Power Rangers Season 2 Episode 11 - The Song Of Guitardo

Last time, we had another part of the "Tommy losing his powers" subplot, which was slightly better than the ones before it in terms of drama and tension, but some technical issues brought it down a bit. We're now at the last episode before this subplot comes to its conclusion, so let's not waste any more time and get to it.

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So we start off at the Juice Bar with Kimberly practicing guitar. I'd comment on the fact that Kim randomly knows how to play guitar, but Amy Jo Johnson does have some musical talent, so I'll let it slide. She asks Zack to give her some help with the lyrics after mentioning something about a picnic later. On the moon, Zedd sees Kim playing guitar and decides to use it as inspiration for his next monster. However, Goldar mentions that since the guitar isn't alive, Zedd can't make a monster out of it.

Now, this WOULD be an interesting weakness on Zedd's part...if Zedd didn't just make a beetle monster out of a poster two episodes before this! What the hell?! Why is this suddenly brought up when there was no indication of it before? Not to mention Zedd made monsters out of a gorilla SUIT and a picture of a goat monster! What, was the suit made out of real gorilla?! Was the paper that the goat monster picture was on mean it was technically alive? Saban, if you're going to introduce a potentially exploitable weakness in someone, make sure it doesn't contradict what's already happened!

Anyway, Zedd decides to base his monster on a musically-themed insect, a cicada. Don't ask me how he went from guitar to cicada. He further explains that the monster will use a hypnotizing song to place the Rangers under his control. Works for me. I guess.

We then cut to the park with the group at their picnic. And then Richie shows up. Goddammit. OK, after listening to him for a few minutes, I have to admit that I may have been a bit hard on him. He isn't actually that bad. The problem is that there's no point to him. All we know about him is that he's the new kid in town and that Trini has a crush on him. That's it. Maybe the viewers could get attached to him if there was something about him to like, but there isn't. He's just there to take up space. Saban, if you're going to introduce a character that'll stay for more than one episode, give us a reason to like him!

After he leaves, we see Bulk and Skull's newest plan: disguise themselves as a monster and a victim to lure out the Rangers. Why this involves Skull dressing up like a princess and sounding like a lost member of Monty Python is beyond me. Bulk also mentions that this is their last chance to meet the Rangers. Wait, why? Is something happening in the next episode that'll prevent them from discovering the Rangers' identities? I'm confused.

Anyway, their antics do attract the attention of the group, which pisses off the duo as they're trying to attract the Rangers. See, it's funny because they ARE the Rangers, but Bulk and Skull don't know it. Ho ho ho! Except not really all that funny. The Rangers lecture the two on "crying wolf" and leave, allowing the two to resume their goofiness. Oh, Kimberly left her guitar behind. I mention that now because Zedd's ready to make his monster, who will steal the guitar for his spell.

The duo continue their craziness (seriously, why is Skull still doing the bad British accent?) when they find a large bug. A cicada, apparently, which is a lot larger than it should be. Zedd zaps it and it transforms into Guitardo. That sounds like something ripe with potentially offensive jokes. It starts chasing the two around, as expected.

Zordon contacts the group and has them teleport to the Command Center to prepare them for the monster's hypnotic abilities. Once there, Alpha scans Tommy for info on his power levels while Zordon briefs the others. We see Guitardo take Kim's guitar while Zordon goes on about how the group needs to keep their minds focused and not fall to Zedd's will, etc etc. Alpha says that Tommy's powers are too low to go out into battle, so the others have to go on without them. I do like this part here. You really do feel sorry for Tommy since he can't go out and help his friends in battle. The Rangers morph and head out to battle.

They meet up with Guitardo and he starts playing his music, which causes the Rangers to...stand there. Really? Not even a slight hint that you may be losing control? At all? Oh, there we go. OK, now all the Rangers except Kim are floating in the air. How does this qualify as mind control again? Tommy decides he has to go help the others and Zordon eventually gives in. Tommy morphs and joins the fight, taking on Guitardo for a bit before it runs off, telling them to meet him at the fair. Tommy runs after it while Kim contacts Zordon. He explains that the only way to help the others is to destroy Guitardo, of course, so Kim runs off to help Tommy.

At the park, Guitardo starts playing his music to make Tommy float in the air, but Tommy breaks out of it by playing his Dragon Flute. Huh, why not? Guitardo then tries again, this time making Tommy sink into the ground. This sounds more like a gravity-controlling monster than a hypnotist. Why not just go with that? Kimberly arrives and manages to save Tommy by using her Power Bow as a harp. Again, why not? They fight for a bit more and Guitardo gets the upper hand, until Kimberly uses the Dragon Dagger as an arrow for her Power Bow and she blasts him. OK, that was kinda cool. This is enough to finish off Guitardo, free the Rangers, and get Kim's guitar back. Zedd has had enough and promises victory next time.

Back at the Juice Bar, the group is holding their picnic inside as a sudden rainstorm drove them in. We then see Bulk and Skull return and we get more silliness. Bulk then gets pissed at Skull for his idea, leading to this:

Skull: My idea? MY idea?! Since when have I ever had an idea?!

Well, at least he admits his incompetence.

The group has a good chuckle and Tommy actually mentions that he's going to miss this. This is a pretty sad moment, to be honest. It seems as though Tommy has finally accepted that his powers are going to be gone soon, so he's just going to enjoy his time with the group while he can. Kimberly and Zack then sing the song that they were working on, which admittedly, is pretty nice. I could swear I saw Tommy getting a little teary-eyed at one point. The episode ends on an uplifting note.

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Again, this episode has its ups and downs. On the one hand, the moments were it seems Tommy's time with the Rangers is getting shorter and shorter are well done and pretty sad when you think about them. On the other hand, the continuity issues and lazy characters bring this one down a bit. Like the others in this subplot, this is somewhere in the middle. Next time, a two-parter that brings this subplot to an end!

