Ishinomori Week: Himitsu Sentai Goranger

Ishinomori Week continues with the original multi-colored super team that kicked off the longest continuously-running franchise in Tokusatsu history, and also continuously trashed their vehicles in the process!

Chances are, if you're aware of Kamen Rider, you already know of its sister series, Super Sentai. Since 1975, with only a slight hiccup between the second and third entry, Sentai has been running strong with a new series every year, enjoying a kind of consistent presence on TV that Kamen Rider has only recently become used to (seriously, until a couple years ago, it often felt like each new series could conceivably be the last one before another hiatus.) In fact, there's a very good chance a lot more people are familiar with Super Sentai than they are Kamen Rider, at least by association due to its eventual overseas incarnation, Power Rangers.

It all started with today's show though, Himitsu Sentai Goranger. Or, according to some, Gorenger. Yes, it's another of those Kikaida/Kikaider-type debates, with ample reasoning for either, and of course Toei themselves are wildly inconsistent. Call them Goranger, call them Gorenger, call them Fred-Five. I'll use Goranger for the rest of this article because that's what I like to use.

And yes, I know about all the business where Toei didn't count Goranger and its follow-up J.A.K.Q. Dengekitai as "Super" Sentai or even part of the franchise until years later, but... well, I think we all know how that turned out. The Ishinomori-created shows are now part of the same big happy family as the rest, as it should be.

So all that said, let's dive into:

Himitsu Sentai Goranger (Secret Task Force Five Ranger) came from auspicious beginnings. While Tokusatsu was no stranger to ensemble "team" shows, the idea of a full team of Henshin Heroes, individuals united under a common name, was still pretty novel by 1975. The popular Kagaku Ninjatai Gatchaman (which was a strong influence on the also-popular Chôjin Sentai Jetman) is often credited with "inspiring" Super Sentai, though I think that once again, Ishinomori's own Cyborg 009 played an important role (even more so with the Goranger's successor team) as well as, naturally enough, Kamen Rider.

Hirayma Tôru, producer of both the classic Riders and today's subject, later stated that one of the early ideas for Kamen Rider Stronger involved calling it "5 Riders" or "Five Riders", making it about a team of heroes. Ultimately this led into a totally new concept, developed by Hirayama, Toei producer Yoshikawa Susumu, main writer Uehara Shôzô (who had also been one of the minds behind Kamen Rider) and of course, Ishinomori (this being the 70's, he's still "Ishimori".) Just some fun trivia, Uehara would go on to be a significant figure in early Sentai history, and is also well-known for his Ultraman work, but I always get a chuckle out of the fact that he's credited as the "main" writer for Kamen Rider BLACK, where you can count the number of episodes he did on one hand (admittely, they're all important ones.)

Around the same time, some convoluted network shenanigans between NET (today's TV-Asahi) and MBS (which aired Rider in the Osaka/Kansai region, as opposed to Tokyo/Kantô) resulted in Rider getting bumped over to TBS once Amazon finished, leaving NET with a gap in their Saturday evening line-up. Thus, Goranger got a huge boost by taking the coveted Rider timeslot, while Stronger (which debuted the same day) went over to another channel. But to backtrack for a moment:

The original working title of the series was "Red 1", featuring various team members whose names were a combination of a color and the English loan word "mask", thus "Red Mask", "Green Mask", and so on. Later this changed to "Five Ranger", and the member names in turn became "Red Ranger", "Green Ranger" and so on. Note that the "Five" was the same as the English word for the number as opposed to the Japanese one, like what was much later used in the series Chikyuu Sentai Fiveman. Ditto on the colors.

"Five Ranger" was dismissed as being too cumbersome, so subsequently the title became "Guts Ranger" and then "5-nin Ranger", which is basically "5-person Ranger". The -nin was dropped, and we had "5 Ranger", which finally became "Go Ranger" (go being Japanese for "five" of course) or Goranger as it's more commonly written. And the rest, as they say, is history.

The series was smash hit, running up to 84 episodes and doing well in the ratings and toy sales. It's still the longest-running Sentai series, and comes closer to the original Kamen Rider's 98-episode run than anybody else (though Robocon tops even that with a staggering 118!)

