Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Universe #4
Paul Allor, Kevin Eastman, Tom Waltz (w) • Damian Couceiro, Kevin Eastman, Bill Sienkiewicz (a) • Freddie Williams (c)
The action-packed first arc of TMNT Universe comes to a close as the Raphael makes an impossible choice and Baxter Stockman’s surprise gambit takes effect!
FC • 32 pages • $3.99
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Universe #3
Paul Allor, Kevin Eastman, Tom Waltz (w) • Damian Couceiro, Kevin Eastman, Bill Sienkiewicz (a) • Freddie Williams (c)
Cornered and injured, the Turtles have no escape from the forces aligned against them! Raphael must learn to compromise with his enemy if any are to survive!
FC • 32 pages • $3.99
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Universe #2
Paul Allor, Kevin Eastman, Tom Waltz (w) • Damian Couceiro, Kevin Eastman, Bill Sienkiewicz (a) • Freddie Williams II (c)
The Turtles are trapped and surrounded by the government. With them? One of their least favorite people in the world, Baxter Stockman! Will the unlikely allies find a way to work together and live to fight another day?
FC • 32 pages • $3.99
He-Man/Thundercats #1
Written by: Lloyd Goldfine, Rob David
Art by: Freddie E Williams II
Covers Freddie E Williams II
He-Man and the Masters of the Universe team up with the ThunderCats—the epic crossover event you’ve waited thirty years to see! In his ever-living desire to destroy the mighty ThunderCats, Mumm-Ra quests for a weapon that can rival the legendary Sword of Omens: He-Man’s Sword of Power! But his dimension-spanning scheme kick starts a cataclysmic crisis that will embroil heroes and villains—Masters, Mutants and ThunderCats—in a mind-blowing six-part saga!
So having been such an avid reader of comic books now for decades, sometimes one can forget what the main point of a comic book should be: to be fun. More importantly, to entertain. Well IDW Publishing definitely seems to know what makes a winning recipe and unlike most sauces, too many cooks here doesn’t spoil it one bit.
In fact, in each short anthology tale featured in TMNT Universe #1, a new layer is added as we peel back the onion on a very vast and growing universe.
The main story shows the Turtles on their rooftop patrol as a backup of sorts for their gal pal April as she is trying to form a business alliance with evil tech genius Baxter Stockman inside the TCRI headquarters.
While April tries to make some headway with the Turtles long time foe, our heroes are using their collective heads in a different way, namely arguing over who has the better weapon for battle. It’s the little humorous moments like these that show the writer has a good grasp on these characters.
The plot thickens whilst April tries to make an ally of Baxter Stockman. He dismisses her as a non-issue until she drops some heaping truth bombs on him. Enraged by this new found knowledge, Stockman resorts to threatening our favorite heroine. Before he can carry out his threat it seems that the “good” doctor has a new enemy in his midst.
Before our new baddie can leave the scene of the crime, our half-shelled heroes arrive and find quickly they are but no match her. She dispatches them all with ease and leaves the Turtles in a very precarious position by the end of the main story.
We then shift gears and focus on the classic creative team and all knowing Ninja God scribe Kevin Eastman and legendary artist Bill Sienkiewicz the reigns for the next jaunt into the Turtleverse. It’s a nice short tale featuring Leonardo taking on the Foot Clan.
The story is nothing Earth shattering here. Just Leonardo having a good ol’ fashioned slice and dice with some foolish henchman. It would be a totally pedestrian segment in the book if it weren’t for Leo’s banter and internal monologs. Parts of it are quite funny and Sienkiewicz’ gritty scratchy art (reminiscent of Frank Miller) fits the mood just right. Leo is left in a situation by story’s end and we get the obligatory “To Be Continued”
Last but not least we end with the “Secret Origin of The Foot Clan.” I found this to be very cool as it’s not an aspect that has heavily been explored (at least not until this IDW run) It’s a quick story that has a lone swordsman surviving an onslaught from his “brothers” in ancient feudal Japan. The action and story moves briskly and is pretty cut and dry but the last few panels offer up something intriguing.
