TMNT Costumed Characters Debut at Nick Hotel Memorial Day Weekend

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TMNT costumed characters will begin appearing at Nick Hotel for meet and greets starting this upcoming Memorial Day weekend. No details about the meet and greets are available, but expect the costumes to be the same as the ones seen at Nickelodeon Universe back in March for the grand opening of the TMNT: Shell Shock ride (which, as an aside, has been closed for unknown maintenance reasons for the last few weeks). You can expect the Turtles to be an on-going attraction at the resort as the premiere of the new CGI series this fall comes ever closer.

If you're like me and you've never heard of Nick Hotel, here's how Nickelodeon describes it:

Located in the heart of Orlando’s tourism district, Nickelodeon Suites Resort, otherwise known as the Nick Hotel, is much more than a place for guests to lay their heads at night. From two over-the-top pool complexes with slides and flumes, to live entertainment and Character Breakfast featuring Nickelodeon’s beloved characters, to a multimillion dollar 4-D Theater, to the colorfully themed KidSuites and gallons upon gallons of slime, Nick Hotel offers nonstop activity from dawn to dusk for the entire family any time of the year.

Sounds neat!

IDW TMNT Color Classics #1 - Variant Cover Guide

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Are you ready to enter into a whole new realm of TMNT reprints? Starting today, IDW is releasing all of the original Eastman & Laird issues (i.e. all the issues that are collected in the hardcover reprints) as individual color "floppies." These issues feature brand new coloring of the original black and white art.

Confused yet? Yeah, thought so. Just smile, nod, and fork over your $4. Not convinced? Check out a preview!

Cover A

Cover B

Cover A: Kevin Eastman & Peter Laird (color).
Regular cover.

Cover B: Kevin Eastman & Peter Laird (black & white).
Retailer exclusive cover for Jetpack Comics.
This cover is available from Jetpack Comics.

Free Comic Book Day is Tomorrow! Giveaway Details

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Free Comic Book Day is TOMORROW! Woohoo! Be sure to visit your local comic shop where you can grab some swag, and buy some extra comics while you're at it. Many stores will be having events, so get out there and partake!

Ninja Pizza will be celebrating by giving away 4 special prize packs featuring an exclusive Wild West C.O.W.Boys of Moo Mesa coloring book and poster, donated by Ryan Brown and The Toys that Time Forgot. Or, if you're in Ohio, you can grab one for yourself!

If you don't know, Ryan is the creator of the C.O.W.Boys, and he also worked at Mirage Studios in the 90s where he drew lots of Turtles and designed lots of toys, among other things.

So how do you win? Visit NinjaPizza.net between 12:00am and 11:59pm Pacific Time on Saturday, May 5, to find out!

If both geography and luck aren't on your side on Saturday, you can buy the coloring books directly (in bulk) from Willow Promotions.

Each winner will receive one coloring book and one poster for tomorrow's Free Comic Book Day event. Each coloring book has a sketch and signature from Ryan on the inside back cover, and each poster has the same! The four that I have are even color coded - one for each Turtle!

I will also be including a random selection of comic books from my personal stash for each winner!

See you back here tomorrow!

TMNT Preview Panel at London Comic Con

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London Comic Con, coming up May 25-27, has announced a special Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles panel that will give attendees a sneak preview of the upcoming new CGI TV series from Nickelodeon. Presenting the panel will be TMNT co-creator Kevin Eastman, along with Senior Vice President of Current Animation at Nickelodeon Rich Magallanes. Eastman was already scheduled to be a guest at the convention, while Magallanes the TMNT Fan Preview Events last year in Burbank and San Diego. 

Convention goers who would like to attend the panel are encouraged to register for "VIP access" on the London Comic Con website.

According to the website:

Visitors to May’s show at ExCel will get a sneak peek at the next generation of turtles, as Nickelodeon previews its upcoming CG-reimagining of the classic animation with an exclusive Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles presentation and Q&A. 

Taking place in the show’s MCM Theatre from 11:30 am on Saturday 26 May, the special panel stars Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles co-creator Kevin Eastman and Nickelodeon Senior Vice President, Current Animation Rich Magallanes. As well as getting the low-down on this exciting new series, every Q&A attendee will also receive a free Turtles item! 

