Credit: Paramount Animation / Nickelodeon Movies The latest TMNT installment has just been released, and it’s finally broken new ground for the franchise.
“TMNT: The Last Ronin” (2020) made waves when it first arrived back in 2020, becoming a critical and financial hit, storming to the top of The New York Times best-sellers list, and transforming the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise forever.
The story finds the lone surviving Ninja Turtle, Michelangelo, embarking on a one-way mission to avenge the deaths of his three brothers, Leonardo, Raphael, and Donatello, and his father, Master Splinter, in a futuristic and dystopian New York City.
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Now, fans are poring over the second, five-part series “The Lost Years” (2023), the prequel/sequel to “The Last Ronin”, which expands upon “the lost years” that precede Michelangelo’s long-awaited return to New York, while also introducing the Turtles’ “replacements.”
The end of the first series sees Michelangelo successfully avenge the deaths of his three brothers after a bloody battle against New York City dictator Oroku Hiroto (The Shredder’s grandson). However, he is also fatally wounded in the fight.
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But the final scene reveals that April O’Neil’s daughter, Casey Marie, a pivotal figure in the rebellion against Oroku Hiroto, has started to raise four baby mutant turtles in the original Ninja Turtles’ sewer lair, and this is where “The Lost Years” picks up.
It would be a lie to say that the current series is split halfway down the middle where its prequel/sequel commitments are concerned. Any focus on the four new turtles, Odyn, Moja, Yi, and Uno, is limited to only a handful of panels in each issue.
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But this isn’t a criticism — undoubtedly, the creators are drip-feeding these new characters into our lives without shifting the focus from Michelangelo entirely. The last original Ninja Turtle will most likely be gone forever once this series ends.
Each issue leaps forward three years, so by the time we arrive at Issue #4, the new turtles are, as the story describes, “pre-Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.” But unlike the previous three issues, they’re now finally being trained on how to fight by their sensei, Casey Marie.
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While their scene in the latest TMNT installment is just as fleeting as those in previous issues, it’s great to finally see them in action, even if the fight does turn out to be nothing more than a simulation, with Casey preparing them for the real world above.
It’s also likely that the final issue, which releases in late July, will feature more from them, which makes sense given that “The Lost Day,” a one-shot comic that hits shelves in late August, will follow these them in their entirety, as they officially replace the original Ninja Turtles.
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IDW Publishing’s main “TMNT” comic book series is still ongoing. At the same time “The Last Ronin,” which takes place in an alternate timeline, is also set to continue, as co-creator Kevin Eastman previously confirmed that a third series is already in development.
But while the primary canon will continue, it seems fans are far more interested in “The Last Ronin.” Not only are waves of new toys based on the dark and gritty comic book series hitting shelves, but a brand-new “AAA game” is in the works, which is said to be heavily inspired by the Gods of War game series.
As per IDW, here’s the synopsis for “The Last Ronin — Lost Years”:
RETURN TO THE RONIN-VERSE! In the smash-hit miniseries TMNT: The Last Ronin, readers were taken on a pulse-pounding trek through time — past, present, future — to witness the final gut-wrenching days of the Heroes in a Half Shell. For Michelangelo in particular, the march to his heart-breaking last battle was long and dangerous, taking him from New York City, to Japan, across Asia and Europe, and then back home again to administer final justice against those guilty of killing his family.
But what happened during those fateful years when he had only the need for vengeance and Master Splinter’s journal to guide him? What battles did he fight? What hard lessons did he learn? The time has come to find out as original miniseries writers Kevin Eastman and Tom Waltz join artist Ben Bishop (TMNT: The Last Ronin) to finally reveal what adventures the Last Ronin experienced during his vengeful journey. While in the present, a new master, Casey Marie Jones, prepares her young terrapin students to be the next generation of… Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles!
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“The Lost Years” issues 1, 2, 3, and 4 are on sale now.
The theatrical TMNT installment Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem (2023) will be released this summer. Check out the trailer below:
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As per Wikipedia, here’s the official synopsis for Mutant Mayhem:
After years of being sheltered from the human world, the Turtles set out to win the hearts of New Yorkers and be accepted as normal teenagers through heroic acts. Their new friend April O’Neil helps them take on a notorious crime syndicate, but they soon get in over their heads when an army of mutants is unleashed upon them.
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Mutant Mayhem stars Nicolas Cantu (Leonardo), Micah Abbey (Donatello), Shamon Brown Jr. (Michelangelo), Brady Noon (Raphael), Jackie Chan (Splinter), Ayo Edebiri (April O’Neil), Seth Rogen (Bebop), John Cena (Rocksteady), Hannibal Buress (Genghis Frog), Rose Byrne (Leatherhead), Ice Cube (Superfly), Post Malone (Ray Fillet), Paul Rudd (Mondo Gecko), Maya Rudolph (Cynthia Utrom), Natasia Demetriou (Wingnut), and Giancarlo Esposito (Baxter Stockman).
Mutant Mayhem (2023) will be released in theaters on August 2, 2023.
Are you all caught up with “TMNT: The Last Ronin”? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments down below!