Power Rangers: Drakkon New Dawn

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers (BOOM! Studios)

by Ryan Parrott, Anthony Burch, Jung-Geun Yoon (Cover Art)

The Ranger Slayer, an alternate universe version of Kimberly Hart, has returned home and become the new ruler of her dimension - but can she fill the void left behind by Lord Drakkon or will she be destroyed by his legacy?

RISE OF THE RANGER SLAYER The Ranger Slayer, an alternate universe version of Kimberly Hart, has returned to her home dimension to pick up the pieces left behind in the wake of Lord Drakkon’s reign. But Kim’s only option to save the people she loves is to become the thing she hates most - the new ruler of her world who sits on Drakkon’s throne. Now Kim must uncover the darkest secrets that Lord Drakkon left behind, starting with the secrets of his prison called Deadlock...and the shocking identity of the inmate known only as the Unknown Ranger. When Lord Drakkon’s final failsafe is tripped, an even deadlier threat sets its sights on Earth - and the Ranger Slayer won’t be able to defeat it on her own! Writers Ryan Parrott & Anthony Burch, along with artists Dan Mora & Simone Ragazzoni, present a bold new beginning for two of the most popular Power Rangers of all time - and set Kimberly Hart on a path you never expected. Collects Power Rangers: Ranger Slayer #1 and Power Rangers: Drakkon New Dawn #1-3.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Graphic Novels Comics, Superheroes, Comic Book

137 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 23, 2021

Reviews

[Chris Lemmerman · Rating 4 out of 5]

What happened to the Coinless Universe when Lord Drakkon left it to die? Kimberly Hart, also known as the Ranger Slayer, returns to find a world in ruins, and only she can fix it. But does it want to be fixed? And what dark specter lurks just out of sight, waiting to strike?

Okay, this was very good stuff. I love how the effects of Shattered Grid have continued to resonate out through the Power Rangers books even though it's been over for years now. The return to the Coinless Universe manages to do a lot of world building in four issues (although they are oversized), and the warring factions all have good points to raise (except maybe Scorpina wanting to murder everyone, although she gets better by the end too).

Kim works well as a protagonist, trying to find redemption for herself through redeeming her world, and the developments that bring all of the characters together set the stage for future adventures that I really want to see play out. There's also surprisingly good coherence between the Ranger Slayer one-shot and the New Dawn mini-series despite them being written by different writers.

The art's a little more dissonate, but that's because the incomparable Dan Mora draws the Ranger Slayer one-shot while New Dawn proper is drawn by Simone Ragazzoni. Ragazzoni is very consistent though, packing in a lot of detail into their panels without sacrificing the story or turning everyone into coloured blobs.

New Dawn is a good way to describe this series - it sets up a lot of potential story hooks for a world that I'd thought was mostly done and dusted, and I'd love to see it revisited. The writers and artists assembled do a great job of bouncing off each other to create something different for the Power Rangers universe, but cleverly inspired by all that came before.

[ItzSmashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Library read #5 planning to slowly read every graphic novel in my local library

This was a lot more fleshed out than the last power rangers book I read. The threat felt imposing and there were some very poignant character beats that got me hooked. Again, a lot of my attachment will be from my nostalgia for the franchise. But even for non fans I think this one would be a good read.

Set in the Ranger Slayer timeline, Zack Trini and Kim have given up there power coins to distribute the power across the remaining humans fighting against Drakkon and his minions. The ranger slayer Kimberley is pushed in to power as a figurehead to rally the rebellion, she struggles with the responsibility but leads her to troops in to battle. Add some nostalgic cameos and a mystery ranger trapped in time and this one flies by.

[MajesticalLion · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had never gotten into Power Rangers until very recently, but as a huge fan of the Shattered Grid storyline, this was the perfect follow up. The character dynamics felt perfect even from someone who wasn't familiar with all the characters histories. And the art was amazing in the Ranger Slayer issue. I love Dan Mora's work. And despite having a lot to live up to, Simone Raggazoni's art was great in the main issues as well. Hoping to jump on to the Power Rangers series proper after this.

[AltLovesBooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

What happened to the world of the Coinless after the events of Shattered Grid? With Drakkon gone, can the returned Ranger Slayer a.k.a. Kimberly Hart take the reins and lead everyone to a better future? Will the division between the Coinless, Scorpina, and the Ranger Sentries be too much to overcome? This was a neat look into a world that left me with more questions than answers at the end of Shattered Grid, and I'm glad the writers stopped to take a look at a world largely forgotten.

The pacing was a little frenetic because of everything that was brought in in a short period of time, and I think the motivations of the different characters suffered a little bit in the process. The writers did manage to balance serious moments with some real zingers on both sides, and I really liked the interplay between Scorpina and Adam. The inclusion of the mysterious character retrieved from Drakkon's prison was also a neat touch, and I liked the uncertainty and confusion it caused in the team as they confronted their reasons for being rangers.

This was a fun read, and thanks to the end reveal, I can't wait for the next volume.

[Joey Nardinelli · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wish I liked this a little more based on the strength of the extended opening issue. I really liked this sort of stab at a return to an alternate timeline, though I needed some brushing up on where everyone had gone (where's Billy, who is this Adam that sort of looks like some of the less Asian-specific takes on Adam I've seen in these comics but clearly isn't Adam the Power Ranger, what the heck is going on with the coin diffuser?). I also thought the next issues were setting up another layer to this with a long-standing adventure into Drakkon's prison, only to make a big character reveal that I thought was wildly predictable and then shift to focusing on fighting Eclipta, a character I'm unfamiliar with and that I didn't feel raised any major stakes for the characters. Also found the ending's terminal text a surprise since I thought this was setting up another multi-volume arc. The art is also pretty great in the first issue as are some of the character beats, and I thought the character beats landed again a bit in the final issue. The art seemed to get really...blurred in the last two issues increasingly? Certain not sloppy, but the linework lost a lot of angularity during scenes of quick motion, but it also made characters hard to read for body language and sometimes even identity. I can't remember if it was the second or third issue, but there's a weird cut of a really dramatic beat between Scorpina and Adam where she's emoting humanly and in tears, and then the page turn has her up in a comical rage again with nothing to acknowledge the transition, and tonally it felt wildly out of place. I think that such things standout to me often means I'm not fully engrossed with the story, so /shrug.

[Caleb Avendano · Rating 5 out of 5]

In "Power Rangers: Drakkon New Dawn", Ranger Slayer, also known as Coinless World Kimberly, returns to her universe after assisting Rangers from another world. She attempts to make amends and face punishment after being brainwashed by Drakkon, an evil alternative universe version of Tommy Oliver. However, things are even stranger following Lord Drakkon's defeat, with zombies, aliens, and an unknown Ranger who has been trapped underground for years. Now, Kimberly must join forces with Scorpina, the Coinless rebels, and Drakkon's army to save their world from an even greater threat.

This epic tale follows one of my favorite Power Rangers characters, the Ranger Slayer, and explores her world, where war has transformed the once vibrant and fun Angel Grove into a hellmouth. I was particularly intrigued by Scorpina's character development, as she evolves from an evil servant to an anti-heroine willing to put aside her pride for the greater good. The revelation of the Unknown Ranger's identity is both shocking and heartbreaking for true Rangers fans.

Boom Studio's 'Power Rangers: Drakkon New Dawn' is a gripping Power Rangers story that masterfully blends drama, an alien war narrative, and action-packed sequences, evoking a range of emotions as it poses a haunting question: which side would you choose in a desperate, losing war? This Rangers story took a darker turn, but it had me hooked from start to finish!

[Christian Wermeskerch · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm really mixed on this. For one, the World of the Coinless deserved absolutely more time - the Ranger Slayer one-shot was good, but the main villain could've been given a full arc, if they wanted. Same for Eclipta, but I guess we'll see the follow up soon with the reveal at the end. Seeing how Kim, Trini, Zach, the Stone Canyon kids, and the Unknown Ranger react to each other, and their own trauma, is brilliant, but even that deserves a lot of time to breath. But I'm not sure how much they'd be willing to give - a lot moves really quickly to fit into a mini-series. (For what it's worth, I'm not a huge fan of the design of Queen Ranger Slayer or the Shattered.)

