Trini Kwan (2017 movie)

"Me and four kids from Angel Grove found a space ship buried underground. I'm pretty sure I'm a superhero now"

- Trini to her Parents

Trini Kwan is the Yellow Ranger of the Power Rangers.

Character History
Trini and her parents have moved into three different towns in three years. Frustrated, she barely talks to her family. This is compounded by the fact that the rest of her family is as 'normal' as it can get. This means she can barely speak to them about the adjustments she needs to make or about her own personal struggles, as she believes they will just label her. As a kid who hasn't connected with anyone in her new town, Trini has made the mine just outside Angel Grove her hideout, where she can practice some martial arts moves on her own.

One day she encounters Billy Cranston as he had just blown up the side of a mountain, looking for minerals, and three other teenagers. One of them, Zack Taylor starts piking the rocks, revealing crystal coins, one of which Trini picked up. As the mine guards approach, the teenagers make a break for it, with Trini and Kimberly Hart running on foot. They eventually catch up to Billy and Jason Scott's van and also pick up Zack while being chased. They brave the railroad to get the train between them and the guards giving chase only for the van to be completely demolished due to being hit by the train and then subsequently rolling over numerous times and then landed rolled over in a ditch.

The teenagers wake up the next day completely fine, and are apparently being followed by the mysterious crystal coins. They discover they had gained super strength. Trini goes to the mine after school, as do Zach, Kimberly, Jason, and Billy. When Trini sees them, she runs away. After climbing up a flat mountain side and jumping over a 100 foot canyon, the others catch up. After Billy falls down the canyon the others follow, but no Trini. Kimberly asks for some of her water, but tricks her by pushing her down the canyon with the others. Under the waters they discover a spaceship that's been there for millions of years.

Trini and the other discover (or are assaulted by) Alpha 5 who is absolutely thrilled at the prospect that they have arrived, as only "Power Rangers' chosen by the coins can open the ship. Alpha awakens Zordon, the previous Red Ranger, now an avatar on the ship wall and together they tell them of Rita Repulsa and her plans to rip the Zeo Crystal from Earth to gain the power of life and death. Zordon shows them the future if Rita were to succeed. Trini goes home to her family who are having dinner and is immediately bombarded by questions from her mother before she can answer a single one of them. Trini's father asks her to share with them one thing she did that day. She calmly, but vaguely tells them that she and four kids from Angel Grove found and space ship buried underground and that she's a superhero. Her mother, thinking she is on drugs, tells her to pee in a cup.

The Rangers walk out on Zordon in disbelief, but Jason believes they should reconsider. He asks them to reconvene the next day, and they do. Zordon and Alpha 5 begin a lengthy training process to prepare them for what's coming in likely 11 days. While their fighting skills improve, they cannot morph. Trini and the other Rangers take some time to camp out and get to know each other. While there, she reveals the frustration she's had with her family and how she's come to enjoy not getting to know other people because of her situation. Zack deduces she also has 'girlfriend troubles'.

Rita Repulsa personally breaks into Trini's house and assaults her, trying to get information on the Zeo Crystal's location. She scoffs at the new Ranger and tells her she'd killed the Yellow Ranger that came before. Rita somehow gains knowledge as to who among the Rangers knows of the Zeo Crystal's location and tries to get Trini to side with her. Trini refuses and instead tells the Rangers where they can attack Rita. Rita waylays them at the docks and takes the information from Billy, who was only forced to tell her the location of the Zeo Crystal because she was threatening Zack. Upon learning the location, Rita tells them to blame Trini that she has led to their deaths, as she kills Billy by drowning him.

As the Rangers carry Billy's lifeless body to the ship, they realize just how much they mean to each other and would fight and die for each other, just as Billy did. This bond causes the Morphing Grid to open. Zordon uses this to resurrect Billy. With Billy back, the Rangers realize that they can morph. They morph just in time to protect the ship from invading putties and to take the battle to Angel Grove where Rita was attempting to find Krispy Kreme - the location of the Zeo Crystal. Zack uses his Mastodon zord on the Putties and the rest of the Rangers follow suit as Rita continues to create more putties on her way to resurrect Goldar, a gold monster under the Angel Grove mines. The Rangers eventually defeat Goldar and Rita Repulsa, sending her flying into the vast emptiness of space.

