Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990) and the Comics

[Silver Nemesis]

Special thanks to Catwoman for restoring the pictures to this thread.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990) was the first big superhero/comic book movie of the nineties, not to mention the first successful superhero 'team' movie ever made. It was part of a wave of darker comic book movies that followed the release of Tim Burton's Batman in 1989. Others included Dick Tracy (1990), Darkman (1990), Batman Returns (1992), The Crow (1994) and The Shadow (1994). While the Turtles sequels would take a markedly lighter approach, the first entry in the series is notable for having a slightly darker and grittier tone that its successors. This is more in line with the original series of comics created by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird, first published by Mirage in 1984.

I haven't read every issue of this series and I don't claim to be an expert on the subject, but here's my stab at a comic-to-movie analysis. There are a lot of comparisons to make here, so I'll try and be concise. I should also mention that I'm not going to discuss the influence of the 1987-1996 cartoon show. I haven't seen it for decades and I really just want to focus on the Mirage series for now. But if anyone else wants to add comments about the cartoon show's influence – or any other comic influences I've overlooked – then please do.

With that said, let's begin.



The Turtles' debut in the first issue of the Mirage series (May 1984) sees them fighting a gang on the streets of New York. The movie also begins with them fighting a street gang, though we don't see the actual fight on account of the screen being darkened.

The police arrive and the Turtles disappear down a manhole.

They return to their secret hideout in the sewers and report to Master Splinter.

The sequence where Raphael encounters Casey Jones for the first time is adapted from 'Me, Myself and I' (Raphael #1), part of the TMNT micro-series released in 1985. In the comic Raph rescues a woman from being mugged and gives her back her purse.

Casey Jones witnesses the skirmish. Disappointed that Raph let the offenders go, he chases the two muggers down and attempts to finish the job.

Raph intervenes and Casey attacks him.

Raph has the upper hand in the fight, but then Casey hits him with a golf club (a cricket bat in the movie) and knocks him off his feet.

Casey runs off and Raph gives chase, at one point leaping over a car as he is crossing a road.

April O'Neil first appeared in the second issue of the Mirage TMNT comic (October 1984). Originally she wasn't a reporter but was instead the lab assistant of Baxter Stockman, the evil scientist who created the Mousers. It was the cartoon show that introduced the idea of her being a reporter.

April is attacked by Baxter's Mousers in the comic, while in the movie she is attacked by members of the Foot. In both stories the Turtles rescue her. April loses consciousness during the battle, so the Turtles carry her back to their base in the sewers.

She awakens and is alarmed to find herself surrounded by giant turtles and a talking rat. Who wouldn't be?

After she calms down Splinter begins explaining his and the Turtles' origin story.

Their back story had previously been depicted in issue 1. There it was revealed that Splinter was originally the pet of a martial artist named Yoshi.

He used to mimic Yoshi's movements as he watched him train from his cage.

In the movie Yoshi has a rival named Oroku Saki. In the comics Yoshi's rival is named Oroku Nagi. Both men fall in love with the same woman, Tang Shen.

In the comic Nagi attacked Shen and Yoshi retaliated by killing his rival. He and Shen then fled to America pursued by Nagi's younger brother, Oroku Saki (aka 'the Shredder'). Saki caught up with them and killed Shen. Yoshi returned home to discover his wife's body lying on the floor, only to then be slain by Saki himself. In the movie Nagi and Oroku are amalgamated into a single character named Oroko Saki, Tang Shen is renamed Tang Shin, and she and Yoshi travel to America without Yoshi ever fighting Saki.

The movie never explains how the ooze canister that created the Turtles ended up in the sewers. But the comic strongly implies that it happened during the same incident that saw Matt Murdock transformed into Daredevil.

Four baby turtles crawled into the ooze down in the sewers.

Splinter found them and gathered them up in a coffee can.

When they emerged from the can, Splinter found the Turtles had grown at an astonishing rate.

Their intellect had also increased, and Splinter was amazed to hear the Turtles speak.

In the comic their first word is "Splinter". In the movie they say "pizza". It was the cartoon that introduced the Turtles' obsession with pizza, so this would be another nod to the animated series.

The appearance of the baby Turtles is consistent with how they look in the comic.

Splinter explains that he named the four Turtles using a book on renaissance art.

Moving on to issue 3 of the Mirage series (April 1985), the Turtles escort April back to the surface.

When they return to their hideout in the sewers they find it has been broken into.

And Splinter has been taken.

In the movie Splinter is taken prisoner by the Foot Clan. In the comic he was simply injured after being attacked by the Mousers. Some scientists found him and took him to the T.C.R.I. facility to be taken care of. He's reunited with his "sons" in issue 7 (May 1986).

With their "father" gone, the Turtles turn to April for help and she lets them crash at her place. In both the comic and the movie, April's apartment is located over an old junkshop called 'Second Time Around' which used to belong to her father.

