The first three seasons of Power Rangers were collectively called Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers. No one could have expected this low-budgeted children's show to become one of the most lucrative franchises in history, but it did. Power Rangers is based on various series in Toei's Japanese-language Super Sentai franchise. The first season of Mighty Morphin' was created by combining original footage with existing footage from Kyōryū Sentai Zyūranger (translation: Beast Squadron Zyuranger).
To capitalize on Power Rangers' success once the Zyuranger source footage dried up, Saban looked to other installments in the long-running Super Sentai franchise. Next up for season two of Mighty Morphin' was Lord Zedd and the Thunderzords. Plenty of the second season's footage was original, but much of it was lifted directly from or inspired by Gosei Sentai Dairanger (translation: Five-Star Squadron Dairanger).
Now, here are ten differences between Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers' second season and its Super Sentai counterpart.
10 There's a Distinct Plot in Dairanger
The basic story formula from the first Mighty Morphin' season was carried over into the second after Lord Zedd finally settled in. Zedd would think of a way to destroy Earth (namely Angel Grove), then send a monster to do his bidding. There were significant arcs (the White Ranger saga, for instance), but, otherwise, many episodes were episodic with no large endgame. The season even ended with some rather meager, unimportant episodes that obviously were made for the sake of filler until the third season rolled out.
In Dairanger, the descendants of the ancient eponymous team are summoned to battle its archenemy, the Gorma. The truth is, the past-life Gorma once coexisted peacefully with two other Chinese tribes. However, the Gorma led a revolt that didn't end well for them. In the present, the Gorma reinstate their takeover plan in a modern setting. The new Dairangers now battle the Gorma in hopes of foiling their masterplan.
9 Most of The New Suits Weren't Used
With the exception of the white member, none of the Dairangers' battle suits were used in Mighty Morphin' season two. The reason why may have been the series feeling like it needed to keep the older suits to maintain some brand recognition. Plus, the Green Ranger confusion.
In Dairanger, the show's motif is ancient Chinese mythology. So, as expected, the suits reflect this element. The biggest issue, had Saban fully adapted all of the Dairangers suits, would be explaining why the Black Ranger was now a Green Ranger.
8 The Zord Situation
The mecha or robots in Power Rangers are generically referred to as Zords. This term has found its way into the Super Sentai series (example: Go-busters), but rarely.
In Dairanger, the mecha are called Mythical Qi (or Chi) Beasts. All of them are based on mythological East Asian animals: RyuseiOh (Qinglong, a Chinese-type dragon), Jishi (Shishi, a Chinese guardian lion), Tenma (Tianma, a flying horse in Chinese culture), Kirin (Qilin, a chimerical creature in East Asian folklore), and Houou/Hōō (Fenghuang, a mythological bird).
The White Tigerzord is Won Tiger in Dairanger, and it is inspired by Baihu (Byakko in Japan), one of the Four Symbols of the Chinese constellations. Tor the Shuttlezord is Daimugen, whose name means "great infinity." In Dairanger, Daimugen is based on another Chinese constellation, Xuanwu, or Genbu in Japan.
7 There is only one female Dairanger
Power Rangers made an active effort to include at least more than one female member in most of their teams, whereas in Super Sentai, the inclusion varied from series to series. In Dairanger, there is only the pink member, Houou Ranger.
In the second season of Mighty Morphin', Kimberly continued playing the Pink Ranger. Meanwhile, Trini and Aisha both portrayed the Yellow Ranger.
There is another female hero in Dairanger called Kujaku, but she is not part of the core team.
6 Serpentera was a Free Agent
In Power Rangers, Lord Zedd had his own Zord-like robot called Serpentera. In Dairanger, this colossal Chinese dragon-like creature is a neutral power named Daijinryu (translation: Great God Dragon). He is a sentient, celestial being whose only goal is to maintain universal balance.
If things get too out of whack on Earth between good and evil, Daijinryu intervenes. This may even result in the deity destroying the planet as a way to restore order.
5 The Gorma
Lord Zedd is an original creation in the Power Rangers-verse. Other than the monsters from Dairanger, none of the main villains were adapted. This included the Gorma Tribe, the recurring big bads in the Japanese counterpart.
The Gorma Tribe' appearance in the modern age is a result of them being able to channel and manipulate qi to the point of them taking on monstrous forms.
4 Black is Green
As mentioned earlier, there was no black-colored member in the Dairangers. The colors were: red, pink, blue, yellow, green, and white.
To avoid confusion with the current Green Power Ranger (Tommy), the green Dairanger's Mythical Qi Beast, Jishi, was called the Black Lion Thunderzord. Its main colors were already black with green accents so this was an easy fix. Yet, in the Mighty Morphin' footage where the Mastodon Zord becomes a Thunderzord, the Black Lion has hind legs. Jishi never had any back legs, though. This was a goof on Power Rangers' part.
3 Tor the Shuttlezord vs Daimugen
In Power Rangers, the heroes are assisted by Tor the Shuttlezord on occasion. In Dairanger, his counterpart is Daimugen. Unlike Tor, Daimugen is more of a conscious being.
In the past, Daimugen fought alongside the Dairangers' ancestors. However, he didn't like violence, and he ran away. Daimugen disguised himself as humans, again and again, in a bid to forget who he really was. He finally awakened as Daimugen when his human form, Kameo, befriended the Dairangers.
2 The White Ranger is a Kid
Similar to how they handled Justin in Power Rangers Turbo, the white Dairangers member is really a kid named Kou. He's nine-years old, which makes him the youngest Super Sentai ranger so far. He gained his powers after meeting the Byakkoshinken (Saba in Power Rangers).
When Kou transformed into the Kiba Ranger, his body physically changed so that he appeared the same age as the other Dairangers.
Kou becoming the Kiba Ranger was no coincidence. As viewers learn later, it was destiny.
1 Zyu2 Monsters
Observant viewers will notice that in Mighty Morphin' season two, Lord Zedd's monsters become less and less nature-based. They're no longer just mutated animals and plants. Rather, they become one-eyed manifestations of inanimate objects like mirrors and doors. Why is that?
When Saban initially exhausted every episode of Zyuranger for the first Mighty Morphin' season, they asked Toei to make more monsters and fight footage so they could keep the money train going. This led to the creation of monsters that are unique to Power Rangers. The footage is commonly referred to by fans as "Zyu2."
Season two of Mighty Morphin' eventually began, and Saban still had some leftover Zyu2 monsters. So, they used them in the earlier episodes of season two until they switched over to the monsters from Dairanger. This included Pirantishead, Primator, Saliguana, Bloom of Doom, Octophantom, Stag Beetle, Invenusable Flytrap, Robogoat, Guitardo, and TurbanShell.
As part of the Zyu2 package, Toei filmed different "execution" scenes for every new monster. So, there was raw footage of the monsters being defeated by the Rangers themselves (i.e., using their weapons), or with the help of their Zords. It came down to how the Saban writers wanted to destroy the Zyu2 creatures. In season two, Power Rangers initially spliced Dairanger mecha battle footage with Zyu2 footage, creating some rather awkward, no-contact battles. After all, these Zyu2 monsters never actually appeared in Dairanger.