MIKEYSTMNT.COM

–>> A note from tOkKa ::

For years now, i’ve always felt at a disadvantage covering the Biggest Comic Convention. Always behind the 8 – ball.. always beneath the Plumber’s foot.

It’s been so frickin hard. 

Sure all big million dollar websites send there geek crews out with all their fancy equipment and high paid, sharky ,flashy , and snarky vlog – cast , pod – cast, Blob – cast ,people out to make a big spectacle of everything. Seems like it’s much more important for them to be a smart – ass than actually deliver knowledgeable and legitimate facts. Sarcasm is one thing, but using that as a basis for your news delivery and making that an integral   part of that is confusing to me.  It scews the news, makes it biased, and ultimatly disapointing and false.

Mikey’s was built the ground up and supported not by big fat companies or gigantic databases and legions of devoted bloggers or what have you. It’s been small, low key , paid for by a person who’s busted their ass for money he didn’t have just to keep the darn place running while he was struggling through tremendous obstacles work and school. The Multimedia content and design alone is more than enough to overwhelm me in an instant. Mike’s a genius at keeping up with it all, the paces, technology and providing so much rare and free content to 1000s around the globe. And to do that for a decade for a freekin’ TMNT Fan – site .. yeh all that’s pretty impressive !!
Then you had this freek ( me ) manically trying to cover all the bases .. my struggle and plight are part of everyday and as much as i try to keep that crap OFF this blog, it’s a still very real challenge as i putz through this existence. I get better every day however despite all the ” schizophrenia” or whatever the doctors call it and my communication skills are more coherent and clear. and i can bring you at least the jist of the news without complaints of people going ” W T F, TOKKA? ! ”

Whatever the case, covering the CON it usually was just an army of one Snapper facing an overwhelming trade-show and struggle to find my place in all this chaos that is the arts and entertainment field.

The balance has been that on NONE.. and the sad part is my common goal for Mikey’s has often been lost in the shuffles and hurricanes that has become the amazing TMNT fandom.

My vision for Mikey’s is pretty simple and expands on Mr.Mike Perez’s , founder of this site’s initial home-grown Turtle Fan site.

” I’ve always wanted to deliver an unbiased and balanced report on the TMNT news every week to the best of my abilities, schedule, even despite any technological, mental , or time disadvantages i may have. ”

Mikey’s site has always hung in there .. through good times, bad, wonderful and terrible. And it this point i believe we’ve got a better network to communicate with friends, fans old and new, creators , writers , artists & animators , bloggers, pod casters, broadcasters, film makers, voice actors, ect. ect. ect.

No it’s not ever gonna be perfect, but there gotta be said for something about this site’s brevity.

With good friends tipping me off, being gracious enough to share news with bits with me and even images on my infamous FlickR account , becoming part of Stephan’s GGM Network, and finally after what has been almost an impossible journey .. tOkKa himself is making his own mark positive on the world a ( and in some small ways even the TMNT one :] ).

I am very grateful and eternally thankful, beyond words to those who have supported Mikey’s and me through the years, putting up with my ‘ craziness ‘ , sharing with me, caring. And for supporting Mikey’s sister site .. my humble artistic monstrosity ,**terrible2z .

I do feel that as of 2009 as we are about to leave an unbelievable decade we about to go through a transitional period not just in Fandom , but in the comics, movies, and yeah even animation.

It will be filled with allot of surprises , excitement , disappointment , cheers, jeers, and everything in between.

Turtle’s has gone thoroughly global at this point, i haven’t seen it all but i’ve seen so so much .

So many have no idea at the legions of fans around the world the Turtles are gaining every single day !!

I believe Mikey’s will be there to bring it all to you in a timely manner and i think the ‘ news reporting ‘ has a stronger back bone than years prior.

Mike , Stephan and GGM , Mirage , Rose, Fans and Friends .. all of you . I thank you all so sincerely for continued encouragement and help.

i also want to thank all of Mikey’s Readers. You are the real reason i do this screwy stuff.

