The Big Picture: No No Power Rangers

[Revnak_v1legacy]

80's 90's cartoons and childrens shows suck. All of them. (Except Gargoyles)

Just wait until people are selling the kids nowadays their nostalgia back. Then we're going to get some awesome films. Kim Possible is going to rock the world so hard the GI Joe films go away and cry themselves to sleep, asking why their entire existence was so pointless and forgettable.

Not quite all (Batman the Animated Series, Gargoyles and Mighty Max are all pretty good) but I would have to agree that a large majority are not worth remembering. I have no idea what the big kids shows of the last decade are but they had to have been better then the crap that was made in the 90s.

Oh I did forget about Batman TAS. That's another plus.

But compared to Spectacular Spiderman, My Little Pony, Adventure Time, Gravity Falls... I think someone at some point in the 2000's decided that kids were actually pretty smart. And Batman TAS went on to have Justice League, Justice League Unlimited and all the really good Batman shows in the 2000's too.

Even when I was a kid not much attracted me as it happened. He-Man was the worst thing ever. I cringed at the Power Rangers and I was eight. Pokemon was good at the time, but trying to watch it again out of curiosity was painful. Powerpuff Girls might actually have been good? But it turns out that was 1998-2004 so it's basically millennial.

Maybe I'm actually more of a 2000's kid than a 90's one, I was still 9 at the millenium, but an adult now watching My Little Pony seems more understandable to me than an adult watching most of the 90's stuff.

Animaniacs, Dexter's Lab, Power Puff Girls, Ed, Edd, n Eddy, the entire fucking Disney Renaissance, Rugrats, Doug, Recess... The 90's were pretty great for cartoons. And Pokemon was completely ridiculous. I have no idea how you could not stand Power Rangers but could deal with that. I remember all of those things and I was just 7 at the millenium. You really don't have an excuse for ignoring them. I'm not saying that the 2000's had nothing but terrible cartoons (though I question your specifying of Kim Possible), but the 90's definitely were far from terrible.

 

[Rad Party God]

I'm 25 (almost 26) and I loved this show as a kid, even on my early teenage years, I still watched this on the early 2000's, but it just became formulaic and repetitive (yeah, so says the guy who likes to grind in videogames) and I simply stopped watching it, but that first season intro brings me LOTS of nostalgic feels.

I definitely wouldn't watch it again, pretty much because if you watch a few episodes, you've pretty much watched the entire thing. So yeah, I'll give it the benefit of the doubt, let's see how this turns out, if it's good, then kudos!, if not, then meh, no harm was done.

 

[drummond13]

I'm very confused. Is this guy calling us hypocrites if we like Batman but think a Power Rangers movie is going to be terrible?

.....seriously?

It has nothing to do with being from a different age group. It has everything to do with the source material for both sets of characters being vastly different in quality.

 

[Right Hook]

I really liked Power Rangers as a kid but I also really liked the Gen X stuff like Transformers and Xmen and all that.. probably because I'm awkwardly in between generations, not really old enough for Gen X, but not really young enough for Millennial. I was excited (and then disappointed) by Transformers movies, I love the comic book based movies, but I could care less about a Power Rangers movie.

I'm in the same place basically, I think I'm technically a millennial just barely but I grew up with a father who was more than happy to introduce me to older cartoons and comics. I had this weird obsession with toys and tv shows that were usually a minimum of five years into syndication and thus came on sporadically and the toys were usually only in comic shops, it was a tough childhood, haha.

Except X-Men (the show, not the comics), which was definitely a 90's thing and thus under the millennial banner if I'm correct.

 

[Leonardo Huizar]

Reasons its not going to work:
1. Its not popular with today's children... At all. I work in a retail store and i walk the toy isle & and have always notice that the PR toys dont sell as well as say the MonsterHigh or Marvel super heroes.

2. Most of the childhood fans like me for instance have moved on or just dont care anymore. I see the show as a silly thing i enjoyed as a kid kind of like the Twilight series and prepubescent girls. Yes, I am comparing Twilight to MMPR and i mean that. Kids like Call Of Duty & twerking to shiddy music.

3. The one time they needed Micheal Bay and instead they will be using the production company who brought us the Twilight series... Because thats who i want to make strong female characters and non psychopathic male figures.

