Miles Morales: Spider-Man Annual #1 Review

 

Writer: Cody Ziglar, Curtis Baxter & Danny Lore

Artist: David Baldeón, Alitha Martinez & Elena Casagrande

Colorist: Dono Sánchez-Almara, Ceci De La Cruz & Dee Cunniffe

Letterer: Cory Petit

Cover Artists: Federico Vicentini & Erick Arciniega; Dike Ruan & Moreno Dinisio

Design: Jay Bowen

Editors: Kaeden McGahey, Tom Groneman, Nick Lowe & C B Cebulski

Publisher: Marvel

Price: $4.99

Release Date: August 21, 2024

 

While he enjoys crimefighting with his friends as Spider-Man, Miles Morales looks forward to personal time with his friends. But Miles won't spend Spring Break attending art shows or street fairs with Tiana, Ganke, Shift, and his baby sister Billie. Instead, he’ll face a foe scarier than Hobgoblin, Rabble, Agent Gao, or the Cape Killers. Can Miles forge a fragile peace with his irascible abuela Gloria Morales? And what other adventures might Miles undertake in this multi-story special issue? Let's grab our venom swords, leap into the Miles Morales: Spider-Man Annual #1, and find out!

 

On The Road: Story

Gloria recently returned to Puerto Rico and needs help unpacking. Jeff and Rio kindly offer her Miles' services. When you're in a bad mood, everything bothers you, and Miles finds plenty to grumble about. Still, when he arrives in Puerto Rico's capital city, he's stunned by its beauty. His flight arrives early, so he explores San Juan and befriends three generous teens. Then his phone rings and his abuela chews him out for keeping her waiting. Miles boards a bus for a circuitous journey filled with stops and starts until he reaches Gloria in Trujillo Alto.

 

In Miles Morales: Spider-Man Annual #1, Gloria makes it clear from the outset that she expects him to be on his best behavior. Miles soon discovers why. His grandmother presents him to her sisters and wants him to impress them. Their discussion helps Miles realize why she had to forsake her life in New York City and return to the island of her youth. Miles doesn't don his spidey suit in On The Road, but like the friends he met in San Juan, he uses his abilities to help the endangered. Cody Ziglar’s heartwarming story celebrates Latino culture and sparkles with humor as Miles and Gloria find common ground and forge peace between warring locals.

 

Leyendas: Story

In Curtis Baxter’s story, Miles isn’t griping about giving up time with his friends or flying the friendly skies in Economy. Instead, he complains about being cooped up in his abuela’s house. The skies have grown distinctly unfriendly. The wind howls. The rain batters the roof. Gloria suggests a divine reason for the hurricane. His parents have arrived, and his mother tries to nip Miles' curiosity in the bud, but even strong-willed Rio can't keep Spider-Man down. Miles doesn't brave the elements to save lives or protect the locals’ homes and infrastructure. Nor does he meet the mythical Juracán, who lashed Puerto Rico with a storm in a fit of jealousy. Still, he makes a new friend in Curtis Baxter’s story about urban legends and learns how the stories that define us change with the times.

 

Night Shift: Story

While On The Road and Leyenas ignored Miles’ vampirism, he’s struggling to cope with his new identity in Night Shift. Danny Lore’s story doesn’t associate Miles with the vampire that haunted the Puerto Rican town of Moca in 1975. Instead, it focuses on how isolating being different can be. Miles fears that Doctor Strange’s spell will wane and his bloodlust will return. Instead of seeking a talking cure with Doc Sasquatch or looking to Tiana for moral support, Miles fixes on Bloodline. He figures that her experience in fighting vampires might give her insights into controlling his unwanted urges. Miles may be grasping at straws, but he’s desperate. Reaching out to Bloodline is a dangerous proposition, given their complicated history. And even if she’s inclined to help, Miles knows how she’ll react if she suspects he's losing control. 

