“There is a war coming, and the Silver Guardians can only do so much.” ~ General E.A. Collins
I’m going to start this article with a brief recap of my previous rant: Saban is letting us down on the 20th anniversary season of Power Rangers because they like money and ratings more than actual, progressive content. We shouldn’t give up hope that 90% of the former Power Rangers are not returning in some way, but rather consider them allies as they are re-injected into Saban’s filming process. They must be considered able to stand up for the fans when not even the Power Force can (who said that?).
However, this article is about the most powerful allies of the fandom: creative fans. I’ve given an overview on independent tokusatsu before and I constantly plead with those of us within the tokusatsu community to support them and help them and, by God, create their own if they have enough ideas to meld together. There are a little more than a handful of these shows out there, and all of them are worth finding, specifically catered those of you who read these kinds of articles about the little specificities of the genre. These shows (Battle Hero Absolute, Gun Caliber, Exo Hero Exceed, France Five, the MMPR fan series, Supernova Cyber Knights, Task Force Operator) are made by fans just like you and me who decided to take their vision of the genre to the next level when their shows did not.
That brings us to the MMPR fan project. This is possibly the most ambitious independent tokusatsu project being worked on to date; recently, they held a fundraiser on kickstarter.com to raise money for the last few things required to get started on creating actual footage. The group asked for $18,500, which is more money than has been known to be spent on any independent tokusatsu project ever made, possibly besides France Five and Aikoku Sentai Dai-Nippon. Here are the statistics: they were fully funded in 9 days, and currently, nearly 3 weeks later, they are sitting on $28,000 of donated money from 283 funders. And they still have a month left. This is clearly a big deal.
Clearly, people believe in this project. They’ve proven to be properly catering to what fans know and love about the franchise, and the conceptual materials are extremely rewarding to those of us who have always wanted a dark, unhomely, maturity-supercharged version of Power Rangers. Heck, they haven’t even released any legitimate content yet! The people at CodeBreaker Productions have earned $28,000 in the time it takes to win a war in Canada with nothing but around 4 minutes of actual footage, concept art of suits and morphers, and direct contact with fans and media. In contrast, Jay Huerto of Jabronie Pictures asked for $4,000 on Kickstarter to finish season one of Battle Hero Absolute with 2 years and 10 episodes of the show to his name, not to mention all of the non-Battle Hero work he’s poured over for the last 10 years. He made it, and in fact made $5,000 by the end of it, but just barely.
I suppose we should go back and learn a little bit more about MMPR. Initially, I thought it was a hardcore revamp of the original series with some more sensible ideas and concepts used in place of things like the abandoned warehouse district. This is not so. Let’s read through the official synopsis, as found on their facebook page (with minor grammatical editing):
“The Power Rangers have vanished. Lord Zedd, their greatest enemy, has been defeated. The world is saved. Tommy Oliver, no longer the White Ranger, is in exile; running…hiding…waiting…for evil to find him again.
The world has moved on. Now, 20 years later, Lord Zedd has returned – stronger, faster and nastier. Slowly regaining his powers and at the helm of a new army, he is looking for revenge against Tommy.
Haunted by his past and having given up on fighting for the world, Tommy is tracked down by Zedd and his minions. But with the help of a mysterious woman, they discover that Zedd is looking for more than revenge…much more.
Now, to stop the forces of evil, Tommy and this mysterious woman seek help in stopping Zedd : an underground street fighter looking to do battle with anyone and everyone, twin sisters as different as night and day….and a police officer who’s no stranger to villains.
Together, Tommy and his new team are all that stands between Zedd and the end of the world. Will they triumph, or will Zedd finally destroy his greatest threat once and for all?
Reformed, repowered, the POWER RANGERS are back.”
