This week began with National Power Rangers Day, which celebrated the official debut of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. Nobody would have guessed that this franchise would have lasted for long as it has, or that it would make an impact on the comic book world, but it has. BOOM! Studios has made the Power Rangers franchise a central part of its publishing plans, and to celebrate this milestone it released Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: 30th Anniversary Special.
The special contains five new stories, each tackling a different corner of MMPR history:
- “Ode To Ernie” from Ryan Parrott, Eleonora Carlini and Raul Angulo highlights the titular owner of the juice bar the Rangers frequent.
- “Alpha Directive” from Mat Groom, Marco Renna, and Sara Antonellini highlights the long, long life of Zordon’s robotic aide Alpha 5.
- “Wedding Vows” from Melissa Flores, Hendry Prasetya, and Matt Herms takes place during the wedding of Tommy Oliver and Kat Hillard.
- “Ranger Academy: Office Hours” from Maria Ingrada Mora, Jo Mi-Gyeong and Antonellini highlights the inner workings of Ranger Academy.
- Finally, “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Re-Imagine” from Amy Jo Johnson, Matt Hotson, Francesco Mortarino, and Joanna LaFuente paints a dark future for the teenagers with attitude.
Rangers fans will probably notice that every person involved with this special has been a major part of the BOOM! Studios Power Rangers comics. Parrott recently wrapped up a lengthy run (including two crossovers with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) while Groom had a brief run penning the Mighty Morphin series; Flores currently writes the ongoing MMPR series. Renna, Carlini, Mortarino and Prasetya have all illustrated various Power Rangers comics. The biggest draw to most readers, however, would be Johnson: she played original Pink Ranger Kimberly Hart, and “Re-Imagine” marks her official return to the franchise.
In fact, “Re-Imagine” is the story that gripped me the most. Johnson and Hotson start off with some familiar imagery: the Rangers are recruited by Zordon, Rita Repulsa and Lord Zedd menace them, and so on. But then things take a twist. Trust me when I say the end of the story will leave you wanting for more (and more readers shall recieve, as the entire creative team is returning for the upcoming Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers: The Return miniseries.) Mortarino draws pitch-perfect images of the Rangers in their teenage years, to the point where it felt like I was watching episodes from the original MMPR show.
The rest of the stories are no less intriguing. “Ode to Ernie” more than lives up to its name, both as an example of how important Ernie is to the Rangers, as well as the late Richard Genelle. Ditto for “Alpha Directive”; by the end of that story I came away with a brand new respect for Alpha 5. “Office Hours” not only gives readers a sneak peek into the function of Ranger Academy, but it also reunites them with a fan-favorite MMPR character. Mora’s script, combined with Mi-Gyeong’s art, gives a manga-influenced spin to the whole affair. Finally, there’s “Wedding Vows.” Flores brings her trademark emotional gut punches to her script, as she showcases Tommy and Kat’s relationship in all of its ups and downs. I also find it fitting that Prayseta and Herms, who kicked off the ongoing MMPR series with a story arc that focused on Tommy, return for one of the biggest moments in the legendary Ranger’s life.
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: 30th Anniversary Special #1 is a celebration of everything Power Rangers, from people who love Power Rangers. I can’t recommend this one-shot enough, whether you’ve been reading the MMPR comics since the first issue or you’ve watched every episode of Power Rangers. Or both. It’s truly morphinomenal.
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