[EPISODE DISCUSSION] Power Rangers RPM: Episode 3 "Rain"

[Lisa J]

Originally Posted by JDF'd

Yeah, but it wasn't for the reasons you were talking about. I didn't feel that the sentai footage held RPM back because of the childishness of Go-onger. It was more that Ziggy wasn't a ranger yet and Dillon wasn't able to bust out his zord. By the fifth episode they should be a five ranger team and things will hopefully flow better.

I've never seen Go-Onger, so I wouldn't have known it was childish. Therefore, that's not my reason either.

Like this episode poked fun at, the concept of rainbow-colored suits is really campy, and for once, so far this season isn't. You've got a well written story with decent characters, so yeah, it does feel like the sentai stuff is holding it back. Not because it's Go-Onger. But because it's sentai in general.

It's not always the case, but I do feel like we have to take a pause and watch the big toys fight each other now. Which again, was done fine, but it's really rare that the characters and the story are outshining the fight stuff. That's what I mean.

[Lisa J]

Originally Posted by RitoRevolto

Well, looks like the premiere was no fluke.

Mid-season is the real test. Don't get your hopes too high!

[BurgundyRanger]

I dunno if it's an accent slip or what, but has there been more than the odd pronunciation of "VenjEx" instead of "VenjIx"?

But that is so ticky-tack on something that is so abundantly good. We LIKE when people care. It shows. Boy, does it show.

[grnrngr]

Waiting for the episode that allows/forces me to stop watching this year. Haven't seen it yet.

Did they actually call the monster by name in the episode? I'm all for end credits names for spelling, but I don't want any "Generation IX Amphibious Attack Bot" BS showing up on the unnamed list.

[Homeslice]

Good ep. I gotta say, so far RPM's doing what most Disney seasons haven't done....that is, not sucking!

- Man, I think Ziggy gets better each time (I know we're only on episode 3), he's a good foil and full of humor without being over the top.

- And yeah, talk about sensitive, Dr. K! Not spandex? Awesome.

- I agree, what is the point of having Tenaya 7 if she's not even there, and she only STARED in the last ep? Sheesh.

- Definitely some pure emotion showing during the bit with Dillon's pocket watch music, and his bad dream (flashback?).

- I bet it won't take too long before we see what Summer sees in him.

- It'll still be some time before Scott grows on me.

- I agree, where the heck was the Colonel?

- Somehow, I snickered when Dillon delivered the line, "He can make shadow puppets." Way funnier than when Ziggy said it.

- Are we really gonna get these generic names for MOTDs? And yeah, silent may be better, but if they gotta talk, at least get some half-decent ADR! Oh wait, that's right: NZ doesn't really have much, if any.

- Kinda funny how Dillon thought his suit was "a little tight" at first.

- And yeah, the way the episode ended was pretty good, Dillon just cutting off Scott like that. So far, this is a good bad-ass-without-going-over-the-top character, Dillon.

Nice ep, I gave it a 4. So far, I have high hopes for RPM, though I really shouldn't get them too high (a la SPD, which started good then dropped off badly). Good eps, but bad intro theme (yep, JF's was better), and not too crazy about the upcoming generic episode titles (though I'm glad the x-number of words thing has been done away with). Can't wait to see how Ziggy'll get his powers.

.....and oh, I've gotta be in the dark about this, but how exactly is Judd Lynn getting involved with this? I don't recall any such rumor - I doubt he's coming back. Where did anyone hear of this?

[TheFireMan23]

Eddie Guzelian got fired after episode 18 and Judd Lynn was brought in to finish RPM.

[Homeslice]

Ooooooh. That explains it.

But still, gotta hope for the best.

[Cadet Landors]

Originally Posted by JDF'd

WELCOME TO BEAUTIFUL CORINTH CITY!

Helping to keep Asians off the streets since 21XX!

LOL

Awesome episode!

- LOL @ the Dillon's line about the use of the word 'covert'

- Flynn is giving off sort of a Scotty vibe, especially during the zord scenes

- How the hell is Ziggy going to be able to go through the same testing?

- One of the best "first morphed fights" in the series

5/5

Best line of the episode:

No, I mean give me a status update on my car!

[Forever Blue]

Originally Posted by DerangedHermit

Uh, she did, in Dillon's dream/nightmare...sounds like we've got the Andros/Astronema arc all over again.

