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Maskmen
Takeru/Red Mask
Takeru/Red Mask | Actor: Ryosuke Kaizu
- The Ace: He is actually one, but in the past, he's anything but. He would still hide that non-Ace past because it is embarrassing.
- Badass Driver: He's a Formula One racer, thus instantly qualifies him as one.
- Bare-Fisted Monk: Like the rest of his team, he's specialized in hand-to-hand combat.
- Bratty Half-Pint: When he was a kid.
- Cool Sword: Masky Blade
- Determinator: This is his main quality, which is why Sugata got him as a Maskman.
- Expy: Closer to the Shout-Out to the Robot Romance Trilogy, Takeru draws similarities with Kazuya Ryuuzaki the most, since he is the male Star-Crossed Lovers, runs on The Power of Love, and is a karateka.
- Finishing Move: Masky Crash
- Episode 6 has him utilizing the all powerful God Hand technique.
- Get A Hold Of Yourself Man: Is the one who'd do this to his friends who needs it.
- The Hero: While the other team members get focus, Takeru is The Leader of the team and the one driving the plot.
- I Know Karate: As a karate practitioner, he naturally incorporates some of it into his fighting style.
- Law of Chromatic Superiority: Gets his own buggy (Spin Cruiser) and has two powerful Finishing Moves he can use on his own, plus he is Jet Cannon's designated pilot.
- The Leader: Designated as such by Sugata.
- My Future Self and Me: It's only after meeting his future Maskman self that little Takeru stopped being a brat.
- Old Shame: An in-universe example. His Bratty Half-Pint past is something he didn't want to reveal to his friends, so he hid the facts about his bratty self.
- Signature Move: Laser Arrow
- Star-Crossed Lovers: With Mio/Iyal. He spends most of the show chasing after her, and once Zeba is defeated they end having to part ways again. Despite this, Takeru encourages Ial to go back to her kingdom to rule and rebuild it rather than stay with him, content with the time they spent together, however brief it was.
Kenta/Black Mask
Kenta/Black Mask | Actor: Kouichi Kusakari
- Barehanded Blade Block: Learns one.
- Casanova Wannabe: He tries, but he just can't get a girl.
- Cowardly Lion: Was turned into one at a point, but he gets better.
- Epic Flail: One part of Masky Rod.
- Handsome Lech
- Super-Strength: Shown in ep 13 where in his civilian identity throws around the other Maskmen like ragdolls of course the Maskmen were faking the fight to draw out a spy, but it was still impressive
- The Smart Guy: A skilled mechanic.
Akira/Blue Mask
Akira/Blue Mask | Actor: Issei Hirota
- Brainwashed and Crazy: At one point, he is possessed by a monster, turning him into the fencer Unas and proceeds to OWN the Maskmen, HARD. He gets better, of course.
- Child Prodigy: Was recognized by Sugata as one in the ways of martial arts, which is why he was chosen for Maskman.
- Heroes Prefer Swords: He is an expert at swordplay...but his individual weapon is tonfa.
- Just a Kid: He really does not like being treated as a kid at first, even if he is only sixteen.
- Keet: He is the youngest of the team and also the most bubbly.
- Kid-Appeal Character: He is the youngest of the team and most expressive with his emotions.
- The Lancer: He is the one making all the jokes.
- Trademark Favorite Food: Apples
Haruka/Yellow Mask
Haruka/Yellow Mask | Actress: Yuki Nagata
- Battle Tops: Masky Rotor.
- The Big Girl: The more obvious Action Girl, that is.
- Boyish Short Hair: Has short hair, befitting her tomboyish personality.
- Cuteness Proximity: Raised as a ninja, Haruka was forbidden to enjoy anything cute or girly, thus explaining her soft spot on cute things despite her tomboyish exterior.
- Doppelgänger Attack: Yellow Mask Kage Bunshinnote
- Expy: She's basically a Gender Flip version of Ryu Hoshikawa since both of them came from the line of ninjas.
- Besides her ninja background, Haruka is the Sentai equivalent of Megumi Oka for having the same color scheme.
- Killer Yo-Yo: Again, Masky Rotor.
- Ninja: Is often counted as one in later team-ups, such as Chou Super Hero Taisen and Strongest Battle.
- Proud Ninja Girl: Is prideful of her ninja lineage.
- Tomboy and Girly Girl: Tomboy to Momoko's Girly Girl.
- Tomboy with a Girly Streak: Is a tomboy, but has a soft spot for cute things.
Momoko/Pink Mask
Momoko/Pink Mask | Actress: Kanako Maeda
- Flowers of Femininity: Her status as Girly Girl couple with her dear "Carol Love" flowers.
