Credit: New Line CinemaThe Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise has explored almost every corner of the entertainment industry. Comic books, cartoons, toys, movies, video games. You name it, the heroes in a half-shell have probably been there, done that (and are likely continuing to do so).
Recently, Paramount even collaboratively launched the first-ever TMNT pizzeria in Los Angeles, based on the 1987 animated series, with more set to open later this year.
And 2027 will see the arrival of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Live on Stage! to celebrate 40 years of that iconic Saturday morning cartoon.
A New Brutal and Bloody TMNT Story Has Arrived
However, amid all the latest TMNT news, some fans seem to have missed the franchise’s first adult-oriented prose novel, an adaptation of IDW’s hugely successful comic book, The Last Ronin, which has been so popular it has received several follow-ups and is now getting its own video game.
A third and final series, titled The Last Ronin III — Return for New York, has also been confirmed to be arriving next year, per Entertainment Weekly.
Sadly, though, the planned R-rated film adaptation was shelved last year in favor of a family-friendly reboot that’s set for theatrical release in November 2028.
But never mind, because The Last Ronin: A Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Novel, written by Erik Burnham and published by Abrams Books, is probably the closest we’ll get to a screenplay of the beloved comic (at least for now, as TMNT co-creator Kevin Eastman, who co-writes the comic alongside Tom Waltz, says he thinks the film has only been “delayed”).
Related: R-Rated TMNT Film Now Likely To Happen Following Paramount Announcement
What’s The Last Ronin About?
The Last Ronin novel follows the same story as the comic book—a lone surviving Turtle who returns to a futuristic and dystopian New York City to avenge the deaths of his three brothers.
However, as this is a prose adaptation, the original story has been fully expanded through countless new scenes, flashbacks, and subplots, all of which feel completely organic and justified.
In fact, Burnham, who has written several IDW comics including Ghostbusters and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, does a wonderful job of building the “Roninverse” for a different medium that, by the end, you’ll feel like the comic is an adaptation of the novel, not the other way around.
But is The Last Ronin: A Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Novel actually worth the read?
The Last Ronin: A Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Novel Review
The book, published in June, might just be the best piece of TMNT media you’ll ever consume, largely because this is the closest you’ll ever get to inhabiting the half-shell heroes.
Told in third person and mostly from the perspective of the titular Turtle (we won’t spoil who it is in case you’ve not picked up the comic yet), the novel lets readers to spend a lot of time with these characters — including the three brothers during extensive flashback sequences — in perhaps the most intimate way in the franchise’s history.
Not to discredit any other Ninja Turtles iteration, but despite all the many cartoons, films, and comics spanning the last 42 years, this is the first time these characters have actually felt like real, lived-in people, and not just, well, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. And that’s what makes The Last Ronin a breath of fresh air for the franchise. Well, that, and the fact that it’s a mature read.
Though it’s accessible to teenage readers, The Last Ronin is a mature read that deals with several adult themes, including trauma, grief, depression, and other severe mental health struggles, things you wouldn’t typically associate with a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles outing (although hardly surprising if you’re familiar with IDW’s source material).
There’s also some brutal (though non-gratuitous) violence sprinkled throughout the book, which will undoubtedly satiate the appetite of fans who were hoping to see that R-rated film adaptation.
For those who have grown accustomed to the visual feast that is The Last Ronin, there are also some stunning black-and-white illustrations from the comic’s artists, Esau and Isaac Escorza,.
Another great aspect of the novel is that it can essentially serve as a spiritual sequel to almost any “traditional” Ninja Turtles iteration.
Although given the tone, you’re more likely to gravitate toward the original 1990 live-action film.
The Last Ronin: A Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Novel is now available for purchase.
Here’s the official description from Abrams Books:
After decades away, a lone surviving Turtle returns to New York City with one mission: To avenge his family by killing the leader of the Foot Clan, Oroku Hiroto. But nothing about the city—battle-ravaged and ruled over by Hiroto with an iron fist—feels like home, and nothing about Ronin’s mission goes to plan.
With the help of old friends and new allies emerging in unexpected places, can Ronin finally get justice for those he lost?
What terrible events destroyed his family in the first place?
Have you read The Last Ronin: A Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Novel yet? Let us know in the comments!
