The Power Rangers series has defied the odds by still being alive and kicking well into 2019 and beyond. This means it’s poised to be running in four separate decades starting next year, which is a truly incredible achievement. The show’s format has mainly been the same, with certain colored Rangers representing the teams.
Of these Rangers, the White Power Ranger has always had a certain level of mystique surrounding them. If one were to think of the most distinct Ranger, then you’d certainly land on the thought of the White Ranger. So, what makes the White Ranger so interesting? Here are 10 facts you should know.
10 The White Ranger Was The Poster Child For the 1st Series
Those of us who are old enough to remember the television landscape of the 1990s will recall how much the White Ranger dominated promotional material back then. There was no way the Power Rangers would be featured on any merchandise without the presence of the White Ranger – who would always occupy the middle spot.
When Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie came out in 1995, the White Ranger was front and center for its marketing. On the film’s poster, you can find the White Ranger’s figure looking forward ahead of every other Ranger. When ads were run to promote the show’s episodes, it would be the White Power Ranger asking us to tune in.
9 A Majority Of White Rangers Have Been Female
This should come as a surprise to Power Rangers fans since Tommy Oliver is the best-known White Ranger in the series and is synonymous with the title, but it has been the female gender that has dominated this designation.
RELATED: The 10 Most Powerful Families In Marvel, Ranked
As of the last count, there have been five women who have become the White Ranger. The female White Rangers seem to have operated under the radar seeing as one can't name them as quickly as the males. Then again, female White Power Rangers are generally part of the core team, and not treated quite as special as some other White Power Rangers. (More on this later.)
8 Male White Rangers Usually Have A Sword
Making it all the more apparent that the male White Power Rangers have been given a little bit more importance is by pointing out that they almost always get a special sword along with the designation. These swords are special because they “get” the personality of the Ranger that is wielding them. Basically, the swords are made to fit with the character traits of the particular male White Ranger.
As far as the female White Rangers are considered, they do acquire weapons of their own, but these are generally very similar to the weapons wielded by the Pink Ranger, making it a case of a palette swap more than anything else.
7 Delphine Was the First Female Power Ranger Leader
Don’t go thinking the show went on discriminating between the female and male White Power Ranger, though, because there’s the matter of Delphine becoming the first female Power Ranger leader, and she just so happened to be the White Ranger.
Making it even more impressive is that Delphine was the sole female member on the team. So, for all those who claim that a female leader is something only recently shown in mainstream media, let us point you toward Delphine, who did so decades previously. Delphine’s status as the White Ranger was immortalized further when she became part of the Legendary Power Rangers.
6 The First Two White Rangers Were the Leaders of their Teams
Delphine wasn’t alone in being the leader as the White Power Ranger, as Tommy Oliver also took the same role when he was with that designation. In fact, the first two White Rangers shown on Mighty Morphin Power Rangers were the leader of their teams.
This means that, at least at the time, the White Power Ranger rank meant the character automatically became the leader of their respective teams. Future series have sought to shake things up a bit by having other color ranks be the leader, but whenever new Power Rangers meet older ones, the original White Power Rangers take up the leadership position once more.
5 White Power Rangers Are Special
More frequently, it is the male White Power Rangers who are treated more special to the story, but this isn’t always the case. We have Udonna as the White Ranger in Power Rangers Mystic Force, who acted as the mentor to the other Rangers before stepping in the action late in the game; her appearance was regarded as a huge deal.
Likewise, other Power Rangers like Tommy and Trent came in afterward in the story, and their arcs were treated as separate and more special than the rest of the team. Their powers are also distinct from the others, regardless if they take up the leadership position or not. As Power Rangers rarely focuses on single characters, these White Rangers having their arcs is a big exception.
4 The White Ranger Was Created Due to Tommy's Popularity
Funnily enough, the White Power Ranger wasn’t even in the developers’ plans originally. If the original storyline had unfolded, the Power Rangers we first saw on Mighty Morphin Power Rangers would’ve remained that way.
However, Tommy Oliver’s character proved enormously popular, to the point where fan mail squarely centered on queries over his return – he’d previously departed the show once his tenure as the Green Ranger had ended. In order to appease fans, and cash in on Tommy’s popularity, the show came up with the White Ranger figure in order to make Tommy’s return mysterious; this way, it ensured fans would tune in to see what powers the White Ranger would offer the returning Tommy.
3 Tommy Got His Own Talking Sword And Zords
Speaking of Tommy’s skills and abilities, he also got pretty cool weaponry and resources. It was Tommy’s White Power Ranger who introduced the concept of a single Zord being used to fight enemies. Previously, the other Rangers’ Zords would prove ineffective in fights, forcing them to combine these Zords. Tommy’s Zord, though, would generally act on its own.
As far as melee combat was considered, Tommy’s White Ranger was also given his own talking sword, named Saba. This shortsword was sentient and aided Tommy by imparting advice, shooting energy blasts, and even possessing flying abilities. Saba was responsible for providing the theme of future special White Rangers having swords that matched their personalities.
2 White Ranger Powers Can't Be Used For Evil
When Tommy was introduced as the White Ranger, the showrunners had to come up with a unique power of his own in order to make the White Ranger designation distinct. This then took the form of Tommy being immune to the forces of evil.
Originally, the White Ranger’s chief attribute was supposed to be the anti-darkness, which meant this Ranger could never be corrupted and was a servant to the powers of good. Although Tommy has been used chiefly to illustrate this power, it was also apparent in Udonna and Delphine; both of whom are famous for being innately pure Rangers.
1 There Have Been 9 White Power Rangers
There have been 26 seasons of Power Rangers, including the original Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, and these have featured more than dozens of multi-colored Rangers (Red Ranger being the most common), but the overall number of White Rangers is only a grand total of 9.
Of these nine Rangers, we have five females and four males – Tommy, Delphine, Alyssa, Trent, Sam, Kat, Udonna, Dominic, and Hayley. This just goes to show that only certain series in the Power Rangers franchise get to have the White Ranger in their teams, and whenever they are featured, these White Rangers are almost always the most special characters.