The Neverending Top Ten Thread

TOP 10 POWER RANGER EPISODES

Here is a show that has defied expectations by lasting 20 years and 754 episode so far. How does one even choose a top 10 with so many options? Well, I guess it depends on your generation. I grew up with the original series and will always be biased towards it. So keep that in mind, Google Bots and Lurkers. As for the CS! folks, I hope this list is at least amusing.


#10 - LOST AND FOUND IN TRANSLATION
from POWER RANGERS DINO THUNDER
Original Airdate: June 13, 2004
Written by Steve Slavkin
Directed by Britta Johnstone & Koichi Sakamoto



Almost everyone knows that Power Rangers is based on Japan's iconic Super Sentai franchise. Based, however, is a misleading word because Power Rangers relies on stock footage from their Japanese counterpart. So it is more than just an adaptation. It's an Americanization of Super Sentai. That's fine, I guess, because I doubt a dubbed version would have been successful. With the exception of Anime, Japanese television has never been popular in mainstream America. That being said, the producers of Power Rangers eventually felt the need to honor their Japanese partners by breaking the 4th wall and acknowledging Super Sentai in one of the episodes. It's a really cool episode and anyone interested should check it out. All episodes of Power Rangers are available on Netflix's streaming service.


#9 - FIGHTING SPIRIT
from POWER RANGERS DINO THUNDER
Original Airdate: August 28, 2004
Written by Jackie Marchand
Directed by Britta Johnstone & Koichi Sakamoto



In 2004, when I found out that Tommy (Jason David Frank) was returning for an entire season of Power Rangers, I nearly s--t my pants. The producers must have known fans would react that way because they did everything they could to take advantage of their nostalgia. The highlight of the season is when Tommy fights his previous incarnations. It sounds stupid but it's f---ing awesome:






#8 - GOOD AS GOLD
from POWER RANGERS ZEO
Original Airdate: November 23, 1996
Written by Douglas Sloan
Directed by Vickie Bronaugh



This is the final episode of Power Rangers Zeo and they did something different to honor the occasion. Usually, a Power Rangers episode ends with the monster becoming a giant and the Rangers using their MegaZord to fight it. Here they cut the middle man by having the main villains AND the Power Rangers become giants for the climactic battle. It's awesome! Another thing I enjoy is Jason's farewell as a series regular. Next to Tommy, he is my favorite Power Ranger and he left by walking off into the sunset with a beautiful girl under his arm. That's a cool exit.


#7 - GREEN NO MORE, PART II
from MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS
Original Airdate: September 28, 1994
Written by Stewart St. John
Directed by John Stewart



Speaking of cool exits, the Green Ranger went out like a badass. He was a one-man-army that saved the day as his powers were being drained. A lot of credit has to be given to Jason David Frank who made the character very popular because of his skills as a martial artists. But let's also not forget Shiro Izumi, the actor that played Green Ranger in the stock footage. He did an incredible job as well. In fact, he was so admired and respected in Japan that there was an outrage when the Green Ranger was killed. That's right! The Green Ranger died in the Japanese version. Super Sentai is a very silly program but they do have some very dramatic moments and here's one of them:






#6 - FOOD FIGHT
from MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS
Original Airdate: September 4, 1993
Written by Cheryl Saban
Directed by Robert Hughes




Power Rangers is an incredibly campy show and no episode illustrates that better than Food Fight. In the episode, the Power Rangers participate in a food festival at their favorite hangout, the Juice Bar. The villain Rita creates a pig monster that crashes the festival, eats all the food, and then goes on an eating rampage across the city. The Power Rangers, of course, try to stop it and discover that healthy food is the only thing that can kill it. So in the middle of all this silliness they're trying to teach kids a lesson. I don't know if it worked but they did sell a lot of Pudgy Pig action figures, so it must have left some impression.