I lost my nostalgia goggles years ago and on watching the re-release a few years back... Its just utter crap, writing, the fighting, the battles, some of the more heinous actions of the producers with their own talent. Oh, and that whole Saban committing that act of espionage on US soil... also hes a bit of a right-winger so we might end up seeing some Nolan undertones crap again. Bet money the monster of the film is some gay-cross dressing-ethnic whose trying to invade the US and replace its workforce with its workaholic minions who just cant stop reproducing, use its shape shifting agents who infiltrated the entertainment industry trying to brainwash the populace into sharing its wealth, mad doctors who harvest the organs and steal fetuses to pro lounge their race's existence, and have an army of smelly trolls hacking and spreading misinformation all over the internet... And they ultimately serve their master Overlord Obamaisatan

 

[BrotherRool]

Animaniacs, Dexter's Lab, Power Puff Girls, Ed, Edd, n Eddy, the entire fucking Disney Renaissance, Rugrats, Doug, Recess... The 90's were pretty great for cartoons. And Pokemon was completely ridiculous. I have no idea how you could not stand Power Rangers but could deal with that. I remember all of those things and I was just 7 at the millenium. You really don't have an excuse for ignoring them. I'm not saying that the 2000's had nothing but terrible cartoons (though I question your specifying of Kim Possible), but the 90's definitely were far from terrible.

The Powerpuff Girls stands the test of time and some of those weren't stupid, but they're also not genius. Rugrat's would always be awesome to watch, but there'd never be a time when someone would want to go back and watch some old Rugrat episodes, and the Rugrat's were something of a highpoint. It's skewed a little younger than I was thinking about too, because it's aimed at an age group which isn't really ever going to tie into a nostalgia based reboot.

Kim Possible is friggin' legendary but I also do have a good reason for naming that one (apart from going back and rewatching it and finding it still totally watchable) and that's because my sisters who're a decade younger than me stumbled upon it and now quote it all the time. There are very few 80's/90's cartoons where that could happen, particularly for girls. A lot of people defend Sailor Moon as a girl-friendly high point, but Kim Possible is what Sailor Moon should have been.

Yeah Pokemon is crud, I was surprised how awful it was going back to it but it still makes a lot of sense to me that I hated Power Rangers as a kid and loved Pokemon. Pokemon doesn't fail at the most basics of basics. In Power Rangers, as a kid, I didn't even understand that they were trying to have a fight scene. It was a confusing mess of people dancing around and then suddenly leaping away in a shower of sparks. I understood that combat was taking place, but it seemed like, I dunno, representative art it was so shoddy. And then the story felt as horrible as a story based around used footage was.

Whereas Pokemon, despite now turning out to have also pacing and characterisations and plot and voice acting, portrayed a functional world and was good at portraying the wonder of being a Pokemon Trainer. Charmander looked and behaved like charmander, which does add a lot. As bad as Pokemon was (and it was awful), in some ways having watched the cartoon manages to make playing the games even better.
----------------------------------
You have reminded me that there was stuff that didn't suck, but I still think that the point still stands that 2000's cartoons go above and beyond and can be entertaining even to none kids. The My Little Pony of the 90's was barely watchable by children, the MLP of the new millenium is good enough that 30 year olds watch it. Whilst the stuff you named doesn't suck, and I was wrong to write it off, I'm still never going to want to go back and watch more of it*. Even some of the not-brilliant stuff that my sisters watch (Total Drama) is still good enough that it's not irritating to be in the room as they watch it.

None of the Disney cartoons were worth the time of day, excepting maybe Darkwing Duck which I was too young for. Unless you're talking about films, in which case, I only ever meant TV shows. There's plenty of fantastic childrens films from the 90's (and presumably the 80's).


*Animaniacs might be worthwhile. That could be a taste thing.

 

[Vausch]

Yeah, I don't see a Power Rangers being all that good honestly, and I was a fan as a kid. I mean, do you think a grim-dark Power Rangers would be any good? I certainly don't, yet we all know that thats a likely scenario. I just can't see it being good as anything more than a goofy, extremely fan-servicey movie with lots of dumb action poses, and honestly, I don't that that'll work for anybody who isn't already a big fan or below the age of ten. I don't think that it'll necessarily be bad, it just won't be Iron Man or Captain America, and thats even with an optimistic projection that they hire somebody who gives a shit and they don't do the dark,gritty reboot thing.

