[PRNS] Articles in Boston Globe & NY Times
Tommy Lawson
articles about PRNS that appeared earlier this month may have just been skipped
over. Anyway, note the numerous errors in both articles- the incorrect title
for the show, an incorrect surname for the executive producer, and once again,
an inaccurate description of the history of the sentai series. Still, quite
informative for those who want to know why PRNS' storytelling style differs
from that used in years past, and Disney's goals for the series they now
control.
Tommy Lawson
Ranger...@aol.com
Power Rangers Info Zone
http://www.prinfozone.freewebsitehosting.com
-----------------------------------------------------
From The Boston Globe:
March 2, 2003
THE STAYING POWER OF AN EVER-CHANGING SUPERHERO FRANCHISE 'RANGERS,' NOW UNDER
DISNEY, IN 11TH SEASON
By Andrew Wallenstein, Globe Correspondent
As even the casual viewer of martial-arts movies can attest, no one is more
resilient than the ninja. No matter how high the odds are stacked, these masked
masters are seemingly immune to extinction.
Which makes the new title for the children's TV series "Power Rangers Ninja
Force" a fitting choice. Known as "Mighty Morphin Power Rangers" when it soared
to worldwide popularity a decade ago, the franchise has eluded the
supernova-like fate that awaits most kiddie crazes, which shine brightly for a
few years before burning out.
Though honored alongside forgotten elementary-school luminaries such as
"Transformers" and "Care Bears" at last week's American International Toy Fair
with inclusion on the "Century of Toys" list, "Rangers" is still alive and
drop-kicking.
The new season that began this month on ABC's Saturday morning block and sister
cable channel ABC Family marks the 11th season on the air for "Rangers." But
it is the first under the creative control of Walt Disney Co., which acquired
the franchise in October 2001.
Not the sensation it once was, "Rangers" was revamped by Disney in an effort to
make it hipper and more enriching - a tall order for a series criticized by
parents and teachers for sacrificing any actual story in favor of fight scenes
kids love to imitate.
"What we're trying to do is put the series creatively on the highest plane we
can," said Gary Marsh, executive vice president of original programming and
production at the Disney Channel. "I do believe we've added complexity in a way
that our demographic audience can relate to."
"Rangers" targets boys ages 6 to 11, the demographic sweet spot among Saturday
morning programmers, and not a real strength of Disney's, which has had more
success with properties that skew toward girls. But results aren't measured
only in ratings; a kids TV series is not so much a stand-alone program as it is
the heart of an octopus-like merchandising machine with tentacles brandishing
toys, clothing, stationery, bicycles, and more.
"TV is obviously a critical component to build awareness," said John Louie,
franchise director for "Rangers" at Disney's consumer products division. "Power
Rangers has been in the public eye for so long that it has become a rite of
passage for boys who act out superhero fantasies with the products."
For strangers to "Rangers," the series tells the story of a band of teenagers
who, invoking Buddhist-sounding pieties about harnessing natural elements like
wind and water, "morph" into superheroes who administer decidedly un-Buddhist
beatings to various alien monsters who would make Klingons look cute.
To the uninitiated adult, the sight of these chirpy, color-coded combatants
sparring in midair could come across as "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon"
performed by the characters from M&M's commercials.
But to children, "Rangers" offers an outlet for empowerment fantasies with a
potency that sets it apart from other shows, according to Paul Kurnit,
president of KidShop, a New York consultancy specializing in youth marketing.
"The idea that kids can transform themselves continues to be a powerful one, as
opposed to old concepts like 'Masters of the Universe' or 'Teenage Mutant Ninja
Turtles,' " he said.
"Power Rangers" was derived from the Japanese series "Dinosaur Task Force
Zyuranger," which is in its 27th year on the air. In 1993, then little-known
kids programmer Saban Entertainment purchased the US rights to the series. To
this day, every episode of "Rangers" begins its life in Japan, which ships
footage of fights to the United States. It is then grafted onto scenes shot by
a separate production crew. The new material often has little to do with the
original Japanese plots.
Almost immediately after bowing on the Fox network, "Rangers" became a huge
hit. Public appearances by the "Rangers" routinely incited pandemonium among
prepubescents. Two "Rangers" movies were released.
The "Rangers" juggernaut is all the more surprising considering virtually no
one thought much of it in the first place.
"Everybody believed this cheesy production out of Asia . . . was going to bomb
completely with kids," said Kurnit. "But the adult-think could not have been
more wrong."
As hot as it got at its inception, "Rangers" cooled off considerably by 1996,
as competition in kids shows intensified. But instead of disappearing,
"Rangers" began to quietly carve itself a niche as a steady retail draw despite
a lower profile: The franchise has rung up nearly $6 billion in merchandise
sales, which made it the best-selling action toy of the 1990s, according to the
New York-based research firm NPD Group.
