Chris Cooper reviews Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #73…
“Trial of Krang,” Part 1 of 3. Infamous warlord Krang is set to go to trial in Dimension X. The Turtles are on hand to make sure everything goes smoothly. Of course it goes anything but! New villains, new worlds, and new intrigue await in the biggest interstellar adventure the TMNT have ever been on!
The IDW TMNT ongoing is now the longest-running TMNT series of ALL TIME!
What an achievement! As some of you will know I’ve been reviewing this series since about issue 15, so to see it come this far is very impressive. Most Marvel and DC titles can’t get to issue 50 before being rebooted so this is doubly cool.
A few pages into this new arc you’ll notice a little editor’s note for ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Free Comic Book Day 2017’. I suggest you find yourself a copy beforehand as things will make a bit more sense. It’s not the end of the world but I’d suggest it.
Anyway! How is the issue itself? It’s been a while since we’ve seen Krang, and he’s no less angry and misguided. That he performed his heinous acts for an arguably good reason almost lends him an air of sympathy, but the script manages to slap that down pretty hard early on.
This issue is really a set up piece, but it’s full of so much that it doesn’t feel like it’s merely ticking boxes before we get to the good stuff. Reunions both exciting and challenging come together with of all things a Star Wars reference (yay!), to make a solid read.
Cory Smith was on board last time we dealt with Dimension X and he’s back here. His art style suits the Neutrinos and their world, as well weirder alien creatures really well. Sometimes an artist and a type of story just click. There are some very cool panels and splash pages here, so I hope he’s here for a little while.
For the geek references alone I’d rank this issue highly, but it’s also a well put together issue that proves that whilst IDW TMNT may now have been running longer than any other series, but it’s still got plenty of fuel in the tank.
Rating: 8/10
Chris Cooper