Badass Women Week: Trakeena

In the beginning, Trakeena was far from a badass, villainous or otherwise. She was spoiled, shallow, and cared little about anything but herself. Following the death of her father, though, she became a force to be reckoned with.

She began her path to badassery a little before that, really. Upon discovering her father wished for her to enter a cocoon that would greatly increase her power but strip away her beauty, she fled to the planet Onyx. While on Onyx, she met Villimax, who trained her in martial arts and swordplay. She then returned home, only to find her father dying from a battle with the Galaxy Rangers. Trakeena was finally in a position to be a badass.

As Queen, Trakeena was both powerful and ruthless. In fact, she became the first villain to outright kill a ranger. 10 episodes after her rise, she killed Kendrix, the pink ranger. If that's not an example villainous badassery, I don't know what is. She clearly cared little for life, ordering her army to fire upon evacuation shuttles filled with civilians in the finale, something not even Villimax, her loyal general and trainer, would do. She also turned all her stingwingers into suicide bombers. Trakeena cared only for her revenge on the rangers, even going into the cocoon that she intially refused. Eventually, she fought the rangers in her mutant form head on, only killed by blasts from the red rangers battlizers at point-blank range. Yeah, that was a badass death.

In her first appearance, Trakeena was one of the most pathetic villains seen at that point. By the end of Lost Galaxy, she had become an ice cold monster, willing to snuff out the lives of thousands, both of her enemy's people and her own. She only wanted her revenge, and would do anything for it. Trakeena's life and death were both memorable, earning her rank as one of PR's badass women.

Badass Women Week: Jen

Jen Scotts is, in my opinion, the most badass ranger ever. She was intelligent, and an amazing fighter. She knew when to hold her ground and when to let go. She faced in incredible adversary a thousand years in her past, and she did so while reeling from the death of her fiancee.

In the first episode we see Jen, she loses her fiancee minutes after his proposal. Her reaction: take three other Time Force officers and morphers and chase his killer into the past. There, despite being complete fishes out of water and needing help from Wes, her dead fiancee's doppelganger, she thrives. Over the course of the season she faces a lot of emotional obstacles, including facing her traitorous former partner, and she does so wonderfully. Just when she's starting to recover, she gets a surprise: Alex isn't dead, he's in the past, and he's a major jackass. Jen deals with this as well; calling him out on his obvious selfishness and shaming him into going back to the future. She stayed in the past, kicking ass and taking names. In the finale, she even heads back to the past, facing what she believed is certain death, because she couldn't not fight. Her skills are clearly not lost after this; in the Wild Force team up, she saves Wes, Eric, and the Wild Force rangers with her shooting skills, all while dressed in a Lara Croft-esque outfit (How they got that past Disney is one of the worlds greatest enigmas).

Jen stands out to me because she is badass in a way most ranger badasses are not: emotionally. She's intelligent, brave, skilled, and a calm and capable leader, like many others, but how many other rangers went through what she did? Her fiancee died in her arms, she went to the past, started to fall for Alex's ancestor, found out he wasn't dead but was an ass, got left by him, fell in love with Wes only to have to leave for 1000 years in the future seconds after admitting it? (Note: That was the first time 'love' was ever said on PR). None. Despite being a leading candidate for the Mighty Morphin' Therapy Rangers, she faced everything head on, and let nothing slow her down. I raise my glass to you, Jen.

Badass Women Week: Taylor

Taylor Earheart is best remembered as the fun-sucker of Wild Force. I feel that while she was a bit of a fun-sucker, this former Air Force Pilot was my favorite part of every episode.

As exposited in the season opener, Taylor was the team leader before Cole showed up, even having been the only ranger for 6 months, something no other ranger, male or female, can lay claim to. She was very by the book, but as former military, I feel that attribute makes a lot on sense, and she was shown to have a reckless side as well. Taylor was easily the best fighter of the core five, and can hold her own well against Merrick. I honestly feel that she should have stayed leader, as she was clearly more competent than Cole.

Her aggressiveness wasn't just for the battlefield either. She refused to let anyone act superior to or insult her team. This was best shown in 'Reinforcements from the Future' when Eric tried his lone wolf routine, only to have Taylor call him out on his jerk-ass ways. In fact, she was like that with all people; taking shit was not in her DNA.

