-
Overdriving The Message
originally posted August 7, 2006
By Victor Ong
Although Operation Overdrive more than half-a-year away, the anticipation is nevertheless becoming lethal. How will Disney handle the 15th incarnation of the States' most popular boy-action TV programme?
Boukenger's Task 1 presented a widescreen adventure of epic proportions that quickly tethered off into the regular Sentai fare, though as previous posts on this blog suggest, it is styled way better than Magiranger. See http://thegkatimes.blogspot.com/2006/07/im-really-looking-forward-to-power.html and start wishing for some solid 'anniversary material', to quote The Snake.
After the dismal Wild Force, which I truly hesitate to show my countrymen, Tori and the Ninja Storm gave me hope. It was something different. DinoThunder made a splendid showing, too, especially for people whose memories of Power Rangers are still stuck at the Tommy-Kimberly stage -- it is a step ahead which forsakes everything that transpired between Zeo and Ninja Storm.
Earlier this year, I took the liberty of new membership to post some opinion http://thegkatimes.blogspot.com/2006/05/new-power-rangers-movie.html calling for a 3rd Power Rangers movie -- a call that's too oft-repeated. If EP Kalish is finally ready for some ambition, we fans should suggest a cinema-quality Operation Overdrive. And merely reformatting the presentation style to widescreen isn't gonna do the job.
Is the 2007 season going to be dominated by pyrotechnics again? Are they going to film 25 episodes this time? If so -- and the ep count remains unconfirmed, mind you -- then the creative team had better give the world a GOOD 25-ep season devoid of cardboard, slapstick acting, inexperienced ADR and superimposing, poor body language and a noisy soundtrack.
If, as the previous post http://thegkatimes.blogspot.com/2006/08/is-disney-really-capable-of-canceling.html suggest, Disney really decides to cancel the whole franchise altogether, then the above changes had better take place, else we fans will forever sue the profit-driven, aesthetics-come-second Mickey Mouse company for slander, negligence and defamation of the Power Rangers TV show, which is in every way deserving of the treatment that has been given to the X-Men, Batman, The Hulk, Fantastic Four, Elektra, Spiderman and the I-love-Lois-Lane Superman.
We understand that for Power Rangers to remain TV-Y7-FV and not progress to PG-13, the creative team has to tone down on some of the consequences of explosive action, i.e. blood, screams, real pain and gore. But I believe that there is a kinder way to treat the Rangers than plonk them in the midst of rubber monsters and blow multi-colored smoke about them. While there should be cooperation amongst the Rangers, it is best to save the synchrony and fight-to-the-beat bowwow till the 16th season. If you want a TV series to rival Smallville, then you must give the characters a greater dimension of individualism.
That is if the Scooby-Doos want to make Overdrive an epic season. As end-users, we have no choice but to wait as we ride out the storm Mystic Force is causing with its rap. :)
more
-
The Fall and Rise of A Legacy part II
originally posted February 12, 2006
By Victor Ong
Earlier this week, I gave you Part One as an insight into the barrenness that so characterized the Tokusatsu landscape in Johor Bahru and Singapore. But that was 2 years ago.
Of late, there have been some exciting developments. The acquisition of Saban Entertainment by media giant Disney interrupted the Saban half of Power Rangers Wild Force with more color, more Matrix-like action and an apparent increase in the number of Power Animals, the latter of which is a 100% Toei contribution, but nonetheless served to heighten the hype and fuel the interest – the dormant fan-base responded. This fan-base included kids who had outgrown MMPR a decade ago, and a new generation of children fed Disney’s maiden version of Power Rangers.
Wild Force is Disney’s MMPR – it brought back on-screen a lame campiness that felt strangely nostalgic. It also had a lot of crayon-and-pastel colors found lacking in some of Saban’s later productions.
Wild Force toys trickled into Toys ‘R’ Us as usual, but as viewership increased and ratings soared, more toys were imported and my eye could not miss the advertisement boards plastered on walls or suspended from ceilings in an extravagant manner. Departmental stores, like Parkson Grand and Carrefour, took up the challenge, jumping into the bandwagon with a wider variety of Power Rangers toys from seasons old and new, at competitive prices. Adding to this logistical nightmare was a flashflood of Kamen Rider Agito, 555 and later Ryuki merchandise, while Ultraman figurines were relocated from dark corners to brightly-lit shelves. These are observations of the naked eye, and my, wasn’t I elated!
These unprecedented changes were followed closely by premiere telecasts and repeat telecasts of TV shows all across the Tokusatsu genre. The remaining part of Power Rangers Wild Force (“Pasukan Liar Power Rangers”) was subtitled in Malay, and for the first time in 5 years, Berjaya HVN released episodes that were free of the unpleasantries I mentioned in Part One. Many companies signed on to take advantage of this growing phenomenon, and soon, TV tie-in products were released. Only the blind and uninformed would miss the colorful Wild Force lunchboxes, pencases, school bags, satchels, stationery, posters and bicycles.
But I must be prudent. I must not overrate this phenomenon. It’s something new, yes, but it is not taking the nation by storm or anything. Only Ninja Storm can take the nation by storm.
