Mighty Morphin Power Rangers – The Complete Series (a J!-ENT DVD Review)

For those who grew up with Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, this is the ultimate set! “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers – The Complete Series” features all three seasons plus the season 3.5 mini-series, new and older special features and more!  What an awesome set that fans will definitely want to own.  Highly recommended!

Images courtesy of © 2012 SCG Power Rangers LLC. All Rights Reserved.

DVD TITLE: Mighty Morphin Power Rangers – The Complete Series

TV SERIES AIR DATE: 1993-1996

DURATION: Episodes 1-155 (19 DVD’s)

DVD INFORMATION: 4:3, English Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo, Closed Captions

COMPANY: Saban/Shout! Factory

RATED: TV-Y7 FV

RELEASE DATE: November 20, 2012

Directed by Terence H. Winkless, Robert Hughes, John Stewart, Shuki Levy, Robert Radler, Worth Keeter, Jonathan Tzachor, Jerry P. Jacobs, Armand Garabidian, David Blyth, Adrian Carr, Jeffrey Reiner, John Blizek, Marco Garibaldi, Douglas Sloan, Vickie Bronaugh, Isaac Florentine, Larry Litton, Paul Schrier

Written by Shuki Levy, Stewart St. John, Shell Danielson, Douglas Sloan, Cheryl Saban, Mark Hoffmeier,Mark Litton, Judd Lynn,  Julianne Klemm,Ellen Levy-Sarnoff,  Peggy Nicoll, Gary Glasberg, Dan Sarnoff,  Jeff Deckman, Steve Kramer, Mark Ryan, Ronnie Sperling, Jackie Marchand, Tony Oliver, Chris Schoon, Tomy Wyner, Barbara Oliver, Gilles Wheeler

Executive Producer: Shuky Levy

Supervising Producer: Tony Oliver, Douglas Sloan, Winston Richard

Produced by Ronnie Hadar, Jonathan Tzachor, Ken Fukuyoshi

Co-Producer: Paul Rosenthal, Ann Knapp, Ellen Levy-Sarnoff

Music by Ron Wasserman

Cinematography by Llan Rosenberg

Edited by Charlie Bowyer, Adi Ell-Ad, Sharon Janis, John Blizek

Art Direction by Steven R. Miller

Series Set Decoration by Sonya Edingburgh

Costume Design by Danielle Baker

Featuring:

Richard Steven Horvitz (voice of Alpha 5)

David Yost as Billy Cranston

Amy Jo Johnson as Kimberly Hart

Austin St. John as Jason Lee Scott

Thuy Trang as Trini Kwan

Walter Jones as Zack Taylor

Jason David Frank as Tommy Oliver

Paul Schrier as Farkas “Bulk” Burkmeier

Jason Narvy as Eugene “Skull” Skullovitch

Barbara Goodson as the vice of Rita Repulsa

Machiko Soga as Rita Repulsa

David Fielding as the voice of Zordon

Richard Genelle as Ernie

Robert Axelrod as Finster

Kerrigan Mahan as Goldar

Michael Sorich as Squatt

David Mallow as Baboo

Romy J. SharfSandi Sellner as Alpha 5

Wendee Lee as Scorpina

Johnny Yong Bosch as Adam Park

Steve Cardenas as Rocky DeSantos

Karan Ashley as Aisha Campbell

In 1993 two unsuspecting astronauts unleashed the greatest evil Earth had ever known — the heinous witch Rita Repulsa. In the 20 years since, with each new villain more sinister than the last, the citizens of Earth have relied on the Power Rangers to protect them. As a superhero team comprising “teenagers with attitude,” the Power Rangers must use their individual strengths combined with the virtue of teamwork to vanquish their foes, keeping Earth safe for another day.

After its premiere in August of 1993, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers became a phenomenon in children’s programming unlike anything the world had ever seen. An instant global sensation, the franchise launched a hugely successful toy line, live stage tour, theatrical feature film and, most importantly, two continuous decades of entertainment that captured the imagination of multiple generations of fans. Now you can see where the international sensation began with the complete first series, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, on 19 discs, including the ten-episode Alien Rangers miniseries and two discs containing rarely seen archival material and brand-new retrospective featurettes!

1993. It was an intriguing time in the United States as we saw elements of Japanese pop culture starting to make its way to television. From Japanese animation being shown on television, so was a sentai series known as “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers”.

Based on the 16th installment of the Super Sentai franchise and known as “Kyoryu Sentai Zyuranger” in Japan, “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers” became an amazing hit as it aired on Fox Kids and made Saban Entertainment a household name for people growing up at that time. Instead of releasing the Japanese version of the series and providing an English dub, Saban Entertainment wrote new episodes and just used the footage featuring the action sequences including the rangers and their mecha vehicles incorporated to the new footage.

And with the 20th Anniversary of the Power Rangers in America taking place in 2013, Shout! Factory will be releasing the complete series via 19-DVD set of “Mighty Morphon Power Rangers: The Complete Series”.  The ultimate set for fans of the original Power Rangers!

“Mighty Morphin Power Rangers” was a simple story focusing on five teenagers in the fictional city of Angel Grove, California.

The five teenagers, who are good friends, included the fitness jock Jason Lee Scott (as portrayed by Austin St. John), the dancer Zack Taylor (as portrayed by Walter Jones), the gymnast Kimberly Hart (As portrayed by Amy Jo Johnson), the intelligent Billy Cranston (as portrayed by David Yost) and the always happy Trini Kwan (as portrayed by Thuy Trang).

