Power Rangers Super Megaforce at Monkey Quest

Ever since Power Rangers Samurai, the monkeys at Monkey Quest have been able to go to an arena and don the costumes (usually split by pants, shirt and mask). Those who play Monkey Quest, know these costumes don't protect much and are no substitute for armor. I want to commend the MQ people for doing a great job on the arena, it is bigger than any other arena for Power Rangers. Also it has 'Monkey Keys' (you can't use them but still nice to see them) with Red, Blue and Green Samurai and all 5 Megaforce represented. The lengths you have to go (fight X-Borgs and other monsters) are a bit long just for one item and getting repeats. Most items are for Level 10 and the Super Mega Saber are for Level 15. And you have to be a member to don them. This didn't happen before. I don't like that but it is clever. It ends June 24th so hurry and get your suits!

 

 

New Power Rangers Super Megaforce Nick Trailer

This is going around everywhere but now it is my obligation to share whatever Saban Brands shares with me:

Check out this exclusive video from TVGuide.com announcing that Saban's Power Rangers Super Megaforce will premiere on Nickelodeon on February 15 at noon/11c!

http://www.tvguide.com/News/Power-Rangers-Super-MegaForce-Premiere-1076101.aspx

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Weekend

This weekend TeenNick will be hosting a POWERED UP Mighty Morphin Weekend, with a complete Power Ranger takeover of "The '90s Are All That" block! Starting Friday, episodes of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers will be running from 12AM ET/9PM PT – 4AM ET/1AM PT.

What better way to celebrate the 20th Anniversary than with classic '90s episodes all weekend long?! Check out the link below for a sneak peek of the action packed Mighty Morphin Weekend only on TeenNick!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2eKwx7C7kd8&noredirect=1

Bits of News this Week: Power Rangers with Nick through 2016 and Tribe of the Wild

 Hollywood Reporter:

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/mighty-morphin-power-rangers-just-639464

Press Release:

http://blog.samuraicast.com/saban-brands-extends-partnership-nickelodeon-bandai-america-2016-press-release/

As you guys may already know, Power Rangers extended the partnership with Nickelodeon until 2016. Which what might happen is another 2 years for one theme and 20 episodes per them. Next up to be adapted is Go-Busters.

New York Comic Con starts Thursday October 10th! TokuNation will have exclusive pitures and info, so check them out for that.

 These cards will be given out by Bandai American at NYCC.

This exclusive Mighty Morphin Red Ranger Tokyo Vinyl will also be available.

 Tribe of the Wild

I haven't mentioned this much because there hasn't been much info. Basically Shuki Levy, who was Haim Saban's partner in music in the 80's and producer of Power Rangers. Premise: "In this sci fi action adventure series for teens, five high school friends are abducted by aliens and find themselves in an unfamiliar world where past, present and future are merged into one."

 GABRIEL MARSHALL (Cody Beverstock) - Gabriel is a handsome, charismatic, all-American athlete who is not aware of his good looks. He truly looks like a high school student, and as the football quarterback, is constantly pressured to meet his father’s expectations on the field. While his focus is sports, he’s still smart, making him a natural leader.  

AMANDA STARKS (Nisalda Gonzalez) – Attractive and athletic, Amanda is a booksmart but still sociable and popular girl. She has a tendency to hide her nerdier side, but still cares about her GPA. She has a very loving family background.

ALEX RUSSELL (Andrew Hellenthal) – Intelligent and deeply interested in the supernatural, Alex is a little withdrawn from the more popular high school social circles, but is still friendly and able to socialize with the “In” crowd. He’s a little hesitant to share his belief in extraterrestrials, but if he feels comfortable, he’s more than willing to enter detailed descriptions of his research. He’s curious and adventurous, and is someone who could have several secret admirers.  

ANGELO FRANCO (Jared Hernandez) – Angelo is the class clown who is cute, outgoing, and can’t keep his mouth shut. He’s accepted by the popular kids, but still hangs with the nerdier kids. The son of a widower, he sometimes uses humor to cover up the sadness he feels due to the loss of his mother.  He is just as quick-witted and adventurous as his friends.

