[Mesnick]

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Originally Posted by GoldenXtreme

All done with Sun Vulcan!

San Vulcan is one of those cases where the villains are much more interesting to watch than the heroes.

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The next time I explore 80s Sentai, I think I'll delve into Bioman since that show seems to get some praise for it's heavier focus on plot and characters than many of its contemporaries.

Bioman is truly a step up in plot compared to previous shows, which is one of the reasons for its popularity. The show also adores its two "female soldiers," which further enhances the contrast. I would also say that from Bioman (maybe even Dynaman) to Liveman, the complexity and drama of the overarching plot, as well as its role in the show, will increasingly increase. Then, in Turboranger and Fiveman, viewers will be treated to a bit of relief before the shock of Jetman.

[GoldenXtreme]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mesnick

San Vulcan is one of those cases where the villains are much more interesting to watch than the heroes.

Bioman is truly a step up in plot compared to previous shows, which is one of the reasons for its popularity. The show also adores its two "female soldiers," which further enhances the contrast. I would also say that from Bioman (maybe even Dynaman) to Liveman, the complexity and drama of the overarching plot, as well as its role in the show, will increasingly increase. Then, in Turboranger and Fiveman, viewers will be treated to a bit of relief before the shock of Jetman.

The villains were definitely consistently entertaining! The bit at the end with the cascading betrayals among them was pretty interesting too.

I'm excited to see some of these more dramatic 80s Sentai, Denziman and Sun Vulcan were both really light on the plot and characterization to say the least. I've been REALLY interested in Liveman for some time, but thought I would save that one for after I had tried a few of the earlier shows the decade had to offer first. I'll probably tackle it as my next 80s Sentai after Bioman.

[Sh Ranger]

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Originally Posted by GoldenXtreme

All done with Sun Vulcan! It was less dull than Denziman was, but it wasn't a show that I thought stood out in any way. It could be pretty funny or kind of dramatic at times, but by and large it was pretty close to a true neutral experience. One of the reasons I watched this one was because it ranked quite highly on the NHK Sentai poll from a couple of years ago, but in the end I think the reason it ended up that high was just due to the facts it was the first Sentai show with a combined robot and the first Sentai show with an animal motif, which probably blew the minds of some Showa era kiddos.

Sun Vulcan Robo was pretty cool and innovative, so I could totally see the first ever Gattai leaving a strong impression on people at the time. The suits are also some of my favorites of the era, with the animal motifs letting each of them stand out more besides color.

While I generally enjoyed Denjiman more for the main heroes, Sun Vulcan had some memorable confrontations with the villains and I liked Hiba when he was introduced after the climactic moment with Zero One.

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Originally Posted by GoldenXtreme

Besides that, the thing the show is best known for is the fact it has no female rangers in it. Someone here had commented that it isn't as bad as it seems, and indeed Misa gets a decent amount of focus and the number of female villains is truly extensive, but I did find myself thinking that the team dynamic would have been more interesting if Misa was able to regularly fight, especially since the three rangers we DO have are simply not very interesting. So while I didn't think it was a critical issue with the show, it was an experiment I am glad only happened once.

Considering the lower number of Rangers, it would've been cool if Misa had become an additional member like Big One. I wonder what her animal motif could've been. Perhaps a dog, like CC, as long as it's not too much to trigger Hyo's cynophobia.

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Originally Posted by GoldenXtreme

So yeah, perfectly okay Showa toku I suppose. The next time I explore 80s Sentai, I think I'll delve into Bioman since that show seems to get some praise for it's heavier focus on plot and characters than many of its contemporaries.

Fun Fact: There was an idea for Bioman to be a 5-male team, but the two heroines were added instead to enhance the dramatic focus the show was going for.

Bioman was certainly a forerunner for the modern feeling of Sentai going forward. I hope you enjoy it!

[GoldenXtreme]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sh Ranger

Sun Vulcan Robo was pretty cool and innovative, so I could totally see the first ever Gattai leaving a strong impression on people at the time. The suits are also some of my favorites of the era, with the animal motifs letting each of them stand out more besides color.

