The Bruce Kalish Era, Power Rangers' Dork Age

Many Power Ranger fans have criticized the Disney Era in general, while others are even more specific, criticizing the Bruce Kalish Era. Before becoming executive producer and head writer of Power Rangers, Kalish actually had a descent resume that included shows such as The Incredible Hulk and The Famous Jett Jackson. After Doug Sloan and Ann Austin left during Dino Thunder, Kalish took over. His PR seasons (SPD through Jungle Fury) have been called PR's "dork age" with many of these seasons considered among the worst in PR's history. Among the various criticisms directed at Kalish include copying too much from Sentai source material while watering it down, failed comic relief, poor writing, overuse of explosions, and many unlikable characters during his time. Here's a look at the Kalish seasons.

Power Rangers SPD

Power Rangers SPD is a love it or hate it series. SPD is considered to be the best season during Kalish's tenure and many fans praise SPD, particularly for its cast, excellent acting, police drama, and strong character development early on in the series. Many fans also liked Sky's story with his father who was a former red ranger and was killed. However, others criticize SPD for the handling of the Omega Ranger scenario in which he was a CGI ball of light when he was unmorphed. This was due to executive meddling from Disney because they didn't give the producers enough money for a seventh full-time ranger actor. SPD is also criticized for it's plot falling apart in the middle and end of the series, in which the writing crew ran out of ideas and copied many filler episodes from Dekaranger. The series is also criticized for not bringing back popular PR actor Jason David Frank to reprise his role as Tommy Oliver during SPD's second team-up with Dino Thunder.

Power Rangers Mystic Force

Much like SPD, Mystic Force is somewhat a "Your Mileage May Vary" season. Some PR fans liked the magic theme to Mystic Force and felt that Mystic Force had a good story behind it. Others criticize the series for too much red ranger focus, particularly on one of the most unpopular red rangers ever, Nick. These fans also argue that the focus on Nick distracted the series from giving proper character development to the rest of the cast. Yet, more fans criticize Mystic Force for lacking originality, being a watered-down carbon copy of Magiranger with a different cast and without the family elements, although there are some family elements such as the pink and blue rangers being sisters as well as Koragg and Udonna being Nick's parents.

Power Rangers Operation Overdrive

Operation Overdrive was PR's 15th anniversary season, and was the counterpart to Boukenger, Sentai's 30th season. Operation Overdrive is considered by most fans to not only be the worst during Kalish's tenure, but the worst season ever, beating other unpopular seasons such as Turbo and Wild Force. Initially, fans had excitement about this season. With a treasure hunting motif, four villain groups to fight, and inheriting villains that were designed from previous years Sentai mecha's/PR megazords, it was seen as a season with so much potential. Among the criticism directed towards Operation Overdrive include bad writing, bad dialog, bad acting, and a very unlikable cast. Operation Overdrive's theme song is also considered to be the worst PR theme song in the franchise's history. Operation Overdrive's lone bright spot is considered to be the team-up two part episode "Once A Ranger" which was a tribute to the franchise's 15th anniversary. Once A Ranger included rangers from the previous four seasons as well as Adam, the 2nd MMPR black ranger, which was widely praised for his return. However, virtually nothing else is praised from this season.

Power Rangers Jungle Fury

Most fans who don't consider SPD to be the best during Kalish's tenure consider Jungle Fury to be his best work. Some fans like Jungle Fury for a somewhat likable cast and for having a descent second half of the season, with the present of the Spirit Rangers which were not present in Gekiranger. However, Jungle Fury also receives much of the same criticism that all Kalish seasons receive, such as overuse of explosions and copying too much from its Sentai counterpart, Gekiranger, while watering down the story. For example, while Rio and Mele turn good near the end in Gekiranger and die soon after, Jarrod and Camille live after turning good in Jungle Fury.

Overall, I think Kalish wasn't a good fit for Power Rangers. While he had a descent resume before, he was a Disney writer who was a bit of a hollywood outsider and didn't know the series or the fandom as well as Douglass Sloan or Judd Lynn did.

My Top 5 Red Power Rangers

After a bit of a long lay-off from my top lists, I've decided to introduce my top 5 red rangers, which is really like a top 6 since #5 is a tie :P And this top 5/6 is a clean sweep for Saban. Honestly, most of Disney's red rangers were annoying.

