This a list of fictional characters from the TV series VR Troopers.
Ryan Steele (played by Brad Hawkins) is the son of Tyler Steele. Ryan learns the nature of his father's mysterious disappearance when he, Kaitlin Star and J.B. Reese are all recruited by Professor Hart to become V.R. Troopers. Ryan's responsibilities sometimes take a backseat to an obsession with finding his father. Ryan is the principal character of the series, directly linked through blood to the unfolding agenda of Grimlord...who uses Tyler in areas to increase his evil hold on virtual reality, and to continue his war against the Troopers to conquer their (read: our) universe. Every episode begins and ends with Ryan reflecting on his father's teachings at a Buddhist Temple where Tyler trained young Ryan in martial arts and in other lessons in life. Ryan's obsessive quest to locate his dad is mellowed by a desire not to see his friends, or their world, suffer. Ryan remains hopeful of ultimately reuniting with Tyler.
Such indeed occurred in the series' first season, but only briefly. Ryan discovered that Dark Heart, one of Grimlord's deadliest cyborg-warriors, was actually Tyler...whose mind had been wiped, as in the case of Darth Vader in Star Wars. Ryan freed his father (who became human again), but Tyler was recaptured by Grimlord.
Ryan's virtual reality powers in the first season include the Laser Fist Command, Lightning Hand Command (his patented finisher), and Internal Gyro Command. His VR vehicles-arsenal includes a "Turbo Cycle." Whenever a "Battle Grid" emergency arises, Ryan and his fellow Troopers employ alternate costumes to fight invading Skugs. His signature color is blue.
Despite being a team player, Ryan typically fights his VR battles alone; due to the differing Japanese series used to create V.R. Troopers, Ryan's Japanese counterpart was only one warrior against a mutant army. In the "linking" U.S. footage, Ryan's joint battles (alongside his fellow Troopers) are limited to the Battle Grid and the Skybase cockpit. As footage of one loner Metal Hero series, Choujinki Metalder ran out, Saban replaced it with another: Uchuu Keiji Shaider. In the five-part story "Quest For Power", Ryan's powers are depleted after rescuing his father and the other two Troopers from Grimlord's cavernous dungeon in reality. Ryan is then given new armor, powers, vehicles (including the Drill Tank, Blue Hawk, and Nitro Cycle) and weapons (including a laser pistol and his new finisher, the Laser Saber; which, like JB's Laser Lance, only functioned as a regular sword in combat). He would also use a Shoulder Cannon similar to JB's Technobazooka (always used on Grimlord's air forces, never on any monsters). His reunion with Tyler would be brief, as Tyler branched out globally to find a way of destroying Grimlord. Ryan was charged with "holding the fort" until his father returned, which happened in the Christmas episode "Santa's Secret Trooper".
As the leader of the VR Troopers, Ryan was the only character to have two different uniforms...since there was not enough stock footage of his Red/Blue uniform for the second season.
Ryan's mother was never seen throughout the series' run; since neither Ryan nor his father even mentioned her, it can be presumed that either Ryan's mother and Tyler are divorced, or she died while giving birth to Ryan.
JB Reese (played by Michael Bacon) is a computer genius and a martial arts-black belt. JB is obsessed with technology and constantly relies on it for solutions. But his ongoing experience as a VR Trooper has taught him to appreciate life outside such conveniences. JB is quite capable of holding his own in battle, armed with a laser gun and a Laser Lance; he often uses the latter as a finishing maneuver against Grimlord's monsters and robots, but only uses it as a regular sword in combat known as the Super Saber. Once he forms the Laser Lance by extending a second blade on his Super Saber, he usually impales a mutant, who then (A) surrenders; (B) has "heartburn"; or (C) is unaffected (only Mechanoid, Photobot, Fanbot, and Electrobot are immune to the Laser Lance impalement and only Fanbot was immune to it altogether), typically the mutant surrenders. If the mutant does surrender, JB destroys it anyway via rapid and repeated slashes; the mutant overheats, falls over and explodes. Also in JB's arsenal is the VR Techno-Bazooka (basically a double-barrel cannon); JB projects a giant virtual image of himself to pull the trigger. The VR Techno-Bazooka is always used on Grimlord's air forces, never on any monsters with one notable exception, Fanbot, a mutant that couldn't be hurt by any other aresenal (including the Skybase). When the battle grows too dangerous for reality, JB activates a Vortex Command (via a button on his waist) to transport himself and the enemy into virtual reality. He also uses the VR Skybase (which can transform into Troopertron, a giant robot) and battle cruiser, when needed; his vehicles-arsenal also includes a VR Fighter bike (also known as the Sky cycle). His signature color is black.
