The Official Now Playing Thread: Za Next!

Over the weekend...

[Rampage] Himitsu Sentai Goranger #81-84 (END)

If you're considering watching this show, just try the first few episodes. If you like the characters and don't miss the mechs, you'll be fine. It's mostly episodic aside from occasional two-parters and a few 'updating the status quo' episodes near the middle, but if you're fine with Sentai that don't have an overarching story, it's pretty enjoyable. Plus, there's a few things I've seen in later (even very recent) Sentai which I didn't realise started here, so it's cool to see some traditions start.

Finishing a couple of things up before Christmas.

[Official youtube channel] Ultra Galaxy Fight: New Generation Heroes #13 (END)
[TMS] Kamen Rider X #35 (END)

The latest Ultra Galaxy Fight series was a pretty good miniseries (13 five minute episodes) although they did have a habit of ending things just as it's getting good. It is getting released in Japan as one single story, so it may be worth hanging on to see if they bring it to the west. But if not, go on the official Ultraman youtube and spend an enjoyable hour with it (you pick which language you want - there's an English dub but the Japanese version has English subtitles available).

The Masked Subbers dropped the final episode of X on Christmas Eve, meaning that every episode of Showa Rider can now be watched subbed (although the last 20 episodes of Skyrider might just be HK subs IIRC). I like X overall. It's mostly episodic but from episode 23 until the end they have a story arc. Personally I preferred the earlier stuff as the arc made each episode quite similar, but it was interesting to find out what the deal was with Apollo Geist, King Dark etc who have re-appeared more recently. Plus it has Starfish Hitler, the most WTF monster-of-the-week ever.

<awakens from hibernation>
[MFC/MF] Kagaku Sentai Dynaman #48-51 (END)

Aah the gunpowder Sentai. I mean the science Sentai. Yeah, this one's famed for it's big explosions and fight scenes. There's some story too, but this is really one to check out when you want to see 80's Toei action. In that regard, it's really good!

[KITsubs/XIG] Kamen Rider (TOS) #97-98 (END)

A big one finally completed! I think Gaim was airing when I watched the first half of this show (!) so I thought it was high time to finish it off, in advance of the 50th anniversary next year.

It is, of course, awesome. There are certainly times when you can feel the show is growing and reshaping itself on the fly and the tone changes massively from one end to the other, but it's got to be on every toku fan's bucket list of shows to see.

This also now means I've seen the first entry in all of the 'big three' toku franchises!

[OT] Garo: Versus Road #12 (END)

So, as always with the Garo franchise, this season has a very rear-loaded plot. Which is a fancy way of saying "they set up a battle royale and there's no more story until episode nine of twelve."

The first eight episodes rely on you being entertained by mindless violence. Personally I'm not, and when the story did come along it wasn't substantial enough to compensate for the feeling that I'd wasted my time on the first two thirds of the series.

Having said that, I've seen a lot of people on twitter saying how much they enjoyed this different take on the franchise, so if you've never seen a Garo show (it is a stand-alone season) or if you are a completionist who has to watch them all, then go ahead. I can't see myself ever watching it again though.

[GC] Ultraman Taiga #23-26 (END)

Given that Z is now airing, it seemed right to finally finish Taiga. I think it's one of the weaker New Generation series. Titas and Fuma are very under-used, Tregear isn't a particularly interesting main villain, Hiroyuki is one of the less charismatic leads, and for all the hype about Taiga being the son of Taro that really has no relevance on the story.

Not a waste of time, by any means. But not a "must see" entry in the franchise. Z has been better so far.

[Crown Empire] Shichisei Tōshin Guyferd #25-26 (END)

One last show over the finish line before the end of the year. Sadly I don't think I could recommend this one. Unless you specifically seek out and enjoy the scrappy, non-franchise, oddball shows, or you're a Gransazer fan who really needs to see two of it's cast members (specifically Asuka Shimizu and Shoichiro Akaboshi) reunited even if it's in a show that's not as good. But for most viewers I think this one could definitely wait until you've gotten through all of the big three, Garo, Godzilla, etc and you're down to scraping the barrel.

But hey, it's the only toku show I can think of that resorted to a 'Home Alone's style trap - having a kid escape from a room by peeing on the floor, connecting the puddle to an electrical outlet, then faking illness to get the guard to come in so he gets electrocuted when he steps in it.

[Bereke] Skyrider #53-54 (END)

Ah Skyrider. You're not the best of the Showa era, but you're not terrible either. Perhaps more excitingly though, I now only have one more Rider series to watch: Super-1. It seems only appropriate to celebrate the franchise's 50th anniversary by finishing all the past seasons, so I guess that's next!

[Bereke] Kamen Rider Super-1 #45-48 (END)

With two sets of enemies, this was a series of almost exactly two halves. The first half was really enjoyable. Possibly some of the best Showa Rider. The second half is not as good, but not the utter disaster it's often made out to be. It's main weakness is that the villains' plans are usually either stupid, unambitious, or both.

This also marks a bit of a milestone for me. With Super-1 now seen, I have now watched every televised episode of Showa era Rider.
I won't say I've "completed" the era, as there's four movies that nobody's bothered fansubbing as they're just episodes with some snippets recovered from the cutting room floor and added back in, and crudely converted to widescreen by slicing the top and bottom off the image. But nevertheless, it feels like I have reached an ending of sorts.

Sneaking one last series in under the wire before the end of the year!

Spider-Man #41 (END)

I have very mixed feeling on this show. The cast are really likeable. It has it's place in history secured due to both it's source material and by being the show that introduced giant robots to Toei tokusatsu. And yet, there's very little in terms of ongoing plot (and what there is seems to be abandoned around the halfway mark) and the giant robot fights are famously perfunctory. Definitely a show where watching an episode now and then for those old school toku vibes seems like a much better option than binge watching it.