Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #75 review: Krang and the hordes of Maligna

Planet Neutrino is under attack by Maligna and her swarm! Yet can the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles save everyone and warp up the trial?

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #75

Writers: Tom Waltz, Kevin Eastman & Bobby Curnow

Artists: Cory Smith, Mateus Santolouco, Damian Couceiro & Chris Johnson

Colorist: Ronda Pattison

Bugs Get Much Larger in Space!

What the Malignoid swarm lacks in intellect, they make up for in sheer numbers. Controlled by Maligna in her space-hive, they act under her will and are loyal to death. Her tactic of overwhelming planets with sheer volumes has never failed. It took the entire might of Krang’s Utrom empire to hold her back in the past. Yet now with Krang deposed, Maligna has sought to fill the gap. Zak and Kala join the Triceritons, and both feel the odds are all but insurmountable.

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Commander Zom lays out their cause to rally the Triceritons for what may be their last war. They fight not just for survival, but for the promise of a home. It is the last time they plan to wage war for another. There is a sense of nobility in the horned warriors as they face insurmountable odds. The Neutrinos obviously fight for their home world, while Ace Duck fights for the glory and reputation which have been lost. Yet not even all of them can stop the swarm from making landfall.

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On the ground, Dask commands the rest of Neutrino’s army. Their job is to fight the minions of Maligna which break through the space armada. This includes Leonardo, Raphael, and Michelangelo. They’re tricked out with jet-packs and “laser” versions of their trademark weapons. While Raphael is in awe of the scale and Leonardo tries to get them to focus, Michelangelo is in his element. Dimension X allows Mickey to be the public hero he could never be in New York City.

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Can Hakk-R Truly Catch a Break?

Meanwhile, Donatello is aiding the Fugitoid in protecting the five witnesses to Krang’s trial. While Ace Duck is in the field of combat, and Leatherhead hardly needs protecting, this leaves Stump, B’een Go, Anemon, and Polly. Yet their enemy is closer than they think, as the assassin Hakk-R emerges! Having been thwarted by the Turtles in trying to stop the witnesses from gathering, he’s content to kill them all now. He gets the drop on everyone, and practically brags about how easy it is.

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After one of the Malignoids gets the drop on Leonardo, the pair go crashing into the witnesses’ chambers! Once again, it seems like Hakk-R is the victim of circumstance and poor luck. Yet when Polly manages to harm him with a concentrated pollen blast, Donatello gets an idea. In no time at all, Donatello figures out a way to get Hakk-R to incapacitate Maligna and end the invasion in one fell swoop. It involves a transport beam and some last second dealing from a begrudging Stump.

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Maligna and her swarm are consequently defeated, at least for the moment. Yet that’s only half the story! Neutrino court is in session once again, with a new problem — Hakk-R murdered Judge Gorath last issue! As a result, yet another judge has to come into the proceedings, and it’s King Zenter himself! While Krang is mortified, Councilor Vin-Bini notes that it’s protocol and for once there is little he can do. Much like with the invasion, Krang’s overreach has proven his undoing.

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Law & Order: Dimension X Edition!

Yet while King Zenter is hardly a neutral party, he does his best to preside fairly and according to the law. As a result he dismisses two of Fugitoid’s witnesses for conflict-of-interest reasons. However, Fugitoid’s most potent witness is the one Krang didn’t account for — Leatherhead. Having been accidentally mutated by Krang and then held captive by him on Burnow Island for centuries, Leatherhead has extensive knowledge of Krang’s acts and methodologies.

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For once, the unflappable Vin-Bini has no cross-examination planned, likely because Leatherhead was a surprise witness. The crux of Leatherhead’s testimony fits into his own philosophy about himself. Leatherhead considers himself and other mutants as abominations of nature who should not exist. Therefore, Leatherhead considers Krang guilty not only of crimes against him, but of all nature itself. It is a long monologue, but court scenes often have these, so it’s acceptable to read.

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Finally, it is time for Vin-Bini to put on his defense. To be honest it may have been fun if they’d dusted off a spare rock soldier or deluded grunt as a witness, at least for comic relief. Yet the scene we get is even more important. Vin-Bini’s sole witness is Krang himself, who proceeds to lay out his entire motivation in stark black and white. Krang’s motives have been explored in previous issues, yet the court motif makes it acceptable to have the character himself spell it out in his own words.

