90's kids took a shot to the heart last Sunday when Jason David Frank better known as Tommy from Power Rangers passed away. For a good 3-4 years, Power Ranger mania took over the world and he was a huge reason why.
The Power Rangers as a collective were cool as hell and heroes we looked up to, but Tommy Oliver was simply that guy. He was the team leader, a bad ass fighter, the personification of the "teenagers with attitude" motto, that had a bit more edge than the rest of the team. About as much Edge as he would get on a kid's TV show. Let's not forget The ladies namely Kimberly and later Kat loved him, and likely a host of fans.
When we played as Power Rangers on the playground, all the kids wanted to be him, for those exact reasons. Let's not forget his Shield and Zords that made him stand out from the rest. I mean he was so cool and admired. He even hosted a karate training session on VHS, so more kids could learn karate just like him. I proudly bought it one year with my own money, in my mind on my journey to being a power ranger. It's a very cheesy cash grab looking back, but for it's time in a kid's mind hot damn it was worth it to start my "training".
His story arc even introduced us to serialized long term story telling and we didn't even realize it. Green with evil was a five part series. One guy gave all five rangers a run for their money, and drew fans in his over the top acting, but hey he was cool. Subsequent episodes regarding him losing his powers had us tuned in as well. When the Green Ranger disappeared, The two-part White Light series that marked his return as the white ranger had us excited he was back.
When he returned to the franchise in Dino Thunder . I was an young adult way past watching Power rangers, but deep down I was excited he came back home. From what I know his time on that series only grew the legend of Tommy Oliver.
The man behind the helmet was said to be very grateful and generous to his fans. Which is all we really ask for when we meet our "heroes". From what I've read about him, all the love he received from fans was an additional spark in his life.
Often times as an adult you forget just how much your childhood influences shaped who you are. To this day I unapologetically love franchises like Ninja Turtles and Power Rangers, I secretly wish I was a ranger getting summoned on my communicator to save the world. Tommy Oliver the power ranger of various incarnations along with his teammates was a huge part of my youth, fans will always celebrate the Legend of him.
May The Power Protect Him.
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