Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Return to the Sewers!
Sept 5, 2024 13:29:15 GMT -5
Confessor, driver1980, and 1 more like this
Post by thwhtguardian on Sept 5, 2024 13:29:15 GMT -5
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #2
Story and Art by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird
Mirage Comics, 1984
Story and Art by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird
Mirage Comics, 1984
Summary: After a string of mysterious bank robberies April O'neal suspects that her employer, Baxter Stockman, is using their invention( the mouser) to steal the money. When she confronts Baxter he throws her into the sewer and sicks the robots on her wherein the Turtles come to her aid.
Oftentimes when a sequel is made in the wake of an unforeseen success the creators struggle to not only recapture what made the original so special but also fail to add anything new. In the second issue of their series Eastman and Laird continue to defy the odds managing to do three things exceptionally well: 1) provides character development to the Turtles 2) expands their world with a new supporting character. 3) provides a successful pivot that allows the plot to move forward in a brand new direction. However, though certainly a strong outing this followup issue is not without its growing pains as well, namely that the new villain is pretty lack luster. But despite that pretty big flaw the good definitely out weighs the bad.
I have to say that while it was great to see the Turtles start to develop their own personalities and of course getting to see April for the first time is a huge development for the lore of the series the true shining star is that last point: the ability to pivot in new directions to continue the story...and it's such a weird and wild pivot. I think that Eastman and Laird aren't afraid to embrace the inherent weirdness of their world is really what makes this series such a worthwhile read even after all these years. And it is truly weird here,there’s the Turtles themselves, of course in all their stubby glory(they aren't nearly as human looking yet as they would be then we get a mad scientist with bank robbing killer robots. It's a big change, and you'd think it would be more than a little jarring to go from gritty Frank Miller inspired ninja action to what is basically a sci-fi romp but it some how manages to feel perfectly natural. Over all it has a fun, silver age feeling that you just can't help but smile having read it.
What's more Eastman and Laird definitely illustrate some serious growth in how they develop this pivot, where as in the first issue the pacing came to a screeching halt as Master Splinter revealed to the Turtles(and the readers) their seceret origin the use of a news story on TV that Splinter and the Turtles are watching gave managed to introduce Baxter and his robots and provide their back story while still feeling organic which is huge. On the flip side of that coin however is the undeniable fact that Baxter Stockman is such a boring, two dimensional villain. Sure, we never really got any characterization for the Shredder in the last issue, but his silent, " I let my actions speak for me" coupled with his cool samurai armor made him intriguing despite any real defining personality traits. And while the design of the Mousers are really cool( They're like evil looking, stainless steel versions of pacman) it isn't enough to make Stockman come off as anything more than just a generic bad guy doing generic bad guy things for generic bad guy reasons. In spite of that boring introduction Stockman has stood the test of time and become an important figure in the Turtles lore showing up just about in every version of the Turtles down through the years.
Speaking of the lore it's here in issue two that we first see April O'neal who has become synonymous with the Turtles. It's interesting that in her first appearance she comes across as so well developed in terms of what her role is the Turtles world and who she is. Right off the bat we see her intelligence and her feeling of having a duty to do the right thing and also that after her initial shock at meeting the Turtles she immediately accepts them for who they are as people with out question and goes on to become fast friends with them. Supporting characters often go through a lot of change through a property's evolution but despite occasionally having a different career( I honestly don't remember when or why she becomes a reporter) her core being really does stay the same which is pretty unique. On top of that, through their interactions with April we start to get our first inklings of who the Turtles are. Michelangelo uses humor to try and put April at ease, Raphael is always a man of action around her, Donatello is impressed by her technical abilities and Leonardo tries to stay level headed and mature no matter what happens. It's bare bones characterization to be sure but with out April being there for them to bounce off of we wouldn't have gotten even these subtle differences.
Overall, the second issue really provides some needed versatility to the concept proving it's a book about more than just ninjas fighting on roof tops. It's certainly flawed (I can't believe Stockman ever got a second chance at being a character after being introduced as a total throw away here) but it's still easy to see why this is a book that really captured people's attention back in the day.
Grade:8/10
Oftentimes when a sequel is made in the wake of an unforeseen success the creators struggle to not only recapture what made the original so special but also fail to add anything new. In the second issue of their series Eastman and Laird continue to defy the odds managing to do three things exceptionally well: 1) provides character development to the Turtles 2) expands their world with a new supporting character. 3) provides a successful pivot that allows the plot to move forward in a brand new direction. However, though certainly a strong outing this followup issue is not without its growing pains as well, namely that the new villain is pretty lack luster. But despite that pretty big flaw the good definitely out weighs the bad.
I have to say that while it was great to see the Turtles start to develop their own personalities and of course getting to see April for the first time is a huge development for the lore of the series the true shining star is that last point: the ability to pivot in new directions to continue the story...and it's such a weird and wild pivot. I think that Eastman and Laird aren't afraid to embrace the inherent weirdness of their world is really what makes this series such a worthwhile read even after all these years. And it is truly weird here,there’s the Turtles themselves, of course in all their stubby glory(they aren't nearly as human looking yet as they would be then we get a mad scientist with bank robbing killer robots. It's a big change, and you'd think it would be more than a little jarring to go from gritty Frank Miller inspired ninja action to what is basically a sci-fi romp but it some how manages to feel perfectly natural. Over all it has a fun, silver age feeling that you just can't help but smile having read it.
What's more Eastman and Laird definitely illustrate some serious growth in how they develop this pivot, where as in the first issue the pacing came to a screeching halt as Master Splinter revealed to the Turtles(and the readers) their seceret origin the use of a news story on TV that Splinter and the Turtles are watching gave managed to introduce Baxter and his robots and provide their back story while still feeling organic which is huge. On the flip side of that coin however is the undeniable fact that Baxter Stockman is such a boring, two dimensional villain. Sure, we never really got any characterization for the Shredder in the last issue, but his silent, " I let my actions speak for me" coupled with his cool samurai armor made him intriguing despite any real defining personality traits. And while the design of the Mousers are really cool( They're like evil looking, stainless steel versions of pacman) it isn't enough to make Stockman come off as anything more than just a generic bad guy doing generic bad guy things for generic bad guy reasons. In spite of that boring introduction Stockman has stood the test of time and become an important figure in the Turtles lore showing up just about in every version of the Turtles down through the years.
Speaking of the lore it's here in issue two that we first see April O'neal who has become synonymous with the Turtles. It's interesting that in her first appearance she comes across as so well developed in terms of what her role is the Turtles world and who she is. Right off the bat we see her intelligence and her feeling of having a duty to do the right thing and also that after her initial shock at meeting the Turtles she immediately accepts them for who they are as people with out question and goes on to become fast friends with them. Supporting characters often go through a lot of change through a property's evolution but despite occasionally having a different career( I honestly don't remember when or why she becomes a reporter) her core being really does stay the same which is pretty unique. On top of that, through their interactions with April we start to get our first inklings of who the Turtles are. Michelangelo uses humor to try and put April at ease, Raphael is always a man of action around her, Donatello is impressed by her technical abilities and Leonardo tries to stay level headed and mature no matter what happens. It's bare bones characterization to be sure but with out April being there for them to bounce off of we wouldn't have gotten even these subtle differences.
Overall, the second issue really provides some needed versatility to the concept proving it's a book about more than just ninjas fighting on roof tops. It's certainly flawed (I can't believe Stockman ever got a second chance at being a character after being introduced as a total throw away here) but it's still easy to see why this is a book that really captured people's attention back in the day.
Grade:8/10