Official Image TMNT conclusion at IDW is HAPPENING -- "TMNT: Urban Legends"

[AquaParade]

You can see from the first page how well the color enhances the pencils/inks. It really is a great issue, in how it draws you in from page 1 and never lets up.

[TheBlueTurtle1]

Originally Posted by AquaParade

You can see from the first page how well the color enhances the pencils/inks. It really is a great issue, in how it draws you in from page 1 and never lets up.

so good!, any ideas when we can expect the trade paperback. The colours look great to me

[Rooish]

Wow! I got the first issue in my hands. The art is so freaking good! And the colours make it even better. I have never read the first issue of Image before (I own only random issues) and the art definitely declined for a little while after this issue before improving again. I'd like to see how some of the later, sketchier and more abstract art will look with colour.

The characterisation in this issue is, of course, ridiculous, and I've never liked the misogyny throughout the Image run, or the stupid crossovers, but I am looking forward to acquiring this series as it looks great and has cool plotlines.

[BartAllen]

Originally Posted by oldmanwinters

Raphael casually quoting old James Cagney movies in reference to Donatello getting shot nearly to death and Leonardo making a similar joke after Raphael gets his face blown off... really makes the characters come across as artificial video game avatars.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BjFfKmPnFzr/?hl=en

Yea, the dialogue is... stilted. Personally, I can enjoy it for what it is. It's a fun callback, at least for me anyway.

[CJStyles]

The dialogue is hilariously dated. Much like I remember about dialogue in 90s comics being.

I know this is wishful thinking, but I’m curious to see if the sales do well could we get another series from the Image crew. Maybe a couple of mini series or something.

[Andrew NDB]

Originally Posted by CJStyles

The dialogue is hilariously dated. Much like I remember about dialogue in 90s comics being.

I know this is wishful thinking, but I’m curious to see if the sales do well could we get another series from the Image crew. Maybe a couple of mini series or something.

If the sales are there, particularly a bit closer to ramping up to #24 - #26 -- and I haven't heard anything, nor have I asked -- I'm not sure we can rule out things simply continuing... into #27, #28, #29, etc..

There's technically a bit of room in the timeline. Vol. 3 could go on a while before it starts hitting things in Tales V2 or Vol. 4.

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

Originally Posted by Andrew NDB

If the sales are there, particularly a bit closer to ramping up to #24 - #26 -- and I haven't heard anything, nor have I asked -- I'm not sure we can rule out things simply continuing... into #27, #28, #29, etc..

There's technically a bit of room in the timeline. Vol. 3 could go on a while before it starts hitting things in Tales V2 or Vol. 4.

That'd be pretty badass.

We just gotta get through the next two years before we have any idea of how this will wrap up or continue...

[neatoman]

Originally Posted by TheBlueTurtle1

so good!, any ideas when we can expect the trade paperback. The colours look great to me

I estimate December.

It's going to be 25 or 26 issues right? That's probably like 5 trades total then.

[AquaParade]

Originally Posted by Andrew NDB

If the sales are there, particularly a bit closer to ramping up to #24 - #26 -- and I haven't heard anything, nor have I asked -- I'm not sure we can rule out things simply continuing... into #27, #28, #29, etc..

There's technically a bit of room in the timeline. Vol. 3 could go on a while before it starts hitting things in Tales V2 or Vol. 4.

That does sound pretty reasonable, though I hadn't considered it. Love the idea. I may just have to pick up more of the books to show support. I actually believe that a continuation could be an improvement on what has come before.

I don't think there's any reason to be concerned with how it ties into Tales or Volume 4. In my mind, it's time to let volume 3 stand alone as a divergent path following volume 2. Especially if they plan on continuing the series. I think that type of freedom is worth more than the scraps of continuity that may exist between Volume 3 and its successors.
The title "Urban Legends" suggests that IDW feel the same way.

Although you're not citing any sources here, it seems you have some friends on the production side, so you may know things I don't. Obviously this is all from my perspective on things.

[Andrew NDB]

Originally Posted by AquaParade

In my mind, it's time to let volume 3 stand alone as a divergent path following volume 2.

No, it's not.

I don't think there's any reason to be concerned with how it ties into Tales or Volume 4.

But that's the whole intent behind their wrapup. It always has been.

[neatoman]

Originally Posted by Andrew NDB

No, it's not.



But that's the whole intent behind their wrapup. It always has been.

[AquaParade]

Originally Posted by Andrew NDB

No, it's not.



But that's the whole intent behind their wrapup. It always has been.

Why should they be so desperate to it tie into the work of someone who has completely disowned it? It's awkward from a business standpoint and a storytelling standpoint.

Image building off of Mirage works, but lets not shoehorn Image it into Volume 4, which wants nothing to do with it. There is no storytelling benefit to that. There are no meaningful payoff's to volume 3 in volume 4. Those payoffs can and will happen in the new Urban Legends issues.

Assuming they want to keep the series going, the idea that we'd trade expansive storytelling and creative freedom so that we can put Volume 3 in a neat little box labeled "canon" is gross.

[CyberCubed]

All the Image series finale needs to do is show the Turtles getting healed and then it will fit into Vol. 4. What's the big deal? The only other thing I can think of is Leatherhead's whereabouts but he's always all over the place in Tales and Vol. 4 anyway.

