TMNT #50

‘TMNT’ #50 cover by Mateus Santolouco

• Story by Kevin Eastman, Bobby Curnow & Tom Waltz
• Script by Tom Waltz
• Art & cover by Mateus Santolouco

The epic conclusion to over four-years worth of storylines! The Turtles stand against Shredder for one final battle that will determine the fate of NYC, and the world, for years to come!

Pickup your copy of ‘TMNT’ #50 at Comixology now!

Finally the conclusion of the current arc is here! As the synopsis above states ‘TMNT’ #50 is the culmination of four years worth of storylines and after four years it certainly does not disappoint!

In my review of #49 (here) I did complain that the never-ending circle from buildup to battle was getting a little tiring and it has. Over the fifty issues we’ve seen the turtles face off against several different foes and each time we’ve seen them beaten down and come out fighting only to win the day. Several months ago my favourite turtle, Donatello, was lost in a fight with Bebop and Rocksteady and that has brought us to where we are now: midway through a fight to the death between the Turtles, the friends they’ve made along the way and the Foot along with their mutated animal warriors.

The battle itself has now spanned over two issues which is epic even by ‘TMNT’ standards. We join the battle in #50 as Splinter and the Turtles have the upper hand and it stays that way for much of the fight. Whilst Splinter uses the astral plane to search for weaknesses in Shredder himself the turtles pick off the others one-by-one until they only have the man himself left to fight.

This issue smacks of being the season finale to a TV series, it has all the action and still finds time to bring in some character moments for many of the series leads. I mentioned previously that in a battle as big as this there was little room for character moments but given that this is a bumper sized issue that is entirely rectified. The supporting cast members, are given less time than the turtles themselves but that was to be expected at this stage. They are however still there in the background so that we don’t forget them.

The biggest moments are saved for the payoff to various storylines from the past. Firstly and fore mostly the story of Donatello is brought to a satisfying ending. His return to the team is much welcomed by fans and happens to be at the precisely perfect moment in the battle. It’s a little cliched but in a story about family it was the perfect reunion.

Much in the style of a TV season finale there are moments in #50 which setup stories to come also. We’ll save the biggest moment for when you read the issue yourselves (if you haven’t already) but the twist regarding Splinter towards the climax of the issue was beyond groundbreaking for ‘TMNT’ and I cannot wait to see where this goes in the future and it comes off the back of a shocking character moment which I did not see coming.

The above twist leads to some good character development for Michelangelo who all too often seems forgotten when it comes to serious storylines. He’s forever been the comic relief through the cartoons and the films so I’m always behind giving him some more serious work to do and separating him from the rest of his family might allow him some room to breathe and grow.

Whilst the story lingers in the short period of time that the fight entails the artwork continues to stand out, this is a send off issue for Mateus Santolouco as from issue #51 Ken Garing takes over. Santolouco has made a huge impression on ‘TMNT’ and goes out in style by getting to show scenes in #50 which break new ground for the franchise.

His artwork has beyond invigorated the series for me. When he first joined I was unsure about the style in which he drew each of the turtles but I’ve grown to love it and in the sort time it’s taken me to read the whole of this version of ‘TMNT’ he has by far outshone the rest of the artists in terms of the uniqueness he brings.

‘TMNT’ #50 is a great sendoff for several of its characters as well as its artist and is definitely a must read!

5 stars