A quarter of a century ago, on August 28, 1993, a pop culture phenomenon was born: the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers

The 25 Best Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Episodes 26 IMAGES

A genius mixture of giant robots, giant monsters, superheroes, reused Japanese footage, screwball comedy, and the philosophical teachings of martial arts, Power Rangers changed the lives of the kids that watched it and became a playground (and toy store) sensation that continues to this day.As the show hits its 25th anniversary, we're looking back at the most memorable episodes of the original series, which ran for three seasons that totaled a whopping 155 episodes. So bust out that Power Morpher and sheath that Dragon Dagger, and let's take a trip to the Command Center that sits in the middle of a random, nebulous desert!Note: We're counting multi-part episodes as one entry.

25 “Trick or Treat”

24 “The Potion Notion”

23 “The Ninja Encounter”

22 "Calamity Kimberly”

21 "The Power Transfer”

20 “The Green Dream”

19 "Alien Rangers of Aquitar"

18 “Return of the Green Ranger”

17 "Mighty Morphin’ Mutants"

16 “White Light”

15 "Wild West Rangers"

14 “A Different Shade of Pink”

But the real star of the show is Rita’s monster, the Pumpkin Rapper, which is exactly what it sounds like. It’s a monster that uses rhymes to attack, and does so in a super cool hip-hop style. Or at least, what the producers of MMPR considered a super cool hip-hop style. This episode also features the Rangers getting their heads caught inside of pumpkins, along with battling pumpkin-headed Putty Patrollers.This episode is also worth a mention for revealing the last names of Tommy, Kimberly, and Skull for the first time.Of course, the spell is eventually broken, as is Skull’s heart. But the end of the episode goes to great lengths to show how far the relationships between Bulk and Skull and the Rangers have come (playing off the Rangers’ presence at the Police Academy graduation a few episodes previous) by Kimberly apologizing to Skull for how she acted and asking him to dance. It’s a tender moment that helps develop both characters. Oh yeah, and the Rangers fight a monster at one point.As such, this arc and the episodes that follow (until after “The Power Transfer”) employ the use of archive footage of the departed actors from previous episodes, stand-in actors with their backs turned to the camera, and sound-alike voice actors for when Jason, Trini, and Zack appear morphed. Watching as a kid the changes likely went unnoticed, but re-watching as an adult it’s hard not to appreciate the clever (if not always successful) attempts to keep continuity intact until the new Rangers could be properly introduced and positioned as worthy replacements.“The Ninja Encounter” not only endears us to the new characters, but also shows Bulk and Skull in a truly positive light for the first time. When Rocky, Aisha, Adam, and their teacher Mr. Anderson are captured by Lord Zedd, Bulk and Skull find themselves caring for Mr. Anderson’s toddler son in a very humorous, but ultimately genuinely sweet, way.Every stage of Zord is featured in this episode, from the regular Dinozords to Megazord to Dragonzord to Dragonzord in Battle Mode to the ever elusive Ultrazord. All of that in one episode! It’s an absolute epic and the first totally balls-to-the-wall Zord battle we witnessed in the series.Still, this was a time full of excitement (and anxiety) for fans, as the departure of the original Red, Black, and Yellow Rangers was a mind-bending experience. While “The Ninja Encounter” had certainly done its job of introducing the new recruits, “The Power Transfer” is the end of an era and the start of what would become the norm for the series in the 20 years to follow: replacement. Still, departing for the World Peace Summit is a noble reason for leaving the Rangers, even if we never actually see the characters say goodbye – their final farewells are made while still morphed.As for Rocky, Aisha, and Adam, this episode does them justice by thrusting them into battle almost immediately.Everything works out in the end, but this episode is notable for its continuation of the Green Ranger saga, particularly establishing how Tommy is essentially living on borrowed time. This episode features a surprisingly melancholy ending, with the whole gang coming to the same realization, teasing the many episodes to come that would begin to weave Tommy’s decline into the stories.Though the Alien Rangers storyline would play out for eight more episodes after this two-parter, this is the only episode to boldly remove all of the main actors of the series in preparation for its overarching conclusion (David Yost returned in the episode after this one, “Climb Every Fountain,” when Billy was reverted to his normal age). With the main cast missing and new Rangers with different costumes and Zords taking their place, it became infinitely clear that irrevocable change was on the horizon.“Alien Rangers of Aquitar” started our Rangers on another journey of finding the power within themselves, and continued a tradition of expanding the MMPR galaxy that began in “The Great Bookala Escape.”Meanwhile, the other Rangers are sent back in time to 18th century Angel Grove (which was apparently a British settlement… on the west coast. Don’t worry about it!), where they struggle with being branded witches. Even for MMPR, the time travel plot here is pretty nonsensical and would probably unravel the space-time continuum, but it’s worth enduring for the satisfaction of seeing Tommy vs. Tommy as they mirror each other’s moves.There’s the thrill of seeing each Ranger fight themselves, each one knowing one another’s moves and fighting to a stalemate. Ultimately, the Rangers need to be upgraded to defeat their evil counterparts, getting more powerful versions of their Power Weapons. The final throwdown comes between the Zords, where Titanus shows up and Ultrazord lays waste to Rita’s latest monstrosity. Between Ranger vs. Ranger action and an appearance from Titanus, this episode was pure fan-bait.The Rangers are left abandoned in a battle with Nimrod the Scarlet Sentinel when Zordon and Alpha disappear mysteriously. Part I ends on the cliffhanger of Billy discovering the duo in a secret chamber of the Command Center at work on a new Ranger. Just as the introduction of Lord Zedd and the Thunderzords did in “The Mutiny,” this was an episode that made all of us kids freak out with excitement.The only bummer about this episode is that it was sent into post-production after it was known Walter Jones, Thuy Trang, and Austin St. John would be leaving, and as such Jason’s impending behind-the-scenes departure leads him to be unceremoniously demoted, Zordon simply declares, off-screen, that Tommy is the new leader of the Power Rangers. Though Tommy is obviously a badass, Jason enthusiasts unaware of the show's turmoil were no doubt left puzzled as to why he was so quickly tossed aside.The Old West Ranger battles are fun (complete with duded-up Putty Patrollers), and feature a variation of the Ranger costumes with western fringe, bandanas, and spurs. Plus, this is one of the few episodes of the show that actually changes up its direction in small but entertaining ways, incorporating the use of spaghetti western-style zooms to keep the theme intact. The use of the “Calamity Kimberly” name is also a nice throwback to the Season 1 episode of the same name.This arc would be notable just for its proper exit of Kimberly (which no other original cast member received due to behind-the-scenes circumstances), but it also succeeds in setting up Kat as a worthy successor. She overcomes Rita’s spell and the show once again shows an aptitude for character consistency and continuity when Tommy relates how his origins as a minion of Rita are almost exactly the same as hers, and that it’d all work out.Plus, using Kimberly’s long history as a gymnast as a way for her to move on from the Rangers was not only logical, but understandable.