Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #5

by Ian B on July 22, 2016

Written by: Kyle Higgins

Art by: Thony Silas

Coloured by: Bryan Valenza

Lettered by: Ed Dukeshire

 

 

After an explosive ending to the previous issue, this issue brings us back to a time before there was a Green Ranger, giving us some added insight into not only one of our heroes, but also our villain. How did the team operate before Tommy showed up? How does the world view the Power Rangers? How far from home do the Rangers operate? What does Rita have planned for the plant once she has conquered Earth? All of these questions and more are answered here.

 

 

The story follows Zack in the days leading up to the emergence of Tommy as the Green Ranger. During a fight with a monster resembling Leonardo Da Vinci's Vitruvian Man, Jason leaps from the Megazord to protect the Italian Prime Minister. Zack, seeing the monster about to kill them both, takes control of the Megazord and slays the monster, saving the day. When they go to check on the people, however, Zack discovers that it is the Red Ranger that the people are cheering for, and returns home dejected before being kidnapped by Rita. Rather than battle, however, Rita makes Zack an offer; join her as her Green Ranger and bring peace to the world. What follows is a surprisingly interesting and deep analysis of two characters that were never given much examination, Rita and Zordon. We are asked to question what we know of the two characters, and ask ourselves: exactly what has Zordon done for the planet, what are his motives, and why does Rita care so much about a single planet? While we never get any real resolution to these questions in this issue, I hope that they are examined more in the future. Even if everything Rita says is a lie, which is never made clear in the issue, it still provides us a different perspective than we have usually been presented with.

 

 

I have little to say about the art that I haven't said in my previous reviews, as the art remains beautiful and stylized. The design of the Vitruvian Man in particular was imposing and elegant, really showing off the ability of the comic to present us with new monsters that can be more than simply people in costumes as the show needed to rely on. In addition, the Megazord itself looked far more mobile than we have seen it in the past, able to slice through a monster in one quick, powerful stroke, emphasizing the raw power at the Rangers disposal.

 

 

Power Rangers is a comic series that really has no reason to be as good as it is. It would have been extremely easy to have simply slapped the name on the cover of a mediocre comic, throw in some fan service and call it a day, getting people on board for a few issues before they ultimately moved on to something else. Instead, we have consistently been getting some of the best stories I have read in years, a writer who knows exactly how to walk the fine line of fan service and excellent story telling, and an artistic team that consistently gives their best to create a dynamic and vibrant image in each panel. Every time I pick up an issue, I find it to be the best thing I read that week, and I would even put this issue as the best so far. This is the story that fans deserve, and as long as Boom and the creative staff continues to respect the fans and deliver amazing issue after amazing issue, every fan should continue to support the series. I could not recommend this series any higher to anyone even casually interested.

Our Score:

10/10

A Look Inside