First Impressions of Ryusoulger
Ryusoulger is the 43rd Super Sentai Series and it has packed quite a punch in only four episodes. The show had faced backlash from fans in the tokusatsu community before the show began. Ryusoulger was confirmed to have a Knights and Dragon theme during the pre-production stage. As we got closer to the premiere we got our first images of the Ryusoulgers.
http://tokusatsunetwork.com/2018/12/toei-officially-announces-kishiryu-sentai-ryusoulger/
http://tokusatsunetwork.com/2019/02/kishiryu-sentai-ryusoulger-cast-revealed-at-press-conference/
Phtoto by tokunation.com
Characters:
Hayate Ichinose (21) as Kou, RyusoulRed: A genius who spends all his time training. The actor’s most impactful series is Gaoranger. (Salas)
Yuito Obara (16) as Towa, RyusoulGreen: Towa is a warrior who refuses to be defeated by anyone. The actor’s most impactful series is Gekiranger. (Salas)
Tatsuya Kishida (26) as Banba, RyusoulBlack: Towa’s older brother, Banba is the silent type. The actor’s most impactful series is Ohranger. (Salas)
Ichika Osaki (18) as Asuna, RyusoulPink: Pink is from a noble family and has exceptional power. The actress’ most impactful series is Lupinranger vs Patranger. (Salas)
Keito Tsuna (20) as Melt, RyusoulBlue: A warrior with a great thirst for knowledge. The actor’s most impactful series is Abaranger. (Salas)
Mitsuru Fukikoshi will be playing Naohish Tatsui, a paleontologist. Mana Kinjo will play Naohisa’s daughter, Ui Tatsui, a YouTuber. (Salas)
First, the fans think of this series as a reboot version of Kyroyuger in 2013 due to the fact of the theme of Dinosaurs being used again, along with the same color scheme. As a fan looking forward to a Dragon Knight themed sentai, I was disappointed at first. But after learning what Super Sentai is facing right now, I can understand why they made the decision of embracing another dinosaur theme. As of now, Super Sentai has been declining in Japan and has been losing money. They have now announced Super Sentai will be ending after Ryusoulger but will continue to work on Kamen Rider. After reading that depressing news, let’s dive in what I think of Ryusoulger thus far.
Episode One: Que Boom!! Ryusoulger
This episode was fun and definitely changes the playing field for Sentai thus far. I haven’t seen this type of writing in a very long time. We open with a scene where our three protagonists get their new powers from their masters. We get some information about who our villains are; which are space aliens called “Warfare Tribe Druidon,” that used to take over the world before the meteor shower blew everything up and brought the dinosaurs to extinction. The aliens attack at the Master and the next generation of Ryusoulger fight a giant monster called a “Minosaur.” The Druidons enter the temple trying to find the Dino Knights, which are the Ryusoulgers mecha. The Masters and the Ryusoulgers lose their powers. The Masters sacrifice themselves to save this generation of Ryusoulger. Ryusoulgers manage to use their masters’ souls to transform again and beat the Druidons. They find out there are two more Ryusoulgers out there and must find them to complete the team.
My Thoughts:
I thought this episode was interesting and dark in some places. I think to have the Ryusoulgers having some worry before the fight begins; wondering if they were up to the task was well done. I find myself enjoying the action a lot and the characters were interesting, but what grinds my gears is, it feels like Kyroyuger in some places. When the Ryusoulger uses their gear reminds me of Kyroyuger. But other than that, this episode was very solid for me. I hope this series revives Super Sentai
Episode Two: Soul is One.
This Episode takes place right where it left off. The Ryusoulgers are trying to find their mechs called “The Dino Knights.” One YouTuber named UI and her uncle wants to help them on their journey. One fencing athlete gets green slime in his mouth and makes another Minosaur. After the Minosaur gets bigger because of the user’s greed, the Ryusoulgers try to fight the giant monster without the Dino Knights. Koh tries to find his Dino Knight, while the Melt and Asuna fight the monster. Once Koh finds his Dino Knight he is able to defeat this monster of the week.
My thoughts:
I think this episode was another solid episode. The action is always fun to watch and I felt this episode was more of a debut episode for their Megazord. But what was interesting was there is one mysterious figure that finds Ryusoul Green and Ryusoul Black training in a random field. Ryusoul Black throws his sword almost hitting the dude in the face, asking him who he was. The mysterious figure states he’s been looking for them. WHO IS THIS PERSON?! I NEED ANSWERS!!!
Episode Three: Cursed Gaze.
Another monster appears and the Ryusoulgers try to fight it. Koh gets turned to stone. Ryusoul Green (Towa) and Black (Bamba) make their debut and fight the monster. The monster escapes and learns UI is the monster’s host. Bamba mentions getting rid of the Minosaur is to kill the host. Bamba tries to kill UI, but Koh states they’ll destroy the Minosaur without a doubt. When UI figures out that she is the Minosaurs’ host, she tries to commit suicide. Asuna manages to say Ui just in time stating that she has friends that care for her and will help her through this. The Ryusoulgers manage to destroy the Minosaur and the day is saved.
My Thoughts:
WHAT DID I JUST WATCH?! Okay, I know this is Japanese Power Rangers and all. But when a show plays with the idea of doing something dark for the sake of the plot. I say it works very, very, well. This gets me hype for the next episode and the series as a whole.
Episode Four: Dragon vs Tiger! Fastest Battle
Koh manages to find Bamba and Towa and wants to find their Dino Knights. Towa challenges Koh to a duel, if Towa wins, Koh will give them the map to find the temple of the Dino Knights. Koh and Towa have these games to see who is the best. Bamba manages to find this monster of the week’s host and contemplates to kill the host. Towa manages to find his Dino Knight and kill this week’s monster before Bamba delivers the final blow.
My Thoughts:
I think this episode had trouble stating what it wanted to be. Did it want to be serious or comedic? I don’t know. This episode felt like it tried to be one of those episodes of that tries to be serious but can’t due to what type of genre the show is. Next week seems to be promising, so there’s something to look forward to!
Final results:
This shows so much promise, but I have been saying something like this in previous sentai shows in the past. So, for now, it’s doing a great job, but I would like to see what happens when the series ends and I will give my final thoughts.
Tune in next week for my Ryusoulger Episode Reviews!