[Paul Decker · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is such a fun volume. We get to return to the Ranger Slayer's world. The Coinless characters are back! And we also get to meet some new ones. There are a lot of cool reveals even in just the first issue (Ranger Slayer #1) alone. I really enjoyed seeing the Stone Canyon trio. Adam has a cool backstory. Scorpina! I love the way she's in this book. She is just so awesome. I love the way she thinks. Her humor is lovely.

There's some great flashbacks in this book. I loved seeing Coinless Jason's backstory. The way Kim and Jason interact is just so great.

I loved reading this volume. I want to see more of this world! The last page makes a pretty big impact. I give this book a 5/5.

[Erik · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an interesting idea, returning to drakkons universe and exploring the aftermath, and for the most part it's done well.

There's hangups that detract it for me though. Although I liked the Ranger Slayer in shattered grid story, here I just feel exhausted of them. Kimberly has never been a favorite of mine so it's just not for me. Although it's interesting that Jason was basically resurrected, of course our new interesting alternate universe Adam had to die. Typical I guess.

The Dark Spectre tie in and set up is a bit interesting but not super interesting to me. I probably won't keep going with this series. It's not bad by any means but there's things I'd rather read

[Aloysius · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ding dong! The most evil "Power Ranger" is dead! But what of the Coinless Universe he left behind? When the Ranger Slayer, formerly the Pink Ranger of this universe returns to her home dimension, she finds it in chaos amidst the fight between remnants of Drakkon's regime and the rebellion against it. Forced to take control of the regime to help bring peace, it will take all of the Ranger Slayer's skills and courage to deal with all of the danger... and secrets, that this broken world has to reveal.

[aaron · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh man I love Ranger Slayer version of Kimberly Hart! She is an interesting character with an even more interesting redemption arc and that continues in this collection of the mini-run of Ranger Slayer comics. Kim finds herself back in her own world and fights to change things to the better even when an even greater evil shows its face. I love seeing characters I know and love in their different roles in this world. Great read!

[Matthew Ward · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an awesome dive back into the Power Rangers world and a great story taking place in Drakkon’s universe dealing with how to run things without him, lead by the Ranger Slayer. As an alternative universe story (that still has great implications for the main continuity universe) this was great! Loved everything this one had to offer.

[Craig Schorling · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is what a good side/spinoff story should be. It explains enough to get you invested and then goes with it. Some smaller characters like Scorpina, Skull, and Bulk get some great moments. The look on Bulk's face when he drives a Zord is priceless. Kim and Jason have some heart to heart moments that set up a climatic and satisfying final battle for the mini series.

[Eye-ra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not reading a lot of power rangers maybe I shouldn’t have read this right away. But even slightly confused as it went along I filed in some gaps and enjoyed it. However o think the world could’ve been better explored and fleshed out in a 5 or 6 issue mini rather than a 3.

[Ryk Stanton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow, who knew the MMPR had been allowed to evolve so much! I picked this up as a jest and was totally captivated. I’m going to have to try to get some back issues to see how they got to where they are.

[Lawrence Neu · Rating 5 out of 5]

A neat little treat

If you're a fan of the ranger slayer then this small little collection is perfect for you the cliffhanger ending leaves much to anticipate but overall a lovely read

[Brandon Daniels · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was solid. It picks up some of the threads least dangling from Shattered Grid while fleshing out a much different take on the Rangers’ world. It further illustrates how much potential this property still has.

[♤Nora · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mi Ranger favorita siempre fue Kim pero nunca me imagine que en el comic le dan un papel muy protagónico y no solo la novia de Tommy.

[Scott A. Love · Rating 5 out of 5]

I never thought a gritty Power Rangers could be this much fun!

[Ramon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting continuation

The comic book delivers a very interesting update about the drakkon realm and the aftermath for the ranger slayer. Very cool¡