One of the coolest characters in Power Rangers broke the show’s ultimate rule by becoming a Red Ranger in a season that already had one. It is an unwritten rule in the Power Rangers universe that each team can only have one Red Ranger. The same can generally be said about all other colors, although there have been a few more exceptions regarding those. However, when it comes to Red Rangers, most Power Rangers teams are associated with just one Ranger wearing the color Red. However, Eric Myers, the Quantum Ranger from Time Force, broke this trend.
Released in 2001, Time Force was a groundbreaking season that raised the bar for the series and showed that Power Rangers could experiment with different genres and storylines. The show leaned heavily on sci-fi and told the story of a team of time cops who traveled from the distant future to the early 2000s to hunt down a mutant crime lord. Time Force was a rather mature Power Rangers season and had some of the best characters in the franchise, including Eric. The Quantum Ranger played by his own rules and was a one-man team.
Time Force Was The First Power Rangers Team With Two Red Rangers
The Quantum Ranger’s Red Ranger Status Was Debatable
While the Quantum Ranger operated apart from the main team for the most part, it is fair to say that Time Force was the first Power Rangers show to have two Red Rangers as part of its main lineup of heroes. Eric Myers is never referred to as a Red Ranger in Time Force, but it is difficult not to think of him as such when his costume is all-red. Although the Quantum Ranger’s costume is different enough from that of Wes, it is still very much a Red Ranger suit.
Power Rangers Time Force Team | |
|---|---|
Character | Color |
Jen Scotts | Pink Ranger |
Wes Collins | Red Ranger |
Lucas Kendall | Blue Ranger |
Trip | Green Ranger |
Katie Walker | Yellow Ranger |
Eric Myers | Quantum Ranger |
Not much is known about how the Quantum Ranger powers came to be, but the fact is that, once Eric found the morpher and claimed his own Zord, he became a Ranger who operated by himself. Teamwork was always an important theme in Time Force, especially with Jen’s squad having to learn how to work with Wes, which is why having a “lonely wolf” Ranger in the season was so interesting. The personal history between Wes and Eric made their dynamic even more compelling – they were two very different Red Rangers.
The Quantum Ranger Was Both A Red And A Sixth Ranger
Eric Myers Operated Outside Of The Main Team
In Power Rangers, the color of the costume is sometimes not enough to define what that Ranger represents to their team. For example, while Tommy was a sixth Ranger when he rejoined the team in MMPR season 2 as the White Ranger, he later became the leader of the team while still using the same color. Likewise, even though Rocky was the Red Ranger for almost half of Mighty Morphin, he was never the team’s leader. This is why it can be difficult to define all the boxes that a Ranger should check to be considered an actual Red Ranger.
There is a difference between wearing the color Red and being a Red Ranger. For example, Crimson Thunder Ranger Hunter technically wore red in Ninja Storm – even Shane referred to it as a “primary color.” However, Hunter can hardly be considered a Red Ranger. When it comes to Time Force’s Eric, there aren’t many reasons to argue that he is not a Red Ranger. Interestingly, the Quantum Ranger can also be considered a sixth Ranger – the extra member of the team who is only introduced a few episodes into the show.
From a story perspective, the Quantum Ranger acts more as a sixth Ranger than as a Red one. Red Rangers are associated with the position of team leader, albeit with a few exceptions, yet the Quantum Ranger did not even have a team. While Eric was never an evil Ranger, he did clash with Wes and the others a few times, which is also a signature sixth Ranger trait. The fact that the Quantum Ranger had the looks of a Red Ranger and the story of a sixth Ranger made him incredibly cool.
“Forever Red” Confirmed Eric Myers’ Status As A Red Ranger
The Quantum Ranger Was One Of The 10 Veteran Red Rangers
Had “Forever Red” never happened, Power Rangers fans would probably still be arguing whether the Quantum Ranger was a Red Ranger. However, given that Eric Myers was one of the ten heroes assembled for the “Forever Red” crossover, there is no question that he is officially a Red Ranger in Power Rangers canon. A crossover special aired in 2002, “Forever Red” celebrated Power Rangers’ 10th anniversary and saw Tommy and Andros assembling a team of 10 Red Rangers. All Red Rangers in the show up until that point returned, the only exception being the second MMPR Red Ranger.
Assuming that
Ninja Storm
’s Hunter cannot be considered a Red Ranger,
Power Rangers
never had a situation quite like the one in
Time Force
again.
Although there were plans for Steve Cardenas’ Rocky to be included in “Forever Red,” the fact is that Jason was the sole MMPR Red Ranger in the crossover. In other words, had Eric not been included, the “Forever Red” lineup would have consisted of nine Rangers instead of 10. Given how a 10-Ranger team sounds much cooler than a team of nine heroes, it makes sense that the Quantum Ranger made the cut. Regardless of the lore aspects involved, seeing Eric and Wes working together with other Red Rangers was very exciting.
Why Power Rangers Never Had 2 Red Rangers On The Same Team Again
The Closest Thing To It Was Ninja Storm’s Crimson Thunder Ranger
Assuming that Ninja Storm’s Hunter cannot be considered a Red Ranger, Power Rangers never had a situation quite like the one in Time Force again. In Power Rangers Samurai, Lauren Shiba briefly becomes the Red Ranger, yet she replaces her brother’s spot on the team while doing so. In Power Rangers Cosmic Fury, Amelia becomes the Red Ranger after the team gains new powers. Once Zayto returns, he switches from Dino Fury Red to Cosmic Fury Zenith, meaning there were never actually two Red Rangers on the team operating at the same time.
The fact that there was never a case of two Red Rangers operating at the same time like Wes and Eric on Power Rangers again adds to the experience of rewatching Time Force. Naturally, Time Force having two Red Rangers only happened because its respective Super Sentai, Mirai Sentai Timeranger, had two different heroes in Red. Wes was based on Time Red Tatsuya Asami, whereas Eric was based on Fire Red Naoto Takizawa. Time Force also had a third Red Ranger, Alex, although he seemingly died in the first episode, with his powers passing onto Wes.
