masterforce next without getting lost!

Now, let's take a look at how King-Ohger fixed Mystic Knights' mess....

Using the less expensive approach of logstics and GREEN SCREEN, now that the technology has been REFINED and MADE MORE ACCESSIBLE

As I mentioned earlier, Mystic Knights went for the IRELAND approach. This was a logistics hurdle. Toei decided to keep King-Ohger in Japan. It would be 100% impractical of Toei went to Europe, perhaps go to Ireland or Holland, or do this and that to create the kingdoms of King-Ohger. King-Ohger had to learn how to take advantage of what Mystic Knights didn't have. Now, CGI has become easier to produce thanks to economies of scale.

There was always my desire to "make things authentic". I always joked about how King-Ohger would've been better if Toei had hired white people to play the characters. It's because the characters had VERY WESTERN SOUNDING NAMES. Gira HUSTY. Yanma GAST. Himeno RAN. Rita KANISKA, which sounds rather Indian though. Kaguragi DYBOWSKI, which sounds POLISH. Jeramie BRASSERIE. However, if Toei gave in to my ridiculous wish, it would be WAY TOO EXPENSIVE. For example, if Toei decided to hire Jacqueline Scislowski to play as Himeno -- that would mean paying for her JAPANESE LANGUAGE LESSONS and accommodation. Toei learned from the Battle Fever J incident when they had to arrange Diane Martin's graceful exit -- as the actress barely spoke Japanese! this was just one proper slap back to reality on my face!

The next step was taking advantage of CGI looking MUCH BETTER than it did back then. Trying to turn the scene above into an actual physical set would be more expensive than the use of castles in Mystic Knights. The solution was that everybody STAYS THE F*CK in Japan. Mystic Knights probably couldn't even create the CGI castle back then given the cost -- making going to Ireland probably all too necessary. Instead, King-Ohger did something similar to Vincenzo. Vincenzo didn't have to film in Italy -- they created an Italy set from GREEN SCREEN! This was what King-Ohger did -- create video game-type scenarios out of CGI! The CGI that was denied to Mystic Knights was now given what I'd call its pseudo-sequel King-Ohger!

In short, Toei used a combination of actual outdoor locations AND the CGI sets. It was because creating those backgrounds with actual materials would COST WAY TOO MUCH.

Aiming to end the show within the year-long run

Mystic Knights was aiming for a second season. Saban Entertainment may have made some bad choices. However, it would look like leaving Mystic Knights hanging was the MORE FINANCIALLY SOUND thing to do vs. creating Mystic Knights Battle Thunder -- the proposed second season. Basically, it was cheaper to leave Maeve and Midler planning their plan and never coming to fruition. However, King-Ohger had a clearer direction. It was at this point that I thought that DugDEAD Dujardin could easily fit Mider's role. Mider was a small evil fairy who gave Maeve her weapons and probably even set up Nemain's downfall and restoration. DugDEAD's true form is some evil, insect-like, small creature. According to some sources, DugDEAD's body was actually that of a beheaded monarch and NOT a mecha. So yeah, talk about brutality that the show probably chose not to mention!

The show was composed of two separate halves within one year. Yeah, that one alone makes he hate the Nickelodeon schedule done by Power Rangers. It seems to be the way how Mystic Knights' two proposed plots could've been done in just one year -- get rid of Maeve in the first half, then introduce Mider as the main villain in the second half! King-Ohger episode 27 finally introduced DugDEAD, who was revealed to be the true "then the dark forces came bringing people endless pain". The Bugnarok's leader, Desnarak VIII, was betrayed by Kamejim. Kamejim was secretly serving DugDEAD and was part of the Five Jesters! The show got rid of the Bugnarok in favor of the real cause of the conflict -- the GALACTAINSECTS! DugDEAD shows up with the Five Jesters, who were effectively taking over the role of the Monster-of-the-Week (MOTW). Creating MOTWs during the second half could potentially create OVERCROWDING, and chose to focus on GETTING RID OF THE FIVE JESTERS IN PROLONGED COMBAT.

