Advance Review: The Ranger Slayer Makes Her Presence Known In Go Go Power Rangers #9

The Power Rangers haven’t had time to deal with the return of their friend, Matthew before being confronted by a new, terrifying foe. The Ranger Slayer (aka Kimberly Hart, the Pink Ranger from Lord Drakkon’s world) has arrived and she’s looking to save Lord Drakkon.  The only problem is she overshot her journey, arriving too early in the timeline. Now she’s stuck, but definitely not defenseless. Meanwhile, Rita gets the Ranger Slayer’s scent and gets curious about this newcomer.

Go Go Power Rangers #9 opens with a look at presumably Lord Drakkon’s world during an earlier time. We see this world’s Kimberly fight off some of the Black Ranger soldiers to save some classmates. Many questions are raised here, principally, how she went from fighting these forces to fighting alongside them.
There’s a great shot of Kimberly from artist Dan Mora just after she’s released a few arrows to dispatch her enemies. She’s propped herself up above on some broken pieces of a building. She is not in a Ranger uniform, instead looking like a pink-tinged Robin Hood.  This same shot is mirrored later on to great effect, showing Kimberly in her Ranger Slayer uniform, this time attacking the Rangers.

Although the Ranger Slayer and the tie-in to Shattered Grid is a key part of this issue, Go Go Power Rangers’ strength is still in the emotional storytelling involving the main characters. Writer Ryan Parrott hits a few great points here, first with our world’s Kimberly. She’s been throw so much recently and now her parents are about to get divorced. This just kicks her when she’s down, so imagine how she feels when she meets the Ranger Slayer.
The differences between Kimberly and the Ranger Slayer are staggering. Mora does a great job distinguishing the two and it’s more than just a different haircut. The Ranger Slayer is fierce and cold, presumably hardened from years of battle. Kimberly is softer and much more innocent. Up until recently, she was a normal teenager and since becoming a Power Ranger, she’s saved the world a couple times, had her boyfriend replaced by a Puttie monster, her parents are getting divorced, and now she meets her evil doppelganger.  Despite all this, she’s still able to persevere.
This interaction between the two characters is going to be key to this story. Kimberly has to wonder if this is her destiny. We know that’s not the case because the Ranger Slayer comes from a different dimension, but that has to weigh heavily on someone. What do you do with that information? How do you process it?

Another great emotional segment comes in the fallout from Matthew’s return. He’s still shellshocked and hasn’t gone back to normal. We see his friends reaching out to him through text messages, each one offering words of encouragement and letting him know they’re there for him. They all fall on deaf ears…or eyes because they’re text messages.  Matthew is a new character for this series and his story has become so enthralling. As exciting as Shattered Grid is, I kind of want to see how this plays out a little more.
Go Go Power Rangers manages to maintain its level of quality and powerful storytelling while weaving in elements of the Shattered Grid event. You really get the best of both worlds here. This means that the creative team is essentially moving two narratives forward at the same time and does so without missing a beat.
Go Go Power Rangers #9 is set for release on Wednesday, May 2^nd at your local comic shop and digitally through ComiXology and Amazon Kindle.