Thursday, August 28, 2014

Happy 21st Birthday Power Rangers!

ALL IMAGES BELOW ARE LINKED TO THEIR SOURCES 
AND BELONG TO SABAN BRANDS LLC



On August 28th, 1993, the world was introduced to what would become the longest running live action super-hero show in the world, Power Rangers.

Today marks the 21st Anniversary of when a space witch and her army of goons was released from their dumpster after 10'000 years and was ready to conquer earth. A floating head in a tube asked his assistant to "recruit a team of teenagers with attitude". And that little scene, led to this:


From then on, it's been success year after year after year. From very successful toy sales to retail items to live shows to movies to charities to internet contribution and even to conventions, Power Rangers has (and still is) a big hit through out the world. The franchise has seen no sign of dying completely, escaping cancellation 4 times thanks to toy sales, high ratings and/or corporate buyouts. 

I wasn't even born when Power Rangers premiered. I was born about a year later, the day when Tommy was coming down as the White Ranger. 

I got into the PR ring when I was 6 years old when Lightspeed Rescue was on. I explain how I got into it in My History With Power Rangers post. I then fell out of the franchise after Dino Thunder. Saw bits and pieces of SPD and Mystic Force and then fell through completely.

Around late 2008/early 2009, I got into it again, just as a casual look back at it. Didn't even touch the Disney material at all. Then Saban Brands announced they bought the rights back from Disney and then I decided to become a fan full swing starting with Samurai. While not the best Power Rangers season out there, it introduced me to the online fandom by listening to people's comments about what they liked and didn't like about certain things. This also encouraged me to join online forums such as RangerBoard and RangerCrew, Subscribe to YouTube channels such as MMPRtoysRanger Review, and DatabaseRanger, as well as beginning my own, and it encouraged me to begin my own blog following in the footsteps of Henshin Grid and Morphin Legacy among others. It also got me into toy collecting which is a mix of both American and Japanese items. 

Today, Power Rangers is stronger then ever. With complete season DVD releases, streaming on Netflix, Nintendo games, impressive toys by Bandai, social media accounts on YouTube, Facebook and Twitter and a recently announced student charity foundation, the brand has gone to new heights.

What can we expect in the future though? We have a highly anticipated "Legendary Battle" in November which features every single Power Ranger coming together (11 past Rangers reprising their roles) to fight an army of foot soldiers, a brand new season in 2015 called "Power Rangers Dino Charge" which features the return of former writer Judd Lynn as Executive Producer and a brand new MMPR Reboot Movie launching on July 22, 2016. And of course, plenty of other unknown surprises.

Special Thanks to Haim Saban, Saban Entertainment, Disney, Saban Brands, FOX, Nickelodeon, Bandai, Lionsgate, Shout! Factory and of course, the fans for the success that has spawned for the past 2 decades. Every little thing you do, whether it's a feature film, a toy review or putting the Red Ranger on a bath towel, it pulls in a new fan every time. And the fan base will continue to grow and grow. 

Here's to 21 Years of Success!

GO GO POWER RANGERS!

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