[DreamSword]

This was an episode that I always felt would've been better as a two-parter.

Don't get me wrong, it mostly comes together well enough, but I feel like the emotional beats would've hit alot better with a bit more spaced out pacing.

And that's kinda where my impressions end? Sure, there's some good characterization here, what with the episode emphasizing the reasons why our heroes are heroes, but alot of the episode goes by a bit too fast for me.

Plus, with a second episode, they could've really dug into how the episode brings up both the literal and metaphorical idea of the future being uncertain, and how much damage is being done to the timeline despite Time Force's' efforts to try and keep it preserved.

But hey, maybe that's a bit too deep for the target audience. And in that regard, I can get why things were kept as simple as possible here.

[Androzani84]

New month, more reviews to come. Let’s get it started with…

Timeranger Case File 21: Sion?s Way 09/07/2000

We start with Sion out on the town, dropping off a repaired radio back at its owner at an electric parts shop.



And on the way back, he discovers the convenience store has a special offer on a new soft drink named Power Spritty (that’s unfortunate), which he takes them up on.



He takes a case back to the loft, where Yuri and Tock are no closer to finding out who built and sent out Raimei (remember it wasn’t a public announcement like the Time Force episode), and everyone takes and drinks a bottle… before Yuri senses something off and checks who manufactured the drink.



And at the company in question, the boss meets with a Mr. Kinjo, who introduced the Power Spritty formula to them.



Mr. Kinjo merely suggests that they hire a bodyguard… before whipping out a Tommy gun (!) and firing at the approaching Timerangers.



The man then reveals that he’s actually Dolnero in a human disguise (which is less of a surprise if you watch the episode, since Dolnero’s VA dubs over the human actor).



He then calls in the bodyguard he was talking about, our alien criminal for the week.



Hydrid then reveals he has super speed, which he uses to defeat the Timerangers within three blows of his sword. And then Dolnero reveals his secret weapon.



The Power Spritty concentrate causes Tatsuya, Yuri, Ayase and Domon to collapse upon ingesting it, with only Sion unaffected.



Dolnero realises that Sion is an alien if he wasn’t affected, before resuming his business talk with the bottling plant’s manager. Only it’s no longer a merger, but a hostile takeover.



Meanwhile, the human Timerangers are acting drunk, with Tock explaining just what Power Spritty actually is.



He notes that neo-alcohol is a lot stronger and more intoxicating than the regular stuff, and lasts longer. And then we get a full minute of drunken antics, but this is the only one that translates to a screenshot.



Back at the bottling plant, Dolnero and Hydrid announce a sudden shift in production. And to avoid any issues, they’re being held hostage.





Meanwhile, at Tomorrow Research, Sion looks up Hydrid in the prisoner manifest to figure out a counterattack. Tock notes that the fact he can outspeed them is worrying, since the Chrono Suits have a super speed function.



Despite Tock’s warnings that he can’t do it alone, Sion decides he’s going to capture this criminal himself.



So he heads out to Chekhov’s Spare Parts Shop to buy the electric components he needs.



In the evening, as Sion cobbles together a bazooka of some kind, Tock continues to insist he wait for the others, which Sion calls him out on for the double standard goven he’s the least physically impressive.



Tock relents and allows Sion to take on Hydrid by himself. He does so by barging into the factory as Dolnero and Lila count up their ill-gotten gains to face Hydrid alone.



Unfortunately, All of the discs Sion fires miss or get hit by Hydrid’s sword, before Sion himself is taken out much to the factory workers? dismay.





But Sion is undeterred, simply going for making modifications to his Chrono Changer.



So the next day, Sion heads back, creating a distraction with an animatronic toy to distract Hydrid.



An annoyed Hydrid destroys the toy… exactly as planned.



Sion then shoots the Power Spritty concentrate with a neutralising agent to remove its effects (why he didn’t do this to his friends is anyone’s guess).