Eventually, Trini adjusts into her new life in Angel Grove, somehow also ending up on regular detention with the rest of the Rangers, and is seen bonding with her brothers over news of the Power Rangers saving the day.

Power Rangers Legacy Wars
The reboot Power Rangers fight with Rangers from the mainstream universe in Power Rangers Legacy Wars.

Personality
Trini is mysterious but extremely bright. Her parents constantly move for work, making her the perpetual new girl to any school. A loner who owns it, Trini is self-sufficient and contemplative, but always observant. All she wants is to find her gang of friends, though she'll never admit it - least of all to herself.

Trini has a hard time contending with her family life due to her family being very typical and uninteresting. She believes that her family has a zealous need to label things due to their observance of the status quo. This is something that she struggles against due to being queer, which she doesn't admit to anyone about until Zack guesses it while the team is bonding by a fire. She doesn't want to be the feminine lady that her mother wishes she would be, choosing to dress, act, and generally be different in order to feel as though she is distinct from others. This causes her to develop a counter-culture identity. Trini ends up finding that she has a place among the rangers, due to all of them being socially independent, and becomes good friends with them, developing a strong bond with the team's other members. This is highlighted when the Rangers come together in mourning of Billy, before he is revived and they gain the ability to morph.

Trini is not resentful of her younger brothers, who she feels greater affection for in the aftermath of the battle against Rita and Goldar when they discuss their favorite Power Ranger while drawing them on the wall while Trini patches the holes with caulk. This causes her to feel a great satisfaction that at least one aspect of her (secret) identity is admired by her family.

Arsenal

 * Yellow Power Coin: Trini's supernatural crystal, which is the source of her powers, and her ability to morph.

Zord

 * Yellow Sabertooth Battle Zord: Trini's alien battle vehicle, very powerful, yet hard to control, with Trini only being able to control her Zord after gaining full access to her morphing capability.

Powers and Abilities

 * Power Ranger Physiology: After receiving her Yellow Ranger power coin, Trini gained following superpowers that possessed by Rangers in general:
 * Superhuman Strength: Trini's strength enhanced to Power Rangers-level superhuman level.
 * Superhuman Leaps: Trini's Power Rangers-level superhuman strength enables her to jump higher than any regular humans, shown when she leaped over a large abyss.
 * Superhuman Durability: Trini's bodily tissues are substantially enhanced by her power coin that she cannot be physically harmed by ordinary humans.
 * Superhuman Climbing: Trini's Power Rangers-level superhuman strength improved her grip that she now able to climb faster and better than regular humans, as she now able to scale a steep cliff in mere seconds.
 * Morphing: Trini, upon acquiring superpowers bestowed by her power coin, capable of morph into her ranger form by forming a suit of powerful yellow armor around her body.
 * Piloting Skills: Upon bonding with the Sabertooth Zord, Trini displayed great skills in controlling the massive mechanical alien feline.


 * Skilled Combatant: Trini, following team training sessions with Zordon and Alpha 5 eventually became fairly skilled in alien martial arts, and thus managed to defeat many of Rita Repulsa's Putty troops. Even before the group training sessions, she had knowledge of earthly martial arts, as she would regularly practice at the mine.

Portrayal

 * Trini is portrayed by Becky Gomez.

Behind the Scenes

 * In the scene where they finally morph, Trini is seen wearing a shirt with the number "1973" printed on it. This is a likely reference to Thuy Trang, the actress who portrayed the original Trini Kwan, whose birth date was in the year 1973.
 * Trini's last name was confirmed as identical to the original when Patrick Sabongui revealed his role as Mr. Kwan, father of one of the Rangers.