The second half can be said to be even gloomier than the first half. It's because the second half contains some REALLY depressing episodes. Even episode 27 can start off to be even gloomier than the first half! All these were, however, meant to go to a DEFINITE END WITHOUT PLANNING ANOTHER SEASON. Episodes that focused on solving past mysteries like Kaguragi's encounter with Iroki (where Iroki chose to kill herself by eating the poisoned rice and BURNING HERSELF WITH IT) or when Himeno finally meets her parents' true killer -- are just scary! All those important plots go together, proving how DugDEAD himself masterminded everything!

DugDEAD was given his just desserts! It was satisfying to to see how King-Ohger actually fulfilled what Mystic Knights failed to do. It's almost like that the 2,000 year conflict started from Earth done by Mider, Mider had people move to another planet, and well, I can create an incredibly convoluted fan theory that CAN NEVER FIT IN. However, I always have fun forcing Mystic Knights into this show just like my guilty pleasure of forcing all Super Sentai entries into ONE TIMELINE. Back on the topic, having the Six Kingdom Alliance FINALLY get rid of DugDEAD once and for all was indeed satisfying. There are no plans for King-Ohger Season 2, and that's the way it should be. That's why I usually skip American shows, and I don't rewatch Dragon Ball Z or any Japanese shows that try to imitate the typical American show format!

____________

Either way, it was indeed satisfying to see how King-Ohger was able to fix what the Mystic Knights couldn't. Mystic Knights was an interesting concept, but the circumstances didn't accommodate the ambition. As said, Mystic Knights should've been just ONE SEASO,N or could've made a first half-second half format instead. King-Ohger was able to carry out the ambitions by having the right technology AND the proper limits of its ambition.

No. 1 Sentai Gozyuger And The GREEED

noreply@blogger.com (Sean Akizuki) — Mon, 24 Nov 2025 06:38:00 +0000

It's no secret that I've lost my fervor for No. 1 Sentai Gozyuger despite its innovative thinking. I was looking forward to what it could do -- such as how the Tega Sword concept, the Battle Royale theme, etc. could work out in Super Sentai. However, late last month, it was the news that Super Sentai would any any time soon. Other reports say Super Sentai might be rebranded as Universe Heroes or Universe Heroes would be a totally different franchise. In my case, I'm actually OPEN to see what Universe Heroes could do after Gozyuger ends. Now, I'd like to address one problem -- THE GREED!

Let's do a bit of a history lesson. Super Sentai anniversaries are usually celebrated by ENTRY NUMBER. What's also interesting to see is how Super Sentai seems to honor Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers' anniversary every decade since 1993. That means there are some festival seasons and some "basic palate cleanser seasons" like last year's Bakuage Sentai Boonboomger -- a return to basics. Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger was too much of a feat that it was a GOOD MOVE to focus on working around simpler themes. I wasn't even ready for another festival. I was just expecting another "standard season". A review class will always be beneficial.

It's been a bit of an exhange of innovating around a party concept vs. a slower steady pace of innovation.We can take a look at these cycles:

