Are western audiences so different from japan audiences regarding super sentais?

[Ziginz Zegell]

Yeah. Let's forget about stories and buy some more toys. That's all that matters. [/sarcasm]

You mean it isn't!? How could I have never have noticed!?!

I want goty's avatar pic...that is freakin adorable.


Now that my smart ass comment and compliment are out of the way I have this to say! If the French can do it then so can we! Also the Japanese just take it more seriously, acting wise at least. Some of the actors they have gotten for power rangers even from the begining were...less then compelling.

I can't even watch Samurai because of the acting...it hurts me. What really ruined the show for me, I mean really ruined it, was the voice actor for the kaijin in the first episode. The guy in shinkenger rocked that part. The guy in Samurai made me want to punch myself into an unconcious stooper...

 

[Fantasy Leader]

Now that my smart ass comment and compliment are out of the way I have this to say! If the French can do it then so can we! Also the japanese just take it more seriously, acting wise at least. SOme of the actors they have gotten for power rangers even from the begining were...less then compelling.

I can't even watch Samurai because of the acting...it hurts me. What really ruined the show for me, I mean really ruined it, was the voice actor for the kaijin in the first episode. The guy in shinkenger rocked that part. The guy in Samurai made me want to punch myself into an unconcious stooper...

I know right?? Voice acting for the monsters should be executed with more care. This is something that I feel like Power Rangers always bullshitted (at least RPM had them growl). Even in Time Force (where the cast of actors were actually pretty good) the monsters were terribly voiced.

 

[Scissors]

If the French can do it then so can we!

Please do not take this as an insult, but I think that foreign shows, dubbed or subtitled are more acceptable to the European audience than to the American.
We are a small continent of many mixed cultures, so being presented to another one is no big deal.
However, in the US, it has been very normal to look down on or mock foreign cultures in the media.
Even though Anime has become popular in the states, there are still many people who refuse to watch it in the original language because its too "alien" for them.

Anime is easier than toku, because you can make it seem "western" through the dubs. The characters already look western, so it is not a big problem.
With Toku you have a bunch of actors who look very foreign and do very foreign things. It is not as easy to change.
Japanese media is only cool as long as we are talking about samurai and ninja fights. As soon as we present people with a story about normal Japanese people, doing normal Japanese things and try to solve everyday issues, the mainstream viewer will turn away

 

[Ziginz Zegell]

Please do not take this as an insult, but I think that foreign shows, dubbed or subtitled are more acceptable to the European audience than to the American.
We are a small continent of many mixed cultures, so being presented to another one is no big deal.
However, in the US, it has been very normal to look down on or mock foreign cultures in the media.
Even though Anime has become popular in the states, there are still many people who refuse to watch it in the original language because its too "alien" for them.

Anime is easier than toku, because you can make it seem "western" through the dubs. The characters already look western, so it is not a big problem.
With Toku you have a bunch of actors who look very foreign and do very foreign things. It is not as easy to change.
Japanese media is only cool as long as we are talking about samurai and ninja fights. As soon as we present people with a story about normal Japanese people, doing normal Japanese things and try to solve everyday issues, the mainstream viewer will turn away

I was refering to this:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/France_Five

If the French can do it so can we. As diverse a nation as we are we have no excuse for being closed minded. Can I get a huzzah?

 

[Glamador]

Yeah. Let's forget about stories and buy some more toys. That's all that matters. [/sarcasm]

Who says we have to forget about the story to talk about toys? The increasing amounts of quality (and more importantly, well-marketed) collector's items means Toei recognizes and is focusing on the audience outside the target demographic, even a little bit.

The more valuable we become to them, the more effort they'll show. And that becomes evident in the story with time.

Frankly, I think the wealth of Toku fans on the net is plenty evidence that there's a market outside Japan. It's all about money isn't it? I really don't get why more Japanese companies haven't started to release things subbed. It's far easier to sub a show than to dub one (or re-create it with American actors as the case may be).

So what if not every American family is going to start watching Sentai? Hardly anyone watches anime if you look at percentages. But America is a BIG PLACE. Considering the low cost of subbing and the potential gain in collector's item and DVD sales you'd think they could at least put some series up on Hulu or similar with subs.

I've watched the subbed anime on Hulu steadily grow these past few years to the point where it has a very respectable selection (subbed and dubbed) now. Who says Toku can't piggyback off of anime in one big marketing push?

 

[Solari]

Asian countries don't have problems airing dubbed rider, but we still get PR instead of sentai.


Besides the children demographic, there's the group who grew up with it and never grew out of it; and then there's the parents who watch it with their little kids.
(They cast ikemen to appeal to the mothers, right? :laugh: )

 

[lazycoconut]

There's an interview Hideaki Tsukada did when he was working on Gekiranger (I referred to it earlier in the thread) and IIRC, he was asked in the interview about the question of Sentai airing in America, and he said that America already has Power Rangers and he feels that's more culturally appropriate for English-speaking fans. That sounds like kind of a rehearsed answer to me, so maybe there's more to it ...

ETA: Interview's here. It says:

"However, you have to keep in mind that our target audience in Japan as well as every other country are preschoolers, and we feel that for those viewers in western countries the Power Ranger series is probably easier to grasp."

He also said, relating to the original topic of this thread:

"Well, in past instalments like Hurricanger there have been deaths of good characters to add to the drama. But those deaths have been taken to heart by our young viewers so much that right now we are trying to avoid it. Personally I think there's enough bad things happening in the world, so at least in the Super Sentai series we want to stick to a more idealized world without dying heroes."

He went on to say that Rio might die (LOL) but bear in mind that one reason for the popularity of Gekiranger with English-speaking fans is that a lot of people consider it more serious and dramatic than other recent Sentai. So I definitely think Toei does make it more child-friendly.

 

[Goty]

I want goty's avatar pic...that is freakin adorable.

Heh, it's the Evil Arale from a Dr. Slump movie, i took a screenshot myself.

Who says we have to forget about the story to talk about toys? The increasing amounts of quality (and more importantly, well-marketed) collector's items means Toei recognizes and is focusing on the audience outside the target demographic, even a little bit.

The more valuable we become to them, the more effort they'll show. And that becomes evident in the story with time.

Exactly, he missed the point. It goes to show that TPTB aren't oblivious to the older fanbase as some people suggest, even if it'll never be the target audience.

 

[ParaParaJMo]

even though this isn't 100% off the subject, but in the sailor moon anime, parents actually complained about the sailor senshi dying in the climax of the first season and zeta gundam got complaints for being dark as well. so japan being acceptable of more mature content is not 100% true.

anyway, anime and japanese entertainment in context to america has a small following, but yet hardcore. can sentai succeed in america? honestly, i do not know. does it deserve a shot? yes, it does. i mean, release zyuranger on dvd for instance. that would be awesome. i think the next morphicon should try different things. like get crew members of the original sentai series and the actors to attend. it would help bridge that gap and get people interested and talking. we get an inside look at what power rangers came from. give zyuranger a screening, etc. i think with the right strategy and timing, anything is possible. never say never.

 

[shingamyeonblack]

never say never.

You just said it.

:laugh:


Well, Japan generally is more accepting of villains dying than Americans are accepting of villains dying. Here, it's like: "They just lost their way. We should all be friends."

If you want to kill off a character, our favorite move is the explosion. People return from explosions every time, so you aren't absolutely certain that someone died in one. The production therefore can kill people without really killing people.