It it wasn’t for you and your love for Mikey’s and those Four Crazy Ninjitsu Green Guys & a fuzzy Rat in a kimono  ..

.. well all of this would be very pointless and all the hard work, pain , and travails would have been all for naught.

So much love to you.

♥ ♥
~ t

The following courtesy of Peter Laird ::

“A few months ago, Steve Murphy had the cool idea of getting me and Kevin Eastman to work together on a drawing (something we had not done in many years) which would then be used as the basis for a print, the proceeds from sales of which would go towards helping our friend Jake Black out with his medical expenses. (Readers of this blog may recall the other Jake Black Benefit print that me and the other Mirage artists produced (http://plairdblog.blogspot.com/2009/05/jake-black-benefit-print-at-fcbd.html and sold at “Free Comic Book Day” in New Hampshire.) Murph managed to convince Kevin to pencil up this drawing…

… which I proceeded to ink…

… and then that version was zapped off to Steve Lavigne so that he could do his digital color magic on it, as you see here in the finished 11 by 17 print.

(Please note that this is a somewhat poor quality digital photo of one of the prints — the colors are much more vibrant in the actual copies.)

And here, direct from Murph, are a few more details about the print, which will be premiered at this years’s San Diego Comicon:

“There are only 100 of them, each is signed by Peter Laird. This group of 100 is SDCC exclusive and will cost $25 each. All proceeds to benefit Jake. In addition, since Kevin is attending the con, people will have the chance to get Kevin to sign it as well.

We will also be selling the “Mirage group jam” prints at SDCC, for $20/each, also benefiting Jake.”

(Note: Steve Lavigne will also be attending the SDCC, so buyers of this print can get Steve’s signature on it, too.)

** And here’s a fun little thing — while inking the piece, I would stop about every minute or so and take a digital photo of the art. When I was done, I put all of those photos together into this (somewhat shaky) “time-lase” movie of the inking process. (( Please Click here for Video. ~t )). **

– PL

Steph and his good graces at GGM start off the Round – Up ::

Steph did a check – in with Playmates for the Fall’s “Controversial ” ‘ Music TMNT ‘ line and Mirage Universe figs.  Not good news .  :

In an E-mail we recieved this morning from the TMNT brand manager of Playmates Toys, we were informed that Playmates has made the decision to NOT release the Mirage Universe or Music Turtles. Additionally we were given an estimated release for the next wave of vintage figures:

The last wave of 4 figures will depend on retailer demand, but should be out by October:
Foot Ninja
Shredder
Casey Jones
Slash

In addition, in August we will be releasing the Original Party Van at Toys R Us.

I know that a number of you were really looking forward to the Mirage releases, and I am sorry we have to bring this news to you. But better sad news rather than no news right?

..thanks for the heads-up , Stephan !!

- ** Stephan also reminds us about Kevin’s San D Schedule via Heavy Metal Magazine and his H.M. booth at the con , Click Here **

*** AND FOR SOMETHING FUN, CHECK OUT STEPH’S NEWS BITE ::

‘ CALLING ALL FOOT SOLDIERS’ , CASTING CALL FOR THE 5th TMNT Film ***

** Check in with Rose for more Exclusive ‘ Panel to Panel ‘ Exclusive Book Plates with the upcoming TMNT v. 1 Trade & Kevin’s TMNT 25 collection Trade

- CLICK HERE **

Danny B.’s official TMNT site bits ::

- Yikes – got behind on making the “Tales of the TMNT” promo banners for the upcoming issues. You can find the latest two on the Banners page – a reminder that you can’t hot link to our graphics because our server just can’t handle the extra bandwidth hit that creates. So if you wanna help spread the word (which we appreciate immensely), you’ll have to find a host site for the banners (we’re sorry for the inconvenience).

Speaking of publishing projects, the “TMNT Collected Book Volume One” trade paperback (“TMNT” volume one #1-11, the four TMNT one-shot issues and including the “Fugitoid” one-shot for the first time ever in this collection) and “Tales of the TMNT” #60 are at the printer now and will be available at participating comic shops over the next few weeks. Don’t sleep on ‘em!

