Power Rangers’ New Ranger Color Pays Off An 18-Year-Old Joke In The Best Way

Summary After 30 years, Power Rangers introduced the first Orange Ranger, Fern, in Cosmic Fury, breaking a tradition.

The Orange Ranger concept ties back to a 2006 fakeout in S.P.D., which introduced a fake Orange Ranger.

Power Rangers and Super Sentai rarely had Orange Rangers, making Fern's debut on the show special.

Power Rangers’ new Ranger Ranger color breaks a 30-year-old tradition and pays off a joke from 2006’s Power Rangers S.P.D. in the coolest way. It took three decades, but Power Rangers finally introduced a proper Orange Ranger. Fern, who first appeared in Dino Fury as a supporting character, joined the Power Rangers in 2023’s Cosmic Fury. Trapped on a distant planet without their Zords, the Power Rangers needed any help they could get. Fortunately, not only did they receive new morphers created by the original Blue Ranger, but they also welcomed a new team member.

To save the Power Rangers’ mentor, Fern had to use one of the morphers created by Billy, leading to the birth of the very first Orange Ranger. Even though there have been dozens of Power Rangers teams and countless characters across all 30 seasons, the franchise mostly used the same set of colors. Apart from a few exceptions. most Ranger colors appeared in at least a dozen seasons. This is why having a brand-new Ranger in Cosmic Fury was so special, particularly in a color that neither the Super Sentai shows nor Power Rangers had ever used.

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Powe Rangers’ First Orange Ranger Pays Off S.P.D.’s Orange Ranger Fakeout

Power Rangers S.P.D. introduced a fake Orange Ranger

Boom, played by Kelson Henderson in Power Rangers S.P.D., once pretended to be the “Orange Ranger” to impress his parents. Boom was a cadet at S.P.D. but was expelled from the Academy shortly after joining the program, which he never told his parents about. When they came to visit him, Boom lied and said he was now a Power Ranger alongside the other recruits. Boom even began to have nightmares about this Orange Ranger persona he created, leading to some hilarious moments and creating the false impression that there was an Orange Ranger in S.P.D.

S.P.D.’s Orange Ranger fakeout was an original storyline, meaning there was not a counterpart for it in Super Sentai. As a result, the show had to craft an Orange Ranger suit. Due to budget limitations, the Orange Ranger suit was put together using props and costumes from previous seasons, which is why it included a repainted In Space Yellow Ranger helmet. Boom’s Orange Ranger lie was particularly funny because Power Rangers had never once featured an Orange Ranger. This would continue to be the case until 2023 when Cosmic Fury made Fern the team's Orange Ranger.

Power Rangers Cosmic Fury's Final Team Character Color Amelia Red Ranger Ollie Blue Ranger Izzy Green Ranger Javi Black Ranger Fern Orange Ranger

In addition to Boom, S.P.D. had another “Orange Ranger” that caused some confusion. Kat, one of the Rangers’ most important allies, eventually became a Power Ranger herself. Kat’s Ranger form did include the color orange, but it also featured the color white in a significant capacity. While an argument could be made that Kat was an Orange Ranger, neither the show nor any reference material ever referred to her as such. Instead, the S.P.D. scientist was simply called “Kat Ranger.” It would take more than 18 years for Power Rangers to officially describe a character as “Orange Ranger.”

Kelson Henderson returned in Cosmic Fury, although he was not playing S.P.D.'s Boom but rather Ninja Steel's Mick Kanic​​​​​.

Why It Took So Long For Power Rangers To Have An Orange Ranger

Orange is not a common Super Sentai color either

There have only been five Orange Rangers in the history of the Super Sentai franchise after almost 50 years. Of that total, one debuted years before Power Rangers even existed, and one was just introduced in 2024. The other three Orange Rangers in Sentai were from seasons that Power Rangers chose not to adapt. In other words, there was never really a chance for Power Rangers to include an Orange Ranger unless it created an original character. Interestingly, while Cosmic Fury technically adapted Kyuranger, the series preferred to use original suits rather than the Sentai ones.

Orange Rangers In Super Sentai Character Show Battle Cossack Battle Fever J ToQ 6gou Ressha Sentai ToQger Zyuoh Bird Doubutsu Sentai Zyuohger Sasori Orange Uchu Sentai Kyuranger Bun Orange Bakuage Sentai Boonboomger

Fortunately, Power Rangers Cosmic Fury's final episodes included an Orange Ranger, although with a very different costume from the one featured in Kyuranger. Considering there was an orange Zord in Cosmic Fury, it made sense for the series to have a Ranger in that color as well. Despite the lack of orange in the Super Sentai lineups, there was always some hope that Power Rangers was eventually going to create an original Ranger to wear it. Decades passed with no Orange Rangers, though, which is why Cosmic Fury’s Fern was such a landmark for the franchise.

What Is Next For Power Rangers’ First Orange Ranger

Whether the Cosmic Fury Power Rangers will return is unclear

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Unfortunately, the future of the Power Rangers Cosmic Fury team is unclear. After leading the show for three seasons, the team first introduced in Dino Fury will likely not return anytime soon. It was already surprising that the same Power Rangers cast led the show for three seasons in a row, something that had not happened since the original Mighty Morphin show. Additionally, considering there is a chance the next Power Rangers show is a reboot set in a different continuity, the Cosmic Fury Rangers might not even get to appear in the usual crossovers.

Between Lord Zedd’s defeat and Zordon’s return, Power Rangers Cosmic Fury delivered a great finale (...)

On the one hand, it can be disappointing that there are no confirmed plans for Power Rangers’ first Orange Ranger to return alongside her team. On the other hand, Cosmic Fury told a self-contained story that perfectly concluded not only the Dino Fury era of the show but the saga as a whole. Between Lord Zedd’s defeat and Zordon’s return, Power Rangers Cosmic Fury delivered a great finale that did not ask for a sequel. That said, there will hopefully be opportunities for the Cosmic Fury Rangers to appear in other projects.

Power Rangers Should Have More Orange Rangers Going Forward

Power Rangers can have some unique color schemes in future shows

Custom image by Yeider Chacon

Power Rangers Cosmic Fury’s final team had a never-before-seen color scheme not only because of the Orange Ranger but also because it did not include either a Pink or a Yellow Ranger. With Super Sentai’s later seasons featuring more and more characters, now would be the perfect time for Power Rangers to include colors that do not appear very often or have never appeared at all. For example, Purple Rangers are still extremely rare in the franchise. Even if Power Rangers stops adapting Super Sentai, it should still get creative with colors and lineups.

Related Power Rangers’ New Show Will Have To Break The Franchise’s Oldest Tradition After 30 Seasons Power Rangers’ next show after Cosmic Fury remains to be announced, but it is time for the franchise to ditch one of its most iconic tropes.

While a Power Rangers reboot would benefit from using the Mighty Morphin color scheme due to nostalgia and how recognizable that formation was, future seasons should aim at something more original. Having a team consisting of less-common colors like Orange and Purple would be a great way for a new Power Rangers series to stand out from the previous ones. Perhaps the biggest advantage a non-Sentai Power Rangers show would have is the opportunity to design all-original costumes in whatever colors. Hopefully, Fern will be the first of many Orange Rangers in Power Rangers.

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