'Here is the second interview with a well-known person from
among fans of the Power Rangers. This time I chose the user Cosmic
Ranger, a very friendly and energetic Ranger fan from the USA. We
talked about the community and of course about the design of this
Ranger.
Before we begin I would like to say that it was an honor to talk
with a man so open, friendly with a clear goal in the community. And
I would also like to congratulate him for recent 3K followers on
Twitter and also for his recent birthday. Happy birthday, I wish you
all the best, lots of happiness, health, love and success. Here is
an interview with the...
Rabbit Ranger: So
for the beginning, could you tell me something about yourself? Like
age, where are you from, how long have you been fan of Power
Rangers, what is your favorite series, Ranger... Cosmic
Ranger:
My name Gabriel and I go by Cosmic Ranger online, I’m 32 years old
from Las Vegas, Nevada and I’ve been a fan of Power Rangers since
day 1, lol. My favorite season is Power Rangers in Space and my
favorite Ranger is actually Psycho Pink (I prefer evil Rangers).
Rabbit Ranger: Evil Rangers
always look cool. Why Power Rangers in space? Cosmic
Ranger:
It wraps up 6 years worth of story while still maintaining its own
identity solidifying itself to be as iconic as Mighty Morphin Power
Rangers.
Rabbit Ranger: I like that
season too. That and Lost Galaxy. Maybe it was the space theme, but
designs were cool as well. What do you like about Psycho Pink? A how
were you satisfied with her portrayal in the Psycho Path comic? Cosmic
Ranger:
For me it was the fact that she was the first person to actually
succeed in killing a Ranger. It showed that pink is just as powerful
if not more powerful than any other color (pink is my favorite
color). Oooh that’s a loaded question, lol. I enjoy that the Psychos
finally got a chance to shine after being gone for about 20 years,
but I can’t deny that I was severely disappointed in their portrayal
in this comic. I feel that they were reduced from some of the
greatest villains the franchise has ever had to mere children with
mommy issues and it just didn’t feel right to me. Nokrea especially
got the worst of it in an attempt to redeem her.
Rabbit Ranger:
I also thought that it was weird to give killing machines so much
human personality. Same problem with Terminator Genisys and gramps
Terminator. Okay, back to you... What do you do for living? Cosmic
Ranger:
I’m the assistant manager for the House of Blues retail store.
Rabbit Ranger: What is its
specialty? Cosmic
Ranger:
Music memorabilia and tourist items like shirts, trinkets and
jewelry… It’s a variety of different items centered around the love
of music.
Rabbit Ranger: Oh,
great. Do you like music? Or play on anything? Or have you studied
music? Cosmic
Ranger:
I love music, but unfortunately I’m tone deaf, lol.
Rabbit Ranger: Okay. I saw
that you have accounts on Instagram, Twitter and TikTok. How would
you describe your content? Cosmic
Ranger:
I call myself the official unofficial gay Morphin Master because my
content is all about the power of unity in diversity through the
medium that is Power Rangers, so I cover everything from the
franchise including the show, movies, comics and games in hopes that
everyone feels like they’re represented in my content.
Rabbit Ranger: When I was
looking through your posts I got that feeling that you inform about
everything from Power Rangers. I know that we are still living in
the world where we can find a lot of hate towards ethnical or sexual
minorities. What do you think of this in Power Rangers fandom?
Sometimes when you read RangerBoard or some Twitter users, you can
see, how full of hate they can be. And unfriendly sometimes... Cosmic
Ranger:
I think for the most part the greater fandom is all inclusive and
accepting of multiple cultures and identities, but unfortunately
then it’s the vocal minority that can make it seem like it’s a
hateful place and those people are the ones that get highlighted by
bigger names, because negativity is like gold online and it gets the
hits. I stay away from places like RangerBoard for that reason and
on Twitter I have a great friend group and followers who don’t allow
any kind of bigotry.
Rabbit Ranger: Maybe the negative people shout the most? Cosmic
Ranger:
Very much so. It’s always the people with little to no followers who
are the most negative.
Rabbit Ranger: I have little to no followers as well, lol. Have you
personally met some hate on your person because you're gay in this
fandom? Cosmic
Ranger:
True But you’re not being negative, lol. Oh of course, I’ve had
people legit refuse to work with me because of it.
Rabbit Ranger: Work on what for example? Cosmic
Ranger:
Well the one that hurt the most was a Game Modder who creates custom
skins for Power Rangers Legacy Wars had discussed putting my custom
Ranger in the game and then backed out because they said they didn’t
agree with my lifestyle and what I represented.
Rabbit Ranger: But I saw some mod of Cosmic Ranger to Legacy Wars on
your account... Cosmic
Ranger:
Yes that was done by GoldenPhoenix who heard about what happened and
surprised me by doing it himself. I’m so thankful to him for that.
Rabbit Ranger: Power Rangers is all about teaching important
lessons, some people are watching it for 30 years and still do the
opposite. Cosmic
Ranger:
Yeah, it’s crazy to see some people miss the entire point of the
super hero genre.
