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Power Rangers: Ranking All 28 Seasons

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Power Rangers is a legacy, joining a very small list of shows that run for such a long period of time, over 28 years! Throughout that time, the series has had its ups, its downs, and its mehs. I’ve been watching since the ripe age of 2 and have always loved the series, even in some of its more questionable moments.

But where does each season rank? With so many entries which ones stand as the best of the best of the best or which one and is a super mega dud? After a rewatch of all the seasons I ranked them all from worst to best with a little explanation of why they ended up where they did.

Quick note: I’m not including the “MMPR Reversioning” as a season. It’s just a few Photoshop effects over a smattering of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Season 1 episodes, and it’s nothing to write home about. I’m also rolling the Alien Rangers episodes into Season 3.

So keeping in mind this is just my opinion, let’s get started, shall we?

28. Power Rangers Megaforce

Nothing much happens in Megaforce. The show feels like killing time with endless fights and little characterization for our main team. We’re lucky to get more than two minutes with our Rangers out of suit and even less for the supporting cast.

The only saving grace of the season is the funky fresh, poppin’ and lockin’ Robo Knight who steals the entire show at the expense of everyone else. Megaforce wants to recapture the magic of the first MMPR season but just isn’t given the space to make that possible.

27. Power Rangers Samurai

Samurai is… awkward.

Everything in the show is nearly directly translated from its Japanese source material with little MMPR touches sprinkled throughout that make no sense. The acting is wooden all around, although with the dialogue given it’s hard not to be. “Now what about what I throw at you?!?” Or the infamous, “Wow! He’s so sparkly.”

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At least we have Antonio’s debut episode, which features quite possibly one of the most homoerotic moments in Power Rangers history. After not seeing Jayden for years, Antonio decrees, “Believe it baby, I’m back. And I’m ready for some action.” Before we got Izzy in Dino Fury as our first confirmed queer TV Ranger this was a big deal.

26. Power Rangers Super Samurai

Pretty much copy and paste what I said above, with slight improvements all around and the best episode of both seasons in, ‘The Strange Case of the Munchies.’ The Rangers get a chance to show their comedic sides and Bulk and Spike get real interaction with the team. We also have Lauren, a rare woman Red Ranger in the series who easily shows up the rest of the team and is just the best one in every way.

25. Power Rangers Ninja Steel

Ninja Steel has a lot of interesting ideas that never go anywhere (RIP Galaxy Warriors). There’s an incredible backstory for the Red Ranger, Brody, where he was raised as a slave on an alien ship that’s almost never addressed. There’s an actual country music star on the team and within a few episodes it’s treated as no big deal.

The show messes around with baffling episodes (looking at you, ‘The Ranger Ribbon‘) before rushing its climax with little build-up. At least Victor and Monty are a constant joy.

24. Power Rangers Super Ninja Steel

In the years to come Super Ninja Steel will simply be known as “that one with the 25th anniversary episode“. Super Ninja Steel has little identity. The main plots of Ninja Steel were resolved so this season feels like it’s killing time. The only plotline it truly manages to pull off are Victor’s quest for his 50th trophy.

The start of the season had a few decent episodes (“Tough Love” was a standout, along with “Love Stings“) but by the end we had descended into the still shockingly misfire of “Sheriff Skyfire.”

23. Power Rangers Operation Overdrive

Overdrive is when things just went wrong in the Disney era of the show. The characters didn’t work well, the premise of treasure hunting was hampered by the lack of budget, and the team-up was lackluster.

However, the season contains the episode “Things Not Said,” which is one of the best episodes Power Rangers ever produced. Mack genuinely wrestling with who he is and hating his father for lying to him for long is extremely compelling.

22. Power Rangers Super Megaforce

When Super Megaforce is good? It’s amazing. When it’s bad? It just makes you go, “Why?!” But you know, the fun kind of “Why?!”

It’s the oddest string of choices ever seen in a Power Rangers season, with arbitrary footage usage, questionable continuity nods, and a finale that should be spectacular but ends up falling flat. This sounds like it’s bad and yeah it’s low on the list but there’s just something fun in watching how bizarre it all ends up as.

