My Thoughts On B-Fighter In 24 Episodes

 

Okay, I thought that I'd never be able to watch B-Fighter because I already knew of the bonus crossover. I still feel bringing in Janperson and Blue SWAT felt very out of place. I guess some older fans will know that Gramps from Ninninger (that terrible, terrible show) is the mentor here. Not surprisingly, Gramps here has been better utilized as a wise old man than he is later in Ninninger. Gramps also had a reunion with Ryoma Takeuchi in Loving You at the End of the World. Now, I'd like to share my thoughts on the series which I wasn't too enthusiastic about.

Remembering Big Badly Done Beetleborgs and other shows

I remembered watching Beetleborgs while waiting for Janperson. Beetleborgs was pretty much a weird show with three typical average kids wishing to become their heroes. Flabber turns them into Beetleborgs. It was pretty much a weird show. I did watch it though I ended up dumping it. Yeah, I understand Toei Ltd. gave Saban Entertainment the rights so no matter how much I hate it - I'll never call it a bootleg. It was also that time when "Janperson" guested as Karato and Bill Goldy as Goldex. I did have to learn about copyright laws and why the adaptations (or better called LOCALIZATIONS) shouldn't be called bootleg. Yeah, I dislike American adaptations of Japanese shows but still.

One reason why I felt it was hard to watch this show was Metal Hero's history. I watched Jiban and Janperson. Right now, I feel Jiban isn't just as cool as Janperson in terms of plot. After Jiban, we had Winspector which was succeeded by Solbrain, and the not-so-direct sequel Exceedraft. After that, Janperson was pretty much what I'd call Toei's best Metal Hero series. A shame really IMHO that Janperson and the Blue SWAT team were dragged into what I'd call, "Should've been a movie instead!" story arc. 

Beetleborgs did try and film more American footage. It was a far cry from that shoddily done Saban's Mashed Rider - something so bad even Saban has a Creator Backlash. A lot of footage here would be hard to edit into the American show. As much as I don't like Power Rangers - I can still praise certain seasons that film more of their own suit footage that blends in better with the main cast's out of suit scenes. Just seeing the main cast getting replaced by Japanese footage is just... WEIRD IMHO. The Magnavores were pretty much filming some of their own footage. The Magnavores operated within a cave. Meanwhile, Jamahl operated in some space fortress.

I still find myself in a weird position about the mecha

I felt some changes in the 1990s Super Sentai have had me boggled. For example, you have all the vehicles operating on land while the non-leader of the team uses a flying vehicle. B-Fighter feels like a step back from Super Sentai in some way. Granted, it's a METAL HERO series so it's understandable why we never have a combining mecha. Instead, the B-Fighters have their own separate vehicles used to do the more dangerous operations. Well, there were some Metal Hero series that had giant robots such as Juspion, Shaider, and Spielban. Here, we have none though B-Fighter Kabuto would have two giant robots that joined the series.

The bug-like theme was played throughout. The designs are pretty neat actually. I do have a soft soft for the Red Gyro. There's also the Beet Luder and Stagger Tank. Later, we have Mega Heracles, based on the Hercules Beetle. Heracles is the Greek for Hercules, meaning "Glory of Hera'. 

Missing the late Takeshi Watabe at this point

Now, I had some fun thinking about how Beetleborgs decided to film some of the Magnavore scenes while borrowing the props from Toei Ltd. Now, time to focus on this one where the villains are pretty much For the Evulz. What hit me to know was that the Takeshi Watabe was the voice of Gaohm - the show's main antagonist. Watabe also did other villain voice acting such as Emperor Aton of Dynaman, Emperor God Neros Germanicus Claudius Caesar in Metalder, and Creation King in Kamen Rider BLACK. Watabe was also known for Emperor Ragorn in Turboranger - a show I believe isn't all too Vindicated by History because Carranger has been so much better for some.

The aim of Jamahl was to let evil spread. The three generals are Gigaro, Schwartz, and Jera. Later, we have the new addition Shadow or Black Beet. Gaohm lacks the silliness that Vexor has in Beetleborgs. Meanwhile, the three generals do have their silly antics more often than not, like any typical supervillain in the comics. I guess the three generals are meant to balance things out. Gaohm, on the other hand, may be the most irredeemably evil character and he does gloat about how EEEEEEVVVVVVIIIIILLLL he is. 

The two Reddles

The series was also notable for a midseason cast change. It can be controversial as to who was better between the replacement AND the original. This is pretty much a real-life writes the plot. Set injuries are no joke. Sometimes, they can even be as bad as what happened to the late Brandon Emery Lee during the filming of Crow. In Tokusatsu, Hiroshi Fujioka did get an injury. In 2000, Power Rangers even notes Alison McInnis did injure her leg but not to the point of having to leave. 

B-Fighter did have the case when Reina Hazuki injured her neck during the late tens. A scarf was used to cover Reina's neck. Eventually, it seems that Reina's really valid reason for leaving was to recover from her neck injury. This was the time when Toei did a lot of stunts that wouldn't get pass the PG-7 radar. The character, Rei Hayama, was more aggressive and mature outlook. Granted, Rei is a professional which explains her professional outlook. Later, Rei was transferred to SOUTH AMERICA for research work. However, she was never heard from again within the show. This also reminds me of how Sun Vulcan also replaced its red ranger by giving him a new assignment. Rei did record her voice for the narration and managed to leave peacefully. This reminds me of how Battle Fever J had Diane Martin leave the set while the character lived. Kensaku Shirahsi wasn't too lucky though. Yuki Ito got married mid-season and left the show. Toei decided to brutally kill Kensaku. Meanwhile, I'm glad Diane's character merely transferred to America. 

The second Reddle doesn't seem to be the ideal replacement. What's with mixing a 19-year-old girl into the mix anyway? Mai Takatori is a STUDENT so shouldn't she be STILL IN SCHOOL? I think she's in some univeristy. She got chosen by fate when she recovered the Pulsabers. Mai is still learning the ropes unlike her more mature predecessor. TBH, I think it would be better if Rei and Mai filmed together. It'd be cool if Rei handed over her powers to Mai before leaving. I bet there wasn't much time to film that. IMHO, I think Reina herself was scheduled for real-life medical treatment. I guess that's understandable why the two actresses never appeared together. It's a shame really since Sun Vulcan and Battle Fever J had moments when the replacement met their seniors.