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Super Sentai

Japanese media franchise From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Super Sentai
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The Super Sentai Series (スーパー戦隊シリーズ, Sūpā Sentai Shirīzu) is a Japanese superhero team media franchise consisting of television series and films produced by Toei Company and aired by TV Asahi.[1] The shows are of the tokusatsu genre, featuring live action characters and colorful special effects, and are aimed at children, teens and young adults. Super Sentai airs alongside the Kamen Rider series in the Super Hero Time programming block on Sunday mornings. In North America, the Super Sentai series is best known as the source material for the Power Rangers series.[2]

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Series overview

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In every Super Sentai series, the protagonists are a team of people who – using either wrist-worn or hand-held devices – transform into superheroes and gain superpowers – color-coded uniforms, signature weapons, sidearms, and fighting skills – to battle a group of otherworldly supervillains that threaten to take over the Earth. In a typical episode, the heroes thwart the enemies' plans and defeat an army of enemy soldiers and the monster of the week before an enlarged version of the monster confronts them, only to be defeated once again when the heroes fight it with their super robot mecha.

For a time, Sentai series chose to set themselves in their own unique fictional universes; however, beginning in the 1990's, incarnations have retroactively made it so nearly every Sentai series has occurred within the same universe with rare exceptions, and modern series now maintain that nearly all Sentai series (as well as a majority of Toei's other tokusatsu hero series) occur in the same setting, just with the other series not commonly referenced when unneeded to allow a running series to tell the story its creators wish to without the need to actively factor decades of continuity in. Beginning with J.A.K.Q. Dengekitai vs. Gorenger, Various TV, video, and film specials as well as in-canon storyline episodes feature a team-up among two or more teams, often clarifying and maintaining the now-commonplace inter-series continuity, which makes it difficult to dis-associate the greater franchise's entries from each other unless a specific entry detaches itself from the greater majority. The Sentai series Zenkaiger proposed that both a standalone and unified perspective of Sentai continuity is simultaneously true; that there are worlds where just any Sentai series occurs in a standalone format, as well as the main timeline in which Toei's series collectively occur; generally seen as a way for Toei to acknowledge their own longstanding inconsistencies and continuity errors with regards to the writing of team-up events and the changing expectations of storytelling over time.

The first two Super Sentai series were created by Shotaro Ishinomori, then known for the 1971–1973 Kamen Rider TV series and the long-running manga Cyborg 009. He developed Himitsu Sentai Gorenger, which ran from 1975 to 1977, and J.A.K.Q. Dengekitai, released in 1977. Toei Company put the franchise on hiatus in 1978, collaborating with Marvel Comics to produce a live-action Spider-Man series, which added giant robots to the concept of tokusatsu shows. The giant robot concept was carried over to Toei and Marvel's next show, Battle Fever J, released in 1979, and was then used throughout the Super Sentai series. The next two series Denshi Sentai Denjiman and Taiyo Sentai Sun Vulcan had Marvel copyrights and co-productions, despite no influence. Subsequently, the remainder of the series has been solely produced by Toei Company.

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Productions

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Main series

The following is a list of the Super Sentai series and their years of broadcast:

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Theatrical releases

V-Cinema releases

Extras

Others

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Distribution and overseas adaptations

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Although the Super Sentai series originated in Japan, various Sentai series have been imported and dubbed in other languages for broadcast in several other countries.

United States

Main article: Power Rangers

After Honolulu's KIKU-TV had success with Android Kikaider (marketed as Kikaida) and Kamen Rider V3 in the 1970s, multiple Super Sentai series, including Himitsu Sentai Gorenger and Battle Fever J, were brought to the Hawaiian market, broadcast in Japanese with English subtitles by JN Productions.[citation needed] In 1985, Marvel Comics produced a pilot for an American adaptation of Super Sentai, but the show was rejected by the major American TV networks.[3] In 1986, Saban Productions produced a pilot for an American adaptation of Choudenshi Bioman titled Bio Man.[4][5] In 1987, some episodes of Kagaku Sentai Dynaman were dubbed and aired as a parody on the USA Network television show Night Flight.[6]

