Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures
Publisher(s): IDW & DC
Writer: Matthew K. Manning
Artist: Jon Sommoriva
Colorist: Leonardo Ito
Cover: Jon Sommoriva
It didn’t take long for IDW and DC to deliver another TMNT and Batman crossover after the last mini series blew fans away. Now we’re back but things are a little different as Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures focuses on the animated versions of these characters. So we’ll be revisiting the world of Batman: The Animated Series along with the current TMNT cartoon on Nickelodeon. Just this combination alone guarantees that this should have a slightly different feel than the last time we saw these characters cross paths several months ago.
Manning doesn’t waste time with introductions as we meet the Turtles doing what they do best. And if you’re already watching the cartoon then you see how well he nails the voices of each character. You’ll hear Greg Cipes as Michaelangelo in the opening sequence and that helps to get right into the story. He gives a brief description on each brother as the story moves along and then quickly shifts over to Gotham. This is where Manning’s story starts to connect the dots and Batman gets his first hint of the dimensional portals used by the Kraang. As I said before, Manning does a fine job of bringing these characters to life so you might end up reading Batman’s parts in Kevin Conroy’s voice too. We also get a more of the detective work here from Batman as all we see are the breadcrumbs leading to what he’ll eventually find and the eventual meeting with the Turtles. Manning provides a hilarious action sequence between the ninja quartet as they face off against Clayface who Michaelangelo has now renamed “Mudbutt” which made me laugh more than I probably should have courtesy of a Dave Chappelle skit. So thanks to Manning every time Clayface appears “Mudbutt” will be the first thing that comes to mind.
The art team of Sommariva, Parsons, and Ito capture everything great about the animated styles of these two shows making you question why hasn’t this happened on television yet?! Seriously, why hasn’t this happened yet? This is one fun looking issue from start to finish with a lighter tone but still visually conveys those heavy moments when needed. We do get a great Alfred moment where the art perfectly syncs with the narrative and will bring back some of that nostalgia from our time with him during Batman: The Animated Series. Sommariva keeps the action looking good and the Mudbu…err…Clayface fight is one that really impacts the pacing of the story in a good way. Parsons’ inks and Ito’s colors add the punch and kicks necessary to make the visuals deliver quality for the reader so expect to enjoy a good looking book.
So fans of both worlds can enjoy the start of this crossover which is a bit formulaic however Manning channels everything that we enjoy from Batman: The Animated Series and Nickelodeon’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles making this well worth your money. And if we get to see Mikey rename classic Batman villains then I’m definitely all in!
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