Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers Season 2 Overview

Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers: Season 2
Air Date: July 24th, 1994-May 20th, 1995
Episode Count: 52

I have to say, Season 2 of Mighty Morphin' isn't as bad as I remember it being, Sure the season has it's share of some major flaws and problems; mostly with editing but the season overall wasn't bad. I have to say once again, how the season started was a great way to reintroduce the show. Out of no where, we are introduced to the arrival of Lord Zedd, Emperor of Evil and Rita's boss. Lord Zedd, immediately proved to a more formidable foe than Rita as he was able to create his own foot soldiers, the Z-Putties (one again, the first American made foot soldiers for the show) from scratch, make his own monster from scratch as well (Pirantis Head) and use him to freeze as well as take control of the rangers' dino zords. It was just awesome to see the production team put so much effort in this new villain (also the first American made villain for the show) that could cause so much trouble for the rangers in a short amount of time. When Zordon asks the rangers to teleport to the Command Center and tells them about Lord Zedd, you can really feel like this was the next phase of their fight against evil and things were about to get tougher. I mean even morphed, the rangers couldn't handle the Z-Putties morphed and for the first time, Tommy's powers were starting to weaken exponentially. All of these things made  "The Mutiny, Part 1-3" a superb start to the season by establishing a new and dangerous status quo for the rangers.

Speaking of rangers, I want to talk about all of them individually, especially since half the team goes missing and then replaced by new characters at the half way point of the season. I'll start with a strong, stoic leader in Jason, who gets a fabulous stand alone episode in "Missing Green". After Tommy loses his Green Ranger powers for good this time, we get a whole episode dealing with the fallout of that ordeal; which effects Jason the most. I love the writers for the episode despite the plotholes and ADR issues with it. It was just great seeing Jason given the spotlight one last time before his departure until Zeo as it once again showed him to be a great leader under a very stressful time for the team and awesome he is overall as a ranger.  Zack and Trini didn't get much focus episodes besides "Putty On The Brain" and "Welcome To Venus Island" respectively, which is a shame as it would have been nice to get some last minute development from them before their actors left the series for good. I mean they introduced secondary, recurring characters like Zack's cousin Curtis and the lackluster love interest for Trini in Richie for reasons that we'll never know now what for. I mean all Richie was there for anyway was for Trini to pin for him but I'm sure the writers planned to have them become some sort of couple.

Next we have Billy, who outside of "Putty On The Brain", doesn't really get a character focused episode until all the way until the final episode, "Blue Ranger Gone Bad". But what's great about Billy's character development this season is continuing to see him be able to help Alpha out around the Command Center during times of crisis as well as make his own devices to save the day from Lord Zedd's, then Lord Zedd and Rita's monsters/plans. From the very beginning from the very beginning of the season with "The Mutiny, Part 1-3" when he with the help of Trini, came up with the device to save their zords to the final episode where he uses his latest invention to escape the clutches of Goldar's dark dimension, Billy is not only shown to be smart but one of the most resourceful rangers this season with his intelligence and inventions helping to save the day. As far as his fighting skills, MAN has this nerd come a long way!!! :) I still find the fight sequence between him, Goldar and the squad of Putties so impressive as he's able to kick all of their asses relatively easy ("Opposites Attract")!!! That coming from the same ranger who had to morph to defeat a single Putty?!! That is awesome!!! Now on to Kimberly, who gets quit a few episodes dedicated to her, if not her overall character development. The first is the 6th episode of the season, "Bloom of Doom" when she must deal with her jealousy over Trini's club being such a success and hers being harshly looked over. She learns not to be so jealous and more proud of her friend despite her not finding the same success. "Beauty and the Beast", while a terrible episode, is a riot just to see Kimberly's Rita impression. I have to say the best episodes for her are first "Best Man For The Job", simply for her learning how to no be so competitive even though she was under a spell and second, "Wild West Rangers, Part 1 and 2" just seeing her bravery and her willingness to recruit the ancestors in the past because she herself has grown into a noble hero that can inspire others. This is already not the same character from the pilot and we aren't at her wonderful Season 3 character journey yet!!!

Then we Tommy, who's story with his diminishing powers pretty much taking up most of Season 2's first half. It was all about Lord Zedd targeting the Green Ranger and trying to drain his powers as much as possible in "The Green Dream, "The Power Stealer" and "The Beetle Invasion" respectively. It always came done to Tommy coming down to his last fight with his powers quickly being no more. Speaking of no more, "Green No More, Part 1 and 2" were a pretty good conclusion to the Green Ranger's official run of the show (despite those horrible Dark Rangers, blah!!! :P)  It was just nice to see Tommy shine one last time, showing how brave and strong he was on his own as well as showing Goldar that being a ranger is not about the power but about his personal perseverance and strength as Tommy. You think this is once again going to be it for Tommy on the show but then the "White Light" two parter centers around the mystery of the New White Ranger who turns out to be Tommy again. It was a great surprise, even though you knew it was going to be him. The initial White Ranger episodes are cool as now being the new leader of the Power Rangers, he's able to work alone when he needs to and join in more fights with the core 5. I love everything about the White Ranger down to Saba, his talking Saba...neat!! :)

