Power Rangers Dino Charge #1.12 “Knight After Knights” Review

Summary: A silly episode indulges in its own goofiness and still finds time for character development.

Recap

Sledge unleashes Bones, a monster who steals the “backbone” of people and thus their courage, on Fury in retribution for him losing the Gold Energem and Ptera Zord. Meanwhile, the other Rangers cheer up Tyler, who is saddened that the Gold Ranger wasn’t his father. Ivan explores the new world, but does not want to join the Rangers as a team unless he’s had time to carefully decide. Bone steals the guys’ courage, and when Ivan sees how cowardly they’re acting, he turns down joining the team and decides to form his own. He gathers people he believes are courageous, misinterpreting fairly mundane acts like being a crossing guard for courage, and sends them to attack the monster. They run off scared as Ivan faces them alone. Unable to get the other Rangers to go out and face the monster, Shelby joins Ivan alone, and upon seeing her be so willing to fight even without her friends, Ivan recognizes her worth. Keeper tells the remaining Rangers to look within themselves and recognize that they would do whatever they could to save their friend, which itself is bravery, allowing them to magically get their backbones back. They join the other Rangers, and the six of them destroy the monster together. At the museum, Ivan tells the story of how he found the Energem and was absorbed by Fury, but gets distracted by burgers and fries.

Review

There’s something to be said about a good comedy episode. “Knight After Knights” is a quintessential one — it’s silly, kind of nonsensical at times, has a bizarre personality swap-type monster, and is mostly inconsequential to the main arc. These are love-it-or-hate-it kinds of episodes, because it certainly depends on the viewers’ own sensibilities. Power Rangers is extra weird because it’s always kind of goofy, even at its darkest, so a “funny” episode isn’t going to have the same effect as when something like Supernatural or even Avatar: The Last Airbender does it.

“Knight After Knights” is certainly a fun one, if only because it goes at its own ridiculousness with pride. Like “The Tooth Hurts,” we have another old-school kind of monster with a wacky power — he literally steals your figurative backbone, so wrap your head around that one. Also like that episode, that weird power isn’t the center of the episode, it’s merely a catalyst for the character story.

And that’s where the episode shines: Sir Ivan. What works is that the episode acknowledges that Ivan isn’t terribly complex; he’s a loyal knight that’s out of time, and that’s the point. His views of courage, loyalty, and honor are vastly different and more archaic and arguably simpler than our own, and the episode explores the pros and cons of both. Ivan doesn’t see how people who are as fun-loving and untrained — and, to be honest, kind of average — as the Rangers could turn around and be so heroic, because his standards of heroism are very straightforward. Knights are trained, sometimes from birth, and sworn to strict codes written for basic concepts. The advantage is that Ivan is exceptionally trained and easily the strongest Ranger right now, because that was his life. It was the way of the world during his time, and considering everyone’s jobs were their lives from birth, it’s pretty easy to spot who’d be best suited to do what.

Of course, that doesn’t translate into our world today, where people have far more freedom to make choices. You can be extremely courageous, but decide to spend your life as a scholar, which means you wouldn’t be immediately suited as a warrior. It’s fitting that Shelby be the voice of reason here, as she’s the known clutz of the group who not even her own teammates totally respect. We also know she’s one of the smartest fighters on the team, which she gets to show off in the climactic fight.

Of course, “Knight After Knights” strips away just about any semblance of subtlety, as everyone Ivan identifies as courageous just-so-happens to be people with hilarious mundane jobs or who are the absolutely opposite of warriors. The motley crue’s slow-mo march into danger is easily the episode’s highlight, and it’s perfectly earned moment. There isn’t much more than what we see, but it’s still a silly moment of Power Rangers self-parody. The joke works particularly well because the assortment is as creative as it is bizarre — including the likes of a crossguard, a carnival act, and a tuba player among others is simply inspired. And then the added joke with the old lady in the scooter taking an extremely long time to drive away is the icing that turns the chuckles into belly laughs.

The hijinks with the cowardly guys is over-the-top, but it’s certainly par the course for the episode. This cast clearly has fun on set, and it shows in scenes that allow them to let loose like this one. Keeper contributes some sage wisdom that cures the Rangers, going the tried-and-true “look within” and “true bravery is inside you” and whatnot route. It’s appropriately cheesy, and it’s another example of the episode refusing away from its own silliness.

Like “Break Out,” there’s a surge of wit in this episode, and some good quotes are in the Odds & Ends section. But in general, this is an exceptionally well-written and well-paced episode that goes by quickly and never drags. The only problem with the pacing comes strictly in the Megazord battle, which is hastily edited together and zips by in quicker cuts than usual. I’ll admit, I sometimes check out on the typical Zord battles — they’re the most toy commercial-y the show ever gets — so it doesn’t really cut enjoyment of the episode. But it’s noticeable when it seems to be tacked on in a limited timeframe, as it feels here.

The episode ends on a high note, though, as Ivan finally completes the flashback that’s been consistently cut short since “The Royal Rangers.” Except even he contribues to the running gag by again cutting the flashback before we can see it visually, and instead rushing out and summarizing it in the most mundane fashion (“Oh you know, a hundred years of darkness and then you save me and here I am!”)

It’s not easy to have an episode like this without tonal whiplash, so “Knight After Knights” succeeds by indulging in its own goofiness at every point. It’s not Dino Charge‘s smartest, but it’s no less entertaining than recent installments, and meets the level of humor it’s going for. We also have Ivan say “‘Tis Morphing Time!” and that’s enough to give it an A.

Odds & Ends

• There’s nothing like getting to watch new or altered opening credits for the first time.
• Very glad the episode so directly acknowledged Tyler’s sadness that the gold energy wasn’t his father. In true Tyler fashion, he’s still uber excited about having Ivan on his team, but he’s appropriately mixed and confused on how to feel about the whole ordeal. Great characterization.
• Where is Keeper the 90% of the time he’s not on screen or even in the Dino Lab? I expect very interesting answers, show.
• I also expect Keeper’s mouth to sync a little better with his voice, which isn’t happening at all this time.
• I shouldn’t have laughed at that “funny bone” joke, but I couldn’t stop myself.
• “My mom said I should get a real job.”
• “Skeletons are so in right now!”
• “The foot bone’s connected to the…OH NO!”