Tag Andros

A Power Rangers Unlimited: Countdown to Ruin Micro-Review – Unlimited Done Right

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***This is where we keep it nice and simple. Comic book reviews in 100 words or less. Straight, concise, and to the point.***

Power Rangers Unlimited Countdown to Ruin 1, cover, 2022, Keyla ValerioTITLE: Power Rangers Unlimited: Countdown to Ruin #1
AUTHOR: Marguerite Bennett
ARTISTS: Anna Kekovsky Chandra & Giuseppe Cafaro, Sara Antonellini (Colorist), Sharon Marino & Fabi Marques (Color Assistants), Ed Dukeshire (Letterer). Cover by Keyla Valerio.

RELEASED: June 29, 2022

By Rob Siebert
Fanboy Wonder

This issue is a great companion to Power Rangers in Space. It doesn’t tell us anything that’s crucial to PRiS from a story perspective. But it offers a lot of fun character exploration into Andros and Zhane. And that’s really what these Power Rangers Unlimited books should be.

As far as Bennett is concerned, Countdown to Ruin is a huge upgrade from her brief run on Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. If allowing her to explore the larger PR universe gets us more content like this, I say let her have at it.

Email Rob at primaryignition@yahoo.com, or check us out on Twitter.

Power Rangers Dino Fury, “Old Foes” Review (Lord Zedd Returns!)

Rob Siebert 6 Comments

Lord Zedd, Power Rangers Beast Morphers, Old FoesSERIES: Power Rangers Dino Fury
TITLE: S28:E13. “Old Foes”
STARRING: Russell Curry, Hunter Deno, Kai Moya, Tessa Rao, Chance Perez
WRITERS: Becca Barnes, Alwyn Dale, Johnny Hartmann
DIRECTOR: Chris Graham
ORIGINAL U.S. AIR DATE: October 15, 2021 (Netflix)
SYNOPSIS: A Sporix Beast resurrects Lord Zedd.

New around here? Check out the Power Rangers review archive!

By Rob Siebert
Fanboy Wonder

Well gosh. As a first generation Power Rangers fan, I wonder if I’ll have any thoughts about this one…

Indeed, the show has resurrected Lord Zedd, the most popular villain in the show’s history. It’s not merely a reference to him. It’s not some cockamamie story about he and Rita Repulsa having a son we never knew about. The franchise’s quintessential villain is back. What’s more, he’s brought back in a way that makes you wonder why they didn’t bring him back a lot sooner. They simply bring in a monster with the power to reincarnate people. Boom. There’s Zedd.

However, they don’t simply leave it at that. In a real treat for longtime fans like me, they reference a bunch of old MMPR episodes, talk about Zordon’s sacrifice in  Countdown to Destruction, and actually treat Zedd like a huge deal. It’s one of the better past character that the show has ever done. What’s more, as someone who grew up on Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, it’s a genuine thrill.

The elephant in the room as far as Zedd is concerned is that his voice is different. Andrew Laing plays the role, as opposed to the late Robert Axelrod. Though even if Axlerod was still with us, I doubt they’d have used him. You’ll notice that in the sequence that used the old footage, Zordon, Rita, Alpha 5, and Andros all had their voices dubbed over by different actors. In Beast Morphers, the returning Goldar also had a different voice. I can only assume that’s a union issue, and if they could have brought the old actors back, they would have.

The use of the inhibitor collar from Beast Morphers on Zedd was a nice touch. This episode truly is a continuity buff’s dream come true. But it was good from a character standpoint too. Unless your name is Dark Specter, chances are Zedd isn’t taking orders from you.

The line where Ollie calls Zedd “radiator face” is a callback to a line Rita had in an MMPR episode. Don’t ask me which one. I just know she called him radiator face at some point.

We’ve reached the point where I’m actually going to be mad if Dino Fury doesn’t link Ollie and Amelia romantically. Or “ship” them, as the kids would say. Their little back and forth moments have become a highlight of the show for me.

Arguably the best thing about this Zedd development? They didn’t kill him off, which would truly have been idiotic. They had him disappear, presumably to return at a later date. I’ve even heard a little bit of buzz about him being the villain for the second season of Dino Fury. Naturally, there’s a lot of intrigue there.

Email Rob at primaryignition@yahoo.com, or check us out on Twitter.

Power Rangers Dino Fury, “Lost Signal” Review

Rob Siebert 3 Comments

Zayto, Power Rangers Dino Fury, Lost SignalSERIES: Power Rangers Dino Fury
EPISODE: S26:E3. “Lost Signal”
STARRING: Russell Curry, Hunter Deno, Kai Moya, Kira Josephson, Victoria Abbott
WRITERS: Becca Barnes, Alwyn Dale
DIRECTORS: Chris Graham
ORIGINAL AIR DATE: March 6, 2021
SYNOPSIS: After receiving a message from Zayto’s home planet, the Rangers must fight a monster blind.

By Rob Siebert
Fanboy Wonder

Sometimes, in the back of my mind, I’ll hear my mother asking nitpicky questions. One came to me as I was watching the opening credits sequence this week: “Why is it called Dino Fury? What are they so mad about, anyway?”

Oh jeez. We’re seeing more tentacled people? I can’t say that’s the route I’d have gone. I’d have forgone the tentacles altogether. Back in the day, Andros was able to pull off the alien look just by putting blonde streaks in his hair. Couldn’t they have done something like that with Zayto?