But chances are you already know all that; after all, you wouldn't be watching Go-Busters if it hadn't taken off. So what's the deal? What sets the Goranger team apart from nearly every other Ishinomori-related Tokusatsu series aside from the Riders, and why did it lead into something that has rivaled Rider in terms of influence and popularity?

I mentioned last time that a lot of Ishinomori's sci-fi/fantasy heroes tend to be not-quite human, i.e. cyborgs, mutants, robots, and so on. I think a large part why this is is that it just makes for really interesting characters. It allows for deeper themes, like exploring what it really means to be human, or even the nature of life itself. It gives us something different, putting new twists on age-old ideas. For instance, one thing I really like about the Kamen Riders being cyborgs (or not-quite humans) is that it means even when they're unmasked, they're still hiding something. It gives the characters some real tangible layers.

The Gorangers by comparison are just well-trained regular people who put on super-suits. They're, comparatively speaking, pretty straightforward characters. The story's often more about what they're doing rather than what they are, which I think is part of the appeal. In Kamen Rider or Kikaider, Ishinomori's saying something about the heroes themselves. In Goranger, it's more about the relationship these people have with each other (and Cyborg 009 sorta crosses the two.)

When you put aside all the great action and super heroics, the real heart of Goranger, and I think Super Sentai in general, is about the team and what they can accomplish together. Individually, they're each a force to be reckoned with. Combined, they're unstoppable. And good thing too, since they're up against some pretty serious competition!

Himitsu Sentai Goranger kicks off with nearly 6 minutes of sustained carnage! There's an ongoing conflict between the heroic global defense force EGL (Earth Guard League, pronounced like "eagle") and the dreaded Black Cross Army, and the good guys are losing. The series opens with attacks on EGL bases all across Japan, wherein everybody is killed save for one lone survivor at each of the five bases. The survivors are brought together and given EGL's new super suits, outfitted with fantastic vehicles and armed to the teeth with high-tech weaponry so they can take the fight to Black Cross and avenge their fallen comrades. They are:

Kaijô Tsyuoshi/Akaranger, the team's leader, he is for Sentai what Rider 1 is for Kamen Rider, the figurative grandaddy of 'em all and King Badass Numero Uno. The consummate professional, Kaijô's cool-headed and tactical, always able to rally the others no matter how bleak things get. His brother was among the victims at the EGL base he was stationed at, so things are particularly personal for him. Highly skilled in soccer, which comes in handy since Goranger's finishers involve kicking some balls (more on that in a bit.) He wields the Red Vute, a whip that can become a spear, and the Silver Shot pistol. Later he upgrades to the New Red Vute, which features various attachments (claw, etc.)

Kaijô's played by Naoya Makoto, who had earlier been the Tsuburaya hero Fireman. Araki Shigeru actually had the choice between playing Kamen Rider Stronger or being the lead in this new, unknown show (the auditions were held at the same time) but ultimately chose Rider. Which is okay with me, since I can't imagine anyone else as Stronger, nor can I imagine anyone else as Akaranger! There are a literal TON of suit actors for Goranger, with even some Rider regulars turning up, but the most significant one is Niibori Kazuo, who is for the Sentai Reds what Nakayashiki Tetsuya is for the classic Riders (i.e. he played a lot of them.)

Shinmei Akira/Aoranger, de facto second-in command. But more importantly, he's Miyauchi Hiroshi! Shinmei is basically the evolutionary link between the more vulnerable, complex Kazami Shirô and the Miyauchi Unleashed™ of Hayakawa Ken in Kaiketsu Zubat, but we'll get to him another time. Shinmei really does feel like a trial run for Zubat though, even dressing like he eventually will as the series goes on. The team marksman, he goes into battle using the Bluechery bow (a combination of "blue" and "archery") which is later upgraded to the Ultra Bluechery. He's also skilled at piloting the team's main vehicle, the Variblune plane, and feels very protective of it. Remember that for later.

In fact, part of the reason for that bit of characterization is that Miyauchi was already a regular on another non-hero series at the time of Goranger, so in order to participate he often had to be stuck piloting the plane for at least part of many episodes, shooting scenes separately from the rest of the cast and then doing ADR for the in-suit sequences. This worked out though, as he originally had planned to decline the series altogether, not understanding it would be a multi-hero program and being unable to take on what he thought was a smaller supporting role whilst already committed to something else. Plus, once you've been V3, why settle for a sidekick role?

