The coolest of Power Rangers’ Red Rangers was not a team leader but rather the series’ perfect anti-hero. The Super Sentai shows Power Rangers covers often include at least one extra Ranger, which has led to a classic trope of a sixth hero joining the team at some point in the season. A significant portion of those characters were introduced as evil Rangers, such as Green Ranger Tommy Oliver or Titanium Ranger Ryan Mitchell. Evil Rangers stories can get repetitive, which is why having anti-heroes instead of brainwashed villains can be much more interesting.
The end of the Zordon Era was a turning point for the Power Rangers chronology, allowing each season to tell a standalone story unrelated to Angel Grove or Lord Zedd. Some of the best and most mature Power Rangers shows came after Zordon’s death, including but not limited to Time Force. Released in 2001, Power Rangers Time Force included five core Rangers but later welcomed a sixth warrior – and he was neither a villain like the original Green Ranger nor a trustable ally like the Zeo Gold Ranger. He also broke the show’s formula by being an extra Red Ranger.
Time Force’s Quantum Ranger Was Power Rangers’ Perfect Anti-Hero
Eric Myers first appeared in Time Force episode 12
Apart from a couple of exceptions, such as Rocky in Mighty Morphin, Red Rangers are usually the leaders of their respective Power Rangers teams. This does not apply to Time Force’s Quantum Ranger, who was not even part of the main team of Rangers initially. Eric Myers was introduced a few episodes into Time Force as a former friend of Wes who was now working for the Silver Guardians. Eric was part of an elite private secure team designed to essentially replace the Power Rangers and believed he was worthy of becoming the squad’s new leader.
Eric already believed that he and the Silver Guardians could do a better job of protecting the world than the Power Rangers, and this perception only increased after he acquired the Quantum Morpher. Eric refused to give the morpher back to the Time Force Rangers and became a Power Ranger himself – the first example of a Red Ranger who was not part of any group. The Quantum Ranger was not evil like Mighty Morphin’s Green Ranger, but he believed his way of doing things was better than that of the Power Rangers. This made Eric into the franchise’s perfect anti-hero.
Time Force Character | Color |
|---|---|
Jen Scotts | Pink Ranger |
Wes Collins | Red Ranger |
Lucas Kendall | Blue Ranger |
Trip | Green Ranger |
Katie Walker | Yellow Ranger |
Eric Myers | Red/Quantum Ranger |
Alex Drake | First Red Ranger |
What Makes Eric Myers The Coolest Red Ranger In Power Rangers
Time Force’s sixth Ranger was also a Red Ranger
Time Force’s Eric may not be the best Red Ranger or even the most famous one. However, he is arguably the coolest version of a Red Ranger in all of the saga. Eric is still the only character in the franchise who was a sixth and Red Ranger at the same time, which is usually impossible given all teams in the saga include a Red Ranger in their original lineup. Time Force, on the other hand, had two versions of the same color, one of which was given to the sixth Ranger.
This unique and fresh combination comes from Mirai Sentai Timeranger, the Super Sentai Power Rangers Time Force was based on. Some of Power Rangers’ best extra Rangers had already appeared on the show by the time Time Force premiered, which only highlights how great of a character Eric was. Rather than someone going through the usual mind-controlling storyline, the Quantum Ranger was simply an arrogant person who believed he could be a better hero than Wes and his friends. Eric was never a bad person, although he had yet to realize that Wes was not the rich, spoiled kid he imagined him to be.
The Quantum Ranger Is Just One Of The Reasons Time Force Is So Great
Time Force remains one of Power Rangers’ best seasons
Power Rangers Time Force is still widely considered one of the show’s best seasons more than 20 years later. The series kept the slightly more mature tone that Power Rangers introduced at the end of the Zordon Era, resulting in characters that were significantly more complex than the ones in Mighty Morphin or Zeo. Time Force opens with the Red Ranger being killed by the main villain in front of his team, which makes it clear that it would be different from previous Power Rangers shows. Wes is a compelling main character, but all other Rangers shine.
10 Must-See Power Rangers Seasons Every Mighty Morphin Fan Should Watch
Catching up with Power Rangers is tricky, but some seasons are perfect for those primarily familiar with the 1990s phenomenon that was Mighty Morphin.
Jen Scotts, the first and so far only Pink Ranger to have led a Power Rangers team, was a solid leader who never let revenge get in the way of her duties as a Ranger. The mystery surrounding what happened to the original Time Force Red Ranger, combined with the show’s time travel shenanigans, resulted in an engaging storyline that made the series more than just a monster of the week story. Time Force’s Quantum Ranger episodes were a highlight of the series, but they were only a small part of what made it a Power Rangers classic.
Power Rangers
- Created by
- Haim Saban , Shuki Levy
- First TV Show
- Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers
- Video Game(s)
- Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Mega Battle
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