"Tales of the TMNT" #62 Preview

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Ryan Brown sent in this fantastic preview image from Tales of the TMNT #62, to be released later this month. I'm all overwhelmed by the adorableness of it all.

Pencils and colors: Fernando Leon Gonzalez, Inks: Ryan Brown

From NinjaTurtles.com:
"Adventures in Bunnysitting" - Michelangelo's Utrom friend, Klag, asks the good-natured ninja to take care of his pet bunny while he's away. Unfortunately for Raphael and Mikey, Klag was unaware that the rabbit was a test subject for mutagenetic studies - and once the little critter gets agitated, things go from bad to worse - much, much worse! Based on a true story... well, kinda...


You can read one side of the true story over here.

And now for a public service announcement, because this seems like a good opportunity to give a spiel on something rather important to me.

Rabbits make for the MOST awesome house pets!

Note the special emphasis on "house." Rabbits have a reputation for being animals that you keep in a hutch in the backyard where they stand all day on a floor of wire, but there really is no good reason for this and if you bring the rabbit into the house to live with the family you will discover a companion pet as fantastic as any dog or cat. Like cats, rabbits can be litter box trained, making the stereotypical wire floor cages completely unnecessary.

Like cats and dogs, it is essential that rabbits be spayed/neutered to not only help control the pet population, but also to increase the animal's overall quality of life. And it is also extremely important to adopt a rabbit from a shelter or rescue organization rather than buy one from a breeder or pet store or a farmers' market or flea market or any other questionable place. For a bargain adoption fee you'll get an already fixed animal and you'll save a life rather than support the unethical selling of animals for profit.

When I was looking for a companion pet last year and my living situation didn't allow for a dog and allergies keep me away from cats, I learned about house rabbits and ended up adopting a rabbit from a local rescue organization. Owen was overlooked for a long time because of his "plain" looks, but now everyone who meets him falls in love because he's one of the sweetest, friendliest bunnies you'll find. He is totally and completely the bestest thing I could have brought into my home.


For more information on house rabbits, you can visit the House Rabbit Society at rabbit.org.

There is also a good introduction to house rabbits video on YouTube:

"Scratch Attack" Jake Black Benefit T-Shirt!

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As you should know by now, occasional TMNT writer Jake Black is currently fighting Hodgkins disease (i.e. CANCER). And that means a lot of big ugly medical bills. To help Jake out, his pals at Mirage Studios have been selling some Turtles wares, the proceeds from which go to pay those bills!

The latest of these sales is a T-shirt featuring the cat burglar Scratch facing off against Leonardo, by Fernando Leon Gonzalez and Ryan Brown!! The shirt looks GREAT and everyone needs to go buy one!! That means you!

Hit up NinjaTurtles.com for all the details!

TMNT: Smash-Up Developers' Diary + More

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Here's something that got a little lost in the chaos surrounding Comic-Con. And since it's not exactly new anymore, anyone following the latest news on this game has probably already found all of this, but here's another video and screen shot collection provided by Ubisoft.

Arcade Mode:

   

   
   

Cutscenes:

   

(Um, can the comic books look like that again? Please?)

SDCC 2009 Recap: TMNT Art and Other Swag

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I had a few Twitter requests to see my acquired art and swag during the Con, so I've put together a slide show showcasing what all I came home with:

EXCLUSIVE: "Turtles Forever" Complete Audio!

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Last Friday, July 24, 2009, Mirage Studios hosted a TMNT 25th Anniversary "Galabunga" party as part of San Diego Comic-Con, where, after pizza, cake, and prizes, fans were treated to the premiere screening of "Turtles Forever," a special animated adventure that saw the Turtles of the 4Kids series crossing into the multiverse of the original TMNT cartoon.

Shortly before the show started I realized that I had my audio recorder still with me, after utilizing it earlier in the day at the Con. I decided to take a chance and flip it on to see if the audio from the show would come out. I finally got around to checking the audio tonight, and what do you know, it actually turned out really good!

Here are all the disclaimers I present with the offering of this audio:

1. This audio is my own personal recording.
2. At no point during the night were we told, either in spoken word or print, that recording was not allowed.
3. As of right now there is no distribution deal for the release of "Turtles Forever" on DVD. This is surely forthcoming, but it can't hurt to raise enthusiasm for the project for potential distributors to see (and hear, in the case of the crowd reaction).
4. If at any point it is requested by Mirage Studios and/or 4Kids Entertainment for the file to be removed from this site, it shall be.
   