Throughout the series' run, it was never explained what JB's initials stood for. Also, while his father was seen in a few episodes, JB's mother was never seen or mentioned at all.
Kaitlin Star (played by Sarah Brown) is a reporter and photographer for a newspaper called Underground Voice Daily. When she wasn't saving the world as a heroine, she was saving it through her journalism and photography. As a Trooper, Kaitlin didn't have as many personal weapons and attacks. She carried around a hand pistol, occasionally a hatchet weapon, and later gained the ability to split into two dubbed "VR Kaitlin Double Team." She mainly fought alongside JB and often served as backup for both male troopers via the VR Skybase and the VR Battle Cruiser. Kaitlin, on two events, demonstrated the ability to heal a fellow trooper by transferring some of her power to re-energize the other Trooper. Although Kaitlin never finished off a mutant herself, she and JB would often combine their laser pistol blasts in a "VR Double Team", usually stunning and weakening a mutant, with a few exceptions. This is not to be confused with the "VR Kaitlin Double Team", where she summons an exact duplicate of herself to assist her in battle (the reason for this is because her counterparts are actually two people from Spielban). She drives a Mazda Familia Hatchback, which was modified by Prof. Hart to fly and thus making travel and rescue operations faster. Also to note unlike Ryan and JB Kaitlin's parents were never mentioned or seen in the series. Her signature color is red.
Jeb (played by Zeb and voiced by Kerrigan Mahan impersonating Jack Nicholson) is Ryan's pet Redbone Coonhound, whom he had since he was young. Jeb was accidentally subjected to a power surge in part two of "The Battle Begins" that gave him the ability to speak. Ryan had him promise that he would never speak when around other people, so Jeb is usually silent except while in the lab. Jeb is known for both his mischievous personality and his humorous demeanor. Often, Jeb serves as comic relief, and both Percy and Mrs. Rooney are frequent victims to his antics. Jeb was based on Metalder's talking cyborg Doberman, Springer. Jeb had to fight as a Trooper once when he and Ryan accidentally switched bodies. He also has a voracious appetite eating any food lying around, including food from Ryan and the other Troopers.
Professor Horatio Hart (played by Julian Combs) is the mentor and serves a Zordon-like role. He was a computerized being who would provide and construct the necessary arsenal and equipment that the Troopers would use throughout the series. Hart was once a flesh and blood human who worked with Tyler Steele on the VR Trooper project. But one day, he was mortally injured by Grimlord; to keep Hart alive, Tyler virtualized his brain. In his most notable role in the episode "Good Trooper, Bad Trooper", he gave Ryan his own Virtualizer to allow Ryan to battle his evil clone after the clone stole the real Ryan's Virtualizer and took control of the Skybase. In early pilot footage for the show (as seen in a VR Troopers promo featured on the Power Rangers Official Fan Club video), Hart was originally portrayed by a Caucasian male slightly resembling Albert Einstein.
The VR Troopers fight the forces of Grimlord and his minions to keep their armies from invading the Earth reality:
Grimlord (portrayed by Gardner Baldwin), was the alter ego of billionaire Karl Ziktor, owner of Ziktor Industries, and the primary enemy of the VR Troopers television series. Many years ago, Grimlord was responsible for the capture of scientist Tyler Steele, and the near death of Professor Horatio Hart, forcing Hart to remain in virtual reality to stay alive. Grimlord, during the same measures taken above, also accessed a source of Tyler's and Hart's experiments in Inter-reality travel, and gained the incredible powers required to access cyberspace.