KELLY GREEN – Kelly is a young, cute, All-American cheerleader, but she’s far from typical. While she is the first one to want to brush over anything nerdy or science-related and is more interested in her appearance, she has a definite emotional and sensitive side. She is quite independent and with a single working mother, finds herself either alone or at Amanda’s house most nights.

French, Spanish, if you're not American, you get new Power Rangers Episodes

Last year when we were waiting for the second batch of episodes of Super Samurai, Nickelodeon Latin America (In Spanish in Mexico, Central America and South America) airs them before North America aired them. Now for the second half of Megaforce is airing in France. In France, they started the first half a couple months ago and now as of September 10th, they showed "Ultra Power" and "Last Laugh." This is probably the decision of the higher ups of those channels (Nick LA and Nick France). "Ultra Power" will air September 14 in the United States.

Power Rangers Megaforce: Never Surrender Game Review

Never Surrender is the new Nick.com game. I am not much of a gamer but I got really into the Super Samurai game, I am not so crazy about the previous Samurai game. So I decided to try this one out.

http://www.nick.com/games/power-rangers-megaforce-never-surrender.html

Unlike the Super Samurai game, you can have two Rangers at once but you only get to play one. You select your Ranger and then you have to select your partner. Once you accumulate cards and pass a level, you get more cards for your Ranger. So far there is 3 cards per Ranger.

 I forget how many levels there are, I think it is 5. Unlike Super Samurai game, you don't get to pick the level. Also you can't pick Easy or Hard. Each level just gets harder. This is a detergent for my grand-nephew Jaiden as he is only 3 and looses a lot on the harder levels. And when you lose, it doesn't say "Game Over"---it says "Continue."

 Up arrow makes you go up the screen. There is no things you have to jump except for in level one where you jump boulders. To jump press the Letter "Z." The green bar represents your life level. The Blue level represents the use of the "X" key. In Super Samurai, it was "Z" that had to be filled and it called your zords. So using X makes a dual attack between the two rangers. If you lose your partner, the X key is useless.

Your enemies are Green Loogies with axes, White Loogies with lasers and big giant Red Loogies with big axes. One bad thing is that you press "Spacebar" to attack but it alternates from your weapon to the Mega Blaster. Even when having the card of your weapon, you still have the Mega Blaster. There is no real way to keep one weapon. When you get close to an object or villain, your personal weapon appears. From far away shots and pressing Spacebar makes use of the Mega Blaster.  

 Pressing down on the Space Bar does call for the Mega Blaster. When you get a zord card, it just provides a strong blast from your Mega Blaster with an animal symbol. So the first card you can get is the weapon card, then the zord card and the final is dyanamic card, which costs the most points. When a villain goes down, you collect Gosei Morphers that provides points. Also you can pick up a "Health Box" to increase your green bar. Your partner can disappear after being beaten but there is no status bar to your partner and there is no way you can save them other than having your life bar up.

You can also smash things around like trash can, hot dog stand, newspaper bin and etc. to gain points.

It is hard to smash things when you use your zord card because it mostly calls your Mega Blaster. You don't call zords and the monsters don't become big, which my nephew does not like. He liked that part in the Super Samurai game. There is three main villains, one level doesn't have a main villain. There is Sacarba, the Monster of the Day of the first episode, Creepox and Vrax. Vrax appears on the last two levels. Vrax is hard to beat. You get a life bar of the villain to see but he doesn't really react and interact with you like the Loogies do. They just keep attacking.

Like Super Samurai, playing the Blue Ranger is hard for short range attacks because he has a bow. The Blue Samurai Ranger had a bow that was only good to shoot at villains for far away. Playing this Blue Ranger, the Bowgun up close to a villain doesn't pack much of a punch. Same goes for Pink's Phoenix Shot.

