Jason David Frank To Return In Power Rangers MegaForce??? (100th Post!)

Yes. the man who made Power Rangers famous may make a 2nd comeback. According to an interview with GeekCast Radio, Jason David Frank may reprise his role as Tommy in the upcoming 20th Anniversary season Power Rangers MegaForce. Here's what OrendsRange Blog copied down from his interview:

"Probably, because that's probably what Saban's talking with my agent about tomorrow. I don't really have any clue what they're talking about, but they did mention some 20 year anniversary thing."

"If Saban ever wanted me to do something, I would do it. I just want everyone to know that if you hear any rumors about Jason Frank not doing the 20 year anniversary for any other reason, I will tell everybody right now that I do things for fun. I would do it for all of my fans and I would do it for a dollar. If it doesn't happen, it has nothing to do with me, it has nothing to do with money, it has to do with Saban. If the fans wanted to see me, it has nothing to do with money. It has to do with doing stuff for you guys."

Jason David Frank is famous for the role of Tommy Oliver who took the positions of:

• Green Ranger (MMPR S1-S2: 1993-1994)
• White Ranger (MMPR S2-S3: 1994-1996)
• Red Ranger (Zeo S4: 1996)
• Red Ranger (Turbo 1st half of S5: 1997)
• Black Ranger (Dino Thunder S12: 2004)

Keep in mind that this is a RUMOR. This isn't official yet, it could be for some other type of thing. I'll keep you updated about this subject as more information becomes available.

Power Rangers At Comic Con News

Well thanks to Henshin Justice, TokuNation and Toy Ark, we have a good handful of news on the show's 20th Anniversary and for the all new MegaForce season out next year.

HotWheels:

Mattel will be releasing HotWheels cars based on Power Rangers MegaForce as well as a special 20th Anniversary Car.

(This image courtesy of Saban Brands president, Ellie Dekel)

Bandai:

This one is huge. Bandai of course is selling the Samurai Final Victory set, but come 2013, their gonna go ALL OUT. I'm talking 20th Anniversary. They showed off 5 special 20th Anniversary toys they're gonna release next year which are:

*Sentai Series Shinken-Oh Megazord:

*Deluxe Armored Mighty Morphin Red Ranger:

*Die-Cast Mighty Morphin Megazord:

*Mighty Morphin Mini Helmet Set:

*Power Morpher: Collector's Edition:

Power Force:

According to the official Power Rangers website, they have set up a special "campaign" called Super Fans Power Force. What this is is a page ONLY for super fans meaning that they'll get inside info

before anyone else. They will also ask for help to promote the anniversary. Submissions will open up soon.

Power Rangers On The CW's Vortexx 

As announced this morning, Saban's new block on The CW will be titled Vortexx. Power Rangers Lost Galaxy will be the first season on the block when it debuts on August 25th. Eventually, Power Rangers MegaForce will debut also.

MegaForce's First Half Is Goseiger 

MegaForce's Second Half Is Gokaiger

It seems that we will be getting Gokaiger earlier then we thought. According to Saban Brands president Elie Dekel, the first half of MegaForce will use footage from Goseiger and the second half will use Gokaiger. Not sure how that's gonna play out, but we'll see.

Power Rangers 20 Years And Beyond Panel

One of Henshin Justice's staff members was one of the 15,000 people to attend the panel. Here is his summary:

"In attedence for the event was the actors who played Bulk from the classic era, Jayden, the current Red Samurai Ranger, Tony Oliver who played various voices and has written and produced episodes from Mighty Morphin’ to Zeo, Elie Deker, president of Saban Brands and host by Brian Ward who worked on the soon to be released DVD sets for Shout!Factory. The other half of the comedic duo, Skull crashed the panel and received a roar from the crowd and the pair spent the rest of the time making everyone laugh.

One of the highlights of the panel was a young girl asking if there will ever be a female Red Ranger, to which the entire audience cheered. They answered yes, but couldn’t say how, most likely indicating at Princess Shinken Red character set to appear in upcoming Super Samurai episodes. They stated that Mega Force will be split up into two seasons like it’s predecessors with the tag Super for the latter season and is definitely is the anniversary season of the show. However, Gokaiger will be used in the second season, but wouldn’t part with any details as to what.

Someone asked about the possibilities of getting the Japanese Super Sentai shows on DVD, but promptly said no.

We’ll be doing more coverage as soon as we can put it together! The marketing team for PR there were impressed with our websites logo "

More information will come as it becomes available.

