Power Rangers: Jungle Fury - Season 1, Episodes 1 & 2 - "Welcome To The Jungle"

My nephew Connor is visiting right now. He's 3 years old has a new obsession that I can relate too. Right when he got up here he stepped out of the car with a Power Rangers action figure in hand and it was not long before he began asking to watch the newest series in the franchise, Power Rangers: Jungle Fury. His passion for the brightly colored, martial arts superheroes re-awakened my long dormant love of the Rangers. He kept begging me to watch the show, jumping around the house mimicking the Rangers fighting style with enthusiastic HI-YA's, singing the classic theme song and running around pretending to morph into the Red Tiger Ranger from Jungle Fury. I got a hold of the premiere episode from the show and we finally watched it this afternoon over pizza and Dr. Pepper.

Jungle Fury tells the story of three young students of kung-fu Master Mao, member of the ancient Order Of The Claw. Long ago the Order Of The Claw imprisoned the evil Dai Shi. But an angry student unleashes Dai Shi, who now means to reign terror on the city of Ocean Bluff. After the death of Master Mao, students Casey, Theo and Lily are sent to meet a new master. When they arrive where the dying master Mao instructed them to go they find Jungle Karma Pizza, run by the eccentric surfer type dude, RJ. RJ turns out to be a kung-fu master and gives them the power to morph into Power Rangers to protect Ocean Bluff from the evil Dai Shi, who now posseses the body of the evil student who set him free.

Let's get one thing straight. Power Rangers is and has always been cheesy as hell. You've really got to access the inner kid to let yourself enjoy this franchise. For me, that's no problem because I have an extreme Peter Pan complex. It also helps to watch the show with my nephew and feed of of his youthful enthusiasm. When Mighty Morphin Power Rangers first premiered it was the absolute coolest thing in the universe. Me and my siblings practically worshipped these guys. They helped nurture our love for martial arts and bring us deeper into the world of sci-fi/fantasy. After watching the show today I wikied the Power Rangers and was shocked to see that the show has never been off the air since it's original conception. It has a deep history of characters that I've decided I'll continue to explore from time to time. I once again love the Power Rangers!!