*Points at Funimation Ultraman Tiga* As long as it's not that, I guess. Not too keen on the whole burn Power Rangers to the ground idea, but as long as it ain't Funimation'd.

I'm not going to get too into the first part of the statement because man, people really can't help but be mean-spirited towards this franchise, huh? That said...

On the subject of subs only though, I do think if you want Sentai to reach more people and gain a wider footing in a global audience... it needs to be dubbed too. I mean specifically in the style of the recent Ultraman Series dubs (Shin, Z, Blazar, Arc). Sometimes people just can't jive with subtitles and need something in their actual language. Or they have medical reasons.

http://pbs.twimg.com/media/GR0upUzXQ....jpg?name=orig

While I absolutely understand that live action dubbing is a bit odd for some people, I think it should be considered an option when importing these shows over. Plus, they've done some good work with the dubs we have had.

When it comes to subtitles or dubbing, it all comes down to quality. Not only is the art of dubbing itself not very developed in the English-language segment, but the difference in acting approaches also comes into conflict. In Japanese and in Asian art in general, they prefer overacting and grotesque emotionality. Even if the character is unemotional, he does it pointedly, playing a robot who won’t be surprised even if he meets a dinosaur. At the same time, a much more relaxed approach prevails in the English-speaking environment. Just remember how many recognized and successful Hollywood actors spend 90% of their screen time muttering something under their breath, occasionally smiling. Because of this difference, when dubbing, a problem without a solution will inevitably arise: if you voice expressively, as in the original, it will be unnatural for an English-speaking viewer; and if you do it according to your standards, then dissonance between sound and picture will arise.

And to think that if Power Rangers had never existed then this discussion likely would've never happened.

I almost always watch things subbed, but I actually sympathize with people who struggle with subtitles a lot. While I do prefer using original audio tracks, I also have trouble understanding speech when there is lots of background noise, to the point I always use subtitles even for stuff in English, and it sucks when there isn't a subtitle track available! So I feel bad for people who struggle with reading subs for one reason or another but don't have other options. Ideally any show or movie would have both options, but sometimes one or the other gets skipped over. Creating a sub track for a show might be considered pointless for something getting aired only for children, while at other times dubbing might be considered cost prohibitive for a show with a relatively small audience.

I think Tsuburaya is being smart by creating quality, faithful dubs while also offering the original subbed show. Gives them the widest reach and fans of either version are generally getting the same experience. Power Rangers... I think it is something of a relic I suppose. The rewritten and recast format of the show was the only way Sentai would be marketable in the States in any form during the 90s and 2000s, but culturally I think there has been a shift away from these sorts of heavily altered "regional" releases here. I just have a hard time seeing what niche it is even supposed to be filling at this point. No offense to any fans of course.

Pretty much. Power Rangers did what it thought would be more befitting at the time and it worked back when Saturday morning cartoons were still a thing, but times have changed. As for Toei, they really need to check Tsuburaya's playbook when it comes to international distribution and marketing. It's great that they're starting with physical media releases of Rider and Sentai (and Metal Heroes as of late), but it's sad that Toei still doesn't seem to feel the need to just release their shows after they air in Japan. Tsuburaya has been doing it for years now, and I'm sure the reception has been good so far. Until then, I can only assume some higher-up in charge doesn't feel the need to.

Why does it need to fill one?

I mean... it's kind of necessary to have one if long-term survival of the series is on the table. Like, I'm a Digimon fan, a series that has some similar issues such as clinging to early entries, chronic struggles to bring in and retain new fans, etc. It will collapse eventually if it can't establish a new niche sooner or later. If it can't survive... well I had fun while it lasted.

I hope none of this comes across as too gloomy. I'm a total outsider to the PR fanbase, but I hope that also means I might be able to offer a slightly different perspective. Gotta change with the times!

No, it doesn't. Plenty of franchises survive without having such a niche to fill. Mazinger Z, for example, is still very much around despite super robot shows now being nothing new.

Franchises live or die based on how much money they make as well as anyone in a company who's willing to keep them going.

No offense, but yeah, you show you very much are an outsider because Power Rangers has infact changed and evolved over time.

If one compares MMPR to Dino Fury, outside of the general theme of dinosaurs, the two are basically night and day. The themes, the tone, the style of action, it's all different and alot of things were done very much due to fan demand. Heck, as much as I personally dislike the guy's' social media presense, Simon Bennett did try to appease the older fanbase when he did work on the show.

One must also take into account that PR isn't just the live-action Toku anymore and hasn't been for basically a decade now. Thanks to Saban we got the comics and the video/tabletop games, both of which have been very successful with who they set out to appeal to. Heck, Battle for the Grid is still a rather popular fighting game with pro players, thanks in part to them getting pro players to help develop the game itself.

And of course, the show has always been and continues to be profitable. Even under Hasbro, the show made money, it's just that the current president doesn't care about the franchise and thus it's getting torched. One of the reasons many people are upset about the situation.

The short of it is that it's not because of stagnation, or lack of innovation or whatever, it's literally the doing of a company that doesn't care for it. Power Rangers continued to exist and be successful because people liked it and cared about it, no different from, say, Ultraman or whatever.

Oh, there's no way that a Sentai dub made in the 90s wouldn't be a gag dub like Tiga.