Go, Go, Geekery Rangers!
Dec 22, 2013 13:36:37 GMT -5
Douay-Rheims-Challoner, Yuri Petrovitch, and 2 more like this
Post by Deleted on Dec 22, 2013 13:36:37 GMT -5
I loved Power Rangers as a kid, I still have love for it now. In retrospect it isn't really a good show at all, but it is still a funtime for me. Is it pathetic? Probably. Does that matter to me? Not really, but I am pretty self loathing... Anyway, I've decided to write a guide to Power Rangers, mixing in a bit of Gateways to Geekery and Primer. I hope you enjoy!
Geek Obsession: The Power Rangers
Background: A long running American children's show that is based off the ever popular Super Sentai Series in Japan. It splices Japanese footage with American made footage to create a different story. It premiered in 1993 and became a huge hit with the little ones. It has had ups and downs but has found a way to stay on the air for 20 years, owned by different production companies, and shown on different channels. The basis of the plot is about teenagers or young adults are chosen to take up the fight against evil, in colorful spandex uniforms of course! Also, GIANT ROBOTS a.k.a Zords!
Why is it daunting: Over 740 episodes through 20 seasons with no end in sight.
Why you should watch this: If you like cheesy fun and/or nostalgic for your childhood this is the perfect series for you.
Where to start: There are actually plenty of starting on points throughout the series. There was some semblance of an interconnecting story through the first 6 seasons, but the story isn't all that hard to follow. The optimal starting point for the first 6 would of course be at the very beginning with "Mighty Morphin", however you can also skip straight to episode 17 that kicks off the "Green with Evil" arc. That is where Power Rangers truly starts to come into its own, and introduces the most popular Power Ranger character, Tommy Oliver.
Power Rangers was actually supposed to end after the sixth season "In Space". It was the culmination of the previous seasons overarching story, and had a definite ending to the series as a whole. "In Space" proved to be so popular that the powers that be brought Power Rangers back, but with a tweaked formula. A new plot and team at the beginning of each season. Other than the occasional two-parter the next season featuring a team up between old team and new, the seasons were self contained. So, from "Lost Galaxy" on you are free to start with a later season if you want, but there are some you should avoid to start off with.....
Where not to start: The BAD seasons. If you are going to start with the self contained seasons it is best to avoid the likes of "Mystic Force", "Operation Overdrive", or "Samurai". "Mystic Force" is a deeply flawed season that has some bright spots, but is mostly crap. "Operation Overdrive" is the worst of the worst, not even hardcore PR fans like it. There is no cheesy fun that will come from "Operation Overdrive" only your will to live being ruined. "Samurai" is also pretty bad, unlike "Operation Overdrive" there are some redeeming qualities, but this is probably the worst acted of all the series. Not to mention the story isn't all that different from the Super Sentai series it was adapted from, which is considered better version(or so I've heard). Also, if you are thinking of just starting randomly from the first six seasons(which I advise against), it is best to avoid "Turbo" which only "Operation Overdrive" tops in terms of suckitude.
The more I've thought about the more you shouldn't start from seasons 2 through 6, because there is an overarching story and you will be lost, somewhat. It is a cheesy children's show, so the plot isn't that too hard to catch up on after a few episodes. It just isn't an optimal starting point is all, but if you do find yourself liking Power Rangers I guess you could skip ahead, just don't really start with it. This includes "Mighty Morphin" seasons 2 and 3, "Zeo", "Turbo", and "In Space". Also there is the precarious situation with "Alien Rangers", but I will talk about that later.
Where to continue: There really isn't a strict way to continue, just avoid the bad seasons if you can. Though if you start with "Mighty Morphin" it is best just to continue through the seasons that are connected to it, you might really want to skip "Turbo" though. That isn't worth the time to be caught up on the story.
What I've Neglected to mention:Power Rangers being bought by Disney, which did bring a change to how the series was produced. For example the production moved from the US to New Zealand, in some cases the acting actually got better, other times got WORSE. There was also a major change in creative, and the Disney Produced seasons are polarizing because of that. Shocker, the plots actually got dumber for a cheesy kids series. While for the most part I think the Disney seasons are up to par with the early Saban ones, there are definitely some low points for the entire series.
