The ‘Super Sentai series,’ the quintessential Japanese tokusatsu (special-effects live-action) hero franchise that enjoyed popularity for half a century, came to a close on the 8th.

Local media reported in unison that with the broadcast of the final episode of TV Asahi and production company Toei’s Super Sentai series ‘Our Number-One Sentai Gojujer! (hereafter Gojujer)’ on the 8th, the Super Sentai series, loved by many children since 1975, had ended its run. In Gojujer’s final episode, 49 actors who had played the lead Red role across past installments all assembled, offering staging that summed up the franchise over 50 years. ‘Tokusatsu’ is the Japanese-style abbreviation for special-effects live-action productions. The term is widely used among fans of these works in Korea as well.

Fans of Japan’s Super Sentai series who watched Gojujer’s finale posted on social media (SNS) X (X) messages such as ‘Super Sentai is over’ ‘Thank you, Gojujer, Super Sentai’ ‘Until the day we meet again’ and ‘Super Sentai series forever,’ expressing affection for the installments aired so far and hopes that the series will resume someday. Japanese outlet Sports Hochi reported that actress Nakagawa Shoko, a fan of the Super Sentai series, posted ‘Thank you, Super Sentai’ on her X along with a crying emoji. Nakagawa also added, ‘Thank you for so many sparkling memories. A world without Super Sentai has begun. I truly loved you, Super Sentai.’

Concluding with Gojujer, the Super Sentai series began with ‘Secret Squadron Gorenger,’ which first aired on April 5, 1975. The original creator was Ishinomori Shotaro, the same as for the Kamen Rider series, which is counted along with Super Sentai and Ultraman as a representative tokusatsu work. Coinciding with the spread of color TV at the time, the format of heroes in suits of red, blue, black, green, yellow, and pink teaming up to fight enjoyed explosive popularity among children. From 1979 onward, one installment aired every year. The total number of installments is 49.

Shirakura Shinichiro, a producer at Toei who has long produced the Super Sentai series, said in an interview on the 28th of last month with the Mainichi Elementary School Newspaper, the elementary school edition of the Mainichi Shimbun, that the Super Sentai series “became hugely popular among children along with the spread of color television,” and that “across the series, the red hero often played the role of leader, and in most cases was passionate and serious in character.”

The Super Sentai series was introduced widely not only in Japan but also to children around the world, including Korea. In Korea it became known mainly under the name ‘Power Rangers,’ and as various installments such as ‘Jungle Force,’ ‘Magic Force,’ and ‘Engine Force’ gained popularity, robots and other merchandise played the role of ‘back-breakers’ for parents.

Among heroes wearing suits in different colors, the Red character in the red suit in particular came to be seen as a symbol of Super Sentai shows. Because many actors who debuted through these works went on to great popularity and became top stars, the Super Sentai series was also regarded as a gateway to stardom. Starting with ‘Dinosaur Squadron Zyuranger,’ which aired in 1992, dinosaurs, cars, animals, and other themes popular with children were adopted as major motifs.

The factors behind the ending of this much-loved Super Sentai series included economic reasons such as production costs and changes among children, who are the main viewers and customers. The most direct cause cited was soaring production costs. Sports Hochi reported that it had become difficult to cover production costs solely with revenue from events, sales of toys and other related merchandise, and film adaptations.

In particular, the increase in children who watch YouTube or enjoy mobile games on smartphones rather than playing with toys has played a decisive role in worsening profits. Sales of toys such as figures of heroes and robots that appear in the Super Sentai series have been recording increasingly sluggish results. It also appears that, as in the past, producing a tokusatsu show every week under harsh conditions has become difficult.

Some also argued that simply following the existing format of the Super Sentai series had limits amid the diversification of children’s tastes. Producer Shirakura told the Mainichi Elementary School Newspaper that he also felt a gap with Japanese animation. He explained, “(Animation) is creating more varied expressions than tokusatsu ‘Sentai’,” and “Rather than expressing only within the framework called ‘Sentai,’ I thought we must create new tokusatsu heroes so as not to lose to animation.”

Sports Hochi reported on the 8th that in November last year TV Asahi President Arata Nishi said, “We want to take 50 years as a turning point and create new heroes not bound by existing frameworks,” adding, “If possible, we would like to build a new brand as a turning point.”

In the Sunday morning slot where the Super Sentai series had aired, since the 15th a new tokusatsu series in which a red hero plays an active role, ‘Project R.E.D,’ has been broadcast. The first work in this series is ‘Space Sheriff Gavan Infinity,’ which inherits the ‘Space Sheriff Gavan’ that was popular in Japan between 1982 and 1983.

TV Asahi said that the Super Sentai series would not be completely terminated, but the Super Sentai series, which had been responsible for Japanese children’s Sunday mornings for half a century, has entered a hiatus whose end is unknown.