Featuring your favourite half-shell heroes – as well as April O’Neil, Splinter and Shredder – the new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series breathes new life into the iconic characters of the much-loved franchise… and you can find out about it first at MCM Expo London Comic Con!

While this is very exciting news for fans "across the pond," it's also rather curious. Indication given at Toy Fair in February was that the new series wouldn't hit international markets until Spring 2013, nearly a year away. Meanwhile, fans everywhere are anxiously waiting for Nickelodeon's PR machine to break loose and start feeding us information and previews.

If any readers attend the Con and the panel, please submit a report to share with the rest of us!

IDW TMNT #9 Variant Cover Guide

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Once again, it's another split new comic book day. Some of you will walk into your shops today to find TMNT #9, some of you will be empty handed. You can thank Diamond for the distribution mess.

No matter what part of the country you're in, you can check out a preview for the book!

Finally, Free Comic Book Day is coming up on May 5! If you know of any TMNT-related appearances or signings happening that day, please e-mail the info to me so that I can post it here on the website. Thanks!

Cover A

Cover B

Cover A: Dan Duncan.
Regular cover; distributed in a 4:1 ratio with cover B.

Cover B: Kevin Eastman.
Regular cover; distributed in a 1:4 ratio with cover A.

Cover C

Cover C: Ethan Nicolle.
Retailer incentive cover; 1 copy sent to retailers for every 10 copies ordered.

Kevin Eastman Auctioning Pieces of TMNT History

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On May 10, 2012, through Heritage Auctions, TMNT co-creator Kevin Eastman will be selling significant pieces of TMNT history from his personal collection through public auction.

Items to be sold include the first ever group drawing of the TMNT (above), one of the first ever TMNT toy prototypes, a Press Proof 1st print of TMNT #1, a collection of TMNT movie scripts (including a draft of the original TMNT 4 script, plus concept art), and more!

You can check out a quick preview of all of the items over at Kevin's DeviantArt account. If you're ready to open your wallet, head over to Heritage Auctions for auction and bidding details!

UPDATE! The final selling price on the first ever group drawing of the TMNT was an astonishing $71,700!!

Boston Comic Con This Weekend

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Kevin Eastman will be at Boston Comic Con this weekend! No specific word on what his schedule will be or where to find him, but I'm sure he won't be hard to track down once the doors open.

A good place to start looking would be the Jetpack Comics booth, where they are claiming to be THE Heavy Metal vendor of the show. Simon Bisley will also be attending, and Jetpack is offering the following special deal throughout the weekend:

Swing by the Jetpack Comics Booth and pick up all the best Kevin Eastman & Simon Bisley merchandise  and you'll get FREE STUFF. Just spend $10 on Eastman merch and get a FREE reproduction of the original TMNT #1! Spend $10 on Simon Bisley merch and get a FREE copy of his Jetpack Exclusive edition of DEAD: Kingdom of the Flies.

I'm not sure which edition of TMNT #1 they'll be giving out (if you go to the show, let me know!), but my guess would be the PBBZ reprint.

Also at the show will be 4Kids artist Khary Randolph and Mirage Studios artist Michael Dooney! Sounds like a good time!

IDW TMNT Micro-Series #4 Leonardo Variant Cover Guide

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Apologies for lack of updates lately. If I hadn't been so busy with other life things, I'd have made a post announcing that IDW is expanding the TMNT Micro-Series title to feature Splinter (#5), Casey Jones (#6), April (#7), and a not-yet-announced character for #8 (Shredder, maybe?). This is actually quite old news at this point.

In other slightly delayed news, the Ultimate Collection Vol. 2 hardcover has finally shipped. You can snag it from your local comic shop, or from Amazon.

Today if you visit your local comic shop you can pick up the Leonardo Micro-Series issue. Check out the preview!

Cover A

Cover C

Cover A: David Petersen (color).
Regular cover; distributed in a 4:1 ratio with cover B.

Cover C: David Petersen (black & white).
Retailer incentive cover; 1 copy sent to retailers for every 10 copies ordered.

Cover B

Cover D

Cover B: Ross Campbell.
Regular cover; distributed in a 1:4 ratio with cover A.

