That also reminds me of the debate of what is anime, and what is not anime despite being made in Japan. Anybody watch Kenny Lauderdale's YT channel, he did something like this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sboxyNkQZJg

And let's not forget Mike Toole's 2011 article on Anime... Or Not?!

If we go by the literal definition of tokusatsu, "live-action filming with heavy use of special effects," that would also include a huge amount of western fantasy, scifi and superhero movies and shows.

I think my unpopular opinion about what is and isn't toku is that there's no clear dividing line. There's some things that clearly are and some things that clearly aren't, but there's a whole bunch of stuff that's in a gray area. I expect most of us have a clear idea of what shows we're thinking of when we say "toku," but any set of rigid rules to define what is or isn't toku will end up either including things that we wouldn't consider toku, or excluding things that we would.
Maybe instead of asking "is this toku or not?" the real question is "how much is this toku?"

Also, I just think this is funny, I did the reverse of you two and branched out from toku into wuxia. Kamen Rider fed my interest in practical effects, and that led me to Thunderbolt Fantasy!

When people refer to Toku or Anime it's generally in a colloquial sense without a lot of hard rules -- it usually comes down to stylistic trappings, or to specific genres, or hell in the case of Toku usually just a few franchises and some other series which share things in common with it. Toku essentially means whatever the majority thinks it means

I mean... That's generally how language works if it's not a hard scientific term, given its everchanging.

So would you consider this as toku:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNsIGlXACew

What about this one:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hw-WcEkOCUM

Or what about Zu Warriors from the Magic Mountain, does this count as toku:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ku3kF6xZdeQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1XB4zH3C5-I

I mean the special effect from a 1983 film looks just like something I see in Kamen Rider, and Super Sentai. Or what about this sci-fi K-drama:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_YpLyPKaGs

And here's another K-drama, Sweet Home, which used a lot of special effect and CG where it borderline to tokusatsu territory:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7rI56NmD33Y

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qkS6i7oUpD8

Here's the behind the scene video that explained how Sweet Home's special effect was done:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Jr8b1JTRKM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNpqOHpZD9I

Wow South Korea is totally outdoing special effect compared to what I've seen in Japanese tokusatsu shows. So yes, that's what I mean by several K-dramas are borderlining to tokusatsu. It makes me baffle why these sci-fi/fantasy K-dramas and wuxia C-dramas are never brought up in discussion in tokusatsu fandom community circle when it comes to what define tokusatsu.

Congrats on watching Thunderbolt Fantasy, are you planning to watch Pili Fantasy: War of Dragons on Netflix anytime soon Fairyking? The Taiwanese company that did Thunderbolt Fantasy also did Pili Fantasy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8fhuB0WCB4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iq4gkf5fKHA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-q8ZXo-rzhQ

Interestingly, on Netflix under Pili Fantasy, here are the list of recommended C-dramas (wuxia mostly) if a person was watching Pili Fantasy:

https://i.ibb.co/rwmqMz6/Pili-drama-Netflix-2.jpg

https://i.ibb.co/3mFSzL7/Pili-drama-Netflix-3.jpg

Would be interesting to see how many toku fans that watched Thunderbolt Fantasy, and Pili Fantasy end up watching something like Ice Fantasy, The Devil Punisher, Word of Honor, and Once upon a time in Lingjian Mountain.

So would be very interesting if my unpopular opinion about wuxia C-drama and sci-fi/fantasy K-drama should be given tokusatsu classification would turned up in the near future.

Anyway, back on topic.

I find Shinkenger to be very overrated and not that great of a series.

What are you talking about? My observation and my unpopular opinion about fantasy/sci-fi K-drama and wuxia C-dramas not being talked about in tokusatsu circle is a unpopular opinion because I've never seen K-drama and wuxia fan made any attempt to reach out to tokusatsu fans. And I've never seen any toku fans reaching out to K-drama and C-drama (including wuxia) fandom.

Hence why I brought that up, it wasn't off topic it was a legitimate unpopular opinion and a observation in the tokusatsu community that I took notice of.

You know, as much as I appreciate the whole legacy aspect of Tsuburaya shows.

I am kind of getting a bit tired of seeing the same rotating cycle of monster suits again and again in the Ultra Series with fewer original and new Kaiju's showing up. Like I think Ultraman Z had... three super, brand new suits that weren't retools of existing monsters?

I'll piggyback off that Ultraman opinion for a moment.

I think Ultraman designs are way too samey and the toys also feel that way.