Hyajakuu Sentai Gaoranger was pretty much a festival. The following year was succeeded by Ninpuu Sentai Hurricaneger which the Zords were almost "back to basics", while there were some gimmicks called the Kakuri Balls.
Bakuryu Sentai Abaranger was the first dinosaur Super Sentai in 11 years. However, it wasn't a huge festival.
Gougou Sentai Boukenger was another festival. It was followed up by Jyuken Sentai Gekiranger which still used the multi-gattai process but Zords were much less fancy.
Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger no doubt cast a huge shadow. In fact, it's that HARD to get let go of it. It was wisely followed up by Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters -- which was more conservative in its approach. I view Go-Busters as a mandatory palate cleanser.
Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger showed up in 2013 -- that means 20 years of Mighty Morphin'. I tend to have issues with theme repetitions. Thankfully, Kyoryuger can still be an enjoyable mess. It's prety much like I was able to watch through B-Fighter Kabuto or Kamen Rider BLACK RX -- which are still miles better than their American localizations!
After Kyoryuger, several seasons had a "diet approach", even the 40th entry Douboutsu Sentai Zyuohger. Toei was wise to have worked through a diet approach from 2014 starting with Ressha Sentai ToQGer, followed up by Shuriken Sentai Ninninger, all before Zyuohger.
Ucchu Sentai Kyuranger became kind of a wild experiment, presumably as a "celebration reboot" that Super Sentai went beyond 40 YEARS. However, it would cast a huge shadow that probably resulted in low toy sales for Kaito Sentai Lupinranger vs. Keisatsu Sentai Patranger. It led to what I call a premature fourth dinosaur Super Sentai when Kishinryu Sentai Ryusoulger went back to dinosaurs.
I thought about how it was justifiable for Kikou Sentai Zenkaiger had an interesting concept, as it was a very unusual Super Sentai. However, yeah, Junko Komura just sucks with anniversaries IMHO and she was also Zyuohger's writer.
The Toshiki Inoue bailout was with Avatar Sentai Donbrothers. I found it way better writing-wise than what happened last year. This one introduced the gimmick where the rangers BECAME the Zords themselves. Seriously, I want to see more of that!
King-Ohger came into the picture with a huge festival. As mentioned earlier, Boonboomger was a palate cleanser. However, it seems King-Ohger created a two year shadow!

What happened was a premature celebration. Gozyuger was a feast and people are probably not yet ready to party. Boonboomger is what I might call the dietary program requiring fans to run the treadmall at bakuage speed. Toei choosing to have an anniversary TOO SOON should be a real problem. People were probably NOT READY YET for another feast -- which should've been in 2026!

I believe the consequences are as follows according to CNA Lifestyle:

According to news reports, citing sources close to production, the reason Super Sentai is ending is that "revenues from events, merchandise and film adaptations did not cover production costs".

As of writing, the producers of the Super Sentai series have neither confirmed nor denied the reports, with a spokesperson from TV Asahi – the network that airs Super Sentai – saying that it "will not comment on future programming plans".

It's probable that Bandai wanted a huge toy sale all too soon. What was probably ignored was the ECONOMIES OF SCALE. It's possible that they ignored that low toy sales for THIS YEAR could've been caused by LAST YEAR. It was said that toy sales for Mirai Sentai Timeranger were lower than that of Kyukyu Sentai GoGoFive. Come on, GoGoFive had way cooler Zords than Timeranger! I even think that Kyuranger toy surplus caused the toy sales slowdown for Lupinranger vs. Patranger toys. Toys that are so shiny and cool tend to overshadow newer toys that aren't as shiny and cool! My inner child makes me think that if I were to buy Megazords -- I could care less about it being new and care more about it BEING COOL.

Bandai may have failed to see that Super Sentai fans weren't ready for a sudden explosion. But that's what happened! Boonbommger brought in the toys (such as how Tega Sword combined with the other Zords) and brought in a super expensive production. This year could've been devoted to another palate cleanser after Boonboomger's treadmill season. Instead, Bandai may have foolishly decided, "We couldn't wait for 2026 so let's celebrate an anniversary on Goranger's anniversary instead.

This may also be the reason why Maya Imamori got into underaged drinking. Maya's talent agency Seju REMOVED HER ASAP. It looks like Toei and Bandai couldn't do anything at all due to contractual agreements. It's probabe that Maya went drinking due to heavy amounts of stress. Maya may have probably not gone drinking if it wasn't for a premature pressure -- given that Gozyuger still ENTRY 49. Like WTF had just happened!

As for the results, I'm not too surprised. It's like spending for a really huge event when people aren't ready for it. Perhaps, people don't have that much money or mood for it. IMHO, this year's move was a bad one. If Universe Heroes is truly NOT going to be Super Sentai rebranded but a new show -- one might want to learn from the Gozyuger fiasco!