Cover D: Peter Laird.
Retailer incentive cover; 1 copy sent to retailers for every 25 copies ordered.

Cover E (Back)

Cover E (Front)

Cover E: BrettsComicPile.com.
Retailer exclusive cover for BrettsComicPile.com.
Distribution for this variant is a bit vague at the moment. For now, your best bet is to get it from here or to search eBay.

C.O.W.Boys of Moo Mesa Coloring Book Available on Free Comic Book Day

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TMNT artist and creator of the Wild West C.O.W.Boys of Moo Mesa, Ryan Brown, has produced a special, limited edition C.O.W.Boys coloring book especially for the upcoming Free Comic Book Day.

The books will be exclusive to The Toys Time Forgot, located in Canal Fulton, OH. Although Ryan will not be in the store that day, all of the copies of the coloring book will be pre-signed along with a TMNT sketch on the inside back cover.

Free Comic Book Day, held on the first Saturday of May, is an annual celebration of comic books meant as a way to introduce comic books to people who don't usually buy them. This year Free Comic Book Day is on May 5.

If you won't be in Ohio to pick up the exclusive C.O.W.Boys coloring book, come visit Ninja Pizza on May 5th for a chance to win one of 4 copies being donated by Ryan!

Potential Kevin Eastman Movie Concept Art Surfaces

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Yesterday, Scott Mescudi posted a curious piece of Kevin Eastman art to his Tumblr account (and, likewise, to Twitter). He states that it was a gift given to him by Andrew Form and Brad Fuller of Platinum Dunes, the company producing the new movie.

The piece, which appears to be a print, is dated 2012 and depicts a Turtle in what could be Casey Jones-like gear. (Or, dare I say it - Alien gear?)

Thanks to the one and only Ernie Reyes, Jr. for bringing this to attention on Facebook!

TMNT TV Preview to Air After Kids' Choice Awards?

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Ever since showing up on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Wikipedia page, the rumor has persisted that we may see a preview of the new TMNT CGI series from Nickelodeon connected to the Kids' Choice Awards, which airs this Saturday, March 31, 2012.

Despite the lack of any official confirmation that this may be happening, there is indication that there could be some truth to the rumor. However, it would not be in the form of a complete episode. If we do see anything, expect it to only be a short clip - probably the same clip that was shown at Toy Fair. It's also likely that the preview won't be during the awards show itself, but directly after it.

Keep in mind that all of this is still just speculation, but if there's any truth to it we will probably hear about it within the next day or so via @TMNTMaster on Twitter and/or the official TMNT Facebook page. Even if we don't hear anything, it might be worth it to schedule your DVRs.

UPDATE:
A Tweet from Kenny Byerly, a writer for the series, indicates that there will not be a preview attached to the Kids' Choice Awards this weekend.

IDW TMNT #8 Variant Cover Guide

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It's new comic book day! Beware lingering Nerd Rage when you go out today; it was in full force last week. And something else for you to ponder: Do the Turtles in the IDW series actually qualify as teenagers? Hmmmm?

Here's your traditional pre-fight preview!

Cover A

Cover B

Cover A: Dan Duncan.
Regular cover; distributed in a 4:1 ratio with cover B.

Cover B: Kevin Eastman.
Regular cover; distributed in a 1:4 ratio with cover A.

Cover C

Cover C: Simon Gane.
Retailer incentive cover; 1 copy sent to retailers for every 10 copies ordered.

New Movie to be Called "Ninja Turtles" - Michael Bay Clarifies Why

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Still worked up about Michael Bay's "alien" comments from a couple weeks ago, another wave of Internet rage seems to have emerged with the revelation that the working title of the film is simply "Ninja Turtles." People seem to be interpreting this as a way to delete both the mutant and teenage aspects of the characters from the film. However, in another statement made on his official message boards, Bay clarifies that the title change was made by Paramount (not Bay) to simplify the title. In his full statement, he also reiterates that great care is going into the movie to make it something the fans are going to love.

