New Fast Forward Comic Art

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Artist Andres Ponce shares with us a new page of pencils for a UK-exclusive TMNT Fast Forward comic story. You can check out this new art on Andres's blog.

Thanks Andres!

Tales of the TMNT #40 Preview Pages

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This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

A Few More NECA Details

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NinjaTurtles.com today posted this information about the recently announced deal with NECA.

NECA, National Entertainment Collectible Association, has signed a license to produce and distribute collector's market TMNT action figures, statues, busts, weapon prop replicas and bobbleheads based on the TMNT comic books from Mirage Studios. These items will be avaialble to small independent retailers, independent toy stores, comic and hobby shops, and specialty chains. The design and development process has just gotten started, so prduct won't be available for awhile. We'll post news from the folks at NECA as soon as possible!

Earlier this week, Steve Murphy posted to his blog NECA's first design sketch for these new action figures. Due to its lack of resemblance to any of the Mirage comic books, this design was rejected.

TMNT Nominated For SpikeTV's Scream Award

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TMNT has been nominated for SpikeTV's Scream award in the category of "Best Comic-To-Screen Adaptation."

You can vote here. It looks like you can vote as many times as you want!

Thanks to raphaelprime for the link.

Tales of the TMNT #42

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From NinjaTurtles.com:

Tales of the TMNT #42
Ship Date: January, 2008
Format: 32 B&W pages, full color cover, standard size comic
Retail Price: $3.25 US $3.95 Canada

Cover art by Dan Berger; story by Dan Berger, art by Jim Lawson
“The Curious Case of Mr. Jones” - Casey Jones is interrogated by "Men in Black" after he and Raphael battled an alien robot that crash landed on Earth. Will Casey reveal who Raphael is to the secret agents? How was the mechanical menace from the stars defeated? And just who are these men of mystery asking all of these questions? All this will be solved and more in Tales of the TMNT #42!

TMNT Volume 4 to Return - Sorta

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NinjaTurtles.com delivered this message from Peter Laird today addressing the return of Volume 4 of the TMNT comic book:

Welcome back to TMNT Volume 4!

Well, not quite yet... but soon. Volume 4 is going to return this year, but in a slightly different form -- or forms, to be more precise. There will be an inexpensive -- or possibly free -- online form, as well as a more expensive limited edition collectible printed version.

There are a few reasons for this new approach, mostly related to my work habits. For quite some time, before I took most of the last year off from doing the Vol. 4 comics, I had been getting more and more
frustrated by what was required of me, with every issue, to meet the requirements of Diamond Comics, the major comics distributor. This included preparing solicitation material three months in advance for the "Diamond Previews" catalog, along with ads and such. For whatever reason, preparing these materials on this schedule, along with actually getting the book ready to go to the printer by a set deadline, was just really starting to get to me. (Don't get me wrong -- Diamond's system is a fine, reasonable, businesslike approach to distributing comics, and works very well. I just can't deal with it anymore.)

I was also getting frustrated with the time lag between finishing the book and actually seeing it appear before the eyes of the fans, on comic store shelves. It would very often be up to four or five weeks from the time we sent the materials to our printer. Again, not uncommon and completely reasonable -- it takes time to print, bind, trim and ship a comic book.

So, while I was on hiatus, I started thinking about it, and came up with a new scheme. It may turn out to be harebrained, or it might be really good... or maybe just okay. We'll see.

Here's the plan:

1.) Digital Distribution: Each issue will be posted online at the ninjaturtles.com official TMNT website, within a few days (or maybe even hours) of being completed. Access to each issue will very likely be free to anyone with an internet connection and a decent browser, though I am looking into possibly charging a small fee... haven't figured that one out quite yet.

In addition, if feasible technically, I may try something new for TMNT -- a somewhat interactive online letters page. I'm not completely sure how or even if this will work, but I'm mulling it over.

2.) Limited-Edition Printed Distribution: Each issue will also be printed in a "collectible" limited edition, very likely somewhere between 1000 and 3000 copies. These will be available via mail order from Mirage, and will probably cost $10.00 each, shipping included. The first hundred books ordered per issue will have an original black and white TMNT head sketch drawn and signed by me on the inside front or back cover.

These print versions will almost certainly not appear at the same time that the online version is posted, but probably several weeks later.

I'm hoping that these changes will work, and will allow me to continue doing Volume 4 with the same sense of fun which has sustained the book from its inception in 2001 up until the beginning of my hiatus in June of 2006. I think it's worth a shot... and I hope you do too!

-- Peter Laird

Tales of the TMNT #38 - Preview Pages

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Artist Dario Brizuela has posted some preview pages from the upcoming Tales of the TMNT #38 to his blog.

