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Let's Gush about Toku!
Hey everyone as sort of a counter point to the "unpopular opinion" thread, I wanted to make a thread like this. Here's a place you can talk about what you love about tokusatsu! From shows themes, to specific plot beats, to just things you love about the genre, all of it fits here! I'm hoping we can have some good discussion here about things we love!
I'll start. I really enjoyed Kento's death scene from Saber. I love how fragile the moment feels. It's not some big heroic sacrifice. It's a person succumbing to wounds and being terrified to leave the world he loves behind. Touma being there to console him is great, as Touma realizes what they shared, and what he had forgotten only to have it torn away again. It's just an emotional scene, and hits real well. |
inb4 someone comes in and just says "everything."
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Ooh boy, where do I start?
The whole "cross of fire" concept in Kamen Rider, where all the Riders get their powers from the same source as the villains they fight, is something that really appeals to me. It's this idea of choice and free will, that being a good or bad person isn't determined by your origins or what other people want you to be, but by what you choose to do. That's something I fully believe myself (with the caveat that not all of someone's actions are really their own choice), so it makes me happy to see stories that take it so much to heart. On a more practical level, it also means there's only one new fantastic or science-fictional concept that needs to be introduced and explained each season, which (usually) makes for smoother storytelling. |
This is a very specific gush but it's about Clip Show episodes, or more specifically, one where I didn't mind that it was a recap, because it was just that good.
I'm specifically referring to Garo Makai no Hana's Episode 15 where we do an interview with the resident butler we all love, Gonza. The way the recap is framed as an interview is just great, and how it develops into why the interview was even going on in the first place was great. Plus we get cute original stuff about our main trio there too. Also speaking of Garo, I think they managed to perfect the formula when it comes to an Anniversary Season with Makai Restudan. The idea of just making a bunch of short one-shot episodes, sometimes even mini-episodes as an anthology of all the different characters we've seen is really great. I just wish more Toku's would do this often, though given how tight of a cast, despite being plentiful, Garo has, I can see why it would work well in that case. |
I love how different most Toku series are allowed to be even within the same franchise, with only certain fundamentals and visual theming connecting them. Kamen Rider is where you see this the most -- one series could be a detective show, the next a high school drama, the next a battle royale, etc. Any given story you will typically see a lot of variation from the last, and that also means the few times a series does go truly back to the franchise's roots, it actually does feel special and important.
I love how loose continuity is. Even when connections are stressed their hardest in Ultraman, it never feels that restricting and still feels like any show could be a one-off; with continuity just used as a fun tool, something for the sake of setting up cool little crossover movies, and in a way that places less relevance on the literal events that happened and more on revering what a show and its cast was about and what was important and beloved about it. I love how these shows understand and maintain an important balance for a kid's show: to be completely aware of their target audience and that they are at their core silly and fun, but also respect that audience enough to ask important questions and explore topics that'll leave those kids thinking and expanding their thought processes and ultimately leading them to grow into more open-minded people. Most toku I see have that wonderful balance between not being afraid to put forward those topics but also realising that you shouldn't push it so far that it loses the fun and light-heartedness, which is just as important -- and some of the best shows realise that these aren't strictly separate notions, but go hand-in-hand with an intersected venn diagram where these important topics are approached and peppered with optimism and hope. I love the sheer unadultered passion you see behind so many shows. Now obviously, this is hardly universal and in franchises this big with corporate toy-advertising control this tight there is going to be a lot of cynicism somewhere; but more often than not I find actors throwing themselves into a role, scriptwriters having fun with the premise, producers and directors feeling an importance for the position they've found themselves in and treating it with a lot of respect. Countless scenes and interviews I've seen of actors, writers, stuntmen and all the rest of the creative team leaving the show with tears and hugs and a sense of satisfaction and hope for what they've achieved. |
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But for something I'm doing at the moment, Kiramager! It's great to have a show where the characters don't have to choose between their previous lives and being a ranger. In so many previous series, either being a Ranger was their job (GoBusters, KyuRanger) or there's always some episode where they have to choose between quitting being a ranger and of course they're cut up about it but come back at the very last moment and save the day from whatever the MOTW is planning, usually associated with that Ranger's skill. Of course, putting the fate of th world above personal persuits is an important lesson and everything, but Kiramager regularly works in the character's jobs as a plot point, and it's nice to see a different side of things! |
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Rider Kicks.