Taylor Earheart was the lone bright spot in a dismal season, and with her independence and fight skill, she is most assuredly one of PR's most badass women.

Badass Women Week: Tenaya 7

Tenaya 7 is the best villain in the last five years. She wasn't the big bad of RPM, but she scared me more then anyone else, including Venjix. She was brave, intelligent, and fought better than anyone else on the evil side. From her first apperance, I knew she was a kickass villian.

Tenaya was a stark contrast to the other female villains of Power Rangers. She wasn't lovestruck, filled with rage, or an ice queen. Tenaya 7 was a smart, sarcastic, attack-bot who did what she loved and loved what she did. Whenever she showed up, it was always a guess as to who would win; she was a very talented fighter who bested the rangers several times, and when she came u with a plan, odds are it would work until someone screwed up. She also showed some major ambition, readily taking over when she thought Venjix dead, and was disappointed to find out otherwise.

Later, when it was revealed that Tenaya was Dillion's sister, she left Venjix and joined the rangers. Unlike other badasses who turn straight, she stayed a kick-ass fighter until she was reprogrammed (Anyone else getting In Space flashbacks?). She risked a lot to aid the rangers, even sneaking Dillion into Venjix's palace, and was reprogrammed because she refused to willingly rejoin the dark side.

Tenaya 7 was everything a good villain should be: smart, resourceful, a good fighter, not afraid of her boss, and she was pretty hot too. She was the first badass women villain in over nine years, and hence, an obvious choice for this list.

Badass Women Week: Summer

When it comes to women, Power Rangers can a bit, well, formulaic. If there are two female rangers, one (typically pink) will be the girly-girl while the other is the tomboy. If there's only one, she pulls double duty as both types, and the female villains are usually shallow/lovestruck idiots. Speaking as an actual girl, this bothers me. It's really irksome that there are so many female characters, yet so few tough ones. However, there are a few times when Power Rangers writers have written women that aren't just tough, they're badass, and in honor of the 100th National Women's Day, I'm going to spend a week talking about the toughest of them all.

Summer Landsdown is the most recent badass. She was the RPM yellow ranger. She also, for over a year, survived being the only girl on the team, which is its own badass skill. Before the series, Summer was a spoiled rich girl who only cared about money and was vicious to everyone she knew. It was only after her long suffering butler sacrificed himself to save her that she became the warrior she is now.

Summer may, at first glance, be an odd choice for this list. She was a bitchy princess for 16 years, she spent a lot of time in the background in fights, and is best remembered as 'The chick who had a thing for Dillion.' However, while of these things are true, they don't necessarily detract from her badassery. During her time as a princess, she trained in martial arts and became an incredible motorcycle rider, both of which helped her save Scott before she even became a ranger. Her place in the background was, in my opinion, due to the sentai footage, as The Dome Dolls showed her to be a capable and clearheaded leader, and the fact that she crushed on Dillion doesn't make her weak, it makes her not dead, as even cold-hearted Dr. K admitted to finding him attractive. In fact, messing with Dillion was shown to be a garunteed way to bring out her badass side.

Summer Landsdown was a loyal ranger, a tough fighter, and a talented leader. She was a truly tough ranger, and earned her place on my Badass Ranger Women list.

Gokaiger Episode 1: Review

Today, I finally found a version of Gokaiger's first episode with English subtitles (needed as my Japanese is as good as my sense of direction: non-existant), and I fecking loved it.

The story was amazingly well-written. There was cheese, but not so much I couldn't overlook it. It also really gets into the legacy of Sentai, and as I have previously stated, I love legacy. The Gokaigers transformed into 3 teams besides their, for lack of a better term, 'true form' and it rocked. The fighting was great, the music was great and the characters...wow. Whoever came up with the season premise is brilliant. All previous Sentai teams are now powerless, their powers in the hands of space pirate anti-hero's who care nothing about justice, only a legendary tresure, led by a hot-headed (and plain hot), curious, impusive money-seeker. Yeah, this rocks. Marvelous is my new favorite character, and the rest of the cast, save one, is pretty kick-ass, too.

