[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/c3f2e46b_a6f0_401d_ab11_1ef767932fc0.jpeg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"Rangers together! Samurai forever!"'']]
->''"Go Go Samurai!"''\\
''"Gold Power!"''
-->-- '''[[ByThePowerOfGreyskull Morphing calls]]''', ''Power Rangers Samurai''

The 18th and 19th season of the ''Franchise/PowerRangers'' franchise, [[{{Frankenslation}} using Ranger, Monster, and Zord footage]] from ''Series/SamuraiSentaiShinkenger''. It was the first season since ''Series/PowerRangersWildForce'' to be entirely directed and produced by Jonathon Tzachor.

In feudal Japan, Nighloks from the otherworldly Sanzu River emerged from cracks in the human world and terrorized the populace until a group of {{Samurai}} united to stop them. When the Nighloks begin appearing again in the present day, five young descendants of those samurai are gathered to train in the ways of their families' "Samurai Symbols of Power" and stop the Nighloks' efforts of using humans' tears of despair to make the Sanzu River flood the human world.

The first season produced by Haim Saban after taking the license back from Creator/{{Disney}}, Saban was [[FirstInstallmentWins banking on nostalgia for the original]] ''Series/MightyMorphinPowerRangers''. They [[RearrangeTheSong revived the classic theme song]] and referenced it in the morph call, and they got Paul Schrier to reprise his role as Bulk, half of the original series' ThoseTwoGuys. The approach appeared to pay off where it counted, as ''Samurai'' did pull in solid ratings, unlike ''Jungle Fury'' and ''RPM'', and easily got renewed.

Due to some oddities with how Nickelodeon handles episode orders, the show and future seasons are split into two and the second half of this series is branded as ''Power Rangers Super Samurai''.

Succeeded by ''Series/PowerRangersMegaforce''.
----
!!Recurring ''Power Rangers'' tropes include:
* AdaptedOut: [=ShinkenGold=]'s TransformationTrinket, the Sushi Changer, was replaced with a recolored and modified version of the Samuraizer called the Samurai Morpher. Oddly enough, the toys of both were visually based on the Samurai Morpher, despite having some physical differences in the show besides color.
* BigBad: Master Xandred.
* BigWhat: Commonly uttered by the villains.
* ChestInsignia: The team logo on the left over the heart and personal kanji on the face of the helmet.
** BroughtToYouByTheLetterS: The kanji qualify.
* ChromeChampion: The Gold Ranger has a lot of blue on his suit (black in Mega Mode), but enough shiny gold bits to count.
* CityOfAdventure: Panorama City. Its name wasn't revealed until episode 30, visible on close-up shots of Mia's driver's license.
* ComicBookAdaptation: Had a run in the UK Power Rangers Magazine.
** Two graphic novels were published by Papercutz.
* CompressedAdaptation: A downplayed example. ''Samurai'' was given 2 seasons of 20 regular episodes, a ChristmasSpecial and HalloweenSpecial each to ''Shinkenger's'' 49. There's also the ''Clash of the Red Rangers'' TV movie, which combines a regular episode of ''Shinkenger''[[note]]#36[[/note]] with supplementary material[[note]]''Shinkenger TheMovie'' and ''Shinkenger vs. Go-Onger''[[/note]].
* TheDragon: Serrator
* EvilPlan: Xandred's plan to use humans' tears of despair to make the Sanzu flood the human world.
* FillingTheSilence: During segments utilizing sentai footage (including Megazord fights), everyone is ridiculously chatty, including the MonsterOfTheWeek. [[Administrivia/TropesAreTools Tropes Are Not Bad]], though - the main fight scene in "A Sticky Situation" involved the Green and Blue Rangers having to coordinate attacks, so the addition of them giving each other instructions on what to do next helped.
* FiveTokenBand: The Red and Yellow Rangers are Caucasian, the Blue Ranger is African-American, the Green Ranger is Latino, the Pink Ranger is Asian, and the Gold Ranger is Mexican-American (blatantly and stereotypically so).
* FleetingDemographicRule: The last time that ''Power Rangers'' had this many [[HurricaneOfPuns puns]] and this much Japanese culture was ''Series/PowerRangersNinjaStorm'', eight years before. Incidentally, ''Ninja Storm'' was also the only previous season to have a {{Samurai}}-based Ranger.
** ''Ninja Storm'' itself is this to the third season of ''Series/MightyMorphinPowerRangers'', also with an eight year gap. Freaky.
* HomeBase: The Shiba House
* HumongousMecha: The Samurai Megazord
** AnimalMecha
*** BearsAreBadNews: Bear Zord
*** KingOfBeasts: Lion Zord
*** OurDragonsAreDifferent: Dragon Zord
*** Turtles: Turtle Zord
*** MischiefMakingMonkey: Ape Zord
*** BigCreepyCrawlies: Beetle Zord
*** SwordfishSabre: Swordfish Zord
*** PantheraAwesome: Tiger Zord
*** NobleBirdOfPrey: the Samurai Battlewing, [[CombiningMecha formed from]] the Beetle, Swordfish, and Tiger Zords
*** GiantSquid: Octozord
*** GiantEnemyCrab (giant arthropod, at any rate; it's a lobster): Clawzord
*** ThreateningShark: Shark Zord
*** BrutishBulls: Bull Zord
** CombiningMecha: The main team shares the Samurai Megazord, and it can then join with the Clawzord to form the Claw Armor Megazord. The secondary zords can combine, too; the Beetle, Tiger, and Swordfish form the Samurai Battlewing and those three plus the Octozord are the Samurai Battle Cannon. Finally, all of the above mecha can combine with the Bull Zord and optionally the Shark Zord for the Samurai Gigazord.
** MechaExpansionPack: The Beetle, Tiger, Swordfish, Octo, and Shark Zords
** TransformingMecha: The Folding Zords (rather than the usual warrior mode, they change to and from a compact emblem mode), the Clawzord, the Light Zord, and the Bullzord
%%* MadeOfExplodium
* MakeMyMonsterGrow: The "second life" concept from ''Shinkenger'' carries over here - the monsters just kinda grow on their own after blowing up.
* TheMentor: Ji, though [[EveryoneCallsHimBarkeep Everyone Calls Him "Mentor"]] more often than not.
* MiniDressOfPower: Part of the Samurai Ranger girls' suits. Of course, this includes [[spoiler:the female Red Ranger]].
* {{Mooks}}: Moogers, including Megazord-sized GiantMook versions.
* {{Motifs}}: ElementalPowers
** PlayingWithFire: Jayden
** MakingASplash: Kevin
** BlowYouAway: Mia (who even names the trope in "Origins Part 1")
** GreenThumb: Mike
** DishingOutDirt: Emily
** LightEmUp: Antonio. He also has a seafood motif on top of that.
* NeverSayDie:
** Sure, pretty standard fare for ''Power Rangers'', but it's especially noticable with the kids in "Deal with a Nighlok" and "Jayden's Challenge"; their problems were switched to fathers far away for their jobs from a dead grandfather in the former, and in the latter a father who'd actually died in a recent monster attack. It's especially baffling given that other series haven't shied away from people having someone die in the backstory, and NeverSayDie has usually presented as simply finding alternatives to the ''word.'' Pretending nothing really bad ever has or can happen to anyone is definitely new. But the second half goes DarkerAndEdgier and bad things definitely ''do'' happen to good people.
** It's also noticable because of a plot point: Jayden doesn't want his friends to die for him, and as such tried to abandon the team. Since we can't say "die", we get a lot of "Don't want to put them in harm's way"s, or "We know the risks". Sometimes it can get even confusing. That said, the origin makes references to Jayden's dad's "last words" and his "final battle". They don't use the word dead (as usual), but there's really no other way to take it.
* OohMeAccentsSlipping: As Saban has taken to hire Americans for the primary cast here in, this doesn't come up as much compared to the Disney era. However, the show ''is'' still shot in Auckland, so this is now mostly reserved for the guest characters. Could also apply to Mentor Ji, though in his case it might be just NotEvenBotheringWithTheAccent.
** Emily's sister in "Sticks and Stones."
** TheKidsAreAmerican: Basically the majority of the kids so far, whether they're portraying younger versions of the Rangers or regular kids, have been unable to hide their New Zealand accents. Especially noticable when compared to the American accents used by adults in the same scene (Ryan and his dad in "Deal with a Nighlok" and Young!- and current-Jayden and Antonio in "Unexpected Arrival").