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This Isn’t the Old School Krang!

In the original 1987 cartoon, Krang was evil just to be evil, as many villains at the time were. Yet here he is a product of his environment. His father Quanin was a warlord, albeit a less competent one. Having expanded the Utrom empire too far and brought it to near ruin, Krang had to enact near desperate motives to save his people. In his eyes this included waging brutal campaigns of war across two dimensions, using Earth as a base of operations for his continued conquests.

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Krang didn’t seek to conquer the Earth just because, he sought to transform it into a new home world for the Utroms. He succeeded in only transforming Burnow Island before the Turtles stopped him. Yet Krang also knows to play to his audience, King Zenter. He notes that Zenter himself was willing to capitalize on unsavory means to save his people. Whether this meant manipulating the Triceritons or allowing allies to broker a deal with an assassin, it had to be done.

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Naturally this leads to final arguments, where Fugitoid sums up his own personal stakes in the matter. Considering that the series has been running for over six years, summarizing Fugitoid’s origin and old alias as Chet Allen is a wise idea. There are fans catching up via trades and digital comics, after all. He notes that while Krang may have believed his acts were to save the Utroms, committing genocide to prevent genocide doesn’t quite wash. Vin-Bini argument extends from Krang’s.

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A Surprise Verdict in a Court Drama? Say It Ain’t So!

The whole Dimension X cast gathers for the verdict, and it’s telegraphed fairly bluntly that Zenter wouldn’t simply convict Krang. Much as Queen Gizzla stated, her husband is not a rash ruler who bends the law to his favor. Krang’s words about exploiting less than noble means to save Planet Neutrino rang true. However, Krang is hardly acquitted either. Instead, King Zenter rules that Krang is to be banished to Earth and placed under the control of Utrom advisor Ma’Riell, who’s turned against him.

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It’s hardly the verdict Leonardo nor the rest of the Turtles expected. It’s also not the verdict which Leatherhead wanted. Many of those who heard about this comic online may have heard that a “big name” character died here, and this appears to be the case. Much like when Donatello seemingly bit it in an earlier issue, it is a rare instance of Tom Waltz and company using issue events to promote their series. Unlike many superhero comics, however, this does not feel forced nor random.

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The Road to Where Is Paved with Good Intentions?

Everyone says their farewells as the Turtles intend to return home. Michelangelo is the least eager to leave, especially since Princess Trib is still very fond of him. Yet that’s hardly the end of the story. As noted by Leatherhead during the trial, the Triceritons in this adaptation have a different origin. In most versions of TMNT, they’re just aliens and little more. Here, they were actual triceratops who were kidnapped and mutated by the Utroms in pre-history to serve as warriors.

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As such, King Zenter has determined that the Triceritons are Earthlings and should be returned to their proper home. Therefore, Zenter opens a warp drive which allows Zom to lead her people into Earth’s orbit. While this seems to be hasty or even an error, Zenter makes it under the best of intentions. All he knows of Earthlings are what he’s learned from the Turtles, who he specifically mentions as being his example. Two worlds are about to learn the price of faulty intelligence!

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Not Just Another Comic Book Death!

Tom Waltz, Kevin Eastman and Bobby Curnow wrap up their expansive space epic in spectacular fashion. After all, not only did “The Trial of Krang” encompass three issues in the main series, it gained its own five issue mini series. It does a great job of tying up many of the loose ends and giving as many characters as possible a chance to shine. Yet it also introduces plenty of new potential for the next 1-2 years’ worth of stories. It’s the end for Krang, but a beginning for others.

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It is worthwhile to mention that as of this issue, Waltz and company have officially completed their stories with both of the Ninja Turtles’ main foes. The Shredder bit the dust back in issue #50, and Krang meets his just desserts (pun intended) here. While the Shredder was the ancient enemy of Splinter and the Turtles via reincarnation, Krang proved to be their arch nemesis in modern times. It was his mutagen which mutated them, and he came closest to destroying the world.