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I still don't see the connection between a guitar and a cicada that resulted in Guitardo, but I guess you have to make some leaps in order to make the Sentai footage make some sense.

Power Rangers Season 2 Episode 10 - Welcome To Venus Island

Last time we had an episode that sort of just filled space. It had a weak plot, the monster wasn't very good, and it overall felt pointless. It did, however, continue the plot of Tommy's powers disappearing, but it would've been better if there was more to it. I'm betting this episode will do the same, but thankfully, we only have a couple more episodes before this plot point is resolved, so let's get on with it.

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So we start off at the beach, with Tommy, Kim, and Trini hanging out with some kid that Trini apparently knows. Great, child actor. And this season was going so well. The kid leaves and...goddammit, Richie walks past. Richie and a child actor in the same episode. This does not bode well at all. We then see Bulk and Skull's next plan: disguise themselves as Z-Putties to lure out the Rangers. Of course, the costumes are bad, all they do is wreck a sandcastle, and Bulk gets his ass kicked by a 5-year old. Ah well, better luck next time, guys.

On the moon, Zedd isn't too pleased that people are mocking the Z-Putties, so he sends the real deal down to cause some havoc. As well as kidnap that girl. Because every child actor on this show needs to be the kidnap victim. Goldar has a spaz attack so Zedd sends him down too to do...something. It's not really clear what. I also like how Zedd referred to himself as "The Master Of The Universe". And here I thought He-Man couldn't get any more naked than he already was. Apparently I was wrong.

Back on Earth, the girl lets out the most unenthusiastic "hey let me go" I've ever heard, and the group comes running. Just in time to see Goldar teleport away with the girl. They notice a bottle he left behind, which they open, causing flames to shoot out and write a message in the sand in some ineligible language. Which of course has a big Z as the signature, because that's how Zedd rolls.

On the moon, Zedd is glad that Goldar caught the girl successfully, but isn't happy that he dropped the bottle. Goldar's explanation is that he dropped it in the battle.

Zedd: The BATTLE?! With a little girl?!

Oh snap, Zedd's gonna slap a bitch!

But Zedd, evil genius that he is, manages to make a negative into a positive. He realizes that once the Rangers decipher the message, they'll find out where the girl is being kept and head there, meaning they can ransom her for the Green Ranger. Subplot continuing, as expected.

At the Command Center, Billy tries to translate the message to find the girl (named Haley or Hally or Halle or something). They eventually discover that she's trapped on the titular Venus Island, which can be called up at Zedd's will. If it sinks without them rescuing her, she'll be gone forever. Not from drowning, of course, this is a kid's show! She'll just be "lost to Zedd's evil". Zordon mentions that at sunset, the wind will blow towards the island, so it's up to Billy once again to create some device to track the wind. Because he's a super-genius and all that.

*insert pissed-off Wile E. Coyote here*

We cut to Billy's garage, where he uses his technical wizardry to create some wind-tracking device. Because he's just that damn good. He, Jason, and Trini go back to the beach while the others wait in the Command Center...

...Zack sounds off. Sure, it still sounds like him, mostly, but he still sounds different. Almost as if he has a different voice actor dubbed in over his lines...hm.

Anyway, they release the balloon at sunset and head back to the Center. While tracking the signal, the others question whether or not Tommy should go. And Zack has his normal voice again. Weird. Tommy convinces the others to let him go if he agrees to escape should Zedd target him. They find the island, as well as Hally trapped in some magic cage. Apparently it's slowly turning her evil, which means they were being literal earlier. Because Zedd totally needs a little girl in his vast empire of evil. Time is of the essence, so the Rangers teleport to Venus Island.

The Rangers arrive and start wandering the island, which, since it's VENUS Island, has a lot of Venus Flytraps on it. Zedd springs his trap by zapping one of the flytraps and creating his newest monster, the Invenusable Flytrap. Eh, it's alright. The monster teleports in front of the Rangers, so they morph in response. For some reason, Jason and Zack don't make any noise when morphed. Also weird. They fight the Flytrap, who sounds like a stereotypical old lady, and it opens it's chest to capture all the Rangers except for Tommy and Trini. It offers to let them go if Tommy gives up the last of his powers and follow Lord Zedd, but they refuse. Zordon orders them to retreat and they return to the Command Center.

Once there, Zordon explains Zedd's plan to fully control Tommy and the Green Ranger powers. Zordon also reminds them of Hally's dire situation, so Tommy decides that he has to give himself up to Zedd. Trini offers to go fight the Flytrap alone, but Tommy refuses. I have to admit, this scene is pretty tense. It's almost like Tommy's willingly walking to his death or something. Nicely done, Saban. However, Alpha manages to save the day by discovering the Flytrap's weakness, heat. If the other Rangers create intense heat from inside the Flytrap, they'll be able to escape. Tommy and Trini teleport back to the battle to help the others.

Once there, they resume fighting the Flytrap. We then cut to inside it and...OK, I can clearly see Jason moving as though he's speaking, but no noise is coming out! What the hell? Well, as it turns out, this was around the time Walter Jones, Austin St. John, and Thuy Trang, the actors for Zack, Jason, and Trini respectively, were having money issues with Saban, and refused to do voice acting for a number of scenes. This explains why Zack sounded weird earlier. They got different voice actors for the suits, but re-airings of the episode just cut it out altogether. Hence why Jason and Zack don't make any noise while morphed.

Anyway, they combine their energy or something to create plenty of heat from within. This, plus Trini and Tommy fighting outside, cause enough damage to force the Flytrap to release the others. They fight some more and combine their weapons into the Power Blaster. And now Jason and Zack have their voices again. I guess they just re-used an old version of this sequence. They blast it and finish it off.

