SDCC Lightning Collection Dragon Shield Red Ranger & Zeo Gold Ranger Gallery

"Back to action!"

It's so fitting that in the first full year with the brand under Hasbro ownership, and with the recent announcement of this particular actor's return, that Hasbro's first convention exclusive would be centered around the ranger who began it all. Austin St. John is fondly remembered by fans old and young as Jason Lee Scott, both the original Red Ranger as well as the Zeo Gold Ranger. And this exclusive Lightning Collection two-pack celebrates both ahead of the character's upcoming return for Power Rangers Beast Morphers in 2020. So how do these new figures stack up to what the line has given us so far? Read on to find out!

**This is a massive gallery of over 120 images, spread across the first 4 posts of the thread. Be sure to check them all out.

Packaging
Once again the Lightning Collection proves to have some of the most stylish and gorgeous packaging of any modern toyline. Thanks in no small part to the ever incredible artwork lovingly crafted by artist Tom Whalen aka @strongstufftom on twitter. This convention two-pack gives us even more space than usual to showcase the epic spread of the Red & Gold Rangers. Each character gets a full unbroken portrait, each taking up half of a unique slipcover box. The two halves are held together by a base, but once removed they are still nice and firm. Slide them off to reveal a proper open window box that still has the striking half portraits on either side. With elaborate exclusives, presentation is everything. And in this case the presentation is incredible. This is easily the best looking thing the line has produced thus far, and obviously that doesn't stop with the packaging!

Main Figures
Armored Red Ranger/Dragon Shield Red Ranger
While Jason's armored form has previously been known as the Armored Red Ranger, "Dragon Shield" seems to be the way Hasbro is deciding to take him (and the upcoming Walgreens Black Ranger) using the Green Ranger equipment now. For the purposes of this review I'm referring to him by the given Hasbro name, Dragon Shield Red Ranger.

This is another new mold for the line, though one that at first glance is quite similar to the previously released White Ranger. Given they hail from the same era that fits, they really should look natural together, and they really really do. Red Ranger features essentially all the same basic articulation cuts as White Ranger as well. Full rotating rocker ankles as well as a clicking swivel joint for them to go back and forth give us a solid start. Above this is a shin swivel as well at the boot cuff, allowing you to rotate that portion of the leg 360 degrees if you wish. Then we get a very similar double jointed knee which allows you to fully bend the leg back in on itself. This is already great but there's a (tight) 360 thigh swivel as well as full hips with back/forth and outward motion. Going backward you will impact that good old sculpted butt plate again. But it far from kills the articulation. All of these cuts are executed in the traditional Marvel Legends/Star Wars Black/Lightning collection Hasbro tradition, and their best to not be obtrusive to the character's design. Notably, each of Hasbro's Power Rangers figures features a ton of sculpted in fabric folds to give it some extra realism as well, though it may be less noticeable in this red plastic. The subtle way this is executed around the thighs, knees, etc is really quite something and just adds to the collector nature of this release.

Around Jason's waist is the ever iconic Power Morpher and belt. In this instance the Morpher should be painted gold to compliment the Dragon Shield which is probably an overlooked detail but not a detrimental one. In some instances in show footage, the silver morpher was left unchanged as well. On his left hip is a holster containing the Blade Blaster (dagger mode). Oddly this release omits the proper extended blade and only includes this smaller dagger and the actual blaster mode. On the right hip is the Dragon Dagger in a black holster. The dagger is actually pretty nicely painted and sculpted, though the figure isn't quite capable of holding it to his mouth.

Like White & Shadow Rangers, Red Ranger has a pretty big piece of chest armor, the Dragon Shield. And thankfully in the same way it's soft and flexible so as to free up the movement of the upper body. I'd like to mention that I'm glad Hasbro didn't skimp on the white diamonds under the armor either. The lower torso has the same satisfying ratchet joint as White Ranger, and a similar ball jointed upper body. The combination of the two gives you quite a bit to work with when posing him. The arms hit the sweet spot with that classic butterfly style shoulder joint. As you angle the shoulder back, the white armor slides out to fill the gap and vice versa. There's a full 360 rotating bicep swivel, double jointed elbows, and the same peg style hands as many of Hasbro's lines. Honestly if nothing else the arms have been generally phenomenal on all the Lightning figures.

