A Regular Guy’s Guide to Fansubs: File Formats, Distribution, and More

Well regular folk, we had to address the spandex-clad elephant in room at some point: not every Super Sentai series is available from Shout! Factory for free on their website, or even to purchase on DVD. So far, they’ve released five seasons with plans for a sixth underway:

-          Zyuranger, which became Mighty Morphin’ season 1

-          Dairanger, which became Mighty Morphin’ season 2

-          Kakuranger, which became Mighty Morphin’ season 3

-          Ohranger, which became Zeo

-          Carranger, which became Turbo, and

-          Megaranger, which became In Space, coming in September 2017.

Zyuranger, North America release

That’s more than 300 episodes right there! That seems like a lot, right? Now you might be wondering, “how many seasons of Super Sentai could there be, away?”

Japanese television is currently airing Space Sentai Kyuranger, which is Super Sentai season 41. Forty-one. FORTY. ONE. That means Super Sentai is more prolific than Friends, Grey’s Anatomy, or even The Simpsons.

Suddenly, six seasons doesn’t seem like all that much.

So how are we going to watch Battle Fever J, one of the first Sentai, as I promised at the end of my Dairanger review? We’re going to delve into the wonderful world of fansubs, of course!

What are fansubs?

Fansubs are just what they sound like: unofficial translations created by fans, applied to video files, and traded online. The sometimes they’re hard to find, the quality varies wildly depending on the fansubber, and there’s a bunch of file formats that might be intimidating to a newcomer. But that’s one of the reasons I created this blog: to teach other regular guys and gals the things I had to learn the hard way.

Let me make something clear, however: downloading these shows, even if they’re not available where you live and in your language, is still piracy, so do so at your own risk. Also, please support the official releases either by watching them on the Shout! Factory website (Zyuranger and Dairanger) or buying them (Zyuranger though Megaranger). You’re probably tired of the “Pirate with Morals” speech you’ve heard 1,000 times by now, but please buy their shows so they release more sets. I’m speaking from experience when I tell you that the quality of the Shout! Factory seasons is excellent.

A bumper for "Bioman," subbed by the fan group Grown-Ups in Spandex (see upper right corner)

What are some fansub formats?

Fansubs come in a variety of formats to suit a variety of needs, but the ones you’ll come across most are MP4 and MKV.

You’re probably already familiar with MP4 files. Most standalone videos nowadays are in this format, and most computers have MP4 players built in. This format is good if you want to watch movies on your TV through devices like the Xbox One, as I do, or if you’re just looking for the easiest option.

MP4s are the second most common fansub format. If you ever see a “hardsub” option, they’re probably talking about MP4s. That’s because the subtitles are “burned in” to the frames of an MP4, meaning you can’t turn them off. Also, a lot of times the MP4 option is in standard definition (SD). I don’t know why that is, but if you’re looking to save hard drive space and don’t mind 480p resolution, that’s the way to go.

AVI and wmv files have most of the same properties of MP4s, but they’re outdated formats. If you see them floating around, it probably means you’re working with translations from at least five, possibly ten years ago. Might be best to search for a newer translation at a higher definition.

MKV files are the preferred format of the fansub community. Unlike MP4s, MKVs keep the video and the subtitles separate, meaning you can turn them on or off. This is called “soft subbing.” The advantage here is being able to swap subtitles out manually if you find a better translation, or you can have more than one subtitle file included with a video and switch between them at will (maybe Spanish and English in the same file, for example). The MKV option is often the high definition (HD) option too, at least when it comes to Sentai made after 2008-ish, including Shinkenger and beyond.

You’ll probably have to download an MKV player because they don’t usually come standard. I recommend VLC Media Player, but just be careful what you agree to installing. Suggestion: Just the player itself, not the other garbage it offers you.

In case you were wondering, I like MP4s because they play nice with my PC and my XBone, requiring no extra fuss. But I also like HD video, which is often a hallmark of MKVs. Sometimes I’ll use Handbrake to convert MKVs into MP4 files, but it sure does take a long time. Mostly I break down and just watch the damn MKV on my computer instead.

MP4s are the “regular guy” option, so maybe start there. If you find yourself wanting higher video quality or wanting to explore the world of fansubs more thoroughly, switch to MKVs once you’re comfortable.

