Super Sentai's Dragon Warriors (Updated Post)

In honor of the upcoming Chinese New Year, I am going to do a review on the dragon-based Sentai warriors as they appeared. I decided to update an old post for that reason. 


Hiryu Tsurugi/Change Dragon 

The first dragon themed red ranger.  He's a pretty emotional individual despite being a responsible leader. However, Changeman didn't introduce the animal-themed mecha until Liveman. He does have a pitch attack called the Dragon Ball. Toei was also the studio behind Dragon Ball - a series that I heard got an American dub by Haim Saban. 


Burai/Dragon Ranger 

First sixth ranger of the Super Sentai franchise, first dragon themed ranger to pilot an actual dragon mecha. He was given his own six-part introduction which I dub as "Green with Evil". I always can't resist comparing Burai to X-1 Mask. X-1 Mask was a prototype and was written off for just one episode. Burai's popularity caused him to be given more episodes than intended. It's also revealed that he's been Dead All Along.

I think Burai has one of the best written episodes. So much, that I think he's considered the best thing for Zyuranger or its saving grace. Then Burai was scheduled to die. I wonder why Toei didn't decide to kill him much later? Instead, Burai finally died in episode 42 and the Water of Life wouldn't work on him. Clotho revealed that Burai was living on borrowed life. Burai did one last heroic arc before departing for the afterlife. Later, Burai became a ghost to help others.


Ryou/Ryuranger 

Dairanger began its shift from dinosaurs to mystical animals. This year is the year of the dragon too. The name Ryuranger literally translates to Dragonranger. Okay Toei what's up with calling Burai as Dragon Ranger then? I think naming him RYOU instead of Ryu was to avoid punning things. I mean, think if he was named RYU which may translate into DRAGON. It'd be funny if he was RYU and he was the RYUranger and his personal zord is the RYUSEIOH. 

I'd say he's one of my favorite red rangers. The Jin Matoba storyline fleshes him out. I'd also have his rivalry with Shadam. Sure, his decision to face off Shadam one last time was rather reckless. It was also there that Shadam's real status remained a mystery. Until now, I feel Shadam transferred his spirit into a clay doll and FORGOT ABOUT THAT ONE FACT. The knife duel that Ryou had really is one of the best eyebrow-raising moments in the 1990s. Too bad not so many rangers ever get to do that!


Ryunosuke Ikenami/Shinken Blue 

I think it's funny how Takeru Shiba is a lot calmer than the water-based Ryuunosuke. He could be a second-in-command. However, the OVA did show he was a better manager than a leader. Why the producers chose a dragon for him over Takeru is probably to avoid redundancy. I mean, I think a Merlion could've fit his role better. Instead, he was given a dragon motif.

I think it's unfortunate (or fortunate) that Ryunosuke belongs to the post-Timeranger era. Timeranger is a series often considered too serious. I think some Power Rangers fans might name Shinkenger or Go-Busters as the best of Yasuko Kobayashi's era. For some, it's ToQGer. He often gets subjected to a butt of jokes. I even remember comparing an earlier episode of his to "A Different Drum" from Mighty Morphin'. I feel this guy a subtle nod to Billy Cranston from Mighty Morphin'. He's shown to be somewhat inventive early on. 


Alata/Gosei Red

Perhaps the only dragon-themed ranger who's not as fierce as he has a bubbly personality. It's know that Goseiger is in the bottom for me. It doesn't help that Goseiger was sandwiched in between two fan favorites namely Shinkenger and Gokaiger. I'd even dare say Go-Busters even causes the show to be overshadowed. The poor guy probably can't catch a break at all!

I think the guy's an okay character. The Goseigers are fine characters. The real problem has been the show. I think it took something as awful as Megaforce to be Vindicated by History. The issue with Megaforce hasn't been the cast but the script. I ended up appreciating Goseiger more after Megaforce became a huge cluttered mess. Pretty much, the guy still has more personality than Troy Burrows - a character said to be more robotic than Roboknight. I even feel Troy was so badly implemented that even the Humagears from Kamen Rider Zero-One have more personality. 


Shou Ronpou/Ryu Commander

More dragon jokes anyone? Shou Ronpou's name can be translated as Xiao Longbao or Small Dragon Dumplings. Hungry? Well, I really think Toei just makes fun of everything. Anybody who grew up watching Dragon Ball Z may notice the food-based puns like the Saiyans named after vegetables, the Ginyu Force are named after dairy products, and Gohan means rice. This guy is another version of Anubis "Doggie" Kruger from Dekaranger. Heck, I even think it was purely intentional that Kyuranger had a one-episode crossover with Dekaranger.

I do have my mixed feelings on the character. Super Sentai went for the Lighter and Softer approach since Gaoranger. Today, it still goes with that approach. Not even Hurricanger, Gekiranger, or Go-Busters were truly like the more serious 1990s entries. Sure, Kyuranger had the Universe under the foul reign of Don Armage. However, the show ends up getting less and less serious. I even feel having that Return of the Jedi moment was toned down due to censorship. I mean, Kyuranger is really meant to be Spaceballs one way or another. I even feel like Don Armage was more like President Skroob than he was Emperor Palpatine in some way.


Zenkai Magine

Okay, where do I even begin? I was excited to see how Zenkaiger would turn out with its strange new look. I was thinking of it as some kind of Metal Hero tribute. Sure, Toei unplugged that franchise BUT it's not been forgotten. Metal Hero references pop out left and right. Instead, it seems that Kamen Rider has become the new Metal Hero. I was excited to see what the characters could do. Instead, it all just fell apart. Yeah, I think Junko Komura isn't the right person for anniversaries

It was interesting to see Magine and her dragon motif. I guess the use of the dragon suited her due to her magical theme. Sadly, I think Zenkaiger failed to reach its potential. I had some high expectations. Instead, the show wasn't really given any interesting development. Hopefully, the concept will be revisited. 


Jiro Momotani/Don Dragoku

An obvious pun on the Dragon Ball franchise. The alter ego is called DRAGOKU. After all, Toei was the studio behind Dragon Ball. The character may be a tribute to Sun Wukong more than Son Goku. However, the dragon form gets into is BLATANTLY a tribute to that. He shows up as some rival to the main hero Taro Momoi.

Unlike Zenkaiger, I do love the rivalry dynamic that Jiro has with Taro. Both of them are based on some folk legend. Both of them tend to rival each other. Sure, Toshiki Inoue doesn't do comedy that well but at least there was development. 

Updated: February 7, 2024

Comments

  1. GingaGreen's animal is a Falcon not a dragon

    ReplyDelete
  2. @Mjolnir- Thanks for the correction. Did revisions already.

    ReplyDelete

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