Review of “Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers: The Return (Issue #3)” by Amy Jo Johnson, Matt Hotson

Score: 95/100 (9.5 out of 10)
WARNING: MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS (MORE SO THAN THE PREVIOUS 2 REVIEWS)

Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers: The Return (Issue #3) follows right in the tracks of the previous book as the OG Power Rangers find themselves trapped on Rita & Zedd's old Moon Palace. They are encaged in a forcefield barrier by the mysterious daughter of the two classic PR villains, Selena Repulsa!

This book pulls back the curtain a bit more as we learn what happened near the end of Rita & Tommy's lives at the climax of the final battle 22 years ago.

It also reveals a bit more about the mysterious new character of Selena Repulsa. We learn that she was rescued by Tommy when he discovered that there was a child in the palace—essentially in the middle of the battlefield—at the center of the blast radius of the Benevalator. We learn that, from Selena's perspective, Rita attempted to preserve her essence in the morphin grid itself.

Selena was discovered, alone and afraid, by Bulk & Skull as police officers.

It is tragic and sad to see Selena as a child caught in a situation like this. You really get a sense that she was innocent. She says and does childlike things like calling Finster “Fixter” and mistaking Bulk for Squatt because of his excess weight and stoutness.

That also reveals that Finster and Squatt were probably partially responsible for taking care of her on the Moon Palace 22 years ago, indicating that they weren't all bad either.

This book also starts to develop the character of Finster a bit more. This is arguably the most development that Finster has ever had in all of Power Rangers. He has always been the goofy, weak, bumbling idiot mad scientist who creates the monsters with his magical clay. In this book, we actually get to see him remote, such as when he reacts emotionally to Rita's death. However, there's a catch to that. He's not just alarmed by her apparent death, but he is fixated on the fact that they're about to “lose.” He seems to prioritize defeating Tommy over the safety of Selena in the flashback scene, which is quite interesting. You could make an argument either way. Maybe Finster is trying to recapture Selena from a hated enemy.

We also get to see how depraved Finster is, even cannibalizing his own creations to survive. Then again, what else was he supposed to do? He was wounded, injured, and trapped on the moon without anything else to eat.

Anyway, Finster and Selena reveal their big plan to bring back Rita Repulsa using a machine which draws from the captured power coins, Lord Zedd's staff, and the remainder of Finster's clay. However, Kimberly seems to have a secret up her sleeves, one that reveals why Finster & Selena's contraption is failing: a sixth power coin of the sixth Power Ranger!

Almost all of this book is one big conversation in one location. Similar to issue #1, it's a lot of exposition—a lot of explaining. Thankfully, the illustrations by Nico Leon are superior to the ones in issue #1. They're more like the bright, beautiful, and vibrant illustrations of issue #2. They really pop!

We're starting to get that this four-part epic has a wave-like flow to it. There are peaks and valleys, and issues #1 and #3 appear to be the valleys. However, you need moments like that for the sake of storytelling. You need the audience to understand what's going on between the big set piece actions scenes and wildness.

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