The Power Rangers Unlimited series continues to expand on fan-favorite corners of the Power Rangers mythos, with the latest one-shot focusing on the Power Rangers HyperForce team, born out of a tabletop roleplaying game web-series. Power Rangers Unlimited: HyperForce #1 from Melissa Flores, Meghan Camarena, Federico Sabbatini, Bryan Valenza and Ed Dukeshire picks up in the aftermath of HyperForce‘s season finale. The Hyperforce Pink Ranger Chloe is on a mission to save her mother – to the point where she’s fallen in league with her evil father. It’ll take the rest of the HyperForce Rangers to snap Chloe out of her villainous streak…but that’s impossible to do when they’re scattered across time and space.
The fun of Power Rangers HyperForce was that it combined the chaotic fun of Critical Role with the vastness of the Power Rangers mythos. A large part of that was due to Flores, who was working with Power Rangers’ new owners Hasbro, as well as Camarena who helped shape Chloe’s character. Flash forward a few years later: both women have co-written Radiant Pink while Flores has also penned The Dead Lucky as well as the most recent run of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers.
What I’m gathering is that this duo isn’t just great at writing pink-clad heroines, they’re also experts in writing characters that deal with mental health. While The Dead Lucky‘s protagonist struggles with PTSD, and Radiant Pink‘s Eva struggles with overextending herself, Chloe is dealing with the loss of her mother as well as her surrogate family. Flores and Camerena deliver a script raw with human feeling, but also find time to pepper in some humorous moments as well. Case in point: Hyperforce Blue (Eddie) and Hyperforce Black (Vesper) renew their romantic relationship in the most outlandish manner. I can’t say much more without spoiling.
Joining them is Sabbatini, who previously illustrated Rangers comics before beginning a lengthy stint on Moon Knight with Jed McKay. Though the action in HyperForce is decidedly less bloody, it’s no less kinetic and engaging. Characters twirl in mid-air, trading blows that send them flying hard into the ground – it feels like you’re watching an actual episode of Power Rangers. Kudos should also go to Sabbatini for translating the HyperForce designs into a new medium, as well. He’s joined by frequent collaborator Bryan Valenza, who brings the usual bursts of color that a Rangers book requires. It especially stands out against the darker hued backgrounds of the book, and adds extra oomph to Dukeshire’s lettering. Especially when the Rangers call their special attacks.
Power Rangers Unlimited: HyperForce #1 finally brings a fan-favorite team into the comics canon, and it does so with style. Given the ending, as well as the ties to Flores’ work on the MMPR ongoing, it’s safe to say that we haven’t seen the last of the HyperForce team.
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