In 1993, American production company Saban Entertainment adapted 1992's Kyōryū Sentai Zyuranger into Mighty Morphin Power Rangers for the Fox Kids programming block, combining the original Japanese action footage with new footage featuring American actors for the story sequences. Since then, nearly every Super Sentai series that followed became a new season of Power Rangers. In 2002, Saban sold the Power Rangers franchise to Disney's Buena Vista division,[7] who owned it until 2010, broadcasting Power Rangers on ABC Kids, ABC Family, Jetix, and Toon Disney.[citation needed] On 12 May 2010, Saban bought the franchise back from Disney, moving the show to the Nickelodeon network for 2011 with Power Rangers Samurai.[8]

On 25 July 2014, Shout! Factory announced that they would release Zyuranger on DVD in the United States.[9] They have since been the official distributor of Super Sentai in North America, and as of 2024 have released all subsequent series up to Dekaranger, plus Jetman and Fiveman. Shout! also provides episodes on demand via Shout! TV since 2016.[10] Super Sentai episodes are also available to watch on the free streaming service, Tubi.

On 1 May 2018, toy company Hasbro announced they had acquired the Power Rangers franchise from Saban Capital Group for $522 million.[11]

South Korea

Super Sentai has been broadcast in South Korea, dubbed in Korean. The first such series was Choushinsei Flashman which aired as Jigu Bangwidae Flash Man (Earth Defence Squadron Flashman), released in video format in 1989 by the Daeyung Panda video company; this was followed by Hikari Sentai Maskman and Chodenshi Bioman. Throughout the 1990s, Dai Sentai Goggle Five, Dengeki Sentai Changeman, Choujyu Sentai Liveman, and Kousoku Sentai Turboranger were also released in video format. In the 2000s and early 2010s, Tooniverse (formerly Orion Cartoon Network), JEI-TV (Jaeneung Television), Champ TV/Anione TV (Daewon Broadcasting), Cartoon Network South Korea, and Nickelodeon South Korea have broadcast Super Sentai series a year following their original Japanese broadcast, but have changed the titles to "Power Rangers".[12][13][14]

Vietnam

Phuongnam Film Company Limited is the unit that purchases copyright, distributes, exploits, narrated into Vietnamese and releases the Super Sentai series. Starting to release in 2003, the Hyakujuu Sentai Gaoranger series, produced in VCD and DVD formats, was the best-selling series in Vietnam at that time. In 2007, Phuongnam Film continued to release the Tokusou Sentai Dekaranger series. The following Sentai series were released: Mahou Sentai Magiranger (2008); GoGo Sentai Boukenger (2009); Juken Sentai Gekiranger (2010); Engine Sentai Go-onger (2011); Samurai Sentai Shinkenger (2012); Tensou Sentai Goseiger (2013); After that, only DVD releases were released, such as the series Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger (2014) and Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters (2015). Since 2016, Phuongnam Film has cooperated with the children's television channel SCTV3-Sao TV (now SeeTV) to broadcast Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger (previously Phuongnam Film collaborated with HTVC Gia đình to broadcast from Magiranger to Goseiger, Gokaiger alone was broadcast on VTC8), then Ressha Sentai ToQger and finally Shuriken Sentai Ninninger, since that film, the production of DVDs or VCDs of Super Sentai or broadcasting on television channels have all stopped. In addition to the release of Phuongnam Film, most Super Sentai series are translated into Vietnamese subtitles by the Vietnamese online community and posted on Vietnamese subtitle movie websites (typically Toku Friends Fansub and Unmei Fansub) or released on pirated video discs that are widely available on the market by private movie narrated units. Voice actress Doan Thi Tuyet Mai started narrating with the Gaoranger series, then she narrated from Dekaranger to Gokaiger. From Go-buster to Ninninger, the male voice narrated, especially the two series ToQger and Ninninger, there were new female voice narrations.