#5 - LIFE'S A MASQUERADE
from MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS
Original Airdate: October 30, 1993
Written by Cheryl Saban
Directed by Robert Hughes



In season one's Halloween episode, the Power Rangers fight Frankenstein and he kicks their butt. Usually, the monsters they fought were goofy looking and could be easily defeated. But, as I mentioned yesterday with King Kong vs Godzilla, once you have a performer in a flexible costume it allows opportunity to have good fight scenes. In this case, they ended up with a spectacular MegaZord battle scene. Check it out:






#4 & 3 - COUNTDOWN TO DESTRUCTION
from POWER RANGERS IN SPACE
Original Airdates: November 20 & 21, 1998
Written by Judd Lynn and Koichi Sakamoto
Directed by Jonathan Tzachor



Power Rangers has been on the air for 20 years, but originally, it was only supposed to last 6 seasons. Power Rangers in Space was the big finale and they went out with a bang. In the final 2-part episode, every villain ever featured in the series team-up to conquer the universe. It's such an EPIC scenario that the Power Rangers couldn't handle it. The only way they defeated the bad guys was by sacrificing Zordon, their mystical leader that's better known as "The Floating Head in the Tube." Most people consider this the best episode in the series because of its EPIC scale. But as a first-generation fan I'm disappointed the original characters weren't included. It's a fantastic episode but not quite #1 for me.


#2 - GUNG HO!
from MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS
Original Airdate: October 25, 1993
Written by Mark Hoffmeier
Directed by Robert Hughes



The Green Ranger stole the spotlight from the Red Ranger. So it is no surprise that these two hated each other in the beginning. It is always fun to watch heroes bicker with each other. That's why Batman and Superman are always a fun pairing. However, they eventually have to learn to get along in order to save the world. That's what happens here... sort of. What I love about this episode is that nothing major happens. Tommy and Jason are participating in a martial arts competition and the only way they can win is through teamwork. This episode is so down-to-Earth that it's almost relatable.


#1 - GREEN WITH EVIL, PART I
from MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS
Original Airdate: October 5, 1993
Written by Gary Glasberg & Stewart St. John
Directed by Robert Hughes




In late August of 1993, the Power Rangers premiered just in time for the new school year. At first, most people didn't know what to think. With episodes like Food Fight, Power Rangers was perceived to be a strange show, but it had dinosaurs and martial arts so we all watched it. Keep in mind that Jurassic Park and Ninja Turtles were the craze at the time. Then... this happened:




That's only one clip but you get the point. In one single episode the Evil Green Ranger destroys the commander center, gets rid of Zordon, puts a virus on Alpha 5, and single-handling beats up all five Power Rangers. For many of us this was our first "watercooler talk." Everybody, and I mean everybody, was talking about this episode the next day. It's the episode that got us hooked on Power Rangers. When you begin to wonder why Power Rangers has lasted 20 years and 754 episodes, all you have to do is watch Green with Evil.

More pics for my British friend:

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES




DUCKTALES




MICHAEL KEATON BATMAN ACTION FIGURE




FEMINIST ICON




PORN STAR APRIL O'NEIL
AS ORIGINAL TMNT CARTOON APRIL O'NEIL




BATGIRL




LUIGI COSPLAYER

Happy 25th anniversary, Saved by the Bell. Thank you for giving me false hopes when I was in Elementary School. And thank you for giving me an escape from reality when I was in High School. You're an awful, awful show but also one of my favorites. The love-hate is strong.


#10 - EARTHQUAKE
Written by Scott Spencer Gordon
Directed by Don Barnhart
Original Airdate: November 21, 1992



Zack Morris and "Tori the Lesbian" get stuck in an elevator with Mr. Belding's pregnant wife during and after an earthquake. And that's the moment when the woman goes into labor and Zack has to deliver the baby. Life is cruel to Mr. Belding. The student he hates the most is the one he needs the most.


#9 - SLATER'S WAR
Original Airdate: September 28, 1993



This episode from The College Years is mockingly referred to as the one where A.C. Slater discovers that he's Mexican. A.C. Slater starts dating a fellow Mexican student and begins to embrace his Mexican heritage. You see, since The College Years was a primetime show, the writers and producers decided to give the series some seriousness and social awareness. It worked for the most part. And the parts that didn't were unintentionally hilarious. I'll never forget Zack's line, "I thought he was Italian."