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Well, I love Gosei Knight and his entire character arc throughout Goseiger. Going from a very Aloof Ally who only cares about his mission of literally protecting the Earth and its environment and being at odds with the Goseigers as a result to slowly warming up to said ranger team over the course of the battles against the Yuumajuu to his dilemma after the first appearance of the Matrintis Empire to realizing how humans are ultimately important to the planet, how they can make things right and that they are worth fighting and then becomes a True Companion to the team. It helps that the character himself is very interesting to watch, has plenty of great fight scenes, and a very solid performance by his voice actor, Katsuyuki Konishi. Oh, he also has a very kick-ass insert song.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=39xDB6Kto2g |
I love the quality and engineering that goes into most of the toys, from the DX stuff to the clever candy toy designs. These things are such high quality but also are incredibly efficient in manufacturing- for kids toys that's really unheard of.
But perhaps where I derive the most joy out of toku are the suit designs. Just the way they take a concept/motif and just execute on a vision that transcends language and just oozes thoughtfulness. I mean, 555 came out in 2003 and I'm still in awe over the designs. Faiz in particular being based on (at this point, very dated) technology is a wonder that the suit doesn't come off as incredibly dated. If anything, the resurgence of vintage and retro tech has made him look even better! |
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the fandom, even with disagreeing opinions.
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I mean, gosh, where do I even start? When I first watched a tokusatsu show a few years ago, I felt like I had found something I had been looking for my whole life! Kamen Rider W was the first show I watched and it had it all: I laughed, I cried, I had a great time. I think part of what makes toku so great is that nothing else is quite like it. It draws attributes from stage acting, comics, animation, film, and has its own unique elements that nothing else really does.
There is such great variety in toku too. Even within a single franchise like Rider, it explores the central themes of the series from a huge variety of angles that makes things feel fresh every year, even if the implementation sometimes falls flat. You could say it has a degree of experimentalism that is rare in this day and age, especially considering how established so many toku franchises are. Even shows I totally hate are often interesting in their own way. I like the variety of characters too. You can have heroes ranging from subdued and kindly to brash and loud to anything else you can imagine. You can even have giant atomic dinosaurs and moth goddesses become heroes. It is pretty rare to see such variety, and conveys a nice message that we can all be heroes in our own way. I think a lot of toku shows are good at conveying positive themes like this, while also doing deep dives on difficult subjects. My favorite toku shows hit that ideal balance of humor and drama that makes the story sing. I could go on and on. Tokusatsu is great, and I love it and the community around it. :D |
For as bad as the writing is, Kabuto's fight scenes are just so damn nice thanks to clock up.
And Tendou pulling the Hyper Zector through time? Chef's kiss Beautiful. |
Fun idea for a thread! Thanks, Deepsea!
Off the top of my head, there's one big thing I love about Kamen Rider, and one small This Literally Just Came Up In Conversation thing. The big thing is that, for as much as Kamen Rider shows are stories designed to sell toys to children, they never skimp on the stories or the toys for children. Like, the balance between art and commerce in Kamen Rider is exemplary. Series are built around themes like friendship, empathy, living with failure, trying to understand other perspectives, recognizing the limitations of organizations, the difficulty of marginalized groups to argue for their culture, and so on. But episodes are still able to introduce collectibles, role-play items, and suits you'd pay 7000 yen to have as an action figure. It's never this tacky attempt to wring money out at the expense of a coherent narrative; but it's also never some high-minded drama that forgets to make you salivate for merch. It's this impossibly perfect blend of resonant themes and FOMO-inducing aesthetics that is filling up my brain with reactions to art and draining my bank account to get more Figuarts. I love it all. The small thing is the exasperated way Yuuji says Kaido's name in Faiz. It's this hill he climbs and slides down, this KAIDO, and it's the best. Yuuji is constantly trying to wrangle Kaido, and his whole Harried Mom approach is as charming as it is hilariously, constantly, ineffective. I can hear it again, and I'm smiling from it. |
I love that the Ultra series is still committed to practical special effects. There's something really special about the amount of care and detail that go into the miniatures and models that make up the setting for the average kaiju battle. I especially like it when the shows edit characters into the model sets to really drive home the scale (one of the recent shows, I want to say Taiga, did this really effectively for one of its fights). Also, any time we get a cool shot that puts the camera into the set, like that brilliant slow motion car flip in Z.