Zedd's none too happy with failing again. However, he still has the last laugh, as Hally is still trapped on the island. He commands the island to start sinking, forcing the Rangers to move faster to find her. They eventually find her in a cave, but can't get to her right away, since the fog's still around the cage and would just turn them evil. And Zack's voice is gone again. I'd stop pointing it out if it wasn't so blatant. Trini finds the solution, which is to just blast the cage until it's gone. Tommy rescues Hally and...the Rangers blatantly call him Tommy in front of her! Guys! What happened to the whole secret identity thing?! Fine, clearly the producers didn't care, so I won't either.

After the Rangers escape and Zedd promises eventual victory, we arrive at the Juice Bar, where Bulk and Skull are interrogating Hally about the Rangers. She gives surprisingly accurate details about both Jason and Tommy, which naturally scares the piss out of them. Bulk and Skull have some French artist draw the Rangers from Hally's descriptions, which allows Bulk to practice his French, which the artist calls "fascinating". More like offensive. The drawing's finished which turns out to be...some sort of gala event. Alrighty then. Group laughs, episode ends.

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This one was slightly better than the last episode, but not by much. The moment with Tommy resigning himself to his fate was surprisingly well done. And I'll admit that the Bulk and Skull moments were pretty funny. But other than that, this one was still in the middle, and the lack of voices for Jason and Zack really drag it down for me. Overall, OK, but again, just part of something bigger.

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Please keep all vagina jokes regarding the Invenusable Flytrap to yourselves. I'd like to keep some dignity with regards to these reviews.

Power Rangers Season 2 Episode 9 - The Beetle Invasion

Last time, we had an episode that wasn't really that great, but was fairly important. The monster wasn't all that creative, the plot seemed a bit rehashed, and, to be honest, the whole "dream" thing didn't really play a big part. It was kind of implied that it was Zedd's fault, but at the same time, not really. It was important, however, in introducing the subplot of Tommy's powers disappearing much faster. This will continue over the next few episodes, so let's get a move on and see where we go next.

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So we start off at the Juice Bar with Ernie playing some weird game with a broom and a ball. The game in particular is called "broomball". It's just like hockey, except you use a broom, and a ball.

Dark Helmet: Everybody got that?

Ernie wants Tommy, Jason, Zack and Billy to play for his team, but they're a bit reluctant. For some reason. We then have these two kids come in from Stone Canyon, who had challenged Ernie to a game. By the by, Stone Canyon is a neighbouring city to Angel Grove, that will be mentioned again in a few episodes' time, but we'll get to that then. Ernie volunteers the guys, which causes the kids to scoff. After all, they've been undefeated for the past two years! It's not like these four in-shape guys who happen to double as superheroes could beat them! Jason accepts and the game is on.

On the moon, Zedd goes on about his plan to destroy the Green Ranger. He explains that he wants to wipe away all memory of Rita's failures, and since Rita technically created the Green Ranger, he wants to wipe him out for good. Makes sense, I suppose. He then sees a poster of the Stone Canyon team, who happen to be called the Beetles. This is apparently inspiration enough for him to create four bowl-cut wearing bugs who form a band and defeat the Rangers with their evil devil music.

OK, not really, but he does use the poster to create a bug monster, the Stag Beetle. ....wow, and I thought Robogoat was unoriginal. Of course, the Stag Beetle's purpose is to drain more of Tommy's Green Ranger energy, and it wanders off to do just that.

Back at the Juice Bar, the group all practice broomball to get ready for the game. One of the balls bounces towards the bar, which is caught by...oh, great. It's here we're introduced to one of the most pointless side characters in this series, Richie. He actually lasts for more than one episode, but he has zero personality and seems to exist only to give Trini a love interest, though nothing ever comes of it. Bulk and Skull then show up with Bulk's latest plan. With a new device they got from a back-of-a-comic-book-order (remember those?), they're going to capture the scents of everyone at the broomball game, then match them with the scents of the Power Rangers. Wait, when did you guys get the Power Rangers' scents? Are you guys that big of fans? ...you guys are starting to scare me now.

We cut to the park with Kimberly and Tommy going for a run. Zedd sends down some Z-Putties to hold them off until the Stag Beetle arrives. The Z-Putties arrive and they fight for a bit. It's nothing special. Meanwhile, the others put up their poster beside the Stone Canyon poster, and notice the beetle missing. Of course, that's the perfect time for the Stag Beetle to show up at the fight, so Tommy and Kim morph (out of order, for some reason). They fight some more, but the Z-Putties overwhelm Tommy, allowing the Stag Beetle to start draining his powers. Kimberly contacts Zordon for help, who relays the message to the other Rangers. They morph and join in. The Stag Beetle eventually retreats, but not before stealing all of Tommy's energy.

Zedd gloats about a successful plan, and explains that he'll now have the Stag Beetle destroy the Rangers with the Green Ranger's own power. At the Command Center, the Rangers discover that Tommy's powers are gone, and Zordon explains that the same could happen to any of them. Billy proposes Alpha make a MacGuffin machine to get Tommy's powers back, but it'll take a while to build. The Beetle reappears, and Zordon explains that they can't destroy him until they get Tommy's powers back. The Rangers head back to the battle.

Once there, the Rangers start fighting the Stag Beetle with their Blade Blasters (seriously, why? Those things suck as daggers), which naturally leads to the Stag Beetle smacking the Rangers around. It summons some Z-Putties to make things harder, leading the Rangers to move to higher ground. Back at the Command Center, Alpha continues to work on the MacGuffin machine, which is supposed to absorb the Green Ranger energy once the Beetle uses it. He does mention the possibility of the Beetle using it up, which I think will come into play in some way. The Beetle and the Z-Putties eventually catch up to the Rangers in front of a cliff. Beetle fires the Green Ranger power at the Rangers just as Tommy arrives to steal it back. This gives the Rangers the necessary opportunity to combine their weapons and zap the Stag Beetle with the Power Blaster.

