Post by crossranger on Feb 28, 2024 17:34:59 GMT -5
King-Ohger: when ambition meets execution.
This review is long, because, oh boy, I have so many things to say. It's hard to review this the season, and calling it "perfect", because I don't think there's a perfect season. But I don't want to live in nostalgia, just like some old fans, saying "Super Sentai was only good in the Showa era, and Sentai died when Hirohisa Soda didn't write it anymore" or "Changeman was the BEST" or "Zyuranger or Abaranger were better, because whatever", some things like that. I don't want to live in the past, I want progression. I want things being different, BUT GOOD. I don't want the Last Jedi-kind of sh17, just people saying is "subversive" or "it's different" so, for some people, "that means it's good". Things can be subversive, different. Things change. That doesn't mean they are automatically good. The Last Jedi is terrible. But King-Ohger, this season.....
This season hit every button I wanted for Sentai (or Power Rangers) and gave it to me in spades. It was mature, clever, interesting, fun, but also funny, cringe and awesome. Subversive, but still Sentai. This is the epitome of cool. It wasn't forceful. It was like organic. A somewhat....PERFECT SEASON. So....
Things I liked:
- Well, almost everything. The season opener: never in a series saw a first episode that communicated its intentions, themes, characters, and, somewhat plot, so flawessly. It present the main cast, the world they were living, their dynamics, and the villians. So many series need two or three to "get" what they said about the series. Some needs more. Some they changed in the middle. King-Ohger was the only one who did it PERFECT. The final battle.......the Avengers Endgame of the Sentai. More than perfect.
- The main cast is EXCELLENT: Gira. Probably the best Red since....I dunno, Marvelous. He's probably following every staple of a Shonen anime character trope, a "Genki" Red, but somehow, the plot made him interesting to watch. His development, his attitude, his sense of "justice", I liked it. Everything. It's great he challenged the perception of a Red Ranger, and how a Super Sentai operates. This is not your common Sentai: here, they are not friends, not family, not rivals-turn-into allies. Kings. With responsabilities, burdens, and cultural traits. And he, somewhow, has to win them over, to fight Racles and the rest of the villians.
- Yanma. Of course he's the classic trope of "yankee student with a heart of gold". There so many things about him to talk. But, which I liked more it's the fact, he's just not only resourceful, but he's very loyal to his friends. And in the beginning, he seems like a foil for Gira, for he transform in his more brilliant ally.
- Himeno Ran. Great casting and great character. I liked there's a justification for his trait on "beauty". Again, it's like, a subversion a the trope for "vanity queen" but whe cares about her people. Her plot about the mistery of the Wrath of Gods was good too.
- Kaguraki Dybowski. What can I say. I love this guy. He's so bombastic. I like he's seems conscious about his characteristic of betrayal,:"we should not be picky about our methods" or "We should cover in dirt". Of course he cares about his people. He understand more. And the fact sometimes he has to and he should to betray the other KingOhgears for a greater good, it's great. Specially his alliance with Racles.
- Rita Kanisuka. I love her catchphrase (based in an old Latin phrase): "The earth may shatter, and the heavens may fall... but I, Rita Kaniska, shall not waver!". She's intransigent and rigid, but she gains more flexibility with the time, which I love. She's probably one of my favorite heroines in latest years.
- Racles. Oh man. Perfect. His development, his motivations, his acting. 'chef kiss'. The only character I wanted to be horribly killed, until the episode 41....the rest is history. He was transformed in character I could sympathize. That heel turn was perfect.
- Jeramie. I never expected the narrator gonna be a main cast, lest of a Ranger! This show gave me more surprises than any other show ever. He was cool, fun, and interesting. And his development, and backgorund, was one of the most interesting in years. I loved it.
- The secondaries. Special mention to Sebastian, best butler ever. Morfonia was really good. And even characters like Suzane and that trio of hackers played important roles. I didn't like a lot the "posse" of Yanma, but I can't deny they were useful. Even I liked Gerojim. It was a great moment when all of them became pilots of the God KingOhger.
- Plot and subplots. Just great. Special mention to the Kaguragi's one. I though Rita or Himeno had the greatest, but how he became a King.... Great backstory.
- The fight choreographies were good, and, in moments, awesome. Mechas' fights were incredible too.
- The subversion of not "being" an actual Sentai, or group. They basically gathering for the moment. It's probably against Sentai, but I like it when they have to fight more "individually" and being Kings of their respective countries, with their own motivations, and "politics", than simply "there's a monster attacking the city, let's gather and fight like a team". This has to be built upon time. It took time. Even if the mecha fights, has to be Gira activating Kingohger alone. It worked better for the dynamics between characters. Also, the friction between them worked perfectly. I think this couldn't work without Donbrothers doing subversion before this series.....
- The villians were great. Deathnarak seemed, at the beginning, like generic "villian gonna be sitting in his ass for the whole season, and he's gonna be active in the last two episodes", which he wasn't. And he has a motivation. And a great death scene....and a even a more awesome return.
