Tom Waltz (Author) Kevin Eastman (Author) Dave Wachter (Artist, Cover Artist) Bobby Curnow (Author) Ronda Pattison (Colorist) Shawn Lee (Letterer)
Thanks to IDW Publishing for the review copy!
IDW recently celebrated the 100th issue of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles so I decided to go back a few issues and start reviewing the series. To establish my TMNT cred, I have the collected editions of the old Eastman and Laird comics, I watched the original cartoon, and I’ve seen all the movies. But I haven’t read the IDW take on the characters, I didn’t know what to expect.
While Nickelodeon owns the rights to the Turtles, style wise, this comic is much closer to the original comics than the 80s-90s cartoon. It’s dark and gritty. There’s violence, some blood, and people die. I liked the classic characters are included, but with a new angle. Splinter is the head of the Foot Clan (!?), Baxter Stockman is a candidate for mayor, and April isn’t a reporter.
This issue is a great jumping on point for the series. Perhaps more importantly, it includes an oral history of IDW’s turtles series. If you are new to the series, I recommend flipping to the back and reading this first as it establishes the changes IDW made to the characters and gives an introduction to some of the new characters.
Issue 93 serves as the the first in the “City at War” arc, establishing Karai, who is a descendant of Oroku Saki (Oroku Saki is usually the infamous Shredder but I’m not sure yet what this series’ take on him is) as the bad guy. While much has obviously occurred over 92 issues, the story does a good job of explaining what happened, explaining the characters’ motivations, and setting the pieces in place for a war between the Oroku and Foot Clans. I really liked the inclusion of other mutant animals (Mutanimals), who each have a unique character design. Artist Dave Wachter also does an impressive job conveying the turtles’ emotions without looking too cartoony.
I’m excited to see what comes next as the series builds towards issue #100.
TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES #93 is now available.
Check back tomorrow for my thoughts on TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES #94
Have you read the issue? What are your thoughts? Feel free to chat with me on Twitter or leave a comment below!
