Chris Cooper reviews Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #28…
“The epic conclusion to City Fall is here! With the heads of the New York underworld gathered, Shredder stakes his claim to rule the underworld of NYC! But the Turtles, along with their allies, aren’t going down without a fight! What role will Leonardo play? It’s all been leading up to this major battle — don’t miss it!”
Last month I was hopeful that the IDW team would finish the City Fall story strongly. Not only does it end the current arc in satisfying way, but leaves me looking forward to another important part of TMNT history.
There is a lot of action, but this month is more about setting up new status quos for the important relationships throughout NYC. We do spend a lot of time with Casey and Hun – much more than I thought we would – but it works well when cut together with Leo’s family trying to rescue him.
I really hope we get see more of Slash. Especially alongside Mikey. Their interactions bring a wonderful light heartedness to the story. Speaking of mutants, Aloplex and Old Hob get their own moments to shape the story whilst we get to see the first battle between the Turtles and Bebop and Rocksteady! I’m looking forward to further clashes in the future. This is how you introduce classic characters.
Damn it Santolouco! His work has been consistently amazing. His style lends itself perfectly to this world, but if he must rest and refresh then it is well deserved. Well done to the whole art team, who I feel have given us a definitive take on these characters.
It’s a shame that the story had to end, but it did so really well. Tom Waltz has crafted a story that managed to juggle several strands whilst moving on and changing the world of the TMNT. Pleasingly there are consequences that will last a long time. I wanted this story to reverberate and stay with us for a while.
Before sitting down to write this piece, I went back and read through the entire arc. I made notes every time something of note, or particularly cool, happened. There is way too much to list here, which hopefully tells you everything you need to know.
IDW. Please listen. You need to keep putting hats on the turtles! I found myself chuckling away every time I saw another turtle/hat combo.
Now that important point is out of the way, how can this title go on from here? I’m hoping for some time to reflect on everything that has happened Splinter and his family. Something similar to the middle act of the first TMNT film perhaps? That would be pretty damn awesome. Just like City Fall has been.
Chris Cooper
Originally published November 29, 2013. Updated April 11, 2018.
