15 Years Ago, Power Rangers Went Behind the Camera

The names, songs, and networks may have changed over the years, but the Power Rangers always stuck to the same playbook. Whatever season you watched, you pretty much knew what you were getting on a week-to-week basis, which helped make it a reliable stable for kids around the world back in the day. Surprisingly, the series offered up a truly unique change of pace once during its 30-year run, and it made for a pretty memorable episode on top of what’s already a well-liked season.

Earlier this week, the Power Rangers RPM episode “And…Action!” turned 15 years old. Originally aired on September 12, 2009, it’s a behind the scenes episode that shows how the non-Ranger fights and original scenes of an RPM episode—aka, not from the Japanese series Go-Onger—are made. But there’s an extra gimmick to things: the cast are still in character, so it’s Ziggy (Milo Cawthorne) is giving you the know-how on how a scene plays out as Ziggy, it’s Flynn (Ari Boyland) talking about stunt driving, and so on.  (There’s also a blooper reel, because how could there not be?) And at the end, the Rangers themselves watch the completed action beat while giving commentary and munching on popcorn.

Since RPM was initially meant as the final Rangers season period before Nickelodeon stepped in, the show decided to do something completely unconventional. This is the first and only time the franchise has broken the fourth wall, and the only episode in its whole run to do anything like this. The 1995 Power Rangers movie and a 2007 episode of Operation Overdrive had their own individual glimpses behind the curtain, but those were basically exist as behind the scenes featurettes you’d easily find on the DVD. That viewers learn what goes into making the show while also still being canon with the rest of RPM gives it an extra bit of charm, so hats off to writer Judd Lynn and director Mike Smith for finding a way to have some fun.

In the same way some people went into martial arts because of Power Rangers or Dragon Ball, it’s easy to imagine this sparking the idea of moviemaking in some kids’ minds, even briefly. (Inspiration can come from anywhere!) Its existence also underlines how much TV’s changed in the past 15 years. As episode 23 of a 32-episode season, “And…Action!” relies on RPM’s bulky episode count. Back then, longer episode counts meant shows could do a quirky little one-off every now and then that played with formula or even just offered up a breather from the big season plot. Not all shows needed that many episodes per season, but it helped them felt like fuller experiences regardless. These days, TV seasons run much shorter; the franchise’s most recent (and final) core series, 2023’s Cosmic Fury, had just 10 episodes.

“And…Action!” isn’t a groundbreaking episode, but it’s a fascinating, endearing swing for the franchise, and what more do you need from the Power Rangers than that?