Power Rangers: 20 Episodes To See For The Anniversary

3) “Missing Green” (Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Season 2, Episode 14)

Before Tommy Oliver essentially became known as the quintessential Power Ranger, his story was heavily meant to complement Jason’s. Serving as a pseudo-sequel to “The Green Candle”–after Tommy has lost his powers for a second, and thought to be final time–“Missing Green” puts Jason center stage as he’s forced to face the guilt for his failure head-on. After the other five are captured by Lord Zedd, they have their powers slowly drained by magic candles just like Tommy, forcing Jason to stand alone and succeed where he once failed. It’s a simple adventure, but showcases the adept character development and continuity the show was slowly gaining.

4) “A Different Shade of Pink” (Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Season 3, Episodes 23-25)

Writing out characters is not always handled terribly effectively on Power Rangers, but when it is, it excels. A big chunk of season 3 gave Pink Ranger Kimberly new opportunities on top of frustrating losses. She gets her power coin stolen, which slowly drains her of her life force, but she’s also offered a position to go train in Florida for a global gymnastics tournament, away from her duties in Angel Grove. This storyline runs parallel Katherine’s, a girl Rita has corrupted in order to infiltrate the Rangers’ lives. As Kimberly is forced to confront her own obligations as a Ranger, Katherine slowly breaks out of Rita’s control, remembering her personal obligation to be good. Topped with the first time we see a Ranger actually in the hospital in serious condition, this arc does everyone’s favorite Pink Ranger justice in her swan song, while seamlessly bringing her successor into the fray. And Kim gets to go out doing what got Amy Jo Johnson the job in the first place–gymnastics.

5) “A Zeo Beginning” (Power Rangers Zeo, Episodes 1-2)

The end of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers laughed in the face of the “no one will ever take them down” verse of the theme song, as the Rangers faced an utterly humiliating defeat. The Alien Rangers arc, which featured the main Rangers turned into children and the bad guys winning, has plenty of merits in its own right (and the premiere almost made this list.) But the long term defeat was finally justified in order to make Power Rangers Zeo be even more triumphant. “A Zeo Beginning” is slow moving, but for good reason–it’s the first time the show fully overhauled the costumes, theme and title since the very first episode, and builds up the suspense accordingly. There’s also plenty of fun character moments as the Rangers wander through the maze under the Command Center, and the new status quo is presented with as much equal trepidation and excitement from the characters as viewers at home were at the time.

6) ”Astronema Thinks Twice” (Power Rangers in Space, Episode 27)

Power Rangers in Space is notable for maturing the franchise, and setting the bar for the show’s foray into heavily serialized stories, tragic backstories, and above all, complex villains. “Astronema Thinks Twice” may not stand out as the single best episode of the season, but it’s the best example of everything In Space has to offer in these terms. The villains are at the center here, far from the days of single-minded Rita Repulsa. Astronema grapples with the revelation that the Red Ranger, Andros, is her brother, and the choice to be evil may not have been her own. As Ecliptor explains, “I am evil. Built that way, every cubic centimeter. But you were born, not built.” The episode itself is a surprisingly insightful exploration of the varying degrees and complexities beyond the concept of “evil,” juxtaposing Astronema’s conflicted struggle with Ecliptor’s honorable and loyal lawful evil, and Darkonda’s pure, selfish chaotic evil. This is part of a much larger story arc, one so successful that the “secret sibling Ranger/villain” plot would be recycled beat-for-beat in a later season.

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