Doubutsu Sentai Zyuohger

This year marks the 40th anniversary for the Super Sentai series. For those of you who have never seen or heard of Super Sentai, it is a show where a group of heroes must come together to defeat a great evil. Usually they transform into brightly colored super heroes and use a multitude of weapons, vehicles, and powers, to stop the evil force from destroying the world or taking over. The show has grown in popularity over the years spawning an American version called Power Rangers. Many fans were wondering what the new series was going to be. After many rumors and leaks we finally got our answer. The Toei company and TV Asahi confirmed Doubutsu Sentai Zyuohger.

The story of Zyuohger is centered around the battle between the Zyumans who live in an alternate dimension on earth called Zyuland, and an alien group known as the Deathgaliens. They want to use Earth for their 100th Blood Game. Four of the Zyumans have protected their kind but when a human named Yamato, who is a zoologist, accidentally finds Zyuland by stumbling through the Link Cube joins Sela, Leo, Tusk, and Amu as the fifth member of the Zyuohger team. They must come together to protect Earth from the Deathgaliens and stop the destruction of all the species living on the planet.

Now what’s really interesting about this series is that the Zyumans are humanoids with animal features. Sela has the features of a swift shark. Leo of course is a mighty lion. Tusk has the features of a powerful elephant and last but not least we have Amu who is a fierce tiger. We also have Yamato who, once he transforms, has the powers of an Eagle. The Zyumans also have an ability to disguise themselves as humans. Cubes play an important role in the show’s story. They are used for their henshin device/morpher, the buildings in Zyuland, and their portal between worlds the Link Cube. The megazord is even made out of cubes shaped like animals.

I’ll be 100% honest when I say that I hated the suits the first time I saw them. I thought they were too simple and cheap. However, the more I saw them the more they began to grow on me. I said the same thing with the megazord. This seasons mecha looked like a block or even Minecraft version the Go-Onger/RPM megazord. Go-Onger is a past season also known as RPM in Power Rangers. This too began to grow on me and the use of cubes began to make more sense to me. Now after watching the first episode it is such a core theme that I want my own cube morpher.

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In the beginning I didn’t know what to make of the series. The animal theme and the cube gimmick seemed too strange for me but I wanted to wait until the first episode before I judged it. I have to say that I am glad I did. The episode was funny and action packed. The first fight between the Zyuohgers and the Deathgaliens was incredible and brought everything together. The first episode ends with the Zyumans not being able to return home after the link cube ends up being damaged in battle. So far I am looking forward to the rest of this season, which is amazing since I really didn’t like some of the previous seasons like Toqger. The last season, Ninninger, didn’t really hold my attention either even though the story was great. I feel invested in this new season and I want to keep watching to see how the Zyumans will return home. I have high hopes for this new team and I am sure the 40th season will not disappoint. Overall I was very impressed with the show and I recommend everyone who is a fan of super sentai and power rangers to give this show a watch.

-Nestor

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