When you pass a level, you can enter the shop. Most of the time, you get around less than 2000 points and only can afford the cheaper cards. I do not know what happens yet if you get all the cards. When you get one card, it later says "Sold Out." If you don't have enough coins, it says that.

1000 points gets you a weapon card, a zord card is 1200 points and a Dynamic card is 2000 points. It is easier to get cards and things in this game than in Monkey Quest. I got an overload of the same color helmet or shirt but still haven't been able to get certain colors. Anyway, I digress. The dynamic card deals with an attack having to do with your weapon in some way.

 All in all, it is a good effort game, but I don't like how your weapon alternates from where you are and some times its hard to gauge. I also don't like how you can't help your Partner ranger out. My nephew doesn't like that the monsters do not grow and you can't play the Megazords. He currently has a thing for Megazords. I do like that the duo attack called upon the "X" key has feathers in it, inspired by Goseiger---they were Gosei Angels.

UPDATED 2/25/13

Now they put a choice of Easy, Medium and Hard. Also, you can choose a new game. Plus, when you get the dynamic card, any Ranger you picked would have an Earth dust effect before. But now with Red and Pink, you get fire and Blue you get water. Black and Yellow Rangers gets black puffs of smoke now.

Feb 2 is the premiere date for Power Rangers Megaforce

Every Power Rangers fansite, fan twitter account and blog is raving over the newly announce date 2/2/13 at 1 pm EST/12 pm Central on Nick for Megaforce. Now most fans can sigh a big sigh of relief. Robo Knight is seen between the cast in the photo above, they haven't announce his voice actor as of yet. It pretty much a confirmation that Robo Knight will not a regular cast member or secret identity (as of yet). Most likely he will be like Gosei Knight, who was the lion robo.

TV Guide:

http://www.tvguide.com/News/Power-Rangers-Megaforce-Premiere-1059159.aspx?rss=news&partnerid=spi&profileid=05
http://nickelodeon.tumblr.com/post/40686675050/first-look-at-the-new-power-rangers-megaforce

Year in Review: Pros and Cons of Power Rangers Samurai on Nickelodeon

UPDATED 12/9/12
Pictures thanks to: samuraicast.com
When it was announced that Power Rangers would air on Nickelodeon, I was a bit wary but excited. Wary because their scheduling is always erratic and random. For example, iCarly never had proper numbers for seasons. Most kid shows last 2 years and 65 episodes but according to its creator, they never had a real break between seasons and the last season was filmed as one but split into two. Anyway, now that Samurai is almost over, I want to go over the pros and cons of having Power Rangers Samurai and Super Samurai on Nickelodeon. Now NickToons will be discussed below.

Promotion
In the winter of 2010 and early 2011, there was a lot of promos for Power Rangers Samurai, including mini ones showing off each Ranger. After each episode, they showed a clip of the next episode. Halfway into the first season, they just showed a generic promo. I think they did show 'next on' promos later on in 2011. I do remember a promo running for the Christmas episode. Also, there was NO promo for the "Clash of the Red Rangers" special. The Thanksgiving Parade appearance served as a indirect promotion for it. There was no "Next On" promo for the Super Samurai season. Also, a Fall promo showed up in June but no exact word on when the new episodes would air, keep reading for more.

There was the recent and atrocious mistake done by Nickelodeon where for Thanksgiving promo, they use the Red SPD Ranger in place of a Samurai Ranger when advertising Power Rangers Samurai. NickToons which has aired a varity of Power Rangers seasons, including SPD, have yet to do something of this nature.



Scheduling
PRS started on Sundays at 12 and quickly moved to Saturdays at 12. But for some unknown reason, the first two episodes were not aired first. This caused a lot of debate in fans as to if "The Team Unites" was the first episode or not. Because clips of the first episode was seen in the promos and the first episode "Origins Part 1" did not air until October 15, 2011. Further, Origins Part 1 and 2 barely have anything to do with each other as there are two different monsters. Saban did release promotional t-shirts for cast and crew that said "Power Rangers Origins." While the Origins episodes did not have earth-shattering secrets, it did establish the Symbol Powers and plot, which could had been nice to air at the beginning. We older fans could follow it but younger fans might have a little lost but they got it eventually. Episode 18 "The Ultimate Duel" was the last episode to air chronologically, it aired Oct. 8. After that was Origins and then Party Monsters, Clash of the Red Rangers and Christmas Together, Friends Forever.

