Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2025) # 1

 By Mark Rodriguez

So before we get into this one, I do want to say I haven't seen (nor plan to see) TMNT Mutant Mayhem or the cartoon series Tales of the TMNT. I couldn't get past the overly stylized designs of the characters, their portrayals and the fact that they ended up going to school as if they were regular teenagers. Now there is a new comic book series based on the cartoon, and by extension the movie. Will this comic change my mind on Mutant Mayhem? Doubtful but let's check it out anyway.

 

The issue opens with the Turtles, Ian and Irma hanging out in a makeshift fort, trading scary stories. Donatello wants to go next and Mikey telling scary stories isn't his strong suit. Donnie insists and says he will tell the story of 'the best week ever'. 

 

Donnie flashbacks to the robotics club where he is trying to fix Metalhead with Ian and Irma. After constant failed test runs, Raph says he should give up and Leo asks why he's so focused on trying to fix Metalhead. Donnie says Metalhead was torn limb from limb trying to save them. They couldn't have defeated Bishop's Mechazoid army without him to they least they can do is try to fix him.

Donatello says the problem might not be his programming, but not getting enough energy. Irma decides they should increase the voltage and Metalhead comes to life. The Turtles leap into action and Metalhead fights them off. Leo, Raph and Mikey grab onto the berserk robot and Ian and Irma short circuit it with battery clamps.

 

Later on, Donatello laments that he needs better equipment to repair Metalhead instead of whatever junk he finds in the sewer. Just then Leo comes in with a letter someone gave to him rather Donnie. It's an invite to NitroBotics, a robotics summer camp. Donatello is excited and says this is just what he needed. Mikey asks this isn't wildly convenient timing. Raph says they'll have a week from Donnie's robot talk and Leo helps him back.

At the summer camp, the counselor announces that as a special reward, the team with a best robot at the end of the week will get a year's supply of robotics equipment. Ian wants to take a pic, but the counselor notices and snatches his phone away. He also snatches Donatello's bo. The counselor says there are no phones allowed for the week so they put all their focus on robotics... while the staff is a safety hazard.

As Donnie and his friend work on Metalhead, a kid shows up having heard that there was a mutant turtle at the camp. The kid's name is Xavier and he's a three year regional camp champ. He looks down at Metalhead's shoddy condition, especially one of its busted eyes when he should be using vibration sensors. Donnie says Xavier should bring his robot out. Xavier says he'll see tonight and Ian wonders what he meant.

Later on, Donnie is wearing a special suit with built in motion capture sensors. Due to this, Donnie can control Metalhead's movements since the robot moves as he does. Irma says the motor functions are good but they shouldn't push Metalhead too far. Donnie gets an idea.

Donatello tests Metalhead on an obstacle course. The turtle runs across tires, and Metalhead does the same. Donnie imitated climbing a wall, as Metalhead climbs a real one. A bug gets in Donnie's face, and as he smacks his face, Metalhead also smacks his face which leads to him losing his grip and falling off the wall. Irma says Metalhead is working beyond her low expectations minus the part with the bug.

As the sun sets for the first day at the camp, the counselor commends the campers and says he already sees some teams that might win. He introduces the longest tenured camper, Xavier. Xavier bring in his two-time robot champ, a huge mechanical terror called Rusty. Donnie says his name is anticlimatic and Irma says it's not his name they have to worry about.

Donatello tells his buddies not to panic. He says Metalhead has been making progress and it's not like they actually have to fight with Rusty. Just then a flash of night reveals a huge arena set for the Annual Battle Bot Showdown. Donatello tells Irma this is how they're most likely going to determine who is the best robot.

The counselor says each first year robot will face off against the returning campers' robots until they win or are destroyed. If the robots gets destroyed... well, they have the rest of the week to fix them. Our trio worry about their chances, and how Metalhead is sure to get wrecked and lose all his progress. Rusty is brought onto the field and it just so happens that the challenger will be Team Metalhead. The team does a quick huddle where the plan is pretty much they have no plan.

