History Series / NinjaSentaiKakuranger

This is the first Super Sentai with a Ninja motif; its characters are also compared to the leads of JourneyToTheWest. It was also the first Sentai to feature a female as its leader, and the first to have a non-human ally as a SixthRanger.

* PostModernMagik: The Youkai have evolved with the times, and take on forms more relevant to the era the show takes place in or are jokes on the legend surrounding the Youkai. Kappa wears ''swimming goggles'', Rokurokubi is a punk rocker, Oboroguruma is a cab driver in human ''and'' Youkai forms...
** The design theme for them was, apparently, "Bronx Yōkai".

** Similarly, Oboro-guruma has 459HEL (which wouldn't be legal in Japan...). '459' = 'shigoku' = 'JIgoku' = Hell. Kind of a blink-and-you-miss-it, since it's only really visible when he's giant-sized.

* TheHitFlash: Of the Batman "POW!" "WHAM!" type. ([[GratuitousEnglish In English, of course.]]) This is the likely reason why not much Kakuranger footage was used for Power Rangers. Frequently appears over the picture, rather than as a separate card.

* {{Eyecatch}}: The eyecatch before the break features a Kakuranger by a black background slashing the screen. All 5 Kakurangers are then seen in the open turning to the camera. After the break, the eyecatch features the Kyodai Jūshō (later switched to the Three God Generals).

* FunWithSubtitles: The subtitles that name the Youkai will ''always'' be accompanied by an arrow pointing towards the Youkai. -->"This guy", because ''clearly there is a possibility that they will be mistaken for someone else''.

* NoFourthWall: Beginning with Episode 25 (following the departure of the narrator), the monsters begin to explain to the audience themselves the mythology behind them.

* {{Eyecatch}}: The eyecatch before the break features a Kakuranger by a black background slashing the screen. All 5 Kakurangers are then seen in the open turning to the camera. After the break, the eyecatch features the Three God Generals.

*** And if you look real close, the "Otasuke Samurai" in that episode is Shirou Izumi ([[KyoryuSentaiZyuranger Burai]]). In what ''had'' to be a MythologyGag, he's even wearing ''green''.
** The original Kirigakure-Saizou is [[ChoujuuSentaiLiveman Arashi/Ashura]].

** HeyItsThatVoice: You might find yourself waiting for [[KazukiYao Ninjaman]] to yell '''[[{{Dancougar}} YATTE YARUZE!!!]]'''

** {{BFS}}: The rangers can later use Muteki Shogun's Blazing Shogun Sword for themselves.

* HighlyVisibleNinja: The team goes out and fights monsters in BROAD DAYLIGHT, and summons giants to fight giant monsters. They have to be the most visible ninjas ever.

* TheHitFlash: Of the Batman "POW!" "WHAM!" type. ([[GratuitousEnglish In English, of course.]]) This is the likely reason why not much Kakuranger footage was used for Power Rangers.

** Masaki Tachi ([[Series/ChoujinSentaiJetman Radiguet]]) plays a man who gets 'cursed' into Mokumokuren in Episodes 5-6.

* FunWithSubtitles: The subtitles that name the Youkai will ''always'' be accompanied by an arrow pointing towards the Youkai. -->

** Episode 35 is a ReunionShow where Satomi Hirose (Tsuruhime) teams up with her co-stars from ''Yugenjikko Sisters Chouchoutrian'': Kei Ishibashi and Noriko Tanaka.

* DancingMookCredits: The [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZATbJR6pxk ending theme]].

** Their ninja gear is much more subdued and actually what you'd expect - black gear, shin guard, bracers - except for Tsuruhime, who wears ''white''.

* PostModernMagik: The Youkai have evolved with the times, and take on forms more relevant to the era the show takes place in. Episode three's Oboroguruma, for example, is a cab driver in human ''and'' Youkai forms.

* FunnyForeigner: Jiraiya combines being this and a {{Badass}}

* PostModernMagik: The Youkai take on forms more relevant to the era the show takes place in.

* RedOniBlueOni: The Shuten Douji Brothers.

* StockNinjaWeaponry: Shuriken show up, wielded by all of the rangers. Most are of them are small. Each ranger has unique shuriken which resemble their ranger symbol. [=NinjaRed=] also has a FuumaShuriken, with his first HumongousMecha wielding a bigger version that it rolls at enemies to kill them. The rangers also use {{Caltrops}} on a few occasions. Each of them has a wakizashi in Ranger form, and finally [=NinjaRed=]'s third Humongous Mecha wields a pair of ninja-to.