First season had a break from June 4th to October 1st (17 weeks) and second season had a break from May 12 to Oct 13 (24 weeks). To kids, 2 weeks is more than a month and 24 weeks, that is like a year. Kids complained to me that there were too many  repeats. With only 20 episodes and 3 specials in 2011, that is understandable. But what I would had suggested was having 5 breaks throughout the year. Like for example, 5 new episodes February-March, take a break and then 5 new ones in April-May and then in August and the rest in October. And the specials after that. But oh well. Also there was erratic time changes to the second half of Super Samurai like moving the show to 1pm and then to 11:30am one Saturday and the Christmas special is scheduled for noon, who knows if it will air at that time.

 Nick LA (Latin America)

Another faux pas (other than Origins and schedule changing) was that Nickelodeon of Latin America aired the last episodes of Super Samurai (revealing female Red Ranger, Shogun mode outside of a zord and Skull's return) before they did in the US. Why was this significant? Because given that Power Rangers was first made to appeal to an American audience and the giant gap of 24 weeks in season two for new episodes, it would had been nice if we got it first. Back in the day of MMPR heyday (1993), the internet was not as prominent and maybe fans would had not noticed. I know that most kids I know didn't know about it. But we adult fans were a bit irked about this. Other countries like UK and France also got episodes before the US.

 NickToons

NickToons have aired Ninja Storm, Jungle Fury, Time Force, SPD, and Dino Thunder and also Samurai and Super Samurai, they have done marathons and also they have aired Power Rangers for seven days straight and at different time. I don't have NickToons so I don't have complaints about it. But from what I've heard, it is all good.

Two Year Split

Yes, Nick is part of the reason that Samurai was split into two seasons. Nick asked for 20 episodes per year. So they were able to do 40 for two years but also add specials. I see the specials as a loophole for Saban to add more episodes. Elie Dekel of Saban Brands said that they did because they wanted to synch the theme with every country into the world, so seasons won't overlap each other and launch a new season at the same time. I personally did not like the 2 years of Samurai AT FIRST because it felt like a delay and also I knew it would delay Sentai even more. Power Rangers was always a year behind the Sentai before 2010.

For example, Go-Onger aired in 2008 and Power Rangers RPM adapted it in 2009. With the 2010 gap (the transition from Disney to Saban), Power Rangers had a two year gap and now in 2013, there is a three year gap. Power Rangers Megaforce will premiere in 2013 but the series Goseiger it is based on aired in 2010. So here we go with two years with Power Rangers Megaforce. The second season is rumored to be called Super Megaforce, the title 'Ultra Megaforce' was copyrighted in 2012. It is also said that Gokaiger footage will be adapted for the second season. And we will be getting 20 episodes and 2 specials for each year as well. Maybe a teamup special will be thrown in there too. In theory, if Saban still has control over Vortexx in 2015, the new Power Rangers season might have more than 20 episodes and last only one year.

Yellow and Green Shogun Mode
Check Power Rangers Super Samurai, Yellow and Green Shogun Rangers appear on the show briefly in a short sequence with five in Shogun Mode but they NEVER appear in action. We saw Yellow (above) in a promo pic in Nick.com and Calendar. Green didn't get a toy or even a promo pic or even appears in the calendar. I asked Tsuyoshi Nonaka why all 5 have Shogun mode and he said Saban asked for it. So my question is.... WHY MAKE TWO SHOGUN MODE SUITS AND NOT EVEN USE THEM ON THE SHOW????

