Power Rangers

What you’re seeing above is a toy ad for the new Power Rangers movie, which has no shortage of surprises when it comes to character makeovers — like Elizabeth Banks’ avant garde Mortal Kombat take on Rita Repulsa, or the quasi-Cronenbergian Alpha-5. The ad above offers the latest reveal from the upcoming movie reboot, giving us our first sneak peek at Goldar, and as his name implies — and for lack of a more appropriate description — he’s gold AF.

You know that Power Rangers movie that still seems to be happening, despite there being absolutely no reason for it to be? You know how Elizabeth Banks is playing the villain? You know how the villain is Sexy Rita Repulsa (which is something I never thought I’d ever type unless I was looking for bad Halloween costumes)? The mind continues to boggle at every turn with this movie, and it’s honestly impossible at this point to predict whether it will be good, bad, or so bad it’s good. But Elizabeth Banks is a talented actress who’s clearly not afraid to put on a lot of weird makeup and outfits for her characters, as evidenced by all four of the Hunger Games movies. Lionsgate released a new image of her Rita Repulsa, complete with evil scepter.

As the kids of the ‘80s and early ‘90s are dragged kicking and screaming into middle age, their nostalgia for the things they enjoyed in childhood has only grown stronger. And Hollywood has responded in kind, taking those childhood obsessions and transforming them into movies that are specifically crafted to appeal to adults with fond memories instead of kids. That’s why director Joseph Kahn’s new grim ‘n gritty Power Rangers short film is brilliant and unsettling in equal measure. On one hand, it’s exquisitely made and just tongue-in-cheek enough. On the other, it’s exactly the kind of movie that we’re worried will actually get made in the next few years.

Well, we don't know about you guys, but we've resigned ourselves to our new nostalgia machine overlords. Their latest decree: the film reboot of the long-running 'Power Rangers' TV series will officially hit theaters in 2016. That gives you plenty of time to figure out an excuse for where you need to be that day -- whether that's an excuse so you can go see the movie or an excuse to avoid it is up to you. The power is yours. Wait. That was 'Captain Planet.'

Jason David Frank, who is better known to the legions of 'Mighty Morphin Power Rangers' fans as the Green turned White Ranger of our collective childhoods, is trying to get into the Guiness Book of World Records. And no, it's not by fighting a million Zords or signing thousands of autographs for fanboys and fan girls. That would probably be a lot safer, in all honesty.