A general point to mention is that the Turtles' distinctive vocabulary has its basis in the comics.

As does their frequent use of pop culture references.

The sequence where Raph is beaten up by the Foot Clan is adapted from 'What Goes Around Comes Around' (Leonardo #1, December 1986). In the comic it is Leonardo who is ambushed by the Foot. He puts up a valiant fight but is ultimately overwhelmed.

This story continues in 'Silent Partner' (TMNT #10, April 1987).

The Foot storm April's apartment and the remaining Turtles have to defend their fallen brother.

The fight begins in April's apartment but moves to the junkshop downstairs. There the Turtles find more members of the Foot waiting for them.

The Turtles are outnumbered and things are starting to look bleak. Then help arrives in the form of Casey Jones.

The Turtles frequently crack jokes during the fight scenes in the movie. They do this a lot in the comics too.

The Turtles escape with their lives but the junkshop catches fire.

In the following issue, 'True Stories' (TMNT #11, June 1987), April, Casey, Splinter and the Turtles take refuge at a rustic farmhouse in the countryside. The captions in this issue take the form of a diary written by April, much like her voiceover narration during this section of the movie. Incidentally, the van they use in the movie resembles April's van from the comics.

The Turtles spend most of their time training and meditating.

The scene where Casey and Donatello playfully insult each other while repairing an old truck is adapted from this issue. In the comic this scene takes place between Casey and Raphael.

In both stories the scene ends with the truck starting up and crashing through the barn door.

Also adapted from this issue is a scene where Splinter addresses the Turtles as they gather around a campfire. In the comic he is physically there with them, but in the movie he appears in spirit.

The final showdown where the Turtles return to the city to face the Shredder harkens back to the very first issue of the series. Both stories climax with the Turtles fighting the Foot Clan.

They then face off against Shredder himself on a rooftop.

They begin by attacking him one at a time, but Shredder easily bests them each individually.

Both fights end with Shredder falling off a rooftop. In the comic he falls holding a thermite grenade which then blows him up. In the movie he lands in a garbage truck and Casey Jones activates the trash compactor. Either way, he falls and seemingly dies at the end of both stories.

And that brings us to the end of this analysis. Of course the Shredder would return from the grave, both in the comics and in the movie series. But that topic is best saved for another day.

[Paul (ral)]

Brilliant SN! I really need to get some old TMNT comics. I love the first movie!

I think there is a deleted scene with the turtles training one the farm where Mikey does a flying kick at a punch bag. I think it's in the movie book...I with get it and have a look.

Nice work...love it!

[Azrael]

Great stuff. For some reason I always associated the Turtles with the late 80s/early 90s cartoon and theme song (and... "Turtles in Time"), I had very limited knowledge about the comics.

[DocLathropBrown]

Silver, you've just done what I've always been thinking of.

The first film is one of the best, most accurate comic book films. I was shocked when I read the comics and saw all of that material straight-up!

[Silver Nemesis]

I think there is a deleted scene with the turtles training one the farm where Mikey does a flying kick at a punch bag. I think it's in the movie book...I with get it and have a look.

I'd be interested in seeing that. The filmmakers were definitely going for some panel recreations in this movie. One of the best examples is the shot of Raphael standing on top of the barn at night.

There's no way that's accidental. Odds are the deleted flying kick scene was lifted from the comic too.

I really need to get some old TMNT comics. I love the first movie!

They're certainly worth a look. All of the examples in this thread are taken from the first 15 or so issues. I believe they've now been collected in colourised editions, so they shouldn't be too hard to get hold of.

The first film is one of the best, most accurate comic book films. I was shocked when I read the comics and saw all of that material straight-up!

Same here. I saw the movie on the cinema as a kid, but I only read the Mirage series for the first time about three or four years ago. I was amazed by how many scenes I recognised from the movie. It really is one of the most faithful comic adaptations ever made.

The second movie lifts a few elements from the comics too, but in many ways it feels more like a live-action episode of the cartoon show.

[The Joker]

Thanks for this thread, Silver Nemesis.

Outstanding work!

[Silver Nemesis]

You're welcome, friend. Glad you liked it. 

I'm not sure the other Turtles movies contain enough comic references to justify full analysis, but it might be worth looking into if anyone else out there is thinking about doing one of these threads.

[thecolorsblend]

The Daredevil thing actually goes pretty far. Apparently Eastman and Laird made TMNT kind of as a love letter to Frank Miller's run on Daredevil (The Hand/The Food, Elektra's red bandana/turtles red masks, the sais, the sewer locale, etc).

[GoNerdYourself]

I absolutely love this movie! I wish Warner Bros. would give us a Blu Ray with special features (or be willing to license it to Arrow or Shout Factory).