Conclusion
In conclusion, the move to Nick has been a mix-bag. A news article reported that Disney wanted Saban to agree not to have PR on Nickelodeon because that was their competitor and that is exactly what Saban did after gaining the rights back. It has been great that so many kids have seen it but there are still kids that have no cable. So Saban bought CW4Kids and now it is on Vortexx on CW which would be a perfect home for new episodes of Power Rangers. But the buying transcation happened after Saban signed with Nick for Power Rangers Megaforce to air on it.

Power Rangers returns to Orlando through Nick Suites Resorts!

UPDATED 11/21/12

 http://attractionsmagazine.com/blog/2012/10/23/power-rangers-returning-to-orlando-for-a-limited-time-meet-them-at-nickelodeon-suites-resort/

I was in Orlando at the time and couldn't report on this. 

Kids or us Adult fans still have an opportunity to meet the Power Rangers and take photos during the Nick Hotel’s Power Ranger Weekend! The weekend will take place from Nov. 16 to 18 at the Nickelodeon Suites Resort in Orlando.

Here’s some of the opportunities they will offer:

Power Up with a Power Rangers Brunch – Guests will enjoy a brunch, meet all six of the Power Rangers (Samurai), get autographs, have their photo taken with their favorite Rangers, and practice special Ranger training moves.

Available Nov. 17 and 18. Four one-hour sessions to choose from:

7:30 a.m. – 8:30 a.m.

 9 a.m. – 10 a.m.

 10:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.

Noon – 1 p.m.

Space is limited.

Exclusive Meet & Greets – Meet your favorite Power Rangers and have your photo taken together. Autograph cards available during signing.

Dive-In Movie – Watch an episode of Power Rangers Super Samurai on the big screen by the Lagoon Pool. Available Nov. 16 and 17 beginning at 8 p.m.

Video Game Showdown- Put your gaming skills to the test at our Video Game Showdown in Studio B. Available from 7 – 8 p.m. on Nov 17.

Charges apply for each event. You may book online or call 1-877-642-5111

Official Website: http://www.nickhotel.com/plan/nick-hotel-annual-events.aspx

http://www.nickhotel.com/rangers.aspx

Power Rangers Network and Cable Scheduling

 I thank Burgundy Ranger of Power Rangers On-Air Central for this help on scheduling. He specializes in archiving the scheduling of programs, including Power Rangers. I wanted to make a record to as to what times have Power Rangers have aired on Network and Cable television.

Official Eastern and Pacific Times:

On Fox: 11:30am / 7:30am (weekdays, 3:30pm for afternoon affiliates) / 8:30am / 8:00am / 9:00am / 9:30am ... 8:30am weekdays (4:30 pm for afternoon affiliates) / 10:30am / 11am

 Affiliates could change the times. In Washington DC, Burgundy Ranger says 3-5pm and then 2-4 on weekdays. For my local city of Miami, it was early affiliate at 7:30am and then changed to 4:30pm on weekdays.

Fox then had 'Prime Time Power Rangers' in 1994 on three Fridays. First week July 21, 1994, Mutiny Part 1 at 8PM and X-Men at 8:30 and then second week July 29 at 8PM with Mutiny Part 2. Mutiny Part 3 aired August 5th at 8PM. I think one of the parts aired at 8:30PM.

ABC (all times Eastern): 11:30, 12:00, 12:30. 5 a.m. was never part of a set network schedule. It was up to the affiliate. I heard that some affiliates aired it at 5, 7, and 8 AM. My affiliate did Wild Force and Ninja Storm and Dino Thunder at 11:30am and 12pm and everything from SPD to RPM was at 5am and 5:30am. Retrofan says his local station did 6am and 10am. ABC only did Saturdays.

On ABC Family, the Jetix block aired from 7am to 12, I am not sure about the times of Power Rangers. I think Dino Thunder aired like at 8 or 9. And repeats of past seasons aired at 8 and 11 or something like that. Marathons did run of PR but I am not sure if it was 7am to 12. ABC Family did Sundays. I forgot that there was a brief period where FOX Family was transitioning into ABC Family.

