Ask a Question: IDW's TMNT Editor Thread

[ProphetofGanja]

Originally Posted by ChosenOne

With the March solicitations having been released today, I have to ask:

Is IDW Bishop a hands-on fighter (he is depicted in one of the covers for #68 engaged in a brawl with Man Ray) or a "mere" overseer?

Also, will there be an in-story reason why he targeted cohesive groups of mutants like the Mutanimals and the Turtles, instead of picking off outliers like Leatherhead, Alopex, Bebop & Rocksteady, or even trying to go after Splinter? Is Bishop even aware of their existence?

If I may chime in, I'd guess that the Turtles and Mutanimals are the first targets because they've been the most visible all over the city (Bebop and Rocksteady fit into that category too, but as we know they're MIA). Alopex gets a pass since she's on the run while her mind is scrambled up, Leatherhead is too new to the city to be on Bishop's radar, and Splinter is the Master OG when it comes to being stealthy. Seriously, the dude has had two lifetimes of practice being a ninja; he can take down any of his sons in a fight, easily. He's probably nearly the single most skilled fighter in the series

[Bobby Curnow]

Originally Posted by ChosenOne

With the March solicitations having been released today, I have to ask:

Is IDW Bishop a hands-on fighter (he is depicted in one of the covers for #68 engaged in a brawl with Man Ray) or a "mere" overseer?

Also, will there be an in-story reason why he targeted cohesive groups of mutants like the Mutanimals and the Turtles, instead of picking off outliers like Leatherhead, Alopex, Bebop & Rocksteady, or even trying to go after Splinter? Is Bishop even aware of their existence?

All of this you'll have to wait and see!

[Bobby Curnow]

Originally Posted by neatoman

So three questions regarding the latest issue of Universe (two of them in spoilers).

1. Was LH wearing some kind of sack or something? Didn't look like a piece of clothing with all the stiches.

Spoiler:

2. Will Hob take LH's advice and not let solitude be tortuous?
3. Is LH's flow chart a hint of things to come?

1. You'd have to ask Michael for an exact answer. Just looks like some stuff LH cobbled together to me.

The other questions, you'll have to wait and see here as well! Happy to answer questions in regard to publishing schedule and the like, but i'm going to keep mum about specific plot questions-- whether we have plans or not!

[ChosenOne]

Originally Posted by ProphetofGanja

If I may chime in, I'd guess that the Turtles and Mutanimals are the first targets because they've been the most visible all over the city (Bebop and Rocksteady fit into that category too, but as we know they're MIA). Alopex gets a pass since she's on the run while her mind is scrambled up, Leatherhead is too new to the city to be on Bishop's radar, and Splinter is the Master OG when it comes to being stealthy. Seriously, the dude has had two lifetimes of practice being a ninja; he can take down any of his sons in a fight, easily. He's probably nearly the single most skilled fighter in the series

Granted, all of that is true, but what I meant (and probably could've conveyed better) is that Bishop has been gathering intelligence on mutants for quite some time, even before we saw Knight spying on Mikey and the Mutanimals.

It stands to reason that he has established a connection between the Turtles and Splinter (the head of a criminal organization, no less), as well as Alopex who was still a member of the Foot at that time, and, well... Bebop and Rocksteady aren't exactly the type to lay low. Not only were they (and Alopex, she was even sighted out in the open the night Hun was arrested) involved in some very public brawls recently, but their trail of reckless destruction all the way to South America and beyond must be fairly easy to track for someone with Bishop's resources and dedication.

As for Leatherhead, Bishop knew enough about Burnow Island to be monitoring events from offshore. While not as likely as the others I've listed, it's likely he's aware of Leatherhead's existence. Maybe not of his relocation in New York yet, but still... After his and Hob's Christmas activities, I'm sure the rumors will start flying soon enough about a gator man in town.

Not to mention, I'd have to recheck the first arc of Universe, but didn't Bishop know about Stockman's involvement with mutants? My point is, it's very likely he knows much more than we believe he knows and he's been gathering intel for a long time.

[Bobby Curnow]

I wouldn't make any assumptions about how much Bishop knows. It's all intelligence, and intelligence can be faulty. So he may think he knows more than he actually does.

[ToTheNines]

Hey Bobby, where about will "Wyrm" and "Metalhead 2.0" land on the timeline?