I've been playing that scene over and over again on my Tivo, pausing it, and then playing it back again, and I'm not sure how you (and others) can be so sure that the girl is Tenaya 7. I guess it would make sense (the background looks like Venjix’s), but I’m not 100% yet. And how do you know that she is his sister?

Besides, that still doesn't explain why they introduced her last week. I would think that it would be a better choice to wait until after the dream to introduce her.

[Fenix84]

This episode is "sort of" the third part of the premiere, though it's also its own self-contained episode in a way, while setting up some other stuff without making Ziggy the Green Ranger yet. RPM's format defies standard PR conventions, and the season is clearly taking its time to set everything up.

In this episode, we're formally introduced to the Rangers' HQ, simply called "The Garage" for obvious purposes. This episode's writing was quite self-aware at times, lampshading Dillon's wannabe tough guy act and Ziggy's later punishment of having to scrub the floor with a toothbrush.

The early scene when the technology of the Rangers' suits was explained was great for the scifi tech and continuity geek in me. The suits not only draw upon the Rangers' life energies, but go further by tapping into a universal life field. The suits are NOT spandex as was made clear, but some cool-sounding technobabble that I'll have to pick up when I watch the episode again. Also interesting was that Dr. K worked on the suits 3 years prior to Venjix's appearance, and that the suits were termed "covert" (in defiance of the bright colors, pointed out in another self-aware line) "infantry" suits. These things were made for the military.

Dillon's physical testing prior to bonding with the suit was cool, with appropriate music highlighting his unusual strength and endurance. Some of the effects (such as Dillon doing pushups with a CGI boulder on his back) were a bit over-the-top and cartoonish though.

Dr. K gets some characterization, though we still haven't seen her yet. She's fiercely proud of her work and can be quite vindictive. I can't believe the Rangers still refer to Dr. K as a "he," when the voice is clearly feminine.

Future stories with Dillon are alluded to. He lost someone important to him before also losing his memory, and still wants to find him/her. It's implied to be his sister. I'm guessing right now that she's Tenaya 7.

After Dillon's dream, the episode starts running into problems. What did he remember that was so clear and urgent that he had to steal Scott's car and try to sneak out of Corinth, abandoning the team he had just joined? The episode doesn't tell us. RPM will have some explaining to do, which should happen in the next episode if everyone responds realistically to Dillon's actions.

The villains' screen time is extremely brief. Tenaya 7, who was introduced in episode 2 and has yet to utter a line (despite Adelaide Kane appearing in the opening credits) doesn't show up. Generals Shifter and Crunch don't get any camera focus at all, and I still wouldn't be able to tell who is who without consulting something outside of the actual show. I praised the "Generation ____" terminology used in the premiere for some subtle universe building, but here it's used again for the name of the MOTD. That gives me concern because it's a term that CAN'T be used in every single episode without sounding badly overused, and it's an extremely boring and generic naming convention for every single monster. We also see some problems with RPM's setup: the villains had to circumvent the city's shield by sneaking an aquatic robot through its water system, which would release a gas that somehow disables its shields. Are the villains going to have to come up with such a scheme in every episode?

Scott gets some of his first real characterization through how he reacts to the theft of his car, and it's not pretty. Even with a teammate missing and the city under attack, he's fixated on how Dillon stole his pretty sports car.

The Rangers fight the Grinders, while Dillon parks his car at the city gates for what must be half an hour in in-universe time. The fighting wasn't very impressive to me at all; the 3 core Rangers are reduced to flailing about helplessly way too soon. Unbelievably, their life energy reserves were drained within minutes of combat, against typical grunts. That didn't sit well with me, because it conflicted with everything we've gotten used to for 16 seasons already. It didn't even make sense in context of what we've already seen in RPM.

Dillon decides to turn back and actually help his team. When he arrives, Scott shows his inner bitch by telling Dillon that the car better not have been scratched. A more sensible bitch would have been something like "Look who finally decided to show up." Seriously Scott, unreliable punk that he is, Dillon's arrival on the battlefield just saved your sorry ass.

Dillon decides to take on the Grinders by himself, while the 3 core Rangers handle the giant-sized MOTD. Again, the stylistic choices and effects of the episode bugged me, when Dillon's morphing call was unnecessarily put in slow-mo for maximum show-off effect. His portrayal is approaching Mary Sue territory: already a badass with a mysterioius past, he toys with the Grinder swarm that the 3 core Rangers had just exhausted their energy reserves just to keep up with. Although his bionic implants provide some justification, the episode could have shown that he actually needs to expend some effort when faced with so many enemies, who had just made 3 morphed Rangers look pathetic.

