Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures Volume #1-5 (Comic Series Review)

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures is a new publication from IDW that revives one of the classic TMNT comic series from the late 1980s and early 1990s. The original comics were first penned by the creators of the franchise, Peter Laird and Kevin Eastman, and published by Archie Comics, but the series gave way to the team of Stephen Murphy and Ryan Brown by the fifth issue. The classic series was set in a different reality than the original comic series and followed the storyline and humorous writing of that often seen in the classic Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon series. Fans of the turtles that still enjoy the jokes and ridiculous 80s references seen throughout the classic cartoon series will want to purchase the new comics collection soon.


Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures begins with Shredder returning to Earth from Dimension X. The villain must rebuild after Krang sends the antagonist back with no henchmen or ways to cause the chaos he loves so much. The turtles are simply trying to go about their day shopping for pizza and enjoying some television when the villain shows up and starts causing all sorts of trouble for the heroes in a half shell. The books cover a wide range of storylines and introduces several key characters including the Rat King, the Might Mutanimals and Maligna and his Malignoids.

The stories present in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures touches on some serious issues that affects our own world such as pollution and racism, but the writing style is one that readers can never take things too serious. The turtles seem to prefer bashing enemies over the head with objects from the environment rather than using their actual weapons to fight, and every other panel seems to have a joke of some type. Combined with the bizarre 80s themes, clothing and other inspirations, and it's very difficult to take the comics seriously, and any mature reader will be rolling their eyes at the comic every few pages.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles fans that grew up in the 1980s will find a sense of nostalgia with the new collections from the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures series, and younger readers may be able to find a love for the series as well, but the classic comics definitely aren't for everyone. Many of the references and themes are dated, and many of the jokes never hit home for readers that aren't very young. The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series is loved by fans around the world still, but some readers will be better off choosing one of the other excellent series from IDW Publishing to get their fix of the brothers in green. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures is out now from IDW Publishing.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures is now available from IDW and volumes can be purchased for $19.99 each. For more information on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures, check out the official IDW website.

Book Information:

• Authors: Stephen Murphy
• Artists: Ryan Brown
• Publisher: IDW Publishing
• Paperback
• First Release: August 21, 2012

Score: 8.5 out of 10