Pimiko doesn't show up in Vol. 4 but most characters in Mirage disappear without a trace anyway.

[AquaParade]

Originally Posted by CyberCubed

All the Image series finale needs to do is show the Turtles getting healed and then it will fit into Vol. 4. What's the big deal? The only other thing I can think of is Leatherhead's whereabouts but he's always all over the place in Tales and Vol. 4 anyway.

Pimiko doesn't show up in Vol. 4 but most characters in Mirage disappear without a trace anyway.

Sure, but I'm talking around the possibility of them continuing the series past the conclusion.

Continuity should be used as a tool for good, not something to weigh you down. You are limited, creatively, when you have a pre-determined destination.
Can you work around this? Sure, Solo just did....I guess.
But for what? So we can come on this forum and say "actually, volume 3 IS canon", despite Peter Laird confirming that, actually, no it's not, in regards to the story he is telling.

No, it's already carved out it's own place in TMNT mythology. Let it do it's own thing with unlimited freedom, if it is to continue. Even if it's not, don't let some desperate attempt to tie into a story that ignores it weigh you down. (Now I do think I heard the creators mention their intention to clean up/heal the turtles, so that will probably happen. Not too late to change course though)

This is a comic that was known for taking chances. You never really knew what was going to happen. A lot of that would be lost when you can just go "Well, in volume 4, we know this happens, so..."
Again, it can be done, but it's not worth it.

[Andrew NDB]

Originally Posted by AquaParade

Why should they be so desperate to it tie into the work of someone who has completely disowned it? It's awkward from a business standpoint and a storytelling standpoint.

Image building off of Mirage works, but lets not shoehorn Image it into Volume 4, which wants nothing to do with it. There is no storytelling benefit to that. There are no meaningful payoff's to volume 3 in volume 4. Those payoffs can and will happen in the new Urban Legends issues.

Assuming they want to keep the series going, the idea that we'd trade expansive storytelling and creative freedom so that we can put Volume 3 in a neat little box labeled "canon" is gross.

Who's saying "desperate"? Their public intent has always been to return everything "back to normal" by the conclusion so as to fit back into the Mirage box. I'm not aware that this intent has ever changed.

Now, should they give two craps about tying stuff in the conclusion into Vol. 4 plots or subplots? Of course not. I don't think they've ever picked up an issue of Vol. 4 and I don't imagine that would change, even leading up to working on their conclusion... and they don't need to. It's enough to show how the status quo is more or less restored.

[neatoman]

Originally Posted by Andrew NDB

Who's saying "desperate"? Their public intent has always been to return everything "back to normal" by the conclusion so as to fit back into the Mirage box. I'm not aware that this intent has ever changed.

Now, should they give two craps about tying stuff in the conclusion into Vol. 4 plots or subplots? Of course not. I don't think they've ever picked up an issue of Vol. 4 and I don't imagine that would change, even leading up to working on their conclusion... and they don't need to. It's enough to show how the status quo is more or less restored.

Okay but why even bother going in that direction 20 years later? If the storyline was declared non-canon 2 years after the book was cancelled, the book that replaced it pretty much being dead, the Mirage continuity having been abandonned and IDW even going with a title that reinforces the non-canon status, what's the point of even giving it a return to the status quo ending? That might have made sense when the book was still being published and they expected to finish it before Mirage got the rights back, it's just that now you might as well give it a more interesting ending. At this point the status quo ending would just come across as a "Let's never speak of this again!" gag.

[Zog The Magnificent]

Well, the benefits of tying the story back in is that it fulfills many of the visions the characters got in volume 2, and it's overall just a really good story. Besides, Vol. 4 starts 12 years or so after this, when they're all in their 30's. Vol. 3, if they decided to continue past the original 26 issues, could easily go on for a long time, doing whatever the heck it wants, as long as when it ended it got the characters to where they were when Vol. 4 starts. Given the aforementioned time gap, it wouldn't be too restricting. Not that it matters anyways, as since the story was declared non-canon by Laird, it's up to each individual fan to take it or leave it. Plus, even if the new Vol. 3 ends up diverging, there's a perfectly good unofficial official conclusion that ties it into Vol. 4, so those of us who want to treat it as canon totally can and can treat the new ending as an alternate, and vice versa.

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

Andrew gave us an Image TMNT conclusion that neatly tied everything up with a bow and put all of the toys back in the box to tie into Volume 4. He did it flawlessly.

I want something new; I want this IDW Image TMNT conclusion to just go nuts, Volume 4 be damned. Keep Pimiko alive, kill Splinter, leave Raph running the Foot, Mikey gets interviewed by Oprah.

[CyberCubed]

The plan is to restore status quo. It's likely going to go back to a clean slate when it ends, and that's how Vol. 4 started. It was a timeskip a decade into the future when the Turtles were 30 years olds with a clean slate.

As I said, if Pimiko survives a Image conclusion and never shows up again? That's fine, plenty of Mirage characters only show up a few times and fade to obscurity.

[Andrew NDB]

Originally Posted by CyberCubed

As I said, if Pimiko survives a Image conclusion and never shows up again? That's fine, plenty of Mirage characters only show up a few times and fade to obscurity.

Yep. And killing off Pimiko and Puzorelli was my idea, not Gary's. I suspect the original intent was to not kill them off.