Saban did in fact buy back Power Rangers and is the company producing the series currently, but it has not been all that well received either. The acting has actually become worse all around, they follow the Super Sentai plotlines way too closely, and the formula is staler than ever. Especially when compared to the last Disney produced season "RPM" which pretty much threw everything about Power Rangers out the window and made something very unique in its own right. Also, instead of being one self contained season, it is now 2 seasons per team, but with 40 episodes between two seasons instead of 32 for 1 season. So it isn't that big of a difference. Especially when seasons used to be 45 episodes a piece.
Now where the primer part of this post begins.
The Essential seasons:
1. "Mighty Morphin" seasons 1-3. The original formation of the team(well in terms of style of suit, not members) lasted for 3 seasons, and is by far the most popular and influential iteration of Power Rangers. Season 2 in particular, since that was when Lord Zedd was introduced, he is considered the best main Villain.
2. "In Space". It is actually considered by hardcore Power Rangers fans to be BETTER than "Mighty Morphin". After all it was the culmination of the previous 5 seasons of story, and had the best GROUP of villains, not just one great Main Villain. This was the season where the evil Psycho Rangers were introduced as well. Who doesn't love storylines about the good guys facing evil versions of themselves?
3. "Time Force" Out of the self contained seasons this is considered the best, and for good reasons. The acting was top notch(for Power Rangers that is). It had a Villain that wasn't just transparently evil, the action was some of the best of any season, and the main plot was very well done. It was so well received that there was talk of bringing back the cast for another season, or a movie, and even a primetime Power Rangers season!
4. "Lost Galaxy" While this season does have some flaws, it did carry the the quality from the season before it(In Space) and was probably the most ambitious of any Power Rangers series, in terms of plot and production values. It is my personal favorite season. Also, even though I said starting with Lost Galaxy the seasons were mostly self contained, there is some connection to In Space(The Psycho Rangers coming back, and a character from In Space actually becoming one of the rangers), but you don't need to watch In Space at all to get what is going on.
5. "Dino Thunder" One of the more underrated seasons. It was a Disney produced season so most people don't give it the time of day, but it was the best of the Dinsey seasons by far, it even brought back fan favorite ranger Tommy Oliver as the Mentor for the team. And like any good season of Power Rangers it had a good Villain for the team to face off against!
My personal ranking of all the seasons:
1. Lost Galaxy
2. Ninja Storm(it poked fun at a lot of Power Rangers tropes, and had my favorite Ranger uniforms of the entire series, and two of my favorite rangers of all time.)
3. Mighty Morphin seasons 1-3
4. Dino Thunder
5. Time force
6. In Space
7. Lightspeed Rescue
8. S.P.D
9. Zeo
10. RPM
11. Jungle Fury
12. Megaforce(So far, it still has Super Megaforce to air)
13. Wild Force
14. Mystic Force(This one actually could and should have been a lot better)
15. Samurai/Super Samurai
16. Turbo
17. Operation Overdrive
Miscellany: There were actually two Power Rangers films, both released Theatrically. One was a commercial success(Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie), the other not so much(Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie). Both are also non canon. They do introduce new zords and powers for the Power Rangers, but the tv series introduced that stuff in a different way.. Neither is anything special, but the first one was a fun time. Turbo is just very meh, despite bringing back two of the original rangers for the film.
It is now time for me to talk about "Alien Rangers", which is considered a season 3.5/Miniseries. It is only 10 episodes and it bridges the gap between between "Mighty Morphin" and "Zeo". "Zeo" would be the first time the Rangers ever switched Power Rangers suits. They did this because they ran out of footage to use for the original suits(The Super Sentai series that they adapt from are only 50 episodes). Though they were already using Zord footage from a different Sentai series, just not the suits. What they did was they turned the Power Rangers into kids, and brought in Alien Rangers to protect the earth while the kid rangers searched for a crystal that would restore them back to their original age. It makes sense in context..... I think it was alright, the kid acting was pretty terrible and the Alien Rangers talked with this stupid filter over their lines and it was annoying.
Also, Power Rangers was so popular that Saban kept making series similar to it, using footage from other Japanese shows. The main ones being V.R. Troopers, Beetleborgs, and an American version of Kamen Rider. I did not watch or particularly like any of these shows. I guess Beetleborgs was the one I liked the most, but it isn't worth tracking down. Just stick with Power Rangers. Though I've heard the original Kamen Rider in Japan is good.
