Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #2

By Kyle Higgins, Hendry Prasetya, Matt Herms, Ed Dukeshire, Steve Orlando, Corin Howell, Jeremy Lawson, Jim Campbell

After three issues, it’s clear that BOOM! Stuidos knew exactly what to with the Power Rangers franchise. The plan was put in place and they picked the perfect team to execute it. This is the Power Rangers as we always dreamed they could be.

Issue two starts out in incredible fashion, with Billy and Trini working on Tommy’s Dragonzord. What makes this scene so special is how Higgins has Billy explain how Zords operate. Past Power Rangers media has been vague, but Higgins does his best to establish a semi-canonical description of how these epic vehicles do the things that they do.

The scene doesn’t stop there either. Things go from Zord-speak to a touching moment between Billy and Trini. Due to his high intelligence and lack of fighting ability, Billy feels very out of place amongst the other Rangers. This was touched upon in the television series, but be assured that it was never done this well.

The action of the issue happens when we reach Tommy, who’s at his home and in the clutches Scorpina. This is a powerful way to make Rita and her forces feel terrifying. The fact that they can enter their homes and threaten their family members (which she does) ups the danger and puts things on a whole other level than anything else before. This could have easily taken a turn into the “dark and gritty” territory that All-Comic has warned against in past reviews. Luckily, Higgins keeps things tasteful.

This issue also seems to be hinting towards a future love triangle between Kimberly, Jason and Tommy. A plot device like this is something that could easily derail momentum for said characters and their development. However, Higgins hasn’t given us a reason to doubt his ability to successfully weave in and out of cliché plot traps.

The art team of Hendry Prasetya and Matt Herms is becoming one of the best in the business. There’s a splash page that depicts the Dragonzord submerged underwater that is my favorite comic page of 2016 (so far). Things are much more grim in this issue, which is displayed in Herms’ incredible colors. The major fight scene between Scorpina and Tommy is wonderfully drawn, with Herms’ expressing the sense of existential dread. For a Power Rangers title, this is some really powerful stuff.

Unfortunately, there isn’t much to report on the Bulk and Skull backup. Don’t worry, though, because it’s still well-written and worth your time. Bulk and Skull have kidnapped a Puddy and plan to use it to impress certain female members of the Power Rangers. It’s fun, but it’s also very brief. The most impressive part is the pencils by Corin Howell and colors by Jeremy Lawson. Lawson’s colors bring a light-hearted tone back to a book that contained a lot of dismay.

This is not just a great series for a Power Rangers fan; this is just a great comic that needs to be read by everyone. You owe it to yourself to at least give it a shot.