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So we start off in what we soon learn is Kimberly's bedroom. It's morning, and Kimberly starts off this new day by knocking over her lamp trying to get to her alarm clock, and then falling out of bed. This bodes well. She then messes with her hair a bit and opens her bedroom curtains, showing to be a pleasant and sunny day. A few seconds later, one of her other windows shows that it's storming. Kimberly's comment: "Weird". Go back to the first window, Kim. Let's see just how weird things are. Anyway, she goes to grab one of her various and highly fashionable outfits, but discovers there's a burn in it (I'm assuming from ironing). She gets annoyed and decides to go back to bed, but then an earthquake happens, causing her handheld mirror to fall over and break. She moans over the seven years bad luck and storms out of the room. Um...I thought the bad luck only came from you personally breaking the mirror. She didn't break it, the earthquake did, so it's not her fault. We then see Squat's shadow behind one of the windows. Not even remotely creepy. Really.
We cut to the moon where Squat is reporting to Rita, saying that now's the perfect time to capture Kimberly due to her bad day. What that has to do with capturing an enemy is...oh, wait, we're doing petty Rita today, aren't we? Joy. So yeah, Rita talks to Finster about the next monster while they recycle footage from the second episode. The monster this week is called the Samurai Fan Man, who is sent down to Earth immediately after creation. You probably have a decent idea what he looks like, but despite his obviousness, he's still a pretty cool monster. But then again, I've always had a weakness for samurais, so I'm probably biased.
We cut to the school where everyone is walking in from the storm. Kimberly happens to be drenched because her umbrella broke. She walks over to her locker, trying to ignore the squeaky bad-record-scratch noises her boots are making, when Tommy walks over to her. I like the little bit here where she seems worried about looking like a mess in front of Tommy. They chat for a bit and we learn that Kimberly has to deliver some pep rally notes to Mr. Douchelan. Problem is, they were drenched and covered in mud from the rain. Geez, this really isn't her day, huh? Then Bulk and Skull wander over. I love the exchange Skull and Kim have here.
Skull: I guess you weren't lying when you said you had to cancel our date to stay home and wash your hair.
Kim: I never made a date with you, you goon.
Skull: *overdramatic pained look as sad music plays* My feelings are hurt.
This guy is brilliant. No questions asked.
Tommy and Bulk get into a confrontation, and the janitor just so happens to spill some water he was using to mop the floors. So Tommy tosses Bulk onto the water, causing him to slide along the floor and landing headfirst in the discarded bucket. Skull helps him up, slipping on the water as well, and the two run off.
Tommy: You know, Bulk and Skull should get their own TV show.
Hey, there's an idea! Sure would be nice if someone followed through on it!
Tommy offers to walk Kimberly home after school, which seems to cheer her up a bit. We then cut to after school, as the two are walking home. Apparently, Kimberly blames a dream she had the night before about Rita being her wicked stepmother. Well, what other kind of stepmother would she be? They walk for a bit and Kimberly trips over some rocks...right into Tommy's arms. The cheesy harp music just puts over this scene. Suddenly, the Fan Man shows up and opens the large jug he has, summoning some weird tornado thing. The tornado seems to simultaneously knock out Tommy and suck up Kimberly, trapping her in the jug. We see Kimberly scream for help, but naturally, no one hears her. We also see Tommy moan but stay unconscious, so I guess him being KTFO will be our reason as to why he's missing this episode. He should probably get used to that, considering his future career.
We cut to the Juice Bar where Jason and Zack are sparring and Trini is practicing Tai Chi with Billy. Zordon calls them and fills them in, so they teleport to the Command Center. At the Center, Zordon teleports Tommy onto a nearby psychiatrist's couch, letting him rest for the episode. Zordon fills them in on Kimberly's situation, saying that the dimension within the jug only exists for a short period of time. Once it disappears, so does Kimberly, so they need to act fast. They morph and head out to battle.
The Rangers fight the Fan Man for a bit, and we learn that they can destroy the jug, because it would destroy the dimension within it, and Kimberly. The Fan Man then shows how he got his name, summoning a giant fan that sends the Rangers flying away.
Zordon and Alpha manage to teleport them back to the Center before they go too far. He explains that if they defeat the Fan Man, Kimberly will be freed. The problem being they need the DragonZord to help, and Tommy's still out. They find the Fan Man at a restaurant, shaking his jug around to screw with Kimberly. The Rangers try to fight him, but he and Goldar hold them back. He throws a few needles from his mask to damage them before Rita makes him and Goldar grow. Naturally, the Rangers summon their DinoZords to fight them.
The Rangers fight the monsters for a bit, but since they're missing two Zords, they wind up on the losing end. Tommy FINALLY wakes up, morphs, and arrives at the battle, summoning the DragonZord. The Rangers form the DragonZord Battle Mode, who fights the Fan Man while the T-Rex Zord fights Goldar. The DragonZord Battle Mode knocks over the Fan Man's jug, releasing Kimberly. She morphs and summons her Pterodactyl Zord to join the fight. The DragonZord Battle Mode and the Fan Man fight for a little longer before the Zords separate and they reform as the MegaZord. The MegaZord summons the Power Sword and it fights the Fan Man while the DragonZord fights Goldar. The Fan Man brings out his fan again and blows both the MegaZord and DragonZord away. The Rangers respond by summoning Titanus and forming the UltraZord. They fire everything at the Fan Man and destroy him, while Goldar retreats. Rita, naturally, is pissed.
We cut to Billy's garage where the Rangers are watching a report on the news about them. Kimberly arrives and Tommy comments on how she seems to be in better spirits. This is answered by Kimberly trying to turn up the volume on the TV, and the TV promptly shooting out sparks. You know what? I'll just chalk that up to it being Billy's remote.
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This episode was a surprisingly good one. The plot wasn't anything too complicated, Kimberly's relationship with Tommy got some development, and it just seemed like a better-written episode all around. Bulk and Skull were in top form this time, Skull especially. The Samurai Fan Man was one of the more memorable monsters, and had a great showing against the Rangers. As for the subplot, I think it's intention was to make us sympathize with Kimberly, and it definitely succeeded. Everyone's had a bad day before where nothing seems to be going right. Your car might just be moving a little slower, or your workload might be a little heavier. Or you just generally feel like crap. Granted, it got a little silly in Kim's case, but I'm willing to forgive that. One of the better episodes, unquestionably.
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The Samurai Fan Man has become one of my favourite monsters-of-the-week for this season. Though I'm curious as to why he pulled out a rake as one of his many weapons. Last I checked that wasn't a traditional samurai weapon.
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