Honorable Mention- Jack Landros (SPD)

T5. Wes Collins (Time Force)

Wes is a virtual carbon copy of Tatsuya from Time Force, but he's still an interesting character. Also, Jason Faunt's acting job was rather good during this series.

T5. Theodore Jay Jarvis Johnson (TJ) (Turbo)

Yes I know it's Turbo, and TJ screwed up by self destructing a megazord at the end of Turbo. I still think TJ did much better as the blue ranger during In Space, but I still like TJ. Turbo still had a pretty good cast in both halves of the season, except for Justin. Also, the second half of Turbo, which was when TJ was present, was much better than the first half. And I also found it funny in Forever Red when TJ bragged about being cooked inside of a giant pizza.

T3. Tommy Oliver (Zeo/Turbo)

Yes, another tie. This one for the third spot. Tommy is still my favorite ranger of all-time, but his days as a red ranger weren't as good as he was as the green, white, and later black ranger. Especially during Turbo, in which he didn't even fight his Turbo incarnation in Fighting Spirit, probably because that part of Turbo was awful. Still, he had his share of memorable moments during Zeo. I loved the story with him and his brother during Zeo.

T3. Leo Corbett (Lost Galaxy)

Another ranger who's story is a bit of a copycat from his Sentai counterpart. Still, Leo was very tough. He was the rookie red ranger, so to speak, after he sneaked into Terra Venture. He was very passionate. The only thing I didn't like is that I wish the writers would have done something more with that one episode romance that he had with Ginger.

2. Andros (In Space)

If there's any power ranger with deeper development than Andros I'm yet to see it. He reminds me somewhat of Takeru in Shinkenger, in that he initially wanted to fight alone and didn't want to get the others involved, before letting up and accepting their help. For Andros, his personal struggles make him one of the most likable characters, such as the search for his sister (who turned out to be Astronema) and the near-death of his buddy Zhane, the silver ranger.

1. Jason Lee Scott (MMPR)

Jason is the second most skilled ranger of all-time, behind Tommy. He was a brave, valiant leader that was more of a leader by example than a strategist. For me, his best example of leadership was towards the end of the evil green ranger arc when he refused to let his team give up when everything was against them, including the powerful green ranger, the lost of Zordon and their zords.

Timeranger Series Review

Mirai Sentai Timeranger (2000-01, English translation Future Task Force Timeranger) was the 24th installment of Super Sentai. Timeranger used a time/law enforcement motif. This motif I believe later inspired Dekaranger's space police motif. Four of the Timerangers are from the year 3000, and chase a group of prisoners known as the Londarz family, to the year 2000 where they meet Tatsuya, who would become Timered. Timeranger is one of darkest, most serious-oriented seasons ever in Sentai's history. It is also generally praised by Sentai fans as one of the best seasons ever. It's dark story, intense drama, complex plot, and likable cast is generally well praised by the Sentai fandom. This show is also one of the last to have a 1980's-90's style, with a level headed red ranger and dark plot. This show receives very little criticism, however, the criticism that it does receive tends to be that the plot falls apart in the last 4th of the series and has an anti-climatic final battle. Me personally I disagree with this criticism. Instead, I think it's the opposite. The series has a slow start through the first 1/3rd of the series (roughly 17 episodes), but picks up more steam as the series progresses, with its most dramatic moments coming in the last 1/3rd of the series.

The Good

Timeranger definitely has a good plot with good drama. The cast is very likable with all of the characters being well developed. Among the cast, Tatsuya (Timered) is the only person from the present, and is struggling to break free from his father's wealth and power. Also, Yuuri (Timepink), is the first Pink ranger leader and the second female leader ever in Sentai. Yuuri is tough as nails and demonstrates excellent leadership ability. She's a member of the same anti-crime division as her father was, before he and the rest of Yuuri's family was murdered. The opening theme song is catchy, and it's lone team-up (with GoGoV), is pretty good. Compared to other seasons, this show also lacks corniness.

The Bad

As mentioned above, the plot moves rather slowly, with no new mecha's until Time Shadow appears in episode 18, and the 6th ranger, Naoto, not appearing until episode 28. This season also might not be one for fans of lighthearted Sentai's, because it is kind of dry because of its dark and serious tone. Despite this, it is still a pretty good season.

