Shonin Sentai Zeniranger is Not the Next Super Sentai Series

A curious trademark went up earlier today leading many to believe the title of the next Sentai had been revealed via a trademark.

Kikai Sentai Zenkaiger is more or less at its halfway point and this tends to be the time of year the trademark for the next Sentai are revealed via a trademark.

The way things typically work is that a company will apply for a trademark with the Japanese intellectual property database, which undergoes a review process before either being accepted or denied. This explains a “application” and “accepted” date found in most of these trademarks. There are a few things to look out for when looking at trademarks and a couple of things to remember.

First and foremost, neither Toei nor Bandai own or can have a blanket trademark on the words “Sentai” or “Ranger” because they’re too commonplace. For example, Tsuburaya, makers of the Ultraman series, have an older tokusatsu titled Kyoryu Sentai Koseidon.

Earlier today, a trademark that may have had Super Sentai fans jumping with anticipation was revealed via the intellectual property database’s Trademark Bot Twitter account, where trademarks are made public once approved. Shonin Sentai Zeniranger appeared via one of the Trademark Bot’s releases today. The first thing that caught my attention was the “zeni” in the title. In Japanese, the word zeni is one of many ways to refer to money, specifically coins. Maybe just a tad bit on the nose for Toei and Bandai. The full title is read as Merchant Sentai Zeniranger.

Now, the biggest tip off that this probably wasn’t going to be the next Super Sentai, after that odd name, is the applicant name, The trademark was applied for by Phoenix Partners, which has no affiliation with Super Sentai or Toei, leaving zero doubt as to whether or not this is the next series.

So if it’s not the next Super Sentai series, what is it? Zeniranger is a Sentai team that fights for “the prosperity of small businesses”, as they describe themselves on their official Twitter profile. Essentially, they do advertising and raise awareness for small businesses in Japan.

While the prospect of finally knowing what next year’s Super Sentai title is an exciting one, it looks like fans will have to keep waiting for just a while longer.

Source: Trademark_bot, Zeniranger