Did Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger Cast A Huge Shadow That's Stretched For TWO YEARS?

noreply@blogger.com (Sean Akizuki) — Thu, 20 Nov 2025 11:00:00 +0000

The recent termination of Maya Imamori is something I consider ALL TOO EXTREME. I pointed out the problem that No. 1 Sentai Gozyuger may have been a result of a premature celebration. If we look into the cycle, Gozyuger is actually Super Sentai entry NO. 49 NOT ENTRY NO. 50! The celebration feels very PREMATURE. If we need to take a look back, we had anniversaries ALWAYS by entry number and NOT by Himitsu Sentai Goranger's birthday. Some Super Sentai series will and DO get overshadowed. In this case, Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger didn't just cause a two-year time skip. King-Ohger also created the scenario where it actually created a TWO-YEAR SHADOW.

Looking at the festival vs. fasting entries

I thought about the number of times that a festival got followed by the badly-needed "diet plan", which I'd include the Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers' anniversary celebration:

Hyajakuu Sentai Gaoranger was a huge festival. Ninpuu Sentai Hurricaneger followed up with fewer Zords to balance it up. The Hurricaneger mecha seemed to "return to standard" and somewhat followed Chojuu Sentai Liveman.
Bakuryu Sentai Abaranger introduced the dinosaur multi-gattai, but it was a very orderly show.
Gougou Sentai Boukenger, a huge festival, was soon followed by the more "palate cleansing" Jyuken Sentai Gekiranger. Gekiranger was so focused more on martial arts, while it had some cool toys -- but not as cool as Boukenger.
Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger became the biggest anniversary ever. It was followed up by the "palate cleanser" with Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters. It was a nice steady pace to have fewer toys, more plot written.
Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger is what I call a watchable mess. I was able to understand the context of the Mighty Morphin' anniversary. The show was festive with all its energy plus WELL-UTILIZED STUNTMEN. It was later followed up by Ressha Sentai ToQGer, Shuriken Sentai Ninninger, and Doubotsu Sentai Zyuohger -- all three entries were "conservative designs" presumably to slowly rebuild creative juices. Take note that Zyuohger was an anniversary season!
Strange enough, Ucchu Sentai Kyuranger was the 41st entry and NOT an anniversary. Was this ill-timed or not? The following year was marked by lower toy sales during the run time of Kaito Sentai Lupinranger vs. Keisatsu Sentai Patranger. I blame the SURPLUS.
The big blunder, IMHO, was to have a dinosaur Super Sentai too soon with Kishinryu Sentai Ryusoulger. YAWN! Why did I even bother to finish it?
Thankfully, Kikou Sentai Zenkaiger, followed up by Avatar Sentai Donbrothers, didn't have a Zord overload!
King-Ohger actually premiered with a huge budget and the use of CGI and on-site sets -- it was a really big budget! Sure, it didn't fly off to Ireland or use real castle sets (to avoid spending too much), BUT it was still a costly set. The aesthetics in the show make me want to be a child again, while the story didn't.
Bakuage Sentai Boonboomger was really meant to focus on "simpler designs". Sure, I was bored but it was the badly-needed diet after King-Ohger's royal feast.
My feeling with Gozyuger is that it didn't wait for the right time to feast -- it TRIED to return to the festival ASAP!

I confess that I have the King-Ohger hype. Back then, there was the Gokaiger hype. I have a feeling that King-Ohger was that "oh so highly innovative system" that has overshadowed any innovative thinking that came after it. Sure, I enjoy how the Boonboomgers have an assistant robot that helps form their Megazord -- something new for the series. However, Boonboomger was me "adjusting to slower paces". The simpler aesthetics felt like I needed to eat vegetarian food almost every day. I eat my vegetables and love eating them. However, I would crave MEAT too. However, I thought of Boonboomger's "back to basics" type of designs, like in ToQGer -- were needed to avoid overburning the innovative senses of the mind! I was too harsh on the designs back then. I realized that innovative thinking needs to slow down at times -- like going to the bare minimum when need be, then introducing something new at the same time.