One very important part of Power Rangers is the theme song. It sets a tone for the entire season, and usually the better the theme the better the season. The only exceptions being "Samurai" and the current season "Megaforce" which use a slight remix of the original theme, they are just trying to cash in on nostalgia! ""Turbo" is also an exception, it had pretty kickass theme music. I would love the "Turbo" theme more if it wasn't connected to that season.
Well, this is the end folks. This bloated guide thingy to Power Rangers is over. I hope you didn't find it too annoying.
Geek Obsession: The Power Rangers
Background: A long running American children's show that is based off the ever popular Super Sentai Series in Japan. It splices Japanese footage with American made footage to create a different story. It premiered in 1993 and became a huge hit with the little ones. It has had ups and downs but has found a way to stay on the air for 20 years, owned by different production companies, and shown on different channels. The basis of the plot is about teenagers or young adults are chosen to take up the fight against evil, in colorful spandex uniforms of course! Also, GIANT ROBOTS a.k.a Zords!
Why is it daunting: Over 740 episodes through 20 seasons with no end in sight.
Why you should watch this: If you like cheesy fun and/or nostalgic for your childhood this is the perfect series for you.
Where to start: There are actually plenty of starting on points throughout the series. There was some semblance of an interconnecting story through the first 6 seasons, but the story isn't all that hard to follow. The optimal starting point for the first 6 would of course be at the very beginning with "Mighty Morphin", however you can also skip straight to episode 17 that kicks off the "Green with Evil" arc. That is where Power Rangers truly starts to come into its own, and introduces the most popular Power Ranger character, Tommy Oliver.
Power Rangers was actually supposed to end after the sixth season "In Space". It was the culmination of the previous seasons overarching story, and had a definite ending to the series as a whole. "In Space" proved to be so popular that the powers that be brought Power Rangers back, but with a tweaked formula. A new plot and team at the beginning of each season. Other than the occasional two-parter the next season featuring a team up between old team and new, the seasons were self contained. So, from "Lost Galaxy" on you are free to start with a later season if you want, but there are some you should avoid to start off with.....
Where not to start: The BAD seasons. If you are going to start with the self contained seasons it is best to avoid the likes of "Mystic Force", "Operation Overdrive", or "Samurai". "Mystic Force" is a deeply flawed season that has some bright spots, but is mostly crap. "Operation Overdrive" is the worst of the worst, not even hardcore PR fans like it. There is no cheesy fun that will come from "Operation Overdrive" only your will to live being ruined. "Samurai" is also pretty bad, unlike "Operation Overdrive" there are some redeeming qualities, but this is probably the worst acted of all the series. Not to mention the story isn't all that different from the Super Sentai series it was adapted from, which is considered better version(or so I've heard). Also, if you are thinking of just starting randomly from the first six seasons(which I advise against), it is best to avoid "Turbo" which only "Operation Overdrive" tops in terms of suckitude.
The more I've thought about the more you shouldn't start from seasons 2 through 6, because there is an overarching story and you will be lost, somewhat. It is a cheesy children's show, so the plot isn't that too hard to catch up on after a few episodes. It just isn't an optimal starting point is all, but if you do find yourself liking Power Rangers I guess you could skip ahead, just don't really start with it. This includes "Mighty Morphin" seasons 2 and 3, "Zeo", "Turbo", and "In Space". Also there is the precarious situation with "Alien Rangers", but I will talk about that later.
Where to continue: There really isn't a strict way to continue, just avoid the bad seasons if you can. Though if you start with "Mighty Morphin" it is best just to continue through the seasons that are connected to it, you might really want to skip "Turbo" though. That isn't worth the time to be caught up on the story.
What I've Neglected to mention:Power Rangers being bought by Disney, which did bring a change to how the series was produced. For example the production moved from the US to New Zealand, in some cases the acting actually got better, other times got WORSE. There was also a major change in creative, and the Disney Produced seasons are polarizing because of that. Shocker, the plots actually got dumber for a cheesy kids series. While for the most part I think the Disney seasons are up to par with the early Saban ones, there are definitely some low points for the entire series.
Saban did in fact buy back Power Rangers and is the company producing the series currently, but it has not been all that well received either. The acting has actually become worse all around, they follow the Super Sentai plotlines way too closely, and the formula is staler than ever. Especially when compared to the last Disney produced season "RPM" which pretty much threw everything about Power Rangers out the window and made something very unique in its own right. Also, instead of being one self contained season, it is now 2 seasons per team, but with 40 episodes between two seasons instead of 32 for 1 season. So it isn't that big of a difference. Especially when seasons used to be 45 episodes a piece.
