Season 12, Episode 29: Isn't It Lava-ly?

"Isn't It Lava-ly?"
Episode 29
Air Episode: September 18th, 2004

Ummmm, this episode just made me feel terribly irritated and honestly, kind of bored.  I mean you have a plot that's relatively exciting and almost apocalyptic in that a monster is created by Elsa to awaken a once active volcano in Reefside to rise again and finally erupt again to destroy the city.  On paper, great plot honestly! But then you have some truly arbitrary sub-plots like Ethan preparing for some serious online gaming competition called....sigh..."Demolition Day" and Devin too busy to help Cassidy...or should I say "serve" Cassidy since it turns out he is apart of the competition as well.  Ok, let me just get this out of the way, I just hate Cassidy and honestly, after this episode, there is just no more redeeming her in my eyes.  These past few episodes had the writers actually trying to make her a decent person who actually cares about people and has feelings outside being self-absorbed and pretty all the time.  Yet, in this episode, she's back to being so obnoxiously selfish that she doesn't have the good sense to support Devon as the episode ends and he wins the tournament, yes, he is the other competitor who beats Ethan's record in the tournament but all Cassidy can do is win about how she can't do anything...yes..ANYTHING without Devin.  To the point she misses class and can't help but sulk in the middle of a monster attack in the city.  I just....two steps forward and four GIIANT steps back with this character.  Hey! Why not continue to explore Cassidy's new found substance and show her being surprised that Devin felt the need to hide it from her by showing her support of him and helping him like Devin has always been there for her!!?? -_-  The episode could STILL have it's comedy hijinks but at least it would make sense where both characters are in the season in terms of character development. Ehhhh!! Anyway!

Anyway, so Elsa kidnaps a substitute teacher who is filling in for Tommy while he tries to track down Zeltrax after a pretty impressive Sentai fight between the evil White Ranger and him when the white ranger is trying to recaptured him for Mesagog.  But one wonders tho...how the hell Tommy has his job back after being gone for soooo long without any explanation of his whereabouts for the past few months but whatever! It's Power Rangers and one of the villains this season is the freakin' Principal of the school who probably let it slide.  I mean, Elsa/Principal Randell practically teleports away through an invisi-portal in front of the science lab but hey, no one wouldn't notice right???!! O_o Yeah, so she captures the substitute teacher like I said and no reason to say his name because he's so useless and irrelevant since Elsa just uses the former volcanist to transform him into a monster with the genetic re-animator so he can revive the dormant volcano.  Since we're on the subject I got to say, the evil White Ranger's really becoming a very generic and pointless villain.  I mean when the story was about Trent and the white dino gem taking over him, it was SOOOO much more interesting and complex where as the evil clone is just some stereotypical general that Elsa just bosses around now.  Sure, he's still a bad ass fighter, easily able to hold his own against the rangers but he's just been so one note at this point I honestly can't wait until he is gettin' rid of.  -_-

Anyway, after Zeltrax comes back and leaves for no reason because he's losing his power or something.  The four rangers face off against Horn-Rimmed (o_o) as Connor unleashes the Triassic Ranger as well as his battlizer to defeat him....before rising from the ashes and growing once more.  The rangers summon the Thundersaurus Megazord and for some reason, Tommy can summon the Stegozord even tho the evil White Ranger has control over it but I cause they can all summon it at random since they all have dino gems??? O_o I'm so confused by that! Oh and that stupid surfing attack returns because Sentai footage as the Thundersaurus drills through the monster and transforms the doctor/substitute back to normal.  Oh and apparently, Tommy can just summon a tidal wave with his Brachio Sword!!?? So what can't that thing do??? ...a little too overpowered buddy??? -_- All and all, "Isn't It Lava-ly" is a very perplexing episode that just frustrates and bores me.  Things are happening but it's not all that interesting.  Cassidy looses all her depth suddenly and becomes more vapid and selfish then usual while the volcano plot doesn't really drive the story to anything exciting or intense.  A swing and a real miss with this one! Sorry!

Final Morph: D+