I absolutely loved the series, I might as well say that right now. I went in to it briefly in my about section at the top of the page, and to sum it up again, Gokaiger was the first Sentai series I ever watched, with no previous knowledge of Sentai other than it was what Power Rangers was always adapated from.
I actually thought about watching some Super Sentai for a while, but was never sure where to start. Then one day I asked that question on Twitter, and was recommended Gokaiger by someone there who told me how it was the absolute best way to get in to Sentai, and told me the basic premise of the show. I was certainly interested enough to give it a try, and so I went and started getting some episodes downloaded to watch.
I honestly had no idea what to expect, but the series blew me away in terms of quality. Having been used to the incredibly corny plots and acting from the Power Rangers cast for all those years in my youth, it was so refreshing to see that in a Sentai series, they don't just aim at young kids, they make it enjoyable for you regardless of age. That's one of the many great things about Gokaiger in particular - there really is something for everyone.
For the kids who watch the show, it has the typical Sentai story of the good guys fighting the villains and having all these amazing powers and mecha etc, and for the older audience, it's still enjoyable as it is far more mature than what most people would be used to from watching Power Rangers. I know so far this post has made it sound like I hate Power Rangers and want to run it down, but that's not my intention at all, it's just that Sentai outdoes it all the way.
I can easily picture a young kid watching this with his/her father or even grandfather, and the kid will love it for the reasons I listed above, and where this is a celebration of the 35 Super Sentai series, there are plenty of nods (and even episodes) focused on the older Super Sentai teams, so the father/grandfather could watch it and probably get a really nice feeling of nostalgia seeing the Sentai teams who they grew up with.
Even with that aside, I couldn't help but just fall in love with Gokaiger as a whole. I do love the fact they can transform in to the older teams and use their powers, the Ranger Keys are a nice idea (and probably pretty lucrative on the merchandising front haha) and the series itself has taught me a lot about past Super Sentai. Before I probably couldn't have told you more than a couple of the series names to be perfectly honest, but thanks to Gokaiger (and of course the awesome ED that runs down all the teams certainly helped) I know them all, even down to the suits.
The cast are brilliant, as are the characters. It's impossible not to like the leader - Captain Marvelous (aka Gokai Red) - and all the Gokaigers have a certain charm and charisma about them. They work brilliantly together and it really does show, and as for the characters themselves, where they all have differing personalities you are sure to take a liking to at least one of them. I do want to give a particular mention to Marvelous though, as he really is the strongest team leader I have ever seen. He has charisma oozing out of him and definitely has that "cool" factor too. I don't care if you're a kid or a grown man, I can guarantee that anyone who watches this series will wish they could be like Captain Marvelous.
I don't just want to make you think everything good is Marvelous though, as all the Gokaigers are brilliant. Everyone from the former princess Ahim to the silly Hakase are great in their own way, and can be really funny or play things for the emotion with no trouble. The villains are also quite good, though (without wanting to spoil anything) Basco is easily my favourite, and he is definitely one of the standout things in the series, with his rivalry with Captain Marvelous being very enjoyable and always leaving you wanting to see more as we find out more about the characters and their past.
I have wrote all this and I honestly don't even feel like I have scratched the surface, so my best advice is to just go and watch the series and see for yourself, as I can guarantee that you won't be disappointed. I know a few people (myself included) who had never seen so much as 1 second of proper Sentai, but after watching Gokaiger became hooked.
This series is special, there is no other word for it. The heroes, the villains, the story and the references to the older series all make this special. Whether you are brand new to Super Sentai or a series veteran, there is something in Gokaiger for everyone to enjoy, and almost every episode was fantastic to the point where I could easily sit through an entire afternoon just watching episode after episode, because it really had that indescribable thing about it that made a connection somewhere deep inside.
Do yourself a favour and watch this series, it will be some of the best 25 minutes (per episode) you could possibly spend watching a show.
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