But he was convinced after Ishinomori explained he would be "the Sasaki Kojirô to Akaranger's Miyamoto Musashi", i.e. the second-most-important guy, and the show needed him. Despite being Ranger #2, Shinmei/Aoranger is credited after the others in the opening credits, which traditionally denotes "actor importance" (for example in Kamen Rider, the last characters in the credits are Tachibana and the Leader, or Rider 1/2 when they appear as a guest star.)

Ooiwa Daita/Kiranger er, Ooiwa Daita/Kiranger, the team muscle and mood maker. A jovial guy who likes curry rice (I mean really likes it. I mean really, really likes it. I mean "how is that humanly possible"-levels of likes it.) He's an electronics whiz as well as a strongman, and uses the YTC (Yellow TranCeiver) Radio, later upgrading with the Ki Sticker staff. He also has a wide variety of judo-inspired moves. Despite his technical know-how, he is often stumped by simple puzzles and trivia, sometimes at amusingly odd times.

Kiranger is notable for being the first team member in Sentai history to be replaced, sort of. From episodes 55~67, Ooiwa is transferred down south and the Kiranger role is filled in by the hefty Kumano Daigorô, who's arrival is pretty awkward (it's literally like "guys, meet your new coworker. Okay go save the world now.") Despite that, Kumano quickly bonds with the team, and his last episode is pretty good, but I'll get to that later. Following that, Ooiwa returns for the remainder of the series, and is arguably the more iconic of the two Kirangers (sadly, in real life, he's no longer with us.)

Peggy Matsuyama/Momoranger, the chemist/explosive expert of the group, and of course, the original woman warrior. And yes, her name is always written and spoken in western order, as she's supposed to be half-Japanese (it's also important in the finale, amazingly enough!) Momoranger's pretty awesome, up there with Bijinder and Tackle as one of the butt-kicking 70's heroines. And I don't just mean that because of the vest/hotpants combo! I really liked how she's generally on equal terms with everybody else, able to hold her own as well as any of the guys and shown to be quite ingenious, as well as a good fighter. As the solo female presence on the team, she really brings it.

Don't be fooled by the heart-shaped visor, which (like all the Gorangers' weapons) produces her armament; the confusing (for the villains) Momomirror. She also has earrings that are high-impact miniaturized explosives, and honestly, the "high-impact miniaturized explosives" part is why I don't question the fact that her helmet has earrings. They're secret bombs, that's good enough for me.

She's also arguably the most important member of the team since she starts off the soccer-style finishing move, Goranger Storm (later Goranger Hurricane, with a football. And yes, that's the famous one where the ball turns into a different thing every time.) Without her, the guys would be screwed! Though technically, everybody's important for that, as episode 67 shows, you can't do the finisher without the full five-man band. Or four guys and one woman-band. You know what I mean. Peggy is played by Komaki Risa, who would later suit-act for Miss America in Battle Fever J.

And lastly, Asuka Kenji/Midoranger. The youngest of the team, he's upbeat able to keep up with the others. Something I really like about Goranger is that everybody's a "big" larger-than-life character, and arguably any one of them could have been a series headliner. It really feels like an actual team show, rather than what it could've easily been Akaranger and the Four Other Guys. Asuka by all rights should be the least-interesting, yet he's still pretty awesome.

Asuka's probably the luckiest of the surviving five, since his EGL base was attacked by the awesome-looking Dokugasu-Kamen (Poison Gas Mask), and, well, good thing he was on pigeon duty that day. In combat, Midoranger uses the Midomerang (a boomerang), which, of course, gets replaced later in the series by the New Midomerang (say that 3 times fast.) Asuka is played by Itô Yukio, who'll go on to return to Sentai in Battle Fever J as the first Battle Cossack.

So there's our team. They're led by EGL Commander Edogawa, who tries to do a whole "Charlie's Angels" thing at first, but gives that up pretty quickly. He's basically the team's resident "base guy", kicking off a Sentai tradition. He doubles as the owner of "Snack Gon" and makes a mean plate 'o curry rice. In episode 32 the place gets a mascot animal, Gon, a Common Hill Myna who speaks and becomes determined to drive Ooiwa insane. There's also some cute EGL agents code-named 007 (!) 008 (!!) and 009 (!!!) who assist the team as their battle with Black Cross continues, and finally a kid who's just kinda there now and then.