One last thing to note: .ass, .ssa, and .srt files are raw subtitles. They can be applied to video files using programs like Handbrake, but it’s easier just to find them already attached to the video file, especially if you’re looking for a hassle-free viewing experience. Don’t worry though, you’ll rarely come across these in the wild if you’re not looking for them.

How do I get fansubs?

Now that you’ve picked your format, it’s time to actually download something and watch it.

The most straightforward way to get fansubs is the direct download (DDL) method. Many fansubbing groups host their work though a site called Mega.nz, where users can download shows one episode at a time. On a decent internet connection, it’s a simple, easy option. Mega.nz has a download limit of about 5 gigs per day per free user, but I doubt you’ll be watching 10 to 15 Sentai episodes in one sitting, so it shouldn’t be a big issue. 

But not all fansubbing groups have direct download pages. Others, like the popular Over-ti.me (currently translating Kyuranger), invite users to post their own DDL links in the comments section for each episode. So if another user hasn’t taken it upon him- or herself to be philanthropic, you’re out of luck. Secondly, if Mega.nz ever goes down, much like Megaupload did a few years ago, there goes 99 percent of your DDL options.

Space Sentai Kyuranger, currently playing in Japan and translated by Over-ti.me 

But on the plus side, you should be able to find most of the popular Sentai in this way. One great resource for DDL is Jps317’s “Folders” blog, which contains excellent Sentai shows like Dynaman and Gokaiger. Jps317’s work was a great boon to my early forays into Super Sentai fansubs. Check it out.

The second download option is torrenting. It’s more advanced, riskier, and can be more frustrating, but it’s also the key to finding the obscure stuff. You remember programs like Napster and Kazaa in the ‘90s? Those worked by letting you download files directly from someone else’s computer. That’s torrenting in a nutshell.

Nowadays there’s a bunch of torrent programs, but my recommendation is Bittorrent. You’ll have to download and install it on your own – I’d rather not link to it in this blog – but a quick Google search should get you where you need to go.

A torrent program is useless without telling it what to download and where to get it. You’ll need to go to a site that keeps track of torrents. Until very recently, nyaa.se was the undisputed king of Super Sentai torrents, but on May 1, 2017, the owner shut it down out of fear of legal action. This scattered Sentai torrents to the winds, but most fansubbing groups have chosen https://anidex.info/ as their new home. Sentai for Regualr Guys (SfRG) has a profile page there too, if you want to visit.

As Stan Lee would say, with great power, comes great, uh, downsides. If users stop “seeding” a file (hosting it for others to download), you’ll have to wait for them to come back online before you can grab the rest. The end result can be weeks of waiting to finish your download, or worse, a torrent you can never complete. You’re also at the mercy of someone else’s internet connection, which means you might be downloading at a brisk 2 MB a second, or crawling along at dial-up speeds. The more you get into Super Sentai, the more you’ll be leaving your computer on all night downloading torrents.

Also, I’m not wild about connecting directly to a bunch of other people’s PCs. I’ve never experienced a virus or security issue that I’m aware of, but it’s just something to keep in mind.

There’s one last option if you’re not into amassing hundreds of gigs of men in helmets punching other men in rubber suits, and don’t mind a moderate amount of malware. You could always stream your fansubs from KissAsian.com, which sounds like a shameful mecca of tentacle-based filth, but is actually a repository for countless Asian drama shows no one has ever heard of. Also spyware. It’s sort of like Netflix, if Netflix were illegal and run by some kind of evil(er?) version of Mark Zuckerberg. There’s a shocking amount of content on this site, but as you might expect, it’s as shady as a late ‘90s Nintendo ROM site. Shortcomings aside, this might be a good option if you’ve got a junker PC and a decent internet connection.

Conclusion

Ultimately, the easiest thing to do is grab one of the DVD sets, crack open a beer, and enjoy something that’s both new and pleasantly familiar. That definitely seems like what a regular guy or gal would do. But if you’d like to explore beyond what you saw on Power Rangers when you were a kid, I invite you to delve into the world of fansubs. It can be intimidating, but with these tips, you should be able to get your foot in the door.

All that’s really left is to pick a series and start watching, but with 40-plus seasons of Super Sentai to choose from, that too can be daunting. Maybe you go in order from Zyuranger onward until you get board. Maybe you watch in the order I write this blog. Or maybe you forge your own path. In any event, have fun with it.

As for Sentai for Regular Guys, we’ll be taking a look at 1979’s Battle Fever J very soon. Stay tuned!