If there was ever a power ranger with autism...
 

Would you see it lead a new team and probably can make a difference in the world?

I feel like this is exactly the same discussion as the one we had about a gay ranger...

I clicked on this thread expecting it to be another one by that guy, too.

This is different!

Never gonna happen it way to risky and Saban would not risk his show in such a way with a retarded person as a ranger could lose a lot of money and ratings.

Btw stop making these treads their pointless.

I don't trust Power Rangers to handle an entire season with an Autistic Ranger. I think they could do the typical PSA episode about it with a kid or friend of the rangers being autistic, but not an actual ranger.

For one, you know the bad guys would either be shown making constant comments about how their insult aren't because said ranger is autistic, which would get annoying real fast and make all the monsters seem like they're really concerned with appearing polite (all the while wrecking the city).

Or their going to say shit that's going to piss off parental guardians and cause a shit storm.

Thanks well said

I'd personally find it obnoxious, pandering and most likely offensive since the only GOOD portrayal of autism (or autistic-ish behavior) in media I've seen is in the Arthur episode "When Carl met George" which had the plus of being an educational cartoon on PBS and having a cast of 3rd graders, which means you don't have someone who's quirky and a bit rude writing off any dickish or weird behavior from someone who should know better as just "being autistic" like some fucking 4chan user who thinks it's just a free pass and not something that the genuinely afflicted try and overcome and quell under a mix of willpower, education and sometimes a bit of meds. Or being Sheldon Cooper fuck you Chuck Lorre.

We had Bridge, Gemngemma, and Dr. K.

I think that's about as close as we can and should get.

Also Sentai King, I think you'll find that a good deal of members around here fall on the Autistic Spectrum, myself included. And on their behalf I'd ask that you show a little respect and common decency.

My bad did not mean to be rude no hard feelings talisman

calm down a little, and different or not, I recall that someone made the point that a character representing someone of a minority or a disability would be pandering and pointless unless written correctly, which as people in this and that thread have stated is something Power Rangers would not be able to handle very well I feel like that point stands pretty firmly in this topic as well.

We have. Gem, Gemma, and Dax. They weren't leaders, though...

Don't forget about asperger's syndrome. Any way to make a difference that we're all human are we?

Asperger was removed as a diagnosis a few years ago.

Actually it was not so much "removed" as it was "annexed by the prime classification of Autism."

And Dr. K.

She's not a ranger, though.

I haven't watched the series, but these characters had forms of mental issues related to autism?

Gem, Gemma, and Dr. K were forcefully (Well, I don't remember how forceful it was, thinking on it...) abducted and basically isolated from everyone (Sans each other).
Though from how K acted, it seems she always had some issues.

I say Dax was also autistic because just watch the guy. The hell is wrong with him?

Ok. I always figured Dr. K was just uppity because of her age. I've heard that the character is rather young. Also, I am now watching RPM. I finally broke. Soggy reminds me of a younger, child friendly, version of Vex from Lost Girl with his attitude and certain gestures.

The WHO still classifies it as a separate diagnosis, however.

In a way that's not definitive but they show signs that there's something unusual about them. See: "Ambiguous Disorder".

And just why does there suddenly need to be a Ranger for every single group there is? Why not a Ranger in a wheelchair? Or a cross dressing transgender Ranger? How about a Blind one? Or a deaf one? Or maybe a mentor with Alzheimer's? Once you start down this road, unless everyone is represented by a Ranger someone is going to be pissed. You don't need all of these things in what is now and has always been A CHILDRENS SHOW....

A blind ranger would be awesome for an animal set. Of course he'd have to be a bat.

We kind of had that with Master Swoop from Jungle Fury.

We did? I never watched JF. Saw clips and such, but never actually watched it. Cool.

I don't think having a Power Ranger character with an explicit mental disorder, like autism, should happen. Unfortunately, TV shows are really bad at accurate portrayals of disorders. In the case of autism, you either get retarded people like Dax, Gem and Gemma or antisocial super-geniuses like Doctor K. There never seems to be a realistic middle ground.
Give it a name, like for example autism, and the target audience, which in this case are young kids, might think everyone with autism is either a retard or an antisocial super-genius. And that is not something you want children to think after watching a TV-show.

Because, of course, it is absolutely impossible to portray someone with a mental disorder as sympathetic. Maybe if they took the effort, it could work well, but I do agree with you that they'd need to do the research to present it. And children already hate everyone unintentionally, so maybe it would help them understand what someone else is going through.

Can we watch the use of derogatory terms in this thread please? It's a sensitive topic for some as it is, so being mindful of what you're posting and the language you're using will go a long way.

Thank you, please continue.

I think one of the better examples of a disability appearing in Power Rangers was in the Power Rangers Zeo episode Trust In Me.
The episode featured Rocky showing pity to a blind woman, by offering to help her with every simple task, followed by her giving him the cold shoulder. The woman in question is never portrayed helpless, as she even gives a perfect Karate demonstration. As a result, she does not want to receive pity from others, since she considers herself as a fully functioning human being and wants to be treated as such.
The lesson Rocky learns in this episode is to not feel pity for people with disabilities, but treat them as equals, which I think is the right direction to go with this subject, should Power Rangers ever feature it.

But, the problem I feel with portraying mental disorders, such as autism, is that they are hard to portray accurately and in a way that children can understand. Blindness is easy to for children to understand, as it can simply be described as the absence of sight. The same goes for deafness; it is the absence of hearing.

From my point of view, there is no easy description of what autism really is. Even I, as someone having a mild case of autism, have a hard time giving people an exact definition of the disorder. In fact, many people 'suffering' from it don't display clear outward traits other people can easily link to autism. This makes it very hard for TV shows to portray it in a realistic way.

I don't think Power Rangers is the right series to handle such a delicate subject. Especially because the target audience comes to see heroes in spandex and giant robots fighting rubber monsters. And this is my final say about this subject.

I have been diagnosed with Autism. So I can understand this. You're more emotional, you cant focus very well, some of us run around like crazy idiots, and some of us are more creative then others.

Power Rangers could handle it offhandy, like not make it a focus of an episode.

And on the main subject, if there was a power ranger with Autism, it would be me.

*coughCOUGH* don't think they(the rangers you pointed out) have autism
Dax.....is ether an airhead, or Autism diagnosed. I know, but its hard to tell with the bad acting of OO.
Gem and Gemma are implied to be insane. Even before Venjex.
I have Autism, and even I'm not the level of smarts Dr K is! She is a Child Prodigy, don't ever mix those up.

Explain it well enough and they might not.

forgive me for triple post

Its really hard to tell if Dax has Autism, or is just an airhead, thanks to the horrible acting of OO. I hope for the Formor one to be true though.

Gem's technically the subleader of the RPM Rangers, I think..?
(forgive me if im thinking of Go ON Gold.) also gem and gemma are implied to be insane as well.

I think even with the most care given to the writing involving the character, the idea would not translate well to the target audience. They would just call that ranger weird and think nothing of it.

Why do the rangers have to be gay or have an ASD diagnosis to represent a group? People that are gay or have an ASD are more than just those two things. Maybe they are afraid of heights, have an irrational fear, or has to work really hard to get better at something. That is how those groups should be represented, not introduce a character and say "Oh yeah, he is gay" or "She has high functioning Autism". It isn't needed. Every person I have worked with that has an ASD is way more than their diagnosis; there is no reason to portray a ranger as their diagnosis when they are so much more.

What you said......times over 9000!