Mighty Morphin Alien Rangers: Episode 9: Hogday Afternoon, Part I

When Mighty Morphin Alien Rangers last left off, four of the five children had returned with their Zeo Subcrystals. Rocky retrieved his from inside a Mexican volcano two generations ago. Adam searched out a wise man named Coyote who gave him a Zeo Subcrystal from behind a waterfall. Tommy, with the help of an Indigenous man, looked inside himself to choose the Zeo Subcrytal out of three options. And Kat put aside her quest to help two older versions of herself, which turned out to be the test of the quest. She got her Zeo Subcrystal.

That left Aisha. Two episodes remained in Mighty Morphin Alien Rangers, and she had yet to find her Zeo Subcrystal. That meant she would be the focus of the two-parter that concluded the mini-series. Of course, something needed to happen in present day Angel Grove to give the rest of the characters something to do. Things would also find some sort of resolution, or lack thereof, allowing the transition into Power Rangers Zeo to happen. The beginning of the end would start with…

Episode 9: Hogday Afternoon, Part I

The Moon Monsters succeeded in their plan. They tried to send Hydro Hog to Earth only to have Zordon and Alpha send an energy beam into space and deflect Hydro Hog away. They tried a second time, with a fake transfer first. The Command Centre energy beam was used on the fake transfer and the Moon Monsters snuck Hydro Hog to Earth right after that.

Hydro Hog went to the lake where the Alien Rangers of Aquitar were ready to rehydrate. He blocked their path and got in a fight with them. During the fight, Hydro Hog removed the water from the lake, leaving the Alien Rangers with no water to rehydrate at. Zordon teleported them to the public pool, but they were too late. Hydro Hog had already removed the water. The children could only watch from the Command Centre. They didn’t yet have all the Zeo Subcrystals.

Aisha was sent to Africa in a time that wasn’t really defined, yet. She was immediately stalked by a male lion. Luckily, she was helped my Tanya, another girl out in the Sahara. Tanya told Aisha that there was some sort of disease in the desert that was causing the animals to be agitated. They were attacking more than usual. Things got worse at night. Tanya and Aisha needed to return to the village that took Tanya in when her parents were lost in an expedition three years earlier. If they didn’t get there before nightfall, they’d be in trouble. The sun started going down before they got to the village, leaving the girls in dire straits. The episode ended with everyone in troubling scenarios.

While all this was happening, Goldar and Rito Revolto finally followed through on their plan. They found a sign in the tunnels under the Command Centre that led them right to the location they needed to set the bomb. They placed the four explosive pieces and set the timer, and were then told to get the Zeo Crystal before setting it. They lied to Rita Repulsa, saying they hadn’t set the timer yet, and hoped for the best.

The one fight in the episode was on the beach between the Alien Rangers of Aquitar and Hydro Hog. It was an interesting fight, highlighting why he was their nemesis back on Aquitar. It began with the usual kicking and punching of any fight. The Alien Rangers pulled out their weapons and continued to hack and slash, knocking Hydro Hog to the ground. It seemed like they would come out on top. Unfortunately, he was faking an injury. He tripped up one of the Alien Rangers and began absorbing the hydration of the others. Eventually, they were all drained of their powers. Then he caused a whirlwind within the lake, upsetting the ten or so people floating in it, including Bulk and Skull. When the Alien Rangers told him to leave the people alone, Hydro Hog took the water, leaving everyone on dry land. There was no more water and no more way for the Alien Rangers to rehydrate.

The two-part finale of Mighty Morphin Alien Rangers was off to a good start. A new threat was brought to Earth in the form of Hydro Hog. The threat overpowered the defenses of Earth by removing the water. The Alien Rangers were left weak and unable to fight. The children were waiting for Aisha to return so they could have all five Zeo Subcrystals. The Moon Monsters set a bomb beneath the Command Centre and nobody in the Command Centre knew about it. Aisha was in danger in Africa, as well. The stakes were high, setting up a satisfying conclusion to the two-part episode, the Mighty Morphin Alien Rangers miniseries, and the Mighty Morphin era as a whole.

There were a few things to note, of course. Hogday Afternoon, Part I was the introduction of Tanya, who would become an important character for the Power Rangers franchise moving forward. Her interactions with Aisha would eventually lead to Tanya becoming a Power Ranger and Aisha leaving the team. She got a good introduction that showed she was protective, intelligent, and tough. She saved Aisha from the lion by simply outsmarting it. She said she had saved other people before. She had the makings of a Power Ranger.

Speaking of the lion, there was some interesting stuff there. When Aisha arrived in Africa, she was stalked by a male lion. In nature, female lions tend to do the majority of the hunting. Male lions rarely hunt. They will take the slain prey, but they will not do the hunting. So, to have a male lion be stalking Aisha would normally be a strange choice. It could be written off for the sake of this episode, however. Tanya mentioned that the disease was putting all the animals on edge. They were hunting and attacking more often. The disease may have affected the natural gender roles of the lions, forcing male lions to join the hunting. If that was not intended, and Mighty Morphin Alien Rangers was simply getting lion facts wrong, that wouldn’t be surprising.

There wasn’t too much more about the episode that needed to be said. It was mostly set up for the finale, putting the pieces in the places they needed to be. It set up Aisha to find her Zeo Subcrystal. It set up the bomb beneath the Command Centre. It set up Hydro Hog as one of the toughest villains that the Power Rangers and Alien Rangers had ever faced. It set up the end of the Mighty Morphin era and the transition into Power Rangers Zeo. Much of the payoff would come in the next episode, Hogday Afternoon, Part II. That will be coming up soon. See you then.