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Merchandise

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As of March 2021, Bandai Namco has sold 30.89 million Super Sentai shape-changing model robots since 1979.[15]

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Parody and homage

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The Super Sentai Series has been parodied and emulated in various ways throughout the world.[citation needed] The term "Sentai" is also occasionally used to describe shows with premises like the Super Sentai Series.[citation needed]

Dai-Nippon

Main article: Aikoku Sentai Dai-Nippon

Gainax produced a Japanese fan film called Patriotic Squadron Great Japan (愛國戰隊大日本, Aikoku Sentai Dai-Nippon) in 1982 as a homage to the Super Sentai franchise.[37]

Sport Ranger

Main article: Sport Ranger

The Thai TV series Sport Ranger, another homage to Super Sentai, aired in 2006.[38]

France Five

Main article: France Five

Jushi Sentai France Five (later known as Shin Kenjushi France Five) is a French online mini-series that was released in six installments from 2000 to 2013.[citation needed] The series was so popular in Japan that Akira Kushida recorded its second opening theme.[citation needed]

Legendary Armor Samurai Troopers

Main article: Ronin Warriors

Known as Ronin Warriors in the English dub, this anime involved five young warriors each in possession of mystical armor and weapons which allowed them to transform into more powerful forms in the manner of Super Sentai.

Sailor Moon

Main article: Sailor Moon

Naoko Takeuchi used the Super Sentai Series as inspiration for the creation of the Sailor Soldiers in Sailor Moon.[39][40]

Digimon Frontier

Main article: Digimon Frontier

The fourth entry of the Digimon anime involved five young kids (eventually six) to gain Digivices known as D-tectors which contained the spirits of ancient heroes known as the Ten Legendary Warriors that allowed them to transform into Digimon forms to fight off monsters in a manner reminiscent of Super Sentai.

Jeanne d'Arc

Main article: Jeanne d'Arc (video game)

The Jeanne d'Arc PSP game made by Level 5 which depicts the title character (voiced by Maaya Sakamoto in Japanese and Kari Wahlgren in English respectively) in a fantasy universe based on the historical story has her and certain others with the power to transform into armored warriors akin to Super Sentai.

Kingdom Hearts

Main article: Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep

The PSP prequel entry to the Kingdom Hearts video game franchise made by Square-Enix involves the main characters (Terra, Aqua, and Ventus) transforming into magical armor akin to Super Sentai.

Sparanger

As part of the Omoikkiri Ii!! TV television program, a series of features was produced on various spas and onsen around Japan titled Bihada Sentai Sparanger (美肌泉隊ＳＰＡレンジャー, Bihada Sentai Suparenjā; Handsome Muscle Spring Corps Sparanger). This featured tokusatsu and drama actors Takashi Hagino (Changéríon of Choukou Senshi Changéríon and Kamen Rider Ouja of Kamen Rider Ryuki) as Spa Red (ＳＰＡレッド, Supa Reddo), Kento Handa (Kamen Rider Faiz of Kamen Rider 555) as Spa Blue (ＳＰＡブルー, Supa Burū), Kengo Ohkuchi (Emperor Z of Ressha Sentai ToQger) as Spa Green (ＳＰＡグリーン, Supa Gurīn), Masashi Mikami (Bouken Blue in GoGo Sentai Boukenger) as Spa Yellow (ＳＰＡイエロー, Supa Ierō), and Kohei Murakami (Kamen Rider Kaixa in Kamen Rider 555) as Spa Murasaki (ＳＰＡムラサキ（紫）, Supa Murasaki; "purple" or "violet" in Japanese, a running joke would involve people referring to him as Spa Purple).[41]

EA's Rock

In 2013, Gainax produced EA's Rock (エアーズロック, Eāzu Rokku), a 13-episode miniseries of live-action shorts which parodied the Super Sentai Series. The series' characters are all former members of a fighting group called Sensation Warriors Gokan Five (感覚戦士ゴカンファイブ, Kankaku Senshi Gokan Faibu; "gokan" is Japanese for the "five senses").[citation needed] EA's Rock is broadcast on the Tōmeihan Net 6 Japanese Association of Independent Television Stations as well as Nico Nico Douga.[42][43]