* PrecursorHeroes: The original samurai
** HeroicLineage: ...and their descendants.
* {{Recycled IN SPACE}}!: Power Rangers [[foldercontrol]]

[[folder: as SAMURAI! ]]
([[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Of course.]])
* SealedEvilInACan:
** The Sanzu River is one to the Nighloks, as nobody can last long away from the river before they dry out. Only a monster and some {{Mooks}} are able to go out at a time, trying to increase peoples' despair and sorrow in order to make the Sanzu's water level rise until it seeps into and floods the human world.
** Master Xandred was sealed in the river by Jayden's father. Due to the seal being done wrong (which stems from the previous Red Ranger having insufficient power at the time), it causes him headaches.
*** "The Master Returns" seems to imply that he's still trapped to some degree, as flashbacks show he could previously leave the Sanzu River without drying out, a problem he has now.
* SuperMode: Literally called "Super Mode", with a long white vest over the regular Ranger suit. There's also a red version called "Shark Attack Mode", and both of these have their own Mega Mode versions. (The Mega Modes and Shogun Mode look like this, but since they're not actually used for fighting, they don't count. Jayden uses the Shogun Mode at the final episode, though.)
* {{Thememobile}}: Averted; the Samurai Rangers have some transportation at their disposal (a VanInBlack and Ji's CoolBike), but no special Ranger vehicles.
* VillainsActHeroesReact: As is the norm for ''Power Rangers'', we generally get a MOTW appearing with an EvilPlan OnceAnEpisode, with our heroes then arriving on the scene to stop them.
%%** KatanasAreJustBetter: Spin Swords
%%** {{BFS}}: Jayden's Fire Smasher
%%*** {{BFG}}: Fire Smasher Cannon Blast Mode and the Bullzooka
%%** TheStraightAndArrowPath: Kevin's Hydro Bow
%%** CombatHandFan: Mia's Sky Fan
%%** Mike's Forest Spear
%%** FuumaShuriken: Emily's Earth Slicer
%%** ReverseGrip IaijutsuPractitioner: Antonio's Barracuda Blade. He uses SheathStrike, too.
%%** ImprobableWeaponUser: Antonio's secondary weapon set, the Light Zord disc-shooting lantern and a LawmanBaton.
%%** WhipSword: Shark Sword
* WordPower
** ByThePowerOfGrayskull or {{Invocation}}: "Go Go Samurai!" and "Gold Power!"
** BondOneLiner: "Samurai Rangers, victory is ours."
** InTheNameOfTheMoon: "Rangers Together! Samurai Forever!"
** TransformationNameAnnouncement: "Samurai Ranger, ready!" and "Samurai Megazord! We are united!"

!!''Power Rangers Samurai'' contains examples of:
* AcCENTUponTheWrongSylLABle: In "The Tengen Gate", everyone pronounces Daisuke as "Dye-SOO-Kay". (It should sound closer to DYE-skay)
* AdaptationInducedPlothole:
** By virtue of being almost a note for note translation of ''Shinkenger'', elements that were present in the source material but not here become glaringly obvious when one knows about both. There are several, but probably the biggest, as noted down in ArtisticLicenseHistory, is that [[spoiler: Jayden and Lauren being siblings messes up the twist at the end quite a bit. In ''Shinkenger'', Takeru is a BodyDouble for Kaoru and wasn't a real Shiba, thus his reasons for not wanting the other Shinkengers to fight with him is based on his feelings that they shouldn't risk their lives over a lie. The omission of a direct counterpart to [[JerkAss Tanba]] also cuts out much of the tension between Kaoru/Lauren and the other Shinkengers/Samurai Rangers, while Lauren is also much friendlier than Kaoru was (at first, anyway), so Lauren choosing to step down from the role of leader comes off as confusing, considering how well she was getting along with everyone.]]
** The above change also causes a smaller one just before, regarding Octoroo's attempt to take out Jayden by burning him up with his own Shiba symbol power. [[spoiler: In ''Shinkenger,'' Shitari's plan fails because Takeru isn't actually a member of the Shiba family, and therefore doesn't have their hereditary Scriptomancy. In ''Samurai'', however, Jayden ''is'' part of the Shiba family, but the plan still somehow fails, even though there's no reason why he wouldn't have inherited the same symbol power as his sister. Hilariously, Octoroo then concludes that Jayden isn't the real head of the Shiba family quicker than Shitari did in ''Shinkenger''!]]
** A smaller one is the much maligned decision by Mentor Ji to take Antonio's morpher away. While it does happen in ''Shinkenger'', Jii does have much stronger reasons for doing it. Namely that Genta is an even bigger doofus[[note]]Genta showed up at the Shiba household looking like a ridiculous Samurai caricature and generally wasn't taking things seriously despite insistence's to the contrary.[[/note]] than Antonio is, and the Sushi Changer was at least partially created using the power of both the Octopus Origami and a Hidden Disk that Takeru had given him, so Jii at least is taking back something that rightfully belongs to the Shiba household because of its origin. The omission of the tinier details causes the scene to take on a very different tone than the original, making Mentor Ji out to be an Elitist JerkAss rather than well intentioned but harsh.[[note]]To be fair, it’s treated as a dick move InUniverse, with the Rangers struggling to justify it and Ji eventually apologising and returning it[[/note]]
* AdaptationSpeciesChange:
** The Kyoryu (Dinosaur) Origami is now the Shark Sword/Zord. Its toy got some fins added to it to look more sharklike, but the TV footage wasn't altered at all. (The toy version of the Light Zord similarly got retooled to become something else - a paper lantern to a spider - but this change doesn't apply to the show.)
** Oddly enough, squid-themed Shitari's been renamed Octoroo and Ika Origami[[note]]Also a squid.[[/note]] became the Octo Zord, giving the OneSteveLimit its second kick in the face.
* AesopAmnesia: Due to the CompressedAdaptation involved in translating Shinken Red's characterization to Samurai Red, Jayden is forced to essentially learn to accept [[TeamSpirit being part of a team]] twice in a row. [[note]] ''Shinkenger'' involved Takeru having to accept applying teamwork to his future battles alongside the others, with the entire point of his characterization from then on involving him having to balance sidling up to the idea with some subtle BloodKnight tendencies; leaving him flawed enough to have to re-learn it. In ''Samurai'', Jayden acknowledges this moral and accepts it the first time it's a major issue. Minus a Handwave, ''Samurai'' all but ignores the BloodKnight angle completely from then on... giving no reason for Jayden to re-learn it a second time.[[/note]]
* AnAesop: Before the show began, one of the producers mentioned that Saban was going to use the show as a platform to encourage healthy eating and exercise to kids. Since it was mentioned so early in production, there was a little concern that the show might become ham-fisted and preachy (but not much, since environmentalism and other Aesops have been part of the show since day 1. The exercise aspect has been pushed through a series of videos titled ''[[https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLD869D353710E40D6 Power Rangers emPOWER]]'' on [[https://www.youtube.com/user/SabansPowerRangers Saban's Power Rangers]] Website/YouTube account, but it's been mentioned very little in the show so far, and the Rangers are seen eating cotton candy and chasing down an ice cream truck at various times.[[note]]To be fair, this was always after they kicked a monster's rear, justifying the treats.[[/note]]
* AllYourPowersCombined: The upgrades provided by the Black Box are described as this.
** The Gigazord, a combination of the Megazord, Battlewing, Clawzord, Octozord, and Bullzord for an 11-in-1 ultimate combo. It's finisher attack focuses these powers through its sword.
*** [[spoiler: The Shark Zord replaces the normal sword in the final battle against Serrator, bringing this trope full-circle.]]
* AndIMustScream: In "Trading Places," the new Nighlok can place human souls into inanimate objects. While the victims can still talk and be heard by other victims, everyone else can't hear them and has no idea what has happened. Worse, destroying the object means death for the affected person - leading to lots of unheard pleas for help.
* ArtisticLicenseHistory: [[spoiler:In the case of traditional Japanese clans, such as those who can trace their lineage to samurai, the title of clan leadership passes down first to the first son of the family. [[HeirClubForMen Even if the son has a older sister, the son will still be the leader of that clan/family.]] Girls can only become the leaders if there is no male heir (by birth or adoption). In other words when one actually follows samurai lore, there shouldn't have even been a debate about Jayden's position as leader, since his older sibling is a female. The only way this would be a problem would be if Jayden wasn't really a Shiba at all (again by birth or adoption).]] ''Shinkenger''[='s=] version of the plotline ''was'' historically accurate, but it's considered unacceptably sexist in modern America and so had to be changed.
