The Power Rangers franchise is known for its primary color uniforms and its monsters of the week, but not all bad guys come and go so quickly. Despite seeming like the series is comprised of 20 minute standalone episodes, all of the Power Rangers shows have a season long story arc with at least one big bad at the center of it.
The Rangers might take on a monster of the week, but there’s always someone behind that creature pulling the strings. It might be an alien sorceress from another planet, a computer virus, a space pirate, or it could be a demon intent on ruling the world. Power Rangers has gone through a lot of bad guys in its 24 seasons.
We’ve rounded up all the biggest of big bads in the Power Rangers franchise to give you Every Major Villain, Ranked Worst To Best. For the record, you won’t find the likes of Ivan Ooze on this list because, despite being a serious foe with a penchant for purple, he isn’t a part of the canon of the main series and never appeared on the television show. What you will find are the 30+ villains who struck fear into the hearts of every Power Rangers team on the small screen (so far).
30. Bulk and Skull (Mighty Morphin)
They might not be the traditional villains that Power Rangers fans have come to know and love, but these two bullies from the Mighty Morphin era certainly deserve to lead off the list with all the antics they’ve pulled over the years.
Bulk and Skull were high school bullies when audiences were introduced to the Power Rangers. They went out of their way to make life difficult for those they deemed nerds, making fun of the five main characters at every turn and setting these two goons as the primary antagonists of the Rangers when they weren’t in their helmets.
Over time, the duo also became obsessed with discovering the identities of the superheroes, setting up more and more elaborate schemes to unmask them, making them a thorn in the Rangers’ sides even when they were in costume.
29. Galvanax (Ninja Steel)
The Power Rangers have had some strange villains in their time, but none of them have ever been an intergalactic game show host.
Obsessed with the Power Stars and wanting to rule the world, Galvanax has used his game show as an excuse to try to get others to open the prism containing the stars for him, though it hasn’t worked out. In fact, he enters the lives of the Power Rangers thanks to some of them stealing the prism and the Power Stars.
Galvanax has the potential to be one of the greats, but with Ninja Steel having only aired half of its episodes, it wouldn’t be fair to compare him to those villains with complete story arcs, so he’s at the bottom of our rankings until we learn more.
28. Hydro Hog (Alien Rangers)
In what’s been called season 3.5 by fans, The Alien Rangers of Aquitar came to Earth to help out the de-aged Power Rangers. When they did, they had their very own recurring villain, thanks to Lord Zedd calling Hydro Hog for help.
The Aquitian Rangers had already battled the “Emperor of Dark Waters” on their own planet, so they knew he was formidable. The Hydro Hog had one specialty: evaporating water. That meant he was tailor made to take on a group of Rangers who relied on fresh water to survive.
Of course, that also meant it didn’t take long for the Alien Rangers to find a way to defeat him, and by the end of their short group of episodes, he was no more.
27. Master Vile (Mighty Morphin)
The father of Rita Repulsa and Rito Revolto, Master Vile was supposed to be quite the fearsome addition to the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers era, so why is he so low on the list?
Audiences had already been introduced to Rita’s witchy ways (not to mention numerous failed plans) and her eventual husband Lord Zedd. For all the posturing about Master Vile being worse than his daughter, he didn’t add much to the storyline other than providing more angry yelling at the minions.
It’s hard to understand just why Rita and Zedd were intimidated by him, since his plans failed just as often as theirs did. If only the audience got to see some true evil out of Master Vile, he would have ranked a bit higher.
26. Flurious and Moltor (Overdrive)
A pair of brothers, Flurious and Moltor obsessed over finding a magical crown full of precious gems, which cursed and separated them, making Operation Overdrive chock full of villains trying to outsmart the Power Rangers.
These two get a joint entry simply because they tended to trade off on whom was providing the monster of the episode, but also because, on occasion, their minions joined forces to take on the Power Rangers. They embodied the cliche of one being fire and one being ice, not only with their hot and cold attitudes, but with one of them living in a winter cave, and one a volcano.
Unfortunately, these two spent more time trying to outdo one another than they did actually concentrating on their fight, making them less intimidating, and more annoying.
25. Divatox (Turbo)
Introduced in Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie, Divatox was about as campy as the villains on the series could be. She was a space pirate with a failed marriage and a submarine full of monsters at her disposal.