Further notes about the audio:

• This was recorded among a very lively crowd, so there is a lot of crowd noise that sometimes blocks out the audio from the movie.
• The volume in the room was very loud and my recording device is very basic (and as it was, I hit record as a crap-shoot to see if the audio came out at all), so there is a bit of distortion during the louder parts.

With all that said, you can download the audio here. Downloads are limited, so please comment if it needs to be re-uploaded.

SDCC 2009 Recap: Sideshow Collectibles Announces TMNT Comiquettes

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While it was not an unexpected announcement due to Sideshow's participation in the button run that helped you win a ticket to Friday night's Galabunga party, it was an announcement that sort of fell under the radar during the busy Comic-Con weekend. But I managed to keep on top of it for you.

Here's the short announcement that happened during Sideshow Collectibles' panel Saturday evening. I've replaced my shaky handy-cam video with the video since released on Sideshow's Web site. And since the audio at the end is hard to hear, I've provided text balloons.

SDCC 2009 Recap: "Spotlight on Kevin Eastman" Panel

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I still haven't caught up on sleep and I'm working on getting over the unavoidable "Con Funk" illness, so these recaps haven't gone up quite as quickly as I would have liked them to. But here we go with the first!

This is the video I took of the "Spotlight on Kevin Eastman" panel. The video only covers the TMNT portions (the rest of the panel mostly focused on the upcoming Heavy Metal-produced movie "War of the Worlds: Goliath," which looks to be really quite neat), and the quality is pretty crap. I took it on my unimpressive digital camera and, of course, didn't have a tripod. But the presentation is mostly a slideshow from Kevin, so I scoured the Internet for digital versions of the pics he shared and was actually able to find most of them. When I did have the actual photo available I super-imposed it over the shaky video. I think you get a better look at the photo that way than you would even if I had an awesome camcorder with tripod.

Anywho, here you go, in two parts:

The TMNT Guide to San Diego Comic-Con 2009!

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Here it is! You're guide to the TMNT at San Diego Comic-Con 2009! Well, the best I could put together in between throwing socks and t-shirts into a suitcase while hoping I don't forget anything.





PROGRAMMING

There are two panels of particular interest for TMNT fans. As a Special Guest at this year's Con, Kevin Eastman has a panel dedicated to him on Thursday. The TMNT 25th anniversary panel will be on Friday, having something to do with the last 25 years (exactly what and how I haven't figured out). Also, expect John Fusco to be introduced as the writer of the upcoming movie planned for 2011.

THURSDAY

1:00-2:00 Spotlight on Kevin Eastman— TMNT co-creator Kevin Eastman not only reflects on his Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle years (with a preview his Comic-Con exclusive 25th Anniversary hardcover collection of favorite TMNT stories!), but also shares sneak peeks and behind-the-scenes teasers or trailers for his upcoming animated film projects—War of The Worlds: Goliath! and Underwhere—and introduces the new Tor Books Novel line Heavy Metal Pulp and the in-development Biz and Buzz animated series. Last but not least, Kevin will give you an update on the new David Fincher/James Cameron–produced Heavy Metal film! Room 5AB

FRIDAY

4:15-5:15 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles— This look at the whole spectrum of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (from comics to toys to TV to movies to video games) celebrates the 25th anniversary of the world-famous brand. Moderator Gary Richardson (CEO, Mirage Studios) discusses the evolution of the Turtles with those people instrumental in the characters' incredible success. Panelists include Kevin Eastman (co-creator of TMNT), Lloyd Goldfine (supervising producer, 4Kids Productions), Steve Barron (director of the original TMNT movie), Karl Aaronian (senior VP of marketing, Giochi Preziosi U.S.A.), Matt Leunig (associate producer, Ubisoft), and Galen Walker (producer of new TMNT movie slated for 2011). Room 6DE

EXCLUSIVES

• NECA will be selling the April O'Neil w/ Mousers figure.
• KEVIN EASTMAN will be selling his TMNT 25th Anniversary book at the Heavy Metal booth.
• MIRAGE STUDIOS will be selling the two Jake Black fund-raising prints at their tables in Artists' Alley.

ON THE FLOOR

• Expect Ubisoft to be demo-ing at least one of the two upcoming TMNT titles.
• As one of the participants in the button give-away (see below), expect Sideshow Collectibles to reveal new TMNT product(s).
  

EVENT

• Friday night there is a preview screening of the the upcoming TMNT direct-to-video special, "Turtles Forever." An invitation to the event is required to attend, and can be acquired by collecting five buttons available at the following locations: Ubisoft's booth, Uclick's booth, Prima Games' booth, Sideshow Collectibles' booth, and the Turtle Van, which will be parked somewhere in or around Horton Plaza.