Ok, that, right there. Has there been any indication so far that this is going to be grim-dark? It's Power Rangers, they're going to at worst make it a PG movie for martial arts violence. Heck, the first movie they made had the Rangers kicking ooze monsters into walls until they exploded into mush. For that matter, several of the TV shows got pretty dark and had kids dying. Lost Galaxy had a story arc of a man who lost his son right in front of him seeking vengeance against the villain of the season but attacking the Rangers if they got close to him. Wild Force had an on screen death of a kid!

I'm hopeful about this. The darkest I could see this possibly going is along the level of a Pixar or Dreamworks movie that appeals well to younger audiences but has themes that would go right over their heads (And I don't mean insertion of adult jokes to make it seem "mature").

 

[marioandsonic]

25-year-old here. Honestly, this is the first time I've heard of a Power Rangers reboot movie coming out.

I did indeed enjoy the show as a kid (at least the first couple of seasons), and I still find the first movie as a guilty pleasure. Yes, it's all cheesy as hell, but it's enjoyably cheesy.

As far as the reboot goes...depends. First, I want to know which movie studio and director is making this. Please don't let it be Michael Bay, because I'm already not a fan of the TMNT movie coming out...

 

[Random Argument Man]

I'm very confused. Is this guy calling us hypocrites if we like Batman but think a Power Rangers movie is going to be terrible?

.....seriously?

It has nothing to do with being from a different age group. It has everything to do with the source material for both sets of characters being vastly different in quality.

No, he's saying that critics of the 80s rolling their eyes about the idea of a film reboot for a show that were made to sell toys shouldn't complain since they've always asked for a film with the same criteria.

It wouldn't be hard to actually have a Power Rangers movie that's good. You just take the premise of Pacific Rim and adapt it.

I remember that I loved that series to death when I was a kid despite not even understanding english. While I understand that the general quality of the show has not aged well, some still look at the show with fond memories. On a personal note, I am pretty sure that I just want the movie to have an excuse to listen to that killer guitar track.

On a somewhat related side-note* Hollywood.. May I have my "ReBoot" movie since you never gave me an ending to my favourite childhood show?

I'm talking about this for those who don't know

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ReBoot

 

[Baresark]

I don't experience nostalgia like a lot of people do. So I can see the advantages of all these being made in modern ways. Also, I'm older than Bob, but I quite recall Power Rangers. I even remember watching it at points... but I had a torrid love affair with anything martial arts growing up, so that could explain that. You can say what you want about the show, but the faux martial arts was a lot of fun to watch. That whole genre of shows is exactly like that, which is probably why I thought it was at very least, kind of cool to watch.

 

[Darklord008]

I'm actually pretty excited for this, but I am from the exact generation that this would be targeted to. Of course I'm a bit nervous about Hollywood massively screwing it up, but a lot of that could be assuaged by seeing the names Ron Wasserman and Judd Lynn attached ASAP.

 

[Keji Goto]

I get where MovieBob is coming from on this but at the same time I think he needs to take a step and realize that many people are rolling their eyes over this because Power Rangers isn't really that good... This is coming from someone who was a massive fan back in the day and watched the show religiously for quite some time. I remember one time Fox messed up and aired two episodes back to back playing the following day's episode. I flipped out when that happened and to this day I still remember that rush of excitement knowing I wouldn't have to wait until the next day to see it. I even went to check the TV Guide channel to see if it was supposed to be airing and it wasn't plus Fox even billed a different show as coming up next. Hell I was even pumped when they did the first movie and didn't mind the changes it brought to the show with the changing of the costumes and new zords too.

While not everything from my youth will stand the test of time there is still that nostalgia which helps it hold up today. Power Rangers is so bad that no amount of nostalgia is going to overcome it. I remember when Power Rangers first popped up on Netflix and my reaction was "Oh hell yes!" Sat down with a friend who was just as big of a fan as I was and we couldn't even make it through an episode before we had to turn it off. The source material just doesn't really give much to work with, the entire series is puddle deep and the whole concept has revolved around making a show as cheaply as possible to sell toys.

I just can't see how Power Rangers can be done on the big screen without getting rid of much of what makes Power Rangers well Power Rangers. The problem is if they keep that "special" something in there then the entire thing will just end up being incredibly corny which will no doubt result in a poor box office showing. When you've got things like Godzilla, Pacific Rim, The Avengers 2, and so forth hitting screens the world over Power Rangers just kind of pale in comparison. Part of the draw to Power Rangers as a kid was the simple fact that there really wasn't live action super heroes, at least in large amounts like today. Sure we had Batman and the Superman films but beyond that you were hard pressed to find something which lived up to the fast paced action you'd expect from something like that. There weren't many giant robot shows either, we had the Godzilla films but in many ways those weren't always the easiest things to get your hands on due to the lack of well established internet fandom.

