POWER RANGERS #3 Review

Power Rangers #3 is available to purchase on digital and in print from BOOM! Studios on Wednesday, January 20. The story is by Ryan Parrott with pencils by Francesco Mortarino, colours by Raul Angulo and letters by Ed Dukeshire.

Cover art is by Matteo Scalera.

Synopsis

Two New Series. Two New Teams. The UNLIMITED POWER ERA continues as Drakkon is the key to the Power Rangers’ new mission. But to defeat the new cosmic threat, the new Power Rangers team — Jason, Trini, Zack and new members — has put their faith in their greatest enemy. And the only way they may be able to save the universe is by giving Drakkon exactly what he wants…

Review

It’s time to catch up with the three original Rangers – Jason, Zack and Trini – as they continue their adventures in space alongside an alternate-universe version of the beloved Tommy Oliver…

Of the two new Power Rangers series, the other being Mighty Morphin, this book feels the least shackled by classic franchise tropes. Whilst Mighty Morphin continues to play with the tropes of good versus evil with Lord Zedd, Power Rangers takes to space and the moral vacuum of living in the grey area in-between.

This issue catches up with the Omega Rangers at the tail end of their battle with The Horrid. The huge set piece formed most of the previous issue and was easily the most ambitious sequence in the series to-date. This month the high gear remains relatively in-tact as writer Ryan Parrott continues to keep the series at a brisk pace.

The issue opens with some backstory on the villainous Horrid. There was little time to learn about their backstory last month and it adds some context to their motivations to see they were once a thriving society just like ours. Parrott continues to explore the darker side of the Ranger universe, The Horrid were victims of a terrible circumstance and not the usual clay monster, cooked up in Finster’s lab. It adds a new dynamic to the franchise to see villains who aren’t directly from the cookie cutter.

Both Mighty Morphin and Power Rangers are diverging from a central point of origin right now. Whilst both are very clearly in the same universe and will converge again there’s an aspect of path forging which feels right placed in these character’s lives. The TV series always painted such issue-of-the-week stories for its characters. Here, despite the sci-fi setting, it feels like characters trials and tribulations are more earnest and true to life.

There are plenty of aspects in play with the story. Parrott is not shy of a complex plot line but his capable writing means that this franchise can handle it. Only three issues in and we are already seeing the potential for another conflict between the Rangers and Lord Drakkon. It’s all quietly developing in the background with a brilliant pacing.

Mortarino and Angulo’s artwork retains the brilliance we’ve seen in the series’ first two issues. Overall it’s less colourful than it’s Mighty Morphin counterpart. There’s less of the intense primary colours, instead this series feels rooted in more natural tones. The Rangers vessel is bathed in metallic hues, whilst the vacuum of space is rendered with typically dark blues and purples. Ordinarily that might seem run-of-the-mill but not here. This is new territory for the Power Rangers and they look great whilst exploring it.

Verdict

Power Rangers #3 continues to build the series first epic arc through solid storytelling and top-notch artwork.

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