The Mythos - Power Rangers (2017)

The Mythos -

Power Rangers (2017)

     This new heading, "The Mythos," is one concocted to take a look at some of the prevailing background and lore of a movie, season, or series in general. This first entry of the 'Mythos" segment will focus on the new Lionsgate movie, "Power Rangers."

     For those who may not be in the know, this film an a modern re-imagining of the original "Mighty Morphin Power Rangers" series, a series in which the evil space witch Rita Repulsa is freed from her space dumpster prison, resulting in the alien wizard Zordon recruiting a team of teenagers to save the world. Armed with an array of sci-fi weaponry and a changing roster of giant mecha known as zords, these teenagers became the Power Rangers. And while the show is currently on its 24th season, "Power Rangers Ninja Steel," the "Mighty Morphin" descriptor was only carried for the first three seasons. Those three seasons, however, were composed of 145 episodes (the franchise as a whole is up to 831 episodes and two films, not counting "Ninja Steel" or the new movie).

     Given the high episode count, there are a lot of ideas and backstory to the Power Rangers mythos, some of them better developed than others, a lot of it only getting mentioned in the season it is introduced. The franchise as a whole is, it seems, focused more on being a 22 minute toy commercial rather than the interconnected sci-fi franchise with deep continuity and imaginative lore that it could be... even with the spandex and rubber monster suits. One of the potential perks of the new movie branch of the franchise is the chance to pick and choose from 24 seasons (and two movies) of mythos to play with and develop. This first movie gives some shining examples of how the writers are not afraid to develop and rework some of those ideas.

     And I feel it succeeds in those re-imagined concepts, and would like to talk about some of them. So, from this point on, there will be...

     Up first...

     - Zordon and Rita's History -

     

Rita Repulsa and Zordon (2017)

     In the original series, we know Rita was out to take over the Earth, sent by Lord Zedd, but was stopped by Zordon. It was, effectively, space witch vs space wizard, the fate of the Earth in balance. Zordon trapped Rita in a space dumpster on the moon, Rita trapped Zordon in a time warp. Fast forward to modern times, astronauts unintentionally free Rita, while Zordon's head occupies a blue Pringle's can. How was this reworked for the movie?

     Rita and Zordon were both once Rangers, Zordon the Red Ranger and Rita the Green Ranger. They were teammates, even. For still unknown reasons, Rita turned on the team to set out and harvest a Zeo Crystal shard (more on that later). Zordon's team fell in trying to stop her, and Zordon effectively sacrificed himself to stop Rita by having Alpha-5 smash their location on the planet with a meteor. It isn't clear if this was intended to be the same meteor that wiped out the dinosaurs, however, since the Zords are dino-themed (more on that later), it implies one of two things; 1) the opening scene was stated to be set in the Cenozoic Era, so if it was the meteor that wiped out the dinosaurs, it was the start of the era, or 2) the fight against Rita on Earth had been going on for a long time, long enough to span two different geological eras. I'm inclined to go with the former, that it was the start of the Cenozoic, and Zordon is responsible for wiping out the dinosaurs in order to save the world, and galaxy, from Rita.

     Anyway, digression aside, Rita is cast into an ancient ocean as Zordon dies, where she lies dormant, withering away to nothing, until modern times. Meanwhile, Alpha-5 saves Zordon's essence/consciousnesses into the computer system of their ship, allowing Zordon to interact with the world again.

     This change of backstory is great, as it gives more life to both Zordon and Rita as characters. It also makes the fight more personal for Zordon, and, potentially even his new Rangers, as, ultimately, one of their own is the villain of the day. It also serves as a cautionary tale for the new Rangers, that no one is safe from falling to the dark side, if even a Ranger can. In addition, making Rita a former Ranger also makes her opposition to the Rangers more personal for her. While we don't really know for sure why she turned dark, she thinks she is still a worthy Ranger, that what she is doing is right, and here is her former leader once again trying to interfere with her mission.

Up next...

- The Zeo Crystal - 

The Zeo Crystal from the TV series

     In the TV series, the Zeo Crystal was a powerful crystal of unknown origin which automatically grew in power as time passed. The crystal was used by the Rangers to develop new Powers, which transitioned the series from the "Mighty Morphin Power Rangers" to "Power Rangers Zeo." Hidden on Earth's moon a long time ago by ancient aliens, it was above the hiding place of the Zeo Crystal that Rita's moon palace resided. It was the Zeo Crystal, in a failed attempt to obtain it, the resulted in Lord Zedd's appearance. It was also a desire for the Zeo Crystal that brought Rita's father, Master Vile, to Earth.

