Cutting Straight To The Point — Reviewing ‘TMNT: Shredder’ #1

Once the iron and blade fisted ruler of the foot clan, Oroku Saki has returned to Earth a changed man. Fresh from a stint in Dimension Z, which by all appearances did not go well, the Shredder is back and isn’t happy with what he’s found.

How or why he’s back, and why he’s looking so rough, are unknown right now. What Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder #1 offers is a whole new journey following the bladed warrior from Dan Watters, Michele Bandini, Marco Lesko, and Darran Robinson.

Sometimes we like things that are drawn out and take their time. Other times, straight to the point is the way to go.

Watters splits the difference here, giving us a tale of the silver-haired Shredder returning to deal wrath upon a “corrupted” spin-off of the Foot Clan, run by a former protégé with a legitimate axe to grind. There is little setup before we witness the seemingly confused, but still deadly, Shredder unleashes upon those that once followed him. It’s slick, action packed, and brutal which is pretty great for this ever shifting character.

Saki being able to retire the Shredder moniker and help out the Turtle Hamato Clan in the previous TMNT series was a nice touch. Gave the character more room to really expand and grow beyond previous concepts. Despite that change he was still dangerous and we feel that now as a hardened possibly out of sorts version tears through those who are in his way.

It’s been a bit since I’ve actually seen Bandini’s work- all the way back during the Krakoa era of the X-Men at Marvel. Different colorists add a lot to work, but there have been some clear changes since then in the artwork itself. There is still a deep character focus that really is felt in the artwork with expressive faces, solid body language, and overall visual depth. There feels like a sharper, swifter edge to what is on the page compared to the (still amazing) work I saw in the past.

It keeps a lot of the really softer aspects that are baked into the artistic style. It’s rife with strong kinetic energy that allows all motion to seamlessly move upon the pages. Creative paneling choices boosts that even more, allowing every action moment to feel truly in motion and bold. Often eschewing pure detail in the backdrop or elsewhere to make the focus action more prominent.

Also heavier are the colors brought by Lesko. Very heavily shadowed, befitting such a dark story, most of the colors are very sort of middle ground in their overall appearance, hitting that toned-down natural appeal in order to give the spaces grounding and familiarity. It allows certain moments to really burst out with vibrancy, complementing the other colors and moments on the page.

There is also a good mixture of hefty tones but something smoother and cooler. It speaks to the world that this book is trying to occupy with a real world setting but outrageous all around. Also, shout out to the really well-done softer filters offered in numerous spots, giving these different spaces their own unique lighting feelings.

I’m not familiar with Robinson’s lettering work, but I will be now. It does a lot of things well in spreading out the dialogue while also following the motion on the page. There aren’t a lot of really out there visual elements at play but the elements that are there work. He keeps the voices at an even point with emotional value clear at all times, helping to begin the crafting of these various new characters’ voices for our mental creation.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder #1 is now available.