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We might be getting more and more CGI as time goes on, but the martial arts and stunts will always be there. Stunt performers really don't get enough credit! |
The thing I've always loved about tokusatsu is our little cottage industry of a fandom; from fansbubbers to teenagers writing OCs on fanfiction.net, from the early days of trading VHS tapes, uploading RealPlayer clips, and writing lengthy meta on geocities about Jetman and its mythical manga sequel, I feel that we have absolutely excelled in the face of adversity, taking this one thing that was never considered for us and making our own fun with it. Even tough I am a stock villain and hate all human life, I constantly find the creativity of this scene to be inspiring and uplifting.
So here's to all the translators, fic writers, artists, forum mods, and cosplayers, here's to everyone who watched these children shows and thought that maybe they could do better as a person in their everyday life because of these embarrassing morals that we all pretend not to have taken onboard. Thank you, friends, for your service. I'm not crying, you're crying. |
I will say, it has seemed sad to me in the past when some fans on the internet have seemed to almost basically like ''hate everything'' in a way, it's like why are you into tokusatsu?! But then in Britain/Europe you are kind of reliant on the internet for toku so I suppose the opinion side can be a bit unavoidable.
But I agree there is certainly nothing like tokusatsu. You could compare it to other countries' long-running TV shows, you could compare it to anime, you could compare it to other Asian dramas, plus some people might be into Marvel/DC but other than the occasional thing that's not quite so much my cup of tea :p But that's not descriptive enough is my point! I suppose for specific things I particularly like returning actors when you don't expect it, like I wouldn't have thought even that the cast of GARO would reunite for a sequel show 6 years after the original and I always like to see what happened to certain characters after their show actually finished, like Gokaiger and Zi-O had some quite satisfactory tribute episodes in my view! |
I remember, when some anime series had the leads perform the Dairangers' role call, and someone had posted a side by side comparison. When the vid was first uploaded, the comments were "The girls did it better" and it really broke my heart.
Last I checked, the comments were nothing but love towards Sentai, and it makes me smile. Anyway, I love Zyuohger. It's my second favorite Sentai behind Gekiranger, and it's a better anniversary than Gokaiger. Gokai is all flash and flare with no character and little heart vs one of the best Sentai casts. It's probably one of the most endearing series that exemplifies what's best about Sentai, rather than being all "Hey, it's [Actor], please applaud." |
Well, you read the title, let's gush!
My first gateway to Tokusatsu growing up, was Godzilla, which will always hold a special place in my heart. I loved seeing those suits wreck miniature cities and fight each other, but there was more than just me being a weird child who enjoyed destruction. There was the effort, the wonder, and spectacle put into these movies, the care put into the miniatures to make it look real. The music, the special effects, and when I learned more, the stuff the actors went through to bring us this. Whether they went with stop motion or this, I wouldn't have cared, it was something that never ceases to amaze me. When I began my trek into more things like Godzilla, I found Ultraman, and was instantly won over. I did watch Power Ranger in my childhood, though I couldn't tell you which one since it's been so long. The best I could tell you was that it was likely one of the Disney produced seasons. Anyway, back on track, the more Ultraman shows I watched, I always found it hard to dislike anything in the shows, as I was so absorbed in the wonder it presented, and seeing the newer shows where they were shorter and more accessible, they still made something I would remember fondly. Though my first completed Showa series was not the Original Ultraman (I did eventually own it and watched it, and loved it), it was actually Leo. When I initially watched these shows on Crunchyroll, I watched the New Generation shows and one Showa show simultaneously, it was something special to see how far these shows have come, and it was all worth it. No matter what they bring out, I always look forward and enjoy each new season. Kamen Rider was more enigmatic to me. I had heard of it, been curious about it, saw some of the openings, where I saw the original opening, then whoever caught my eye, and that was Wizard. Though I never found episodes for any Kamen Rider season, I eventually saw Build get revealed, and I was absolutely won over by his suit, that I went to find a site to watch these shows at last. I found the first episode of the original, then half of Amazon, and eventually Decade became my first completed Rider season, movies included. Which brings me to where I am now, I could talk more about my journey through Tokusatsu, but I should probably stop right now. But I'll leave off with this: Even if we're going into a time where CGI is taking over, practical effects will always have a timeless, almost magical charm to it, and I will never get tired of it. |
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I absolutely adore that Tokusatsu can be the most awkward/silly/cringy thing ever & stupifyingly awesome/smart/heartfelt at the same time. There really is nothing else in media out there like it. I know Anime comes up alot in comparisons & for good reason. But you can get away with so much more in animation than you can in cheap, low-budget live-action shows with spandex & goofy characters made out of rubbery suits. The fact that Toku is getting so much more attention now is only making me appreciate this genre of storytelling even more.
