is a Japanese ''
tokusatsu
is a Japanese term for live-action films or television programs that make heavy use of practical special effects. Credited to special effects director Eiji Tsuburaya, ''tokusatsu'' mainly refers to science fiction film, science fiction, War fi ...
'' television series and the sixteenth installment in the long-running ''
Super Sentai
The is a Japanese superhero team media franchise consisting of television series and films produced by Toei Company and Bandai, and aired by TV Asahi. The shows are of the '' tokusatsu'' genre, featuring live action characters and colorfu ...
''
metaseries
A media franchise, also known as a multimedia franchise, is a collection of related media in which several derivative works have been produced from an original creative work of fiction, such as a film, a work of literature, a television program, o ...
of
superhero
A superhero or superheroine is a fictional character who typically possesses ''superpowers'' or abilities beyond those of ordinary people, is frequently costumed concealing their identity, and fits the role of the hero, typically using their ...
programs. Produced by
Toei, it aired on
TV Asahi
JOEX-DTV (channel 5), branded as , and better known as , is a Japanese television station serving the Kanto region as the flagship station of the All-Nippon News Network. It is owned-and-operated by the a subsidiary of , itself controlled by ...
from February 21, 1992 to February 12, 1993, with a total of 50 episodes replacing ''
Chōjin Sentai Jetman
is a Japanese tokusatsu television series produced by Toei Company. It is the fifteenth entry of the ''Super Sentai'' metaseries, following the previous series '' Chikyu Sentai Fiveman''. The series aired on TV Asahi on February 15, 1991, to Febr ...
'' and was replaced by ''
Gosei Sentai Dairanger''. It was the first Sentai series to have a regular Sixth Ranger, and the first to introduce the concept of sentient, living mecha, a theme that has been used frequently in the franchise ever since. It was also the first Sentai series to be adapted into an installment of the American ''
Power Rangers
''Power Rangers'' is an American media franchise created by Haim Saban, Shuki Levy and Shotaro Ishinomori built around a live-action superhero television series, based on the Japanese tokusatsu franchise ''Super Sentai''. It is currently ow ...
'' series. Footage from all 50 episodes was extensively used for the first season of ''
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers
''Mighty Power Rangers'' (''MMPR'') is an American superhero television series that premiered on August 28, 1993, on the Fox Kids programming block. It is the first entry of the ''Power Rangers'' franchise, and became a 1990s popular culture, ...
''. The core ''Zyuranger'' costumes were used in all three seasons of ''Mighty Morphin Power Rangers'' and were used as the original ''Power Rangers'' costumes while the Dragon Ranger costume was adapted into the Green Ranger's costume and was used throughout Season 1 and in early Season 2. The title Toei gives this series for international distribution is ''Galaxy Rangers''.
Cast members from the series reprised their roles for the 2014 film, ''
Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger vs. Go-Busters: The Great Dinosaur Battle! Farewell Our Eternal Friends''.
At the 2014
San Diego Comic-Con
San Diego Comic-Con is a comic book convention and multi-genre entertainment event held annually in San Diego, California, at the San Diego Convention Center. Founded in 1970, originally showcasing primarily comic books and science fiction/fant ...
,
Shout! Factory
Shout! Factory, LLC, doing business as Shout! Studios (formerly doing business as Shout! Factory, its current legal name), is an American home video and music distributor founded in 2002 as Retropolis Entertainment. Its video releases, issued i ...
announced that they would be releasing the entire ''Zyuranger'' series with English subtitles on DVD in North America. On February 17, 2015, ''Super Sentai Zyuranger: The Complete Series'' was released on DVD in North America. This is the first Super Sentai series to be released in North America. In addition on January 23, 2016, Shout Factory streamed the series on their website.
Plot
Five young warriors from an ancient civilization of are awakened during the present day after 170 million years of suspended animation when their sworn enemy, Bandora the Witch, is inadvertently released from her magical container on Planet Nemesis by two astronauts. The five warriors, the Zyurangers, must summon the power of mechanical-looking deities known as Guardian Beasts, each modeled after a different prehistoric beast, in order to protect mankind from Bandora's evil forces. A sixth warrior, Burai the Dragon Ranger, later becomes involved with the conflict between the Zyurangers and Bandora's forces.
