Welcome to Rock Bottom, New York City! The site of rough living and traditional ninja training. Follow along as The Last Ronin (Michelangelo) attempts to train a hard-headed Casey Marie. While also answering the question of when are traditional training methods outdated and needing changed?
Creative Team
Kevin Eastman / Tom Waltz (Writers), Ben Bishop / Escorza Brothers / Freddie E. Williams II (Artists),
Luis Antonio Delgado (Colorist), Shawn Lee (Letterer)
Nathan Widick (Designer), Tommy Stella (Editorial Assistant), Jake Thomas (Editor)
Publisher: IDW Publishing
Training Day
Welcome to another chapter of the infamous The Last Ronin series! This iconic new arc of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle (TMNT) universe brings a fresh new take on a futuristic plot resulting in the survival of only one ninja turtle. If you have not read The Last Ronin or The Last Ronin II – Re-Evolution, you will want to check those titles out to get a better understanding of this new “one shot” story.
Training Day takes readers on a dynamic story about Casey Marie Jones. She is the daughter of the iconic April O’Neal and Casey Jones from the original TMNT story arc. Within this story you will witness two different versions of Casey Marie. This issue starts off with Casey Marie being a rough nose sensei to a new group of mutant turtles wanting to take over the mantle of TMNT. The bulk of this story is centered around Casey Marie’s training years earlier with her over-bearing sensei, Michelangelo.
Flashing back to the training days of Casey Marie gives readers and TMNT fans a blast from the past to the original training of the turtles by Master Splinter. Now that Michelangelo is the sole survivor of the ninja family he feels it is his obligation to share his knowledge of ninja training with Casey Marie. Training her is proving to be a challenge that Michelangelo is not prepared to deal with.
There is some comedic relief within this story that takes down the intensity of it. The comedy comes in the form of Michelangelo’s brother’s spirits. Once they present themselves, they start to poke and pry at him. Making digs and sarcastic comments about his training regiments. Once Mikey gets overly irritated and snaps at their spirits, his father’s (Master Splinter) spirit arrives to give his fatherly advice for the situation. Which turns the comedy into a very somber heartfelt tone.
After the conversation with Master Splinter, Mikey changes his way of training. Stepping down a less traditional road with Casey Marie. This new path resonates with Casey Marie to the extent that her attitude towards ninja training changes and she becomes a much better student. Within this learning curve Mikey and Casey Marie embark on a spontaneous mission that was not part of the training plan. Will Casey Marie become the student that Mikey will be proud of? Or will she remain like her father, stubborn and hardheaded? You’re going to have to read this issue to find out!
The Writing
Kevin Eastman and Tom Waltz provide fans of The Last Ronin a fresh new story and dynamic of Mikey and a pupil. This is a great story of teacher and apprentice. Some of the context clues within this story make some connections to Star Wars. One of the connections is the use of Master Splinter’s Ninja Journal. This gives the feel of training with the ancient Jedi texts. This story provides deep dialogue and narration giving the reader an in-depth view of the relationship and struggles between sensei and student. This is a very entertaining story, one that should be added to your Last Ronin collection.
The Artwork
The artwork by Ben Bishop, Escorza Brothers, Freddie E. Williams II and Luis Antonio Delgado is absolutely beautiful! The pencil work is done in a way that brings TMNT lore into the present day. Crisp lines added with amazing coloration provide an impactful issue. This team does an amazing job of giving emotional details to a turtle face that one might not think possible. The spirits are a beautiful shade of blue giving them a ghostly feel as they should. This issue is a great visual piece to look at!
Variant Covers
Final Thoughts
The Last Ronin story arc is one of the best refreshes to TMNT. This issue adds to that lore in a monumental fashion. Fantastic character development between both star characters really brings meaning to the story, as well as adding much more potential to stories to come. Training Day increases the plot line for this arc, opening the door to so much more within The Last Ronin arc. TMNT fans will not regret purchasing this issue for their collection. You will not want to miss this meaningful story!
Overall Grade: 10/10
Links
Comic Book Reviews & Entertainment News: Nerd Initiative
Previous TMNT Review: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #19 – Family Fun Day!
Travis’ NI Portfolio: TravisComicHaven – Nerd Initiative
Travis’ Personal Content: Travis’ Comic Haven
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