     In the new movie, Rita has come to Earth in order to obtain the Zeo Crystal. We later learn that if she successfully harvests the Zeo Crystal, it will unleash a wave of energy across the planet, wiping out all life. It is also learned that the Zeo Crystal on Earth is but a Zeo shard, and every life bearing world is home to a Zeo shard. It is not known if this means the Zeo Crystal Shards are responsible for developing conditions which allow life to develop on a world, or if the Zeo shards are a natural by-product of the life energies of a planet. Regardless, the Zeo Crystal seems to be a coveted power source for evil, as in her defeat, Rita gives an ominous warning to the Rangers that their fight is not over, that others will come for the planet and the crystal.

     In addition, the location of the Zeo Crystal Shard on Earth explains why a random town in California is the focal point for Zordon, Rita, and the Rangers. In the TV series, it just seemed random, with no greater purpose. This reason, that Angel Grove just happens to be atop the Zeo shard, is a good one to explain why this otherwise insignificant town seems to be so important in the grand scheme of things. It will be interesting to see how they develop the Zeo Crystal concept further in future movies.

Next we have...

- The Zords - 

The Dinozords (2017)

     In the original TV series, the Dinozords were composed of the Tyrannosaurus Rex Zord, Mastodon Zord, Pterodactly Zord, Sabertooth Tiger Zord, and Triceratops Zord. These five Zords could combine to form a moving weapons platform and a giant humanoid robot called the Megazord. From what I can recall, the show never really gives a good reason for why the Zords are based on prehistoric creatures, but at the time of the show's release, it didn't matter. Why didn't it matter?

     GIANT ROBOT DINOSAURS!

     Now, however, with a movie designed for slightly older audiences than the show's target demographic, and for a major theatrical release, explanations matter. So, we know Zordon and the previous team of Ranges came to Earth a long time ago, during a time when dinosaurs still roamed (never mind the difference in time periods between some of the species the Zords are based on). In the movie, Alpha-5 explains that the Zords are adaptive technology, they take on a configuration based on the most powerful life forms the planet they are on has. In this case, dinosaurs!

     Making the Zords adaptive technology is a fantastic idea, and one that opens up the potential for future modifications. Perhaps, as the Rangers bond to the Zords, their personalities and fighting styles further shaping them. This could allow for the Dinozords to be used in the sequel movie (which is likely at this point) while not being the exact same designs (which is important for merchandising purposes). It could also result in, if the movies go on long enough, the same Zords changing configurations to become other Zords from the franchise (perhaps the Thunder Zords, or if they really go for mixing up lore, maybe beyond the second film the PR team ends up on an alien world, and we get a Mighty Morphin version of the Galactabeasts as their Zords reconfigure again).

Dino Megazord (2017)

     Another change to the lore from the series is that it appears the Dinozords had never formed the Megazord before their use by the modern day Earth Rangers. When the Megazord forms, Rita is surprised by it, which, her having once been a Ranger, suggests the Zords had not ever combined before. While it isn't clear if the Megazord ends up being the result of the Rangers soulful desire to stay together, to not give up, and if they were going to die, they were going to die together, and this state of being translated through the adaptive technology of the Zords to form the  Mammazord Megazord, or something else. It could just as easily have been the power of the Zeo Crystal Shard they were falling onto that combined their Zords as well, or even a combination of both scenarios. Of course, it could simply be a secret mode Zordon installed in which no one else new about.

     Regardless, if the Earth Rangers were, in fact, the first team to pull off the feat of creating a Megazord as the movie implies, it just further goes to show how the Power Coins chose their hosts correctly and this collection of humans truly are destined for great things.

    - Conclusion -

      Off the top of my head, these three topics were the stand out examples of re-purposing the mythos of nearly 150 episodes of a TV series for a new generation in a way that both honored and improved on ideas from the original series. When I see the move again, I may notice even more stand out re-imaginings worth highlighting, in which case this entry will receive a part two. That said, I have only seen the film once, so if I missed anything regarding the above topics, or have something wrong, let me know.

     I'd also like to know what you think of the changes to the topics presented here, or any other changes the new movie made over the original TV series.

     Until next time.

-Dr. K