Rita Repulsa
Encyclopedia
Rita Repulsa is a fictional character
from the television series Mighty Morphin Power Rangers
. She is based on the Kyōryū Sentai Zyuranger villain Witch Bandora. In 2006, Jetix had a poll asking viewers to vote for the greatest villain in the history of the Power Rangers and Rita Repulsa was voted as number one.
In the 2006 series, Power Rangers: Mystic Force
, the audience sees that Rita has become Mystic Mother (played by Machiko Soga
, the original Rita actress, for the Japanese series, Magiranger) and she is the empress of all good magic. In episode 31 of Mystic Force, it is referenced that Mystic Mother was once called Rita in "the dark days".
witch bent on galactic domination, Rita Repulsa was the first villain the Power Rangers
had to face. Most discernible by her two pointed hair cones, one may also recognize her by her screeching voice, Madonna-like cone bra, and obnoxious attitude. While she is sadistic and power hungry, her character would usually become humorous whenever the Power Rangers defeated her; this would end with the catchphrase "I've got such a headache!" As Rita then married Lord Zedd
later on in the series, her humorous personality was increased (usually arguing with Zedd or her father, Master Vile).
In the 2006 series Power Rangers: Mystic Force
she is the ruler of all good magic and can use that magic to defend herself if and when she needs to.
in the original Japanese footage used for villain scenes, with her English voice performed by Barbara Goodson
. Carla Perez would take over the role from Soga after the character's reintroduction midway through the second season through the end of Power Rangers In Space
. In Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie
, she is portrayed by Julia Cortez. Barbara Goodson continued to provide Rita's voice when Perez and Cortez played the character. Her final appearance as Mystic Mother is portrayed by Machiko Soga, with Susan Brady
providing her voice.
. She, along with the other season 1 villains, was released by a pair of Earth astronauts. She exited the dumpster along with her minions Goldar
, Baboo & Squatt and Finster. Rita claimed she would conquer the first planet she saw after being freed, and it happened to be Earth. Over the course of the show, Rita Repulsa battled the Power Rangers using everything from phobia spells, super Putty patrollers, binding magic spells, and on occasions, she would even allow the likes of Goldar and Squatt and Baboo to be "in charge" of destroying the Power Rangers. Nothing worked, and Rita would normally take her frustrations out on her henchmen by bashing them on the head with her magic wand or screaming into their faces. One of Rita's most memorable traits was that following each loss, she would either swear vengeance, or complain that she had a headache (the latter becoming one of her trademarks). Eventually Rita's reign of terror came to an end when Lord Zedd
returned to assume control. Then it is revealed Rita was not the true empress, but actually the regent of Zedd's empire while he was off in other places. Zedd was furious that Rita had failed to defeat "children" and conquer the Earth. Despite Rita's begging and pleading, Lord Zedd vaporized Rita's magic wand and shrank her down to the size of a toy before again exiling her into space in a space dumpster.
succeeded in opening the dumpster. But the Power Rangers were successful in sending Rita back into space. Eventually her dumpster crashed into the moon, and she escaped. Down but not out, after regaining her freedom, Rita sought assistance from Finster, her still loyal henchman, to concoct a love potion that would generate libidic feelings for use on Lord Zedd. She also used a beauty cream made by Finster over her face to become younger (serving to transition the actress from Soga to Perez). The love potion worked, and the two were then married. Once married to Lord Zedd, Rita gave up her magic practices and worked alongside Lord Zedd as a partner in crime. Zedd and Rita attempted to defeat the Rangers, using clones of the Rangers and time-travel, and though they each failed, the Rangers did not claim victory so easily.
, arrived to join his sister and brother-in-law on their quest to destroy the Power Rangers. Also, following this, monsters were now made to grow by Rita and Zedd's crossing their staves and using lightning to make monsters grow. Nevertheless, they continued to fail, even with help from Rita's spy, Katherine Hillard
, who, after breaking free from Rita's control, joined the forces of the Power Rangers as the second Pink Ranger when Kimberly Hart
departed for Florida. Additionally, Goldar
found out about the love potion that Rita used on Lord Zedd
, and had a concoction created to reverse the effects. The anti-love potion brought Zedd back to normal, however, he had apparently developed a real love for Rita of his own accord.
Later still, her father, Master Vile, made his entrance, aiding the villains greatly by leaving the Rangers as powerless children.
were summoned from Aquitar. During this story arc, the villains were successful in destroying the Ninja power coins and planting an implosion device which, when the timer ran out, destroyed the Command Center.
