Power Rangers Fever

By: JD Hardin

It’s happening again. Just like two decades ago, Power Rangers fever is sweeping the nation, and The Nerdery has it. And, just like twenty years ago the toys are going to lead the way. Once again, resembling it’s original debut and the Power Rangers themselves, these toys are more than meets the eye.

Let’s start with the Putty. Now this guy doesn’t exactly look like he’s made of clay like in the original MMPR, but he looks far more terrifying. While details on the figure are sketchy, it looks like he will have some sort of spring loaded “smashing action”. At current, this is the only look we have of the new Putty Patroller. I, for one, love the new look and am anxious to see this guy on screen.

Now, on to the Power Rangers themselves. Just like the original action figure series, the torsos are a little on the bulky side. It’s to be expected to a degree. Having to hide another head inside the body can make things a little cramped inside for arm hinges. Not to mention that these will be marketed to children who inherently rough toys up a little bit. To compensate for that, the plastic that makes up the torso needs to be a little thicker than what most adults require.

Another feature worth noting is the Morphing articulation. The original series placed the ranger’s symbol directly on the chest to stay. The new ones have remedied that issue to a small degree. The symbol rests on the back while in “civilian mode”. As the head flips the upper body turns back to front, exposing the ranger’s emblem and the helmet. A little on the goofy side but remember, these are for the kids.

The biggest complaint that I have, even from a child’s perspective, is the lack of leg articulation. Look closely, the only movement that the legs display is the squeezing that triggers the morphing action. In this day in age the fact that poseability must still be sacrificed to allow the swapping of a head. Personally, I would rather have a helmet to lose.

Since these are the only two who have any sort of appearance, we’re assuming that these will be the launch set and the rest of the rangers are to follow. These bad boys will have a reported MSRP of $14.99 and should be available through all the major chains, ie. Wal-Mart, Toys-R-Us, Target.