[Opening Credits]
At the Angel Grove Juice Bar, we
find Aisha & Billy sitting a table together, talking as Bulk & Skull are seen in
the background horsing around. Aisha hopes Adam had a good & exciting time at his
family reunion, Billy agrees, calling this his big chance to get in touch with his roots,
something important to their Black Ranger pal. Speak of the shy devil, Adam drops by,
bringing along a red lantern that was presented to him at the reunion. Apparently it's a
family heirloom, having been in his bloodline for many years, and it's said to hold great
powers. Billy calls this quite an honor, inspecting the fragile paper lantern for himself.
Adam notes that it indeed is, a lantern-keeper is chosen for each generation so it's a big
responsibility for him. Billy queries on what the inscription on the tag attached to the
lantern says, Adam has no clue and is supposed to discover its meaning for himself.
Suddenly, the short attention span of the Junior Police Patrol's newest recruits turns
their way, as Bulk & Skull rush over, Bulk snatching up the lantern and offering to
help tell him what it says, Adam reluctantly lets him. Bulk can't understand a word of it,
mockingly stating that the tag says "Do Not Try To Read Something Unless It's In
English", Skull starts to do his trademark laugh, slapping Bulk on the back for the
amusing joke. This causes him to lose grip of the lantern, but luckily Adam catches it
before any damage is done. Bulk & Skull quietly slip away before they can get in any
trouble. Billy comments that his lantern seems to be demonstrating its capabilities, Aisha
remarking that it sure put those two idiots in their places. Adam laments that he doesn't
even think he's begun to understand the Park-family lantern's powers.
Meanwhile on the Moon Palace, Rita peers through her Repulsascope while her husband Lord
Zedd stands to her side on the balcony. Zedd shouts that he'll show the Black Ranger that
contraption's real powers, turning around and ordering Baboo & Squatt to go get the
lantern. Rito is hanging around and wants to go to, Zedd caves in and agrees to let the
bumbling bag of bones accompany them. (Rita oddly remains silent in this whole scene, but
gestures in the same manners to almost everything Zedd also does). Lord Zedd figures
between the three of them they might just be able to do something right for a change,
Baboo & Squatt seem tickled to death to finally be back in action, and rush off with
Rito to attempt the task. Zedd boasts that he'll soon harness the lantern's power and make
stuffing out of those Rangers!
[commercials]
Later at a large green garden &
pond area, Billy & Adam walk around, enjoying the sites. Billy's pal, Ko, keeper of
the garden since Billy was 10 years old, his parents having first met the guy in the
orient. They bring Adam's lantern, figuring if anyone can understand the inscription, Ko's
the man, as he knows several different languages. They find him in a small hut, attending
to several lanterns similar to the one Adam brings with him. Introductions are made, the
older Asian bald guy takes a good look at the lantern and assures them it is a special
lantern indeed. Adam scopes out the collection Ko has, to which he notices Adam has an
appreciation for things of beauty. Ko points out one that his father gave to him on his
fourth birthday, with an inscription that explains courage, reading it aloud as "The
Dragon You Fear Is Only As Potent As Your Imagination". Adam asks what it means, Ko
bounces the question back, asking what it means to him. Adam figures it means fear is only
as powerful as what you make it in your mind, asking Ko if that's right, Ko only answers
that if he believes it, it is so. Billy & Adam are left speechless to these cryptic
words, continuing to glance at the exotic wonders of Ko's virtual wonderland of reality.
But they didn't come alone! Rocky, Aisha, & Tommy are wandering around the huge garden
area as well, and of course, Bulk & Skull have been following for no good reason.
Tommy mentions the place is awesome, Aisha notes they should be able to find a great plant
for Kimberly's new garden, Rocky mentioning it was nice of her parents to let Kim start
one at her house. Tommy makes a reference that all following continuity should keep note,
involving how Kimberly's been working so hard on a gymnastics competition that she
probably won't have time to work in it (hence her lack of appearance in this episode). The
three Ranger teens bump into Bulk & Skull, discovering the bumbling duo has been
assigned to patrol that area, which Skull mentions should put their minds at ease.
