TMNT: The Armageddon Game: Opening Moves #1 Preview and Discussion

[Utrommaniac]

(drops out of the sky like Mister Bean)

I wait six years to see Krang and Ch'rell to have a conversation and they're having a flashback spat lol.

In all honesty, Krang's reaction to Ch'rell being upset about the withdraw was tame compared to previous occasions of people resisting/challenging his commands.
"A rift", Saki??? That was more of a "WOW, Ch'rell really got away with speaking to him like that?!"

Plus he probably had to drop it eventually. There were bigger fish to fry coming up fast, unless this was the first of several disputes, despite everyone's belief that Ch'rell would still have been outraged by Krang's imprisonment/assumed death; even his own sister, who would probably have noticed a shift in their dynamic. All the information we've been given about their dynamic is Ch'rell's terrifying loyalty (literally calling him a "favorite lapdog" this time around), so it's a...choice to suggest there might be a rift from this one situation, especially with Krang respecting his anger at the retreat.



Also, I gotta beg the question...would the Toad Baron reform as a tadpole and have to go through the whole metamorphosis process if he were killed???

(beams away for now)

[neatoman]

Originally Posted by Leo656

So whatever Krang is made of is stronger than the digestive acids in a mutant alligator's stomach, then, or what?

There are stomach parasites in real life and they would have to be, so it's not exactly a stretch of the imagination that he would be.

[hypered1]

Originally Posted by Zog The Magnificent

It's comic book science; he's a parasite and that's why Utroms can control corpses and bodies and such. Don't think about it too hard. The real issue is the fact that this plotpoint, like so many others, has exisited for over 2 years now and Campbell has done NOTHING with it, in favor of Mutant Town.

I think we can confidently say that LeatherKrang was on the list of things that Sophie wasn't/ isn't permitted to touch since she took over, or at least in so far that Tom's plans aren't affected

[Sumac]

Originally Posted by hypered1

I think we can confidently say that LeatherKrang was on the list of things that Sophie wasn't/ isn't permitted to touch since she took over, or at least in so far that Tom's plans aren't affected

Quite strange way to write a continuous story.

Create bunch of plot points, bail out of the book to attend to other obligations, permit using your story hooks and let new writer do...whatever **** they could, just without moving story forward in a significant way.

Like WTF? Is this normal for a comic book industry?

[hypered1]

Pretty sure it was always planned that Tom would return at some point as Sophie was only supposed to lead the series for a year or so and then Tom would return to close out his remaining plot threads, but other obligations like his promotion, TLR and in general things like covid caused some delays so as a result of that and having a few restrictions in place as previously mentioned the pacing of the series took at hit.
What this also means however is that once Tom's plots are wrapped up by the AG event, Sophie (who is staying on as lead afterwards) will be able do things more freely and be able to properly 'put her foot on the gas' so to speak.

[Leo656]

Originally Posted by Zog The Magnificent

Don't think about it too hard.

...To ME, he says this.

[ChosenOne]

Originally Posted by hypered1

What this also means however is that once Tom's plots are wrapped up by the AG event, Sophie (who is staying on as lead afterwards) will be able do things more freely and be able to properly 'put her foot on the gas' so to speak.

I'm sorry, I legit want to bury the hatchet but this is just too damn funny. (flashes back to Multiverse of Madness) What gas? She's disassembled the car, tossed away the engine and turned the whole thing into a tricycle.

[CyberCubed]

Yeah I think the original plan was for Tom to only take a brief hiatus from the book, maybe a year at most. But then covid happened and IDW stopped releasing new comics for a few months, and then he got too busy finishing The Last Ronin and the last two issues kept getting delayed...so here we are.

I think I remember Sophie even saying she was only there to do one or two story arcs at first, but then they just kept her on because Tom was too busy. So my guess was he was originally supposed to come back after the "battle of the bands" arc at the latest, but then he never did.

[Sumac]

Oh, I see, it makes sense in a context, as they say.

Still they could've implement some contingency plan, just so reserve writer won't write crap, just to pad the space, but whatever.

[ChosenOne]

Originally Posted by Utrommaniac

I wait six years to see Krang and Ch'rell to have a conversation and they're having a flashback spat lol

I've waited nearly twenty years to see Saki fight Bishop and it still hasn't happened, even though Armageddon Game is the perfect storyline to bring Bishop back, whether as one of Rat King's pawns or (even better) an uneasy ally for the Turtles. If this is Tom Waltz's last time writing the comic, and given Campbell's lack of interest in actual TMNT stories, it's unlikely we'll ever get such an opportunity again.

[Zog The Magnificent]

Originally Posted by Leo656

...To ME, he says this.

I dunno man, comic books are weird, more than any other medium. There are just certain things you gotta leave by the door, and the mechanics of phlebotious processes is one of them. It's the same reason why we don't think about HOW exactly Superman can fly, or how Batman has managed to never kill anyone, or how any shapeshifter is able to change their mass. It's all part of the fun.

