[Paladin]

The yokai energy has overwhelmed StarNinger. And an even more powerful foe is just around the corner...

As always you can view this episode via live stream on Saturday by heading over to Taima TV. They play other miscellaneous programs up until the live broadcast starts.
Live Streams of the Superhero Time block start at 6:30 PM Eastern Standard Time on Saturdays.

[Golden King]

Those finishers were so well shot I love it

[Suzu]

I loved this episode. While I do feel it would have had more impact if they stretched the build-up over a longer period of time, the overall execution was pretty fun nonetheless. It was really great to see Kinji overcoming his weaknesses due to his close bond with the Igasaki family and I also loved how Nagi was trying to help him out. Those two make a really good combo.

[Helios]

I don't care if people don't like Super StarNinger, I love it even though it's a simple upgrade. HaOh Gekiatsu DaiOh's finishers were amazing. Next week's episode seems like it's going to be a lot of fun. I can't wait for that.

[Dormamu]

The poncho was strong with this honcho.

Great episode, fast pacing, and didn't waste a lot of time trying to backtrack on itself. I still don't feel any type of way toward Kibaoni's impending arrival. Makes me think he will be easy.

[Kamen Rider Lucha]

This episode is fucking awesome. I can't believe we had two whole episodes dedicated to the Kinji werewolf plot. And the resulting Super StarNinger design is literally my favorite ever Sentai 6th ranger design. It is so flashy and cool and a completely different silhouette from anything Sentai has done before, while still reading as distinctly Sentai. I just have to applaud their willingness to go kind of nuts. Super StarNinger is the Elvis-inspired cowboy Sentai member of my wildest dreams.

Seriously, I'm starting to get actually annoyed by the people who are spouting their disdain for this show. I had tolerance for their opinion up to a certain point, but I'm past the limit. I have to wonder if the haters are actually watching it. And if they are, I'm gonna say it, I question if they even like Sentai to begin with. Ninninger is such an effective distillation of everything I think makes Sentai great that I find it in unfathomable to believe anyone with a love for and understanding of the franchise would hate it. It's utterly baffling. Does it have its weak spots? Sure. But there has never been a flawless Sentai. I have no idea what standard they're holding the show to.

i mean, if you sincerely hate Ninninger, you be you. Go with God. But I'm never gonna get it.

[Kamen Rider Lucha]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Suzu

Those two make a really good combo.

They totally do! Their pairing really made these past two episodes shine.

This is one of my favorite things about Ninninger that I think gets overlooked a lot. The show does this interesting thing where it eschews traditional spotlight episodes in favor of two-person, interpersonal relationship building episodes. I think this allows for a lot of dynamic character development, especially when you but two characters together that are very different, or that you wouldn't expect to see eye to eye, and force them to learn to value their differences in order to save the day. This is, to my knowledge, a totally new structure for Sentai stories -- or at least, it's new as a long-term structure for a whole season.

It also keeps any one character from hogging the spotlight all the time -- something Ninninger has been doing well, especially in recent months.

Hey, remember when everyone was certain Nagi would never get any character development and would be totally forgotten? Such little faith.

[ZeoRangerV]

Was an pretty good episode. I don't feel the whole Kinji as a Youkai plot really got the depth it deserved but I do have a weird fondness for Super Star Ninger. Sure there it may look like there was a whole lot of effort put into it, but not everything needs insane upgraded pieces to look good - I certainly prefer Super Star to Chouzetsu Akaninger.

Problem is I still don't feel like the whole story is actually building up to anything, and that's ultimately what's affecting my enjoyment of the series. It's far too easy forget that the Kibaoni corps even have an endgoal.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Lucha

Seriously, I'm starting to get actually annoyed by the people who are spouting their disdain for this show. I had tolerance for their opinion up to a certain point, but I'm past the limit. I have to wonder if the haters are actually watching it. And if they are, I'm gonna say it, I question if they even like Sentai to begin with. Ninninger is such an effective distillation of everything I think makes Sentai great that I find it in unfathomable to believe anyone with a love for and understanding of the franchise would hate it. It's utterly baffling. Does it have its weak spots? Sure. But there has never been a flawless Sentai. I have no idea what standard they're holding the show to.

i mean, if you sincerely hate Ninninger, you be you. Go with God. But I'm never gonna get it.