Our heroes have a variety of vehicles, including motorcycles (Goranger Machines) which, of course, get replaced later on (by the Star Machines.) I already mentioned Variblune, which will eventually get traded in for... you know what, I probably need to explain this better.

It's hard to fully summarize Goranger in one article, as like the original Rider, it's a beast. Part of the reason Ishinomori Week came so late this year was I sat down to watch the whole thing in preparation (along with the other series being covered.) Heck, this article has already taken up the better part of a day and will probably rival Kikaider 01 for length! So let's break it down.

First off, I think it's fair to say this, and even the hardcore Sentai fans out there would generally agree: of the two original franchise-spawning shows, Kamen Rider probably handles its length a bit better. It's really two shows in one (arguably even more) with very clear stylistic and story transitions. There's a very organic feel to how to evolves.

By episode 98, it's still recognizably the same show it was back in episode 1, but it's undergone a lot of growth, not only as a story but as a piece of television it general. It goes from the funky 'lil experimental action-horror show to something that was creative and flexible enough to still be running today. The names and faces change, but the fundamentals are all there.

Which is true of Goranger, except for the whole evolutionary part. Goranger came into a world where Kamen Rider has succeeded and led to legions of successors and imitators. It was made with the benefit of confidence in what it was, by a staff of seasoned veterans who knew what worked. As a result, I'd say it probably goes through less of a transition over the course of its 84-episode run. If you loved episode 3, you're probably going to love episodes 13 33, 63 and 83, because everything you liked in 3 is still there. The weaponry changes along the way and some characters come in and out, sure, but otherwise it's got more of a consistency to it. This isn't a bad thing, but it's an important fact to consider.

What I'm getting at is, the episodes blur together a bit easier, and even as I write this I have to keep referring back to my notes on particular points of interest in each episode. Maybe it's just because I've only watched Goranger in full about 2~3 times, while with Kamen Rider, I gave up counting long ago. But to properly cover the series, we'll try to hit most of the major points. As always, spoilers ahoy!

Alright, so the team comes together in episode 1, and eagle-eyed fans will note that Akaranger wears an earlier NG version of the costume in some scenes (when he rounds up the others; the fabric's shinier.) Our heroes rescue a bus full of kids, and defeat Ôgon Kamen (Golden Mask), one of the Black Cross generals who was responsible for that mass EGL slaughter earlier. The next few episodes are spent taking down the rest, as well as giving our heroes' spotlight episodes. Generally, Goranger tends to feature one of the team in a particularly large role or invest them more in the story, but it's always more of an ensemble piece. Individual team member subplots mostly came along in later shows, though there's still plenty of running jokes with Ooiwa and good moments of characterization.

Also, right from the get-go, we see the leader of the Black Cross Army, the Black Cross Führer. A little tangent on that character's name: If you remember back to Inazuman Flash, the villain of that show was called Führer Geisel. He and the Black Cross guy have the same title (sôtô) which is also used in the Hitode-Hitler episode of Kamen Rider X, where the big guy's personal bodyguards refer to him as such. Makes sense in context.

However, the word has several meanings, including "president" and "generalissimo", and I feel one of the others might fit the Black Cross boss better. With Geisel, they were intentionally evoking Nazism with his design and even ideology. I don't quite get that sense here. While the Führer first appears as a hooded, robed figure, his costume evolves over time (gaining creepy glowing eyes after episode 20) and there's a really big change in episode 43, but we'll get there. Needless to say, go with whatever translation you want, and I'll use the most popular one for purposes of this article, but I did want to bring that up.

So anyway, we see the big guy right from the beginning, or at least his masked self. He's voiced by good 'ol Ando Mitsuo (Gill from Kikaider & Geisel) and he calls all the shots. The monsters of the week in Goranger are referred to as "Masked Kaijin" and true to that name, are all people who wear some kind of elaborate mask or headdress themed after a particular object or idea. Many of them also wear capes, and while the costumes get fancier later on, a lot of the early ones have fairly simple bodysuits that accentuate the crazy masks. They also have their own belt buckles of honor, which you may have noticed were worn by the other resurrected villains in the Super Sentai 199 Heroes movie (where Black Cross is back! Sorta!)

