TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES x STRANGER THINGS #1 DIRECTOR’S CUT Review

TMNT x Stranger Things #1 Directors Cut is published by IDW Publishing, written by Cameron Chittock and illustrated by Fero Pe.

Issue #1 is available 22nd November 2023 either from your favoured online supplier or from your local comic book store, digital copies will be available to download from the usual content providers.

Synopsis

Travel back to 1985 for the most bizarre crossover of 2023 as the TMNT and the kids from Hawkins meet for the first time! With script pages and early-process art from Cameron Chittock and Fero Pe, this Director’s Cut is the perfect way to re-experience the greatest crossover you never saw coming.

Review

You can’t help but have a little warm feeling inside as one of you favourite ever childhood series and one of your favourite recent series collide in probably one of the most unlikely of crossovers in comics, TMNT x Stranger Things brings together these two worlds in one epic series that you never though you wanted but turns out you really do.

The gang from Hawkins are on a seemingly innocent trip doing the tourist thing in the Big Apple, you can’t blame them for everything they’ve been through back at Hawkins you can’t begrudge them a break full of enjoyment. But the gang being ever inquisitive find themselves on a search deep into the underground train tunnels of New York after hearing a familiar sound coming from just past the station platform.

A further investigation finds that the noise was indeed familiar and came from a being they know only too well, the Demogorgon. This isn’t the first time they’ve had a meeting but this time certainly not expected. Out of the shadows comes help in the form of New York’s most heroic amphibians, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Making short work of the Demogorgons the attention between the two groups soon turn to the reason behind the sudden appearance of these evil predators and it seems like a certain figure from the TMNT past may have the answers.

In terms of an unlikely of combinations this has to be up there with one of the ones I didn’t really expect to see but it turns out it’s a combination I never knew I needed but I certainly did, the two character groups work surprisingly well together combining their unique personalities to create an epic story.

I have alot to thank Cameron Chittock for, having the thought process to come up with this concept is nothing short of genius, I’ve always enjoyed Stranger Things with it having a slight Goonies feel to it (but alot more scary) and TMNT will always have a special place in my heart so having the two combined blew my little mind. The story is well written and this makes the story naturally flow rather than have it just thrown together for the sake of it, I can’t wait to see more of this.

The illustration style of the comic was good I especially enjoyed the Director’s Cut version which gave you a black and white concept making the impact alot more intense than maybe colour would have, either way a fantastic job done by Fero Pe literally illuminated my imagination with the intensity of each panel.

The part of the book after the comic was especially my favourite part as it allows the reader a unique look behind the scenes of how it was all put together.

Verdict

Top marks. Not a combination I expected, but a combination I want more of all the same. A genius concept brought to fruition by a talented creative team, definitely one of the comics of the year.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