People were probably NOT too ready for the festival that's Gozyuger, which was a result of THE GREEED

What should be TRULY bothersome IMHO was how this scene became HARSHER IN HINDSIGHT. I felt like King-Ohger was a huge banquet. It was like attending a party EVERY WEEK except for times when Super Hero Time isn't airing! The audience wasn't ready yet for another festival. I was simply waiting for another oh-so-regular Super Sentai season. Instead, Super Sentai decided to hit what I'd call a premature celebration. IMHO, Bandai could've thought that low toy sales this year may be because of last year's hype. Boonboomger gave that dietary season that fans all needed!

However, the same couldn't be said about Gozyuger. The whole show went for a super-expensive approach, trying to mimic Kamen Rider Geats. The whole show had the Battle Royale thing going on. The questions that management needed to ask were both costing and TIMING. Why am I talking about timing again? It's because it's still the 49th entry for CRYING OUT LOUD! That means the anniversary was PREEMPTIVELY EXECUTED! What may have happened was the HUGE PRESSURE that may have hit the cast -- MAYU INCLUDED!

I heard toy sales weren't enough to cover things up. This might be best interpreted as producing too many toys that nobody wants. If people aren't in the mood to buy that many toys -- WHY IN THE WORLD IS BANDAI PRODUCING THAT MANY TOYS?! That may be the harsh reality that Bandai failed to account for when Gozyuger came. King-Ohger's shadow was a far bigger stretch. The safest move IMHO, was to just go for a regular season and CELEBRATE THE ANNIVERSARY IN 2026. Instead, it seemed that this year's careless move may either call for Super Sentai's inevitable cancellation or rebranding. IMHO, it seems Universe Heroes might be a new franchise to replace Super Sentai -- which I'm pretty fine with, actually, if it forces Toei and Bandai to another challenge!

My Reaction To Kohaku Shida Replacing Maya Imamori AS SUMINO ICHIKAWA (WTF REALLY)

noreply@blogger.com (Sean Akizuki) — Sun, 16 Nov 2025 14:29:00 +0000

I must admit that I've been left SPEECHLESS and perhaps NOT IN A GOOD WAY! It turns out that Kohaku Shida is GOING TO BECOME SUMINO ICHIKAWA! This information from UkiyaSeed made me WTF through and through:

Shida will replace Maya Imamori for the role of Sumino Ichikawa/Gozyu Unicorn starting on the show's 40th episode, which will air on November 30th. As previously reported, Imamori stepped down from the role due to her agency dropping her because of underage drinking.

My reaction to this is like, "WTF are we thinking Toei?" Kohaku was previous cast as Haruka Kito in Avatar Sentai Donbrothers. This was a reaction to Maya Imamori's termination because of underaged drinking. This casting makes me raise the concern. Was this solely done because of whatever charm and impact that Kohaku had while she was in Donbrothers? Maybe yes, maybe no. I should still wonder how Gozyuger's creative crew will explain Sumino's SUDDEN FACE CHANGE since Kohaku will FREAKING PLAY THE SAME CHARACTER!

Seeing this phot, I always thought that the most logical step was to make Oto Ichikawa, Sumiko's younger sister, as the new Gozyu Unicorn. Instead, why had Toei decided to take the step of GETTING KOHAKU SHIDA AS AN ACTRESS REPLACEMENT? Wouldn't it be safer to simply explain Ichikawa away (like she got her job back) and have Oto become the new Gozyu Uniform.

Honestly, WTF Toei!

My Reaction Towards Maya Imamori's Underage Drinking Incident

noreply@blogger.com (Sean Akizuki) — Mon, 10 Nov 2025 08:40:00 +0000

I heard about the shocking incident a few days ago. However, I had NO ENERGY to write about it. It totally caught me OFF GUARD at that really happened! Yes, it's official that Maya Imamori was actually FIRED after her underage drinking incident. That means NO new No. 1 Sentai Gozyuger episode to be aired UNTIL. FURTHER. NOTICE.

Imamori’s talent agency also released a statement on its official site:

“It has been confirmed that our talent, Maya Imamori, engaged in underage drinking despite being under 20 years old.

As this constitutes a serious breach of contract, we have decided to terminate her management contract as of today after careful deliberation.”

The agency offered its apologies to fans and those concerned and pledged to strengthen compliance education and management systems to prevent similar incidents in the future.