You can check out all of the pages here, here, and here.

Tales of the TMNT #38 will be in stores later this month.

TMNT FF Trading Card @ KB Toys

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KB Toy stores are giving away a pack of 4Kids trading cards free with any purchase. Each pack is the same and contains a card from most of the shows in their Fall lineup. The TMNT card features this art.

TMNT Mini Mutants Action Figures

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Toy News International has released pictures of new TMNT "Mini Mutants" toys and figures that will be hitting shelves in 2008. These figures are similar in design and scale to the Star Wars "Galactic Heroes" and Marvel "Superhero Squad" toys.

You can view the entire gallery here.

Thanks to IBNXuFasch for the link.

Kevin Eastman Interview: Part 2

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The second half of Newsarama's interview with Kevin Eastman is now available for reading on their website here. This part deals mostly with Heavy Metal.

Convention Sketches From Eric Talbot

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Eric talbot has posted some scans of sketches from last weekend's Comic Expo in Toronto.

You can check all of them out at his blog.

Raphael: Bad Moon Rising #2

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Raphael: Bad Moon Rising #2 is now in comic shops.

Go get it!

New Interview With Kevin Eastman

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Newsarama has posted a new interview with TMNT co-creator Kevin Eastman. Apparently there's a part two that we'll see on Monday.

This one's a good read - Check it out here.

Thanks to xmen510 for the link.

NECA to Produce Comic-Based TMNT Action Figures!

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Now this is some exciting news.

In an interview with Action Figure Times, Randy Falk of NECA reports that the company will be releasing comic book-based TMNT figures.

RoAR: Will this be oriented toward the animated series or the original Eastman/Laird comics or a different source?
RF: Starting with the Eastman/Laird comics and we’ll go from there. Expect more detail and texture and loads of articulation on these.

That's the extent of details so far, but as soon as more is known, you'll find the info here!

Thanks to mattmanw54301 for the link.

TMNT Alien Hunter Action Figures

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Toy News International has posted pictures of eight new TMNT figures from Playmates for 2008. This Alien Hunter series features each of the four Turtles and four new alien characters.

Visit TNI for pics of each figure.

Thanks to Ectocooler for the link!

New Fast Forward Comic Art

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Writer Jake Black shares with us three new pages of pencils for a UK-exclusive TMNT Fast Forward comic story. You can check out these pages on Jake's blog.

Thanks Jake!

Auto Attack Action Figures Now In Stores

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The new Auto Attack action figures are now being sighted in stores. Below are pics of the Leonardo and Raphael figures.

Tales of the TMNT #41

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From NinjaTurtles.com:

Tales of the TMNT #41
Ship Date: December, 2007
Format: 32 B&W pages, full color cover, standard size comic
Retail Price: $3.25 US $3.95 Canada

Cover art by Steph Dumais; story by Murphy, art by Steph Dumais
“The Sword.” In the far-flung future an aging Leonardo battles a familiar foe from the past… one final blood-soaked time. Picking up a plot thread from Tales #13, this issue features the wild art of Zombie Commandoes from Hell creator Steph Dumais! With a frontispiece by alphagodz.com!

New Playmates TMNT Web Site

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Playmates has launched a new TMNT section to their Web site. You can check it out here.

Don't miss the details to get the exclusive Bigfoot figure!

Thanks to Hellboy for the link.

Donatello Sketch From Eric Talbot

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Eric Talbot has posted a new Donatello sketch in his blog.

Jagwar In Action

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Fans of the old Archie comics may remember Jagwar, who ended up as part of the Mutanimal team. He never did get an action figure back then, but it seems that his day has come.

Murphy announced today that Jagwar will be part of the TMNT action figure line next year. And then later he gave us pictures.

Fantastic!

Tales of the TMNT #37 Now Available

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Tales of the TMNT #37, "Casey in Point," is now available at comic shops. If your shop doesn't have it, pester them to order it for you. If they tell you they can't, they're lying.

New Action Figures Now Available

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New TMNT movie action figures have started appearing in stores.

Available in this wave are:
Jungle Leo (pictured)
Monster Capture Raph
Surveillance Don
Extreme Sports Mikey
Sloth Monster

and yes....
The Shredder!!

Tales of the TMNT #40, Pages 14-15

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The 5th Turtle has posted this preview of pages 14 & 15 from Tales of the TMNT #40.

TMNT on DVD This Tuesday

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TMNT comes to DVD this Tuesday, August 7. Here's a rundown of special deals at some major retailers.

Target

• Exclusive 2-disc Deluxe Edition DVD for $22.99.
• Regular Edition DVD for $16.99.

