Return Of an Old Friend
From Power Rangers Universe
 | This article is about a/an episode in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. |
| Code: | 1x49/50 |
| Title: | Return Of an Old Friend |
| Parts: | 2 |
| Index: | 49/50 |
| Season: | Mighty Morphin |
| Enemy: | Dramole |
| Important?: | Yes |
| Airdate: | {{{airdate}}} |
The two-part story "Return Of an Old Friend" re-introduced Jason David Frank in the role of Tommy Oliver.
With "Doomsday" a huge success, Toei was commissioned to create a second season of their ZyuRanger series, which Haim Saban—creator of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers—used for the rest of the first season and the early episodes of Season 2. To that end, and up until Season 2's Green No More, Tommy returned as the Green Ranger.
[edit] Synopsis
[edit] Part One
It's Parents' Day at Angel Grove, and four of the Power Rangers—Jason, Zack, Trini, and Kimberly—are enjoying themselves with the rest of the student body of Angel Grove High at the Youth Center.
Meanwhile, Rita Repulsa is planning her hugest scheme yet, when she orders Finster to create the Dramole monster, who can hypnotize its victims with toxic gas emitted from its nostrils. When the Rangers head out to look for more refreshments for the Parents' Day celebration, Rita uses the distraction to trap all in the Angel Grove Youth Center in another dimension, just as Billy—the only Ranger not present at the party, enters and finds the Youth Center deserted. At that point, he is overcome by the Dramole's hypnotic gas, and while under Rita's control, he infiltrates the Command Center, shuts down Alpha 5, and steals the Dragon Dagger—the only thing capable of summoning and controlling the Dragonzord.
The Rangers are alerted to Billy's theft by Zordon and morph and teleport to the Dark Dimension, where Billy is just about to hand the Dragon Dagger to Goldar. Goldar keeps the four morphed Rangers busy with a contingent of Putty Patrollers, long enough to take possession of the Dagger and teleport back to Earth. Billy is set free from the Dramole's mind-control gas, and he morphs and teleports with his teammates back to Angel Grove, but not in time to keep Goldar from summoning Dragonzord and sending it in to attack Angel Grove. The Rangers summon the Megazord to hold Dragonzord at bay, but the former is slammed and severely damaged by the latter. The Rangers leap out of the Megazord in time to be informed by Goldar to give up their Power Coins or lose their parents forever. With no choice but to save their parents' lives, the Rangers, one by one, hand over their Power Coins, placing them inside an ornate treasure box held by Goldar, and are powered down into their human forms. However, Goldar only wanted the Power Rangers unable to stop Rita from conquering the world, and with the Power Coins now in his possession, he believes, nothing can stop her now.
However, at the Command Center, the Rangers discover that Jason did not hand over all the Power Coins. He still has the Dragonzord Power Coin, which Tommy gave to him when he was in danger of losing his powers to Rita. And meanwhile, back at the deserted Youth Center, Tommy has just entered the main hall, confused when he finds it empty.
[edit] Part Two
The Rangers, with Zordon's help, make a plan to retrieve their parents from Rita's Dark Dimension, but first, they will need their Power Coins back. With only one Coin left—Tommy's Coin—the Rangers have no choice but to ask their old friend for help. Alpha 5 teleports Tommy back to the Command Center, but Tommy wonders how he will be able to help with his powers depleted. Zordon has an idea, but it will be very risky. He intends to infuse Tommy with his own energy, morphing him into the Green Ranger for a time, but, as the Rangers warn him, the power will not last long, and if Zordon drains too much of his energy trying to restore Tommy's powers, he will cease to exist.
While Goldar reawakens Dragonzord to finish destroying Angel Grove, Zordon implements his plan, nearly draining himself of his own life force, but temporarily restoring Tommy's Green Ranger powers in the process. The Green Ranger teleports to Goldar's location and confronts him, but the beast-warrior merely sends Putties to deal with Tommy and weaken his powers until they are depleted again.
After a harrowing battle, Tommy manages to retrieve the Dragon Dagger and regain control of the Dragonzord, but Rita sends Scorpina to help Goldar destroy the Zord. As giants, the two warriors battle Dragonzord until they realize that they have left the Rangers' Power Coins unguarded. Back at the Command Center, Zordon has drained away all of his life force trying to maintain Tommy's powers. Meanwhile, just as Tommy is within an inch of powering down permanently, he ekes out a victory by retrieving the Power Coins and is teleported back to the Command Center just as a Putty is about to strike him down. When Tommy reaches the Command Center, the physical and mental strain of maintaining his powers has taken its toll on him, and he passes out before powering down into his human form.
After the Rangers make certain that Tommy is okay, they work on a plan to try to restore Zordon, and Billy and Alpha discover that the Rangers could restore Zordon by infusing him with energy from their Power Coins. They attempt this, and to their good fortune, the energy infusion does work, just as Rita sends Dramole to attack the rock quarry outside the city. Zordon informs the team that by destroying Dramole, the Rangers' parents will be returned to Earth from the Dark Dimension, so they morph and teleport to the rock quarry to confront the Dramole monster. However, Dramole uses his hypnotic gas to mind-control four Rangers into attacking Kimberly (the Pink Ranger).
Back at the Command Center, Alpha and Zordon discover that Tommy's body has been electrically charged by the force field surrounding the Power Coins. That energy has restored his powers temporarily, and when Alpha hands Tommy his Power Coin, he morphs into the Green Ranger and sends out laser blasts that incapacitate Dramole, setting the four Rangers he had put under his control free. Enraged, Rita throws her wand down to Earth, making Dramole grow. Tommy uses his Dragon Dagger to summon Dragonzord while the other Rangers summon the Megazord. A harrowing battle ensues before the Rangers call forth Titanus and form the Ultrazord, which disposes of Dramole with its finishing blast.
After the battle, Zordon is pleased to inform the Rangers that with Dramole destroyed, the citizens of Angel Grove have been returned to their own dimension, with no memory of what transpired. Jason and the other Rangers celebrate Tommy's return, but Alpha and Zordon warn that Tommy's powers are still temporary, and they could fail him at any time, but Tommy chooses to continue his work as a Power Ranger—even if it means someday he may never be one again.
The Rangers hurry back to the Youth Center and express their love for all their parents, and Kimberly (whose parents are divorced) decides to introduce her mother and father to Tommy, just as Bulk and Skull start a food fight in the Youth Center. Soon all the grown-ups join in, forcing the Rangers to retreat to the entryway, laughing over the fact that there is still a little kid in all their parents.
