There have been many Blue Rangers in Power Rangers history, but David Yost’s Billy Cranston will always occupy a special place in the lineup since he was since he was the original, holding the mantle for the entirety of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers’ run. Earlier this year, Yost reprised Billy for Mighty Morphin’s 30th anniversary special, Once & Always, his first time back in the role since Power Rangers Zeo in 1996. Now it’s been revealed that Yost will be sticking around the franchise a little longer, as the first look at his lead role in Netflix’s Cosmic Fury has arrived.
After being known as Power Rangers Dino Fury in its first two seasons, and being the first show in the franchise to exclusively stream to Netflix subscribers, this morphenomenal saga has been rebranded as Power Rangers Cosmic Fury for its third season. Among the new elements fans can look forward to is Yost’s Billy becoming a mentor to the current Ranger team, and in the below photo supplied by EW, you can see him alongside Jordon Fite’s Aiyon, Hunter Deno’s Amelia, Chance Perez’s Javi, and Tessa Rao’s Izzy.
David Yost is returning to the 'Power Rangers' TV series for the first time in more than 25 seasons. Get an exclusive first look at his Blue Ranger Billy in 'Cosmic Fury' https://t.co/3U6fKWD3hlAugust 17, 2023
Billy isn’t the only former Power Ranger to become a mentor to younger heroes. Back in 2004, the late Jason David Frank reprised Tommy Oliver for Power Rangers Dino Thunder, where he first guided James Napier’s Conner, Kevin Duhaney’s Ethan and Emma Lahana’s Kira from the sidelines, then joined them out in the field as the Black Dino Ranger. Regarding David Yost’s involvement in Cosmic Fury, executive producer Simon Bennett had this to say:
We felt it would be a meaningful landmark for fans to have David return to the show in a significant role, playing a mentor. 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.
Bennett also mentioned that bringing Yost back into the fold for Cosmic Fury was conceived before Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once & Always was being put together. As such, that special is being considered “completely separate” from Cosmic Fury, with Bennett saying he and his team “were asked to keep it that way,” though here will be “a couple of tiny easter eggs” that eagle-eyed fans may be able to spot. So while one shouldn’t consider Cosmic Fury a direct follow-up to Once & Always, if you’ve liked Billy over the years, then you’ll surely want to see how he does in this mentorship role.
In addition to David Yost’s return, Lord Zedd, who was one of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers’ main villains, will continue causing trouble in Cosmic Fury after being brought back in Dino Fury Season 2. Per the official plot description, these Rangers will need the new powers, suits, weapons and Zords bequeathed to them by the Cosmic Orbs to deal with Zedd’s latest threat. The Cosmic Fury description also mentions the following about Billy’s presence:
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.
Power Rangers Cosmic Fury’s 10 episodes will hit Netflix on September 29, and the streaming service is also still developing a more adult-focused Power Rangers series being developed by Jonathan Entwistle and Jenny Klein. Browse through the Netflix TV schedule to learn what other shows the platform has coming up.
