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Preface
Drakkon’s Tales, Chapter 116:
“Huh, it’s been a while since I wrote in this. Sorry for depriving you of the privilege of reading what I am doing.
So, what has happened since the whole kerfuffle with the Empyreals?
Well, I went exploring. I saw the universe. Boy, there were more human-looking aliens than I thought.
Then, I returned home and what should have been a parade by my subjects turned into a goddamn Fortnite map. So, I had to go back to another dimension and spend all of my time with a bunch of teenagers. God, I felt so old. No one would take me seriously. Stupid Gen Z.
And, now, here I am. Back in the Morphin’ Grid’s manifestation of my world. AKA Super Drakkon Land!
No rides, but I am being chased by my possessed ex-slave.
Women, huh? Just can’t resist me.”
The Cover
Saba, you haven’t done anything in such a long time. You don’t deserve a spot on the front cover like this!
I joke, but I do like this image of Drakkon. The art style and coloring really make it a visually pleasing image. It’s detailed everywhere showing Drakkon with the silhouettes of the Green and White Rangers behind him. But, at the same time, the basic background adds to the atmosphere, making the image somber overall and setting the mood for the issue.
(Also, I wonder how many people would buy this cover if they knew what Drakkon’s hair actually looked like.)
The Story
Flashback Land shows Anti-Kim being a good little servant to Lord Drakkon before Shattered Grid. We cut over to the Morphin’ Grid where Anti-Kim is now serving her new boss, Dark Specter, with great performance. She tries to corrupt Drakkon with Dark Specter’s juices. However, since the Drakkon coin was made from the White Light, Drakkon is immune to that as Tommy is.
Back at Safehaven, the battle between Rangers and corrupted Rangers is still going on. At the Command Center, Billy fixes up a remote to teleport the Rangers back to safety. However, he only manages to get a few of them, leaving behind Yale, Scorpina, and Bulk to be captured. There’s also Kiya who, once she realizes that Drakkon used the Arch by himself, immediately blows the Arch up.
Kiya, this is not as epic as you think it is.
Dark Specter is mad about this development and so threatens to kill Rita for her failure. However, she reveals that with Keeper’s staff infused with her magic, Dark Specter can become an Arch. With every Ranger he corrupts, he gains not just an army, but strength to breach the Morphin’ Grid on his own.
In the Morphin’ Grid, Anti-Kim and Anti-Tommy share casual date banter with your typical fight to the death. Anti-Tommy admits that Anti-Kim should have never been caged and plans on freeing her. Anti-Kim fires an arrow right as it passes a flying Dragon Dagger. The Dragon Dagger punctures Anti-Kim’s body. With the dagger infused with the original Drakkon coin, it frees her from Dark Specter’s control. However, Anti-Tommy is hit with the arrow, fatally wounding him. Succumbing to his wounds, Anti-Tommy gives one last order to his loyal Ranger Slayer before he dies: to save the universe.
Ending Thoughts
So, Drakkon’s dead. *listens to see if there are any signs of children singing in the street*
I’m kidding, I swear.
Drakkon is a character that for the longest time, felt like he was overstaying his welcome. After Shattered Grid, his character kept losing a lot of his appeal. He became crazy for a bit and then became somewhat ‘sane’, playing 4D chess that shouldn’t have been at all possible. There were sparks that he potentially wasn’t a villain after all that went through during the Empyreals thing. He was cunning, he waited until the right moment to make his move. And, then, he returned to the story by returning to his home dimension. And, well, everyone treated him as the annoying guy that they have to put up with, especially with the situation going on. Even I got annoyed with his threatening attitude whenever he had a moment to speak.
However, this issue was the first time in a while I felt that Drakkon was given good focus. With his narration, Drakkon clarifies that yes, he is evil. He is someone who doesn’t regret every horrible thing that he has done. He is always someone who manipulates and acts like he knows everything, believing that his way is always what has to be done. It explains his actions becoming Lord Drakkon along with every single time he has helped the Rangers, including now. But, this was the most insight into his character that we have ever gotten. Mainly that he was finally able to show a sympathetic side to him. It’s been implied a lot, but this is the first time I can remember where Drakkon explicitly says that he has feelings for Kim. He made her his Ranger Slayer because he didn’t want to kill her in his conquest. Though, again, even if it’s not a healthy thing to do, it shows something about him that readers can understand. If this really is Drakkon’s confirmed death, then I feel it serves as a satisfying end to the character, sacrificing his life to free his ‘love’ from the same fate she suffered at his hands.
I haven’t mentioned it before, but we have been getting a few additional artists here and there for issues. As far as I am aware, Simona Di Gianfelice is still the main artist for the series, but, understandably, we don’t see their work all the time, especially for a major crossover event like this where there’s most likely going to be tons of Rangers with different designs.
And, for this issue, we have Marco Renna helping with the art for the battle at Safehaven while Adam Gorham is doing all of Drakkon and Ranger Slayer’s scenes in the Morphin’ Grid. Renna’s work is a lot more colorful and fluid, working with the tone of the fight scenes. Gorham’s work is more muted, but it nails the emotional expressions on the characters’ faces. It becomes more dramatic and epic with the panels having their energy for them, making the fight between Drakkon and Ranger Slay memorable.
(And, I must say I love that gorgeous two-page spread. Not just because it displays multiple fan-favorite Ranger teams, but the way it’s designed with the lightning bolt acting as panels, it’s such a creative way of doing it and this is unique just for Power Rangers. There’s not a single franchise that could pull off this concept and make it so iconic.)
MMPR #116 serves as a satisfying conclusion to Drakkon’s story as we revisit a long-forgotten plot point and witness a glimpse of a hero deep inside the psychotic dictator in an issue filled with drama, action, and beautiful art.
Random Thoughts from the Morphin’ Grid
- Lord Drakkon: “Some have called me a despot. A murderer. A king. A god.” Others have called him stupid. Crazy. The guy who needs a haircut…
- The two-page spread with all of the different Rangers that could be targeted next is such a good-looking image. Don’t get me wrong. But, I do wonder why the Mystic Force Rangers are there since as we saw, the villains already got Xander.
- I don’t know if the need to teleport the Rangers in that specific way was ever explained. It makes sense now why Kendall had to stay back because they needed her Energem, but yeah, since they didn’t show the Rangers getting into the tunnels in the last issue, it does come off as a bit convenient to get the Rangers split more apart. But, don’t worry. We can afford to lose some of them if you know what I mean…
- That picture of Kim in the thunderbolt could be a meme. I already claimed it.
- …It rains in the Morphin’ Grid?