His plans ruined, Dolnero tells Hydrid to take care of Sion before leaving. Hydrid, impressed by his foe’s tactical planning, challenges him to a one-on-one showdown. During the battle, Sion gets a scan of Hydrid’s running speed.



As this happens, Tock corrals the hungover rest of the cast towards the battle, since all 5 are necessary to freeze-compress a Londars (we’re still in the era when they felt the need to shoehorn reasons to keep the fights involving all 5, rather than taking opportunities to split them up). They arrive to witness Sion defeat Hydrid by moving at a faster speed.



He explains the he refined the super speed feature in the Chrono Suits into Accel Stop, a technique that lets him go faster for 3 seconds, at the cost of reducing his durability. He created the disc launching weapon to test Hydrid’s speed to perfect this mechanism, with the discs being remote controlled to miss him.



Sion then leads the others in summoning their VolUnits… but they’re so drunk, they end up summoning the Double Vectors instead.



Of course it’s moot, as Hydrid triggers his own rebound. Sion summons the TimeJets, with there being enough sobriety between them to form the fully repaired TimeRobo Alpha. But when that’s not enough, TimeShadow is sent in, travelling through the eras of Moses, Dracula and Neil Armstrong.



TimeShadow proves more of a match speed wise for Hydrid… so Sion decides to combine the two robots into a bulkier one as Shadow Alpha.





The new formation holds Hydrid in place by firing a Virtual Net at him.



And then Sion summons the Prodivider and uses it to finish Hydrid off with the Blizzard Slash.





Later on, a now sober Yuri thanks Sion for handling things while everyone was addled.



Sion then finishes tuning up everyone’s Changers to make Accel Stop a proper upgrade.



And the episode ends on Sion revealing that he has photographic evidence of their embarrassment, with everyone trying to politely get him to hand it over.



Next time: Tatsuya, Domon and Ayase all pursue the same woman, leaving Yuri feeling emasculated, in Case File 22: Pink Temptation.

Final thoughts: A pretty decent focus for Sion, showing him relying on his ingenuity to make up for his physical disadvantage. Though I have to wonder if a plot where our heroes get drunk (even unwillingly) is really appropriate for children, and wonder what the reasoning for giving Dolnero a human form this late in the game was.

[Androzani84]

Sorry for the delay, I?ve had a hectic week. So here we are, continuing the week with?

Time Force Episode 11: Uniquely Trip

Our episode opens with Trip explaining his latest invention, the Electro Booster, to a clearly bored Wes and Circuit.



But the talk is unfortunately (or fortunately, if you side with the people watching the demo), the Rangers are called away to deal with a mutant kidnapping children.



The Rangers show up to save the child with the aid of their US-original guns (I?d snark ?Buy the toys?, but I don?t even know what these things are called, so I wouldn?t even know what to buy if I was a parent of a kid watching this show when it premiered).



They then move on to fight the mutant, named by the credits as ?Redeye? (adapted from Jewel Thief Rouge from episode 6 of Timeranger), who apparently has some history with Jen, as she notes the latter was the one who sent her to jail in the future.



In spite of Trip erm, tripping his way throughout the fight compared to the impractical moves everyone else shows off, the Rangers eventually overcome the Cyclobots and summon the Vector Weapons (and since this is all US footage, I?m surprised that my theory as to why the US-original guns were introduced is debunked) and blow Redeye up (which recalls my joke from episode 6 of this series - ?Kidnap children and die? - and seems to be confirming what was meant as a joke as actual operating procedure).



But despite his victory, Trip is upset at his lack of proficiency, and gets extra depressed when he sees the kids in the park (one of who is future Tomorrowland star Britt Robinson) dressing up as the Power Rangers.



[IMG]://pbs.twimg.com/media/HFUZ6vVWgAA-60F?format=jpg&name=small[/IMG]

Why, you ask? Because none of the four kids wanted to be Green.



Meanwhile, Ransik decides to comeback from Redeye?s failure with another Mutant named Electropede (who I bought was named Voltipede, before I realised I was thinking of the Ninja Steel monster with a similar motif and gimmick), and we get our first look at the freezing system?s controls, which are remarkably idiot proof for what you?d think they?d want to keep as secure as possible.