- Friend to All Children
- The Heart: Less 'chick' than most others, since this is Maskman, Sentai of Charles Atlas Superpower, she can be as strong as you can get.
- Heroic RRoD: In the episode where she fought against a monster untransformed for so long, it drained her fatigue that after firing the Shot Bomber, she collapsed, reverts back to human form and rendered unconscious.
- Determinator: All because she made a promise about teaching her students about making the impossible possible as long as one pushes their efforts to their limits, she absolutely refuses to transform and to her credit, she actually punches a hole through the Monster of the Week's chest untransformed and even after she transformed, she still wrecks the monster hard enough so it can be shot with Shot Bomber. However...
- Unwitting Pawn: That is exactly what Anagmas was counting on her, resulting the fall of Great Five. To her comfort, she still saved her students and their spirits.
- Lady of War: It's Tai Chi Quan, the martial arts for Lady of War.
- Mythology Gag: Is the Pink Ranger, uses Ribbon as her weapon, and part of her name is 'Momo'. We've had this concept before.
- Tomboy and Girly Girl: Girly Girl to Haruka's Tomboy.
Allies
Commander Sanjurou Sugata
Commander Sanjurou Sugata | Actor: Hayato Tani
A man who discovered the existence of Tube and, learning of their plans to invade, assembled the Maskmen to combat them.- Alliterative Name: Sanjurou Sugata.
- Big Good: The team benefactor this season.
- Cool Old Guy: Can be a bit gruff, but is respectful to his team and compliments them when they do well.
- Genius Bruiser: He's both a scientist and a skilled martial artist.
- Levitating Lotus Position: Demonstrates it in the theme song and to the Maskmen.
- Old Master: Is well versed in Aura Power and older than the rest of the team.
Princess Ial
Princess Ial/Mio | Actress: Mina Asami
The princess of Tube and younger sister of Igam. She betrays Tube at the beginning after falling in love with Takeru, only to be trapped in a block of ice by Zeba as punishment for her treason.- Expy: The "Erika" to Takeru's "Kazuya".
- Meaningful Appearance: When she came to the surface world, she didn't have shoes. After saving her life, Takeru noticed the barefooted Mio and bought a pair of red shoes, which are used to symbolize their love.
- Rebellious Princess: Turned against Tube after falling in love with Takeru.
- Royal Blood: Princess of the Tube Empire.
- Star-Crossed Lovers: With Takeru/ Red Mask. Despite wanting to be with him, she ends up having to return to her people in the ending and leave Takeru, though not before staying goodbye.
- Tomboy and Girly Girl: The girly girl to her "brother" Igam.
- The High Queen: Becomes this to Tube in the finale, with every other contender having died or gone into seclusion.
Ryo Asuka/X 1 Mask
Ryo Asuka/X1 Mask | Actor: Shinji Higashi
A One-Shot Character who briefly joined the Maskman team as its sixth member.- Classical Anti-Hero: He's a prototype Maskman who became doubtful of his duties due to the loss of his girlfriend from a Tube attack. He grows out of it later on after Takeru helps him regaining his confidence.
- Deadly Gas: His Gas Buckle releases a dangerous toxic cloud.
- De-power: He ended up losing his powers after assisting the core Maskmen by defeating the Magma Doggler.
- Poisonous Person: Again, Gas Buckle.
- Shock and Awe: Lightning Attack
- Sixth Ranger: Predating Burai; he coincidentally has the same color.
- Super Prototype: His suit differs from the other Maskmen in appearance and has different attack in its arsenal. Notably it also doesn't need a Transformation Trinket.
Underground Empire Tube
In General
A vast civilization from the underground. Though once pacifist, after the rise of Emperor Zeba, Tube began building up its forces for an invasion of the surface world.
- Armies Are Evil: Zeba's rise as ruler of Tube saw the Tube embracing militarism in preparation for invading the surface world.
- Contrasting Sequel Antagonist: The Reconstructive Experiment Empire Mess in Choushinsei Flashman were Alien Invaders, while the Tube are an imperialist army from the underground seeking to conquer the surface. Mess was founded purely to fulfill their ruler's megalomaniacal intentions, while Tube was originally a peaceful kingdom that was hijacked by a despot seeking to conquer the surface world. The Mess created all of their generals through genetic engineering, while Tube recruits most of their generals from the various tribes that make up their empire.
- The Empire: A militaristic power seeking to dominate more land. Notably, they have a lot of the trappings of a traditional empire, being a union of various tribes under a single authority.
