TheMighty Morphin Power Rangersenjoy a refreshingly simple premise. A group of teenagers who look like 25-year-old Olympic athletes gain superpowers from an alien to fight evil. They’re color-coded so that kids can pick their favorites. Each Ranger color has been passed down through the generations. Some have seen dozens of users. The Purple Ranger wasn’t among the original group, but a few have appeared inPower Rangers’long history.
Adding additional colors seems like a no-brainer for new seasons ofPower Rangers. Some kids' favorite colors won’t be represented by the original red, yellow, black, blue, and pink. Many viewers were thrilledwhen the Green Rangerjoined the team or when he changed into white. Kids decide a lot based on their favorite color, so appealing to the strong contingent of those who prefer purple became inevitable.
How many Purple Power Rangers have there been?
There are four main Purple Power Rangers in the various mainline series. These central cast members would be considered part of the season’s core team. Three additional Purple Power Rangers enter the franchisein alternate timelines thatdon’t necessarily apply to the canon. Three more can technically count as “Evil Rangers.” These villains are empowered by the same force that flows through the heroes. Antagonists frequently create Evil Rangers to battle the Power Rangers, adding a new vector for additional colors. There are ten total Purple Power Rangers. Counting only canon sources, there are seven Purple Power Rangers. Counting only official members of Power Ranger teams, there are only four. This pales incomparison to the Redand Blue Rangers, each sporting close to thirty official examples and dozens of alternates, antagonists, and non-canon examples. Purple Rangers are rare but usually compelling.
Where has the Purple Power Ranger appeared?
The countlessPower Rangersspin-off series have thoroughly buried the 1993 original series. Ninjas, cops, wizards, dinosaurs, animals, samurai, time travelers, and many more kid-friendly ideas have becomePower Rangersspin-offs. The few Purple Rangers didn’t come out of the first severalseries ofPower Rangers. The first central Purple Ranger joined the team in 2008. Unpacking each example, starting with the four canonical Purple Rangers in the official line-ups:
The Purple Rangers receive a fair amount of characterization as central members of the series' teams. Villains and non-canon characters are less impressive. Koragg the Knight Wolf was the first Purple Ranger. He’s an honorable warrior who seeks the thrill of a fight. Two heroic characters, Leanbow and Nick Russell, were enslaved by an evil eldritch god to don Koragg’s armor and fight until they escaped. Cybervillain Roxy, an antagonist fromBeast Morphers, is a clone of Yellow Ranger Roxy, who wears violet. The non-canon examples are mostly gags. Ellarien, the Purple Solar Ranger, appears in the Boom! Studios comic series. A 2016 comic sees school bully Bulk don a purple outfit alongside Skull in an orange ensemble for a brief battle with Rita Repulsa. Finally,Donatello from theTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtlesbecame the Dimension X Purple Ranger in a brief cross-over series.
Every Purple Ranger is different, but the lesser-used color has enabled some unique talents to join the team. From the oldest Ranger in the franchise toa few villainswho turned good to Donatello from theNinja Turtles, the Purple Rangers could be anyone.
