Toei Company begins to release Tokusatsu shows on YouTube

June 27, 2021 8:34 AM

Toei Company Ltd of Japan has long been a producer and distributor of anime and tokusatsu programs. While the Western world has seen many of their anime and Super Sentai programs (mostly in the form of Power Rangers), access to many other toku shows has been limited. Shout Factory TV has begun to bring Ultra, Kamen Rider, and Super Sentai series to Western streaming services, but now Toei is releasing the first two episodes of more obscure tokusatsu programs in subtitled form on a new channel on YouTube.

Some highlights include:

Poitrine (YT episode link) and Chukana PaiPai (YT episode link), both "magical girl" shows that were forerunners to Sailor Moon.

Henshin Ninja Arashi (YT episode link), a historical fantasy starring a transforming (Henshin) ninja.

Space Ironman Kyodain, a live-action super robot show that uses Dutch angles, stop motion, sped-up film, and even hand puppets to put together a truly zany show.

Some modern Kamen Rider series are also seeing the first two episodes being released with subtitles for free viewing, such as: Kamen Rider W, Kamen Rider Blade, Kamen Rider Den-O, Kamen Rider OOO, and others.

posted by Tchozz (8 comments total)

Originally read that as tonkatsu. And I was confused.
posted by Splunge at 10:09 AM on June 27, 2021 [6 favorites]

Pluto TV has a channel that shows these shows and I found Kamen Rider Kuuga quite entertaining. The final episode had a decidedly downbeat ending that surprised me.
posted by wittgenstein at 10:10 AM on June 27, 2021

Ever since I heard the name mocked as Ramen Rider in Ninja High School I've wanted to see some of the original, and now I can. Thanks!
posted by Rash at 10:11 AM on June 27, 2021

I really need more episodes past the first two of Captain Ultra subbed. I have not found any fansubs anywhere, and using the Google autocaption + autotranslate breaks my brain. That show has such a great soundtrack, and I love the technicolor palette. Space is dark royal blue!
posted by blakewest at 10:12 AM on June 27, 2021

Let me know when somebody does a Mystery Science Theater overdub of these.
posted by micketymoc at 1:25 AM on June 28, 2021

I hope they’ll catch up with Tsuburaya and start simulcasting their currently airing shows on YouTube. Watching Ultraman Z with my daughter was great, and we’re looking forward to Ultraman Trigger…
posted by robcorr at 2:19 AM on June 28, 2021

Pluto TV has a channel that shows these shows and I found Kamen Rider Kuuga quite entertaining. The final episode had a decidedly downbeat ending that surprised me.

Yeah, I caught Kuuga on Pluto TV also and that's what got me interested in watching Kamen Rider again. I've been aware of it for quite some time as a general fan of Japanese sci-fi pop culture. The best an English-speaking fan can do, it seems, is buy Malaysian DVDs of Kamen Rider from eBay and use the English subtitles provided there. I never end up finishing a Kamen Rider series though having started Kuuga and W (from an aforementioned eBay DVD set). I need to finish Kuuga on Shout Factory's website and then finish ripping my W DVDs to digital files that I can watch on my iPad.

For others, a lot of stuff you see on Pluto TV can be streamed at your convenience elsewhere, too. So, for instance, everything on the TokuSHOUTsu channel on Pluto can be watched in order, episode by episode, on Shout Factory's website. I actually kinda like the old fashioned "live TV" experience of Pluto TV, but some shows need their sequence.

I watched Kamen Rider Den-O last night on the Toei YouTube channel and thought it was the best first episode of any of the modern KR series I've seen. I might have to check more of that one out (from what I've read it's supposed to be one of the more comedic KR shows).

Originally read that as tonkatsu. And I was confused.

We do tonkatsu at our house as a special treat sometimes. But I don't think Toei sells it! :)
posted by Tchozz at 6:41 AM on June 28, 2021 [1 favorite]

For those who want tonkatsu instead of tokusatsu: Tonkatsu DJ is a charming 2017 anime series about the son of a tonkatsu chef wanting to become a dj and incorporating his frying knowledge while doing so.
posted by MartinWisse at 1:41 PM on June 28, 2021 [1 favorite]