- Evil Is Deathly Cold: Tube is stated to be a very cold place, on account of being deep underground.
- Evil Is Not Well-Lit: Justified, as they live underground and thus don't have as much need for light as surface dwellers.
- Monster of the Week: The Doggler Beasts, which are thawed out from a frozen cave to fight the Maskmen. A few of the early ones were actually two monsters in one, which were composed of an "Underground Doggler" and a "parasite" that would grant it power.
- Mooks: The Ungler Soldiers, essentially your standard Sentai Faceless Goons.
- Standard Evil Organization Squad: Zeba's inner circle, who command the forces of Tube in battle.
Emperor Zeba
Emperor Zeba/Lethal Doggler II | Actor: Seizō Katō (voice), Hideaki Kusaka (suit)
- Alien Blood: A variant. He sweats green ooze.
- Ambiguously Human: From the beginning it's not clear whether Zeba is an underground human like Igam or Baraba, or something more alien. He eventually turns out to be an Earth Beast, albeit one that worked its way up the food chain.
- Bad Boss: Even by the standards of Sentai villains, Zeba is an abysmal boss. Just about every episode has him zapping his subordinates with lightning because they did something to displease him.
- Big Bad: Zeba is responsible for the transformation on the once peaceful Tube empire into a dark militaristic kingdom in order to invade the surface world.
- Cannibalism Superpower: Cannibalized his own parent to absorb its power for himself.
- Cool Mask: Wears an ornate blue mask that covers his face, leaving only his eyes visible.
- The Emperor: His title as ruler of the underground. Unlike most other Emperors in the franchise however, he actually has a claim to the title given how similar Tube is to a traditional empire.
- Even Evil Has Standards: Even he was against reviving Lethal Doggler, the beast which once terrorized the underground. Subverted later. Zeba wasn't worried about Lethal Doggler returning, he was worried about being caught.
- Evil Overlord: Plays just about every Evil Overlord trope unabashedly straight, up to and including stealing his domain from the rightful rulers.
- Fake King: Stole the position from the real king.
- Glorious Leader: As the head of Tube's military dictatorship, his subordinates have constructed a Cult of Personality around him revering him as a great and wise leader.
- Light Is Not Good: His appearance is shiny and sparkly, but at heart he's a cruel and cold dictator.
- Make My Monster Grow: In the finale he absorbs the energy of the Maskmen's Finishing Move to enlarge himself.
- Molotov Truck: In the finale he does this with his own headquarters, jampacking with Evil Particles and sending it to the surface so he can blow it up and scatter the particles all across Earth's atmosphere, corrupting it to be like Tube's underground environment.
- Mook Promotion: He's basically a Monster of the Week that worked his way up to Big Bad.
- One-Winged Angel: In the final battle, Zeba assumes his true form as Lethal Doggler II after being exposed by Ial and Igam.
- Orcus on His Throne: Despite his immense power, and the fact that he can take on all five Maskmen with ease, Zeba never takes to the field for most of the series and instead uses his powers to punish his subordinates for failing to defeat the Maskmen.
- The Stoic: Even when he's furious, Zeba rarely raises his voice.
- Not So Stoic: The prospect of Lethal Doggler being revived makes him visibly unnerved.
- Superior Successor: The first Lethal Doggler tried to take over the underground and was slain. Zeba, the second Lethal Doggler, succeeded in taking over the underground and defeating the Igam family.
- Take Over the World: Aims to bring both the surface and underground under his control.
- Technicolor Death: Bleeds red energy like other Ground Beasts then melts into energy which forms into a face which float up in the sky and explodes four times.
- To Create a Playground for Evil: Seeks to terraform Earth's surface to be cold and dark like Tube.
- Tyrant Takes the Helm: After overthrowing the Tube royal family in a coup, Zeba turned Tube from a pacifist kingdom into a militaristic empire.
- Villainous Breakdown: Whenever a clue to the Lethal Doggler emerges, he desperately aims for that hint to be destroyed at all costs. This comes into the forefront in the endgame when a ball delivered by the Igam Dragon reveals that he is Lethal Doggler's son.
- Villainous Legacy: He turns out to be the spawn of an earlier Imperial Beast, Lethal Doggler, destroyed by the original Tube royal family. Driven both by hatred against humans on both sides of the crust as well as his ancestor's lust for domination, he wiped out all of the Tube royal family save Ial and Igam, whom he used as his pawns.
- You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: In the finale he sacrifices Igam, Fu-Min, Oyo-bu and even his own Supervillain Lair in a final bid to conquer the surface.