* VanityLicensePlate: Nekomaru's license plate is 'Shinagawa 56 Go 5656' - '56' can be read as 'goro', and 'goro-goro' is the Japanese onomatopoeia for 'purring'.

** KidAppealCharacter: Saizō[[/note]]A bumbling fool, though on the bright side, he's a FriendToAllChildren. Ironic, since his namesake, Kirigakure Saizō, was TheLancer and TheSmartGuy to SarutobiSasuke. Nor is his Journey To The West counterpart, Sha Wujing, who's TheBigGuy[[/note]]

** TheMentor: Sandayū Momochi

* Muteki Shōgun[[/note]]Invincible General[[/note]]: The first and [[MightyGlacier largest of the three]]; he has a [[FlamingSword flaming]] {{BFS}}. Governs "body".

''Ninja Sentai Kakuranger'' (Ninja Squadron Stealth Rangers[[hottip:*:Kakuranger is a portmanteau of ''Kakure'', which means "hidden", and Ranger]]) is the eighteenth installment in the ''Franchise/SuperSentai'' franchise, airing from 1994 to 1995.

* Sasuke / '''Ninja Red''': The [[HotBlooded hot-blooded]] [[TheHero Hero]] of the story. Parallels to Sun Wukong.
* Tsuruhime / '''Ninja White''': TheChick and SmartGuy. She's technically the leader, but Sasuke's the P.O.V.-character. Parallels to Xuanzang.
* Saizō / '''Ninja Blue''': The KidAppealCharacter. [[SmallNameBigEgo He thinks he's all that]] ([[CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass maybe]]). Parallels to Sha Wujing.
* Seikai / '''Ninja Yellow''': TheBigGuy, BigEater, and HeavySleeper. Parallels to Zhu Bajie.
* Jiraiya / '''Ninja Black''': TheLancer. American. Speaks GratuitousEnglish [[SurprisinglyGoodEnglish astoundingly well]]. Debuted as the ReverseMole. Parallels to Yulong. [[hottip:*: Unfortunately, he was written with no counterpart, but Yulong is left over from Journey To The West]]

!!The Sanshinshō [[hottip:*: Three Divine Generals]]
* Muteki Shōgun [[hottip:*: Invincible General]]: The first and [[MightyGlacier largest of the three]]; he has a [[FlamingSword flaming]] {{BFS}}. Governs "body".

* Kakure Daishōgun [[hottip:*: Hidden Great General]]: The third and [[FragileSpeedster swiftest fighter of the three]]. Governs "skill".

* Hana no Kunoichi Gumi[[hottip:*:The Flower Kunoichi Gang]]: The Yōkai's [[AmazonBrigade All-Female]] [[ThePsychoRangers band of fighters]]; their names are '''[[color:navy:Ayame]]''', '''[[color:fuchsia:Sakura]]''', '''[[color:olive:Suiren]]''', '''[[color:orange:Yuri]]''', and '''[[color:purple:Ran]]'''. They were once ordinary cats until transformed by Gashadokuro.

* ByThePowerOfGreyskull: Super Henge [[hottip:*: ''change'']]! Doron Changer!"

* FinishingMove: The Raiko Nami [[hottip:*: Lightning Wave]], an energy blast with the Kakuremaru.

** [[TheSmartGuy The Smart]] [[TheChick Female]] [[TheLeader Leader]]: Tsuruhime [[hottip:*: She's the brains and quite more skilled in some aspects of leadership than [[DesignatedHero Sasuke.]]
** KidAppealCharacter: Saizō [[hottip:*:A bumbling fool, though on the bright side, he's a FriendToAllChildren. Ironic, since his namesake, Kirigakure Saizō, was TheLancer and TheSmartGuy to SarutobiSasuke. Nor is his Journey To The West counterpart, Sha Wujing, who's TheBigGuy.]]

** AMechByAnyOtherName: The Sanshinshō [[hottip:*:Three Divine Generals]] and their components, the ''Kyodai Jūshō'' [[hottip:*:Giant Beast Generals]] and the ''Chōninjū''[[hottip:*:Super Stealth Beasts]]. Tsubasamaru gets the unique classification of ''Seininjū'' [[hottip:*:Holy Stealth Beast]].

*** Averted with the Jūshō Fighters, which are lightweight versions of the standard Jūshō that make up for their inability to combine with greater speed and flexibility.[[hottip:*:Their names are just like the others, only they all begin with "Battle" (i.e. Battle Saruder, Battle Kark, ect.).]]