 

 

 

Art

David Baldeón wows with the stunning beauty of Puerto Rico in Miles Morales: Spider-Man Annual #1. His portrayal of Gloria and her sisters is fanciful and endearing. Miles moves swiftly through action scenes and demonstrates respect, nonchalance, leadership, and bravery amid his interactions with the locals. Dono Sánchez-Almara lavishes On The Road with a loaded palette. Her vibrant colors remind mainlanders of the tropical beauty that suffuses these sparkling jewels dotting the azure seas.

 

While Leyenas continues Miles’ vacation in Puerto Rico, Spider-Man steals the show. Alitha Martinez suffuses interiors with familial warmth and belonging, while Spider-Man braves the raging forces of nature. Miles looks dauntless as the elements pound him, and the person he meets exhibits flair and glamour. Ceci de la Cruz lavishes bright colors on Gloria's home, and the red on Miles' black suit shines amid the darkness. But everything glows on this dark and stormy night as Miles thwips toward the heart of the black and gray storm lashing Puerto Rico.

 

Elena Casagrande communicates the isolation Miles feels as the weight of his vampirism threatens to crush him. Dee Cunniffe lavishes blues, reds, pinks, and lavender on this story about navigating the ever-changing landscape of friendship.

 

Cory Petit thwips black uppercase letters into white dialogue balloons in Miles Morales: Spider-Man Annual #1. He shares Miles' thoughts as white letters in red narrative boxes and his journal entries as black letters on tan parchment. The delicate font never shrinks and emboldens for inflection. Energizing sound effects accompany a runaway vehicle and a storm’s ferocity. Thanks to Marvel for providing a copy for review.

 

Final Thoughts

The Miles Morales: Spider-Man Annual #1 reminds us of the importance of self-care and family, that those we love may die but never abandon us, and the importance of achieving our potential. Along the way, Miles learns more about his Puerto Rican heritage and struggles to cope with his vampirism. The epilogue showcases the dangers awaiting Brooklyn's Spider-Man in forthcoming issues.

 

Rating 9.4/10

 

To preview interior art see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Return #4 Review

 

Writer: Amy Jo Johnson & Matt Hotson

Artist: Nico Leon

Colorist: Dono Sanchez-Almara

Letterer: Ed Dukeshire

Cover Artists: Goñi Montes; David Nakayama; Miguel Mercado; Kevin Eastman & Andrew Dahouse; Ivan Tao; The Escorza Brothers; Chrissie Zullo; Mel Milton; R1C0; Nico Leon; Justine Florentino

Publisher: Boom! Studios

Price: $4.99

Release Date: May 29, 2024

 

Selena Repulsa abducted Kimberly from her remote mountain cabin. She imprisoned Kimberly with Jason, Billy, and Zach. Selena has their power coins and Trini’s. So, who just teleported into the Bandora Palace? Let's grab our power coins, leap into Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Return #4, and find out!

 

Story

Selena is the daughter of Lord Zedd and Rita Repulsa. Before Rita died, she transferred her essence to the Morphin Grid. Selena gives Finster the surviving rangers’ power coins to upgrade his Monster-Matic machine into a Morphin-Matic. He uses the last of his magic clay to bring Rita Repulsa back to life.

 

When Kimberly’s daughter Olivia returned to her ransacked home, she knew enough of her parents’ history to realize what happened. So, in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Return #4, Olivia found Tommy’s power coin and teleported to the moon.

 

Ransacking Kimberly’s house wasn't Selena's only mistake. She assumed Billy's Benevolator destroyed Tommy's power coin when it bit a chunk out of the moon. So she didn't search Kimberly's house for Tommy's power coin. Then, when her first attempt to bring Rita back to life failed, she let Kimberly get her goat. In her anger, Selena reached inside her forcefield and pulled Kimberly out. So now, Kimberly can team up with her daughter and attack Selena.

 

Sadly, Kimberly has spent the years in hiding since Tommy's death. She has never used her power coin. Nor has she trained her daughter. By comparison, Selena has worked hard to master Rita’s skills since learning of her mother’s presence in the Morphin Grid. Selena also harnessed Finster’s expertise. Now, Selena can accomplish her plan. All she must do is wrest Tommy's power coin from Olivia.