The Ugly

For being such a good and well-praised season, this season really got the shaft. Unlike other seasons, it received no mid-season movie and had only one team-up with GoGoV, mostly because the next season, Gaoranger, was Sentai's 25th anniversary season. Also, the quality of footage that exists on youtube is terrible.

My Rating

8.5/10 (Grade B+). Another very good series with strong characterization.

My Favorite Episodes

Episode 5- Reveals the murder of Yuuri's parents.

Episode 8- A fun episode where Yuuri learns she can't be too serious all the time.

Episodes 9-10- The revelation of Ayase's illness.

Episode 11- The beginning of the Honami/Domon arc.

Episode 17- Tatsuya teaches a young karate student that karate isn't just about becoming stronger.

Episodes 25-26- This is where the plot finally starts moving. This episode established the attraction between Tatsuya and Yuuri, and gives both characters strong development.

Episode 34- Yuuri is nearly forced to become an assassin. This episode also further develops the attraction between Tatsuya and Yuuri.

Episode 36- Domon's relationship with Honami finally becomes reality.

Episodes 42-44- Timeranger's Christmas episode. It's also a major plot arc in which Captain Ryuuya reveals he set mostly everything up.

Episodes 47-50- Not the greatest final battle, but the entire plot comes full circle in this arc and has a sad ending.

David Yost Comes Out of the Closet.

In an interview with No Pink Spandex which was posted on youtube yesterday, as David Yost, who played Billy in MMPR and Zeo, acknowledge that he is gay. This had been rumored for years among power rangers fandom, and he campaigned in the 2008 election against Proposition 8, an anti-same sex marriage ballot initiative in the state of California. In the interview, he revealed the reason why he left at the end of Zeo was because of homophobic remarks made towards him by the production crew. Yost also apparently had a mental breakdown due to his sexual orientation. Now before anybody comments on this blog, please be aware that any homophobic remarks will not be tolerated. This is strictly just a news entry, so please don't leave any nasty comments towards Yost or gay people in general.

Power Rangers In Space Season Review

Power Rangers in Space (1998) was the 4th installment of Power Rangers and the 6th overall. PRIS used footage from Megaranger. This season was the first to deviate from its Sentai's theme, mostly by accident. When the producers first saw the mecha footage from Megaranger, they thought Megaranger was a space themed Sentai. In reality, Megaranger was a video game themed Sentai. However, because they were already in pre-production, writer Judd Lynn decided to go with the space motif. After the failures of Power Rangers Turbo, it was thought that PRIS would be Power Rangers' last season. As a result, the writers went all-out, with one of the most ambitious seasons ever. The result was a semi-dark season that would tie six seasons worth of story lines into one whole season, in a race against time to find Zordon before the evil forces take over the entire universe. This season had a recurring story line, with continuity from one episode to the next. Much of the campiness that was visible during the first five seasons was toned down significantly during this season. Andros was and still is one of the deepest, most well developed characters ever, and the main villains, Astronema and Ecliptor, even received a high level of development compared to most villains. Later on, it was revealed that Astronema was Andros' long lost sister, Karone. This season is one of the most popular seasons ever, and the two part finale, Countdown to Destruction, is considered by most to be the best season finale to date as well as one of the most popular episodes ever. This season is widely viewed as the season that saved Power Rangers from cancellation.

The Good

The character development and the story writing imo are among the best ever during a PR season. The cast, for me, is the second best behind MMPR S1, and has both my favorite pink and blue rangers. This season had some very intense drama with many cliffhanger moments. The production job, considering the low budget and the misunderstanding regarding the Sentai footage, is among the best ever done. This was also one of the first seasons that actually had descent American-ranger fight scenes, where as the American footage in previous years was for the most part awful. Also, a big bonus was that Ron Wasserman returned to sing the opening theme song, which is one of my all-time favorites for PR openings.

The Bad

The only bad thing about this series is that it was the first to feature a battlizer, this weapon would get out of hand imo in the seasons to come.

The Ugly

There's nothing ugly about this season, it's one of the best seasons ever.

My Rating

9.5/10 (Grade A)- In Space has the best story of any Power Rangers season.

My Favorite Episodes

Episode 4 (Shell Shocked)- While many people berate this episode I actually liked the fact that the Power Rangers teamed up with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, especially since I'm a fan of both shows.

Episode 5 (Never Stop Searching)- Reveals that Andros has a missing sister, and develops his bonding with his new team, especially Carlos.