You’d think I wouldn’t have rolled my eyes so hard at Amelia thinking a psychic could unravel the mystery of the message from Zayto’s planet. This is, after all, a show with tentacled people, an anthropomorphic talking dinosaur, and a cyborg walking around like normal in everyday life. By Power Rangers standards, who’s to say it’s that far-fetched?

It looks like Jane and J-Borg are our comedic duo this season, in the spirit of Bulk and Skull or Ben and Betty. These pairs are usually an acquired taste. But I’ll say this much: They found two funny actresses in Kira Josephson and Victoria Abbott. Dino Fury is also the first season to give us two women in these roles, as opposed to two men, or one man and one woman.

Pine Ridge. That’s our city name in Dino Fury. Pretty generic. But it beats no name at all.

Solon would be such an awesome sidekick for the Rangers if only her lips moved a little bit. Those zoom lenses on her eyes are pretty cool, though.

I enjoyed that little fight sequence between Zayto and Vypeera, and I like the idea of the Rangers having to fight a monster blind. I only wish it could have gone a little longer.

I talked last week about the zord sequences having too much CGI for my taste. Cast in point: The Tricera and Ankylo zords. Whenever they were on screen, it looked like the show jumped right into a video game. And not in a good way.

So Ollie and Amelia teleport into the Megazord cockpit, and one of the first things Amelia says is: “We’ve got to get a selfie in this thing!” Please tell me that’s not how kids talk these days. Tell me they don’t go around asking to take selfies in things. Please? Pretty please…?

I like the T-Rex Champion zord better than the Megazord. The latter just has too much going on. It’s almost overwhelming on the eyes. That’s a common problem with modern Megazords, I think.

This episode had its high points. But overall, I’d call it a step down from the first two. Here’s hoping next week’s will be better.

Email Rob at primaryignition@yahoo.com, or check us out on Twitter.

MMPR: Shattered Grid: 25 Morphinominal Moments, Part Four

Rob Siebert 1 Comment

By Rob Siebert
Fanboy Wonder

As it happens, these last two installments of our countdown are largely going to be monopolized by Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #29 and #30 respectively. Naturally, Kyle Higgins, Daniele Di Nicuolo, and the crew at BOOM! Studios have ramped things up as we move toward this week’s finale. You’ll see that here, as four spots are occupied by moments from issue #29.

(Part One. Part Two. Part Three.)

16. Lightspeed Rescue appearances.
Power Rangers Lightspeed Rescue is a perennially underrated season, in my opinion. Sadly, that point is accentuated by the fact that Lightspeed is fairly underrepresented in Shattered Grid. Not as bad as, say, Operation Overdrive. But still.

However, we do get a few appearances from Carter, the Red Lightspeed Ranger. And issue #29 does start with an appearance from Kelsey, the Yellow Lightspeed Ranger. Oddly enough, she’s in a push-up contest with TJ. Mind you, her hair is the wrong color. But I’m just grateful she made the cut!

17. Andros, Karone, Zordon, and Kruger.
One thing I’ve complained about as it relates to the main MMPR comic, is how characters are learning too many things about their future. The appearance of Saba, the Thunderzords, etc. But of course, I threw my hands up once we got to Shattered Grid, and simply opted to enjoy the story. So this little moment with Andros and Karone managed to be a highlight for me. The story obviously isn’t about them specifically. But this relationship is an important one in the annals of Power Rangers history. So to see it get spotlighted like this is pretty cool.

Zordon and Kruger also get a little scene on the same page. I wouldn’t have mentioned it, were it not right after this Andros/Karone exchange. But it’s cool in its own right.

18. Terra Venture revelation.
Outside of what we saw in the outstanding MMPR #20, the Grace Sterling character hasn’t done much for me. I appreciated the Promethea concept, though. Even moreso when we got this little gem of a revelation…

Promethea is Terra Venture, the space colony that serves as the setting for Power Rangers Lost Galaxy. I mean, c’mon! How damn cool is that? They didn’t have to go there. But they did. And I love ’em for it!

19. Reinforcements from the Future
This is a beautiful moment. Conceptually, artistically, or virtually any way you want to look at it.

As they prepare to face Lord Drakkon’s forces, our heroes discover the cavalry has arrived…

 

 

 

 

 

 

Holy crap, that’s gorgeous. The splash page on the right even has a Kevin Maguire, Justice League International feel to it.

While I highly doubt this was intentional, I appreciate that Daniele Di Nicuolo put the Quantum Ranger at the front of the pack. Jason, Kimberly, and the others are seeing the future here, after all. Also, note the appearance of the Rangers from the upcoming Power Rangers Beast Morphers.

20. Tommy’s “second chance.” (Go Go Power Ragners #12)
Up to this point, Go Go Power Rangers had been Tommy-free. Present-day Tommy, at least. That ultimately works to the book’s advantage. The Green Ranger isn’t hogging the spotlight, and we get to focus more on our five heroes.

However, the series makes an exception in issue #12, when Ranger Slayer tracks Tommy down. She shoots him with a super-powered arrow. The future Green Ranger is hurt, but not killed. Kimberly says she’s giving him a second chance. I suspect we’ll find out what she meant in the finale.

It’s definitely a thrill to see Dan Mora draw Tommy, the Green Ranger, and the Dragonzord. By the by, we find Tommy working out at a gym while it’s closed. I suspect that’s meant to imply that his family doesn’t have a lot of money, so he can’t afford a gym membership. Not sure where they got that notion, though. To the best of my recollection, it was never established on the show…

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