Season 1, Episode 16: Switching Places

"Switching Places"
Episode 16
Air Date: October 4, 1993

God, this episode sucked!!! I get the whole "Freaky Friday" premise but my goodness, do a lot of the characters look incompetent do to the plot of this episode. Honestly, the whole body switch is pointless if it doesn't have a message to it or at least entertaining to see the actors try to mimic the other's character mannerisms, speech pattern, etc. While both Amy Jo and David Yost do that, it's a shame Billy and Kimberly look stupid because of how they handle the situation. I get Billy having to rebuild a part of the machine to fix the problem and it taking a while but why not tell Zordon and Alpha about this??? Wouldn't they be able to fix the problem??? Also, how come they couldn't figure out Rita was behind that??? What was the point if the rangers could still fight after being minor inconvenienced again??? URGH!!!

Squatt messes with the machine, Billy and Kimberly switch bodies because of it the next day. What's even worse??? Bulk get the idea to use the machine because he and Skull are right outside Billy's house!! Seriously, what is up with these two idiots?? You talk about how Jason and the others are such dorks yet now you're stalking them, breaking into one of their houses and using their machine which could, I don't know, NOT work!!! God, I HATE these characters. Bulk and Skull switch bodies after getting chanced by a dog, blah, blah, blah.

I'm just skip over the dumb hijnks of Billy and Kimberly trying to go to school in each others' bodies. Exploding food and computers so HILARIOUS!!! Not!! Anyway, Rita's monster this week is a freakin' Genie named....Genie....wow and Goldar (who's voice sounds awesome now) is ordered to tell the Genie the plan of what to do.  Kimberly and Billy finally tell the other what's going on after yelling at each other. Gotta say, I'm LIVING for David's impression of Kimberly (a little bit of his hidden sexuality coming out at the time! hehe) But of course, when the whole Genie plot comes into play, the rangers don't tell Zordon or Alpha, just teleport to the Command Center after getting a prop from Aladdin and get their usual exposition from Zordon.  Honestly, I can't say I enjoy the action this episode because it's bogged down by the quick shifting of scenes. First the rangers are fighting Goldar and the Putties, then are sent to fight the Genie, then are teleported back to the Command Center in under a minute! I just....anyway, Zordon tells them they must combined their power to defeat....which is completely irrelevant in the end because it's Zordon and Alpha that destroy the lamp and save the Rangers during a pathetic zord fight. The Genie just vanishes and Rita teleports away like a coward. Way to show how evil and menacing your lead villain is guys!!

Anyway, everything reverts back to normal at the end; even Bulk and Skull switch back...even though I was hoping the machine would some how fry their brains and this would be their last episode but NOPE!!!

"Switching Places" is dull, stupid (not in a fun, PR way) and has two plots that feel poorly written. I honestly think it's one of the weakest of the season and I just want to get through it as fast as possible because the next run of episodes.....YEEESSSSSS!!!! FINALLY!!! :) :) :)

Final Morph: C-