Divatox was a lot of fun, but she wasn’t particularly effective. She was the straw that broke the evil-doers back, so to speak. She was the last solo villain of the Zordon era of the series, and as her season came to an end, the reveal was made that all of the previous villains had decided to team up, since they couldn’t take out Zordon or the Rangers on their own.
Though the audience never got her planned backstory, which included her being the sister of a Ranger ally named Dimitria, Divatox was eventually redeemed during Power Rangers In Space.
24. The Fearcats (Overdrive)
Flurious and Moltor weren’t the only big bads to take on the Rangers in Operation Overdrive. Another group of villains known as the Fearcats wanted the power of the Corona Aurora for themselves, and they were even stronger than most of the monsters the brothers produced.
The Fearcats were a race of alien beings who resembled, as their name suggests, cats. The last of their race, four were introduced over the course of the show, and were some of the toughest opponents the Rangers faced.
With so many foes vying for a magical crown though, there was more fighting amongst the villains than there was against the Rangers in Operation Overdrive, so like the evil brothers of the season, they don’t crack the top half of the list either.
23. Dark Specter (Space)
Another villain might have stolen most of the spotlight during the Power Rangers In Space season, but it was really Dark Specter who loomed in the background and pulled the strings.
Dark Specter was the big bad who got Astronema to take on the Power Rangers, and he was also the one who brought the main villains from the previous seasons of the show together to take down Zordon and the new group of Rangers. All that makes him sound like a formidable foe, and though he does make some strategic moves, he doesn’t often get his hands dirty.
Instead, it was Astronema who was left to do most of the dirty work while Dark Specter spent his time looking menacing and growling at her once in awhile, so his protege ranks much higher than he does.
22. Lothor (Ninja Storm)
While many of the villains throughout the Power Rangers series are simply invaders looking to conquer a new world, some of the villains have personal connections to members of the team. Such was the case with Lothor.
At one time, Lothor was a promising ninja, but his love of power got the better of him and he became evil, sealed away for a generation until he gathered forces to go up against the same ninjas who had fought against him. As a result, his own nephew was one of the Power Rangers his minions took on.
Lothor actually had some pretty solid plans, and he even had some pretty fearsome monsters. Lothor, however, put his trust in the wrong people. Not only did one of his generals attempt a coup, but his daughters wound up turning on him as well.
21. Master Xandred (Samurai)
Master Xandred is one of the few baddies in Power Rangers history to take on his enemies himself. It’s rare, since many times the big bads hang back and allow their generals to get destroyed to keep themselves safe.
Leader of the Nighlok monsters, Xandred holds a special grudge against the Samurai Rangers. A previous generation sealed him away to prevent him from taking over the planet, and when he finds a way out of the Netherworld, he sets out to take over again. He can’t leave for long, though, as he needs the protection of the Netherworld to survive.
Like many villainous leaders in this series, Xandred made a fatal mistake: he aligned himself with those who were out for power just like he was, leading to repeated betrayals.
20. Mesogog (Dino Thunder)
An unusual bad guy for the Power Rangers franchise, Mesogog is actually the villainous half of a scientist named Anton Mercer in Power Rangers Dino Thunder.
He’s got the head of a dinosaur, but the mind of a scholar, which could make him particularly dangerous if he had a better control on his human side. Anytime Mesogog would attempt to make progress on his goal of world domination, Anton Mercer would take over their shared body.
His goal of domination was a little stranger than normal, though. Mesogog didn’t just want to rule the planet; he also wanted to turn everyone into reptiles and bring back the age of the dinosaurs. Ambitious, sure, but considering that most dinosaurs would have been large and dangerous enough to eat him for lunch, maybe not the best plan.
19. The Machine Empire (Zeo)
During Power Rangers Zeo, a new group of bad guys came to town, kicking the previous occupants out of the palace on the moon. We can’t just single out one of the House of Gadgetry, though, as the entire Machine Empire was busy trying to conquer new galaxies.
The Empire, made of robot-like beings, were intent on making Earth their latest conquest, since Rita Repulsa and Lord Zedd hadn’t managed to. Some of their pastimes include organizing gladiator-like games and making things blow up.