The bright spot in all this is the sixth ranger, Orion. His debut episode is surprisingly solid and he gets to have some real character moments. With a tragic back-story along with some wacky misunderstandings of Earth, he always brings a smile to my face.

21. Power Rangers Mystic Force

I hope you like the Red Ranger. No really, I REALLY hope you like the Red Ranger, because Nick takes up almost all of the focus of Mystic Force and leaves next to nothing for the rest. Even episodes about other characters somehow become about Nick and his blanket of angst. Which is sad, because there was a lot of potential in the characters and even the side cast (love you, Toby!)

While the season starts off okay, it descends into nonsense by the end with a badly rushed final arc.

20. Power Rangers Dino Super Charge

While this season started off strong (anytime you have James Gaylyn you get a bump in my book) it quickly took a nose dive after Tyler’s dad was introduced. All the forward momentum the season had been building up ground to a halt. Plot arcs stopped dead. The series ran in place until the most baffling finale in the series history.

Even with the weak plots the cast really did shine and Chase unexpectedly emerged as the character with the most development. Plus Tyler and especially Ivan’s lowkey jokes saved some otherwise forgettable episodes.

Dino Super Charge on a whole was a lot of wasted potential, which is a shame when Dino Charge had seemingly set everything up so well.

19. Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Season 2

The start of the season features, “Missing Green” which is one of the few early MMPR episodes to really dive deep into a characters psychology and play with continuity.

But the moment the series loses Jason, Zack, and Trini? It spirals into absurdity. Having to write three Rangers out and bring three new ones in is handled as best they could, but it doesn’t make for good television. “The Ninja Encounter” is a mess and while the season is able to recover by the end, that middle is just plain hard to watch. But it did give us badly dubbed Jason and that truly is a gift.

18: Power Rangers Wild Force

Wild Force is a season that while mostly bland, is bolstered by a few amazing elements. Of course you’ve got the team-ups with Time Force and legendary ‘Forever Red’ but you can’t forget the villains. Master Org, Jindrax, and Toxica. The latter two’s relationship is what really helps keep this season together and Master’s backstory is pretty damn brutal for Power Rangers.

The Rangers though? I mean, I have a lot of love for Danny and Max’s first focus episode, but on a whole the Rangers never left much of an impression and the plots didn’t do anything to help that.

17. Power Rangers SPD

While its premieres is extremely strong, as the season goes on SPD fails to deliver. After the first ten or so episodes, the series loses all of its forward momentum and instead runs in place with characters learning the same lessons over and just being dicks to each other.

Some of this can be put aside when you look at the amount of love put on screen by Executive Producer Greg Aronowitz and the cast’s stellar portrayals. No matter what else you say about the season, it looks amazing.

16. Power Rangers Jungle Fury

There’s one reason this season manages to make it towards the middle of the list and that’s all down to the man, the myth, the possibly high pizza slinger, RJ. Whether it’s his unconventional wisdom, “Tomorrow, today will be… yesterday. I always love to leave my opponents with a confusing thought,” his little hand jives, or the relationship with his father. David de Lautour brings his A game to the role and creates one of the most memorable Rangers ever.

You’ve also got the US exclusive Spirit Rangers and the hilarious way the Rangers shout all of their fight dialogue. The show sadly sags in the middle thanks to the Writers Strike but second-to-last episode ‘Path of the Righteous’ is one of the franchise’s strongest.

15. Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Season 1

You can’t get more classic than Mighty Morphin Power Rangers season 1. There’s a certain charm in the simplicity of what was basically Saved By The Bell with superheroes. Sure you had the “Green With Evil” mini-series that sticks in people’s minds, but you also had comedy masterpieces like, “An Oyster Stew.”

The season was able to leap from the drama of a giant gold monkey nearly killing some bullies (it’s dramatic for Power Rangers, okay?) to a giant pig monster eating everything at a food festival. When you think about that? Season 1 is kind of beautiful. Not to say it’s all-perfect, some episodes like, “The Yolk’s On You” are forgettable, but it’s a fun ride regardless. Just don’t let your nostalgia cloud the fact that the season isn’t perfect.

