Ever since its launch, Power Rangers Prime has delighted in surprising longtime Ranger fans with its twists and turns to the mythos. But the biggest surprise was the presence of Rita Repulsa. This time, instead of serving as the Rangers’ archnemesis, Rita is their very reluctant mentor, and seems to have her own agenda. What her end goals are remain to be seen, but Power Rangers Prime #9 has thrown another wrench into the gears with its introduction of Rita as the Green Ranger.
This is a development that makes sense on so many levels. Previous issues of Prime have shown that Rita isn’t above entering the fray, especially when she can use her magic to destructive effect. Making her the Green Ranger also lets Melissa Flores play with another longstanding Power Rangers trope: the introduction of the sixth ranger, who usually turns out evil before becoming an ally. In this case, Rita lies somewhere in between; she’s not wholly evil, but she’s not entirely trustworthy.
If that wasn’t enough, Michael Yg opens Power Rangers Prime #9 with a flashback to Rita’s time in space prison, and gets the chance to depict her in various forms. There’s her original Mighty Morphin Power Rangers form, her current Prime form, and countless others, all backed by a green hue courtesy of Fabi Marques. Yg and Marques even get to deliver yet another amazing fight scenes that pit Rita against the VR Troopers, and her use of magic results in some intense imagery that needs to be seen to be believed.
One of those moments involves Teezee, the tiny Zord that was first introduced in Power Rangers Prime #7. If you’re familiar with any Power Rangers lore, you’ll know that part of Rita’s magic is making things grow, and Teezee is no exception. In the space of one page, Teezee goes from Funko Pop size to Godzilla size – and it turns out he has the firepower to match.
Rita as the Green Ranger isn’t the only surprise that Power Rangers Prime #9 has. Halfway through the book, there’s a surprising development that completely upends our new team of Rangers – and it works! Part of the reason it works is because Flores drops the twist where you least expect it, but also because it’s something that Prime has been building up to from the very first issue. On top of that, the final pages feature yet another new wrinkle for the Rangers, and I can’t wait to see how it’s explored. The same goes for the VR Troopers, who are continuing to be fleshed out between Prime and their own current miniseries.
Power Rangers Prime #9 introduces a new Ranger, a new set of plot twists, and a new set of reasons to continue being excited for future issues. It also continues to be one of a handful of comics that shows you can do a new take on a character without fully leaning on nostalgia or throwing away the core values of what made the original story great.
