Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (IDW Publishing)

• 1. The License And The Reboot

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  In April 2011, IDW Publishing acquired the license to publish new collections of older Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comics from Nickelodeon. This deal marked a significant shift in the franchise's history following its sale to Nickelodeon in October 2009. The first issue of this new series was released on August 24 that year. It became the fifth comic book series in the franchise's publication history and served as a reboot of the franchise's story and characters. Kevin Eastman, one of the original co-creators, collaborated on the plot and page layouts alongside writer Tom Waltz and artist Dan Duncan. By 2017, the series had become the longest-running comic book series in the franchise's history, surpassing Archie Comics' Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures which ran from 1988 to 1995.

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• 2. Feudal Spirits And Modern Rebirth

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  Hamato Yoshi is a member of the Foot Clan led by Oroku Saki during Japan's feudal period. After seeing Saki act ruthlessly, Yoshi leaves the Clan and is marked by the clan as a traitor. Saki orders Yoshi's entire family to be put to death. His wife Tang Shen is attacked and severely wounded by the clan's ninjas. With her last breath she beseeches Yoshi to protect himself and the children. He flees with the boys and remains on the run for several years. Saki eventually finds Yoshi and his children and murders them all. Centuries later their spirits are reincarnated in modern times as a gray rat and four green turtles respectively. This happens in a research laboratory called Stock Gen owned by Baxter Stockman. An intern at Stock Gen named April O'Neil names the turtles after Renaissance artists: Leonardo Michelangelo Donatello and Raphael. Members of the Foot Clan break into the facility to steal an alien mutagen. The animals are taken by mistake and when they get lost in the sewer they are covered with the spilled mutagen and transformed into intelligent humanoid beings. Yoshi now called Splinter remembers his past life and begins to train the turtles in the art of ninjutsu.

• 3. Writers And Artistic Shifts

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  The initial creative team consisted of Turtles co-creator Kevin Eastman who collaborated on the plot and page layouts alongside writer Tom Waltz and artist Dan Duncan. In 2017 it became the longest-running comic book series in the franchise's history surpassing Archie Comics' Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures which ran from 1988 to 1995. Starting from issue #101 series writer and artist Sophie Campbell took over as the sole lead writer for the book. It was announced on the 12th of January 2024 that the current volume would end with issue #150 and a new volume would launch in July 2024. Jason Aaron takes over as the head writer for this relaunch. The first five issues of the new series will each be drawn by a different artist including Joëlle Jones Rafael Albuquerque Cliff Chiang Chris Burnham and Darick Robertson respectively. Following these issues Juan Ferreyra would then draw the second story arc beginning with issue 6.

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• 4. The Rat King And Armageddon

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  The Rat King is a member of the Pantheon eager to see his family's power game brought to a conclusion. He attempts to unleash the Armageddon Game upon the world a conflict involving every major character up to that point. During this event Donatello travels to the future and discovers Armaggon a monster that can devour and erase timelines. He becomes obsessed with stopping the monster and inadvertently creates it while traveling through space and time. With Venus' help and sacrifice Donatello is able to stop Armaggon and ensure that his family won't be erased from history. The outcome of the Armageddon Game is the downfall of both Krang and Ch'rell the destruction of Mutant Town's borders and the banishment of all the Pantheons from the world. Kitsune a member of the Pantheon attempts to resurrect the Dragon to end humanity which the Turtles and their allies attempt to thwart leading to the death of Splinter and Shredder's redemption.

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• 5. Crossovers And Shared Universes

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  A crossover series with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Batman from DC Comics ran from the 9th of December 2015 to the 11th of May 2016. It was illustrated by Freddie Williams II and pitched the Turtles and the Dark Knight against an alliance of the deadliest criminals of two universes. Later adapted into an animated film another crossover between Batman: The Animated Series and the 2012 incarnation of the Turtles ran from the 6th of November 2016 to the 10th of May 2017. A third sequel series featuring a story arc in which Krang messes with both the Turtles' and Batman's histories created a merged reality in which Batman becomes part of the Turtles' family running from the 1st of May 2019 to the 2nd of October 2019. A crossover miniseries focused on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and the Boom! Comics version of the Power Rangers ran from the 4th of December 2019 to the 17th of June 2020. In this story the first team of Power Rangers join forces with the Turtles to combat an unholy alliance between the Shredder and Rita Repulsa.

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• 6. The Last Ronin And Future Generations

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  A separate continuity focusing on a cyberpunk dystopia several years in the future is based on an idea originally conceived for the Mirage Comics. This timeline features a lone Michaelangelo seeking vengeance for the death of his friends and family in a futuristic New York City under the control of Shredder's grandson Oroku Hiroto. Casey Marie Jones daughter of April O'Neil raises a new generation of Ninja Turtles named Uno Moja Odyn and Yi during Mikey's 15-year journey to kill gang leader Death Worm. The series follows the new Ninja Turtles as they fight against forces that threaten to destroy the city. This storyline explores how the original characters' actions ripple forward into a dark future where their legacy must be carried by those who come after them.

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