Born in Miyazaki Prefecture, Imamori won the Grand Prix at Miss Magazine 2023 and gained popularity as a gravure model. Her role as Sumino Ichikawa / Gozyu Unicorn in Number One Sentai Gozyuger drew attention as the first-ever female Black Ranger in the franchise.

At the series’ press conference in January, she expressed enthusiasm:

“I want to give my all every day so that viewers can enjoy the show each week. I hope to create a work that makes people think, ‘This is wonderful!’ at every moment.”

Following the controversy, Imamori posted an apology on Instagram:

“I sincerely apologize for the trouble and concern I have caused many people due to my careless actions. Drinking alcohol while underage is a shameful act as both a member of society and as an individual. I deeply regret my actions and am reflecting on them seriously.”

She continued:

“I would like to apologize once again to my fans, everyone involved, and my co-stars for causing great trouble and disappointment. Through this incident, I will reflect on my immaturity, face the consequences of betraying the trust placed in me, and live my life with sincerity so that this will never happen again. I am truly sorry.”

Perhaps a bigger problem than what happened with some midseason cast changes

There's the problem of hte Real Life Writes Plot. Midseason cast changes happened in Super Sentai such as the following:

The late Baku Hakateyama had a short leave from Goranger. The temporary replacement is the still-living Jiro Daruma. This was a case of a yellow ranger getting a substitute.
Battle Fever J had two important cast changes. The first was when Yukio Ito left the script, I think because he got married, and was replaced in the EXACT SAME EPISODE with Naoya Ban, becoming the new Battle Cossack. Diane Martin left presumably because of real life tight schedules and was replaced by Naomi Hagi as the new Miss America. Diane never spoke Japanese fluently!
Taiyo Sentai Sun Vulcan had Ryusuke Kawasaki replaced by Takayuki Godai. This was the first red ranger replacement. Takayuki Owashi was replaced by the new red ranger Tayakuki Hiba, who's a swordsman.
Dai Sentai Goggle V had Eisuke Kikuchi and Kumiko Nishiguchi written off after 15 episodes, when Kumiko Nishiguchi was introduced in the same episoode, as Grand Marshall Deathmark.
Chodenshi Bioman has the rather controversial departure of Yuki Yajima. This required Sumiko Tanakai to play as Jun Yabuki -- Mika Koizumi's replacement as the new Yellow 4. Bioman was also the first series with a female yellow ranger.
Kosuki Sentai Turboranger replaced the Three Bouma Generals with the Nagare Bouma. It was said the late Masashi Ishibashi didn't like his costume as Rehda, and wanted to leave the show.
For some reason, Ninja Sentai Kakuranger only had Prince Junior from episodes 14-31 only. Kenichi Endo somehow never clarified why.

The root cause (trying to humanize the situation) and why I feel immense pressure MAY have been the root cause

It would be important to know WHY Maya did it, and not just that she had underage drinking. I looked into two important considerations. In the Filipino context, no one can go drinking until they are at least 18 YEARS OF AGE. It turns out that Japanese laws prohibit drinking until people are at least 20 YEARS OF AGE. This is where Maya Imamori may have been caught in-between two realities. The Filipino side says 18 years, and Maya is 19. If Maya went drinking in the Philippines, THEN it wouldn't be an issue. Maya was in JAPAN when it happened -- which makes the whole incident MUCH HARDER than if it were in the Philippines!

However, I was also looking at other matters for consideration. If you think about WHEN an anniversary is celebrated -- it's USUALLY BY ENTRY NUMBER AND NOT BY YEAR. This reminds me of the trend that happened:

Choriki Sentai Ohranger was the year when Himitsu Sentai Goranger and Dengekitai JAKQ became more openly declared in the Super Sentai list.
Mirai Sentai Timeranger has never been an anniversary season. It was more like a "finale" and made way for Hyajakuu Sentai Gaoranger as the true anniversary, based on the post-series clip show. Ever anniversary from the 25th, 30th, 35th, 40th, and 45th were STRICTLY BASED ON ENTRY NUMBER.
However, Gozyuger decided to PREMATURELY CELEBRATE THINGS IMHO.

