Kimberly Hart
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Kimberly Ann Hart was a fictional character in the Power Rangers universe. She was played by actress Amy Jo Johnson. Kimberly is best remembered as the original Pink Ranger from Mighty Morphin Power Rangers.
She was also played by Johnson in the pre-television pilot as "Kimberly" (the surname didn't come until the series). Kimberly also appears in the video game Power Rangers: Super Legends.
Character history
Kimberly was one of the original five Power Rangers chosen by Zordon when Rita Repulsa attacked Earth following her release from containment. Her four teammates were also her closest friends; Jason Lee Scott, Zack Taylor, Billy Cranston and Trini Kwan. Kimberly received the Pterodactyl Power Coin and the Pterodactyl Dinozord, thus becoming the Pink Power Ranger. She was a capable gymnast and would later show that she also has some musical and artistic talent. Kimberly was also an avid gardener, which would lead to her being in charge of designing Angel Grove High's float for a parade. She once, in the episode "Different Drum", taught an aerobics class while using American Sign Language to interpret for a student with a disability.
Kimberly starts the series as a typical valley girl, but with a heightened awareness for her friends. Throughout the series, she is the member of the team most likely to fire off a sarcastic or witty retort. Though as MMPR progresses, she becomes a more friendly and kind hearted person.
Skull, one of the local bullies, had a crush on her until she became involved with Tommy Oliver. It is revealed in the episode The Green Candle that they both have feelings for each other when Tommy asked her to the dance right after they kiss and she says yes. Kimberly told Tommy right before he kissed her that she misses him a lot after Rita Repulsa took away his powers to be a Power Ranger. However in Season 3, it is shown that Skull still had some feelings for Kimberly when she was placed under a spell that made her—albeit briefly—reject Tommy. When the spell was broken, Kimberly offered to dance with Skull during a "Lover's Ball" held at the Juice Bar later that day. This to date is the only canonical representation of genuine emotional sincerity between Kimberly and Skullovitch.
All the members of the team possessed unique fighting styles. She used a blend of gymnastic maneuvers followed by punches, elbows and kicks. She often used the environment around her as a springboard for her attacks. Kimberly was often called upon to finish off monsters with physically visible weaknesses such as the Terror Toad's second mouth once he had been weakened by losing his horn and the Snizzard’s golden apple on top of its head.
After Jason, Trini and Zack left the team and Rocky DeSantos, Aisha Campbell and Adam Park joined the team, Kimberly became second-in-command to Tommy. In Season 3, Kimberly becomes the Pink Ninja Ranger.
Midway through Season 3, Amy Jo Johnson requested that Kimberly be written off the show. The character was accommodated with a 10-episode story arc focused on Kimberly, leading up to her departure. Kimberly was replaced by Katherine Hillard. The veteran Ranger was targeted for elimination when Katherine, under Rita's spell, stole her power coin, granting her access to the Ninjazords.
The coin being in the hands of evil also served to drain Kimberly of her life force as the Ninja Powers were linked directly to the life of the Ranger, unlike the Dinosaur-based power set. To take advantage of this, Rita launched a campaign to keep Kim overexerted in battle, knowing that, at the same time, she was focusing all of her personal time to gymnastics training for the Pan Globals. Her coach, the famous Gunthar Schmidt, grew increasingly impatient with Kimberly's apparent lack of dedication to her training. On one occasion, Kimberly trained late at Ernie's Gym and Juice Bar after hours and, depleted, she fell from atop the balance beam. She is discovered unconscious on the balance beam mat by Katherine which overrides the evil spell she is under. Katherine calls '911' and Kimberly is hospitalized. She recovered, but almost abandoned her gymnastics training after that, until she is encouraged to go back to it. In a turn of events, Katherine took a dramatic approach to inspiring Kimberly to pursue gymnastics again by revealing to Kimberly a scrapbook of her own athletic achievements in the sport of high diving. After hitting her head on the board, she gave up on the sport, just short of her entrance into the Olympics. Katherine lured Kimberly to a local pool where she arrived just in time to see Katherine perform a fearful, yet expert high dive for her first time in years. This, and Zordon's declaration that her recruitment as a Ranger is over, prompts Kimberly to leave in order to train full-time with Gunthar Schmidt.