Like an accelerated version of "Star Trek," "Rangers" brings in a new cast and
setting nearly every season. But in recent years, the franchise has been on
autopilot, displaying little humor, thinly sketched characters and story lines
that rarely deviate from the original version, which often contains references
and plot devices that are incomprehensible outside Japan. Eager to rid
themselves of their halves of the "Rangers" parent company, Saban Entertainment
and co-owner News Corp. sold Fox Family Worldwide to Disney for more than $5
billion.
To resuscitate "Rangers," Disney turned to two of the series' original lead
writers, Ann Knapp Austen and Doug Sloan. They had left the series in 1996 over
creative differences with Saban and landed at Disney. As executive producers
of the new season, they will pay more attention to instilling humor and
conflict than Saban did.
This season, "Rangers" received an extensive makeover, with the cast enrolled
at an academy for aspiring ninjas. The characters now resemble actual
teenagers, down to their use of authentic slang and interest in "extreme"
sports such as surfing. Reversing a long-held edict that forbade internal
conflict among "Rangers," the characters often squabble with one another, a
more realistic touch the producers hope kids can identify with.
With a significant portion of the "Rangers" audience below the recommended age
limit of the program's TV-Y7-FV rating (translation: unsuitable for children
younger than 7 with special advisories for fantasy violence), Disney has
adopted stricter content guidelines. Now, "Rangers" never incite a fight and
avoid direct blows to sensitive body parts.
Marsh hopes the fight scenes won't seem as gratuitous as they have in years
past.
"What we try and do is use the action to tell parts of the story as opposed to
action for action's sake," he said.
-----------------------------------------------------
From The New York Times:
March 2, 2003
Power Rangers With Personality Plus
By Kathryn Shattuck
On the map, Blue Bay Harbor lies just down the road. But psychically speaking,
it's a long way from the juice bar in Angel Grove, Calif., where in 1993 five
teenagers summoned the spirits of dinosaurs to transform themselves into a
singular fighting machine.
Megazord, the behemoth humanoid robot of "Mighty Morphin Power Rangers," has
long since bitten the dust. A decade later, there's a new crew in a new town.
But instead of relying on prehistoric beasts to rule their world, their
strengths rest with the wind, water and sand.
"Power Rangers Ninja Storm" had its premiere on Feb. 15 at 11:30 a.m. on ABC
and begins this morning on ABC Family, where it will be shown on Saturdays and
Sundays at 8:30 a.m. Like the previous 10 Power Rangers series (there's a new
one every year), this latest permutation combines martial-arts action, campy
humor and overstated drama as its warriors take on otherworldly powers to
defend Earth from intergalactic evil forces. But unlike incarnations of late,
when the Rangers started to morph into faceless adults devoid of personality --
and the viewers' age group plummeted from 7-to-10-year-olds to the preschool
set -- "Ninja Storm's" heroes are clearly defined courageous teenagers.
"I've always thought that the show lost that audience because they didn't make
the rangers identifiable," said Douglas J. Stone, the show's executive producer
with Ann Knapp Austen. "When you ask the younger children, 'Who's your favorite
ranger?' they say, 'Oh, the Black Ranger' or 'the Blue Ranger.' But you can't
have Superman without Clark Kent. You need to have an identifiable civilian
face because that's what older kids respond to. They have to have someone to
relate to."
Mr. Stone and Ms. Austen dream of a series embraced by viewers upward, say, of
14. Certainly, Tori (played by Sally Martin), Shane (Pua Magasiva) and Dustin
(Glenn McMillan) lead typical teenage lives in Blue Bay Harbor. Shane
skateboards, Dustin races motocross, and Tori loves nothing more than to ride
her board through a barrel.
But the surfer scene ends at their tan lines. Afterhours, the trio study at a
secret school where, under the careful tutelage of a wise sensei, they train in
the ancient ways of the ninja.
Never mind that their lack of priorities makes them less-than-ideal candidates.
When Lothor, a banished ninja master, returns to Earth bent on revenge and
turns the sensei into a guinea pig, Shane, Dustin and Tori are his only help.
With the sensei's gift of "morphers," the three are transformed into
superheroes: Shane becomes the Red Ranger, his power derived from the air and
the sky; Dustin is the Yellow Ranger, relying on the power of the Earth; and
Tori changes into the Blue Ranger, drawing her power from flowing water. Riding
Tsunami Cycles and armed with explosive equipment, they wreak comic mayhem on
those who would try to disrupt Earth's equilibrium.
"I think our audience can differentiate between fiction and reality, and action
as opposed to violence," said Mr. McMillan when asked about the battle scenes.
"I suppose we all like to assume we can be role models and that what we're
ultimately teaching kids are the fundamental notions of tolerance and
responsibility."
-----------------------------------------------------
SirSTACK
>which often contains references
>and plot devices that are incomprehensible outside Japan.
Ironic, since PRNS hinges totally on the art of ninja, which is something
predominantly Japanese. It wasn't like PRWF was all about animals exclusive to
Japan, or Kelsey remained a Cornjob Bike Cop like her GG5 double. The guy who
wrote this article clearly got his info 4th or 5th hand.
