Mighty Morphin Power Rangers is a hit kids' show in multiple countries. Still running in the United States today, roughly 20 years after its debut, there have been lots of different series featuring lots of different rangers battling lots of different monsters. But now, for the first time on DVD, you can see how it all began.
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Season 1, Vol.1 collects the first 30 episodes, half of season one, onto a three disc set (sans bonus features, not that that matters to the target audience). These are the characters that started it all, and built the phenomenon. Each episode is about twenty minutes long, and features the first five teenagers to don the suits and call upon the robotic dinosaurs.
There's Jason (Austin St. John), the leader and Red Ranger of the group, who loves his country and karate. Billy (David Yost), the Blue Ranger, is a sweet nerd who speaks a genius language all his own. Trini (Thuy Trang, The Crow: City of Angels), is the Yellow Ranger, as patient and spiritual as she is tough. Zack (Walter Jones, Space Cases) is the charismatic, energetic, dancing Black Ranger. Finally, Kimberly (Amy Jo Johnson, Flashpoint, Felicity), the Pink Ranger, is a popular girl who loves gymnastics and shopping.
For those who don't remember how it began, the evil Rita Repulsa (anime voice actress Barbara Goodson) escapes from her 10,000-year imprisonment in a dumpster on the moon. Her various creature minions rally around her, and they plan to attack the Earth. Zordon (sound guy Robert L. Manahan) taps five young people with just the right mix of moxy and heart to suit up and take on Rita. Thus, the saga is born.
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers does not hold up well, sadly. As iconic as it may be, watching just the first episode will leave you shaking your head at the plot holes they got away with. There are not logical jumps in the story; instead, the characters just move where the plot demands they be, and, anxious to bring on the battle sequences, skips over the necessary character development to turn teenagers "with attitude" into heroes. Thus, not only is everyone flat, but they also suffer from a lack of distinct motivations.
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