Armorsaurs made its grand debut on Disney+ this week and introduced a new legion of fans to a new world of dinosaur mayhem and superhero action. While the superpowers and armored dinosaurs get a lot of attention, the heart of the show is really found in the relatable and ever-evolving cast of heroes just trying to navigate this world. ComicBook had the chance to speak to the Armorsaurs crew of producer Kevin Yi and cast members Jailen Bates (Liam), Avianna Mynhier (Paloma), and Sade Louise (Prisca), all about the show’s origins, how they set about creating a modern kids’ show, and comparisons to Power Rangers and how early 80s and 90s adventures inspire the series.
Armorsaurs definitely feels like it has some of the DNA that made shows like Dino Riders and Mighty Morphin Power Rangers such beloved projects, and Yi confirmed that the show is definitely an homage to those shows while also bringing some new elements to the genre. “You mentioned the 80s and 90s shows. I grew up on all of those, you know, so this feels like so much of a throwback to a lot of the shows that we grew up with, for sure. We’re definitely paying homages to those things, and I think if you watch really, really carefully, there’s definitely some analogues that you can see, analogies that you can see as you watch the season,” Yi said.
Power Rangers Is An Inspiration, But Armorsaurs Brings Fresh Energy to the Genre
“One of the best parts, I think, about a show like this is we’re also bringing back a sincerity. I think that there’s a genuineness to the way that the teens talk to each other, the ways that we’ve built out the world that I think the world needs right now,” Yi said.
“I think there’s, you know, a lot of stuff out there that’s really cynical, and I think kids can fall into that because the world is a scary place, and so we want it to be something a little bit refreshing, something a little bit, you know, let’s kind of wash away all of those things, and let’s kind of start with the basics,” Yi said. “And again, we wanted to make sure that we were accessible to really young kids, to older kids, and even to adults like myself who grew up on shows like this. And so I think that’s been a part of the blessing of working on a project like this is that we get to bring sort of these sensibilities that we grew up with into a modern era, and I think that’s really exciting.”
The Heart of Armorsaurs Is In Its Inspiring and Relatable Human Heroes
One of Armorsaurs‘ hallmark features is its immensely human heroes. Armorsaurs is a kids’ show that doesn’t talk down to its audience, which is not something that always happens. Children are incredibly smart and quite perceptive, and Armorsaurs introduces concepts like anxiety, being misjudged, and facing your fears, and those are concepts that, when executed correctly, can initiate conversations between parents and children. Armorsaurs knows how to have lighthearted dialogue and big action, but it also puts its human heroes in the forefront, and it’s something the cast feels passionate about as well.
“I’ll kick it off. I think, first of all, thank you. You’re so tapped into what I think matters to us in the show, so thank you for watching it with that close eye. It means a lot to hear, like, you have a daughter too. I hope she enjoys it. I think for Paloma, a lot of times characters, especially for kids’ shows, are so one-note. It’s like she’s the fashionista, you know, and to your point, Matthew, like, we all contain multitudes and kids are smart,” Mynhier said.
“I really only wanted to be involved in a kid show that acknowledged kids intelligence, and so I was just so delighted to hear you say that right now, because in my character in particular, like, she walks in as this fashionista, sarcastic, sort of quippy gal, but then what the other characters kind of bring out in her is her innate intelligence, and she’s reading the manual and she steals a ship and like, and in season two, that only continues where she lets different parts and facets of who she is take a front seat and she doesn’t box herself into the just one note, you know, fashion sassy thing,” Mynhier said. “So I just loved what you said, and I hope that kids do really get to like, understand themselves through all the different characters in the show.”
“Absolutely, and similarly to Aviana, I think you’re touching on aspects of the show that we really want people to hone in on, and Liam is a character that I’ve never played before, and many of his character attributes are just so different, but it was such a unique challenge to not only bring this world of dinosaurs to life, but also find the sincerity within Liam and his emotional depth and his protectiveness,” Bates said.
“And I was really surprised because I think, as actors, often we can judge a book by its cover. Often that’s our character, and for me, I think I came in thinking Liam was this very logical, analytical, kind of stone faced individual, but it was so incredible to read the scripts and watch his arc through the season have such relatability and tenderness and sensitivity and yeah, it was really awesome to see and is what drew me to the project,” Bates said.
“I love that you said all of that, and you’re connecting and seeing those aspects from the show that we really wanted to bring in because, as you said, kids are so smart, and they’re learning from the things that they’re watching. Especially for me, one of the most exciting things is just that we’re seeing more female superheroes. I think that is such an incredibly important thing for both little girls and little boys to grow up seeing and watching because I think women, as women, there are so many ways that we can be strong, and we see those differences between Prisca and Paloma,” Louise said. “But Prisca, for me, she’s so connected to her heart and her sensitivity, and she deeply loves her team and maybe even more so is she loves her sister and would do anything for her. I think that really comes across throughout the entirety of the season, and we see even more of that in season two, where she would do anything for them.”
Armorsaurs Started Life As a Different Series
“The show actually started life as the original Korean show, Armored Saurus. So our version, Armorsaurs, is a reimagining of the original Korean show. The original creator of Armored Saurus, his name is Dae-Il Kang. He’ll tell you that he was sitting there one day and was thinking about, what do boys love? What is it that my kids would really love? And he was thinking, dinosaurs, robots, and cars. That’s really sort of the genesis,” Yi said. “That’s sort of the idea, and then from there, you have the original Korean show, and then for our version of the show, we really took the best parts of the original Armored Saurus show and we really thought, you know, how do we bring this to a level that’s really accessible to families and to children?”
“We really thought, you know what? Let’s really make sure that we’re focusing on the human element, so our show is really focused on the five pilots, their bond with their dinosaurs, and really making sure that we’re telling stories that are relatable,” Yi said. “You know, obviously, visually, the show is absolutely incredible, but I think at the end of the day, if you’re not sitting with the stories and you’re not in love with the actual characters themselves, I think eventually we’ll lose you. So we don’t want to just be fancy pixels on a screen. We really want to tell stories that matter to people, and I think that’s what we’re bringing to the top table with Armorsaurs.”
Armorsaurs is now streaming on Disney+.
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