 This article is about a/an series entry (the 6th) in the Power Rangers franchise.
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Power Rangers in Space, often abbreviated as "PRIS" or simply referred to as "In Space", was the sixth season of Power Rangers. It used footage from the twenty-first Super Sentai series, Denji Sentai Megaranger, and was dubbed in South Korea as Megaranger (메가레인저 Megaleinjeo), taking after its Sentai counterpart.
The show was a turning point in the history of the Power Rangers franchise, as the season brought about the end of six years worth of storylines and was the ending of the practice of having the Power Rangers be a continuous serial-style show with a regular cast that carried over from one season to the next. It was supposedly going to be the last season, but due to major ratings, they succeeded and went on to make a new season, Power Rangers Lost Galaxy.
The characters of Mr. Caplan, Jerome Stone and Miss Appleby are completely removed from the franchise from this season onwards, as they were written out of the franchise in several episodes of the previous season, Power Rangers Turbo, when it was decided by the writers and producers that those characters (and their respective jokes and gimmicks) were no longer needed anymore. The final episodes for these characters are Alarmed and Dangerous, Carlos and the Count, and Chase into Space: Part 1. The new linking civilian Angel Grove character for Bulk and Skull is, this time, Professor Phenomenus, a scatterbrained and wacky scientist specializing in extraterrestrial activity. Also, the Youth Center has been replaced by a new location called The Surf Spot, run by a woman named Adelle Ferguson.
Production
Judd Lynn went ahead with the "space war" storyline in spite of the problems with the Megaranger footage. A great deal of the budget would be spent creating cheap green screen space footage for the Zords traveling in space as well as shooting new fight scenes with the Space Rangers which were tinted a different color for broadcast so as to create the appearance of the battles taking place on alien worlds.
Two team-up episodes were commissioned along the way bringing Blake Foster (Justin from Power Rangers Turbo) and Johnny Yong Bosch (Adam, succeeding Zack as the second Black Power Ranger, Green Zeo and Original Green Turbo Ranger) to the show to try and tie up loose ends. The Phantom Ranger (whose identity was never revealed in Turbo) was also brought back for a multi-episode arc, but plans to reveal his identity fell through due to budget problems and forced Lynn to cut the episode where his identity was to be revealed.
Also, the show would be the first Power Rangers series to be completely serialized, in that the series was the first series to rely on a continuing plot that unfolds episode by episode. This series also featured plot devices and storylines never before seen in a Power Rangers series. The series is also highly regarded for being the first Power Rangers series to feature sympathetic and multi-dimensional villains in the form of Astronema and Ecliptor. Astronema was Red Space Ranger Andros' sister, Karone, who was kidnapped by the cruel Darkonda as a child and raised by the cyborg Ecliptor to be the evil Dark Specter's harbringer of evil. When Astronema learns the truth about her identity, she is tortured and brainwashed into staying evil by Dark Specter and Darkonda. Ecliptor, who sees himself as Astronema's father due to him raising her, gains a level of depth not seen by many villains on the show when he tries to defend his adopted daughter, only to be cruelly tortured by the sadistic Darkonda, who forces the two to merge into a singular entity, leaving Ecliptor broken both physically and mentally.
Synopsis
After being defeated by Divatox, the former Turbo Rangers T.J., Cassie, Ashley, and Carlos leave for space with a voice-damaged Alpha 6 in search of their old mentor Zordon and are taken to a strange spaceship. Elsewhere on the Cimmerian Planet, the evil Dark Specter is celebrating his conquest of Eltar with his guests in the United Alliance of Evil: Rita Repulsa, Lord Zedd, Master Vile, the Machine Empire, Divatox, General Havoc, and their many minions. As the villains enjoy a banquet, an unwelcome guest crashes the party -- a Red Power Ranger. Dark Specter sends his chosen disciple Astronema to pursue and destroy him.
As he retreats to the spaceship, the Red Ranger Andros finds the former Turbo Rangers and Alpha examining the ship. Though he does help repair Alpha's damaged voice (giving him a new vocal tone more similar to his predecessor), Andros initially doesn't trust his new guests. When they help defend the Astro Megaship from Astronema, Andros gives them all-new Astro Morphers as an act of gratitude, allowing them to transform into Space Rangers like him.