On Toon Disney, I know PR aired at 8pm. It might have aired at different hours, I am not sure. I didn't have Toon Disney. Toon Disney air PR almost every day.

On Nickelodeon, they have aired Power Rangers Samurai on Sunday at 12 and then Saturdays at 12 and sometimes at 12:30 and now I hear in an early time.

 On Nick Toons, they have played marathons so it is possible they have played Power Rangers at every time. Nick Toons have played PR on every single day practically. Sometimes skip a day but eventually that day does get PR airing.

And now on the CW, Power Rangers Lost Galaxy airs at 8am in the Vortexx block.

Monkey Quest's Power Rangers promotion

Monkey Quest is a Nickelodeon game designed for kids ages 8-12 that's absolutely free! Since its launch in early 2011, it has already reached over 10 million players! Additionally, Monkey Quest will be doing a Power Rangers promotion starting in late May and running through June! The promotion will include an Arena Challenge and there will be special prizes every day with the Power Rangers theme. 

 Nickelodeon’s Monkey Quest, the action-packed massively multiplayer online game (MMOG), now ranks as the fastest-growing virtual world for kids* in its first year live, amassing 10 million registered users since its April 2011 launch. To celebrate this milestone, Monkey Quest players around the world will be gifted limited-edition battle gear through the end of the month.  Players enter the world of Monkey Quest by creating a monkey warrior and gear up for battle as they embark on an epic adventure, fighting evil monsters bent on stopping them from completing quests, joining tribes, and ultimately unlocking the secrets of the legendary Monkey King.

- Team up with the Power Rangers and battle evil in Ook

- A Red Ranger monkey marks the entrance to an exclusive Power Rangers-themed arena, where players can hone their fighting skills against some of Ook’s toughest monsters.

- After defeating the arena a special chest will unlock, awarding the player one of 8 different prizes, including a Samurai Sword, Power Rangers Masks and consumables that will help them during their next battle.

- Players can return every day to battle evil and to receive another prize.

Info thanks to: Monkey Quest Affiliate Team of the Intelligent Performance Marketing

Remember to keep tuning in to Power Rangers Morphenomenon: Featuring DinoThunder, on Nicktoons!

Power Rangers needs your viewership!

Jungle Fury Marathon on Nicktoons 11/18/11

Hey Power Rangers fans, wanna see some of the previous Ranger series? Jungle Fury joins #Nicktoons on 11/18 at 7pm ET w/ a 48 hr marathon!

 

https://twitter.com/#!/NickelodeonTV/status/131093156639936512

It finally happened, former seasons on Nicktoons but fans are surprised it is Jungle Fury and not the first season. And strangely, the Power Rangers official Facebook and Twitter haven't mentioned a thing.

“Power Rangers Samurai” Hits Series High Ratings, “Supah Ninjas” Hits Series Low

"On Saturday, April 30, the move of Power Rangers Samurai to a new day for new episodes caused the series to hit a record high in total viewers: 3.184 million viewers (you can see more ratings from the show here). In fact, Power Rangers Samurai’s noon airing on Saturday was watched by more people than each show airing in primetime that night on Nickelodeon and Disney Channel!

However, on the same day (and in primetime none-the-less), Supah Ninjas hit a series low, after only three weeks, in total viewers: 2.106 million viewers. The show premiered on April 16 to 3.1 million and dropped on April 23 to 2.872 million."

http://www.nickandmore.com/2011/05/04/power-rangers-samurai-hits-series-high-ratings-supah-ninjas-hits-series-low/
http://www.nickandmore.com/shows/power-rangers-samurai/

Stephen Lunsford and Felix Ryan in Victorious

I usually do not watch "Victorious" but I was flipping around and found yesterday's episode "A Film my Dale Squires" featured Stephen Lunsford as Dale Squires and Felix Ryan as Damian. Felix Ryan plays Spike on Power Rangers Samurai and has appeared in 3 other episodes as Damian on Victorious. Stephen Lunsford played Kit on Kamen Rider Dragon Knight.