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under General Tokusatsu News, Godzilla, Kamen Rider

It’s almost back to normal time around here at TokuNation.com after spending the last week in San Diego, California. And for those of you who have purchased all the items you needed from SDCC 2014, it’s time to get ready for the next round of monthly shopping to begin! Our friends and site sponsor BigBadToyStore.com have put out their latest newsletter showcasing some of their new arrivals and new pre-orders in the store! Check out the new toku item pre-orders below!

NEW PRE-ORDERS!

Some great new items listed! Don’t miss your opportunity to pick yourself up that hot looking S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider Duke … a dealer at SDCC 2014 was selling the other S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider Gaim figures that have been released at a 85% mark-up and he sold out by Thursday!

To see the whole newsletter, simply click “Read More”! Be sure to pay our friends at BigBadToyStore.com a visit and tell them TokuNation.com sent you!
[Read more…]

under Conventions, Other Conventions, Power Rangers

This is the week of convention announcements, and they’re all awesome! For fans up north in Toronto will be pleased to hear that Unplugged Expo has just announced another guest – Jeff Parazzo, better known as Trent the White Ranger from Power Rangers Dino Thunder. He will join his fellow Dino Thunder cast mate Kevin Duhaney (Ethan, Blue Ranger of Power Rangers Dino Thunder) as well as the legendary Johnny Yong Bosch, known for his roles as the Black Ranger in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers as well as the Green Rangers in Power Rangers Zeo and Power Rangers Turbo.

Unplugged Expo runs the weekend of September 27th and 28th at the Chestnut Conference Centre in downtown Toronto. For more information, including how to register, head to www.UnpluggedExpo.com!

Check out this announcement video from Jeff Parazzo below!

under Conventions, Kamen Rider, Power Rangers, San Diego Comic Con, Super Sentai

It’s a busy week for the hosts of the Talkin Toku Podcast!

Joining Kickback/Chris, Den-O/Jordan, and Sentai Tamashii/Tom is none other than Deefuzz/Dan, known for his work with the PreOrder 66 Podcast. This means the entire news team covering this year’s SDCC is altogether for a podcast to discuss everything they’re looking forward to at SDCC 2014!

First things first – the group shares their thoughts and reactions to the news of Roberto Orci as the executive producer for the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Movie. Is it good news or bad news? How can he take the premise of Power Rangers and turn it in to a successful movie franchise? The guys discuss!

The topic quickly turns to SDCC 2014 – the guys talk about the coverage plans, tease at some stuff they can’t announce that are planned for SDCC 2014, and of course, they talk toys – what toys they want, what toys they don’t want, etc. Are any of them planning to grab the Bandai of America toys this year? And exactly what secret item is Kickback/Chris planning to bring home to his lady friend?

The show ends with the group discussing conventions in general and in specific TFCon Chicago, where they make plans on-air to attend the show together. D’aww.

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under Conventions, Power Morphicon, Power Rangers

It’s a great week to be a Power Rangers fan, and our friends at the Official Power Morphicon convention have made your August something you will never forget! On top of the earlier announcement of Zyuranger’s Geki appearing at this year’s show, they have also updated their guest list with more Power Rangers and folks involved with Power Rangers! Check out this list below and try to clean up all the foam coming out of your mouth!

  • Jorge Vargas Jr. (“Blake”, Ninja Storm Navy Thunder Ranger)
  • Kimberly Crossman (“Lauren”, Super Samurai Red Ranger #2)
  • Ann Austen (Writer/Producer for Mighty Morphin, Zeo, Turbo, Ninja Storm, Dino Thunder, and Masked Rider)
  • Takahiro Kikuchi (Fujiyama Ichiban)
  • Yumie Yamagiwa (“Margaret” from Fujiyama Ichiban)
  • Yuuki Luna Yamagiwa (“Sakura” from Fujiyama Ichiban)

Unfortunately, there’s some sad news to announce as well – another cancellation.  No word yet on how this effects the pricing and such of the Power Rangers Wild Force Photo Op that had been announced by the cast.

NO LONGER ATTENDING
  • Alyson Kiperman (Wild Force Yellow Ranger)

Stay tuned because there’s always announcements each and every single Monday! If you haven’t yet – click here to begin your registration process for Power Morphicon! Not only do you get to meet all these amazing guests (well over 100 now), you also have an opportunity to purchase the Bandai of America exclusive toy – which we might see this week at San Diego Comic Con 2014! Be sure to keep your browsers tuned to TokuNation.com as we are attending both San Diego Comic Con and Power Morphicon! See you at the shows!

under Power Rangers

The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers is getting a movie – and Roberto Orci was announced last week as the film’s executive producer. And now, a week later, he’s ready to talk, and did so with IGN’s Eric Goldman. We’ve taken the liberty of sharing the interview with you here!

