Children’s programming like the original Mighty Morphin Power Rangers series have tall orders. They have to balance tales of morality and life lessons with enough humor and engaging stories to keep an audience with a usually shorter attention span entertained. That results in a lot of moments played for laughs that becoming recurring themes throughout the series.
In the case of Power Rangers, much of the humor is at the expense of the villains, or good-natured teasing amongst friends. Some of the running jokes have become hallmarks of the show for long time fans, or like Rita Repulsa’s headaches, a lasting part of pop culture.
Rita Always Has A Headache
Rita Repulsa is a woman of simple needs. What she really wants is to take over Earth. Unfortunately for her, the Power Rangers continually get in her way, so she keeps having her minions and monsters try to take them out.
When her plans inevitably fail, Rita’s go-to response is to bemoan that she has a headache. The line was actually born from the hand gesture made by Machiko Soga in the original Japanese series when the American adaptation began creating dialogue to fit the scenes. It became Rita’s catchphrase, but also a funny way to show kids that the bad guys kept losing.
Bulk And Skull Never Finish Their Meal
When Angel Grove High’s resident bullies aren’t busy going after their classmates or trying to figure out who the Power Rangers are, they spend an awful lot of time trying to get the perfect snack. Sometimes, that’s a dessert at the juice bar. Other times, that’s crafting the perfect sandwich in a classroom.
It doesn’t matter what Bulk and Skull try to eat though; they never get to finish it. Slapstick comedy, monster attacks, or simply finding themselves in trouble with a teacher means they spend more time wearing their food than eating it.
Tommy Is Always Late
When Tommy Oliver originally joins the show, he’s a villain, but that turns around pretty quickly. Once he’s a Power Ranger himself though, he’s rarely on hand for the fight. That’s because of a lack of footage of original footage of the Green Ranger, but on screen, it becomes common practice for him to be unreachable at a martial arts tournament, or that he lost track of time.
It eventually becomes a running joke that he’s always late and forgetful. An entire episode is even built around his friends trying to help him be more organized.
Zack Has A Fear Of Bugs
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers is actually really good about teaching kids to face their fears in season 1. Whole episodes are devoted to different team members overcoming obstacles tailored specifically to them. That being said, one Ranger never completely gets over his fear, and it’s played for laughs.
Zack is terrified of anything “creepy-crawly.” It’s demonstrated when he faces off against bug-inspired monsters, but also when his friends purposely scare him with fake spiders. He’s the only one who keeps facing his same fear (and getting made fun of for it) through all of his time on the show.
Rito Doesn’t Know Zedd’s Name
Rita Repulsa’s brother Rito Revolto eventually joins the show to help her conquer Earth. There’s no love between Rito and his sister’s husband, Lord Zedd. In fact, Rito doesn’t even remember the man’s name.
He frequently calls him “Ed” instead, much to the annoyance of the villain. Of course, stunt performer Ed Neil actually played the physical performance of Lord Zedd, so it doubles as an in-joke for adult fans now.
No One Understands Billy’s Vocabulary
There’s no arguing that Billy is the most academically inclined of the Power Rangers. He’s the first to figure out solutions and can adapt alien technology for their needs. His friends also, however, have trouble understanding him when he uses his SAT vocabulary words in everyday conversation.
There’s a lot of asking him to repeat himself or clarify himself. In the early days of the series, Trini acts as a bit of a Billy translator. She’s the only one who can keep up with him, and her explanations are always met with laughs or confirmations of understanding, leaving Billy as the odd one out.
Bulk And Skull Are Not Fighters
Much of the comedy in the series comes from the antics of Bulk and Skull. One of their recurring bits in the show is them believing they’re better fighters than the main characters – without ever realizing the kids they pick on are actually the Power Rangers.
Of course, Bulk and Skull are not great fighters, as seen when young kids who don’t have much martial arts training are able to best them. It’s also demonstrated when they can’t keep up in Tommy or Jason’s karate classes or when they constantly run away from the Putties.
The Juice Bar Always Needs A Clean-up
Ernie’s gym and juice bar is essentially the after-school hang out. It’s a youth center where kids can teach – or take – classes, join clubs, or just sit and do homework. It’s also the main set for the show. As a result, a lot of the antics that make up Bulk and Skull’s comedy bits take place at the juice bar, and they always leave it a mess.
Bulk and Skull’s tendency to have meals interrupted, not pay attention to where they’re going, or to accidentally ruin decorations, means that the juice bar is in a perpetual state of disarray. Ernie frequently has to get the teens hanging out there to help him clean up a mess, or hand Bulk and Skull their own mops and buckets.
Bulk And Skull Have Detention For Life
On the subject of Bulk and Skull, the teens just never seem to stay out of trouble or learn the lesson of the week. It’s amazing they ever make it to the juice bar to hang out since they spend nearly every single day in detention.
In fact, most of the early episodes end with a teacher or principal tacking on extra detention days. At one point, they even acknowledge that the number of detentions they have extends beyond their prospective graduation date!
Kimberly Hates Helmet Hair
While all of the Power Rangers are athletic and willing to work up a sweat while they save the day, there is one who always feels just a little bit gross after a fight. From the very start of the series, Kimberly is the one Power Ranger most concerned with her appearance, making a crack about not wanting helmet hair, which does make her friends laugh.
They also laugh when she proclaims certain monsters gross, discusses her outfits, or worries about her makeup. In fact, when she and Aisha get sidetracked by a conversation about haircare during a fire safety talk, even that is played for laughs.
