Power Rangers

[Samurai8472]

Patoranger - Chase You Up !

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Lupinranger - Spin the Dials !

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After episode 6 I think I'm leaning towards Patoranger's theme

 

[Christopher]

After episode 6 I think I'm leaning towards Patoranger's theme

Of the two in isolation, I like the jazzier Lupinranger theme a bit better. But I prefer the combined version with its rather lovely harmonies and counterpoints:

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Although my favorite cue so far is the jazzy instrumental theme that's used under Lupinranger's big entrances and henshin sequences, which is a more developed form of the melody heard at the start of the combined theme song.

 

[Samurai8472]

Lupinranger VS Patranger 7

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Good focus episode for Umika. She really is alone if Kairi and Tooma are out of the picture. She sure as heck can't really rely on Kogure(who has his own motives)

Sure it was convenient she found the exact restaurant that the ganglar would strike next but if I wanted stuff to make sense I would watch something else haha.

Bonus points for Tsukasa being the one to start being suspicious of the three restaurant employees

Next week looks even better. The Patranger's using Jim Carter as bait to draw out the Lupinrangers. I hope the Patranger's find out and it's not fake out at the end

 

[Christopher]

I like the other source of LvP videos better. It has higher resolution and more thorough subtitles (complete with color/font variations for different characters). Is there a reason you went with a different one this week? Was it just that it came out sooner?

This was a good episode for Umika. I liked how she managed to find her strength and cleverness to save the day on her own. Sakuya, meanwhile, is just kind of annoying.

Sure it was convenient she found the exact restaurant that the ganglar would strike next but if I wanted stuff to make sense I would watch something else haha.

That made sense, though. She recognized that he was carrying the same restaurant guide they had at Bistrot Jurer, and that the first two places he'd hit were on consecutive pages. So she deduced that he was going through the listings in order and just turned to the next page. A plausible bit of detective work.

Bonus points for Tsukasa being the one to start being suspicious of the three restaurant employees

Yes, keen observational skills. I'm really starting to develop a crush on her now.

 

[Samurai8472]

It just came out sooner

 

[Christopher]

By the way, this episode made good use of slowed-down instrumental versions of the LupinRanger theme, which were rather lovely. Maybe they've used those cues before, but I didn't know the melodies well enough for them to stick in my mind. The music in Sentai shows is often really good, and this is fast becoming one of my favorite scores.

 

[Christopher]

Although my favorite cue so far is the jazzy instrumental theme that's used under Lupinranger's big entrances and henshin sequences, which is a more developed form of the melody heard at the start of the combined theme song.

Found it:

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By the way, I'm a bit embarrassed that it took me this long to realize that they've paired off the two trios' members as opposite character types. Kairi is a laid-back jokester while Keiichiro is an ultra-serious hothead; Tooma is a stoic tough guy while Sakuya is a big goof; and Umika is girlish and frazzled while Tsukasa is mature and super-competent. I wonder how the upcoming fourth members will complement each other.

 

[Samurai8472]

Since I already posted this weeks LVP I thought i'd share the other half of the superhero hour.

Kamen Rider build episode 1

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Kamen Rider series usually are more skewed to teens and the drama can get way more intense than sentai sometimes. The humor can get zany but that's to offset the serious moments

Enjoy!

 

[Kane_Steel]

I think this is the ultimate low point for Power Rangers as a franchise.

Creatively, the show is at it's lowest now. Ninja Steel is complete dreck, basically unwatchable. Generic stock characters, forgettable villains, fart jokes. You can tell that the executives at Nick have their hand in the creative process, because we know that Judd Lynn has produced far, far better PR shows. Not surprised ratings are sinking like the Titanic.

Also, the movie bombed and there won't be a sequel.

I love the footage for Go-Busters, but I feel like it's going to be wasted under the current regime.

I think the best thing is for this franchise to take a rest for a while, and eventually reboot and return on a streaming network.

 

[Christopher]

I think this is the ultimate low point for Power Rangers as a franchise.

Creatively, the show is at it's lowest now. Ninja Steel is complete dreck, basically unwatchable.

It's pretty inconsequential, but I still like it better than Samurai, because its actors are actually competent. And I would submit that it's more creative than Samurai, because even telling mediocre original stories is more creative than slavishly adapting the Sentai beat for beat. And it has Chrysti Ane, who's gorgeous and talented. Like Amy Jo Johnson on MMPR season 1, her charms keep me watching despite the ineptitude of the rest. It's just a shame she couldn't be part of a better season.

The one part I really hate is the stuff with Victor & Monty. If they were excised from the show, the rest wouldn't be so bad -- not great, but passable. Unfortunately, the decision-makers are clearly attached to them.

You can tell that the executives at Nick have their hand in the creative process, because we know that Judd Lynn has produced far, far better PR shows.

