Go Go Sentai Boukenger!
"Even today. there are those who risk their lives to adventure. They overcome all troubles to secretly protect dangerous treasures. Adventurers!"
And most stand out of all these adventurers is one badass lady who stole my heart, BoukenPink, Sakura Nishihori!
So, after finishing Mahou Sentai Magiranger, I decided to go with the Super Sentai series that followed it, the 30th anniversary series. Plus, it was basically described to me as the Super Sentai take on Indiana Jones, which I felt had potential to be awesome.
The theme for this sentai is "Adventure", the literal translation for "Bouken". All the characters, the Boukengers, work for SGS, Search Guard Successor, which provides them with all their equipment and training for gathering various treasures from around the world known as "Precious". This gives the series a very episodic structure, each episode being mostly self-contained and centered on the struggle to obtain and protect the McGuffin that is the focus for each episode. However, there are periodic multi-parters, and bits and pieces from earlier episodes will get built upon for later episodes. Plus, after the recap episode, the final stretch of the series becomes one long storyline that wraps almost every plot thread up.
Another major element of the series is the way it handles its Giant Robot action. It is very elaborate, with by the end eighteen individual "Go Go Vehicles", numbered 1-18. The largest single combination of vehicles is 10, and there's also a lot of mixing and matching of vehicles to get the upper hand on the giant monster of the week. This leads to some very fun and creative fight scenes, which is always a plus with this sort of thing.
However, what I find to be the strongest and most interesting aspect of the series is the Pink Ranger, Sakura Nishihori. Basically, she is a somewhat more approachable version of Mai from Avatar the Last Airbender. I mean, I know Mai was hardly a unique archetype, but to see the Pink Ranger, who is generally the picture of pep ala Ty Lee, being a strict and cool customer was pleasantly unexpected. Over the course of the series she does get better about expressing her feelings, but she's never made to have to rewrite who she is as a person to gain everyone's approval. Also, one of her episodes is basically Revolutionary Girl Utena condensed into a single episode, with rose imagery replaced with giant robot fights. Once again, I'm finding that Super Sentai does very well by its ladies.
Now, unlike other Super Sentai series, there are three, and later four, enemy factions, referred to as "Negative Syndicates". They each seek the various "Precious" around the world, and while they'll form alliances with one another, they'll also betray one another just as quickly, for their goals are mutually exclusive to one another.
First up is High Priest Gaja, ruler of the Goadam civilization, is awoken from his slumber in the first episode to find his domain is long gone. Naturally, he doesn't care for that, and seeks the Precious to recreate his old empire. Of the factions, he makes the most use of Mooks, Kaasu, which he conjures in great quantities from any nearby rocks, and will offer up these mooks to the other Negative Syndicates to curry favor with them. One thing you'll pick up on right away is his hat, which is rather reminiscent of the Pope's, leading to many nicknames in fandom, or so I'm told. He also speaks slowly with a raspy voice, and his dominant color scheme is white.
Next is Ryoun, King of the Jaryuu tribe. He is a Dragon-Man who believes himself superior to humans, and so seeks the Precious to wipe all humans off the face of the Earth and repopulate it with his kind. He also has mooks, but not as many; in fact, when their numbers aren't being increased by special effects, you never see more than three Jaryuu soldiers on screen at any one time. He ultimately ends up being the most complex of the villains, being given a backstory that really brings home the rivalry between him and BoukenRed. His dominant color scheme is Red.
Third on the line is the Dark Shadow Ninja Clan. They're just in it for the money, stealing valuable Precious and selling them on the black market. This is a small group, lacking in any mooks not provided to them by Gaja. Their leader is Gekkou, a talking owl and master of Ninja Magic, capable of creating Monsters of the Week and turning them giant. Beneath him are Yaiba, the strict and serious one, and Shizuka, the excitable one who you can't help but feel sorry for when her plans inevitably fall apart. Their dominant color scheme is Blue.
Finally come the Ashu/Questers, who don't actually show up until later in the series, and they bring with them the resident sixth ranger. All those stories around the world about Demons and Yokai? These guys are what they're talking about. One of them has a habit of rolling his R's, which my ears really like, and they tend to construct Giant Robots with very heavy militaristic themes. Anyway, they're pissed about being hunted down to extinction over the centuries, and would like to return the favor. Their dominant color scheme is Black.
Now, in terms of its flaws, I found that the middle part of the series began to drag, not really having any particular goal. Also, they introduce a Robot Buddy who's powered by friendship, he's underdeveloped to put it mildly.