PEOPLE TO SEE

• Kevin Eastman can usually be found around the Heavy Metal booth, though possibly with less regularity this year than others.
• Stan Sakai, creator of Usagi Yojimbo, is also a special guest at the Con this year and can be found the entire weekend around his booth, or at several scheduled panels.
• Kevin Munrore, director of TMNT (2007), will be moderating the Thursday panel Masters of the Web and previewing his upcoming movie, Dead of Night starring Brandon Routh. An autograph session in the Sails Pavilion follows the panel.
• James Arnold Taylor, Leonardo in TMNT (2007), can be found throughout the Convention at several panels and scheduled signings.
• Mike Sinterniklass, Leonardo in the 4Kids TMNT cartoon, will be on the Saturday night Adult Swim/Venture Bros. panel.

ARTISTS' ALLEY

The following people can be found in Artists' Alley throughout the weekend:

• Dan Berger
• Michael Dooney
• Steve Lavigne
• Jim Lawson
• Eric Talbot
• ... and more!

Eastman & Laird Reunited!!!!

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Yes, the headline is true! You might have thought it would take hell freezing over for the two co-creators of the TMNT to get over their apparent irreconcilable differences and collaborate artistically once again. But no, it didn't take that, it took a much more unfortunate reason. You see, my pal and occasional TMNT writer Jake Black has the Big C. Yeah, that's right: Cancer. The good news for Jake is that the specific type of cancer he has is Hodgkins Lymphoma, which has an extremely high cure rate. The bad news is that being extremely treatable doesn't make the treatments any less sucky and it doesn't make medical bills any less expensive. He's already won a battle with his insurance company to get them to cover his treatments, but you know they're not covering anything. And on top of that he's still got a wonderful family to support, which isn't as easy to do when you're sick and can't work as much as you're used to.

That brings us back to the headline. Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird have collaborated to create a commemorative art print, the sales of which will go to Jake's medical bills! I'm pretty sure that Kevin and Peter haven't collaborated in this form since the mid-90s and, honestly, the chances of this happening ever again are rare at best. What does that mean? It means you need to get yourself one of these!!

How do you get one? For now, you have to be attending San Diego Comic-Con next week. They will be for sale at the Mirage tables in Artists' Alley for the (extremely reasonable) price of $25. The edition sold at Comic-Con is limited to 100 pieces, but if you miss out or can't make the Con, don't fret too hard, it sounds like a non-Comic-Con edition of the print will eventually become available. Jake reports that there are also plans to put the image on T-shirts and posters.

The current Mirage crew collaborated on a print, also for Jake's benefit, that was first sold at a Free Comic Book Day event back in May. This print will also be available at Comic-Con next week for $20.

Chrome Fugitoid Figure Available For Pre-Order

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This showed up on Entertainment Earth a few days ago, but was then quickly taken down. Well, it's back - Chrome Fugitoid! Better get your pre-orders in now, as this is destined to ultimately be one of those ultra-rare figures. How else will it be available? No idea! Retailers that carry Playmates' TMNT figures are dropping like flies (Target recently dropped them, seeming to leave only Toys R Us left), so it's not going to be on a store shelf (or peg) near you. This could very well be the last TMNT action figure until they no doubt release movie tie-ins in 2011. Am I sad about that? No, I'm laughing because the fans that Playmates was pointing and laughing at were right and they were wrong. Too bad for them.

But if you dig Chrome Fugitoid, best get your order in now.

Link was found on Twitter via @geekgirldiva - Thanks!

TMNT: Smash-Up New Characters Revealed

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Hey, I must be on "The List" now - Ubisoft has checked in again, this time with new screen shots and a video revealing three new playable characters: Karai, Nightwatcher, and Fugitoid. Check out the pics & video below.

TMNT Smash-Up & Turtles in Time: Re-Shelled Updates

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You probably know about the upcoming TMNT Smash-Up & Turtles in Time: Re-Shelled video games, but aside from breaking the news on the existance of TMNT Re-Shelled, I've pretty much left the gaming Web sites to take care of feeding the public with info on them, since they generally get fed all that information directly and the only thing I'd be able to do is steal their news from them and I'm just not that kind of person.

Anywho, a fine gentleman from Ubisoft was kind enough to send me an e-mail with some pictures that, apparently, have not been sent to any of the other gaming Web sites (yet). That's right, these are for Turtles fans first!

Update: Quality issues have been fixed (thanks, Ubisoft!), but I'm told that this images aren't particularly new. Well, I guess it's still something.

     

You can keep current on all the latest news on these games on the following Web sites (as well as many others):

TMNT Smash-Up
Gamespot | IGN | 1Up | Official Site
Available September 15 on Wii and September 22 on Playstation 2.

