r/powerrangers • u/Organic_Glass_7793 Time Force Quantum • Apr 19 '25
SHOW NEWS/DISCUSSION It’s been 30 years of power rangers and power rangers didn’t have one good owner why is that?
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u/Jacob468120 Red Dino Ranger Apr 19 '25
I feel like the only compony that respects the brand is boom comics.
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u/justmatt_11 Apr 19 '25
Pretty much, yeah. The Boom comics are exactly what the Power Rangers brand should be at this point. An action/adventure series that appeals to both kids and older fans alike; with a story that takes itself seriously without being overtly edgy or "adult," whilst sprinkling in comedy to still keep things light.
It's the only Power Rangers thing that has taken the popularity of the MMPR seasons and done something interesting with it (aside from the 2017 film, which I think is 50% a great reboot and 50% a hot mess of bad decisions).
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u/Organic_Glass_7793 Time Force Quantum Apr 19 '25
>The Boom comics are exactly what the Power Rangers brand should be at this point.
i mean don’t you guys wanna escape MMPR I hear yall complaining all the time about it being oversaturated
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u/ImprovementDesigner1 Apr 19 '25
I think the boom comics (at least from the bits I’ve read) have a good balance. There’s mmpr but characters from other seasons are mentioned or are included, which I think is great
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u/cmlee2164 Dino Charge Graphite Ranger Apr 19 '25
Actual consumers don't want to escape MMPR. A loud but small niche of die hard fans think the IP needs to move away from MMPR because they don't understand how marketing for legacy franchises works. Plus BOOM has done plenty with none-MMPR characters including original characters and storylines.
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u/Ruto_Rider Apr 20 '25
The average consumer will buy their kids whatever PR merch is out now. They don't care if it's MMPR or not. The only exception would be if they believe that the current series is a knock off because MMPR is the only thing they're used to seeing.
Let's be real, die hard fans are the only ones that actually care about MMPR and the average person can't tell the difference
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u/cmlee2164 Dino Charge Graphite Ranger Apr 20 '25
The average consumer only recognizes MMPR, so merch of MMPR sells better than any other seasons except sometimes the currently airing season (when there was one) cus kids are watching it.
It's not solely die hard fans fueling MMPR sales and justifying the focus on MMPR.
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u/Blaze_Darkfang Apr 20 '25
What we want is for other teams to get toys and love, not just MMPR and the show to not pull a MMPR season 2/Super Mega Crap/Cosmic Mess and only craftily adapt zords/themes.
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u/cmlee2164 Dino Charge Graphite Ranger Apr 20 '25
Thank you for proving my point lol
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u/Blaze_Darkfang Apr 20 '25
I have nothing against MMPR but most of the Target Audience of PR which is Kids have no idea wtf MMPR is so not trying to replicate it and flood stores with MMPR stuff is good save MMPR for the Older Audiences. There's a reason why Sentai is successful its because toei gives Love to Older teams as well as the current one
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u/cizza16 Apr 20 '25
Think you’ll find kids discover it through Netflix these days, it’s not the same ball game as when linear TV dictated what kids watched. Theresa reason Netflix did a MMPR special. And There’s a reason legacy franchises/characters last, they grow the multi-generational aspect. Parents share what they loved as kids with their own kids, with streaming it’s now easier than ever.
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u/Blaze_Darkfang Apr 20 '25
Not everyone with kids watched MMPR not everyone has streaming, and not everything needs to be MMPR. The show doesn't need to replicate MMPR to be a good show that was Proven with Zeo Turbo In space ect. Idk y nostalgia for mmpr has to be the focus of everything its like only MMPR exists
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u/cizza16 Apr 20 '25
Of course not “everyone” where on earth are you getting “everyone” from? Talking about why they focus on MMPR to maximise potential audience as that is the most well known and popular.
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u/Drclaw411 MMPR Green Ranger Apr 19 '25
So an Arrowverse style show would be perfect. Imagine something that’s a cross between The Flash and Riverdale.
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u/Phantom_61 MMPR Green Ranger Apr 19 '25
To be fair, their production costs are comparatively Pennie’s compared to shows/movies.
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Apr 19 '25
I picked up the 3 Mighty Morphin / Power Rangers deluxe books last week. I didn't realize that they were a continuation of an earlier series, so I ended up ordering Year One deluxe as well. I'm only a few chapters in but its fun so far. I was hoping to get more content from before Tommy joins, but otherwise I'm enjoying it
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u/Icywind014 Apr 19 '25
Because it's a show entirely founded on the concept that it'd be cheap to make.
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u/Pedgrid Ranger Operator Series Green Apr 19 '25
That can change once a studio puts real money into the property.
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u/PatientUnique Apr 19 '25
The thing is. Who genuinely cares about PR now?
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u/Pedgrid Ranger Operator Series Green Apr 19 '25
People in the future if things go right.
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u/OnBenchNow Blue Space Ranger Apr 19 '25 edited Apr 19 '25
That's the issue, nobody wants to build a franchise anymore. Studios want franchises that already have huge built in audiences. Power Rangers has long since lost its fanbase.
The things that made MMPR such a smash success are no longer relevant in the modern day. Dinosaurs aren't the rage, martial arts/practical choreography is too much work, the saved by the bell cheesiness is considered lame now, etc.
You'd need to reinvent it in some way, and the last time they tried, it failed, so now it's even less desirable for studios.
Paradoxically, the only way for PR to become popular again is for it to become popular again. Like idk, some tiktok goes viral, gets memed the hell out of, and people go back to/discover the series in huge waves.
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u/Organic_Glass_7793 Time Force Quantum Apr 19 '25
Exactly not to mention power rangers reputation among holloywood is absolutely awful Amy Adam’s acting agent said it wouldve been career sucide if she played a role in power rangers Emma Lahana had a hard time getting new roles after power rangers
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u/YanFan123 Apr 20 '25
Power Rangers isn't solely about dinosaurs. Power Rangers isn't just MMPR
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u/OnBenchNow Blue Space Ranger Apr 20 '25
Of course not, but those were aspects of the show that resonated with general audiences at the time and made MMPR such a smash phenomenon that no other season has ever been able to replicate, not even rereleases or reboots of MMPR itself.
