Warning: The following contains spoilers for the Netflix special Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once & Always.Netflix reunites most of the original Mighty Morphin Power Rangers team in their 30th anniversary special Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once & Always, and it does it with a lot of references to the franchise. Mighty Morphin Power Rangers premiered in August of 1993 with a cast that featured five teenagers chosen to fight a sorceress from another planet. For the first several seasons of the franchise, most of the main cast remained intact until new seasons meant whole new casts and whole new themes, beginning with Power Rangers Lightspeed Rescue.
In the 30th anniversary special, Power Rangers Billy (David Yost), Zack (Walter Emmanuel Jones), Rocky (Steve Cardenas), and Kat (Catherine Sutherland) reunite to stop a robotic version of an old enemy from capturing fellow Rangers. They do it with Minh Kwan (Charlie Kersh), daughter of the original Yellow Power Ranger Trini, finding out the truth about her mom and her mom’s best friends. The special might focus on the adult lives of the Power Rangers, but it has a lot of callbacks to their teen years in the ‘90s.
The Masked Power Ranger Voices
Kimberly (Amy Jo Johnson), Tommy (Jason David Frank), and Jason (Austin St. John) don’t physically appear in the special, though the Power Rangers they’ve played in the franchise do appear masked and in the initial fight, captured by Rita Repulsa (Barbara Goodson). The sounds that the audience can hear of their fighting - though they don’t actually speak - are audio pulled from the original series.
The same is true for Trini when she calls out “Billy” and dives in front of him. That’s audio that was used when Trini would witness Billy in danger from one of Rita’s monsters in the show’s original run.
The Radbug 2
The flying car that Billy has might be a new model, but it’s not a new idea. It’s the newer version of his Volkswagen Beetle convertible that he had in the original series. Billy frequently experimented on the car, including finding a way to make it fly, just like the one in the special. Trini often helped him with his experiments in the original series.
Snizzard And Mighty Minotaur
Fans will certainly remember that Rita Repulsa is the original villain of the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers series. Snizzard and Mighty Minotaur are also both from the first season of the show and get a robotic upgrade here.
Mighty Minotaur first appeared in the Season 1 episode “Teamwork” in which Kimberly and Trini try to organize a neighborhood cleanup, and Snizzard first appeared in the episode “Foul Play In The Sky” in which Kimberly ends up having to fly her uncle’s plane after it is attacked. In his original appearance, Snizzard was actually voiced by Bryan Cranston, who inspired Billy's last name, and who returned for Lionsgate's 2017 Power Rangers movie as Zordon.
Minh’s Training Moves
When the audience first sees Minh begin her training, her moves are reminiscent of Trini’s in the original series. That’s because Trini spends a long time perfecting the Praying Mantis style of Kung Fu, learned from her family, and passes that style down to Minh in her teachings. There’s even an entire episode devoted to Trini learning it and having to fight a Praying Mantis monster on her own. Rita mentions the style when she first fights Minh.
Zack Raises Minh
Of all the Power Rangers that could have raised Minh after Trini’s death, it’s Zack who stays with her. That might seem like an unusual choice for the audience since Zack and Trini didn’t seem closer than the other Rangers, but it works as an interesting Easter egg - intentional or not.
Zack, Trini, and Jason all left the show at the same time as part of a Teen Peace Conference, so the three did have the chance to bond outside the group. In real life, the three actors left because they wanted to be part of the actor’s union and increase their pay wages, but the executives behind the show kept the series non-union.
In an alternate comic book timeline, when Kimberly meets up with Trini and Zack after they all have given up their power coins to new team members, Trini and Zack have been traveling and teaching martial arts together in South America. They’re also dating at the time. The choice for Zack to raise Minh could be a nod to that.
Another great Zack detail is that after Jason and Tommy are both captured and out of commission, it’s Zack who originally leads the team morphing calls because he’s the next highest-ranking team member. He was always Jason’s backup among the original five.
Zordon And The Z Wave
Rita’s evil essence is able to return in a robotic form because Billy tries to reconstitute particles from the “Z Wave.” fans of the Zordon Era might remember that as the wave of good produced when Zordon sacrificed himself in the Power Rangers In Space series. He allowed Andros (Christopher Kyhman Lee) to destroy his containment so that the energy from his death would purge the evil from the enemies of the Power Rangers all across the galaxy. Rita is one of those enemies.
“After All These Years, I’m Free.”