- Stephan sent in pix and box text for some old toys, Raphael’s Pizza Sai Set from 1991 and the Mini Mutants Dino Jammin’ Combo from 1995.

- Vaughn has also sent in a bunch more pix of the 1994 reissue figures as well as a few from 1998 and 1999.

- Michelangelo-Sama sent in the following info about Ubisoft’s upcoming video game projects:

Just wanted to give you an update on the upcoming turtles games. At www.1up.com they have posted gameplay night footage for both “TMNT Smash Up” and “TMNT Turtles in Time Re-Shelled” and a comparison video between the original “Turtles in Time” arcade game and the remake.

WARNING: some profanity is used in the videos! Proceed at your own discretion!

The first video is TMNT Smash Up play through.

The second is TMNT Turtles in Time Re-Shelled.

The third is the comparison between both Turtles in Time arcade versions.

- ** MechanisticMoth has posted some reviews of our recent comics. Scroll down to see ‘em all – there’s a review for “Tales of the TMNT” #56 and #53 as well as a review for “TMNT” volume four #30.

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–>> You may or may not be familiar with Speed Lee’s mighty weird take on classic toys and characters. Yes TMNTs are among his most popular mash-ups ..but there many more valiant, twisted, and demonic takes on characters from toys from all over the figure – verse.

Show, Comic , or Movie accuracy isn’t ALWAYS the key with Speed.

Uniqueness, and style are.. variations on favourite themes.

As a provocateur and obsessive soul on such variations .. i implore you to seek out more of Speed Lee’s work !!

** And see what’s up for sale .. or make a deal with the devil you can’t refuse, maybe .. he can make your figure-fantasy come true ?! !!

Click here for SPEED LEE’s customs Blog !! **

Fair Warning .. :: Simply Awesome  ( and in some cases quite beautiful too !! )) !! !!

–>> Doug Brammer’s bigger than Stephen King. Er, ok well at least in the world of  the TMNT he’s kinda a big deal.  Creator and  writer on numerous indy-comic  hits including Bog the Swamp Demon, Wild West C.O.W. Boys of Moo Mesa, Power of the Golem , and Ryan Brown’s classic Rion 2990. In the early 1990s , Doug also scripted some of your favourite TMNT ADVENTURES stories. 

Doug returns to writing duties on Ryan Brown’s NEXT GENERATION MUTANIMALS project , “THE SELECTED” later this year.

Doug also had the misfortune to do a torturous Q & A with this Schizo Snapper sharing memories of workin’ with Dean Clarrain at the gang at Mirage, Demonic Swamp creatures, Cat Burglars, Cow Boys, Apples and oranges. MIKEY’S TMNT presents this exclusive interview to you verbatim !!

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Hi, Doug .. i’m Tokka. I’ll be your interviewer today. I am the next incarnation of evil. But friendly evil. I’d like to take this time to give you the tough Q & A TMNT fans demand and have you liken it to getting your teeth pulled. I mean not like pulling ‘em with the monkey wrench and a lot of toxic gas like they do at the real dentist’s office but like um.. pulling them with a feather duster.

Er, yeh. I’m not gonna pull any punches either ( mostly cuz i hit like a girl ) and i’m gonna ask the hard questions.  It’ll be like you being invaded by albino brain -chiggers !! !! Ok more like your being lobbed with banana cream pies as if this were a really bad Three Stooges sketch. So i hope your ready, buster  !!

tOkKa : Can you give us the run down of who you are , what you do / have done.. and your history with TMNT , TMNT Adventures and the like ?!

Doug : well, I’m a now 46 year old married father of one who scripts comic books. I’ve been at this for 20 odd years and so far i haven’t gotten fired..

t : You’ve done allot of ‘ Scripting ‘ for Comics ( much like portions of this interview, they are scripted ) . Particularly for TMNTA. What does this entail for those NOT in the know ..what is your process, THE process ?!