#8 - THE LAST WEEKEND
Written by Brett Dewey & Ronald B. Solomon
Directed by Don Barnhart
Original Airdate: October 26, 1991 (seriously)



In season 3, the writers and producers got tired of looking at the same sets everyday so they made 6 episodes at a beach resort, 2 episodes at a luxury hotel, 3 episodes at the mall, the hilariously bad Zack Attack episode, and that weird episode based on the Clue board game and movie. And let's not forget the "Adventures in Hawaii" TV Movie which aired during the beginning of season 4. But of all these outside-of-school episodes, the ones people remember the most are the beach resort ones which feature stand-out performances by Leah Remini and Ernie Sabella. Choosing a favorite is difficult because these episodes aren't stand-alone. They literally play-out like a 6-part episode about the gang getting summer jobs at a beach resort. But since I'm forcing myself to choose one, I guess I'll go with the last one because it perfectly captures that end-of-summer and back-to-reality feeling every teenager gets in August or September when it's time to return to school.


#7 - MISS BAYSIDE
Written by Bennett Tramer (yes, the guy from John Carpenter's Halloween)
Directed by Don Barnhart
Original Airdate: October 27, 1990



Feminist Jessie Spano protests the annual High School beauty pageant and forces Mr. Belding into letting Screech and A.C. Slater join. Then, Zack Morris bets Slater that Screech will win... and he does. Just look at Screech's face. He has never been happier.


#6 - SLATER'S FRIEND
Written by Larry Balmagia & Scott Spencer Gordon
Directed by Don Barnhart
Original Airdate: November 28, 1992

NOTE: This episode was made during season 1 but aired as the 100th episode during season 4. In the early days, NBC got nervous about some of the wackier episodes and didn't air them. One of the reasons behind the "middle school episodes" was to fill in the cap. Then in season 4, with syndication on the horizon, NBC decided to air all the "banned" episodes so they can sweeten the deal. And thankfully, the proper episode order was restored in syndication for future generations.



And yes, this is the episode where A.C. Slater dresses up as a f---ing lizard. Basically - and I'm not making this up - the episode is about Slater's pet lizard getting accidentally killed by Zack Morris and then having a funeral for him. The song, "Artie Boy," will be in my memory banks forever.


#5 - PRACTICAL JOKES
Written by Howard Ostroff
Directed by Gary Shimokawa
Original Airdate: February 25, 1989



Before Saved by the Bell, there was Good Morning, Miss Bliss. They are different shows made by the same people and about the same characters. And that gave NBC the opportunity to turn both shows into one by incorporating Miss Bliss into Saved by the Bell as the Middle School episodes, even though there's a million continuity errors. It's like that episode of Star Trek where they turned the original pilot into a 2-part episode about Spock on trial for breaking Starfleet law. Anyway, Miss Bliss is very different from Saved by the Bell. It relies more on realism and school-life than teenage hijinks. Of the 13 episodes produced between 1988 and 89, the one that best illustrates that is Practical Jokes. This episode is about Screech being accused of ruining Miss Bliss' sweater during a prank. But instead of sending him to the Principal's office and calling his parents, Miss Bliss decides to turn the whole incident into a mock court trial with Zack Morris as Screech's lawyer. And yes, it plays out exactly like an episode of Franklin & Bash which you can watch every Wednesday on TNT.


#4 - CREAM FOR A DAY
Written by Scott Spencer Gordon
Directed by Don Barnhart
Original Airdate: October 7, 1989



Screech makes a cream that can eliminate zits in a day and Zack Morris sells it to every student at school. And as you can imagine, there's a big side-effect and hilarity ensues.


#3 - SCREECH'S BIRTHDAY
Written by Stephen Langford
Directed by Don Barnhart
Original Airdate: November 14, 1992



Here's another season 1 episode that didn't air until season 4. This one isn't as stupid as the lizard one but it's just as crazy. Zack Morris gets the wild idea of having Screech's birthday in Mr. Belding's office and spends the entire school day trying to pull it off. On second thought, it's just as stupid, but you go with it cause it's so damn funny. Plus, Kevin the Robot makes a guest appearance. You can't hate any episode with Kevin the Robot. Oh, and Mr. Dewey. He's awesome too.


