[Locke]

Gaoranger 04. This episode highlighted some of the core flaws of sentai in general.

Minus Alata - and to some extent Ryuuji - I can't really think of a single other specific hero who felt LIKE a hero from the start. I get that Rangers become heroes over the course of the series but it just seems odd that the shows always bring together a bunch of rookies that bumble their way to badassery. Why not just pick those who are heroes ALREADY? They still have as much room to grow as a rookie does, but you don't have problems like this at the start. Or if you DO pick a bunch like this, it deserves a better explanation than 'well the Power Animals know best derp'.

Similarly, pretty much every other show starts with everyone doing their own thing, just a bunch of random people chucked together. Of course they wont function as a single unit if you throw a bunch of strangers together, what do you expect? Why doesn't this TEAM BASED SHOW think more about the TEAM ASPECT?

That isn't to say Gaoranger is a total wash, although dated in the execution, the villains have interesting designs, and seeing the Gaoranger literally claw off the footsoldiers faces is some fucked up shit that never gets old.

But yeah, the last two episodes have not been particularly great, I'm hoping the cliffhanger of this episode means a brighter future but if not then maybe I'll just write this one off. Maybe try a few more episodes of Maskman before leaping into Gokaiger. We'll see.