Series Re-Watch: My "PR Dino Charge" Review

Power Rangers Dino Charge (Season 22)

After re-watching "Dino Charge" on Netflix, I'll have to say, this was a good season!! After 4 years of mediocrity from the Neo Saban era so far with the mostly subpar "Samurai"/"Super Samurai" and the enormously disappointing "Megaforce/Super Megaforce", there is simply one word to describe "Dino Charge": improvement. Returning to the franchise as head writer/executive producer, Judd "Chip" Lynn does a fine job of bringing back the needed essentials of making a good Power Rangers season by establishing a well written storyline, great character development, not to mention some fun personalities. Yes, the actual Rangers have personalities again and surely that aspect of Power Rangers has been missed. Each ranger has distinct character traits that make each of them not only stand out but extremely likeable. We have Tyler, our courageous and adventurous Red Ranger who was chosen by the red energem, Shelby, an aspiring paleontologist with a feisty attitude who was chosen by the pink energem to become the Pink Ranger, Riley, a farm boy and practicing swordsman who tackles life with logic chosen to be the Green Ranger by the green energem, Chase, a self-involved womanizer but ultimately heroic Black Ranger chosen by the black energem and then you have Koda, who is one of the most original rangers in a while. A 100,000 year old caveman chosen by the blue energem, Koda has a limited vocabulary but makes up for it with his heart of gold and primal instincts. Not only are the rangers great characters but they each have character flaws that are explored in individual character episodes whether is be Chase and Riley's clashing ideologies in "The Tooth Hurts", Shelby wanting to prove herself in "Let Sleeping Zords Lie", Tyler making a disapproving decision to make a plan of his own in "A Fool's Hour" or Koda dealing with getting accustomed to the modern day world in "Return of the Caveman", each character must continue to learn and prove themselves as not only rangers, but people, which is both fascinating and once again, fun to watch.

Back to the storyline of this season, Chip does an excellent job from a storytelling perspective right from the beginning with the premiere, "Powers From The Past". We learn 65 million years ago, an alien (and ET look-a-like) named Keeper was entrusted with 10 energems, immensely powerful artifacts from space when he was shot down and landed on Earth. In a moment of desperation to keep the energems safe, he bonded them to dinosaurs...and then caused their ultimate extinction and genocide by blowing up the main villain, Sledge's ship and causing an asteroid he caught to fall to Earth but at least there was some genuine effort put into the backstory of the rangers' powers instead of "there's a simple explanation for that". Speaking of Sledge, we get an original villain for Power Rangers this season, which is the first in a while. Sledge makes for a decent villain. Not the best villain design and the most terrifying but certainly a step up from the previous Neo Saban villains who fade in my memory as I speak. An intergalactic bounty hunter who chased after Keeper for the energems, Sledge plans to steal the energems for himself and become the most powerful creature in the universe. The other villains that make up Sledge's crew are also likeable. You have Poisandra, Sledge's fiancée who desperately wants to get married and is losing her patience, especially after 65 million years! Seriously, their relationship is hilarious and entertaining to watch. Then there's Wrench, Sledge's technical expert who comes up with devices and weapons to combat the rangers. Lastly, we have Fury, Sledge's main general who becomes trapped on Earth for 65 million years and....couldn't seem to find one energem, a running joke that fuels a humorous rivalry between him and Poisandra. Like the rangers, the villains' have interesting personalities and dymanics between them that make us not only care about them but their relationships with each other. Once again, what an improvement. Even an insignificant character like Curio, a best friend built for Poisandra by Wrench, never feels superfluous to the story.

The other characters this season are Kendall Morgan, a scientist who is the rangers' technical advisor and creator of the Dino Chargers. She helps the rangers by creating new weapons for them to fight Sledge. Then there's Sir Ivan, the Gold Ranger, who finally makes his debut at the end of the Gold Ranger arc in "Breakout". An 800 year old Knight of Zandar, Ivan is a noble warrior who bonded with the gold energem while protecting the Prince at the time when they were attacked by Fury. Ivan, like Koda, is a very original character and I really like his medieval speech as well as Arthurian mannerisms. He makes for a great ranger who starts off yearning to be on his own and hilariously forming his own band of knights in "Knight After Knights" but realizes the other rangers are just as brave as he is, eventually joining them to continue their fight against Sledge. Lastly, you have Prince Phillip. The heir of Zander who is introduced as a stuck-up and snobbish royal who takes the gold energem from the rangers in "Breakout". Saving him from destruction and realizing how important the rangers' battle against Sledge is, he gives them back the energem. I like how Prince Phillip grows immensely in a short period of time. When he finds his own energem, the Graphite energem, he must learn to embrace his inner hero before it finally bonds with him in "Rise of the Ranger" to become the Graphite Ranger (Though, why not just make him the Gray Ranger, sheesh!) We also have other arcs this season like Tyler's search for his father who disappeared 10 years prior and the Purple energem mini-arc which leads the rangers to New Zealand to discover a Purple Ranger has already been chosen ("World Famous! (In New Zealand)") The eccentric explorer named Albert ultimately decides to not be a ranger and the bond between him and his energem is separated by Keeper. This leads us into the final two episodes where we are introduced to a pretty awesome new villain, Heckyl. Unpredictable and powerful, Heckyl is infamous among Sledge's ship full of prisoners for destroying galaxies. While we don't get much of Heckyl this season, he makes enough of an impression that leaves us wanting more for sure! The season finale, "One More Energem" ends the show with the rangers coming up with a counterattack against Sledge who obtained the purple energem and steals the Red Energem from Tyler. Taking the fight to Sledge's ship, Tyler manages to get his energem back as well as we get the debut of Kendall as the new Purple Ranger. Overall, "Dino Charge", like I said, was fun. The characters, the villains, the storylines, the dialogue, etc. were pretty solid. By season's end, viewers are left wanting more for "Dino SuperCharge", which so far is getting mixed reactions but "Dino Charge" showed an amount of effort being put this season than we have in a long while. From the biggest details like Sledge's ship carrying hundreds of monsters from his previous bounties to the smallest detals like having the energems making the rangers ageless, "Dino Charge" was a well thought out season with an engrossing story and good characters that will be remembered for a while. Even the holiday episodes proved to be decent with "the Ghostest With The Mostest" and "Race to Rescue Chrismas" being cute specials for the kids that avoid the unbearable quality that have been that last few holiday specials from the Neo Saban era. I also love how awesome the Rangers' base of operations is, by looking way more impressive than Megaforce's cheap looking base. Also, it makes sense from a story perspective that their base would be set in a museum. The Rangers even have jobs there that help them to cover their true identities. Not to mention, no more characters shouting out their names during the opening credits and we got an awesome new theme song that got us pumped up for the show!!! All that can be said is, welcome back Chip and thanks for a good season!

Best Episodes

1. Return of the Caveman

2. Breakout

3. Wishing For A Hero

4. Powers From The Past

5. One More Energem

Final Morph: ​B