However, it's just a flesh wound, meaning Zedd can make the Stag Beetle grow. The Rangers summon the ThunderZords in response and form the Thunder MegaZord. Choppy fight sequence go! Watch as the Stag Beetle clearly kicks the original MegaZord, and then get cut by the original Power Sword instead of the Thunder Saber! OK, OK, Thunder MegaZord finishes it off and Zedd surprisingly doesn't get pissy. Since the Stag Beetle did use up some of the Green Ranger power, it's only a matter of time before it's gone for good. See, told you that would come into play.

We then move back to the Juice Bar, where the group has their broomball game, while Bulk and Skull wander around with what is essentially a blowdryer. Of course our heroes win at the last second, as they always do. Richie shows off his blandness, the other team is so crushed they can barely say "good game", and Tommy mopes some more about his powers dwindling. Unlike the last episode, though, he remains optimistic that he'll get his powers back at full strength as the episode ends.

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This one was just there. Like the last two, it didn't really serve much purpose other than to continue the subplot of Tommy's powers draining. One good thing about this episode, though, is that it shows off Zedd's attitude about this whole thing. He can accept one minor defeat if the end result is what he wants. Overall, this just seems like one part of a much bigger episode, and if you look at it as that, it's not so bad, but on its own, it's better if you skip it.

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The Stag Beetle. One of the most unoriginally-named characters as of yet. And it doesn't even look that good.

Power Rangers Season 2 Episode 8 - The Green Dream

Last time, we got an episode that was pretty disappointing. The monster was uninspired, the plot seemed tacked on, the good aspects of this season were barely there, and Bulk and Skull somehow became even more incompetent than usual. Not a good sign for this episode, but since it apparently features Saban's cash cow, how bad can it be?

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So we start off at the school, with Ms. Appleby giving the class an essay assignment. Bulk and Skull panic, but Bulk decides to kill two birds with one stone and write an essay about the Power Rangers' secret identities. Uh, don't you need to know what they are first, guys? Surprisingly, Skull gives off a good evil laugh here. We then move to the hallway where Tommy seems a bit jumpier than usual. He explains to Kim that he's had "the dream" for the third night in a row. Basically, he's dreamt about losing his powers, and since it's happened three times in a row, he takes it as a sign that it'll happen soon. Personally, I would too. No way that's a coincidence. Kim tells Tommy to stay positive, but it's obvious that it isn't working very well.

On the moon, Zedd gloats over Tommy's weakening powers, and devises his next plan: use the Sword of Power to drain away the rest of the Green Ranger power. The problem is, however, the Sword can't be summoned unless all of the Rangers come together to do so. So, he decides to capture them one by one and trap them in the Dark Dimension, thereby forcing them to summon the Sword to escape. Hmm, manipulation, separating the group, preying on their weaknesses? This is the Zedd I remember! Good to have you back!

We cut to the Juice Bar where Billy is tinkering with some electronic scrambler or something. Not sure how it'll help fight Zedd, but still a pretty nifty device. The group talks about the assignment until Bulk and Skull arrive with some cheap radar device, designed to detect the Rangers' energy signatures. I don't know how much it cost, but it definitely couldn't have been enough for Bulk and Skull to snap it up. Billy uses his scrambler to mess with their device so they think Ernie is a Ranger. He does some goofy kung-fu poses to mess with them and they sulk. Tommy leaves to study for the essay and-

*record scratch*

WHAT IN THE HIGH HOLY HELL?!

Zack's hair is back to that poofy 90's afro! What in the shit is going on here?! Did I see these episodes out of order or something?

...huh. Turns out I did. Oops. Sorry guys, this one's on me. This is supposed to take place before The Power Stealer. My bad.

Zedd sees Tommy walking home alone, so he sends his Z-Putties to capture him and put him in the "Dark Chamber". Whatever that is. The Z-Putties arrive and Tommy, since he's Tommy, starts kicking ass. He even bicycle kicks one of them! Eat your heart out, Liu Kang! Well, OK, not really, but it was still awesome! The Z-Putties overwhelm him, however, and teleport him to the Dark Chamber, which is just another creepy cave. Goldar appears with Zedd's staff no less! Holy shit! He explains that he'll cast a spell on Tommy and take control of him, so that he can convince the others to summon the Sword of Power, then steal it and give it to Zedd. Of course Tommy refuses to be evil again, but he doesn't have a choice as Goldar zaps him and his eyes glow red, showing he's under Zedd's control. Damn.

Of course, Goldar gloats about how Tommy is evil again (though not really), and then notices a book that he dropped on mythology. He sees a picture of some guy fighting a goat monster, and he asks Zedd to make a monster out of it. Zedd agrees, somehow getting his staff back, and creates the Robogoat from the picture.

Wait.

How can a mythological goat monster be called "Robo"goat? That doesn't make any sense! What part about him is robotic? How does that even...nevermind.

Zordon catches wind of this and contacts the Rangers, just as Tommy rejoins the group. They all teleport to the Command Center and Zordon fills them in on Robogoat. Tommy proposes that they summon the Sword of Power, which could give Tommy enough of a power boost to last longer in battle. Now, I'm just throwing this out there, but how do the Rangers know about the Sword of Power?! It was never mentioned until this episode! Did Zordon brief them on it ahead of time? And if so, WHY ARE THEY JUST USING THIS NOW?! Whatever, they summon the Sword and Tommy suddenly starts acting eeeeeevil and teleports away.