[Bobby Curnow]

This is off the top of my head before I close up shop for the holidays, so not doing an exhaustive think to see if i'm missing any details that don't line up, but...

Wyrm should be at about the same time as TMNT #66, could be a little before or after.

Metalhead 2.0 isn't done yet, so something may come up that changes a little, but I think fits in between #66 and #67.

[ToTheNines]

Cool, man. Thanks.

Enjoy your break, and Happy holidays to you and the whole gang!

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

Merry Christmas! (A day or four early.)

Bobby, who came up with the idea of Leatherhead's conflicted self-loathing? I'd really enjoy hearing more about how this unique character trait came from and what might have played into it from a creative perspective...

[Bobby Curnow]

Originally Posted by CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy

Merry Christmas! (A day or four early.)

Bobby, who came up with the idea of Leatherhead's conflicted self-loathing? I'd really enjoy hearing more about how this unique character trait came from and what might have played into it from a creative perspective...

Happy holidays to everyone!

My memory is foggy because we were thinking about Leatherhead way before we introduced him, so this is years back. And big apologies to Tom if i'm taking credit for something he did. But I believe it was my idea for him to be the "first mutant" (or at least, earth mutant). From there, I think it sort of evolved naturally between Tom and I... the idea that this is a creature, first of his kind, alone and isolated (except some contact from Krang and his underlings) who would start to evolve some pretty messed up thought processes. He had a peaceful existence and then suddenly he's turned into this nightmare creature in captivity and subject to torture. It makes (twisted) sense that he would believe himself to be an abomination, and extend that feeling towards other mutants. After all, if he was never mutated, his life would have been fine. Ergo, mutants are not natural and shouldn't exist!

I often reference Frankenstein's Monster when talking about him: something that's not necessarily bad, but shouldn't exist, and how that colors one's self-worth. And ultimately we thought that would set him apart from all the other characters and make him a bit unpredictable.

We've got fun plans for him in the future!

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

Originally Posted by Bobby Curnow

Happy holidays to everyone!

My memory is foggy because we were thinking about Leatherhead way before we introduced him, so this is years back. And big apologies to Tom if i'm taking credit for something he did. But I believe it was my idea for him to be the "first mutant" (or at least, earth mutant). From there, I think it sort of evolved naturally between Tom and I... the idea that this is a creature, first of his kind, alone and isolated (except some contact from Krang and his underlings) who would start to evolve some pretty messed up thought processes. He had a peaceful existence and then suddenly he's turned into this nightmare creature in captivity and subject to torture. It makes (twisted) sense that he would believe himself to be an abomination, and extend that feeling towards other mutants. After all, if he was never mutated, his life would have been fine. Ergo, mutants are not natural and shouldn't exist!

I often reference Frankenstein's Monster when talking about him: something that's not necessarily bad, but shouldn't exist, and how that colors one's self-worth. And ultimately we thought that would set him apart from all the other characters and make him a bit unpredictable.

We've got fun plans for him in the future!

That's awesome. I mean, you guys dashed all my hopes for seeing Leatherhead as a close ally like he's been in a number of TMNT iterations, but it's such a great idea I can live with it!

[ChosenOne]

Originally Posted by Bobby Curnow

Happy holidays to everyone!

My memory is foggy because we were thinking about Leatherhead way before we introduced him, so this is years back. And big apologies to Tom if i'm taking credit for something he did. But I believe it was my idea for him to be the "first mutant" (or at least, earth mutant). From there, I think it sort of evolved naturally between Tom and I... the idea that this is a creature, first of his kind, alone and isolated (except some contact from Krang and his underlings) who would start to evolve some pretty messed up thought processes. He had a peaceful existence and then suddenly he's turned into this nightmare creature in captivity and subject to torture. It makes (twisted) sense that he would believe himself to be an abomination, and extend that feeling towards other mutants. After all, if he was never mutated, his life would have been fine. Ergo, mutants are not natural and shouldn't exist!

I often reference Frankenstein's Monster when talking about him: something that's not necessarily bad, but shouldn't exist, and how that colors one's self-worth. And ultimately we thought that would set him apart from all the other characters and make him a bit unpredictable.

We've got fun plans for him in the future!

Reminds me a lot of what they tried to do with the Indominus Rex in Jurassic World. Great stuff!

Merry Christmas to you and the rest of the IDW crew!

