Volume 4 #22
 

Enough discussing new issues. It's time to discuss an old one. Not just any old issue, but possibly the most loathed of them all: Volume 4 #22.

I was reading it again recently and I came to the conclusion that, though I still have some misgivings about April's origin, I love it. It is absolutely the pinnacle of Volume 4, and one of the standouts among the entire series. It's just so...different.

Lawson's art really, really adds to the surreal atmosphere, and this story is the perfect outlet for his style. The origin is also very well handled, and surprisingly emotional. It would have been easy for the story to skip straight from April's dad finding the crystal to April being born. Instead we got so much substance. The father's slow experimentation, Robyn's episode with the puppy (that's...actually kind of sad), the reluctance to follow through with the plan, dissappearing babies. It's some messed up stuff, but the snail pace of the story actually allows April's family to seem like real people in the presence of something extroadinary. That's what the Turtles comics are about right there.

And all the while you have April and Renet "doing cockroach things." You have this twisted sense of distorted time. It's just wonderfully bizzarre. The only thing I can really fault this issue for is that, on the writing side, some of April's narration is a little sloppy and verbose (kind of like this post).

So, Vol 4 #22. Read it again with an open mind. It kicks a surprising amount of ass.

And the cover - Really creepy. Really cool.

I don't mind the issue at all. As long as the whole deal with April is going somewhere subsequently, building from this.

While I wouldn't readily call it the best issue in the series--it's got some mean competition from issues 10 and 11--but yeah, it's right up there, for all the reasons you mention.

Eh...maybe so (although I didn't really feel that way upon reading it) but still, I think it's justified--after all, she is telling Casey the story, and while we have the benefit of visuals, he doesn't.

I've always liked this issue a lot. I don't understand all the hate. :ohwell:

"Oh noes, they ruined the only normal character in the comic!" Big deal. They used a character near and dear to people's hearts and used her to tell a poetic and heartwarming story with some bizarre surrealness thrown into the mix to make it that much more memorable. I love it! :D

I liked the writing of the issue, not so much a fan of the origin, but April does still feel like a normal, human female, so its not too bothersome.

April still bleeds, she doesn't have any special powers, she just can't reproduce.

I did say however they should make a story showing if all those other April babies actually grew up in Kirby's dimension and if they're all adult women now. April could have many "sisters" in this other dimension she doesn't know about.

I'd say this issue is a terrible idea executed in a fantastic way... So the end result is a good read based on an idea, I think is hard to write in a good way..

I've been hoping that might be addressed in with the Battle Nexus. It's been mentioned several times that multiple versions of the same people can show up there. Maybe Leo will run into one of the other "Aprils"? It would help tie the plots together.

Or not. It's just a cool possibility.

That could only lead to sexy times. Maybe he could run into MORE than one of the other Aprils? Eh? Eh?!?

Like, run into more than one April?

I'm not sure how I feel about acts against humanity in my comics.

Yeah I liked this issue back then. I think its the best TMNT comic in a long time. I was miffed by what April was, but like in a previous forum thread topic about the TMNT comics being stuck unto Vol. 1 title too much, it had a great connection to it. The Kirby crystal was used when I thought we'd never see it again. On an emotional level the story was really effective. It certainly was the nicest read in the Vol. 4 run. I liked her origin and her being, was the reason why she couldn't have kids. We got to see Aprils parents, her sister, in ways we'd never really saw them. The backstory really helped us see Aprils early life in a sense. It was just a nice touching story.
May have to re-read this one again. But then I'm thinking of doing this on Vol. 4 series one day too.