History Series / ChoujinSentaiJetMan

''Chōjin Sentai Jetman'' (''Birdman Squadron Jetman'') is the fifteenth ''Franchise/SuperSentai'' series, running from 1991 to 1992. Notable for being a tribute to ''[[Anime/ScienceNinjaTeamGatchaman Gatchaman]]''. Originally intended to be the origin point for the ''Franchise/PowerRangers'' franchise, but ''Series/KyoryuSentaiZyuranger'''s SixthRanger proved to be a major draw for [[Creator/SabanEntertainment Haim Saban]]. The TitleThemeTune was performed by Hironobu Kageyama.

* LoveDodecahedron: Ryu is still hung up over losing Rie. Kaori likes Ryu. Gai likes Kaori. Raika also likes Kaori (but chooses not to pursue her). Kaori doesn't like Gai at first. Gai hates Ryu's guts. [[spoiler:Then we find out that Rie is still alive as Maria, and that Radiguet and Grey like Maria... also, Kaori starts liking Gai, but Gai breaks up with her and lets her to be together with Ryu.]]

** Their mid-season upgrade in question of monsters of the week are called Biao-Jigenjū (Bio-Dimensional Beasts), which are inanimate objects possessed by Biao-Jigenmushi (Bio-Dimensional Bugs), which are the same as normal Jigenmushi, but are pre-implanted with animal DNA, creating a bizarre hybrid between animal and whatever object the Baio-Jigenmushi merged with.

%%** CoolGuns: The [[MidSeasonUpgrade Beak Smashers]].

** Being a wealthy, spoiled young lady Kaori is the most different from her Gatchaman counterpart, Jun, but they're both TheChick of their team and sometimes Kaori still acts as somewhat of a CoolBigSis to Ako, like Jun often does with Jinpei.

* RagtagBunchOfMisfits: Let's see. A military officer [[TheLostLenore who lost his colleague and love interest]] to an early villain attack; a [[TheCasanova womanizing]] IneffectualLoner; a [[RichIdiotWithNoDayJob rich]] and [[SpoiledBrat spoiled]] [[TheOjou princess]]; a [[DorkKnight clumsy]], [[SelfDeprecation self-deprecating]] [[FarmBoy farmer]] and an [[GenkiGirl energetic]] HighSchool {{Tomboy}} who's OnlyInItForTheMoney. Why yes, these guys are our world's last hope against the Vyram.

* DesperatelyLookingForAPurposeInLife: Kaori's reason to join the Jetman was to break out of the RichIdiotWithNoDayJob shell she lived in and do something for once, even if that something was fighting legions of demonic beings from another dimension.

** Being a [[RichIdiotWithNoDayJob wealthy]], [[SpoiledBrat spoiled]] [[TheOjou young lady]] Kaori is the most different from her Gatchaman counterpart, Jun, but they're both TheChick of their team and sometimes Kaori still acts as somewhat of a CoolBigSis to Ako, like Jun often does with Jinpei.

%% Image selected per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1623701740039793400
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[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/choujinsentaijetman_5.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''Flap Your Wings! Aviators!'']]

* WeaponOfChoice: For the first time since [[Series/ChoudenshiBioman Bioman]], the heroes do ''not'' have an individual WeaponOfChoice. They do have:

** {{BFG}}: The Fire Bazooka.
** [[CoolGuns/{{Handguns}} Cool Gun]]: The [[MidSeasonUpgrade Beak Smashers]].
** BifurcatedWeapon: Two of them, both of which use the Bird Blaster:
*** Bringer Sword + Bird Blaster = [[CoolGuns/{{Handguns}} Jet Hand Cannon]] (which fires the "Bird Bomber" finishing blast)

** It was probably a stretch, but [[StreetFighter the one who was like KEN is named RYU]].

%%* IdiosyncraticEpisodeNaming:

* TransformationTrinket: See ByThePowerOfGreyskull. The trinket is two- the Cross Changer itself, and the Corresponder, which serves as the communications device for the team, and as the key to form Jet Icarus and the Icarus Haken (the square piece on the right side would be detached from the Corresponder and into the "Bird Lock" in the Jet Machines),

* AntiHeroSubstitute: The Neo-Jetman team from Episode 40 and 41, who are assembled by Chief Ichijō (Odagiri's rival) to replace the depowered original team. They end up being less effective than the original team. For what it's worth, they subvert having the attitude of anti-heroes, and they're far more civil and noble than their [[TheNeidermeyer extremely unpleasant commanding officer]], and it's they who defy orders and choose to sacrfice their Birdonic Wave energy repower their more experienced seniors.