The true nature of the monsters is a bit of a mystery; presumably they are cyborgs, but some are almost robot-like in how mechanized they've become. I think they're a bit like the Delzer Army guys from the end of Stronger: "reconstructed demons", being altered with super-science and magic, yet not being entirely human to begin with either. They've certainly got some seriously bad attitudes. Goranger's a fairly lighthearted show with a nicely serio-comedic mood throughout, but when it wants to get nasty, it gets nasty! I mean it does open with a mass slaughter, after all! Black Cross has their own air force (the wonderfully weird Condorers and Battlers) plus a couple unique vehicles & bases. Their henchmen, the Zolders, are awesome, and have one of my favorite henchmen battle cries ever. "Hoi!"

You can't have an evil organization without some commanders though, and as with Kamen Rider they're generally how we break up the different arcs of the series. Episode 15 introduces Nichirin Kamen (Sun Mask), the "Star of Africa", whose appearance is so bright at first everybody has to shield their eyes when he arrives on the scene from Black Cross Africa. Looking more like a promoted monster-of-the-week, Nichirin Kamen reminds me of the Raisin Bran sun mascot if he joined a secret society and became a terrorist mastermind. So he shows up with two scoops of evil, and I have to say this episode gave me a serious Inazuman Flash(back) when you have Ando Mitsuo talking to a monster voiced by Iwana Masaki, aka Udespar, and there's liberal use of Inazuman music (same composer for these shows, and the Kikaiders!)

The monster, by the way, is Niji Kamen (Rainbow Mask) whose head looks like a multi-colored pineapple-chicken wearing a ruff, and he's pretty friggin' awesome. I mentioned earlier that Shinmei is very protective of Variblune, and in this episode the bad guys hijack it for their own use (even giving it an evil redecorating!) You can bet 'ol Aoranger doesn't take that lying down.

Anyway, by episode 20 the top dog has had enough of Nichirin's bumbling (despite actually being a pretty good leader! I guess the boss just isn't very patient) so the sunny one orchestrates a pretty ingenious plan where he has Kaijô view his apparent execution for failure, only to rescue him so he can pretend to turn traitor. Everybody's pretty convinced, though smartly Shinmei doesn't completely buy it.

It's a trap, of course, but the rest of the team getting captured does nothing to deter Kaijô, who lets loose a badass one-liner to Nichirin Kamen ("Your destination... is Hell!") and he saves everybody, with a little help from Edogawa and his secretaries. The banter the other four have while standing before a firing squad is great stuff; even if character development was simpler and more subtle back in the 70's, it was so totally there.

By the end of 20 there's a new commander in town, Tetsujin Kamen (Ironman Mask) Temujin Shôgun. Now this guy doesn't screw around! He brings his own henchmen and tougher monsters from the Gobi Desert in Mongolia, along with half a map leading to an ancient Antlantean airship (aptly named the Atlantis) that Black Cross uses for a few episodes. Temujin looks cool, with a full regal dress uniform and some sharp weaponry. He's a tough customer and lasts until episode 42. He's voiced by Iizuka Shôzô, aka Hakaider & Bamba (plus like a thousand other guys.)

42 is the show's halfway point, where the team defeat Temujin, but at great cost, losing Variblune in the process (they give it a nice salute though.) Don't worry, they get the new & improved sleeker Varidreen, which also can launch the mobile Varitank. The changes keep coming next episode, with new suits (same designs, but in-story they literally get "New Goranger Suits"), those upgraded weapons I mentioned earlier, and the Goranger Hurricane attack.

The bad guys get some updates as well; Temujin's successor is Hi no Yama Kamen (Volcano Mask) Magma Shôgun, who is again voiced by Iizuka starting from 45. Prior to that, it's Yoda! Er, Yoda Eisuke, who'll go on to do voices in Sentai for the next few decades. Anyway, Magma's got a neat look, and with him comes the mobile battle platform Navarone. Also, the boss man inexplicably decides now would be a great time to reveal his true form, shape shifting in a star-headed robed guy. The actual reason for this is Ando was getting tired of being a voice-only role, so boom- there's the leader!

