Space Sheriff Gavan the Movie - Talk Back

[Amon]

I was thinking about watching the movie tonight. Do I need to watch the original Gavan show in order to understand the story?

 

[Dark Kabuto]

I was thinking about watching the movie tonight. Do I need to watch the original Gavan show in order to understand the story?

I enjoyed the movie despite not watching the original I didn't really find it confusing at all.

 

[Burkion]

The only thing watching the original movie will do would be to make things a little clearer, but it never would amount to more than what the movie already explains or implies.

Beyond the fact that the original Gavan is one of the biggest badasses in all of Toku.

 

[Sentaifan'07 Xman]

Saw it and loved it. I hope to see more after the Superhero Taisen Z film.

 

[Aoiblue]

Wow...that was a pretty damn good film! I'd say one of the better ones toei has released in a while.
Man, I wouldnt mind seeing the cast in a tv series in the future.

 

[Shougo B'Stard]

Eh, I didn't like this movie. I thought Gokaiger VS Gavan was better, it was especially better at capturing the Uchuu Keiji feel.

I mean, how boring and unlikable were the three leads, for how much screen time they ate up? It was hard to care about any of them or their limp storyline. The casting of Yuuma Ishigaki was a HUGE mistake -- he just sucks and has no presence or personality. (And this is Kenji Ohba's shoes he's putting on here!)

The Space Sheriff shows relied on likable, talented leads, interesting visuals and nonstop action, and I think this new movie -- for being a big attempt at reviving the brand -- wasn't able to deliver in any of those areas. "Space Sheriff Spirits" was better and had more love put into it, and it was a video game. (Playing Space Sheriff Spirits is what really kicked off my even liking the Space Sheriff shows.) Although I like Osamu Kaneda as an action director, I just don't know if he's well-suited at directing-directing, because...this was just a plain, visually dull movie. It has no liveliness and doesn't evoke the world of the Uchuu Keiji shows.

For a minute there, I was actually interested in Superhero Taisen Z, even though the first one was atrocious. After watching this movie with Fake Gavan, and Zombie Sharivan and Zombie Shaider? (Really, way to roll out of bed and sleepwalk through your cameos, Miura and Iwanaga!) Not so interested.

 

[Toku Prime]

I mean, how boring and unlikable were the three leads, for how much screen time they ate up? It was hard to care about any of them or their limp storyline. The casting of Yuuma Ishigaki was a HUGE mistake -- he just sucks and has no presence or personality. (And this is Kenji Ohba's shoes he's putting on here!)

I have to disagree with that. I thought the actors playing Geki and Itsuki did a decent job. Touya's actor was pretty wooden though. He only seemed to display emotion when the mask was on. I don't know if that was deliberate or if the guy's future career should be in voice acting instead.

I was a bit disappointed with Kenji Ohba's (lack of a) role in this. I remember seeing a translated interview around the time the film came out in whic he spoke about being more of a teacher etc. It left me expecting that he'd be an equal lead, training the new guy and giving him the title at the end after he'd proven himself. As it is, you probably could have written the character out without changing much. I've only seen the five episodes subbed by Midnight Crew, along with the Gokaiger and Go-Busters appearances, so I'm by no means a Gavan expert, but was he always a harsh kind of guy who slaps his underlings about? I got more of a big brother or fatherly vibe from the character previously. Though I've never understood how that whole "beat you up until you have a breakthrough" thing was meant to help anyone. "You need to concentrate on this issue, so I'll distract you by hitting you in the face".

I liked the first half. Maybe it was a little flashback heavy. But it felt like Garo in many ways, which is never a bad thing. Then just as it seemed we were going to jump into the action, we got the Makuu space BIG LIPPED ALLIGATOR MOMENT!!! :redface2: I think the action in the second half suffered from a lack of "spots". It was good, but for me there were no "**** yeah!" moments. I was also a bit disappointed that Witch Kill's final fight was mostly off-screen, after they'd gone and cast Sanae Hitomi in the role. Overall, while it was nice to see a toku film with a bit more substance to it than the modern Rider movies can manage, it didn't make me want to go back and watch the Gavan TV show in the same way that Gokaiger vs. Gavan did.

 

[Shougo B'Stard]

I've only seen the five episodes subbed by Midnight Crew, along with the Gokaiger and Go-Busters appearances, so I'm by no means a Gavan expert, but was he always a harsh kind of guy who slaps his underlings about?

Not really. Other than when it came to stuff about his dad, Retsu/Gavan was a pretty easygoing guy. I was also puzzled why they decided to have him be so freakin' different in this movie -- I guess we're just supposed to assume that this is the aged Retsu, but he didn't act this way in Gokaiger VS Gavan, so...Toei can't use that as an excuse!

I didn't think Kenji had that same spark in this movie. He was impressive with the action they gave him, of course, but...he just didn't seem to have fun with it -- or a natural fun, because that awful stuff with Makuu Space was forced. I obviously can't blame him, you can picture him being like "Man, this is not what I had in mind when they told me they were making a Gavan movie for the 30th anniversary."

I liked the first half. Maybe it was a little flashback heavy. But it felt like Garo in many ways, which is never a bad thing.

I guess that's appropriate, given the writer. It felt like Garo in that I didn't care about the leads!