Red Ranger's head round's out the figure. Nice and proportionate to the body, it's unobstructed by the shield armor. Thanks to a standard ball jointed neck we gut full rotation and plenty of back and forth with this one. Perhaps the only real issue with the head is the missing line of silver or white along the rim of the visor on top and bottom that we traditionally see with the design. Again it's not a huge detriment to the figure, this is a another solid entry in the line. Just something worth pointing out. Overall this figure adds a nice amount of bulk and proportionality to the design that's been missing from the last several attempts that fans have been given. Particuarly if you picked up the Gamestop Exclusive Legacy Armored/Dragon Shield Red, you'll see a noticeable difference. In my gallery I've included photos with S.H. Figuarts Armed Tyranno Ranger, seeing as it's been the gold standard of this design for years. As with all Lightning Collection figures, this one is a great compliment to your Figuarts, or a great replacement or alternative if you like. I really didn't expect to care for this figure from the two-pack, and it's really wowed me.

Zeo Gold Ranger
"It's time for a Gold Rush!" After years of waiting, we finally have the collector grade figure of the design we've all craved for! After the utter disappointment of Bandai America's cheese colored armor on their Legacy Gold Ranger, many of us thought that was our one shot. Time to retreat back to the trusty old Super Legends Gold Ranger. Thankfully Hasbro really shocked collector's when they announced this Jason themed Red & Gold two-pack. As the Lightning Collection line grows it's apparent that many releases in it are making up for what we've been given before.

Gold Ranger is another fresh mold for the line, clearly setting us up for the core 5 Zeo Rangers with it's new tooling. The articulation cuts are again pretty basic for the line, Gold White & Red all share essentially the same design pattern. Full rotating rocker ankles, clicking swivel back & forth joints as well provide the tried and true base of support. We get the 360 shin swivel again as well, though this time we have the much more intricately designed gold boot cuffs this time. Just seeing *actual* gold paint this go around is a huge change from the aforementioned Bandai cheese color on the previous attempt. The double jointed knee is back as well and we also get a new gold knee pad cuff above it. This figure also has the same 360 thigh swivel and that signature sculpted butt plate. As always these articulation cuts give the figure all the range it needs to be an excellent display piece and functional toy.

As with the Red Ranger we have more of those delicious sculpted fabric folds that give the figure a better sense of realism. It's especially noticeable around the waist where the "fabric" is tucked under the belt, which features a perfectly sculpted Gold Ranger emblem. The lower torso has the same satisfying ratchet joint as the other rangers, and a similarly ball jointed upper body. The combination of the two gives you quite a bit to work with when posing Gold Ranger. This is particularly nice in addition to the soft rubbery chest armor the figure has. These figure's are designed as toys first, but an extremely close second is their collector nature. I really appreciate the nice dark paint wash applied to the shield as it brings the sculpt of it out to the forefront. I kind of wish the other bits of armor were this way as well, but I'm so happy with how it turned out here.

The arms feature the same butterfly style shoulder joint. As you angle the shoulder back, the black armor slides out to fill the gap and vice versa. Of interest is some sculpted Zeo print detail on the forward shoulder joint that would only be present on the core team of Zeo Rangers. Meaning one of the other 3 male rangers must be in pre-production now. It's easily overlooked here, but both a nice touch and something we probably weren't supposed to notice. Upon closer inspection you can see this sculpted design extends across the entire chest underneath the shield as well. The arms still feature the trusty swivel joint, double elbow, and free moving peg style wrists. While the peg system means we miss out on side to side movement with the hands, it still works phenomenally. The Gold Ranger's helmet rounds out the figure with it's striking gold trim. On a nice free moving ball joint, this figure can pose with the best of them.

As I mentioned above, this is the first really really good figure we've ever had of the King Ranger/Zeo Gold design. The old Super Legend was the figure I rocked for years, but it's wonderful to finally have a successor. I know Kickback/Tokuchris is thrilled to finally have this bad boy, and he's literally the number one Gold Ranger fan. His endorsement was enough for me to be excited. And I'm quite happy with how the figure itself has turned out. Now on to the accessories for both of these rangers!

Accessories
Between the two figures we really get an incredible number of accessories. So far this line is just getting a reputation for having a great number of accessories available for each release and this is really no different. We can likely expect to see standard retail version of both the Dragon Shield Red Ranger and the Zeo Gold Ranger in the future with fewer accessories. But for now, let's bask in this breakdown:

2 - sets of hands. That one set of open hands for each ranger. Practically the same each is design to hold the included weapons meant specifically for each ranger. I would have liked some more open hands but the real meat of the accessories is below anyway.

