The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have been around for four decades now and are still going strong on the comics page. — Photos: Filepic
The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have been around for so long that there is a chance that every single one of us has grown up with one kind of exposure or another to the four pizza-chomping ninja turtles.
Whether it was through the various television series, the movies, or a freebie comic book from a milk product, we knew Raphael, Donatello, Leonardo and Michelangelo as “anthropomorphic ninja turtles” and NOT Italian renaissance artists!
As for me, my first encounter with them happened in the mid 80s where I came across an extremely unorthodox comic featuring four ninjas ...but in turtle form! Personally, am not a ‘super pet’ lover (which explains why I am not a big fan of Krypto or Ace the Bathound), but the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TMNT) are an exception.
Despite its colourless facade and odd-sized print, the storytelling by its co-creators, Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird, had a very uniquely nostalgic and energetic feel to it.
Being big fans of Jack “The King” Kirby and Frank Miller, the creative duo paid tribute to the comic legends by channeling both legends’ style and influence into their comic works.
Equally legendary is Eastman and Laird’s “start-up tale”, which is fueled by passion and sacrifices made in producing their first comic book. The first issue of TMNT had a meagre print run of 3,000 copies (vs Spidey’s 300,000 print run then) and was funded by a tax refund and a loan from Eastman’s uncle. The reaction was unimaginable as it led to multiple print runs and Eastman and Laird’s full-time dedication towards TMNT.
Nevertheless, that dedication eventually deviated from its original labour of love, and the undeniable fact is that two comic fan boys created a billion dollar empire that outclassed many mainstream characters.
Today, we revisit TMNT’s four-decade long history and understand how heroes in a half shell morphed from a half-baked idea to a global phenomenon.
The initial TMNT comic was a gritty black and white indie comic self-published by Eastman and Laird.
The unorthodox idea of a turtle as a ninja originated from Eastman, who shared with Laird a drawing of a “Ninja turtle” standing on its hind legs armed with nunchucks (!).
Laird improvised by adding the words “teenage mutant”, in tandem with the (then) popularity of DC’s New Teen Titans and Marvel’s Uncanny X-Men.
To further spice things up, they named the turtles after Italian Renaissance artists and gave their origins a touch of Kirby and Miller’s Daredevil stories. If you are thinking that Eastman and Laird’s origination tale sounds very much like what we would do as kids with “fanfic” tales, that was the scenario indeed.
While this sub-headier may remind you of the 1991 TMNT movie sequel title, it is also the substance behind the creation of the Turtles. Taking a leaf from the pages of Marvel Comics’ Daredevil, the pre-ninja turtles were bathed in a radioactive ooze substance from the same “canister” that blinded Matt Murdock. While the encounter with the canister gave Murdock enhanced senses, it transformed the Turtles into fighting machines (not sure whether it caused the “pizza addiction” though).
This “unofficial crossover” with Marvel did not end here, as the Turtles’ sensei, aka Splinter, is modelled after DD’s mentor aka Stick, and the Turtles’ arch nemesis is a ninja group aka The Foot as opposed to DD’s The Hand!
Did you know that the ooze that turned the Turtles into mutants was also the same one that gave Daredevil his powers?
Based in the Big Apple’s sewers, TMNT comprises Leonardo (the team’s katana wielding leader), Raphael (strongest member who uses a pair of sai), Donatello (the team’s inventor who prefers a bo staff) and Michelangelo (the carefree member who uses nunchucks). They were raised and guided by a “mutant rat” sensei named Splinter. Beyond the sewers, the turtles have two good friends, i.e. news reporter April O’Neil and vigilante Casey Jones.
Completing the TMNT ecosystem are villains such as the Shredder, The Foot, Karai (Shredder’s daughter), Krang (alien warlord), Baxter Stockman (evil scientist), Bebop (a mutant warthog) and Rocksteady (a mutant rhinoceros).
While the animated series may use all these characters in a routine/mundane cycle, efforts to generate more depth and diversity have been happening in the comic books. A notable breakthrough in recent years is the introduction of a “fifth turtle” aka Jennika – who not only represents the fairer sex but also the first and only turtle who wields more than one main weapon.
Shredder is arguably the Turtle's most formidable and iconic foe. — Photo: IDW Publishing
TMNT’s comics journey began via Eastman and Laird’s Mirage Studios, which published 129 issues over four separate volumes from 1984 to 2014. Personally, the best TMNT stories were in the first 11 issues, which had heavy influences from the co-creators.
With the media franchise later dominating the co-creators’ attention, assistance from publishers such as Archie Comics, Image Comics and Dreamwave Productions were sought but the stories were rather “soulless” without the co-creators.
Its present home with IDW Publishing offers some hope as the co-creators reunite for The Last Ronin series, which is reminiscent of a TMNT-meets Dark Knight Returns story, with the futuristic take bringing Michelangelo on an quest to avenge his fallen brothers.
Over the years, the TMNT have also had crossovers with the likes of Batman, Usagi Yojimbo, Savage Dragon, Ghostbusters, and even TV franchises like The X-Files and Stranger Things!
The TMNT have had numerous crossovers with other properties before, including Batman.
TMNT was licensed to Playmates in 1987 and sold more than US$1bil (RM4.17bil) worth of toys in just 4 years (!). This success was replicated in the animation front, video games and a few movies.
On that note, the first TMNT movie (screened in 1990) grossed more than US$200mil (RM943mil) worldwide, making it the highest-grossing independent film back in the day.
The subsequent movies did not fare as well but they weren’t as “regrettable” (to quote Laird) as the 1997 one-season animated series, which introduced a fifth Turtle aka Venus de Milo (it’s a good thing TV appearances don’t count as canon!).
Following Michaleangelo on a solo quest for vengeance, The Last Ronin is one of the better new comics starring the Turtles.
None of those failures seemed to dampen the turtles’ popularity though. Even today, there has been a continuous renewed interest in the TMNT media franchise, with almost all big names (i.e. 4Kids, Viacom, Nickelodeon, Paramount Pictures and Netflix) having a go at milking the Turtles franchise for all its worth.
While comics purists may blame the TMNT’s “unchecked” media expansion as the cause of its limited comics expansion, well, that is the price to pay for global popularity. Something that even Eastman and Laird can’t deny as their friendship got derailed along the way. While the duo has reunited for some TMNT projects, nothing can ever surpassed the first 11 issues that they passionately worked on. Cowabunga!
