Carlos on Call

Power Rangers in Space, Episode 32

Original Airdate: 10-31-1998

Last Time: The Rangers got beaten up by the Psycho Rangers....several times. So, you're probably jazzed to see where that's headed, eh? Too bad.

At the Surf Spot, Carlos is playing an arcade as a little girl watches intently. The game is WWF Superstars, which, if I recall correctly, wasn't exactly spectacular. Also, by 1998, it was damn old. Then again, by 1998, arcades were already on their last legs. The little girl's mother comes to retrieve her daughter, and it turns out that the mother used to teach Carlos. She asks Carlos to watch her daughter for a minute, and Carlos shows off his ability to lose at video games. Carlos challenges the girl to do better, and she does...a lot better. Carlos looks on shocked, as, by the rules of manhood, he has just been completely emasculated. The mother walks off and Carlos walks away. As he leaves, his communicator goes off. Wait, wasn't there a big deal last episode about how they couldn't use the communicators or else the Psycho Rangers would show up and blow them to bits? Anyway, Carlos, being Carlos, decides that a photo booth is a keen place to morph and protect one's secret identity.

The Rangers sans Andros arrive and begin their fight against the monster, which is kind of hard to describe, it's kind of like an armadillo, maybe? With a satellite dish as some sort of collar. Back at the Surf Spot, the little girl, Silvy, finds the photos and realizes that Carlos is the Black Ranger. Carlos isn't doing so great so far in this episode. Credits!

At the monster fight, Andros finally shows up, but the fight ends inconclusively as the monster decides to flee. On the Dark Fortress, the Psychos really want to kill the Rangers, but Astronema disallows such action. Up in the Megaship, Carlos is doing some studying when a robotic voice informs him that he has email. Ah, to live in the 1990s, when AOL still ruled the internet, and voices told us things like "Welcome" and "You've got mail," but those days are past....long past. Anyway, the email tells Carlos that someone knows his secret identity, and demands he meet the holder of the information in person. You know, given that the Rangers' archenemies already know the Rangers' secret identity, I don't why it matters if a little girl knows. I also don't understand why they're doing the blackmail plot for the second time this season.

Carlos, assuming that the Psycho Rangers are planning to blackmail him with his secret identity, instead, you know, gutting him like a fish, heads to the arranged meeting spot. Silvy shows up and Carlos does his damnedest to brush her off. Silvy has to spell it out for him that she's his blackmailer. Carlos is dismayed in the most theatrical way possible. Later, we learn that Silvy has used her incriminating photos to make Carlos go shopping with her. Well, he's still doing better than Cassie did with her blackmailer, at least. Then Silvy gives Carlos a pager so she call him at any time. Carlos has been completely outmanuever by a ten year-old.

On the Megaship, the Rangers are discussing the Silvy situation. Carlos is ready to law down the law right up until he remembers that that's not how being blackmailed works. Silvy summons Carlos to the carnival. Carlos goes along with it. Afterwards, Silvy is willing to give him the photos in exchange for a moon rock. This sets Carlos off and he starts yelling at the girl, instead of simply going to the damn moon, getting a rock, and sparing us the back half of this episode. I mean, fuck, one their Megazords is based on the moon. He storms off.

Later, Carlos is still fuming about Silvy. Ashley comes in and explains that there's something Carlos needs to know about Silvy. Good, I was worried that Carlos had done enough dumbass things this episode. Ashley takes Carlos to see a doctor, who explains that Silvy moved to Angel Grove a while ago so that her brother could receive medical treatment, so she doesn't have any friends around. Oh, and her brother's dead too. The doctor, realizing the need to really hammer the point home, shows Carlos a picture of Silvy's dead brother holding a rocket, and explains that they both wanted to be astronauts, and that Silvy promised to get him a moon rock. Leave it to Carlos to somehow come out the bad guy after being blackmailed. He decides to go get the moon rock.

At the local graveyard, Silvy is talking to her dead brother about her promise to get him a moon rock. The monster shows up to terrorize the little girl. She's able to use her pager to contact Ashley, who'd be given the device by Carlos. The Rangers show up to save the day and the monster goes down. The fight moves onto the giant-sized round and the megazord of the week is...actually first the Rangers try to shoot it with their blasters, which never works on giant-sized creatures. No, the megazord of the week is, in fact....the Mega Voyager! On the Dark Fortress, Astronema realizes that the episode's running short, and asks where the Psychos are. Turns out that they're on Earth and Psycho Red manages to capture Silvy. He demands the Rangers fight him, and they agree. This proves to be a poor choice as Psycho Red manages to defeat the entire team single-handed. The Rangers are only saved by Psycho Black, who hates the Rangers so much that he can't bear to see someone else kill them. They both decide to leave. The Rangers have once again won by default! Hooray!

On the Dark Fortress, Astronema is rethinking her plan in wake of the hopelessly mutinous nature of the Psychos. She decides to take out the Rangers one by one, and chooses to start with the Pink Ranger. Down on Earth, Carlos takes Silvy home, and she gives him back the pictures. He gives her a moon rock. So, I guess the moral of today's episode is that blackmail works, and works well, and only fools would disdain its use. He then takes her to space, reinforcing that lesson. Show Over!

Next Time: Ashley and Cassie fight over chores! Wait, that can't be right...