The original
“Mighty Morphin Power Rangers” was introduced in Japan in 1975 as
“Dinosaur Task Force Zyuranger”, a children’s television show
produced by Toei Co., Ltd., one of the largest movie studios in Japan.
In fact, the Toei Co. still has the rights to the Power Rangers in Asia
and still produces the Japanese version of the Power Rangers. In Japan,
the Zyuranger series is also referred to as the “Sentai Series”.
Sentai are a team of superheroes who use their various martial arts
skills, along with machines and weapons to battle the forces of evil.
Haim Saban, founder and former executive producer of Saban
Entertainment, was introduced to the Zyurangers while he was traveling
in Japan. He decided to repackage the show for the US audience and named
the US version “The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers”. Margaret Loesch,
President of the Fox Children’s Network, felt the Power Rangers had
all the ingredients for a great kid’s show. In August of 1993 the
Power Rangers blasted onto kid’s television and became an instant
success. Soon to follow were feature films, book publishing, toys and
other merchandise. The first feature film, “Mighty Morphin Power
Rangers: The Movie”, was released in 1995.
By 1996, the popularity of the Power Rangers had faded and Saban
executives had to determine the future of the Power Rangers. They met
with the top five licensees and found that although most licensed
categories were no longer in demand, toy sales were still strong, and
the show was still at the top of the ratings list of most popular shows.
Although the original fans had outgrown the Power Rangers, a younger
generation was just discovering them. Saban Entertainment decided to
heavily invest in the Power Rangers to get people to believe in it
again. New staff were hired to expand Saban’s licensing and
merchandising division, new licensees with strong track records with big
retail buyers were brought on board, and the Power Ranger look was
updated. The new style was high tech and featured space and astronomy
themes.
By the end of the decade, it became clear that the Power Rangers were a
lasting property. The Nielson Galaxy Explorer proclaimed the Power
Rangers the “Most Popular Kids Show of the 1990’s”. According to
Nielson, the Power Rangers television program had the highest in
audience share in the kids’ age categories of Kids 2-11, Kids 6-11,
Boys 2-11, and Boys 6-11.
By June 2000, the Power Rangers were declared “#1 Again!” The NPD
Group, Inc., the toy industry sales tracking organization, rated the
Power Rangers as the “#1 Male Action Toy Brand” for the year 2000.
The proclamation coincided with Fox Kids Network decision to air a new
“Power Rangers Time Force” episode every Saturday morning for year
2001, the 9th season of the series. A few months earlier, the NPD group
had also ranked the Power Rangers as the “Best Selling Action Figure
of the 1990’s”. By December 2000, the Power Rangers had also earned
the honor of “Best Selling Action
Toy of the Year”, ahead of “Pokemon”, “Star Wars”,
“Transformers” and “GI Joe”. Power Ranger toys are produced by
Bandai America Inc., a subsidiary of Bandai Co., Ltd. of Tokyo, Japan,
the third largest toy company in the world. Bandai has a longstanding
reputation for producing great products with durability and long lasting
play value.
For those who have never seen a Power Ranger show, the Power Rangers are
a special group of teenagers selected by Zordon, Commander of the forces
of good, to defend the earth against evil forces. The teenagers have the
ability to “morph” or transform into Power Rangers. As Power
Rangers, they have superhero powers. Each Power Ranger is also given
command of his own “Zord”, or colossal fighting machine. Throughout
the various seasons, the Power Rangers face a variety of villains and
take control of various powerful Zords to help them fight evil.
The Power Rangers have become popular across the globe and is now aired
in over 53 countries. Haim Saban, who often modestly refers to himself
as a “cartoon schlepper” , made his name and fortune in kid’s
television in large part by his success with the Power Rangers. Saban
eventually purchased Fox Family and became Chairman and CEO of Fox
Family Worldwide, Inc.
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