Saban Brands And The CW Launches "Vortexx" Block On August 25th

Well it seems we have the name of the new SatAM block from Saban And The CW. It will launch Saturday Morning August 25th At 7 AM. Here's the full press release thanks to Nick And More,

Power Rangers At San Diego Comic Con 2012: Planned Events

Well folks, its happening again. Power Rangers at Comic Con. Thanks to Saban Brands and RangerCrew's blog, we have a complete rundown on what's going on at the popular convention. Take a look:

First the press release: 

Saban Brands' Power Rangers to POWER Up San Diego Comic-Con International

Saban Brands' Power Rangers will be back again at this year's San Diego Comic-Con International 2012, taking place July 12-15. The brand will have a bigger presence at SDCC than ever before, with POWERED Up news and events to celebrate the past, present, and future of the Power Rangers brand.

"Power Rangers fans are going to be thrilled with the announcements and our lineup at Comic-Con this year," said Elie Dekel, President of Saban Brands. "We have a lot up our sleeves and are excited to share a few exclusives and unveilings with our super fans."

Saban Brands will kick off the show with a special Shout! Factory panel on Thursday, July 12. The summit, "POWER RANGERS: 20 Years and Beyond," will be held at the Hilton San Diego Bayfront (Indigo Room) at 2pm. Moderated by Brian Ward (Shout! Factory DVD producer), panelists include Elie Dekel (President, Saban Brands), actor Paul Schrier (who played "Bulk" in the original series and in the current production), writer and supervising producer Tony Oliver (Mighty Morphin Power Rangers), actor Alex Heartman (Jayden/Red Samurai Ranger), as well as other key talent and members of the creative team. The panelists will dive into the evolution of the Power Rangers franchise over the years, including the long-awaited debut of the series on DVD and the show's resurgence on Nickelodeon with Power Rangers Samurai and much more. Immediately following this event, the panelists will remain available at the Shout! Factory booth for a signing.

Fans that head straight for the show floor will be able to find Power Rangers merchandise, giveaways, and activities at various licensees' booths throughout the show. Bandai America Incorporated will be offering Limited Edition San Diego Comic-Con Exclusive, which includes 6 Ranger figures with metallic paint deco. Fans can purchase these at the Bandai America Inc. Booth #5136. The Mega Bloks booth (#3947) is solely dedicated to the Power Rangers brand featuring a progressive mural made of blocks, while various other licensees including NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc. (booth #5136), Mattel (booth #3029), Papercutz (booth #2546), Shout! Factory (booth #3849), WeLoveFine (booth #517), will also have a Power Rangers presence with exclusive items, game demos, products and more. Acme Archives (booth #5629) will be debuting the first ever piece in the Power Rangers art program, entitled "Red Ranger" by artist Dave Rapoza, available starting on Preview Night.

In addition to all the swag at Comic-Con, attendees can keep their eyes peeled for the actual Power Rangers who will be around on the show floor throughout the entire show. They will also be making a special appearance at the Mattel Booth #3029 on Sunday at 10am.

The excitement will continue well into the show, as fans can join the cast of the number one kids' action series, Power Rangers  Samurai, at 5th and Island Avenue for the reveal of a Power Rangers 3D Progressive Mural on Saturday, July 14 at 12pm. There will be POWERFUL franchise announcements and surprises that no Power Rangers enthusiast will want to miss. Following the mural unveiling, the Super Samurai cast will participate in a Q&A press event at a nearby hotel. Fans will also have the opportunity to see the cast of Power Rangers Samurai at the Nickelodeon Booth #4113 for an autograph signing on Saturday at 3pm. Actors Alex Heartman (Red Samurai Ranger), Najee De-Tiege (Blue Samurai Ranger), Erika Fong (Pink Samurai Ranger), Hector David Jr. (Green Samurai Ranger), and Brittany Pirtle (Yellow Samurai Ranger) will be on hand to meet and greet fans and pose for photos. Go Go Samurai!

Then what RangerCrew found out:

Power Passport:

Fans will get a Power Passport Card, which can be used to get a free exclusive Power Rangers 20th Anniversary t-shirt.  Take the Passport to the following Parter booths: Mega Bloks (#3947), Acme Archived Limited (#5629), WeLoveFine (#517), Shout! Factory (#3929), Mattel (#3029), Bandai Namco Games (#5136), and Papercutz (#2526) and get the card stamped.  You can exchange the stamped Passport Card for the exclusive t-shirt.

MMPR Complete Series Set:

Get this 19-DVD box set Comic-Con Exclusive version only at the Shout! Factory booth (#3929)! Featuring all 145 original episodes from Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Seasons One, Two and Three, plus the ten-episode series Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Alien Rangers. In-depth bonus content includes retrospective featurettes, brand-new interviews with members of the cast and the creative team and much more!

Graphic Novels:

Papercutz and Saban Brands have announced that the much anticipated first graphic novel in the blockbuster franchise’s 20-year history will see an early premiere at this year’s Comic-Con International in San Diego. POWER RANGERS SAMURAI #1: “Memory Short,” which will be widely available on July 17, 2012, is based on the number one kids’ action series on television. Papercutz will also be offering a show-exclusive print honoring the heroic legacy of the Power Rangers as a free gift with purchase to the first 1,000 attendees at Booth #2546.