Akibaranger

Main article: Unofficial Sentai Akibaranger

Unofficial Sentai Akibaranger (非公認戦隊アキバレンジャー, Hikōnin Sentai Akibarenjā) is a Toei-produced parody series that premiered in April 2012 on BS Asahi and Tokyo MX. Akibaranger is made for adult fans who were fans of the Super Sentai Series as children. The story features three otaku who live in the Akihabara district of Tokyo who receive technology from a scientist to fight an evil threat that at first only exists in their delusions, but eventually starts materializing itself in the real world. Like Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger, Akibaranger features guest appearances by veteran Super Sentai actors (as themselves rather than their characters), and voice actors and musicians who have worked in anime and tokusatsu.[citation needed] A second season aired in April 2013.[citation needed]

Bleach

Main articles: Bleach (manga) and Bleach (anime)

The manga/anime franchise Bleach has referenced Super Sentai twice. First with Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck and her Fracción (Dondochakka Birstanne, Pesche Guatiche, and Bawabawa) taking Sentai poses and introductions when they first encounter the protagonists in Hueco Mundo. The second is when Kisuke Urahara establishes the team of Karakura Raizer (lead by Kon) to protect Karakura Town in the heroes' absence, with their powers and introductions clearly inspired from Super Sentai teams.

Love After World Domination

Main article: Love After World Domination

The manga/anime series Love After World Domination is a satire on the Super Sentai genre, with a team of multi-color heroes who can don spandex power suits to fight against an organization bent on world domination.

Dragon Ball

Main article: Dragon Ball

Akira Toriyama was inspired to create the Ginyu Force for the Dragon Ball manga after seeing his children watch Super Sentai.[44]

Yu-Gi-Oh!

The anime series Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS (2017) pays homage to the Super Sentai series, with the character Shima occasionally performing Sentai moves.[citation needed] The English dub adds a joke referring to a Sentai move as "the dab", referencing how the dab dance move in 2010s American popular culture has a striking resemblance to Sentai moves that have appeared in the Super Sentai series since the 1970s (and the localised Power Rangers series since the 1990s).[45]

One Piece

Main article: One Piece

Germa 66's Vinsmoke commanders bear a resemblance to Super Sentai series, as they bear similar color-coded designs and epithets: Reiju is "Poison Pink", Ichiji "Sparking Red", Niji "Electric Blue", Yonji "Winch Green", and Sanji "Stealth Black". These colors are also prominently incorporated into their clothing and hair color (except for Sanji).[citation needed]

The Red/Blue/Pink/Green team alignment matches that of J.A.K.Q. Dengekitai, the first and only Sentai squad which started with four members.[citation needed]

The clone soldiers used by the Germa likewise resemble the various foot soldiers used by the villains in Sentai series.[citation needed]

Pretty Cure

Main article: Pretty Cure

The Pretty Cure franchise largely resembles Super Sentai as a tokusatsu-style magical girl series with varying teams of girls over the years, as well as the fact that it is long-aired alongside Super Sentai on TV on Sunday mornings.

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Common concept

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Roll call

It is common for Sentai heroes to announce their names and titles after morphing. This performance is referred to as a "roll call".

The performance dates back to "Shiranami Gonin Otoko", a kabuki play first performed in 1862.[46] Elements of kabuki were carried over into 20th century television jidaigeki, which Toei excels.[47] Kazutoshi Takahashi, a sub-director of swordplay of "Himitsu Sentai Gorenger", decided to introduce roll call to the first Super Sentai.[46]

Roll call has been omitted at times throughout history of Sentai series, but the children have not responded well to it.[47]

The performance is in line with Japanese aesthetic sense, and when it is broadcast in other countries, it is the part that raises the most questions: "Won't they be attacked by the enemy during this time?"[48] During the production of "Mighty Morphin Power Rangers", the American side raised doubts about the roll call, and producer Takeyuki Suzuki had to explain the necessity of it.[49]

However, as the Power Rangers series continued, roll call gradually became more well-known.[50] In the late 2010s, when the Japanese side omitted roll call, they were even told "why don't you do it?" from other countries.[50]

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Notes

    References

    External links

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