* ArtShift: First season of PR to be shot in HD.
* AscendedExtra: Well, Lauren's counterpart was hardly an ''extra,'' but we got to know Lauren a ''lot'' better than we did Kaoru.
* AxCrazy: [[spoiler: Arachnitor]], post-mutation.
* BadassLongcoat: The Super Samurai Mode provides the person using it a vest with long coat tails. Same goes for Shark Attack Mode but in red.
* BatmanGambit:
** Following the one made in ''Shinkenger'' to a T in "There Go the Brides" (except they didn't have Kevin playing the other bride): they set up two fake brides - Mia as the obvious decoy and Emily as the "real" bride.
** This is also attempted by the Nighlok Eyescar in "The Rescue" as he sets up a trap where the only apparent way to save the captured Antonio and Ji is to follow the trail that leads into an army of Mooks. It fails because Jayden sees right through it and [[spoiler: destroys them all with an aerial strike from the Samurai Battlewing.]]
* BehindTheBlack: In Antonio's introductory episode he's on the run from Kevin and Emily. They stop to have a loud discussion about where Jayden is and what kind of help he needs before running off. Antonio promptly emerges from behind a wall that they really should have been able to see past, especially considering he's dragging his fish cart along with him.
* BottleEpisode:
** Done with "Trickster Treat", which may have been a contractual obligation; shot well after production had wrapped and not long before ''Series/PowerRangersMegaforce'' started shooting. The episode uses no original footage recyling stuff from other episodes of ''Samurai'', even recycling stuff from ''Series/SamuraiSentaiShinkenger'' that normally would've been edited out, such as the Kuroko. It even features Mako standing in for Mia at one point, with only clever editing attempting to hide it. Only the main 6 Rangers were in this with no supporting characters.
** "Stuck on Christmas" did it as well, though it actually used original footage, mainly the Megazord cockpit and the Shiba house intertwined into a ClipShow. Also of note this episode used very little Shinkenger footage and the main unmorphed fight scene was recycled from an earlier episode. Plus none of the actors minus those for Ji, Bulk and Spike appeared in this with the ranger actors once again confined to the audio booth with Antonio mysteriously missing most likely due to the Shinkenger footage not featuring Shinken Gold.
* {{Bowdlerize}}:
** In "The Blue and the Gold," Antberry has to chop up thirty toys to create a portal to the Sanzu River from a well. In ''Shinkenger'', however, this plan involved ''[[HumanSacrifice chopping up a group of young girls]]'', something that probably would have been considered too sinister for a children's show on American TV.
** Dayu and Deker's backstories, too. [[spoiler:Considering Shinkenger!Dayuu fell to Gedou burning the wedding reception of the lover who scorned her to the ground, taking him with her as her shamisen and Juzo (Deker) fell to Gedou because he was an assassin who cared for nothing but killing, and Uramasa was his unspecified female family member's soul in blade form. Basically, they were mistaken by the heroes for being more sympathetic than they were, when actually they were unrepentant murderers who became monsters by basically the Shinkenger version of falling to the Dark Side in ''Star Wars.'' Deker's counterpart Juzo in particular was only there for Jayden's counterpart's development - Takeru, no longer Shinken Red as of the counterpart of the Lauren storyline, continued to fight Juzo because fighting was all he had left, after a season of refusing to fight him just for the sake of fighting. He ran the risk of becoming like his foe, the ''previous'' warrior who fought for the sake of fighting. The red energy that appeared during Dayuu and Juzo's transformation was starting to rise around Takeru when the others reached him to talk him down, saving him seconds before he'd have basically become the new Juzo.]] However, this makes Deker and Dayu more sympathetic, and therefore [[spoiler: more tragic when they can't be saved]].
** See FrothyMugsOfWater down below regarding Doukoku Chimatsuri's sake. Interestingly, it's replaced with something a little darker - Xandred's "medicine" is for the ''constant pain'' he is in because of the previous generation's seal. Now you know why he has such a bad temper.
* BilingualBonus: The Symbols of Power used by the Rangers are never exactly translated. One can get a basic understanding of what they mean by seeing the context they're used in, but they're rarely given an outright translation. However, sometimes the Ranger will yell out the translation when writing the kanji. Also, even when the kanji are different from the ones used in sentai, they do still properly translate into what's being ''done.''
* BishieSparkle: Antonio gets these the first time he morphs. Justified because he's a shiny ChromeChampion.
-->'''Emily:''' Wow! He's so sparkly!
* BlackBox: The name of the AppliedPhlebotinum du jour of ''Super Samurai''. It seemed to fill the "nobody knows how it works" trope prior to that before Antonio worked on it.
* BloodKnight: Deker seeks a battle with a worthy opponent, for its own sake, and once he has his sights set on Jayden he'll even attack other Nighloks to [[TheOnlyOneAllowedToDefeatYou keep them away from]] ''his'' destined rival.
* BreakingTheFourthWall: After making short work with Moogers in "Room For One More", Antonio turns to the camera and gives an instant replay that slows down the fight, allowing audiences to see what had happened.
* BrideAndSwitch: Double pulled by Mia and Emily on Dayu in "There Go The Brides".
* BrokenAesop:
** The Red Ranger stays behind to train on his day off while all the other Rangers go to an amusement park. His master says that in order to master his weapon, he needs balance in his life and should have more fun. The Ranger shrugs him off and eventually masters the weapon with more training, even after all these hints that in order to master his weapon, he needed to have more fun.
** "Kevin's Choice" is about Kevin having to accept that his being a Ranger meant putting certain life things on hold for the greater good, (in this case, a potential swimming tournament) as [[SecretIdentity his presence in such a public situation]] could put the citizenry in danger. The ending of the Episode however involves Kevin accepting this necessity.... and then competing in the tournament anyway after the MOTW is defeated, doing the exact thing the Episode had been warning him against the entire time without any justification, [[note]]Aside from the current threat being removed, but the fact that [[FridgeHorror the show has used multiple MOTWs in one Episode before....]][[/note]] rendering the whole Episode's conflict '''completely pointless'''.[[note]] This doesn't help that Kevin's Choice" is a point-for-point rehash of the first season's third Episode "The Team Unites," which starred Mike facing the exact same "duty before life" dilemma, with a monster aware of his identity [[AesopCollateralDamage attacking those close to him]], forcing him to keep out of the public eye to protect them, [[ScareEmStraight thus playing the moral straight]]. Kevin essentially gets off scot-free for making the same mistakes.[[/note]]
* ButtBiter: During the Megazord battle with Eyescar, he has a grip on the Claw Battlezord, using it as a HumanShield (so to speak) against the Samurai Megazord. Cue the summoning of the Sharkzord, which runs around behind him and chomps him on the backside so he'll let go.
* CallBack:
** In "[[ChristmasEpisode Christmas Together, Friends Forever]]", Mike gives the motorcycle he received away to Bulk and Spike (who had lamented over not being able to afford one at the beginning of the episode). Bulk and Skull had a motorcycle they used as a patrol bike back in ''Series/PowerRangersZeo''.
** In "Runaway Spike", Spike's attempts to hold a job recall those of his father and Bulk in ''Power Rangers Turbo''.
** Mia is an Asian samurai Ranger whose last name is shown on her driver's licence to be Watanabe. ''Series/PowerRangersNinjaStorm'' had Cameron Watanabe, an Asian samurai Ranger.
** In "A Crack in the World", Antonio morphs in a photo booth, a nod to an episode of ''Series/PowerRangersInSpace'' where Carlos doing that (and the energy causing the booth to photograph it) was a plot point.
* CallARabbitASmeerp: Two examples...
** Dayu's shamisen is referred to as a "harmonium."
** The Kyoryu ("dinosaur") Disc becomes known as the "Shark Disc." By extension, this also applies to the Kyoryu Origami becoming the Shark Zord.
* CallingYourAttacks: The show has an odd variant - the characters ''write'' their attacks [[WordsCanBreakMyBones in Japanese kanji]]. Justified as [[MagicAIsMagicA that's the way magic works for them]].
* TheCameo: [[spoiler:Jason Narvy as Skull]] in the last episode!