Now where the primer part of this post begins.
The Essential seasons:
1. "Mighty Morphin" seasons 1-3. The original formation of the team(well in terms of style of suit, not members) lasted for 3 seasons, and is by far the most popular and influential iteration of Power Rangers. Season 2 in particular, since that was when Lord Zedd was introduced, he is considered the best main Villain.
2. "In Space". It is actually considered by hardcore Power Rangers fans to be BETTER than "Mighty Morphin". After all it was the culmination of the previous 5 seasons of story, and had the best GROUP of villains, not just one great Main Villain. This was the season where the evil Psycho Rangers were introduced as well. Who doesn't love storylines about the good guys facing evil versions of themselves?
3. "Time Force" Out of the self contained seasons this is considered the best, and for good reasons. The acting was top notch(for Power Rangers that is). It had a Villain that wasn't just transparently evil, the action was some of the best of any season, and the main plot was very well done. It was so well received that there was talk of bringing back the cast for another season, or a movie, and even a primetime Power Rangers season!
4. "Lost Galaxy" While this season does have some flaws, it did carry the the quality from the season before it(In Space) and was probably the most ambitious of any Power Rangers series, in terms of plot and production values. It is my personal favorite season. Also, even though I said starting with Lost Galaxy the seasons were mostly self contained, there is some connection to In Space(The Psycho Rangers coming back, and a character from In Space actually becoming one of the rangers), but you don't need to watch In Space at all to get what is going on.
5. "Dino Thunder" One of the more underrated seasons. It was a Disney produced season so most people don't give it the time of day, but it was the best of the Dinsey seasons by far, it even brought back fan favorite ranger Tommy Oliver as the Mentor for the team. And like any good season of Power Rangers it had a good Villain for the team to face off against!
My personal ranking of all the seasons:
1. Lost Galaxy
2. Ninja Storm(it poked fun at a lot of Power Rangers tropes, and had my favorite Ranger uniforms of the entire series, and two of my favorite rangers of all time.)
3. Mighty Morphin seasons 1-3
4. Dino Thunder
5. Time force
6. In Space
7. Lightspeed Rescue
8. S.P.D
9. Zeo
10. RPM
11. Jungle Fury
12. Megaforce(So far, it still has Super Megaforce to air)
13. Wild Force
14. Mystic Force(This one actually could and should have been a lot better)
15. Samurai/Super Samurai
16. Turbo
17. Operation Overdrive
Miscellany: There were actually two Power Rangers films, both released Theatrically. One was a commercial success(Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie), the other not so much(Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie). Both are also non canon. They do introduce new zords and powers for the Power Rangers, but the tv series introduced that stuff in a different way.. Neither is anything special, but the first one was a fun time. Turbo is just very meh, despite bringing back two of the original rangers for the film.
It is now time for me to talk about "Alien Rangers", which is considered a season 3.5/Miniseries. It is only 10 episodes and it bridges the gap between between "Mighty Morphin" and "Zeo". "Zeo" would be the first time the Rangers ever switched Power Rangers suits. They did this because they ran out of footage to use for the original suits(The Super Sentai series that they adapt from are only 50 episodes). Though they were already using Zord footage from a different Sentai series, just not the suits. What they did was they turned the Power Rangers into kids, and brought in Alien Rangers to protect the earth while the kid rangers searched for a crystal that would restore them back to their original age. It makes sense in context..... I think it was alright, the kid acting was pretty terrible and the Alien Rangers talked with this stupid filter over their lines and it was annoying.
Also, Power Rangers was so popular that Saban kept making series similar to it, using footage from other Japanese shows. The main ones being V.R. Troopers, Beetleborgs, and an American version of Kamen Rider. I did not watch or particularly like any of these shows. I guess Beetleborgs was the one I liked the most, but it isn't worth tracking down. Just stick with Power Rangers. Though I've heard the original Kamen Rider in Japan is good.
One very important part of Power Rangers is the theme song. It sets a tone for the entire season, and usually the better the theme the better the season. The only exceptions being "Samurai" and the current season "Megaforce" which use a slight remix of the original theme, they are just trying to cash in on nostalgia! ""Turbo" is also an exception, it had pretty kickass theme music. I would love the "Turbo" theme more if it wasn't connected to that season.
Well, this is the end folks. This bloated guide thingy to Power Rangers is over. I hope you didn't find it too annoying.
