So what's with Mirage purists?

[Andrew NDB]

Originally Posted by CyberCubed

Agreed. People actually don't realize how much we lucked out with IDW and Nick TMNT. It could have turned out like the 2014 movie or worse.

The Nick cartoon could have very well been a very shallow and dumbed down show for 4 year olds but it isn't. The IDW comic could have been terribly written with bad plots and art...but it isn't. Sure its far removed from Mirage but then so was everything before it too like Fred Wolf, 4kids, the 90's movies, Archie, etc...

I really don't mind the Nick cartoon. It makes me laugh, at times. And my daughter loves it. Though it's possibly coincidentally humorous how Nick and IDW are often times trying to resurrect the exact same Fred Wolf things at almost the exact same time in different ways. I don't mean that mockingly, it's just a fascinating study of almost identical intentions coming to fruition from different camps at slightly different times.

I mean, I'm torn. With Nick, I totally get that I'm watching a toy commercial for 5 year-olds watchdogged by people with the best of intentions and are genuinely creative who love the actual Eastman & Laird source material but yet... have to do this thing. Under certain parameters. That is comedic (again, I laugh, I'm not talking about unintentional humor... it cracks me up at times, a lot is snuck in there cleverly). It's not the "true" TMNT to me, but it uses the property to reach a new generation well. And succeeds in making 34 year-old me laugh, so hey that counts for something. Then there's IDW TMNT. It seemed to be this one thing at first, then became another, and never stopped at least trying to be edgy (insomuch as it is allowed), but then came all the Fred Wolfisms. And Archisms, which I didn't and don't mind at all. What I wrestle with is that at times it feels like it's fighting with itself what it wants to be... is it an adult tale about the TMNT in the vein of the Mirage? Is it trying to be Ultimate TMNT, cherry-picking from everything? But at the end of the day it often seems -- to me -- that while there might be a dash of 4Kids, or Archie, or Mirage here or there, ultimately it can't wait to unwrap the next big thing from the Fred Wolf cartoon and that sort of permeates it all along the way. Over and over again, often times right before or after the Nick cartoon seems to be following the same agenda. Again, it's never badly written... but just, even now, at times, I'm just not sure what to make of it. I don't dislike it, I'm just... unsure how to process it. I know no one's going to die for real and there hasn't been much in the way of actual consequences on the page unless it's Feudal Japan, so I'm not really held in suspense, even when word broke virally about Donatello's "death." Though by the same token that the Nick cartoon is overshadowed by a toy company and a certain agenda, I get that the IDW series with no hands tied behind its back would be something possibly very different, and I respect that. You're given a sandbox, but it comes with a set of rules... I wholly believe both the Nick folk and the IDW folk are doing the best they can within the parameters of such and are all awesome, creative people. I'm still interested in seeing where it goes, don't mistake me.

And what a coup! Batman and Ghostbusters, crossing over with TMNT? Under different circumstances 15 years ago I'd sh** myself. Even now it makes my jaw hit the floor. Batman? BATMAN? I remember drawing in elementary school comics of Batman meeting the Turtles. These are fun times to be a fan, even if I don't necessarily agree with everything that's going on the page.