My apologies for falling behind on my Godzilla vs. Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers II coverage, KU readers! There’s been a lot happening for me (and everyone else at KU, for that matter), but now it’s time for a round-up of issues three and four of this sequel miniseries. Is it living up to its absurd premise?
Issue #3
While at first it seems like it’ll just be an action-heavy issue, it does manage to slow down for plot development. The battle with the “Psycho Monster Rangers” (I think that’s the right word order) is brief at the beginning, and honestly doesn’t amount to much aside from showing how outmatched our heroes are against them. It’s then revealed (unless I missed this in issue two) that Jet Jaguar is the multiversal macguffin. Yes, he has a device inside him that allows him to dimension hop. Not only that, according to Goro Ibuki, it’s even causing his programming to evolve. It’s as good an explanation as any for Jet’s infamous AI evolution in Godzilla vs. Megalon. (I like to say he’s powered by plot convenience). This makes him the crux of the Rangers’ new plan, as Jet travels to other dimensions to find more kaiju. The reader thinks it’s so the Rangers can team-up with them, but it’s actually so they can enhance their powers—and the issue ends with them getting kaiju versions of their suits. Given that a horde of monsters are fixing to assault the Command Center (which I have little doubt was inspired by the two-part finale of Power Rangers Turbo, “Chase into Space”), those will come in handy. More on that in my issue four discussion.
This issue leans more into Godzilla lore than it does Ranger lore, especially with Godzilla and the Rangers traveling to Infant Island—and they meet Mothra and her luminous fairies. Specifically, the Elias from the Rebirth of Mothra trilogy. I was a bit surprised by this choice. While those movies have their fans, they aren’t generally well-regarded. The Elias’ designs do borrow a few features from the Millennium incarnation of the fairies, and with them speaking in unison, their characterization is closer to the versions from before and after them. So, is this just the Elias in name only? I’m not sure yet.
Baldemar Rivas’ art continues to be hit-or-miss. It isn’t bad, per se, but it veers into manga-isms at points, which is jarring. This happens twice with Rita, whose over-the-top reactions contort her face into almost grotesque caricatures. The problem is this doesn’t happen to anyone else, so it stands out. Yes, she was even more bonkers than the Wicked Witch of the West in the original show, but it’s still inconsistent. It does contrast her nicely with my girl, Astronema, who continues to cool and collected. Sadly, there’s also a panel where Jet’s head looks weirdly misshapen, which took me out of the comic.
Overall, it was a solid issue. It had a bit more story than I expected and is taking advantage of what the franchises have to offer.
Issue #4
Well, this got crazy.
Issue three was heavy on Godzilla lore, and this one leans hard into Ranger lore. So hard, in fact, Godzilla technically isn’t in this. Keyword: technically. His image is in this, because it’s revealed that Green Ranger Tommy is now a Godzilla Ranger—and has a Godzillazord! The irony is the original Dragonzord (or Dragon Caesar, for you Zyuranger fans) was obviously influenced by Mechagodzilla, a robot doppelganger of Godzilla. So, it feels weirdly full circle.
But as I mentioned, the other Rangers and the Psychos also get kaiju power-ups, and in the Rangers’ cases, they get newfangled kaiju Zords. Here’s a quick rundown:
-Jason: Rodan
-Billy: Anguirus
-Zack: King Caesar
-Trini: Baragon
-Kim: Mothra
Psycho Red: Destoroyah
Psycho Blue: SpaceGodzilla
Psycho Black: Megalon
Psycho Yellow: Ghidorah
Psycho Pink: Hedorah (strange choice)
Psycho Green: Gigan
The Zords are essentially kaiju re-skins of the existing Zords with the exception of the Rodan Zord for Jason, which looks more like a derivative of the pterodactyl Zord. Regardless, the Rangers go to town on Rita and Astronema’s monster horde with their new powers and toys—even when Rita makes several grow. (Eagle-eyed Ranger fans will continue to spot monsters from various Ranger series). One thing I found strange was Billy’s Anguirus helmet looked strangely similar to the one worn by the late great Jason David Frank in the upcoming film Legend of the White Dragon. Make of that what you will, although it doesn’t appear to be disrespectful.
The “B plot” of the comic has the White Ranger teaming up with Jet Jaguar to liberate captured Rangers from across the multiverse being held in the Dark Fortress. This includes a fight with Goldar. Yes, Goldar vs. Jet Jaguar. The fight we all imagined with our toys at some point, I’m sure. Sadly, Jet gets trounced until Godzilla Ranger Tommy shows up and shoots Goldar with a green beam inspired by Godzilla’s atomic blast. That part ends with the promise of Astronema dealing with the intruders herself (which, obviously, has me excited).
The artwork indulges in some manga-isms again, but they’re more consistent. The White Ranger and Jet in particular turn into manga-style caricatures to denote fast movement during fight scenes. However, there are once again panels where some characters look misshapen. In this case, Goldar’s first appearance looks way off, which is odd because he looks perfect in his next panel.
Conclusion
The series is piling on the crazy, and I’m curious to see how it ends. Excited, even. Hopefully, the finale, which will be published in less than a week (August 28), will be a worthwhile finale.
I’ll let you know then!
