Youngsters’ ‘Mighty Morphin’ Play Packs a Punch--and a Kick

During the last two months, admitting clerk Kathy Rodriguez has noticed a peculiar trend in the emergency room at the Ventura County Medical Center.

At least six young children have come to the county hospital seeking treatment for playground combat wounds suffered during sword fighting and kick boxing inspired by their favorite TV show: “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers.”

The enormously popular program has spawned the hottest toys on the market this holiday season, and its karate-chopping spandex-clad super-heroes have enthralled children with their galactic adventures.

But educators, parents and medical officials have observed that when youngsters re-create Power Ranger stunts on elementary school playgrounds, the results can sometimes be dangerous.

“I’ve had a lot of kids coming in with injuries and I’ve asked them, ‘What were you doing?’ A majority were claiming to be playing Power Ranger,” said Rodriguez.

She recalls one case in particular. A 6-year-old boy came in recently with a deep laceration to his left arm, just below the shoulder, she said.

The child explained that he and a friend were playing Power Ranger when the boy cut him with a stick he was wielding as a sword. “He was the green ranger,” the boy told her. “He got me before I could move.”

In the past few months, Rodriguez has seen bumps and bruises, cuts and minor head injuries caused by children thwacking each other with sticks, she said.

“It’s something that stands out in my mind now,” Rodriguez said. “Power Rangers have become such a big thing for these kids.”

Big indeed. Since their television debut in the fall of 1993, “Power Rangers” has become the top-rated children’s television show in the country.

This year, about $1 billion worth of licensed Power Ranger merchandise has been marketed throughout the world, according to Burbank-based Saban Entertainment, the show’s production company.

In addition to the action figures, parents can surround the Christmas tree with Power Ranger gifts such as pajamas, backpacks, trading cards, bike helmets and underwear.

Demand for the goods has been so high this year, some Ventura County stores are struggling to keep Power Ranger merchandise on the shelves.

At a Target store in Ventura, four shelves packed with Power Rangers on Wednesday were nearly empty the next day.

“We don’t have anything (in storage),” said Mariam Gonzales, a saleswoman at Target in Ventura. “What’s out here is all we have.”

No karate-kicking combatants could be found at the department store Thursday afternoon. But 9-year-old Cassie Urspringer of Camarillo explained the Morphin phenomenon.

“I think they’re popular with boys because they do karate,” she said. In fact, her 5-year-old brother, Matthew, wants to watch the show. “My mom, she doesn’t let him watch because she says it’s violent.”

Although the television show has been criticized as provoking violent behavior among children, Saban Entertainment officials maintain that the show encourages teamwork and teaches children how to resolve conflicts.

“Power Rangers have served as a positive motivator for kids,” said Barry Stagg, vice president of publicity for Saban. “They stand for good.”

But Jean N. Eaton, a first-grade teacher at Junipero Serra Elementary School in Ventura, said she has observed violent behavior on the school playground when children act out scenes from the television show.

“They do play quite a bit of this right now,” she said. “I know that the Power Ranger idea is the good guys versus the bad guys, but if they could emphasize more positive ways of dealing with problems, it would help.”

But the show’s producers say they have done that. Saban and Fox Television have created 18 television spots to remind children that their beloved rangers are fantasy, Stagg said.

“We reiterate to kids that what they see on TV is a carefully choreographed, staged performance done by experts,” he said.

Vicki Hannigan of Ventura doesn’t have to be convinced. Leaving Toys R Us, her arms were overloaded with 11 Evil Space Alien figures, nemeses of the super-hero Power Rangers.

Her three boys watch the show and are no worse for it, she said.

“My kids don’t have injuries, and they don’t inflict injuries,” she said. “They kick the air, not other people.”