The younger generation of the family attempted to take over, and while they did get pretty far in their efforts on Earth, they were ultimately defeated. Remnants of the Empire would pop up again in the Wild Force season for one more go, however, proving how resilient these bots could be.
18. Emperor Gruumm (SPD)
Space Patrol Delta was responsible for protecting their planet from criminal threats, and most of the time, those threats came from beings attempting to invade Earth, like Emperor Gruumm.
In fact, Emperor Gruumm had already worked his way across the galaxy and destroyed the homeworld of SPD’s leader before he made his way to Earth. The fearsome Emperor, however, turned out to be the second in command and was captured by Anubis Cruger without any assistance from the rest of the Rangers.
Gruumm wasn’t just out conquering planets for himself. Instead, he was working for Omni, a giant disembodied brain. All those planets he conquered provided the resources to create a body for his boss, but seeing as how Omni didn’t do any of the work, we can’t really give him any of the credit.
17. Bansheera (Lightspeed Rescue)
The Queen of the demons, Bansheera didn’t get in on a ton of the action on Power Rangers Lightspeed Rescue, but she was still a formidable force.
Bansheera was still in her spirit form when the series began, trying to get herself back to a corporeal body so she could take over the world. She still gave advice to those who worked for her in the form of a floating head until her followers had enough power to bring her back to life.
Bansheera didn’t last, though - and neither did much of her fighting force. She was willing to kill her own people to use their energy to sustain her life force, causing her numbers to dwindle. Her second in command and her own son did more damage to her enemies than she did.
16. Ransik (Time Force)
Like many of the Power Rangers villains, Ransik was actually captured before the team of Power Rangers Time Force began their big adventure. It was his breakout from prison that kicked off the series’ major story arc.
Ransik, a mutant who hated human beings for the way they treated mutant-kind, wasn’t just after the planet or out to beat the Power Rangers. He wanted to beat the Time Force Rangers specifically - and make sure they never existed at all. He definitely gets points for creativity, since he’s one of the few villains to time travel and not just send a minion to do his dirty work.
Ultimately proving that love triumphs over hate, Ransik was redeemed thanks to his own daughter instead of any magic spells or curses being lifted. He saw the error of his ways as she convinced him to turn over a new leaf.
15. Sledge (Dino Charge)
Before Power Rangers Dino Charge premiered, we bet people didn’t think the Power Rangers had anything to do with the extinction of the dinosaurs!
Sledge was a collector of rare items - from asteroids to escaped prisoners. A bounty hunter, he was obsessed with the energems at the center of the Dino Charge season, and it was on a quest to find them that his ship was blown off course and his asteroid collection rained down on Earth, killing the dinosaurs.
That’s quite a mistake for such a fearsome villain!
Sledge had his own spaceship that he used to hunt and house his bounty, and he’s been alive for millions of years, so we know he’s a tough opponent for the Rangers despite making such a big mistake. Being a bounty hunter also meant he had plenty of access to monsters to use to fight the Rangers.
14. Scorpius and Trakeena (Lost Galaxy)
Scorpius, like many of the antagonists not actually from Earth, was intent on using his warriors to conquer worlds. He spoiled his daughter Trakeena and didn’t want her to become another warrior, but his successor as ruler.
Trakeena defied her father at every turn, sneaking out to see what his generals were up to and making plans against the Power Rangers, intent on proving herself. She ended up leaving her father behind with the hopes of becoming a great warrior on her own, only returning when she found out her father was dying.
Trakeena not only became a great fighter, but she nearly succeeded where her father failed, bringing down the space station the Terra Venture and coming this close to destroying the Power Rangers, even returning in Lightspeed Rescue to take on another group.
13. Goldar (Mighty Morphin)
Those who loved The Wizard of Oz might have seen Goldar as something of a flying monkey initially, but he’s so much more than that.
During Rita Repulsa’s tenure as the franchise’s big bad, Goldar was one of the minions at her side. Unlike the others in her employ who hung out on the moon and listened to her rants, Goldar actually went down to Angel Grove and fought the Power Rangers himself, most often coming to blows with the Red and Green Rangers.
When Lord Zedd came to take over operations, it was revealed that Goldar was actually loyal to Zedd, and his disdain for Rita was palpable. There are probably plenty of audience members who believe that if Lord Zedd and Goldar were running the show, the Rangers would have easily met their match.