Upon arriving in Virtual Reality, Grimlord soon assembled a fierce army of mutants and cyborgs commanding them from a place of authority. In the first season, this was the Virtual Dungeon. In the second season, it was the orbiting Virtual Dark Fortress. He also appointed several mutants and cyborgs as authority figures themselves including General Ivar and Colonel Icebot. In perhaps the greatest irony, Grimlord transformed Tyler into Dark Heart. Yet Dark Heart turned traitor after Ryan freed him from execution. When Ryan and Dark Heart confronted Grimlord, he ended up escaping after setting the Virtual Dungeon to self-destruct. When Dark Heart regressed back to Tyler Steele, Grimlord abducted Tyler with his magic as he still needed Tyler for his next plot.
Grimlord, like the Troopers, had a civilian identity and can travel between both realities on a regular basis. He uses a transference orb placed on the desk of his office and chants, "Forces of Darkness, empower me! Take me back to my virtual reality!" The orb sends a current of energy into his body, changing his physical appearance. Upon transformation, he is taken to the throne room of his command center.
Like most heartless supervillains, Grimlord cared very little for his army and henchmen, and generally loses patience with them quite easily when they report a complication or failure. His constant defeats by the Troopers causes a frequent irradiation in enraged eyes and a clenched fist at the conclusion of every episode. Grimlord is not above destroying his own base to kill the Troopers, as displayed three times in the series (twice with the Dungeon, and once with a cave he was temporarily using after the former's final destruction). In the second season, Grimlord attempted to trap Ryan in another dimension just to prevent the Troopers from learning his name in reality. In fact, no one, not even the Troopers or Professor Hart, knew that Grimlord and Karl Ziktor were one and the same.
In the second season, Grimlord underwent a drastic change in appearance and format after self-destructing the Virtual Dungeon for a second time. With barely any footage of his counterpart existing for use anymore, Saban upgraded Grimlord into an American exclusive character and base of operations. Siphoning off Tyler Steele's knowledge of Virtual Reality into an energy prism (which resembled a green crystal), Ziktor discarded his traditional orb, and used this prism to access a whole new army of Virtual creations and a new base of operations called the Virtual Dark Fortress. He now had an appearance that slightly resembled his old appearance with a cape and this form also included Grimlord having a long tail. He was no longer confined to sitting on a throne, and also had the ability to teleport to different places at will. His counterparts from Choujinki Metalder are Gozou Kirihara and Emperor GodNeros.
General Ivar (voiced by Mike Reynolds) is not only a rocket-shaped mutant, but also a military strategist and chief commander of much of Grimlord's outer aerial and ground forces. Ivar occasionally battles the Troopers in various vehicles, but seldom fights one on one. In one episode, Ivar had plotted mutiny with the aide of a stolen military brain. His mutiny resulted in what appeared to be his ultimate destruction. However, Grimlord felt Ivar was redeemable, so Grimlord's forces retrieved Ivar's remains and rebuilt him. General Ivar, along with Colonel Icebot, is one of the few survivors of the Virtual Dungeon's destruction in Season Two, and remains with Grimlord after he upgrades to the Virtual Dark Fortress.
Colonel Icebot (voiced by Richard Epcar) is much more reserved than Ivar. He rarely fights at all, and serves as Grimlord's chief science officer as well as commander and developer of many aerial assault vehicles and inventions. In his only battle, Icebot gained the ability to change into another form to battle JB and Kaitlin but that form was destroyed when JB struck him with his "Laser Lance" command. He survives the battle somehow, along with the Dungeon's destruction, and serves Grimlord in Season Two in the same capacity as before. Ironically enough, Colonel Icebot has no ice attacks or abilities.
Decimator (voiced by Michael Sorich) is an expert swordsman and the most active warrior of Grimlords' key lieutenants. Decimator was the first to deal Ryan a mortal blow in the first episode, nearly killing the inexperienced Trooper. He is mostly seen among the armored and cyborg members of Grimlord's army. Ryan and Decimator clashed frequently over the first season until Decimator wasn't seen again since Grimlord destroyed the Virtual Dungeon.