Cast
*:
*: , played as
*:
*:
*:
*:
**Burai (young):
*:
*:
*:
*:
*:
*:
*Satoshi:
*Satoshi's friends: , ,
*Narrator:
Voice actors
*:
*:
*:
*:
*, Dokiita Golems, Dora Cockatrice, Dora Cockatrice 2, Dora Silkis:
* (30, 31 & 47-50):
*, , :
*, Dora Narcissus:
*Dora Franke, Zombie Franke, Satan Franke:
*Dora Goldhorn:
Episodes
Songs
;Opening theme
*
**Lyrics: Gōji Tsuno & Reo Rinozuka
**Composition: Gōji Tsuno
**Arrangement:
Kenji Yamamoto
**Artist: Kenta Satō
;Ending theme
*
**Lyrics & Composition: Gōji Tsuno
**Arrangement: Kenji Yamamoto
**Artist:
**; Mecha themes
*** "Daizyuzin No Uta" (大獣神のうた "Daizyuzin's Song")
**** Artist: Ju-project
*** "Dragon Caesar No Uta" (ドラゴンシーザーのうた ''Doragon Shīzā no uta'', "Dragon Caesar's Song")
**** Artist: Funky Y.K.
**; Insert themes
*** "Kibou No Tsurugi" (希望の剣 ''Kibō No Tsurugi'', "Sword of Hope")
**** Artist: Tomomi Hiraishi (平石豊 茂美 ''Hiraishi Tomomi'')
*** "Tyrannoranger ~Akaki Yuushi~" (ティラノレンジャー・「赤き勇姿」 ''Tiranorenjā "Akaki Yūshi"'', "Tyrannoranger -The Crimson Hero-")
**** Artist: Tomomi Hiraishi (平石豊 茂美 ''Hiraishi Tomomi'')
*** "Yumemiru Otome No Chikara Kobu" (夢見る乙女の力こぶ "The Strength of a Dreaming Maiden")
**** Artist: Sayuri Saito (斉藤 小百合 ''Saitō Sayuri'')
*** "Shippo Piki Piki" (しっぽ Piki Piki)
**** Artist: Kenta Satou (佐藤 健太 ''Satō Kenta'')
*** "Pop Up Night" (ポップアップナイト ''Poppu Appu Naito'')
**** Artist: Takeshi Ike (池 毅 ''Ike Takeshi'')
**; Character theme
*** "Dolla! ~Majo Bandora Theme~" (Dolla!~魔女バンドーラのテーマ~ ''Dora! !Majo Bandōra no Tēma~'', "Dolla! ~Witch Bandora's Theme~")
**** Artist: Bandora / Machiko Soga (曽我町子 ''Soga Machiko'')
International broadcast and home video
*In its home country of Japan, this was the next series in the franchise to be given a full home video release after the success of
Chōjin Sentai Jetman
is a Japanese tokusatsu television series produced by Toei Company. It is the fifteenth entry of the ''Super Sentai'' metaseries, following the previous series '' Chikyu Sentai Fiveman''. The series aired on TV Asahi on February 15, 1991, to Febr ...
. It was released on VHS (both Sale/Rental) from April 1993 until February 1994 and spread across 11 volumes. The first seven volumes contain four episodes each. Volumes 8 and 9 contain 5 episodes, and the final two volumes contain 6 episodes. It was also released on Laserdisc from November 25, 1993 until January 25, 1994, as it was cancelled after two volumes were released, with each having four episodes. From September 21, 2010 until January 21, 2011, the series was released on DVD for the first time spreading through five volumes, with each one containing ten episodes each. On November 9, 2022, to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the series' premiere, a collection set to spread through two volumes was released with the both volumes having 25 episodes.
*International distribution towards all future Super Sentai seasons would be limited to a few neighboring Asian regions starting with this series since then, as most regions around the world would receive foreign language dubs of the U.S.' adaptation based on this series, which was ''
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers
''Mighty Power Rangers'' (''MMPR'') is an American superhero television series that premiered on August 28, 1993, on the Fox Kids programming block. It is the first entry of the ''Power Rangers'' franchise, and became a 1990s popular culture, ...
''. Although, Japan did release the first 100 episodes of the Power Rangers adaptation dubbed, but despite high ratings the rest was not dubbed. South Korea only aired a dub of the first season due to the belief that the attention span of Korean kids was too short to keep up with a multiseason show. Thailand, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia and The
Philippines
The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...
also aired the Power Rangers adaptation dubbed in their languages as well.
**In Thailand, four different Thai dubs have been confirmed to exist for Zyuranger. The original Thai dub was licensed by Toon Town Entertainment for
Channel 9 (now MCOT HD) in 1994, a second dub was licensed by Video Square, A third dub was released around 2006/2007 by Cartoon Inter Company Limited for VCD release and spread across 25 VCDs, and a fourth dub was released by the Cartoon Club Channel for YouTube.