Overall: All in all like most anthology books, this had a little of everything. Being the big Turtle fan that I am, I loved the opening story. It set up a new direction with possibly April and Baxter being allies and introduced a new formidable villain. I’m not quite sure of her game yet but the way she was introduced, definitely made me want to see a bit more.
Eastman’s Leo tale was pretty decent but compared to the other two stories it came off as filler with no serious ramifications coming from it. What it means to future issues remains to be seen.
Between the main story and the Foot Clan short, I was definitely satisfied. This issue wasn’t quite the Meat Lovers Pizza I was looking for but had a little bit of everything to make it a house special.
Story: Paul Allor, Kevin Eastman, and Tom Waltz
Art: Damian Couceiro, Bill Sienkiewicz, Freddie E. Williams
Story: 7 Art: 8 Score: 7.3 Recommendation: Read
IDW Publishing provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Universe #1
Paul Allor, Kevin Eastman, Tom Waltz (w) • Damian Couceiro, Kevin Eastman, Bill Sienkiewicz (a) • Freddie Williams (c)
Introducing a new era in TMNT! This series will explore characters and story-lines that are pivotal to the IDW TMNT universe! When a mysterious new mutant targets Baxter Stockman, it will be up to the TMNT to reluctantly save him. Little does everyone know that a larger trap is being laid by a new arch-foe! Plus a back-up story from TMNT co-creator Kevin Eastman and comics legend Bill Sienkiewicz!
FC • 40 pages • $4.99
It’s the epic crossover event 30 years in the making! He-Man and the Masters of the Universe team up with the ThunderCats to make comic book and pop culture history! Scheduled to debut in October and published by DC Entertainment, this monthly miniseries will embroil heroes and villains—Masters, Mutants and ThunderCats—in a mind-blowing six-part comic book saga!
The story will be brought to life by the writing team of Mattel Head Writer and Masters of the Universe Lead Creative Rob David and Supervising Producer Lloyd Goldfine, with all-star artist Freddie E. Williams II handling interiors and cover art.
In his eternal desire to destroy the mighty ThunderCats, the evil Mumm-Ra quests for a weapon that can rival the legendary Sword of Omens: He-Man’s Sword of Power! But his dimension-spanning scheme launches a cataclysmic crisis that will, for the first time ever, unite Lion-O, Cheetara, Tygra, Panthro, WilyKit and WilyKat with He-Man, Battlecat, Teela, Man-At-Arms and the rest of the Masters of the Universe.
He-Man/Thundercats #1 debuts October 5, 2016.
![HeManThunderCats_promo_Freddie_E_Williams_II[1]](https://media.graphicpolicy.com/2016/07/hemanthundercats_promo_freddie_e_williams_ii1.jpg)
IDW Publishing will launch a second ongoing comic series based on Nickelodeon’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. IDW has been home to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comics since 2011 and the high demand for this iconic brand has now paved the way for a sister series entitled Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Universe this August.
The creative team for the first arc will include writer Paul Allor joined by artist Damian Couceiro on a story centered around a dangerous new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles foe — the U.S. government! A back-up story will run alongside it from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles co-creator Kevin Eastman and comics legend Bill Sienkiewicz. Freddie E Williams II, fresh off the bestselling Batman/TMNT crossover mini-series with DC Comics, will supply regular cover art, with guest artists providing sought-after variants.
This new spin-off sets itself apart from the ongoing Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series by spotlighting characters and storylines that are pivotal to the vast IDW TMNT universe, while also showcasing fan-favorite creators alongside emerging talent.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Universe will explore tales along the entire continuity of the current ongoing Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series, which recently hit 56 issues and counting. This will mark the first time two ongoing Turtles comics will run in tandem since IDW got involved with the property.
Look out for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Universe this August at your local comic shop.
If you’re a fan, even in passing, of either franchise, this is a crossover you have been wanting for a long time. We’re three issues into the six issue miniseries that’s being co-published by DC and IDW now, and so the question of whether the crossover is living up to expectations can be answered with a degree of accuracy.
And it does.
