Season 4, Episode 1: A Zeo Beginning, Part 1

"A Zeo Beginning, Part 1"
Episode 1
Air Date: April 20th, 1996

Ummmm, how awesome is that Zeo theme song!!??? O_O Start out of the wood word, we get an epic, theme song with new exciting footage of the soon to be Zeo Rangers and it just takes my breath away every time.  As we get a quick recap of the final moments of the Alien Rangers mini-series, narrated by Tommy, the rangers are running toward the aftermath of the destroyed Command Center. As some question if Alpha and Zordon survived, looking at the wreckage, it doesn't look hopefully. Meanwhile, on the Moon, the villains are celebrating their recent victory over the rangers when Finster comes in to stop them. It's apparently really important but Lord Zedd and Rita don't care as they finally have defeated the Power Rangers!!! Or so they think anyway.... Soon the Moon Palace shakes as Finster insists he tried to tell them. As Rita looks through her telescope at the disruption, she is terrified by what she sees. Meanwhile, the rangers are seating around wondering what to do next when Adam sees a glowing light in the rumble. Could it be??? They start digging through it as the Moon Palace is being attacked by someone that Finster calls the Machine King. Even Squatt says King Mondo is the baddest of the bad as Lord Zedd and Rita prepare to flee the palace.

I'm not surprised as when we see the Machine Empire, it's no freakin' joke!! O_o It's a massive army of robots, flying spacecrafts, etc. An entire kingdom equipped with a fleet of flying machines that easily crush anything we seen before and anything Lord Zedd and Rita have ever conjured up!! We are immediately introduced to King Mondo, the Machine King and his wife, Queen Machina. Apparently, Mondo is here to conquer this galaxy even if Lord Zedd and Rita have calmed it for themselves.  The Machine King and Queen pretty much spend the entire episode laughing at Rita and Lord Zedd as their forces continue to attack them. I don't blame Rita and Zedd as like I said, the Machine Empire is a enormous fleet of spaceships and fighters; something their magic could never stand up against. As former villains continue to flee, we see Rito and Goldar are still on Earth and have forgotten who they are. Meanwhile, the rangers finally discover that it is the Zeo Crystal under the rumble and come to the conclusion Rito and Goldar must have "dropped it" on their way out of the Command Center. I mean they just teleported away, of course they DROPPED IT....wait...huh!/! O_o

Anyway, Billy tells Tommy to put the crystal done as they don't know what effect the blast had on it but it still has it's immense power. Turns out, the crystal makes the rangers stuck to the ground as part of it begins to fall through. As the rangers fall in a hilarious sequence, they end up underneath the Command Center. As they wonder the tunnels, the Command Center begins to magically repair itself piece by piece. As the rangers continue to wander, they hear Alpha as he tells them to step throw the vortex. But they are interrupted by the continued attack of the Machine Empire. Rita comes to the conclusion that the only one who they can live safe with is her father; to Zedd's irritation. They contact Master Vile and he agrees to take the all in as long as they don't disturb him. Meanwhile, the rangers finally come to the vortex as Alpha tells them to step through it. Tommy tries to touch the weird glowing green aura and it turns out to be safe, everyone except Rocky goes through but Adam pulls him in a hilarious bit. The rangers soon arrive at what Billy calls the next evolution in Strategic Command Outpost. Alpha soon arrives to welcome the rangers, as they are glad he's safe, they wonder what happened to Zordon. Turns out.....we'll have to wait until Part 2!!! -_-

Overall, "A Zeo Beginning, Part 1" does an excellent job of introducing us to bits of the new status quo with a new army of villains, a new base of operations, some funny bits here and there and an epic feel to this new season of the show! :)

Final Morph: A-