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 Posted: Wed Sep 26, 2007 3:01 pm
Tokusatsu is the Japanese word for "special effects."
It’s usually used to refer to Japanese live action super hero shows as well as kaiju (giant monster) movies.
Whether you know it or not, you’re probably already familiar with tokusatsu.
There have been many attempts to adapt toku programs for an American audience.
Here is a list of American tokusatsu adaptations:
Godzilla (1956 - Present)
Power Rangers (1993 - Present)
Superhuman Samurai Syber-Squad (1994 - 1995)
VR Troopers (1994-1996)
Masked Rider (1995 -1996)
Beetleborgs (1996 -199 cool
Ultraman Tiga (2002 - 2003)
Unfortunately, those in charge of localization and adaptation choose to heavily censor, water down, and "Americanize" the plots.
Typically, American actors will be used for most of the story, and then Japanese fighting footage is spliced in and dubbed over.
Most of the time, American adaptations tend to turn westerners off of tokusatsu rather than draw them in.
The aim of this guild, besides being a great place to hang out and talk about your favorite tokusatsu programs, is to educate the people of Gaia about this widely underappreciated genre.
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Posted: Wed Sep 26, 2007 3:03 pm
Super Sentai
Super Sentai is a long running Japanese television series about a team of heroes, usually teens or young adults, who are able to transform into color coded fighting forms.
Each year, a new and mostly unrelated season is aired.
Each season has its own new cast of characters, a new theme, and an all new plot.
The different seasons aren't set in alternate realities, but they do tend to stick to themselves with the exception of a few crossover specials.
Even though the stories and characters change, the series has a sort of formula that is usually followed.
Each ranger has his or her own color, and the main team is usually composed of five rangers, although many recent seasons have started with just three.
The rangers always have some sort of mechs, large vehicles, or giant forms, that can combine to create a human-shaped fighting form.
With this giant human form, the rangers can finish their foes, whose last resort is nearly always to grow to giant size in order to step up the battle.
In Japan, Super Sentai has been running for just over 30 years.
It has been adapted by Saban, and later Disney for an American audience as Power Rangers which has been running for just over 15 years.
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Posted: Wed Sep 26, 2007 3:03 pm
Kamen Rider
Like Super Sentai, each season of the series is different, but they all share similar themes.
Each new series involves at least one young adult male transforming into a Kamen Rider to fight various monsters and organizations usually linked to his own origin.
Early Kamen Riders were usually based on grasshoppers and wore scarfs as part of their costume, but many of the newer shows have gone with entirely new looks and themes.
Motorcycles are a staple of the series, hence the "Rider" in the title.
Saban attempted to adapt Kamen Rider for an American audience in the nineties.
Saban's Masked Rider, created as a spin-off of Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers, ran on Fox Kids from September of '95 to November of '96.
Adness Entertainment is adapting Kamen Rider Ryuki for American television to be aired in 2008.
The series will be called Kamen Rider Dragon Knight.
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Posted: Wed Sep 26, 2007 3:05 pm
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Posted: Thu Sep 27, 2007 11:11 am
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Posted: Thu Sep 27, 2007 11:12 am
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Posted: Fri Sep 28, 2007 6:27 am
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Posted: Fri Sep 28, 2007 3:41 pm
Well, I honestly don't know much about the franchise.
Would you like to write up an intro to Metal Heroes?
It sure couldn't hurt.
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Posted: Fri Sep 28, 2007 4:49 pm
 A relatively short-lived genre of tokusatsu, the Metal Heroes existed from 1982 to 1996 & featured heroes that wore heavier suits of armor than most tokusatsu heroes in their time. Many of their series are technology-based with sub-genres such as the Space Sheriffs. Although it is now a defunct franchise of Toei entertainment, many consider the spirit of the Metal Hero lives on to this day in the form such as the modern & more armored Kamen Riders
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Posted: Fri Sep 28, 2007 5:57 pm
There, now we've got Metal Heroes too.
Is there any other major franchise that we ought to touch on?
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Posted: Fri Sep 28, 2007 10:31 pm
What about the 'Independent' Tokus? Like, the Choseishin (sp?) series of Gransazer and Sazer X?
Ryukendo, Ougon Kishi GARO, Wecker Signa? Live Action adaptions of animation series like Cutie Honey and Sailor Moon?
Oh and, not sure if you guys know this: Ishinomori Shotarou (manga-ka of Cyborg 009 fame) was the one that started the whole Kamen Rider and Sentai (mainly with Goranger and JAKQ Dengekitai) tradition we all watch today. razz
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Posted: Sat Sep 29, 2007 11:15 am
Seger Bonalee What about the 'Independent' Tokus? Like, the Choseishin (sp?) series of Gransazer and Sazer X? Ryukendo, Ougon Kishi GARO, Wecker Signa? Live Action adaptions of animation series like Cutie Honey and Sailor Moon? Oh and, not sure if you guys know this: Ishinomori Shotarou (manga-ka of Cyborg 009 fame) was the one that started the whole Kamen Rider and Sentai (mainly with Goranger and JAKQ Dengekitai) tradition we all watch today. razz
Please feel free to type up an entry on any tokusatsu program you can think of.
At the very least, I probably should've credited Ishinomori.
He gave us Kamen Rider, Sentai, Cyborg 009, Kikaider, and The Skull Man, among other things.
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Posted: Sat Sep 29, 2007 5:38 pm
Seger Bonalee What about the 'Independent' Tokus? Like, the Choseishin (sp?) series of Gransazer and Sazer X? Ryukendo, Ougon Kishi GARO, Wecker Signa? Live Action adaptions of animation series like Cutie Honey and Sailor Moon? Oh and, not sure if you guys know this: Ishinomori Shotarou (manga-ka of Cyborg 009 fame) was the one that started the whole Kamen Rider and Sentai (mainly with Goranger and JAKQ Dengekitai) tradition we all watch today. razz Hell yeah! Ishinomori still rocks from beyond the grave!
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