[Androzani84]

Way later than usual, but here?s Tuesday?s review.

Timeranger Case File 12: A Wish Upon A Star 30/04/2000

And it?s our second episode by Yamaguchi.

We open on Sion trying to show Tatsuya his newest construction, when a kid shows up, wanting Tomorrow Research to help him meet an alien. The kid takes Sion to a man performing the disappearing/reappearing coin trick, which he attributes to being friends with a UFO, which only the kid introducing this plot believes. (And ironically, Sion is the one tasked with proving aliens exist)

The man walks off, deciding to give it up, but Sion gets his address from the kid, Hayato. In the factory, a golf ball gets launched at the man by Sion, which he phases through himself, proving that he?s an alien, which the man denies before demanding Sion leave.

Elsewhere in the city, several valuables disappear from different locations, such as a necklace, an antique vase and a stack of money. They get given to Dolnero by this week?s criminal, Blackmailer Gemark (who was adapted as Rabbitcon in Time Force 7). Tomorrow Research get on the case, with Tock not finding a match in the prisoner manifest for the powers required. Sion asks Yuri what she?d do if aliens were on Earth in the 20th Century, to which she answers that such an alien would certainly be in danger.

Sure enough, Gemark turns out to be blackmailing trench coat man into stealing for him, under threat of being exposed. Sion arrives to behold the scene, with Gemark sweetening the deal by promising to never come near his victim if he pulls off one last heist. It?s then that Sion intervenes, getting into a one on one battle, which ends quickly with the reveal that our alien?s name is Argo.

Argo reveals that he deserted a war on his home planet Arctuus, due to being sick of fighting. He made an emergency landing on Earth, whereupon Hayato found him and treated him with kindness. He was forced to use his powers to save the kid from a car accident, which alerted Gemark to his existence. Sion?s pleas to give up his blackmailer?s location falls on deaf ears, with Hayato saying he hates Sion and pushing him away.

As Argo and Hayato discuss the latter potentially leaving, Gemark kidnaps the kid be posing as a friendly alien to use as leverage. So Argo heads for the Yamagami Museum of Oriental Art to steal a giant statue of Kanon, finding Sion there to once more ask for help. Argo blames Sion for Hayato being kidnapped, with Sion?s appeal being that he?s also an alien and will make sure Hayato?s safe. Hearing that Sion understands Argo?s loneliness due to his Superman-lite backstory, along with the other Timerangers showing up to tell Sion that he?s not alone, convinces him to lead them to Gemark?s location: on top of a skyscraper.

As Gemark summons the statue, Gemark proves to be not as good as his word, summoning Zenits to force Argo into compliance. But the Kanon statue turns out to be Sion?s machine from earlier (pretty good foreshadowing there). As Argo rescues his friend, the Timerangers appear to battle the Zenits, before Sion engages Gemark. Gemark gains the upper hand, before Argo reappears, using his powers to disarm the blackmailer, before being blown back (and apparently, his species are similar enough to humans that they have red blood). Sion is so annoyed, he single-handedly beats Gemark with the Vector End: Beat 9. But the criminal is smart enough to trigger a Rebound before he can be shot with the Voltech Bazooka, sparing us the stock footage for a third week in a row. As the second verse of the TimeRobo insert plays, the Time Jets combine into Time Jet Gamma to buffet Gemark, before turning into Time Robo Alpha (no side plot of Lila trying to kidnap Tock here). After overcoming Gemark?s whip, the Timerangers defeat and capture another one.

All the stolen goods are returned to their rightful place, before Argo sets off on the road, with Sion showing Hayato his ship, taking off for the stars (No idea where he?s going though), with Argo using his powers to gift one of his coins to Hayato, as Yuri reminds Sion that their mission is to defeat the Londars who bully the weak.

Next time: Tatsuya enters an underground fighting tournament run by a mysterious cloaked figure to find a missing person, in Case File 13: Battle Casino.

Final thoughts: A bit more slice of life than the usual fare for this series, but I hint it worked. I like how Yamaguchi is willing to play with the otherwise unremarked on aspects of the series, such as the characters coming from a future period who history yet to happen, or the idea that if aliens exist in the future, they must?ve existed in the past.