While the teens put hang out at a teen Youth Center owned by Ernie (As portrayed by Richard Genelle) and are often upset at the local wannabe bullies Bulk (as portrayed by Paul Schrier) and Skull (as portrayed by Jason Narvy), everyone likes to have fun at the center.

While in space, two astronauts discover an extraterrestrial container and when they open it, they inadvertently release the evil alien sorceress named Rita Repulsa who was confined in the container for over 10,000 years. And now Rita has her sights of conquering the planet Earth with her evil space aliens and monsters.

The wise sage known as Zordon, who was responsible for capturing Rita and confining her, now needs to make sure Earth is protected. So, Zodon has his robotic assistant named Alpha 5, find five teenagers who can help defend the Earth from Rita’s attacks.

And the five teenagers are brought to headquarters to meet Zordon and Alpha 5 and find out that they have been selected to defend the Planet Earth from Rita Repulsa’s attacks. They will be given the power of the Power Rangers, dino-powered warriors of goodness.

Jason becomes Red Ranger, Zack becomes Black Ranger, Billy becomes Blu Ranger, Trini becomes Yellow Ranger and Kimberly becomes Pink Ranger. The five are given weapons and a vehicle to control. And when their opponent becomes too strong for all five to challenge, the five can use their vehicles to become one huge robot known as the Megazord.

As the five teens use their new powers to defend the planet from Rita Repulsa’s monsters, a new teenager with martial arts skills shows up in Angel Grove. His name is Tommy Oliver (portrayed by Jason David Frank), who has the power of the Green Ranger, but is he friend or foe?

As the first season focused on Rita trying to use the Tommy/green power ranger against the Power Rangers and then trying to regain the power, the second season would introduce new antagonists.

In season two, Rita Repulsa’s superior, Lord Zedd has arrived and upset with her performance, he throws her into the space dumpster and focuses on his own personal campaign to conquer Earth.  But because of the new threat, Zordon and Alpha upgrade the Dinozords into the Thunderzords, with the exception of Tommy who must continue to use the Dragonzord.

Meanwhile, as Zedd ties to focus on eliminating Tommy, Zed creates a special green crystal in order to take away the powers of the Green Ranger and also power up Zedd’s Dark Rangers.  Meanwhile, Jason, Zack and Trini are chosen to attend the World Peace Conference in Switzerland and that means that the Power Rangers will need new members.  And the three’s powers are transferred over to new members Rocky DeSantos (portrayed by Steve Cardenas), the new red ranger; Adam Park (portrayed by Johnny Yong Bosch), the new black ranger and Aisha Campbell (portrayed by Karan Ashley); the new yellow ranger.

This will eventually lead to a new storyline featuring a transformation of Tommy into the White Ranger with a Tigerzord and become the new leader of the group.  As for Rita Repulsa, she makes her re-appearances, albeit with a special makeover to have a younger and prettier face.  Thus creating two power-house antagonists that the Rangers must contend with.

In season three, a new antagonist known as Rito Revolto (Rita’s skeletal brother) has now arrived on Earth and showing his might, destroys the Power Rangers Thunderzords and even the Tiger Zord.  Needing new zords, the Power Rangers seek the creator of the Power Coins, Ninjor and the result is the creation of powerful Ninjazords and the Falconzord and later to the Shogunzords.

The third season introduces us to Katherine Hillard (portrayed by Catherine Sutherland) who arrives from Australia to Angel Grove and becomes the new replacement for Kimberly who chooses to pursue her dreams of competing in the Pan Global Games and becomes the new Pink Ranger.

The third season also, introduces us to Rita’s father, Master vile and turns the Power Rangers into children and leads to the ten-episode mini-series (a.k.a. Season 3.5), Mighty Morphin Alien Rangers (which is included in the season three DVD release).

With Master Vile using the Orb of Doom to turn the Power Rangers into children, Zordon recruits the Alien Rangers of Aquitar for their help.  Meanwhile, Billy tries to find a way to restore everyone back to their normal ages and that is to find the fragments of the Zeo Crystal.

Here is a spoiler-less summary of the episodes featured in the “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers – The Complete Series”:

“Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Season 1, Vol. 1” (Note: The episodes are listed by production code order, not air date)