Zelton (voiced by Michael Sorich) is one of Grimlord's high ranked robotic warriors and key lieutenants who is sometimes seen amongst the robotic members of Grimlord's army. In one of his notable battles with Ryan Steele, Zelton was given the ability to transform and utilize the powers of other robotic warriors from Grimlord's army since it was made from the power of them. Regarding his most infamous battle with Ryan, Zelton was able to and did transform into Cannonbot, Graybot, Metalbot, and Renegade. After a hard and enduring battle, Ryan defeated Zelton. Zelton was impressed by Ryan's skills and saluted him as his equal. Displeased with Zelton's honor, Decimator activated Zelton's self-destruct. Zelton was shortly restored afterwards. Zelton has not been seen since Grimlord self-destructed the Virtual Dungeon.
Toxoid (voiced by Dave Mallow) is another of Grimlord's key lieutenants. Toxoid was a mutant beast with a high pitched voice that wore green body armor with his skull-like head incased in a clear dome. Toxoid's other abilities included teleportation and shooting goo out of his fingers. He has also had the most opportunities to battle Ryan Steele personally, but either loses or runs away each time. Toxoid is looked down upon the most due to his limited intellect and cowardly behavior. He was often seen among the organic-looking creatures in Grimlord's army. He was never seen again after Grimlord self-destructed the Virtual Dungeon.
Blue Boar (voiced by Mike Reynolds) is one of Grimlord's key lieutenants who commands the Gunbots and is seen amongst them and any other weapon-based robot. He is a large red and bluish steel robot with a head closely resembling a boar. In one hand he held a sword while his other hand was large. This served as a shield plus each finger was a small cannon. In his only notable battle, he fought by Ryan while JB dealt with Vanbot. Ryan managed to defeat him using his "Lightning Hand" command; but even though he was destroyed, Grimlord had him rebuilt. He wasn't seen again after Grimlord self-destructed the Virtual Dungeon.
Dark Heart (voiced by Kerrigan Mahan in the first appearance, Richard Epcar in the second appearance) is formerly Tyler Steele, father of Ryan Steele. Dark Heart was the fiercest of the mutants in Grimlord's army as well as a key lieutenant. His battle with Ryan resulted in failure however. With Grimlord disappointed, he arranged for Dark Heart's execution. Dark Heart escaped with Ryan's help and joined him in assaulting the Virtual Dungeon. Both of them managed to escape before the Virtual Dungeon self-destructed and Dark Heart was eventually restored to human form after being wounded by Decimator. However, his freedom was short lived as Grimlord transported him back to Virtual Reality as Grimlord still needed Tyler Steele for his next plot. Outside of that, Dark Heart fits the category of Zelton's army.
Despera (portrayed by Kristin Norton in US Footage) is an advisor and strategist to Grimlord who also created her. She is dressed in an elegant white robe and a horned headdress, and wields a large scepter. She is quick to lose her temper and is an immensely powerful warrior. She is the sister of Desponda. Ryan once clashed with Despera, who battled him through various dimensions. In our dimension, Despera could float and blast purple electricity from the sphere on her staff. In another dimension, Despera seemed to turn invisible and attacked by throwing her staff around like a spear. Ryan also encountered another dimension, while involved in a battle with her, that was like a giant, slowly revolving crystal ball. Ryan escaped this dimension by blasting the crystal ball walls a few times with his laser pistol. Ryan defeated Despera in battle, by tricking her into zapping a trap wall in the temple containing Grimlord's secret identity. She was struck in the shoulder by an arrow, and after removing the arrow, promptly retreated.
NOTE: In "Uchuu Keiji Shaider," Despera's Japanese equivalent is the transvestite grandson of Oraclon's Japanese equivalent.
Doom Master (portrayed by T.J. Storm in US Footage) is a sword-wielding field agent dressed in black armor who was created by Oraclon. Doom Master commands the Vixens and often the Ultra-Skugs personally when the battles require his attention. He is a proud, yet easily irritated warrior who often gets into arguments with the more rational Despera, who is quick to temper when he provokes her. He is also a rival of the mutant Arachnobot, whom he destroyed before Arachnobot could destroy Ryan Steele, since he didn't want to be outdone (and replaced) by the mutant.