Electropede is released and instantly lives up to his name by sucking the lighting into his mouth.



But Ransik stops him, convincing him to take the power he needs to eat to live (honestly, this guy, I can see his life sucking enough to turn to crime) from the POWER Rangers, causing everyone to laugh evilly? except Nadira, who?s pissed that the power cut out while she was drying her wig.



Trip meanwhile, in an attempt to seem cool, embarks on the stereotypical macho training montage, even down to drinking a concoction of raw eggs (it goes something like this and lifting weights beyond his limits. The others don?t find out about it until Katie and Jen come in to complain that the boys aren?t helping them with a painting job.



Lucas thus decides to take the Xybrian under his wing and show him how to be cool, even grabbing some wildflowers to seduce a pretty girl.



Trip?s attempt? it doesn?t end well. I?ll let you watch the episode to see why, since words or pictures cannot do it justice.



While he?s doing that, the others face Electropede at a power plant, wherein he sucks so much energy from their US-original guns that they explode.



Trip shows up, but only succeeds in making things worse by throwing the gun at Electropede. When the Rangers regroup, Circuit confirms that the US-original guns have been damaged pretty badly, and are unable to be recharged with the available technology (if they reappear in a later episode, I call bull).



Trip then gets benched, with everyone telling him to stay and rest, which cripples his self esteem further.



Soon enough, Electropede finds and starts draining another power plant, wih the discharge bringing the Rangers in quickly.



Trip meanwhile realises that if Electropede eats power, then there?s a limit to how much power he can absorb, causing him to run off to work on the Electro Booster.



As the V Weapons prove just as fruitless against Electropede, those same kids from earlier reappear, still in costume.



And they?re near enough to the power plant that one of its pylons falls over and causes a fire that traps them. (Don?t these kids have parents?)



And to make a bad situation worse, a helpfully labelled can of gasoline falls over, tipping out a puddle that grows ever closer to the flames.



Electropede then begins directly draining Power from the Rangers (and presumably, by extension, the Universal Morphin Grid).



Trip soon flies in, shooting Electropede down and showing off the newly completed Electro Booster.



Wes soon combines it with his Chrono Saber to create a BFG, capable of taking out an army of Cyclobots and reducing them to nothing, before turning the tide against Electropede.



Wes drains Electropede of all his energy, but Frax intervenes by destroying the emblem on the Mutant, exposing his DNA to make him grow.



After the standard Megazord battle (in which the Shadow Force Megazord Mode Blue is incorrectly named ?Mode Red?. I assume Wes is colourblind this week) after which Electropede is recaptured, Trio senses the children are in danger (which is likely the only reason Electropede is alive. They had no idea he?d endangered children).



Trip then uses the Time Jet to fly in and save them, just before the gasoline meets the flame and ignites (hopefully, they?re insured enough the Rangers won?t be sued by the owner).



Afterward, Katie tells Trip that they don?t approve of his decision tot Ry and be like them? but as thanks for saving the day, all of them are wearing wigs in his honour (isn?t that cultural appropriation?).





And we end by showing that those recurring kids are now all dressed as Green (why did whatever mother made those costumes make 4 Green Ranger costumes ahead of time? Or was this after he saved their lives?)



Next time: Wes?s dad and heretofore unmentioned old friend form a police force for dealing with minor mutant malfeasance.

Final thoughts: While as I pointed out last time, Trip?s sudden klutziness seems exaggerated or outright made up for this episode, it?s still a good episode. The Mutant is appropriately threatening enough to justify the upgrade, he kids stick around long enough not to be annoying and the ending is rather sweet.

[DreamSword]

I'm of two minds on this episode.

I always felt that, new weapon upgrade aside, the basic plot of this episode should've probably been the first Trip focused episode we got, rather than the second.