You're probably right, but I'm hoping that somehow Bandai America's influence played a part and that the switch to Hasbro (or whoever) as the new toy affiliate will lead to some creative shifts. If they're more willing to let PR adapt seasons that Bandai found unsuitable, then maybe they'd also give Lynn more creative freedom. But it's hard to know how much influence they have relative to the network's influence.

I love the footage for Go-Busters, but I feel like it's going to be wasted under the current regime.

Yeah, even if the writing got better, it's unlikely that Beast Morphers could be as good as the original.

 

[May 20]

My son recently rewatched the available episodes of Ninja Steel. I've found that, with lowered expectations, it's not terrible. I also have very little patience for Victor and Monty, but the team is palatable through the Nickelodeon filter. It's not great, but it's bearable. I learned that the actor who plays Mick also played Boom (SPD). I'm sure that's old news to most of you, but it was news to me.

We're also binge-watching Operation Overdrive. I wasn't impressed the first time I watched it, and I'm still pretty sure it's one of my least favorite seasons. But he's enjoying it, so we will continue to watch.

 

[Christopher]

I learned that the actor who plays Mick also played Boom (SPD).

Oh, Kelson Henderson has done many Power Rangers roles. He started with a couple of guest roles in Dino Thunder, as a record producer and as a voiceover announcer. Boom in SPD was his first of four consecutive series-regular roles that became progressively less human, followed by Phineas the "Troblin" in Mystic Force, the voice of Norg the Yeti in Operation Overdrive, and the voice of Flit the mechanical fly-announcer thing in Jungle Fury. He's done a few guest voices since then, but Mick is his first on-camera role in more than a decade. I'm amazed it's been that long.

http://powerrangers.wikia.com/wiki/Kelson_Henderson

 

[Christopher]

More Sentai news: ShoutFactoryTV's free streaming site now has Denji Sentai Megaranger available:

http://www.shoutfactorytv.com/series/denji-sentai-megaranger

They still have everything from Zyuranger to Ohranger, but for some reason, they've skipped Carranger. Well, I guess it doesn't matter if I watch them in order or not. I haven't up to now.

 

[Stephen!]

Judd Lynn has produced far, far better PR shows. Not surprised ratings are sinking like the Titanic.

Prior to Dino Charge, he did say that there would be less compromise on the production end. Perhaps that was just short-lived. http://henshinjustice.com/blog/2014/08/14/interview-judd-lynn-hju-exclusive/

Judd: Every creative endeavor that involves profit has, by definition, many competing interests. With Rangers, there will be the corporate voice, the network voice, and the voice of the production company. Each one fights for what is in their interest. All must be listened to. What happened in the past was that my opinion was often in conflict with other production voices. What will happen this time is that my voice will shape the production opinion. The stories will still have to withstand other interests, but at least there will be less compromise on the production end. Marry that with the fact that I can now oversee all of the other creative aspects, ie. Set design, costumes, casting, etc, and it’s a recipe for true change. Whether or not the fandom likes that change remains to be seen.

 

[Christopher]

I'm six episodes into Megaranger now. It's agreeable so far -- not outstanding yet, but entertaining, with a likeable cast and characters. I think it's the first Sentai season I've seen that actually focuses on high schoolers like so many Power Rangers series have done. I liked it that most of the Megarangers were chosen for their intelligence and creativity, though Red is more of a goofy slacker. It's a little unclear yet what motivates the villains, beyond a desire for chaos and destruction and the weird emphasis on "twisting."

It's amusing to see a computer/cyberspace-themed series dating from a time when computers were comparatively primitive -- when it took several minutes and a stack of floppy disks to store a single large file.

The surprising thing is that the Galaxy Mega, the ship that turns into the giant robot, actually has a crew of over 100 people inside it, including the team mentor Dr. Kubota. I can't think of another instance where the Rangers have taken their support team into battle alongside them.

 

[cylkoth]

You're forgetting Dekaranger/SPD, were the police station transformed-with all officers onboard, into one of the then largest megazords ever, up to that point.

 

[Christopher]

You're forgetting Dekaranger/SPD, were the police station transformed-with all officers onboard, into one of the then largest megazords ever, up to that point.

Yeah, I'd forgotten that, but then, I've never seen all of SPD. Even so, I remember that that was a later Megazord, not their default unit.

One other thing that seems unusual for Super Sentai is that the Megarangers have secret identities. Generally, in the ones I've seen, they've been pretty open about their identities (except for the Lupinrangers, of course). Even the Kakurangers, who were ninjas and thus should theoretically have operated in secret, didn't really seem to hide who they were from their friends or other civilians. Between the high school focus and the secrecy, I wonder if Megaranger was influenced by Power Rangers. Although it clearly has other influences. The "video game as secret training for warriors" trope is reminiscent of The Last Starfighter (though hardly unique to it), and the Galaxy Mega/Astro Megaship's design is a knockoff of the Defiant from Deep Space Nine. They even used the TARDIS sound effect for the villains' ship in the first two episodes, even though it wasn't a time machine.