* BerserkButton: Don't call Ninjaman "Blue Squirt" [[hottip:*:It's a pun: "Blue Squirt" is the direct word-by-word translation of "''Aonisai''", which can has varying meanings between "Novice", "Greenhorn" and "Sucker".]], or else you'll meet [[SuperMode Samuraiman]]!

* DistressedDude: Seikai tends to get into trouble and captured first amongst the team. [[hottip:*:In case you didn't notice, that's what also happened to his Journey To The West counterpart]] Sometimes, [[BadassInDistress he COULD turn the table around, to be fair]].

---> '''Yousuke'''[[hottip:*:The line is not limited for him alone though.]]: "... has arrived!"
** At one point Junior performs a ritual to Zashiki-Warashi evil, with the incantation "Daichi no akuryou tachi yo. Ikeru momo no subete no ikari to nikushimi wo atsume, kono zashiki-warashi ni aku no chikara wo atae yo" [[hottip:*: Evil spirits that dwell within the earth, gather the anger and hatred of all living things, and grant evil power unto Zashiki Warashi.]] This is very close to Bandora's MakeMyMonsterGrow incantation in Series/KyoryuSentaiZyuranger, "Daichi ni nemuru akuryou-tachi yo. (monster's name) ni chikara wo atae yo." [[hottip:*: Evil spirits that dwell within the earth, grant power unto (monster's name.)"]]

* PreAssKickingOneLiner: "Seibai!"[[hottip:*:"Judgement!"]] Accompanied with a thumbs down.

''Ninja Sentai Kakuranger'' (Ninja Squadron Stealth Rangers[[hottip:*:Kakuranger is a portmanteau of ''Kakure'', which means "hidden", and Ranger]]) is the eighteenth installment in the ''SuperSentai'' franchise, airing from 1994 to 1995.

This is the first SuperSentai with a Ninja motif; its characters are also compared to the leads of JourneyToTheWest. It was also the first Sentai to feature a female as its leader, and the first to have a non-human ally as a SixthRanger.

!!'''Recurring''' SuperSentai tropes:

* CoolBike: The Shark Machines, much like the [[HimitsuSentaiGoranger Goranger Machines]] and the [[KyoryuSentaiZyuranger Zaurer Machines]], consisted of one solo bike for Red (the Shark Bridder) and two [[CoolSidecar sidecar-equipped]] bikes for the rest of the team (Blue's Shark Slider shared with White, and Yellow's Shark Launcher shared with Black). They could be combined to form a FinishingMove called the Shark Driver.

* {{Crossover}}: ''Super Sentai World'', a short [=3D=] film where the Kakuranger team fought alongside the four previous Sentai teams ([[ChikyuuSentaiFiveman Fiveman]], [[ChoujinSentaiJetman Jetman]], [[KyoryuSentaiZyuranger Zyuranger]] and [[GoseiSentaiDairanger Dairanger]]). The main giant robot of each team were also present. This short film served as a predecessor to the annual Versus movies that began the following year.

** ImprobableWeaponUser: The Kakurangers later gain the Kakuranger Ball, a mighty football to finish off Yōkai with. [[ShoutOut Now, where have I]] [[HimitsuSentaiGoranger heard that one before?]]

!!Tropes specific to {{Ninja Sentai Kakuranger}}:

** Reiko Chiba plays a nature loving female ninja named Reika in Episode 25 who wears an outfit similar to what Mei (Reiko's previous ''Sentai'' character) wore in ''KyoryuSentaiZyuranger''.

** Tarō and Jirō, the Dog Twins, were played by Keisuke and Daisuke Tsuchiya. Keisuke was Kazu (Kirin Ranger) in ''GoseiSentaiDairanger'', while Daisuke later played Takuya Kai (Blue Beet) in ''Series/JuukouBFighter''. Both brothers guest starred in each others' show as their brother's {{evil twin}}.

** The reporter on episode 9 - Rika Kishida better known as [[{{ChoujinSentaiJetman}} Kaori Rokumeikan/White Swan.]]

** Thanks to the previous two entry, later on, [[HiroshiTsuchida Saizo's voice actor]] would voice various SuperSentai MonsterOfTheWeek in the future.
** And later in the future, Teruaki Ogawa/Sasuke would play as [[SeijuuSentaiGingaman Black Knight Hyuuga]]

* MythologyGag: The close-quote of the roll call in NinpuuSentaiHurricaneger is ''very'' reminding of this series'.

