One thing I neglected to mention about the theme song? We’ve finally added Ernie to it!
The news about Zordon, of course, is that he’s just fine. He appears in his new tube and welcomes the Rangers to their new base of operations.
He apologizes to Tanya for her transition being so insane, and she says with a laugh:
“Well, it’s a little different, I’ll say that.”
Zordon drops the news about the Machine Empire, and poor Tanya has to deal with yet another change from everything Aisha told her.
Alpha starts to malfunction from all the questions the teens immediately ask, and Tanya’s the first to notice because she’s a star.
Rita and Zedd finally reach Serpentera while there’s a lull in the attack, and King Mondo demands answers as to why they haven’t been destroyed yet. Queen Machina urges him to remain calm, but their son Prince Sprocket stirs up trouble by blaming Klank, their footman who randomly has a Scottish accent, for the failure.
Klank argues against this assertion, but King Mondo warns him about contradicting his son. He apologizes for forgetting his place and promises to do better with the next attack as Orbus, his tiny companion, whirs around his head.
Back on Earth, Goldar and Rito stumble into Bulk and Skull’s garage, where they’re working on their new motorcycle. They scream and try to flee, but just run straight into the generals, knocking themselves out in the process.
Zordon gives the Rangers the lowdown on the Machine Empire, and they’re understandably worried by the idea of a threat that could send Rita and Zedd packing. They’re also introduced to the Cogs, this season’s foot soldiers, which must be completely dismantled to be defeated.
Evidently, our galaxy is the last in a chain the Machine Empire is looking to conquer, meaning the Rangers are literally the last line of defense against them.
Rito and Goldar wake Bulk and Skull and beg to move in with them, as they have nowhere else to go. The boys finally realize they have no memories of who they are, and agree to take them in when they say they’ll do anything.
The villains finally board Serpentera and take off for Master Vile’s home, though Zedd vows that one day he’ll be back and will take over the galaxy once and for all.
Rocky asks Zordon how they’re supposed to take on the Machine Empire without their Power Coins, and the floating head reminds him of their recent quest to collect the Zeo Crystal fragments. With them, they’ll have access to greater powers than ever before.
Billy points out that the Zeo Crystal only has five sub-sections, meaning only five of them can be Rangers. Tanya immediately offers to step down, as she’s been there such a short time, but he replies that through his work with the Alien Rangers, he realized that being their full-time tech support could actually be more beneficial than being a Ranger:
“What I’m trying to say is that, I think it’s time to pass the power onto someone else. Tanya, I’m giving my crystal to you. From this point on, you are a Power Ranger.”
Tommy asks if he’s sure about this, and Billy says he is. (I’d like to point out that it was never “his” crystal to begin with, as Aisha specifically gave it to Tanya, but she offered to step away, so I get the gesture.)
Zordon is disappointed to see Billy step down, but agrees that he could be more useful as a permanent figure in what he’s now calling the Power Center. Everyone thanks Billy for all that he’s done, and he points out that in an emergency, he can always assume the Zeo power, which is a nice backup for the Rangers to have.
The alarms alert everyone to the Machine Empire’s first attack on Earth, and the Rangers are given their new morphers, which are called the Zeonizers. They’re activated by putting the two halves together like a lock and key.
The Zeo Crystal breaks back into five pieces, which float over the Rangers, and we’re finally officially given their new colors:
“Katherine, from this moment on you will be known as Zeo Ranger One, Pink. Tanya, you will be known as Zeo Ranger Two, Yellow. Rocky, you are now Zeo Ranger Three, Blue. Adam, the power of Zeo Ranger Four, Green, belongs to you. And finally, Tommy, you will assume the identity of Zeo Ranger Five, Red.”
He continues on to say:
“You will have many new tools at your disposal. These will all be revealed in time. I am very proud of all of you. As Power Rangers, you have served your planet well, but the Power Rangers as you have known them are gone forever. In their place has emerged a new and more advanced fighting force. You have now become the Power Rangers Zeo, the next level in the fight against evil.”
With his father’s permission, Prince Sprocket gives the order to attack Angel Grove, seeking to pick up where Zedd and Rita left off.
Despite the fact that they’re already morphed, the Rangers morph again, and we finally get an actual morphing sequence!!!
They head to a construction site where Cogs are doing some damage, and we get our first shot of the Zeo Rangers all together.
They make quick work of the Cogs as a kick-ass new song screams in the background, and King Mondo takes note that the Earth isn’t quite as defenseless as he’d believed. He looks forward to having a formidable foe to go up against, an attitude we haven’t seen from a lead villain yet.
Bulk and Skull, meanwhile, have turned Rito and Goldar into their servants, having them sweep the garage and fan them while they relax in comfort.
The male Rangers head to the Juice Bar, where we get our first shots of them in their new colors.
Kat and Tanya skip in with the news that Kat’s parents agreed to let Tanya stay with them, continuing the tradition of our lady Rangers living together and confirming that Kat has reconnected with her parents since becoming good again. They’ve also enrolled her in Angel Grove High, which must have super lax admission rules given she’s not a US citizen (unless her explorer parents were conveniently American, which they probably were, knowing this show).
Adam remarks that it’ll be weird not having Billy with them, but he assures him he’ll still be by their side in every way that matters. And with that, they all put their hands in, but don’t shout “POWER RANGERS!” because they’re in a public space.
Power Rangers In Order 