The Zord battle was more substantial than the "jump right to finisher" filler that we've usually gotten, even with the episode's time running out. I liked how the Megazord was knocked into the bridge, and had to use its arms to cover the gap while civilian cars drove by. The battle goes all the way into the final minutes usually reserved for the short epilogue, and into the closing credits.

This was a flawed episode that displayed some of the problems in RPM's complex premise. The villains are unimpressive so far, and need to get a LOT more screen time. A simpler way of getting past the shield will need to be found. Scott needs to be portrayed better than the Kalish-like whiner he was in this episode. These are challenges that the season will hopefully overcome as it progresses.

Rating: 3.5/5

I didn't hate this episode, but it was a clear step down from the quality of the first 2 episodes, tempering some of my excitement for the season. RPM will definately have to find its groove as it goes through its "normal" episodes where it will have to actually deal with PR conventions and the adaptation of Sentai footage. It still would have been one of the better episodes of JF, and a highlight of the season if it was in OO.

[feelingpeanuty]

Originally Posted by TheFireMan23

Eddie Guzelian got fired after episode 18 and Judd Lynn was brought in to finish RPM.

Why did he get fired?

[Novametalstar]

Hey, there were Asians on the street when the monster popped up out of the water, so I guess the Corinth police have more work to do. Imagine being a civil rights lawyer in that place.

[RitoRevolto]

Also, I love how it rained, but nobody got wet.

[Diend]

Originally Posted by feelingpeanuty

Why did he get fired?

Not enough explosions, second-rate actors, stale characters, or mind-numbingly retarded plots.


Err, I mean... he went over-budget.

[Soskai]

Originally Posted by feelingpeanuty

Why did he get fired?

According to what he's said, Disney never really elaborated exactly why. Even his termination papers were rather vague. It could have been a combination of things, like blowing the budget, etc.

[feelingpeanuty]

Originally Posted by Heranger

Not enough explosions, second-rate actors, stale characters, or mind-numbingly retarded plots.

Not from what I've seen.

Either way, it's a shame, because the actors seem to have such high praise for the guy.

[BrandonTheMoose]

Can someone please explain to me why, (I'm from California) I can't see PRRPM on ABC Kids? :S

It always says "Now for Power Ranger RPM" and instead "The Emperors New School" plays.

[Isamu_Ozu]

hmm. not a bad episode. i give it 4 Dr. K lines outa five.

[inferno19]

I went into RPM thinking that it was going to be another Operation Overdrive type deal, but I must say after three episodes I'm impressed (however I still remain skeptical that it can possible stay this good).

My favorite part was the explanation of how they got the power to get these suits working. It makes complete sense that they could run out of power too (assuming that all past rangers have failed and drained the morphing grid in the process).

I also really enjoyed the call back from MMPR:TM (the scene where the megazord kept cars from driving off the bridge) even if it was completely unintentional.

[NinjaHurricane]

I gave the episode a 4 rather than a 5. While this is still a step up from anything we've gotten in past seasons, it's still relatively a "good" and not "excellent" episode. My main problem is with Dillon. I like him, but that's all they've dealt with in the first 3 episodes and I'm worried this will become a dangerous trend. One good character does not a great show make. SPD relied too much on Sky in the latter half of the season, leaving the other cast members trying to make the most of their limited screen time.

On the plus side, I still love the SPD cast because they got some development in one way or another. But it was very obvious the show depended on Sky for its emotional weight.

I did enjoy RPM poking fun at itself about the spandex, and how they made a "cool" sounding reason for the existence of the Ranger suits. Dr. K is totally a PR version of Boukenger's Mr.Voice.

What do we know about Scott, Flynn, and Summer? Hardly anything. I even had to think about the guys' names for a second. So far they're just muscle for the fight scenes. Summer seems a bit more interesting, but again we haven't learned too much about her.

I understand we've only seen 3 episodes and the season still has a lot of time to develop the other characters. But by the same argument, a show needs to grab its viewers in the critical period of the first several episodes. We need to know who these characters are and why we care about them - that's what keeps the audience engaged. For Dillon lovers, that's great. But for other viewers who want to know about the whole team, RPM needs to develop the Red, Blue, and Yellow Rangers in the next few episodes fast.

Unfortunately, I think episode 4 is a Ziggy-focused episode...

Also, it looks like they couldn't afford glass and instead used that weird-looking clear tarp material. Unfortunate, because the glare of the lights really shows.