David Yost's Billy Cranston Joins 'Power Rangers Cosmic Fury'; Get Premiere Date
The original Blue Mighty Morphin' Power Ranger returns to the main series for the first time since Zeo. The opening theme sequence also confirms another cast member
Guess this news was too good to wait for Power Rangers Day. Entertainment Weekly has finally confirmed that David Yost did indeed stick around in New Zealand after the filming of the Power Rangers 30th anniversary special, Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers: Once and Always and is bringing Billy Cranston to the main show’s 30th season, Power Rangers Cosmic Fury.
These are Yost’s first episodes of the main series at all since he walked off the set late into Power Rangers Zeo, the fourth season, following continuing homophobic abuse from producers. That relationship has clearly been mended in the Hasbro era of franchise ownership. "We felt it would be a meaningful landmark for fans to have David return to the show in a significant role, playing a mentor," Cosmic Fury executive producer Simon Bennett tells them. "And on a personal level, it was a thrill to be working with the O.G. Blue Ranger. David's calm and positive spirit kept us all grounded and reminded us of the Ranger legacy we were striving to do justice to." Billy becomes the first character to serve as Ranger, tech support, and mentor in the franchise’s history.
Bennett also says that Billy's return was planned for prior to Once & Always manifesting. This means aside from Billy thinking of sticking around and the broadcast from BuzzBlast’s Angel Grove team covering the putty attack, there’s not going to be reciprocations in callbacks from Cosmic Fury’s end. The season’s logline reads:
Lord Zedd has escaped, and this time his rampage extends to the farthest reaches of space! The Rangers need to find new Zords and new powers to face Zedd’s latest threat, and they won’t do so alone. Joined by some familiar faces, they will discover the power of the Cosmic Orbs and become the Cosmic Fury Rangers, armed with new uniforms, new weapons, and an entirely new fleet of Zords!
It continues, telling of Billy’s role in the season, as he “joins the Dino Fury Rangers in fighting back against the gravest threat the universe has known. Ever the tech genius and master of logic, Billy’s help is crucial to the Rangers in their battle against Lord Zedd. Billy’s expertise shines as the team rallies to fend off both a galactic invasion and the potential undoing of all the good that came from the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers team.”
Cosmic Fury continues the Dino Fury Rangers’ story, the first full team to get a third season. They consist of Hunter Deno as Amelia, who becomes the show’s first starring female Red Ranger, having been Dino Fury Pink, Russell Curry as Zayto, the Zenith Ranger and former Dino Fury Red Ranger, Kai Moya as Ollie Akana the Blue Ranger, Jordon Fite as Aiyon the Gold Ranger, and Tessa Rao and Chance Perez as siblings Izzy and Javi Garcia. But that’s not all. The theme song also revealed another new series regular. It’s Jacqueline Joe, who plays Izzy’s girlfriend Fern, and is heavily believed to be becoming the Cosmic Fury Orange Ranger. There are also glimpses of Zedd-resembling foot soldiers and another original villain.
Notably, the theme song is the first since 2009’s RPM to not feature “Go Go Power Rangers”, and like when the first version of the Dino Fury theme only included Zayto, Ollie and Amelia because Izzy and Javi didn’t debut yet, this version of the Cosmic Fury intro only features the Rangers in their Dino Fury suits. Bennett said it had to be done this way. Power Rangers Cosmic Fury, the show’s final New Zealand-filmed season will debut its ten episode season on Netflix globally on September 29, exactly one year after the back half of Dino Fury’s second season debuted on the service.
Source: Entertainment Weekly