Power Rangers In Order: How To Watch Every Movie & TV Series

Saban Entertainment

The 1990s were a good time to be a fan of Japanese pop culture. After the '80s made gamers out of millions of kids thanks to Mario and Sonic the Hedgehog, it was the '90s when anime started to become mainstream in the U.S. (even if kids didn't know it at the time) thanks to "Pokémon" becoming a worldwide cultural phenomenon. (That and "Sailor Moon" and "Dragon Ball Z" turning kids and teens into lifelong fans of the medium.)

But it wasn't just animation. In live-action, "Power Rangers" brought tokusatsu fun to the West and started a hugely influential superhero franchise that, yes, is still very good. Created by Haim Saban and Shuki Levy in collaboration with Shotaro Ishinomori, the long-running property is mostly made out of reused footage from Ishinomori's iconic tokusatsu series "Super Sentai." It revolves around a team of youths trained to morph into the eponymous Rangers to fight evils, and occasionally pilot giant mecha called Zords.

The original "Mighty Morphin Power Rangers" became an overnight phenomenon. It's a superhero TV show so popular it kickstarted a franchise that's still going over 30 years after it began, with entries like "Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once & Always" both evoking nostalgia by looking back at the property's history while also delivering new and original stories. Over the decades, however, there have been many, many, many "Power Rangers" shows — and even a couple of movies — taking their cues (and footage) from nearly 50 years of "Super Sentai" series. This can make it difficult for a newcomer to get into this franchise or even for a longtime fan to revisit this hugely popular tokusatsu property. So, consider this your official guide to the best way to watch "Power Rangers" and its many eras.

Fox

Yes, the key to "Power Rangers" is that, much like the long-running "Godzilla" films, there are different eras of "Power Rangers" with various degrees of quality, and only one with actual continuity. The best way to watch the "Power Rangers" franchise is to simply go by release order. (Quick note: there are a couple of movies missing from this list for reasons we'll get into later). That means:

• "Mighty Morphin Power Rangers" (1993)
• "Mighty Morphin Alien Rangers" (1996)
• "Power Rangers Zeo" (1996)
• "Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie" (1997)
• "Power Rangers Turbo" (1997)
• "Power Rangers in Space" (1998)
• "Power Rangers Lost Galaxy" (1999)
• "Power Rangers Lightspeed Rescue "(2000)
• "Power Rangers Time Force" (2001)
• "Power Rangers Wild Force" (2002)
• "Power Rangers Ninja Storm" (2003)
• "Power Rangers Dino Thunder" (2004)
• "Power Rangers S.P.D." (2005)
• "Power Rangers Mystic Force" (2006)
• "Power Rangers Operation Overdrive"(2007)
• "Power Rangers Jungle Fury" (2008)
• "Power Rangers R.P.M." (2009)
• "Power Rangers Samurai" (2011)
• "Power Rangers Super Samurai" (2012)
• "Power Ranger Megaforce" (2013)
• "Power Rangers Super Megaforce"(2014)
• "Power Rangers Dino Charge" (2015)
• "Power Rangers Dino Super Charge" (2016)
• "Power Rangers Ninja Steel" (2017)
• "Power Rangers HyperForce" (2017)
• "Power Rangers Super Ninja Steel"(2018)
• "Power Rangers: Beast Morphers" (2019)
• "Power Rangers Dino Fury" (2021)
• "Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once & Always" (2023)
• "Power Rangers Cosmic Fury" (2023)

The key here is that you watch everything from "Mighty Morphin Power Rangers" to "Power Rangers in Space" in release order. That's because these shows have a clear continuity, with each new season following the previous one directly and characters passing their mantle to new Rangers, creating it a clear throughline from one team to another. Though incredibly campy and over-the-top, seeing the Power Rangers go from living in the small town of Angel Grove to literally colonizing the stars (in 1998!) is fascinating and must be experienced the way kids did at the time of release.

After "Lost Galaxy," continuity doesn't matter as much, with shows being essentially standalone. That being said, there are many crossover episodes where the current team meets the previous team, along with epic episodes like "Forever Red" (which brought back every Red Ranger up to that point).

Hasbro

Though not official, fans have separated the different "Power Rangers" shows into distinct eras. There's what is called "The Zordon Era," named after the original mentor of the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers team. This era starts with the very first season of "Mighty Morphin Power Rangers" and carries over through "Alien Rangers," "Power Rangers Zeo," "Power Rangers Turbo," and ends with "Power Rangers in Space."

The rest of the shows from "Lost Galaxy" through "Wild Force" constitute the rest of the "Saban Era" due to the series being produced by Saban Entertainment, and they established a tradition of resetting the story and following a completely independent story and a brand new team. Though not as culturally relevant as "Mighty Morphin," this era produced some of the best "Power Rangers" stories in the entire franchise.

Everything between "Ninja Storm" and "RPM" belongs to what fans refer to as the "Disney Era," as this is when the House of Mouse bought Fox Family Worldwide and became the owner of "Power Rangers." This era saw a lot of changes to the formula, like introducing a female Blue Ranger, having three-member teams, or even seven-member teams rather than the standard five (plus one special Ranger).

After Disney sold the franchise back to Saban, the property started betting hard on nostalgia, with everything between "Samurai" and "Super Ninja Steel" trying to echo the success of the early shows and do more crossovers. "Super Megaforce" even gave its Rangers the ability to transform into Rangers of yore.

The current era is dubbed the "Hasbro Era," which started with "Beast Morphers" and may actually mark the end of "Power Rangers" as we know it, as Hasbro is taking over toy-making duties from Bandai. The shows of this era have broken away with many of the franchise's traditions, but it has also made a lot of progress (see "Dino Fury" introducing a queer Ranger). Still banking on nostalgia, this era has similarly brought back old characters. "Cosmic Fury," the most recent show, even brings back Billy Cranston and Zordon, tying the story to "Mighty Morphin" in a big celebration of the franchise's 30th anniversary. The show is meant to serve as the final chapter in the continuity that started back in 1993, and it works wonderfully, crafting a new and exciting story that nevertheless harkens back to the classics.

As for the movies, only "Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie" is part of the canon, as it serves as the official transition between "Power Rangers Zeo" and "Power Rangers Turbo." In fact, 1995's "Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie" was not even considered canon by the "Power Rangers" shows at the time of its release, while the 2017 "Power Rangers," though very good, is a reboot completely separate from the rest of the canon — save for a couple of cameos at the end.