Power Rangers Returning to Comics Through Papercutz

[Rich Johnston]

Peter S. Svensson writes for Bleeding Cool about a show he's writing a book on.

Papercutz is the young readers imprint of NBM responsible for releasing the Smurfs comics in English, and creating original Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys comics. They have just gotten the rights to release comics of the long-running Power Rangers franchise. Specifically, they will be releasing a series of graphic novels based on the current season airing on Nickelodeon: Power Rangers Super Samurai. Not the original Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers show that began in 1993 and has the iconic characters that most of you remember. These graphic novels by the team of writer Stefan Petrucha (who has written some Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys books for Papercutz) and artist Paulo Henrique (who most recently drew the Lego Ninjago graphic novels.) aren't aimed at the adult fans, but at the kids who are watching their favorite color-coded superheroes on TV.

The comics will not be adaptations of existing episodes of the show, but original stories featuring the Samurai Rangers who use their totally-not-Japanese-calligraphy-based powers to fight off a demonic invasion by the evil Lord Xandred. The roughly 50-page graphic novels will be released quarterly in both hardcover and softcover simultaneously. The first volume, Power Rangers Super Samurai Vol 01 Memory Short, is in the current Previews catalog for ordering and has an estimated release date of June 27th. In that first volume, the Rangers will be attending a concert in their civilian identities but have to deal with the entire audience being mind controlled to attack them. Can they manage to win without slaughtering hundreds?! Probably, I mean this is a franchise aimed at elementary school kids.

This will be the first Power Rangers comic released in the US since 1997, when Acclaim did a one-shot. There have been comic strips released in Europe for over a decade, including a year where it was written by Simon Furman, but those got no release in the US. Sadly.

Papercutz currently has no plans to release comics based on the original Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers, much to the dismay of the adult fans reading this as well as myself. There might be some references or call backs to them in their comics adapting next year's show, which will be an adaptation of the Japanese original "Pirate Squadron Gokaiger." And now for a gratuitous plug for the Official Power Morphicon, which I'm involved with.

(And stay tuned next year for the release of "Twenty Years of Color-Coded Teenagers" by yours truly.)

[Blackfist]

Oh god the 90s

[RYard]

Wait, is the Pirate Power Rangers confirmed?

[MicroZone]

I tried a few of Papercutz titles when they revived Tales from the Crypt. Every single product from DC, Marvel & Image in the past 20 years was better. To have waited 50 years for new EC only to have something worse than fanfic makes me terrified of what they will do to an already weak series.

I'm already leery of what Saban will do to Gokaiger, which is pure awesome even before you add the 35th anniversary guest-stars. Saban does normally destroy any story or character potential in it's American Sentai/Toku adaptions. Then couple THAT potential clusterfuck with whatever Papercutz belches out. Ugh. At least they can't take away my Gokaiger vs Space Sheriff Gavin joy.

[Hollow]

[I]This will be the first Power Rangers comic released in the US since 1997, when Acclaim did a one-shot.

Hmmm. No.



Published in november 2004. Yes, they are "Cine-Manga" (Photo-Comics) but still... comics.

And the theme was the best the series had to offer.

Now if they would do new comics based on "Winspector" I'd be all over that:

[Blackfist]

Now if they would do new comics based on "Winspector" I'd be all over that

i still want VR troopers back

Saban does normally destroy any story or character potential in it's American Sentai/Toku adaptions.

It was worse under disney, kinda declined after Dino Thunder

[MicroZone]

Even awesome dino mechs and Tommy returning couldn't keep me interested in Dino Thunder. Tho to be fair, Time Force was the only season that I watched all the way thru since the beginning. I'm watching Jetman for the first time now and wishing Saban had gotten his way and we just had a dub of this show for the first season. Bouncing between this, Gokaiger and new episodes of Go-busters when the subs get posted online every Monday. Not sure if I want to watch the new parody Sentai yet. The raw looked okay. I don't want to get too bogged down with similar shows. I really want to find the first Kamen Rider subbed. Found the first episode on YouTube and want to watch more. Might settle for KR The First/The Next if I can't find more of the original. Heard KR Black was good and downloaded it yesterday.

I seem to remember a Big Bad Beetleborgs comic back in the 90s along with MMPR. (Marvel? Can't remember by who.) Don't recall ever seeing a Masker Rider comic here tho. I know the TV shows are all coming out on DVD starting this year. Every season of every Saban PR/Toku series. Shame there's so little demand for official subs on DVD to warrant those. Of course, Shout did release subbed versions of the three seasons of Transformers after it ended here and they're doing the Saban stuff too. maybe if we bug them.

[Static-Pulse]

And now for a gratuitous plug for the Official Power Morphicon, which I'm involved with.

PMC shows up at BC. My worlds are colliding!

Melodrama aside, this might be kind of cool. Samurai is the first Ranger show I've watched in a while, and while not without some hiccups, is fun to watch. I'll have to keep an eye out for the book...books, the comic and yours. Thanks for the heads up!

[GreyMouser]

Microzone:
i dont know if this helps, or what it means for videos, but when i was in Japan in Oct/Nov '11 there were TONS of new Kamen Rider toys coming out. seriously, like several dozen designs in different sizes, etc.
this means a big push for the future?

[Blackfist]

Microzone:
i dont know if this helps, or what it means for videos, but when i was in Japan in Oct/Nov '11 there were TONS of new Kamen Rider toys coming out. seriously, like several dozen designs in different sizes, etc.
this means a big push for the future?

If i remeber correctly Kamen Rider is more popular than the Ranger stuff (even the games are better )