• EPISODE 1 – DAY OF THE DUMPSTER – Rita Repulsa has been released from her imprisonment, the sage Zordon selects five teenagers and gives them the dino-powers of goodness to protect the planet.
• EPISODE 2 – HIGH FIVE – Rita tries to trap the Power Rangers in a Time Warp.
• EPISODE 3 – TEAMWORK – When Kim and Trini try to shut down a local waste dump, they don’t know the waste dump is owned by Rita.
• EPISODE 4 – A PRESSING ENGAGEMENT – Rita tries to split the Rangers up during their battle with the King Sphinx.
• EPISODE 5 – DIFFERENT DRUM – Kimberly’s deaf friend has a problem fitting in at the Youth Center.
• EPISODE 6 – FOOD FIGHT – Rita sends Finster’s creation, the Pudgy Pig to the Youth Center’s International Food Festival.
• EPISODE 7 – BIG SISTERS – Kim and Trini become a big sister for teh mischievous Maria. But Rita kidnaps Maria and the Power Rangers must save her.
• EPISODE 8 – I, EYE GUY – Billy tries to help his youn, intelligent friend Willy with his Virtual Reality device for the Angel Grove Science Fair.
• EPISODE 9 – FOR WHOM THE BELL TROLLS – Trini brings her favorite doll, an elf named Ticklesneezer to Angel Grove High’s Hobby Week.
• EPISODE 10 – HAPPY BIRTHDAY ZACK – The Rangers and Ernie plan a surprise birthday party at the Juice Bar for Zack.
• EPISODE 11 – NO CLOWNING AROUND – Trini takes her cousin Sylvia to the fair but the fair is a front for Rita’s Putties and one turns Sylvia into a cardboard cutout. Can Trini save her cousin and bring her back to normal.
• EPISODE 12 – POWER RANGER PUNKS – When Billy and Kimberly’s drinks are spiked, they become bullies.
• EPISODE 13 – PEACE, LOVE AND WOE – Billy bumps into an intelligent girl named Marge and both decide to the upcoming dance together. But what happens when Madame Woe captures Marge?
• EPISODE 14 – FOUL PLAY IN THE SKY – Kim goes for flying lessons with her Uncle Steve, a pilot. But when Rita puts a sleeping potion in Rita’s drink, Kim must take over the controls of the airplane during flight.
• EPISODE 15 – DARK WARRIOR – Trini’s scientist uncle Howard drops by to showcase his new invisibility formula, which Rita wants.
• EPISODE 16 – SWITCHING PLACES – Squat and Bamboo play around with BIlly’s brain switching machine and causes him and Kimberly to swap bodies.
• EPISODE 17 – GREEN WITH EVIL, PART 1: OUT OF CONTROL – Tommy Oliver has come to town and Kimberly falls for him. But when Rita kidnaps Tommy and turns him into the evil Green Ranger, what happens when he infiltrates the Command Center.
• EPISODE 18 – GREEN WITH EVIL, PART 2: JASON’S BATTLE – Tommy transports Jason into the Dark Dimension.
• EPISODE 19 – GREEN WITH EVIL, PART 3: THE RESCUE – Jason is powerless in the Dark Dimension and must fight against Goldar and the Green Ranger.
• EPISODE 20 – GREEN WITH EVIL, PART 4: ECLIPSING MEGAZORD – Giant Goldar attacks Angel Grove, meanwhile the Power Rangers look for Zordon.
• EPISODE 21 – GREEN WITH EVIL, PART 5: BREAKING THE SPELL – The Green Ranger’s identity is revealed.
• EPISODE 22 – THE TROUBLE WITH SHELLSHOCK – Baboo and Squatt create a turtle monster known as Shellshock.
• EPISODE 23 – ITSY BITSY SPIDER – Trini and Billy try to save the Forest Spirit Statue from being destroyed.
• EPISODE 24 – THE SPIT FLOWER – Kimberly must design a flower float for teh big Angel Grove Parade.
• EPISODE 25 – LIFE’S A MASQUERADE – A costume party is being held at the Youth Center but Rita uses the opportunity to mine a special clay on Earth to make Super Putties.
• EPISODE 26 – GUNG HO! – Jason and Tommy team up for an upcoming Team Ninja competition at the Youth Center.
• EPISODE 27 – WHEEL OF MISFORTUNE – The Power Rangers are involved in a stage play of Rumpelstiltskin at Angel Grove High.
• EPISODE 28 – ISLAND OF ILLUSION, PART 1 – Rita sends the six Rangers to her trans-dimensional island where worst fears become a reality.
• EPISODE 29 – ISLAND OF ILLUSION, PART 2 – The Power Rangers are trapped in the Island of Illusion. Can they escape?
• EPISODE 30 – THE ROCKSTAR – Jason and his young cousin Jeremy get caught up in a plot by Rita and Scorpina.

“Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Season 1, Vol. 2” (Note: The episodes are listed by production code order, not air date)