Back at the Dark Chamber, Goldar gets Tommy to hand the Sword of Power over to Robogoat. This instantly breaks the spell over Tommy, allowing Robogoat to teleport away. Goldar dares Tommy to morph and use up what's left of his power. Tommy, knowing it's a trap, morphs anyway and goes after Robogoat. He sees the Sword of Power nearby and, like a dumbass, runs after it, allowing Robogoat to cause random explosions from a distance. Robogoat appears and the two fight for a bit before Tommy gets the Sword back. Or not, as it's a fake, Robogoat still having the real one. He attacks Tommy and tosses him down a cliff, leaving him beaten and his powers fading.

Back at the Command Center, Zordon finds Tommy, apparently explained to the Rangers that Tommy was under Zedd's control off-screen, and the Rangers morph to go save him. Once they arrive, they all pretty much get wrecked by Robogoat and the Sword of Power. Robogoat then creates a fissure that traps the Rangers, save Jason. Jason pulls out his Power Sword (not to be confused with the Sword of Power) and engages in an epic sword fight with Robogoat. Well, not epic, but better than expected. Jason eventually knocks the Sword of Power out of Robogoat's hands, allowing it to be teleported to the Command Center. They fight for a bit more and Jason somehow gets Robogoat to release the others, who were suddenly sealed in Robogoat's body. I dunno, let's just go with it.

Zedd makes Robogoat grow, so the Rangers summon the ThunderZords and from the Thunder MegaZord. Another awkward and choppy fight begins, one part being the Thunder MegaZord pulling out the Thunder Saber...only for Robogoat to stare at the original MegaZord's Power Sword. Wow, nicely done there. The Robogoat gets the upper hand and starts electrocuting the Thunder MegaZord. Because he can do that. Guess that's where the "Robo" part comes in. Tommy, low on power, tries to summon the DragonZord to help them out, but it doesn't work. The Rangers recover anyway and finish off the monster. Man, that's gotta be pretty demoralizing for Tommy.

Back on the moon, Zedd berates the others for costing him his monster and the Sword of Power. However, all is not lost. They did cause the Green Ranger to waste a good portion of his power, which Zedd plans to take advantage of. Back at the school, Tommy talks to Kim and Jason about how his time is running out, and how his nightmare is slowly coming true. They try to reassure him that he'll come back from this like before, but Tommy isn't convinced. The episode surprisingly ends on a low note, with Tommy realizing that Zedd will be purposely targeting him from here on out.

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This one was...OK, I guess. It has its faults, like the flimsy MacGuffin Sword and the weak monster. This works better as an introduction to a subplot. Tommy's powers are almost gone and he knows it, and like he said, Zedd plans to take advantage of that. We'll see that over the next few episodes (and it does make The Power Stealer make a bit more sense. Not by much, but a bit). I have to give credit for the ending of this episode, at the very least. It doesn't end with the usual group laughter, everything's gonna be OK ending like it usually does. It ends on a depressing note, and it actually seems foreboding. Like the kids know it's only a matter of time before Tommy's gone for good. That's ballsy, and I have to give Saban credit for that. This episode's more important than it is good, so watch it if you feel you have to, but otherwise, skip it.

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I still don't get it. Why does a goat monster based on some mythological creature get the name "ROBOgoat"?

Power Rangers Season 2 Episode 7 - The Power Stealer

Last time, we got an interesting episode, showing off both Zedd's planning skills and Amy Jo Johnson's acting skills, which made for an enjoyable romp all around. Oh, and there was a weird-sounding monster too. I'm sure the good work will continue with this one, so let's take a look.

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So we start off at the Juice Bar with a "clean-up drive" taking place, which is apparently good enough to make the news, since there is a reporter there. She turns to our heroes and-

HOLY SHIT ON A CHRIST CRACKER!

Zack! What happened to your hair?! You switched from that cheesy 90's crewcut/afro combo to frickin' CORNROWS?! I mean, yeah, I know we see his new hairdo in the intro, but it's still hard to get used to. It completely goes against his original and more familiar design. Things will never be the same again.

It's here that you'd expect me to rant about them bringing up yet another environmental message, but surprisingly, it's not about cleaning the environment. It's more just about keeping the community clean and looking nice. So, it's not really annoying, but more entirely pointless. Yeah, I can understand you wanting to clean up litter, but why graffiti? I think it adds a lot of ambiance to a neighbourhood. If you're walking down the street and you see some random graffiti on a wall, you know you're in a baaaaad town. Then again, this is Angel Grove, which is supposed to be squeaky-clean, so I can see why they're bothering with this.

The reporter mentions a rumour that the Rangers are gonna show up and help with the clean-up, causing our heroes to try waaaaay too hard to hide the fact that they are, in fact, the Rangers. After they leave, Bulk and Skull try to borrow the recording equipment from the news crew, but no luck. Bulk, evil genius that he is, gets an idea. They follow the camera crew to the park, where the Rangers are said to be showing up, then when they do, they rush in, yank off their helmets, and expose their identities for fame and fortune. This seems...rushed, a bit. What, the Power Rangers are just gonna stand there and let you yank off their helmets and expose their identities to the world? Yeah, that'll happen.

We then move to the moon, Zedd concocting his next plan. He mentions how the Rangers love everything clean and pretty.

Goldar: Yes, it's one of the Rangers' most disgusting traits!

When you find yourself agreeing with the villain, that's not a good sign.

Zedd decides to create the ugliest monster he can think of, the Octophantom, which is a cross between an octopus and an elephant. Oooookay.

We then cut back to Earth, with the Rangers and others all cleaning up the park, with the camera somehow appearing in the trashcan facing up. And this isn't just a strange camera shot, it's implied that the camera being used in the episode, by the news crew, is somehow in there. I don't get it. Zedd mentions how the Octophantom is supposed to capture each Ranger in a magic jar, which will drain them of their powers. Why does this sound familiar? He mentions that the Green Ranger will be first, of course, because he needs to be written out until the end.

