For as unapologetically cheesy as Mighty Morphin Power Rangers could be, the hit ’90s TV series has left a bittersweet legacy, one that’s the first proper trailer for Netflix’s reunion special Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once and for all is completely in it. It’s time to get dressed and do all the moves, but maybe cry a little too.
This is one of the surprising things about the trailer’s plot, which is kind of silly at first glance. Original villain Rita Repulsa is back in a robot body with a dastardly plan to go back in time and take out the Power Rangers before they become Rangers, so Billy (David Yost) and Zack (Walter Emanuel Jones), the original Blue and Black Rangers, reuniting with the Red and Pink Rangers from the second era of Mighty MorphineRocky (Steve Cardenas) and Kat (Catherine Sutherland) to stop her.
With this setup Once and always eventually becomes a reminder of what was lost along the way as the new character introduced in the trailer, Minh (Charlie Kersh) is revealed to be the daughter of Trini, the Yellow Ranger (late Thuy Trang) who was killed by Rita. While unexplained in the trailer, footage of the Green Ranger also suggests there may be some form of tribute to the late Jason David Frank, who died by suicide last year.
Most of all, the trailer looks serious – something a niche franchise like Power Rangers, which at times had a less-than-shiny history, deserves in a 30th anniversary special.
You can catch Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once and for all on Netflix when it premieres on April 19.