Power Rangers turned 25 last month, but the series it owes its existence to—Toei’s tokustatsu icon Super Sentai—has been around since 1975. Ever wondered what it took to turn Spandex-clad Japanese heroes into all-American Power Rangers? Here’s a handy video guide to the secret behind every Power Rangers show.
As you probably know by now, the original Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers liberally used action footage fromeven by Haim Saban himself, before Saban Entertainment eventually struck gold with Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers.
Taking the in-costume action sequences of Zyuranger while lopping off the Japanese story to replace with newly-shot footage featuring the teens with attitude we’ve come to know and love, Power Rangers’ writers found themselves having to find clever ways to blend Japan and American-made superhero action into a cohesive whole, as you can see in the video above. It’s a tradition that still persists today, with the upcoming Power Rangers Beast Morphers—the first series under Hasbro’s new ownership of the franchise—which borrows footage from 2012’s Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters. So remember the next time you catch the Rangers on TV—you’re getting a little taste of a whole other universe of superheroes from Japan’s shores.
This video was created by Hodges Usry. You can see more of his videos here.