Mighty Morphin Power Rangers/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1 Review

Children of the 90’s rejoice, the crossover we’ve been waiting for all our lives is finally here. If you, like me, are in your late-20’s or early 30’s, then odds are you grew up with Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles or both. For yours truly, both franchises were a huge part of my childhood and I continue to love both to this day.

When I heard that the Power Rangers and the Ninja Turtles were set to finally team up, I was jumping for joy… only to be immediately disappointed. Yes, the much-anticipated crossover turned out to be nothing more than an overhyped letdown that barely feels like the major event that this epic team-up should be. Fortunately for this article, I’m talking about the 1998 episode of Power Rangers in Space entitled “Shellshocked” and not the subject of today’s article, the first issue of this brand-new comic book crossover, Mighty Morhpin’ Power Rangers/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. So excited was I upon hearing about this crossover, that I immediately drove three towns over to the nearest comic book store in a snow storm with bald tires. Was it worth it? Let’s dive in and find out.

We open more or less how one would expect a crossover like this to open, with the Rangers and the Turtles in action individually. The Rangers are up first and quickly dispatch one of Rita’s monsters. Notably absent amongst the teens is the Green Ranger, Tommy Oliver. The dialogue during the fight seems to imply that no one quite knows where Tommy is and hints that the relationship between him and Kimberly may be on the rocks. The Turtles are up next, dispatching a squad of Foot ninjas with minimal effort while having a rather amusing philosophical discussion of what they’d enjoy about being human. Apparently, Leo wouldn’t mind having hair. Raph, annoyed by the conversation, gets dropped by a surprisingly skilled Foot Soldier, but not before Raph unmasks him in the scuffle revealing none other than Tommy Oliver. The Foot retreat and the Turtles are left with concerns and, in Raph’s case, a very bruised ego.

At the hideout of the Foot Clan, Kurai, The Shredder’s second in command, confronts Tommy. Apparently, Tommy has only been with the Foot for three weeks but in that short time he has managed to impress both Kurai and The Shredder himself, though it’s clear Kurai doesn’t trust him. Curiously, Kurai refers to Tommy as “Tommy Marshall” meaning he gave the Foot a false name. In any case, Kurai assigns Tommy a special task from by order of The Shredder.

That night, Tommy is seen breaking into an office building and stealing a piece of technology, unknowingly watched by The Turtles. The Turtles all jump at once but Tommy catches them off guard by Morphing, leaving the Turtles stunned that Shredder has apparently recruited one of the famous Power Rangers. While Tommy’s enhanced strength and agility from being a Power Ranger makes it a more even fight, even he can’t take four highly skilled opponents at once all on his own and finds himself thrown through the wall. Fortunately for Tommy, The Rangers seem to have tracked Tommy’s location and have teleported to the very rooftop where the fight is taking place. Mistaking the Turtles for Rita’s monsters, the rest of the Rangers leap into battle, leading to an absolutely gorgeous splash page of the two teams leaping into battle against eachother.

During the fight, Billy notes that The Turtles seem too intelligent to be Rita’s monsters and Zack expresses confusion when Mikey assumes that The Rangers are working for the Shreddder. Meanwhile, Tommy tries to slip away but is confronted by Kimberly. Kim wants to know just what the heck is going on but Tommy just says that Kim needs to trust him. Kim is understandably frustrated, but let’s Tommy go and even covers his escape while Raphael tries to jump him.

Our comic ends on a nearby rooftop where the fight is observed by Kurai and The Shredder. Apparently, Shredder has been aware that Tommy is a Ranger all along and if his plan is successful, Tommy will be his to command.

What Works:

There is a lot to love about this comic. For starters, I really like that we set up a mystery right away. What is Tommy up to and why does it necessitate infiltrating the Foot Clan? What is Shredder’s endgame? This is some great stuff. More than that though, this comic is full of a lot of little things that I appreciate. The Fight between the Rangers and the Turtles is an absolute blast, with a lot of cool visuals and fun dialogue. It was especially nice for me to see Billy, my favorite Ranger and Donatello, my favorite Turtle, squaring off and Donnie asking a bunch of Ranger related questions like a total fanboy was an absolute delight. It actually reminded me of myself when I met David Yost at a convention. That actually brings me to something that may seem small but was actually a huge point in this comic’s favor, at least for me personally. The Turtles recognize Tommy as a Power Ranger instantly. Remember at the beginning of this article where I mentioned that infamous episode of Power Rangers in Space? Well, one moment in that episode that was particularly infamous was when Raph said, and I quote, “The Power Rangers are just pretend, as in Comic Books.” Let’s unpack why that statement is infuriatingly stupid shall we. So, I’m more than willing to accept that The Rangers and The Turtles share a universe without actually interacting with one another. Afterall, the Turtles operate out of New York City and the Rangers out of coastal California. We’re talking opposite sides of the country here and it’s not like they would ordinarily have reason to venture onto each other’s respective turfs. I’m also willing to accept that the Rangers are by-and-large unaware of the existence of the Ninja Turtles. While this varies from continuity to continuity, more often than not the Turtles operate completely in secret with their existence known only to a select few. The Rangers on the other hand are not like the Turtles. While their true identities are not public knowledge, they are nonetheless known public figures who have appeared on talk shows, at charity events and have been honored by the city of Angel Grove on numerous occasions. Not to mention the fact that said city is under attack by giant monsters on a near constant basis, and I don’t care what kind of insignificant one horse town Angel Grove may or may not be, unless the biggest government cover-up in human history is in play here, there’s no way in hell that a kaiju sized pig in a spartan helmet fighting a giant robot in the middle of Southern California isn’t going to make national news. There is no reason for the Turtles not to believe that the Rangers exist. Not to mention that four giant turtles gifted with human intelligence and dexterity thanks to a glowing green ooze in a New York sewer aren't exactly in any position to question the believability of anything. I know that seemed like a bit of a rant, but that point has been irritating me for over 20 years now, and this comic FINALLY makes up for it. What Doesn’t: I’m sure there’s explanations to come, but I would have liked a little more elaboration on the piece of tech that Tommy stole and why Shredder wants it.

I also didn’t like that The Rangers just appear in New York with no establishment. All we get is a brief scene of Kim asking Zordon if there’s any way to track Tommy, but nothing that indicates that he’s actually in New York. It sounds like a minor point to get hung up on, but when it actually happens in the book, it really does come across like I skipped a page.

Overall:

5/5

This a very strong start that gives equal time to both the Turtles and the Rangers. The mystery angle sets up an interesting hook for the readers and it ensures that one will pick up the next issue. Great stuff all around.