#2 - JESSIE'S SONG
Written by Peter Engel & Tom Tenowich
Directed by Don Barnhart
Original Airdate: November 3, 1990





#1 - THE ZACK TAPES
Written by Peter Engel & Tom Tenowich
Directed by Don Barnhart
Original Airdate: December 2, 1989



I know what you're thinking, "blasphemy! Jessie's Song is #1." But hear me out. This is the episode where Zack Morris uses subliminal tapes to get Kelly KaPOWski to go out with him and then accidentally makes the whole school fall in love with him. This is the episode where A.C. Slater says to people, "he's going to the dance with me!" This is the episode where Screech dresses up as a girl and calls himself Barbara Bush. Come on. You know this is #1. Or maybe it's the one where they do a hip-hop version of Snow White. I don't know. I flipped a coin.

Good God you did an actual top 10 on Friends.

#10 - F.I.S.T. (1978)



Grade: 11th
Class: American History
Lesson: Sylvester Stallone was robbed at the Oscars.

The hardest I ever laughed in 11th grade History class was watching Sylvester Stallone's F.I.S.T. in a room filled with immature teenagers. We all know that Stallone has some sort of vocal disability. It's his trademark and limits the type of roles he plays. But after the success of Rocky in 1976, Hollywood decided to give Stallone a chance and cast him as a Jimmy Hoffa rip-off in a movie about labor unions. To hear Stallone give speeches and curse people out is so unintentionally hilarious that teachers in other classrooms had to tell us to stop laughing so loud. There is one scene in particular that I'll never forget. Stallone is arguing with someone and you can't understand a single word he's saying. It literally sounds like he's just making noises with his mouth. Think of Stallone's rant in First Blood and imagine it a million times worse. That's how incoherent it is.


#9 - RETURN OF THE JEDI (1983)



Grade: 3rd or 4th
Class: After School Activity Club
Lesson: George Lucas is destined for greatness.

I was born too late to witness Star Wars at the theaters and my family is from the Caribbean so I never had a predisposition to be a fan of the franchise. In fact, my entire knowledge of Star Wars for most of my childhood was that episode of Muppet Babies where they spoofed the first movie. Then in 3rd or 4th grade, during a rainy day, I watched Return of the Jedi in my school's afternoon activity room and that became my introduction to the Star Wars trilogy. At the time - I'm not gonna lie - I thought it was a Jim Henson movie and that says everything you need to know about Return of the Jedi. Speaking of Jim Henson...


#8 - LABYRINTH (1986)



Grade: 3rd or 4th
Class: After School Activity Club
Lesson: Jennifer Connelly's hotness distracts from David Bowie's bulge.

Those damn rainy days in Elementary School where I couldn't play Kickball in the afternoon activity club were a mixed blessings. Sometimes I had to do homework, other times I got to play Sega Genesis and then there was those days where a teacher brought in a cool movie to watch. And on one particular rainy day, I watched Jim Henson's and George Lucas' Labyrinth for the first time. It's like a Muppet movie but much darker, and since I grew up on Tim Burton and 80's horror movies, this was up my alley.


#7 - CHARLOTTE'S WEB (1973)



Grade: 3rd or 4th
Class: After School Activity Club
Lesson: Don't eat talking animals.

I haven't watched Charlotte's Web since childhood, so I can't tell you if it's actually good or not, but I loved it as a kid. I thought it was funny, charming and a bit of a tearjerker. It also opened my mind to the thought of animal cruelty and vegetarianism. Some conservatives might attack the movie as liberal propaganda, but I don't think it actually affected anyone. I'm still an animal eater. But at least it gave me something to think about.


#6 - CLASH OF THE TITANS (1981)



Grade: 7th
Class: English
Lesson: Public breastfeeding and nude walks on the beach.

Earlier in this thread, I was joking about seeing breasts at school, but the first time I ever saw a naked woman in a classroom was in 7th grade English when the teacher made us watch Clash of the Titans. I had already seen the movie on TNT, they aired it a lot in the 90's, but it was obviously censored so this was the first time I really watched Clash of the Titans.


#5 - O (2001)



Grade: 12th
Class: English
Lesson: Julia Stiles prefers Black guys.

