Release Date: February 2022
RRP: $41.99/£45.99
With one team member from Power Rangers Zeo left to release, one would think that Hasbro would just get them out as part of an upcoming wave to complete another team on collectors shelves. Of course this isn't how Hasbro operate, and why give you one figure you want when they can bundle it up with one you probably don't? Though to its credit, the Lightning Collection Mighty Morphin Pink Ranger & Zeo Pink Ranger set is a clever idea for a two-pack release - channelling the rise of the team's second Pink Ranger Katherine Hillard whilst also releasing yet ANOTHER version of the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Pink Ranger into the wild. This set was initially released in the US as a GameStop exclusive, however was also made available via Hasbro Pulse in both the US and the rest of the world.
The Lightning Collection Mighty Morphin Pink Ranger & Zeo Pink Ranger set comes in the initial style of packaging these two-pack releases had, which featured Tom Whalen's recognisable helmet artwork on either side of the front - with the visible halves then continuing over the sides to create a full picture. As before the artwork on these two-packs features the Rangers from a face-on view, while the artwork on the single releases has them from the side. The sides of the box also feature the series logos for Mighty Morphin Power Rangers and Power Rangers Zeo. On the back of the box you'll find the usual CGI renders of the figures in action poses, and then inside all of the contents are neatly laid out across a moulded plastic tray. To fair it's quite a packed release, so little space is wasted!
We start the set all the way back with Kat's initial appearances in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, when she was ambushed by Rita Repulsa and put under a spell to serve her. During her time brainwashed she possessed the ability to transform into a white cat, which was then adopted by Aisha and Kimberly and named "P.C." (Park Cat). Said white cat has been included here as a static accessory, moulded in white plastic with painted green eyes. While not the most exciting accessory, it is a really good inclusion for a Kat-themed set. It's something that could look really good with Rita and Zedd figures or a Kat-themed display, but otherwise is more than likely to be left in the box by a lot of people.
Moving onto the figures themselves we kick off with the Mighty Morphin Pink Ranger, which Kat became later in season three when Kim left the team to train for and compete in the Pan Global Games. The figure included in this set is a re-release of the initial Lightning Collection MMPR Pink figure, sporting a new and more accurate helmet sculpt. While the proportions of the previous helmet weren't too bad (at least, not as bad as some of the other Rangers), comparing them side by side you can see that there's quite the difference. The pink plastic is also a touch darker this time around, which in itself isn't necessarily a bad thing however the difference in shade between certain areas of the figure is quite noticeable. It doesn't show up very well in photos, but in hand you can see it straight away. Other than that there's not really a whole lot to say - the colours are sharp, and the moulding on places like to Morpher on the belt are good even if the details are a little squished. Odds are most Lightning Collection fans would either have the Pink Ranger by this point (Hasbro have made enough of them) or if this is your first experience with it odds are you weren't buying this set for it in the first place.
As quite an early release in the Lighting Collection the Mighty Morphin Pink Ranger has a pretty basic array of articulation, but then that said it didn't really change until they started playing around with pinless bodies anyway. Altogether the figure features;
- Ball jointed head, torso and hips
- Single hinge neck
- Swivel hinge shoulders, elbows, wrists and ankles
- Butterly joint shoulders
- Double hinge knees
- Thigh and boot swivels
At the risk of sounding like a broken record I won't go on about how the female body in this line was shafted compared to the male one. Lacking the double jointed elbows and knees, ab crunch and bicep swivels, it goes without saying that it's slightly less poseable. Swapping the elbows out for swivel hinges does make it a little better, but the bend still isn't that much more than a 45 degree angle. Despite the soft plastic skirt the hips aren't impacted too badly either thanks to the cuts on either side. Overall its fine despite the line offering much better elsewhere, and you'll still be able to get some great action poses out of her.
The accessories specifically intended for MMPR Pink include a knife strike right hand and closed fist left hand (complimenting the default pair of weapon holding hands), Blade Blaster in gun mode, Power Bow and an arrow. A small translucent green blast effect part has also been included that was designed for the Zeo Laser Pistol, but can fit onto the Blade Blaster or arrow with a little bit of force (the effect piece is made of rubbery plastic so won't break). It's a pretty standard array of accessories for a Pink Ranger figure, however the ironic thing is that by the time Kat became the Pink Ranger all these weapons had pretty much been phased out - in fact until Once & Always was released earlier this year Kat hadn't even used the Power Bow before. They're the same accessories that were included with the Metallic Armour Pink Ranger so the repetition was to be expected, but the Blade Blaster in its holstered form would have made more sense. Again there's not a whole lot to say about these pieces that haven't been said before - the Power Bow looks good even though the look is kind spoiled by all the clips on the underside, and the Blade Blaster sports a decent splash of white paint to make it pop.
