Cover Art by: Dan Mora
Later this year, Boom! Studios and IDW’s five-issue sequel to its Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers / Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles will tentatively be released in one complete collection. The release is currently scheduled for release Sept. 19 through Boom! Studios and IDW. If the release date sticks, the 144-page story — which is the sequel to the 2020 story involving the heroes on the half shell and those teenagers with attitude teaming up to defeat Shredder and Rita Repulsa – will come almost three years to the day since that story’s full paperback release.
In the meantime, audiences who have been collecting the story in its single-issue releases will get the story’s finale in the story’s fifth and final issue Wednesday. The final chapter of this latest crossover is a presentation that audiences will agree is mostly successful. That is thanks in large part to how this chapter unfolds. This will be discussed shortly. The dialogue used throughout the issue adds its own touch to the presentation and deserves its own attention. It will be addressed later. The artwork used in this final issue of the crossover series rounds out its most important elements and will also be examined later. Each item noted here is key in its own way to the whole of the conclusion to Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers / Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II. All things considered they make this latest crossover event from Boom! Studios and IDW a fine finish to this event.
The upcoming fifth issue of Boom! Studios and IDW’s limited event series, Might Morphin’ Power Rangers / Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II is a mostly solid conclusion to the event. What started in December 2022 with the evil forces defeated in the previous series reappearing for more as Casey Jones fights Karai on a rooftop continues with even more excitement and drama through the next three issues and concludes here fittingly with Casey Jones returning to the side of good (not to give away too much) and Rita and Krang being defeated. Their fates following their defeat will be left for audiences to find out for themselves. Readers also get to see Shredder take on the powers of the Green Ranger and even see the Dragonzord merge with the Turtle Zord (driven by Alpha 5 and Zordon) to take down Krang once and for all as he fights Shredder in the original Megazord. Meanwhile the heroes on the half shell are busy taking on Rita, and just as things seem at their worst, they get a surprise from Casey, who had been turned into the Chaos Ranger by Rita early in the story. While this was to be expected (what MMPRG story is complete without someone good being brainwashed and returned to good by its end?), there is something lacking here. He just seemed to conveniently turn good again, like Rita’s spell was just conveniently reversed. It would have been nice to have had at least a little more background on that brief moment. That aside, the story comes out with a happy ending while leaving the door open for at least another sequel story that would definitely be interesting to see. That will also be left for audiences to discover on their own.
As much as the story presented here does to make this finale so engaging and entertaining, it is just part of what makes the story so fun. Right from the opening page, Ryan Parrott – who has written this whole series—breaks the fourth wall as he has Raphael ask, “Is that really what we’re going with” as the story opens with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles jumping back to Earth from Dimension X and the cry is heard, “Go, Go, Dimension X Rangers!!!” That breaking the fourth wall right off the bat is a great lighthearted, comedic moment among all the more action-filled moments in the story. Rita calling the turtles envious as they enter into the fray is just as lighthearted. It is classic villain bravado. On yet another note, Tommy’s response when Shredder asks why he and the other Power Rangers ever “de-morph” is another great moment as Tommy tells Shredder, “Everyone has to go to the bathroom eventually.” That continued lightheartedness even in the ongoing heat of battle, that exchange, is so simple yet so great in its simplicity.
On a slightly heavier note, Shredder berating Krang as he takes him down is another great moment of dialogue. His assertion that the world could have been theirs, but Krang’s “lack of faith in him” is what led him to join his hated enemies is its own classic style presentation. It is that vintage villain asserting his dominance, showing that even in this case, there really is no honor among thieves so to speak. This is just a great throwback to so much vintage superhero/supervillain dialogue. To that end, Parrott is to be commended for his ability to entertain audiences once more even in this aspect. When the fully immersive dialogue is paired with his work bringing the series to its close in terms of the overall story, his continued talent is put fully on display and is fully deserving of praise. It is all the more proof of what makes this final episode so enjoyable.
As much as the overall writing does to make the final issue of Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers / Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II engaging and entertaining, it is just part of what makes the issue so enjoyable. The artwork, contributed by the team of Dan Mora, Raul Angulo, and Ed Dukeshire, continues to impress just as much. The color in each cell is so rich. Case in point is the scene showing Shredder using the Green Ranger powers to morph. The contrast of the colors – that green and gold of his suit against the purple of his cape against the black background and the green lines that show the power enveloping him – makes for such a strong scene. That is especially the case as he takes that classic superhero/villain stance, morphing into the “Green Shredder Ranger.”
On a similar note, seeing the Dragonzord rise from the water is another great moment showing the importance of the art. The water literally splashes against the page. There is something about how that moment was handled that makes the art feel so real for lack of better wording. It takes audiences back to those early days of MMPR on TV, seeing the Dragonzord rise, while improving dramatically on the familiar sequence.
One more great moment that shows the importance of the issue’s art comes late in the story as Krang, inside the Megazord, is about to use the Megazord’s sword to defeat Shredder as he sits in the Dragonzord. The cell deserves so much more space than it received, being another of those iconic style moments. The yellows and reds of the flames behind the Megazord makes a great contrast to the foreground while also doing well to sort of hint at the situation being like a Hell on Earth. The use of the silhouettes in the very next cell against the energy in the sword fully visible helps enhance the moment, showing even further, the power of the art in this issue. Between these moments and so many others, the art exhibited throughout the issue proves just as impressive as the story and the dialogue used to help the story progress. When the art is considered along with the rest of the issue’s content, the whole makes the conclusion to Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers / Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II a fitting finale to the story and continuation of its predecessor that will leave readers hoping for at least one more sequel in the not-too-distant future.
The fifth issue of Boom! Studios and IDW’s Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’ latest crossover event is a mostly solid closing to the limited event series. Its success comes in large part through its featured story, which finds Krang and Rita Repulsa finally defeated once again, this time through the combined efforts of the Rangers, the turtles, and lo and behold Shredder, who utilizes the Green Ranger powers to help defeat Rita and his one-time fellow villain. The end looks to finally be in sight for Rita and Krang, but the story leaves the door open in its epilogue for at least one more sequel to come along. Whether that will happen is anyone’s guess. The dialogue that helps the story progress plays its own role in the issue’s success. That is because so much of it is classic style superhero/villain banter. It throws back to a great bygone era, and in turn makes the story all the more immersive, engaging and entertaining. The artwork displayed throughout the issue is so rich from beginning to end, making for just as much enjoyment. The richness of the colors and the ability of the art to actually look like they jumped right off the TV screen at points makes for even more engagement and entertainment. Each item noted here is important in its own way to the issue’s success. All things considered they make the finale to Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers / Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II a fitting finale to this limited series.
Issue #5 of Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers / Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II is scheduled for release Wednesday. More information on this and other titles from Boom! Studios is available at:
Website: https://boom-studios.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BOOMStudiosComics
Twitter: https://twitter.com/boomstudios
More information on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and other titles from IDW is available at:
Website: https://idwpublishing.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/idwpublishing
Twitter: https://twitter.com/IDWPublishing
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