Review: ‘Mighty Morphin’ #3 Is Bursting At The Seams With Team Drama

The mystery of the new Green Ranger continues as Lord Zedd sends down some super powered Putties to wreak havoc on Earth. That’s just some of the problems facing the Rangers as the truth about Billy’s betrayal may be exposed. Considering how angry Zordon has been as of late, it’s only a matter of time before there’s a blowout in the team.

Mighty Morphin #3 opens with the fight scene that closed out the previous issue. It’s easily the most action-packed sequence with Putties the franchise has ever delivered. These aren’t the typical goofy cannon fodder we’re used to. They’re dark and sinister, imbued with chaos energy. Any one of them can go toe-to-toe with a Power Ranger and that’s a scary thought. It changes the game.

Artist Marco Renna does a brilliant job with this sequence. The Putties surround the Rangers in a claustrophobic manner. There’s virtually no escape. My favorite part is when Adam gets whammied by a Putty, making him think the Rangers are the enemy. Renna gives us a glimpse of what Adam is seeing. Each Ranger is twisted into monstrous versions of their powers. For example, Aisha is a sabertooth tiger creature. It’s creepy and hits the mark.

Colorist Walter Baiamonte, aided by Katia Ranalli, give the Putties an eerie green glow. That’s the chaos energy at work. It makes them look radioactive and even more dangerous than their usual dreary grey forms. I also love how bright and colorful the battle is. You have the Rangers’ costumes, of course, but there are bright pinks and blues surrounding them, making this scene even livelier.

The highlight of Mighty Morphin #3 comes when Aisha confronts Billy about the Green Ranger. She saw him talk to the newcomer in the field and wants answers. I’m sure he means well, but this looks super shady and suspicious. It’s clear we’re building towards a tense confrontation and writer Ryan Parrott is teasing this out just long enough.

Add to that a great argument between Grace Sterling and Zordon and you’ve got a drama-filled issue. Grace controls the Green Ranger and we’re still learning to what extent, but Zordon feels that this was stolen from him. This is a fascinating conversation as they both want to save the world, however they’re going about it in different ways that seem to clash with one another. Grace is a former Power Ranger and saw first hand the dangers that come with it, so she brings a really interesting perspective to this. Writer Ryan Parrott is weaving some really cool threads together here.

Zordon is pissed too, more than we’ve ever seen him. Letterer Ed Dukeshire captures that rage perfectly. You might think a floating blue head can’t seem angry and intimidating, but that is so not the case here.

Mighty Morphin #3 feels shorter than it is, probably because it ends just as the action heats up again. Most monster attacks follow a set formula where Lord Zedd grows the creature to a large size and a fight with the Zords begins. That’s where we leave off, although something feels different here. With tensions riding high within the team, I don’t know how they’re going to defeat this new foe.

Mighty Morphin #3 from BOOM! Studios is currently available at your local comic shop and digitally through ComiXology and Amazon Kindle.