Super Sentai, The Riddle Of Steel And Swords!


After writing on two articles on swordsmanship namely non-red ranger swordsmen and them red swordsmen, I just thought of that line by Yuusuke Amemiya/Red Falcon in Gaoranger vs. Super Sentai movie. The statement was, "How can a frightened sword like that defeat enemies?" This was the lesson that Gaku Washio learned from Yuusuke when they met. So I thought I might make some instances where the enemy supposedly had a stronger sword but was defeated at the end of the duel.

I'll give a few examples below.


In Bioman episode 30, Doctor Man had a powerful katana prepared for the Mantis Kans. In this episode, even if the katana may seem "superior". At the hands of Monster who was an incompetent guy, Shiro Gou/Red One managed to really get over the dilemma of the samurai sword. Mantis Kans soon had that super powered katana that split even the Bio Shield into two but cleverness and proper use of the Super Maser saved the day.


In episode 30, Baraba reveals that he had unlocked the Imperial Underground Sword. At that point, I started to really worry whether or not the Maskmen would be able to defeat him. Although Takeru said one day that Akira's sword may beat Baraba's sword but it never happened. Instead, the destined battle was when Red Mask beat Baraba in their final clash in episode 48. Red Mask managed to beat the Imperial Underground Sword by cutting it into two while Baraba used it as a shield. The fearsome Imperial Underground Sword lost to the Masky Blade.



In Liveman episode 23, Dr. Kemp creates a new alloy that creates a super sturdy katana-type blade for Sword Zuno. I don't know if this episode was meant to debunk the idea that the samurai was always superior to the two-edged longsword. I admired how Yuusuke/Red Falcon said that it wasn't the need for a stronger sword but defeating the sword style. By making the 0.1 second difference, Red Falcon managed to defeat Sword Zuno. I wish though we saw his obviously fake pop up sword break Sword Zuno's katana. By overcoming that fear, Red Falcon proved the hero makes the sword, not the sword makes the hero.


In Gingaman episode 24, Ryoma/Ginga Red challenges Budo to a final duel. What I love about this duel is also how Ginga Red breaks the blade of Budo's katana before ending the duel. I just thought of this one that maybe Budo got overconfident leading to his defeat.

The whole riddle of steel is plain and simple, "The answer lies in not in the blade but in the man." No matter how powerful a sword you'll hold, a lesser but effective sword would beat you out if you lose your discipline in handling the sword.

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