questions concerning japanese vs american series
 

hey i've been watching toku and kaiju a while off and on. im finally getting to to the point where with some series i am debating whether to get the japanese version( super sentai or metal heroes for example) as opposed to the adapted american versions (like power rangers or vr troopers). i dont really know the differences other then the american versions have different actors, are in english, reuse footage from the japanese versions etc. im guessing when the american versions reuse the fighting footage they pick select stuff because ive read sometimes they take footage from several series in japan for one series in america. that leads me to think the american versions are like condensed "best of" such and such series where seeing all the japanese series are for completeists. im wondering if im wrong though? any info would be appreciated. also if this is in the wrong section i apologize.

MMPR has no major plots. Zyu, Dai, and Kaku do. In fact, Dai is pretty much a story driven series with only 6 episodes of filler in its entire run.

A lot of the american shows are very different from their japanese counterparts in terms of character and story. They reuse some of the same footage but are often happening in very different contexts. There are shows that reuse the storylines from their source material to some extend but still put their own spin on it.

Kakuranger had a major plot? I remember important things happening of course, such as the whole thing with Tsuruhime's father and the various attempts by the Youkai to either capture Kakuranger just to name a few, but an actually storyline? Maybe I missed that...

Kakuranger was more character driven.

That's what I thought. All of the show major 'plot' points are either about character development or Tsuruhime's backstory. I still joke about how, as far as the plot is considered, Tsuruhime is really the only Kakuranger that actually matters as a character. Everyone else is just a body filling a suit.

story is nice. i really just like to see the fights, special effects, transformations, etc more than anything. im wondering if they when they adapted these series much was cut out in terms of that.

My understanding is that the similarities between Power Rangers and Sentai is all over the map. I'm told there are a few Power Rangers series that barely deviate from the Super Sentai. I gather Samurai is like this, but I've only seen one episode; that episode was more or less exactly like the Sentai version, only with white people and awful acting. I gather the best Power Rangers series rewrite and recontextualize a great deal, using the Sentai as a springboard to make something new. RPM seems to be more or less the ultimate expression of that; the first half of the series uses some Go-Onger footage, but the vast majority is completely original. Engine Sentai Go-Onger and Power Rangers RPM are very different experiences that each stand on their own.

You may want to check out an episode or two of a couple of Sentai and compare them to their Power Rangers counterparts. The shows certainly *feel* different. The music in Sentai - opening and closing themes, but also audio cues - makes them feel really different. Sentai often spends time on roll calls, and the super-elaborate ones (Gekiranger, Shinkenger) may be my favorite flavor of cheese. The fight sequences often overlap, but not always, and transformation sequences differ. Power Rangers drops some Sentai content, but sometimes builds entirely new content in its place. (I'm very curious about all those extra Jungle Fury Rangers.)

People who've seen the entirety of each version of the shows can tell you more specifically which Sentai are must-watch and which you can skip because the Power Rangers version was better. If you track down Go-Busters, ToQger, Dairanger, or any series Jetman or before, you're getting something that largely (or wholly) doesn't exist in Power Rangers form.

They're just some of the masters with a suit, nothing much.

its weird trying to get back into the franchise after watching it way back when ( i spent a good deal of time looking for darker tokusatsu films or at least something more mature but this franchise is so polished) and knowing they didnt simply dub or sub the show but actually made an alternate version for us. it makes me appreciate whats out there some more.

The baseball episode being one of the best from said filler episodes. :lolol

Kakuranger did have a plot, but yeah, a lot of it is through the characters themselves. That is still a plot though.

The only series I have seen that I think is better than the Sentai counterpart is SPD. Dekaranger is in my bottom rankings of Sentai due to the lack of a major villain, it being pretty episodic, and Ban (and partially Umeko). SPD was actually well written, well acted, didn't have pointless bathtub scenes, and gave the show a main villain with an overarching plot. Oh, and the rangers arrested the monsters rather than outright killed them.

That's not a filler episode though. The 3 Stooges stuff is part of the show's story since they are what motivates Shouji at the end of the show.

The filler episodes are:

Father Magnet episode
Tofu Hermit episode
The one with the photocopier and evil Kazu
Birdcage Vagabound's episode
General Cactus' episode
The one where Gorma tricks Rin into being an idol

In Dekaranger's defense, the monsters were put on trial for their crimes.

And almost every single one is sentenced to execution by firing squad? Seriously?

For Pete's sake, I'm a proponent of the death penalty and I think this is nuts... actually, I think it's nuts BECAUSE of my political beliefs. It's almost like someone tried to construct a strawman of me and it sets off my "not this BS again."

A lot of enemies in Dekaranger were guilty of destroying a bunch of planets.

Still, this sets off ALL my "This sounds EXTREMELY skeevy" alarms. It's just begging for some sort of abuse.

"Oh, but they do get a trial, it just happens in less 30 seconds in hyperspace." Yeah, prove it in a fashion that doesn't require me to lose 20 years off my life.

And that's before we get into all the ways this could be abused in conjunction with officer impersonation. Rig up the box right and you have carte blanche to murder whoever you like, with a system that nobody freaking questions.

They destroyed planets, thus mass genocide
In Japan, murder leads to the death penalty unless it's proven to be accidental or self defence, though you'll have a LONG ass prison sentence

I had no idea that was the case.

To be fair, most non-Japanese people found out because of Ace Attorney, as they always say "Someone's life is on the line" when talking to a shifty witness or something

It's less the sentence itself and more the whole concept of "Judgement Time" is... there is a lot about it I have issues with.

That and I don't like the idea of the same cops enforcing the law on the streets are also dealing out immediate punishment. It's like Judge Dredd or something, but possibly more horrifying because I don't think the author understands what's wrong with this premise and that it's in a KID'S SHOW.

EDIT: Also, no such thing as accidental murder. An accidental death called manslaughter.

Murder is a very specific thing and is not a word to be tossed around lightly...

Mind I say the same thing about heresy, and we all know how that works... Thank you Spanish Inquisition. It is your freaking fault that the WBC hasn't had someone pop their face in for being a crazy cult. Well, that and the decentralized nature of Baptist churches....


I think I'm straying into rule-breaking territory again.

It does saves taxpayers' money since Japan's economy is declining. Also, some criminals need to be sentenced to death for the horrible crimes they committed. Besides, some prison system is quite bad at guiding criminals to become good samaritans. I guess we can't blame the system entirely. It's hard to treat psychological problem and most people rather see them suffer than enjoy their sentence. Norway actually have the most luxurious prison in the world and it seems to be working pretty well for them. In the states, we give long death row to horrible criminals ranging as high as 25 years. It's both expensive and frustrating for the public.

I think the last thing that should be said about this death sentence stuff is that it proves how different American and Japanese cultures are

Dude, I just said I'm a death penalty proponent.

I mean, mind, that 25 years is mostly appeals, which they are by law required to take every single appeal opportunity when it comes to a death sentence.

I don't personally know enough about the prison system to have any real opinions on how to improve them, although my general thought is that there should be more fines in the legal system and less jail time, as more often than not the latter just exacerbates the problem.

Hmm... I wonder if a deal could be made between trade schools and prisons to create some sort of "Crooks to Craftsmen" type of program? I mean, I know there's programs for basic workshop work or food prep, but those are mostly low-end go nowhere jobs, not likely to ever be more profitable than more illicit endeavors.

I said that because we're getting off topic with this subject

Right, sorry, kind of forgot myself for a bit. My other major forum has made topic drift a freaking artform.

Seriously, the first Gun Control thread is a beautiful trainwreck of drift of which the likes we have not seen since.