As with any comic book property crossover, there seems to be at least a vague formulaic approach to the opening of the arc; Hero A meets Hero B, they fight (typically to a draw), then realize that they have a common goal, so pool resources. It’s a familiar formula because for the most part it works in allowing the reader of one property to get a bit of background on the other, and allows the fans to see the fight they wanted to see before the story proper begins.
James Tynion IV has captured the essences of the main heroic characters here with a graceful ease that allows fans, like me, who are more familiar with one publisher’s stable than the other to be able to follow and enjoy the story as it’s presented. And it’s presented very well. Perhaps one of my favourite aspects of the artwork is the hand coloured vibe that Jeremy Colwell‘s has. It feels as though he’s used coloured pencils on the pages here that gives an almost modern vintage feel to the series, which evokes memories of the last time these characters met on my bedroom floor twenty some years ago. As interesting as Colwell‘s colouring is, if Freddie Williams II‘s art wasn’t equal to the task then visually the comic would fall flat. It doesn’t. Each turtle has a distinct personality conveyed in the art, just as the innate power of the Dark Knight comes across, and the threat of Shredder. What is happening within the story is clearly shown on the page, with none of the details being lost within panels where it would be easy to let that happen.
With the miniseries having established a simple, yet very effective reason behind the Turtles and their father needing to get home, and why they can’t stay beyond the typical “our people need us!” trope. And so, the team up proper happens and with the third issue we finally see the Heroes in a Half Shell and the Dark Knight standing on the same side. It makes you realize just how well the characters work together, and I hope that the six issues we’re getting won’t be the only six issues we’ll get of these characters in the same comic.
It’s a glorious combination.
In all honesty, this crossover had the potential to be nothing short of a quick cash grab for both publishers, because whether you want to admit it or not people would buy it regardless of the quality of the issues (I was planning too), but when I saw that James Tynion IV was scripting the series I felt a glimmer of hope that this would be worth reading.
So far it has lived up to my hopes and dreams, which is good because I’d be buying it anyway. Like Leonardo says “this here is a…. TOTALLY AWESOME TEAM-UP!”
Story: James Tynion IV Art: Freddie E Williams II Colours: Jeremy Colwell
Story: 8.75 Art: 8.75 Overall: 8.75 Recommendation: Buy
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DC Comics and IDW Publishing team up for the crossover you never saw coming as two of the greatest entertainment icons meet for the first time! In Gotham City, a series of deadly raids leads Batman to believe he’s up against a group of highly trained ninjas known as the Foot Clan! Somehow, they’ve crossed over to another dimension and are determined to take advantage of the situation while looking to get back home. But they haven’t come alone: Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello and Michelangelo are hot on their trail.
When I first heard about this series I immediately thought back to some of the crazy crossovers I remember reading during my teenage years in the 90s. The idea of the Turtles and Batman teaming up seems so silly, but at the same time definitely appeals to that kid in me.
The comic is very much in the style of those crazy classic team-ups that seemed to dominate comics for a while, and it works really well. That’s to do with writer James Tynion IV who really seems to know what he’s doing, which is not to take the crossover too seriously and have fun. While we don’t totally know how the Turtles are in Batman’s world, it still somehow works. Partially is because of that fun
The first issue is a lot of lead up, but we have the Turtles taking on Killer Croc and Batman dealing with the Foot Clan. There’s just something that’s fun, which is the key word here.
The art by Freddie Williams II is good and covers things nicely. What really stood out to me is the coloring by Jeremy Colwell which I’m not the biggest fan of, but hearkens back to early TMNT comics where the shading involved lots of use of white and dark lines outlining the characters. You’ll like it or you’ll hate it probably. I wasn’t the biggest fan, but it’s not enough to really take me out of the comic.
DC Comics and IDW are taking this miniseries seriously with top creative team that are showing that while the concept might seem silly, this isn’t a cash grab. Can’t wait to see where this goes next, as I was seriously amazed at how well it worked.
Story: James T Tynion IV Art: Freddie E Williams II
Story: 8 Art: 7.7 Overall: 8 Recommendation: Buy
DC Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review
