The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have been icons of pop culture for nearly forty years, and in that time they have gone through several transformations. While there is no end to the number of television and silver screen adaptations of the series, the Turtles of the comics have always been central to their identities across every form of media.
The adventures of the Splinter Clan have been published by several different companies over the years, each with different strengths and weaknesses. Here is a list of the different publishers that have brought the Turtles to life over the years, as well as a declaration of which has presented the best depiction of the reptilian heroes.
Eastman & Laird’s Original TMNT Series From Mirage Comics
May 1984 saw the premiere of Eastman and Laird’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles published by the duo’s recently founded Mirage Studios. Created as a parody of various properties from Daredevil to the X-Men, the original series introduced the titular heroes in gritty fashion.
The Turtles were originally indistinguishable from one another save for their weapons and personalities, and their early adventures were as off-the-rails as the rambling title implied. Despite its unrefined style, the series was instrumental in establishing the core themes and characters that would go on to become almost as instrumental to the Turtles’ adventures as the Mutagenic Ooze that created them.
Archie Comics’ TMNT Adventures
Just three short years after the Turtles first burst onto the scene, the Heroes in a Half Shell were given their very own small screen adaptation in an iconic 1987 cartoon series. One year later, Archie Comics began producing their own series loosely based on the cartoon in the form of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Adventures.
With a more recognizable art style than the previous comics and an established world from which to pull inspiration, the Archie Comics’ series remained true to its predecessor, at least at first. In later issues, the Turtles were transported through time and space to confront terrifying monsters, disembodied brains, and even Hitler himself. The series ultimately ended after nearly a decade of publication.
Image Comic’s Interpretation of the Ninja Turtles
In 1996, Image Comics picked up where Mirage Studios had left off with a third volume of the original comic book series. The interpretation is fondly remembered for ramping up the action and making surprising changes to the established status quo. Leonardo lost his hand, Splinter was transformed into a bat, Donatello became a cyborg, and most shockingly of all, Raphael picked up the mantel of the Shredder.
While this series delved further and further into unhinged territory, a lack of support from the original creators, combined with declining sales, led Image to shelve their TMNT comics before the story could come to a proper conclusion. While the Image run may not be considered canon alongside the Mirage comics, it still deserves a place in the overall mythos.
The Dreamwave Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Series
Dreamwave’s 2003 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles started with a premise not all that dissimilar to what Archie Comics had done over a decade earlier. Taking stories from the then-current animated series produced by Mirage Studios and 4Kids Entertainment, Dreamwave’s series saw the familiar adventures take place from brand-new points of view.
Following four issues, the series spun out into its own direction, again echoing what Archie Comics had done in the ’90s. Unfortunately, this iteration of the Turtles’ story only lasted seven issues before being canceled, although fans can still get their hands on a digital collected edition courtesy of IDW Publishing, who currently publishes the adventures of the Ninja Turtles.
IDW Publishing’s Direction for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
IDW Publishing brought readers all the way back to the very beginning of the Turtles’ story in 2011, and they haven’t looked back. With a slew of all-star writers and artists, including the original creator of the Ninja Turtles Kevin Eastman at the helm, the IDW series has reimagined some of the heroes’ most iconic storylines to critical acclaim.
Additionally, the still-running series has also successfully brought characters and concepts from nearly every single previous incarnation of the franchise into the fold, from beloved silver screen monsters to universally loathed small screen mutants. With almost all of the Turtles’ greatest enemies converging on them at once, the violent loss of their home, and a brand new team of mutants on the scene to terrorize the heroes, IDW’s version of the story has done more than any other with few if any failures along the way. They might not be the original, but the IDW Turtles are undoubtedly the best of them all.
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