- Kamejim. I really thought he was an idiot at the beginning....but he played the long game, he was part of a bigger plot. He was treacherous, cunning, and sinister. The kind of character you love to hate. And he was the character I think he deserved an awful death. And the series delivered. Thanks, Minato Takano.
- The Jesters. Some said they were underutilized. I think they were perfect. Specially Grodi. He was incredible creepy. Hirubiru too, controlling people with the voice. Probably Goma and Minongan were less creepy, but they were formidable opponents. But, man! Grodi, he was really creepy. Again, Kousei Amano stole the part.
- Dugded, the cosmic entity who destroyed planet just for fun. He was great. He was everything I wanted in a villian: powerful, an a22hole, and with more input in the plot. I mean, he was making chaos, killing Racles and Gira's parents, starting a war with the Bugnarak and Shuggodam, and even helping to Deboss to rule the Earth? Man, he was vicious. He even could travel to the land of dead to kill an enemy!
- Politics. And when people talked about politics it's just some left wing ideas, or right wing ideas. No, people. Politics. How to be a ruler. Burden. Sacrifice. Justice. Probably it's just the less explored of the ideas, but they worked really well with the amount of things this season offered.
- The designs were perfect. Suits, mechas, weapons. Even the integration of merchandise and plot worked perfectly! They even used those objects/pendants/symbols that, I thought, were another thing to be a cash grab for Toei. Just collectibles or some things for cosplay. Accesories. They were the King's Proof, and a source of a power up! Damn.
- The CGI, probably not perfect, but I don't mind. It was used when it mattered the most. Even if probably still looked like CGI those backgrounds (and the floor), but they gave us some incredible landscapes. It was ambitous to create five (later six) kingdoms, with their own characteristics. Different cultures. A whole new world. That's the ambition I wanted for a show.
- With the CGI, also I love the creativity. Sure, you could say they copied European, Asian and different cultures to make the kingdoms, even some ideas of Game of Thrones, but it was executed perfectly.
I don't dislike a lot of things. There's nitpicking things. Probably, the timeskip of two year...ngh. I dunno. Probably a "one year later" skip could be more realistic. It doesn't change a lot of thing, specially for the plot. Probably because Bun, the little orphan, and the other girl didn't age a lot in two years. I mean, they were kids, they are supposed to grow. But, meh. It's just nitpicking.
So, Super Sentai a la Game of Thrones. But not failing like Game of Thrones season 8. LOL.
11/10. Best Sentai.....ever.
This review is long, because, oh boy, I have so many things to say. It's hard to review this the season, and calling it "perfect", because I don't think there's a perfect season. But I don't want to live in nostalgia, just like some old fans, saying "Super Sentai was only good in the Showa era, and Sentai died when Hirohisa Soda didn't write it anymore" or "Changeman was the BEST" or "Zyuranger or Abaranger were better, because whatever", some things like that. I don't want to live in the past, I want progression. I want things being different, BUT GOOD. I don't want the Last Jedi-kind of sh17, just people saying is "subversive" or "it's different" so, for some people, "that means it's good". Things can be subversive, different. Things change. That doesn't mean they are automatically good. The Last Jedi is terrible. But King-Ohger, this season.....
This season hit every button I wanted for Sentai (or Power Rangers) and gave it to me in spades. It was mature, clever, interesting, fun, but also funny, cringe and awesome. Subversive, but still Sentai. This is the epitome of cool. It wasn't forceful. It was like organic. A somewhat....PERFECT SEASON. So....
Things I liked:
- Well, almost everything. The season opener: never in a series saw a first episode that communicated its intentions, themes, characters, and, somewhat plot, so flawessly. It present the main cast, the world they were living, their dynamics, and the villians. So many series need two or three to "get" what they said about the series. Some needs more. Some they changed in the middle. King-Ohger was the only one who did it PERFECT. The final battle.......the Avengers Endgame of the Sentai. More than perfect.
- The main cast is EXCELLENT: Gira. Probably the best Red since....I dunno, Marvelous. He's probably following every staple of a Shonen anime character trope, a "Genki" Red, but somehow, the plot made him interesting to watch. His development, his attitude, his sense of "justice", I liked it. Everything. It's great he challenged the perception of a Red Ranger, and how a Super Sentai operates. This is not your common Sentai: here, they are not friends, not family, not rivals-turn-into allies. Kings. With responsabilities, burdens, and cultural traits. And he, somewhow, has to win them over, to fight Racles and the rest of the villians.
- Yanma. Of course he's the classic trope of "yankee student with a heart of gold". There so many things about him to talk. But, which I liked more it's the fact, he's just not only resourceful, but he's very loyal to his friends. And in the beginning, he seems like a foil for Gira, for he transform in his more brilliant ally.
- Himeno Ran. Great casting and great character. I liked there's a justification for his trait on "beauty". Again, it's like, a subversion a the trope for "vanity queen" but whe cares about her people. Her plot about the mistery of the Wrath of Gods was good too.