There's only one thing I dislike so far, and another that isn't a dislike as much as a head-scratcher. How the hell did the Gokaigers get their hands on so many ranger keys? They've never been to Earth, it's said to be a rural planet, and it just doesn't make sense! I can only hope it will be adressed in a future episode. The thing I hated was Ahim. Shallow, sheltered, 'I want to help everyone', I hated her before I saw it. And if she wants to help people, why is she a pirate? By their own admission, they take what they want and smash whoever gets in their way. It doen't seem like a logical life choice for miss goody-two shoes.

So yeah. Gokaiger episode 1 was wicked awesome and I will be watching the season eagerly as long as I find eps with subtitles.

Missed Kisses

I hate Valentines Day. I don't know if its because I'm single or if it's just stupid. Either way, I did not want to to a top 3 romances for this unblessed occasion for 2 reasons: 1) See first sentence and 2) They're done to death. Instead, I'm going to do a list that is more original and more in line with my feelings. I proudly present my list of the top 3 of missed kiss moments.

Honerable Mention: Nick/Maddie in 'Mystic Fate, part 2'.

Andros and Ashley at the end of 'Countdown to Destruction, part 2'. Specifically, when Andros appears on the Megaship after saying goodbye. Sure, Ashleys reaction is touching, as is his confession that his home is with the rangers. Still, the lack of kiss feels weird. I mean, Andros is leaving his home and most of his family for Ashley, and she can't spare a little lip action? If I was her (or him) the kissing would have come before anything else.

Summer and Dillion in 'Belly Of the Beast'. This was a serious face palm moment on behalf of the writers, as we have not one, but two missed kisses in the space of a minute. Trapped in a burning Venjix factory, Summer and Dillion almost lock lips, only to be doused by water from the Whale Zord. They attempted to celebrate their new lease on life with anther kiss, only to be interrupted again, this time by Gem and Gemma, who are completely unaware of what they burst in on. Really, writers, really?

Was there ever any doubt? Wes and Jens heartbreaking separation in 'The End of Time, part 3' had me in tears the first time I watched it, and I was seven. It is, in my opinion, one of the best-written scenes in the entire series. I can still recall the feeling of loss as the two time-crossed lovers separated, thinking I'd never seen anything sadder in my life. I also remember thinking "Why aren't they kissing?" (Reminder: seven.) When small children start wondering why there is no kiss, you know someone dropped ball.

The Power Rangers writers love to tease us with flirting and almost-there-but-then-something-happened moments, and its annoying. I can only hope that the writers of samurai have figured out, through MMPR, that audiences like romances and like seeing the two we all to get together actually get together. If not, at least I'll have new material for next years list.

The Teams Unites: Review

The first episodes of Power Rangers Samurai, in my opinion, kicked ass. I liked a lot of it, an while i had complaints, they are objections to things specific to this episode, not to the series in general (mostly).

I liked most of it. I loved the revamp of MMPR's music for the credits, and the fight music rocked. I was disappointed by how little of the rangers, besides Mike, we saw, but the glimpses of them intrigued me. The Nighloks were enjoyable, with Dayu sending chills down my spine, and I feel that their plan was well expressed without resorting to "Hello audience. We're evil and this is our plan". The script was a little cheesy, but, hey, it's power rangers. We also got the bonus of a shirtless ranger in the first half. I realize it's a kids show, but I'm 16 and appreciate a hot guy sans top.

 I have only three issues with the episode, but they really irritated me. Mainly, the episode is called "The Team Unites" but I saw very little uniting. It was all about Mike, and while it was done well, I like back story and explanations and knowing why these five people are the rangers. I got none. Please let episode two involve flashbacks, reminiscing, or some form of back story. I also hated that Mia and Emily had less then ten lines combined, and they sucked. I understand Mia is supposed to be nurture-y and Emily is naive but thats no reason to make them idiotic mutes. I'm hoping this gets resolved in the future as well. My last complaint is the theme song. Not the song itself, mind you but the shouting of the rangers names as they are credited. It's distracting and unnecessary. Please make it go away.

There you have it. I liked "The Team Unites" as it showed a lot of great potential, but it also has a way to go in the way of storytelling and dialogue. I will be watching eagerly as the season continues. However, I will be watching with the opening credits on mute, because I'm not listening to the shouting every week.

