Melissa Flores and Simona Di Gianfelice did not waste any time in making a statement at the beginning of their Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. And what bigger statement can be made than having Rita Repulsa return by taking on a new powerful form and stepping on an injured Lord Zedd? That certainly was an eyebrow-raising moment to conclude the first issue of Flores and Gianfelice’s run on Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. This kicks off a whole new never before seen direction that has made BOOM! Studios Power Ranger comics so special. Let’s see what Flores and Ganfelice have in store for us next with Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #102.
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Melissa Flores
Artist: Simona Di Gianfelice
Colorist: Raul Angulo
Letterer: Ed Dukeshire
SYNOPSIS
While stepping on a heavily injured Lord Zedd Rita Repulsa reintroduces herself as Mistress Vile. Mistress Vile, with the help of her new partner named Vessel, easily overwhelms Tommy Oliver, Kimberly Hart, and Matthew Cook.
After they defeat the Throne monster Rocky DeSantos and Aisha Campbell arrive to back up their teammates. Seeing how outnumbered they are Tommy orders Rocky, Aisha, and Matt to take Lord Zedd, who begged him to get him to Zordon for help, out of the Moon Castle while he and Kimberly hold off Mistress Vile.
Rocky and Aisha get Lord Zedd to where Billy Cranston and Adam Park are with Goldar prepping Serpentera to leave the Moon.
As Tommy and Kimberly struggle against Mistress Vile and Vessel, they are saved by Matt. Matt tells Kimberly and Tommy to leave while he holds off the villains. Matt is knocked out by Mistress Vile and Vessel so he is unable to escape with Kimberly and Tommy.
When the Power Rangers are leaving Mistress Vile and Vessel hit Serpentera with a powerful blast. The Power Rangers are barely able to make it back to Earth.
Later, while Lord Zedd warns Zordon about Mistress Vile it’s shown that Mistress Vile and Vessel have found the Zeo Crystals. End of issue.
REVIEW
There is no messing around in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. Even as the payoff for Charge to 100 set up Mighty Morphin Power Rangers to possibly follow the direction of the third season of the show Melissa Flores and Simona Di Gianfelice are not going with that predictable route. Instead, Flores and Gianfelice are following their predecessors by going in a completely new and exciting direction for their Power Rangers run.
Going down a new and unknown route is exemplified by the third page of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers with the newly powered up Rita Repulsa renaming herself Mistress Vile. The visuals of Rita as Mistress Vile stepping on a heavily injured Lord Zedd and then ripping off Lord Zedd’s helmet further add to how we really are going into unknown territory. Rita as Mistress Vile is on a completely different level than any threat we’ve seen before. And that is saying something given everything the Power Rangers have been through with Lord Drakkon, Empyreals, Eltarian, and Death Ranger.
Adding to how we can’t predict what direction Flores is taking this series on is the new being that Mistress Vile has aligned herself with. Gianfelice does a great job giving Vessel a powerful and mysterious design that adds to how we don’t know the endgame for this new threat. The reaction Vessel has to Tommy Oliver during the fight also sticks out as something to keep an eye on. And with the Zeo Crystals once again coming into play we could once again see elements from future Power Rangers seasons be brought into the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers present.
Flores also seems to have big plans for Matthew Cook. The opening flashback scene with Matt convincing Zack and Trini to give Kimberly another chance emphasized he will be an even more important character. Giving Matt the big hero moment of saving Kimberly and Tommy does create concern for the character. Especially with how Mistress Vile brought up her connection to the Green Power Coin the situation of Matt being in the hands of the big villains is not a hopeful one.
How this also comes into play for Kimberly’s arc will also be interesting. Because we see how Flores is placing more of an emphasis on Kimberly through how she reacts to different things going on. This continues the thread by Higgins and Parrott before her as Flores is dealing with a time period around when Kimberly decided to leave the Power Rangers. It does seem like that has been the plan for a while since even as changes have been made to the continuity there are specific events like the Power Rangers roster changes have still happened. It may just be that like with Jason, Trini, and Zack before her we will see the reason Kimberly exits as the Pink Power Ranger will lead to a whole new direction for her.
The ending with Mistress Vile and Vessel finding the Zeo Crystals while Lord Zedd appears to be teaming up with Zordon and Power Rangers certainly makes a statement. This does seem to indicate that we will see some events from the future possibly fast-forwarded. Given that there have been a lot of things involving the bigger war in the universe involving Dark Specter the Zeo Crystal being brought back into play could signal more of that. We are certainly left in a spot where we once again wonder if the Power Rangers can overcome the odds. Which is a great way to establish a long-term narrative to hook fans in.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Melissa Flores and Simona Di Gianfelice have knocked out of the park once again with yet another excellent comic book in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #102. The reintroduction of Rita Repulsa as Mistress Vile and the statement she makes with her show of power against the Power Rangers and Lord Zedd was a sight to see. If you are a Power Rangers fan you do not want to miss out on what Flores and Gianfelice are cooking up with their run on Mighty Morphin Power Rangers.
Story Rating: 9 Night Girls out of 10
Art Rating: 9 Night Girls out of 10
Overall Rating: 9 Night Girls out of 10