Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Volume 1

Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1

by Kevin Eastman, Peter Laird, Jim Lawson

The hit TMNT anthology series is back, and now in color! Volume 1, with a new cover by Steve Lavigne, collects issues #1-4 which include the stories "A Tale of the TMNT," "Nobody's Fool," "All Hallow's Thieves," and "I, Monster." Read along again (or for the first time!) to enjoy the enormity of the Turtles' universe.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics, Fiction

132 pages, Paperback

First published November 27, 2012

About the author

Kevin B. Eastman is an American comic book artist, co-creator of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

Reviews

[A.J. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sadly this wasn’t as great as I was expecting, mostly carried by Jim Lawson’s fantstic pencils and the pretty sweet Rat King issue, but it’s still a fun companion series to the main Miarage run. This is also a recolor of the Mirage Tales series, as IDW doesn’t really seem to like reprinting these titles in black and white like they originally were. I’m honestly mixed on that idea as a whole, but the coloring is actually really well done here, especially the Rat King issue that concludes the collection.

A Tale of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles by Kevin Eastman, Peter Laird, Jim Lawson, Ryan Brown, and Steve Lavinge ☆ ☆ 1/2

Taking place after the Turtles have retreated to Northampton, this one deals with some relatives of Casey Jones, leading to an okay story that never really does anything all that interesting. I was pretty meh on this one, but Lawson’s art is great.

Nobody’s Fool by Kevin Eastman, Peter Laird, Jim Lawson, Ryan Brown, and Steve Lavinge ☆ ☆ 1/2

Another samey story that was carried by amazing art from Jim Lawson. I really love this guy’s pencils, but there is not much else to say about this story as a whole.

All Hallow Thieves by Kevin Eastman, Peter Laird, Jim Lawson, Ryan Brown, and Steve Lavinge ☆ ☆

This was by far the goofiest of these issues so far. A statue is stolen from April’s antique store and turns into a giant monster thing with 4 arms. Pretty cool fight scenes from Lawson and Brown aside, this wasn’t anything special.

I, Monster by Jim Lawson, Ryan Brown, and Steve Lavinge ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ 1/2

This was really, really cool. The Rat King’s first ever appearance, and it is spectacular. I think a final page was added in this edition, retconning the Rat King’s apparent death in the initial printing of the issue back in the day. The story is creepy, and I like that we get some monologues for a villain instead of the heroes. I also loved the pencils by Lawson and inks by Ryan Brown (shocker). Solid issue with nothing really holding it back.

Even though I loved I, Monster, I’d only recommend checking this out if you are a hardcore TMNT fan. It’s a great companion to the Mirag run, but I just can’t see new fans of Ninja Turtles enjoying this.

[Quentin Wallace · Rating 4 out of 5]

I myself have never been a huge fan of the TMNT, but most comic fans do read some of the material just because it's almost considered required reading for a comic fan. For people who are familiar with the TMNT as the kid's cartoon characters, the early stories would definitely come as a shock. The comic was originally a grim and gritty book really aimed at mature readers. This volume reprints the first four issues of the "Tales of the TMNT" series which was a companion series to the original book. These aren't quite as the gritty as the early issues of the original book, but aren't exactly kiddie fare either. Both the story and art are good, and when compared to many of the comics that came out during the black and white glut of the 80s, the work is stellar.

In all it's an entertaining volume, although the last story does venture into the "silly" category. Really, though, this is the type of comic archive that any comic fan should read at least once, just to give you an idea of the evolution of such important pop culture characters as the Turtles.

[Charles · Rating 3 out of 5]

Stuff I Read - Tales of the TMNT Vol 1 Review

I guess I should start by saying this is the first TNMT comic I have ever read. I watched the show back in the day and watched the older movies, but I got this as a gift so I figured I had to give it a go. And what I can say is that it was all right. Nothing was too out there that I didn't understand what was going on. But this is probably not the place to start reading TNMT comics. It's world-expanding stuff from the original series, and it's interesting and rather funny and the art is neat. There is a lot to like about this, especially the rather insane story about the Rat King.

The art is definitely a product of the time, though. Now, it seems almost painfully out of date, because it lacks the polish of more mainstream comic books. That's part of its appeal. It definitely has some more personality, and it definitely comes from a more personal place than most other comics, but it does make for some weird layouts at times and not always the cleanest of pictures. Not that the art is bad, but it takes a little bit of getting used to and it typically very dominated by shadows. I'm not sure at this point if the series was still making fun of all the tropes of comics or if it had transitioned over to be its own successful franchise, but the stories are completely over the top. That was nice. They're crazy and that's really all you can expect from the TNMT.

There are only four actual issues in this collection. One with the turtles and Casey Jones out in the country. One with the Rat King. One with a different masked vigilante. And one with magic on Halloween. I was a little disappointed that there wasn't more sci fi elements, as that was something from the show that I assumed was from the comics. But the magic was good, and rather crazy, and I liked each of the stories in their own ways. Not groundbreaking, but entertaining at least. Not bad. Which is to say that I would read more if someone gave me more, but I'm not really going to go out of my way.