[MikeandRaph87]

I was wondering,what influences/suggestions were given by Nickelodeon in the comic. I am aware it was Nickelodeon that gave the idea of Raphael being separated in the beginning though that is all I am aware of. Also, is there one specific person from Nick that you interact with when sending in story concepts?

[AlessandraDC]

I really enjoyed Inside Out. The art and colors were great! Especially in that last part, with the Mirage throwback. So cool! Will this story have an impact on Leo's character development in the main title? Despite being the "leader" he has sort of been a pawn of both Saki and Yoshi, and I am still left wondering if he will be used by the Rat King as well. So will Leo actually try to take a stronger stand?

[Bobby Curnow]

Originally Posted by MikeandRaph87

I was wondering,what influences/suggestions were given by Nickelodeon in the comic. I am aware it was Nickelodeon that gave the idea of Raphael being separated in the beginning though that is all I am aware of. Also, is there one specific person from Nick that you interact with when sending in story concepts?

First off, just want to say an early happy new year's to everyone. I imagine I'll be too hung over tomorrow to say it.

Those very earliest days, before #1 hit print, were when I was still technically an assistant editor, and so wasn't privy to all of top level discussions. Raph not being part of the group coming from Nickelodeon doesn't sounds "wrong" but i don't have a firm memory of that being the case either. Could be! Would have to ask Tom.

I'm trying to think of any other instances of suggestions coming from Nickelodeon in the IDW ongoing, and I can't think of any. They've had questions and perhaps suggestions for adjusting things for clarity, but they've never, to my memory, suggested a plot point or anything like that since the book has been on the stands. We've got notes like "Don't you think it's time we moved forward the Technodrome storyline?", and things like that, but it's all been notes on things we've proposed. And as time has passed and we've been given more and more trust, those questions are fewer and farther between.

They've been a good deal more involved in the Animated book though.

I used to have two main people at Nick that I would run things by, now there's just one for the most part.

[Bobby Curnow]

Originally Posted by AlessandraDC

I really enjoyed Inside Out. The art and colors were great! Especially in that last part, with the Mirage throwback. So cool! Will this story have an impact on Leo's character development in the main title? Despite being the "leader" he has sort of been a pawn of both Saki and Yoshi, and I am still left wondering if he will be used by the Rat King as well. So will Leo actually try to take a stronger stand?

Well, our intended goal with that story was to show that Leo has figured out how to root out mind manipulation for good. We'd like to close down that being a plot point. We'll touch on this a bit more in #66.

[CyberCubed]

Just gonna say, Happy New Year!

[AlessandraDC]

Originally Posted by Bobby Curnow

Well, our intended goal with that story was to show that Leo has figured out how to root out mind manipulation for good. We'd like to close down that being a plot point. We'll touch on this a bit more in #66.

Ah, ok! That's interesting! Happy New Year to you too!

[MikeandRaph87]

Originally Posted by Bobby Curnow

First off, just want to say an early happy new year's to everyone. I imagine I'll be too hung over tomorrow to say it.

Those very earliest days, before #1 hit print, were when I was still technically an assistant editor, and so wasn't privy to all of top level discussions. Raph not being part of the group coming from Nickelodeon doesn't sounds "wrong" but i don't have a firm memory of that being the case either. Could be! Would have to ask Tom.

I'm trying to think of any other instances of suggestions coming from Nickelodeon in the IDW ongoing, and I can't think of any. They've had questions and perhaps suggestions for adjusting things for clarity, but they've never, to my memory, suggested a plot point or anything like that since the book has been on the stands. We've got notes like "Don't you think it's time we moved forward the Technodrome storyline?", and things like that, but it's all been notes on things we've proposed. And as time has passed and we've been given more and more trust, those questions are fewer and farther between.

They've been a good deal more involved in the Animated book though.

I used to have two main people at Nick that I would run things by, now there's just one for the most part.

Thank you. I was always curious just how much Nickelodeon as a company would involve itself. It was my major concern when the intellectual property was sold. Now I can say I like it better as it is. It looks like Nick can get a little frustrated with pacing too. Its all paid off as far as IDW's TMNT are concerned. Its more than I can say for other comic companies!

Happy New Years to you and thank you for all you do!

[neatoman]

Happy New Year IDW!

So Bobby, have you guys ever thought about other holiday issues for TMNT? Aside from Christmas that is.