Writer: Ryan Parrot & Rachel Wagner
Artist: Daniel Bayliss
Colorist: Arthur Hesli
Letterer: Ed Dukeshire
Cover Artists: Toni Infante, Goñi Montes, Miguel Mercado & Justine Florentino
Publisher: Boom! Studios
Price: $7.99
Release Date: January 31, 2024
After her battle with Lord Drakkon, Ranger Slayer hurtles through an interdimensional vortex. Kimberly Hart arrives in a forest, but where will she find the Morphin Masters? Dark Specter's infection is spreading, corrupting the Morphin Grid. Can a pink and black ranger who has made all the wrong choices save the universe? Let's leap into Power Rangers Unlimited: Morphin Masters #1 and find out!
Story
While exploring the forest, Kimberly finds an XI Unit made by the Morphin Masters. When attacked, a disembodied voice guides her escape. The Pink Emissary offers to aid her quest but will not protect Kimberly from danger. Also, despite the urgent situation, the Pink Emissary speaks ambiguously.
Kimberly feels alone and unloved. A conversation with a fallen friend offers solace. But in this realm of wonders, is this merely the appearance of her former teammate? He speaks of The Illumination, six elders who took refuge here. Should she trust this spirit with her life? The Morphin Grid is held together by Faith and Trust, after all.
In Power Rangers Unlimited: Morphin Masters #1, Kimberly must pass tests. As the Black and Pink Ranger Slayer, others don't view her as a hero. The Power Coin protects her from Dark Specter's infection but not from the violent, corrupted rangers.
Aleia, the Pink Emissary, views the universe—and the Morphin Grid—in a way Kimberly can only imagine. Aleia wants to help but must allow Kimberly to endure ordeals and make her own choices. But is it right to stand aside and do nothing? So many heroes have discarded their ideals and now wield their power untampered by morality. Others have retreated from the battle. They view life, evil, and even the death of the universe from a detached, philosophical perspective.
Kimberly Hart has lost friends. She's done things she can never forgive. At times, Kimberly's failures have weighed her down. In Power Rangers Unlimited: Morphin Masters #1, the Ranger Slayer must decide where she stands. Ryan Parrot and Rachel Wagner ask: does Kimberly’s history of failures mean she can never succeed? Or can Kimberly accept her past and battle on regardless? The fate of the universe awaits her decision.
Art
Memories of her battle with Lord Drakkon haunt Kimberly as she hurtles through the vortex. A forest of twisted and tilting trees shows signs of decay. A robot, entangled by a tree like an unsuspecting hobbit, speaks to her. Kimberly battles animals that glow like suns. Energy radiates from the Pink Emissary as she hovers above Kimberly. Aleia guides her through a realm of clouds toward flying pyramids.
Kimberly's expressions and posture relate to her struggles in Power Rangers Unlimited: Morphin Masters #1. The Ranger Slayer wishes she were a better person. Kimberly gazes in wonder at the realm she travels through. Her burden lightens when Kimberly spies the face of a fallen friend in a pillar of water. But she crosses her arms, and her gaze falls when he asks her to trust him.
Arthur Hesli’s vibrant colors lure the reader into Daniel Bayliss’ magical world. Intriguingly, Kimberly’s adventure with Aleia begins surrounded by her favorite color. The Pink Emissary’s costume shines brighter than Kimberly’s black and pink and crackles with energy. By contrast, jagged red lines adorn the blackened arms of Aleia’s corrupted counterparts. Black cracks rip across each fallen Emissary, radiating a brighter hue of their costume’s power.
White dialogue balloons host black uppercase letters with good spacing between lines of text. Like their costumes, fallen Emissaries conjure jagged gray balloons surrounded by hints of their Ranger color. Ed Dukeshire’s giant yellow letters relate sounds and shouts, while dialogue shrinks occasionally for lowered and weakened voices. Yet even during fights or when no one is speaking, Kimberly keeps us engaged by sharing her thoughts with us in appealing pink narrative boxes filled with uppercase red letters.
Whether you’re a franchise veteran or newbie, Power Rangers Unlimited: Morphin Masters #1 is easy to understand and follow. Kimberly Hart may be down on herself, but it's easy to relate to her struggles. The immersive art in this double-length special transports readers to a realm of beauty and wonder. Thanks to Boom! Studios and Hasbro for providing a copy for review.
Final Thoughts
With the universe at stake, Kimberly Hart, the pink and black Ranger Slayer, struggles to redeem her past in Power Rangers Unlimited: Morphin Masters #1. It's a fight she was never meant to win. But could she?
9.6/10
For another cover see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.
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