Our well wishes here at No Pink Spandex go out to Alan, his husband and their loved ones.

(Courtesy: bandai1983 from Rangerboard)

He was originally charged in January 2016, and faced a trial in December 2016 that was aborted after two days for reasons unknown to the press. At the time, he was only facing 15 charges, two charges have been added since then and the date for a new trial is still being set at this time.

While Naufahu originally wanted this suppressed for the good of his family and career, he’s released a statement to the media expressing his desire to defend himself publicly, and rescue the reputations of other actors who were assumed to be the defendant in this case.

“I now no longer seek suppression with my family’s support. I am pleased to be able to make this decision and I know that it is right. I am quite prepared to confront these charges openly and will do so.”

Naufahu’s next court date is currently scheduled for April 2017.

(Courtesy: kainhighwind2 from Rangerboard)

Following a preliminary hearing that began on October 20, judge Lisa Chung ruled on Friday, October 21 that Rick Medina a.k.a. Ricardo Medina, Jr. (Cole from Power Rangers Wild Force) will be forced to stand trial for the murder of his roommate Joshua Sutter, for which he was arrested and charged in January.

KNBC-4 Los Angeles was in the courtroom Thursday when the hearing began, including in their report audio of the 911 call and partial testimony from Medina’s girlfriend about the night in question.  Medina was scheduled to be back in court on November 4 for arraignment, but that proceeding has since been postponed until December 16.

In a report by KABC-7 Los Angeles, Medina’s attorney Allen Bell says he still has not gotten any response from the deputy district attorney’s office about what he believes to be false information provided as to dog bites on the victim’s body being regarded as inflicted stab wounds.

“I can only conclude that the conduct that we complained of is being ratified by the district attorney, and ignored by the district attorney, and, or I hate to say, maybe covered up by the district attorney,” Bell said.

According to an article outlining the case on People.com, Medina’s preliminary hearing is scheduled for October 20, 2016.

(Courtesy in part: ranger_scout from Rangerboard)

After being arrested on formal murder charges last month, KNBC-4 Los Angeles reports that Rick Medina a.k.a. Ricardo Medina, Jr. (Cole from Power Rangers Wild Force) appeared in court in the city of Lancaster for a bail hearing, presenting the argument that Medina does not pose a threat to the outside world. The judge turned down the reduction request and the $1 million dollar bail still stands.

Deputy District Attorney Tannaz Mokayef claimed that there were ten total stab wounds on Joshua Sutter’s body, Medina’s former roommate. Medina’s attorney Alan Bell disputed the claim, saying that the prosecution did not want to see photos proving the majority of those wounds were bites from dogs cared for on Sutter’s property and the coroner had incorrectly identified said wounds.

Bell also presented a protective order filed by Joshua Sutter’s sister Rachel Kennedy against her brother. Bell cited that Sutter possibly had a violent pattern, but Kennedy spoke to reporters stating that the incident between her and her brother was all a misunderstanding.

Medina has another court date currently scheduled for April 2016.

TMZ reports they’ve spoken to local law enforcement and Rick Medina a.k.a. Ricardo Medina, Jr. (Cole from Power Rangers Wild Force) has been arrested and formally charged with the stabbing death of his roommate Joshua Sutter.

Last year, Medina was involved in a fatal encounter with Sutter apparently stemming from an argument over Medina’s girlfriend.  Medina immediately alerted police, and after an initial investigation, charges against him were dropped and he was released from jail.  But the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department today says the district attorney has now charged Medina with one count of murder.  According to the KTLA-5 Los Angeles news crew, prosecutors request he be held on $1 million bail.

The family of Joshua Sutter assumes this new action was taken due to evidence not matching Medina’s claim of self-defense.  Chiefly, that Sutter was said to be the attacker yet had defensive wounds on his hands, and allegedly burst into Medina’s room yet most of his blood was found outside the room.

If convicted, Medina would face 26 years to life in prison.

On Sunday, February 1, 2015, TMZ broke the story about Rick Medina a.k.a. Ricardo Medina, Jr. (Cole from Power Rangers Wild Force) being arrested for stabbing his roommate Joshua Sutter in the stomach with a sword after an altercation:

According to law enforcement … Medina retreated to his bedroom with his girlfriend — but Sutter forced his way into the bedroom … and that’s when Medina allegedly stabbed him once in the abdomen with the sword.

Medina called 911 and waited for for cops to arrive. He was arrested and booked for murder. Sutter was transported to a hospital … where he was pronounced dead.

ABC7.com is now reporting that the charges against Medina for murder were dropped today and the district attorney is requesting further investigation. Medina was released today at approximately 1:00 PM PT.

