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Preface
We are now over the halfway point of this series and all I have to say now is “Remember. When you’re reading this, take all of the continuity and history that you remember from the TV series and throw it in the nearest dumpster.”
The Cover
The cover is…. ok. It has a sort of David vs Goliath theme with Kim normal sized taking on a giant-sized Goldar (though I have no idea why there’s random thunder in the background). The cover does get a reader’s attention, but this “fight” is more symbolic rather than an actual scene from the comic. Part of me is unsure if this is a good thing or not.
The Story
We open in the depths of the ocean where Kim is trying to work with Goldar and her fishy mom to get out of the “complete” megazord. Goldar is reluctant to do it, but he realizes that having a temporary alliance with a Ranger is better than being buried at sea.
Goldar is an interesting choice to make the “reluctant ally” for the Rangers. To be honest, I would’ve chosen Squatt and Baboo for that position. But, unlike them, Goldar is an actual threat to the Rangers.
On land, Zack and Trini are trying to stop Verto, but choose to not hurt his minions because the whole “they’re people and it would be wrong” thing. I just want to point out that during this fight, Trini is basically on the phone, chatting it up with Alpha, while Zack is just fighting in the background.
Meanwhile, Serge and Britt are trying to take some civilians to safety.
Under the sea, Kim gets the idea to use the one zord from the megazord that can save them: the Firebird Zord. Sidenote: This is actually the first time we see a cockpit of any of the ThunderZords since the second season didn’t make one for any of them. It actually looks like the Zyuranger cockpit except that it now has a firebird symbol and the cockpit has enough space to fit two girls and a Goldar.
It saves them from the drowned Megazord and takes them to the Rangers’ fight with Verto. Goldar orders Kim to fire at Verto, but Kim refuses, knowing that only Verto can reverse the effects on his minions and her mom.
Goldar, not being the best backseat driver, dives out of the zord and wants to do things his way. Verto sees the zord and takes the zord to the ground using a very sharp trident.
Zack goes to help Kim, but Verto, being the nice guy that he is, takes Zack hostage and almost eliminates him if not for Serge saving Zack in time. Goldar attacks Verto, but Verto escapes into the ocean.
After the fight, Zordon buys the Rangers more time and advises Kimberly that she’ll need a full team to save the day, prompting Kimberly to use the sword and make Serge and Britt Power Rangers!
Goldar shows up outside and reluctantly asks for the Rangers’ help to defeat Verto. Both sides agree they’ll work together, but once Verto is done for, “all bets are off.”
The Power Rangers go to the town and help them prepare for the coming attack. When Verto finally does show up (along with the Typhonis Megazord), standing in his way are five Power Rangers, two of them who are barely qualified, a fish lady, a damaged Firebird Zord, and a metal monkey with wings who could turn on them as soon as he gets what he wants. I see no possible way how this could go wrong.
Ending Thoughts
With how this issue is taking the plot, it seems like the threat of Verto is going to end in the next issue and the last issue is going to be an epilogue to the whole thing. Adding Serge and Britt as the two newest Rangers to the team seems like a way to make them feel more important to the story. But, Issue 5 is probably the only chance they have to shine as Rangers. And with Kim leading the charge, it doesn’t seem like much will come from it.
Goldar’s story arc is actually unique for Power Rangers. Sure, we have villains who intentionally botch up a plan or simply let the Rangers win to serve their own ends or to get rid of a rival. But, a majority of them usually just let the Rangers do all the dirty work. It’s rare to see a villain who hasn’t been reformed to fight alongside the Rangers just to defeat the enemy of their master. The only instances I can think of are Diabolico from Lightspeed Rescue and General Schwarz from Super Sentai season ToQGer. Either way, this concept alone is enough to make the fight next issue very interesting.
Random Thoughts from the Morphin’ Grid
- We have multiple ZordBuilder entries now but we can’t make the cool Typhonis Megazord. That’s just mean.
- In the beginning of the comic, the megazord was shown to be flooded. So, are you saying to me there’s a giant crack in the Megazord that’s currently supposed to take over the world? This better be how the Rangers defeat the megazord or else I’m going to be mad.
- I don’t know why Britt is the Red Ranger and Serge is the Blue Ranger. Serge is the one who dove in front of a giant trident to save Zach.