This Iconic Marvel Team Is Perfect for the Next Power Rangers Crossover

The Power Rangers debuted as "teenagers with attitude," and since then, they've been the face of a franchise with various incarnations. Originally defending Angel Grove, the heroes fought alongside various other properties and characters, including the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Batman, and the Justice League. Their interactions with the Marvel Universe have been comparatively nil, but one team might be best suited for the task.

The X-Men is the true premier Marvel team, with the property being one of the company's biggest brands ever since Chris Claremont first penned their stories. Marvel's X-Men occupy a different point on the superhero spectrum than the Power Rangers, which is why teaming them up is such a good idea. Likewise, they're also franchises tied to 1990s nostalgia, making such a crossover an even better idea.

The Power Rangers Are the Kings of Modern Crossovers

The Costumed Heroes Represent Different Aspects of Heroism

Since the 2010s, the Power Rangers and the Ninja Turtles have both occupied a crossover space that hasn't been seen with many other franchises. Not only have the brands teamed up before, but the Power Rangers have also united with the DC Universe and even the mighty monster, Godzilla. This is all possible due to the narrative divergences and diversity that's inherent in the brand, which is what has kept the Power Rangers around for over three decades. Morphing into colorful costumes, the Power Rangers are a team of superheroes, though they're rarely shown interacting with the general public in many of the shows. Likewise, they also utilize hi-tech gadgets and even giant robots, making them akin to Batman with his utility belt or even James Bond.

Similar to the Dark Knight, the Power Rangers, namely the original team, are well-trained in martial arts, making them a combination of street-level heroics with a much broader scope. Due to this, it's almost shocking that the Power Rangers have had no connection or crossover with Marvel Comics. Thus, they can work in somewhat more "human" and down-to-earth stories while also reveling in tales that are over the top. It helps that the Power Rangers' general mythos is a combination of fantasy and science fiction, giving them a lot of flexibility. At the end of the day, however, they're largely seen only in a positive light and lack much of the criticism and cynicism that's sometimes directed at other heroes. Sadly for the X-Men, this is far from the case with Marvel's merry mutants.

The X-Men Are Conceptually the Opposite of the Power Rangers

Marvel's Mutant Heroes are Rarely Celebrated

Like the Power Rangers, the X-Men started out as teen heroes, though they've since expanded beyond this premise. Unlike most Marvel Comics heroes, who are characterized as genetically altered "mutates," the members of the X-Men and their spinoff teams are mutants. Born with genetic differences, the species is feared and hated by many, with the X-Men's stories largely dealing with issues of discrimination and sci-fi sociopolitical commentary. Even when they try to save a world that mistreats them, the mutants are rarely afforded much gratitude or anything in the way of a hero's welcome. Still, they use their mutant powers and other tools to defend the world at large, namely from vicious members of their own species.

From the advanced Danger Room to the Blackbird jet, the X-Men are loaded with technology that even the Avengers would be jealous of. Likewise, their ranks include geniuses such as Beast, Forge, and psychic mutant Professor Charles Xavier, among others. Even with the world disliking them, they're always up for a colorful and exotic mission, be it to Asteroid M or the dinosaur-laden world of the Savage Land. They even boast alien enemies such as the Brood and arguably the Shi'ar Empire, the latter of whom are important in the origins of X-Men members Cyclops and Havok. This has all allowed them to become one of the biggest and most profitable comic book franchises of all time, and the legendary stories involving the characters are many. Said popularity, among other things, would make for a great crossover between the heroes and the Power Rangers.

An X-Men/Power Rangers Crossover Would Be Perfect

The Two Teams are Narratively Distinct Yet Similar

On the surface, the Power Rangers and the X-Men couldn't be any more different, which is part of why a crossover would work. The original Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers mostly just protected Angel Grove, whereas the X-Men have more global pursuits. Likewise, the Power Rangers are almost never blamed or hated by the public, the exact opposite of how mutants are treated. If anything, this is the perfect reason for a slight conflict between the two, with the feud perhaps stoked both by the machinations of Rita Repulsa and Lord Zedd alongside mutant manipulators such as Mesmero and Mastermind. The two teams would come to blows over how one is treated, with the X-Men despising the relatively "cartoonish" nature of the monsters that the Power Rangers face. All the while, the Rangers would wonder why the X-Men have seemingly not "fixed the world," ignoring the far bigger problems they face.

In the end, the two teams would team up and finally use their powers and gadgets for the greater good. The Megazord could demolish Sentinels while Wolverine and the others completely toy with buffoons such as Rito and Goldar. A darker direction could also be taken that moves beyond the more obvious route, especially since both properties are familiar with grim futures. A dark alternate timeline could see the villainous Green Ranger Lord Drakkon ruling the Earth as mutants are hunted down and exterminated, combining elements of "Shattered Grid" with "Days of Future Past." This would force the present-day X-Men and Power Rangers to keep this from happening, all while showing the two teams that they aren't so different after all. It could even be hinted that Billy's near superhuman intelligence is perhaps the result of a latent X-gene, allowing him to work with the similarly intelligent Forge and create new technological devices to take down their mutual enemies.

It helps that both properties are known for their 1990s incarnations, and this narrative nostalgia could fuel such a crossover between the X-Men and the Power Rangers. The X-Men started to become more mainstream through the 1990s cartoon X-Men: The Animated Series, while the Power Rangers debuted in 1993. They both had a sense of coolness and edginess that separated them from other brands, and they involved some of the biggest heroes of the decade. This nostalgia might inform the versions of each team used in a crossover, with the original Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers team teaming up with the mutants seen in the 1990s X-Men cartoon. As a result, characters such as Jubilee and perhaps even Gambit and Rogue could relate to the Power Rangers, all while the older X-Men are a lot more standoffish in comparison.

This might be just the comic book crossover needed to really light a fire under the Power Rangers brand. Currently, there's no new show on the horizon, with a planned Netflix Power Rangers reboot going down in flames. All the while, the X-Men are still some of the biggest names at Marvel Comics, and many are anticipating their debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Thus, they could offer a high profile that helps relaunch the general interest in the Power Rangers license. Given that the Rangers have had several successful team-ups with other brands and properties, there's no reason as to why this would be any different. The result could be the first major intercompany Marvel crossover in years, and perhaps the most successful yet for the morphing teenagers with attitude.