Combo Rangers: We Are Heroes Vol. 1
Picnic Ninja
Written by: Fabio Yabu
Drawn by: Michael Borges
Reviewer: Rob Wrecks
Summary: In New City, superpowers are old news. People often use them fly to work or to clean the house. With so many people flying in the skies, the super heroes ended up forgotten.When the villain Satan Boss and his Evol Empire invades the Earth, it's up to the Mighty Combo to sum up five children with pure hearts to defend the planet. Together, Fox, Ken, Kiko, Lisa and Tati will show the world the hero that lives inside of them... and in all of us!
Review: For some strange reason, when I began reading this I thought it was a first issue type of thing. But as I got to reading more of this I quickly realized it was more of a volume then a single issue. My fault really for not bothering to read titles more carefully. And to be honest, when I first saw this in the weekly Submit list, I just knew reading it would be a must! It is very obvious that Combo Rangers is a nod to Super Sentai/Power Rangers, and considering what Fabio and Michael are fans of, its easy to see why they wound up doing this. Even though the characters all tend to look kid sized with a few various heights for some characters. I imagine Michael Borges found that particular design to be the most easiest. Or perhaps it was what Fabio himself wanted. Aside from that, I didn't really have any other issues with the art. We also have Tomas Buteler to thank for making an English version of this story.
Though there is some obvious grammar errors that are present here and there but I didn't find it too serious an issue. While I found this to be somewhat silly and in some cases annoying (looking at you Principal Pile) I still found myself enjoying this. The lead character known as Fox really took to everything like a fish does to water.
Reminds me a little of Jason Lee Scott in how he wasn't really hesitant about what Zordon was offering him and the others. Only with Fox, and his team they weren't exactly hesitant about anything. Though with their mentors (aside from Mirrorman), these guys aren't exactly all that entirely bright. And with Fox, he's more likely to rush into a fight on his own. Something I could see winding up becoming a huge problem later on.
Superpowers being of the mind set of 'Oh, those are so 1990's!' was a key theme in this title as well. Fabio managed to nicely keep that part of the story from being over done. Although a certain blonde reporter REALLY needs to do her homework cause she's making blondes everywhere else look bad. I admit that I was surprised by the amount of colorists and inkers involved in this title. But considering there is 123 pages of content in this, I suppose I shouldn't be too surprised. I am curious though if this title was done in single issues or if it was all done as one thing rather then singles. Something I'll be sure to look into when I have the chance! As for the villains, while they had names that you really couldn't take too seriously (Yes Satan Boss I am including you in this too!), the villains themselves weren't exactly pushovers however. Especially the main show runner Satan Boss himself, as he himself knows the merits of long term waiting. Something some hardly seem to be able to grasp as they prefer the direct with occasional subtle approaches. As this is aimed at kids and youngsters in general, Fabio managed to also nicely keep from going over board with the fighting.
So if you are a parent and worried this might not be suitable because of all the fighting that goes on in this. I can assure you that you have nothing to worry about. Still not convinced? There's no cussing! What? Still not enough!? Okay there's an over bearing Principal who's more concerned with education and making sure everything falls in line. That got you? Well, okay then! Personally, as I mentioned earlier, I found the Principal Pile character to be pretty darn annoying. His turd styled hair does him no favors either! There's a moment around the end of the story however that has him slightly redeemed, but I can't see it sticking as it seems he is the type who has to experience a lot to really change from the annoying all fall into place kind of guy. Lisa Lima who's the team's Yellow is someone who'd likely fit blue more since usually blue rangers are the really smart ones. Plus if it wasn't for her mad skills, things likely might have been a bit worse off for everyone!
As for Tati, while she wasn't originally the first choice for the role of the Pink ranger, (though I love her tenacity) she certainly came to fit well. Her scream abilities even compliment her too! Though I'm curious on how much longer it'll be before she admits certain feelings towards a certain Red team mate. Combo Rangers is something I hope to see more of, especially to see how the 5 rangers grow into their new roles. The fact there's already a few prospective 6th members that could be brought in at some point is a nice touch too. As for Ken, (Blue Ranger) this kid is in serious need of a hair cut! Having all that hair in front of his eyes can in no way be a good thing. Especially in the fights that are surely to come as Satan Boss and his main two minions keep on in the quest to take Earth. As for Kiko, (Green Ranger) I can only imagine how badly he's going to handle things when he realizes that the use of Popularity isn't always going to be around. Or be all that useful. First volume alone already has started him on that path and I can only imagine how he'll be able to handle it again when it happens again. Or on a variety of occasions. Although I got to admit, there's a moment on here that felt like a Captain Planet moment! Whether or not anybody else will see it like that will be fun to see.
Giluke and Deke (Satan Boss' main two minions) are definitely two guys I look forward to seeing more of. Especially after the events of this book and what Satan Boss may or may not do. Though again, the fact he has something of a good grasp in the thinking of long term warfare, it might not bother him too great a deal. Course I could always be wrong. All I know is.. I'm ready to believe in the power of Combo! So if you haven't yet, put this title in front of your eyes! Not just your own eyes, but with the whole family too! And at 99 cents, you certainly can't beat a good price like that!
Editor's Note: To get your digital read on with Combo Rangers, head over to ComiXology!