• EPISODE 31 – CALAMITY KIMBERLY – Kimberly is having a bad day and Rita sends a Samurai Fan Man to fight the Power Rangers.
• EPISODE 32 – A STAR IS BORN – Tommy competes against Bulk for a TV commercial and the Raners must take on Scorpina’s pet worm.
• EPISODE 33 – THE YOLK’S ON YOU – Finster creates the Fang monster for Rita’s birthday, but the monster becomes enraged when Baboo & Squat eat his rare “Gooney Bird” eggs, Goldar tells the Fang monster that the Power Rangers are responsible and now the Fang monster wants revenge.
• EPISODE 34 – THE GREEN CANDLE, PART 1 – Rita plans to put an end to the Green Ranger.
• EPISODE 35 – THE GREEN CANDLE, PART 2 – Tommy fights back against the cyclops monster with all his might.
• EPISODE 36 – BIRDS OF A FEATHER – Zack teaches young students to compete in a karate tournament, meanwhile the Power Rangers must take on a Hatchasaurus monster.
• EPISODE 37 – CLEAN-UP CLUB – The Rangers organize a Clean-Up club.
• EPISODE 38 – A BAD REFLECTION ON YOU – Rita has a new monster known as the Twin Man who creates evil doppelgangers of the Power Rangers.
• EPISODE 39 – DOOMSDAY, PART 1 – Angel Grove throws a big celebration to the Power Rangers, but Goldar has his own plans to defeat the Power Rangers on their special day.
• EPISODE 40 – DOOMSDAY, PART 2 – The Zords have been damaged and Rita has captured the entire population of Angel Grove and imprisons them in another dimension.
• EPISODE 41 – RITA’S SEED OF EVIL – The Rangers plant saplings in the park, but Rita also plants something…an Octoplant.
• EPISODE 42 – A PIG SURPRISE – The Rangers organize a Pet Adoption program and an older lady donates a pig, but the old lady is actually a putty.
• EPISODE 43 – SOMETHING FISHY – When the Rangers organize a Pet Adoption program, Billy declines to take part of it because of his fears of being bitten by a fish.  Rita exploits this fear by creating a Toxic fish monster.
• EPISODE 44 – LIONS AND BLIZZARDS – When the Rangers win the Oddball Games, Rita turns their strange trophy into a chimera.
• EPISODE 45 – CRYSTAL OF NIGHTMARES – The Rangers must study for an upcoming test and head to the cabin up in the mountains, but Goldar uses this moment to use the Crystal of Nightmares on the Rangers.
• EPISODE 46 – TO FLEA OR NOT TO FLEA  – Ernie’s Youth Center and Juice Bar is going out of business and Rita introduces her newest monster, the Fighting Flea.
• EPISODE 47 – REIGN OF THE JELLYFISH – Angel Grove High School plants to bury a time capsule and inside the capsule includes a photo of the Power Rangers which makes Rita very jealous that her photo is not included.  So, she unleashes her jellyfish monster to go after the Power Rangers.
• EPISODE 48 – PLAGUE OF THE MANTIS – Trini trains with Master Li and learns the Praying Mantis Style.
• EPISODE 49 – RETURN OF AN OLD FRIEND, PART 1 – It’s Parent’s Day at the Youth Center and Rita traps the parents and puts them in another dimension.
• EPISODE 50 – RETURN OF AN OLD FRIEND, PART 2 – Tommy is teleported to Command Center to become the Green Ranger once again.
• EPISODE 51 – GRUMBLE BEE – Billy gets a B on his test and feels he must study more.  Meanwhile, Finster creates the Grumble Bee to take on the Rangers.
• EPISODE 52 – TWO HEADS ARE BETTER THAN ONE – Baboo and Squatt create a turtle monster known as Shellshock.
• EPISODE 53 – FOWL PLAY – The Power Rangers take on a two-headed parrot monster.
• EPISODE 54 – TRICK OR TREAT – Kimberly takes on Skull in the nation’s biggest game show, “Trick or Treat!”.
• EPISODE 55 – SECOND CHANCE – Ernie selects the lineup for the Angel Grove Junior Soccer team but a young boy named Roger isn’t on it. So, the Rangers try to help them.
• EPISODE 56 – ON FINS AND NEEDLES – Jason and Tommy teach free karate classes at the Youth Center.  But Rita is sickened by their friendship and sends down a Slippery Shark Monster to end this friendship.
• EPISODE 57 – ENTER…THE LIZZINATOR – Kimberly tries to help her Cousin make it on the Angel Grove Junior High cheerleading squad, but Squat and Baboo kidnap her.
• EPISODE 58 – FOOTBALL SEASON – Tommy is struggling on Angel Grove High football team due to his karate training.  Rita sends down a Rhinoblaster to take on the Power Rangers.
• EPISODE 59 – MIGHTY MORPHIN MUTANTS – With self-improvement week at Angel Grove High, Rita creates her own mutant rangers.
• EPISODE 60 – AN OYSTER STEW – Zack wants to impress Angela by getting her presents for her birthday, but he doesn’t know the earrings are evil Pearls of Stiffness which freezer her and everyone else around them except Zack and Tommy.

“Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Season 2, Vol. 1” (Note: The episodes are listed by production code order, not air date)

• EPISODE 61 – THE MUTINY, PART 1 – The Rangers take part in a charity 4-wheeler race, meanwhile Lord Zedd has returned to the galaxy!
• EPISODE 62 – THE MUTINY, PART 2 – Lord Zedd sends out a Pirahntishead to take control of the Tyrannosaurus Dinozord and the Dragonzord.
• EPISODE 63 – THE MUTINY, PART 3 – If Billy can find a way to get control of the Dinozords, Zordon can upgrade them to Thunderzords.  But will Billy be able to do it?
• EPISODE 64 – THE WANNA-BE RANGER – Lord Zedd creates the Primator which can transform himself into an exact double of anyone.
• EPISODE 65 – PUTTY ON THE BRAIN – Lord Zedd puts his power on Billy’s special sunglasses and each time he puts them on, the Rangers will be put on a spell to think their teammates are Putties.
• EPISODE 66 – BLOOM OF DOOM – When no one joins Kimberly’s gardening club, Lord Zedd puts a spell on Kimberly and making her jealous of Trini.
• EPISODE 67 – THE GREEN DREAM – Why is Tommy having a dream that he will be losing all his powers?
• EPISODE 68 – THE POWER STEALER – It’s another clean-up drive in Angel Grove and Lord Zedd sends his Octophantom monster to steal Tommy’s powers.
• EPISODE 69 – THE BEETLE INVASION – Zedd creats a Stag Beetle monster.
• EPISODE 70 – WELCOME TO VENUS ISLAND – The group are having fun at the beach but Goldar kidnaps Trini’s young neighbor Hallie..
• EPISODE 71 – THE SONG OF GUILLARDO – The Rangers have fun at a picnic but Lord Zedd turns a cicada into a Guitardo monster.
• EPISODE 72 – GREEN NO MORE, PART 1 – Tommy and Kimberly witness a transmission from the future in which Tommy loses all his powers.
• EPISODE 73 – GREEN NO MORE, PART 2 – Lord Zedd strips the Power Rangers from their Morphers.  Tommy is trapped in another dimension.
• EPISODE 74 – MISSING GREEN – Jason can’t concentrate on the big karate tournament as he feels guilty for not getting the Green Candle to prevent Tommy from losing his powers.
• EPISODE 75 – ORCHESTRAL MANEUVERS IN THE PARK – A big jazz concert at the Youth Center but Zedd creates a Trumpet Top monster to go against the Rangers.
• EPISODE 76 – BEAUTY AND THE BEAST  – Lord Zedd needs a bride and Goldar, Squatt and Baboo kidnap Kimberly.
• EPISODE 77 – WHITE LIGHT, PART 1 – Tommy vanishes without warning and what is this strange gold object that Bulk and Skull has found in the park?
• EPISODE 78 – WHITE LIGHT, PART 2 – The Rangers are wondering who is the White Ranger?
• EPISODE 79 – TWO FOR ONE – Kim and Tommy go out on a date but the two are attacked by the Putties.
• EPISODE 80 – OPPOSITES ATTRACT – Billy is working on a new experiment and Lord Zedd sends Goldar and the Putties to disrupt the experiment.
• EPISODE 81 – ZEDD’S MONSTER MASH – It’s Halloween and Ranger Teens are helping at the Youth Center, but the Putties have a surprise waiting.
• EPISODE 82 – THE NINJA ENCOUNTER, PART 1 – The Power Ranger teens encounter their friends from Stone Canyon High School (Rocky, Aisha and Adam).
• EPISODE 83 – THE NINJA ENCOUNTER, PART 2 – Rocky, Aisha, Adam and Mr. Anderson are trapped in teh cave and the Power Rangers must save them.
• EPISODE 84 – THE NINJA ENCOUNTER, PART 3 – The group ties to figure out how to unfreeze, Jason, Zack and Trini and save their friends before they are turned into the dark side.
• EPISODE 85 – A MONSTER OF GLOBAL PROPORTIONS – Lord Zepp kidnaps the international reps of the World Teen Summit and the Rangers will need help from their new friends.
• EPISODE 86 – ZEDD WAVES – Rocky, Aisha and Adam compete in a triathalon.  Meanwhile, Lord Zedd sends a Beamcaster monster to disrupt them.

“Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Season 2, Vol. 2” (Note: The episodes are listed by production code order, not air date)

• EPISODE 87 – THE POWER TRANSFER, PART 1 – With Jason, Zack and Trini planning to attend the World Peace Conference in Switzerland, they must give their powers to their new replacements….Aisha, Adam and Rocky.
• EPISODE 88 – THE POWER TRANSFER, PART 2 – The new Rangers try to find and retrieve the Sword of Light.
• EPISODE 89 – GOLDAR’S VICE-VERSA – It’s time for the Vice-Versa dance at Angel Grove High but with Adam without a date, Goldar sends in Sabrina to catch his eye.
• EPISODE 90 – MIRROR OF REGRET – Adam’s young student gets picked on because he is smaller.  Meanwhile, Goldar comes down to Earth to use the Mirror of Regret.
• EPISODE 91 – WHEN IS A RANGER NOT A RANGER? – Lord Zedd turns Adam’s kaleidoscope into a Scatterbrain monster.
• EPISODE 92 – ROCKY JUST WANTS TO HAVE FUN – Lord Zedd puts a spell on Red Ranger and Rocky begins to shirk all responsibilities.
• EPISODE 93 – LIGHTS, CAMERA, ACTION – The Power Rangers are scheduled to appear on “The Harvey Garvey Show”.
• EPISODE 94 – WHEN THERE’S SMOKE, THERE’S FIRE – It’s “Fire Safety Week” at Angel Grove High and Aisha is appointed to Fire Safey Captain.  But Lord Zedd creates a Flamehead monster to cause problems.
• EPISODE 95 – SCAVENGER HUNT – The Rangers take part in a Scavenger Hunt at Angel Grove and Lord Zedd turns one item into a Cannontop monster.
• EPISODE 96 – THE GREAT BOOKALA ESCAPE – A traveler from the planet Bookala lands in Angel Grove PaArk and Lord Zedd wants to steal the traveler’s special diamond.
• EPISODE 97 – FOREVER FRIENDS – Aisha’s friend Shawna takes on Kimberly at the gymnastics competition.  But Goldar kidnaps Shawn and Kim.
• EPISODE 98 – A REEL FISH STORY – Lord Zedd recreates Rita’s water-based monsters while the Rangers are hanging out at Angel Grove Lake.
• EPISODE 99 – RANGERS BACK IN TIME, PART 1 – Lord Zedd uses the Rock of Time to reverse the Earth’s rotation and everyone reverts to children.
• EPISODE 100 – RANGERS BACK IN TIME, PART 2 – The Rangers have become children and their only hope are…a young Bulk and Skull?
• EPISODE 101 – THE WEDDING, PART 1 – The Ranger teens take a class vacation to Australia.  Meanwhile Alpha 5 is corrupted by Finster’s virus.
• EPISODE 102 – THE WEDDING, PART 2  – The Rangers must take on monsters in an abandoned theater.  Evil Alpha 5 is now in control of the command Center.
• EPISODE 103 – THE WEDDING, PART 3 – Lord Zedd and a young Rita Repula get married.
• EPISODE 104 – THE RETURN OF THE GREEN RANGER, PART 1 – Rita and Zedd summon the Wizard of Deception and send the teens back in time.
• EPISODE 105 – THE RETURN OF THE GREEN RANGER, PART 2 – The White Ranger vs. the Green Ranger.
• EPISODE 106 – THE RETURN OF THE GREEN RANGER, PART 3 – It’s the 1700s and the Rangers must take on human-sized rats
• EPISODE 107 – BEST MAN FOR THE JOB – Tommy runs for office at school and his competition…Kimberly?
• EPISODE 108 – STORYBOOK RANGERS, PART 1 – Angel Grove sponsors a book fair and Zedd and Rita zap Kim, Tommy and Rocky into a storybook.
• EPISODE 109 – STORYBOOK RANGERS, PART 2 – Rocky, Tommy and Kimberly are stuck in the book, Grumble, the Magic Elf”.
• EPISODE 110 – WILD WEST RANGERS, PART 1 – Kimberly gets sucked into a timehole and ends up in Angel Grove in 1880.
• EPISODE 111 – WILD WEST RANGERS, PART 2 – Kimberly is trapped in Angel Grove, 1880 and must find a way to get back to the present time.
• EPISODE 112 – BLUE RANGER GONE BAD – A girl named Violet creates a statue of Billy, but Goldar, Baboo and Squatt turn it into a life-sized replica of the Blue Ranger.

“Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Season 3” (Note: The episodes are listed by production code order, not air date)

• EPISODE 113 – A FRIEND IN NEED, PART 1 – Alpha’s planet Edenoi is under attack by Count Dregon.
• EPISODE 114 – A FRIEND IN NEED, PART 2 – The Rangers meet up with the people pf Planet Edenoi and their prince Dex (Masked Rider).
• EPISODE 115 – A FRIEND IN NEED, PART 3 – The Power Rangers and Masked Rider take on the minions of Count Dregon.
• EPISODE 116 – NINJA QUEST, PART 1 – Rito Rvolto, brother of Rita, plays a visit to Lord Zedd and Rita and destroys the Thunder Megazord and Tigerzord.
• EPISODE 117 - NINJA QUEST, PART 2 – Lord Zedd Rita and Rino are having a party to celebrate the destruction of the Thunder Megazord and Tigerzord.  Meanwhile, the Power Rangers seek Ninjor, creator of the Power Coins.
• EPISODE 118 - NINJA QUEST, PART 3 – The Power Rangers are given the Ninja Zords.
• EPISODE 119 - NINJA QUEST, PART 4 – The Power Rangers with their Ninja Zords fight Rito.
• EPISODE 120 – A BRUSH WITH DESTINY – Kimberly has nightmares of moving to Paris and Finster tries to take advantage of the situation.
• EPISODE 121 – PASSING THE LANTERN – Adam receives a paper lantern with mysterious gifts.  Rito tries to steal the lantern.
• EPISODE 122 – WIZARD FOR A DAY – Rocky switches places with Mr. Wilton, meanwhile Rito goes to Earth to destroy the Rangers.
• EPISODE 123 – FOURTH DOWN AND LONG -Rocky’s uncle, a star quarterback comes to Angel Grove to visit.  Finster creates the Centiback to fight the Rangers.
• EPISODE 124 – STOP THE HATE MASTER, PART 1 – Lord Zedd and Rita creates the evil Hate Master and all Rangers are under his spell except Aisha.
• EPISODE 125 - STOP THE HATE MASTER, PART 2 – Aisha and Alpha must find a way to break the Hate Master’s spell.
• EPISODE 126 – FINAL FACE-OFF – Kimberly goes to the museum to learn about a face-stealing monster.
• EPISODE 127 – THE POTION NOTION – Zedd has a second honeymoon for Rita.  Meanwhile, Rito sends Miss Chief with a love potion to Angel Grove.
• EPISODE 128 – I’M DREAMING OF A WHITE RANGER  – It’s Christmas Eve and Zedd and Rita send their troops to the North Pole to capture Santa Claus and the elves.
• EPISODE 129 – A RANGER CATASTROPHE, PART 1 – Kimberly and Aisha find a stray cat and Rita wants to take advantage of the situation.
• EPISODE 130 - A RANGER CATASTROPHE, PART 2 – The stray cat that Kimberly and Aisha finds, ends up to be Katherine, an old friend of Kimberly.
• EPISODE 131 – CHANGING OF THE ZORDS, PART 1 – Rita now having control of Katherine uses her to steal Kim’s power coin.
• EPISODE 132 - CHANGING OF THE ZORDS, PART 2 – The Rangers fight the Incisorator, meanwhile Kimberly is kidnapped by Lord Zedd.
• EPISODE 133 - CHANGING OF THE ZORDS, PART 3 – Tommy agrees to pilot Lord Zedd’s evil Shogun Zords.
• EPISODE 134 – FOLLOW THAT CAB – Bulk, Skull and Kimberly try to find a criminal.
• EPISODE 135 – A DIFFERENT SHADE OF PINK, PART 1 – Kimberly receives an offer from an international gymnast trainer and Kimberly wonders if she can pursue her dream and quit being a Ranger.
• EPISODE 136 - A DIFFERENT SHADE OF PINK, PART 2 – The Rangers fight the Tenga Warriors and Rito, meanwhile Kimberly is in the hospital.
• EPISODE 137 - A DIFFERENT SHADE OF PINK, PART 3 – Kimberly makes her decision to follow her dream and Katherine becomes the new Pink Ranger.
• EPISODE 138 – RITA’S PITA – Rita makes the healthy Tommy want nothing but junk food.
• EPISODE 139 – ANOTHER BRICK IN THE WALL – Tommy runs for office at school and his competition…Kimberly?
• EPISODE 140 – A CHIMP IN CHARGE – Katherine and Aisha to help teach a monkey named Kelly communicate with sign language.  Lord Zedd turns Kelly to a Sinister Simian monster.
• EPISODE 141 – MASTER VILE AND THE METALLIC ARMOR, PART 1 – Rita and Rito’s father Master Vile has arrived and he transports the Rangers’ zords to another dimension.
• EPISODE 142 – MASTER VILE AND THE METALLIC ARMOR, PART 2 – Tommy and Katherine try to find the Falcon Zord and Zeo Crystal.
• EPISODE 143 – MASTER VILE AND THE METALLIC ARMOR, PART 3 – The Rangers must retrieve their zords in another dimension.
• EPISODE 144 – THE SOUND OF DISCHORDIA – Aisha and Katherine write a song for school and the evil Dischordia is created by Master Vile.
• EPISODE 145 – RANGERS IN REVERSE – Master Vile turns the Power Rangers into children.

