[Androzani84]

Okay, here?s our next irregular update.

Time Force Episode 12: Worlds Apart

We open on Jen critiquing the battle from the last episode because apparently, she thought everyone?s fight choreography was terrible (which implies nothing else of interest happened between these two episodes).



The others are about as enthralled with this as I am (seriously, this whole scene is bordering on padding, since nothing in it gets brought up again this episode), passing around popcorn in secret instead of listening.



The session gets cut short when Trip arrives with a trash picking job (which seems to be the second thing these guys have been seen actually doing, despite being an odd jobs shop lending itself to several plots).



As if on cue, Mr. First Name Unknown Collins drives by, talking on his comically large early 2000s cellphone. He notices Wes among the group and expresses his disappointment at his son?s choices.



Meanwhile, a pair of stock footage black cars pull up to the bank Nadira is robbing, out of which several guys in gear marked ?CGD? calling themselves the ?Silver Guardians? (which I?m guessing is a nickname, because there?s no way you can abbreviate that to those initials) point their tiny guns at her, with intent to arrest.



As they start firing their lasers (because this is a kid?s show after all), we get a meaningful closeup of one of the grunts (the Commander can be identified because he has a beret).



Nadira teleports away as the Rangers arrive pre-morph and the troops destroy the Cyclobots, with the grunt focused on walking up to Wes, who recognises him enough to be on a first name basis with ?Eric?.



Later, the Rangers watch a press conference in which Mr. Collins introduces the Silver Guardians, stating them to be there to protect the city from the monsters attacking it, with the rather sensible justification that ?the Power Rangers can?t be everywhere?.



(Also, Lucas references the Raimei, but he pronounces it ?Raw-mai?. Seriously)

Wes switches the tv off, dismissing the whole Silver Guardians idea as a grift by his greedy dad (even though a) he?s never acted particularly greedy or money obsessed in any previous episode and b) the one suggesting this was a reporter who didn?t even get the dignity of a response, which can go any way), and then reveals how he and Eric know each other: They were at the same high school, and were both members of the karate club.



One day, the latter decided to drop out and develop a one-sided enmity with Wes (no, really. That is how it plays out).



Mr. Collins then delivers a 1984-esque speech to the troops about the importance of saving the city (both incredibly unsubtle and notably lacking any mention of them charging for their services).



Eric then talks to Mr. Collins about Wes, before he thinks the latter?s son is a fool for giving up his cushy life, and then heads to the shooting Ranger, where he thinks back on how Wes gave up chances to hang out with the rest of the rich snobs because they didn?t like the lower class Eric (which honestly, makes Eric look like the bad friend in this relationship. Which was probably the point, but they?re not doing a great job making this dude likeable).



He then rather unnaturally taps the laser gun against his other hands (complete with long, lingering camera shot).



Meanwhile, we get a long extended stock footage sequence of Frax by himself in the prison, deciding to show that robots are better than Mutants (which is apparently the first time, despite him having already acted on his own twice before) releasing another criminal from the X Vault (and we get this brief shot of something heading towards the city, which the episode pretty much ignores).



The Silver Guardians and the Rangers quickly show up as the mutant this week attacks a public park (which is another mark against the idea that the Silver Guardians are charging for their services), and the former easily take out the Cyclobots, with Trip debuting the Time Slide (adapted from Accel Stop).



They then face down the mutant, with Circuit appearing on screen inexplicably to state he?s from the X-Vault.



The Cyclobots then take out the police before the Silver Guardians arrive and set up bazookas to try and force the Mutant to leave without wrecking the place. Predictably, they?re ineffective against anything stronger than henchmen, with he Commander in particular being targeted.



Wes leaps into the way the way to save him, but the guy ends up keeled over in pain anyway (then what was the point of this? Wait for it?).



Wes then gets up, revealing that the blast cracked the area surrounding his eyes and left him singed.



And yet, both Eric and his dad recognise him, despite the fact here?s barely enough to identify him. Wes calls out his dad (which would be cathartic of this plotline was more developed) and then leaves after insisting he?s doing something actually worthwhile. He rejoins the fight and the Rangers suddenly turn things around and actually manage to recapture the Mutant without a Megazord battle.



Back at the prison, despite knowing that Frax has pulled unknown, more powerful Mutants out of his afterburner before, Ransik and Nadira wonder where this week?s came from.



Frax hurriedly hides the key and denies involvement (despite having been eager to take credit for the last X Vault Mutant), pretending to be a dumb, single-minded servant until they?re gone, at which point he continues monologuing to himself.



And to end the episode, Mr. Collins approaches Wes, once again asking for him to work with the Silver Guardians to protect the city as their new leader (the old guy got injured), and gets refused outright.



Next time: The Rangers and Mutants compete over a Morpher excavated from a dig site, only for Eric to acquire it.

Final thoughts: Boy I?m probably not going to make any friends with this opinion, but I was not a fan of this one.

Part of it is that I really don?t like Wes in this one. His angst at his dad just comes off as belated teen angst given that all of his complaints are relayed to us rather than actually shown off, with said dad still not coming off as the rich bastard the show tries to paint him as, either in the dialogue they give him or the actor?s performance. You?d think that would mean I?m routing for the Silver Guardians, but between Mr. Collins being essentially a satellite character for Wes at this point (count the number of significant interactions he?s had with anyone else) and Eric being an unlikeable prick, and it?s hard for me to invest in anyone in this conflict.

Add to the weird amount of continuity errors in a show where there?s only two writers who do every episode, and this was not a particularly enjoyable experience.