UPDATE (9:13PM ET):

On January 17th, Jason David Frank broke the Guinness world record for breaking the most pine boards in freefall. The last record was set by Travis Donley in 2012 at 2 boards. Jason broke 7. Congrats to him (and for not dying)!

(Courtesy: Houston Chronicle)

This may be old news to some but it’s new to me! The last time I saw Melanie Vallejo (Madison from Power Rangers Mystic Force) was at the first Power Morphicon in 2007 and she was seeing Firass Dirani (Nick from Power Rangers Mystic Force) at the time. How things have changed!

She’s now married to Matthew Kingston and have been since May 2011. Congrats!

(Courtesy: Adelaide Now)

(Courtesy: IrishGREYSFan via Twitter)

[youtube width="480" height="360"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2P0pDM9nIMc[/youtube]

[youtube width="480" height="295"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAzaC4zGuf0&NR=1[/youtube]

And did I say Jason Narvy? I meant Dr. Jason Narvy. Congrats on getting his doctorate!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i9AXoc6lLsY[/youtube]

Hell yeah the case was dismissed. Maybe the cops should stop charging people for “driving while black.”

(Courtesy: TMZ)

(Courtesy: People)

Now, time for Justin Nimmo (Zhane from Power Rangers in Space). The last big project he was in was Pleasantville in 1998, and then we hadn’t heard from or seen him since. That’s because he got married, moved back to Oklahoma with his wife, and now is a co-owner of Just-in-Time Rent to Own. Here him talk about his business in the video below:

(Courtesy: RTO Online)

According to PersaCon’s chairperson Lauren Collen, that Sunday morning, Jones asked for directions at a local gas station and was pulled over for “‘failure to dim headlights’.” She continues, “He forced a very competent and alert (obviously not drunk) Walter to perform the various field sobriety tests. For those that don’t know, those tests consist of testing your balance, awareness, and even a breathalyzer (which checks how much alcohol is in your system). Walter passed all of those tests with flying colors, and yet he was still handcuffed.”

Jones was then charged for driving under the influence, and TMZ caught wind of the situation. Needless to say, it was all over the internet, and hardly anyone got to hear the other side of the story.

Now, our Black Ranger is fighting back! According to TMZ, “Lawyers for Walter Jones … were in an Alabama court yesterday to enter the plea” of not guilty. The trial is set for mid-November.

(Courtesy: JC via Rangerboard and TMZ)

This is a fun time for all involved. Having been to Power Ranger appearances at Youmacon in 2005 and 2008 as well as Anime Central 2008, as well as countless other conventions to meet other actors, I can tell you I’ve seen my fair share.

To be honest, I’ve seen some awkward reactions when fans are in the presence of their favorite Power Ranger cast members. Although they may not realize it, these reactions may not only be embarrassing for the fan, but also for the actors and the fandom in general. The following are some tips for when you get to meet your favorite star at a local convention.

Starstruck

You’ve grown up watching them. You’ve followed their career for years. And when you finally meet them… you turn into a pile of incoherent goo. You’re a mess, you can’t speak and you’re shaking. Guess what? The actor you’re meeting might be just as nervous to meet you!

At Youmacon 2005, there was a Rangerboard room party Saturday night of the convention. And guess who crashed it? Chris Violette, Alycia Purrott, Monica May, Bruce Kalish, and Greg Aronowitz. Shortly after being ambushed by their adoring fans, Chris found his way to a less congested part of the room where my fiancee, Leyann, initiated a conversation with him. This led to the three of us having a good 20-minute discussion filled with topics concerning where we were from, what we did for a living, goals for the future, etc…

The flow of the conversation was easy, we joked around and we had a good time. He admitted that since it was his first convention, he wasn’t prepared for the fanbase that awaited him at the con. He was a little taken aback, not just by the number of people who came to see them, but also that these fans were much older than he initially expected. When it came right down to it, he was just as nervous to meet all of us as we were to meet him!

• Remember, actors are people just like you and me when you come right down to it. They have the same fears, ambitions, emotions as the rest of us.

Towards the end of the conversation, a few more people decided to join in. And quickly the topic reverted back to Ranger-related antics: “Hey remember in episode 13 where blah blah blah…” and “Your character did yadda yadda yadda…” At one point Dino Thunder was even referenced, a season Chris had not seen or participated in. It was then noticeable on Chris’ face that Power Rangers was not the only thing he wanted to talk about that evening, after a long day of Ranger panels and Q&A.

• Do not bore actors with over the top fandom terms and analysis, especially in a clearly SOCIAL situation. They know they work they did, you know the work they did… leave it at that unless it naturally comes up in conversation.

Hygiene

Anime cons and other conventions in general have become known as places where the personal cleanliness of its attendees has become an issue. For years, anime cons have done everything to encourage good hygiene, from selling shirts with taglines such as “Got Soap?” to actually providing free bars of soap to all con-goers.

I honestly don’t know what compels people to go three or more days without showering at conventions. But it’s obviously a large enough problem where even convention guests have begun to take notice.

Case in point: Last year at Youmacon, I got to meet Walter Jones and Paulie Schrier. The setting was very casual; they were just standing around on the second floor by the autograph area and the line of fans was quite orderly. I was the last in line with my fiancee. After getting an autograph and picture with Walter, we approached Paulie. He got to chatting with us, thanking us for waiting so patiently. After taking a picture with him, Paulie turned to me and said, “Wow man, you smell really good!”

I thanked him for the hilariously flattering comment and he was quick to add that he too had experienced the horrors of convention B.O.

• People, you heard it here first, Power Ranger actors don’t want to smell your fanboy funk! At cons: shower, rinse and repeat!

Politeness, Autographs and Pictures

My parents taught me to always say “Please” and “Thank You”. Even after standing for two hours in a line, I still ask PR cast members if they could “Please sign this…”, and I thank them immediately. I also ask if it would be alright if I could take a picture with them. Every time, they are more than happy to, and sometimes that can lead to some small talk or an overall better reaction than if I were to just shove something in front of them.

There have been few times where I’ve seen a total lack of respect towards both the guest and to other fans waiting in line, by people who have more items than are usually allowed to be signed, taking one too many pictures or even shoving their camera to another fan expecting the picture be taken for them without even asking. The guests are not there to help drive up your eBay sales or add to your wall of collectibles.

• Stick to a convention’s autograph and photography policies, if there is no limit, use good judgement. There are many people waiting for the same opportunity as you, don’t be greedy.

• Kindness gets you a lot more than being a greedy fan! Make the experience fun for not only yourself, but the guests themselves. If they like the experience, there’s a getter chance of more convention appearances.

Panels

Panels are a great opportunity to hear stories from behind the scenes, see the personalities of guests, and to find out facts you may have never heard of before. Almost always there is a time for Q&A at the end of the panel, where you get a chance to ask the guests specific questions. Of course, you don’t want to waste the precious time of the guests and other con goers who might have equally burning questions.

• THINK before you ask a question. Is it relevant to the season the guests were on? I know this my seem like common sense, but I’ve witnessed a few questions that go right over the guest’s heads, simply because they don’t know what you are referring to.

• LISTEN to what people have asked before you. Don’t get so wrapped up in thinking of what you are going to ask that you miss what is going on and end up repeating a similar question.

• GET THE MOST OUT OF YOUR QUESTION. Try to ask a question that gets all the guests involved, this really adds to the discussion and can lead to interesting stories and interactions.

• GIVE OTHERS A CHANCE. Stick to asking one question, don’t disguise it with a ‘two part question’. And don’t raise your hand a second time, there’s a great chance that another person wants to ask the same question your forgot to ask.
  

I hope these tips help you to have a memorable convention experience, meeting your favorite star can be exhilarating and a lot of fun. Just remember that there are others who want to have a great a time as you do!

Ann had to this to say, “I really thought it was my last day and I was on the way out. I feel like he’s saved my life and I don’t know what could have happened if he hadn’t come in.

“Everyone in hospital has been calling him a little hero. They said the longer you are out the worse it is for you. He told the staff that he was being Red Power Ranger and was picking me up.”

(Courtesy: Hartlepool Mail)

Not convinced? Well, if you’re fans of either Chris Violette (Sky from Power Rangers SPD) or Michael Copon (Lucas from Power Rangers Time Force), then maybe that’ll sway your decision. Both are currently on Twitter, and if you want to follow them, all you have to to is sign up.

(And while you’re at it, follow No Pink Spandex as well!)

Many reports on the web have been getting this wrong time and time again, and after not even simply looking on IMDB to check out their facts, the misinformation still lingers.

So, to give you a final say-so on the matter, here are some visual aids:

Skylar Deleon is not Austin St. John

Skylar Deleon is not Walter Jones

Skylar Deleon is not Jason David Frank

Skylar Deleon is not David Yost

Skylar Deleon is not Johnny Yong Bosch

Skylar Deleon is not Steve Cardenas

(Although, if you tilted your head to one side…)

Skylar Deleon is not Blake Foster

And just to be on the safe side:

Skylar Deleon is not Amy Jo Johnson

Skylar Deleon is not Thuy Trang

Skylar Deleon is not Karan Ashley

Skylar Deleon is not Catherine Sutherland

Skylar Deleon is not Nakia Burrise

So many Ranger alums have gotten pregnant, but this is the first we actually get to see one preggers! Yes, I am this immature at 5:30 in the morning. ^_^

(Courtesy: Zhane from Rangerboard)