[neatoman]

Originally Posted by ChosenOne

I've waited nearly twenty years to see Saki fight Bishop and it still hasn't happened

... Hold on... Let's see here:
In Hun on the Run, he contacts Saki but he sends out Hun instead.
In Exodus part 1, they're in the same room but Bishop is too occupied to fight him before he gets on the ship.
The Utrom version does not appear again until Turtles Forever, which does not feature Bishop.
He is in the alliance against the Demon version but only ever fights monsters.
Shredder is not relevant for most of his appearances in the 2012 show.
In IDW he doesn't show up until after Shredder dies and dies himself before he comes back.

Huh, guess you're right.

[ChosenOne]

Originally Posted by neatoman

Huh, guess you're right.

Sad face. At this point, I'm starting to think it's done on purpose, like Buffy the Vampire Slayer's Buffy and Drusilla never once duking it out (Dru did land a couple of blows on a restrained Buffy on one occasion, but that doesn't count) in seven years plus the comics.

[MikeandRaph87]

Originally Posted by neatoman

... Hold on... Let's see here:
In Hun on the Run, he contacts Saki but he sends out Hun instead.
In Exodus part 1, they're in the same room but Bishop is too occupied to fight him before he gets on the ship.
The Utrom version does not appear again until Turtles Forever, which does not feature Bishop.
He is in the alliance against the Demon version but only ever fights monsters.
Shredder is not relevant for most of his appearances in the 2012 show.
In IDW he doesn't show up until after Shredder dies and dies himself before he comes back.

Huh, guess you're right.

The freak birth defect was a poor origin. IDW can make up for it by being more true with his essence transferred into a cloned body instead of a shell. The EPF is still out there and it needs direction.It would be perfect to follow up with after The Armageddon Game concludes. It won't happen but still it would be cool.

[Zog The Magnificent]

Genuine question, could someone summarize why they did not like IDW Bishop's origin? I continually saw that people here did not like it, but I still don't really understand why. Yes, this version of the character was more overtly villainous, but he still had most of the core character traits and, in my opinion, worked quite well in the context of the IDW iteration. I really don't get why people did not like this Bishop as much, or why him being deformed takes away from his actual character at all, given his role in the story.

[Leo656]

Originally Posted by Zog The Magnificent

It's the same reason why we don't think about HOW exactly Superman can fly

At least some of the time, it's a form of tactile telekinesis.

At least John Byrne has thought of it.

[Ninjinister]

Originally Posted by Zog The Magnificent

It's comic book science; he's a parasite and that's why Utroms can control corpses and bodies and such. Don't think about it too hard. The real issue is the fact that this plotpoint, like so many others, has exisited for over 2 years now and Campbell has done NOTHING with it, in favor of Mutant Town.

That's how this whole series has rolled, in case you haven't paid attention. Things are constantly introduced just to backburn for years. at 130 issues it's the norm.

[Zog The Magnificent]

Originally Posted by Ninjinister

That's how this whole series has rolled, in case you haven't paid attention. Things are constantly introduced just to backburn for years. at 130 issues it's the norm.

Things developed slowly, not "not at all." This series has always been a slow burn, but plot points still developed. Campbell completely sidelined all the main plot points in favor of Mutant Town, not even checking in with any part of the main plot of the comic until #125 or so where we finally got a few pages on Burnow Island. There's a difference betwee "slow burn" and "shoved into the back of the freezer."

[Andrew NDB]

Originally Posted by Zog The Magnificent

Things developed slowly, not "not at all." This series has always been a slow burn, but plot points still developed. Campbell completely sidelined all the main plot points in favor of Mutant Town, not even checking in with any part of the main plot of the comic until #125 or so where we finally got a few pages on Burnow Island. There's a difference betwee "slow burn" and "shoved into the back of the freezer."

I think Sophie's general idea was that "I don't want to touch these things Waltz has in motion because he'll be back soon and he can do them then." But then for some reason (and we can speculate on why) he didn't come back as soon as originally planned. So she kept on doing what she was doing, because TPTB. I'm fairly sure if she was told "Sophie, Waltz is off the book for years, take the reins and do whatever" we'd have probably got at least some continuance of pre-existing threads. You can't get mad at her for the way things unfolded.

[Zog The Magnificent]

Originally Posted by Andrew NDB

I think Sophie's general idea was that "I don't want to touch these things Waltz has in motion because he'll be back soon and he can do them then." But then for some reason (and we can speculate on why) he didn't come back as soon as originally planned. So she kept on doing what she was doing, because TPTB. I'm fairly sure if she was told "Sophie, Waltz is off the book for years, take the reins and do whatever" we'd have probably got at least some continuance of pre-existing threads. You can't get mad at her for the way things unfolded.

I can get mad at the incredibly subpar writing and terrible characters that have overtaken the book for Cambell's entire tenure. In some ways, I suppose I should be glad the old plot points weren't touched; The comic may have been agonizingly spinning it's wheels for way too long, but at least the actual important things weren't spoiled.