Over at Ko's place, Billy says that they'd hoped Ko would help them find out what Adam's
lantern's inscription reads. Adam mentions his family said he had to found out what it
meant himself but he doesn't know where to look. Ko does a quick run-through of the tag on
Adam's lantern, reading it as "The Lamp May Light The Path, But The Soul Must Light
The Way". Adam asks what it means, Ko states that they are wise words but like others
they are only words. Adam doesn't understand, Ko reminds him of the last lantern-reading,
he must discover what this means to him, Billy getting the swing of things by saying that
if he believes, then it is so. Ko cautions Adam to have patience as ancient words do not
always reveal themselves right away. Ko's gotta get going, he's got like a football
field-sized lawn to mow and only a pair of pinking shears to do it with! Adam & Billy
bow as Ko takes off to finish tending to his garden, thanking him for the spiritual
guidance and free translation (I wonder if he knows the other three are planning to savage
his garden and steal a plant for Kimberly?). Billy comments to Adam that he forgot to tell
him that sometimes Ko's advice doesn't make sense until a day or two later, Adam laughs
and says that's good as it sure doesn't now!
Speaking of the other three Ranger teens, they eventually find their way to Billy &
Adam's location, and just as they begin to cross the small bridge near the waterfall (does
Ko trade mystical Japanese garden tips with Ninjor?), Tengas feather-port around them! If
that wasn't enough, Rito, Baboo & Squatt are there too, leaving our heroes with only
one option as of late, Ninja Ranger Power! One quick morph into Ninja attire later, and
the Ninja Rangers are on the scene, taking care of birdbrains. Rito commands Baboo &
Squatt to go up into Ko's hut and get the lantern, which they eventually do, proving they
didn't die back in season 1 and have just been reanimated corpses since. White Ninja
bounces off a rock near the water, and leaps back off it, striking two Tengas down in
midair. Blue & Black Ninjas leave the hut and face three Tengas, focusing on the job
at hand, Billy gives Adam a boost and they both double vault into the air, jumping across
the beakheads and twisting one upside down and into the ground. Baboo & Squatt are
confused as to which lantern they're supposed to take, when confronted by the large
collection of Ko's. Baboo seems to be sure of himself, handing Squatt a few and mentioning
if they take all of them then nobody can yell at them! Black Ninja isn't far away, while
facing two Tengas, he flips over, does a hand stand and walks right into them, kicking
their faces all the way, finishing them off with a mighty upside down kick. Yellow Ranger
backflips around as far as she can go, a Tenga gives chase, until she finally reaches a
tree, rolls up the side of it, flips over the birdbrain and then leaps onto him
powerfully, giving her a boost to a branch high above. Red Ninja hops into the air and
lands on the shoulders of a Tenga, squeezing his legs around its neck and yanking feathers
out in fistfuls! He quips for the crazy crow not to get his feathers in a ruffle, but the
fun has to end when three Tengas head his way, prompting Rocky to leap off his
plucking-buddy and start kicking the others one at a time (in midair, not landing until
all three have been taken down!).
Rito calls this the easiest fight he was never in (and come to think of it, just WHAT was
he doing during all of this? Smelling the roses?), rallies his beaten Tenga troops
together, along with Baboo, Squatt and their stash of lanterns. They teleport home, and
our five heroes power down from Ninja Mode, thinking a speedy victory but soon discovering
the awful theft. Adam searches about the hut and can't find his lantern, Billy tries to
tell him he's sorry but Adam sadly states he swore in front of his family that he'd
protect it and now it's gone. Aisha tells him it's not his fault and he shouldn't be so
hard on himself, so Adam does so anyway, realizing he shouldn't have let it out of sight.
