The Energon Pub

[Wigglez]

Is it just me, or are they getting lazy with the mecha and suits now?

[Jelze Bunnycat]

Is it just me, or are they getting lazy with the mecha and suits now?

Nah, but the toys are getting too gimmicky for their own good now. Not to mention... simplistic for young kids to mentally grasp better? Keep in mind Super Sentai has been struggling for the past few years, since Go-Busters I believe, with ratings getting lower and lower. Maybe they're trying a new direction for the design?

[King Kuuga]

Ratings for the whole block have kind of been on the decline for a good decade now, probably beyond Sunday Morning Kid's Time as well to the rest of Japanese children's programming. Like in America, there's other things competing for kids' interests that just didn't exist in the past, and the declining birth rate surely doesn't help. But the divided focus means they have to really fight to get kids to notice, and that means gimmicks out the butt. I like the suits for Zyuouger, but the Minecraft Megazord toy looks awful (THE LEG SPLIT IS PAINTED IN, IT IS LITERALLY JUST THREE CUBES STACKED UP) and the costume of it doesn't save it. I liked Shurikenjin, I liked Kyoryuzin, and I like Go-Buster Ace (but NOT Go-Buster Oh, not as a toy). Magiking was the last truly complex megazord, where you couldn't even tell what it was made of and it had a pretty complex transformation. It's been a gradual downhill slide since then to get to "stack three cubes and fold over a few panels".

Here's a look back at all sentai main robot toys up to 2015:

[Sabrblade]

SCG Power Rangers has a new trademark - "Ninja Steel"

Guess the next one after Dino Super Charge is gonna be skipping ToQger in favor of adapting Ninninger.

Cowboy ninja sixth ranger w/ burger morpher and electric guitar gun, here we come.

[Jelze Bunnycat]

SCG Power Rangers has a new trademark - "Ninja Steel"

Guess the next one after Dino Super Charge is gonna be skipping ToQger in favor of adapting Ninninger.

Cowboy ninja sixth ranger w/ burger morpher and electric guitar gun, here we come.

Awwwwww, I wanted to see Power Rangers Rainbow Railway!

[King Kuuga]

[insert obtuse argument about how trademarks don't mean anything] (yes I've actually seen people say this, using Power Rider as their "proof", conveniently forgetting that we found out about Dino Charge this way)

Anyway. This just gives me more incentive to finish Ninninger.... eventually.

[Wigglez]

Is it just me, or are they getting lazy with the mecha and suits now?

Keep in mind Super Sentai has been struggling for the past few years, since Go-Busters I believe, with ratings getting lower and lower.

I think this is due their population being on a decrease. or the fact they're either getting lazy or just running out of ideas.

[wilcosu35]

Is it just me, or are they getting lazy with the mecha and suits now?

Keep in mind Super Sentai has been struggling for the past few years, since Go-Busters I believe, with ratings getting lower and lower.

I think this is due their population being on a decrease. or the fact they're either getting lazy or just running out of ideas.

I dunno, i think they manage to be quite original, even though they simplify things to incorporate a gimmick. Toqger was pretty original since we haven't had a train season before. And while we've had dinosaur and ninja seasons before, they do manage to be different from the earlier series.
Regarding Zyuohger, while having an animal theme isn't strange, i don't think anybody expected then to go with cube-based animals. Call me a fanboy, but i like them. And i don't think having simple mecha is necessarily a bad thing. We've had a bunch of seasons in the 90's with mecha that had only a few moving parts to their transformation (muteki shoguns' limbs, for instance).
I prefer the simple aesthetics of zyuohking over that of gobuster-oh, which was just a cluttered, partsforming mess (that's why i have all the mechs from that series uncombined, they look better that way).

[Sabrblade]

Regarding Zyuohger, while having an animal theme isn't strange, i don't think anybody expected then to go with cube-based animals. Call me a fanboy, but i like them. And i don't think having simple mecha is necessarily a bad thing. We've had a bunch of seasons in the 90's with mecha that had only a few moving parts to their transformation (muteki shoguns' limbs, for instance).

It is quite an odd thing to go with for the 40th anniversary series, though.