* CassandraTruth: In episode 4, Kaori tells her fiance she can't marry him because she's a superhero. He laughs...until the MonsterOfTheWeek attacks.
%% * TheCasanova: Gai.

* DownerEnding: Not the show itself (as noted above, it ends on a bittersweet note), but episode 42. [[spoiler: The robot G2, who is already quite tragic due to the circumstances behind his existence, dies unnoticed - Tranza rejects him for being defective, Grey doesn't care about him, Radiguet doesn't even seem to know he existed after Tranza rejected him, the Jetmen did not know about him since they never met, and Maria who he does bond with is incapacitated when he saves her life and brings her to Grey]]. It's ''very'' hard not to feel depressed after watching that episode...
* DudeMagnet: The women in the show tend to end up attracting pretty much every man they interact with regularly.

* HopeSpot: Brutally in Episode 24 - After getting curbstomped by [[spoiler:Empress Juza's fully-grown monster Semimaru]], the team is rescued by Jet Garuda, piloted by three warriors from another dimension. After a whole episode of making it compatible, the warriors set off with Jet Garuda to save the day and combine into Great Icarus! But then Radiguet murders then and [[GrandTheftPrototype Gundamjacks]] it. Dan, the last surviving member of Jet Garuda's crew, manages to kick Radiguet out of the Jet Garuda, though at the cost of his own life. His HeroicSacrifice allows the Jet Icarus and Jet Garuda to combine, allowing the Jetmen to destroy Semimaru once and for all.

** Most of the team qualifies, as they start out as civilians with no combat experience whatsoever - by the finale, they're taking names. It's telling that when a specially-trained squad is sent in to replace them, through a combination of factors and not counting their dickish officer's incompetence, they end up being far less effective than said civilians who've had a nearly a year's worth of experience and naturally working out their personal issues to become a more tightly-knit team.

* YearX: The show's first episode establishes that it takes place in the year 199X. Interestingly, Rie's [[spoiler: apparent]] death takes place in the year 1991, but a video monitor in episode 1 shows a date of December 23, 1990 - although it's likely that said video was made before the Birdonic experiments took place.

** ShowAccuracyToyAccuracy: When you consider that size among mechs in Super Sentai are generally inconsistent anyway, between all the kibble that flattens into the suit and all humanoid mechs having the same average height (regardless of whether they're an individual component, a proper combined robot, or even combinations of two robots) even when the toys' mechanics dictate that none of them should be as tall as each other. For example, DX Jet Garuda towers over DX Jet Icarus, yet the two are of the same height in the show[[note]]This is unfortunately a product of their mechanism, Jet Garuda needing to be significantly bigger to be able to combine Icarus. However with the recent ''Super Minipla'' figures, while Garuda still towers over Icarus, rather than being twice the height of Icarus with the DX versions, it's now only a third bigger, with Icarus' head going up to Garuda's shoulder.[[/note]]. Moreover, Great Icarus should be a giant that towers other monsters and yet is no taller than either Icarus or Garuda), it's hardly worth pointing out.

** ShowAccuracyToyAccuracy: When you consider that size among mechs in Super Sentai, are generally inconsistent anyway, between all the kibble that flattens into the suit and all humanoid mechs having the same average height (regardless of whether they're an individual component, a proper combined robot, or even combinations of two robots) even when the toys' mechanics dictate that none of them should be as tall as each other. For example, DX Jet Garuda towers over DX Jet Icarus, yet the two are of the same height in the show. Moreover, Great Icarus should be a giant that towers other monsters and yet is no taller than either Icarus or Garuda), it's hardly worth pointing out.

** Most of the team qualifies, as they start out as civilians with no combat experience whatsoever - by the finale, they're taking names.

* AntiHeroSubstitute: The Neo-Jetman team from Episode 40 and 41, who are assembled by Chief Ichijō (Odagiri's rival) to replace the original team. They end up being less effective than the original team.

* NoSell: In the final battle, the Jet Phoenix just bounces off Radiguet's final form.

