Season 11, Episode 13: Return of Thunder, Part 4

"Return of Thunder, Part 4"
Episode 13
Air Date: May 3rd, 2003

Hmmmmm...it's not that "Part 4" is necessarily a bad episode...it's actually pretty great actually.  The thing is, the previous 3 episodes felt like a self contained story divided into three parts while this one....feels a little bit tacked on, especially considering it has nothing to do with the events of the prior 3 installments.  I mean the only connection to them is that the frequently incompetent and recently thrown out Choobo is planning his revenge against the Thunder Rangers for ruining his plan and joining up with the Wind Rangers.  But seems that Blake and Hunter have serious reservations about joining their new team, especially considering all the damaged they've caused as their rivals.  I honestly, I think the best part of the episode is seeing both brothers coming to terms of their tenure as Lothor's greatest weapon against the Wind Rangers and wondering if they are worry to stick around in helping them stop Lothor for good.  But unfortunately, that oh too brief underlying plot point is left overall unexplored for.....sigh....FOR more dumb hijinks Lothor and his crew of buffoons! -_-  Oh look, Marah lost her pet and we get various scenes her irritating crying and her sister, Kapri, making fun of her about it! Wow! -_-

Anyway, in main plot news, Choobo sneaks back onto Lothor's ship to steal a Scroll of Empowerment  so he can put his plan into motion.  Sadly, Zurgene is unable to stop him and he manages to make his way back to Earth lure poor Blake and Hunter into a trap.  After morphing, Choobo makes quick work of them and traps them into his dimension...in his backpack! O_o  Yes, cause in Power Rangers, alternate dimensions can be in a bottle, backpack, cheap looking set from 90s, etc.  Anyway, once the Thunder Rangers go missing, Cam alters the Wind Rangers to their disappearance, especially when Dustin discovers their abandon motorcross bikes on the beach.  While Cam leads the rangers to Choobo's location, he continues working on some type of new configuration for both the Storm Megazord and Thunder Megazord.  As Tori, Dustin and Shane arrive in front of Choobo on their tsunami cycles, they are suddenly ambushed by an almost endless army of Kelzacks that become too difficult to defeat.  Luckily, Tori using her....megaphone weapon to some how dispatch all of them and free Dustin and Shane from their minor captivity.....sigh....just go with it and fully embrace the absurdity with this show!  So Cam finally tells the rangers how to free the other rangers by destroying the straps to Choobo's backpack and they do so; releasing and reuniting with the Thunder Rangers.

As the 5 proceed to tag team the hell out of Choobo, he manages to gain control of the Wind Rangers like a puppet master and uses them to destroy the Thunder Rangers.  While the Wind Rangers struggle to gain back their control, Blake and Hunter struggle to fire themselves with their friends in the way.  I like seeing this kind of brief inner struggle between both teams, especially when the Wind Rangers manage to break Choobo's spell and the Thunder Rangers manage to blast Choobo back.  After some more awesome teamwork between all 5 rangers, Choobo decides to finish them off by making himself grow with the scroll of empowerment; forcing the rangers to call Cam for the zords.  As both sets of rangers assemble their individual megazords face off with Choobo, he's simply too powerful for even both of them! As the rangers to keep their megazords fighting, Cam finally figures out the new configuration for both megazords and sends them....mini-zord.....yeah....and isn't he cute??? :)  Anyway, the little guy shoots out of each megazord and forms into himself to instruct the rangers to form the Thunderstorm Megazord.....uhhh...HELL. FREAKIN' YESSSS!!! :)  The Thunderstorm Megazord....like all bigger and better forms of megazords is plain. AWESOME!!! Towering over Choobo and able to take attacks like it's nothing as the thing freakin' shoots multiple blasts from various locations of the megazord to destroy Choobo once and for all in beautiful chaotic fashion.  So very satisfying!

As the episode concludes, Lothor takes a small Choobo and gives it to Marah to make up for her lack of a pet as Blake and Hunter FINALLY decide to officially join the team.  Overall, this was a very solid episode, but it could have been it's own self contained story and actually feels like it; once again, having nothing to do with the three parter prior besides Choobo's vendetta with the two new recruits on the team.  But either way, I really enjoyed aspects of it like Blake and Hunter coming to terms as former villains and the epicness of the Thunderstorm Megazord, so not bad at all.  :)

Final Morph: B+