Paramount marketing changed the name. They made the title simple. The characters you all remember are exactly the same, and yes they still act like teenagers. Everything you remember, why you liked the characters, is in the movie. This script is being developed by two very smart writers, with one of the original creators of Ninja Turtles. They care VERY MUCH about making this film for the fans. Everyone on this team cares about the fans. Just give them a chance. Jonathan the director, is a major fan of the whole franchise. HE'S NOT GOING TO LET YOU DOWN.
MICHAEL

Of course, saying "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" repeatedly gets tiring quite fast, and pretty much everyone has simplified it to "Ninja Turtles" anyways. Considering that there are also already three movies that start with "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles," differentiating this new movie from the old ones is a no-brainer.

Guinness World Record for Largest Gathering of Ninja Turtles

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On Saturday, March 17, 2012, a new Guinness World Record was set for the largest gathering of people dressed as Ninja Turtles! The event marked the grand opening of the new ride at Nickelodeon Universe in the Mall of America, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shell Shock.

A crowd begins to gather around the new ride.

Check out video of the event below! Some of the audio is a little hard to hear, but this is essentially the entirety of event, with the 10 minutes of waiting cut out. The final number of people dressed as Ninja Turtles was 836! Cowabunga!


Some of my favorite fan shots from the event! Check out all my pictures on Flickr!

The youngest Turtle?

Best. Hair. EVER!

Director Jonathan Liebesman Comments on New TMNT Movie

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While doing press for the upcoming Wrath of the Titans, Jonathan Liebesman finally had a chance to have his own say about the recent "alien" controversy in an interview with Collider.com. And in doing so, he pretty much confirms that the Turtles themselves aren't going to be aliens. He actually said all the right things that should make any TMNT fan ready to embrace and be excited for this movie.

"Look, it's so funny—if everyone was such a die-hard fan, they would know that the TCRI canisters where the ooze comes from. That is alien ooze. Now I'm not saying what Michael said is exactly what the movie is, because we're sitting in a room now figuring everything out. So we don't know, but we are like Michael said: we're expanding it, and the expansion will be true to the mythology. I promise you: fans will love it."

He also commented that this isn't just going to be an action movie.

"We're definitely into the action, but for me what's more important than that is that it's a story about brotherhood and friendship and responsibility. Right now, I'm with the characters because those are what attracted me to the movie. They're the best characters I'll have had a chance to deal with."

These comments alone should be enough to satisfy fans that this movie is going in the right direction and that, for now at least, there's no need for nerd rage.

Further details speak to Kevin Eastman's involvement in the film:

"A lot of it is stuff he’s wanted to do for a long time, but just hasn’t had the opportunity [before, but] now we have the budget ... on this film to expand it in the right way."

Finally, Liebesman mentions that the film could be filming in Canada sometime around September, and that they're looking at rendering the Turtles with motion capture suits, similar to Rise of the Planet of the Apes.

TMNT Creators Weigh-In On Bay's Turtles

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Kevin Eastman drawing secret stuff.
Photo by: Jonathan Liebesman

When Michael Bay posted a comment to his official message boards responding to the outrage over the revelation of "alien" Turtles, he mentioned that he was working with one of the original creators on the project. It was easy to speculate that that person was Kevin Eastman, but Kevin has now confirmed that with a brief update to his Facebook page.

Hey Guys, Sorry to have been away for so long--completely swamped with work--but it is some pretty exciting stuff. I had been invited to check out the TMNT film development by my friend Scott Mednick over the years, and a while back had a full look behind the curtain at what writers Appelbaum and Nemec, director Liebesman, and producer Bay are doing--and trust me--it IS AWESOME. I'm officially on board, and will share more as I'm allowed… thanks all!

So, it looks like Kevin is behind the project 100%. And that's good enough assurance for me.

Meanwhile, Peter Laird has posted some of his own musings on the topic on his blog, although he has no personal involvement in the project and knows only as much as the rest of us do. He also drew a cute little alien Turtle.

INFESTATION 2: TMNT #2 - Variant Cover Guide

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I know everyone is currently obsessed with the idea of the Turtles being aliens, but how about we all take a break from that and focus on Turtles fighting underground alien monster creature... things.

It'll all be ok. Really. Check out the preview, then head to your comic shop!

Cover A

Cover B

Cover A: Menton J. Matthews III.
Regular cover.

Cover B: Mark Torres.
Retailer incentive cover; 1 copy sent to retailers for every 10 copies ordered.