[wilcosu35]

Regarding Zyuohger, while having an animal theme isn't strange, i don't think anybody expected then to go with cube-based animals. Call me a fanboy, but i like them. And i don't think having simple mecha is necessarily a bad thing. We've had a bunch of seasons in the 90's with mecha that had only a few moving parts to their transformation (muteki shoguns' limbs, for instance).

It is quite an odd thing to go with for the 40th anniversary series, though.

I take it you mean the cube-thing? It sure is, can't deny that. But i think a series is best judged after having watched it . I'm always excited for a new sentai series, whatever it may look like.

[Jelze Bunnycat]

Regarding Zyuohger, while having an animal theme isn't strange, i don't think anybody expected then to go with cube-based animals. Call me a fanboy, but i like them. And i don't think having simple mecha is necessarily a bad thing. We've had a bunch of seasons in the 90's with mecha that had only a few moving parts to their transformation (muteki shoguns' limbs, for instance).

It is quite an odd thing to go with for the 40th anniversary series, though.

I take it you mean the cube-thing? It sure is, can't deny that. But i think a series is best judged after having watched it . I'm always excited for a new sentai series, whatever it may look like.

The eagle, shark, and lion motifs are based on Taiyou Sentai Sun Vulcan's VulEagle, VulShark and VulPanther. And I think the toy gimmicks and the fiction are decided on separately, then mushed together somehow so it makes sense. That's how we got locked-shaped fruit-based fighters for Kamen Rider Gaim

[wilcosu35]

Regarding Zyuohger, while having an animal theme isn't strange, i don't think anybody expected then to go with cube-based animals. Call me a fanboy, but i like them. And i don't think having simple mecha is necessarily a bad thing. We've had a bunch of seasons in the 90's with mecha that had only a few moving parts to their transformation (muteki shoguns' limbs, for instance).

It is quite an odd thing to go with for the 40th anniversary series, though.

I take it you mean the cube-thing? It sure is, can't deny that. But i think a series is best judged after having watched it . I'm always excited for a new sentai series, whatever it may look like.

The eagle, shark, and lion motifs are based on Taiyou Sentai Sun Vulcan's VulEagle, VulShark and VulPanther. And I think the toy gimmicks and the fiction are decided on separately, then mushed together somehow so it makes sense. That's how we got locked-shaped fruit-based fighters for Kamen Rider Gaim

Or dinosaur batteries.

[Jelze Bunnycat]

Or dinosaur batteries.

And I want those so bad! That Megazord 2-pack didn't have any!

[Madeus Prime]

Well, I've caught up on everything.

Thoughts on Ghost, haven't gotten a chance to fully watch every episode, but I've seen all the fights and henshin, I got to say it's lost its charm. Hopefully Necrom will spice it up again.

Speaking of Necrom, they revealed who he's going to be...It's Aran, the lead-ish villain

Doubutsu Sentai Zyuohger...I like the suits, love the helmets and hate the mecha. I thought it couldn't get any worse after ToQ-Oh and his train dick, but the Megazord looks like a bad Minecraft mods!

But the theme, 40 second clip of it at least, is awesome sounding! http://mz-edge.stream.co.jp/v/tqrc9179

[wilcosu35]

Today was the press release in japan where more details on the series were announced, along with demo's of the toys. I quite like zyuohking actually, it's a simple thing.

On a related note, Shout! factory have announced they're subbing Kakuranger, to be released later this year. Apparently enough of us have bought the Dairanger boxset. Hopefully they'll be able to keep this up for all sentai.

[King Kuuga]

Changing gears a bit, I started Ultraman Mebius around March or April last year on Crunchyroll, and finally I'm getting near the end. I'm loving this show more than I'm loving any other toku on right now, even including Garo. i also like it better than its contemporary shows, Boukenger and Kabuto, although that's not to say I don't like either of them in their own right. Anyway, i'm glad I started watching Ultra finally. Any other Ultra watchers here?

[Bradimus]

What, are you planning to watch them in order or something?

That's my plan. I'll have to skip the series that haven't been dubbed, and if I don't like what I'm watching, I'll go on to the next, but otherwise I'd like to view them in order to see the evolution of the genre. For better or worse as the case may be.

In other news, I sort of got bored with Ghost. Kamen Rider just doesn't do it for me. Sorry.