Doug :  For Turtles, I’ve done both full scripts and marvel style. With a full script the writer tells the artist the panel layouts along with narration and dialogue blocks. Much like a movie script. While Marvel style the artist works from a plot and the writer provides dialogue and narration from the penciled pages. Both have their good points. But as long as my wife Michelle who types and edits my scripts and fixes my bad spelling…its all good

t : Off the top of your head, were there some Fave TMNTA stories / characters you helped to create ?!

Doug :  My favorite story is the first one i wrote for TMNT…the back up in the

turtles meet the Archies. The story was about the manmoth and the turtles. It worked and…hey…it was my first one.

t : What was it like to work with Ryan Brown, Dean Clarrain ( a.k.a. S.Murphy ) , and the gang back in the day ?!

Doug :  This may sound like cliche but…the days of Mirage where great and those where the nicest group of people to work with. A time of fun and family.

t : I’m evil .. and am only gonna ask the following because i’m under contract..” what’s your favorite TMNT?  ”

Doug : I’ve always liked to write dialogue for Mike. With him I felt we could show that no matter how rough things got, you can get through it with a postive attitude and a smile

t : Enough !! Let’s get to the nitty-gritty !!
WHO’S YOUR FAVOURITE TMNT Villain !! !! ?! !!

Doug : While he may not be a true villain…I always liked the Collector. His goal was to save the last of any endangered species. A worthwhile goal i thought.

t : TMNT Adventures was a book that was ahead of it’s time. Unlike the cartoon it was initially based on .. as the comic’s audience matured, so did the stories. In all fairness .. later the original cartoon show would grow a little darker .. but the TMNT Adventures would deviate from this long before !!
Important issues of the day (  ones that still effect us in the 21st century ) regarding scientific ethics like cloning, the environment , wild-life issues , spirituality on many diverse levels, and actually some pretty dark stuff.  All kind of heavy stuff for a kids book at the time. Especially in regards to the ‘ Happy , Cute , Puffy , “COWABUNGA DUDE !! ” , pizza loving , goofy guys of the T.V. cartoon the TMNTA book . Can you expand on this ?!

Doug : I totally agree. Thats one of the things i always thought was great about these books… you had stories that all age groups could and can enjoy. while the young fans read the cowabunga dude side, the older fans can see the deeper meaning behind the TMNT stories that Mirage produced. All for one and one for all as it where.

t : One weird, dark character and story that actually took on a whole level of weirdness and became somewhat legendary on the Toy market was Hallowcat, better known as SCRATCH !! The TMNTA #27 actually had Scratch and his evil allies emanate from a somewhat tragic origin. The illegal dumping of toxic waste and the poisoning of the land and environment of Innsmouth became the setting of April O’Neil’s encounter with this frightening, Zombie – ish town. Even scarier the unique vilainous mutants the ‘ Uncanny Trio’. Scratch and his friends Nevermore the Scarecrow and the owl Nocturno cause so much havoc. They even almost force April to mutate herself as they try to force her to drink their soup !! This is until Raph and crew manage to crash the freak-fest !! The book was almost horrifying and reflects some very real truths about industrial waste and the destruction of out environment. The poisoning of entire communities !! Sadly even this day and age .. these truths reign !! With challenging issues at hand in the real world .. has this effected you creativly ?! Helped you creativly in your writing .. driven you ?! Any other thoughts regarding these types of issues ?!

Doug : While cowabunga dude is fun to write…all of us…Ryan, Dean,  myself…always tried to add depth and meaning to our stories. Trying in our own way to teach the younger fans about whats going on in our real grown up world. I’m 46 now and i wonder each day what kind of world my age group has left for our children and can we turn the tide before its to late. I hope with stories like TMNT 27 that some young fan will step forward and make a change.

t : Was it exciting to script Scratch’s first appearance and did you ever imagine that he’d become one of THE most sought after TMNT toys in history ?!