“Mighty Morphin Alien Rangers – Season 3.5” (Note: The episodes are listed by production code order, not air date)

• EPISODE 146 – ALIEN RANGERS OF AQUITAR, PART 1– The Power Rangers have been turned into their younger selves and Lord Zedd and his minions are causing chaos in Angel Grove.
• EPISODE 147 - ALIEN RANGERS OF AQUITAR, PART 2 – The young Rangers meet their Alien Ranger allies.
• EPISODE 148 – CLIMB EVERY FOUNTAIN – Young Billy and the Alien Rangers work together.
• EPISODE 149 – THE ALIEN TRAP – The kids work on a new device to help the Alien Rangers.
• EPISODE 150 – ATTACK OF THE 60′ BULK – Zedd and Rita want to create a new monster.
• EPISODE 151 – WATER YOU THINKING? – The Rangers try to find the shattered pieces of the Zeo Crystal, while Zedd and Rita try to keep water away from the Alien Rangers in order to keep them dry.
• EPISODE 152 – ALONG CAME A SPIDER – Billy needs to find parts to be used for the Zeo Crystal.
• EPISODE 153 – SOWING THE SEAS OF EVIL – Young Tommy and Katerine are on their quest, meanwhile Rita and Zedd create a Hydro Hog.
• EPISODE 154 – HOGDAY AFTERNOON, PART I – Aisha’s quest begins.  Lord Zedd looks for the Zeo Crystal.
• EPISODE 155 - HOGDAY AFTERNOON, PART II – Aisha’s quest leads them to the final piece of the Zeo Crystal.  But Rito and Goldar want the complete Zeo Crystal.

VIDEO & AUDIO:

“Mighty Morphin Power Rangers – The Complete Series” is presented in 4:3 and this is probably the best quality we are going to see of the series. As many ’90s shows (animated or live action) will not receive the HD remastering or cleanup (especially due to the costs involved in remastering and clean up), having owned the VHS copies including the old Matrix Interactive Xiphias multimedia CD of “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers”, this is probably the best quality that I have seen of the series so far.

But with that being said, the series does look soft, it does feature noise and occasional specks do show up here and there. It’s important to note that the series was low budget in the beginning, it combined Japanese footage with American-made footage, so the sources do differ at times. But back then, Saban made it work! And as the series progresses, the picture quality does get a bit better.

As expected on DVD, with ten episodes on a single DVD, you can expect mild artifacts and banding. But for those who recorded the series on VHS or bought the original VHS or low-res Quicktime multimedia CD like I did back then, this is probably the best looking version of the TV series on any media right now.

As for audio, the audio is actually quite clear via Dolby Digital Stereo 2.0. Dialogue and music is clear and I heard no audio problems during my viewing of the entire series.

There are no English subtitles but closed captions are included.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Mighty Morphin Power Rangers – The Complete Series” comes with the following special features:

• Morphin Time! – (32:44) A look back ad the “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers” phenomenon with new interviews with the cast and creative team.
• A Morphenomenal Cast: A Look at Becoming a Power Ranger – (35:06) Casting director Katy Wallin and the stars of “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers ” talk about being cast for the show and the camaraderie of teh cast members.
• Lord Zedd’s Monster Heads – (25:03)  A video montage of the various monsters featured in the series.
• Alpha’s Magical Christmas – (23:14) The original Power Rangers Christmas special episode featuring Alpha celebrating Christmas with the children.
• The Good, The Bad and the Stupid! The Misadventures of Bulk and Skull – (52:13)  A special episode featuring Bulk and Skull as Civil Defenders and recalling their past adventures.
• The Fans Power Up! A Peek Inside the Power Rangers Fandom – (13:46) Fans of “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers” talk about what they remember of the series when it first aired on television and the cast talk about how the fans are phenomenal and loyal.
• Rare Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Fan Club Video – (29:48) The original video created for the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Fan Club featuring the original season one cast.  And a chance for fans to learn more about the cast behind the Power Rangers.
• MMPR Karate Club: The White Ranger Kata – (51:17) The karate club videos that were originally included in the VHS tapes featuring Jason David Frank teaching how to do martial arts.
• Power Rangers Live: The World Tour – (1:11:59) Featuring the Power Rangers live stage show.

EXTRAS:

Featuring a 40-page booklet with information on the series, character bios, episode summary and more.  The set comes with a big slipcase to old all DVD’s.

Back in 1993, I was a big fan of “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers”.

At the time, I was running a Japanese animation and pop culture BBS and I remember myself and a group of other adult friends just being happy because we were starting to see Japanese pop culture, may it be anime or sentai (Japanese term for “squadron” but most often used for Ranger-type shows) on American television.

As a big fan of the anime series “Gatchaman” (also known as “G-Force” or “Battle of Planets” in the U.S.), I had this interest in sentai series. Mainly because I thought martial arts and the uniforms were cool, typically there was always a pretty starlet playing a member of the series and just enjoyed the series no matter how corny the storyline or adversaries would be or how the Yellow Ranger (Japanese scenes taken from Zyuranger) in action was played by a guy, while the America’s Yellow Ranger was a female.