13/14. Power Rangers Beast Morphers Seasons 1 and 2

Beast Morphers is the rare season(s) which features multi-season team-ups that aren’t wholly defined by them. This says a lot, considering it not only manages to feature team-ups with Jason from MMPR and much of the Dino Charge cast but also goes the extra mile and finally gives us some closure to the RPM cliffhanger finale after eleven years! Any other season would struggle to have its own plot stand out amidst these huge events but Beast Morphers just manages it.

The characters are on the whole fairly good and most of them get several chances to shine, most of all Steel who easily steals the spotlight in most episodes after his debut. There’s also the bonkers ‘It’s Great to be Human’ musical segment, which, after 25 years, proves Power Rangers can still surprise you. The season overall is hurt by not living up to its full potential, with characters like the human Blaze severely underdeveloped and the plot often running in place. Still, there’s a lot to love here it certainly worked as a start to the “Hasbro Era” of the franchise.

12. Power Rangers Lost Galaxy

Lost Galaxy has so many high points. The premiere, the arc actually set in the Lost Galaxy, the in-Space team-up, the Magna Defender’s music, the epic finale, and the return of Karone!

Then it’s got the low points. The Lights of Orion arc is inane and makes no sense, even by Power Rangers standards. How could the Lights be hidden in an ordinary camera?! How was Terra Venture able to scoop up an ACTIVE VOLCANO? When did they hollowed out Angel Grove lake? I still want answers!

11. Power Rangers Lightspeed Rescue

Lightspeed Rescue has solid characters, solid plots, and damn good villains. It’s cliché to mention, but the standout element of the season has to be the first American exclusive Ranger, The Titanium Ranger, played by Rhett Fisher. His storyline is far too brief but culminates in him fighting the manifestation of a snake tattoo that was about to kill him.

Oh Power Rangers, I can never hate you when I get to write sentences like that.

10. Power Rangers Dino Charge

While Dino Charge was breath of fresh air at the time of its airing, in retrospect its hampered by Dino Super Charge not following up on all the groundwork it had been laying. The episodes are still fun but they don’t really go anywhere.

Dino Charge is a very enjoyable watch in spite of all that, with engaging and unique characters that were given fun episodes to work with. The introduction of Ivan was especially well handled and he’s a contender for being my favorite Ranger of all time. Plus, never forget Tyler and his VR Troopers style daddy issues!

9. Power Rangers Dino Fury Season 1

Beast Morphers pulled off some great nods to the past but Dino Fury is the first season in a long time to successfully make it feel like Power Rangers is part of a real shared universe again. From the Morphin Masters showing up in the premiere to backfilling details on the Morphin Grid, Dino Fury has been a true love letter to the franchises continuity.

But a season can’t survive on deep lore alone and Dino Fury has done one hell of a job telling a fun and engaging story with memorable characters. Zayto especially is a constant delight and Izzy made history as the first openly queer Ranger in the TV show’s history (and she’s a wonderful character on top of that!) Stand-alone plots beautifully dovetail with long running arcs and with Season 2 heading for Netflix we can’t wait to see what other wonders Dino Fury has in store for us.

8. Power Rangers Ninja Storm

I admit, I love me some wacky. If I wanted to watch my superheroes be dark and gritty? I wouldn’t be watching superhero stories; I’d be watching Big Little Lies. So when a season like Ninja Storm comes along I consider it a gift because it goes whole hog with the comedy.

We’ve got adrenaline sports junkies as our main cast and while they bring the laughs, they’re also able to deal with the heartfelt moments no problem. The best examples being the introduction of Cam as the Green Samurai Ranger or Dustin being tricked by Marah into believing she’s good. The comedy of the series makes these moments stand out and elevate it far above where fans normally consider the season to rank.

7. Power Rangers Time Force

You know, with a few tweaks this season would have been perfect as one of those other syndicated TV shows that were all over the place in the late ’90s. It’s got all the silly elements but it also has some damn fine storytelling. Wes dealing with his own destiny and Eric’s anger directed squarely at Wes for not appreciating everything handed to him.

The sci-fi elements are strong, with the main villain being a product of genetic engineering, and time travel as the driving force of the season. It’s just a shame Lucas, Katie and Trip never get enough focus.

