Time to talk about Hasbro and Power Rangers

     So I was tempted to bring this up as a bonus in last week's grab bag but there is a lot I want to say on this topic. As most of you know, Hasbro has recently bought Power Rangers from Saban Properties LLC for $522 million dollars in cash and stock. Fans were shocked as this could mean a lot, and I mean A LOT of things for the franchise. I think right now it is fair to look at what this deal entailed and what this could mean for the future from this fans opinion as only time will tell what will happen for sure.
     One interesting thing to be made aware of is that, while buying the whole franchise was a shock, Saban having deals with Hasbro is not as new. Back in February, Hasbro had acquired the rights to make Power Rangers toys. The fact is a lot of toy based deals and sales were happening around that time. Companies who manufacture and distribute toys took a significant hit after the closing of Toys R' US. Strictly speaking of toy companies, a lot of deals had to be made and things signed over so some people can keep their business afloat.
     Does this mean that the fall of Toys R' Us is to blame for all of this? I don't believe so. While many, including Hasbro, blame the fall for declining sales across the board, there is likely another cause. It has been a trend for years that people prefer to buy things online instead of going to the store to buy things, which is criminal and stupid but not what we are here to discuss. It is one of the main reason's that Toys R' Us went under in the first place. Toy companies had to rethink a lot of strategies, like Saban making a new deal with Hasbro.
     Now what does all of this have to do with Hasbro acquiring Power Rangers? I believe a lot. Whether we like it or not, the Power Rangers franchise is kept afloat by two things; Toys and viewers. The show gets us to buy toys and the toys get us to watch the show. While this marketing strategy may warrant criticism, it has worked for over 25 years in America and almost 40 years in Japan. The obvious upside is that both sides of the coin strengthen each other for constant growth. The even more obvious down side to this is if one goes bad, the other suffers. Anybody who has watched Power Rangers recently knows the show has been far from it's best. Couple that with a hit to the toy sales and Saban was left in honestly a pretty bad situation.
     Thinking about this from Saban's perspective, Hasbro is great at making toys. The current toy lines for Star Wars, Transformers and My Little Pony have been great, despite the fall of Toys R' Us. It was safe to say the toy problem was solved. There was still the issue with making the show. I don't believe the people running Saban are stupid. I believe they are aware of all of the problems and complaints people have made about Power Rangers since MegaForce came on the air. Power Rangers is staying afloat but not to the degree it used to in the mainstream. There is a very clear downward trend. To save money and prevent further risk to the company, Somebody else had to take the helm of producing the shows in the future.
     While Disney may have been a consideration it was probably easier to deal with Hasbro since there were already written agreements in place. Hasbro even has been connected to some very successful television shows. Again, My Little Pony started a phenomenon that is still going on to this very day. Looking at the stellar toy record of Hasbro and their incredibly decent, albeit short, TV history, Saban had the means to turn the series over to potentially good hands and still score a profit.

     With that we are left with one question. Will Hasbro do the series justice? Hasbro can absolutely make toys that people will love. If they partner with Bandai for more legacy figures, even better. The biggest point of contention is going to be the show. Hasbro is already starting ambitious and basing the next Power Rangers off of a Sentai that was skipped before, Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters. Already they are using viral marketing and open auditions to get the best people possible. The heart is there but Power Rangers is more tricky to make than it would seem at first. Hasbro may do the series a service and sneak in plenty of adult and pop-culture humor like their other shows, but that could detract from some of the initial fun of the show.
     Time will tell what Hasbro does. The first toy line will come out next Spring, and the show will premiere sometime that year as well. All eyes will be on Beast Morphers next year. If this series is good, Hasbro will have won over the fans. If the series flops, then nothing will have changed and Hasbro will receive blame for "the downfall of the Power Rangers". Oh yeah not just fan opinion, but Hasbro's credibility is on the line for this move. At least part of it anyway. I will remain optimistic that Beast Morphers will be a decent show. Go-Busters is one of my favorite Sentai so I must be a little strict with it lol. Keep your hopes up you fellow toku-nuts!