12. Diabolico (Lightspeed Rescue)
Queen Bansheera might have been the one pulling the strings to bring the demons back to Earth in the Lightspeed Rescue season, but Diabolico got in on the action a lot more than she did.
It was Diabolico who was often on the front lines with the demons that fought the Rangers. Diabolico was the first of the demons granted extra powers by the queen, and as a result, he was one of their toughest foes. He also played a role in their pasts, though.
Diabolico was the same demon that “rescued” future Titanium Ranger Ryan Mitchell as a child and kept him in exchange for saving his life. Kidnapping kids and training them to be a member of a demon army? That’s pretty dark stuff for Power Rangers!
11. Master Org (Wild Force)
The audience didn’t see much of the original ancient Master Org during the Power Rangers Wild Force episodes, but the villain was so great, he inspired a second person to take up the name in the modern day.
Scientist Viktor Adler was once on the trail of the Animarium and the Wild Force Rangers, but his jealousy consumed him when his companions got the spotlight, and he in turn consumed what was left of the original Master Org to turn himself into a powerful villain.
Adler then straight up murdered the other scientists and tried to kill their baby, though he didn’t find him until long after that baby grew up to be the Red Ranger. Too bad he couldn’t hold his own against the Rangers in the end.
10. Koragg (Mystic Force)
When the warrior Leanbow sacrificed himself 20 years before the events of the Power Rangers Mystic Force series, his power was harnessed and Koragg was born as an ally for those evil beings trying to return The Master to earth.
Koragg, with Leanbow’s fighting skills and abilities, was a powerful antagonist, though he tended to focus his efforts on the Red Ranger specifically, considering him his nemesis. He was also incredibly inconsistent in his attacks since Leanbow’s ideas of honor were still present in Koragg.
It’s a good thing for the Mystic Force Rangers that Leanbow still had such an influence on Koragg, or he probably would have been able to defeat them long before the next entry on our list was able to return to Earth.
9. The Master (Mystic Force)
There’s a whole coalition of bad guys in Mystic Force that take on the Rangers on a regular basis. Koragg appears as the primary antagonist until Leanbow is saved, but there’s one big bad lurking underneath it all.
The Master is a demonic presence that hangs over everything throughout the season. Every single bad guy that comes on the show is in service to The Master, and unlike Dark Specter, The Master isn’t hanging back and simply letting his minions do his dirty work. Instead, he’s trapped and waiting for release.
When the audience finally gets a glimpse of The Master, he’s one of the most frightening villains the show has ever used. Looking like part octopus, part demon, he’s all evil.
The Master does (briefly) get a form on Earth to go up against the Mystic Force Rangers, but by then, he’s so confident in his own abilities that he severely underestimates the amount of good magic in the world and just how much the people around them believe in the Power Rangers.
8. Admiral Malkor and the Armada (Megaforce)
Admiral Malkor is the leader of the Warstar, the military organization at the center of Power Rangers Megaforce. Unlike other villains in the franchise, he doesn’t allow defeat to anger him, but instead appreciates a worthy adversary.
Malkor is trusted to bring a victory about for the Armada, and although many of his plans fail, he is still eventually able to bring the full force of the Armada to Earth. It’s the single biggest event in Power Rangers history, as it brings together all of the classic Rangers for one more major battle.
As levelheaded and intelligent as Malkor is, though, he doesn’t see when one of his own generals is out to get his power, and he almost loses his leadership role on more than one occasion.
7. The Psycho Rangers (In Space And Lost Galaxy)
The only major villains on this list to appear in multiple episodes across two different seasons of the show - and remain villainous in that time - the Psycho Rangers weren’t actually the big bads pulling the strings in either of those seasons.
Instead, the Psycho Rangers were the brainchild of Power Rangers In Space’s Astronema. Designed to be the equals to their Power Ranger counterparts, the Psycho Rangers certainly gave the good guys a tough showdown during In Space.
When they returned in Lost Galaxy, the team even came close to ending the Rangers for good. The Pink Psycho Ranger was the first villain to kill a Power Ranger in the line of duty (on screen, anyway), and though Kendrix was resurrected by the end of the season, her demise remains one of the most powerful moments in the show’s history.