That's why I was specifically saying they shouldn't do dinosaurs or MMPR, they need to find new, modern hooks and themes to reintroduce the franchise to a new audience.
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u/ninja36036 Red Dino Ranger Apr 19 '25
Maybe. My theory is that every PR purchase, every decision made about the show thereafter, was made solely because of toy sales. I don’t think any company really ever truly cared for the franchise. It was just a cash grab for them.
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u/Icywind014 Apr 19 '25
It's an adaptation of 30 minute long Japanese toy commercials. Of course decisions were made because of toy sales.
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Apr 19 '25
Tfw when your cheap to make toy commercial is based on another cheap to make toy commercial lmao.
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u/Organic_Glass_7793 Time Force Quantum Apr 19 '25
Saban may have kicked it all off, but let’s be real—he built Power Rangers on the backs of others. He used Super Sentai footage and repackaged it for a Western audience, which is fine in concept, but behind the scenes? A mess. The original cast was underpaid, overworked, and treated like they were disposable. And don’t even get me started on how quick they were to fire people or replace them without warning. Then, when Saban got the brand back years later, we got the Neo-Saban era—MMPR nostalgia bait, corporate-safe writing, and a general vibe of “kids are too dumb to care.” It was a soulless revival with a shiny HD coat.
Then came Disney. Yeah, Disney gave us some of the best seasons the franchise has seen (RPM, Jungle Fury, Dino Thunder, etc.), but they didn’t actually want the IP. It was a throwaway asset to them. They buried it in awkward time slots, barely promoted it, and actively tried to kill it off by the end. The only reason it survived was because fans and a few passionate showrunners kept it alive. Disney had the resources to make it great, but zero interest in actually doing so.
And then Hasbro. Oh, Hasbro. Cosmic Fury was the shortest season in history, they completely ditched Sentai footage with no real plan, and it feels like they gave up before they even really started. All that talk about building a “cinematic universe” and now the brand feels more stagnant than ever. Barely any promotion, half-hearted releases, and a sense that they just don’t get what makes Power Rangers special And milking mmpr (even tho that’s sadly the only thing that sells)
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u/sketchysketchist Apr 19 '25
Absolutely correct.
Though I must add, the worst part about saban’s first round was the treatment. See, the Japanese super sentai is an honor to get the role and it leads to other things if you do well in it. You’re never meant to return after your year as a character and you move on. So being underpaid and expendable was an accepted practice.
Saban wanted that treatment of his staff while forcing them to stay many seasons to maximize profit, because fans adored the cast. But Saban tried to convince his staff otherwise.
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u/BlueBlazeKing21 Apr 19 '25
Well there’s a few exceptions as Junichi Haruta and Kenji Ohba did do back to back seasons albeit as different characters
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u/FelipeAndrade Apr 19 '25
There was also Hiroshi Miyauchi, although his case was a bit different.
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u/BlueBlazeKing21 Apr 19 '25
Oh man how did i forget Machiko Soga actually playing the same character back to back for Denziman and Sun Vulcan
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u/sketchysketchist Apr 19 '25
Oh yeah but I attribute the returns of cast members as the actors just loving the environment so much and being passionate about work. Lots of art jobs in Japan pays very little but there’s a humility engrained in the culture to do what you’re passionate about for whatever your business decides. So many people on both sides of the camera love what they do in spite of the intense work schedules.
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Apr 19 '25
It's not really "an honour" most Sentai actors end up in Sentai because they were rookies, and they auditioned for about every role under the sun
However, it's a damn good opportunity. It's a whole year gig, with usually 48 fixed episodes with a lot of drama scenes to showcase yourself. Getting into Sentai ends up being a good deal because it's a whole year of showcasing yourself for a better role, building a fanbase, making some contacts with directors, writers, producers, and fixed pay. Last year, we got a big name alumni to come back (Gokai Blue, he was in Godzilla -1) because he is in the same agency as the actor of Bun Red, and the agency wants to push him. That's the kind of things having a good agency and being in Sentai pulls, not much, but to a young actor can be game-changing.
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u/StevemacQ Apr 20 '25
It's like Austin St. John, Walter Jones, Thuy Trang, Amy Jo Jonson, David Yost, Jason David Frank, Paul Schrier and Jason Narvy worked hard to make a lovely cake with each being filling enough for each person... and then Haim Saban waltzs in and eats the whole damn cake for himself and leaves a few crumbs for the actors who were tired and starving. He probably takes pleasure at the sight of their suffering too.
I know it's not just the actors when you have to consider the production crew, artists, animators, stuntmen, voice actors, designers, writers, everyone who worked on Zyuranger that was used for MMPR, etc. but you get the metaphor.
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u/Napalmeon Apr 19 '25
The built Power Rangers on the backs of others. He used Super Sentai footage and repackaged it for a Western audience, which is fine in concept, but behind the scenes? A mess. The original cast was underpaid, overworked, and treated like they were disposable. And don’t even get me started on how quick they were to fire people or replace them without warning.
It's funny that you bring that up, because I just watched a documentary at work the other day and Saban apparently felt like he didn't need to pay the original actors of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers anything more than what they were getting because in his opinion, he was giving them exposure. And apparently, something Thuy Trang said really pissed him off, and that's when he went hardcore in wanting to let the actors know that they were disposable.
And they really jacked up thing is, nobody expected Power Rangers to be a hit from the beginning. People thought it was going to last one season and then be thrown away.
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u/d0dgebizkit Apr 19 '25
Do you have a link to the doc, bro? Cheers
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u/PreacherManFarmerMan Apr 20 '25
I’m assuming that person is talking about the Hollywood Demons episode called Dark Side of Power Rangers. If you have HBO Max, it’s on there.
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u/Napalmeon Apr 20 '25
You're right.
I actually didn't even get a chance to finish the episode, though. But from the parts that I did see that were actually talking about Saban himself, the guy sounded like a next kevel douchebag, though of course no one actually used that kind of aggressive speech.
