Leonardo...I am your father!
I started following IDW's new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series with the "City Fall" arc, and I have got to say, I am very much enjoying this. TMNT is the first independent title I've picked up since the old Al Simmons Spawn days, and after TMNT I'm planning on looking into more of IDW's work. Writer Kevin Eastman knows each turtle's personality, but doesn't seem to pigeon-hole them into that niche. What I mean is, sure Raph is the angry one, and Mikey is the slacker, but they aren't ALWAYS angry and slacking. Like any real person, their moods fluctuate. I like that he treats them as more than just their traditional archetypes. I won't recap the entire story, but this issue continues from where the last one left off. The turtles have gotten Casey to the hospital, and have joined into a shaky alliance with Old Hob and Slash. They are en route to find Leo, and Hob takes them to a warehouse where Leo has apparently been taken. There is an entertaining few panels exchanged between Mikey and Slash which made me think of a Snickers commercial. The turtles and Splinter enter the warehouse, and well, things go haywire. They find the Shredder and Leo, but Leo is wearing the garb of The Foot and calling Shredder master. If you've followed City Fall up until this point, it should come as no surprise. Was is a surprise is Leo quickly beating up all the turtles and Splinter. I know, I know, I've always been a Raphael fanboy myself, and it is hard to see him lose so handily, but it is not that surprising. The Foot bombard the turtles, they manage to escape, but the last page really strikes an emotional cord. Without ruining anything, Splinter steals the page without speaking a word.
Mateus Santolouco's artwork is crisp, clean and polished. There are no rough edges or hard-to-see panels where you are trying to decipher what's going on. I am a big fan of it. Each character is unique, no one seems a copy of another. Even the turtles, without their different colored headbands, have a slightly differing head, face, and body. It really makes me happy that they aren't all the same model with different colors. The combat art is just as clean, no excess blurred lines making the fighting unnecessarily chaotic and hard to understand. The art compliments and enhances the story, which is what a good artist is there to do.
I don't have anything bad to say. I'm new to the TMNT comic train, and I plan on continuing the ride. City Fall has so far been a great story and I can't wait to see how it concludes.
This issue earns a solid 5 out of 5 stars. If you grew up loving the old TMNT movies or cartoons, you should check this out. I am by no means a hardcore turtle fanatic, but I find this series hugely entertaining. Cowabunga!