* CaptainObvious
-->'''Jayden''': "Beetle Zord!"
--> ''*giant beetle appears*''
-->'''Emily''': "HEY! A BEETLE!"
-->'''Mia''': "A Zord came out of that disc!"
* CerebusRetcon: In "Trading Places," Antonio has his soul placed in a fish. The majority of it is played for laughs, especially when he starts to spoil, up to and including nearly getting eaten by a cat (his faint after changing back was one of the funniest parts of the episode.) In the next episode, "Something Fishy," Antonio is completely shell-shocked by the whole thing, and the situation's played almost entirely seriously.
* TheChainsOfCommanding: Multiple episodes see Jayden angst about sending his friends into danger.
* ClipShow: The first set of holiday episodes: "Party Monsters", [[RoguesGalleryShowcase where the villains get together]] for a [[HalloweenEpisode Halloween Party]] to discuss how the Samurai Rangers defeated them; and [[ChristmasEpisode "Christmas Together, Friends Forever"]].
* CombatCommentator: Deker during the Jayden/Kevin fight in "I've Got A Spell On Blue", though he's doing more color/analysis than play-by-play.
* ComedicUnderwearExposure:
** During the training sequence in "The Team Unites", a rougher stunt causes Kevin's pants to go down, revealing his [[ColorCodedForYourConvenience blue boxer shorts.]]
** Happens to Bulk and Spike when Negatron blasts them with an insult.
** And Antonio inadvertently rips his own pants when he arrives at the Shiba house in #12.
* ContinuityNod: In the origin episode Bulk mentions he has a history with Power Rangers.
** Santa is shown as real in the ChristmasEpisode, something previously seen (and used as a plot-point) in "[[Series/MightyMorphinPowerRangers I'm Dreaming of a White Ranger]]".
* ContrivedCoincidence: The fact that a group of ancient samurai mingled with non-Japanese to have descendants that make the perfect FiveTokenBand. Granted, this is the same show that says [[Series/MightyMorphinPowerRangers the British colonized California]], but still...
* ChristmasSpecial: Two of them actually, since this series was split into two seasons, they were panned for being ClipShows but worth noting because this was the first time Power Rangers had done Christmas specials since ''Series/PowerRangersZeo''.
* CultureChopSuey: The Nighlok Robtish, who can be described as a ''[[UsefulNotes/{{Scotland}} Scottish]]'' [[EverythingsBetterWithSamurai Samurai]].
* CulturalTranslation: Dayu's Harmonium is a Shamishen as named in ''Series/SamuraiSentaiShinkenger''. (A harmonium is a type of keyboard instrument, not a guitar or banjo like instrument.)
* CurbStompBattle: Xandred performs one to show exactly why he's the BigBad in "The Master Returns".
* CuteKitten: A neighborhood stray makes a few appearances in early episodes of ''Super Samurai''.
* DealWithTheDevil: A minor one, a kid makes a deal with a Nighlok [[spoiler: in which if he throws away his baseball things (and therefore, his dream), he would see his father again.]] In fact, the episode is called "Deal With A Nighlok".
** "Broken Dreams" reveals that [[spoiler: Dayu]] made a deal with a Nighlok to save [[spoiler: Deker]]'s life. Of course, the Nighlok being a [[AlwaysChaoticEvil Nighlok]], both of them ended up being cursed.
* DeliberateInjuryGambit: [[spoiler:How Jayden beats Deker in their duel.]]
* DesignatedGirlFight: Dayu brings out a female Nighlok on the same week that [[spoiler:Lauren debuts just to kick her tail.]]
* DetachmentCombat: The Samurai Megazord is able to split off its limbs, as shown in "Sticks and Stones" against Negatron.
* {{Determinator}}: In addition to the Rangers themselves, Negatron earns special mention. He just keeps trying to insult Emily despite the fact she doesn't feel any emotional pain from them rendering his powers useless. Taken to crazy extremes when he actually tries to insult ''the Megazord itself!'' Emily herself also counts because even when his insults do strike true she pushes through to continue the fight, [[spoiler:and after the fight, she passes out due to how much she took]].
** Emily has her spirit (soul) taken and manages to wake up to give a pep talk to her team... sort of.
** Jayden staying up all night to master the Beetle Disk kind of counts, but presents a surprising [[DeconstructedTrope deconstruction]] (or BrokenAesop, depending on how cynical you are) as the moral of the episode is that it's actually not very useful to push yourself too far.
** Kevin spends so much time and energy focusing on catching the Swordfish Zord, he ends up suffering from heat stroke, and even then goes right back to his mission the minute he wakes up.
* DiegeticSoundtrackUsage: Like the communicator signal back in ''Mighty Morphin''', the "Go Go Power Rangers!" riff is used in several places whenever a little jingle is needed for a scene.
* DisappearedDad: It's stated as clearly as possible for a NeverSayDie show that Jayden's dad (the previous Red Ranger) didn't survive his final battle with Xandred.
* DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything: Bulk paying Bikers $5 in "He's Not Heavy Metal He's My Brother" to act as bodyguards is eerily similar to when Music/{{The Rolling Stones|Band}} hired the Hells Angels to work security at [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Altamont_Free_Concert Altmaont]]
* DontThinkFeel
* DownerEnding: Episode 17 "The Tengen Gate" ends with Jayden poisoned and kidnapped by Deker, Mia, Emily, Mike and Kevin defeated by Aracnator and Master Xandred unleashing a bunch of giant moogers and spitfangs.
* DreamLand: In the episode "Broken Dreams".
* DualWielding: In the final episode, Jayden uses a disk to wield ''two'' Fire Smashers.
* DubNameChange: The Green Ranger's element has been changed from "Wood" to "Forest", likely [[CleanDubName because it avoids]] possible DoubleEntendre jokes or [[RuleOfCool just sounds cooler]]. It even works with the kanji, as 森 (''mori''; the "forest" kanji) is pretty much a large 木 (''ki''; the "wood"/"tree" kanji, used in ''Shinkenger'') stacked on two smaller 木.
** Averted with Dayu, Ji, the Sanzu River, and the Shiba family, who all keep their ''Shinkenger'' names in some form or another (the Usukawa part of the Japanese Dayu's name didn't carry over, and Ji was just a nickname in ''Shinkenger'').
* DubSpeciesChange: The Italian dub changes the Beetle Zord into a scarab and the Octo Zord into a squid (that is what it's actually supposed to be, as seen in AdaptationSpeciesChange)
* DullSurprise: One of the main criticisms of ''Samurai'' is the wooden acting from all of the Ranger actors except for Antonio and Mike.
* DutchAngle: While Kevin was controlled in "I've Got a Spell on Blue".
* EarlyBirdCameo: Serrator in "Broken Dreams".
* EnvironmentSpecificActionFigure: Played with, as the Zord-piloting "Mega Mode" armor is the standard in the toy line, and the basic Ranger suits are treated as the less-common variant.
** CCGImportanceDissonance
* EpicFail: The Rangers' [[http://www.samuraicast.com/gallery/displayimage.php?pid=13742&fullsize=1 first attempt]] at forming the Samurai Megazord.
* EverythingsBetterWithSamurai
* {{Expy}}: Armadevil is one of Soccadillo, though the method of weakening his shell is more like what was done to Turbanshell (both from ''Mighty Morphin''').
* FakeShemp: In the ''Series/PowerRangersRPM'' crossover ''Antonio'' is only ever seen unmorphed from the back, and is dubbed by someone who sounds ''nothing'' like Steven Skyler. It's also ''thought'' to happen to Scott, credited as someone else and never demorphing, but that's more to union rules limiting the actor's appearance combined with the ShotForShotRemake syndrome (for most of the episode, he's less Scott and more Sousuke Esumi by way of Scott's actor, and ''feels'' very un-Scott despite the same actor.)
* {{Foreshadowing}}: Like in the original Sentai series, during a fight with Negatron, Jayden was called a liar and was said to have a secret. Episode 10 even ends with Ji telling him "we'll tell them when the time is right". Many episodes after have references to "the secret".
** Not to mention all the times they refer to Dayu's past in "There Go The Brides".
*** And this exchange between Dayu and MonsterOfTheWeek Madimot from "I've Got A Spell On Blue."
--->'''Madimot''': "When was the last time you had fun Dayu? Three centuries ago?