Donatello and Xavier and talk trash as they get ready to start the match. As the fight begins, Rusy kicks Metalhead in the face. It then grabs the robot turtle's leg and slams him into a wall. This also knocks Donnie on his back, as he's wearing the motion capture suit. 

 

Irma asks how Rusty can track all of Metalhead's moves since it doesn't even have eyes. Donatello realizes that Rusty's 'eyes' are on the wheels on its feet, remembering how Xavier mentioned vibration sensors. Donatello says he just have to keep Metalhead off the ground. He gets back to his feet and ready to fight.

Metalhead charged towards Rusty and then leaps high into the air. Rusty is temporarily confused, having lost 'sight' of its target. Donatello swings his fist down and Metalhead does a powerful diving punch that smashes Rusty to bits. 

 

Ian and Irma celebrate with Donnie. Xavier shakes Donatello's hand and says it was a good fight. He mutters that he doesn't know what they pulled, but he'll be keeping an eye on them. Irma and Ian call Xavier a sore loser. Xavier says they think they won the week. He tells them to get their rest because they'll need it.

Back to the fort, Raph says that robots are boring and Mikey asks how that was their best week ever since they weren't there. Donatello says robots aren't boring, especially after he described that fight scene. Raph is sure he could have taken down Rusty. Donnie continues the story, saying that Rusty was the least of their problems.

After the fight, the counselor gives someone a call. He tells the caller than everything went perfectly and the team is taking advantage of every resource they given them. The caller is Bishop and she is pleased to see that is everything is going according to plan. Soon Donatello will have upgraded Mechazoid 4, who he calls Metalhead and she'll be able to add it to her army. She also adds that Mechazoid 4 will not be the only one benefiting from Donnie's upgrades.

 

Bishop is working on a giant-sized Mechazoid with orders to bring back Mechazoid 4 and to destroy all mutants. Bishop says he should thank Donatello, but he won't thank him for returning something that was hers to begin with. She watches Donnie sleeping on a monitor and tells him to sleep tight, since his time is almost up. Donatello tells the crew that the story will continue. 

I kinda wonder how Donatello knew about that part of the story since he wasn't there. I'm surprised anyone else didn't ask that since that is such an easy joke to make. 

My thoughts-

So this was kind of a weird way to start a whole new comic book series. So the Turtles are hanging around telling scary stories and Donatello's story is the focus of this issue... and apparently the next since this ended on a cliffhanger. While I still this is a weird way to start the series, it probably would worked better as a one and done? You know, so the next issue might center around Leo or Mikey for example. I sure hope Donatello is everyone's favorite turtle and no one was too eager to see Raph kick some ass when buying this book.

I still find it weird to see the Turtles just walking around with regular people without absolutely no reason to hide whatsoever. Even the 80's Turtles in the later seasons still had to hide a few times. Sure, they were welcomed by a lot of people, but they still had to go back to the trench coats here and there. OK, so Donnie made some new friends, Ian and Irma, and April knows them too but it's weird seeing no one else at the robotics camp bat an eye. Xavier isn't even phased that he's talking to human-sized talking turtle.

I wonder why Donatello was just his regular Ninja Turtle self at the camp. I thought these turtles wore regular clothes when at the school. I wasn't able to find any pics of them wearing regular clothes in the cartoon series so maybe that was just for the movie?

 

Bishop seems to be behind the camp, and she is also the main villain of the cartoon series' first season. I'm assuming the deal with Metalhead sacrificing itself to help the turtles defeat the Mechazoids happened in the show. This is a very different version of Bishop, not only this version a woman this time around, she doesn't seem to be involved with the government like 2003 Bishop is. The design is a bit odd and she looks more like an aged Karai than a female version of Bishop.

I guess I'll at least get the second issue so I don't leave this off on a cliffhanger, after that we'll see. These incarnations of the turtles will be appearing for a bit in a side story of the upcoming TMNT Battle Nexus, which is pretty much 'Enter the Turtleverse: The Tournament' so I guess it doesn't hurt to be somewhat familiar with these turtles before then.