The Rat King steps ever closer to world domination by plunging the world deep into war. The Impostor Turtles have sown discord and painted the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles as public enemy number one, turning humans, mutants, and aliens against them and each other. Luckily, the Turtles and their allies have a glimmer of hope in their new recruits, the formidable Four Winds, led by Cherubae — if they can free them from the demon Noi Tai Dar and Madame Null. Meanwhile, one of the Trio of Terror, General Krang, has a score to settle with his fellow Utrom, Colonel Ch’Rell, but his battle may already be over.
Written by Tom Waltz, illustrated by Vincenzo Federici, with inks by Alex Sanchez, colors by Matt Herms and Heather Breckel, and letters by Shawn Lee, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Armageddon Game #5 plunges all sides of the Armageddon Game into chaos.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Armageddon Game #5 boasts an enormous cast of characters. This scope adds to the depth and scale of this all-encompassing war story. Unfortunately, the size of the cast contributes to the disjointed, chaotic, and sometimes incomprehensible narrative. Even the art and lettering suffer at times. Within scenes, the camera jumps at such a madcap and inconsistent rate that it can be difficult to differentiate who is doing or saying what, and at what time. Shawn Lee’s lettering style helps to alleviate this problem, but the transitions between scenes are often confusing.
Although this run’s claim to fame is its intense war story, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Armageddon Game #5 is best in its quieter moments when the sophistication of Waltz’s writing is given enough space to breathe. As with previous issues, the growing relationship and respect between Leonardo and the redeemed Shredder is the strongest aspect of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Armageddon Game #5. Leo gets to use and master his Dark counterpart, a turning point in his development and for the greater story overall.
There is a lot going on in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Armageddon Game #5. This is only natural considering the level of drama in this thrilling run, depicting warfare with fantastical, sci-fi flair. As dense as this issue is, Waltz still leaves room for plenty of action and stellar artwork. The dark themes make for some remarkably striking imagery, such as the disturbing use of triceratops carcasses as body armor in the opening battle sequence.
The chaos of the narrative negatively affects the art in this issue. Normally the combination of artist Vincenzo Federici, inker Alex Sanchez, and colorist Matt Herms produces stellar results. Sanchez sticks to the previous painterly, traditional-looking calligraphy-like lines of past issues, with bold line weights, soft blacks, and grainy, natural textures. Herms and Breckel stick to a palette of warm red tones abetted by soft mauves, greens, and blues. The consistent presence of red lends itself to the violent atmosphere, and the subtle textures evoke the same traditional art as Sanchez’s inks. Unfortunately, this art style benefits from ample negative space, which this issue is sorely lacking. Each panel is crammed with activity, making it harder for the reader to follow the action.
Although it can be too massive for its own good, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Armageddon Game #5 pushes forward the high-stakes narrative and game-changing character development for the central characters during its strongest moments, making it an imperfect but entertaining read for Turtles fans.
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