---> '''Dayu''': "Well, actually, I..." ''(he interrupts her before she can finish)''
** And the distrust towards Deker.
** "The Tengen Gate," in addition to reminding viewers about Jayden's secret, also foreshadows a bit of [[spoiler:Dayu and Deker's]] back story, which is fleshed out in "Broken Dreams".
** "Origins Part 1", like its counterpart, gives us the line from Kevin "I didn't know the Red Ranger was a girl". [[spoiler:Part of Jayden's secret is that the true Red Ranger really IS a girl.]]
* FormulaBreakingEpisode: While a ClipShow or other HowWeGotHere moments aren't unique, "Party Monsters" stands out by being told from the villain's perspective. Instead of the Rangers sitting around talking about their various battles, it takes places at a party in the afterlife, where the monsters are talking about how they were defeated.
* FreezeFrameBonus: As seen [[http://oi53.tinypic.com/xfxpqc.jpg here]], [[DevelopmentGag one bride is named]] [[SpellMyNameWithAnS Erica]] [[DevelopmentGag Fong, another Brittany Pirtle,]] [[{{Demographically Inappropriate Humour}} one couple's last names are Wetter and Beaver]], and Aleisha Fraser's getting married twice in one day.
* FrothyMugsOfWater: In ''Series/SamuraiSentaiShinkenger'', Dokoku Chimatsuri calms himself by drinking ''sake'' (rice wine). As Master Xandred, he's supposedly taking his "medicine".
* GratuitousSpanish: Antonio the Gold Ranger. ''¡Fantastico!''
* GrievousHarmWithABody: When Dayu and a MonsterOfTheWeek are arguing, Xandred ''throws a Mooger at them'' to shut them up.
* GrossUpCloseUp: Invoked in "Party Monsters" with ''real worms'' served up as snacks. Twice.
* HalfTheManHeUsedToBe: [[spoiler:Serrator's demise thanks to the Samurai Shark Gigazord. He even takes the time to [[LampshadeHanging hang a lampshade]] on it before exploding.]]
-->[[spoiler:'''Serrator:''' NO! I WAS SUPPOSED TO SPLIT OPEN YOUR WORLD! YOU WEREN'T SUPPOSED TO DO IT TO ME! *BOOM*]]
* HandicappedBadass: In "The Master Returns" Xandred was crippled with drying out yet still manages to wipe the floor with Jayden.
* HarshWordImpact: Negatron has a power of Snarkiness that sends his victims flying with insults, physically. During its first fight against the Rangers, he was able to slam down the Rangers with those insults, except Emily.
* HeroSecretService: Though not nearly to the extent of ''Shinkenger'', the Samurai Rangers seem to have a small support network of allies (seen in "The Tengen Gate" and "The [=BullZord=]").
* HeroWorship: When Lauren steps in to replace an injured Jayden, the other rangers seemingly cannot go a few minutes without citing how awesome or amazing they think he is. This becomes especially grating when they compare him against Lauren ''with her still in the room.'' (See TheWoobie).
* HijackedByJesus: A mild but interesting instance. The antagonists of ''Shinkenger'' were overall themed around {{Youkai}}, but Xandred on the other hand was given a few traits of a BigRedDevil. This leads straight into [[spoiler:the rewrite of Juzo/Deker and Dayu's relationship. ''Shinkenger'''s Juzo and Dayu were humans whose respective sinful obsessions warped them into monsters (a common origin in quite a few Japanese folk tales), while Dayu in ''Samurai'' was made a sympathetic character who made a DealWithTheDevil with Xandred, something he hardly had the ability to do in the original show]].
* HurricaneOfPuns: The Rangers and every MonsterOfTheWeek so far are guilty of this during the action sequences, which is no surprise due to the old school feel they're going for.
* IKnowMortalKombat: Bulk claims to be an expert in samurais when he told Spike after he arrived in Panorama City. Although he did state it out loud that he's an expert by watching most samurai movies.
* ImaginationBasedSuperpower: Symbol Power can do almost ''anything'' as long as you have enough energy and know the proper kanji. Including using "red pony" to summon a Ford Mustang (though the actual kanji used was that for "vehicle").
* InformedAbility: Some of the characters are described with traits that match their ''Shinkenger'' counterparts... but said traits haven't been displayed in ''Samurai.''
** Also, Octoroo everytime tells Dayu or Master Xandred (and the audience) that the MonsterOfTheWeek is really evil, threatening and big and bad. Some monsters of the week also proclaim that they are very menacing, but they are shown to be the jerks at worst and are easily defeated and don't do anything that puts them to being actually evil.
*** Averted more with the monsters that serve under Serrator. Heck the first of his monsters to appear wanted to get humans killed by other humans without even realizing it by switching their souls into objects.
** Also, Xandred is TheDreaded but in practice does nothing but sit around and complain in the vast majority of episodes. Yeah, he's unable to leave the Sanzu River (or, as we'll find out later, unable to leave it for long and then only at great cost) but the BigBad of the previous series was one of the ''most'' menacing despite spending most of the series as a red light on a wall because he was quite a mastermind.
* InformedFlaw: At the end of the first season, Jayden implies that he [[BloodKnight somewhat enjoyed his duel with Deker]]. However, not only is there no indication of this during the duel in question, but Jayden all but ignores this implication for the rest of the show while the other rangers don't even believe that it's true. Despite a CallBack to these feelings made by Deker before their [[spoiler: final fight]], [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot It's in no way built upon for the entirety of the battle, the one place where it ought to be relevant]]
* InsultBackfire: A plot point in "Sticks and Stones", when the Nighlok Negatron converts mental anguish, caused by insults, into physical pain. Emily is immune, because her sister helped her when she was bullied as a child. He even lampshades it with his last words: "My insults backfired!"
** Also happens when one of the Rangers calls Negatron a bully. He replies that its 'the nicest thing anyone's ever said about me'.
* ISOStandardUrbanGroceries: Mia's bag in "Shell Game" has a french loaf sticking out of it, even though Jayden looks in and only sees the [[CordonBleughChef "oysters, chocolate sauce and Brussels sprouts"]]. The french loaf also appears in "A Sticky Situation".
* JesusTaboo: Played with in "There Go the Brides"; no mention of any religious figures, but the ColdOpen takes place in what is explicitly referred to as a church, and the minister begins quoting 1 Corinthians 13 at one point.
* JuggleFu: Used in the Zord summoning sequence; as the Rangers toss their Spin Swords, transform into Mega Mode, and then catch the swords on the way to their Zords.
* LampshadeHanging: During "Party Monsters" the villains reference how the Rangers always turn away right before they explode, referring to it again later as "The Pose".
* LargeHam: Antonio is hammier than even most ''Power Rangers'' characters, which is [[WorldOfHam really saying something]]. Does he know his theme is seafood and not pork?
** Also, Bulk can be pretty hammy sometimes. Check his appearance in the DreamLand in "Broken Dreams".
* LastMinuteHookUp: [[spoiler:Emily & Mike]], with [[spoiler:Mike]] deciding to leave with [[spoiler:Emily]] after they've finally defeated Xandred. Even though [[spoiler:Mike]] denies there's anything romantic going on, the two are clearly holding hands & the other Rangers have looks on their faces that imply they aren't buying his protests.
* LateArrivalSpoiler: With the show being an almost ShotForShotRemake of ''Series/SamuraiSentaiShinkenger'', it was hard for many people to avoid spoilers and those who had seen Shinkenger knew exactly where the series was going.
** Also the series started airing the final episodes in Latin America a couple months before the United States.
* LethalChef: Mia. The other Rangers don't have the heart to tell her, though. Negatron, however, does.
* LetsYouAndHimFight: The Nighlok in "I've Got a Spell on Blue" takes over Kevin's mind and sets up a fight between him an Jayden. He also sets up a fight between Jayden's Lion Zord and the Tiger Zord.
** And Jayden gets caught up in another one with [[Series/PowerRangersRPM Scott]]. Of course, with a title like "Clash of the Red Rangers", what do you expect?
* LostInTranslation: Much of ''Shinkenger's'' references to Myth/JapaneseMythology don't really cross over well into ''Samurai'', in part because the symbolism just isn't that well known in the West. For example, the main villains of the season are based on the Seven Gods of Luck, while the Sanzu River is analogous to the [[Myth/ClassicalMythology River Styx]].
* LoveBubbles: Well, little floating hearts, but in Spike's first ImagineSpot of the Pink Ranger, they're there, even as she's slashing Moogers.
