Toybox REVIEW: Power Rangers Lightning Collection In Space Pink Ranger

Release Date: February 2022

RRP: $22.99/£23.99

Wave 10 of the Power Rangers Lightning Collection was notable for rounding off two popular teams from the original Saban era. The Zeo Yellow Ranger joined to complete Power Rangers Zeo, while fans also could also complete their Power Rangers In Space team with the release of Lightning Collection In Space Pink Ranger! Cassie Chan succeeded Katherine Hillard to become the second Pink Turbo Ranger, before blasting off into space with her teammates and joining Andros in his fight against Astronema and the forces of Dark Specter.

The fourth and final In Space Ranger to be released in standard packaging (Andros was a two-pack release and TJ in both a two-pack and deluxe set), the Lightning Collection In Space Ranger among the last few releases to feature windowed packaging and that great Tom Whalen artwork. Pink and white is a good colour combination, so that Ranger artwork stands out really nicely on both the front and sides of the box. The back of the box shows off the usual Hasbro figure render, showing off the figure in an action pose with most of its accessories. As tends to be common with these renders there's a noticeable difference between this and the actual product, but we'll get into that a little further below. Inside the real things are neatly stored on a moulded plastic tray.

As you'd probably expect the In Space Pink Ranger shares the same body as the In Space Yellow Ranger, which is in turn pretty much the standard body used for most female Rangers in the Lightning Collection. The details on the In Space suits are relatively simple but the figure pulls them off well, such as the coloured rectangles across the chest and the gold belt buckle. One thing to note about the figure (which interestingly doesn't seem to show up very well in photos) is there that the pink plastic used on the parts doesn't completely match up across the body. While it's all a very vibrant hot pink, the abdomen piece in particular is a little darker which kinda throws the look off. A much more significant problem though is the helmet sculpt, which on first glance might seem fine but on closer inspection (or to eagle-eyed Power Rangers fans) isn't quite right. The Pink Ranger's visor differs from the others it's quite thick and curls up into rounded areas. The Lightning Collection figure is close, but curls up into sharp edges. This might sound like a minor complaint, but given how little difference there is in these suits otherwise getting the visors right is important. What makes it even worse is that the render on the back on the box got the visor perfect, so there really is no excuse for the final product to come out wrong. Sure it's not as bad as the SPD A Squad Pink Ranger (which reused the In Space Pink helmet) getting it completely wrong by having Red's visor, but it's still not great.

The figure's articulation matches that of the other female characters released in the Lightning Collection, which is reasonably good but still a step down from the male body figures. You could perhaps argue that this is due to the thinner frame of the women figures, but given that Hasbro have recently improved the articulation on them (see the forthcoming White Alien Ranger) you could also argue that they could have managed better all along. That all aside, the In Space Pink Ranger features; 

- Ball jointed head, torso and hips 

- Single hinge neck and ab crunch 

- Swivel hinge shoulders, elbows, wrists and ankles

- Butterfly joint shoulders 

- Double hinge knees 

- Thigh and boot swivels 

Sometimes I feel overly harsh when criticising the female figures in this line because overall they still are pretty decent, but it's frustrating to see the elbows barely manage a 45 degree bend when the male figures are out there rocking a double hinge joint instead. However like the Yellow Ranger the butterfly joints on this mould are really good, which does help make up that grievance. The skirt piece is made of soft plastic with slits at both sides, minimising the restriction on the hip joints. In fact, surprisingly the skirt probably has more impact on the ab crunch than it does the hips. Honestly despite my complaints it's still a really fun figure to pose, especially since the body is light enough that you can fit a display stand into the foot peg and get some really good mid-air poses out of her.

Cassie's accessories include an alternate left closed fist and right knife-strike hand (nicely complimenting her default weapon-holding hands), Astro Blaster sidearm, Satellite Stunner and an accompanying effect part. The Satellite Stunner is In Space Pink's personal weapon, and as the name suggests a mini-satellite gun that fires rings of pink energy. This attack has been beautifully replicated in the included effect part, which is designed specifically for this weapon and plugs into it to create a cone of energy. As nice as universal effect part pieces are, there's nothing quite like getting one that's designed to represent a specific attack and this one looks great. The Satellite Stunner is also very nicely painted too – moulded in grey plastic but with the correct black grip and pink along the weapon itself. The Astro Blaster is identical to the ones released with the other In Space Rangers – again nicely detailed and able to fit into the belt holster when not in use. It's a shame that the two weapons can't combine like they do on the show, but that was also the case with all the other figures so it was to be expected at this point. Interestingly the replacement hands are the direct opposite to what was included with In Space Yellow, giving you complete pairs of closed fists and knife-strike hands between the two.

Rounding off the accessories is the alternate Cassie Chan head, which falls into the usual Lightning Collection standard of "good, but not great". The likeness to actress Patricia Ja Lee is definitely there (especially in the eyes and hair) but the face itself looks far too chiselled, with really defined cheeks and chin as opposed to the much softer look she actually has. As such it's a passable likeness, but at the same time does come off as a little generic. I am however grateful for the more neutral smile Hasbro gave the head sculpt, as opposed the horrifying smile Ashley was burdened with.

Power Rangers in Space has provided a pretty solid range for the line, so it feels a little harsh to say that the Lightning Collection In Space Pink Ranger is probably the weakest of them. All the good things the In Space Rangers do are still here (particularly the accessory count) and the figure is really fun to pose, but the usual Lightning Collection drawbacks get really old after a while. A mediocre civilian head sculpt is one thing, but issues like mismatching shades of pink and an incorrectly shaped visor (no matter how minor it may be) just shouldn't be happening on a line that's this long into its lifespan. Compared to some of the things other Hasbro lines are doing for roughly the same price (particularly the G.I. Joe Classified Series) the Lightning Collection is really lacking. A great character and one step closer to rounding off a fan-favourite team, but not really representative of what the line is really capable of.