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View Full Version : Is anyone else surprised Mirage kept Tales of the TMNT running as long as they did?

CyberCubed
10-06-2011, 11:58 AM
Tales of the TMNT lasted a staggering 70 issues, even more if you count the Leo/Raph/Mike/Don spinoff mini-series that includes 16 more issues.

That made Tales of the TMNT the second highest issue count of all the series, just behind Archie.

Even though Tales sold poorly, I can't believe they kept it running for 70 issues. Not only did it nicely tie up loose ends in the Mirage universe, but without it the Mirage series felt far more "barren" with almost nothing happening.

It also gave the Mirage universe what was essentially its last hurrah, aside from Volume 4.
Roseangelo
10-06-2011, 12:11 PM
The main reason it ran so long was to be a means of income for the Mirage staffers.
twopinacoladas
10-06-2011, 12:17 PM
Maybe a little but maybe Peter just wanted to keep it going until the 25th anniversary. Also lots of his friends work at Mirage maybe he also wanted to be able to keep them working, Jim, Dan, Eric etc. There were lots of things turtles around that time 2007 CGI film, 4 Kids TV show. There were issues that made their money or some money I believe that sold out. They also put $1,000,000 into the 25th anniversary so if they were willing to do that there is no reason not to keep a comic going I guess.

Heck wasn't Peter looking at a TMNT #1 adaptation using imagi's CG characters. I think it was not enough time and a small budget that stopped it. But we got Turtles Forever which was a good way to end the Mirage 4kids Fred Wolf era. There was rumor of it ending for a while I believe its cool it went as long as it did tho when you look at the number of issues.
Andrew NDB
10-06-2011, 03:34 PM
But we got Turtles Forever which was a good way to end the Mirage 4kids Fred Wolf era.

I enjoyed Turtles Forever but I don't know that I'd go that far. It's a good ending for the 4Kids stuff with a little bit of a reacharound for the Fred Wolf and Mirage fans, but that's about it.
CyberCubed
10-06-2011, 03:59 PM
The Mirage universe isn't over until Volume 4 gets a conclusion.
Venom
10-06-2011, 06:54 PM
The Mirage universe isn't over until Volume 4 gets a conclusion.

Which hopefully will be never. :)
Powder
10-06-2011, 07:02 PM
Even if/when we get a vol. 4 conclusion, the Mirage universe isn't over. There's still plenty of gaps that can & will be filled by fans, some of which are working alongside former Mirage employees. Gotta love & respect that. Besides, IDW said they may at some time do a story within it, right? So there's that too.
Slap-Happy
10-06-2011, 07:36 PM
The Mirage universe isn't over until Volume 4 gets a conclusion.

Which hopefully will be never. :)

This.

I hate the character limit.
CyberCubed
10-06-2011, 07:52 PM
Even if/when we get a vol. 4 conclusion, the Mirage universe isn't over. There's still plenty of gaps that can & will be filled by fans, some of which are working alongside former Mirage employees. Gotta love & respect that. Besides, IDW said they may at some time do a story within it, right? So there's that too.

Aside from Tristan's Gang war storyline, I can't think of any other lingering plot threads in the Mirage universe anymore.

Remember the Lady Shredder from Tales #22 reappears in Image 23/24/25, so that takes care of that.

If/when PL gives us a Vol. 4 conclusion, all else we need is some specials to wrap up Tristan's Gang war arc and I'll be content with the Mirage universe ending.
Powder
10-06-2011, 09:00 PM
I didn't say loose ends, I said gaps. As in, there's plenty of room to insert more storylines, and there are a buncha characters that could use some more tales.
***First of Two Latin Kings***
10-07-2011, 09:52 AM
Which hopefully will be never. :)

Why? I loved Vol. 4.
Venom
10-07-2011, 01:39 PM
Why? I loved Vol. 4.

I do too, and leaving it on a cliffhanger leaves the hope that the Turtles have many, MANY more adventures to have.

PLus, the mirage universe always had that "slice of life with a weird twist" feel to it, so in some ways it almost feels appropriate we would leave that universe much as we discovered it: in the middle of something. :tgrin:
Mr._Mutant_Man
10-08-2011, 05:35 PM
I can see how it lasted longer than Volume 4, and not just because Peter Laird was inconsistent with writing the series.

Since Tales had a different story each month, it was potentially more appealing to more readers. With Volume 4, if you started to hate it, you knew you wouldn't bother with the rest of the series. Tales had a wider appeal, which could have been even wider had the series been advertised.