It’s not something I talk about a lot but I’m a big fan of all things Power Rangers/Super Sentai related. Something else that has been made very clear for the last few years is my love of isekais. So imagine my excitement when I see a show that blends both of these elements together. In The Red Ranger Becomes An Adventurer In Another World stars Toga Asagaki the red ranger who gets sent to another world after a climatic battle with the leader of their enemy. Now in an unknown world he comes face to face with their own threat as he forms new bonds to face evil and find a way home.

The story is about what you would expect from any isekai. Our protagonist goes through moments of adjusting to a new world while having abilities unknown or overpowered to the new world that they’re in. In this case Toga’s powers are very much like what some of you may know from Power Rangers. You have all of the random gadgets and the cheesy explosions upon transforming into ranger form. A constant and humorous gag as the people of the world he’s in have no idea what to think of it.

What sets this show apart from other isekais is not only the humor but how it blends two different genres together. Toga clearly doesn’t fit in and his powers are very flamboyant and unpredictable. So it’s entertaining to see a character with a weapon that requires a team of rangers to use but instead it’s one ranger and a bunch of characters that fit more of a magic and fantasy vibe. It really shows the stark differences between these two genres as they come together. However, it’s not all different as both genres come with a lot of similarities which makes this work so well. Things like out of nowhere power ups, big personalities and more make up both of these methods of entertainment and it never really crossed my mind how many similarities they share till I watched this.

Another thing I loved is how the ranger theme is all about bonds and that is a central part of the entire story. Making bonds, strengthening them, loosing them, protecting and mending them. It’s all about the various ways bonds form and change over time. I expected the humor and loved it’s execution but got an added treat of an emotional tale mixed within. Toga has a pretty tragic background despite his cheerful disposition and it’s told very well throughout the season. While Toga is by far the most developed character thus far we get a lot of well designed characters with complex motivations all centered around their bonds with others. So while Toga is the star a lot of characters had time to shine and show how amazing they are.

The show features a lot of combat and it actually varies. Some fights are clearly meant to be hilarious to show how ridiculous a ranger’s powers appear in a world full of swords and magic. Then you have story driven fights that are much more climatic and evenly matched to put the emotional weight of the fight in full display. Just like with the genres, mixing different types of fight scenes made for a diverse and consistently entertaining sequence of events.

So overall I came to this show to see two genres I love come together. I am enamored by how well this show highlighted the differences of these genres in an entertaining fashion but also how this show managed to bring out their similarities. In what I expected to be a humorous show also gave the added treat of incredible characters and emotional depth. The season ends on a note with more story to tell and I’ll be pretty upset if we don’t get another season.