Bulk & Skull appear on the scene at the mere mention of the word 'steal', asking what
it was that was swiped, but instead of a big caper like robbed jewels or food, Billy tells
them several irreplaceable lanterns have been stolen. Aisha mentions one of the lantern's
was Adam's, so Bulk & Skull remove their Police Patrol hats and console him as best
they can. Bulk promises they'll get back the missing goods, but puts his foot in his mouth
by suggesting he forget the lantern, come into the 90's and get a flashlight. Skull
maniacally laughs at this, Adam feels horrible and the bumbling cops depart, their work
only just beginning.
On the outskirts of Ko's Japanese Garden, Baboo & Squatt are under a tree, going
through their large collection of stolen lanterns. Rito yells at them, shouting that if
they had brains they'd be dangerous, asking if they took all those lanterns because they
were planning to open up a store. He picks up Adam's lantern without knowing it, threatens
Baboo & Squatt with the possibility of being chopped to sushi unless they find the
right out, and tosses the object of their robbery into the air! It flies off down the
sidewalk, landing right in front of Bulk & Skull, who are casually walking along.
Skull calls that a close call, as it almost hit him in the skull, asking Bulk if he gets
that reference. Bulk ignores Skull asking if he gets it over and over, picks up the
lantern and takes a peek into the distance, spotting Rito shouting for Baboo & Squatt
to look inside for a name tag! Bulk silences Skull's continued "do ya get it? huh?
huh?" yapping and tells him to look up ahead, seeing Rito complain about how Baboo
& Squatt can't read. Skull quickly pulls out his Junior Detectives Manual from under
his hat, flipping through the pages like crazy, frantically asking if they should call for
reinforcements. Bulk starts to panic as well, grabbing the manual and trying to pull it
out of Skull's hand, remarking he needs it before those evil space aliens beam them up
somewhere. Skull won't let go, trying to find the aliens section, and of course, the book
snaps up at last into Bulk's grasp, at the cost of tearing it and hitting Bulkie in the
face, which he comments really hurt. Rito grows frustrated, orders the two meatheads to
just take all the lanterns (which they were doing in the first place when they teleported
from Ko's hut earlier, why the detour, who knows), and they zip off to the moon in a
flash. Bulk & Skull suddenly start screaming loudly, until Bulk stops to ask why
they're screaming, Skull mentions it's because evil space aliens have just used their
magical powers in front of them. It makes perfect sense to Bulk, they return to screaming
and flee off into the distance.
Soon at the Command Center, Kimberly has joined her Power teen pals, as they consult
Zordon about the recent lantern theft. He believes Zedd was after Adam's lantern only,
Billy answering Kim's question about why Adam's was targeted (trick question, Rangers'
things always get targeted, Kimmie!) by mentioning it possessed great powers that Rita
& Zedd probably want to use against them. Zordon calls this an excellent deduction,
and if this is the case then they must get it back before Zedd can harvest its energy.
Alpha ay-yi-yi's that there's no telling what Zedd's done with it by now. Up on the Moon
Palace, Lord Zedd sits at his throne, surrounded by the large stack of paper lanterns
Baboo & Squatt stole on Earth. He asks why they brought so many, asking how he's
supposed to know which one has the special powers, Baboo noting the garden guy said all of
them were special. Rita finally speaks, calling it fortunate that she has a natural gift
for sensing extraordinary powers, Zedd thinks this true, as she did choose him. Rita
groans for her husband to get real, as she reaches into the pile and picks out a small red
one with writing on it. Baboo thinks a yellow one matches the drapes better, but Rita
tells monkey-breath to zip-it as she knows what she's doing. Lord Zedd has had enough,
ordering them to get rid of the lantern mess by sending it all back to Earth, he doesn't
want it cluttering up his Throne Room. Rita croons that Zeddy is so politically incorrect
and she loves it, running her hand along his cast-iron faceplate and tugging at his
sharp-edged chin. He tells her not to call him Zeddy and continues sulking evilly on his
throne, while Rita admires the lantern she chose, shouting for the Power Dweebs to get
ready for Lanterra!
