Well, the ninja have ran wild all year. Now, their time (finally) is over and before the Zyuohger take the stage, let’s take a look back and give these Ninnincompoops what for!
Shuriken Sentai Ninninger tells the story of the Igasaki cousins (also this American Ninja Bro) and their quests to beat each other out for the title of Last Ninja. And I guess take out this Kibaoni Gengetsu dude or whatever.
I have a very kinda slightly like/kinda mostly hate story with this season. Back before it aired, I was so completely hype for this show, and honestly, how could I not be? It boasted a lot of tropes that I love in a good Sentai: Relatives/Siblings, Ninjas, and Random ‘Americans’! Often, even now, I find myself really wanting to like this season, but there was so much that made that freakin hard. How about a list to help us out?
Story
The base premise of the story is decent enough, yokai want to take over the world, ninjas obviously oppose them. Also, we explore bonds among the cousins with Uncledad, Grandad, and then with newcomer Kinji.
Characters
Now, here’s where we get hamfisty! When boiled down to their essences, the Igasaki family are all good starts, however, when character development isn’t allowed to happen, too much focus given to a central character who never really seems to grow, it just all becomes too stale too quickly.
Let’s talk about each of our main characters-
Takaharu
Our fired up AkaNinger. Headstrong and powerful, he just charges headfirst into any situation and doesn’t sweat the consequences. The latest in a string of such Reds, Takaharu takes it to the max and frankly, just leaves us wanting. Obviously, the Red is the Main Character in a Sentai, so his story is always at the forefront. And while a super brash, selfish Takaharu makes sense in the beginning of a series, having him stay so much the same, especially after taking time having him learn Important Lessons then having them go in one ear and out the other is just a waste of valuable time for everyone.
Yakumo
Our too easy AoNinger. An Anglophile with a chip on his shoulder, Yakumo, or Cloud Cloud, is that shitty little brother we all hate. As a student magician with a superiority complex, he rarely resists the chance to try to prove that magic is clearly better than ninjutsu will ever be. Thankfully, he comes to realize that maybe this ninja stuff is cool I guess and decides to mix something he loves with something he’s good at and happens to run in the family. This kinda chills him out, but he is still a douche. Though, by the end, even though he basically wants to beat Takaharu at everything, Cloud Cloud realizes that maybe playing on the team is a better idea than just sucking all by yourself.
Kasumi
Our scientific MomoNinger. Smart and blunt speaking, Kasumi is basically a babysitter to her cousins. Bailing Takaharu out of hairy battles and knocking Cloud Cloud down a peg or two come pretty naturally to her. She desires to combine ninjitsu with her love of science. Outside of this, we know not much else about her.
Nagi
Our supporting KiNinger. Yeah, supporting. Like, does he really have a bigger role than that? Don’t get me wrong, I think Nagi is adorable, but underdeveloped and underused. A high schooler, who likes to get certifications just to look good on his resume, Nagi is at least a nice, shy character, who had the misfortune of having to try to stand out when next to Takaharu and Cloud Cloud, especially in his own episodes, when the focus shifts away from him onto those two so fast it makes your head spin.
Fuuka
Our bubbly ShiroNinger. I’m not going to lie here, anyone who has ever heard anything I’ve ever said about Kakuranger knows how much I love Tsuruhime. And as another White Ninja, I had probably the highest of expectations for Fuuka. This was a folly on my part, because Fuuka didn’t really end up that much like Tsuruhime, did she? They do share some similarities, both being young and both having to put up with Red-iculous Red Ninja. This being said, I do like Fuuka. She’s energetic and while she doesn’t mince words when her brother and father are acting like fools, she still cares about them very much even if she’s not so great at saying it.
Kinji
Our Party Night StarNinger. Straight out the gate, Kinji is my favorite out of all of the Ninninger. Not just because he’s a ‘gold’ ranger, but because out of every other Ninninger, he got the most character development. Kinji, minus his bombastic ways, grew as a person from his experiences in the series. He able to overcome feelings of inadequacy from not being allowed to study under Granddad, and eventually wins to old coot over to become a pupil. It also doesn’t hurt that he has a lot in common with Umemori Genta, one of my favorite Golds.
Even Granddad and Uncledad suffer from Too Little, Too Late Development. I do think Uncledad came out pretty good in the end though. I really was touched by his story, probably the most of any in the series.
Villains
With the exceptions of Kyuuemon and Ariake, I find myself barely remembering anyone in Kibaoni’s army? I feel like I need to thank the writers here for giving that little redemption arc to Kyuuemon. For as much as they are cliché, I enjoyed the heckle out of it. That probably lends itself to my attachment to Uncledad, but whatever, I got misty-eyed. Sue me.
Cameos
Cameo once, yay for all of us. Cameo twice, oh okay cool. Cameo three times, what the hell are you doing do you have nothing else going on with your life? Cameo four times, wow even the show doesn’t like the show I can’t even. I’m a sucker for a good cameo as much as the next person, but it was just like how many more guest spots were they going to shoehorn into this show? Obviously, appearances by Kakurangers and Hurricangers were reasonable and much wanted, even the crossover with Kamen Rider Drive wasn’t unusual, it was throwing in Jiraiya in from left field that had everyone reeling. I guess having him there was good fanservice for older people, but I seriously doubt their intended target range knew or gave two craps about that dude. But, that’s none of my business, I guess.
Final Thoughts
I wanted to have more heated opinions of Ninninger, but frankly, I barely remember most of this series and it’s made me so tired. Yes, that’s exactly how I feel about Ninninger. It wears me out. I just wish I could have been able to enjoy this show as much as I hoped I would. I’m just so upset at all of the wasted potential of characters, of plots, just man, this is basically the tv version of stepping on a Lego. Like, you are in agony, but you’re not going to stop buying Lego, you just guess you’ll have to learn how to tread lighter.
I’ve been Amber. Check me out on Twitter/Insta/Tumblr @pan2dapan