* MagicAIsMagicA: Unlike with ''[[Series/PowerRangersMysticForce Mystic Force]]'', ''Samurai'' sticks with the magic system set by ''Shinkenger''. For example, the symbol to enlarge the Zords ''has'' been changed from 大 (''dai'', or "big") to 超 (which ''Shinkenger'' used to merge the support Origami with Shinken-Oh), but it fits as it means ''chō'' or "super", accounting for the Rangers' Mega Mode as well.
** Of note also are the different kanji that Kevin tries to use to reel in the Swordfish Zord in "Fish Out of Water" - most of them are related to fishing.
* MagicalForeignWords: The Symbols of Power, even if the show hasn't acknowledged them as actual words.
* MassOhCrap: ''Everyone's'' reaction to Master Xandred finally coming to Earth himself. Including ''[[KnightOfCerebus Serrator!]]''
* MeaningfulEcho: in "Clash of the Red Rangers":
-->(15 minutes in) '''Mike:''' "I still don't trust him. And I don't like the way he looks at you." '''Emily:''' "He's wearing a helmet. How can you tell?"\\
(44 minutes in) '''Scott:''' "I do have eyes under here, you know. I've seen the way she looks at you."
* MeleeATrois: Done near the end of "Test of the Leader", between Jayden, Deker, and [[MonsterOfTheWeek Robtish]].
* MidSeasonUpgrade: The Black Box provides the team with stronger powers, spiffy jackets, new mega armor and new Zord combinations.
* MundaneSolution: In the early episodes at least, Nighlok spells and curses are repeatedly shown to be cleansed by pure water.
* MundaneUtility: Mia uses her katana to make food in the kitchen.
** Sentient, pocket-sized mecha that can move on their own make excellent game pieces.
* MythologyGag
** Xandred regularly [[Series/MightyMorphinPowerRangers has a headache]]. And in "Deal With A Nighlok", the monster throws his staff into the ground in a particularly familiar fashion.
** Similarly, "Day Off" has Bulk and Spike chowing down on cotton candy much like the clip used in the original's title sequence (from the first season episode "No Clowning Around").
** The new Samurai Rangers do the classic Mighty Morphin' hand-stack thing, albeit with their "Rangers Together, Samurai Forever" in place of shouting "Power Rangers!"
** The use of the phrase "Go Go Samurai" recalls the original theme song, which might make it the easiest morphing call to remember.
** Not only does the whip-wielding Nighlok that can mind-control Ranger and Zord alike in "I've Got a Spell on Blue" parallel the [[Series/PowerRangersWildForce Lion Tamer Org]], but this episode also features [[spoiler:the full-fledged debut of Ricardo Medina Jr., previously the Red Wild Force Ranger, as Deker.]]
** The monster in #12 actually utters Tommy's "Aww man!"
** The Megazord's battle helmets' idea originated from ''Zeo'', although it's style is closer to that of of ''Jungle Fury'''s zord combinations.
** Spike has a crush on the Pink Ranger. In ''Series/MightyMorphinPowerRangers'', Spike's dad had a crush on Kimberly, who was the first Pink Ranger ever.
** Bulk uses a video camera to spy on the Rangers, though this time its to learn their moves rather than their identities.
** While Mako's greatest fear was ''natto'', Mia is afraid of [[Series/PowerRangersMysticForce frogs.]] She even kisses it, not on top like Madison did, but full on the mouth for ''the first liplock in Power Rangers since [[Series/MightyMorphinPowerRangers Tommy and Kimberly!]]''
** Mia's driving licence in "A Strange Case of the Munchies" reveals her last name as Watanabe - [[Series/PowerRangersNinjaStorm any chance she's related to Sensei and Cam?]]
** Bulk strikes the [[Series/MightyMorphinPowerRangers Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers']] morphing pose with a handful of gumballs in "Stroke of Fate". [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sGrdxqgW5CU IT'S CHEWING TIME!]]
** In the Netherworld scenes, you can vaguely make out a few bars of Rita Repulsa's background music.
* NewSeasonNewName: ''Samurai'' to ''Super Samurai''. The first PR series since ''Series/PowerRangersInSpace'' to officialy have this trope, as the seasons from ''[[Series/PowerRangersLostGalaxy Lost Galaxy]]'' and ''[[Series/PowerRangersRPM RPM]]'' were more-along-examples of SequelSeries.
* NoFullNameGiven: We've heard of no surnames for half of the main characters. The ones we do know are Antonio Garcia, Jayden Shiba, Mia Watanabe; and long-known Farkus Bulkmeier and Spike Skullovitch, by virtue of his father Eugene. Kevin, Mike, Emily, and Ji, nor Deker and Dayu haven't had theirs mentioned.
* NoHoldsBarredBeatdown: Splitface receives this from the Rangers as revenge for stealing Emily's spirit.
* NoSwastikas: The background of the morphing sequence is based on that used in ''Shinkenger'', but edited to remove the manji-like patterns (The UsefulNotes/NintendoDS game, however, still has them).
* NotEvenBotheringWithTheAccent: Every. Single. Child Actor who appears in Samurai will not even bother trying to hide their kiwi accents which can stick out like a sore thumb. Especially when we see flashbacks to young Jayden who suddenly has a Kiwi accent despite having an American accent as an adult.
* NotSoStoic: Jayden. While he is more serious than his teammates, he isn't immune from engaging in witty banter during battle (which may be a step up from ''Shinkenger'' - in which it makes him seem more receptive to the team - or down - in which it saps authority that he must have as team leader - from Takeru's initial IneffectualLoner behavior).
* OfficialCouple: [[spoiler:In flashback, Deker and Dayu are shown as this, until the tragedy that changed their lives forever.]]
** After being [[ShipTease teased]] off and on for nearly the entire run of the series, [[spoiler: Mike and Emily]] finally become this in the finale.
* OffscreenMomentOfAwesome: The Samurai Rangers except for Jayden get to visit the ''RPM''-verse in the crossover, but all we get is "The other RPM Rangers say 'Hi.'"
* OpeningNarration:
-->"Three hundred years ago in Japan, the evil Nighlok monsters invaded. Only five had the power to stand against them. They are the Power Rangers Samurai."
** There's another variant as well (which is the one that is most commonly used before the non-continued episodes):
--->"Centuries ago in Japan, Nighlok monsters invaded our world. But samurai warriors defeated them with Power Symbols, passed down from parent to child. Today, the evil Nighlok have risen once again and plan to flood the Earth. Luckily, a new generation of heroes stand in their way. They are the Power Rangers Samurai."
* OrcusOnHisThrone: Xandred can't leave the Sanzu, but even so he doesn't do much beyond nursing his headache. Sure, he authorizes Nighloks to go to the human world, but he doesn't exactly think up attack plans. Dayu does even less in most episodes, being more of a court musician than anything else, but even ''she'' masterminds more plans than Xandred.
* ParanoiaGambit: The Nighlok Vulpes' plan was to make Jayden paranoid enough to reveal the Sealing Symbol.
* PercussiveMaintenance: The Light Zord sometimes gets its discs jammed, requiring a swift smack to its butt.
* PintsizedPowerhouse: Octoroo. As TheSmartGuy of the villains in a series that really doesn't need a monster-maker 'cause monsters just show up, can grow on their own, and {{Mooks}} are created ''by Xandred's bad temper,'' he often has little to do. He's also waist-high. Then he comes up with the poisoning plot and takes the field personally. And he is a really powerful fighter, doing more damage than Dayu or Deker, the more standard [[TheDragon Dragons]].
* PlanBResolution: Much like its ''Super Sentai'' counterpart, a driving theme was that it seemed the only thing that could stop Master Xandred for good was the sealing symbol of the Red Ranger. [[spoiler:Unfortunately, when Lauren used it on Xandred, it had no affect on him as he was no longer pure Nighlok due to absorbing Dayu. Fortunately, Jayden had a plan B: taking him out with brute force by striking the spot where Dayu was absorbed]].
-->'''Jayden:''' Forget sealing [Xandred]. If we can strike that spot with a strong enough blow, we may be able to ''destroy'' him.
* PottyEmergency: Kevin has one in "A Sticky Situation". While he and Mike are [[ChainedHeat stuck together]], by their wrists, front-to-front. Mike was ''not'' happy.
