Quiet week to end May, as the next week to begin June will have more stuff. Three comics, three spoilers. Upward and onward!
DREAD'S BOUGHT/THOUGHT FOR 5/30/12!
TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES #10: The core TMNT ongoing series written by Kevin Eastman and Tom Waltz and drawn by Dan Duncan technically ran a week late and didn't ship an issue in April. Such a fact was easy to forget since IDW also has a secondary TMNT MICRO-SERIES running alongside it, which did shift an issue last month. The fortunate consequence is that since May is one of those rare months with five Wednesdays, this means this is the second issue of this series to ship in May. As usual, it continues Eastman and Waltz's masterful retelling of the TMNT mythos in a manner which embraces the bedrock of the franchise as well as characters from the various adapted media into a cohesive and action packed whole.
As the cover (one of three for the issue) showcases, the arch-nemesis of the Ninja Turtles, the Shredder, finally makes his debut in this series. Considering that in the original 1980's TMNT #1 issue, the Shredder both debuted and was killed off within the span of 40+ pages, you could argue fans have waited a bit for him to appear in this re-imaged universe. A great majority of the MIRAGE STUDIOS TMNT series dealt with the Turtles battling other threats, but the various cartoons and films since have cemented the Shredder as their top nemesis, which has stuck with the audience. Besides being repeatedly utilized in mass media, the Shredder has always been linked to the origin of the TMNT (and their mentor, Splinter), and this incarnation of the franchise has taken an interesting route with that. The gist is that while Splinter and his four half-shelled students were mutated via "ooze" devised from Baxtor Stockman's lab, their souls were reincarnated from a family from feudal Japan who were killed opposing the corrupt Foot Clan, which was run by Oroku Saki. This altered origin was likely done to better mingle the themes of sci-fi with Eastern philosophy which have always been intertwined in TMNT, as well as get around the idea of a pet rat learning ninjitsu from a cage. Essentially, Splinter is the reincarnation of Homato Yoshi and retained his ninjitsu skills as well as awareness that Yoshi's sons have also been reborn as the Turtles. Splinter had been successfully captured by Stockman's Mouser robots, but the Foot Ninja have kidnapped him from Stockman's clutches. Thus, while the Turtles as well as their allies Casey and April attempt to find Splinter and figure out their next movie, Shredder and his second-in-command Karai attempt to force Splinter into joining the Foot.
The issue is divided between focus on Splinter's trial with the Foot, the Turtles and their allies regrouping, and Stockman answering to his own financial backer. Despite both being mixed in creating the TMNT, Shredder and Stockman represent two conflicting sides. Stockman is being bankrolled by General Krang (a warlord from space disguised as a banana republic dictator) into creating genetic experiments which Krang seeks to employ in his intergalactic army. These experiments include mutated animal warriors such as the feline Old Hob, Splinter's other enemy. Both factions compete for turf as well as resources, with Shredder seeing Splinter as a useful mutant warrior to recruit; only after seeing Splinter in action does he realize the ancient link between their souls. Waltz's action sequences as always are a highlight, another highlight is the argument between Leonardo and Donatello over their conflicting philosophies. Leo naturally believes all of Splinter's reincarnation stories, while Don is a Turtle of science who seeks to examine only those elements. The two don't quite realize they are creations of both, at least not yet. Mikey also benefits here as being a well needed optimist and lighter hearted character rather than the moron he typically is in media adaptations. Fans get another look at old background locations such as April's old antique shop and her yellow van, which serve as building blocks towards revised material.
As always, IDW's TMNT series is the best thing to come out of Peter Laird's $40 million sale of the franchise to Viacom in 2010. While it is a shame that Kevin Eastman didn't get a cut of that payday, he is the co-creator currently involved in influencing the Turtles in this comic as well as future adaptations. While the upcoming NickToons show may be geared towards kids, and the Michael Bay produced film may be a farce geared at teens, this ongoing series is geared towards everyone, and should please Turtle fans new and old. It has become one of IDW's best sellers and one of the best selling "indie" comics in monthly sales, and frankly deserves to. If one hasn't given this series a try, embrace your inner "Generation X" child and give it a go.