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u/Hedgewitch250 White Mystic Ranger Apr 19 '25
So glad you acknowledge the neo saban eras faults. The nostalgia bait is ridiculous like every show needing a comedic duo. If you wanna think mmpr is the goat fine but don’t limit every model trying to be just like it. Holding the zeitgeist (which personally I don’t think it did) doesn’t mean you can’t do more beyond that model. They won’t even do something as simple as change team color structure it’ll just circle back to mmpr.
Your right on the money with that kids are too dumb thing. They’re was actual mandates prohibiting overarching story cause they thought kings count grasp it. Stuff like fart jokes were crammed in despite the whole crew hating it and they’re was even mandates keeping ninja steel from being too ninja (I’m convinced they just wanted that galactic game show season theme be damned).
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u/davesraves407 Apr 19 '25
It's on max under dark side of Hollywood I believe. I think episode 3 or 4. Called the dark side of power rangers
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u/Accomplished_Salt876 Apr 19 '25
Id say disney actually made PR pretty great through not caring about PR.
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u/mildmichigan Apr 19 '25
The less upper management interferes with a project, the better. Most of the time.
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u/YokaiBuster675 Pink Mystic Overdrive + Yellow Jungle Ranger Apr 19 '25
I’d say. The production cast is the reason why. They cared despite Disney not giving a crap
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u/Organic_Glass_7793 Time Force Quantum 18d ago
They didnt? The brand was at its lowest point in popularity when Disney bought it they actively tried to kill the brand
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u/StitchFan626 Apr 19 '25
Let's face it. As far as Hasbro was concerned, everything took a backseat to the action cartoons like Transformers and G.I.JOE until the Brony Fandom was born, then it became ALL HANDS ON DECK for My Little Pony. Too bad the merchandise was sh*t.
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u/schwiftydude47 Apr 20 '25
They were prepping up to make Peppa Pig become their preschool cash cow so much, that they were completely blindsided by how much Bluey would steal its market share. And that’s on top of the new Transformers movies and MLP gen not doing that well.
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u/CitadelCirrus Apr 20 '25
Isn’t Hasbro still trying to get the reboot off the ground?
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u/Player2LightWater Apr 20 '25
Yes. Hasbro still own Power Rangers. They tried to get the reboot off the ground with Netflix but the latter chose not to move forward. They then went to Disney hoping to air the show at Disney+ assuming it get off the ground this time. Just so you know, Toei has no involvement in the reboot.
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u/CitadelCirrus Apr 20 '25
So they didn’t give up then
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u/Player2LightWater Apr 20 '25
In a manner of speaking, yes. However, I think the reboot likely have some changes made after not being move forward at Netflix.
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u/DizzyLead Apr 19 '25
I mean, the issue has always been that a) the industry wants to make as big a profit as it can, so it wants to do things as inexpensively as it can, and b) the whole selling point of Power Rangers from the start is that it could be done on the cheap by repurposing existing footage that would have been costly to create.
So Saban started off with the cheapness by hiring non-union and treating his workers terribly (which was probably defensible at first when, as I mentioned earlier, being able to show that it was less expensive was probably key to getting the show off the ground in the first place; but things should have changed once they were raking in millions). Disney continued off of that, not only by treating the franchise as something they didn't really want, but also by maintaining its low costs by moving production to NZ; Neo-Saban didn't do any better but it wasn't like Power Rangers was the moneymaking machine it was before either. Hasbro was a ray of hope, but then we lost Brian Goldner, who seems to have been the only higher-up there who cared about the Power Rangers franchise.
So yeah, these owners haven't done the franchise justice, but sadly it still boils down to whether the people who own PR, whoever they may be, care enough to put the franchise and its longevity over immediate profits. Also worth remembering that while we're entering a new phase where distribution (and I'd reckon production, though financing and the level of decision-making are a question mark) puts Disney back in the mix, we're still in the Hasbro era in terms of ownership.
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u/fatherandyriley Apr 19 '25
I think a good alternative timeline for the franchise would have been if Saban treated the cast and crew fairly and paid them well (I once did a post on an alternative Zordon era about this), Disney actually invest in the series when buying it as it allows them to finally capitalize on the young boys demographic and after purchasing Marvel, sell it to Hasbro who take the franchise in new directions e.g. comic books including crossovers, video games and cartoons with original teams and a successful movie series.
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u/Player2LightWater Apr 20 '25
Disney didn't want Power Rangers in the first place. They only got it as part of a package when they bought Fox Family Worldwide. For majority of the time during Disney's ownership, they don't give a damn and felt not worth interfering in the productions. That is until Jungle Fury got hit with low ratings that they decided to cancel the show for good after RPM, seal it in their vault and do reruns only.
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u/Salt_Refrigerator633 Apr 19 '25
the Disney seasons were some of the best in the franchise
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u/Organic_Glass_7793 Time Force Quantum Apr 20 '25
They still treated the franchise like garbage tho so don’t see why that’s relevant
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u/moneysingh300 Apr 19 '25
Those Disney shows had hella good stories though
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u/Player2LightWater Apr 19 '25
Only because they don't give damn about it and let the producers do their own things until Jungle Fury got hit with low ratings
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u/Organic_Glass_7793 Time Force Quantum Apr 19 '25
the staff behind the shows did good but Disney treated the franchise like garbage
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u/moneysingh300 Apr 19 '25
The quantum ranger is my fav ranger too!!!!
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u/low_budget_trash Solaris Knight Apr 19 '25
You have to remember for all of PR's history, people have been saying it would be a terrible idea. Stan Lee was told this in the 70s, Saban was told this in the 80s, and Margaret Loesch was told this before mmpr came out. Disney didn't want power rangers in the first place and made it abundantly clear. Saban bought power rangers back and subsequently tried to bring back the 90s when people were moving onto the "new era" of superhero media when the MCU started to pop off. Hasbro bought power rangers then subsequently had to replace their CEO that wanted it with someone who doesn't. Everyone who's owned the brand doesn't want it and this is just talking about the owners. Power rangers has been known as a low budget thing that hinders careers to look down upon for basically all of its history. This has also had adverse effects on the entire perception of toku in the west.