Power Rangers vs. Sentai

The battle of power rangers versus super sentai is a long and vicious one, with fans on both sides refusing to back down. It is also one that i will neither support nor tolerate, so please keep flames, cussing and pointless "mine is better then yours" comments off here. 'K, thanks. I will not go so far, however as to completely remove myself from it, though as a fan of both series, my position is a little less solid and a little more of an example of an indesicive carpet dance, because on one hand...

...I'm American. Like it or not, my nationality has influence on my preference.  Power Rangers was written, for the most part, by Americans, for Americans, and as much as I enjoy some sentai, some things get lost in cultural translation. For example, what is up with the recurring stereotype of female rangers who can't cook but want to get married as a life goal? It bothers me, a fact that can, in fact, be atributted to culture. But on the other hand...


...Does culture really make a difference? If something's well written, it's well written. I love Hurricaneger, which was very japanese-culture heavy, and my favorite scene of all sentai I've seen was when Isshuu gave Nanami a living, breathing cow to impress her. I was laughing for two days solid, because that was hilarious in either language. Yet...

...I like the stories and characters of power rangers more then sentai. I haven't watched all seasons of sentai, but that's because a) I'm a multi-tasker and lack the patience to read subtitles, but mostly b) The stories and characters don't interest me. Even with a lot of the bad seasons of power rangers, the premise at least sounds interesting. But then there's...

...The Dork Age. And Wild Force. And Turbo. These six seasons were bad, and three (Turbo, PROO, and PRJF,) sucked so much ass that I don't have words to describe the horror they induce in me. These seasons were bad, bad, bad, bad, bad, bad, bad, and are a clear smack to anyone who claims Power Rangers is always better, The sentai counterparts to these seasons aren't to my taste, but they were good. Still...

...You see how it goes. I like and enjoy both, for diffrent reasons. Still, if i have to choose one, it would be power rangers. I was raised on this show, (my sister had me watching in utero and made sure i was educated about previous seasons) and as much as I enjoy sentai, a lot of its not to my personal taste. I do however respect both, and ask that you do too.

Power Rangers Samurai

Like all Power Rangers fans, I have been looking forward to the 18th season for months. However, I have my reservations about the series, as well as things I'm excited for.

The Nerve-Inducing: The tone of the series is what gives me the most nerves. I loved Shinkenger, and a good part of that is due to the darker tone. Unlike Shinkenger, Samurai has been stated to have a lighter, more comedic outlook. That's not necessarily a bad thing, as I do enjoy some lighter series (Ninja Storm immediately comes to mind), but i prefer my Power Rangers and my Sentai on the darker side. I also have reservations about the executive producer, Jonathan Tzachor. Like it or not, he is the Bruce Kalish of Saban-era Power Rangers. I wouldn't even worry except Judd Lynn, who has pioneered two of my personal favorite seasons, will not be involved.

The Awe-Inducing: It exists. This single fact makes me desperate for February 7th to get here.The high point of 2010 for me was finding out Saban had re-purchased the rights to Power Rangers and an 18th season was being planned, and I will watch faithfully. The hope for a female red ranger also has me buzzing. It's not guaranteed that the arc with Kouda will be adapted, but I have a good feeling it will be. If this happens, she will not be the first female red ranger or leader, as those titles belong to Charlie and Jen respectively, but she will be more legitimate in each role. Charlie was evil, and SPD took place in the future to Samurai's she-red will be the first chronologiclly. Jen, while a kick-ass ranger was not the full leader of Time Force, as Wes took the role of field commander. The final element that has me amped up is the inclusion of the Power Rangers legacy. For a long time the role of the legacy has been minimized, even attempting to tell us at the start of Ninja Storm that there were no such things as power rangers. This was laughed off by fans, because we like when everything is connected, and Samurai is clearly respectful of that. The theme song is a remix/cover of Mighty Morphin', there are reports of recruiting former rangers for guest apperances, and Bulk, (BULK!!!) is in the premiere episode. I love the legacy and I love samurai for loving it too.

All in all, I'm five exits past pumped for Samurai, despite my nerves over tone and Tzachor. I love Power Rangers, and am ecstatic that after 17 seasons, others love it too. May the Power live on forever.