Circuit City

• DVD for $16.99 + free action figure (the free action figure looks to be one of the mini figures that were available at Toys R Us earlier this year).

WalMart

• I thought I had read WalMart would have the movie packaged with the PC game for $19.99, but now I can't find confirmation on this.

BestBuy

• DVD for $16.99, no special bonus.

Based on this information, it would seem that Target is the place to go for the "Deluxe Edition."

Don't forget that Season 5 of the original cartoon and Volume 2 of Fast Forward are also available on the same day. There are reports that some stores have already put these on the shelf, so you might get lucky and find them early if you look.

Tales of the TMNT #41, Cover

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The 5th Turtle has a preview of December's Tales of the TMNT issue.

New Comic Book Day

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Both "Tales of the TMNT" #36 and "Raphael: Bad Moon Rising" #1 are available in comic shops today. Go check them out!

New Art From Eric Talbot

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Eric Talbot updates his blog today with a nice Raphael sketchbook painting.

"The Forever War" to See Print!!

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Many, many years ago, "The Forever War" was to be the last story arc of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures title published by Archie comics. But Archie pulled the plug on the series early and the story never came to be. For several years Mirage has been saying that they would complete and publish this story, but it hasn't come to be. Now word comes from Steve Murphy that "The Forever War" will be published as part of the TMNT's 25th Anniversary in 2009. A trade paperback collecting related issues will also be published.

Read the full details at The 5th Turtle!

Another Murphy Interview

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Steve Murphy has given and posted yet another interview.

No ground-breaking revelations in this one, so I'll just send you over to take a read.

Press Release: Upcoming Tales of the TMNT

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Comic Book Resources has published a press release from Mirage Publishing that features previews of several upcoming Tales of the TMNT issues.

Click to read.

Thanks to Tristan for the link.

Tales of the TMNT #40

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From NinjaTurtles.com:

Tales of the TMNT #40

Ship Date: November, 2007

Format: 32 B&W pages, full color cover, standard size comic
Retail Price: $3.25 US $3.95 Canada

Cover art by Diego Jourdan; story by Murphy, art by Diego Jourdan


“Silent Knight.” It’s the year 2025, Christmas Eve… a forlorn Raphael makes his way through the sewers of Tokyo… and finds an abandoned baby. What should be a simple trip to the local hospital turns into a deadly gauntlet as Raphael and the child are attacked by… The Foot! All-out ninja action issue!

Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Original Volume 1 Series Treasury Edition

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From NinjaTurtles.com:

Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Original Volume 1 Series Treasury Edition

Ship Date: November, 2007

Format: 288 B&W pages, full color cover, standard size comic
Retail Price: $18 US $20 Canada

Cover by Jim Lawson and Mike Dooney; stories by Jim Lawson, Ryan Brown and Peter Laird; art by Jim Lawson, Ryan Brown and others.

Treasury Edition reprint collecting the entire original Vol. 1 run of Eastman and Laird’s Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles… plus an all-new, never-before-published full-length story and all-new frontispieces by Jim Lawson! Includes the first appearance of the Rat King, Leatherhead and many other characters! A TMNT classic!

Tales of the TMNT #40, Page 8

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Diego Jourdan has posted a preview of page 8 from Tales of the TMNT #40 on his blog.

New T-Shirts

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Kohl's stores now have available two t-shirts featuring the 4Kids TMNT logo. You can click on each picture to go to a link to purchase the shirt at Kohls.com, but you might be able to score a significant discount if you wander down to your local store.

Thanks to ToTheNines for the links.

Another Interview With Steve Murphy

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Murphy has posted a new, fan-conducted interview over at The 5th Turtle.

Here are a few highlights:

We should know this Friday (July 13) whether or not Imagi (animation studio) and Warner Brothers/Weinstein Group (distribution) plan on going forward with a sequel.

All I know about TMNT V. 4 is that Peter Laird (its writer and creative guru) hopes to return to working on it by the end of the calendar year. At least that’s what I heard this morning from our CEO.

Given the way Mirage Publishing is going, I would doubt very much that we’ll ever see The Forever War storyline (from Archie’s TMNT Adventures) getting published.

Old Japanese OP and ED Songs

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After the post with the new Japanese theme songs, GreenWillow requested the info on the first Japanese theme songs. So here it is.

OP1:
Title: 情熱の風 (Wind of Passion)
Artist: The Inazuma Sentai
CD Single Catalog Number: CRCP-10170
CD Release Date: 2007/05/09
Where to Buy:
Amazon.co.jp | CDJapan
Watch the Video
Watch the Music Video


ED1:
Title: サマーファイター (Summer Fighter)
Artist: Kamogawa
CD Single Catalog Number: CRCP-10171
CD Release Date: 2007/05/09
Where to Buy:
Amazon.co.jp | CDJapan
Watch the Video
Watch Part of the Music Video

Most of this info was compiled by Gobo.