The Vixens are a team of breath-taking and deadly kunoichis trained in the most vicious and dangerous arts of combat. It consists of the Black Vixen (portrayed by Corinne Chooey in US Footage), the Purple Vixen (portrayed by Mariah Shirley in US Footage), the Red Vixen, the Green Vixen, and the Pink Vixen (portrayed by Amy Tan in US Footage). They are created by Oraclon and commanded by Doom Master, and often accompany him in battle.
Oraclon is an oracle of data and information. Oraclon gives Grimlord more information on aspects of the Virtual Realm even he has no prior experience with in any way. Oraclon can create monsters for Grimlord to use against the Troopers. He can also be a devastating warrior in his own right. In the episode "Into Oraclon's Web", Oraclon left the Fortress and took on Ryan Steele himself. He is little more than a giant circular head installed in the walls of the Fortress. In battle, he sprouts tentacles, and even a tiny body with legs, to give him mobility. Ryan was able to blast and destroy his tentacled body, thus Oraclon resulted in battling and moving around by floating. Ryan first used his "Laser Saber" command and tried to finish off Oraclon by repeatedly slashing him, but to no avail; Oraclon was too powerful. Later in battle, Ryan discovered Oraclon's only weakness was the area of space between his three eyes. Using his "Laser Saber" command once again, Ryan plunged it into that weak spot (his third eye), and then used the finishing swipe which successfully destroyed him. Oraclon is the only member of the Fortress crew to have been killed in battle; although a line dropped by Grimlord at the end of that particular episode demands that he'd be rebuilt immediately...which he is. However, in the final episode, Kaitlin and JB made his circuits overload while he was trying to drain Galileo the Robot of his memory, frying his circuits and computer banks in the process and making the Virtual Dark Fortress unusable until he were to be reprogrammed again. He was the only major villain this season to be destroyed by the Troopers, and he was destroyed twice at that.
NOTE: In "Uchuu Keiji Shaider," Oraclon's Japanese equivalent is the main villain and is called "Great Emperor Kubilai."
Knighttime (portrayed by Paul Brewster in US Footage, voiced by Wendee Lee) is an androgynous humanoid with long robes that had the ability to control dreams (much like the Dream Master and speaks telepathically) and is an old friend of Grimlord. Knighttime is described as a virtual prince of time travel and hails from a separate, yet savage, virtual reality universe. Knighttime once battled JB in Crossworld City and was revealed to be able to shoot glowing, laser-like projectiles from his mouth. Knighttime put the Troopers into a deep sleep where they dreamt about an apocalyptic version of Cross World City, under Grimlord's totalitarian rule. JB and Kaitlin fought old foes Shoulderbot and Laserbot while Ryan fought a monster that appeared as a giant pair of boot-covered feet. To wake up, the Troopers had to regain control of their dreams and defeat Knighttime. Knighttime appeared once again and sent the Troopers back in time via a time machine. Knighttime was called upon again, this time as temporary leader of Grimlord's army while Ziktor had plans in our reality. Knighttime revealed he could make himself transparent and non-corporeal (ala a hologram). Even later, Knighttime was eventually defeated by Fanbot after betraying Grimlord by both freezing time with his time machine (against Grimlord's permission), and building the scrap-piled robot Conatron to aid him in his conquest of our reality. He believed that Grimlord did not own our reality, so it was okay for him to freeze time with a special device and seize it for himself. When neither Ryan nor Grimlord were able to destroy the time machine individually, they both worked together to successfully destroy it. Grimlord would hold Knighttime captive afterwards hoping to use his power to conquer the real world upon learning more about the time-freezing device.
NOTE: While Knighttime looked and clearly sounded female, it was said on the show that Knighttime was a male. In the Japanese counterpart series, Knighttime was also an androgynous effeminant male.
Renegade (voiced by Scott Page-Pagter) was a master assassin and marksman dressed in red spandex with white armor and fancied himself as one of the best. When it came to hunting down the rogue robot Dark Heart, Grimlord sent Renegade. When his head was damaged by Ryan, Renegade gained an upgraded head with a winged snake ornament on his forehead. Renegade also lost on his first encounter with Dark Heart; but after their second encounter, he successfully defeated and damaged Dark Heart. Renegade made further appearances in the show. Now with an upgraded and specially made handgun, to fight Ryan, Renegade proved very formidable and would have won against Ryan, at one time, if the Ghost Biker hadn't saved Ryan. Renegade fits the category of Zelton's army since Zelton briefly took the form of him.