While I generally enjoyed Denjiman more for the main heroes, Sun Vulcan had some memorable confrontations with the villains and I liked Hiba when he was introduced after the climactic moment with Zero One.

I agree that Denziman has a much better hero cast. Hiba is pretty good though, I'd probably pick him as the best in Sun Vulcan just for getting some nice episodes and having a bit of depth to him! I'm not totally sure why I like Sun Vulcan a bit more than Denziman to be honest, I think I just found it's episodes a bit more entertaining overall?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sh Ranger

Considering the lower number of Rangers, it would've been cool if Misa had become an additional member like Big One. I wonder what her animal motif could've been. Perhaps a dog, like CC, as long as it's not too much to trigger Hyo's cynophobia.

A dog or a wolf would have been fun, but I also like the idea of something that would compliment the sky-sea-land theme of the rest of the team. Maybe a rose to contrast with the animal motifs, and serve as a nod to that episode where she was acting as a rose-themed fencer.

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Originally Posted by Sh Ranger

Fun Fact: There was an idea for Bioman to be a 5-male team, but the two heroines were added instead to enhance the dramatic focus the show was going for.

Bioman was certainly a forerunner for the modern feeling of Sentai going forward. I hope you enjoy it!

Oh man, is Bioman the one with a convoluted romantic drama plot that was basically the Toshiki Inoue sauce years before he broke through with Jetman? I know there is some Showa Sentai along those lines, but I can't remember which one it is.

[Mesnick]

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Originally Posted by GoldenXtreme

Oh man, is Bioman the one with a convoluted romantic drama plot that was basically the Toshiki Inoue sauce years before he broke through with Jetman? I know there is some Showa Sentai along those lines, but I can't remember which one it is.

I think it`s more true for Maskman. And while romance is a key plot theme there, there's a significant difference between the relationships in Maskman and Jetman. To put it bluntly, the romance in Maskman is like that of a Shakespearean play, while in Jetman it's like that of a soap opera.

[Sunred]

Quote:

Originally Posted by GoldenXtreme

Oh man, is Bioman the one with a convoluted romantic drama plot that was basically the Toshiki Inoue sauce years before he broke through with Jetman? I know there is some Showa Sentai along those lines, but I can't remember which one it is.

Bioman was a team of modern day individuals whose ancestors were showered with Bio Particles during old-timey Japan, and fought a cyborg madman and his creation of cyborg lieutenants and robot cronies. By the way, first team to have two female rangers. Later on, it gave us Bio Hunter Silva, the most badass Hakaider/Terminator-inspired third faction villain who had his own mecha. Also, the future Juspion actor, Hikaru Kurosaki, was a guest star for two episodes.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mesnick

I think it`s more true for Maskman. And while romance is a key plot theme there, there's a significant difference between the relationships in Maskman and Jetman. To put it bluntly, the romance in Maskman is like that of a Shakespearean play, while in Jetman it's like that of a soap opera.

Maskman also gives me subtle vibes of the movie, Legend (which had its plot borrowed heavily for the Magiranger summer movie) because of the whole damsel in distress shenanigans.

[Mesnick]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sunred

Maskman also gives me subtle vibes of the movie, Legend (which had its plot borrowed heavily for the Magiranger summer movie) because of the whole damsel in distress shenanigans.

Yes, I remember that movie. Yeah, I'd love to see a classic fairytale fantasy like that. These days, it's either too much humor, turning history into a parody, or it's all pseudo-historical political intrigue.

[GoldenXtreme]

Maskman was probably the one I had heard about the romantic shenanigans in, though I find it a bit of a relief that it will be a different flavor from Jetman, which wasn't enjoyable for me. A Shakespearean play or a classic fantasy epic, both sound cool, plus I know Maskman also has some martial arts stuff going on! So much interesting stuff to check out in from the 80s...