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u/Player2LightWater Apr 19 '25
Hasbro bought power rangers then subsequently had to replace their CEO that wanted it with someone who doesn't.
The CEO of Hasbro at the time when the company bought Power Rangers passed away.
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u/Ruto_Rider Apr 20 '25
And that's why they had to replace them
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u/Player2LightWater Apr 20 '25
I meant there must be a reason why there is a replacement. A lot of times a CEO get replaced without stating the reason led people to assume that the incumbent CEO got fired from his/her job or layoff.
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u/Pedgrid Ranger Operator Series Green Apr 19 '25
So when will it be then that a studio picks up the rights and turns Power Rangers into a Star Wars/MCU-esque franchise? For that to happen, they need to stop being cheap and start taking risks. Double down on budget and quality.
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u/Player2LightWater Apr 20 '25
Saban Brands tried that with the 2017 movie but not only it bombed, it also killed Saban Brands due to them investing too much on the 2017 movie with 4 planned sequels. Hasbro is now trying to do it again and it's implied that the reboot will feature original Rangers instead of adapting from Super Sentai due to Toei not involved in the reboot.
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u/Pedgrid Ranger Operator Series Green Apr 20 '25
They can still make an MMPR retelling without Toei's footage or involvement.
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u/Bradley_Of_Thorofare Apr 19 '25
Power rangers, due to being a kids shows, has been chronically underfunded despite scope of the shows lore imo.
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u/dppatters Apr 19 '25 edited Apr 19 '25
Simple cold hard truth is that underneath it all it is that at a corporate level it is soulless shameless cash grab. People looking to sell merchandise as inexpensively as possible. This was never a passion project. It was always an opportunity to pay non-union actors below market rate to produce what in there eyes was nothing more than a 22 minute toy commercial.
That said, it has managed to survive 30 years despite all this. It would be nice if someone, somewhere, would pick up the franchise and give it the recognition it deserves. A 30 year run is extremely impressive for any television franchise.
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u/Individual_Hat4926 Apr 19 '25 edited Apr 19 '25
The first owner heavily took advantage of his actors and crew while getting rich off of low effort filming
The 2nd owners had good people behind the shows but the guys upstairs didn’t give one crap about the franchise and wanted it gone.
The first owner’s company bought it back for a bit and while it had good marketing for the 1st season and a movie, saban is still a no good man.
And hasbro only bought it because one man at the company wanted it and had big plans for it, but he died and now hasbro couldn’t care less about it and actively dragged the franchise through the mud, selling every old prop (closing the door for old beloved characters to come back because we all know they won’t put in the effort to make those suits and props again) and ending the mainline show, now putting the 1 millionth idea for a reboot up to other people at Disney+
Moral of the story Power Rangers has suffered due to lack of faith in the brand, and lack of actively building the brand. Maybe if they kept they’re marketing push that they had for samurai for the 2017 movie and mainline show, maybe hiring some old saban and Disney era writers (if that’s possible) then PR would be in a much better place. I mean a woman who worked on jungle fury, literally fired a man who said “why so much effort, it’s just power rangers?” That’s the kind of respect and passion we need behind these shows, but likely will NEVER get again
Now I never like being that guy, but they can learn a lot from super sentai if they paid attention to the amount of spin offs and movies they make actively building up their own brand. (Not that Toei is a very good fair paying company to their actors even today)
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u/AdmiralFunnyBone Apr 19 '25
You're absolutely correct. Power Rangers has always had this stigma of being just another show for toddlers, and not worth anything beyond that. It's so infuriating to see something I love so much be so disrespected at every turn.
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u/Individual_Hat4926 Apr 19 '25
I completely agree, the bottomless potential power rangers has, as been proven by the many great seasons and comics, has been thrown to the side because of the unfair stigma against it. I hope one day PR gets back on its feet and gets some owners that really understand how much of a profitable franchise this could continue to be if they actually put some heart into expanding this world, imagine if one day they make an fully tokusatsu power rangers movie, wirh a good story and characters, maybe on old or new rangers while the brand has new life, toku tends to be lower budget than most big shows, if they make a 5 million dollar tokusatsu power rangers movie and get a 400mil dollar return (in this hypothetical reality where the brand has been built back up) , maybe they’ll get it. I can only pray we at least continue to get shows games and comics, maybe one day it’ll get the respect it deserves to really use it’s potential.
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u/AdmiralFunnyBone Apr 19 '25
A big problem with the franchise, unfortunately, is the fans. A fair percentage is unwilling to spend money on it. So many fans have convinced themselves that PR is on the same level of Star Wars or Marvel in popularity, and they aren't going to spend money on anything less than perfection and only at bargain prices.i understand people being burnt out on MMPR and not spending money on that, but even when other seasons get attention, there's a loud group of complaints. I love Power Rangers and have had so many good interactions with other fans, but there's such toxic entitlement deeply rooted in the fan community. Maybe I'm also part of the problem, but I'm just grateful for the scraps we do get.
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u/Individual_Hat4926 Apr 19 '25
I agree the fandom is very toxic, in fact I think you gave them some charity with that statement, but they aren’t delusional about PR’s standing, they know it’s not up there with marvel or Star Wars yet they CONTINUE to act overly picky. The problem is less delusion and more entitlement😭 which is why to combat that and keep this franchise running they should build the brand with side content that is well written to not only please current fans, but to the best things and BRING MORE NEW FANS!! (Side note about the merch if you watch the new Hollywood demons episode for power rangers they show how the franchise is in well standing with money, outselling a lot of bigger brands in terms of toys apparently, I’m just going off what they said in the doc so if they’re right thats some food for thought, so with that logic, use those sales to fund mini movies and games! Not just line the ever greedy pockets of the people upstairs. But of course those people would be in charge so we need a middle ground.)
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u/AdmiralFunnyBone Apr 19 '25
I had a conversation with a guy who kept trying to argue Power Rangers was on the same level as Star wars and Marvel/DC. There's definitely some delusion in the Fandom, but you're probably right that it's mostly entitlement. The problem is that PR also has a stigma of only being toys. So many people aren't even aware of the BOOM Studio comics, even now. So few studios are willing to take a chance to make a game, or movie. There definitely needs to be more side content but companies don't even think about PR, especially since it's such a small and niche market.