 

Billy, Zach, and Jason's activities may have placed them in danger, but at least they helped others. Without using her power coin, Trini Kwan also benefitted her community. But in hiding away and not training her daughter, Kimberly Hart wasn't prepared when the danger she feared arrived. Amy Jo Johnson and Matt Hotson’s story reminds us that hiding accomplishes nothing. Kimberly and Olivia have good hearts. But is that enough to defeat a trained, resourceful villain who can also command the rangers’ power coins?

 

 

Art

Olivia finds Tommy’s power coin in the dark cabin. Green lightning shoots into the heavens. The Green Ranger stands before Selena’s fallen silhouette. Kimberly’s mouth gapes as she regards her daughter on hands and knees. Billy, Jason, and Zach clench their fists and adopt fighting stances within the crackling energy shield. Then shock overcomes Selena and the men's faces. What happens next, you ask? Selena brings her mother's magic wand down on Olivia's head!

 

After Kimberly frees her friends, they crash into sword-wielding putties. Kimberly brings a knife to a wand fight in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Return #4. Nico Leon makes the action easy to follow, as rangers pound putties and mother and daughter combat Selena. Energy sparks, blasts rangers, and more electricity than Dr. Victor Frankenstein ever summoned fills the air as a daughter stands in one of two pods in the Morphin-Matic machine. Guess who appears in the other one?

 

Olivia's suit scatters a green reflection of the crackling blue-white energy dome on the floor of Bandora Palace. Selena’s pink and purple clothes harmonize with the energy from Rita's power wand and provide an intriguing link with Kimberly's pink sweater and burgundy slacks. Dono Sanchez-Almara surrounds the gray putties with yellow and orange, while Selena’s attacks on Kimberly and Olivia turn the air purple. Pink and lavender fill the air as Selena orders Finster to activate his machine. Amid the swirling purple energy, a familiar Z shoots white energy toward the heavens.

 

Ed Dukeshire casts large, black uppercase letters into white dialogue balloons and colored narrative boxes in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Return #4. Words grow bold for inflection and morph in size and color when rangers activate their power coins. Sound effects help us hear a dagger skitter across the floor and rip through a power shield, the putties charge to Selena's rescue, and Olivia crash into Selena amid the thrumming air and rumbling palace.

 

Thanks to Boom! Studios and Hasbro for providing a copy for review.

 

Final Thoughts

As family fights family, older and wiser Power Rangers confront the next generation of villains, and Finster’s genius resurrects the dead in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Return #4.

 

Rating 9.8/10

 

For more cover art see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Return #3 Review

 

Writer: Amy Jo Johnson & Matt Hotson

Artist: Nico Leon

Colorist: Dono Sanchez-Almara

Letterer: Ed Dukeshire

Cover Artists: Goñi Montes, Ejikure, Rahzzah, Frany, Ivan Tao, The Escorza Brothers & Nico Leon

Publisher: Boom! Studios

Price: $4.99

Release Date: April 10, 2024

 

Trini Kwan's niece Selena tracked Kimberly to her remote mountain cabin. When Kimberly refused to train her, Selena assumed Rita Repulsa's appearance and attacked her. Why would Selena want to hurt Kimberly? Or did Rita return to life to kill Kimberly? Let's grab our power coins, leap into Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Return #3, and find out!

 

Story

After Green Ranger Tommy Oliver failed to return from the moon, Kimberly extracted a promise from the surviving Rangers. They would never draw on the Morphin Grid again. Trini kept the agreement, but Jason disappeared while fighting crime as the Red Ranger. Former Blue Ranger Billy Cranston and Black Ranger Zach Taylor told Kimberly Hart they also utilized the Morphin Grid.

 

Way to let down the ladies, guys!

 

Kimberly awakens where her old life ended in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Return #3. Jason, Billy, and Zach are also in Bandora Palace. Selena reveals that she wasn’t Trini’s niece but Lord Zedd and Rita Repulsa's daughter. Her father may have died when Billy’s Benevolator detonated, but Rita survived. Or at least her spirit did.