From the Astro Megaship (which can also transform into the Astro Megazord), the Space Rangers patrol the galaxy as they try to locate Zordon and rescue him from Dark Specter, who intends to absorb the sage's power into himself. However, they are frequently forced to postpone the search in order to protect Angel Grove from Astronema, her loyal general (and adopted father) Ecliptor, and the seemingly-immortal bounty hunter Darkonda. Old friends such as Adam Park, Justin Stewart, and the Phantom Ranger come to the Rangers' aid alongside new allies such as D.E.C.A., the Megaship's onboard A.I., and Zhane, the Silver Space Ranger and Andros' childhood friend from their homeworld of KO-35. New resources are also granted in the form of the Delta Megazord, the Mega Voyager, and the Mega Winger.
When Andros is able to confront Astronema at one point, he learns to his surprise that she is actually Karone, his sister that had disappeared many years ago when they were children. Darkonda had kidnapped her so that Dark Specter and Ecliptor could raise her in the ways of evil. Though Andros is able to convince Karone to forsake her evil upbringing and return with him to the Astro Megaship, she is recaptured by Darkonda and placed under intense cybernetic brainwashing alongside Ecliptor.
With no trace of her former life left in her, Astronema resumes her evil plans by sending down an adversary unlike any other -- the Psycho Rangers, five violent psychopath cyborgs programmed to terminate the Power Rangers. They are all powered by Dark Specter's evil energies, weakening him as part of Astronema's larger plan to kill her master and become the sole ruler of the United Alliance of Evil. Through many long and arduous battles, the Power Rangers are able to slowly weaken and eventually defeat the Psycho Rangers.
As the series comes to a close, Dark Specter rallies his forces and launches a full-scale invasion on the universe. The Power Rangers and all their allies from across the galaxy try their hardest to fend off the overwhelming forces but are unable to hold up against the onslaught. However, Dark Specter is assassinated by Darkonda, who is then killed by Dark Specter and Astronema quickly takes advantage of the unexpected diversion by declaring herself to be the new undisputed Queen of Evil.
In his last-ditch attempt to end the invasion, Andros infiltrates Astronema's Dark Fortress where he finds Zordon imprisoned. Zordon demands that his energy tube be shattered in order to save the universe, but Andros refuses to kill him. However, Astronema and Ecliptor arrive to keep him from doing anything. When Astronema is accidentally killed during the conflict, Ecliptor breaks out of his brainwashing and attacks Andros in a rage.
Andros is forced to do what must be done and destroys Zordon. In doing so, the sage's purifying energies wash across the entire universe, turning all evil it touches into dust, while Rita, Zedd, and Divatox are purified and become human instead, and Astronema is also restored to life as Karone. Though Zordon's death comes as a grave loss, the galaxy takes heart in knowing that his legacy will continue to live forever through the Power Rangers.
Characters
Rangers
The Space Rangers from left to right : Ashley, Carlos, Zhane, Andros, Cassie and T.J.
