I was on the fence with this one before I went into the shop. I grabbed it off the rack and nostalgia won out. Remind me to thank my nostalgia later because I had a blast reading this issue. Like G.I. Joe is for our intrepid leaders on this site, TMNT was for me. I worshiped that cartoon and think I owned, literally, every toy they ever made. Because of my age at the time, I had never read the comic books, mainly because I wasn’t into comics at that point. Now, as a comic fan, I’m delighted to see a comic book that captures the spirit of the cartoon while staying true to its more serious comic book roots. This issue was a true delight as it focuses on a new-ish origin for our shelled heroes. Sprinkled into the story we see different variants of characters that we’re familiar with, like April O’Neal and Casey Jones. I also have to mention the panel in the issue that made me laugh out loud. I won’t give it away, but it involves gangsta babies and is truly one of those awesome Michelangelo jokes. I’m excited to see where this story takes us, and if I’m being honest, it’s a lot of fun to hold a TMNT comic in my grubby little hands.

The art by Dan Duncan is kinetic, to say the least. There is movement in all of the panels, and yet he finds ways to express some true turtle emotion. The coloring does a nice job of distinguishing each of the turtles and Duncan sticks to the original designs to further help our heroes look different. This is a beautiful book printed on deluxe paper. It’s a visual treat!