[Kamen Rider Lucha]

I finished up Gingaman today. It was... aight.

There's not really much to say that Matrix didn't cover in his recap.

I mean, technically there are a lot of good, enjoyable parts, but literally everything I liked, I've seen done better in other Sentai. Not only that -- I've seen it done better in other Sentai written by Yasuko Kobayashi. Part of it comes down to not really connecting with any of the characters. The only leads I had any particular fondness for were Bull Black, Saya, and Shellinda. The rest I found pretty dull, which made their focus episodes absolute slogs.

At the end of it, I see how Gingaman is an important show. It ushers in a lot of the tropes we see in every show after it, and gives one of the franchise's most important voices her first spin in the driver's seat. It was probably super fresh when it came out, but more often than not, it isn't a fun show to watch in 2016. In that way, I liken it to Zyuranger, another important Sentai that introduced a lot of new tropes that would go on to be implemented better later (notably by the same writer), but is kind of an inconsistent mess on its own.

In my personal ranking, I'd place it as just better than Ninninger. For reference, that list goes: Jetman (10/10) > Kakuranger (9/10) > Gokaiger (9/10) > Dairanger (8/10) > Shinkenger (8/10) > Kyoryuger (8/10) > Ohranger (7/10) > ToQger (7/10) > Go-Busters (7/10) > Goseiger (7/10) > Zyuranger (6/10) > Carranger (6/10) > Gingaman (6/10) > Ninninger (5/10) > Magiranger (4/10) > Megaranger (3/10) > Maskman (3/10)

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In more positive news, I've finally started watching Gekiranger in earnest. I'm only three episodes deep, but there's something about the energy of the show that is super engaging. I like the set-up, I like the action, I like the characters (so far), and Rio is sure to be a badass.

I'd been saving Gekiranger because it's the last universally-acclaimed Sentai, that's been fully translated, that I haven't seen. But after soldiering through a string of shows I didn't love (Carranger (it's complicated), Megaranger, Gingaman, Ninninger), I felt like I needed to do something enjoyable for myself.

The only bummer about Gekiranger is that I know the outcome of at least two of the series' main stories. Hopefully I can enjoy the ride despite all that, and hopefully there are some twists and turns along the way that I don't see coming.

So far, I'm really, really into it.