Turtles in Time: Re-Shelled
Gamespot | IGN | 1Up | Official Site
Available August 5 on Xbox Live Arcade

New TMNT Electric Zombie Clothing

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Electric Zombie clothing has released a new line of TMNT-inspired T-shirts.

The T-shirts feature original designs that harken toward everyone's love of zombies.





The available styles are:
Rocker Olive Green (Rocksteady - pictured above)
Bopper Purple (Bebop)
Don of the Dead Black (Donatello and Krang)
Shock Wave Orange Metalhead
Shred Head White (Shredder)
Bug Eyes Gold (Baxter Stockman)
Mondo Teal (Mondo Gecko)

There is also a (not-so-original) poster.

Most of these styles are super-limited, so get them NOW if you want them!

Thanks to @CoreyMadVillain on Twitter for finding this!

TMNT 2011 Movie Gets A Writer

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TMNT25.com has released some details about the events they will be hosting at Comic-Con, coming up in San Diego in two weeks, and by doing so has inadvertently disclosed some information not previously announced (to my knowledge).

According to the TMNT25.com site, John Fusco will be writing the new movie, slated for release in 2011, and will be on a TMNT panel scheduled for Friday of the convention.

According to IMDB, Mr. Fusco's previous screenwriting credits include the Young Guns movies, The Babe, and Hidalgo. He is also writer of a novel, Paradise Salvage.

Unfortunately, I don't believe I've seen any of his credited films, so I really can't comment as to what this actually means for the upcoming TMNT film. It does seem that Mr. Fusco likes horses, though.

Ninja Pizza will be covering San Diego Comic-Con extensively leading up to, and during the show, so stay tuned for many more updates and details to come. Watch for information on TMNT-related programming and events coming up within the next few days.

More PanelToPanel.net Exclusive Book Plates

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PanelToPanel.net has revealed more of their exclusive book plates that will be included with upcoming TMNT releases purchased directly from PanelToPanel!

TMNT Collected Book Volume 1 (pictured left), which collects what basically amounts to the Eastman & Laird collection of TMNT work, will include a book plate illustrated by Peter Laird and signed by BOTH Peter Laird and Kevin Eastman (below left).







Next, Kevin Eastman's upcoming 25th anniversary TMNT collection of his favorite stories (below left) will feature a book plate illustrated and signed by Kevin Eastman (below right).













Be sure to get your orders in now for both of these fantastic books and exclusives (just click any of the covers or book plates to be taken to the corresponding order page)! If you've already ordered the TMNT Adventures "Future Tense" TPB, just shoot John at PanelToPanel an e-mail asking for all of your orders to be combined for discounted shipping.

"Future Tense" w/ Exclusive Book Plate Available for Pre-Order

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PanelToPanel.net has posted the "Future Tense" trade paperback for pre-order! While supplies last, all copies of "Future Tense" ordered from PanelToPanel.net will include an exclusive bookplate featuring brand new art by TMNT Adventures artist Chris Allan. This book contains some of my all-time favorite TMNT stories, so you definitely don't want to miss it!



From NinjaTurtles.com:

Mirage Studios' first trade paperback collection of Archie Comics' "TMNT Adventures," collecting 8 issues of the classic comic book series: #42-44 ("The Future Shark Trilogy") and #62-66 (the "Dreamland" 5-issue story arc). All issues feature the "future Turtles" and act as a lead-in to the upcoming all-new "Forever War" mini-series!

Here's a preview of the bookplate that will be included:

Free Comic Book Day!

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It's Free Comic Book Day! If you haven't already, head down to your local comic book shop, say "Hi!" and snag yourself some awesome (free) comics.

Of course, TMNT fans will want to be sure to pick up the special FCBD reprint of TMNT Vol. 1 #1 - Yes, the first-ever TMNT comic book, for free!

If you're in Rochester, New Hampshire, you can meet a slew of the Mirage gang at Jetpack Comics until 4pm. And if you're in Los Angeles you can meet Kevin Eastman at Golden Apple Comics.

A New "Turtles in Time" Game

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At last week's Galabunga events in NYC, the debut of the Turtles' Party Van also revealed that a "new" TMNT video game - not the already revealed "Smash-up" game for the Wii - was in development. New, yet a game all TMNT fans are familiar with: "Turtles in Time." Only now it's been updated using modern 3D graphics. Mega TMNT fan Jason Koza was at the event (in his Casey Jones costume!) and provides the following info and pics of the game.