Picnic Ninja
Written by: Fabio Yabu
Drawn by: Michael Borges
Reviewer: Rob Wrecks
Summary: In New City, superpowers are old news. People often use them fly to work or to clean the house. With so many people flying in the skies, the super heroes ended up forgotten.When the villain Satan Boss and his Evol Empire invades the Earth, it's up to the Mighty Combo to sum up five children with pure hearts to defend the planet. Together, Fox, Ken, Kiko, Lisa and Tati will show the world the hero that lives inside of them... and in all of us!
Review: For some strange reason, when I began reading this I thought it was a first issue type of thing. But as I got to reading more of this I quickly realized it was more of a volume then a single issue. My fault really for not bothering to read titles more carefully. And to be honest, when I first saw this in the weekly Submit list, I just knew reading it would be a must! It is very obvious that Combo Rangers is a nod to Super Sentai/Power Rangers, and considering what Fabio and Michael are fans of, its easy to see why they wound up doing this. Even though the characters all tend to look kid sized with a few various heights for some characters. I imagine Michael Borges found that particular design to be the most easiest. Or perhaps it was what Fabio himself wanted. Aside from that, I didn't really have any other issues with the art. We also have Tomas Buteler to thank for making an English version of this story.
Though there is some obvious grammar errors that are present here and there but I didn't find it too serious an issue. While I found this to be somewhat silly and in some cases annoying (looking at you Principal Pile) I still found myself enjoying this. The lead character known as Fox really took to everything like a fish does to water.
Reminds me a little of Jason Lee Scott in how he wasn't really hesitant about what Zordon was offering him and the others. Only with Fox, and his team they weren't exactly hesitant about anything. Though with their mentors (aside from Mirrorman), these guys aren't exactly all that entirely bright. And with Fox, he's more likely to rush into a fight on his own. Something I could see winding up becoming a huge problem later on.
Superpowers being of the mind set of 'Oh, those are so 1990's!' was a key theme in this title as well. Fabio managed to nicely keep that part of the story from being over done. Although a certain blonde reporter REALLY needs to do her homework cause she's making blondes everywhere else look bad. I admit that I was surprised by the amount of colorists and inkers involved in this title. But considering there is 123 pages of content in this, I suppose I shouldn't be too surprised. I am curious though if this title was done in single issues or if it was all done as one thing rather then singles. Something I'll be sure to look into when I have the chance! As for the villains, while they had names that you really couldn't take too seriously (Yes Satan Boss I am including you in this too!), the villains themselves weren't exactly pushovers however. Especially the main show runner Satan Boss himself, as he himself knows the merits of long term waiting. Something some hardly seem to be able to grasp as they prefer the direct with occasional subtle approaches. As this is aimed at kids and youngsters in general, Fabio managed to also nicely keep from going over board with the fighting.
So if you are a parent and worried this might not be suitable because of all the fighting that goes on in this. I can assure you that you have nothing to worry about. Still not convinced? There's no cussing! What? Still not enough!? Okay there's an over bearing Principal who's more concerned with education and making sure everything falls in line. That got you? Well, okay then! Personally, as I mentioned earlier, I found the Principal Pile character to be pretty darn annoying. His turd styled hair does him no favors either! There's a moment around the end of the story however that has him slightly redeemed, but I can't see it sticking as it seems he is the type who has to experience a lot to really change from the annoying all fall into place kind of guy. Lisa Lima who's the team's Yellow is someone who'd likely fit blue more since usually blue rangers are the really smart ones. Plus if it wasn't for her mad skills, things likely might have been a bit worse off for everyone!
As for Tati, while she wasn't originally the first choice for the role of the Pink ranger, (though I love her tenacity) she certainly came to fit well. Her scream abilities even compliment her too! Though I'm curious on how much longer it'll be before she admits certain feelings towards a certain Red team mate. Combo Rangers is something I hope to see more of, especially to see how the 5 rangers grow into their new roles. The fact there's already a few prospective 6th members that could be brought in at some point is a nice touch too. As for Ken, (Blue Ranger) this kid is in serious need of a hair cut! Having all that hair in front of his eyes can in no way be a good thing. Especially in the fights that are surely to come as Satan Boss and his main two minions keep on in the quest to take Earth. As for Kiko, (Green Ranger) I can only imagine how badly he's going to handle things when he realizes that the use of Popularity isn't always going to be around. Or be all that useful. First volume alone already has started him on that path and I can only imagine how he'll be able to handle it again when it happens again. Or on a variety of occasions. Although I got to admit, there's a moment on here that felt like a Captain Planet moment! Whether or not anybody else will see it like that will be fun to see.
Giluke and Deke (Satan Boss' main two minions) are definitely two guys I look forward to seeing more of. Especially after the events of this book and what Satan Boss may or may not do. Though again, the fact he has something of a good grasp in the thinking of long term warfare, it might not bother him too great a deal. Course I could always be wrong. All I know is.. I'm ready to believe in the power of Combo! So if you haven't yet, put this title in front of your eyes! Not just your own eyes, but with the whole family too! And at 99 cents, you certainly can't beat a good price like that!
Editor's Note: To get your digital read on with Combo Rangers, head over to ComiXology!