| Color | Role | Actor |
|---|---|---|
| Red Space Ranger | Andros | Christopher Khayman Lee |
| Black Space Ranger | Carlos Vallerte | Roger Velasco |
| Blue Space Ranger | T.J. Johnson | Selwyn Ward |
| Yellow Space Ranger | Ashley Hammond | Tracy Lynn Cruz |
| Pink Space Ranger | Cassie Chan | Patricia Ja Lee |
| Silver Space Ranger | Zhane | Justin Nimmo |
Allies
- Alpha 6
- DECA
- Commander Kinwon
- Tykwa
- Karone
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
- Zordon
- Galaxy Rangers
- Seymour
- Waspicable
Past Rangers
| Phantom Ranger | Phantom Ranger |
| Blue Turbo Ranger | Justin Stewart |
| Mighty Morphin Black Ranger | Adam Park |
| Blue Senturion | Blue Senturion |
| Gold Zeo Ranger | Trey of Triforia |
| Red Aquitar Ranger | Aurico |
| White Aquitar Ranger | Delphine |
| Blue Aquitar Ranger | Cestro |
| Yellow Aquitar Ranger | Tideus |
| Black Aquitar Ranger | Corcus |
Civilians
- Farkas "Bulk" Bulkmeier
- Eugene "Skull" Skullovitch
- Professor Phenomenus
- Adelle Ferguson
- Silvy Larson
- Ashley's grandmother
Villains
- United Alliance of Evil
Psycho Rangers
- Main article:Psycho Rangers
| Color | Role | Actor |
|---|---|---|
| Psycho Red | Psycho Red | Patrick David |
| Psycho Black | Psycho Black | Michael Maize |
| Psycho Blue | Psycho Blue | Wally Wingert |
| Psycho Yellow | Psycho Yellow | Kamera Walton |
| Psycho Pink | Psycho Pink | Vicki Davis |
| Psycho Silver | Psycho Silver (fake) | Justin Nimmo |
Arsenal
Morphers
- Astro Morpher ◆◆◆◆◆
- Digimorpher ◆
Communication Devices
- Wrist Communicators ◆◆◆◆◆◆
Sidearms
- Astro Blaster ◆◆◆◆◆
Individual Weapons and Team Blaster
- Spiral Saber ◆
- Quadro Blaster ◆◆◆◆
- Super Silverizer ◆
Other Weapons
Power-up
Vehicles
- Galaxy Gliders ◆◆◆◆◆◆
- Megatank
- Galactic Rover ◆
Zords
- Legend:◆ piloted zord, ✶ team-piloted zord; colors are in reference to the Rangers who pilot them, not the physical color of the Zords
Mega Zord System
- Astro Delta Megazord ✶✶✶
- Winged Mega Voyager ◆◆◆◆◆◆
Toy Exclusive
Episodes
- From Out of Nowhere, Part I
- From Out of Nowhere, Part II
- Save Our Ship
- Shell Shocked
- Never Stop Searching
- Satellite Search
- A Ranger Among Thieves
- When Push Comes to Shove
- The Craterite Invasion
- The Wasp with a Heart
- The Delta Discovery
- The Great Evilyzer
- Grandma Matchmaker
- The Barillian Sting
- T.J.'s Identity Crisis
- Flashes of Darkonda
- The Rangers' Mega Voyage
- True Blue to the Rescue
- Invasion of the Body Switcher
- Survival of the Silver
- Red with Envy
- The Silver Secret
- A Date with Danger
- Zhane's Destiny
- Always a Chance
- The Secret of the Locket
- Astronema Thinks Twice
- The Rangers' Leap of Faith
- Dark Specter's Revenge, Part I
- Dark Specter's Revenge, Part II
- Rangers Gone Psycho
- Carlos on Call
- A Rift in the Rangers
- Five of a Kind
- Silence is Golden
- The Enemy Within
- Andros and the Stowaway
- Mission to Secret City
- Ghosts in the Machine
- The Impenetrable Web
- A Line in the Sand
- Countdown to Destruction, Part I
- Countdown to Destruction, Part II
VHS/DVD Releases
VHS
- Power Rangers In Space (VHS)
- Rangers Gone Psycho
- A Rift in the Rangers
- Five of a Kind
- Silence is Golden
- The Enemy Within
- Power Rangers: Red Alert
- Mission to Secret City
DVD
- The Best of the Power Rangers: The Ultimate Rangers
- Countdown to Destruction, Part 1 & 2
- Ninja Turtles: The Next Mutation Volume 2
- Power Rangers In Space (Complete Season) [German RC2]
- Power Rangers: From Mighty Morphin to Lost Galaxy (TimeLife Exclusive)
- Power Rangers in Space: Volume One (Shout! Factory)
- Power Rangers in Space: Volume Two (Shout! Factory)
Notes
- Power Rangers in Space is the first season:
- To be space-themed, which would carry over to Power Rangers Lost Galaxy.