Rita makes this statement when her energy is able to transform Alpha-8 into her new robotic form. It’s a riff on her emerging from her space dumpster prison in the original Power Rangers series, a moment that is later seen in the 30th-anniversary special when she attempts to open a time portal.
Harvey Garvey
When the Rangers are interrupted while visiting Trini’s grave on the anniversary of her death, the Minotaur breaks through a headstone in the cemetery. That headstone is for Harvey Garvey, and he apparently died in 2022, just like Trini did. That character might be memorable for Mighty Morphin Power Rangers fans.
The character was a talk show host in the original series who offered the Power Rangers their first chance to appear for an interview on live television - and they didn’t have to reveal their identities. Harvey was played by voice actor Kim Strauss, who also provided voices for several of the monsters and allies of the Rangers over the years.
Bandora Protocol
Not only is Rita’s palace on the moon named the Bandora Palace, but the Rangers also enact Bandora Protocol to contact all the Power Rangers in the world, and to have Kat and Rocky teleport in to help their old teammates. Rita is based on the Witch Bandora from the Sentai series that provided footage for the original Mighty Morphin Power Rangers.
Fans will glimpse on the computer screen just which locations are reached out to because of the Bandora Protocol. Those include Reefside, Turtle Cove, the Astro Megaship, Terra Venture, and Osaka. While the Astro Megaship was home to the In Space Rangers and the Terra Venture was the colony for the Lost Galaxy Rangers, Reefside, Osaka, and Turtle Cover are on Earth. Reefside is where the Dino Thunder Rangers work. Turtle Cove is home to the Wild Force Rangers. Osaka is home to the Dino Fury Rangers.
Once A Ranger, Always A Ranger
When Rocky and Kat show up to help the team free the captured Rangers, they are both given secondary power coins to access the Mighty Morphin powers of the Morphing Grid. While they’re both warned of the danger, they both decide the danger doesn’t matter because, “Once a Ranger, always a Ranger.”
That phrase has become the motto of every team-up in the Power Rangers franchise and fuels the idea of bringing back past Rangers for guest appearances. It also appears in the credits of the special to honor Thuy Trang and Jason David Frank, but it actually has its roots in another Power Rangers special. It’s the title of an episode in which Power Rangers from five different teams are brought together under the leadership of Adam Park (Johnny Yong Bosch) to help a new team of Rangers. It’s been used ever since and even provides the inspiration for the name of this special.
“Too Much Pink Energy.”
Kat makes the comment that she doesn’t care if there is too much Pink Ranger energy when she grabs the power coin because she feels like it's her responsibility to help save Kimberly, Jason, and Tommy. Tommy, after all, is her husband in this timeline, and Kimberly is the person who chose her to become the Pink Ranger. The idea of too much Pink energy originates in the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers series though.
Zordon warns of the possibility when Kimberly goes back to the past and recruits the ancestors of her teammates to help her fight in Angel Grove’s version of the wild west. Kimberly is also warned about it when Kat has her power coin (and is under Rita Repulsa’s control) because her connection to the Morphin Grid is literally being drained from her. Just what happens if two Pink Rangers operate at the same time has never been fully explained though.
Interestingly enough, the special marks Kat's first time as a Pink Ranger using the Pterodactyl-based powers. When Kat first became a Power Ranger, Kimberly was calling on the spirit of the Pink Crane and was no longer using the Pterodactyl.
JJ Oliver
Kat mentions her son JJ is at a karate tournament when she first reunites with the other Rangers. It’s later in the episode that she confirms JJ is the son of Tommy as well. The name has been used in previous appearances by Kat in the Power Rangers franchise, but the character was actually introduced as a Power Ranger in the comic books from Boom Studios. In the comic book story “Soul Of The Dragon,” JJ has become a Power Ranger, just like his parents 20 years after the events of the Power Rangers Dino Thunder series. He becomes a member of SPD and a Green Ranger.
Bulk And Skull
Bulk And Skull were mainstays of the Zordon Era of the Power Rangers franchise, starting their roles as high school bullies in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers and growing up through Power Rangers Lost Galaxy. They’ve even made guest appearances in later series. For the special, however, they only appear in Easter egg form.
A billboard advertises their “bulk food” company. They were often seen creating unique sandwiches in the original series which they never got to eat, and Bulk even had a restaurant in the Power Rangers team up “Forever Red.”
