Episode 93 - Lights, Camera, Action

I've got a stomach virus or something, so I am at home with a lot of soup, but that doesn't stop me from recapping this completely ridiculous episode. There are so many questions that can only be answered by saying that the fish did it. Although I still encourage people to write fic.

So, the episode opens with Aisha giving a report on tv. I still want to know what class it is, since I'm assuming it's the same class that Adam did his report on kaleidoscopes. But besides pondering what class it is, we're both instantly struck with the need to all caps at each other about how OLD we are, because Aisha pulls out a VHS tape to show some footage about TV. Seriously, we are SO OLD.

Aisha finishes up her report, and Ms. Applebee asks the class if they know who the father of television is, and Bulk answers Captain Kangaroo. Seriously? Apparently Captain Kangaroo ended in 1993, but... would Bulk and Skull really have been watching? I'm 25 and I barely know who Captain Kangaroo is. Ms. Applebee basically calls Bulk an idiot, and Adam correctly answers the question.

This somehow leads into Ms. Applebee telling them about their homework - the Power Rangers are going to be on TV that night on a nationwide broadcast (Angel Grove is so its own country) promoting education, since they are apparently worldwide ambassadors of education. Everyone in class needs to watch the broadcast and then write a report on it. I have a few suggestions on things they could talk about - the need for some new teachers at Angel Grove High and replacing the curriculum with something that accurately reflects a high school being pretty high up there on the list.

But I keep getting distracted by the actual logistics of this. How was this arranged? Did the newsguy catch them after one of their fights and ask if they would be willing to be on TV? Did they just teleport into the studio and declare themselves proponents of education and say they wanted to be on primetime? Was there a giant press conference where the United Nations declared them worldwide ambassadors of education? These are the things that I think about! Also, I desperately want to read the Rangers' reports about themselves. I'm sure that Tommy's is all about how great the White Ranger is.

Out in the hall, Adam is all freaking out because he doesn't like cameras. He really doesn't want to be on tv! Rocky tries to tell him it will be okay, possibly because he's hoping to make a video of his own later. Billy gets all touchy feely with Adam, and they point out they'll still have their masks on (possibly in the video that Adam and Rocky make also)

Anyway, Zedd is all "Hmm, the Power Brats will be on TV? I should take advantage of this by kidnapping them and replacing them with Evil!Rangers who will spread my message of hate!" That is... actually not a bad plan! Although I'm fairly sure if Zedd showed up at a TV station and demanded that they hold a press conference, they would let him.

So, sometime before the broadcast the Rangers are wandering along the beach when Goldar and some putties show up. Adam is all "crap, Goldar!" because he is clearly terrified that Goldar will take him to Scorpina (or, you know, steal his self-esteem.) So they morph, and there's a fight, and the Rangers win, and Zedd is all "Well, Goldar screwed up, so no evil twins today!" Instead, he makes a camera monster.

At the Harvey Garvey show (yes, that is actually the name) the host is wearing the most ridiculously early 90s outfit, words will not do it justice. Also, the guy is pretty sleazy. The audience is all "We want the Power Rangers!" and I'm just hoping a riot doesn't break out. So the Power Rangers all come out, and there's a lot of martial arts and some ridiculous pyrotechnics, and then the host goes straight to commercial. Oh, and Bulk and Skull have a plan that will try and expose the Rangers identities on live television. This will obviously fail, and Bulk will get hit in the head a lot, and I'm not going to even bother to mention it again.

Harvey Garvey asks the Rangers if education has helped them. The answer is clearly not, since they go to Angel Grove. Also, the guy is making it sound like they're already out of school (of course, nobody suspects that it's a bunch of high school kids) and the Rangers encourage this, talking about how all of the monsters have a weakness, and they have to use their heads to figure it out. I'm sure that Tommy has a very hard head.

Also, Rocky is pretty much sitting on Adam and Aisha, and this is very important.

Anyway, Kimberly and Billy talk about the Pudgy Pig and we're all happy to see the old footage. Pudgy Pig is awesome!

The next question has absolutely nothing to do with education, and instead Harvey Garvey asks about how they do all those kicks, so Aisha and Rocky give him an impromptu lesson. (Points for involving Aisha in this, since they would usually do Tommy and Adam.) Of course, Harvey Garvey falls.

The next question is directed at Tommy, asking what happened to the Green Ranger. Which brings me to another question - how DO they explain these things? Do people just assume that the Green Ranger died? But Tommy is saved from having to answer this, because Zordon has noticed that Zedd sent down a monster. Alpha initially doesn't want to contact the Rangers, since they are on TV, but saving the world is more important. Tommy answers his communicator on the air, and then the group teleports out, just as Bulk stumbles onto the set to try and pull off their helmets.

The only notable thing about the conversation in the Command Center is that Tommy says "lights, camera, we're morphin into action." What the fuck.

Anyway, there's a fight, Zords are summoned,you know the drill. It was pretty boring.

The next day, Ms. Applebee is asking students about the broadcast. One guy (who appears to have a mullet) says that since the Rangers think education is cool, he does too. If the Rangers all jumped off a bridge, I bet he would. Then Ms. Applebee asks Rocky what he thought, and Rocky smirks and says that the Rangers reached out and touched him. I'm sure that Adam did all night long. :D

Ms. Applebee says that they really touched her (although hopefully not in the same way) and that they touched people all over the world. Really, I thought this was only a nationwide broadcast? Okay. And apparently Zack, Trini and Jason were all watching, since they faxed the school to say how great it was. I'm surprised that Torchwood let them contact everyone, and also amazed that they didn't directly contact the other Rangers. I guess they are all sad they weren't invited.

Bulk and Skull show up late, expecting to be treated like stars since they crashed the broadcast. Instead, they get more detention.

Fish: FIVE. The fish clearly arranged everything

Covered in: Bulk gets hit by a bunch of stuff. Apparently we're backsliding.

Billy speak: If there was any, we were too distracted by the fish to notice.