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http://www.morphinlegacy.com/legacy-...rive/xv-allies |
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I need to gush about Ghost's soundtrack, it's only appropriate given the most recent news.
For not having any Insert songs to speak of, the instrumentals really carry that series strong. Each Rider has their own set of multiple themes that get utilized that are essentially lyric-less insert songs and it just ends up being so very, very good. Current Mood: Just playing all of Ghost's music I found on a Youtube playlist and sitting here jamming the night away. |
I think my favorite thing about Toku is its ability to inspire emotions in people.
From making us laugh at its inherent cheese, to really tempting us to buy the awesome toys, to getting very emotional over characters we love. Sure, some of the thoughts and opinions that stem out of those emotions are ones I might not agree with, but regardless of that, it atleast shows that the people watching care about the medium. Speaking solely for myself here, it's very rare that something reaches the level of emotional attachment I have to shows like Power Rangers, Android Kikaider, and Kamen Rider Kuuga. Toku is attached to some of my fondest and most powerful memories and experiences, and I hope to never forget that. |
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You're not wrong! I think I came around more on Onari from that show than any other character. |
Onari is honestly like, the best.
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I'm being tested, aren't I?
You're trying to see if I'm going to break and start going negative in the positive vibes thread. Nice try, but it's not going to work. |
The Onari love gives me strength! I actually found him really funny and enjoyable throughout the entirety of Ghost and I think he lands far better than most comedic side characters in rider which more often than not fall completely flat. *cough* shunpei *cough* the entire investigation team in Drive *cough*. So yeah, it's nice to see him getting some appreciation.
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- The endless dedication of Ultraman - in general, as a franchise - to making everything a spectacle and a wonder. The sheer reverence and love for the concept of an Ultraman that never disappears and is never made anything less than amazing
- Following on from that, the way any return or revival of a classic hero in most seasons is treated with wonder and reverence. The 7 Legendary Riders in Movie Wars Megamax; the original Gridman's return in SSSS.Gridman; literally any appearance of the Ultra Brothers; Akaranger leading the charge; Sentai mech toys coming to life in Gokaiger x Goseiger; Tiga's scant few appearances being full of love... it's so, so good. - Kamen Rider Zero-One's soundtrack... if not the best, it's definitely one of the top 5 in the series. Bombastic and fun and exciting in so many ways - Abaranger's constantly positive affirmation of Ryoga and Mai's father-son relationship being just as authentic as a normal one, and further than that being the central example of a good parental relationship in a season where that was the theme. You just don't often see adoptive relationships done this well and I'll always praise Abaranger for it - The fact that when anniversary specials and big line-ups are done, not a single series is left out. Kamen Rider always including unpopular guys like Wizard and Shin and Super-1; Sentai never forgetting all the random 80s teams that many wouldn't remember; Ultraman going as far as including guys like Powered and Nice and Neos. It doesn't matter how obscure any of these are or if any are widely considered unpopular -- all of them mean something to someone, and because of that none of them are ever left out |
Small and kind of niche one: whenever a water pipe breaks and it's used to represent rain, the two that come to mind are Touma's transformation into primitive dragon when he tries to get Kento back the first time, and when Chase first transforms into Chaser. I bring this one up because it's not something you really see in other shows, or at least it feels that way. I think a lot of other shows might see that as melodramatic, but toku embraces that feeling and tells stories about large emotions.
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I like that Sento from build ugly cries, it’s very humanizing.
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