[commercials]
Bulk & Skull continue running
through the park, carrying Adam's lantern with them. Little do they know that Lanterra is
on the scene, sneaking around behind them and awaiting the right moment to attack. The
bumbling duo stops in their tracks, Skull checks the manual, which reads that "a good
detective keeps track of what is in front of him, as well as to each side, and behind
him". They pause and look in each direction, Lanterra ducks out of their sight until
the last one, when they get a full view shot of the creature, who laughs and says hi! The
evil grinning lantern creature bobs around psychotically, sending Bulk & Skull
screaming as they run away, dropping Adam's lantern on the ground in the commotion. Not
far off, Aisha & Adam walk around the garden, Aisha doesn't see what good it'll do for
them to keep looking, as Alpha said he'd let them know if anything happens. Adam feels
responsible for the whole city being in danger if Rita & Zedd use his lantern's power
for evil, she understands and agrees to keep looking. Just then, Bulk & Skull race by,
screaming about a monster in the park, continuing to run for their lives as good Angel
Grove Police Officers would do! Adam contacts the others at the Command Center via his
Communicator, asking them if they see anything unusual on the Viewing Globe. One quick
look reveals the monster mucking about, Alpha states that the Lanterra monster is on the
loose, meaning It's Morphin' Time (the call words spoke by both Tommy & Adam this ep)!
The Power Rangers appear before Lanterra, who calls them the Rainbow Warriors. Tommy notes
it seems like Zedd customized Adam's lantern, and Rocky remarks they're about to turn out
the monster's lights. He seems ready to battle, but Black Ranger isn't, cautioning them to
be careful and try to find a way to defeat him without destroying his family heirloom.
Lanterra heard someone lost their lantern and he's happy to be the replacement, quipping
he'll look great in their rec room after he's wrecked all of them! Up on the Moon Palace,
Rita scopes the scene and comments to Lord Zedd that she know Adam's loyalty to that silly
lantern would make him unable to fight back. Zedd mentions he knew that too, Rita says she
knew it first, but who's keeping track, all that matters is the Rangers' are done for. On
Earth, Lanterra heats things up by firing off blasts from a smaller lantern he carries,
with a ghostly shape of a face on it. It strikes out six heroes as the usual monster
blasts do, Adam asking how dare he use the powers that way, causing the creature to then
spew off fireballs from his mouth instead! Yellow Ranger notices the monster doesn't have
their best interests at heart, Red Ranger calls it one powerful lantern, Lanterra mentions
that if thinks that's bright wait until he turns on his high-beams. Rocky wants to fall
back and regroup, but Billy knows he'll just follow them and do more damage. Adam
remembers the inscription Ko told him, about the soul lighting the way, discovering its
meaning that the power is within him and not the lantern, which is just an object that can
only remind him of the strength he truly possesses. The Power Rangers stand poised to
fight, Lanterra tosses his small (but useless, outside of Kakuranger at least) lantern
aside and rushes into battle, striking each Ranger down with chests a-sparkin'! Black
Ranger recovers and calls him just a worthless walking lampshade, the two fighting it out
one-on-one. Long battle short, Adam somehow charges his fist up and punches him
powerfully, followed by a strong kick, tossing Lanterra down the side of the nearby hill
(it always comes back to Angel Grove Lake, doesn't it?). Loads of puns exchanged, the
final being Adam noting the light of the party is having a little power failure.
