Academic research on Super Sentai and Power Rangers

Cestro · 11/18/14, 05:03 PM

I'm really trying to do some research into the cultural and historical impacts of both Super Sentai and Power Rangers. However, I keep running into a brick wall.

All the articles I find about Power Rangers are from 1993 to 1995 and only reference the violence of the show. Most articles don't even mention the fact that it is based off of a Japanese TV show. The only book about Power Rangers is the "Truth" About Power Rangers book that only talks about how Power Rangers is training children to be Satan worshipers. Beyond that, even with the help of my librarian, I can't find any academic articles, papers, or books discussing Power Rangers.

I have spoken to three of my professors in Japanese studies here at school. One is a Japanese woman who knows nothing about Sentai. The other is a professor who knows nothing of Super Sentai and when I discuss it with him, he thinks it is below him and academic study (he has the same feelings on Godzilla, yet Akira is not below academic study). My last professor is aware of it but knows nothing. He says he has a Japanese pop culture book where it has citations from primary sources and may help me. The ONLY reference he found was about Power Rangers, and there is no citation.

I find it extremely frustrating to have all of these great resources and yet still not find anything about Sentai or Power Rangers that is beyond "they were violent". Even more frustrating is trying to talk to Japanese people about Super Sentai for The Onyx Tavern. I was in Kyoto for five weeks and every Japanese that I spoke there either never heard of it or said that their baby brother watched it. And this was me asking tons of people while at the school and in the city. Even showing them the title in Katakana and Kanji didn't help. I'm even trying to talk to the Japanese community here at my school and I am getting the same responses, either they never heard of it or their younger siblings watch it.

So I don't know guys. Has anyone else attempted to do any research on Sentai or Power Rangers and have been able to uncover more than I have? I mean one show has been on close to 40 years and the other has been on for 21, why is it so hard to find any academic research or sources that don't look at it as something corrupting the youth? I just don't get it. Can anyone point me into the direction of SOMETHING useful?

(And no, this is not "Homework help" this is for my own personal befit and for future episodes of The Onyx Tavern).

11/18/14, 05:03 PM	#1
Cestro Putty Patroller Join Date: 05/08/13 Posts: 8	Academic research on Super Sentai and Power Rangers I'm really trying to do some research into the cultural and historical impacts of both Super Sentai and Power Rangers. However, I keep running into a brick wall. All the articles I find about Power Rangers are from 1993 to 1995 and only reference the violence of the show. Most articles don't even mention the fact that it is based off of a Japanese TV show. The only book about Power Rangers is the "Truth" About Power Rangers book that only talks about how Power Rangers is training children to be Satan worshipers. Beyond that, even with the help of my librarian, I can't find any academic articles, papers, or books discussing Power Rangers. I have spoken to three of my professors in Japanese studies here at school. One is a Japanese woman who knows nothing about Sentai. The other is a professor who knows nothing of Super Sentai and when I discuss it with him, he thinks it is below him and academic study (he has the same feelings on Godzilla, yet Akira is not below academic study). My last professor is aware of it but knows nothing. He says he has a Japanese pop culture book where it has citations from primary sources and may help me. The ONLY reference he found was about Power Rangers, and there is no citation. I find it extremely frustrating to have all of these great resources and yet still not find anything about Sentai or Power Rangers that is beyond "they were violent". Even more frustrating is trying to talk to Japanese people about Super Sentai for The Onyx Tavern. I was in Kyoto for five weeks and every Japanese that I spoke there either never heard of it or said that their baby brother watched it. And this was me asking tons of people while at the school and in the city. Even showing them the title in Katakana and Kanji didn't help. I'm even trying to talk to the Japanese community here at my school and I am getting the same responses, either they never heard of it or their younger siblings watch it. So I don't know guys. Has anyone else attempted to do any research on Sentai or Power Rangers and have been able to uncover more than I have? I mean one show has been on close to 40 years and the other has been on for 21, why is it so hard to find any academic research or sources that don't look at it as something corrupting the youth? I just don't get it. Can anyone point me into the direction of SOMETHING useful? (And no, this is not "Homework help" this is for my own personal befit and for future episodes of The Onyx Tavern).