* PragmaticAdaptation: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bM7jt8tpF_w The morph.]] The original uses ink brushes that somehow writes colorful Japanese characters in the air. The American version uses a colorful LED that writes colorful Japanese characters in the air. Calligraphy brushes aren't as culturally important in America, but also the devices (which are otherwise identical despite the visual effect) look like complicated cell phones instead of magic wands.
** To be fair, the original Sentai's morphers were cell phones that happened to contain a magic calligraphy brush.
** And the previous set of Samurai Rangers ([[spoiler:and Lauren]]) are shown using the ink brush style morphers as opposed to the modern one.
** Special mention must be made of adapting the Green-stuck-with-Blue battle in "A Sticky Situation", as Mike and Kevin now yell commands at each other to pull off the whole thing. In the original, the less talkative Shinkengers would have to have been using telepathy.[[note]]Actually, that episode established that Ryunosuke and Chiaki work very well in tandem, in a nearly instinctive level, and the stuck hands predicament threw off their teamwork, which they eventually regain in order to destroy the Ayakashi.[[/note]]
* PutOnABus: Dayu and Deker basically disappeared from the first stretch of ''Super Samurai'', Dayu having ditched Xandred and Deker presumably "destroyed", before both of them turning up in "Kevin's Choice". Later, Xandred took some episodes off to recover after overexerting himself in "The Master Returns".
* RealLifeWritesThePlot:
** Weird example. The automorph toys had masks covering their "civilian" faces because they were being made while casting was still going on, so the toy makers couldn't know what the unmorphed Rangers looked like. As a result, the masks were added to the show's TransformationSequence to justify their presence.
** The reason why Bulk's scenes are so limited, and he ''rarely'' interacts with the rangers (despite having done so multiple times at this point in the franchise) is due to Paul Schrier being unable to relocate to New Zealand - meaning that either they come up with an entirely new character, or they include him, but in a very limited way (they went with the latter).
* RearrangeTheSong: The theme tune is a remix of ''MMPR'''s with the lyrics altered to replace any mention of Mighty Morphin with "Rangers Together, Samurai Forever". Bulk and Spike's theme also reuses some lines from Bulk and Skull's original theme.
* TheRestShallPass: While Mike invokes this against a monster and is ultimately the one who brings it down in both the on-foot and Zord fights, he has help both times from Jayden and the rest of the Rangers respectively.
* SamuraiShinobi: All the Rangers are called samurai in this season. However, one episode has Antonio escape by using a smoke grenade.
* SealedCastInAMultipack: With new zords being discovered and tamed and/or busted and unfinished equipment being brought out and repaired as the plot demands.
* SelfProclaimedKnight: Antonio
* SequelNumberSnarl: The cause of some big ones for the franchise. First, it was referred to as Season 19 when it launched, placing the ''Series/MightyMorphinPowerRangers'' ReCut as an official season. Second, it was stretched over two years as two 20-episode seasons; and delaying ''Samurai'''s end until 2012 brought a lot of questions regarding how they were going to handle potential ''Goseiger'' and ''Gokaiger'' adaptations if ''Gokaiger'' was to be used as a 20th MilestoneCelebration in 2013. They ultimately merged both ''Goseiger'' and ''Gokaiger'' into ''Series/PowerRangersMegaforce''.
** As of Megaforce Samurai ''Mighty Morphin''' ReCut is no longer considered a numbered season.
* ShamWedding: In one episode, the villains have been abducting women at their weddings, and so the Rangers arrange a fake ceremony between Jayden and Mia to lure the monsters to them.
* ShipTease: Mike with Emily, Jayden with Mia, Kevin with Mia, and Antonio with Lauren.
** In "Clash of the Red Rangers" [[Series/PowerRangersRPM Scott]] basically out right states that Emily and Mike have a thing for each other.
** Mia often disusses Jayden's problems like when she practices with him after he rejects Antonio from the team and in "Trust Me".
** Kevin and Mia are sort of shipped in "Deal With A Nighlok".
** Antonio and Lauren talk about Jayden and his past, and Antonio calls Lauren cool.
* ShotForShotRemake: One of the biggest complaints against ''Samurai'' is that they're trying to replicate ''Shinkenger'' as closely as possible. Not only does this make it basically reruns for anyone who's seen Shinkenger, but because of ValuesDissonance, they simply aren't able to do it as well.
** As of "Boxed In", this trope is subverted to some degree (while Genta manages to finish the Inroumaru in the corresponding episode, Antonio is unable to do the same for the Black Box, thus delaying the team's SuperMode). The next episode [[spoiler:pretty much completely rewrites Dayu and Deker's histories, making both quite sympathetic.]]
* ShoutOut: The Beetle Zord's combination with the Samurai Megazord is called the [[Series/{{Beetleborgs}} Beetle Blast]]er Megazord.
** Antonio, LargeHam and GadgeteerGenius, and just to hammer it home, Antonio can also mean [[ComicBook/IronMan "Tony"]]. Interestingly, Mia actually says "this isn't my first rodeo" in "Clash of the Red Rangers", in different context from Agent Coulson of course.
** Antonio uses a quick-draw style with a ReverseGrip, much like a certain [[Franchise/{{Zatoichi}} blind swordsman]].
** One of Spike's Pink Ranger dreams has a tied up Mia proclaiming [[Film/ANewHope "Help me, Samurai Warrior, you're my only hope!"]]
** In the "Origins" episodes, you can spot [[Anime/MyNeighborTotoro Totoro Drive]] in a map.
** Negatron addressing a bunch of chicks as "Literature/{{gossip girl}}s"
** In "Clash of the Red Rangers" at one point Mike yells "It’s time to [[Music/RageAgainstTheMachine rage against the machine!]]"
** At the end of the ChristmasEpisode Bulk and Skull are seen [[FullMoonSilhouette riding the motorcycle Mike gave them past the moon]], a la ''Film/ETTheExtraTerrestrial''.
** Three of them in "He Ain't Heavy Metal, He's My Brother":
*** The title is inspired by a song from Music/TheHollies, minus the "Metal".
*** Bulk hiring bikers to work as bodyguards to protect them while they perform is a possible reference to when the Rolling Stones hired the Hells Angels biker gang to work as security at Altamont.
*** Bulk and Spike's music act has them use the names [[Creator/MarkWahlberg Spikey Spike]] and [[Music/WillSmith the Fresh Bulk]]. And of course they had to include the line [[Music/SnoopDogg 'drop it like it's hot']].
*** The duo also try wearing costumes in Bulk's garage, which resemble Music/DaftPunk.
** The title of the 15th episode, "The Blue and the Gold" is probably a reference to a certain [[ComicBook/BlueBeetle duo of]] [[ComicBook/BoosterGold superheroes]].
* ShownTheirWork: ''Samurai'' changes some of the kanji used in ''Shinkenger,'' but the new kanji are still relevant to the action onscreen. Let's take an example from "Broken Dreams": in the original, Takeru writes 夢 ("dream") to allow Ryunosuke and Chiaki to jump into Genta's dream; in the adaptation, Jayden writes 門 ("portal" as he calls it, but loosely it means "gate") to ''open'' the passage for Kevin and Mike to enter Antonio's dream.
** The face in the belt of Shogun Mode is based off actual belt buckles worn by certain noble samurai.
* ShutUpHannibal: The monster of "Sticks and Stones" attacks by giving short {{Hannibal Lecture}}s and converting the emotional pain into physical pain. This leads to Emily using this trope to help defeat it.
* SleepCute: Kevin and Mia.
** Emily, riding piggyback on Mike. Okay, he isn't sleeping, but she's so {{Squee}}-tastic while she's asleep... Until the ice cream truck passes by and she wakes up.
* SingleTear: Jayden produces one every so often.
* TheSnackIsMoreInteresting: "A Sticky Situation". Mike seems to think munching an apple during sword training makes him more badass. He actually sticks it on Kevin's sword to catch him off guard.
* SoapOperaDisease: The vaguely defined sickness that caused Emily's sister to give up Ranger duty.
* SpectacularSpinning: Everything with the Power Discs.
* TheStarscream:
** Arachnitor is an interesting example of a MonsterOfTheWeek that actually tried his hand at becoming Starscreamy to Master Xandred. Sadly, his attempt to overthrow him and become the new leader of the Nighloks didn't end so well for him, and he ended up being mutated through ColdBloodedTorture as punishment for his betrayal.