IGN: How did you get involved in Power Rangers?

Orci: I happen to know Erik Feig, because we had some fun times doing Ender’s Game and Now You See Me. He’s at Lionsgate and he had mentioned that they were pursuing this property at Lionsgate and we just, because we’re friends, got to talking about it and he sort of roped me in – or I roped him in! I’m not sure which is which!

IGN: How do you approach the tone on something like this? It obviously has a perception going in, but it’s also going to be pushed to a wider audience besides the pre-existing fans.

Orci: Part of it is seeing what we remember of it; our generation and what our memories of it are. Part of it is seeing the fans of it today. There are a lot of kids that love it today, and so it’s about doing your homework. You talk to everybody who loves it and you find out why they love it and then you figure, what is the appropriate translation of that, tonally, to now? We have the added benefit of a movie is going to be two hours, or whatever it is, so it’s gotta have an arc and a reality to it that maybe you don’t have a chance to do all the time. That’s going to be the exciting part.

IGN: Presumably it’s not tied to the 21-year of history of the show. Are you going to use the same characters from the original series?

Orci: One of the first things we did was learn and read… They have 600 pages of research that they have on their stuff. We read through the synopsis of everything they did and we are actually taking into account quite a bit of the canon in a real way. We’re not just a leave it behind reboot. [Haim] Saban cares very much about that. This is something that he created. I had to go to his house, personally, to tell him, “Listen, I’m your man. Miller and Stenz, these are your guys. I promise you I won’t ruin your franchise.” And he said, “It’s very important to me, because kids around the world know what the Power Rangers are. So you can’t just come in here and walk all over it. It better be consistent with what I’ve been doing.” And I said, “Yes sir!”

IGN: Oh, so then does it does exist within the continuity of the TV show?

Orci: It’s got a continuity within the world. I can’t tell you what, but it does have a continuity.

IGN: As a Fringe fan, hearing Miller and Stenz were working with you on this, it’s fun to have you together again on such a different project.

Orci: It’s great. I’ve been working with them for years, so when I found out they were available, I called Erik Feig and said, “Hey, these guys might want to come on. What do you think of the three of us…?” He was like, “Come on! Let’s do it!”

IGN: Think we might hear anything about a director in the not too distant future?

Orci: I’m sure they’d like one right away! We’ve got to give them a script first.

IGN: Lastly, I’m sure you know you’re going to be getting this question… Any possibility for cameos or appearances by original cast members?

Orci: Of course. That’s something we want to rely on the Saban group to tell us. They have a lot of internal knowledge of their franchise and we’re just learning now. We’ve seen it only as fans, but they actually know it inside and out, so I’d love to know what fans want to see.

Again, special thanks to IGN for this interview that, obviously, has answered some questions for Power Rangers fans. You check out the original article by IGN clicking here. So what do you think Power Rangers fans? Excited yet? Sound off!

under Conventions, Kamen Rider, Power Morphicon, Power Rangers, Super Sentai

Today was one of the biggest announcements yet for this year’s Official Power Morphicon convention. Promising an unbelievable announcement for today’s guest revealing was an understatement – fans of Power Rangers and Super Sentai now have a reason to come together.

Headlining today’s guest announcement is Yuuta Mochizuki, better known as Geki the Tyranno Ranger from Kyoryu Sentai Zyuranger, the series that Mighty Morphin Power Rangers was adapted from. Basically, the original Red Ranger from Mighty Morphin Power Rangers and the Tyranno Ranger from Kyoryu Sentai Zyuranger will be appearing at a convention together for possibly the first and only time.

Also from the press release sent directly from the Official Power Morphicon convention comes the announcement that Hiroshi Maeda, a professional Japanese stunt actor, will be appearing at the show. You’ll know him best as the stunt actor for Tyranno Ranger in Zyuranger, as well as numerous other Red Rangers for the Power Rangers franchise. And last but not least – Yasuhiro Takeuchi, another Japanese stunt actor who played both Dragon Ranger in Zyuranger as well as the Green Ranger in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. On top of that, he has also worn many of the Megazord suits for filming.

The Official Power Morphicon convention happens August 22nd to August 24th at the Pasadena Convention Center in Pasadena, California. Tickets are still available (but only for a couple of more weeks) – click here to begin your registration process so you don’t miss out!

Please read the full press release after the jump!
[Read more…]

under Power Rangers, Super Sentai

We haven’t talked much about it here, but there’s this awesome indie game being created, thanks to a crowd-funded Kickstarter, called Chroma Squad! The premise behind the game was that you created your own Super Sentai television show – complete from picking the Rangers, the actors, and played the game in a semi-RPG style to gain ratings, more funding, and unlock cool things as you progressed through your created season. The game was successfully funded through Kickstarter on August 21st, 2013 at $97,148 with a goal of $55,000.