. However, the couple, along with the other villains, returned to the moon in a campervan
and throughout the latter part of Zeo, Rita and Zedd attempted to thwart the Machine Empire's plots and even aided the Rangers to prevent the Machine Empire from claiming Earth. In Rangers Of Two Worlds, Part 1, Finster made a new wand for Rita, which was used to create a monster that was strong, even against the Zeo Ultrazord. After King Mondo and his family are defeated by the Power Rangers, Zedd and Rita gave Prince Sprocket a present, claimed as a peace offering, which was actually a bomb, which blows the Royal House of Gadgetry to pieces.
sacrificed his own life (at the hands of the Red Space Ranger Andros
), Rita was transformed into a normal human, along with Lord Zedd, who had also been transformed into a normal human being.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
from the television series Mighty Morphin Power Rangers
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers is an American live-action children's television series based on the 16th installment of the Japanese Super Sentai franchise, Kyōryū Sentai Zyuranger. Both the show and its related merchandise saw unbridled overnight success, catapulting into pop culture in mere months...
. She is based on the Kyōryū Sentai Zyuranger villain Witch Bandora. In 2006, Jetix had a poll asking viewers to vote for the greatest villain in the history of the Power Rangers and Rita Repulsa was voted as number one.
In the 2006 series, Power Rangers: Mystic Force
Power Rangers: Mystic Force
Power Rangers Mystic Force is an American television series, and is part of the Power Rangers franchise. As with all Power Rangers series, the show is adapted from a series in the long-running Japanese tokusatsu franchise, Super Sentai...
, the audience sees that Rita has become Mystic Mother (played by Machiko Soga
Machiko Soga
was a Japanese voice actress and actress.- Life and career :Machiko had humble upbringings and was raised to be a singer, though her talents were with acting. She was “discovered” after doing a play in Tokyo Center...
, the original Rita actress, for the Japanese series, Magiranger) and she is the empress of all good magic. In episode 31 of Mystic Force, it is referenced that Mystic Mother was once called Rita in "the dark days".
Personality
An evil alienExtraterrestrial life
Extraterrestrial life is defined as life that does not originate from Earth...
witch bent on galactic domination, Rita Repulsa was the first villain the Power Rangers
Power Rangers
Power Rangers is a long-running American entertainment and merchandising franchise built around a live action children's television series featuring teams of costumed heroes...
had to face. Most discernible by her two pointed hair cones, one may also recognize her by her screeching voice, Madonna-like cone bra, and obnoxious attitude. While she is sadistic and power hungry, her character would usually become humorous whenever the Power Rangers defeated her; this would end with the catchphrase "I've got such a headache!" As Rita then married Lord Zedd
Lord Zedd
Lord Zedd is a fictional villain from the TV series Mighty Morphin Power Rangers who was introduced at the beginning of the show's second season. Unlike Rita Repulsa, the show's original villain, Zedd was a character made specifically for Power Rangers without any prior counterpart in the Japanese...
later on in the series, her humorous personality was increased (usually arguing with Zedd or her father, Master Vile).
Powers
Being a powerful witch, Rita possesses many magical abilities. In the first season, her wand was used as the recurring plot device to make her monsters grow to enormous sizes.In the 2006 series Power Rangers: Mystic Force
Power Rangers: Mystic Force
Power Rangers Mystic Force is an American television series, and is part of the Power Rangers franchise. As with all Power Rangers series, the show is adapted from a series in the long-running Japanese tokusatsu franchise, Super Sentai...
she is the ruler of all good magic and can use that magic to defend herself if and when she needs to.
Portrayal
The character of Rita Repulsa was portrayed by three actresses. Since the character originated as the Zyuranger character Witch Bandora, she was portrayed by Machiko SogaMachiko Soga
was a Japanese voice actress and actress.- Life and career :Machiko had humble upbringings and was raised to be a singer, though her talents were with acting. She was “discovered” after doing a play in Tokyo Center...
in the original Japanese footage used for villain scenes, with her English voice performed by Barbara Goodson
Barbara Goodson
Barbara Goodson is an American actress known mostly for her versatility in voicing original and dubbed cartoons. She is voted one of the ten best women to do the voices for young males in cartoons...
. Carla Perez would take over the role from Soga after the character's reintroduction midway through the second season through the end of Power Rangers In Space
Power Rangers in Space
Power Rangers in Space is a television show that aired in 1998 as the sixth season and fourth installment of the Power Rangers franchise...