So back on Earth, Z-Putties arrive and start to cause havoc. Tommy, Jason, and Kim get the others to run away, but it should be noted that the cameraguy leaves his camera behind, still recording. This'll come into play later. They fight the Z-Putties for a little bit, until Zedd sends down the Octophantom. Eeesh, he wasn't kidding about it being ugly. They morph, meaning the camera saw who three of the Rangers were. They fight off the Z-Putties some more, the camera capturing everything. Here is where I find a problem with the Z-Putty fights now. They kick and punch the Z-Putties in their weakspot multiple times, yet they don't die right away. Yet when Kimberly barely grazes one Z-Putty's symbol, it dies. Yeah, it'd be boring if they were beaten right away, but a little consistency wouldn't kill you, Saban. Of course, this wouldn't be a problem if they didn't have the weakspots in the first place.

Anyway, Tommy gets overwhelmed by the Octophantom and the Z-Putties and is captured. Jason and Kim teleport to the Command Center, the camera having seen everything. Bulk and Skull come across said camera, realize that it was recording while the Rangers were fighting, and take the tape. I'd be worried about this if status quo wasn't in the way.

After some random expositing about the monster at the Command Center, we see Tommy chained up in a cave somewhere, which is somehow draining his powers. I'unno. Zedd explains that he'll send the Octophantom to Earth to deface some public property with graffiti, in order to lure out the Rangers.

Zedd, stop. You're supposed to be a SMART villain. This is smelling awfully Rita-like. Yes, this is just a trap to lure out the Rangers by exploiting their good nature, but they're not THAT good! Besides, Zordon explains that it's clearly a trap from the get-go. Sure, they morph and go anwyay, but come on, this is just stupid!

They arrive at the battlefield and start fighting Octophantom, who attacks them by throwing...something. It's too small to see. They keep fighting while Billy stays in the background, trying to think of a plan. Wow, how uncharacteristically dickish of you, Billy. Stay behind and let your friends do the dirty work while you try to think of something. What a hero, folks. Octophantom is about to capture the Rangers, but suddenly stops to admire his reflection. Soooo, his necessary weakness is that he's vain. How...random. He then opens the jar, but Jason gets out of the way, the other three being captured. Octophantom teleports away, telling Jason to meet him at the quarry that so many battles take place at.

Back at the Command Center, Billy decides to create a device that can exploit the Octophantom's vanity. Dude, just get a giant frickin' mirror! And why does Jason need to run ahead and give Billy time to build a "device"? Seriously, just get a mirror and attack him while he's distracted! Why be so needlessly complicated? Oh, and if I haven't mentioned it by now, Jason suddenly acquired a habit of shouting "Back To Action!" whenever he or the group teleports back to the battlefield while already morphed. I guess they didn't have enough catchphrases already.

Jason teleports to the quarry and meets up with the Octophantom, who has the others tied up on a hill nearby. How this is draining their powers, I have no idea. Jason clenches his fist to show this is srs busness, yo, and they start fighting. And Jason gets his ass kicked. What the hell? Then Billy shows up with his device: a shield with a mirror in it. .....why did he need to make that?! He gives Jason the shield while he goes to save the others. After more fighting, Jason finally uses the shield to distract Octophantom while he blasts him with his Blade Blaster. Billy frees the others, then sends Tommy back to the Command Center because of his low power. I have to admit, an interesting effect is with Tommy's green suit slowly turning a dark grey-ish colour to show his dwindling powers. Nice touch.

Anyway, Zedd makes the Octophantom grow, so the Rangers summon the ThunderZords and form the Thunder MegaZord. They fight for a bit and it's slightly better than these fights have been so far. Emphasis on the "slightly", though. Although the Thunder MegaZord shows a new trick in creating a tornado with its sword. Anyway, after some awkward punching, the Thunder MegaZord just finishes the Octophantom and that's that.

Back at the Juice Bar, Jason congratulates Billy for his work today. For what? Abandoning his buddies and letting them get captured while his big device is essentially a frickin' mirror?! Yeah, that's some top-notch work there, boss. They mention that Tommy's powers are getting weaker and weaker, which is pretty much the only continuing plot point right now (not that I'm complaining, mind you), before Bulk and Skull arrive with the tape, ready to play it. The Rangers stop them, however, and wind up switching the tapes around so they get some cartoon that Skull apparently likes.

Now, there's something that's really bugging me here: Why didn't Bulk and Skull watch the tape ahead of time?! It doesn't make any sense that they would just grab a tape, think it had the Rangers' secret identities on it, not check the evidence, and show it to everybody. Yeah, they're not that bright, but they're not THAT stupid! But status quo demands that the Rangers' identities remain secret at all times, so we get this. The only redeeming part is that, while Bulk is lamenting his lost fame, Skull actually yells at Bulk for once because he's trying to watch the cartoon. Bulk facepalms and the episode ends.

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This one was baaaaaaad. I mean, it wasn't really bad, but bad enough to be noticeable. It seemed very, very rushed. Get the monster ready A.S.A.P., give the Rangers something to do while waiting, have Billy create some device to save the day, have Bulk and Skull do something...it just seemed like a paint-by-numbers episode with very little substance to it. The monster was a mess, the fight scenes weren't memorable, and Bulk and Skull were somehow stupider than usual. Even Zedd seemed to be phoning it in this time around. All in all, not a good one.

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Why a cross between an elephant and an octopus is called the OctophanTOM is beyond me. In fact, where exactly is the elephant incorporated here? It just seems like an octopus monster.

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I'd like to finish today by apologizing for the lack of updates recently. I've had a few things to deal with. In addition to figuring out what's going on with college right now, I've also started writing for a gaming website, GameRant. And no, I'm not telling you which writer I am. Just trust that that's what I'm doing. As such, I can't promise that updates will be as frequent as they once were, but I will try to get back to doing this on a semi-regular basis.