The SPA And The Troobian Empire
When Aisha (Karan Ashley) and Adam respond to the Bandora Protocol alert, they’re too far away to teleport in to help because they’re on a ship somewhere in space. They’re also wearing new uniforms with the logo of an organization called SPA. That abbreviation is never explained, but fans can likely call it Space Patrol Alpha.
Fans can figure out that Easter egg because the two make mention of tracking the Troobian Empire. The Troobian Empire is the main antagonist of Power Rangers SPD. That team is Space Patrol Delta, one of the factions of law enforcement Power Rangers that help to protect the entire galaxy. “Delta” is just the designation for Earth. It stands to reason that Adam and Aisha are part of the “Alpha” group that travels to further reaches of space.
BuzzBlast
When the Putties make trouble all over the world, news footage is shown of them in Angel Grove. That footage comes courtesy of a reporter working for BuzzBlast. BuzzBlast is the media company multiple characters apply for jobs with in the Netflix series Power Rangers Dino Fury.
Hip-Hop Kido
Zack’s signature fighting style in the original Power Rangers series is a martial arts style that he’s created. Zack combines his love for dance with his martial arts skills, dancing into offensive moves. He uses some of those moves when he and Rocky end up at Angel Grove’s Gym and Juice Bar to rescue Minh from Putties.
The Juice Bar
Ange Grove’s Gym and Juice Bar is a regular hangout spot for the first few seasons of the Power Rangers franchise. The Mighty Morphin, Zeo, and Turbo seasons are largely made up of the same cast members and all of them hung out there after school. Though the location became a new business in Power Rangers In Space, it’s become the Gym and Juice Bar again at some point between that series and the anniversary special. The design, though it’s clearly a new set, is nearly the same.
Eagle-eyed fans will also spot several pictures on the wall featuring images from the original series. One of them features original Green Ranger Tommy and Red Ranger Jason from one of their karate tournaments.
Rita Repulsa Captures Other Power Rangers
Though the special focuses on those team members of the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, they aren’t technically the only Power Rangers that appear. When the team heads to Rita Repulsa’s moon palace to rescue the captured Rangers, there are members of other teams hooked up to her machinery. Those Power Rangers include members of the Zeo, Wild Force, Lost Galaxy, In Space, Dino Thunder, and Beast Morphers teams.
“Together, They Are More.”
Rita Repulsa remarks at one point that “together, they are more,” in reference to the power provided by the captured Power Rangers for her time portal device. That particular phrase might sound familiar to Power Rangers fans. It was the phrase used to advertise the 2017 Power Rangers movie produced by Lionsgate starring Dacre Montgomery, Naomi Scott, Becky G, RJ Cyler, and Ludi Lin.
Cestria And Aquitar
When Adam and Aisha take Rocky and Kat with them back to their spaceship where the other Power Rangers are healing, they have some parting words for Billy. They tell him that they’re heading to Aquitar next, and encourage him to join them for their journey. He doesn’t, but Adam still mentions Cestria.
The Alien Rangers of Aquitar actually came to Earth and helped the Power Rangers when they were turned into children for a while at the end of the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers series. In Power Rangers Zeo, Billy traveled to Aquitar and left the series completely, meeting an Aquitian named Cestria who helped to heal him when he was aging too quickly.
Mirinoi
Aisha and Adam also mention they have a visit planned to Mirinoi. That is also another planet. That planet, however, is from the Power Rangers Lost Galaxy series. That’s where Yellow Lost Galaxy Ranger Maya (Cerina Vincent) is from, and where the Quasar Sabers were encased in stone for the team to use.
A Mighty Morphin Title Sequence
While the opening of the special doesn’t have a title sequence, one does play before the credits role. It’s in the style of the original Mighty Morphin Power Rangers series, complete with old and new morphing footage, and with Charlie Kersh in the role of the Yellow Ranger. It even utilizes the original theme song, whose instrumental version is played earlier in the special.
The Power Rangers Special Is Dedicated To Fallen Rangers
The end of the special also features footage from the original Mighty Morphin Power Rangers series of Kimberly and Zack singing a song about friendship. The song was written for the series and the original is used in the Season 2 episode “The Song Of Guitardo.” In the show, the duo writes and performs it for Tommy when they all believe that he’s going to have to leave the team as the Green Ranger powers are failing. Here, it’s used to dedicate the special to the real-life fallen Rangers.
Thuy Trang died from injuries sustained during a car accident in 2001. Jason David Frank died by suicide in 2022. Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once & Always is dedicated to both of them.