Is IDW going to go mutant-heavy like Nick?

[CyberCubed]

As we know the Nick cartoon is very mutant heavy, with the cartoon introducing a new mutant in almost every episode. The show is far more "mutant of the week" than any previous incarnation even compared to the original cartoon.

However with IDW we have Old Hob beefing up his gang with new mutant recruits, as well as Shredder mutating more creatures as well.

Is IDW going to eventually become mutant focused over regular humans or mystical beings? I like how Mirage and 4kids avoided introduced excessive new mutants and had the Turtles fight a mix of humans/aliens/robots/creatures instead.

[corvus]

God I hope not. We've had three new ones in the last two issues. I hope it slows down. We need development for the mutants we got.

[Coola Yagami]

Originally Posted by corvus

God I hope not. We've had three new ones in the last two issues. I hope it slows down. We need development for the mutants we got.

I'm sure they have it covered. Also the comic is kinda about mutants, so the more the merrier. Besides most of the older 80's characters are mutants so it's kinda hard not to bring back classics without it being 'mutant-heavy' by default.

[Joey Kamikaze]

We're almost 40 issues in--more like 70 counting all the side stories--and besides the main five (the turtles and Splinter) we have, what:

-The Foot Clan mutants: Alopex, Bebop & Rocksteady, Koya, and Bludgeon (isn't it cool how Shredder has land, air and water covered?)
-The anti-Mutanimals: Old Hob, Slash, Pete, Herman, and Mondo Gecko (a mix of newbies and fan favorites)

...For a total of 15 mutants introduced so far including the titular family, right? (Of course there's a hint that Leatherhead will appear in the future, but he hasn't shown up so far. And I'm not counting all the random mutants in the future issue either because that would be silly.) That doesn't seem excessive. Hell, 15 mutants in almost 70 issues seems downright conservative compared to a lot of TMNT universes. That's something like 0.2 mutants for every issue that's been published, pretty far from the cartoon's average.

If the mutant population has been increasing lately... well, yeah, we're at the point in the story where mutants are becoming more of a thing and multiple factions are hoping to use mutants as soldiers in the coming battles. That doesn't mean mutants are going to continue to be introduced at the same rate they have lately for the rest of the book. Rather, it means the players are being put on the board so we can learn more about them as they participate in the story down the road. My guess is Hob's gang is going to be a big deal in stories for years down the road, probably even one of the IDW universe's defining characteristics.

[Coola Yagami]

The Stone Warriors kind of count as mutants I think? Weren't they human before?

Even so, it's not a mutant-a-thon like one would think. I mean City Fall only introduced Bebop and Rocksteady at the very end and that was after several issues.

Does Hun count as a mutant, kinda?

[Mutant Ninja Anole]

I will only consider whether the IDW universe oversaturated with mutant when they reach minimum viable population.

So, we need around 50-60 mutants and a lot more females.

Seriously though, if the Turtles in Time future issue shows Shredder's intention for the future, we could be getting a lot more mutants eventually.

Now having mutants become a larger presence and having mutant characters dominate the stories over humans like April and Casey is a whole other matter than that.

The crazy transformations and strange creatures was one of the big attractions of TMNT to me as a kid, and still to this day, I'll confess. As long as the characters are interesting and the stories engaging though, I won't complain, whether they are human or not.

[PangolinFeets]

We can have all the mutants! BUT GIVE US MORE MICROS!

[PangolinFeets]

Originally Posted by Joey Kamikaze

Hell, 15 mutants in almost 70 issues seems downright conservative compared to a lot of TMNT universes. That's something like 0.2 mutants for every issue that's been published, pretty far from the cartoon's average.

Just lol @ calculating the rate of mutant population growth per comic. I am so amused.

[spookycookies]

Originally Posted by Joey Kamikaze

We're almost 40 issues in--more like 70 counting all the side stories--and besides the main five (the turtles and Splinter) we have, what:

-The Foot Clan mutants: Alopex, Bebop & Rocksteady, Koya, and Bludgeon (isn't it cool how Shredder has land, air and water covered?)
-The anti-Mutanimals: Old Hob, Slash, Pete, Herman, and Mondo Gecko (a mix of newbies and fan favorites)

...For a total of 15 mutants introduced so far including the titular family, right? (Of course there's a hint that Leatherhead will appear in the future, but he hasn't shown up so far. And I'm not counting all the random mutants in the future issue either because that would be silly.) That doesn't seem excessive. Hell, 15 mutants in almost 70 issues seems downright conservative compared to a lot of TMNT universes. That's something like 0.2 mutants for every issue that's been published, pretty far from the cartoon's average.