Red Python (voiced by Wendee Lee) is a VR Trooper created by Colonel Icebot when he was finally successful in creating an evil VR Trooper with Tyler Steele's knowledge. However, the Red Python required a human spirit to harness her full powers. Meanwhile, the Troopers made a new friend named Amy. Amy was exactly the person Grimlord wanted to become the Red Python. Skugs captured Amy and she was brainwashed and given her new powers. The Red Python proved very formidable and almost killed Kaitlin. JB vowed to get revenge. However, Col. Icebot wasn't as successful as he hoped. The Red Python's powers were slowly becoming unstable and any further battles would lead to her self-destruction. Amy's physical well-being and mental health were also in jeopardy. During her last battle with JB, her powers gave up completely. The Troopers were able to save Amy before she was destroyed.
Air Stryker (voiced by Dave Mallow) is a humanoid helicopter who serves as an aerial lieutenant. In one event, he collided with Ryan causing the Trooper to experience amnesia. He continued to do aerial attacks alongside Fighterbot after Grimlord upgraded to the Virtual Dark Fortress in the second season. Fits the category of Blue Boar's army.
Fighterbot (voiced by Tom Wyner) is a humanoid jet who is often paired with Air Stryker. He mainly does reconnaissance or aerial assaults with him. Like Air Stryker, General Ivar, and Colonel Icebot, he continued to serve Grimlord after the Virtual Dungeon's destruction. Fits the category of Blue Boar's army.
Desponda (voiced by Andrea Harmon) is Despera's sister. She is a powerful warrior that Grimlord once hired on Despera's request to destroy the Troopers and control his Air Castle. She succeeded in capturing the two Kaitlins and JB aboard the Air Castle and seemed to have several forms. JB managed to defeat her with his Laser Lance as well as permanently destroy Grimlord's Air Castle. His finisher caused her to burst into fire balls instead of falling and exploding as normally would happen when used. Somehow, she survived her defeat even though she appeared to have been destroyed. After the two Kaitlins and JB escaped the ship and ruined Despera's evil plan, Grimlord vowed never to use another of his allies' relatives to help him again.
NOTE #1: In Jikuu Senshi Spielban, Desponda's Japanese equivalent is the main villain and was referred to as Queen Pandora.
NOTE #2: Desponda was shown to have four additional forms, not counting her original, in VR Troopers. One form was a mutant, one form was a robot, one was a mutant/robot hybrid, and one looked like vapor/water.
The Skugs are Grimlords' foot soldiers. They usually take the form of human beings when carrying out Grimlord's agendas and travel in twos or threes. In human form, Skugs apparently gained more individuality and intelligence than they normally have in their true forms, as evidenced by Ziktor's secretaries and inventor Strickland. When confronted by the Troopers, they change into their true form and split into a few more to increase the difficulty against their adversaries. They can shift through solid floors back into Virtual Reality. There are a rare occasion of Skugs known as Mutant Skugs.
The Ultra Skugs' are an "upgraded" form of Skugs, used with Tyler Steele's technology. They begin as regular Skugs in traditional Trooper battles, but can transform to this form of drastically different warriors by posing towards one another in a fighting stance. They are significantly more difficult in this form, however they could still be eliminated the same way as the regular Skugs (that is, by knocking them against one another).
A bunch of shark-shaped flying battleships that served as the air force for Grimlord when he was in the Virtual Dungeon.
They serve as the air force for Grimlord when he moves to the Virtual Dark Fortress.
The Grimstars are flying battleships that are designed to look like miniature versions of the Virtual Dark Fortress. The Grimstars are equipped with wheels and also seem to resemble mini-carriages.
The Grimstars are often accompanied by a giant rolling robot with a spiked head and a frowning faceplate called Gargantus. Gargantus was first seen in an image that Grimlord shows to Tyler Steele before he upgrades to the Virtual Dark Fortress. Gargantus could shoot lightning from its eyes.