On the Moon, Rita asks how dare the mangy Rangers knock over her prized creation, vowing
they won't get away with it, she raises the stakes with Lord Zedd by raising her power
staff to him and firing some energy down via the usual huge lightning strike. Lanterra
gets some major firepower, growing into a giant menace before the Rangers' eyes (and now
carrying his own little sword). The Power Rangers then call on the Ninjazords, which
appear on the scene pretty quickly, forming the Ninja Megazord in due time. Lanterra goads
them to come and get him, and just after he speaks, Ninjor swoops down from the skies on
his fluffy white cloud! He greets the Rangers, thinking they could use some assistance he
drops down and stands by the Ninja Megazord's side with his sword drawn. Lanterra fires
his blast-breath their way, doing damage on the Megazord and allowing Ninjor some hands-on
time. No time for that, Ninjor gets battered like crazy by Lanterra's saber, and
eventually kicked across the battleground like he was nothing. It takes being called a dim
bulb by Lanterra to set Ninjor off, he's angered, shouting that no one calls Ninjor dim
and survives to converse about it! Ninjor morphs into Warrior Mode, yelling that he is
furious as he conjures up an energy ball and strikes Lanterra in the gut with it. The
Falconzord shows up, with White Ranger in the cockpit, powering it up and locking on with
the other Rangers to make the Ninja Megafalconzord, joining them inside the Megazord
cockpit. The Ninja Megafalconzord swoops down, a Wolf/Ape Charged Fist sandwich is all it
takes to send Lanterra down in flames. Flames indeed, as he ignites into a blast of
spiritual energy, that floats up into the darkened skies, and explodes again! Ninjor &
The Megazord pose victoriously together, Ninjor telling the Rangers they did good work and
the evil lantern is no more (and how will they explain that to Ko?!).
[commercials]
Later at the Juice Bar, Ernie is
busy mopping up floors as Kimberly brings a few drinks to a table where Rocky & Adam
are at. She says they are so proud of him, knowing how hard it was for Adam to destroy his
lantern. Adam isn't so bummed out, as once he realized the lantern was just a symbol of
his family's strength and wisdom, it wasn't so tough a choice. Rocky wished they hadn't
had to demolish his family heirloom, Adam laughs and notes that everything it represented
is inside of him, and they're all safe, which is what matters most. Kimberly calls this a
definite thing, giving Adam a small hug and the three toast to the occasion. The other
three Ranger teens show up, with Bulk & Skull in tow, Billy mentions "Angel
Grove's Finest" insisted on following them over for fear of the walk being too
dangerous. Aisha guesses thanks are in order, Bulk agrees they are since they solved the
case, whipping out Adam's lantern they recovered from the park! Adam is overjoyed that
another mystery has been wrapped up by the Junior Police Patrol's newest cadets, asking
how they found it. Bulk exclaims he should have seen what they had to go through, battling
that huge lantern monster, Skull also pointing out the huge pigeons they faced! Bulk
mentions Skull reached for his manual and they cornered them, the bumbling duo are so
involved with the fanciful retelling of the story that wasn't, they ignore Ernie's
warnings to watch where they hop around as he just mopped that area. Bulk & Skull get
their arms tangled up while showing the Ranger teens the moves they used to fight the
baddies, and eventually they slip on the soaped floor and land on their sorry asses. Our
heroes laugh like there's no tomorrow, and Adam smiles, clutching his lantern happily, and
not helping the two who got it back for him, up off the floor. Ungrateful... Oh, and no
word is ever mentioned of Ko's lost lanterns, but I like to think he's still out there
cutting his grass, too busy to notice they're missing.
[End credits]
_END CREDITS SCENE:_
At the Japanese Gardens, Skull says he has everything under control as he steps out, right
into the pond! Bulk sternly tells him to get out of there, but Skull has some trouble. He
loses his shoe in the water, picking it up, he gripes that there's a fish in it! He pulls
out the large goldfish, which thrashes around before finally getting stopped between
Skull's mighty hands. It spews out a spit-line of water just past Skull's face, he calls
it a juicy little fish and finally drops it. Skull stands there for a second and finally
kicks the water in frustration, but eventually laughs.
