Yeah kinda? It’s more more tokusatsu, i.e., dudes fighting in costumes. Like Godzilla or Ultraman. The giant-robot elements are solidly fantasy instead of sci-fi.
A key distinction in unambiguous mecha shows is “real robots” versus “super robots.” Super came first and is basically superhero stories where the mild-mannered protagonist’s transformation or supernatural assistance is replaced by a comically large artificial humanoid. Real robot stories are generally sci-fi military fiction where those premises have been taken seriously and given dramatic weight. Power Rangers is definitely not the latter. I guess it’s solidly the former, just… undercut by the main characters also being superheroes in themselves. Like if Batman ended every episode in the Batplane, is that really the same genre as Top Gun?
Does Power Rangers count as mecha?
Hell yeah
Yeah kinda? It’s more more tokusatsu, i.e., dudes fighting in costumes. Like Godzilla or Ultraman. The giant-robot elements are solidly fantasy instead of sci-fi.
A key distinction in unambiguous mecha shows is “real robots” versus “super robots.” Super came first and is basically superhero stories where the mild-mannered protagonist’s transformation or supernatural assistance is replaced by a comically large artificial humanoid. Real robot stories are generally sci-fi military fiction where those premises have been taken seriously and given dramatic weight. Power Rangers is definitely not the latter. I guess it’s solidly the former, just… undercut by the main characters also being superheroes in themselves. Like if Batman ended every episode in the Batplane, is that really the same genre as Top Gun?