2005 welcomed Ninja Storm with open arms. With Seiyu, Sogo, Takashimaya and other departmental stores (where parents frequent) lining up their toy displays with the latest Bandai action figures, Singaporeans must’ve noticed something. It’s an undeniable fact: the Power Rangers are back. And this time, with something called “Super Sentai” in tow. Dog-faced Dekarangers are on display with plasticky Storm Megazords. Japanese Power Rangers……weird!
Today, Power Rangers Dino Thunder is airing simultaneously on Malaysia’s TV2 and Singapore’s Mediacorp TV12 (a.k.a. Kids Central). IMMG, Singapore’s sole licensee for Yu-Gi-Oh!, Crush Gear Turbo and Kamen Rider, is releasing Dino Thunder VCDs every month, while toy shops, big and small, are inviting a greater Power Ranger/Super Sentai presence. A little over a month ago, my brother and I, among other shoppers, had the pleasure of watching a full episode of Hurricanger in Sogo’s toy department. That, in addition to everything relevant that’s happening around me, convinces me enough to say that the Sentai presence is as significant as that of the Gransazers, here in Johor Bahru and even more so in Singapore.
The Power Rangers are regaining a foothold in this part of the world. Only God knows what SPD will do come January 2007.
It’s catchin’ on in this town! Witness the birth of Singapore’s 1st Tokusatsu superhero! Visit Project Leo http://www.projectleo.blogspot.com/ for more details. bruary 12, 2006
more
-
The Fall and Rise of A Legacy part I
originally poasted February 7, 2006
by Victor Ong
Good morning, readers! It’s past 12a.m. in Malaysia, and I’m here with a report of the latest Power Rangers and Super Sentai developments in Johor Bahru and Singapore.
Back in late 2004, when Saban’s Power Rangers Wild Force began airing every Saturday 6:30p.m. on Malaysia’s TV2, my friends and I made a regular habit of leaving the hostel and entering College to watch the featured episode on overhead television sets in the canteen. The security guards would join us from time to time. The stout Indian lady peddling hotdogs, fries and burgers would crane her neck to catch a bit of the colorful action, while Malay kids back from their regular weekend soccer match would lounge about the canteen pretending to be mature, grown-up teenagers, drinking Coke and isotonic drinks, but still watching Wild Force nevertheless.
The 6:30p.m. viewership base soon expanded to include a CPA Accounting student, Monash University Malaysia undergrads, parents on school seminars (those freaky PTA stuff) and finally some members of Saban’s target audience – the kids of our lecturers. Trust those teachers to leave their tykes with us – we had the perfect childcare environment.
Guards + friendly tuckshop lady + innocent undergrads + cute girls + watchful parents + Power Rangers = wholesome time together. Sweet.
Most of my peers and ALL of my less-than-senior lecturers know what “Power Rangers” is; they just don’t know how far it has ventured post-MMPR. In Malaysia and Singapore, the general impression is “Tommy”, “Kimberly” or “the White Ranger……ah, I remember”, and nothing much besides. In 1998, toy sales began falling. Why? They changed the costumes. Zeo. Weird. Gone were the Power Rangers I knew, and I stopped watching the series. So did a million other kids.
In 2003, Power Rangers resurfaced in my life. It was a renewed interest brought about by MMPR Season 2 VCDs that cost US$1 apiece; I bought all 7 discs on sale at that time, and watched them over one weekend. This experience prompted me to welcome more Power Rangers-related material into my life, till it was saturated with them. An Internet search revealed much. Admittedly, I was shocked by the vast library of PR episodes, the expanse of the PR universe, the increasing complexity of PR plotlines and the upgraded special effects. I began fervent downloading, a habit that lasted quite long.
2004, I tried to lay my hands on episodes I could watch on TV, namely VCDs and DVDs, but many of my efforts were in vain. Singapore’s major cartoon licensees do not market PR, and many popular video stores do not stock them; across the Causeway, the situation is less bleak, with major player Berjaya HVN releasing PR discs every now and then. But subsequent purchases (especially Time Force) revealed poor video quality, lousy color separation and the occasional TV encode.
Toy stores, similarly, had forgotten PR. With the exception of Toys ‘R’ Us, most brand-name toy stores refrained from stocking PR toys and accessories. Don’t think too highly of Toys ‘R’ Us, though – it, too, had a poor catalog of PR merchandise. Fortunately, some of the ‘lesser’ toy outlets imported plenty of imitations, and though I avoided buying them, they gave me a pretty good intro to PR’s exciting counterpart – Super Sentai.
Malaysia and Singapore seemed like a wasteland in the aftermath of MMPR’s demise. Zeo, Turbo, Lost Galaxy all the way to Time Force were like weeds growing in a barren landscape under clouds that refused to give water. Those clouds are, of course, the local fan base.
MMPR left an indelible impression of campiness, silliness and kiddiness that gave what used to be 7-year-olds in 1995, but are now angst-y 12-year-olds in 2000, every reason to avoid Power Rangers and its supposedly immature incarnations.
But no longer. Power Rangers is back in Johor Bahru and Singapore with a vengeance.
-- to be continued --
more