Commander Baraba
Earth Imperial Commander Baraba | Actor: Keijiro Shiga
- The Brute: He's both a powerful warrior and skilled swordsmen, in addition to being Tube's military commander.
- Co-Dragons: Starts off on equal footing with Igam, though his failures eventually lead to him falling out of favor with Zeba.
- Cool Sword: His Mid-Season Upgrade gives him one.
- Even Bad Men Love Their Mamas: He's a very bad man, but Baraba genuinely loves his mama. When his mother gets killed by a Monster of the Week, it allowed him to gain enough courage to slay the monster and gain his own Mid-Season Upgrade.
- Last Villain Stand: After Zeba marks him for death for his continued failures, he's allowed a final chance to defeat Red Mask. He ends up getting slain by Takeru in a duel, after having been tricked by Kiros into giving him Ial.
- Unwitting Pawn: Gets tricked by Kiros into taking Ial out to use as a hostage against Takeru, allowing Kiros to swoop in and claim her.
Igam
Earth Imperial Prince Igam | Actress: Mina Asami
- The Atoner: In the finale, she's repented of all the bad things she's done by becoming a Buddhist nun.
- Bastard Understudy: Igam's goal is to grow close to Zeba in order to succeed him and take back the throne for the Tube royal family.
- Bling of War: His suit has gold highlights.
- Cain and Abel: Seeks to murder Ial to restore his family's honor after she fell in love with a surface dweller.
- Combat Stilettos: They're there, but more for making Igam taller than to be sexy.
- Crosscast Role: Is played by the female Mina Asami despite being male. Subverted when it turns out she was really a woman in disguise, making it more just a case of heavy-handed Foreshadowing.
- Dark Action Girl: The reveal she's a woman does nothing to make her any less of an effective fighter.
- Dragon Knight: Igam's armor has a draconic motif.
- The Dragon: Igam is Zeba's second-in-command and the lead enforcer of Tube.
- Dragon with an Agenda: Namely, retaking the throne and getting revenge on Takeru for wooing Ial and apparently disgracing their family name.
- Even Evil Has Loved Ones: Genuinely cares for and appreciates his loyal bodyguard Fumin.
- Even the Girls Want Her: The movie has Igam wooing a mermaid into helping Tube with their plans. Given the reveal about her true gender...
- The Evil Prince: As a counterpart to Iyal's desire for peace.
- Evil Wears Black: Wears a mostly black outfit, though he's comparatively less evil than the likes of Zeba or Baraba.
- Expy: Considering the Shout-Out to Robot Romance Trilogy, Igam is basically the Richter for Ial's Erika, although there are elements of Prince Heinel (being outcasts of the fallen royal family who wants to rise through the ranks of their kingdoms to prove themselves and restore family honor) and Teral (High-ranking female general who convincingly disguised herself as a man)
- Heel–Face Turn: After much convincing from the Maskman and Ial and the reveal of Zeba's true intentions, she helps the Maskman unmask Zeba's ruse.
- Knight Templar: Does everything he does in the name of restoring his family to power, though he was down with Zeba's invasion of the surface world and was even willing to murder his own sister.
- Meaningful Name: His name is Filipino for "Weapon".
- The Quisling: Despite being of the original royal family that Zeba wiped out, he serves Zeba in hopes of succeeding him and restoring his family name.
- Raised as the Opposite Gender: Was raised as male so she could claim the throne of Tube, as Tube tradition dictates only a man can take the throne. She keeps it up under Zeba so she can be named his successor.
- The Rival: Of Takeru, who he seeks to kill to restore his family's honor after Ial fell in love with him.
- Royal Blood: Is a member of the original Tube royal family, before Zeba usurped them.
- She Is the King: Is actually a woman, something not even her own sister knows.
- Significant Double Casting: Is played by Mina Asami, who also plays his sister Ial.
- Sweet Polly Oliver: Is not a prince but actually a princess.
- Tomboy and Girly Girl: The Tomboy to Iyal/Mio.
- Warrior Prince: Has no qualms with participating in battle.
Oyo-bu
Earth Imperial Ninja Oyo-bu | Actor: Yoshinori Okamoto
- The Dragon: Starts off as one to Baraba, but by the end he's become one of Zeba's top lieutenants.
- Lightning Bruiser: Known for his speed and is one of top generals of Tube.
- Ninja: An underground Ninja for Tube.
- Noble Demon: Though he is a fervent supporter of Tube and Zeba, Oyobu abides by something akin to a code of honor, to the point of refusing to aid Baraba in dealing with the Maskman as Baraba promised he would do so by himself.