If the mutant population has been increasing lately... well, yeah, we're at the point in the story where mutants are becoming more of a thing and multiple factions are hoping to use mutants as soldiers in the coming battles. That doesn't mean mutants are going to continue to be introduced at the same rate they have lately for the rest of the book. Rather, it means the players are being put on the board so we can learn more about them as they participate in the story down the road. My guess is Hob's gang is going to be a big deal in stories for years down the road, probably even one of the IDW universe's defining characteristics.

Don't forget Flyborg(s).

[CyberCubed]

Originally Posted by Coola Yagami

The Stone Warriors kind of count as mutants I think? Weren't they human before?

Even so, it's not a mutant-a-thon like one would think. I mean City Fall only introduced Bebop and Rocksteady at the very end and that was after several issues.

Does Hun count as a mutant, kinda?

Traag and Granitor were aliens, but the Stone Warriors on Earth were humans.

[Joey Kamikaze]

I thought about the stone soldiers, but I'm considering mutants as in animal mutants. The stone soldiers and Hun are kind of their own things.

I did forget about the Flyborgs though. Damn, I need to re-read Utrom Empire and the last couple arcs.

[Joey Kamikaze]

Originally Posted by PangolinFeets

Just lol @ calculating the rate of mutant population growth per comic. I am so amused.

Nerdery? On a TMNT fan site?

...And with the Flyborgs counted it's more like 0.23.

[snake]

More mutants in IDW is fine because you know that they're going to have develop for them. Just look at Alopex.

[DONATELLO DUZMACHINES]

Im totally down for more mutants. This series has done a great job at developing its characters whether that be in the main series or the micro's. So yeah I want to see more mutants and micro's to cover them.

[miru]

It's fine because most mutants here seem to be enemies of the Turtles (though I bet Alopex and Mondo will turn good). I have a feeling some of them are going to be KIA, given this is more adult than the Nick show. Also, I've noticed there haven't been any "monster" mutants yet.

[ProphetofGanja]

Originally Posted by miru

It's fine because most mutants here seem to be enemies of the Turtles (though I bet Alopex and Mondo will turn good). I have a feeling some of them are going to be KIA, given this is more adult than the Nick show. Also, I've noticed there haven't been any "monster" mutants yet.

Alopex and Mondo are already not enemies of the Turtles


It would add carry a lot of weight if one of the mutants in the series died, any of them really, but definitely if it was one who's been around for a while and has had an impact on the story



I don't think the series is over-saturated with mutants yet, we just need some development for the newest three. I do want to see more of the mystical aspects of the series (Kitsune, Rat King, their other siblings), as well as the extraterrestrial/extradimensional (Krang and Fugitoid, but also the Triceratons and Neutrinos, as well as some new different ish)

[CyberCubed]

Old Hob's gang should peak at 10 mutants at the most. He already has like 5 now, so I can maybe 5 more and stop there.

- Slash
- Pidgeon Pete
- Mondo Gecko
- Lobster Man
- Bebop and Rocksteady (?)
- Alopex (maybe?)

I'm sure Leatherhead will join too. Throw in a mix of Napoleon/Wingnut/Man Ray and stop there.

[Candy Kappa]

Well, Hob's army is going to be Mutants, that's a given. I doubt the majority of those mutants will be a major character in future story archs.

[Cipher]

Originally Posted by snake

More mutants in IDW is fine because you know that they're going to have develop for them. Just look at Alopex.

Mmmmmmmm... Is she really all that developed yet? Certainly she's had a few twists and turns, but I don't really feel a voice for her, you know? And as far as her actions, she's seemed to just kind of go wherever she needs to for the story pivot.

Hob is still the gold standard for personality and natural development in this series, for me. I don't think any of the other mutants, and maybe even any of the other secondary characters, have really come close yet. It could also help, though, that he's been the only one really instigating his own plots. Alopex, for example, has mostly been reactionary, and it's always harder to get a read on characters when they're just responding to events.