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Preface
Yale’s Diary, Chapter 16:
“It’s finally over.
Now, I am the biggest bluest thing in the cosmos. Minus this planet that has a lot of water.”
The Cover
Taken straight from the Mighty Morphin #16 review:
“That said, it’s very easy to say that the Power Rangers cover is my favorite. Mainly because the Mighty Morphin cover reuses a lot of art seen in previous covers and the Power Rangers cover has a better sense of lighting and coloring.”
Mighty Morphin – 8
Power Rangers – 8
The Story
On the moon, after the battle from Mighty Morphin #15, Zordon is on the ground exhausted as Lord Zedd stands over him. Zedd pulls his staff on him, asking Zordon if he thinks “the power” will protect him from Zedd’s wrath. Zordon, however, points out that “the power” isn’t some cosmic force of the universe, but the actions and the decisions we make every day. And, Zordon says that he would gladly make the same decisions again, even saving Zedd’s life. Alpha teleports to the moon’s surfaces and Zedd lets Alpha take Zordon to safety.
In the ruins of Promethea, Sentry Force Four surrenders after realizing they’re basically screwed. From his spaceship, Drakkon contacts Trini and claims that he intentionally left Xi’s body with them back in Power Rangers #12, knowing that Safehaven would come and save them. Failing to convince him to come back, Trini tells Drakkon to be careful and reminds him that he doesn’t have to be what he was in the past.
Due to the fight on the moon, Zordon’s suit starts to break down and with the Command Center destroyed, Billy starts to panic about where Zordon can go. Luckily, Grace has a secret black site that has just what we need to make him a new energy tube. But before that happens, Zordon wants to do one more thing.
A single tear is all you need…
The Blue Emissary tells the Omega Rangers that he doesn’t know how long his form can last or why none of the other Emissaries have returned yet. The Emissary plans on returning to the Morphin’ Grid and talking to the Morphin’ Masters. As he leaves, he tells the trio that they don’t need him anymore and this is only the Omega Rangers’ beginning.
Meanwhile, Zelya tells Zordon that all of the remaining Eltarian troops have been recalled and anyone in the Eltarian government that was supporting Zartus’s plans has fled into hiding. Even though Zordon would like the chance to go back to Eltar, he knows that his world needs a fresh start and perhaps Zelya as their new leader and Supreme Guardian. Before her journey back home, Zelya finds Skull and finally explains the whole “alien” situation to him. Zelya hopes that he could come to Eltar with her, but Skull sadly denies her request, wanting to stay on Earth with his best friend, Bulk. And then they kiss goodbye.
Later, Jason and Tommy thank Goldar and his gang for helping the Rangers and Earth out. As such, the Rangers give them a choice: to either go to Safehaven and start fresh or to return to the Moon Palace and work for Lord Zedd again. Ultimately, they decide to go to the Moon Palace, not out of loyalty to Zedd, but out of loyalty to Rita.
After they arrive back on the Moon, Finster reveals that Zedd had him plant a device in the Command Center’s Power Chamber before the Empyreal attack. Laughing at his new plan coming together, Zedd tells the group that they’re leaving, going somewhere where they can revel in their victory…
And so we’re left with only one thought left…
That a Lord Zedd coffee mug like this is not a bad idea.
Ending Thoughts
Quick thoughts on this epilogue.
The dialogue between Zedd and Zordon is easily the best scene in the entire issue because it captures so much of their characters and their now-forgotten friendship. All major storylines have now been resolved and each one does have a satisfying conclusion. And, with a lot of characters leaving like Lord Zedd, Drakkon, and Zelya, this epilogue opens up the room for a lot more storylines down the road.
Now, how do I feel about this arc as a whole?
Well, when you talk about the Eltarian War, you have to talk about the full run from both series too since the Eltarian War is supposed to be the big payoff from the buildup of each series. And you know what? Overall, this story is good. Even though the setup took a long time, it’s a tight driven narrative that handles a lot of the story elements in an effective manner. Art is always on point with colors complementing the atmosphere. Action sequences delivered some big moments many PR fans have been waiting forever for. Even if I personally don’t care about the Dragonzord and the White Tigerzord combining, I know for a fact a lot of people love it.
But, this story arc’s biggest strength is the focus and growth of its characters. Characters that normally don’t get a ton of growth like Goldar’s gang or Bulk and Skull still get focus, showing their friendships and how far they’re willing to go to help each other. Drakkon, previously known as the Anti-Tommy with a few screws loose, evolved into an actual decent character with us readers not knowing where he can be taken next. My personal favorite though must be Zordon’s story in all of this. Just seeing how this unsure soldier became the wise mentor we have known for years is so refreshing and interesting.
With that said, there are some plot points and elements that don’t work as well as they should.
Our main villains, the Empyreals and Zartus, ultimately don’t leave that much of an impression. (We can get the Horrid out of the way since they’re barely a footnote in the last few issues.) Concept-wise, they do what they’re supposed to and they all have cool designs to them. But, there’s not much in terms of personality. The Empyreals come off as generic by the end of this and Zartus’s motivation for all of this seems weak. I’m sorry, but I can’t get behind someone who’s just upset because he didn’t get a job promotion. (And I still don’t know how he was able to do all of the 4D chess and planning we saw earlier.)
And then there’s Promethea in the middle of all of this. It’s great that Grace and Zordon got a peaceful conclusion in this epilogue. But, the main irritation for this run so far has been Matt as the new Green Ranger. I accepted that the Green Ranger was a thing again. I was fine with Matt being this new Green Ranger. However, I don’t know what it was that set this off, but almost every issue since we learned about the Green Ranger’s identity, Matt has made a mistake or a criticism of some sort. And, when reading it altogether, they slowly built up to the point where I’m not even a fan of Matt anymore. Besides his public Ranger status and backstory, there is not enough personality here to make him as likable as the other Rangers. All his character contributed was a love triangle that just makes me want to see his character given more substantial material.
Power Rangers #16 is the grand finale of the Eltarian War, an arc that featured some underwhelming villains but made up for it with fantastic art, fun action sequences, and satisfying focus for many characters in this large MMPR universe.
Random Thoughts from the Morphin’ Grid
- We’re getting rid of the connecting thunderbolts on the covers so final score is 8 to 8. I’m really surprised we got a tie.
- For now, goodbye Zedd. Maybe we’ll see you again on March 3rd… because that’s when the new season of Dino Fury premieres! Mark your calendars! Forget everything else that is streaming that day!