Tommy was Kimberly's boyfriend and the two shared many dates and tender moments. Unfortunately for him, during Season 4 of the Power Rangers series, titled Power Rangers Zeo, Kimberly later met someone else while pursuing her athletic career, and broke up with him in a dear John letter.
Kimberly appeared in this movie. Due to the alternate timeline of this movie, it is unknown whether Kimberly had control of the Pterodactyl Dinozord or the Firebird Thunderzord, although she still had the Pterodactyl Power Coin. She also used a weapon not existent of the show: the Pterodactyl Thunder Whip. Kimberly was depowered by Ivan Ooze and had to travel to Phaedos. There she gained the power of the ninjetti and the Crane Ninjazord. In the movie the Pink Ranger suit, along with the other five, was modified with metal and PVC plating and a new helmet design, as well as no skirt.
Kimberly returned briefly during Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie, when she and Jason are captured by the evil pirate queen Divatox while scuba diving, Kimberly and Jason were subsequentley trapped on Divatox's ship and were to be sacrificed to Divatox's fiancee Maligore. They were tied up above the volcano which Maligore is imprisoned in and Divatox offers Maligore Kimberly and Jason to become his evil children. Although the power rangers battled with Divatox's Minions they were unable to stop Kimberly and Jason being lowered into the volcano much to the pleasure of queen Divatox who showed great delight in the fact that her plan had been succesful . Kimberly and Jason reappear from the volcano each appearing out of fire and onto the volcano's edge much to the fear of the Rangers and the joy of Divatox Kimberly and Jason appeared with bright red eyes ripped of there handcuffs with there bear hand's the two evil ex rangers now were under the control of Divatox and she commanded them to "Destroy those who threaten the phase of unity" Kimberly and Jason followed there master's wishes and began to assault the Rangers shwing great delight as they did so. .Tommy was deeply troubled by this and took off his helmet, hoping Kimberly would remember him, however Kimberley merely laughed in Tommy's Face saying that she had no friends and watched on as he was attacked by Jason. Kimberly continued to battle with and mercilessley defeat the rangers.Although like Jason it is felt that Kimberly expressed some of her personal resentment towards new Pink Ranger Katherine Hillard as upon sight of Kat Kimberly's face grew increasingly satisfied and through Katherine's pleas for Kimberly to fight the evil Kimberly laughed and said " Evil is like Evil does " before attacking Kat with a vicious kick to the waist. Kimberly then watched on with great pleasure as Jason was about to push Tommy into the fire, Kimberly and Divatox pleaded together for Jason to throw Tommy into the fire and for him to also be under the control of Divatox and Maligore, However just as Maligore was beginning to rise from the fire Kimberly was cured by Lerigot, a small wizard. Upon seeing Jason dangling over a pit of lava, Kimberly attempted to help Tommy save him and rejoined the forces of good.
Monsters Defeated by Kimberly
- The Terror Toad: Kimberly shot three arrows from her Power Bow into Terror Toad's neck, making him fall over and releases the four swallowed rangers from his mouth in the form of energy spheres. The Terror Toad was later destroyed by her Power Bow's arrow.
- Snizzard: It was then that Kimberly arrived and saved her teammates. After defeating a group of Putties that Snizzard had summoned, Kimberly slew the reptilian monster by firing an arrow of her own into his Zapper Apple.
- Evil Pink Duplicate Ranger: After the duplicate Ranger fooled Trini in attacking Kimberly she fired an arrow from her Power Bow, and defeated it.
- Evil Pink Mutant Ranger: Kimberly continued to fire arrows from her Power Bow, then the other Ranger's finally finished them all off with the Power Blaster.
- Bloom of Doom: Trini frees her by launching her Power Daggers at a 90-degree trajectory course, shattering the dimension and releasing both Kimberly and the monster. Kimberly, freed of the evil spell, teams up with Trini, and pummeled the monster.
- Guitardo: Once Kimberly shows up, she helps Tommy and they combine Kimberly's Power Bow (now strung like a harp) with Tommy's Dragon Dagger. Kimberly blasts the Dragon Dagger straight into Guitardo, obliterating him.
- Artist Mole: Kimberly finally arrived and destroyed the creature's palette, along with the monster itself, causing the colors to return to the Rangers and Ninjor.