Rounding off the accessories is the first of two civilian Kat heads included in the set, this first one sporting her standard hair down look from Mighty Morphin season three. Though a similar head was included with the Metallic Armour figure, this one sports some pretty fundamental differences - the hair is much flatter and tucked behind the ears, and she sports a more neutral expression as opposed to a wide toothy grin. The Metallic Armour release's head wasn't bad, but this one is both a considerable improvement and easily the best of the two heads included in the set.
Following the destruction of the Ninja Power Coins and the Command Centre, Kat along with the rest of the team used the powers of the Zeo Crystal to become stronger than before. Now part of the Zeo Rangers, Kat continued as the team's pink ranger, also known as Zeo Ranger I. Being (currently) the only way to get this figure and thus complete the Power Rangers Zeo team in the Lightning Collection, it's fair to say that the Zeo Pink Ranger is the star attraction of this set. And on first glance it looks great - the pink body suit is vibrant (and not quite as colour mismatched as the Mighty Morphin figure), while all the gold accents compliment it well. The helmet sculpt looks great too, with that long rounded oblong visor taking centre stage. Of course it wouldn't be a Lightning Collection Zeo figure without inconsistent paint apps, and this time we're added a new one to the mix too. As well as Hasbro reverting to a silver trim for the visor (meaning Pink, Blue and Green have silver whilst Red and Yellow have the correct white), Zeo Pink is also the first of the team to feature black boot soles. Whilst absolutely correct to the onscreen suit, it just seems bizarre to casually drop them on the final release. In the grand scheme of things little paint app differences shouldn't matter, but it just goes to show how slapdash this line can be when it comes to the finer details of these suits.
Despite significant differences when it comes to moulding and suit design it's the same basic female body under there as Mighty Morphin Pink, with the Zeo Pink Ranger sporting;
- Ball jointed head, torso and hips
- Single hinge neck
- Swivel hinge shoulders, elbows, wrists and ankles
- Butterly joint shoulders
- Double hinge knees
- Thigh and boot swivels
As such I won't go over the the pros and cons of the articulation again, but it's pretty much the same as I wrote further up for the Mighty Morphin figure. At a push you could say that the holsters on either side of the belt have some impact on the hips since it's more for them to push against, but it's not really that noticeable.
The Zeo Pink Ranger commands slightly more of the accessories in this set, which isn't really that surprising given that it's the figure that collectors actually wanted. Altogether she comes with a knife strike right hand and closed fist left hand, extended Zeo Power Pod Sword, Zeo Laser Pistol, Zeo I Power Disc shield and a small translucent purple blast effect which can clip onto the shield. The previously mentioned green blaster effect can also plug into the Zeo Laser Pistol and is a much better fit given that was the weapon it was initially designed for (the effect having previously come with Yellow, Green and Red Rangers). Straight away the hands included with this figure are a massive misfire because they're identical to the ones meant for Mighty Morphin Pink - however said hands are exactly the same, there's no difference in sculpt whatsoever. So rather than including the same hands twice Hasbro could have just included a matching pair of knife strike and closed fist hands for better variety. The standard Zeo firearms are the same as previous released - the Laser Pistol is very nicely moulded and detailed while the inclusion of the extended Power Pod Sword (but not the collapsed version) continues to frustrate when it comes to putting it in the holster. The Zeo I Power Disc though is VERY nicely done, not only including all the right moulding and paint apps but also the option to either clip it onto the wrist or hold it via one of the weapon-holding hands. This gives you the choice of either using it like a standard shield, or putting Kat in some great Captain America-like shield-throwing poses. I'm not 100% certain if the shield's effect part is a brand new piece but it's certainly one of the lesser ones seen in the Lightning Collection, and while fairly straightforward does a good of making action poses feel that little bit more dynamic.
Rounding off the accessories is a second Kat head, this time sporting a tied-back ponytail hairstyle that she sometimes had in Zeo. It's a great head sculpt in that it's distinctly different from the other one in this set and the previously released Metallic Armour one, but personally I'm not so sure about the facial expression. Again the likeness to Catherine Sutherland is there, but there's a strange vacancy to the stern look that doesn't sell the character quite as well as the other head. The detailing on the hair and pink scrunchie are pretty nice though. Of course neither head is meant specifically for a figure in this set, so you can always put the hair-down head on the Zeo figure or vice versa.
The Power Rangers Lighting Collection Mighty Morphin Pink Ranger & Zeo Pink Ranger set is a wonderful celebration of the often underrated Katherine Hillard, but it does leave you wondering whether it should really exist in the first place. Hasbro forcing fans to buy a Mighty Morphin Pink Ranger just to finish their Power Rangers Zeo team is a dick move, especially since most collectors buying this won't even want it - whether it's due to having multiple Pinks already or just having no interest in Mighty Morphin whatsoever. The figures themselves are fine and don't have any significant flaws that aren't elsewhere in the line, although Hasbro's dedication to giving the Zeo team mismatching paint apps continues to be as baffling as ever. Thankfully by this point the set isn't too hard to find at a heavily discounted price, so Hasbro's little scheme to pinch every penny from collectors wasn't quite the success they hoped.
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