>To resuscitate "Rangers,"
Which was only needed because Disney ripped out its heart, soul, brain, and
reproductive organs when it fired all of MMPR Productions. Ever see Robocop?
Murphy's a good cop. He does things the right way in a corrupt world. When he's
rebuilt as Robocop, he continues, more or less. But that mysterious 4th
objective keeps his creators safe from getting busted by him. That's what
happened to PR.
>As executive producers
>of the new season, they will pay more attention to instilling humor and
>conflict than Saban did.
(shakes head)
If you want humor, go throw a pie at a Priest and blame the Rabbi. PR doesn't
need to be a sitcom. Sitcoms are a dime a dozen.
>The characters now resemble actual
>teenagers, down to their use of authentic slang
Authentic?
AUTHENTIC?!
What, doing archelogical research into the ancient man of 1991's slang is
considered "totally authorized, dude!"?
>Reversing a long-held edict that forbade internal
>conflict among "Rangers," the characters often squabble with one another, a
>more realistic touch the producers hope kids can identify with.
Taylor sure got along great with Cole ALL the time! Heck, she also did nothing
but give love and support to Max! Jen never had any sort of issue with Wes,
quickly giving him leadership and marrying him in under 5 shows. Joel's
hotdoging merely made Captain Mitchell & Ms. Fairweather glad they chose him
for the job, and his teammates were quite proud! Kai made out with Leo the
first time he saw him! Cassie & Ashley never had a single squabble! Rocky
always felt secure around Jason, the guy he replaced!
Wheee! I live in the magic land of propaganda!
>Now, "Rangers" never incite a fight and
>avoid direct blows to sensitive body parts.
So... dumb the show down storyline wise, make it less enticising for girls,
force humor every other second, and have the Rangers resolve conflicts with
handshakes and puppy dogs as gifts. Yep! They're reaching the above 14 market
that way!
>Marsh hopes the fight scenes won't seem as gratuitous as they have in years
>past.
He's failed. Tell Marsh to clean out his office immediately.
>But instead of relying on prehistoric beasts to rule their world, their
>strengths rest with the wind, water and sand.
Wait until next year, Sister...
>But unlike incarnations of late,
>when the Rangers started to morph into faceless adults devoid of personality
>--
Just because YOU lack personality, lady, doesn't mean other adults do.
>"I've always thought that the show lost that audience because they didn't
>make
>the rangers identifiable," said Douglas J. Stone, the show's executive
>producer
>with Ann Knapp Austen.
Which is total bollocks, since they did everything they could to MAKE
characters indentifiable. Look at the overly uniformed outfits they wore when
unmorphed! That was done, among other reasons, to make it clear to kids who was
who at all times.
>You need to have an identifiable civilian
>face because that's what older kids respond to. They have to have someone to
>relate to."
Dougie, Dougie, Dougie. This isn't 96. There will be no "Tommy 2003". You CAN'T
get that kind of identity WITHOUT keeping characters for more than a year. It
hasn't Flabber's snot to do with TRYING to make characters stand out. It won't
matter, since by the time enough kids learn to like them, they'll be replaced
with the next round of no-names. The sooner that's learned by this crew, the
sooner they'll do something with these characters that doesn't scream "Look!
Each one of us has a DIFFERENT sport! That makes us so very unique!"
>Mr. Stone and Ms. Austen dream of a series embraced by viewers upward, say,
>of 14.
Seems that dream came about a 6 year coma, since the show's been having that
since before they ever left to begin with.
> lead typical teenage lives in Blue Bay Harbor.
So, loitering at a sporting goods store, sneaking off to a ninja academy where
they're the worst students, hanging out in a hole in the ground with a rodent
and his socially-retarded son, and never doing anything but the same sport each
time is what is typical of teenagers in that town?
>Tori loves nothing more than to ride
>her board through a barrel.
And how I'd love nothing more than to ride a double-barrel shotgun through her
board.
>But the surfer scene ends at their tan lines.
And sun-baked brain.
>Never mind that their lack of priorities makes them less-than-ideal
>candidates.
Make me!
>they wreak comic mayhem
Comic? Mel Brooks is rolling in his grave at the notion that THAT is comedy!
What? Mel's not dead? Well, don't show him PRNS and claim it's what comedy is
today, cause he'll keel over before he finishes "Spaceballs 2: The Search For
More Money"!
Ahh. That was fun. Got anymore error-riddled biased-media reports for me to
recycle into scathing social commentary?
Christopher N. Denner
----------
In article <20030326042822...@mb-mq.aol.com>,
spree
> >when the Rangers started to morph into faceless adults devoid of personality
> >--
>
> Just because YOU lack personality, lady, doesn't mean other adults do.
That's right! Yell at a reporter who will never even dream about
coming to this newsgroup. *rolls eyes*
SirSTACK
>That's right! Yell at a reporter who will never even dream about
>coming to this newsgroup. *rolls eyes*
Saying I should start yelling at you again, chopsey? Okay, grow a sense of
humor.