I remember in High School watching the trailer for O and sarcastically thinking, "oh great, another contemporary Shakespeare movie starring Julia Stiles." Then Senior year rolls around and guess which Othello movie my "hip" English teacher wants to show us? O! I remember thinking, "the movie is called O. O! It's gonna be horrible. I just know it." Then, to my surprise, the movie is f---ing good. Now before you start judging, I haven't seen the movie since Senior year so it's possible that the movie DOES suck, but as a 17-year-old, I thought it was really good.


#4 - THE MACHINIST (2004)



Grade: College
Class: Film Analyzes & Critique
Lesson: Christian Bale is awesome!

I got into a lot of "dark" movies in college. Memento. One Hour Photo. Those creepy Asian horror movies. So I was delighted when one of my professors screened - yes, screened - The Machinist for his students to dissect. I was already a HUGE Christian Bale fan thanks to the Internet's obsession with American Psycho and Equilibrium, so I was thrilled to watch The Machinist which was getting lots of press for Bale's crazy weight loss. Anyway, the movie is awesome and I had lots of fun discussing the movie with classmates and then writing a college paper on it.


#3 - SYBIL (1976)



Grade: 12th
Class: Psychology
Lesson: The Amazing Spider-Man is all in Aunt May's head.

Watching Sybil in a Psychology class is the equivalent of watching Amadeus in Music or Schindler's List in history. And I think the experience is exactly the same. When the movie is over, you end up quoting Marty McFly by saying, "woah, Doc. That's heavy!" But unlike Amadeus and Schindler's List, which are among my favorite movies, I haven't watched Sybil since High School so I can't say if it's actually good or not. But considering this was the same year I thought O was a good movie, my opinion can't be trusted.


#2 - ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEXT (1975)



Grade: 12th
Class: Psychology
Lesson: Jack Nicholson wins an Oscar for playing himself.

The movie that beat Jaws at the Academy Awards is basically an unrealistically and bulls--t portrayal of mental institutes. Yes, there has been some frightening mental asylums in American history but those are the minorities. Regardless... there's enough great acting and compelling storytelling to make this a very entertaining movie to watch. Sorry, Doomsday.


#1 - A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE (1951)



Grade: 11th
Class: English
Lesson: STELLA!!!!!!!!!!

Like everyone my age, my introduction to Marlon Brando was in Richard Donner's Superman. But when I was 11-years-old, I watched The Godfather for the first time and finally acknowledged his great talent. And no, I'm not exaggerating. I was 11 and I even checked out Mario Puzo's novel from my local library. And this was before I had the Internet, so I also checked out a book about Marlon Brando so I could learn about him. Can you imagine that? Using books to educate yourself? The 1990's were ancient times, my friend. So using this book - I'm so f---ing old - I learned his filmography and was able to watch The Wild One, On the Waterfront and Last Tango in Paris. I stopped there because this was a time before Netflix and streaming services, so watching movies depended entirely on what was available on television and whatever your parents allowed you to rent from Blockbuster. Plus, there was SO MANY other movies I wanted to watch too. I was like PG Cooper and his journey to watch "classical" movies. So when Junior year of High School rolled around and my English teacher showed us A Streetcar Named Desire after we read Tennessee Williams play, I was excited because this was my opportunity to catch up on Marlon Brando movies. But I very quickly realized that this is actually Vivien Leigh's movie. Marlon Brando delivered a great performance but Vivien Leigh stole the spotlight which is very impressive considering she comes from the 1930's style of Hollywood acting. But from what I've read, she pretty much played herself. LOL.

Top 25? I'd be lucky to put together a Top 10.

Sadly, I never watched any Lethal Weapon movie in school. But my uncle, who went to High School in the late '80s and early '90s, says it was common for teachers to show Lethal Weapon, Die Hard, Aliens, Predator and Terminator during lazy days. He says that back then schools and parents weren't uptight about R-rated movies. And there is some truth to that. I was a kid during the 90's and I would watch movies like Robocop and Scarface and my mother wouldn't even blink. We were the last unsheltered generation.

NE, what's your top 10 for Arnold movies?

I'd replace Jingle All The Way with Kindergarten Cop.

Total Recall would be higher for me.