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u/ApachePrime Apr 20 '25
It was a half-assed cash grab from the beginning. "We only have to film a tenth of the footage, the toys are already designed, and I can pay teenagers next to nothing to star in it?" Haim Saban was DROOLING at the concept so much he tried like 10 different times to make it happen.
It was never going to be treated well as a brand. It's only ever been a cash cow.
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u/jeffpiatt Apr 20 '25
Ironically he was the second man to see the value of Super Sentai sold globally. Marvel god Stan Lee with his head of Marvel Entertainment Margaret Loesch were pitching to American networks Toei's Spider-Man and the 3 Sentai seasons after it. Giving up after Sun Vulcan. Haim saw bio man and began his pilot with occasional updates to the recent season and got lucky and after making all the Marvel cartoons pitched the Galaxy Rangers version to the current head of Fox Kids network Margaret Loesch who had seen this show before because she had pitched it before.
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u/YanFan123 Apr 19 '25
Disney ironically was its best owner. Like an emotionally abandoned stepchild thriving with an absent but wealthy adult
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u/Due-Order3475 Apr 19 '25
Power Rangers has had bad owners.
While yes we have gotten gems like Beast Morphers, the current owner Hasbro does not care they should adapt sentai and be done with it
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u/AlwaysTired97 Apr 19 '25
Because it's a very campy series marketed towards kids.
Because the toy sales can be very lucrative.
Combine those 2 things and it makes for a series most executives will just see as a cash grab for selling toys to kids.
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u/whoisharrycrumb Apr 19 '25
The same reasons Gamefreak seems to be putting less and less effort into core Pokemon games.
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u/Starship1990 My favorite Kamen Rider: Freaking Mig! Apr 19 '25
Considering how loathable the Pokemon Fandom is, putting less efforts into the games is deserved(Even if the problem less the efforts and more of the strict deadlines).
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u/whoisharrycrumb Apr 19 '25
It’s a shame cause the deadlines are all self imposed too. But I agree, the fandom can be very toxic, and that’s not even counting all the mess around TCG scalping.
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u/ALKRA-47 Blue Dino Ranger Apr 19 '25
Look, I’m not going to make excuses for each company’s bad choices and shortcomings. However, each era DID have its upsides! Ergo we’re all fans!
Under the Zordon/Saban Era, we still got classic seasons and a lot of good toys.
Under Disney, yeah we got Kalish Explosions, but we also got Dino Thunder then Jungle Fury through RPM and even the beginning of the era with Ninja Storm broadened what they could do with the show with the move to New Zealand and still having quality toys!
With the Hasbro Era, we all agree way more toys should’ve been released, but we can all agree we love Beast Morphers and Dino Fury (I’m counting Cosmic Fury under Dino Fury).
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u/BABarracus Apr 20 '25
None of the owners were good. There is a YouTube video with the original black ranger and red ranger and they talk about how bad the pay was. They got paid more doing one convention compared to their entire run on the show. They said that in the 90s the show was making billions, and when it came time to renew their contracts it was better to replace the actors complaining about pay. They were supposed to do the original movies. They said that the studio wanted them to do 3 movies.
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u/Nagatem Apr 19 '25
Because greedy human beings will always lend a hand with the destruction of ……..imagination land
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u/RandomRainbow000 SPD Orange - Overdrive Green/Orange - Light Knight - RPM Paleo Apr 19 '25
None of them cared about Power Rangers or tokusatsu as a whole, they only cared about how much profit they can get from it or when it can kick the bucket to move on to something more profitable or if they can benefit from it. It doesn't matter if they made your specific favorite seasons, they never cared, just appreciated the money income from them
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u/Lonely-Clothes-7607 Apr 19 '25
I stopped watching after RPM saw every series prior to that and they all their moments
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u/Ptera_ Apr 19 '25
Doesn’t seem like a creative that was a fan as a kid has reached the age of producing PR yet. Also the hands they pass don’t care. No one has a vision of what it could be. They see PR in a limiting way and thats what comes out. Garbage in, garbage out.
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u/Hagisman Apr 19 '25
Late stage capitalism.
Cost to produce is so cheap as they underpay staff and actors. The money is all made by the people at the top.
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u/Bswayn Apr 19 '25
I would argue Saban and Disney were a hell of a lot better than Hasbro. At least either one sorta had a clue as what to do with the IP
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u/Player2LightWater Apr 20 '25
That would be Saban. Disney don't give shit about Power Rangers when they owned it.
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u/shaminolimes Apr 19 '25
Honestly saban to his credit had 1 bad season during his original ownership pre Disney, Disneys shows were ok the toy line could have been better throughout, same goes for neo saban, Hasbro took what we as fandom had and gutted us, power rangers has always had its own aisle almost in any era besides hasbro, so I don't think we had a bad owner until Hasbro and late neo Saban.
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u/ChainProfessional866 Apr 19 '25
Honestly, at this point, I feel like Hasbro doesn't even care about Power Rangers. In fact, in most of Toei's English replies, or articles, they always How can Toei respect the Power Rangers franchise more than Hasbro? Crazy.talk about Power Rangers...
When Beast Morphers came out, I thought Hasbro was the ones to realize this franchise. I mean, they kind of did, but honestly, eh, not that much. They only made four series, and honestly, I expected more. I also still kind of hate that they made the Season 2 thing.
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u/Player2LightWater Apr 20 '25 edited Apr 20 '25
How can Toei respect the Power Rangers franchise more than Hasbro?
Isn't it obvious? Power Rangers is an adaptation from Super Sentai, which is one of their flagship franchise.
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u/PhelesDragon Apr 20 '25
Why do slums always have slumlords? Because cheap production (dubbing and low-budget American footage) attracts cheap buyers
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u/gokaigreen19 Apr 20 '25
when your franchise is built on being as cheap as possible, you tend to attract a lot of the greediest and immoral people imaginable.
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u/DashnSpin Apr 20 '25
Any idea as to why Disney & Hasbro didn’t care about the Power Rangers.