The transition of commanders in this show is pretty cool, with each one arriving during the previous one's send-off. Naturally, they all don't get along very well. It's the very early version of something Sentai would feature heavily in subsequent series: villain in-fighting and "court intrigue", where various bastards vie for the favor of the leader or even control of the entire enemy group. Backstabbing, betrayals and behind-the-stage dealings are suddenly all the rage. It's noticeable that Stronger has a lot of this too, with the Titan/Shadow feud and then Delzer's antics. Prior to that, when Rider villains didn't get along, it was usually because one organization was dismantling the other!

The next major change will be in episode 54, but before that, I have to mention episode 53. It's the one with the Goranger villain fans are probably most familiar with, due to his recent inclusion in the Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger summer movie: Yakyuu Kamen (Baseball Mask), appearing in a story that also features Doctor Shinigami! No, not that one, but some guy in a top hat who also has the name. The plot involves Goranger transferring him to prison, so Black Cross has to bust their top scientific genius out. And how do they do that? By killing him! As it turns out though, this Shinigami can be resurrected with a little science, and soon he's back on his feet developing deadly exploding balls because, hey, wouldn't you?

This sets the stage for an epic showdown with Goranger of course. It's one of the show's wackiest episodes, and rightfully one of the most memorable, with some great visual gags (Henchmen #0 actually had me in tears.) It's not hard to see why they recently brought back Yakyuu Kamen, original voice actor and all; in a show with monsters that are often big on personality, he's got tons of it. He's pretty ruthless too, as our ill-fated Doctor finds out too late. You better believe the resolution involves the mother of all strike-outs.

Episode 54 sees the end of Magma and the Navarone base, which our heroes must sacrifice their motorcycles to destroy (hence the upgrades.) With his demise, the final commander takes over: Commander-in Chief Golden Kamen (unlike the episode 1 guy, his name uses the English word "Golden".) This Egyptian-flavored villain will last until the end of the series, and yep, it's Iizuka voicing again. I hope the guy was well-paid for this show! Also, the Führer changes actors due to Ando falling ill, so into his star-shaped costume steps Yana Nobuo, aka Big Shadow! If you're wondering, yes, Ban Daisuke turns up in episode 81, and Ikeda's in 83, so both the Brothers Kikaider are on hand for cameo appearances.

As I mentioned earlier, episode 55 is where Ooiwa steps out and Kumano steps in. Not much to say about his tenure, aside from some more stuff for the villains (new ninja henchmen, plus the Black Cross castle, another flying fortress) though as I said, I think his last episode's pretty good. He goes down swinging, and despite his short time on the show, everybody gives him his due respect as the first fallen warrior. One interesting thing about Kumano's initial episode is how he has trouble transforming at first. While Goranger has a lot of the tropes we associate with Sentai these days, the two most noticeable ones it lacks are the giant robots, and the changers. When transforming, they just spin around or leap into the air, yell "Go!" and there it is. However, as we see in 55, it is sort of tied into willpower, and requires some degree of focus to successfully pull off.

With the return of Ooiwa, it's only a matter of time before the final battle. The team get a wacky new vehicle in episode 69, the hot air balloon Varikikyuun. Peggy gets a pretty good character episode in 83, and the big showdown happens in 84. It's a pretty cool finale, with the Black Cross Führer at last getting fed up and taking the Goranger team on mano-a-mano. He's resistant to all their weapons, even the Goranger Hurricane (which turns into a guillotine that chops his head off!) but his weakness is revealed during the battle. How the Gorangers actually figure it out is pretty clever.

Right from the beginning, Goranger has had a subtle star motif going on (It's not surprising that the show was even called Star Rangers in the Philippines.) It's right there in the opening title card, even. The reasoning for that comes about in the finale. The Führer (who is, in fact, an alien war machine) is weak to the cosmic rays of the constellation of Cassiopeia. And wouldn't you know it, the first syllabogram of each team member's name (Kaijô, Shinmei, Ooiwa, Peggy, Asuka) spells just that (well, in Japanese. Sorta.)