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It is easy for some comic fans who are jaded with the endless series of “shocking events” in most mainstream comics to be wary of seeing such things elsewhere. In fact, some readers may have heard that a “shocking” death occurred via another website before reading this. However, much like with Donatello’s near death, it follows a natural course of events. It is an event which serves the organic path of the story rather than something to hit on a promotional checklist.

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A Comic with a Cast of Thousands!

In terms of threats, Maligna is a more simplistic one compared to Krang. She and her swarm are essentially evil bug aliens, who are routine in science fiction. They’re similar to the Brood from Marvel Comics and originated from Archie’s TMNT Adventures series of the 90s. In that series, Maligna formed an alliance with Null in at attempt to invade the Earth. Could that be a story that Waltz and company pay homage too? Who knows, but this clearly hasn’t been the last of Maligna.

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While Hakk-R makes a stand at redemption after so many defeats, it’s Leatherhead who steals the trial. Crafting a character whose allegiances shift isn’t easy, because if done poorly the character simply becomes a walking plot contrivance. Yet with Leatherhead, Waltz and company get it right. While it seemed like Leatherhead was on their side, Leo felt otherwise, and was right. Yet due to the extreme circumstances, few could find much fault. Leatherhead’s only on his own side.

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Between all of the characters and all of the art, as well as double the page count, the reader really gets their money’s worth here. All of our favorite witnesses from TMNT: Dimension X get their moments to shine. Ace Duck takes to the skies once again with his squadron. Anemon gets to throw his weight around. Polly’s pollen-blast actually proves critical to defeating Maligna. And even Stump gets one last scene where his sleazy wheeling and dealing skills come into play.

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Four Artists for Four Ninja Turtles!

The Turtles themselves to a degree almost become lost in the massive scale of the adventure, yet that’s hardly a new thing for them. Their critical strength is adaptation. Ninjas are supposed to the masters of their environments, and the Turtles often face extreme environments. Even Raphael notes how they “never trained for this.” Michelangelo is at home in these sorts of over the top space adventures, and Donatello’s ability to bend the rules, as he’s done before, saved the day.

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Considering the amount of artists involved, this is close to a jam issue. Cory Smith is the main artist for the arc, and he gets all the court scenes. Mateus Santolouco started drawing for TMNT at issue #5 and has become the de facto head artist and designer over time. He handles the battle sequences between Hakk-R, the Turtles, and Maligna’s bug. Chris Johnson, who drew TMNT: Dimension X #4 is reunited with Ace Duck in space, while Damian Couceiro handles the rest.

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The extra artists only add to the sense of scale and grandeur to the issue. While their styles are all distinctly their own, they blend together better than you’d think. This is aided by Ronda Pattison, who has colored every issue of this run so far. They all handle the various designs of the characters and their world with glorious ease. It really adds to the idea that the universe of TMNT is a lush and vibrant one with a multitude of designs and types. Maligna in particular looks vicious.

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The Difference between Shock Value and Story Progression!

Tom Waltz has admitted in interviews that he was a big fan of 4Kids’ 2003 animated series. This double sized issue proves this in regards to how things end. The Utrom Ch’Rell was the main villain of that cartoon, and he’s been developed to carry the torch from Krang. And the plot involving the Tricertons invading Earth and Agent Bishop’s reaction to it were the opening arcs of that cartoon’s 3rd season. This is a positive thing which pleases fans of both old and new eras of TMNT.

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The invasion of the Tricertons should make for an terrific story line to begin 2018 on. With their origins involving Earth, their status as returning life forms rather than invaders adds a key complexity to it. So does the fact that Zenter’s judgement was both well intended yet misinformed. Finally, allowing Agent Bishop’s Earth Protection Force to actually protect the Earth will bring about a level of complexity which only aids in developing well fleshed antagonists.

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Next: See how the trial began in #74!

This issue, more than anything, showcases all of the things IDW’s TMNT does excellently. It features gorgeous artwork by a cast of talented creators. Beyond that, it features a writing team who both love the franchise and seek to evolve their own creative vision with it. They don’t mindlessly imitate the past nor allow things to get stagnant. They also don’t embark on change for the sake of change. It is a progressive serialized drama which gets better with every issue.

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