So... Plot or no plot?
 

In other words, do you typically prefer high stakes Sentai with season long storylines or low stakes Sentai that place more emphasis on the day to day adventures of the characters rather then a story or whatever world domination plan the villains may, or may not, have?

Me personally? I prefer low stakes Sentai. Most Sentai like this are very comedic in nature and, while Sentai can certainly do a serious storyline, I believe Sentai is at its strongest when its focused more on comedy and wacky adventures rather then serious villains who are, ya know, actually supposed to be taken seriously.

I'd normally say low stakes. Zyuohger being so character focused was what helped it be so charming and entertaining.

However, Gekiranger is a thing, and it's ongoing plot kept me engrossed. The villains were threatening due to being involved in their own B plot, and our heroes growth was natural due to the rising threat.

Both styles of plots have their weaknesses, but I think the low stakes, more character driven series tend to be worse off because of it. A lot of shows take a fair number of episodes to really get you engrossed into the cast. But whereas other comedy/character series can put a focus on this, Sentai needs to add multiple action scenes as well as the mech fight. This dampers things because if you don't find yourself really enjoying the cast (Or at least a few members) after 6 or 7 episodes (*Cough*Kyuranger*CoughCough*), it's difficult to really buckle yourself in for the long haul.

...Why can't we have high-stake, character driven Sentai? That's not impossible last time I checked...

I didn't say it wasn't. Some Sentai, and Tokusatsu in general, just have no interest in a season long story line and prefer to focus on the various adventures the characters go on in their day to day lives and how the monsters they face effect them. They may have a serious plot line or a more high stake adventure here and there, even Go-Onger had episodes like this, but having an actually storyline is clearly very low on their list of priorities.

It depends on what the tone for the rider show that airs alongside it is like. If the rider show decides to go goofy with its tone then I would like something serious in the sentai show and vice versa.

Kamen Rider doesn't really "do" comedic seasons very often do they? Fourze was the last time an honest effort was made at a comedic season and, even then, it started getting kinda dark towards the end. Not even close to the seasons that followed but still...

Depends on the show and timing (and my mood, honestly). Generally, in the early episodes, I look for characters, both heroes and villains. Regardless of plot, if I'm going to sit through 50-ish episodes of a show, I want characters I enjoy watching. That is the foundation of a good show, really. Enjoyable characters will carry the show for a while, long enough to add more heroes/villains (just don't overdo it), and then the added characters can carry the show until around episode 30. Around that time is when I get really anxious for plot and/or twists that will carry the series through the end. I like some kind of subplots going on before then, like villain infighting or a quest for some power up. Something to tell me there's more going on, but it's not the focus yet.

So basically, first half of the show is more about characters and second half is more about the plot and I like a good bridging subplot in the middle.

Ideally I want both because I almost always enjoy long, rich stories that develop over the course of a year. Characters are very important to me, probably the most important aspect of a show, but characters alone are not going to be enough to keep me interested in a show. For example, I love the cast and characters of Zyuohger but I felt the story went nowhere for such a long time, the villains weren't overly engaging, and it was overall a chore watching these characters I like go through lackluster situations.

True, but overall it managed to be a light-hearted school drama with some seriousness when needed.

Ghost wasn't a comedy?

Ghost was a sitcom that was re-edited to be from Takeru's view. It actually is a Japanese adaptation of The Office starring Onari and his two subordinates. :lolol

Was that what it was? I assumed it was a mix of the two. I'm not sure if it was a *good* mix of the two but...

Gekiranger was an unique series. I refused to watch it and dropped it before because I'm not fond of the cast including the 7 furries and their suits/mecha. I changed my mind later and completed it. Turns out it's one of the rarer series where the villains are actually doing something threatening every episode like Liveman.

You're creating a false dichotomy here. Stories can, and should, be both plot-oriented and character-oriented. In fact, separation of character and plot (they're inextricably intertwined in the best stories) is often the easiest way to spot a weak storyteller.

That said, I think there's something to be said about preferring low-stakes stories to high-stakes stories (personally, I think they both have their merits). The great thing about Super Sentai is that because it's rebooted every season, you don't actually have to choose!

As I mentioned early in this discussion, I'm fully aware that a Sentai can have both good characters and a good story. There are just some Sentai that clearly care more about one then the other. I'm also aware that we don't have to choose one or the other but even so, there are still people who prefer one over the other and there are certain things that work better in one type of story then the other.

If I had to choose one then obviously character driven. With a story driven one the story could be amazing but the characters could end up ruining it in one form or another. Which would annoy/disappoint/piss me off more because the ideas the show has sound amazing, but the use of characters ruins it, like Ghost, Wizard, and Kyuranger (as of episode 9 at least). I think I may have messed up what I said.

Still not exactly sure what you mean, but based on what I think you are saying, mine would be high stakes. I want plot, which is why Dairanger is my favorite show.

I guess I did word the question rather oddly didn't I? I guess what I mean by character driven is... a show that's very in the moment. They may be fighting against monster who intends to take over the world, but they aren't really under the same kind of pressure story driven teams are. For character driven Sentai, filler episodes are the main reason you watch the show. This definition is a bit "shakey" for certain Sentai that I consider character driver rather then story driven but that's probably the best way I could describe it.

I'd prefer both, but if I had to pick between good plot and good characters? I'd pick characters any day. It doesn't matter how good the plot is, if I hate the characters, or just find them boring, I'm not going to like the show.