Power Rangers Season 2 Episode 6 - Bloom Of Doom

Last time, we had an episode that was good in concept, but somewhat flawed in execution. It still had its fair share of good points, like a cool monster, but the negatives were a bit more apparent. I'm sure this one will be better, so let's take a look.

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So we start off at the Juice Bar with a number of booths set up, each for a respective club in the school. Of course, Billy has the science club, while Zack has the "hip-hop-kido" club. I know that's his own fighting style, but wouldn't it make more sense for him to do the dance club? Trini's in charge of the volleyball club/team, and gets a huge turnout. Kimberly, who's in charge of the flower/plant/botany or whatever club, who's right beside her, gets no one. Kim congratulates Trini, but seems just a bit jealous of Trini at the moment.

Which is the perfect opportunity for Zedd's next plan. He'll cast a spell on Kimberly's cactus, and when she pricks her finger on it, her jealousy towards Trini will increase exponentially. I really like this plan. It's similar to the last two plans of wanting to split the group up, but those relied more on confusion among them. This one is about making one of them want to split the group up. That's brilliant.

Back at the Bar, Zack dances around to get people interested in his club, Bulk and Skull talk about their "Unsolved Mysteries" club (which actually sounds pretty cool), and Douchelan whines about how the applications are all over the place. Kim remains optimistic that she'll get members, despite Bulk and Skull's mocking. Back on the moon, Goldar pours a "jealousy potion" onto a cactus, and Zedd sends out a Z-Putty to switch it with Kim's. I'd comment on the semantics, but it ends with the same result, so whatever.

The Z-Putty arrives on Earth, in a human disguise, and makes the switch while Kim talks to Ernie about her troubles. Afterwards, Kim pricks her finger, as predicted, and as a nice touch her eyes flash green for a second. She confronts Trini over her "stealing" all the club members, and when Trini offers to help her get some, she says that she can find some on her own. Of course, our heroes can't imagine what's wrong with her! She then talks to Bulk and Skull, who continue with the same plan from the last episode to find the Power Rangers, as in, record people's voices to match with the ones they heard. Kim berates them as she usually does, but a really nice touch here is that she sounds much more mean-spirited towards them, instead of her usual level of sarcasm. Subtle, but noticeable enough to make a difference. Tommy tries to cheer her up with a flower, but Kim just gets worse, even mentioning that Trini isn't her best friend.

After Trini's volleyball club ends for the day, Jason and Tommy ask her what's going on with Kim, but Trini's just as lost as they are. Bulk and Skull arrive, and initially decide that there's no way that they could be the Rangers (cue knowing look between the members), but decide to record their voices anyway for the sake of SCIENCE! *trumpets* This, of course, leads to Bulk getting tied up in the microphone cord. Meanwhile, Kim is messing around in a garden, wondering why she's even bothering, calling it boring. Zedd decides to use the flowers to create this week's monster, the titular Bloom of Doom.

At the Command Center, Zordon and Alpha catch wind of the Bloom of Doom's creation, Zordon mentioning that its pollen is highly flammable, and they contact the Rangers. Jason, Trini, and Tommy morph first, followed by Zack and Billy. When Kimberly gets contacted by Zordon, there are a number of nice touches here. First, Kim puts on a fake smile and has a false sound of pleasantness in her voice. Then, while Zordon is talking, she makes constant "hurry up" motions with her hands, but doesn't say anything. Then, after getting the special vine weapon thing to take on the Bloom of Doom, she puts on another fake smile before morphing. All nice ways to show just how different this Kim is.

The Rangers arrive at the battle and the Bloom of Doom summons some Z-Putties for the fight. Of course, the Rangers plow right through them, and take on the Bloom, who sprays her burning pollen on the guys. Kim wraps it up with the vine/ribbon thing, which of course electrocutes it. Trini accidentally cuts the ribbon, letting the Bloom escape. Kim goes after it, and winds up being teleported to some alternate dimension with the Bloom. The others retreat to the Command Center for backup.

In the alternate dimension, the Bloom attacks Kim while mocking her, saying that her own jealousy has driven her friends away and that she'll be stuck there forever. At the Command Center, Billy manages to figure out through technobabble a way for Trini to save Kimberly and break the spell. Which is "throw her daggers at this spot". Makes as much sense as anything else, but this scene does show that Billy's become a lot more accustomed to the Command Center's technology. Trini teleports back to the battlefield.

Back in the alternate dimension, we see Trini's daggers come out of nowhere and hit the Bloom, freeing the both of them from the dimension and breaking the spell on Kim, just as predicted. The two instantly patch things up and team up to fight the Bloom. The others arrive and combine their weapons into the Power Blaster and finish it off. Zedd gets angry and promises victory next time.

Back at the Juice Bar, Kim meets up with her group members, who got the wrong information on where to meet, which is explained by Douchelan mixing up the locations. We then think we're getting a gag with Douchelan sneezing his toupee off, but it's just a tease. Damn, what a missed opportunity. How sad is it that we won't get to see Douchelan sneeze his toupee off. The others arrive and Trini and Kim reaffirm their friendship. Bulk and Skull arrive, supposedly with evidence of the Power Rangers identities via their voices. Of course, the tape screws up and they have nothing. Still, Bulk and Skull vow to find their identities regardless. They wander off, group laughs, episode ends.

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This one was very good. The plot was interesting and showed that Zedd was willing to adapt his gameplan even this early on. The monster was...interesting, to say the least. But really, you should watch this episode solely because of Amy Jo Johnson's performance. She manages to add enough little things to make it seem like an increased aspect of a character, rather than an entirely different person. Very well done, and worth your time.

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The only thing that really stuck out for me concerning the Bloom of Doom was its voice. I can't even describe it properly, but it sounds like a woman's voice horribly warped to switch between high pitched and unnaturally deep.