The MMPR team is undoubtedly looking to add to the original continuity with some grown-up, Dark Knight-esque flair that is sure to blow some socks off if we offer them the chance. Old school Ranger lore is a precious timeline that must be treated carefully; some fans see the new approach with the use of the original story as a recipe for disaster that will lead to no one being happy. Some of the more major issues can also be seen with the new suit and morpher design, which has received intense feedback from more traditional fans that do not wish for a change. There has been an equal amount of hate and love for the content that has been released by the MMPR team, and it has no signs of falling anywhere inbetween. I’m here to tell you why you should be excited and what the MMPR project holds for the Power Rangers fandom.
First, let’s review why people are excited in the firstplace with such little content to their names. In the philosophical realm of things, we, as humans, are drawn to tales of heroes early on in our lives, and always have been as long as we have been civilized and domesticated. From the stories told of sailors before Jesus’ birth about mighty catches and devastating battles to the tales that hunters brought back of slain bears and tigers, to the accounts of warriors at Agincourt and Acre and the campaigns of Achilles at Troy and David at the forest of Ephraim, we have listened and retold in our own ways. Why have we done this? Why does the story not stop at the telling to the individual, to the ‘you’? It’s interesting, you had your experience whilst listening, what is left? Some would say to encourage others and to spread the word of a mighty deed or the return of fertility and goodness to the land, to ensure the legend does not die. This can be a universal truth and primary reasoning behind the thousands of years of retelling of countless stories and deeds and whatnots that entertain and astound us.
I’m not making an argument against the above reason, as it’s probably more true than the next reason I’m going to use. I believe that we, as humans, recognize subconsciously that the memory of something, whether it be a heroic tale or a deceased family member or a feeling brought on by an old toy, allows the thing that can be recognized as gone or in the past to live on. So long as we remember and honor the ideas of the heroes that are no longer with us, their legacy will ensure that the characters and the stories told to us will never die. Specifically, the Power Rangers legacy itself is cemented within the fandom that I write these articles for and in the biennial Power Morphicon, which will be held for the fourth time in August 2014. Even as the Power Rangers show continues on through the years, evolving past Jason Scott and Tommy Oliver and Trakeena and Ms. Fairweather-Rawlings and Eric Myers and even Zordon, we need some confirmation that the story does not end and feel entitled to homage or a general continuation that allows the legacy to live on.
With that out of the way, we have to realize that the creative team at CodeBreaker Productions is made up of fans of the original series that just like us. These are men and women that grew up with the show that are attempting to revisit the concepts of the show that they loved so much in a relatively unvisited perspective of being a grown-up. I say ‘relatively’ to honor the predecessors of Battle Hero, France Five, Gun Caliber, and the other indie toku groups that have made a name for themselves, all inspired by the Power Rangers and Sentai (and heavier concepts from the Kamen Rider franchise) in an independent setting. However, the Power Rangers themselves have never been subjected to the same revisionist treatment by independent artists with a vision of an upgraded tokusatsu hero, and as long as it remains a children’s market, Power Rangers will never be seen in such a light. As I said earlier, the creative fans remain the greatest hope for the aging fans, and once the Megaforce generation grows up, they will have this MMPR project to fall back on for further entertainment and, hopefully, to provide inspiration for further independent ventures.
The primary function that we should all be excited for, however, comes back to the fact that the original story lives on in the primary storytelling. The effects of what happened in the original story is going to be the world that this new story occurs in. No more random location changes to Turtle Cove or Mariner Bay or any other city that’s totally not Los Angeles and societies that are newly accepting their own local team of Power Rangers on their very streets and in their own abandoned warehouse districts. Ladies and gentlemen, MMPR is set in an Angel Grove where the Power Rangers have faded into history after claiming victory; it can be implied that this is an Angel Grove where not only the Mighty Morphin’ team is in the books, but the dozens of other Rangers all have a place in this world, as suggested by the presence of Silver Guardian commander E.A. Collins. If we are to believe that all the stories are being thrown into a continuity blender and poured over the new concepts from the people at CodeBreaker, this should be more fan service than has been offered in years.
