Copyright Screen Rant
Few TV shows out there have a legacy quite like Power Rangers, which debuted in 1993’s Mighty Morphin and has regularly reinvented itself across dozens of distinct seasons ever since. Every era brought a fresh team of color-coded heroes, a new roster of Rangers, and epic Zord battles that became part of childhood rituals. The franchise kept shifting identities, yet remained recognisable. At the core of every version of Power Rangers lies a singular source: footage from Japan’s long-running Super Sentai franchise. From giant mechas punching skyscrapers to Ranger teams morphing mid-battle, the American show lifted its most iconic visuals from Sentai. This visual DNA made the Rangers feel big, explosive, and global in scope across every iteration. After 30 years of constant reinvention on the air, Power Rangers is now at a crossroads. The relationship with Super Sentai is changing forever, and that shift forces the franchise into territory fans have never seen. For those who have witnessed the franchise’s evolution for years, the version of Power Rangers fans know is now over. Super Sentai Is Ending After 50 Years Sentai’s Half-Century Run Is About To Close, Spelling A Huge Blow For Power Rangers After five decades on the air, Super Sentai is coming to a definitive close. The current season, No. 1 Sentai Gozyuger, which began airing in February 2025, will mark the finale of the franchise that launched in 1975. That means the very source of the footage used by Power Rangers to build its monster fights, Zord footage, and transformation sequences will no longer be available in the same way. For decades, the American production of Power Rangers leaned heavily on Sentai’s giant-monster battles and Zord fights, repackaging and editing those sequences alongside new American scenes. The identity of Power Rangers - the giant robots, monsters in the streets, climactic Zord face-offs- is built on that Japanese bank of visuals. With Super Sentai ending, or at least reinventing itself, the adaptation well goes dry. Footage of epic megazord clashes, sprawling city-destruction, and costume-to-costume monster fights (in Sentai suits) is no longer guaranteed. Without Super Sentai, things may feel familiar only in name. That said, Power Rangers was very much expected to move away from Sentai after Cosmic Fury, following years of rumors and speculations about a reboot. This isn’t only the end of Sentai, it’s the end of Power Rangers as fans have known it. Power Rangers Had Already Been Moving Away From Super Sentai The Franchise Began Charting Its Own Path Long Before Sentai’s End The end of Super Sentai will undeniably reshape Power Rangers, but it isn’t the first seismic shift the franchise has experienced. When 2023’s Cosmic Fury rolled out, it became clear Power Rangers was already breaking the mold. In that season, Zord and Megazord battle scenes were drawn from Uchu Sentai Kyuranger, but all of the American-shot ground fights and costumes were newly made for the U.S. production. This marked the first time that such major portions of a Power Rangers season were crafted entirely in the U.S. That shows the franchise was anticipating a future without relying purely on Japanese footage. The writing, filming, and costumes were now American, while the Sentai footage was only part of the puzzle. Over time, that shift became deliberate. The very notion of being an adaptation began to fade. Just before Cosmic Fury, the Power Rangers: Once & Always special had used minimal Sentai footage and leaned heavily on original American production. The creative team’s experiments signaled recognition that the old model of Sentai footage mixed with American inserts may no longer be viable long-term. Logistically, production costs, licensing complications, and shifting audience tastes made the old model less sustainable. Creatively, Power Rangers began branching in new directions, altering team structures, stylings, and mythologies to better suit global streaming rather than network kids-TV. The shift away from Sentai wasn’t sudden; it was incremental. With Super Sentai ending, however, those experiments become the blueprint for what comes next. The era of Power Rangers as a direct adaptation is already finished. What remains is a franchise forced to reinvent itself, and for fans expecting more of the same, it will feel very different. Disney+’s Power Rangers Reboot Will Be A New Beginning For The Franchise The Next Power Rangers Chapter Will Unshackle The Show From Its Japanese Roots Entirely Even if Super Sentai had continued, the future of Power Rangers was always pointing toward transformation. The franchise has been off the air since 2023, setting the stage for a major Power Rangers reboot on Disney+ in collaboration with Hasbro. With Disney-led production and no new Super Sentai footage to rely on, the next Power Rangers era will look nothing like what came before. The upcoming Disney+ reboot is positioned as a fresh start. Without the safety net of Sentai footage, every transformation scene, every Zord battle, will need to be conceived and shot from scratch. That opens creative freedom but also raises risks. The giant-robot spectacle, the monster suits, the sudden morph-calls that defined generations - all will need re-imagining. Fans may see deeper character arcs, cinematic production values, or streaming-style pacing, but they will also face a Power Rangers that has shed many of its hallmarks. From a business standpoint, Disney+ gives the franchise a platform aligned with global streaming, not kids-after-school TV. Production budgets, tone, and audience reach will shift accordingly. The brand is being re-engineered for a new era, one where legacy means nostalgia and novelty must carry the forward momentum. In short, the upcoming Power Rangers reboot isn’t just a new season, it’s a relaunch.