6. Astronema (In Space)
Astronema has the honor of being the villain with the most fleshed out backstory in the history of the franchise, and it makes her one of the most compelling characters to watch.
Astronema is revealed as the protege of Dark Specter in Power Rangers In Space, and she’s a master of her magic, has fighting skills to rival the Rangers themselves, and creates some of the deadliest monsters in the franchise. She also happens to be the brainwashed little sister of the Red Ranger.
As a result, the audience gets to know the character both as Astronema the villain and Karone the Pink Ranger in Lost Galaxy, giving her one of the few full character arcs in the franchise and making her an obvious fan favorite.
5. Tenaya (RPM)
Narrowly edging out Astronema to make it into the top five is one of the primary antagonists in Power Rangers RPM. Tenaya’s story was clearly inspired by Astronema’s, but she outranks the other woman on sheer creativity for the character.
Tenaya was once a normal human girl, but the Venjix virus made her a human-robot hybrid, programming her to be loyal to Venjix, giving her special skills, and even upgrading some of her body parts. Like Astronema, Tenaya’s brother turns out to be a Power Ranger, but unlike her predecessor, Tenaya has a few more tricks up her sleeve.
More accurately, she has one creepy trick below her sleeve, in the form of a detachable hand that she can control and use as a camera. She also intimidates her opponents by whistling a creepy tune, solidifying her awesomeness.
4. Rita Repulsa (Mighty Morphin)
The most iconic villain of the Power Rangers franchise, there’s just no way Rita Repulsa doesn’t make it into the top five villains of all time.
Rita isn’t the most competent of villains, it’s true. Her creations aren’t usually very bright, just intent on creating havoc rather than truly destroying the Rangers. She’s certainly one of the most creative baddies though, allowing everyday objects to inspire her monsters.
She’s also a master of disguise, frequently setting up her minions to infiltrate Angel Grove under the guise of humans, and her magic is on point. She makes sure a love potion cooked up by her right hand Finster is enough to allow her to rule by Lord Zedd’s side when he’s ready to kick her out. She’s quite the schemer!
3. Dai Shi/Jarrod and Camille (Jungle Fury)
Jarrod was a bully at Pai Zhua Academy, and when his body was taken over by the spirit of Dai Shi and he got Camille as his most loyal ally, his power increased tenfold.
Thanks to Camille, there was a steady stream of masters ready to help Jarrod/Dai Shi train to unleash an evil army of beasts on the world. Camille was willing to do anything to help him in his rise to power.
Camille had the spirit of the chameleon, making it easy for her to blend in anywhere, but her evil was somewhat muted by her love for Dai Shi, or so she thought. In reality, it’s Jarrod who often protects Camille, and she falls for the human Dai Shi has taken over, leading them both on a path to redemption.
2. Venjix (RPM)
With Tenaya landing so high up on the list, the evil entity she was programmed to work for had to land near the top too, right?
Venjix was originally created as a simple computer virus by Doctor K, but unable to enter the code to stop it from spreading, the virus quickly took over every system in the world. In fact, Venjix spread through technology so fast that reports of its destruction were still “unconfirmed” as one of the future Power Rangers saw her own neighborhood bombed by its robots!
In just three years, nearly all of humanity was wiped out, leaving only the protected city of Corinth out of the reach of the virus. By then, Venjix was busy creating its own bots and bodies so he could fight the Rangers himself. All of that makes him one of the most successful villains ever!
1. Lord Zedd (Mighty Morphin)
Only one villain could top something as far reaching as the Venjix virus, and that’s the big bad Lord Zedd.
Zedd made his debut during the second season of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers as an exclusively American creation, a departure for the show which had pulled all of its bad guys from the Japanese Super Sentai series that inspired Power Rangers.
He was scary enough that Rita Repulsa, reigning queen of mean, was worried she would be banished, so she concocted that love potion. Zedd’s monsters were more powerful than Rita’s, and his plans involved not just taking over the planet or distracting the Rangers, but getting rid of the good guys once and for all.
At the time, Zedd’s menacing attitude was so terrifying that parents complained about how much he scared the kids!
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How did we do? Did your favorite villain land at the top? Which of the Power Rangers villains do you think deserves the top spot, and who didn’t even deserve a ranking? Let us know in the comments!
