What Will Happen to the TMNT When Peter Dies?

[Venom]

I've often wondered about this. He's what, in his mid-fifties now? Anyway, we all know it'll happen eventually, but what will happen to the Turtles? Will Kevin step back into the picture and resume creative control? After all, he is still part owner. Would he absorb Mirage into Heavy Metal and turn it over to Murph and the guys since they know the property? Or will the Turtles simply cease to continue, to fade away into nostalgic obscurity?

Discuss!

[Roseangelo]

Murph answered this in the comments of the 5th Turtle once... IIRC, the only plan in place (that Murphy knows of) is for trust/ownership to go to Peter's wife and daughter. I guess it'd be up to them to decide the fate of the TMNT in the future? :ohwell:

This is actually something that bothers me quite a bit... I can't comprehend why Mirage isn't building a new staff that can carry on the legacy. You don't even have to be so morbid as to think as far ahead as Peter's unfortunate, though eventual passing. What happens when he just wants to retire and do nothing but ride Segways? What happens when Murphy or Dan finally decide to move on? There is no one ready to step in and keep things going.

[CyberCubed]

What happens when Murphy or Dan finally decide to move on? There is no one ready to step in and keep things going.

Unless of course, TMNT get acquired by another comic company like DC or Marvel. This is assuming Mirage as a company is dissolved altogether when all its employees move on.

I'm sure TMNT as a franchise will live on in some form even if Mirage no longer exists.

[VaughnMichael]

I think people like yourself Rose or I would be more than willing to step in with our vast tmnt knowledge :fshifty:
But yeah I believe I was the person who asked Murph I could be wrong though, but his answer scares me, I can't fathom 2 people like that running Mirage. But who knows maybe it'd be better because they could put Murph in charge or something.

[Roseangelo]

Unless of course, TMNT get acquired by another comic company like DC or Marvel.

Even if that were to happen, and I think it is a huge if because that would require Peter sell the TMNT and I don't think it's likely to happen, we would still be without a team of people who knew how to do the TMNT right. We would very possibly be given stuff like Jim Lee's TMNT where everyone's all extra buff and extra badass but with the essence of the story that we all love left behind.

I'm sure TMNT as a franchise will live on in some form even if Mirage no longer exists.

I wish I could be so sure... :(

[VaughnMichael]

Even if that were to happen, and I think it is a huge if because that would require Peter sell the TMNT and I don't think it's likely to happen, we would still be without a team of people who knew how to do the TMNT right. We would very possibly be given stuff like Jim Lee's TMNT where everyone's all extra buff and extra badass but with the essence of the story that we all love left behind.



I wish I could be so sure... :(
It's not like many people care about what Peter is doing now, especially with volume 4.

[Roseangelo]

It's not like many people care about what Peter is doing now, especially with volume 4.

All the more reason to have capable people waiting in the wings.

[Rooish]

What happens when he just wants to retire and do nothing but ride Segways?

:lol:, well said, Rose. I hate that Peter is stubbornly holding onto everything Turtles-related. He's like a big baby. "It's mine, all mine!!"

I do appreciate some of the work he did on Vol. 4. I do appreciate his turning down of Imagi's sequel proposal (a comedy). But he's leaving the Turtles in the hands of his family when the Mirage staff -- poor Murphy and Berger and Talbot and Dooney and Lawson -- are the ones who have lived and breathed the TMNT for years, writing their adventures and trying to keep the franchise alive. F**k, it's not like any of those guys are in it for the perky benefits of working for Peter!

I think the Turtles will survive in some way when Peter dies. Just maybe not as awesomely as it could have, if Peter hadn't been so possessive.

[Sage Ninja]

maybe Kevin will step up again? :ohwell: Do you think Keven would buy back his share if Peter checked out?

What is the age diffrence between Keven and Peter?

[Buslady]

I'll buy the rights to Raph. *snickers*

Juuust kidding..lol!

I've wondered this myself. They need to gather up a group who is willing to keep it going when Pete wants to retire. I think a few fans should be included IMO, generally we all have a good feeling about the turtles, we know their personalities well, etcetc...mixed with the pros like Dooney, Lawson, etc...

well, it's just a thought.

[Venom]

Kevin wouldn't necessarily have to buy back anything because he still owns half of the Turtles. All Peter bought from him is creative control, meaning Peter makes all the decisions regarding what happens with the Turtles. Depending on how Pete's family is, they may very well turn things over, creatively, to Kevin if he wants to carry on the property.

From the interviews I've read with Kevin, he still loves his creation and has stated that he still has more Turtle stories to tell, but it may be a long time before anything, if ever, happens.

If I remember correctly, Kevin is what, about 15 years younger than Pete?

Also, I remember years ago on the TMNT yahoo mailing list when the Turtles were in limbo that a group of fans were working on a fan-comic. I forgot how the project ended, but I remember it was to be free so as to get around any copyright issues and be distributed like fan-fic. Cool concept. God that's been years ago though!

[The Shelf]

If I remember correctly, Kevin is what, about 15 years younger than Pete?

I thought it was closer to 10, but I don't remember. I'm pretty sure it's mentioned somewhere in the first few pages of Kevin's Artobiography if anyone has a copy handy to look it up.

[tone-master21]

I thought it was closer to 10, but I don't remember. I'm pretty sure it's mentioned somewhere in the first few pages of Kevin's Artobiography if anyone has a copy handy to look it up.

Peter is 54 and Kevin is going to be 46 in May, so Peter is 8 years older.

[odupianist]

At this rate PL will probably kill turtles off before he dies. Let's hope that doesn't happen first, then we shall figure out how the TMNT will get handled after he dies.