2 - Jason Lee Scott heads. The one intended for the Red Ranger has a bit of a happy smirk on his face while the Gold Ranger's is a bit more subdued and basic. Obviously these heads can be used with either of the figures. The face print on each is honestly pretty great and really is a decent likeness of Austin St. John.

1 - Dragon Dagger. A new accessory for the line, it appears identical to the one coming with the Green Ranger/Putty set.

1 - Blade Blaster (Dagger Mode). The non extended blade version of the weapon. Even though the hands are ostensibly meant to hold Red Ranger's other weapons, they work pretty great with this too.

1 - Blade Blaster (Blaster Mode). It's always nice to get another mode of the Blade Blaster, even if that weapon isn't the star of the show with this power up for Jason.

1 - Power Blaster. In truth, the combined Power Blaster can actually break down into all of the component Power Weapons of the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers! Power Daggers, Power Axe, Power Bow, Power Lance, and Power Sword. Interestingly enough the Power Axe has the sliding grip mechanism built in, meaning the one that comes with the upcoming Walgreens Dragon Shield Black Ranger will be fully functional as both Axe and blaster. The tab which holds the Power Sword is of a pretty standard size as well, so if you wanna throw the Dragon Dagger in there or do as I did and plug the Zeo Gold Staff in there, you totally can. I expected the Power Blaster to be one big accessory so I'm quite happy it can break down and Jason can use his Power Sword on it's own.

1 - Gold Energy Effect. A recolor of the energy effect that came with Lord Zedd. You can plenty of use with this accessory, as both power up or damage effect. Either way I'm always happy when things like this are included.

2 - Zeo Golden Power Staffs. We get one standard version of the staff with the ornamental hilt in mid position and gold halves closed. While the hilt should have some gold paint at it's center I can't say I'm terribly bothered by the absence. I do however applaud the sculpted button present just below the head of the staff. We also get an active Power Staff to represent the "Gold Rush" attack. This version is molded split open with silver details between the gold and the hilt slid down to the end of the staff. I would have greatly appreciated both of these being combo'd into one functional staff. As is though, I'm happy to take the multiple display options instead.

And that's one hell of an armory for these two figures to share! I'm really really impressed.

Final Thoughts
As Hasbro's first (of hopefully many) SDCC exclusives to come, I'm ridiculously pleased. The Dragon Shield Red Ranger & Zeo Gold Ranger two-pack is a genius themed release with tons of accessories and absolutely the right kind of premium style packaging befitting an exclusive of this nature. I can't wait to get my hands on the next two-pack with Green Ranger & Putty now. Keep up the good work Hasbro!

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Now THIS is the gallery I was waiting for! Great job as always, I don't know how you come up with so many picture ideas in such a short amount of time

Still disappointed by the MMPR morpher being so small and flat, but otherwise he looks great. Didn't expect the Axe to be functioning either; that's super cool! Wish they did the same for Zeo Gold's staff now but hey, I'm happy either way.

Part of me kind of adores that they included the holster mode of the blade blaster even if I would have preferred the actual blade mode. A lot of figure reveals recently almost seem to be focused on flexing on Legacy and this is just the apex of that by having the only accessory Legacy's MMPR figures did plus a thousand more.

This is a fantastic gallery, Den! Not only the figures, which are good anyway, but the framing and the selection of the shots. I'm not super big into Zordon Era stuff, but it's good to get a Gold Ranger that isn't bright yellow, and the Armoured Red Ranger is nice too... even as the one people were less interested in.

Really hoping they do an individual release of the Gold Ranger. I love that suit design, and would hate to not be able to get a good figure of it.

He's got some jowls on him.

I believe that only the duo pack is an exclusive, as in, they'll only be sold separately in retail

Dragon Shield is very inconsequential but the Gold Ranger is significant due to the Mustard Ranger figure from Bandai of America. I swear, Hasbro seems to focus primarily on kicking BoA in the dick. Except the Psycho Ranger, BoA had a better helmet mold for that

If Hasbro really wants to kick BoA I the dick I'd say making 2 packs of PRIS Silver with Astronema or Ecliptor, a PRNStorm Thunder Rangers 2 pack, and a PRNStorm Green Samurai with Lothor ought to do just that.

Oh almost forgot... A mass produced Lord Drakkon. Hell, they can even make a 2 pack with 2 versions of him in some of his other get ups.

Right now, for me personally... Hasbro > BoA

The only thing Hasbro would not be able to out class as easily is the Legacy role play collectables BoA gave us. Although their white ranger helmet is already looking better than any of the ones BoA put out. NTM a cheaper retail price.