. In Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie is a 1995 American superhero action fantasy based on the television series Mighty Morphin Power Rangers on Fox Kids. It featured the characters and actors from the series itself, and used the zords from Ninja Sentai Kakuranger...
, she is portrayed by Julia Cortez. Barbara Goodson continued to provide Rita's voice when Perez and Cortez played the character. Her final appearance as Mystic Mother is portrayed by Machiko Soga, with Susan Brady
Susan Brady (actress)
Susan Brady is a New Zealand actress who has made several appearances in different shows including Shortland Street, Marlin Bay, and Hercules: The Legendary Journeys...
providing her voice.
Season 1
At the beginning of season 1, Rita Repulsa had been imprisoned for over ten thousand years in a space dumpsterDumpster
A dumpster is a large steel waste receptacle designed to be emptied into garbage trucks. The word is a genericized trademark of Dumpster, a American brand name for a type of mobile garbage bin...
. She, along with the other season 1 villains, was released by a pair of Earth astronauts. She exited the dumpster along with her minions Goldar
Goldar
Goldar , is a fictional character from the Power Rangers universe, first appearing in the American series Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. He is based on the Kyōryū Sentai Zyuranger villain Grifforzer. He is a powerful yet very overconfident warrior that served under the command of Rita Repulsa and...
, Baboo & Squatt and Finster. Rita claimed she would conquer the first planet she saw after being freed, and it happened to be Earth. Over the course of the show, Rita Repulsa battled the Power Rangers using everything from phobia spells, super Putty patrollers, binding magic spells, and on occasions, she would even allow the likes of Goldar and Squatt and Baboo to be "in charge" of destroying the Power Rangers. Nothing worked, and Rita would normally take her frustrations out on her henchmen by bashing them on the head with her magic wand or screaming into their faces. One of Rita's most memorable traits was that following each loss, she would either swear vengeance, or complain that she had a headache (the latter becoming one of her trademarks). Eventually Rita's reign of terror came to an end when Lord Zedd
Lord Zedd
Lord Zedd is a fictional villain from the TV series Mighty Morphin Power Rangers who was introduced at the beginning of the show's second season. Unlike Rita Repulsa, the show's original villain, Zedd was a character made specifically for Power Rangers without any prior counterpart in the Japanese...
returned to assume control. Then it is revealed Rita was not the true empress, but actually the regent of Zedd's empire while he was off in other places. Zedd was furious that Rita had failed to defeat "children" and conquer the Earth. Despite Rita's begging and pleading, Lord Zedd vaporized Rita's magic wand and shrank her down to the size of a toy before again exiling her into space in a space dumpster.
Season 2
Locked within a space dumpster, Rita came within inches of freedom when her dumpster came to Earth, and Bulk and SkullBulk and Skull
Bulk and Skull are fictional characters in the Power Rangers universe. They appeared as permanent cast members from Mighty Morphin Power Rangers until Power Rangers in Space...
succeeded in opening the dumpster. But the Power Rangers were successful in sending Rita back into space. Eventually her dumpster crashed into the moon, and she escaped. Down but not out, after regaining her freedom, Rita sought assistance from Finster, her still loyal henchman, to concoct a love potion that would generate libidic feelings for use on Lord Zedd. She also used a beauty cream made by Finster over her face to become younger (serving to transition the actress from Soga to Perez). The love potion worked, and the two were then married. Once married to Lord Zedd, Rita gave up her magic practices and worked alongside Lord Zedd as a partner in crime. Zedd and Rita attempted to defeat the Rangers, using clones of the Rangers and time-travel, and though they each failed, the Rangers did not claim victory so easily.
Season 3
Shortly after the wedding, Rita's brother, Rito RevoltoRito Revolto
Rito Revolto is a fictional character from the American television series Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, as well as the sequel program Power Rangers Zeo. The idiotic skeleton-like brother of Rita Repulsa, brother-in-law of Lord Zedd, and son of Master Vile, Rito is based on the Ninja Sentai...
, arrived to join his sister and brother-in-law on their quest to destroy the Power Rangers. Also, following this, monsters were now made to grow by Rita and Zedd's crossing their staves and using lightning to make monsters grow. Nevertheless, they continued to fail, even with help from Rita's spy, Katherine Hillard
Katherine Hillard
Katherine 'Kat' Hillard is a fictional character in the Power Rangers franchise. She was played by Australian-American actress Catherine Sutherland in adult form, and by Julia Jordan in child form...