**In Hong Kong, the series aired as ''Dinosaur Team'' (''恐龙战队'', Kǒnglóng Zhànduì) with a Cantonese Chinese dub on
TVB Jade
TVB Jade (), or simply Jade, is a Hong Kong Hong Kong Cantonese, Cantonese-language Terrestrial television, free-to-air television channel owned and operated by Television Broadcasts Limited (TVB) as its flagship service, alongside its sister n ...
on July 9, 1994 until July 1, 1995, with all 50 episodes dubbed. The Cantonese dub of the Power Rangers adaptation would be released as ''New Dinosaur Team'' (''新恐龙战队'', ''Xin Kǒnglóng Zhànduì'').
**In Indonesia, Zyuranger did not air at all. But its U.S. adaptation Mighty Morphin Power Rangers did air with an Indonesian dub in its place. However, the next series ''
Dairanger'' would air afterwards with a dub there, under "Star Ranger." (Not to be confused with the English title for
Gorenger's release in the Philippines).
**In the
Philippines
The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...
, despite switching to the Power Rangers airing on
ABS-CBN
ABS-CBN is a leading Philippine media and content company. It serves as the flagship media brand of ABS-CBN Corporation, a subsidiary of Lopez Holdings Corporation. Once the country's largest free-to-air television network, ABS-CBN has since ...
, it was reported that Zyuranger aired on ABC 5 (now
TV5) from 1997 to 1998 and on
IBC-13 from 2000 to 2001 with a Tagalog dub.
*In North America, the series was released on DVD by
Shout! Factory
Shout! Factory, LLC, doing business as Shout! Studios (formerly doing business as Shout! Factory, its current legal name), is an American home video and music distributor founded in 2002 as Retropolis Entertainment. Its video releases, issued i ...
presented with the original Japanese audio with English subtitles on February 17, 2015. This was the very first Super Sentai series to get an official release in its unadapted Power Rangers form. The series is also available for streaming on
Tubi
Tubi (stylized as tubi) is an American over-the-top ad-supported streaming television service owned by Fox Corporation since 2020. The service was launched on April 1, 2014, and is based in Los Angeles, California. In 2023, Tubi, Credible L ...
along with many other Sentai series.
Video game
A ''Kyōryū Sentai Zyuranger''
video game
A video game or computer game is an electronic game that involves interaction with a user interface or input device (such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device) to generate visual fe ...
was released in Japan for the
Family Computer
The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) is an 8-bit home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was first released in Japan on 15 July 1983 as the and was later released as the redesigned NES in several test markets in the U ...
by Angel (a subsidiary of
Bandai
is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational toy manufacturer and distributor headquartered in Taitō, Taitō, Tokyo. Its international branches, Bandai Namco Toys & Collectables America and Bandai UK, are respectively headquartered ...
) on November 6, 1992. It is a side-scrolling action game in which the player takes control of a different Zyuranger in each of the game's five stages. The game includes two difficulty settings and a password feature.
The player begins the game as Boi in the first stage, followed by Mei, Dan, Goushi, and Geki in subsequent stages. Each Zyuranger begins his or her stage wielding the standard Ranger Gun, which can be replaced with the character's corresponding Legendary Weapon by finding the entrance to Barza's room in each stage. Each stage also contains ten scattered coins which will replenish the player's life gauge completely when fully collected, as well as display a still of the character's mecha and its specifications. At the end of each stage, the player will confront one of the main villains from the show. The villains faced are Pleprechuan, Bookback, Totpat, Grifforzar and Bandora herself.
Between stages, the player will be challenged to one of three possible minigames by Burai the Dragonranger. These consist of a trivia game where Bandora will ask the player a question related to the TV series, a
Pong
''Pong'' is a 1972 sports video game developed and published by Atari for arcades. It is one of the earliest arcade video games; it was created by Allan Alcorn as a training exercise assigned to him by Atari co-founder Nolan Bushnell, but B ...
-style game between Daizyuzin and the Dragon Caesar, and a
hot potato-style game between Gouryuzin and Lamy. These minigames are also accessible from the main menu and can be played with a second player.
The series itself is also included in the Mobile game ''
Super Robot Wars X-Ω'' as a limited-time event, making it the first
Tokusatsu
is a Japanese term for live-action films or television programs that make heavy use of practical special effects. Credited to special effects director Eiji Tsuburaya, ''tokusatsu'' mainly refers to science fiction film, science fiction, War fi ...
series to debut in a Super Robot Wars game.
Notes
References
External links
*
Official Shout! Factory pageOfficial Shout Factory TV page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kyoryu Sentai Zyuranger
Super Sentai
Television series about dinosaurs
1992 Japanese television series debuts
1993 Japanese television series endings
Japanese action television series
Japanese fantasy television series
Japanese science fiction television series
1990s Japanese television series
Prehistoric people in popular culture
Fiction about rogue planets
Japan-exclusive video games
Nintendo Entertainment System games
Nintendo Entertainment System-only games