Michael Bay Responds to "Alien" Outrage

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As you most likely know by now, Michael Bay created a bit of Internet outrage last week with some comments he made about the new TMNT movie, scheduled for release Christmas 2013. Here's the entirety of the current controversy:






There are several possible interpretations, but "These Turtles are from an alien race," seems pretty straight forward. Although the Turtles have always been Earth-based, their origin in the original comic books and 4Kids TV series came from an ooze created by the alien Utroms. However, when taken at face value, Bay's comments really do seem to indicate that the Turtles themselves are now going to be aliens. What's a fan to think?

Well, let's keep some things in mind, especially before declaring that Michael Bay is ruining the TMNT. Even though he made this presentation, he is still only a producer on the project. He did not write the script and he is not directing.

Just a short while ago, on his official message boards, Mr. Bay responded to all the outrage:

Fans need to take a breath, and chill. They have not read the script. Our team is working closely with one of the original creators of Ninja Turtles to help expand and give a more complex back story. Relax, we are including everything that made you become fans in the first place. We are just building a richer world.   

Michael

It's safe to assume that the creator being spoken about is Kevin Eastman. Not only is Peter Laird absolutely not involved in any of the new projects, but Kevin mentioned having seen the script in an interview late last year during the Lost Angeles: 35 Days of Kevin Eastman event at Meltdown Comics in Los Angeles.

I think for the time being we all owe it to the involved persons to keep an open mind and give this thing a chance. Literally all we know about anything at this point is seven words. And the story and appeal of the Turtles is a lot deeper than their origin.

New Guinness World Record Set For Most People Dressed as Ninja Turtles!

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Yesterday, in celebration of the grand opening of the new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shell Shock ride at Nickelodeon Universe at the Mall of America in Bloomington, MN, 836 TMNT fans successful set the Guinness World Record for the most people dressed as Ninja Turtles in one place!

I will have a full report of the event, along with a bunch of pictures and some video, coming up later this week (after I get my shell back to California). But, I will say in short that the event was a blast, and the ride is reallyreally fun! It was tough to get the cars to do a complete 360, but very rewarding when you succeeded - It really was kinda like ninja training!

For now, here's the official group photo of the event. I left it huge so you can play Where's Waldo if you're in the crowd or know someone who was. Cowabunga, Dudes!

TMNT: Shell Shock Grand Opening Event Today!

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Keep track of event goings-ons by following @NinjaPizza on Twitter!

Guide to WonderCon 2012

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WonderCon, the little sister convention to Comic-Con International, is being held this weekend, March 16-18, at the Anaheim Convention Center. This is a (supposedly) temporary relocation from the usual digs at the Moscone Center in San Francisco. (I sure hope so!)

The only TMNT-related information I have for the convention comes from IDW:

March 17, 12:00-3:00pm - On Saturday, the IDW booth will be hosting a signing with TMNT co-creator Kevin Eastman.

All weekend - The IDW booth will be selling the limited edition black & white variant cover of TMNT: The Ultimate Edition, Vol. 1.

I was hoping to make it to this even though it's not in my backyard this year, but things didn't work out and then something else came up. Happy conventioning to anyone who is going!

New TMNT Movie Officially Scheduled for December 2013

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Deadline.com is reporting tonight that the new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie, which has been in development for several years now, has an official release date scheduled for Christmas 2013.

And with all signs pointing at the movie moving forward into production, Jonathan Liebesman has been named director. Just a month ago he was rumored to be in talks for the job.

The movie is said to be a live action-CGI combo, although there are no specifics are mentioned on exactly how the Turtles themselves will be realized.

Shout! Factory Acquires DVD Rights for "Ninja Turtles: The Next Mutation"

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Last year, Ninja Turtles: The Next Mutation appeared on Netflix streaming as part of a distribution acquisition that included most all of the titles in Saban's library. This was the first time The Next Mutation had appeared in the United States in any format in well over 10 years.

Now, in a DVD distribution deal that consists mostly of Power Rangers episodes, Shout! Factory has picked up the rights for The Next Mutation. This doesn't guarantee that the series will be released on DVD, but it is an important step in making it happen. Here's hoping!