It made me keep thinking about The First, which had that sorta-maybe love triangle that didn't work, and was also a big failure at being a "back to basics" kind of toku. At least The First had some style to it, though -- and I thought the stuff with Snake and Cobra actually worked, unlike when this movie tries to get the audience to sympathize with Touya.

I was also a bit disappointed that Witch Kill's final fight was mostly off-screen, after they'd gone and cast Sanae Hitomi in the role.

Poor Hitomi -- she tried the hardest, and tried best to evoke the old shows -- she acted as if she stepped right out of a Showa series. (She was really reminiscent of Metal Hero vet Atsuko Takahata.) And she was just wasted.

 

[Inui Takumi]

I don't know. Maybe it has to do with how attached you are with the original series. Like a lot of people here, I've only seen the first few episodes that have been subbed along with the crossover movie with Gokaiger and the episodes in Go-Busters, but I thought this movie was fine. It's not the greatest toku movie out there, but I didn't think it was bad. I think the actor for Geki did a fine job. Granted, he was a bit better in that first episode in Go-Busters, but I didn't think he did a bad job. I will give you that I didn't really care for Touya or Itsuki which is a bad thing for a movie centering around the three characters. But the action and the basic plot kept me interested. I thought the action was well done and wouldn't mind seeing Yuuma Ishigaki in more installments as the new Gavan. I think with the right script he can really shine. I've seen him in other dramas and the actor is really good. And the fact that he can actually fight is a huge plus for me.

As far as Kenji Ohba's appearance in the movie, I agree that he was better in the Gokaiger vs Gavan movie, but he wasn't bad here. I loved the moment when Geki and Retsu first enter Makku Space, Geki smiles and throws up a peace sign at a girl in the front row. Then Retsu smacks him in the head but immediately does the same thing as soon as Geki turns his head. I think that showed the charm of both actors even for a bit and had me dying. I think the problem had to do with the script than the action or the main actors. Again, not a bad script entirely, but I think more could have been added to increase the depth of the movie in general.

I just don't see the big fuss over how bad the movie is. It's a good movie overall. It may not have been as epic as most hoped it would be, myself included, but its a good start in hopefully what will become a new line of Gavan and/or Metal Hero movies. I enjoyed it quite a bit and will probably watch it again this week.

 

[SamuraiEchidna]

I admit, I have not seen much of Gavan except for an episode or two. In fact, I can say that about all the Metal Heroes at this point. So maybe I have no right to see this movie without seeing its predecessors first...

But that being said, I really liked this movie! :anime: It was serious when it needed to be, silly at the right times, and bringing the old Gavan back for Double Gavan Action was really great! I like how they were willing to have more blood splatters than your average Saturday Morning toku series these day. And probably what was the best surprise for me was seeing Shaider and Sharivan getting successors to the titles just like Gavan did. I hope, if we see more of them in the future, they also get a bonding moment with the original Shaider and Sharivan.

I am not sure if this movie would make me interested enough to see the original series, but I still think it was great. Just short of getting something made by the makers of Garo like many wanted, this a great modern version of the Space Sheriff series that I would gladly encourage more of.

I've only seen the five episodes subbed by Midnight Crew, along with the Gokaiger and Go-Busters appearances, so I'm by no means a Gavan expert, but was he always a harsh kind of guy who slaps his underlings about? I got more of a big brother or fatherly vibe from the character previously. Though I've never understood how that whole "beat you up until you have a breakthrough" thing was meant to help anyone. "You need to concentrate on this issue, so I'll distract you by hitting you in the face".

~Snip~

Then just as it seemed we were going to jump into the action, we got the Makuu space BIG LIPPED ALLIGATOR MOMENT!!! :redface2:

It's been a while since I saw every Metal Hero title, so this may have happened in another series besides Gavan, but... Things like the Makuu Space are actually NORMAL in some of those shows. In fact, considering the scene was taking place in the city, that's really kind of a toned down version of what you might normally see. Usually, things like that get a lot more trippy because the TV shows didn't limit themselves to taking place on Earth alone.

As for the *slapping New-Gavan around* scene, consider it Retsu trying to teach Geki how to fight. Sort of a torching-passing scene, except Retsu is giving Geki the same skills and the same warrior's resolve he has. When it's over, Geki gains that new fighting move where he does that somersault over his opponent, and the will to defeat the enemy at the risk of Touya's life.

Think of it like Batman and Robin. Bruce Wayne went to different parts of the world to learn fighting and other skills from the best. He dedicated all of his childhood and teen years to it. Robin doesn't need to do all that life-long searching because Bruce all ready learned from the greatest masters, so everything he has to learn is right there with one person.

So, yes, time was of the essence in that moment, but the moment wasn't wasted at all. And honestly, I love it when previous heroes pass the torch this way. I totally endorse mentoring through face punches. :169:

I loved the moment when Geki and Retsu first enter Makku Space, Geki smiles and throws up a peace sign at a girl in the front row. Then Retsu smacks him in the head but immediately does the same thing as soon as Geki turns his head. I think that showed the charm of both actors even for a bit and had me dying.

Oh yes, that scene! It was silly, but timed perfectly. A serious warrior should still have some charm and likability, and this scene cemented that. It showed us that, after Retsu taught Geki how to fight as Gavan, he still had the same kind of charm and character that Retsu has. And honestly, I would have loved to see more character exploration like that going on, to see how similar the two Gavans really are. But what we got was still a nice treat. :thumbs: