[Fish Sandwich]

Jetman 10-11:

The ultimate monster finally arrives in 10, when Naruhisa Arakawa's first ever Sentai script blesses the world with the existence of Noodle Dimension, also known by his seemingly benevolent alias, God Ramen. Is it any wonder this man went on to write some of the most beloved Sentai series ever made after this? What a delightfully wacky episode. It consciously shifts the focus away from the main cast, and on to a nerdy kid obsessed with cup noodles, with his (probably really unhealthy) obsession with Ako being the tenuous connection back to the title characters. They just aren't what matters here though, and I'm not complaining, because watching this guy and his new monster friend launch a highly successful noodle empire (complete with an ad on TV!) makes for a ridiculously entertaining first act, and I do mean ridiculous. It feels much more in line with the kind of monster plots that have become standard for Sentai in recent decades, and yet, it's not totally out of line for Jetman, either. It's been well established by now that part of the Vyram shtick is how much they genuinely resent humanity for its flaws, so there's a ~vaguely~ satirical bent to the idea of this scheme taking advantage of people's desire to have food that's the cheapest and fastest possible, exposing us for how impatient we truly are. ...Or whatever! It's not that important. What is important is how fun this one is from start to finish. It's unabashedly nonsensical, but also thoughtfully constructed by an up-and-coming writer full of potential.

11 continues the parade of guest writers with Kunio Fujii taking a stab at Jetman, and while it's tough to follow up on Arakawa's utter brilliance, I appreciate what this one is going for in its own right. You've got a vending machine monster tricking the team into drinking juice that alters their personalities, but the episode tries to get a little deeper than just the comedic potential of a Jetman that's all mixed up. And don't get me wrong, it is pretty amusing seeing Gai as a sensitive team player, or a totally lethargic Ryuu half a second away from a nap at any given moment; heck, it's even more fun thanks to the twist on this formula that everyone keeps flopping back and forth the whole time. But I really like the angle the story takes that, rather than just some arbitrary change, or even a simple opposite day sort of deal, like it probably comes off at first, it's explicitly stated that these are all very real sides of the characters' personalities that are just buried way down deep normally. That gives it all some substance, you know? It gets you thinking about the cast a little more, and it all lands on a really nice beat about how people can be complicated, and how that's all part of being human. There are some particular bits of this one's execution I didn't think were the greatest, but viewed overall, I came away liking it more than I expected.

Quote:

Originally Posted by EpsilonX

Man you're noticing tiny little details that I never did when I watched through Jetman. Your descriptions make the series sound better than I remember it being. (Not that I thought it was bad, but you make it sound incredible)

Thank you, that's really flattering.

I hope you enjoy Gekiranger, by the way. That show is one of my favorites, so it's always nice to see people giving it a shot.