Writer: Melissa Flores
Artist: Hendry Prasetya
Colorist: Matt Herms
Letterer: Ed Dukeshire
Cover Artist: Taurin Clarke; Björn Barends; Mona Finden; Goñi Montes; Mateus Manhanini; John Giang
Publisher: Boom! Studios
Price: $4.99
Release Date: May 26, 2024
Billy Cranston can't sleep. Dark Specter's infection hasn't reached him yet, but it's only a matter of time. Soon, the shield protecting Earth will fail. Can he find a way to defend Earth and repel the corruption that has swept through the Morphin Grid? Or will he go crazy from lack of sleep? Let’s leap into Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #121 and find out!
Story
Grace Sterling died, but her influence lives on. She haunts Billy’s rare hours of sleep and stays beside him as he works. He still admires her, even if others don't. This morning is no different. She accompanies him as he meets Dr Kendall Morgan and the Phantom Ranger. The two wrack their brains for ways to prevent the shield protecting Earth from failing. Their latest proposals hold no more promise than all the rest. Truisms like "We'll get through this" are comforting. Yet the Solar Rangers foiled their most promising proposal by severing access to the Void. No one considers curing the Morphin Grid anymore. Their best ideas can protect Earth for a few more days. But eventually, the infection corrupting all other areas of the Grid will break through the shield and overtake Earth.
Billy isn’t usually so pessimistic. Dr Morgan sees how stress and insomnia affect Billy in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #121. She suggests he take a break and clear his mind. Aisha cleansed Rocky and Adam, so Billy visits them. Dark Specter's infection is gone, but they're reeling from feelings of violation and haunted by what they did under his influence. Perhaps someone like Tommy, who also fell victim to Dark Specter and found his way back to them, can help. But Billy can't understand what they went through.
Everyone else casts the battle with Dark Specter's infection as good combating evil. Their history teaches them that good must triumph. Yet Death waits at Earth’s door, and no one can prevent it from opening. So Billy visits Kiya. The discredited ranger regards him from behind the energy bars of her cell. “You’re coming to me?” her expression says. “You must be desperate.” Billy wasn’t ready to contemplate her radical approach to curing the Morphin Grid when she unplugged one of the Power Eggs. But in Melissa Flores’ story, Billy has tried every conceivable remedy to heal the infection. Billy asks her to run her reasoning by him again. In Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #121, Billy is finally willing to listen to the woman who killed Lord Drakkon and tried to blow up the Morphin Grid.
Thank goodness Billy's not infected by Dark Specter's infection!
Art
An inset panel magnifies the bedside clock as Billy turns off the alarm. His untamed hair and drawn expression suggest rapid aging. The cracked eggs project sparks instead of a pillar of light before the damaged arch. Rocky throws up a hand at Billy. Panic etched into his features, his muscles poised to run away. Kiya's arms uncross and fall to her sides as she speaks. Billy's takeaways from their conversation dot a double-page spread showing a villain's efforts to become a god.
Matt Herms lavishes a loaded palette on Hendry Prasetya’s art in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #121. Grace Stirling appears in red. Even her white slacks hint at red. Red energy bars protect Billy from Kiya's influence. Yet her story leads Billy to Jason, who exercises in a red tank top. Grace’s red ghost counsels Billy as he sits on a black iron bench. The brownish-yellow air obscures the distant green trees while Billy gazes at the sky. The pink and green aurora are beautiful, even amid the foul haze. Yet they remind Billy that the shield protecting Earth is weakening and destined to fail. Think, Billy! What does the color red signify?
Black and red uppercase lettering inhabits white dialogue balloons, while Billy’s thoughts appear in blue narrative boxes. Ed Dukeshire’s letter size, line spacing, and contrast between print and backgrounds make Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #121 easy to read. The surging electricity he provokes may shatter readers' perception of Billy in Melissa Flores’ story. Thanks to Boom! Studios for providing a copy for review.
Final Thoughts
Driven by insomnia and desperation, Billy Cranston takes a leaf out of Dr Gregory House’s book, stops listening to his friends' treatment options, and contemplates a dangerous cure for Dark Specter’s infection in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #121.
Rating 9.6/10
For more cover art see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.
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