Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Redone for 2010 - Review of ABC's Revisions

Since it debuted on Fox in 1993, Power Rangers has become a popular, if controversial (due to its somewhat violent nature), show for children. Through its many incarnations, the series has endured even as characters and cast members have come and gone. With the most recent version, Power Rangers RPM, having ended its run, and no new Power Rangers episodes for the foreseeable future, ABC has started airing the very first version, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, which is shown on their Saturday morning block, ABC Kids. While those who were not around when the series first aired will likely enjoy discovering how the legacy began, those who grew up with the show will notice almost immediately that it is not quite the same as they remember.

The basic storyline from the first season remains the same: after an imprisonment on 10,000 years, the villainous sorceress Rita Repulsa and her minions have accidentally been released. They plot to conquer Earth with the aide of their loyal Putty Patrol and a slew of vile monsters. Having learned of Rita's plan, Zordon, an old enemy of Rita's, commands his robot, Alpha 5, to summon five teenagers to help foil the witch's plans. At first, the teens-Jason, Zack, Trini, Kimberly, and Billy-are skeptical, but after learning how to morph into heroes and using giant robots known as Zords to take out Rita's monsters, they agree to do whatever it takes to protect the world from Rita's wrath.

While the footage is the same as it was back in 1993, Disney apparently felt the need to "modernize" the series for today's children. The most prominent new feature is adding comic book-style effects to various points in the episodes. This is first seen in the opening titles, where a cutout of Rita is shown as she is escaping from her prison. Throughout the episodes, there are also comic book-type panels, usually seen just before commercial breaks. At times when more than one panel is shown at the same time, the effect is jarring and distracting. Additionally, some fight scenes feature the actual sound effects on the screen like in the old Batman live action series from the 1960s. In that show, the effects added to the rather enjoyable campy quality. Here, the effects are rather pointless and detract from the show's quality.

When the Zords are coming out from underground, their names are shown in yellow boxes on the screen. This is not necessarily a huge problem, but in the opening episode "Day of the Dumpster," Zordon actually tells the Rangers which Zord he or she will be using. Thus, having their names pop up on screen just a few moments later seems rather pointless. Do today's kids really have such short attention spans that they need a reminder of which Ranger uses which Zord? If this is what modern day programming for children is like, then that makes me glad that I have pretty much stop watching such shows.

As for other changes, the Power Rangers logo in the opening credits has been given a makeover. It is actually a pretty cool-looking logo, though I prefer the original one for its nostalgic quality. Some scenes seem to have been either altered or cut to make room for the new comic book edits and the consistent commercial breaks (four breaks per half hour! Really, ABC?). Lastly, the closing credits are now played over the episode's final scene, which is a bit of a distraction. Having some credits over the last bit of the scene followed by a separate credits sequence is fine, but credits during a good bit of the scene further robs the show of its nostalgic value.

In fact, ABC and Disney seem to be trying their best to hide the fact that these are not really new episodes, despite being advertised as such. In the commercials for the series, Rita is introduced as an ancient enemy of the Power Rangers who has returned. Nowhere in the ads does it state that the original series has made its triumphant return. Also, the only copyright date at the end of the credits is MMX, or 2010, as if ABC wants to avoid letting kids know that the shows are older than they think. This is one more reason why the network seems to be more concerned about catering to younger audiences while ignoring the older fans.

Rest assured that not all of the aspects of Power Rangers have undergone a lot of meddling. The story lines are still engaging today, and the power of teamwork is a lesson that can resonate with everyone. The excellent theme song has not been changed, and neither has the morphing sequence. Of course, there is still plenty of violence to be found, and the rather grainy-looking Japanese footage is as enjoyably cheesy as ever. The nostalgic value for longtime Power Ranger fans is still there, and it still feels good when it has not been tampered with in any way.

Having watched the first two episodes on ABC, I can say that I have a love/hate relationship with the new version. I love the nostalgic quality when it is left intact, but I hate the new, often unnecessary, changes that were added. I grew up watching the original version, which proved that it did not need any comic book-style effects or other silly gimmicks to win over fans. Sadly, about the only ways to see the show as it was meant to be viewed is to track down out-of-print VHS copies of various episodes or look them up online. If the episodes are released on DVD, let's hope that there is at least an option to view the shows in their original form for the sake of longtime fans.

A nice piece of nostalgia from the 1990s is what I wanted. What I got was one more form of a popular show being changed for the worse. Did ABC and Disney feel that the show would fail without the edits? Do they believe that kids are only enticed with shows with flashy effects and features that cater to short attention spans? Did they care so much about introducing the show to a new generation that they forgot to cater to people who have been waiting for its return to network television for years? At any rate, the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers are back in an inferior version of a classic show. New fans might enjoy it, but older fans might want to approach with caution. The series is not the same as a lot of people remember, which is a shame. The Power Rangers deserve better than this type of treatment.