, who, after breaking free from Rita's control, joined the forces of the Power Rangers as the second Pink Ranger when Kimberly Hart
Kimberly Hart
Kimberly Ann Hart is a fictional character in the Power Rangers universe. She was played by actress Amy Jo Johnson during the first three seasons of the show, plus on the two feature films of the franchise. Kimberly is best remembered as the first Pink Ranger from the first entry of the franchise...
departed for Florida. Additionally, Goldar
Goldar
Goldar , is a fictional character from the Power Rangers universe, first appearing in the American series Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. He is based on the Kyōryū Sentai Zyuranger villain Grifforzer. He is a powerful yet very overconfident warrior that served under the command of Rita Repulsa and...
found out about the love potion that Rita used on Lord Zedd
Lord Zedd
Lord Zedd is a fictional villain from the TV series Mighty Morphin Power Rangers who was introduced at the beginning of the show's second season. Unlike Rita Repulsa, the show's original villain, Zedd was a character made specifically for Power Rangers without any prior counterpart in the Japanese...
, and had a concoction created to reverse the effects. The anti-love potion brought Zedd back to normal, however, he had apparently developed a real love for Rita of his own accord.
Later still, her father, Master Vile, made his entrance, aiding the villains greatly by leaving the Rangers as powerless children.
In Mighty Morphin Power Rangers The Movie
In the movie's alternate continuity, Rita and Zedd are married, though their space palace looks different. They release Ivan Ooze, but become trapped in a snowglobe for the remainder of the movie.In Mighty Morphin Alien Rangers
After her father turned back time using the Orb Of Doom, The Alien RangersAquitian Rangers
The Aquitian Rangers, sometimes referred to as the Alien Rangers, are fictional characters and heroes from the Power Rangers universe, starring in the television series Mighty Morphin Alien Rangers...
were summoned from Aquitar. During this story arc, the villains were successful in destroying the Ninja power coins and planting an implosion device which, when the timer ran out, destroyed the Command Center.
In Power Rangers: Zeo
Rita and Zedd fled to live in refuge with Master Vile following the invasion of the Machine EmpireMachine Empire
The Machine Empire is a group of robotic villains in the Power Rangers universe, who first appeared in the television show Power Rangers Zeo and were later mentioned in Power Rangers in Space and Power Rangers Wild Force.-History:...
. However, the couple, along with the other villains, returned to the moon in a campervan
Campervan
A campervan , sometimes referred to simply as a camper, or a caravanette, is a self-propelled vehicle that provides both transport and sleeping accommodation. The term mainly describes vans that have been fitted out, often with a coachbuilt body for use as accommodation...
and throughout the latter part of Zeo, Rita and Zedd attempted to thwart the Machine Empire's plots and even aided the Rangers to prevent the Machine Empire from claiming Earth. In Rangers Of Two Worlds, Part 1, Finster made a new wand for Rita, which was used to create a monster that was strong, even against the Zeo Ultrazord. After King Mondo and his family are defeated by the Power Rangers, Zedd and Rita gave Prince Sprocket a present, claimed as a peace offering, which was actually a bomb, which blows the Royal House of Gadgetry to pieces.
In Turbo; A Power Rangers Movie
Rita and Zedd made a small cameo appearance in Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie. Divatox calls them in the middle of the night to ask them how to destroy the Rangers. In a comical scene, Rita held the phone to a snoring Zedd, saying that if she knew how to stop the Rangers she wouldn't have to listen to that, and then told Divatox her advice was to run.In Power Rangers Turbo
In the episode "The Millenium Message", the Blue Senturion plays a video message from the future foretelling of Dark Specter's alliance and their attack on the galaxy. Shown working together and causing destruction are Rita, Zedd, Mondo, Machina, and Divatox.In Power Rangers In Space
In Power Rangers In Space, Rita and Zedd joined the alliance of villains led by Dark Specter, and assisted with Dark Specter's scheme to vanquish all good in the universe. However, during the final confrontation, when ZordonZordon
Zordon is a powerful wizard and mentor to the Power Rangers franchise, appearing in the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers television series and many of its subsequent incarnations....
sacrificed his own life (at the hands of the Red Space Ranger Andros
Andros (Power Rangers)
Andros is a fictional character in the Power Rangers universe, appearing in the television series Power Rangers in Space. He was portrayed by Christopher Khayman Lee.-Power Rangers in Space:...
), Rita was transformed into a normal human, along with Lord Zedd, who had also been transformed into a normal human being.