BATMAN BEYOND UNLIMITED #4: This ongoing series which offers physical prints of DC Comics' "digital first" material in their BATMAN BEYOND alternate future universe has quickly become a sort of anthology series. While Batman Beyond and Justice League Unlimited share the title dress, it also features a "Superman Beyond" strip and has begun a Warhawk strip detailing his conception. For $3.99, one gets 40 pages of story which is a good deal for those who are not buying this material online ahead of time. Derek Fridolfs, Dustin & Eric Nguyen work on the JLU and the Warhawk strips, which flow from one to the other. In the JLU strip, the Justice League of the future have found out that the cult Kobra has revived a horrible serpent monster and unleashed it upon the planet New Genesis, where team member Barda hails. Terry McGinnis/Batman gets a new suit from the elderly and retired Bruce Wayne to aid in a response mission, but they arrive too late to save the planet. The Warhawk strip delves further into playing with continuity crafted from the "JLU" TV show by explaining how John Stewart and Hawkgirl would eventually sire a child despite Stewart insisting on dating Vixen to spite destiny. The unfortunate result is that in two comics in a show (this and JUSTICE LEAGUE INTERNATIONAL), Vixen is taken out by a villain to further the plot. Eric Nguyen's artwork has more of an illustrative style than Dustin Nguyen's, but it all flows well. Adam Beechen and artist Norm Breyfogle continue on with their BATMAN BEYOND strip, finally ending their "Return of Mad Stan" plot in which Terry finally manages to capture both the titular bomber as well as some Russian arms dealers. Matched with Andrew Elder's colors, the artwork is stunning to behold while the script for this serial strip is probably the best thing Beechen has continuously written for DC in ages. J.T. Krul and Howard Porter continue on their SUPERMAN BEYOND script, and it seems to stick out a bit. While Fridolfs, Nyguyen, and Beechen seem to be working from the same foundation of continuity based on Bruce Timm produced animation and all flow well together, Krul's Superman Beyond script seems to function in its own space. In this script, Superman is a lonely man without friends in a Metropolis which has replaced him with cybernetic cops and Lex Luthor's latest heir set to try to kill him. Overall, while the Superman strip is a little bland, this is still a terrific value for your money featuring a continuation of one of the best DC cartoons which ushered in the 21st century.
X-MEN LEGACY #267: Crossovers with line wide promotional events are common for second and third tier franchise titles such as this are common. Often times they can trigger an uptick in quality or at least an exciting diversion, while other times they feel burdensome and obligatory. Writer Christos Gage is at the helm of two series wrapped in the midst of AVENGERS VS. X-MEN and while the crossover hasn't brought out the best in AVENGERS ACADEMY, it has given this title the kick in the keister it needed.
This is the title which covers the team of X-Men tasked with protecting the Wolverine founded Jean Grey School for Higher Learning; with Wolverine (and Beast) busying siding with the Avengers against Cyclops and the rest of the X-Men, the squad at the school (led by Rogue) sought to stay neutral. While Iceman and Rachel Summers departed to aid Cyclops band off the bat - with Rachel having a fair point that since she hosted the Phoenix Force for years and never went insane, so could Hope - Rogue, Kitty Pryde, Husk, Chamber, Cannonball, Gambit, Mimic, and Frenzy sought to stay on the sidelines and tend to their students. This task became difficult not only due to their students' eagerness to join the battle, but a squad of C-List Avengers such as Moon Knight, She-Hulk and Falcon being dispatched to "occupy" the campus to make sure no X-Men leave to aid Cyclops. In the previous issue, despite everyone's attempts to avoid a conflict, Frenzy and the unstable Moon Knight proved the spark needed for a full blown battle. This issue continues that struggle as Rogue's conflict with her past continues to be the centerpiece. She made her debut in AVENGERS ANNUAL #10 in 1981 using her powers to defeat the entire team, but has since long evolved and reformed from her days on Mystique's Brotherhood Of Evil Mutants. However, this conflict forces those old memories as well as urges to come out, which may be what her friends need to survive once Iron Man is called for back-up. Relying on Rogue to cut loose with her absorbsion powers to save the day also risks losing her to the abyss of absorbed psyches, but her strength of character is stronger now than when she was a teenager. This issue is essentially one long action sequence for artist Rafa Sandoval (along with inker Jordi Tarragona and colorist Rachelle Rosenberg), but it plays to his strengths and is very entertaining. Moon Knight's tactic against Rogue in particular almost embodies awesome comic book logic, which should be read and not spoiled. While the Avengers tend to look like bullies here, one could say that of AVX in general, which Gage had nothing to do with writing.
Rogue is the star of this run, and the series in general for a long time since Mike Carey was writing it, which has the side effect of snuffing character development for others. The next issue promises focus on Frenzy, and it will be good to spotlight other characters here. Gage's run on this title has been neither great or terrible, but these two crossover issues have definitely spiked the needle closer to the former. One hopes that trend continues.