Episode 10 (A Wasp with a Heart)- Technically filler, but I would argue this episode gave Cassie some good character development. It also showed that not all monsters are one dimensional.

Episode 14-17- This arc involves the first appearance of Darkonda and eventually leads to the Mega Voyager.

Episode 19-20- The first appearance of Zhane, the Silver Ranger.

Episode 23 (A Date with Dangerr)- Zhane dates the main villain, Astronema.

Episode 25 (Always a Chance)- Adam returns to help Carlos regain his confidence.

Episodes 26-30- This arc involves the reveal that Astronema is Andros's long lost sister, and has many good emotional moments.

Episodes 31-36- This is the Psycho Rangers arc, and the Psycho Rangers are badass.

Episodes 42-43 (Countdown to Destruction)- Simply, the best season finale ever in Power Rangers.

Power Rangers ratings Wild Force-MMPRv2

Fantasy Leader the other day asked for a list on viewer-ship ratings for Power Rangers. I was able to find numbers on everything from Wild Force to MMPRv2, however, I have yet to find anything from MMPR S1-Time Force. Also to note, the American ratings system is much different from the Japanese system, so it's difficult to compare. For example, the highest rated tv shows in the United States have ratings around 6.2, while in Japan ratings can be much higher, into the 50's and 60's I believe. Also, these ratings are somewhat skewed because it shows viewer-ship for ages 6-11, and doesn't take into account older fans. Needless to say, Power Rangers has a large older fanbase. Also, these ratings are done on a week by week basis.

Power Rangers Ratings (on ABC kids)

(PRWF average: 1.38 rating / 6.46 share)
(PRNS average: 1.42 / 6.86)
(PRDT average: 0.93 / 4.78)
(PRSPD average: 0.99 / 4.89)
(PRMF average: 0.96 / 4.64)
(PROO average: 0.70 / 3.55)
(PRJF average: 0.60 / 3.07)
(PRRPM average: 0.53 / 2.82)
(MMPRv2 average: 0.47 / 2.28)

TOON DISNEY

(Saturday mornings)

(PRMF average: 0.45 / 1.81)

(PROO average: 0.54 / 2.42)

(PRJF average: 0.56 / 2.97)

ABC FAMILY
(Saturday mornings)
(PRWF average: 0.95 rating / 4.67 share)
(PRNS average: 1.17 rating / 5.86 share)
(PRDT average: 1.05 of 11 reported)
(PRSPD average: 0.71 rating / 3.33 share)
(SPD new eps only: 0.75 / 3.50)

For me some of these ratings come as a bit of a surprise. I would have expected Dino Thunder to be much higher than SPD and Mystic Force due to its popularity. Then again, ratings aren't exactly a good measure for popularity. RPM, for example, had bad ratings because of terrible time slots. As we know, even though the ratings for Wild Force are relatively high, it is one of the most unpopular seasons among Power Ranger fans. Likewise, while RPM's ratings are low, it is one of the most popular Power Ranger seasons. Here's a few graphs that show some of the recent PR ratings episode by episode.

When looking at these ratings, Operation Overdrive's ratings took a free fall from the first week. It's common for shows to have a big drop off from the first week, but a total free fall. While Jungle Fury's ratings were low, they went up after the beginning of the season. Also, as I stated above, it is somewhat unfair to compare these ratings to what they could have been because of time slots and the fact that older kids/adults aren't included. BTW, Fantasy Leader can you provide some ratings stats for Super Sentai as well?

Kotoha and Mako Pairing?

With all the fan-made pairings in various Sentai shows, especially Dekaranger and Shinkenger, I think a girl with girl pairing, with Mako and Kotoha comes the closest to being "hinted upon," at least in Kotoha's mind. At least it is somewhat hinted in the recent Shinkenger V-cinema movie that Kotoha might have a bit of a crush on Mako.