[Madeus Prime]

Anyway, i'm glad I started watching Ultra finally. Any other Ultra watchers here?

Here, Tiga was my first toku series I ever watched, which is also is my favorite Ultraman series, with Mebius following up at a close second.

I don't know how much you've seen out of Mebius, but my big recommendations are Ultraman Tiga, Max, and X.

[King Kuuga]

What, are you planning to watch them in order or something?

That's my plan. I'll have to skip the series that haven't been dubbed, and if I don't like what I'm watching, I'll go on to the next, but otherwise I'd like to view them in order to see the evolution of the genre. For better or worse as the case may be.

Interesting approach, to be sure. Let us know how that works out!

In other news, I sort of got bored with Ghost. Kamen Rider just doesn't do it for me. Sorry.

Ghost is incredibly boring at the start. I dropped it for a while, but picked it back up because everybody said it started getting better around episode 7 or so. It does get better, but it's by no means an excellent show. Try some other riders before dismissing the entire franchise.

Anyway, i'm glad I started watching Ultra finally. Any other Ultra watchers here?

Here, Tiga was my first toku series I ever watched, which is also is my favorite Ultraman series, with Mebius following up at a close second.

I don't know how much you've seen out of Mebius, but my big recommendations are Ultraman Tiga, Max, and X.

I just finished Mebius tonight, in fact. Hell of a show. I've seen the first 7 of X, it didn't catch me quite as readily as Mebius but I'll keep going. I saw like 2 or 3 eps of Ultraseven X back when that happened, a few episodes of Ultra Q on Shout Factory TV, and I want to say a single episode of Nexus a long time ago? Reportedly, Nexus is coming to Crunchyroll this year so I'll definitely watch it when it does. Leo, 80, Max, and X are all in my Crunchyroll queue now, and I've been debating which to watch next. On your recommendation I guess I'll start Max and resume X.

[Sabrblade]

Dino Super Charge has begun airing as of yesterday.

The opening is even more awesome than the first season:

[Hellscream9999]

So, if this isn't the appropriate thread, delete this post, but, is it just me, or does this scream 'death of megazords' respect'



I mean, it doesn't have fingers! The legs aren't even seperated, it's solid... It's just three blocks stacked on each other

But I guess impaling the stack of cubes with a sword to transform it(?) is kinda cool (but not really)

[King Kuuga]

Oh trust me, I hate the minecraft megazord. Go-Onger had a similar stacking gimmick for the main robot, but even they had some actual transformation involved. This is a very large step downwards. I can only hope that future robots augment it much, although an early look at the second robot/configuration is not promising. I'm not too hyped about the show itself, either, but I haven't dropped a sentai yet and I always find something to like even in the worst shows, so I'll certainly watch it.

[Hellscream9999]

Oh trust me, I hate the minecraft megazord. Go-Onger had a similar stacking gimmick for the main robot, but even they had some actual transformation involved. This is a very large step downwards. I can only hope that future robots augment it much, although an early look at the second robot/configuration is not promising. I'm not too hyped about the show itself, either, but I haven't dropped a sentai yet and I always find something to like even in the worst shows, so I'll certainly watch it.

I mean, I like the general aesthetics, and I like the idea of it, maybe if they had put more effort into making the animals look like animals, and making the megazord look respectable, at least stacking the trains for to-q-thingy yielded re-configurable, cool looking zords

[Sabrblade]

Rita's actress has been cast for the 2017 MMPR remake movie. She will be played by none other than Elizabeth Banks - https://twitter.com/PowerRangers/status/694569928376975360

[Bradimus]

So Denji Sentai Megaranger...









Loved it!

Great concept. Well Executed. Fun characters. Good villains. Great mecha.

Everything worked so well. The story was solid, and the way they handled the identity problem near the end was very well done. I also liked the use of Mega Silver. When he first appeared I was all "please don't be a jack@$$, please don't be a jack@$$" and he turned out to be a fun character who acted in a badly needed field mentor role.

My one complaint is they dropped the other-dimension fight scenes early on. I wish they would have brought them back in later episodes. That concept stood out and it's a shame it wasn't further developed.

However, all is forgiven because this series has the best OST I have heard yet. Give me good music and I can forgive just about anything. Love that jazz!

Now moving on to Seijuu Sentai Gingaman.