Mega Bloks:

Come by the Mega Bloks booth (#3947) and add as many blocks as you want to the MEGA Mural and help build a giant Mega Bloks Power Rangers Red Ranger Mask. Mega Bloks is also hosting a contest for the Claw Armor Megazord Figure. For contest rules, visit the Mega Bloks Blog. Each entrant will receive a series 2 Mega Bloks Power Ranger Random figure pack.

Mega Bloks has another exclusive surprise for SDCC attendees: Mega Bloks Power Rangers Claw Armor Megazord Poster! This is a limited edition poster, only 500 printed specifically for SDCC, and 50 of them have been signed by the cast of Power Rangers Samurai. Come by the Mega Bloks booth (#3947) and get yours while supplies last. The Mega Bloks community team will be randomly handing out Golden Tickets throughout SDCC: at our booth, on the floor, at external events, and more. If you get one, you can redeem it for 1 of 50 signed posters at the Mega Bloks booth.

Red Ranger Lithograph:

Dave Rapoza (Acme Archives) has created an epic lithograph portraying the Red Mighty Morphin Power Rangers.  You can purchase this at the Acme Archives Booth (#5629) and online. Check out Dave’s other works on his Blog.

Power Morphicon Postcard:

Get the Power Morphicon SDCC exclusive postcards at the various booths at Comic Con, including Big Wow Comic Fest (#1300), October Toys (#4838), Action Figure Express (#3345), Blue Fin (3545), and Bandai (5136). Power Morphicon will be held next month in Pasadena. Register today at the Official Power Morphicon Site! This is one event that you will not want to miss.

Other Booths:

• Stop by the Mattel Booth (#3029) to check out the Power Rangers 20th anniversary collectible cars.
• Play the Power Rangers Samurai Kinect game at the Bandai Namco Games Booth (#5136). This game was first shown at E3 earlier this year. 
• Check out the new Power Rangers t-shirts at the WeLoveFine Booth ((#517).
  

And that is it! I will keep you updated tomorrow and the next few days. I won't be at Comic Con, but other people will. I will give you information as it becomes available. Follow me on Twitter: @filmfreakish to keep updated. 

Why I Don't Count Samurai As Two Separate Seasons

This is a subject that's always bugged me. As you all know, Power Rangers Samurai has been split into "two separate seasons". The first was Samurai with the first 22 episodes and the second half was titled "Super Samurai" with the remaining 24 episodes (20 episodes+Clash Of The Red Rangers+two more holiday clip shows). Now one question I always had about this is........WHY?!?!?!?!?!? Why in the world would Saban call both halfs of Samurai two different things? Why did the name change and who's responsible? Well we will find out.

#1: The Network

When Power Rangers Samurai was publicly announced back in September 2011, us super fans were expecting the usual. Debuts in February and ends in November so that the theme can change for next year. However, we were wrong about that. Press releases were saying that it would last for 2 years. Of course we thought "So their gonna have 2 40 episode seasons of Samurai? One uses Shinkenger footage and the other uses Goseiger?" I was confused and decided not to worry about it....until something else came up. About 4 months into the show's run, they took a 16 week break after airing new episodes. So far, they only aired 16. I thought, "Oh, their doing what they used to do and they'll wrap up the show in November with the final 25 episodes." Boy was I wrong. We found out that 2011 was ONLY gonna show 24 episodes and the concluding episodes were gonna air in 2012. MANY fans (including myself) were outraged. Why did this happen? How can this be? Well, its because of Nickelodeon. Each one of Nickelodeon's shows has a "20-25 episode per year" rule. That means every show that airs on there like iCarly MUST have at least 20-25 episodes per season since that's what their calendar looks like. That makes sense for iCarly since its a Nickelodeon production, but Power Rangers ISN'T. Nickelodeon shouldn't have gotten in the way of how Power Rangers does their episodes. They're gonna do the same thing with MegaForce too sadly.

#2: "Two Separate Seasons"

Both halfs of Samurai are titled as two separate seasons. The first half is "Samurai" and the second half is "Super Samurai". This bugs me to no end. Just because your 2nd half airs the next year, DOESN'T MEAN ITS A DIFFERENT SEASON.......at least in Power Rangers case. For me, a complete Power Rangers season is 40 or more episodes long. But 20 episodes for a season????? WHY? The reason why the second half was called "Super Samurai" because the Super Mode for the Rangers was introduced..........WHY???!!!????!!!??!?!?!?!?! It's the same season, same characters, same story and same everything. WHY CHANGE THE NAME. Take for example Lost Galaxy. When they got the Lights Of Orion, the season title didn't change to Lost Deserted Orion Galaxy, it was still called Lost Galaxy. Just because they get new powers doesn't mean its a separate season. I still subtitle BOTH halfs Samurai and that's the way its gonna be with MegaForce also. 