For those who haven't seen the V-Cinema movie (Shinkenger Returns), the Shinkengers are trapped in a dream state in which they go from one illusion to the next. These "illusions" are based somewhat off of tv dramas and movies. In Kotoha's illusion, she disguises herself as a boy in order to attend an all boys school. The reason why is because she was in love with Shiraishi-kun (a.k.a. Mako, it's her surname). Mako in this scene is a boy, and Kotoha is about to "confess" her love for Mako, when Genta, Chiaki, Ryuunosuke, and Takeru reveal that they're also girls disguised as boys. If you haven't seen this scene and a little confused, in this scene everybody's gender is switched except for Kotoha's. Later on towards the end of this movie, it is somewhat hinted that these illusions may have been their "deepest desire." Especially when Ryuunosuke is questioned about his illusion. So that made me think, does Kotoha really have a crush on Mako and is afraid to admitt it? Maybe she feels guilty about having a crush on another girl, which may be why Mako is a boy in this scene. Kotoha has been known to have one-sided crushes before, particularly on Takeru and Chiaki.

The 5 Times Power Rangers Survived Cancellation

The longevity of Power Rangers, now heading for its 18th season, is quite remarkable. Especially considering the show had been cancelled or nearly cancelled five times. Most shows don't survive cancellation even once, making it even more extraordinary. Here's a break down on the five times Power Rangers avoided cancellation.

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, Season 1.

Originally, MMPR was expected to be sort of a "one hit wonder." Saban had for years been trying to bring Sentai into America one way or another. His first attempt was a Bioman dubbed pilot that aired in 1986 but went nowhere. After that, he had tried pitching his idea for Power Rangers using the footage of first, Turboranger and later Jetman to American TV networks but he couldn't sell his idea. Then, Fox Network, which was new at the time, decided to give MMPR a shot. Saban used the Zyuranger footage instead of Turboranger and Jetman. At the time, Fox was anxious to try anything, but both Fox and Saban thought MMPR would be able to only last a year at best. The original ending of the series was suppose to be the two part episode, Doomsday. However, MMPR had quickly became the biggest kids show on television, which forced Saban to alter his plans for ending Power Rangers after one year, and extend MMPR S1 by about 15 episodes. To do this, he borrowed money from Fox and used it to ask TOEI to produce more Zyuranger footage that would be used only for Power Rangers. This footage is now famously called Zyu2.

Power Rangers in Space

The second time Power Rangers avoided cancellation was Power Rangers in Space/Turbo. Every since MMPR S3, the ratings had seen a gradual decline, although they were still serviceable. But in Turbo, the ratings took a free-fall, particularly the first half of the season. The second half of the season the ratings gradually went up, but the ratings were still dismal and below that of Zeo's. At the time, both Fox Kids and Saban were losing money from the show's presence, so Fox told Saban to make Power Rangers in Space to be the last season of Power Rangers. This is why the Zordon Era ended and why we had the finale "Countdown to Destruction." It was thought that PRIS would be PR's last season. However, PRIS like MMPR, was a big hit and its ratings were in fact, on par with MMPR. Because of the success of PRIS, Fox decided to let Saban continue with Power Rangers, and thus, Saban cancelled the second season of The Mystic Knights of Tir Na Nog to focus its entire budget on PRLG.

Power Rangers Wild Force

After Wild Force, Power Rangers again was suppose to be cancelled due to the Disney buyout. However, former PR producers and writers Doug Sloan, Ann Austen, and Jackie Marchand were all working for Disney at this time. They successfully convinced Disney to keep the show running, and as a result, Sloan, Austen, and Marchand were the main producers of Ninja Storm and Dino Thunder.

Power Rangers Jungle Fury

After Bruce Kalish left and abysmal ratings, Jungle Fury was intended to be PR's last season. Disney didn't want to deal with finding a new producer for Power Rangers, and there were heavy talks about Disney switching to an animated series that would be based off of MMPR. However, TOEI disapproved of the animated series because it meant that they wouldn't make money off of the Sentai footage used to produce Power Rangers. Bandai also disapproved. However, due to outside forces (mainly because PR was still very popular in Germany), Bandai and Jetix Europe gave Disney enough money to produce one final season, which would be RPM.

Power Rangers RPM

This time, after Power Rangers RPM ended, the series was cancelled. Disney was tired of splitting the money with Bandai and TOEI, so they decided to re-edit MMPR instead, which was among the worst of Disney's PR projects. RPM had the worst ratings ever for a Power Rangers series, however this was more due to being screwed by the network than lack of popularity. RPM was moved away from cable tv onto ABC, and was placed in the worst time slot imaginable. In some parts of the country, RPM aired at 5am in the morning, and entire episodes were not seen due to being subject to ABC's sports coverage. However, as we know now, Saban bought back Power Rangers from Disney, and immediately decided to produce another season.

