Screenplay by: Unknown
Directed by: Katsuya Watanabe
Cast:
Atsushi Hashimoto, Asami Kai, Yuki Ito, Hiroya Matsumoto, Ayumi Beppu, Yosuke Ichikawa, Ryuuji Sainei, Tsuyoshi Hayashi, Yousuke Itou, Ayumi Kinoshita, Mika Kikuchi, Yuuichi Yoshida, Tetsu Inada, Mako Ishino, Kaoru Hirata, Tsutomu Isobe (voice), Takeshi Kusao (voice), Chikai Horan, Tomomi Kitagami and many others!
Running time: 44 minutes
Rating: PERFECT!
Note: The version I have viewed is not the official R2 DVD release of the film. I have watched the TV-Nihon fansubbed release. Please bear in mind that my comments relating to plot and dialogue are based on TVN’s translations and my less-than-fluent knowledge of Japanese, and may not reflect the true intentions of the filmmakers.
Since the very second Super Sentai series to debut teamed up with the first back in 1977, Super Sentai teamups have been a regular occurrence – and beginning in 1996, it became an annual tradition, and it even has its own name: V-Cinema! 2005’s V-Cinema special was Mahou Sentai Magiranger VS Tokusou Sentai Dekaranger, and it is perfect in every conceivable way!
The plot is a complex one. It turns out that years earlier, Hades Beastman Aboloth left Infershia to journey into space to create a new life as an Alienizer called Agent X, where he trained underneath the evil space merchant Agent Abrera (the big villain from Dekaranger). He returned with two other Alienizers – Chigukada Seijin Buildjick and Algol Seijin Babon - to seek the Flower of Heaven… and they have enlisted the help of Meemy to do it!
Meanwhile, the Magirangers are celebrating Fantastic Happy Day, a celebration that their family enjoys once every ten years. Buildjick attacks during the celebration, and it turns out another diner at the restaurant is Umeko – DekaPink – who summons help from the other Dekarangers. (The Magirangers cannot transform without revealing their identities, which is against Magitopian law.)
The Dekarangers defeat Buildjick and are confronted by Babon, who kidnaps Urara (MagiBlue) and Jasmine (DekaYellow). The Dekarangers are later joined by their former leader, Ban (DekaRed).
The two teams team up to rescue their friends, and along the way learn the secret of the Flower of Heaven. It turns out that every ten years, the Flower freezes all the love in the hearts of humans, unless it itself is bathed in love. Fantastic Happy Day was an excuse made by the Magirangers’ mother to smother the Flower with love and prevent that danger.
It turns out the mother was friends with Doggy (DekaMaster) and Swan (DekaSwan), and actually asked them, years earlier, to guard the Flower for her!
After a long series of character moments where we are updated on the happenings in the lives of the Dekarangers, the fight eventually takes place – and after realising just what it is to be a family (or a team!) the teams combine to vanquish their foes.
Okay – that sounds pretty so-so, largely because I don’t want to spoil the coolness… like the revelation about Sen and Umeko… or Jasmine’s news… or the awesome swordfight between Wolzard and DekaMaster…
Let’s just say the movie rocks. 
The writing is superb – when the Dekas appear, it feels like they had never left. That is also largely due to the acting; both the primary cast and the stunt actors recreate the older characters perfectly. The music is awesome, especially during the opening intro, combining heavy versions of the Dekaranger and Magiranger themes for the ultimate degree of awesomeness:
The special is notable for a first in the Super Sentai series. While in every series the team gets a power-up (in the case of Dekaranger it was SWAT mode, and Legend Power for Magiranger), there is rarely a case where one character gets a power the others don’t – and that character is always the ‘additional’ (sixth or seventh) member.
Contrary to that, in Power Rangers (the Americanised version of Super Sentai), the red Power Ranger always gets a Battlizer mode, which only he can use (except in rare cases where it is loaned to another Ranger temporarily). These Battlizers have never appeared in Super Sentai.
Until now. At the end of Dekaranger, Ban joined the Dekaranger Fire Squad, an elite team of red Dekarangers. In the movie, he unveils the Fire Squad Special Armour… which is actually the Battlizer from Power Rangers SPD! The Americans may make little use of all the cool elements of Super Sentai, but Toei sure knows how to pick whatever goodies it can out of Power Rangers.
As the movie takes place during an ongoing series, it is important to watch it at the right time. I watched it immediately after episode thirty-one of Magiranger, as that is the earliest point it can be watched without any spoilers for the series. That point also works quite well as the happiness from the end of that episode, and its references to the Ozu family’s many memorials, can be seen to flow right into the opening of the movie.
All in all, Mahou Sentai Magiranger VS Tokusou Sentai Dekaranger is perfect. The writing, acting, stunts, special effects and music are flawless and stick to the continuity of both series very well. I cannot think of anything that could have improved on the film in any way. It is well worth watching for any fan of either Magiranger or Dekaranger… or even just someone who wants an utterly awesome film to watch.