** At one point Junior performs a ritual to Zashiki-Warashi evil, with the incantation "Daichi no akuryou tachi yo. Ikeru momo no subete no ikari to nikushimi wo atsume, kono zashiki-warashi ni aku no chikara wo atae yo" [[hottip:*: Evil spirits that dwell within the earth, gather the anger and hatred of all living things, and grant evil power unto Zashiki Warashi.]] This is very close to Bandora's MakeMyMonsterGrow incantation in KyoryuSentaiZyuranger, "Daichi ni nemuru akuryou-tachi yo. (monster's name) ni chikara wo atae yo." [[hottip:*: Evil spirits that dwell within the earth, grant power unto (monster's name.)"]]
** Also when the Flower Kunoichi Gang posed as a teacher, they taught the children songs that was taught in the first episode of ChikyuuSentaiFiveman by Five Yellow/Remi Hoshikawa. The 'gag' part? [[HeyItsThatGuy One of the Flower Kunoichi Gang members is played by the actress of Remi (Keiko Hayase)]]

* {{Ninja}}: [[NinpuuSentaiHurricaneger They wouldn't be the last.]]

** Another bit of HilariousInHindsight here: "Seibai!" is also pronounced by the [[SamuraiSentaiShinkenger Shinkengers]] when using most any human-size finisher. ''Both'' probably picked it up from ''AbarenboShogun.''
* PropRecycling: One of the various background Yōkai in a few episodes is in fact the [[FusionDance Combined Four Deva Kings]] from ''GoseiSentaiDairanger'' in a different outfit and given a red wash.

** Reika's participation in battle alongside Sasuke gives tribute to ''KyoryuSentaiZyuranger'' battles. Reika herself is an homage to Mei (who was played by her actress), her twin daggers are a nod to Boi (that team's Yellow), and unlike the Kakurangers' attacks, her blows strike SwordSparks off the Dorodoros. What may be another Zyuranger nod are the non-urban shots of the Super Stealth Beasts running together.

* {{Tuckerization}}: The one-shot character Reika is played by Reiko Chiba ([[KyoryuSentaiZyuranger who played a Sentai warrior two years ago]]).

It was adapted into America as the third season of ''MightyMorphinPowerRangers''. Notably, the suits were used for the Aquitian Rangers, who protected the Earth during the "Alien Rangers" story arc when the Mighty Morphin team were de-aged.

** HilariousInHindsight: Guess what got ''added in'' to the 2010 reversion of ''MightyMorphinPowerRangers''?

It was adapted into America as the third season of ''MightyMorphinPowerRangers''. Notably, the suits were used for the Aquitian Rangers, a separate team of Rangers that protected the Earth during the "Alien Rangers" story arc when the Mighty Morphin team were de-aged.

* NamesTheSame: Toei used the name "Jiraiya" for [[SekaiNinjaSenJiraiya a previous tokusatsu hero]].

** Tarō and Jirō, the Dog Twins, were played by Keisuke and Daisuke Tsuchiya. Keisuke was Kazu (Kirin Ranger) in ''GoseiSentaiDairanger'', while Daisuke later played Takuya Kai (Blue Beet) in ''{{Juukou B-Fighter}}''. Both brothers guest starred in each others' show as their brother's {{evil twin}}.

** Masaki Tachi ([[ChoujinSentaiJetman Radiguet]]) plays a man who gets 'cursed' into Mokumokuren in Episodes 5-6.
** Hakumenro (Tsuruhime's father) is played by Godai Takayuki, formerly the second Vul Eagle in ''TaiyouSentaiSunVulcan''
** As some of the previous show about 'previous heroes cast as villains', this time we had [[ChikyuuSentaiFiveman Remi Hoshikawa]] being one of the Flower Kunoichi Gang. This would have an effect below.

** Tarō, one of the Dog Twins, was played by Keisuke Tsuchiya (Kazu/Kirin Ranger in ''GoseiSentaiDairanger''). The other twin, Jirō, was played by Keisuke's actual twin brother Daisuke, who played Kazu's evil twin in one episode of ''Dairanger'', although he is much better known for being Takuya Kai/Blue Beet in ''{{Juukou B-Fighter}}'' (where Keisuke played his EvilCounterpart Black Beet).

** Another bit of HilariousInHindsight here: "Seibai!" is also pronounced by the [[SamuraiSentaiShinkenger Shinkengers]] when using their [=IkaTenkuu=] Buster.
* PropRecycling: One of the various background Yōkai in #3 is in fact the [[FusionDance Combined Four Deva Kings]] from ''GoseiSentaiDairanger'' in a different outfit and given a red wash.