by Matt Sernaker, Managing Editor
It’s Free Comic Book Day 2023! Our favorite comic book publishers have released a series of new special issues for the May 6th event, and we are pleased to share our morphinominal first look at the upcoming Ranger Academy series from Boom! Studios. Very little has been released about the new all-ages Power Rangers title prior to today’s FCBD special, so let’s rocket into an advance review:
Official Synopsis:
It’s time to enroll in a bold new take on the Power Rangers mythology in this Free Comic Day Special! Class is in session for the start of an epic saga that is sure to delight longtime Rangers fans, and provide an excellent jumping on point for brand new readers.
Creative Team:
Writer: Maria Ingrande Mora
Artist: Jo Mi-gyeong
Coloring: Fabiana Mascolo
Lettering: Cardinal Rae
Designer: Madison Goyette
Cover Artist: Miguel Mercado
The Ranger Academy – FCBD Special sets controls for outer-space where we are introduced to new characters, intriguing mysteries, and teases of future story elements for the main title. When a shuttle crashes on the remote moon of Vaela, it is up to Sage to rescue the passengers from another world. Those passengers turn out to be Ranger Academy Cadets named Tula and Mathis, and Sage’s universe begins to expand in unexpected ways. Despite the pushback from her father (who has a surprising knowledge of the Morphin Grid), Sage decides to take her future into her own hands and sets off for adventures with her new friends…To be continued in Ranger Academy #1!
This story acts as a perfect jumping on point for new readers, but long-time fans will surely notice a few references to past characters, mythology, and a bit of the lore that has previously been established in the main title. The setup for our trio of protagonists is interesting, and in true Power Rangers fashion, this short story demonstrated the potential hero within each of us. From an art perspective, Mi-gyeong’s style gave me flashbacks of Voltron: Legendary Defender, which is a high compliment as it was one of my favorite animated adventures in recent years. Mascolo’s color palette for the story was equally as impressive, and helped to flesh out this strange new world.
Do you have what it takes to become a future Power Ranger? This topic seems to be a key issue leading into the upcoming launch of the book. Although there aren’t any aliens or monsters to fight, Ranger Academy succeeds by leveraging the values of the Power Rangers to tell a somewhat grounded story…set in space. The future seems bright with the launch of this new story, and I am interested to see what the creative team does with these threads.
