Boonboomger has arrived, wheel helmets and all! But, as most of us know, Toei likes to reuse a gimmick now and again and there have been other “car Sentai” in the past. Read on to get an idea of what they were like and if you should track them down!
Hero Historia is a series dedicated to helping fans of superhero tokusatsu find shows that don’t get talked about as much; older shows, ones that may not have many defenders or flag wavers online. Consider me that flag waver because, for every person out there interested in tokusatsu, there are dozens of shows they’d love that they’ve never had recommended. Currently, this only excludes shows that have aired in Japan’s Reiwa Era, which began in 2019. Minor spoilers only.
Kousoku Sentai Turboranger
The Basic Idea
When the Bouma Hundred Tribes awaken from being sealed away in the Earth, five highschoolers discover that they are among the few humans who can see fairies, making them the only candidates to become Turboranger! This was the first series with a full team of youngsters (it has an obvious echo in Megaranger eight years later, but that’s another story) and youth is the core theme. In fact, the car motif to the suits, gear and mecha is utterly unrelated to the plot and is totally unremarked on. It’s a bit funny, since pollution is expressly one reason the Bouma were unsealed, but here are teens driving trucks the size of buildings. As the plot escalates, the day is won because of young people’s ability to overcome prejudice.
The Team
Red Turbo, Honoo Riki: Flighty and book dumb, Riki leads the team with fighting spirit and a surprising knack for tactics. The actor, Satou Kenta, sung the main theme for the show and came back to do it again with Zyuranger!
Black Turbo, Yamagata Daichi: More motivated than the others, track star Daichi is willing to be a wet blanket if it keeps the team on task.
Blue Turbo, Hama Youhei: Goofy, girl crazy and a bit vain, Youhei is most notable for being unlucky; he’s the one who loses his changer, he’s the one who has to babysit, that sort of thing. If you’re a JoJo’s fan, think diet Polnareff.
Yellow Turbo, Hino Shunsuke: The proper class clown, Shunsuke has a surprising amount of tragedy in his backstory, the general implication is that his happy go lucky self is a coping mechanism.
Pink Turbo, Morikawa Haruna: Student council president and ace student Haruna is both the cleverest and kindest Turboranger. If she wasn’t such a natural trickster, she’d probably be leading the team.
With help from:
Shiiron: The fairy child that recruited the team, Shiiron is an immediate little sister to them all. She doesn’t fight or provide instruction but can sense danger.
Dr. Dazai: A middle aged inventor who made all the team’s gear as well as a set of goggles that allows him to see fairies, Dr. Dazai provides a mix of exposition and comic relief.
The High Point
Episode 14 introduces the Wandering Bouma, half human outcasts from the villain tribes, with standout anti villain, Yamimaru. He’s a swaggering rival who owns the screen and when he meets another Wanderer later on, their schemes to take over result in the best drama of the whole show.
Gekisou Sentai Carranger
The Basic Idea
A group of almost Sienfeld-esque jerks who run a small automotive design shop stand against the Bowzock, an interstellar biker gang that would blow up the “Earf” to impress a pretty girl. Though they’re the destined heroes empowered by Carmagic shining down from the Guardian Car Constellations, they also have to hold down their low paying day jobs and put up with disrespect from all over the universe for their hero identities, their civilian lives, and just about everything else someone can criticise. The good news? The Bowzock are doofuses so inept it’s hard to believe that they haven’t blown themselves up already. They get turned into a pizza!
The Team
Red Racer, Jinnai Kyousuke: A test driver with aspirations of racing, Kyousuke isn’t interested in being a hero at first, but once he finds out that he’s the team leader, he cherishes the chance to be taken seriously, which doesn’t happen.
Blue Racer, Domon Naoki: A whiz kid inventor engineer, Naoki’s passive nature often leads others to try and take advantage of him.
Green Racer, Uesugi Minoru: The company salesman and dedicated people person, Minoru is tragically under the impression that he’s the serious adult on the team.
Yellow Racer, Shinohara Natsumi: Tomboy mechanic and big sister in search of a little sibling to protect, Natsumi is enthusiastic about being part of the team, so long as she has her lucky wrench.
Pink Racer, Yagami Youko: Secretary and accountant for the shop, girly girl Youko doesn’t really let things get to her, even when the planet is on the line, unless it disrupts her day.
With help from:
Dappu: The sole survivor of the last planet raided by the Bowzock, Dappu is a child Carmagician who isn’t really interested in how much work the team has to put in and will gladly criticize their form as they try.
