The following contains major spoilers for Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #101, available now from BOOM! Studios.

For nearly thirty years, the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers have been pop culture's preeminent color-coded superhero team, yet their story is one that stretches back thousands and thousands of years. More so than almost anyone else, Zordon of Eltar knows all too well how much things have changed in that time, not the least of which just so happens to be himself. In fact, readers have just been given a glimpse back to the moment when the Zordon who used to be became the Zordon fans know best, and it is just as horrifying as ever.

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #101 (by Melissa Flores, Simona Di Gianfelice, Raúl Angulo, and Ed Dukeshire) brings readers back ten-thousand years to a time when Earth was completely unaware of the interstellar opera playing out on its surface. After battling one another across the cosmos, Zordon and his fellow Eltarians have finally cornered the original Evil Space Aliens on the planet's surface, where the then Supreme Guardian of Eltar sentences the villains to their ultimate confinement. Unfortunately, before she can be sealed away alongside her compatriots, Rita offers Zordon a sentence of her own, and with it she kicked off the most recognizable era in the franchise's history.

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The Power Ranger's Mentor, Zordon, Has a Tragic Origin

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Far from the tall and gleaming Eltarian warrior Zordon used to be, the version of the character first introduced in 1993's original series was little more than a head in a jar, or rather a towering visage within an equally massive Power Chamber. By using her dark magic to tear Zordon's physical form apart, Rita effectively left the Eltarian hero stranded within an intraversable time warp for what should have been eternity.

Luckily, the Power Chamber was eventually used to give Zordon a place in which he could focus what was left of his consciousness into a single ethereal form. With it, Zordon was able to continue on in his efforts against the forces of Dark Specter, assemble various lineups of Power Rangers, and even save Rita herself along with the rest of the universe when the time came. During the final battle against Dark Specter, Zordon's Power Chamber was destroyed in one of the franchise's truly unforgettable moments. By giving up the last of himself, Zordon purged evil across the cosmos, including that which had plagued the likes of Rita and Lord Zedd for thousands of years.

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Will the Power Ranger's Zordon Ever Regain a Body?

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Of course, that time has hardly come for the Power Rangers of the comics, and there is no telling if it ever will. What is perfectly clear, however, is the impact that being locked within the Power Chamber has had on Zordon over the years. From the countless moments he has been caught wishfully thinking back to better days all the way to the gleeful way in which he embraced his short-lived robotic form, it is painfully obvious that not having a body of his own is something Zordon has never really come to terms with.

On the other hand, there is always the possibility that Zordon will be given a chance to walk among his Rangers again some day soon. Billy has already proven that it can be done, and the only thing keeping it from happening all over again are the inherent risks which the impending threat of global annihilation overshadowed. With time, Zordon could very well step out of his Power Chamber and into the real world once more, even if he can't move past the memory of being trapped there to begin with.