- "The Reason You Suck" Speech: Gives a particularly scathing one to Baraba when he asks for his help in fighting Red Mask.Oyobu: I wanted to give you, the Earth Imperial Commander and hero of the Baluga Clan, the chance to have a final fight. However, you are nothing more than a coward.
- Super-Speed: Noting for being able to run at lightspeed-like velocities.
- Undying Loyalty: To Tube, to the point where he willingly gives his life to ensure Zeba's plan to raise the underground castle succeeds.
Fu-Min
Earth Imperial Ninja Fu-Min | Actress: Kaori Kubota
- Alas, Poor Villain: She dies protecting Igam, confirming that she's still loyal to her, despite hiding her true gender and attempting to overthrow Zeba.
- Anti-Villain: Type I. Fu-Min's loyalty to Igam is extreme, but genuine that she sometimes showed even compassion to the frozen Ial. She also pretty much sacrificed her life so Igam can live and redeem herself.
- Dark Action Girl: A skilled ninja and one of the top warriors of Tube.
- Evil Counterpart: To Haruka, both being female ninjas.
- Ninja: Like Oyo-bu she is an underground ninja.
- Ninja Maid: She's both a ninja and Igam's personal servant.
- The Rival: To Haruka, who like her is a ninja.
- Undying Loyalty: To Igam, even performing a Heroic Sacrifice to protect her.
Anagmas
Earth Curiousities Beast Anagmas | Actor: Takuzou Kamiyama
- Bat Out of Hell: Resembles an overweight bat.
- Evil Genius: He is incredibly wise and has a vast knowledge of Tube's history, having served even prior to Zeba's Hostile Takeover.
- Fat Bastard: Is a noticeably portly fellow and is shown to be a massive supremacist who willingly aided Zeba's plans, including keeping the truth of him being a mere Doggler Beast hidden.
- Hypercompetent Sidekick: Is a gifted orator, a wise historian, and a skilled warrior when necessary. Notably, Zeba treats him a lot better than most of his other subordinates, never giving him the same Bad Boss treatment he does Baraba or Igam, and seems to trust him the most out of all his minions.
- Killed Off for Real: In the penultimate episode he's felled by Galaxy Robo after doing his best to keep Zeba's secret hidden.
- My Country, Right or Wrong: He seems to be loyal to whoever sits on the throne of Tube, even if they aren't of the Tube royal family and are an usurper like Zeba. Notably, he was even involved in the conspiracy to keep Zeba's true identity a secret.
- Non-Standard Character Design: While his more animalistic design wouldn't look out of place for a Monster of the Week, it certainly stands out among the, mostly humanoid, generals of Tube.
Thief Knight Kiros
Thief Knight Kiros | Actor: Shunta Fuchino
- Karmic Death: Not the death itself, but the last thing he sees before dying is an unfrozen Ial - the woman he gave up everything to go after - embracing her lover Takeru.
- Knight in Shining Armor: Subverted. While he does save girls like one occasionally, his motto is "I always get what I want", which horribly clashes with the meaning of the trope.
- Murder the Hypotenuse: His desire for Ial brings him to blows with Takeru.
- The Rival: Of Takeru for Ial's affections.
- Sealed Evil in a Can: He was trapped inside of a "whirling Hell" before freeing himself.
- Sixth Ranger: Joins up with the Tube exactly halfway through.
- Out-Gambitted: Episode 41 has him brainwashing the two female Maskmen to commit robberies for him. Only for it to turn out they were just playing along to get him to reveal his true plans and all the robberies were staged.
- Wild Card: He only works for Tube so he could have Ial for himself instead of supporting Zeba's cause.
Okelampa
Okelampa
- Catchphrase: "Yare yare..." ("Good grief").
- Damaged Soul: Creatures he revives will always be snarling, rampaging beasts, even if they were capable of speech beforehand.
- Make My Monster Grow: His sole reason for living is to enlarge the Doggler Beasts of Tube..
- Pokémon Speak: His name is the only thing he says besides "Good grief".
- What Happened to the Mouse? - His final fate is unknown...
Others
Lethal Doggler
Lethal Doggler
- Posthumous Character: It terrorized the Underground long ago, but is long dead by the time the series starts.
- Predecessor Villain: Right before succumbing to its wounds, it spawned a successor, Lethal Doggler II, to carry on its legacy.
- Red Herring: It's hinted in 45 and 46 that it might be Zeba's true identity, but the two are revealed to be separate beings when its spirit appears. They do share a connection, however.
- Sealed Evil in a Can: A temple was built over it to keep its spirit from escaping. Its spirit briefly gets free and possesses a Monster of the Week, but it's soon destroyed for good by the Maskmen.