Preceded by ''Series/ChikyuuSentaiFiveman'' and followed by ''Series/KyoryuSentaiZyuranger''.

!!The Jetmen:
* '''Ryū Tendō''' ('''[[red:Red Hawk]]'''): TheLeader who's [[LovingAShadow still much in love with his dead girlfriend]]. Based on ''Gatchaman''[='=]s Ken the Eagle.
* '''Gai Yūki''' ('''Black Condor'''): TheLancer, SourSupporter. Initially comes off as a {{Sociopathic|Hero}} AntiHero but [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold later revealed to be a nice guy too]]. Based on ''Gatchaman''[='=]s Condor Joe.
* '''Raita Ōishi''' ('''[[gold:Yellow Owl]]'''): {{The Big|Guy}} and [[TheSmartGuy Smart Guy]]. [[IJustWantToBeNormal He just wants to be a normal]] [[FarmBoy farmer]]. One of the very few visibly fat heroes in any ''Super Sentai'' series. Based on ''Gatchaman''[='=]s Ryū the Owl.
* '''Kaori Rokumeikan''' ('''[[gray:White Swan]]'''): TheChick, TheOjou. Based on ''Gatchaman''[='=]s Jun the Swan.
* '''Ako Hayasaka''' ('''[[blue:Blue Swallow]]'''): KidAppealCharacter. Starts off as a [[{{Shorttank}} tomboyish]] and [[YouGoGirl athletic]] OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent. Is a bit of a HighSchoolHustler at the beginning of the series. Based on ''Gatchaman''[='=]s Jinpei the Swallow.
* '''Chief Aya Odagiri:''' The TeamMom, TheMentor. Based on ''Gatchaman''[='=]s Dr. Nanbu.

!! The Shadow Dimension War Party Vyram:
* '''Radiguet:''' The [[TheHeavy most proactive]] Vyram executive. An ambitious and callous ManipulativeBastard with [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder no loyalty whatsoever to anyone]] other than himself, he's one incredibly ruthless and nasty piece of work through and through. [[spoiler:Later develops a [[EnemyCivilWar feud with Tranza]]. Later becomes the true BigBad.]]
* '''Tran:''' EvilGenius and Evil TagalongKid with an annoying laugh. Despite his age, [[KidsAreCruel almost just as much of a monster]] as Radiguet. Later [[spoiler:rapidly ages into [[PsychopathicManchild Tranza]], starting an EnemyCivilWar with Radiguet... and actually [[TheEmperor winning]]. [[BigBadWannabe For a while, anyway]].]]
* '''Grey:''' A [[TheQuietOne quiet]], [[TheStoic stoic]] guy who is a NobleDemon and WorthyOpponent (to Gai). [[WickedCultured Enjoys wine, women, music, and cigarettes]] [[RidiculouslyHumanRobot despite being a robot]]. His [[TheRival rivalry]] with Gai is almost friendly, or at least as friendly as a rivalry between an AntiHero and a NobleDemon can be. [[LadyAndKnight Develops feelings for Maria]] later on.
* '''Maria:''' DarkChick whom Ryū notices has an uncanny resemblance to [[TheLostLenore Rie]].

* InstantClothesChange: Played with. When any of the team's transformation is cancelled while within their mecha, rather than reverting to what they were wearing before transforming like in most shows, they end up in their fighter pilot uniforms for some reason. This is most obvious in the final episode, where they're detransformed rather early on in the mecha battle and spend the rest of it in the flight suits, despite being in civilian clothes prior.

* SixthRanger: [[spoiler:Rather tragically subverted]]. When it looked like Ray, Kanna and Dan, the three human-like warriors from Dimensia would fill this spot (they had transformations and special powers, not unlike the Jetman team), [[spoiler:Radiguet appears, kills Ray and Kanna, then hijacks their HumongousMecha, Jet Garuda, to assist the monster Semimaru in defeating the Jetman team. The third and youngest warrior, Dan (who was away with Ako when his teammates were killed), dies from wounds in battle against Radiguet shortly after that, but not before wrestling control of Jet Garuda away from the villain. Only the aformentioned Jet Garuda mech remained as testimony of their intention to aid the heroes against the Vyram]].

* TheCasanova: Gai.

* MiniDressOfPower: Once again worn by the female rangers.