Signalman Police Coburn: A galactic traffic cop, Signalman is a riff on the Metal Hero series who thinks he’s the hero and that Carranger is a bunch of untrained vigilantes.
White Racer (self-declared), Radietta Fanbelt: An alien princess and Carranger fangirl with some Carmagic skills in a parody of Sixth Rangers. Only in a few episodes.
The High Point
This is somehow one of the only Sentai so far to have an explicit romantic subplot in spite of, or possibly due to, its silly parodic tone! Zonette, the hot girl the Bowzock’s leader is trying to date, develops a crush on Red Racer (only Red Racer, mind you, she thinks Kyousuke is ugly and boring at first) and he struggles with these feelings while also trying to turn her to good. It’s hardly an epic love story but it’s a fun, unexpected angle amongst the jokes and shenanigans.
Engine Sentai Go-Onger
The Basic Idea
Interdimensional living vehicles pair up with five human losers (and two rich geniuses) to fend off the invasion of a pollution loving empire of machine people. The first five Go-Onger members, stuck at dead ends in their careers and without much to fall back on, make a great contrast to the Pollution Ministers, the executives for most of the show. The three Ministers are villainous, sure, but are also characterised as friends who complain to each other about their middle management positions.
The Team
Go-On Red, Esumi Sousuke: Another wouldbe pro racer, Sousuke is almost suicidally overconfident and leads the team by charging head first at every problem.
Go-On Blue, Kosaka Renn: Brainy but not bookish, Renn is very often the only adult in the room, to the point that the others call him “Mom.”
Go-On Yellow, Royama Saki: Sweet and upbeat, Saki is the youngest on the team and winds up as the team’s Heart, contrasting Renn’s Brains and Sousuke’s Guts.
Go-On Green, Jo Hant: Shy and sheepish, Hant isn’t looking to monetise his hero work, but he’ll spend every free second working any job that will take him to make some cash.
Go-On Black, Ishihara Gunpei: A former policeman looking to play hero, Gunpei is a bit like Green Racer; convinced that he’s mature and serious, making his pratfalls that much worse.
and Go-On Wings:
Go-On Gold, Suto Hiroto: A stoic (and also Stoic) philosopher and boxer, Hiroto (played by Kamen Rider Kabuto’s Yaguruma) succeeds at everything he decides to do, from making curry to soft rock. His reliable attitude results in the others nominating him as the team father, which he loathes.
Go-On Silver, Suto Miu: To date the only female Sixth Ranger (fingers crossed that changes), Miu isn’t just a genius and martial arts prodigy like her brother, but also gifted with a psychic danger sense.
with help from:
Bomper: A squat robot from Engine World who looks like a 1950s kitchen appliance.
The Engines: The heroes of Engine World and only capable of manifesting their bodies for a few minutes on Human World, the Engines are partners, mentors, and mechs to the Go-Onger team.
The High Point
Go-On Wings never properly join the team and the episodes right after their debut show why and what it adds to the series. The core five fall all over themselves trying to keep up with the Sutos’ effortless skill, while the siblings try to convince them to stay out of the fight. Best of all, in the chaos, Miu takes an interest in Sousuke’s pitiful lack of skills, manners, or style and all but says “I can fix him.” The two teams are eventually able to work together, but the mix of friendship, rivalry, romantic tension, jealousy, and condescension never goes away.
Final Thoughts, Who Should Watch Which Show?
On a basic level, I don’t think there are many bad Sentai years. If you’re a fan of the series, I’d encourage you to work your way through the whole thing eventually. That said, Turboranger is far from what most would expect, being a teen drama in a science fantasy wrapper. Watch that one if you want likable heroes and redeemable villains. Carranger is a perfect look at 90s Sentai, silly characters, surprising plots, and monster/alien suits made in a style you don’t see anymore. Go-On is more polished, an artifact from the lead-up to Gokaiger when production values were high. It’s a show I’d push for if you’re looking for more action, as well. They’re all good at what they do. And no, despite what Gokaiger and Zenkaiger tell you, they don’t have super speed.
So that’s it for today! After only a couple of episode, Boonboomger definitely has some of the silly DNA we see here but it will form its identity over time.
Have you seen the classic Car Sentai? Which series do you hope Boonboom ends up most like? Let me know in the comments below and I’ll see you in the next Hero Historia!