• The game is set up and directly taken from TMNT Turtles in Time.
• Right now it's only going to be for Xbox Live, but they're working on bringing it to Wii (Virtual Console Wiiware?).
• It has the same music as the old game.
• Only the levels "Alleycat Blues" and "Skull and Crossbones" were playable.
• The only difference noticed was the bosses for the "Skull and Crossbones" are Tokka and Rahzar (unlike the original, which had Bebop and Rocksteady).
• For Alleycat Blues the boss is still Metalhead.
• The game is basically Turtles in Time with new graphics - Awesome!

Josh notes:

Actually, Tokka and Rahzar were the bosses on Skull & Crossbones in the ORIGINAL (Arcade) version. They were moved to the (added) Technodrome level for the home version, and replaced with Bebop & Rocksteady. This means the remake is probably based on the Arcade version, meaning no Technodrome level, no Rat King, etc.

SDCC Exclusive Figure: April O'Neil

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A "nifty nugget" of SDCC news comes to us tonight from Randy Falk at NECA via Peter Laird:

"I just wanted to send over an image of our SDCC exclusive for this summer. It will be a brand new April O' Neil figure that comes with a Battle Damaged Mouser and a Regular Mouser with a new head featuring an articulated jaw.

This is the first non Turtle figure in the NECA TMNT collection

This version of April will be available at San Diego Comic Con this July.

We are going to try to make arrangements to offer a small amount of figures online for those who can not attend SDCC."

So there ya go - April figure for Comic-Con! (Now where's my Foot Elite, hmm?!!)

Looking Back at TMNT 2007 to look forward to TMNT 2011

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Earlier today I spent some time considering all the different variables that are preventing me from jumping for joy over the new TMNT movie project. The list got quite long and long-winded, so I'm going to try to tackle the bigger ideas in a series of posts.

To start, I've pulled out a series of interviews published before the release of TMNT 2007 from my personal archives. The point of bringing these out is to illustrate how similar the attitude and direction was for TMNT 2007 compared to what (granted, very) little has been said so far of the new project. And in some cases, how the exact opposite of the ideas sold to us for the 2007 movie are now being moved forward.

You can download a PDF of these interviews here.

Before I go any further, I'd just like to make it clear that I really, truly love TMNT. Kevin Munroe gets the characters and I would have no problem were they ever entrusted to him again. I think he did a fantastic job working within all the limitations he was given. TMNT wasn't a bad movie, but it seemed to scratch the surface on what could have been a reallyreally great and more-successful movie.

But anywho, moving forward...


Comics used as the source
One of the big talking points for TMNT 2007 was that it was going back to the comic books for inpiration. Now, almost as if that's been completely forgotten, the new movie is going back to the comic books once again. And in TMNT 2007, where both the Turtles' origin and Shredder were left out of the picture because, "Been there, done that," now the new movie will be not just be revisiting both those points, but will seemingly be built upon them as a foundation.

How this can work
The TMNT, particularly in the last 10 years, have struggled emensely to escape the first 11 issues of the comic book. It seems that each adaptation isn't good enough so then we have to do it all again... it's become tiresome and boring. The comic books should be used as inspiration, but straight adaptation should be kept to a bare minimum. Change things up while maintaining all the elements that have kept fans around through thick and thin (A LOT of thin) for 25 years.


Live action vs. CGI
There were two key reasons for the 2007 movie to be done in CGI. The first, and apparently biggest factor, was cost. A live action film was predicted to cost at least three times as much as a CGI film. The second reason was to avoid the limitations presented by having guys in rubber suits do ninja moves. Makes sense, but now we have this new movie apparently ready to once again put live action guys in rubber suits.

How this can work
So long as all parties involved are willing to spend the money needed to make the rubber suits and CGI combine seamlessly to look believable and not cheesy, this could work out fantastically. But they have to be willing to spend the money. Up 'til now, the most expensive TMNT movie was 2007's at around $35 million. Before that was 1993's TMNT 3, at around $26 million (and we all know how that turned out).


The Batman Begins analogy
Batman Begins has become the ultimate point of comparison when it comes to reinventing an old franchise into something new, exciting, and extremely successful. Rightfully so? Perhaps, although I think it's become overused to the point of cliché. To what extent does the comparison exist with the TMNT? Well, not only was this instantly discussed when news of the new movie broke last week, but - wait for it - it was discussed with the 2007 movie as well.

Click the pic below to compare words from Animation Magazine in April 2007 to an MTV interview with Peter Laird released just today.


What is the point of all this? Well, just because all the creative minds have their hearts and intentions in the right place doesn't mean the project is going to come out and be embraced as they anticipated it would be. By the sounds of it, TMNT 2007 started out in the very much the same place that TMNT 2011 seems to be now.