** Serrator later turns out to be this.
* StatingTheSimpleSolution: When Madimot brainwashes Kevin, Dayu suggests he just make him [[NeverSayDie "turn his blade on himself"]]. Madimot shoots the idea down because he likes making the Rangers fight each other ForTheEvulz.
* StickySituation: Thanks to a glue monster in - what else? - [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin "A Sticky Situation"]]. The main one featured was [[ChainedHeat Kevin and Mike stuck together]].
* StockFootage: While the use of ''Sentai'' footage is a given, the two ''Super Samurai'' specials, "Trickster Treat" and "Stuck on Christmas" use footage from previous episodes of ''Samurai'', the former almost entirely made up of StockFootage from both ''[[Series/SamuraiSentaiShinkenger Shinkenger]]'' (there's even a quick shot of an untransformed Mako left in; her face is blurred, though) and ''Samurai''. The latter actually does use quite a bit of original footage. See BottleEpisode above.
* SublimeRhyme: The team's rallying cry of "Rangers together, Samurai forever!"
* SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute: Spike for his father, Eugene Skullovitch.
* SympathyForTheDevil: [[spoiler:Mia discovers Dayu and Deker were once husband and wife, but a fire in their house mortally wounded Deker. As a result, Dayu made a DealWithTheDevil, selling her soul to save Deker's life, unknowingly cursing him to be a half Nighlok who would forget he ever knew her. Mia actually feels sorry for Dayu after this.]]
* TechnoWizard: Antonio. Particularly noticable because more than once there's been a broken piece of gear and someone's said "I bet Antonio might be able to fix this!"
* TemptingFate: happens right off the bat in "I've Got A Spell On Blue" and again in "Shell Game".
* ThemeTuneRollCall
* ThisIsUnforgivable: Said by Mia to Doubletone, after finding out [[spoiler:[[ILied he lied]] to a little boy that he'd let him see his father again in exchange for him giving up baseball.]]
* TitleDrop: In the middle of "Super Samurai" [[note]] the episode and the season [[/note]] "Jayden looks into the camera and says "We need to be... Super Samurai."
** In "Fight Fire With Fire", Octoroo says the name of the episode.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: Mia and Emily.
* TrainingFromHell: Self-enforced by Jayden, when he tries to master the Secret Beetle Disc in "Day Off". He gets thrown back by its sheer force too many times to count, but [[{{Determinator}} he just won't give up]].
** Played for laughs in "A Strange Case of the Munchies" to distract Bulk and Spike when they wander straight into the Shiba house. Bonus points for the horse stance and the eggs, taken straight out of the Creator/JackieChan training handbook.
* TurnInYourBadge: Ji makes Mike hand over his Samuraizer in "Forest For The Trees", and a variant when he confiscates Antonio's morpher in "Room for One More".
* UnderworldRiver: The Sanzu river is a giant river which flows through the Netherworld and is in a hell dimension connected by cracks to the human world. The river consists of human tears and when monsters attack the human world it causes it to overflow.
* UnusuallyUninterestingSight: In episode 8 several civilians are in plain sight of the Nighlok fighting the Rangers and are too busy crying from the fact that the monster made it rain to run away. Justified in that said rain is supposed to make them feel too hopeless to even ''think'' of doing anything else.
** In "Jayden's Challenge," the young boy Jayden meets seems more interested in the paper airplane Jayden made than the fact that he made the plane from paper he summoned by drawing it in the air with his Samuraizer. Even though Jayden ''did'' tell him it was a trick of his, we don't hear anything like "wow! How did you do that?" from the kid.
* VanInBlack: Kevin gets a ride in one at the beginning of "Fish Out Of Water." Mia rides in one to meet the other Rangers in the origin.
* VerbalTic: Octoroo tends to pepper his lines with "ooh-ah-ooh!"
* VomitIndiscretionShot: A first for ''Power Rangers'', as Kevin makes himself eat Mia's cooking only to hork it back up later.
* WeaponizedHeadgear: The Swordfish combination's finisher involves sticking its sword on its ''head'' and waving it around like that, while the Beetle forms a [[{{BFG}} massive energy cannon]]. The Tiger's armaments are more on the shoulders, though.
* WeddingSmashers: Dayu's scheme in "There Go the Brides." The ColdOpen makes use of SpeakNowOrForeverHoldYourPeace, as well.
* WhamEpisode: "The Tengen Gate". [[spoiler:Jayden is poisoned by Octoroo and is taken away somewhere else by Deker, while Mike, Mia, Kevin and Emily are defeated by the MonsterOfTheWeek and knocked unconscious.]]
** "The Master Returns" has [[spoiler: Xandred temporarily arriving on Earth to effortlessly beat all the Rangers, shrug off all of their attacks, hitting Jayden hard enough to de-morph and seriously injure him, and sending Serrator running in fear. Note that he does all of this while rapidly drying out!]]
* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: In "Clash of the Red Rangers", Sharkjaw isn't so much as mentioned again after jumping off Xandred's boat.
* WhereTheHellIsSpringfield: There are conflicting pieces of information as to what ''country'' it's located in. The citizens and English writing of the town suggest that it is in America, but there are some locations that imply it to be in Japan. Notably, "The Tengen Gate" implies that the titular gate, the site of the Nighlok's first defeat, is not too far from the Samurai Rangers' hometown. However, the introduction in each episode points out that the Nighloks first appeared in feudal Japan, making things more difficult to sort out. There is also the temple in "There Go The Brides," as well as the torii seen in "An Unexpected Arrival," to add to the confusion.
** "The Bullzord" gives us the titular zord, "first brought into being by symbol power" then locked up by the original samurais... and apparently it's within walking distance of the Shiba house since a 9 year old boy run away from home to the Shiba house to get help releasing it.
** "The Strange Case of the Munchies" adds more confusion as Mia's driver's license says her address is Panorama City, PR 649815. Problem here is that no American city has a 6-digit ZIP code and since Antonio is the only person on the show to speak Spanish, [[GratuitousSpanish albeit badly]], that pretty much rules out Puerto Rico.
** American money is seen on at least a couple of occasions such as when Bulk pays some bikers $5 to be security in "He's Not Heavy Metal He's My Brother".
** "A Crack in the World" reuses ''Shinkenger'' footage of a bird's-eye view of Honshu, though the entire island is never seen all at once so those who don't know better might see it as just a peninsula somewhere.
* WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes: "Something Fishy" deserves special mention for adapting the corresponding arc from ''Shinkenger'' without losing the context. While Genta's fear of his own Sushi Changer stemmed from [[AndIMustScream his soul getting trapped in sushi that was almost eaten]], Antonio developed a fear of his ''weapon'' (the fish-shaped Barracuda Blade) instead, after being trapped in a regular fish. The other Rangers' fears have been changed (the haunted house is swapped for regular old spiders for Jayden), with a CallBack to boot as Kevin's test of courage involves ''Mia's cooking.''
* WordsCanBreakMyBones: Symbol Power
* WorfHadTheFlu: [[spoiler:When Master Xandred makes his first appearence to the Rangers in "The Master Returns" he rapidly dries out moments after getting to Earth due to the previous generation's seal on him. However, far from being weaker than expected, he was ''immensely'' powerful and his needing to retreat to avoid crumbling away is the only reason that the Rangers ''survived!'' The final episode was played more straight: after absorbing Dayu and becoming part human, he gained immunity to drying out ''and'' the sealing spell, but his power was reduced, making him a very difficult but ultimately beatable foe.]]
* YouLookFamiliar: Rene Naufahu, playing Ji, once threatened Rangers as [[Series/PowerRangersSPD Emperor Gruumm]]. There was even an episode where Gruumm took human form, allowing Naufahu to walk around out-of-costume.
** Related to the above, the Grand Shogun is played by Jim Mclarty, who played Broodwing.
** [[Series/PowerRangersWildForce Cole's]] actor, Ricardo Medina Jr., returns as [[BloodKnight Deker's]] human form. It should be noted that the slicked back hair & goatee make him look distinctly different to when he last appeared as Cole, and coupled with the fact that he's credited as "'''Rick''' Medina" here, it could be enough to throw anyone who didn't know it was the same actor.
** Daisuke from "The Tengen Gate" is played by Grant [=McFarland=] who played ''both'' [[CainAndAbel Sensei Kanoi and]] BigBad [[CainAndAbel Lothor]] in ''Series/PowerRangersNinjaStorm''. Why do they keep having him play Asian people?

----
-->''"Rangers together, Samurai forever!"''
----