- To feature the Battlizer mode, which would carry over to many subsequent teams, as well as other American-made equipment not used in its Super Sentai counterpart, to better help market the toys that were being sold by Bandai America. Prior to this, the only Power Rangers media to feature American-made non-Sentai equipment was Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie, which gave that team weapons and other items not seen in Kyōryū Sentai Zyuranger. Interestingly, the In Space Sentai counterpart team had a power-up of golden torso armor that was never seen in the American series.
- To use an orchestral music score, in lieu of the rock music that had been used in the previous seasons.
- To had its theme song composed another key (in this case, A minor) instead of E minor, used in the previous seasons.
- To utilize a 30fps framerate, largely in scenes aboard the Astro Megaship.
- To feature a Ranger as a blood relative to a lead villain, as Andros and Astronema were siblings. This would happen again in Power Rangers Ninja Storm and Dino Thunder..
- Not to feature any kind of power transfer, as each of the previous seasons featured at least one such moment (with "The Power Transfer" and "A Different Shade of Pink" in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, "A Golden Homecoming" in Power Rangers Zeo, and "Passing the Torch" in Power Rangers Turbo).
- To have Rangers wearing uniforms when unmorphed.
- Not to feature Tommy Oliver.
- To feature the Rangers revealing their identities to the public, something the previous teams were specifically instructed by Zordon never to do. This occurs in the final episode "Countdown to Destruction" and is justified as they had to save the public.
- Power Rangers in Space is also the final season of the Zordon Era, and features several differences in comparison to the previous Zordon Era seasons:
- This is the only season from the Zordon Era that does not feature the Youth Center. Instead, the Surf Spot serves as the Rangers' new hangout. This is the only season in which it appears. (Given that they take place in similar-looking sets, it's possible it's the same building after being remodeled.)
- This is the only Zordon Era season, and the first season in general, in which Alpha 5 is neither seen nor mentioned. His final appearance was in the Turbo episode "Passing the Torch".
- The characters of Mr. Caplan, Jerome Stone and Miss Appleby are completely removed from the franchise from this season onwards, as they were written out in several episodes of Turbo.
- This is the only Zordon Era season that does not feature the Command Center/Power Chamber as the base of operations. Instead, the Astro Megaship serves as the new base, and would continue to appear in Lost Galaxy.
- To have the Rangers' helmets lack sculpted lips, but have silver mouth plates. This would be repeated in subsequent series such as Wild Force, S.P.D., Operation Overdrive, Dino Charge and Beast Morphers.
- This is the final season to take place in Angel Grove. The city would make an appearance in "Quasar Quest", the first episode of Power Rangers Lost Galaxy, before disappearing from the series until Operation Overdrive's 15th anniversary special "Once a Ranger".
- This is the final season to feature bloopers in the ending credits.
- This is, to date, the only season to feature a crossover with another franchise, with the episode "Shell Shocked" seeing the Rangers meeting the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles from fellow Saban series Ninja Turtles: The Next Mutation. (Masked Rider's appearance in Mighty Morphin season 3 was meant to introduce the character, making his subsequent series a spin-off.)
- The final battle between Ecliptor and Andros can be seen as an homage to the ending of the Super Sentai series Gosei Sentai Dairanger, in which the Ryuuranger (the Red Dairanger) duels with a villain one-on-one to the death, to resolve the season-running conflict once and for all.
- Prior to the second half of Power Rangers in Space, several Megaranger monster costumes would make their debut in the special Power Rangers Funniest Moments.
- Although Bulk and Skull remain members of the main cast, they only appear in 13 of the 43 episodes of this season.
- This is the final season to feature the original communicators which were introduced in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Season 1. Newer Power Rangers have since contacted each other with their Morphers. They also have a new beep sound.
- This is the first season since Mighty Morphin Power Rangers to feature Red, Black, Blue, Yellow and Pink as the core team's color formation. In addition, this is the final season to feature a Black Ranger as a core member until Power Rangers Wild Force.
- This is also the last season to feature the original Red, Black, Blue, Yellow and Pink main team formation until Power Rangers Operation Overdrive.
See Also
- Denji Sentai Megaranger - Super Sentai counterpart . See comparison page.
External links
References
Footnotes