[The Shelf]

At this rate PL will probably kill turtles off before he dies. Let's hope that doesn't happen first, then we shall figure out how the TMNT will get handled after he dies.

I'm not sure if you're talking about story-wise killing off the turtles or franchise-wise, but I for one really want to see how each of the turtles dies. Seriously. A lot of the Tales frontispieces hint at the turtles' deaths, and now I really want to know how they die. It's not like those stories would affect the franchise at all because there are always gaps to fill which is why we have Tales to begin with.

But I suspect you were referring to the death of the franchise, so my comments are most likely moot.

[Roseangelo]

I have honestly wondered if Peter even wants the TMNT (franchise) to live beyond him.

[DrSpengler]

Well, presuming he has no health issues, and barring any unforseen segway collissions, Peter's got another 30 years in him, give or take.

So this is hardly an issue we have to worry about for the moment.

But just to keep in the spirit of the topic, I agree that the longterm Mirage staffers are the guys best suited to carry the Turtles in Peter's absence. Hell, at times I've found them to come across as far more dedicated to the Turtles.

They have both an insider's perspective, what with being Mirage employees and all, but also an outsider's perspective, since they didn't create the characters. I think that's what makes their work better than Peter's, nine times out of ten. They understand the franchise, they have decades of experience, but they don't suffer from the "mine mine mine" mentality and are more diplomatic about creative compromises.

[Raph The Angry]

They have both an insider's perspective, what with being Mirage employees and all, but also an outsider's perspective, since they didn't create the characters. I think that's what makes their work better than Peter's, nine times out of ten. They understand the franchise, they have decades of experience, but they don't suffer from the "mine mine mine" mentality and are more diplomatic about creative compromises.

Very good points, I agree completely and thats why having some of the fans with a ton of knowledge step into the fold would be great also as someone already mentioned

[thebrownranger]

My guess is that when Peter is gone, Kevin will probably come back to help Mirage and the crew to continue the TMNT franchise. Hopefully this happens. C'mon, he's one of the creators of the turtles and we all know its something that he doesn't want to see fade away.

[Mr._Mutant_Man]

I don't think the Turtles should ever be killed off, unless it's some kind of "what if" or alternate timeline story or something. When I see the old turtles in the comics, I kind of just assume that they all lived to old age.

I think someone should carry on the TMNT "legacy". Maybe they aren't on the same level as Superman or Batman, but I think they are still kind of iconic characters. At the very least, I think some company should see that the old comics are around for future comic enthusiasts to enjoy.

[The Shelf]

I don't think the Turtles should ever be killed off, unless it's some kind of "what if" or alternate timeline story or something. When I see the old turtles in the comics, I kind of just assume that they all lived to old age.

Well, Don's frontispieces always make it seem like Leo and Mike die at a very old age, so I doubt they were murdered or anything. But I'm pretty sure Raph dies much earlier than the rest because he appears much younger than the other turtles in Don's frontispieces for the recently released TPB of Tales Vol. 1. It's still possible that he dies of cancer or some other natural cause, but I'm willing to bet he gets murdered if he does die earlier than the rest.

[Hamato Yoshi]

quote : I have honestly wondered if Peter even wants the TMNT (franchise) to live beyond him.

Herge had a clause that when he died they were not allowed to draw any more Tintin comics.....

[Mr._Mutant_Man]

Well, Don's frontispieces always make it seem like Leo and Mike die at a very old age, so I doubt they were murdered or anything. But I'm pretty sure Raph dies much earlier than the rest because he appears much younger than the other turtles in Don's frontispieces for the recently released TPB of Tales Vol. 1. It's still possible that he dies of cancer or some other natural cause, but I'm willing to bet he gets murdered if he does die earlier than the rest.

Wasn't there an old Raph in a recent Tales issue?

[Kunoichi_Haruko]

Wasn't there an old Raph in a recent Tales issue?

Yup, Tales #40. Don't know the title, but there's an hourglass on the page.

EDIT: Just checked the comic and the site. There IS no title. Hmm...

[TristanHuwJones]

I'm pretty sure that Tales #40 (By Murph and Jourdan) was entitled "Silent Night".

[odupianist]

I thought it was "Silent Knight" but yeah something along those lines. Shelf, I meant the franchise. It will be interesting to see what happens though..

[The Shelf]

Wasn't there an old Raph in a recent Tales issue?

Yeah, I'd forgotten about that. I guess it's just the way they draw him. He never looks as old and wrinkly as the other turtles in those "glimpse of the future" issues, so I just assumed he didn't live as long. Oh well, hopefully it will all be cleared up eventually.

[Raph The Angry]

Yeah the Tales issue #40 took place Christmas Day, 2060, so I'd say Raph lives to a moderately old age

[The Shelf]

Kevin wouldn't necessarily have to buy back anything because he still owns half of the Turtles. All Peter bought from him is creative control, meaning Peter makes all the decisions regarding what happens with the Turtles. Depending on how Pete's family is, they may very well turn things over, creatively, to Kevin if he wants to carry on the property.

Well, it appears that Kevin finally gave up the last bit of control he ever had over the turtles. According to ninjaturtles.com, Peter finally bought him out completely. The note on the site seems cheery enough, but I hope that's not covering up any hard feelings. I hate it when creators have disputes.

[Kunoichi_Haruko]

Yeah, I read this afternoon. So much for that back-up plan...

[Andrew NDB]

:lol:, well said, Rose. I hate that Peter is stubbornly holding onto everything Turtles-related. He's like a big baby. "It's mine, all mine!!"

Well, it kinda is.