- Kaguraki Dybowski. What can I say. I love this guy. He's so bombastic. I like he's seems conscious about his characteristic of betrayal,:"we should not be picky about our methods" or "We should cover in dirt". Of course he cares about his people. He understand more. And the fact sometimes he has to and he should to betray the other KingOhgears for a greater good, it's great. Specially his alliance with Racles.
- Rita Kanisuka. I love her catchphrase (based in an old Latin phrase): "The earth may shatter, and the heavens may fall... but I, Rita Kaniska, shall not waver!". She's intransigent and rigid, but she gains more flexibility with the time, which I love. She's probably one of my favorite heroines in latest years.
- Racles. Oh man. Perfect. His development, his motivations, his acting. 'chef kiss'. The only character I wanted to be horribly killed, until the episode 41....the rest is history. He was transformed in character I could sympathize. That heel turn was perfect.
- Jeramie. I never expected the narrator gonna be a main cast, lest of a Ranger! This show gave me more surprises than any other show ever. He was cool, fun, and interesting. And his development, and backgorund, was one of the most interesting in years. I loved it.
- The secondaries. Special mention to Sebastian, best butler ever. Morfonia was really good. And even characters like Suzane and that trio of hackers played important roles. I didn't like a lot the "posse" of Yanma, but I can't deny they were useful. Even I liked Gerojim. It was a great moment when all of them became pilots of the God KingOhger.
- Plot and subplots. Just great. Special mention to the Kaguragi's one. I though Rita or Himeno had the greatest, but how he became a King.... Great backstory.
- The fight choreographies were good, and, in moments, awesome. Mechas' fights were incredible too.
- The subversion of not "being" an actual Sentai, or group. They basically gathering for the moment. It's probably against Sentai, but I like it when they have to fight more "individually" and being Kings of their respective countries, with their own motivations, and "politics", than simply "there's a monster attacking the city, let's gather and fight like a team". This has to be built upon time. It took time. Even if the mecha fights, has to be Gira activating Kingohger alone. It worked better for the dynamics between characters. Also, the friction between them worked perfectly. I think this couldn't work without Donbrothers doing subversion before this series.....
- The villians were great. Deathnarak seemed, at the beginning, like generic "villian gonna be sitting in his ass for the whole season, and he's gonna be active in the last two episodes", which he wasn't. And he has a motivation. And a great death scene....and a even a more awesome return.
- Kamejim. I really thought he was an idiot at the beginning....but he played the long game, he was part of a bigger plot. He was treacherous, cunning, and sinister. The kind of character you love to hate. And he was the character I think he deserved an awful death. And the series delivered. Thanks, Minato Takano.
- The Jesters. Some said they were underutilized. I think they were perfect. Specially Grodi. He was incredible creepy. Hirubiru too, controlling people with the voice. Probably Goma and Minongan were less creepy, but they were formidable opponents. But, man! Grodi, he was really creepy. Again, Kousei Amano stole the part.
- Dugded, the cosmic entity who destroyed planet just for fun. He was great. He was everything I wanted in a villian: powerful, an a22hole, and with more input in the plot. I mean, he was making chaos, killing Racles and Gira's parents, starting a war with the Bugnarak and Shuggodam, and even helping to Deboss to rule the Earth? Man, he was vicious. He even could travel to the land of dead to kill an enemy!
- Politics. And when people talked about politics it's just some left wing ideas, or right wing ideas. No, people. Politics. How to be a ruler. Burden. Sacrifice. Justice. Probably it's just the less explored of the ideas, but they worked really well with the amount of things this season offered.
- The designs were perfect. Suits, mechas, weapons. Even the integration of merchandise and plot worked perfectly! They even used those objects/pendants/symbols that, I thought, were another thing to be a cash grab for Toei. Just collectibles or some things for cosplay. Accesories. They were the King's Proof, and a source of a power up! Damn.
- The CGI, probably not perfect, but I don't mind. It was used when it mattered the most. Even if probably still looked like CGI those backgrounds (and the floor), but they gave us some incredible landscapes. It was ambitous to create five (later six) kingdoms, with their own characteristics. Different cultures. A whole new world. That's the ambition I wanted for a show.
- With the CGI, also I love the creativity. Sure, you could say they copied European, Asian and different cultures to make the kingdoms, even some ideas of Game of Thrones, but it was executed perfectly.
I don't dislike a lot of things. There's nitpicking things. Probably, the timeskip of two year...ngh. I dunno. Probably a "one year later" skip could be more realistic. It doesn't change a lot of thing, specially for the plot. Probably because Bun, the little orphan, and the other girl didn't age a lot in two years. I mean, they were kids, they are supposed to grow. But, meh. It's just nitpicking.
So, Super Sentai a la Game of Thrones. But not failing like Game of Thrones season 8. LOL.
11/10. Best Sentai.....ever.