Trini's Death Is a Major Plot Point in Netflix's 'Power Rangers' 30th Anniversary

Spoiler alert: This article contains plot points for Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once & Always.

It's morphin' time once again for the first team of Power Rangers on the 30-year anniversary. Based on the Super Sentai superhero franchise that originated in Japan, the series typically follows a group of skilled fighters who don color-coded suits to defeat evil. Though Power Rangers has persisted with new iterations and reboots, the original Mighty Morphin squad will return in the upcoming Netflix special, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once & Always.

The special follows several of the earliest members of Power Rangers, including Zack Taylor (Walter Emanuel Jones) and Billy Cranston (David Yost), joined by some of their successors in Rocky DeSantos (Steve Cardenas) and Kat Hillard (Catherine Sutherland) as they face off against a newly revived Rita Repulsa who travels back in time to stop the Rangers from existing.

However, the special also works in the death of Trini Kwan (Thuy Trang), the original Yellow Ranger. Here's what you should know.

Longtime fans of the series will notice some missing members of the original cast from the first season of Mighty Morphin. Amy Jo Johnson, who portrayed the original Pink Ranger aka Kimberly Hart, declined to return for the special. On Twitter, she stated that she "never said no," but simply didn't accept the offer to return. However, she did express excitement in watching the special. Austin St. John, the first Red Ranger, is under currently probation for business fraud.

However, at least two of the original Power Rangers aren't returning for far more tragic reasons. Thuy Trang, the actress who portrayed the original Yellow Ranger aka Trini Kwan, died in a car accident in 2001. She was 27 years old at the time. Her death was grieved by each of the original Power Rangers cast members.

Two decades later in November 2022, Jason David Frank — who played fan favorite Green Ranger Tommy Oliver — was found dead by suicide.

Each of these deaths impacted both the original Power Rangers cast and their fans in major ways. Curiously, though, Thuy's death is being worked into the upcoming anniversary special.

In the trailer for Once & Always, it is revealed that Trini dies at the hands of Rita Repulsa, who eventually seeks to kill all of the Rangers in order to conquer Earth.

Not only does this affect the Rangers themselves, but it also impacts Trini's daughter.

While the Rangers balance their grief and their world-saving responsibilities, we are introduced to Trini's daughter, Minh Kwan (Charlie Kersh). The Rangers on call urge her to stay out of harm's way, but she seeks to destroy Rita herself for what she did to her mother.

As a new addition to the Ranger pantheon, we currently don't know how Minh will truly factor into the events of the special. In any case, the 30th anniversary of Power Rangers is paying tribute to its departed veterans in interesting ways.

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once & Always begins streaming on April 19 on Netflix.