My personal favorite in Japan was “Ninja Sentai Kakurangers” and also “Chojin Sentai Jetman”, but when I found out that Kyoryuu Sentai Zyuranger (Dinosaur Task Force Zyuranger) was coming to America with the name “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers”, suffice to say, I was excited to see how its American interpretation would be. Especially how it would utilize the Japanese scenes.

And at the time, I can easily remember guys go crazy over Amy Jo Johnson, people wanting to design and have a Power Rangers helmet or costume and saw the excitement with the addition of the Green Ranger/White Ranger Tommy Oliver.

But as the series became popular, I can easily remember news stories of parents of different countries complaining about the violence of the series and children using martial arts on their siblings or other kids. Parents going crazy with the introduction of Lord Zedd and automatically seeing a new person playing Rita Repulsa.

But possibly the biggest shock would be the contract disputes in season two involving Austin St. John, Thuy Trang and Walter Jones and Saban making their statement clear that any cast member can easily be replaced. And by mid-season, three new cast members appeared in the series.

So, “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers” was an intriguing part of early ’90s pop culture. Many people were captivated by the show and even today, many young people including dedicated fans who have been around since 1993, continue to follow the series.

And because this series was so brand new and introduced people to sentai to larger audience, the original series holds a strong place in the hearts of many sentai fans!  And the fact that I grew up with this series, suffice to say, I have nothing but positive memories of watching the shows with friends and back during those earlier years of being online via BBS or when the internet started to become used in the household, this is one series that I will always remember chatting with people while it was airing on television.  Those were the days!

So, here we are with the fantastic DVD release of “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Season – The Complete Series”. Over 155-videos on 19 DVD’s. And watching these episodes takes me back to 1993, because I can remember chatting with people about these episodes, reading messages from the Amy Jo Johnson fans but seeing how people were really getting into the series by episode 17. The Green Ranger arc known as “Green with Evil” was so popular that many people would chime in on these episodes and what they thought of new character Tommy Oliver.

I can easily remember when Tommy became the White Ranger and then of course the baton was passed from the first cast to three new members and eventually seeing the Thunderzords, then the Ninja zords and seeing goodbye to Kimberly and Katherine replacing her as the new Pink Ranger.  So, many memories!

Watching it today, sure the series can be a bit corny. With the monsters ala rubber suits, a Black character as Black Ranger and an Asian as Yellow Ranger is a bit stereotypical and seeing the early ’90s fashion definitely makes this series a product of its time. And I’m sure a lot of us had jokes of seeing a Yellow Ranger with an adam’s apple back then and even to my chagrin of seeing Saban Entertainment doing the 3.5 series featuring the Power Rangers turned to children.  How delighted I was that the series did not turn out to be like “Big Bad Beetleborgs”.

But these episodes were fun to watch again and like any fan who is nostalgic for the series, it’s great to have this DVD set, especially containing  all these episodes for a pretty wonderful price! I can remember paying a lot more for the VHS tape including the multimedia disc that had the bad quality, small low-res Quicktime videos at the time. The old multimedia discs were so bad that colors were faded, artifacts galore and they were split up into multiple media files.

So, it’s great to have this all three seasons on DVD. And like many ’80s or early ’90s shows, they are not going to be the greatest in clarity. Picture quality is slightly soft, there are white specks that can be seen as with noise and yes, there is a little interlacing and artifacts that are expected on DVD (note: Mostly noticeable when watching it on big screens but not on smaller televisions) but considering the alternatives out there of watching this series on physical media, this is probably the best looking version you’re going to get for this first season and the good news is that as the series progresses, picture quality does get better.

But all first three seasons and season 3.5 together in one set is fantastic!  And also the inclusion of the special features, quite a few that are new and some of the old features that were on the VHS tapes are included on this DVD set.  While it would have been nice to have one of the convention press conferences being included on the special features or even a cast audio commentary reuniting some of the original members, I am quite pleased that there are newer interviews included with this DVD release but it would be great to have commentary, press conference and also the original pilot, which I was hoping to be included with this DVD set.

But fortunately, fans who want to know more about the Power Rangers that aren’t featured in the special features can still catch the cast at various conventions.  Fortunately original talents such as Austin St. John, Walter Jones, David Yost, Jason David Frank, Paul Schrier, Jason Narvy and Rita Repulsa voice actress, Barbara Gordon, are still very active in the convention scene and enjoy meeting with fans of the series but unfortunately a true reunion with all six original members together would be impossible due to the unfortunate death of actress Thuy Trang (Trini/Yellow Ranger), who died in a car accident in 2001.

But there was something magical about this cast.  They were newbies but for us who grew up with them, I think it was positive in the sense that the casting was diverse.  I was also proud of the series back then because it featured a Black and Asian hero. Not sure if Saban was trying to be multi-cultural or politically correct but for me, how proud I was to see the casting of Walter Jones and Thuy Trang. As an Asian American, you just don’t see Asian heroes (outside of martial arts films distributed in America at the time), for me, to have a strong character like Trini, I was grateful for that. And of course, it continued with the newer members with Johnny Yong Bosch, Steve Cardenas and Karan Ashley.  And I’m glad that to this day, people of different ethnicities are still featured in these character roles for the different Power Rangers series within the last 20 years.  I find that pretty awesome!

But nevertheless, “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers” was a big part of the lives of many children and young adults. I was one of those fans who enjoyed it back then and met many good friends who were fans of the series and as I got older, eventually having friends who were involved in various Power Rangers series, may it be as talent or on the technical end of the series.

Overall, for those who grew up with Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, this is the ultimate set! “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers – The Complete Series” features all three seasons plus the season 3.5 mini-series, new and older special features and more!  What an awesome set that fans will definitely want to own.  Highly recommended!