To retain my original statement on the psychology of how heroes live on, this will undoubtedly serve to confirm that our heroes have not completely faded away and are still active, alive, and affected by the things going on within the new continuity. The characters are already established as living, breathing people that grow and change to those of us who grew up with the show, and this is an opportunity that all of us should accept and encourage. If you had to choose, would you prefer a Super Megaforce episode where Tommy’s son appears in the White MMPR suit, or see a new MMPR story arc where Tommy appears to wear an upgraded White MMPR suit? Both are feasible continuity progressions, but most would say that the indirect interaction is less satisfying than the direct interaction with the character.
My next point, which is a key component to my argument that MMPR is a big deal, is the fact that Jessica Rey, who played Alyssa Enrile (Wild Force White), said via twitter she’d be willing to show up in the MMPR project. In fact, the MMPR project has received blessings from Jason Faunt (Time Force Red) and even hired Ron Wasserman to score the footage, and more importantly, got Robert Axelrod (Lord Zedd) and David Fielding (Zordon) to reprise their roles.
Everyone who has hate against this project so far cannot have any possible grounds to doubt the project. Look at the facts: total strangers gave them $28,000. The most revered PR mentor and villain are coming back voiced by the original actors. Other Power Rangers alumni support it and are willing to perform in it. Why are people so vocally against the project thus far? Let’s collect the main issues, gathered from what I’ve observed in comments and conversation, and lain out here for review:
The General Surge Of Originality
The inclusion of several original characters that the fans are not familiar with has left many fans with a bad taste in their mouth. From detectives that are not Lt. Stone to a fresh new team of Rangers that don’t include any MMPR cast members (so far) to the mystery and discomfort surrounding the new story, many fans are just that: uncomfortable. It’s a scary new venture into a story that many fans hold sacred, and I believe many don’t like the new concepts and characters because, subconsciously, we are afraid it will not be up to snuff with our vision of what a ’20 years later’ should look like. This is the most understandable argument, and it is the base for most of the issues fans have; though we may not be courageous enough to admit it, none of us want to see Tommy portrayed wrongly by a non-Jason David Frank actor, or put into a situation we don’t feel he should be involved with. The natural flow and progression of the story and the characters is what we will be looking at when the Rangers aren’t in the suits, and to deny and pervert the characters we’ve loved for so many years is the ultimate sin against the fandom, whether in an official or unofficial capacity.
The New Morpher
About 50% of fans cannot stand the fact that there is a new morpher design and a new suit design. Apparently, the concept art is so maddeningly different from the retro designs that some want nothing to do with MMPR from here on out. The morpher itself seems to be a combination of the ‘greave’ section of the classic MMPR glove that goes around the wrist and forearm, made to look very technological and advanced, combined with the Ranger’s respective power coin. Not much has been found wrong with the suits themselves, but the morpher, going against the classic Dino Buckler-knockoff, has effectively left many fans to expect that other basic elements to the MMPR universe will also be scrapped without meaning. Those guys at CodeBreaker Productions are surely evil assholes!
The Gender Benders
The fact that the new Blue Ranger has been written and cast as a female has made several fans upset. It goes against the foundation we have established in the original MMPR team. This also means there will be more females than males on the core team, which is not being received well by several male fans. It is disappointing that the fandom, in this day and age, cannot accept such a notion without making their discourse public. As above, this is a matter of the old ideas we first loved clashing with the new ideas that must, in some respect, stand alone; if you are one of those guys who can’t handle a female blue MMPR Ranger, please remember that the character herself will be a key member of the storyline and an indirect team leader that will have a BIG part to play in the revisit of the story. Give her a chance and you will see that her place and the necessity of her place as Blue is not a random choice, but most likely pertinent to a bigger story that will dazzle us all.