Power Rangers filled a massive gap that kids wanted and were willing to overlook how incredibly bad it was. These days there isn't that gap, especially at the movie theater. I know the show is still somewhat popular with younger audiences but I can't imagine pandering to that audience is going to result in a good film. It just seems like a foolish project which will only end in disaster as it joins the ranks of god awful films which should have never happened.

 

[Something Amyss]

In all my internet travels I have never seen a group of people consider the MMPR more than a minor nostalgia rush usually followed by "you know, that show wasn't that good, but I liked it as a kid". I guess we can add "fanbases" to the internet quantum physics laws.

I wouldn't call it quantum physics, it's more than likely a sampling issue.

I don't think this episode was really about Power Rangers so much as using Power Rangers to represent a general thought among the gen Xer film critic.

Replace "Power Rangers" with the term of your choice, and the end result is the same. Well, I won't be the person in question as a given, but the rest is the same. Using your examples of Pokémon, there are people who grew up with Pokémon who scoff at new product. And let's be honest, how many millenials would really be behind a western reboot of Pokémon? Same with the Ninja Turtles, which is weird to attribute to millennials, since I was like 7 when it became a thing and I'm a year older than Bob. In fact, I'd attest that Gen Xers scoffing at the new TMNT movie demonstrates what I was saying and why I'm not 100% onboard with Bob's argument. It came out two years after GI Joe, three years after Transformers (Which would then end the year TMNT came out) and a whole four years after He-Man and the same year they decided to capitalise on the popularity of the show with a (bad) feature film.

Maybe they're not scoffing at TMNT because it's the wrong generation, you know? Bob and I might be on the tail end of Gen X, but we were still in the age range the show was marketed at. People are scoffing based on quality, I think. Much like they did with Transformers and GI Joe. For those of us at the tail end, the ones of similar age to Bob that he mentioned, this would still be, as you put it, their "wheelhouse."

So yeah, it might not be about any one product, but I never thought it was. But the issue I take is that the very fanbases that are supposedly the psyched ones are the ones who seem to be most critical and dismissive. Not everyone is as in love with their childhood as Bob, and it'd be good to recognise that as we're looking for a reason these movies are poorly looked upon.

In short: when you get back to the critics, it might not be "get off my lawn" curmudgeonly stuff, but I understood the point, which is why I ended that comment with a token acknowledgement that it's an attitude we should not employ. Being open to what millenials want and enjoy doesn't mean that they will respond any better, the same as being supposedly closed off hasn't led the new guard to all fall in line with Bayformers and Baynage Mutant Ninja Turtles. And I think Gen Y's response in this very thread is enough to give us a hint as to that.

I had a Power Rangers birthday cake when I was a kid and I rolled my eyes.

Also I own a lawn and will yell at who ever is on it.

But you're from the dawn of generation Y. How is that possible?

If they embraced that but did the fight scenes with the professionalism of a major Hollywood movie we might have a bit of a classic on our hands. I mean Power Rangers has always had at least pretty decent fight choreography when it came to the ground. Now Del Toro has shown us just how awesome a giant monster vs. giant robot fight can look. Apply that to Power Rangers, with their ridiculous weapons, and we could have something really awesome on our hands.

Also he shouldn't have a main role in my opinion but Jason David Frank should have a cameo at least. I mean he'd probably be game for it. He's pretty much embraced that he is Tommy Oliver and he is riding that train magnificently....in that he posted a video of himself riding his motorcycle in public while wearing his black dino ranger costume one time.

Agreed on all counts. One of the things that always bugged me about MMPR was that the SS footage tended to be of poor (visual) quality, moreso than a lot of the Japanese flicks I watched from around the same time. Now, it never bugged me to the point where I wouldn't actually enjoy it, in part because the fake martial arts were really fun. And if someone could do that with the giant robots and monsters in the movie, it could be AMAZING.

At the same time, I'm trying not to get my hopes up too much.

Also, I wouldn't say no to any cameos from Rangers actors, but JDF is such a part of the franchise at this point he really should be part of the movie. Maybe they can pull a Star Trek and he can be "Tommy Prime."