 

Once again, Kimberly’s fears over the power of the Morphin Grid prove correct. Billy’s invention drew power from the Morphin Grid. Rita used that conduit to send her spirit there. Now a ghost in the machine, Rita spoke with her daughter through the Morphin Grid.

 

Jason, Billy, and Zach used the Morphin Grid to help others. Kimberly avoided it to shield Earth from malignant forces. Rita Repulsa inhabited it! Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Return #3 tantalizes us with a glimpse of Selena's childhood. We don't know how Selena grew up, but we know her mother influenced her. In Amy Jo Johnson and Matt Hotson’s story, Selena says she wants power, but her immediate plans involve emotional fulfillment. While seeking revenge, Selena lets her parents' killers live. If Selena achieves her objective, will it bring the satisfaction she craves?

 

Art

Billy’s Benevolator created a crater the size of Angel Grove. The debris orbits the moon, captured by the planetoid's gravity. Outside the damaged Bandora Palace, the Putties that once battled Rangers now clean up the debris. Inside, Jason—the first Ranger captured—hovers over Kimberly. Zach and Billy linger back, doubtless still smarting from their tongue-lashing in the diner. When Selena speaks to them from her mother's throne, the former Blue and Black Rangers assume fighting stances on the flagstone floor. Energy encircles them as they face the reincarnation of their old nemesis.

 

Dynamic layouts showcase Selena’s confrontation with her parents’ enemies, while inset panels reveal how she tracked them. Thoughtful camera placement keeps the action fresh in a now familiar setting. One of Rita's former servitors survived in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Return #3. Although ravaged by age, he hobbles with a cane as he attempts to carry out Selena's plan. Nico Leon reveals Tommy Oliver’s final moments. His final act may explain Selena’s reluctance to kill.

 

Dono Sanchez-Almara colors Jason, Zach, Bill, and Kimberly's clothing to remind us of their uniforms. White energy pulsing through the blue dome evokes sunlight reflected in the sea. After a stream of pink energy signals Kimberly's departure, Tommy spies a child sitting on the worn wooden floor. As Selena reaches toward her mother's still form, her white hair and gray dress contrast with her mother’s colorful regalia and the crystal adorning the Magic Wand’s headpiece.

 

Large, black uppercase letters inhabit white dialogue balloons and colored narrative boxes in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Return #3. Words grow bold for inflection and rarely shrink. Colorful sound effects help us hear Kimberly’s attempt to break free from the energy dome and Tommy's struggle to reach the Benevolator as it counts down to detonation. Ed Dukeshire’s immense letters compare the power humming through Billy’s device with the one constructed to resurrect Selena’s mother.

 

Thanks to Boom! Studios and Hasbro for providing a copy for review.

 

Final Thoughts

While providing insight into Tommy Oliver’s final moments, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Return #3 portrays the perils of social media, the allure of power, and how clinging to the past warps one’s character.

 

Rating 9.6/10

 

For more cover art see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Return #2 Review

 

Writer: Amy Jo Johnson & Matt Hotson

Artist: Nico Leon

Colorist: Dono Sanchez-Almara

Letterer: Ed Dukeshire

Cover Artists: Goñi Montes, Ejikure, Inhyuk Lee, Ivan Tao, the Escorza Brothers, Nico Leon and Santa Fung

Publisher: Boom! Studios

Price: $4.99

Release Date: March 13, 2024

 

Kimberly Hart changed her name. She abandoned her friends to live in obscurity. Kimberly returned to Angel Grove to celebrate the opening of the Trini Kwan Memorial Park and Youth Center and lay flowers on Tommy Oliver's grave. Yet the past refuses to remain buried. Poor decisions imperil Kimberly’s remaining friends, while the next generation of Power Rangers threatens to awaken the horrors of yesterday. Can Kimberly avert the catastrophe she worked so hard to prevent? Let's grab our power coins, leap into Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Return #2, and find out!

 

Story

Twenty-two years ago, the Power Rangers led an assault on Bandora Palace. Finster ordered his army to defend Rita Repulsa and Lord Zedd’s fortress. Red Ranger Jason Scott reminds his comrades they don't have to win this war, but Green Ranger Tommy Oliver and Pink Ranger Kimberly Hart need time to carry out their mission.