Power Rangers Season 2 Episode 5 - Putty On The Brain

Last time, we had a fun little romp with a shapeshifting white baboon, which allowed some actors to flex their skills in villainy without actually turning evil. This also showed the brilliance that is Lord Zedd, which will continue for a while. I have high hopes for this next one, so let's take a look!

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So we start off at the school with Zack giving Billy a pair of sunglasses, which is for their work in the science lab. We then immediately jump to the moon. Wait, Zedd has a plan for the sunglasses? Apparently, yes. He says he'll cast a spell on them that will alter Billy and Zack's vision so that they see the other Rangers as Z-Putties and attack them. And yes, this spell will remain even if Billy and Zack take the glasses off. See, Zedd thinks of everything, doesn't he?

He casts the spell on the glasses and they put them on, altering their vision so they see Tommy, Jason, and Kim as Z-Putties. And here we see a fatal flaw in the plan: They can still understand their speech. I get that seeing Putties would freak you out quite a bit, but doesn't the fact that they're speaking in the same voices as your friends strike you as a bit odd? Well, maybe they can't and that's just the viewers, but either way, Douchelan arrives and Zack and Billy assume the Putties are attacking him, leading to a collision. Douchelan gets pissy and assigns Zack and Billy detention.

Meanwhile, Bulk and Skull continue on their quest to discover the Rangers' identities. Skull mentions something about recording people's voices, so I guess they're going to match people's voices to the Rangers', which they overheard. Not bad. Bulk says that everyone is a suspect. Leading to this little bit.

Bulk and Skull: *look at each other for a moment, then shake their heads* Nah.

Despite their plans, they still aren't exactly that bright, are they?

Ms. Appleby asks the duo to feed the class pet iguana while she goes and prepares today's test, which they do by dumping the entire box of food in. Of course, Zedd picks this as the opportunity needed to transform the iguana into today's monster, the Saliguana. It's actually a pretty cool looking monster, from what I've seen of it. Another little bit I like:

Bulk: *very calmly to Skull* I think we may have overfed it.

*the two then look at Saliguana, scream, and run out*

After that, Ms. Appleby's class gets ready for the test, as Zack and Billy start to realize that something isn't quite right. See, they CAN still understand the others, which makes earlier even more confusing. Skull accidentally plays back Ms. Appleby's voice on his recorder, which leads to him and Bulk getting detention and Ms. Appleby confiscating the equipment. Billy realizes that Zedd put a spell on them, which leads to Bulk and Skull swiping the sunglasses and putting them on, leading to them getting hit with the spell. They see Zack and Billy as the Z-Putties and run out.

Zedd then sends down some real Z-Putties to add to the confusion. Zack and Billy meet up with the real Z-Putties, leading to an easy attack on the Z-Putties' part. Things only get worse when the other Rangers arrive and get mixed in with the Z-Putties. They still fight them off, but Zack almost attacks Trini in the mix-up. They explain the situation to the others and they all teleport to the Command Center for help.

Once there, Zordon fills them in on the Saliguana, who just happens to be a fire-breathing lizard monster. Billy offers to make a device that can counter its fire-breathing, and Zack decides to help him, while Alpha works on a way to break the spell. Back at Billy's garage, the two work on something to freeze Saliguana, due to it being cold-blooded. Trini arrives and says she has an experiment she wants to try. She morphs and they discover that the spell doesn't work when the Rangers are morphed. Saliguana attacks, so Trini teleports away, Zack and Billy morph, as do Kim and Jason, Tommy staying behind due to low power.

They take on some Z-Putties for a while before Zack and Billy take on Saliguana. They try the device Billy created on it, but it doesn't work properly. After more fighting, Billy discovers that he forgot to add a computer chip to it that would make it work. Just...*sigh* never mind. They use it again and it works this time, the others arriving just in time to lend a hand. They combine their weapons into the Power Blaster and zap him. Just before he can die, however, Zedd throws his magic grenade down and makes him grow. The Rangers summon the ThunderZords in response.

The Red Dragon ThunderZord goes to Warrior Mode to try and take him on solo at first. It doesn't really end well. The other four Zords then combine to form some sort of flying platform or something for the Red Dragon Zord to ride on. It isn't that impressive, it's just the four sticking together with some metal platform inexplicably in between them. The Red Dragon Zord flies around for a bit, dodging the Saliguana's fire, before just combining with them and forming the Thunder MegaZord. The Saliguana then fires out its red tongue at the Thunder MegaZord to trap it...which somehow turns into a thick, BLACK tentacle when it moves to the MegaZord. That's just terrible. It breaks free and finishes Saliguana off with the Thunder Sword. Zedd glows red with anger and blames Goldar.

Back at the school, the iguana is returned safe and sound, whereas Billy and Zack are still under the spell. The others arrive with the sunglasses, now altered by Alpha, and after putting them on, the spell is broken. Of course, Bulk and Skull are still affected by it. Skull finds the iguana, and Bulk figures that, since it fought the Rangers, it'd be able to "sniff them out". Uh, OK...they let it go and the other classmates freak out. You know, despite it being the CLASS PET. Ms. Appleby gets them to put it away, leading to Skull lamenting the fact that they won't find out who the Power Rangers are. Group laughs, episode ends. Uh, what about Bulk and Skull being under the spell?

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This one was decent. Zedd continues to show off his brain power, but what does making Billy and Zack see Z-Putties in the place of their friends have to do with a fire-breathing iguana? Bulk and Skull actually show a degree of brilliance with their planning, though not much. The monster was pretty cool, but the Zord fights are still pretty bad. I can't really recommend this one, but I can't hate it either. It's somewhere in the middle.

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I forgot to mention that the Saliguana is apparently a cross between an iguana and the mythological Salamander, hence the fire-breathing.