TMNT: The Last Ronin #4 // Review
City-wide wars are nothing new for the turtles of the Teenage Mutant Ninja variety. Even their original comic featured the City at War storyline, detailing how the world fell apart once the Shredder was killed. However, none have yet decided to do it while also covering the post-apocalyptic hellscape. Until now.
The fourth issue of The Last Ronin is brought to us from the writing trio of Kevin Eastman, Peter Laird, and Tom Waltz. Pencils and inks once more are from Esau and Isaac Escorza, with assistance from Ben Bishop and Kevin Eastman. Samuel Plata and Luis Antonio Delgado worked on the colors, while Shawn Lee letters the book.
The final plans to free New York City from the power of Oroku Hiroto and his Foot Clan are put into motion. While the Ronin connects with the child of April O'Neil, the last free people of New York strike out against the man helping prop up the Foot: Baxter Stockman. Anxious fans will be treated to the final fate of the third turtle brother, and of Master Splinter.
For fans who’ve been dying to see this Ronin in action, this issue is a real treat. Not only does the Ronin rip his way through the futuristic technology of Baxter Stockman, but he even takes the young Casey under his wing as her mentor. Seeing the older turtle reach out to a next generation is genuinely heartwarming despite his lack of social skills, and helps further flesh out the remaining mutant turtle well. Another highlight of the issue is the flashback drawn and inked by Kevin Eastman, though it does give the issue a hilarious layering of flashbacks. From the present fighting, the reader is taken back to the Ronin talking with April, then back to the Ronin meeting with the last of the Hamato Clan under Eastman’s pencil, then to the different art to have the Ronin find out what happened to the last of his family. The flashbacks then snap the reader back to the present for the action, but it feels like the over-the-top sitcom parody of flashing back in flashbacks.
This remains a delightful book, with clever writing and a relentlessly grim setting spiked with touches of hope. Once more, the $8.99 price tag raises eyebrows, but die-hard fans should certainly pick this comic up as soon as possible. Those who are simply more interested in reading the complete story eventually, or love dark futures, might want to wait for the trade that will collect all 5 issues. The choice is yours, but this is something all TMNT fans will enjoy.