 

[Samurai8472]

Lupinranger VS Patranger episode 8

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Another good episode. I like when Jim Carter the robot helper for the season had to pose a gangler

"How dare you always push me around!"

Keiichiro- He's acting right?

I had a feeling we wouldn't get the Lupiranger's identities revealed. Hopefully it won't drag on too long

Still alot more background information on the Lupinranger

Kairi- After finishing school started work at the bistro

Tooma- Quit working at a French restaurant to work at Jurer

Umika- Dropped out of school to work and left home to work at Jurer

Episode 9 looks to be a flashback episode to young Kairi

 

[Christopher]

Another effective, fun episode. I figured the Lupins would find some way to pull off the ol' alibi trick and preserve their secret identities, but I didn't anticipate how they'd do it. It made sense that LupinRed would use his triplication power to impersonate the other two Lupins. It makes less sense that Kogure could successfully pass himself off as the leaner Kairi, but then, we've seen enough alien or robot Rangers somehow shrink their heads to fit inside Ranger helmets.

By all rights, Jim Carter should be an annoying character, with his childlike comic-relief voice, but he's actually kind of funny. Although that safe disguise could've used more work. I'm surprised Kairi fell for it. But maybe he was distracted by the effort of playing three Rangers at once. Tooma probably would've seen through it right away.

I have a sneaking suspicion that Kogure is actually GoodStriker in human form. They were asking why he was late for something, and he had no explanation. And we saw today that Goody has the same ability as Kogure to materialize in unexpected places.

Unusual to have an episode with no Ganglar-of-the-week, just a bunch of giant footsoldiers. I guess the focus was more on team vs. team. Which is certainly turning out to be an interesting dynamic, by the way.

The thing about GoodStriker being needed to form both Kaisers (Megazords) is that it precludes having the two teams get into a robot fight against each other. I suppose that's necessary, since the giant robot fights usually have to end with someone being blown up. But I do wonder if at some point they'll acquire extra mecha that let them face each other directly. Maybe toward the climax of the season.


Meanwhile, I'm rather enjoying Megaranger. It's not one of the greats, and it's a very basic, routine Sentai premise, but it's well-executed and entertaining. I like how well-drawn the characters are, and the actors do a good job. I've just gotten up to the introduction of MegaSilver, and I like it that he's a renegade employee of INET who has to convince the boss to let him be a Ranger. That's kind of unusual for a Sixth Ranger, though I guess there's some similarity to the Go-Busters equivalent character.

I think the Megaranger costumes are one of my favorite suit designs. There's a simplicity to them that I appreciate.

 

[Samurai8472]

Unusual to have an episode with no Ganglar-of-the-week, just a bunch of giant footsoldiers. I guess the focus was more on team vs. team. Which is certainly turning out to be an interesting dynamic, by the way.

The thing about GoodStriker being needed to form both Kaisers (Megazords) is that it precludes having the two teams get into a robot fight against each other. I suppose that's necessary, since the giant robot fights usually have to end with someone being blown up. But I do wonder if at some point they'll acquire extra mecha that let them face each other directly. Maybe toward the climax of the season.

I think the Megaranger costumes are one of my favorite suit designs. There's a simplicity to them that I appreciate.

-Yeah we didn't need a Ganglar this week. It changes things up a bit like Go-busters and two battles going on(Ground metaroid) and big zord battle.

-From hacked revealed sounds from the VS Changer we will get a new mecha that can be either Victory Striker/Siren Striker. It's supposed to give each team a team power-up on the ground too

I think it will alternate like Good Striker. So we could get Victory Striker(the Lupinranger's alternate combo) squaring off regular PatKaiser and vice versa

We're supposed to be getting information on the 3rd quarter summer toy catalog very soon. From toy catalog scans for the 2nd quarter there weren't any scans released of future bigger combinations

This season is very keen on keeping the two teams separate. I don't think we'll get a Lupiranger + Patranger + additional hero mecha formation.

Here's a new picture showcasing the new ranger who can change sides.

He's supposed to be a double agent who can be Lupin-X or Patren-X

It would break the VS theme going on if they all of a sudden worked together till the end of the series.

So I think we'll get a 3rd level of formations

Lupinranger with Lupin-X mecha and Patoranger with Patren-X mecha

Neither side will combine for a big grand formation


Regarding the Megaranger/ PRIS suits. There was a slight difference when Power Ranger's got the suits.

The white space on their chest design is a little wider

Compared to Megaranger's sleeker and shinier versions