...No?

*backs away slowly*

Gabe Newell is Linkara. It all makes since. History of Power Rangers Episode 3 confirmed!

To be released alongside Half-Life 3 on the Steam Machine!

 

[Canadamus Prime]

I'm kinda indifferent about a new Power Rangers movie. I remember liking the Power Rangers for about a year when I was in Grade 6 (and having a crush on the pink ranger) and then I didn't really think about them again for years after that.

 

[Sniper Team 4]

Oh man, that intro. The memories. The nostalgia...brain is overloading...good times. Made me laugh.

Wait, there's a Rescue Rangers movie that is in the works? I missed that how exactly? Someone on The Escapist is not doing their job right--or I just missed the article. We'll get the theme song, right?

Also, what was that insanity at the end? Why were Power Rangers fighting each other? Man, if I were still a kid and still a fan of the show, that probably would have had me jumping up in down with joy.

 

[Aardvaarkman]

MovieBob is a tad confused over the reaction over the announcement of a new Power Rangers movie.

As a cynical member of Generation X, there's no irony or hypocrisy when I roll my eyes at a Power Rangers movie. I do the same thing for Batman movies, Superman movies, Avengers movies, etc.

The whole pantheon of superhero and comic-based movies is stupid. They all suck. And I protest when you claim that my generation grew up revering these things. I certainly did not. I grew up holding them in contempt, as any cynical Gen-Xer should have.

Also, the idea that comic books and superheroes were for nerds seems bizarre for me. No, they weren't! Nerds were into intellectual pursuits. These comics and superheroes were for the mainstream. There was nothing nerdy about them. What we're seeing here is a revisionist history, where "geek" has become the new cool, and consumer products are being retroactively marketed as "geeky."

 

[Something Amyss]

On a somewhat related side-note* Hollywood.. May I have my "ReBoot" movie since you never gave me an ending to my favourite childhood show?

I'm talking about this for those who don't know

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ReBoot

Isn't there a new ReBoot series coming out? Or did that go away of the announced three films?

 

[Necris Omega]

I reacted to the announcement with a flabbergasted laugh, not out of hostility, but out of targeted nostalgia and sheer disbelief. I mean, the notion, a -gritty- (that was the exact term used) Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers reboot? I'd expect that to come out of a Cracked Photoplasty, not a legit studio announcement. Yes, Comic Books have leveraged themselves into deadly serious movies, sure, but the Power Rangers?

It's not to say they can't do that - not only have they leveraged a damn board game into a movie (albeit a flagrantly terrible one), but Battleship wasn't even novel or unique as Clue had it beat to the punch and was a better movie. Really, when you step away from the knee jerk shock, the MMPR is hardly the most ridiculous or unworkable source for Hollywood to draw from.

And who knows? Absolute coups have happened. Maybe it'll be to the original series what the Dark Knight was to Adam West's original Batman? Sure, it's a one in a million shot, but hell, if the stars align, if fate gets drunk and throws an orgy, if God directly intervenes, if it pans out you're basically talking the Avengers + Pacific Rim. And that, ladies and gentlemen, would be an amazing thing.

 

[CrazyGirl17]

I'm... on the fence about the Power Rangers reboot. I've liked Power Rangers since I was a kid, and would gladly get into actual tokusatsu... if I knew where to find it. As for the movie itself, well, they'd probably make it all dark and edgy, which doesn't fit with the original show's fun campiness (though the franchise's attempt at movies in the past have... not gone well). I guess we'll just have to wait and see...

Also, what was that insanity at the end? Why were Power Rangers fighting each other? Man, if I were still a kid and still a fan of the show, that probably would have had me jumping up in down with joy.

If I may put on my nerdy specs for a minute...

That scene was most likely a scene from which the current iteration of Power Rangers is based off on. Basically, every known ranger fights against evil aliens. Now, Super Sentai, which Power Rangers is based on, has been going since the 70's. Hence in the Japanese version, there are 34 teams and 200 Rangers fighting at the same time.

While our version is not as awesome, due to Power Rangers having not been around as long as its' progenitor, it's still pretty cool.

You're welcome.

 

[yatterman1]

most likely the movie will be the American version of one of the Kyoryuger movies or a rewrite with Mega Force joining them or something. i just hope they pick something original to make script wise due to the bombing fail of the effort they put into cramming two of the Shinenger movies together into a horribly written special for samurai DVD.