#3: Season #s

Now before you get into a hissy fit on why I have a picture on MMPR2010, let me explain. When it aired back in 2010, it was dubbed as the 18th Season. Of course, I didn't agree with this since all it was was a horrible comic booked reversion and a new logo. However, I thought about something. Samurai was dubbed as Season 18 and Super Samurai was dubbed as Season 19. I didn't agree with this since 20-25 episodes don't make a whole season in Power Rangers' books. So I decided to count MMPR2010 as Season 18 and both halfs of Samurai as one whole season to make it Season 19. Once MegaForce debuts, both halfs of that will be dubbed one whole season as Season 20 and the Gokaiger adaptation will be Season 21. It makes more sense if you think about. I still refuse to watch MMPR2010 though. 

In conclusion, Samurai is one whole season in my opinion. Here's how it works for me:

Mighty Morphin 1

Mighty Morphin 2

Mighty Morphin 3

Zeo 4

Turbo 5 

In Space 6 

Lost Galaxy 7 

Lightspeed Rescue 8

Time Force 9

Wild Force 10

Ninja Storm 11

Dino Thunder 12

SPD 13

Mystic Force 14 

Operation Overdrive 15 

Jungle Fury 16

RPM 17

Mighty Morphin (Reversion) 18

Samurai 19 

MegaForce 20

That's the way its gonna be.

A Bit More Info On MegaForce

According to a summary of a comic reader on Barns And Noble's website, we have a bit more detail on Power Rangers MegaForce's premise for the season. It says:

"A comic reader based on the new Power Rangers season--which also happens to be the 20th anniversary of PR!

For centuries, groups of brave warriors known as Power Rangers have been called upon to protect our world from evil. Now, the future of humankind rests in the hands of a few ordinary teens with one extraordinary destiny.

The 20th Season of Power Rangers will include flashbacks, weapons, and characters from previous seasons, and promises to be the most exciting season yet!"

Now, this sounds like a Gokaiger adaption, but in truth it is Goseiger. It will be original and it seems pretty cool. Stay tuned for more updates.

Info found thanks to FuryDiamond of RangerCrew.

Saban Brands and The CW Partner Up For Saturday Mornings

We already know about this, but its worth posting. Saban Brands on their official website released their press release on their partnership with the CW for Saturday Mornings. As you all might already know, Saban Brands under the name "Kidsco Media Ventures LLC" acquired all the rights to 4Kids assets, except for Yu-Gi-Oh! which went to Konami. The press release doesn't reveal much in the line of shows, but we do know that Power Rangers will comeback to broadcast TV and Yu-Gi-Oh! will stick around since The CW has rights to air them until 2016. 

To see for yourself, read the press release from their official website. Download it here.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Saban Brands Partners with The CW to Launch Five-Hour Kids Television Block

National broadcast and online footprint connects and entertains kids with action/adventure and comedy programming

Los Angeles (July 2, 2012) – Kidsco Media Ventures LLC, an affiliate of Saban Brands, will supply programming for The CW Network’s five-hour, Saturday morning kids television block, allowing the company to create a revitalized and branded block with powerful programming and promotion. The block will be anchored by key franchises such as Power Rangers and Yu-Gi-Oh!, in addition to other marquee, soon-to-be- announced action/adventure and comedy shows. The company plans to re-brand the daypart, which will air on The CW Saturday mornings from 7 a.m. -12 p.m. starting this fall.

“Saban Brands is back in the kids’ television business in a BIG way!” said Elie Dekel, President, Saban Brands. “The broadcasting block represents a unique opportunity for us to be the premier destination for action/adventure and comedy on Saturday mornings, while delivering what kids want online and on mobile 24/7/365.”

The new block will provide the company’s programming, brands, and marketing initiatives with access to 110 million households – a truly national audience, reaching 10 million more homes than anything delivered through cable. Furthermore, with the broadcast entity comes a passionate and dedicated online audience of kids, thereby providing an additional platform on which to connect with fans and viewers. A robust new website will also be launching, providing exciting content and activities that will keep kids engaged 24/7/365.

“We are very excited to partner with Haim Saban and Saban Brands, an individual and a company with a celebrated history of creating and distributing world-class children’s programming,” said John Maatta, Chief Operating Officer, The CW. 


“The association with Saban and the programming and marketing they will bring to us will be a great asset for The CW and its affiliates on Saturday mornings.”

This new partnership with The CW continues Saban Brands’ dramatic growth since reacquiring the Power Rangers property in 2010. About to celebrate its 20th season, Power Rangers is the brainchild of Haim Saban.