What I Would Like to See in Next Year's Power Rangers

I know what I have above is a Shinkenger photo, but I don't have anything better for a 2011 Power Rangers photo yet. I'm glad that Shinkenger is being adapted for the next season because I don't like to "skip" a season and I also want to see what a Samurai themed Power Rangers would look like. However, what I don't want is a plot and numerous episodes that are a carbon copy of Shinkenger. I love Shinkenger, but as both a Power Rangers and Sentai fan, seeing the same story twice and lacking originality is boring. I'd also like to see a season with a more mature, darker storyline like we had with In Space and RPM. It seems so far that the Princess Megan character is going to be a mentor to the Power Rangers, and then become the Red Ranger towards the end of the season, which will differentiate some from Kaoru. I've been thinking, one way she could become the Red Ranger is if the character Reese dies (yes, a ranger death on Power Rangers) near the end and she uses his powers. That would show both originality and maturity in the plot. I'd also like to see more humor used between the rangers. This is usually very well executed in Sentai and was well executed in RPM as well. I would also like to see the opening song, and an entire soundtrack made by Ron Wasserman, but unfortunately that's not likely to happen. :(

Power Rangers RPM and Go-Onger Comparison

Despite sharing some of the same footage and RPM supposedly being an "adaptation" of Go-Onger, they're both radically different shows. For one, RPM is set in a post-apocalyptic nuked-earth setting, while Go-Onger is campy and kid-friendly. To me they're both good, even though they're different interpretations of the series. For me, it's kinda like The Three Little Pigs and The True Story of the Three Little Pigs, different versions of the same story that are both quite good. I'll compare both seasons by elements such as cast and plot.

The Cast

Scott vs Sousuke

To me Scott was an ok character. He was head strong, sometimes reckless, and often conflicted with his dad. He was often underappreciated by his dad, but proved to be quite a valiant leader. Fortunately, RPM is a season that doesn't have "too much red ranger focus" like Mystic Force does. Sousuke was kinda like Scott in that he was rather reckless, but also dramatically different. Sousuke was rather "simple minded" who's greatest strength was dashing forward. I also think Sousuke was quite funny and had a grove about him that Scott didn't have. So in the end, I like Sousuke better than Scott.

Flynn vs Renn

Flynn I think was a really cool character. I guess because of his Scottish accent, which I think was done quite well by Ari Boyland. Flynn was rather laid back and was another character in RPM that was initially underappreciated by his father. Among the regular five, he was somewhat the brains of the group in terms of being a mechanic and being capable of building zords and other devices, kinda like his Go-Onger counterpart, but Flynn was more serious. Renn, like Flynn, was the "brains of the group." Renn also was a descent cook. although the only thing the Go-Ongers could afford was eggs, so his cooking was limited to making mostly omelets. I think Renn had a kind, gentle heart. Renn to me is ok, but I like Flynn better.

Summer vs Saki

I like both Summer and Saki. Some PR fans like to compare the two as being "the same" but I think they're quite different. Aside from both of them being really nice, I think Summer is much different from Saki. Summer comes from a rich family, and her background story is more similar to Ran's of Gekiranger. She was also a practicing martial artist prior to joining the Power Rangers, where as Saki was working a 9 to 5 job at a race track and had no experience in martial arts. Summer is also a much more serious character than Saki, yet she's compassionate. As far as Saki goes, I think she was rather cute with a very charming and cheerful personality. Her character kinda reminds me of Kyoko Fukada's characters on the jdrama's Friends and Strawberry on the Shortcake. I really like both characters so for me, it's hard to pick one above the other.

Dillon vs Gunpei

Dillon is one of the most badass rangers we've had in a long time on Power Rangers. Aside from Tommy's return in Dino Thunder, I would say that Dillon is the most badass power ranger since Jen from Time Force. RPM is one of the few seasons where one of the other rangers got more focus than the Red Ranger. MMPR S2 would probably be the only other where Tommy got more focus than either Jason or Rocky. Here, Dillon gets more focus than Scott, which was a good change-up for me. Dillon is introduced as a bit of a stereotypical bad boy. He had Venjix hardware implanted in him when he was captured. He also had an intriguing story in which one of the lead villains, Tenaya, was his sister. Among the original five Go-Ongers, Gunpei is the serious one. He sees himself as the "professional" much like Hoji from Dekaranger, although Gunpei can be quite an idiot at times. He reminds me a lot of Ryuunosuke from Shinkenger. To me Gunpei is ok but Dillon's too much of a badass, so I like Dillon better.

