I recently watched the new Power Rangers movie and loved it. I mean, I really loved it. I haven’t been this obsessed with a movie since I first watched Eddie and the Cruisers. I will admit that I have never seen the old TV show and I went into the movie with absolutely no expectations. Seeing as how I was blown away, though, I decided to create an ultimate ranking of the new Power Rangers, starting with the coolest and ending with the least. It is important to note that this is my opinion and I thought they were all awesome, but they can’t all be listed first.
1. Billy Cranston (The Blue Ranger)
Billy Cranston, or the Blue Ranger, is played by RJ Cyler and is by far the best Power Ranger. Not only is Billy an awesome teenage-superhero, he is an awesome autistic teenage-superhero, which brings representation to the big screen. Billy’s autism isn’t something the movie focuses on heavily, choosing to portray it as it is – a part of everyday life. Plus, Billy is hilarious and the heart of the Power Rangers.
2. Trini Kwan (The Yellow Ranger)
Trini Kwan is the Yellow Ranger and is played by the singer Becky G. Trini also brings representation to the big screen by being part of the LGBTQ+ community. So, not only is she an awesome teenage-superhero, she’s queer as well. The movie handled this as realistically as they handled Cranston’s autism, choosing to opt out of the Huge-Realization-and-Immediate-Admission trope and instead have Trini talk about figuring out her identity only briefly. Trini’s sexuality and Billy’s autism aren’t brought up again in the movie after the initial discussion, which makes sense considering the teens are focused on saving the world and not mulling over these small parts of their everyday lives.
3. Zack Taylor (The Black Ranger)
Zack Taylor, the Black Ranger, is portrayed by actor Ludi Lin. My friend describes Zack as, “crunchy on the outside, chewy on the inside.” Gross metaphor, but accurate. Zack seems like a tough and adventurous guy, which he is, but he is also a very caring friend and son. Zack’s familial story is, again, representative of many teenagers’, complete with a sick mother and absent father. The representation shown by Zack is not as ground-breaking as Billy’s or Trini’s, yet is more interesting than that of Jason and Kimberly, landing Zack a spot right in the middle of the list.
4. Jason Scott (The Red Ranger)
Jason Scott is the Red Ranger, the leader, the token straight, white male. He is played by the actor Dacre Montgomery and he looks remarkably like Zac Efron in his Troy Bolton’s days throughout the movie (once even wearing a white shirt with red sleeves). Jason is the first Ranger that the audience meets and he is, as the leader of the Power Rangers, the motivator and the one who brings together the team. Overall, Jason is a good character, but his character is one that we have all seen a thousand times before.
5. Kimberly Hart (The Pink Ranger)
Kimberly Hart is the Pink Ranger and is portrayed by Naomi Scott. Kimberly is the second Ranger that the audience sees and is the typical popular girl having boyfriend and friend trouble. Like Jason, Kimberly is a good character but nothing new to the movie scene. The most remarkable aspect is the fact that the audience does not see her and Jason develop romantically.
Overall, the new Power Rangers movie was amazing and the characters provide representation to many walks of life, while managing to be normal teenagers who just happen to save the world. I highly recommend that everyone watch this movie.
