Last time on Mighty Morphin Power Rangers we got a deep dive into Rita Repulsa’s transformation in Mistress Vile. With that we learned how Rita’s Mistress Vile power upgrade was connected to Dark Specter. Along with the Mistress Vile was able to recruit the maniacal Alpha-1 that has returned after his previous defeat at the hands of the Power Rangers. Now we are going to be returning to the present day where Alpha-1 somehow stole the Red Omegazord and Mistress Vile is working to corrupt Green Ranger Matthew Cook. Let’s find out how things go with Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #105.
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Melissa Flores
Artist: Simona Di Gianfelice
Colorist: Raul Angulo
Letterer: Ed Dukeshire
SYNOPSIS
On Planet Casentine Kimberly, Adam, Rocky, and Aisha battle Alpha-1. Trini and Yale arrive. The Power Rangers then combine their Zords to form the Omega Blue Thunder Omegazord. With the new Megazord the Power Rangers defeat Alpha-1.
Yale, Adam, Rocky, and Aisha go save Zack and Kevor Vrin while Trini and Kimberly watch over Alpha-1 as they know the robot will reactivate. Kimberly and Trini burn the remains of Alpha-1 after the evil robot reveals information on Mistress Vile and the Navigator, then teleport to reunite with the others.
Back on Earth, Billy helps patch up Tommy. While standing watch over Goldar and the others Tommy can’t hide his concern the team may be breaking up.
Later that night Lord Zedd regains consciousness and confronts Zordon. Lord Zedd admits he is not planning on running away in his current state.
Over at the Omega Rangers spaceship Xi talks with the Power Rangers about the Ancient Morphin Grid Navigator it found that was used by the Morphin Masters to “tune” to specific coordinates within the Morphin Grid.
The next day Lord Zedd and Goldar are arrested by the Guardians of Eltar.
In another part of the universe Alpha-1 obtains a new body. Alpha-1 then leads Mistress Vile’s army to find the Navigator. End of issue.
REVIEW
The deeper they get into their run the more we are seeing how Melissa Flores and Simona Di Gianfelice are balancing multiple plot and character arcs. Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #105 is the best example of this balancing act. We have the Power Rangers, Omega Rangers, Lord Zedd, Mistress Vile, and Alpha-1 all having their own arcs that are given time. And that’s not even mentioning the other world building with how Morphin Masters, Eltar, and Dark Specter continue to play a role in everything going on.
Right away Flores and Gianfelice got over how crazed and deadly Alpha 1 is for readers that may not remember the evil predecessor of Alpha 5. We do see how experience does come into play as Kimberly leads Adam, Rocky, and Aisha to successfully push Alpha 1 back. Even when Alpha 1 was able to turn the tide to his favor we see how with Trini and Yale the Power Rangers and Omega Rangers are able to quickly turn things around. It all puts over how both the Power Rangers and Omega Rangers continue to grow stronger with the more experience they gain.
And while Alpha 1 is defeated Flores and Gianfelice did a lot of great character work to continue to showcase how evil they are. The entire battle showed Alpha 1’s power. Then the discussion Alpha 1 had with Kimberly and Trini showed how far gone the villain is. They were already corrupted but here we see how Alpha 1 revels in believing it’s the best and knows everything. This all adds to how Mistress Vile current power level has manipulated even Alpha 1 to do her bidding. Which is helpful given that Mistress Vile only appears at the very end of the issue.
Speaking of Mistress Vile, it was the one disappointing part of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #105 that we didn’t get a follow up on Mistress Vile corrupting Matthew Cook. The last two issues have heavily featured this plotline. It was to such a degree it would’ve made the ending even more effective if we saw what state Matt is in, especially with the teaser we get from the main cover from Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #105.
Back on the positive note, Flores further taps into the Power Rangers mythology by bringing more Morphin Grid elements into the story. The Navigator that Alpha 1 is searching for has clear ties to the Morphin Grid. In addition to that we learn that the Omega Rangers Ark was created to travel through the Morphin Grid using the Ancient Morphin Grid Navigator that Xi found. This a great way to show how this series isn’t afraid to dig into the Power Rangers mythology while doing it in a way that honors everything fans know about it.
The character work was even stronger part of what made Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #105 work so well. Flores does some obvious ties back to Power Rangers Pink, a mini-series set in a possible future set after Kimberly left the team, with the growing relationship between Trini and Zack. Here we see more romantic ties between them as the time they’ve spent as being parental figures to the babies they found has brought them closer together.
Flores does a good job utilizing Trini and Jason’s short-lived relationship in Go Go Power Rangers to have a fun scene with Zack. With how they reunited at the end of this issue it wouldn’t be surprising, that like other elements in this series, we will see Trini and Zack’s relationship happen sooner than was shown in Power Rangers Pink.
Then there was Tommy opening up to Billy about his concerns about the status quo of the team was a great honest moment from the Power Rangers leader. It’s clear that Tommy is aware of about Kimberly thinking about life outside of being a Power Ranger. Even though he doesn’t say it the way Tommy talks with Billy does hint that he is more aware of what Kimberly and others are going through mentally than he lets on. This also worked to establish Tommy and Billy’s friendship, which hasn’t been spotlighted much since the first fight with Lord Drakkon, as they are the two longest lasting Mighty Morphin Power Rangers.
A wild card to be on the lookout for what role Lord Zedd will play in not just this story but series overall. The loss to Mistress Vile seems to have severely impacted Lord Zedd’s ego with how he speaks with Zordon in a self-defeated attitude. But this is Lord Zedd we are talking about. There is no way he is going to be letting things go this easily. This does create questions if Lord Zedd willingly let himself be arrested by the Guardians of Eltar could play into his possible comeback.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #105 is another strong chapter in Melissa Flores and Simona Di Gianfelice run. We have multiple plotlines and character arcs that are progressed in ways that get you more invested in this series as a whole. That leads into anticipating what happens next with the Mistress Vile story even more.
Story Rating: 8 Night Girls out of 10
Art Rating: 8 Night Girls out of 10
Overall Rating: 8 Night Girls out of 10