Overall? It's a lot of fun, great action/adventure sequences, and BoukenPink is awesome. Everyone should be able to enjoy Go Go Sentai Boukenger.
And most stand out of all these adventurers is one badass lady who stole my heart, BoukenPink, Sakura Nishihori!
So, after finishing Mahou Sentai Magiranger, I decided to go with the Super Sentai series that followed it, the 30th anniversary series. Plus, it was basically described to me as the Super Sentai take on Indiana Jones, which I felt had potential to be awesome.
The theme for this sentai is "Adventure", the literal translation for "Bouken". All the characters, the Boukengers, work for SGS, Search Guard Successor, which provides them with all their equipment and training for gathering various treasures from around the world known as "Precious". This gives the series a very episodic structure, each episode being mostly self-contained and centered on the struggle to obtain and protect the McGuffin that is the focus for each episode. However, there are periodic multi-parters, and bits and pieces from earlier episodes will get built upon for later episodes. Plus, after the recap episode, the final stretch of the series becomes one long storyline that wraps almost every plot thread up.
Another major element of the series is the way it handles its Giant Robot action. It is very elaborate, with by the end eighteen individual "Go Go Vehicles", numbered 1-18. The largest single combination of vehicles is 10, and there's also a lot of mixing and matching of vehicles to get the upper hand on the giant monster of the week. This leads to some very fun and creative fight scenes, which is always a plus with this sort of thing.
However, what I find to be the strongest and most interesting aspect of the series is the Pink Ranger, Sakura Nishihori. Basically, she is a somewhat more approachable version of Mai from Avatar the Last Airbender. I mean, I know Mai was hardly a unique archetype, but to see the Pink Ranger, who is generally the picture of pep ala Ty Lee, being a strict and cool customer was pleasantly unexpected. Over the course of the series she does get better about expressing her feelings, but she's never made to have to rewrite who she is as a person to gain everyone's approval. Also, one of her episodes is basically Revolutionary Girl Utena condensed into a single episode, with rose imagery replaced with giant robot fights. Once again, I'm finding that Super Sentai does very well by its ladies.
Now, unlike other Super Sentai series, there are three, and later four, enemy factions, referred to as "Negative Syndicates". They each seek the various "Precious" around the world, and while they'll form alliances with one another, they'll also betray one another just as quickly, for their goals are mutually exclusive to one another.
First up is High Priest Gaja, ruler of the Goadam civilization, is awoken from his slumber in the first episode to find his domain is long gone. Naturally, he doesn't care for that, and seeks the Precious to recreate his old empire. Of the factions, he makes the most use of Mooks, Kaasu, which he conjures in great quantities from any nearby rocks, and will offer up these mooks to the other Negative Syndicates to curry favor with them. One thing you'll pick up on right away is his hat, which is rather reminiscent of the Pope's, leading to many nicknames in fandom, or so I'm told. He also speaks slowly with a raspy voice, and his dominant color scheme is white.
Next is Ryoun, King of the Jaryuu tribe. He is a Dragon-Man who believes himself superior to humans, and so seeks the Precious to wipe all humans off the face of the Earth and repopulate it with his kind. He also has mooks, but not as many; in fact, when their numbers aren't being increased by special effects, you never see more than three Jaryuu soldiers on screen at any one time. He ultimately ends up being the most complex of the villains, being given a backstory that really brings home the rivalry between him and BoukenRed. His dominant color scheme is Red.
Third on the line is the Dark Shadow Ninja Clan. They're just in it for the money, stealing valuable Precious and selling them on the black market. This is a small group, lacking in any mooks not provided to them by Gaja. Their leader is Gekkou, a talking owl and master of Ninja Magic, capable of creating Monsters of the Week and turning them giant. Beneath him are Yaiba, the strict and serious one, and Shizuka, the excitable one who you can't help but feel sorry for when her plans inevitably fall apart. Their dominant color scheme is Blue.
Finally come the Ashu/Questers, who don't actually show up until later in the series, and they bring with them the resident sixth ranger. All those stories around the world about Demons and Yokai? These guys are what they're talking about. One of them has a habit of rolling his R's, which my ears really like, and they tend to construct Giant Robots with very heavy militaristic themes. Anyway, they're pissed about being hunted down to extinction over the centuries, and would like to return the favor. Their dominant color scheme is Black.
Now, in terms of its flaws, I found that the middle part of the series began to drag, not really having any particular goal. Also, they introduce a Robot Buddy who's powered by friendship, he's underdeveloped to put it mildly.
Overall? It's a lot of fun, great action/adventure sequences, and BoukenPink is awesome. Everyone should be able to enjoy Go Go Sentai Boukenger.