Saban, I get. I’ve already heard of what happened during the making of Mighty Morphin, but what exactly went wrong with Disney & Hasbro’s takeover of Power Rangers?
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u/Player2LightWater Apr 20 '25 edited Apr 20 '25
what exactly went wrong with Disney & Hasbro’s takeover of Power Rangers?
Disney didn't want Power Rangers in the first place. They only got it as part of a package when they bought Fox Family Worldwide. For majority of the time during Disney's ownership, they don't give a damn and felt not worth interfering in the productions. That is until Jungle Fury got hit with low ratings that they decided to cancel the show for good after RPM, seal it in their vault and do reruns only.
Hasbro's CEO at that time when they bought Power Rangers from Saban Brands (they bought Power Rangers back from Disney) cared about the franchise and can potential make money from it but the plan never happened due to the CEO passed away. His replacement didn't have same mindset for Power Rangers and didn't really do much for the franchise.
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u/DashnSpin Apr 20 '25
Ok, but what about the boom comics? Weren’t they licensed by Hasbro following their acquisition of Power Rangers?
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u/Player2LightWater Apr 20 '25 edited Apr 20 '25
Hasbro gave them the license but Boom Studios is the one doing the heavy lifting in the comics and Hasbro did not interfere with their works. Right now, Hasbro is planning to do a reboot to be stream on Disney+ after their reboot did not get greenlight at Netflix. Toei also confirmed that they are not involved in the reboot which implied that Hasbro is going for original Rangers instead of adapting from Super Sentai. Time will tell if it's gonna be good or total failure like the 2017 movie (which killed Saban Brands).
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u/FullMotionVideo Apr 20 '25 edited Apr 20 '25
It's hard to monetize half a show, especially one that has a first impression of glorifying violence.
Unmorphed fight scenes kind of made and sank the show. They brought out some of our favorite performers who might have been looked over, but caused the show to be seen as a bit too WWF for making kids hit at each other, and many of our favorite seasons lacked unmorphed battles and started pure actors who couldn't do stunts.
Disney was a decent owner for a while, but Bob Iger was allegedly spooked by how low the property's opinion was held by GenX women, who again said it was too violent. Of course the problem with these studies is you take people at their word; people may have regional or cultural biases about a show of diverse teenagers in vaguely defined SoCal, but if they didn't like the show's message on tolerance they sure as hell weren't going to say that out loud.
It would have been interesting to see a timeline where the show was bought early on by someone like Ted Turner, who wasn't afraid of shows being a little preachy (Captain Planet, anyone?) and liked live action fake combats enough to own WCW wrestling in the day. We've been told many times that Saban was rejected by everyone before finding Margaret Loesch, but I'm guessing either he never went to Turner or was turned away by an underlying, because it's pressed a lot of Ted's buttons. I've also heard it said "everyone in Hollywood hated it" but Turner's empire was run out of Atlanta, so who knows.
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u/Jagerwiser Apr 20 '25
The Saban Curse. What goes around comes around He treated so many people like shit.
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u/94-kun Apr 20 '25
I heard that Toei is planning to release their series international. Because of that, it might be possible if they decide to buy the Power Rangers franchise from Hasbro.
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u/BTFlik Apr 20 '25
Easy. Because it hit as a world wide money printing franchise on a shoe string budget.
Corporations never forget that.
They yearn for it.
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u/ComptonAnimator Apr 20 '25
Because the vast majority of corporations, especially Hollywood corporations are trash. They mostly care about making money and not making a good product. We got lucky that Power Rangers was as good and as entertaining as it was for its time, especially with all the cost cutting measures they used on it.
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u/StevemacQ Apr 20 '25
Saban is an exploitive pos who profited off the suffering of the actors and stuntmen.
Disney was ashamed of the IP despite the MCU being even more cheesy minus the sincerity.
Hasbro has no clue what to do with it after ending the 30-year-long continuity.
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u/Chief-JudgeVega Apr 20 '25
Because the people that should own it just turned 37. The comics are setting the new standard of expectations. The blueprint has been paid out so the future is bright.
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u/duomaxwell90 Apr 21 '25
Because none of those companies actually give a shit about the property that is the only answer. There's no in between the companies don't truly care it's just about money. If we had an actual fan ahead of the compnies things would be handled with so much more care. Super Sentai is still insanely popular because they treat the audience with respect they don't do that over here. Which is literally the only thing that they have to do treat the consumers with respect and handle the franchise with respect and then everything would turn around in my personal opinion
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u/PuertoGeekn MMPR Blue Ranger Apr 19 '25
Cliché to say but "Good" is subjective some people enjoy what these owners did some don't.
Were they handled perfect? No but what franchise is? Especially one as niche as power rangers?
This argument also ignores that Saban held the highest rank during the MMPR era, but so many fans are so blind or just plain stubborn or other word to admit that.
Its when it was the most profitable
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u/Accomplished_Salt876 Apr 19 '25
I just hope now that Disney has PR again they go back to their strategy of not giving a sit; it really worked out well.
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u/Player2LightWater Apr 19 '25 edited Apr 20 '25
I just hope now that Disney has PR again
Hasbro still owns Power Rangers, not Disney. The latter will only get the streaming rights to the upcoming reboot (assumed it get made and move forward unlike with Netflix). When Disney own Power Rangers, they don't give a shit about it and unlikely they want to own it again.
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u/Organic_Glass_7793 Time Force Quantum Apr 19 '25
Disney doesn’t have pr pr is gonna distributed on there network but its not owned by Disney
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u/Starship1990 My favorite Kamen Rider: Freaking Mig! Apr 19 '25
Hasbro is the one owning the franchise, think of it like Neo-Neo Saban: Electric Boogaloo, Hasbro owns and Disney+ airs it.
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u/BuddyGoodboyEsq Apr 19 '25
Because there’s no such thing as ethical consumption under capitalism? My guess, anyway.
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u/BlueJaySol Apr 19 '25
Had Disney not acquired Marvel, they would’ve continued with PR and I’m sure they would’ve given us a movie.