Doug : At the time the story was a blast…but if i had any idea that the action figure would become so hot i’d have a room full and my daughter would have a free trip to college. But honestly…i think we really hit the nail on the head with that story.

t : You’ve worked on a number of titles, including some indy CULT comic hits .. somewhat, kind of but not really related to Turtles.  One  in particular is that of a  um.. ‘ SWAMP – LIKE THING ‘ ..  BOG THE SWAMP DEMON !!  Bog first appeared as a back up series of stories in the second volume of TMNT. Later he had broke off on his own. Bog’s pretty interesting and actually has been touched upon by some really great talents including the legendary S.R. Bissette himself.
What can you share with us about the Hell Bent, Hell Spawned , hell bound creature and your experience with the slimy , green guy ?!  Especially  for fans that don’t know !!

Doug : well, Both Ryan and I are big fans of the major company swamp creature books…and swamps in general. strange but true. We came up with bog as a way to do our version of a book that we both grew up loving yet with our own bent twist on the idea of a swamp monster.  bog…a demon from hell who escape hell uses a dead body and swamp muck to create a form for himself and just wants to be left alone. but as with most things…that just never seemed to happen.

t : K’ , dude !!  I need you ta break out your stirrups, Ten Gallon hats , liquorish whips, put on some Gene Autry . Prolly wouldn’t hurt if you rented a couple ol’ John Wayne videos from your NETFlix. We’re gonna round up the doggies and then hit up Mrs.Lilly’s for that good ol’, home made  sarsaparilly.   Here’s where it gets real personal and really cool.

THE WILD WEST C.O.W.- Boys of Moo Mesa !!  The most Rootin’ tooin’ …coolest Kick – arse Cow Boy cartoon show / short lived comic around !!   How were you involved on this book and what was it like ?!

Doug : Ryan had at the time gotten out of doing art for turtles and was doing more toy designs and he came up with the idea of cowboy cow because his dad was a big western fan. He asked me to script the first mini series…a hit…and we went on with the regular monthy series. plus i even got to answer the fan letters…a real blast.

t : What’s your favourite cow pun ?!
Doug : my favorite was always…yippeecowya

t :Who’s your favourite C.O.W. Boy Hero  / and Villain ?!

Doug : Moo Montana and Sheriff terrorbull.

t : K’ Apples and oranges ..  in a bar room brawl fight .. the WILD WEST C.O.W. Boys Vs. The TMNT ..

WHO’D WIN ?!

Doug : C.o.w. Boys of course…hey they had horses.

t: K’ APPLES OR ORANGES ?!  (( I prefer Citrus fruit myself !!  ))

Doug : Sorry pears

t : What other indy comic projects outside the TMNT, Bog, and C.O.W. boys have you worked on over the years ?!

Doug :  Lots that never saw print as companies kept going out of business. one that did was… Power of the Golem.

t : Do you collect any toys  ?!

Doug : Oh yea, TMNT…C.O.W.Boys and of of course Godzilla the king of all monsters.

t : Are you currently reading any comics ?!

Doug : Not really…things just aren’t as fun as they once where. but i do still take a peek now and again. Well ok…I admit it…I still read TMNT.

t : You will be helping on scripting the upcoming, NEXT GENERATION Mutanimals comic ..: Ryan Brown’s The Selected !!

What can you reveal regarding this exciting new project ?!  Do you have any insight on the new characters, plot lines, will there be allusions  to the famous Mutanimals of the previous generation or will this be a separate entity entirely ?!  !?

Doug : Not a thing at this time…cause we’re still putting it all together and there’s not much to tell at this point.

t : Due you know of a projected release date for The Selected ?!
Doug : My guess at this point would be late summer or fall 2009. Helpful huh?

t : May i also have your thoughts about being interviewed for the TMNT Documentary ?!

Doug : I must say that was an honor. I’m glad i got the chance to leave something like that for my daughter.

t : Well like to thank you for this intense, provocative, and pulse pounding interview !!

My head now hurts and i really need a massive sedative or at least a good, stiff drink.

I need to go buy some bus tokens .. do you have change for a 5 ?!

