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Preface
If you didn’t know, Issues 5 and 6 of this series have been delayed with Issue 5 coming out around August. Just to let you know it’s a while before the next comic comes out.
Also, this comic happened to be released on the same day as MMPR #15. This review is coming out first, just because it was the first one I got. But, if you really want to know, short review of MMPR #15: It’s good. Go buy it.
The Cover
The cover is a bit simplistic, but it does do the job correctly.
It mirrors the cover of the first issue and given how this is the second half of the story, it does work thematically. If I had to choose between the first cover and this one, I’d take this one just because it looks more aesthetically pleasing and it’s more centralized with the divide between two characters rather than two teams of heroes.
One small touch that I would suggest is adding Brainiac’s robots and having them “against” the Putties. Just a suggestion.
The Story
So, from last issue, everyone is working on the super duper plan to get back to the Rangers’ world. It involves a Japanese toy, a piece of jewelry, and millions of dollars floating in space.
It works and both teams arrive outside Angel Grove, where Brainiac is already in the process of shrinking down Angel Grove. Batman says they can’t do anything to stop it or they risk destroying the city and everyone in it. Zack can’t do anything as he sees his parents (and the rest of the city) disappear. Superman consoles the Rangers by telling them they that he already lost his home and there’s still time to save theirs.
Knowing that Brainiac usually plans on destroying the planet after capturing a city, a plan is made that Batman, Superman, Cyborg, Billy, Zack, and Trini will go into Brainiac’s ship to save Angel Grove while the rest of the League and Rangers stay on Earth to protect it.
Since the teens are powerless, Batman brought along a bunch of weapons and equipment from the DC universe for the Rangers to use…
Red Hood and the Outlaws 2: Only one panel and already better than the new 52 version.
Superman attacks the ship while everyone else infiltrates the ships and fights Brainiac’s robots. Cyborg hacks the ship to try and find Angel Grove (And I’m sure this isn’t a stupid decision at all). The three Rangers find their Power Coins and communicators, but they’re not out of the woods yet. Brainiac takes control of Cyborg and has him attack the Rangers. Billy, being able to morph, tells Cyborg he’s sorry and –
Uh, Billy, it might be just me, but I think there are a lot of things that you could’ve done instead of going straight for the kill. Just saying.
Ending Thoughts
At least this was better than the last one.
Yeah, I’m still mad about the CERN collider thing. Stuff like interdimensional portals is fine in fiction. But when you add actual realistic elements, you need to treat it realistically. And it’s still not. And the Dragon Dagger in the collider makes it work. How? Because science. And it just so happens to land the team RIGHT outside the city instead of inside the city or near the Command Center or literally anywhere else!
But, after the first third of the comic, I liked this issue. Besides Cyborg’s “What could possibly go wrong?” stupidity and everyone else’s stupidity for not warning him that his decision is stupid, this issue was fun. Seeing the Rangers using DC equipment that “matches” them is pretty interesting and there are some amazing visuals. Not to mention, that there are some great dialogue and character moments that makes the issue more memorable and creating a more emotional connection.
Art-wise, it’s great, but again, you notice some weird facial expressions from the characters. (Although, there are some art discrepancies like how the destruction scene doesn’t match the one from the first issue.) Anyway, this issue is definitely improved over the last one and I can only hope the next issues (whenever they come out) become better than the last.
Random Thoughts from the Morphin’ Grid
- Even though it is kinda cool to see all of the DC references that are used in the Rangers’ “costumes”, I really do have to wonder where did these things came from. Some of them are from people who (I’m pretty sure) have never interacted with the Justice League before (at least in Prime Earth) and even then, there was a bunch of stuff that I think would’ve taken time to get onto the Javelin and the Rangers never noticed this stuff at all.
- Jason has the “Sword of Azrael”… Yeah, I can’t find much about it. But apparently, it’s supposed to be called Also, it apparently belongs to Azrael, an assassin, and it works for Jason… Also, he’s wearing the Red Hood helmet, currently owned by another Jason, Jason Todd. Who is also a guy who’s okay with killing… I don’t know how to feel about that.
- Yeah, it might be just me, but Trini’s equipment seems a little bit stereotypical… if you know what I mean.
- I don’t think Lex Luthor’s suit has a helmet like the one depicted in the comic. Luthor is an egomaniac and likes to show his face so everyone can see so a helmet isn’t exactly his thing.
- Kim’s wearing the Hawkgirl helmet… even though Hawkgirl was clearly seen last issue…
- Billy wearing that Prometheus helmet… I can actually dig it. If you didn’t know, the helmet is actually a computer that stores strategies to deal with any superhero Prometheus could encounter. The helmet’s significance honestly is a perfect match for Billy’s intelligence (except not in a supervillain kind of way)
- Those last two pages… Yeah, Billy’s not wearing glasses so I don’t know how in the world he’s fighting off Cyborg. Sure, he gets contacts in later seasons of the TV show, but that’s not the case here. So, this is going to cause some major issues for the rest of the series.