Saban gives Power Rangers a Samurai twist ahead of relaunch

More details are emerging of the new Power Rangers series, the first to be produced since Haim Saban’s Saban Brands re-acquired the property earlier this year.

Two new twenty episode series are in production for Nickelodeon in the US. The first will have a Samurai theme and follow three young Rangers who, with the help of their Samurai mentor, take on the Samurai Power Rangers’ mortal enemy Master Xandred.

Having been acquired by Disney as part of the Fox Family deal, the show has remained in production but has had nowhere near the profile it had in the 1990s when Saban originally launched it. Original producer and director Jonathan Tzachor has been brought back as Saban tries to reinvigorate the brand.

“We have a different strategy this time, we found the brand has huge awareness and people have a relationship with it –  there was a barrier to entry then that does not exist now,” Elie Dekel, president, Saban Brands tells TBIvision. “It’s more a question of how do we reconnect and make it part of the conversation again. Core to that was it getting a good time slot on TV and making it visible.”

Marvista will launch the new show internationally at MIPJunior early next month. “We have high expectations of how the market will react,” Marvista boss Fernando Szew told TBIvision. “I believe the time is right for a live-action kids show with a comedic spirit – there’s nothing in the market like that at the moment.”