Ziggy vs Hanto

Both Ziggy and Hanto are more or less, the comedic characters of the group. Though they have different personalities. Ziggy is a funny smartass who originally looked like he was good for nothing, but later became quite a skilled ranger and progressed quite a bit during the season. Hanto on the other hand was the playboy of the group, and often tried to get part-time jobs either to help the Go-Ongers make ends meet or just to try to pick up some girls. Hanto's cool, but Ziggy is flat out hilarious. To me, Ziggy's the funniest ranger ever in Power Rangers.

Gem and Gemma vs Hiroto and Miu

Both brother-sister combos are radically different from the rest of their teams. While both of them are among the "brains of the group" on their respective teams, they have radically different personalities. Gem and Gemma differ from their otherwise more serious team in that they're both silly, wierd scientists. They're the comedic duo of their team while the rest of the team (save for Ziggy), are much more serious oriented. Meanwhile, Hiroto and Miu are the more serious oriented characters on Go-Onger in sharp contrast to the other five Go-Ongers, with the exception of Gunpei. Actually, at the beginning Miu and Hiroto are so serious and "professional" they're like jerks (especially Hiroto) to the point of not acknowledging the other five Go-Ongers, much like Hoji and Tetsu from Dekaranger. Eventually, they do grow out of their attitudes and not only acknowledge the Go-Ongers, but become good friends with them as well. I really liked episode 41 where Hiroto found a baby monster and became like a father to it. To me it showed a soft, gentle side to his character. Gem and Gemma are ok, but I like Hiroto and Miu better, especially the character development episodes that they were given.

The Plot

Overall, I think RPM has a better plot, especially the setting in a "nuked earth." I think even though Dillon and Tenaya's story was a bit of a recycled version of Andros and Karone, I think it was well executed, and RPM during the first half of the season did a lot to develop its characters. Its character development episodes were among some of the best ever in PR's history. That said, I think Go-Onger also had its share of good story writing as well. Go-Onger had plenty of good, heartwarming moments as mentioned above with Hiroto with Saki and Hanto also had their share of heartwarming moments. I also like the Go-Onger finale better than the RPM finale.

The Mecha

In Go-Onger, a lot of people didn't like the talking mechas and the various cartoon strips present in the show. Criticism varied from being a rip-off on the movie Cars to being downright childish. The talking mecha's and cartoon strips were omitted from RPM to give the show a more serious feel. I have to admit at first I didn't think I was going to like this element in Go-Onger, in fact I didn't like talking mechas that were "gods" in Zyuranger. But after watching the show, I warmed up to these talking mechas rather quickly. They all had they're own personalities and all of them had descent character development for being side characters. Though, admittedly, Go-Onger, like Boukenger and Shinkenger, suffer from mecha overload with the ridiculous 12 pack combination, which Power Rangers RPM did inherit this as well. However, I don't think the mecha overload takes away too much from any of these shows. For me, it's just a minor annoyance.

Overall, I like both shows. For me, Go-onger was a nice, fun change-up to some of the more serious Sentais. Meanwhile, coming off a dork age, a dark, plot heavy series like Power Rangers RPM was needed after several consecutive bad seasons. RPM was a way for Power Rangers to "go out with a bang," even though now we know that RPM won't be the last Power Rangers season.

My Thoughts on the 2011 Power Rangers Cast

As some of you may have read on the Power Chamber blog or on rangerboard, yesterday Saban confirmed the cast for the upcoming 2011 Power Rangers adaptation for Shinkenger. From looking at the cast pictures and reading about the cast, it will be another ethnically diverse cast. Also, from looking at photos the two female rangers are among the hottest since Maya in Lost Galaxy, and as a duo, since Cassie & Ashley from In Space. There's some concern on rangerboard about the lack of experience that half of these actors/actresses have, but to me it's not much different from previous power rangers series. Almost every power ranger actor or actress hired by either Saban or Disney has had little to no experience acting wise, so it's not much different that we've seen before. The Power Rangers franchise has never been known for great acting either. Only time will tell how well they do.