However, the villain that faces the Chroma Squad right now isn’t digital or even made of rubber – it’s made of suits that represent Saban Brands, owners of the Power Rangers intellectual property across the globe, which of course, is adapted from Super Sentai. According to an E-mail sent to backers of the Kickstarter, Saban Brands has threatened to sue the developers if they continue to release the game … unless they agree to split royalties. Now, as many note, Chroma Squad is more based on Super Sentai than it is anything Power Rangers, but alas – Saban Brands does own the adaption rights nearly worldwide for Super Sentai.

Either way, the fan community is split – those who followed and backed the Chroma Squad project are angry. There are others who didn’t follow it because they weren’t interested and they don’t seem to care either way. This only begs the question – why can’t Saban Brands go after something that calls itself Power Rangers, has those involved referring to themselves as Power Rangers (even to sick kids in hospitals), has names directly taken from Power Rangers, and has potentially ripped off hundreds of fans for tens of thousands of dollars? Especially instead of something that doesn’t refer to itself as such and was going to be made simply to give a lot of video game fans who enjoy Super Sentai and Power Rangers a chance to live out their imagination? If you need some help Haim Saban, we’re more than happy to point you in the right direction.

Sound off #RangerNation … is Saban Brands going too far? Or are they justified in their decision? We’d love to hear your thoughts! Stay tuned for further updates on this story.

under Super Sentai

Some of you may be asking “Really? Is this NEWS?” … and yes, yes it is. Because not only for minipla collectors is it frustrating when your ripped open box is thrown away (cuz the instructions are on the box), but now you can download them and be able to look at them with your hearts content. And for those asking about news – well, there’s news here too.

Bandai Japan has been kind enough to post the instructions online for most of the Ressha Sentai ToQGer Miniplas. This is great news for collectors who have misplaced them or simply had the boxes thrown away or too damaged to read (or you didn’t put the stickers on and…whoops). Also of note – Build Ressha has the instructions posted and this item has not yet released. It’s a great first-look at, in a way, how the toy is going to work and combine with the others.

Again – click here to check out the manuals. And kudos to Bandai Japan – this is a great thing for us Minipla collectors! Hope to see more series put up in the future!

under Conventions, Power Rangers, San Diego Comic Con

If you’re headed to San Diego Comic Con 2014, be sure to stop by the Bluefin Tamashii Nations booth #3545. When you make a purchase, they will include, while supplies last, a free Uchiwa (Japanese styled fan). They have five different versions that they will be including free with your purchases (one for each day), and the first one revealed is a S.H. Figuarts Mighty Morphin Power Rangers themed one.

Be sure that your purchase is none other than their exclusive S.H. Figuarts Mighty Morphin Armored Black Ranger figure (and maybe that animation colored Vegeta too!).

TokuNation.com is the only place you need to have your browsers tuned to for the week of SDCC 2014. We are in attendance this year with MORE staff than last year to assure you the best, most in-depth coverage you will find anywhere for tokusatsu news, information, pictures, videos, interviews, and so much more. We have a LOT in store for you – some of which we can’t talk about yet – and each day promises to be filled with fun and excitement. Follow all of our social media accounts listed below so you don’t miss out on seeing the news and pictures FIRST!

– Follow us @TokuNation on Twitter
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If you’d like to keep up on what our news team is doing, who just happen to be the hosts or guests of our @TalkinToku Podcast, follow their individual twitters. They will be posting their own thoughts and reactions and celebrity interactions as they occur!

– Follow Kickback @rankal on Twitter
– Follow Den-O @DenO_TokuNation on Twitter
– Follow Deefuzz @Deefuzz on Twitter

This year promises to be even BIGGER than last year! Look for our coverage to begin on Tuesday, July 22nd, with official images rolling in on Wednesday, July 23rd.

under Power Rangers

If you’ve been missing new adventures of the Power Rangers Super Megaforce, good news – we have a date on when they will return! The bad news? You still have over another month to wait. Thanks to Fury Diamond and his Samurai Cast Blog, we know that Power Rangers Super Megaforce will return with all new episodes on Saturday, August 30th on Nickelodeon.

The first new episode will actually be Episode 09 of Super Megaforce titled “The Power of Six”, where Jake must get over his jealousy of Gia and Orion to help Orion use the combined powers of the past sixth Rangers in order to defeat a new monster. For those who didn’t follow Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger, that means it’s the premiere episode of the Gold Mode for the Super Megaforce Silver Ranger, where he utilizes an armor with the faces of all the previous sixth Rangers.

Excited for Super Megaforce to return? Or are you just counting down the months until the premiere of Power Rangers Dino Charge? Join in the discussion!