Rabbit Ranger: The last "question" in this topic... If you can tell
anything to some minorities in this fandom, what would it be? Any
message. Cosmic
Ranger:
Just keep being yourself and keep fighting for what’s right cause
remember Earth’s Defenders, Never Surrender!
Rabbit Ranger:
Now for the part i'm
most looking forward to... Cosmic Ranger. That design is great, what
can you tell me about Cosmic Ranger yourself? Cosmic
Ranger:
Cosmic Ranger was created as a way to see myself represented as part
of a world that hasn’t yet fully represented me, Power Rangers has
never done a Gay male Power Ranger so I decided to make one myself
to show the reason Pride exists, it’s to celebrate how far we’ve
come but also to continue the fight for equality because now more
than ever, it is important to remain vocal and stand together as the
queer community, specifically trans people are facing a record
number of hateful bills targeting our right to live freely in the US
and abroad.
Rabbit Ranger:
Wow, great purpose. Why
the name Cosmic Ranger? Cosmic
Ranger:
I absolutely love everything Space themed and I was watching Kamen
Rider Fourze when I joined the fandom so I took inspiration from his
Cosmic States form and just added Ranger to it since I loved Power
Rangers.
Rabbit Ranger: Did you design it yourself? Cosmic
Ranger:
Yes I designed the suit myself and had help on the helmet with a
friend of mine who did the final art. These are first drafts...
My
original character years in the making has gone through countless
redesigns but this is it,this is the ranger of my dreams. A Ranger
filled with Pride and Power!
Rabbit Ranger:
I can see that buckle is
missing in the final. Diamond is based on MMPR? Cosmic
Ranger:
Yes I didn’t end up liking the buckle, lol. Yes the Diamond was a
tribute to MMPR. Design wise he has elements from MMPR, Solar
Rangers, the Morphin Masters, Ben 10 and Digimon.
Rabbit Ranger:
I cannot help but I see
resemblence to Black Solar Ranger in the design of the helmet. Is it
coincidence? Cosmic
Ranger:
The helmet is actually more based on Mastemon from Digimon.
Rabbit Ranger:
Is there another thing
from Digimon? I haven't really watched the show. Cosmic
Ranger:
The Morpher is designed almost like the newer digivices.
Rabbit Ranger:
Okay, how does it work
for Cosmic Ranger? Cosmic
Ranger:
If it were to be seen in action it would function like Ben 10’s
omnitrix where you could cycle through different powers by turning
the faceplate until you reach your desired power. Except instead of
transforming into a different ranger like Gokaiger/Megaforce it
would only give you the teams special weapons.
Rabbit Ranger: I saw some picture with some energy sword, is that
it? Cosmic
Ranger:
So that was a mock up of how it would look if he had an original
weapon of his own. Ultimately decided not to use it but hey maybe
one day I’ll go back to it. It would be like an energy aura style
weapon just shaped like the Power Sword or a Quasar Saber and it
would have access to every teams weapons from show, movies, comics
and games.
Rabbit Ranger:
That would be really
powerful Morpher. When was your idea born and how long did it take
to final stage? Cosmic
Ranger:
I had always wanted to make my own ranger but I didn’t really start
the design process until late 2019 going into the pandemic and then
waited till 2021 to actually finalize it and release it. Then I made
his backstory: Dark Specter has returned and is uniting evil forces
from across the multiverse to destroy the power rangers. The Morphin
Masters as a last resort create a Morpher that harnesses the power
of the Morphin grid itself and send it to a universe where The Power
Rangers are a Tv show! The Morphin Nexus Morpher must seek out a
host who Can use their knowledge of the “Real World” to become the
Cosmic Ranger and save the Rangerverse once and for all.
Rabbit Ranger:
Since my account is
about cosplay, have you ever considered making real life costume of
Cosmic Ranger? Cosmic
Ranger:
Yes I’ve been researching some amazing cosplay makers in preparation
of commissioning one to bring my ranger to life soon.
Rabbit Ranger: That will be awesome. Cannot wait to see it. I would
recommend Starchild, it is a great communication with him and I have
also the helmet in the process of making there. Now a very tricky
question... What do you think about Rabbit Ranger? Cosmic
Ranger:
I think it looks great honestly its a fun design with really cool
helmet… I can’t wait to see more of it and you in the future.
Rabbit Ranger:
Thank you very much.
Appreciate it. Fun design you mean tail and fur? Cosmic
Ranger:
Yeah it’s very whimsical but still kinda dark in like an Alice in
wonderland kinda feel
Rabbit Ranger:
Thanks for all your time
and answers, it was very fun and educational time spent with you. I
really look forward for more stuff about Cosmic Ranger and I hope we
stay in touch.
Rabbit Ranger:
I must say I am a little
bit jealous that you have pictures from TokuJay. His art is just
perfect. But now he closed his commissions. Cosmic
Ranger:
Yeah I waited almost a year till he was able to do it for me. Oh
really? I wasn’t aware…to be fair I don’t think he had any openings
to begin with tho.