Most people tend deal in extremes. You're more likely to see people saying a show is "amazing" or "terrible" than you are saying its simply "okay".

Honestly Ninninger has been one of the weaker shows I've watched (it has its certainly positives, but the bad has ultimately overshadowed the good and I don't think there's enough to the show left to sway me - it's welcome to try though!) but it isn't completely without redemption. No Sentai is - even ones I REALLY dislike like Sun Vulcan and Boukenger I've managed to find something to enjoy about. I guess it just depends what people are looking for *shrug*

If it's any consolation to you, at least the people who do dislike the show have long abandoned these threads.

[AkibaSilver]

Hey look, the "Kinji as a Youkai" plot did die this episode! Still, at least we got SuperStar Ninja out of it. Easily better than Chouztsu Star Ninja.

Ignoring the quick wrap up, this was a good episode. Cool fights, nice character stuff, and more Kyuemon. Now, if only they'd killed the general dude, and moved into an actual villain plot, that'd be great

[Kamen Rider Lucha]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ZeoRangerV

Problem is I still don't feel like the whole story is actually building up to anything, and that's ultimately what's affecting my enjoyment of the series. It's far too easy forget that the Kibaoni corps even have an endgoal.

Zeo, first off, I'm a big fan of your reviews -- they're some of the most cogent Sentai analyses on the internet. Even when we don't see eye-to-eye, I know your opinions will be well-reasoned.

So I'm not surprised that you've foregrounded this point. I've been struggling to identify exactly where larger fandom and I diverge in our assessment of Ninninger, and I keep coming back to the same thing. Namely, Ninninger's lackadaisical approach to its overarching plot, best represented by its villains' half-cooked schemes and seemingly boring motivations. I may not mind as much as most that the villains' plan is very generic because I'm enjoying the character development of the heroes so much (I would never have thought that Takaharu and Kinji, characters I loathed when they were initially introduced, would develop into two of my favorites on the show). This would be far from the first Sentai with half-baked villains, but I do agree that this element is tangibly holding the show back.

(That said, I think Kyuuemon is shaping up to be an interesting antagonist, with more complex motives than the show originally let on. I'm half expecting the show to pull a Snape on us and reveal that he's been pretending to be part of the Kibaoni clan this whole time to undermine them from within, sacrificing his own happiness along the way. But obviously that's just idle speculation at this point.)

Quote:

Originally Posted by ZeoRangerV

Honestly Ninninger has been one of the weaker shows I've watched (it has its certainly positives, but the bad has ultimately overshadowed the good and I don't think there's enough to the show left to sway me - it's welcome to try though!) but it isn't completely without redemption. No Sentai is - even ones I REALLY dislike like Sun Vulcan and Boukenger I've managed to find something to enjoy about. I guess it just depends what people are looking for *shrug*

See, that's the kind of measured reply I'd expect from you. I'm not saying there's nothing to dislike about the show. Rather, it's the fervent vitriol I encounter for it on a daily basis -- so far out of proportion to the show's offences -- that chaps my hide.

At the end of the day, it's unlikely Ninninger will rank among my top 5 favorite Sentai shows, but I can already safely say it's far from the weakest I've seen. It's impossible for me to rank it below Maskman (with it's complete lack of anything innovative, distinct, or remotely fun), Ohranger (with its horrifically ill-conceived comedy, completely one-dimensional characters, and artless toy-shilling that sinks the show despite a handful of tremendous episodes), Goseiger (which has exactly 10 watchable episodes in its run, most of which happen at the very end of the show), or Go-Busters (which is not objectively terrible but is so often tonally inconsistent and directionless that it's more frustrating to watch than anything). Compared to those shows, Ninninger at least has a spirit, a pulse... a reckless, punkish liveliness that makes it feel vital in a way that some series just don't.