Now before I talk about the new rangers, I want to talk about the transition between the original 6 and the new team but man, was it sloppy!!! O_O I mean on one hand, I liked the writers set up Jason, Zack and Trini's departure several episodes in advance with the World Peace Conference plot but the editing and reusing of stock footage didn't help matters. Listen, I know the writers and production had no choice given Austin St. John, Thuy Trang (Rest In Peace) and Walter Jones walked off set do to money disputes with Saban but my goodness, it was so clear now that they weren't there. I'm sure as kids, you can buy it but now, nope. It's just Tommy back in green and half the team being suspiciously silent, not to mention the ADR was soooo lackluster. Also, you kind of start to feel that there is some kind of rift in the group because it's just Tommy, Billy and Kimberly hanging out with Jason, Trini and Zack off on their own all the time now. That being said, also the introduction episodes of the replacements, Rocky, Adam and Aisha, was not good.....at all!!! It's not just the fact that "The Ninja Encounter, Part 1-3" features almost 4 minutes of the teens chasing a baby carriage, it's that nothing really happens. Everytime something is about to, the rangers are always called back to the Command Center for further instruction which is just beyond lazily writing! O_o What DID help the transition was seeing Rocky, Adam and Aisha as reliable allies who would come in and help the rangers during Putty fights like in "Zedd's Waves" or when the rangers were off on a deserted, distant planet and they had to save the world on their own without their new heroic friends. It showed us the viewers why they were ultimately chosen to be rangers besides the face they were already dressed in their designated colors already. lol

As for character development from them, the second half of the season had to devote time to these new characters so we could get to know them and for the most part, it's a mixed bag. "Goldar's Vice-Versa" and "Mirror of Regret" to a greater extent establish Adam as the soft quit type I guess, being that he's shy and doesn't know how to talk to girls. The anti-thesis of the fun loving former, original black ranger. We learn he use to be bullied a lot but has overcome that when he learns his latest protegee in his class is doing fine by gaining self-confidence. Aisha gets her development in "When There's Smoke, There's Fire" when she learns that she got carried away with be a fire safety captain. We also get a nice episode where her and Kimberly learn to share their best friendship with her best friend Shawna. Lastly, there Rocky, who is just the blandest of the bunch. I get Adam being all silent and quiet, even if it makes him sort of dull but there is really no handle on Rocky's character who's taking over the former leader of the team's spot. Where Jason was strong and stoic, Rocky apparently can be be irresponsible in "Rocky Just Wants To Have Fun", but I just don't buy that cause we don't know the guy yet. I did like how we saw the veteran rangers and new rangers hang out separately for a couple of episodes before mixing it up with the hanging out.

Lastly, I want to talk about Bulk and Skull, whose main storyline this season was finding out who the rangers are. Besides it growing old fast and showing how even dumber those two could be, I have to mention their heroic moment in "When Is A Ranger Not A Ranger?" as it gave the two some depth....that soon the writers squandered as they kept trying to reveal the rangers identities even if that meant putting people's lives at risk, so one great moment is overshadowed by many bad ones, sorry. I still hate these two!!! As for the Zords, the introduction of the Thunderzords were amazing as well as the White Tiger Thunderzord. I loved the different formations of the zords especially the Mega Thunderzord looking like an ancient Chinese warrior. Though, Tor, the Carrier Zord as well as Thunder Ultrazord leave me still puzzled. The thing just shots up and lands on the monsters....sheesh! O_O

Pros:

• Great New Villain in Lord Zedd
• The new Thunderzords 
• Some great multiparters in "White Light" and "Wild West Rangers"
• Great character focused episodes like "Missing Green"
• Rita and Zedd's marriage...hilarious!!!

Cons:

• More bad acting
• Some of the worst editing from the franchise
• Too many multiparters
• Weak character development for some new characters
• Horribly bad, ADR for Jason, Zack and Trini before their exit

Best Episodes;

1."Missing Green"-One of the best character centered episodes from the early seasons as Jason getting put through a stressful test of leadership and carrying on the fight in the face of guilt. Excellent!!!

2. "The Mutiny, Part 1-3"-It's the introduction of Lord Zedd, the new Thunderzords and Rita forced into exile; all solidly written and just beyond enjoyable!! What a great start to the season !!!

3. "The Wedding, Part 1-3"-Rita's return was done with just the right amount of amusing manipulation and light hearted comedy that I didn't even care that the rangers spent most of their time trapped in an abandoned theater that apparent stopped them from using their powers (Still don't get that but whatever!!!)

4. "The Power Transfer, Part 1 and 2"-Part space adventure, part introduction to a new era of the show with a new cast, both these episodes did the transition between old and new team quite well and satisfyingly."

5. "Best Man for the Job"-Still an episode that makes me chuckle to no end!!! Tommy and Kimberly's magic induced competitiveness led to some of the funniest moments from the show. Hahahaha!!! :)

Worst Episodes:

1. "The Ninja Encounter, Part 1-3"-What a horrible introduction to our new heroes. They are kidnapped and trapped for seemingly forever as the rangers go back and forth from facing monsters and having to be called back by Zordon...for what!?? O_O

2. "Rangers Back In Time, Part 1 and 2"-I just couldn't stand the little version of the rangers and the first part in particular had too much time with them!!! Yuck! -_-

3. "Scavenger Hunt"-What was the point of this episode besides the whole scavenger hunt....this episode just fades in my memory as I talk about it. Not good at all!!!

4. "Beauty and the Beast"-Like I said, outside of Kimberly's dead on impression of Rita, this episode is a complete and utter waste of time.

5. "A Reel Fish Story"-Season 2 had a habit of rehashing old monsters and I feel that this was the worst of it. All the fish themed monsters come back and Bulk and Skull get saved by a little kid who fears the monster in the water.....ehhhhhh!!! -_-

"The second season of Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers is a heavily flawed season with bad ADR, terrible editing and way too many multiparters. But the story focused parts of it from the ultimate defeat of the Green Ranger powers to the Power transfer between old and new rangers to the hysterical wedding between Lord Zedd and Rita, the show continues to change is a satisfying, if not sometimes clumsy way."

Season Score: C+