In the end, this volume does what it was meant to do, gives fans some more material to read. It does that well enough, but for a first-time reader there are much better places to start. If you receive this as a gift, I'd say give it a shot. Maybe it will convince you to seek out more. For me, not so much, but this is still a 6.25/10 to me.

[Greta is Erikasbuddy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked up this book thinking it would have the old TMNT comics in order. It says 1-4, right?

But what confused me where comics that started with:
This story takes place before TMNT #11.

Perhaps that makes these new stories. But I don't see how when it says:
These reprints of 1980s-era comics were intended for mature audiences, and do not reflect today's values of those of Nickelodeon or IDW Publishing. Except for the addition of color, the comics are presented here as originally published.

So, that would have to mean that they aren't new.

I just found it the book rather confusing. I didn't understand what was going on. It seemed like we jumped into the middle of the action without learning how the fight started.

I think if you have read the series before then you will enjoy this, but for someone who is just starting out... this wasn't for me.

[Hudson Nutting · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think it’s a fun experiment to see what they like to do as inbetweens that aren’t canon, makes it more fun you can do not story things on their own. The art is incredibly gritty and it adds to the charm.

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

3 1/2 bumped up because of the feels from nostalgia goodness.

[Nicholas Dehler · Rating 4 out of 5]

A comic collection of four 31 page stories that can be read out of sequence. I found all of them to be super enjoyable! The Rat King one was definitely my favorite. Certainly interested in reading the other tales of the turtles collections!

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun read to expand the Turtle universe but also got down right freaky and creepy at times. There were some really dark stories but also made you think. The one done completely in black and white was really interesting and some of the stories I recognized from the 2003 TV series like the Rat King story and Nobody. I also got introduced to Shadow, a character I am not familiar with as I haven't read too much of the older TMNT books. Most of the stories played with a spiritual, magical, or other plain-type stories while a few took place in more the natural world but they all were dark in theme and topics. While this book is dark and challenging, I would recommend it for an older age group (T+) and will need to be in the right mood to read more of the volumes.

[Ashlight Grayson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've never read any TMNT comics before and this was an enjoyable read for me despite being an anthology of stories rather than a chronological, cohesive story arc. I had people warn me about how gritty the older comics were, but I found that I really didn't mind it. At some point one of the characters breaks a rat's spine in a fight. I know, that sounds strange out of context, but my point is, it is kind of gritty. I actually want to start reading the 2009 run so I can get a greater feel for the comics.

[Kass · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun stories, but not particularly fascinating. It's a positive in my eyes that the red masks for every turtle has been ditched, because without seeing their weapons you have no idea who's who

[Nicholas Ahlhelm · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun if somewhat simple spinoff to the original Ninja Turtles book from Mirage. Features very early Jim Lawson art.

[Devon · Rating 4 out of 5]

T-U-R-T-L-E POWER!

[A.L. · Rating 2 out of 5]

This collection is only OK. This series is a collection of stand alone stories that fit within the larger TMNT continuity. Four stories are included. All of them are forgettable. None of the plots seemed to have much weight. I felt like these stories didn't matter at all. They felt like add-ons. Like extra scenes included on a DVD. After you watch them you often think, "well, I know why that was deleted." (Because they're lame or unnecessary.)

Despite my overall lukewarm feeling for this volume, I enjoyed seeing lots of early Jim Lawson art. You can truly see a difference in the art from story to story. His style has drastically evolved over the years. I prefer much of his early art to his current, more boxey/cartoony, renderings (see the cover of this collection for an example of his current style). I loved his version of the turtles shown in issue #4 of this collection.

Issue #4 is also and interesting Rat King story. This is the highlight of the collection. The script and plot were better executed, and seemed to matter more, than those of the other stories. (Particularly issue #1 which has really poor dialogue between Casey Jones and his cousin.)

The price point on this collection ($19.99) seems steep, especially for just four issues that are easily forgotten.

The bottom line: I'd recommend this book only to TMNT, or Jim Lawson fans, that want to read EVERY issue. And I'd recommend that they check it out of the library rather than pay for it.

[Karl-Kristoffer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this up thinking it was a collection of the first four issues of the original comic. When I read the introduction I found out I was somewhat mistaken. It was actually a collection of the first four issues of a series of side-stories. However, since these four stories are pretty much self-contained, they can be enjoyed by themselves.

I also discovered that all four of these stories have been adapted into episodes of the 2003-cartoon. Having recently watched through the entirety of that show, these stories were rather familiar.

Anyway, I found the book an enjoyable read but most of it was nothing special. I probably wouldn't have given it more than a three until I got to "I, Monster". Holy shell, this is definitely my favourite version of the Rat King ever. While the animated adaptation follows the events rather closely, the character himself feels very different. I absolutely love this version of the character and since he is the driving force of the story, by extension I love the story.

To summarize: The first three stories get three stars. "I, Monster" gets five stars. Overall I give the book a four.

[Shaun · Rating 3 out of 5]

Though I wouldn't rate this as A+ stories, it is nice to have self contained ones. Each issue can be read merely on its own, which is great. Though there aren't such greats as Shredder and Baxter Stockman in this issue, the highlight would have to be #4, with the Rat King.

[Marc · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not what I expected.

[Neal · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.2