Not helping is that, the basic idea of one of the Rangers trying to find their role is moreso one that immediately fits Wes rather than Trip, and given how certain scenes flow, I wouldn't be surprised if that was the original idea.

And as many other viewers have pointed out over the years, not having Trip be the one who defeats the monster in the end kinda-sorta gives off the implication that he's not someone who's worthy of having the spotlight, even when it involves his very own invention.

But on the other hand, the emotional core of this episode really does work. Trip being the outcast already fits in with how he's the only alien on the team, let alone empath. And having the episode being focused on the gadgeteer does help to highlight how beating up bad guys isn't the only thing that makes a Ranger worthwhile, let alone anyone else.

Plus, that ending, where Trip is the one who saves the kids? That's such a bigger victory than freezing a mutant could ever be, and that whole sequence, plus the celebration of Trip himself at the end, really does tug at my heart strings every time that I see it. It just goes to show that people tend to the shine the brightest when they're being true to themselves, rather than trying to chase the highs set by someone else.

Could it be better in a few ways? Yeah, but I still have a big soft spot for this episode.

[Androzani84]

Alright, we are officially in "updates come when they come" territory. Meaning things won?t be at all regular anymore. But for now, the next review.

Timeranger Case File 22: Pink Seduction 16/07/2000

And it?s our second - and final - dose of Inoue in this series, and indeed in Sentai for the next Decade, before he goes over to follow in his dad?s footsteps and write for Kamen Rider (heading three shows, keeping two others going in the midst of behind the scenes turmoil and doing a lot of material for all but one of the 10).

We open with Tomorrow Research taking on a job from a single dad struggling to look after his baby.



He wants their help in looking after his baby and looking for his fiancee, Kyoko Hirosue, who went missing recently.



And despite what they assume, she did not take all of his money. He gave it to her.



As he leaves, they discuss how badly he suffered from a scam, and easily find Kyoko through a Google search.



While Tatsuya decides to try dating her himself, Yuri decides to help our single dad by working as a housekeeper.



Despite how unprepared she is at domestic work, he?s grateful for her hard work.



And her attempts at cooking? he finds them inedible.



And as a matter of fact, so does Yuri (honestly, her lack of domestic knowledge makes some degree of sense, given she?s never been shown cooking before and she had a stunted childhood, with it being likely she grew up in an orphanage).



Meanwhile, Tatsuya meets with Kyoko for a marriage interview, with her now dressed like and acting as his female counterpart.



And it turns out their desires for a marriage partner are 100% compatible.



The next day, Tatsuya?s wasting calligraphy materials paying homage to her.



And he fell for the exact same ?sick mother? scam that their client did.



Back with Yuri?s housekeeping job, the guy is so weary of her cooking he?s started buying takeout.



In case you forgot this is Timeranger, and not an NTR dorama, we now return to the Londars, already in the midst of another evil scheme.



She explains that she let her go to do her job, to which Gien inquires what kind of job.



Sure enough, we cut to Kyoko (look, our villains are based around getting money, and that?s what she?s doing with the men she strings along) going into a bar for a blind date with Domon.



Within 12 hours, Domon is using Tock as a stand for his mirror as he fixes his appearance for Kyoko.



And he also got catfished out of his funds (which are somehow only slightly less than Tatsuya?s, despite 20-something less years to build up money)



Ayase is so easily able to tell they?ve been duped that he makes the comparison that Keven Levin was cowed into backing off from making.





He then decides he?s going to date Kyoko next. Speaking of Kyoko, Lila is lambasting her for how her last few dates have been really cheap, with life savings adding up to 20,000 yen.



And in case you think she?s a red herring for the real criminal? think again!



After another bad night with the single dad (she knocks over his shelf with the hoover and makes the baby cry), Yuri wakes up to find that Tatsuya and Domon are still simping over a woman both of them met once, while she?s never caught either of their eyes.



Sion merely thinks she?s sick and heads out to buy medicine, while Tatsuya assures her that she?s charming - just not as charming as Kyoko. Meanwhile, Kyoko goes back to the agency to be given her next mark - erm, date, at the restaurant downstairs.