6. Power Rangers Turbo

Do you hear that? It’s the sound of fans crying in the distance. Look, I get it. Turbo pretty much abandoned all of the world building Zeo did. It introduced Justin who gets way more flack then he really deserves. It even had a theme of race cars.��While I agree it had a VERY rocky start, once Tommy and the gang leave and we are introduced to TJ and company the show takes a quantum leap forward in quality.

Turbo embraces the silly in ways even Ninja Storm never could. It features not only the greatest episode in PR history, “Trouble By The Slice” but… No actually, that’s all I need. That episode says it all. The Rangers fight a pizza monster that turns their cars evil with… EVIL PIZZAS. If only the whole season was like the second half, this would be number one. No doubt. Plus, TJ is the greatest Ranger of all time. No argument.

5. Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Season 3

You’ve got to admire a season that just shatters the status quo left and right while also doing some solid world building. When people remember MMPR being amazing? This is what they should be thinking of.

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers season three starts off with one of the best multi parters in the series history, “A Friend in Need,” setting up the Masked Rider spin-off and opening up the Power Rangers universe to well… the universe. After that we have a ton of mini series that write Kimberly out, bring in Kat, give us a whole new fleet of Zords, and a new team of Rangers!

The season is what turned Power Rangers from “’90s pop-culture relic” into something that could start to gain its own fanbase.

4. Power Rangers RPM

What do you do when your show is on the brink of cancellation? In RPM’s case, you go all out. Set in a post apocalyptic world but still having a good sense of fun (it’s not dark and gritty, I promise) RPM stands out for some of the best character work in the series history.

No more is this exemplified than in Doctor K, the team’s mentor. From being locked up in a government think tank as a young child to dealing with the guilt of ending the world it’s tough stuff. This is balanced out by the wacky antics of Green Ranger, Ziggy, and the pyrotechnic loving Gold and Silver Rangers, Gem and Gemma. At times the series felt like it was trying to shed its Power Rangers identity, but it ends on one of the most PR style endings you could ever have.

3. Power Rangers In Space

MMPR season 3 opened up the show’s universe and In Space explored it, literally. Carrying over most of second half Turbo’s cast, the show was able to hit the ground running with some real weight and gravitas. Oh yeah, and our new Red Ranger doesn’t know how to eat a banana. It’s the little touches that make me love a season.

We even get a team up with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles! The show keeps building on itself with impressive twists and turns. When the secret of Andros’ sister is revealed the show really kicks it into high gear. The only real blemish on the season is the inane Psycho Ranger arc, which has some cool moments but is just killing time. On the whole though, In Space is a triumph for Power Rangers.

2. Power Rangers Zeo

Dubbed Mighty Morphin Power Rangers season 4 by some fans, Zeo really is the culmination of the previous three. It still has wacky plots of the day but it starts to develop these characters we’ve spent so long with and does a ton of genius world building. And you’ve got former villains Zedd and Rita driving around the universe in a camper! Only in Power Rangers.

Zeo also introduces the Gold Ranger, originally voiced to perfection by Brad Hawkins, eventually becoming original MMPR Red Ranger, Jason. The episode where the Gold Ranger debuts is a work of art.

1. Power Rangers Dino Thunder

It’s like if MMPR was actually as good as you remember it being! Dino Thunder takes the series back to high school and gives us not only fantastic characters but ones with real growth over the season. For example, Red Ranger Conner starts off as a sexist asshole but slowly learns to not only treat everyone with respect but also that being a dick to girls doesn’t work. This isn’t just beaten into us through the dialogue; it’s subtly shown in episodes that don’t even focus on Conner. That’s the beauty of Dino Thunder; it’s always doing something with both the main and side characters.

While the show does stumble in a few places (let us never forget Smitty) it’s still the best Power Rangers has to offer. The villains, especially Mesogog, can be genuinely terrifying. The plots still have a lot of wackyness. We even get an episode fully devoted to showing off the original Sentai! Dino Thunder is what all seasons should strive to be. I’m not saying they should be exactly like it, but the time and care put into it? The character work? The fun? This is what Power Rangers should be.

So what do you thin, fans? Do you agree with my list? Disagree? Well let me know in the comments how you would rank all of the seasons of Power Rangers. I know every fan has radically different views of the show so I would love to hear what you think.

This article first ran in 2015. It has been updated with new information since then.

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