Doug : Hey i’m a writer…I dont have any money….thats why i’m married.

t : D’oh !! Well ..your willingness to submit your precious time will be recorded for prosperity and noted. Your brevity and kindness in the face of adversity in getting your teeth pulled by a feather duster will also work to your benefit. For once i have conquered this muddlesome planet i shall make you vice-secretary of feather-dusters !!  Thank you very kindly for this opportunity to hold your feet to the fire.

Doug : No thank you… future master of the human race.

t : ( See that wasn’t so so bad was it ?! )

Doug : Nothing is  ever as bad as you think. no really…i had a great time. TMNT FOREVER DUDES!!!

** Ya may wanna check out Michelangelo’s offical TMNT Blog.  Mike Dooney, GGM’S Stephan , TMNT Doc’s Randy Lobb, and Michelangelo himself are tracking and recording TMNT memories old and new. Updates on the TMNT 25 Road Trip are at hand as well !!  NEW POSTS ARE UP NOW .. CLICK IT !! !! **

*** Meet the “SON OF RAPHAEL”  ( ASH PAULSEN !! !! ) on GGM ..

CLICK HERE !! ***

Imperative   Snippets from Dan B ::

- Updated the Books of the Future page with our releases for September, Tales of the TMNT #62 and Donatello: The Brain Thief #1.

- Posted the preview for “Tales of the TMNT” #58 – which should be in comic shops next week!

- If you go to PanelToPanel.net you’ll see listings for the “Future Tense” trade paperback with a limited-edition bookplate by Chris Allan and the Collected Book Volume 1 trade with a limited-edition bookplate by Peter Laird.

- TMNT volume four #30 is due to arrive on our doorstep on May 20. Once Peter has had time to do the 150 sketches on the inside back cover, we’ll put ‘em up for sale. I’ll make more announcements here as that day draws nearer – stay tooned!

– Videomeister Neil has posted his review of Lionsgate’s Season 7 DVD releases here.

Special thanks to Don N. ::

** Gunaxin’s top 20 Bizarre TMNT Toys  **

..har har har ..  !!

–>> KICK Arse 4kids TMNT Blog post !!

“This entry
features a special look at designs from the unproduced episode of
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Fast Forward “Master Fighter 2105 .. “

**..View the Animatic preview here for this never aired episode and unlock the FULL ANIMATIC with your 4kids Bonus points !!**

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****Last year , 80′s Tees  was offering this TMNT costume shirt. Exclusive of the design. ( I believe it’s still available. )

*** My Party Shirt is offering four variations of this shirt featuring the guys’ weapons and initialed, coloured belts.

The site is online store  with some amazing costume shirts, including some awesome Toon Ghostbusters shirt selections ( Even Louis Tully,Mr.Stay – Puft, and Janine !! And More !! ). The prices are decent too !!

..>v<

@!*$^%$&

Steph @ GGM :: “This footage is actually really good in terms of showing character animations. Unfortunately, no bosses. This came in by way of GGM reader Michelangelo-Sama. Thanks Dude. Original video published by GamerVision.”

** CLICK HERE **

..following up Stephan’s post regarding the TMNT in Time Remake, Mike-Sama adds ..:: ” Speaking of news I have info on Warner’s forthcoming release of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: 25th Anniversary Collection on DVD and Blu-ray due out on 8/4
for (New Line).

Per the official press release, both will include all four movies in the series. The DVD set (SRP $39.92) will also come packaged in a collectible tin DVD travel case, with four turtle masks and temporary tattoos. The Blu-ray set (SRP $84.99) will come in retro pizza box packaging, and will include all the stuff we mentioned before – a reproduction comic book, an exclusive original sketch with creator Peter Laird’s autograph, collectible character cards and a TMNT beanie hat.

Not bad news but its a bit of a let down that the first movie isn’t two disks and more than likely will not include the deleted scenes or a re-cut of the film to include the deleted footage. Also from my talks with Dan Berger they haven’t recorded any extras for the sets. Hopefully things will change as it gets closer to the release date. “

‘TMNT ‘ concept & development design courtesy of  **Thomas Perkins ::