Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #27
Story by Kevin Eastman, Bobby Curnow, and Tom Waltz
Script by Tom Waltz
Illustrated by Mateus Santolouco
Colored by Ronda Pattison
Lettered by Shawn Lee
Covers by Mateus Santolouco, Kevin Eastman, and Kenneth Loh
IDW Publishing
Release Date: October 30, 2013
Cover Price: $3.99

With Leonardo still under Shredder’s control, the leader of the Foot Clan has nearly consolidated his power in NYC’s underground in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #27. The remaining three Turtles scour the city looking for their lost brother, while mustering their forces (and technology) to confront the dreaded leader of the Foot!

Thankfully, this title consistently feels like it was written in the glory days when the original creators were at the helm. Undoubtedly, it helps that co-creator Kevin Eastman is at the helm of the story. Even Mateus Santolouco‘s art is reminiscent of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle titles of days past…only with cleaner lines and more vibrant layouts.

For newcomers to the series, the design of the Turtles will be a hard transition (smaller frames, with much more rounded faces and features), which is odd because the covers of this and previous titles feature more classic Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle designs.

This issue in particular showcases the strength of this title. We see strong themes of family, betrayal, and self-sacrifice. Only the plot-contrivance of Leonardo’s “brainwashing” sticks out in this issue (and story arc), but Tom Waltz‘s script is so strong, I’m willing to follow the story wherever it leads.

This is the penultimate issue in the City Fall story arc and it sets up what promises to be an exciting knock-down, drag-out, winner-takes-all fight!