Each member represents one of the stars of the constellation, and this plays into their final attack used to beat the Black Cross boss. It's an interesting twist and something they obviously thought about very early on. Alright, so they only sorta beat him, but then it turns out he's actually the Black Cross Castle (wha?) but you already knew that if you watched 199 Heroes. Goranger defeat the Black Cross Army once and for all, sacrificing their bikes and Varidreen in the process, and everybody goes home happy. Except for whoever paid for all that stuff. Seriously, by the end of the series, all they got left is the clothes on their backs and the balloon! Oh well, let J.A.K.Q. worry about what comes next!

Himitsu Sentai Goranger is a great series. I can understand why a lot of Sentai fans feel that the best stuff was still yet to come, particularly in the 80's & 90's, but the original show's still got a lot of charm. It's just a very fun series, and you can clearly see a lot of the elements that would define Sentai over the next few decades. Right from the get-go we've got a team of unique characters, the multi-colored costumes, the roll call, the individual weapons, and so on. It's as important to Sentai as the original Kamen Rider is to Kamen Rider, and equally as important to Tokusatsu over all. As an Ishinomori work, it might not go as deep as some of his other stuff, but it's one really great ride.

Speaking of Ishinomori, what about the comic version? Well...

I need to confess something: at the time of this writing, I have not yet finished the Ishinomori comic. It's short, but harder to find than some of the others which have been reprinted to hell and back, and to complicate things there's actually two versions by just Ishinomori (not to mention all the other versions by other guys, as usual.) So I won't be able to do a comprehensive analysis of the comic version this time, though thankfully if there's one Ishinomori property that you can get away with that on, it's this one.

Ishinomori's original Himitsu Sentai Goranger comic from Weekly Shônen Sunday is pretty close to the TV version from what I've seen, with the differences mostly being cosmetic. Everybody's exaggerated versions of their TV selves, so Kiranger is REALLY hefty, Midoranger's considerably shorter than everybody else, Momoranger looks more overtly exotic, and so on.

Akaranger's still pretty hardcore, with a penchant for headshots, but by and large it's the kind of super spy action the TV show has, just in comic form. Same 'ol vehicles, the villains are close to their TV selves, and so on. Where things take a 180 turn is with the other comic, Himitsu Sentai Goranger Make-Believe, which is sort of like the Akibaranger of Sentai comics. It's more of a gag strip, with surreal, often smutty humor, and occasionally involves Robocon!

I certainly would like to finish the comics though, and I think this probably won't be the last time I talk about Goranger around here, so that's a challenge I'm more than up to for the future.

What I can talk more about is Ishinomori's original designs for the heroes, which were eye-opening to finally view (in the "After 1975 art book.) Generally, the overall rough design of the Goranger team is pretty close to what ended up on TV, but with a lot of interesting little differences. One sketch of the masks shows a fairly similar Akaranger, but (presumably) Aoranger has a visor that's an arrow pointing down. Momoranger is #3, and Kiranger has two split, almost Rider-ish eyes for a visor. Midoranger's boomerang-shaped visor is flipped over, more closely resembling the finished version of Aoranger's. Another sketch shows that the team's capes were meant to open up and form "wings", which is different (in the show, they have jetpack belts!)

The color designs show a green "Kiranger" and yellow "Midoranger" (if you go by their finalized names) as well as Momoranger having colors inverted from her final costume, being primarily white with pink boots and gloves. I guess that would have made her the first-ever white ranger? Also, more like the 009 team, everybody was originally going to have guns, rather than just Akaranger. Fascinating stuff.

As for the actual onscreen Goranger costumes, I love 'em. I'm not sure if I'd say they're my absolute favorites, as I really, really like Sun Vulcan's, but they're certainly up there. Both Ishinomori's teams have a great look to them though, being unmistakably Sentai and yet having an almost Riderish feel to them with the various individual elements. And the capes are cool. Bring on the Figuarts! I'd get them. And Yakyuu Kamen.

And that's Himitsu Sentai Goranger. Like I said, it's hard to cover even just the TV show in one article, but hopefully this has given you a little insight into my own feelings on the show and its importance in the grander scheme. Ishinomori & co. struck gold with Kamen Rider, and they struck it again with Sentai. In the years since Himitsu Sentai Goranger ended, the team has come back time and again, including the excellent team-up movie with J.A.K.Q. and, of course, in Gokaiger. Much like the Riders, it's not a question of if we'll see them again, but simply when.

"Akaranger! Aoranger! Kiranger! Momoranger! Midoranger! The five of us together: Goranger!"