TMNT: The Collected Movie Books Bookplate

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Here's a look at the Panel to Panel exclusive bookplate that is tipped into their copies of TMNT: The Collected Movie Books.

If you're not aware, Panel to Panel has offered an exclusive bookplate for each Collected book that Mirage has published in the last year and they will continue to do so with new books that are released.

Each bookplate features brand new art (with the exception of the one shown here, which is obviously style guide art from the new movie) and is hand signed by at least the artist and sometimes one or more additional people. They make for very unique additions to your TMNT comic book collection.

New Interview With Steve Murphy

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Newsarama has posted a new interview with (outgoing) Tales of the TMNT editor, Steve Murphy. I've quoted what I found to be the most interesting chunks of text below. You can read the entire interview here.

Tales will continue to come out monthly, the trades will continue quarterly, and we'll continue with our yearly solo-Turtle mini-series projects. At least through the end of 2008. After that, things are, well, rather murky. As Jim Morrison sang: "the future's uncertain, and the end is always near." How's that for being cryptic?

I've recently begun negotiations with a publisher of trade paperbacks who does have distribution into the chain bookstores. While the deal is not signed yet, should it come to be, they would be coloring and publishing collections of Mirage comic books, most likely the current run of Tales.

From where I am right now, the future looks... mixed. While plans are underway for a new direction for the cartoon show in 2008, we still do not have a green light as to a movie sequel. Comics will be published at least through the end of 2008 (as noted above). To our double-headed licensing stream of cartoon-based and movie-based, we will be actively pursuing what we're calling "retro," which is a third licensing stream, one that's based on the classic TMNT cartoon. As far as the future of Mirage itself, only time and Peter Laird will tell.

X-E Revisits the TMNT Magazine

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In addition to looking at the magazine, a break is taken to make Fruited Mutant Pizza.

Take a read.

Thanks to sdp for the link.

New Japanese OP and ED Songs

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New opening and ending theme songs for the Japanese dub of the 4Kids cartoon have now aired on TV Tokyo.

OP2:
Title: PERMANENT VACATION
Artist: UNDER THE COUNTER
CD Single Catalog Number: CRCP-10177
CD Release Date: 2007/07/18
Where to Buy:
Amazon.co.jp | CDJapan
Watch the Video



ED2:
Title: 夏の終りがまだここにある (Summer is Over, But I'm Still Here)
Artist: THE LOCAL ART
CD Single Catalog Number: CRCP-10178
CD Release Date: 2007/07/25
Where to Buy:
Amazon.co.jp | CDJapan
Watch the Video


Thanks to Mendinso for the video and to Gobo for tracking down the CD info.

Tales of the TMNT #40, Page 1

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Murphy has posted page 1 from Tales of the TMNT #40 over at The 5th Turtle.

TMNT: The Collected Movie Books

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Now available for order at PanelToPanel.net:

AVAILABLE EXCLUSIVELY AT PANEL TO PANEL.NET! AN EXCLUSIVE IMAGE, CREATED BY KEVIN MUNROE'S CG CREW, WILL BE SIGNED BY PETER LAIRD AND TIPPED INTO EACH AND EVERY COPY OF TMNT: THE COLLECTED MOVIE BOOKS (FOR A LIMITED TIME ONLY)!

Click here to purchase.

TMNT in "Lil Formers" Web Comic

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Donatello makes a cameo appearance in today's Lil Formers web comic.

Thanks to MikeyLikesIt for the link.

Preview of UK Fast Forward Magazine #4

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Tristan Huw Jones has posted two sample pages of an upcoming TMNT Fast Forward comic in his blog.

The comic will be published in issue 4 of the UK TMNT Fast Forward comic magazine, scheduled for release in August.




Click here for info on the magazine. Send me an email if you're able to actually subscribe to it.

Tales of the TMNT #40 Preview

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First look at a story titled "Silent Knight."

Visit The 5th Turtle for full details.

X-E Uncovers the TMNT Pudding Pie Commercial

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Don't waste any time asking, "What?" Just go here some awesome nostalgia.

Thanks to Ecto Jedi for the link.

Tales of the TMNT: Collected Book 3 - Now Shipping w/ Exclusive Bookplate

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PanelToPanel.net is now shipping Tales of the TMNT Collected Book 3 with an exclusive tipped-in bookplate by Eric Talbot. Click here to order. Previous Collected Books with exclusive bookplates are also still available.

TMNT Mutant Pendant Collection

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Tookie has discovered TMNT dogtags in vending machines in the UK: