Episode 138- Another Brick In The Wall

Today is apparently the start of Kat being a Very Special Snowflake on the Ranger team. I don't dislike Kat, but this episode starts to show why I never actively sought out her episodes after the first run on tv. It's the first in the migration from team-oriented episodes, or at least attempting to showcase the others in a ranger-specific episode.

We start with Adam and Tommy sparring. Kat comes up with a model home in her hands. It's apparently a model for a restoration project she's taking part in and she designed it herself. It's a very small, modest house, with a HUGE three to four car garage (seriously, two equal sized garage doors and the garage itself is the same size as the entire house). We theorize this project creates houses for people who have been displaced by monster attacks.

Rita is disgusted at how goody-goody Kat has become. Goldar makes some snide comments and Rita defends Rito, saying what a big help he's been and how he's done more for her than Goldar and Zedd combined. Aw, Rita loves her brother! That's sweet.

Back on Earth, Kat has taken lessons from Aisha in How To Run Things. She is wearing a pink hard hat (in the Youth Center) and ordered about thirty people around. Apparently there is nobody to paint, however, and I have to wonder... what is wrong that not one of these thirty people can pick up a paintbrush or roller? Really? That's a lot of people for just landscaping. I won't complain too much. We get some nice shots of Adam and Billy's arms, though the episode is sadly lacking in flexing Rocky.

Anyway, everybody gets to work on this big brick wall and gardening and the place looks great. Kat is going to stay behind to take pictures, but meet up with everybody later. She's not worried about things because she has Bulk and Skull (covered in soap and goodness knows what else, and currently knocked unconscious under a tree, which nobody seems concerned either) to protect her, and I bristle. Don't tease the poor boys. It's cruel.

As soon as everybody leaves, Tengas and Rito show up. They wake up Bulk and Skull and chase them away while destroying as much of the work as possible. Kat fights for awhile but then remembers she has a communicator and calls Zordon. He sends the others in and they fight for a bit. I love the Ninja powers, but I really miss the unmorphed fights. Rito and the Tengas go away as Rita calls down a new monster. She takes a section of the brick wall and turns it into the monster, just another brick in the wall.

They morph and fight, but the brick monster turns first Aisha and Adam, and then Tommy and Rocky into bricks. Kat and Billy are the last ones standing. We can only assume Rocky is not the last one standing because the rangers were not turned into balls this time, unlike... well... all the other times. Kat and Billy collect the bricks and teleport to the Command Center while the monster runs around eating building supplies.

Zordon discovers the rangers are not actually bricks, but rather have been shrunken and encased in bricks. Billy suggests they erode the bricks away to release their teammates and Kat, having learned about erosion in architecture class (not science? In like, second grade? Really?), agrees to help. But alas, the monster is terrorizing Angel Grove and so Billy goes to fight it, leaving Kat to do all the science-y stuff.

Now here's my thing. Billy is the science-guy. Billy is the genius. Billy is the chemist. Shouldn't Billy have been the one to stay and free the others? But no. KAT gets to do it because KAT is super special and knows all about erosion and Kat had a random moment of guilt so she has to absolve herself of... I'm not sure what. She and Alpha manage to use pollution to erode the bricks (OMG they're all going to die of cancer now... what, wouldn't WATER have worked???) and release the other rangers.

But wait! She's too late. Because Billy is a BADASS and manages to defeat the monster ALL ON HIS OWN. He is now on fighting-level-AWESOME with Kim. Go Billy! And... all the others thank Kat profusely and only remember to say "Hey, good job, Buddy" when Kat talks up Billy's awesomeness.

Back at the restoration sight, everybody is standing around waiting on the mayor. Lt. Stone comes up wondering what's taking so long, having sent Bulk and Skull to find out who stole all the building materials (because he didn't believe a monster took them... what, is he new to Angel Grove or something?). Just then, Bulk and Skull come up having restrained a woman in a nice suit carrying a golden shovel. They insist she's the thief even though she says she's the mayor, and Lt. Stone turns about four shades of red in anger because, uh, she actually is the mayor. They release her and apologize while she tells Kat what a great job she did. Kat is handed the useless golden shovel.

And that was a short episode clocking in at only 19 minutes. Wow.

4 fish. The pollution thing? Just flat out ridiculous. And dangerous.