 

Blue Ranger Billy Cranston’s plan was elegant and heroic. His Benevolator would draw energy from the Morphin Grid. Instead of killing their enemies, it would sap the dark energy from their souls. Tommy Oliver and Kimberly Hart snuck into the moon palace, searching for a room steeped in dark energy to detonate it. What place could be more steeped in Rita Repulsa and Lord Zedd’s evil than their bedroom?

 

If only Rita hadn’t discovered them, forcing Kimberly to shoot the witch amid her vicious attack on Tommy. If only Tommy hadn’t damaged the Benevolator during the fight. If only Billy’s timer had worked instead of instantly detonating the damaged device! Presumably, that's why Tommy didn't teleport back to Earth in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Return #2. All Kimberly knows is the explosion left her without Tommy to wrap her arms around and with Rita’s blood on her hands.

 

Perhaps Jennifer blames Billy for the Benevolator’s fragility. Billy, Zach, and Jason’s decisions to break their pact and draw power from the Morphin Grid put all their lives in jeopardy. Someone discovered Jason, who resurrected his Red Ranger persona to save others. After returning from her visit with Billy and Zach, Trini Kwan's niece Selena arrives on Jennifer’s doorstep. How did the girl track Jennifer down to her remote log cabin?

 

In Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Return #2, Pink Ranger actress Amy Jo Johnson and co-writer Matt Hotson relate the Power Ranger’s final, tragic battle. Jennifer tells Selena that she won’t train her. Unlike her surviving fellow rangers, Jennifer believes the best way to protect Earth is not to draw upon the Morphin Grid. Will Selena bow to Jennifer’s superior wisdom? Is Selena all she claims?

 

 

Art

A two-page spread reveals the scope of this final battle. As the Power Rangers' zords attack, Finster’s forces march out to meet them. The Earth rises behind Bandora Palace, sunlight reflecting off its atmosphere while stars punctuate the surrounding void. A second double page makes clear the overwhelming nature of Finster’s forces as the glowing Earth emerges behind the massive moon palace. Shard-like panels reveal the fractured nature of the Ranger's bold offensive and compare the revelry inside the palace with Kimberly and Tommy sneaking in via the sewers.

 

A vast window replaces the exterior wall of Zedd and Rita’s cathedral-like bed chamber. Nico Leon conveys the intense fight between Rita and her Putties versus Kimberly Hart and Tommy Oliver in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Return #2. The couple's cozy sitting area, desk, bedroom furniture, bookcases filled with books (and more stacked on the floor), and architectural detail ground the frantic action, making it even more poignant when Kimberly kills Rita in the villainess’ lovely lair.

 

Dono Sanchez-Almara fills the opening panel with gold, silver, and red as Rita and Zedd drink a toast to Zordon’s death and their inevitable rulership of Earth. Green and Pink Rangers shine amid the brown tunnels beneath the regal moon palace. Rita’s Magic Wand leaves pink contrails as it flashes and crashes into green-clad Tommy, casting yellow sparks and summoning white lightning. Blue, pink, red, yellow, and purple fill the air as the Power Rangers teleport back to Earth in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Return #2. Kimberly remembers this heartbreaking victory as she stares out the window of her log cabin. The glass captures the glowing moon rising above the forest, as the yellow-orange fire burning in the hearth symbolizes the triumph that devoured her life.

 

Large, black uppercase letters inhabit white dialogue balloons. Words grow bold for inflection and rarely shrink. A thick-colored border celebrates a familiar rallying cry. Thin-colored balloon outlines make radio transmissions ranger-specific. Ed Dukeshire helps us feel a selfless ranger's pain and the empty end of a woman devoid of virtue.

 

Thanks to Boom! Studios and Hasbro for providing a copy for review.

 

Final Thoughts

When Kimberly Hart’s friends break their agreement to shield Earth by not drawing power from the Morphin Grid, a villain arises to menace them all in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Return #2.

 

Rating 9.8/10

 

For more cover art see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.