Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin II Re-Evolution #2: I See What’s Happening Here

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin II – Re-Evolution #2 is both the longest title of any comic this year and the second issue of the sequel to the acclaimed Last Ronin tale that shocked new life into the TMNT franchise. This issue picks up with the Odyn being rushed back to Casey and April’s secret lair as the team seeks to find a cure for Odyn’s stone form. While Odyn wakes up and seemingly recovers, April has a chat with Professor Honeycutt, warning her that creating a new set of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles may not have been the brightest idea. As the conflicts in the city get worse, Casey decides to bring the turtles out once again resulting in a reveal that will definitely shock long time fans of the TMNT franchise.

It is no secret that the first issue of this series spent a lot of time recontextualizing and expositing to get fans on board for this sequel. And that is very fair, this sequel is built on a very solid foundation that needs to be contextualized or else the entire thing falls apart. Thankfully, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin II – Re-Evolution #2 is where the plot can fully kick in, with it becoming very apparent where this story is going as the issue comes to an end. The impotence behind this series is that it is not going to be the same TMNT that you grew up with, so seeing the dramatic shift that this book takes is very welcome. Will this be like the reincarnation reveal from the main IDW series all over again? Maybe. But it is great to see this franchise take chances with not only its new characters, but it’s lore as well.

It is worth noting that this series is still being written from one-half of the original team, Kevin Eastman, as well as fan-favorite writer of the 2011 ongoing IDW Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series, Tom Waltz. These are the guys who would know the franchise better than anyone, and seeing them take this series in a bold new direction comes with that level of comfort that other franchises miss out on. Both Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin II – Re-Evolution and its predecessor are like if George Lucas came back to make more Star Wars.

The art team of Issac and Esau Escorza and Ben Bishop continue to stun here, especially when the action kicks in. There often can be a lot going on within a given page, but the way it is all choreographed makes it a joy to read. Like the first issue, this installment features a flashback (although not nearly as important or long), that helps contextualize a long time character, Professor Honeycutt. This segment is very well drawn, harkening back to a more classic style that shows off elements of the TMNT lore that the layman may not be aware of. Overall, the art is great and worth the price of admission alone.