Kyoko heads to the scene, using alien powers to change herself into Ayase?s ideal woman.



But Ayase proceeds to act as tactless as possible, so she ends up leaving the date before it can begin (was this the plan, or??)



As she leaves, Yuri confronts her about abandoning her fianc?, as Lila listens in.



Kyoko admits she barely remembers any of the men she?s seduced, and says that she can seduce any man she wants, while Yuri is too ugly to ever attract anyone.



Cue a cartoonish gag.



After the eye catch, Yuri starts an intensive training regimen to look more attractive.


Meanwhile, Lila tells Kyoko that the woman questioning her and her latest clients are the Timerangers, which is why they were so cheap. But Lila has a better idea.



Meanwhile, Yuri?s training montage turns to beauty treatments using whatever funds Tomorrow Research has left over.



And Sion rejoins the plot? only no-one?s in the loft anymore.



Meanwhile, Kyoko lures Domon, Tatsuya and Ayase to meet with her in the park.







Assured the three would do anything for her, Kyoko summons her snakes to infect the three, making them fight to the death.



As the trio comes close to killing each other despite Sion?s efforts to make them stop, the newly made over Yuri appears. And we get our standard ?ladies costume changing? plot out of the way.



And the scene of her being a head turning beauty gets its own song, somewhat appropriately titled ?Who Are You??.

I keep breathing so that my face shows my way of life
In a voice whirlpool, I seek an escape. My soul prayer quivers
I can't make a dent in this irritating fate
I'm daring in my reflective pace, but I keep getting hurt needlessly
The news is about my broken dream, and I have no way of changing the past
It's the deadline for a fate where I could have smiled
Words (I complain about not being able to progress, arriving upon this reality)
are lost (Whether I pass or avoid it, there's no end to the ordeals)
I look for (I bite my lip, I'm not sure if there's happiness ahead)
the heart (Yet, what is that flame that won't go out?)

Who Are You? Why do you exist now?
Tell me (You Know)
I ask my heart, but still don't have a reply
All or (Nothing) There's no response though
For someone dear to me, I give up myself
My Love (For You) I'll take on any ordeal
Right now, my tears are changing (Grade Up) into wings

Such is her beauty that her kisses break the love spell.



Kyoko is so annoyed at being out-romanced she assumes her true, alien form (briefly seen twice in earlier scenes).



Everyone is shocked that they were hitting on that, with Domon actually breaking things up.



Barbera attacks, using her hair to tie up her former victims.



Sion refuses to help, instead chiding them for being seduced by a honey trap. Yuri is more forgiving, using Accel Stop to cut through Barbera?s hair.



She then defeats Barbera in battle, and they blast her with the Voltech Bazooka. But she lasts long enough to rebound and we get a second appearance of Shadow Alpha, which debuts the human stock footage for the Blizzard Slash (note the text in the background).



After Barbera is frozen, Sion offers her up to her admirers, all of whom are now more embarrassed by the whole thing than anything.



As for Yuri? She goes to Goro Yamada (the name of the client, which I hadn?t mentioned until now. Sorry) and drops off a letter ?written by? Kyoko, breaking things off.





She even dresses as Kyoko so he can get one last look at her.





But as the episode ends, Yuri trips because she?s never worn heels before.

Next time: the trailer didn?t give me much, but it?s the source for the Time Force episode I just reviewed, Case File 23: Beat Up.

Final thoughts: I think this is my favourite episode of the series, since we get to see Yuri do more than be the straight man to the boys? nonsense, and we get a plot about her struggling with domestic work that isn?t beating us over the head with the obvious reason why. Plus while a bit of a dope, Yamada works as a character because he?s not played up as a creep or a weirdo, but someone who?s struggling to look after his son and trying to hold onto the one good thing he seemingly had.

The worst I can say is that I wasn?t keen on the cartoon gags, but that comes down to personal preference.