One of the difficult parts of being a fan of Japanese sci-fi is that news sometimes travels slow, if at all. How could I have known that Akihiko Hirata had already passed away when I was figuring out who he was? Even today, because of the language barrier, things often go unnoticed.
Case in point is Noboru Sugimura. Never heard of him? Not surprised, really. However, if you've ever seen the early seasons of POWER RANGERS, you've seen fragments of his work. He was a scripter for many, many Toei SPFX programs, including various "Metal Hero" and "Super Sentai" programs. He was the main writer for shows like ZYURANGER and DAIRANGER. He also scripted the film KAMEN RIDER ZO and a number of episodes of KAMEN RIDER BLACK. Among his works on the latter are the introduction of Shadowmoon and the climax of the series.
Noboru Sugimura passed away in 2005. Although I consider myself a fan of his work, I had no idea until this past December. It's sad that the men and women who bring those movies and shows to life get so little recognition, so I thought I'd do my part by mentioning it here.
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