Following the release of “Cosmic Fury” and “Once and Always,” Hasbro announced they would halt the production of movies, television seasons and toys associated with the “Power Rangers” franchise until 2025.
I cannot wait for the hiatus to end, but I also pray that once it does, Hasbro makes better decisions. Nobody likes hearing that their favorite show is put on pause. Anime fans are regularly frustrated by years of waiting for new seasons or arcs to be released. The great thing about “Power Rangers” was its consistency. It released new material yearly, or weekly when it was in-season, so waiting was never terrible. I sure do not appreciate having to wait another year, possibly a year-and-a-half, to discover how the legacy continues.
The Hasbro Era of “Power Rangers” has been promising but overall underwhelming for the Ranger Nation. With their adopted seasons either dropping or plateauing in quality, the different directions for the franchise to take once the hiatus ends have been heavily debated in an online fury.
Because of Hasbro’s recent releases, many fans have demanded that they sell the franchise to another production studio. The company’s executives and creative teams have released no specific intentions or plans for the franchise once the hiatus ends, which has led us fans to wonder if they have the same hope or enthusiasm for the franchise as they once did.
Regardless of Hasbro’s attitude, they still have to decide where they hope to direct the series once they resume production. Based on their handling of “Cosmic Fury” and the expressed interest in bringing the franchise into animation, there are three avenues available: rebuilding the franchise from scratch, continuing to adapt “Super Sentai” seasons or remaking and revisiting previous seasons.
A trademark of “Power Rangers” is the show’s repeated use of borrowed footage from its inspiring “Super Sentai” season. This was partially done to cut time and costs for production. The process of creating a “Power Rangers” season was split between the studio shooting American-original footage of its cast and then splicing it with whatever sentai footage they were able to acquire. Hasbro tested the waters and moved away from tradition when they chose to only adapt the Zords (giant assault vehicles piloted by the rangers) from “Uchu Sentai Kyuranger” rather than the full team and storyline for “Cosmic Fury.”
One of the few seasons of “Power Rangers” to have only a single aspect of its inspiring sentai adapted, “Cosmic Fury” utilized minimal Zord and Megazord footage. Compared to previous seasons, which were either split 50-50 or 61-39 between sentai and original footage, the most recent season’s use of sentai footage covers barely 10 percent of its entirety.
If Hasbro were to continue to adapt sentai seasons, they could carry this method and create a new tradition of adapting as little from a “Super Sentai” season (costumes, Zords, premise) as possible and producing the rest of the season themselves.
A similar method was attempted during the “Disney Era” when “RPM,” which is set in a dystopian future where the rangers battle a self-aware computer virus, adapted the “Go-Onger” suits and Zords but none of its original premise, which follows a group of racing enthusiasts fighting alongside living machines from a parallel dimension.
Hasbro’s plans for a reboot were made clear when they released a reboot film in 2017, which saw the storyline from the original “Mighty Morphin” season adapted to the present day. The movie was meant to kickstart a series of six; however, Hasbro’s plans were discouraged by the film’s performance at the box office. The plans for a reboot film series were shelved, but Hasbro maintained its plan to revamp the franchise.
If Hasbro wanted to stay true to its intentions from 2017, it could revisit any of the previous seasons and adapt the story to the modern day. “Mighty Morphin” is the season that started it all, but the tradition of “Power Rangers” introducing a new team every year or two means a reboot could start from any season from any era. If the aspect of connected lore and history is handled correctly, a reboot series could make way for new storylines and experiences for fans and their beloved characters.
Any of these possible futures would satisfy at least a fraction of the fanbase created over the last 30 years. My personal preference would be for Hasbro to vie for option three and reboot the franchise with seasons that take no inspiration or attributes from previous “Power Rangers” or “Super Sentai” seasons.
As awesome as it would be for my favorite characters to return, the show is not immune to meaningless cameos and wasted reunions. I love crossovers as much as any fan, but some of them failed to deliver the hype they promised and almost hurt the characters more than anything else.
The premise of a reboot free of any historical connection to previous lore means an expansive canvas for new and unseen stories and characters. This possible venture would be the most freeing for writers and production because they would not be limited by having to work around any previous conceptions or adapted footage from “Super Sentai.”
It might upset some seasoned fans, but Hasbro has already proven that adhering to the old rules of the show is not their strong suit. If Hasbro wants its era of the franchise to succeed, their best bet is to reboot from scratch, please however many of the older fans they can, appeal to a new audience and create a new legacy of power.
