Warning: Contains SPOILERS for Power Rangers Prime #1!Lord Zedd is famously one of the greatest villains thePower Rangershave ever faced (no matter the incarnation of the team). However, when compared to an all-new - yet terrifyingly familiar - threat, Zedd doesn’t hold a candle. And the most interesting part is that these new villains have astrange connection to Lord Zedd, one that could lead to a mind-blowing twist.
InPower Rangers Prime#1 by Melissa Flores and Michael Yg, fans are thrown into anall-newPower Rangerscontinuity, one where the Power Rangers themselves are all but eradicated. The Power Rangers were introduced as age-old protectors of the Earth who would pass down their morphers through the generations, ensuring the world was never without a fully-trained team of Power Rangers. However, that chain was broken when Earth was visited by two separate groups of alien invaders: the Beast Brigade and the Eltarian Empire.
The Beast Brigade arrived first, and the Eltarians showed up to help defend the Earth from the Beast Brigade threat.The Eltarians fought side-by-side with the Power Rangers, but once the Beast Brigade was vanquished, the Eltarians set their own sights on Earth - and the Power Rangers threatened their conquest. The Eltarians kill the Power Rangers, and hunt down all of their successors. While there are still some with tenuous access to the Morphin Grid (which is how they’ll make their comeback in this series), the Eltarians have ensured the Power Rangers are no more.
The Eltarian Empire Did What Lord Zedd Never Could: Defeated the Power Rangers
The Eltarians Took Over the Earth, & Wiped Out the Power Rangers When They Did
While Lord Zedd worked for years to destroy the Power Rangers, he was never successful, no matter how many hordes of villainous minions he threw at them. And in the originalPower Rangerscontinuity, the likes of the Eltarians were never a threat, as they were peacekeepers disinterested in galactic conquest (indeed, Zordon himself was an Eltarian, and he led the Power Rangers). That’s why the Power Rangers never faced a defeat as devastating as their fate in Power Rangers Prime.
But, now that the entirePower Rangersuniverse has been effectively retconned, the Eltarians are suddenly a major threat - one too great for the Power Rangers to handle. The reason why seems to be that, while Zedd was obviously evil, the Eltarians came to the Rangers as friends. They tricked the Power Rangers into trusting them, and when the Rangers least expected it, the Eltarians turned on their ‘allies’, winning the world and eradicating the Power Rangers as a result - something Lord Zedd could never do.
The Eltarians Have a Deep-Rooted Connection to Lord Zedd
Could Lord Zedd Still Be the Main Villain inPower Rangers Prime?
The Eltarians have succeeded where Lord Zedd has failed countless times, but interestingly enough, their victory over the Power Rangers is almost an extension of Lord Zedd himself. Originally,Lord Zedd was named Zophram, and he was an Eltarian. Zophram was even the mentor to Zordon before his body was mutilated, and his mind fell to corruption in his quest for ultimate cosmic power. Even as an Eltarian, Zedd was considered villainous. But, where would that put him in this new continuity? Could Zophram (Zedd) be one of the leading Eltarians inPower Rangers Prime?
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It would be a wild twist if Lord Zedd never had to fall to villainy because the Eltarian Empire was one of galactic conquest, allowing him to remain Zophram and march an army of his people across the cosmos. That would mean Lord Zedd did finally defeat the Power Rangers, just not the version of Zedd fans are used to. Of course, this is all speculation. As it stands, Zedd is nowhere to be seen, and the Eltarian Empire alone is responsible for thePower Rangers’ downfall - effectively making them worse than Lord Zedd has ever been.
Power Rangers
Power Rangersis a long-running multimedia franchise that debuted in 1993 with the TV seriesMighty Morphin Power Rangers. Created by Haim Saban and adapted from the JapaneseSuper Sentaiseries,Power Rangersbecame a cultural phenomenon by combining action-packed footage fromSuper Sentaiwith new scenes featuring American actors. The franchise follows teams of young heroes who transform into Power Rangers to battle various villains, using martial arts, special powers, and giant mechas called Zords. Over the decades, the franchise has expanded into multiple TV series, films, comics, video games, and merchandise, becoming one of the most successful children’s franchises in the world.