Acting
There is another group that has panned the acting in the recently-released mini-episode, where General Collins of the Silver Guardians discusses the need for progress in the search for Zordon with Dr. Clark Maxwell of the mysterious PROJECT_RANGER. Although reception has been generally favorable, many found the acting itself to be just a shade under what has been promised; according to a more fevered reviewer, the moment when General Collins knocks the clipboard from Dr. Maxwell’s hands appears unnatural and doesn’t completely flow within the context of the scene leading up to the act. There are also those who believe that certain lines of dialogue are made too intense to the point of cheese and, in some respects, exploding within a scene that does not demand such delivery. Excluding a minor audio flaw that left some lines nearly unhearable and the strange setting of the scene, no other issues have been brought up.
This is the worst of the project that I can currently find, and all of it is easily fixable with either a few more rehearsal notes or a kick in the pants. I’ve tried to flesh these issues out as much as I can and I have to say that I am still highly optimistic about the MMPR project, and I still believe the Power Rangers fandom should be, too. Let’s review my final big point, which everyone should really pay attention to and let fester on your minds:
The people at MMPR are literally in direct contact with fans, as I mentioned before. They respond to just about everyone who contacts them on facebook, twitter, and I’d assume email. They are LISTENING to us, and as a result of our involvement, the planned White Ranger was changed back to a Green Ranger, as confirmed on Morphicon4Ever’s interview with the director and producer. They have made a shit-load of money with practically nothing. Former Power Rangers actors know about it and want to act in it. If we continue to support MMPR and get the word out, what’s to stop the greatest aspirations for it to come true?
Let me preface by saying that there is support coming to this project from all over the world from Power Rangers fans and non-fans alike. We all had a moment of truth at some point in the show’s run to either let it go or continue watching and claim fan status; many who dropped out early became fully average members of society that never came back to the franchise they once loved. MMPR is piquing the interest of those forgotten audience members who are now interested in seeing a long-gone storyline continue within the context of their adult perspective; the ability to be taken seriously is a major factor and will certainly be a challenge leading up through its release. When MMPR is released and begins getting traction both within the PR fandom and the independent film community, it will have more options and opportunities available to them. If enough people support the releases on YouTube and they happen to get more popular, viral even, what WILL the options be for the guys at CodeBreaker?
Should their ego stay tamed and the interest remains steady, we can easily see a Power Rangers reunion that was once implied by Saban. What is stopping Jessica Rey from flying to New York for a day to film a quick scene of an aging Bulkmeier picking up his nephew from school? Why shouldn’t Jason Faunt and/or Daniel Southworth return as Silver Guardian advisors? The possibilities are much more plausible with this new production directly linked to the Power Rangers continuity on the same continent as most of the actors that we wish to see return. What is really stopping Jason David Frank from reprising his role as Tommy? Why shouldn’t Walter Jones and David Yost play Zack and Billy in a production run by fans that cherish their place in the story? How likely can it be, if the MMPR project gains enough momentum, to see a full-fledged Saban-era team-up with the new team of Indie Rangers in a project run by Saban-era fans, made for Saban-era fans?
The idea is entirely plausible. With the legions of cosplayers wearing show-correct uniforms and props, often made by other fans, it’s entirely a possibility to pull practically any former Ranger, actor and uniform and props alike, right out of thin air with a single request via facebook. Maybe some polls are in order: which PR alumni would you want to see, with or without morpher, in the MMPR indie project? Either way, to come back to the quote I used, I can see a major rift coming within the PR fandom over the future of this project, and us writers can only do so much to help advise and provide opinion on such matters. I’ve given you everything I know on it; it’s now up to you.
- I literally have nothing else to give. I’ll send you my shoes if that’s what it takes to support MMPR.
We have an exclusive interview with the crew of MMPR coming up soon, and in early July, I will be visiting New York City to hang out with them and learn more about it all, and probably have some other exclusive pre-production updates for MorphinLegacy.com around that time.
Until next time, be courageous and press on regardless.
QC by thebubbledragon
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