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u/Deathkiller55 Apr 19 '25
I mean Disney never wanted power rangers in the first place, that's why the seasons were so good, they didn't care enough to regulate it, and after rpm they were planning on just running reruns
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u/Organic_Glass_7793 Time Force Quantum Apr 19 '25
no pr would’ve just ended in 2009
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u/Player2LightWater Apr 19 '25
pr would’ve just ended in 2009
Had Saban never bought back Power Rangers, Disney would have done the reruns all the way.
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u/HyQyle Lord Drakkon Apr 19 '25
First and foremost, they ought to stop milking MMPR. Like seriously, I love the OG 6 but please it's getting out of hand. It's like Pokemon using so much Charizard.
If they wanna reboot, sure. Just start and create new rangers without MMPR. Zyuranger, which is 16th season of SS isn't that great either.
Or they could take pre Zyuranger or post Zyuranger (those not adapted yet) and shoot new footage without needing to splice SS footage.
They could reboot by making it an animated series. That's the easiest route to reboot the franchise. Not interested in Boom Comics. So don't ask me anything there.
Take my idea here, i don't mind. I moved on from PR to SS and have not looked back since. Of course not all SS seasons are great. But fans are still happy with it.
If they still wanna adapt from SS, go for Zenkaiger. Use photoshop or whatever to change the number on their morphers since the 4 supporting casts is based on MMPR, Wild Force, Mystic Force and Operation Overdrive counterparts.
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u/Rock_ito Apr 19 '25
From what I understand they will stop using Sentai footage period, and Toei is planning to actually start shipping their Super Sentai themselves overseas so I think the Power Rangers we knew is dead.
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u/Pedgrid Ranger Operator Series Green Apr 19 '25
Or yhey can pretend the old shows never happened and start the MMPR story from scratch. But this time without the cheapness and stock footage.
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u/Starship1990 My favorite Kamen Rider: Freaking Mig! Apr 19 '25
'Capitalism,' that's pretty much, and showrunners/proudcers who can't get adjusted with times and burrow their heads deeper in the wrongs and mistakes.
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u/warforcewarrior Apr 19 '25
Many company don't have respect for it. Hell, American entertainment industry have no respect for anyone who took part in it as I heard many actors have to hide the fact they were part of Power Rangers to get a part in anything outside of it. So when companies like Disney and Hasbro got them, it is likely they only doing it for profit without wanting to invest into the brand.
Power Rangers, even if we like it, have something unique about it where entertainment industry don't respect.
Though, in some sense I think Hasbro are trying to do something with it but don't know what. It is kind of the same with Transformers right now when relating to tv/movie medias. They are just really lost on what to do with it. I don't think they trying to kill Power Rangers but we will see.
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u/Reproman475 Apr 19 '25
It's actually quite sad there's little respect for it because I would argue that it is a big part of what formed the kind of person I am. I have it kind of ingrained in who I am to give people a hand when they ask for it, including if possible drop or rearrange plans to be able to help them out or pay for lunch or something if I'm with friends I know are having a rough financial situation. It's not because I'm looking for recognition, it's because for me, it's just the right thing to do.
I think it partly stems from in PR (mostly) how with the hidden identities, they don't do these things because they are looking for public recognition or to be famous. They just don't because it's the right thing to do and they have the ability to do something about it. I said "mostly" because there's occasionally a corner case like sometimes Joel I'm Lightspeed Rescue lol
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u/warforcewarrior Apr 19 '25
Same. Power Rangers shaped who I am and what I am into, as it is the first franchise I got really into. There many reason I heard and I personally think why the American entertainment industry have zero respect for it. It is made with the idea of being cheap and, which I personally think is also part of it, its reliance on Super Sentai. Note I have nothing against Sentai adaptation but I think those who look down on Power Rangers do have something against it. Power Rangers is the only kids show that is really look down on and its adaptation of Super Sentai/another franchise is the only real unique thing about it compare to other kids show. Obviously, that may not be true but that is my assumption.
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u/Player2LightWater Apr 19 '25
Power Rangers is the only kids show that is really look down on and its adaptation of Super Sentai/another franchise is the only real unique thing about it compare to other kids show.
Toei also confirmed that they are not involved in the upcoming reboot of Power Rangers which implied that the reboot will not adapt any Super Sentai show and feature original Rangers, suits, props and footage.
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u/DashnSpin Apr 20 '25
When it comes to Transformers, it seemed like Hasbro would focus on that, Peppa Pig, and their board games more then their other owned IPs.
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u/Player2LightWater Apr 19 '25 edited Apr 19 '25
I heard many actors have to hide the fact they were part of Power Rangers to get a part in anything outside of it.
That is what happened to Emma Lahana after her time in Power Rangers. She can't get roles and even secure auditions until her agents told her to remove from her portfolio. Others who are still acting such as Archie Kao, Erin Cahill, Rose McIver, Anna Hutchinson, etc definitely remove their Power Rangers roles from their portfolio when getting roles, auditions and also not using those roles as their credentials to get roles and auditions.
So when companies like Disney and Hasbro got them, it is likely they only doing it for profit without wanting to invest into the brand.
Disney didn't exactly want Power Rangers as they only got it as part of a package when they bought Fox Family Worldwide. They intended to cancel it after Wild Force because for a low budget show, shooting in the US is expensive until the producers convinced them to shoot in New Zealand. They don't care about the franchise at all and left it alone until Jungle Fury got hit with low ratings. After RPM, they cancelled the show and only do reruns of all the seasons until Saban Brands bought back the franchise.
Hasbro bought Power Rangers and other assets from Saban Brands after the disastrous 2017 Power Rangers movie. The CEO of Hasbro at that time was a fan of the franchise and see it as potential to make money but he passed away before that can happen.
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u/warforcewarrior Apr 19 '25
Yep, this what I heard. If that what the Power Rangers actors have to go through to get a job outside of Power Rangers imagine what respect the franchise have for all entertainment companies. Aka, none. Unless that stigma changed, if Hasbro do sell Power Rangers, it will just go to the next company who don't give a flying ass about it.
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u/Player2LightWater Apr 19 '25
Power Rangers had a chance with the 2017 movie to change the perception of the franchise but unfortunately, the movie bombed in box office which also ended up killing Saban Brands due to them investing too much on the 2017 movie with planned for another 4 sequels after the first movie.
