TokuNation.com Interview with Bandai of America at NYCC 2013

Our administrator Sentai Tamashii sat down with Brehan Maul of Bandai of America who was kind enough to answer a variety of questions that we submitted from you, our users. So let's dive straight in to them, shall we?

Regarding the Legendary Morpher
For starters - yes, the Legendary Morpher does open and close clam-shell like, just like the show. Also, the keypad is fully functional. Each Ranger Key is unique, and will unlock a unique sound when used. Also, when you turn certain keys in immediate sequence (example: Super Megaforce Red, then Blue, then Green, then Yellow, then Pink) you will unlock a special sound. There will be many special combinations that will be leaked after release. It was not stated outright, but it was implied that the Legendary Morpher has a larger sound-bank than the Gokaiger Mobirate.

Regarding Ranger Keys
While they couldn't come right out and say if we would be getting a Ranger Key of any of the exclusive Power Rangers (Titanium, Elephant, Shark, Bat), it was stated that yes, Super Megaforce will have USA exclusive Ranger Keys that Japan did not get. Again, each key is unique and will unlock a special sound in the Legendary Morpher. Also, each key has a graphic that you can scan with an upcoming app that will then unlock that Power Ranger in the app.

Regarding Legacy items for Collectors
For starters, if you thought the Legacy Dragon Dagger looked impressive, check out this fact - the sample is all plastic! The final release will not be all plastic, though they did state that for safety reasons, the blade of the dagger will NOT be diecast metal. And for those wondering - the Legacy Dragon Dagger and Legacy Dragonzord are NOT the final Legacy items. There are more planned. Bandai of America would like to move on to series other than Mighty Morphin but nothing is planned at this time. So the future Legacy items will continue to be Mighty Morphin themed.

Regarding the Power Rangers Action Card Game
The Power Rangers ACG will continue through Super Megaforce.

Again, a huge thank you to Brehan Maul from Bandai of America for taking the time to not only answer our questions, but to GET answers he didn't have, as well as putting up with some of Sentai Tamashii's technical difficulties. We will have a video of this interview after the convention is over.

So what do you think? We will do a quick run-by follow up on Sunday, so if we missed anything dire (they can't always comment on things because marketing is different than development and some things aren't finalized) please feel free to post it here.

Exciting year ahead of us!

Oh God I'm so pumped for the Legendary Morpher now.

So, i took it as a possibility of a Legacy Thunder Megazord and White Tiger Zord. That would be quite awesome.

While it'd be unrealistic to expect a Legacy Jungle Pride, I would very much like to see a Legacy Ninja Megazord (Falcon included, hopefully).
...Oh, and I guess a Legacy brick house would be neat too, if it included a white arm. Legacy Battleborgs, too!

Anyway, I kind of figured they wouldn't make the blade of the Dragon Dagger metal. They can aim it at collectors and stamp "15+" on the box all they want, parents will still get them for kids, and kids will beat the hell out of their siblings with it

Unique sounds for each key eh? The legendary morpher is more than welcome in my collection then!

Good to see them moving in a better direction with more Legacy stuff. While I don't like to have PR equivalents of my sentai robos, Zyuranger through GoGoV can be pricey. So I'll take a cheaper alternative where and when it's possible.

Good to know the Legendary Morpher has a lot more sounds. But I feel I have to point out that it may not necessarily equal more in terms of quality. The Gosei Morpher used quite a few generic sound effects that weren't as elaborate as the Tensouder. I'm 50/50 on whether the inclusion of more sounds is an improvement or not. Honestly it could be a series of reused sounds slightly tweaked.

What I'm still really interested to know is if they plan to produce more original Grand Powers upgrade mecha than were originally present in Gokaiger. I don't expect them to be very elaborate but the mere inclusion of something like the "Red Zeo Battle Tank" is cool. It definitely shows a willingness on BOA's part to be creative again. If they could repeat a similar process for other ranger shows that won't have a "Legendary Machine" counterpart from Gokaiger then they could even sell someone like me on their line. And I don't mean the generic motorcycles as legs and arms things they always do. I mean legitimate additional zords/vehicles.