Image via Power Rangers Official
Most people tend to celebrate National Power Rangers Day (August 28), by first asking out loud: “Wait, there is a National Power Rangers Day …?” and then realizing that OF COURSE there is a National Power Rangers Day. After all, this is the franchise that changed the game.
When Saban Entertainment first took Kyoryu Sentai Zyuranger — part of the Japanese Super Sentai series that’s been on the air since 1975 — and spliced its martial arts/robot-monster fight scenes into original footage of American actors to create a first-of-its-kind hybrid show, they stumbled upon something magical. The resulting Mighty Morphin Power Rangers took the world by storm and spawned sequel after sequel. But which American remix of Super Sentai was the best? The answer will be different depending on who you ask but, for our money, these five series are definitely contenders:
Power Rangers Dino Thunder
The 12th season of Power Rangers, Dino Thunder, felt almost like a soft reboot/remake of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers that simultaneously took itself more and less seriously. On the one hand, the series lampshaded a lot of the sillier elements from the series that started it all like by (lovingly) poking fun at how stereotypically some of its main characters acted in the beginning. But then the series let them grow, taking the best elements of MMPR and refining them into one of the most unforgettable parts of the franchise. A big part of that was due to the return of Jason David Frank as Tommy Oliver but there were other great things about Dino Thunder.
The main villain, Mesogog, for one, was more than your typical “evil thing coming down from space to do evil things” bad guy. He still had that over-the-top flare we love and is probably one of the more lethal Ranger foes out there, but there is also a tragedy to him that was a real breath of fresh air. Combined with solid performances from the main cast, Dino Thunder more than earned its shot at the title of the best Power Ranger show ever.
Power Rangers RPM
RPM was one of the earliest Power Rangers shows where the villains felt really scary. Not just cool-looking, or tragic, or well-acted, but actually menacing. Destroying/enslaving 99 percent of humanity is a pretty impressive accomplishment from a franchise that started with a Moon Witch who couldn’t even destroy one town in California.
That’s not to say RPM was a sci-fi horror or anything like that. Sure, it was a post-apocalyptic show, but it retained a lot of the signature Power Rangers goofiness, always finding that perfect balance between camp and genuine human moments. The PR vehicles might not have been the best the franchise ever produced, but the weapons of the individual Rangers were what every kid who watched the show wanted for Christmas. Plus, we never got tired of listening to the voice of Venjix, the RPM Big Bad. Still sounds so cool after all these years.
Power Rangers S.P.D.
Disney was on a roll in the early 2000s since Dino Thunder was immediately followed by another amazing Power Rangers show: S.P.D. A police-themed series, one of the greatest accomplishments of S.P.D. is how well it’s managed to juggle its massive cast. With the addition of Rangers like Shadow, Omega, or Nova, the show had nine main characters and still successfully gave each and every one of them as much screen time and attention as they needed for the viewers to care about them.
S.P.D. was also expansive in its setting and worldbuilding, and with it taking place in the future and dealing with aliens, it was one of the first Power Rangers shows that had an almost space opera feel to it. The storylines were epic and grand, the characters believable, and there was even a solid mystery element to this incarnation of the Power Rangers. What more can you ask for?
Power Rangers Ninja Steel
Ninja Steel attempted to do a lot of things at once. It sort of tried to capture the tone and energy of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers only with better effects and acting, much like Dino Thunder. But it also took a lot of elements from the original Super Sentai shows, like the cowboy hat-wearing StarNinger from Shuriken Sentai Ninninger, and transplanted them into the show instead of adapting them into a new setting. It seemed like their goal was to celebrate and embrace what made Super Sentai so popular in Japan, which was admirable. The final hook was some of the best effects in all of Power Rangers, particularly with the villains and the attacks.
Individually, all of those elements were the peak of Power Rangers’ creativity and storytelling. The problem was that they didn’t always jive together, and that’s what ultimately held the series back from being a masterpiece. All the right parts are still there, though, and you can constantly sense the potential for Ninja Steel to be the greatest Power Rangers show ever. To some, that’s more than enough.
Power Rangers in Space
For many of us, Power Rangers in Space was the first time we started realizing that Power Rangers could be more than just a goofy and colorful pitstop on the road from enjoying cartoons to live-action shows. The sixth Power Rangers season didn’t exactly come without any homework, banking on the viewers’ knowledge of the previous installments of the franchise, but it then brought them all to their most satisfying conclusions. After all, it was the show that made Bulk and Skull … cool, in that one scene? Wait, how on Earth is that possible? It’s not. But In Space it is. (No refunds.)
In Space effectively ended the Zordon era of the Power Rangers, and it truly went out with a bang. It felt like the perfect culmination of everything set up by Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. Sure, it wasn’t as serious as some of the later shows, but you always got the feeling that In Space was embracing its campier elements out of love for the series that by then had been on the air for five years. Admittedly, some of the appeal of In Space lies in its nostalgia factor and requires you to have an emotional connection with the shows before it. But if you have that, this is the show you will never, ever forget.
What's your favorite Power Rangers show? Let us know in the comment section!
Cezary writes words on the internet. You should follow him on Twitter.
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