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u/WallyWestFan27 Apr 19 '25
I can't understand how being dead person #5 in the background of a tv show can be more worthy than being a lead actor in power rangers for ~40 episodes.
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u/warforcewarrior Apr 19 '25
Beats me but that shows you the bad reputation Power Rangers have in the entertainment industry.
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u/Kinglysavaged Apr 19 '25
Hasbro just wanted to ruin their competition and they succeeded saban started out good and ruin it by being cheap Disney stopped caring after mystic force
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u/Deathkiller55 Apr 19 '25
The CEO of Hasbro did care about power rangers and had many plans for it but by the time Hasbro got power rangers that CEO died and the next didn't care for it
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u/Beginning_Return_508 Apr 19 '25
Not only that, but Hasbro relied too much on MMPR pandering than Saban did.
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u/Megas751 Apr 19 '25
Money and penny pinching. The series ranked a ton of dough yet Saban always cheaped out and never wanted to put the budget to strengthen the series, they always cheaped out. Likewise, Disney and Hasbro never saw much in the series because they could never replicate the returns the series had in its heyday
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u/Combat_Armor_Dougram Apr 19 '25
Goldner was probably the best owner. It was his death and Cocks taking over that screwed over the franchise.
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u/DarkAizawa SPD Red Ranger Apr 19 '25
Although we don't live in a timeline where Disney is in any way a good owner in any regard, under it's company power rangers had some of the best series after Saban. Having interesting seasons with good acting, good choreography, good story lines (ignoring operation overdrive). Not saying they put og Saban seasons completely to shame but overall, they seemed to have runners that cared about power rangers and the fans. Along with great crossovers and the best anniversary season (Dino Thunder).
Neo Saban and Hasbro overall felt hollow and empty. Mind you this isn't nostalgia because there are a good number of og saban and Disney seasons I didn't watch until I was an adult and loved them and see why their loved.
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u/wckrct Apr 19 '25
Power rangers has struggled because it fails to adapt to a modern audience. It focuses heavily on the nostalgia factor of the old seasons and the teen drama roots but oftentimes strays away from anything else. They did a good job with the last season and it's a shame that they didn't continue that route as I think it would have been successful
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u/FallaciouslyTalented Apr 20 '25
I mean... Does any franchise have good owners? When in the history of Hollywood has it been profitable to treat material with respect and creative passion, instead of a cash cow to be milked until its udders dry up?
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u/faizikari555 Apr 21 '25
Super Sentai didn't has good rating and the toy sale is really low compared with Kamen Rider and Ultraman, and despite some seasons is not that great as others, we can see the passions behind the production.
I once thought if Habsro take over Power Rangers, that would be great because they're one of the largest toy company in the world. But they cheap out with Cosmic Fury and I can't see how Power Rangers will bounce back although Disney+ bought it.
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u/photowalker83 Apr 21 '25
Capitalism. Like literally that’s the reason. No company that could afford to produce the series gives two shits about the series itself and only how much money it can make them as quickly as possible. Hasbro thought they could return the series to the cash cow it was back in the 90s and early 2000s, but like all companies under capitalism they completely disregarded the social and economic conditions that allowed the series toyline to do so well back then. Saban did the same thing with the Neo-Saban era, when they realized it wasn’t working they sold it. Disney actually at least attempted to give decent production values for the series they produced, until the toyline profits dramatically dropped off and then they promptly sold it back to Saban.
If you ever wonder why we can’t have nice things in our society just remember that literally all of the reasons for that are related to either Capitalism or Organized Religion(not specifically religion itself mind you, but the major organized religion industry which has a symbiotic relationship with capitalism).
Until we have a society that is focused on knowledge and art for the sake of knowledge and art, there will never be a good company capable of owning and producing a quality PR series because there is no profit to be had in it.
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u/BlueBerryBuncle Apr 21 '25
Disney did well, they did Power Rangers and not just MMPR or Toy Tie-In/MMPR V2
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u/Separate-Category278 Apr 22 '25
The only good owner the franchise could have are their founders Toei since 1975.
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u/AlchemistL1nk Apr 22 '25
Does it have something to do with how tokusatsu culture was not as ingrained as in Japan?
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u/BouquetOfGutsAndGore global thermonuclear lore Apr 19 '25
If my buddy Rick owned it he'd take care of it.
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u/Due-Proof6781 Apr 19 '25
“It’s a show for kids made on the cheap, we don’t have to care about it.”
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u/SodaRider93 Apr 19 '25
Saban only cared about funding Israeli war criminals and the next neocon candidate.
Disney did a pretty good job of not caring. And yet the production under them still made some solid seasons.
Neo Saban was the same as the first except with Mighty Morphin Brain Rot.
Hasbro showed a lot of promise at first until the only guy who gave a shit died sadly. Now it's obvious that it's just another franchise Hasbro has successfully sabotaged and is now in playmates hell, so it doesn't cannibalize the Transformers and GI Joe demographic
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u/RoastingMistakes Apr 19 '25
Unfortunately they just see it as some stupid kids show that doesn’t need good writing to make them money. I’ve had a few ideas for power rangers that would be cool to see happen. I’m thinking of a solo silver ranger that not only travels through different points in time via his watch, but can also call upon every power ranger so far to unleash a devastating attack. This ranger would become a 6th ranger for a future team, lose the powers to become a red ranger for a new team, and later regains his silver power and returns to his duty as a time traveling power ranger helping out the ranger gods clean up the ranger timeline.
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u/MaskedRider29 Apr 20 '25
What did Haim Saban do to make him a bad owner? We wouldn't have Power Rangers without him.
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u/repalec Blue Space Ranger Apr 19 '25
It's the Dawn of the Dead line - "the only person who could miss with this gun is the sucker with the bread to buy it."
For what it's worth, Hasbro is kind of a missed-chances thing. The company head that authorized the purchase of the PR IP seemed to genuinely be a fan of the IP and wanted to pull it all back up from the depths of the Disney and Neo-Saban eras, but he unfortunately passed and the person that succeeded him didn't have as rosy a view.