Everything about Gozyuger feels like it would've saved for 2026. I considered the following events that may have worn out the production team:

Avatar Sentai Donbrothers may have given Toei enough money from show.
Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger is one huge celebratory show.
Bakuage Sentai Boonboomger was most likely that mandatory "yearlong diet", a time when Toei could still earn money from last year's surplus.

The shadow of King-Ohger may still be LONG CAST. Did Toei and Bandai decide to prematurely celebrate the anniversary when IT SHOULD BE FREAKING NEXT YEAR? That's what I've considered since the incident. Boonboomger was the PERFECT TIME to slow things down for production. This year could've been used for something super standard or perhaps make a Super Sentai series based on a random unexplored theme, like another RPG-inspired one, time travel, etc. Instead, Gozyuger came in as a good idea that was PREMATURELY LAUNCHED!

Chances are that Maya herself was stressed out, given the pressure of the project. My own interpretations are:

Maya was just stressed from all the pressure and didn't know what she was doing. For example, she may have forgotten that while 18 is the legal age for drinking among Filipinos, she FORGOT that Japan has the 20-year-old age of consent! Think about making a wrong turn during a weekday!
Maya deliberately engaged in underage drinking because SHE. WANTED. OUT. Stress is something YOU CAN NEVER UNDERESTIMATE.

In my case, I felt that firing Maya and DELETING HER from the website -- was TOO MUCH! It's excessive! In fact, why is that Subaru Kimura, whose known to be a racist (and ironically, HE'S A HALFIE AS HIS REAL SURNAME IS BARTSCH), is still getting jobs when he supposedly NEVER APOLOGIZED for the blackface incident?

The possible replacement

Either way, I feel like what happened to her was a result of stress. Right now, I believe Oto Ichikawa could be the replacement -- based on this LEAKED PHOTO. Can anybody confirm the legitimacy of this photo? It would make perfect sense if Oto were the one who took over -- to put closure to Sumino's departure.

It's still sad really that the incident happened. Toei needs to be more vigilant and learn from this incident!

The Gray-Eyed Rei Gushima: A Tragic Nightmare Fuel?

noreply@blogger.com (Sean Akizuki) — Sat, 04 Oct 2025 08:08:00 +0000

It's been some time since I did a Gozyuger react on the update. I'm watching Gozyuger while Super Sentai hasn't been high on my leisure list. Right now, the plot involving Rei Gushima slowly reveals more layers in Gozyuger's unorthodox innovative world-building. The layers of tragedy get darker. Super Sentai may have been toned down since 2001. However, that hasn't stopped Super Sentai from adding plots NOT ALLOWABLE in Power Rangers.

This is one flashback that gets too disturbing. Rikuo Byakuya was revealed to have been friends with Rei in an earlier episode. The flashback where Rikuo was nearly stabbed by a fake fangirl (who was jealous of Rikuo, actually). It's revealed that Rei has some degree of goodness (back then) and maybe, that's what Rikuo is trying to reach. Apparently, Rei saving Rikuo from a stab attack was a genuine act! This kind ofs cene wouldn't be allowed in Power Rangers! Super Sentai for all its toning down -- still allowed a stabbing plot to happen! Did the writers forget the new standard for Super Sentai was to be more child-friendly?

I've always has some strange malicious thoughts about why Rei kidnapped Oto. The way that Ryoma Baba's make-up was put made him LOOK LIKE A PEDOPHILE. It's hard to believe that Ryoma was the heroic Ryuji Iwasaki in Go-Busters when you look at him here! Ryoma does a convincing job looking like a creep. However, it turned out that Rei kidnapping Oto wans't what I feared it was. Instead, Rei kidnapping Oto was to make the latter a guinea pig, as the former was suffering from some UNSPECIFIED INCURABLE ILLNESS.

This plot doesn't really touch my inner child at all! Instead, I just want to look at Rei's backstory as an adult! So much for me wishing I could be a child again until Gozyuger wraps up!