Publication date: June 8, 1991
Story: Uncredited
Art, inks, colors: Staz Johnson
Summary:
Down in the lair, the Turtles are enjoying a dagger-throwing contest which Raphael handily wins by way of his sai. April then shows up and tells them that diamond dealer Guggenheim is about to have his annual costume ball, and in the wake a recent string of diamond robberies, she fears the ball will be the next target. Master Splinter meditates on this and then suggests that the Turtles attend the ball in disguise. After seeing April off, the Turtles argue over what their costumes should be, but Splinter has a humbling suggestion.
The following night, at the ball, the Turtles show up in drag as the Four Ugly Sisters. They don't have to wait long, as a man in a gorilla suit reveals himself to be the Shredder, while several of the guests unmask and reveal themselves as Foot Soldiers. They begin robbing the guests until the Turtles take action and destroy all the Foot Soldiers. Cornered, Shredder grabs April and puts a knife to her throat, but Raph disarms him with a careful throw of his sai. Defeated and diamond-less, the Shredder escapes through a window. The remaining guests marvel at how brave and resourceful those four ugly women are.
After the ball, the Turtles and April return to the lair to tell Splinter the whole story. Michelangelo then reveals that he won a year's supply of free pizza vouchers as first prize in the costume contest. He decides to split the prize with April and she tells him he's a real "jewel".
Turtle Tips:
*This issue is continued from TMHT Poster Mag #1. The series continues in TMHT Poster Mag #3.
*The poster in this issue was of the Shredder.
Review:
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| "I say, Carruthers." "Hm?" "You know what's very, very funny? A man dressed in women's clothing!" |
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| "Mm, yes. Quite. Ripping good laugh." "Yes." "Mm." |
So last issue, I joked that it was a change of pace for the Fleetway comic to feature a character disguising themselves in drag instead of a gorilla costume. I see that I spoke too soon, as this issue features both drag AND a gorilla costume! Always one step ahead of me, aren't you, Fleetway?
By my count, this is the third instance of gorilla costumes in TMHT Adventures. Why? Why? What was their preoccupation with something so bewilderingly specific? Was there a bet going on at the Fleetway offices to see how many different ways you could work gorilla costumes into the comic? Who won? What did they win? Was it worth it?
Well, that aside, it's another cut 'n dry comic. I learned my lesson from last issue and now I know that the cover of these Poster Mags are actually the first page of the story, so it read a little easier. I do enjoy the unexpected violence in these comics, particularly with the way the Foot Soldiers are dispatched. They're identified in the dialogue as "Footbots" to make it clear to the reader (or, more likely, their nosy parents) that these are robots, which is good, because the Foot Soldiers get their heads and feet chopped off in these things, and aside from little explosive bursts at the wounds, you wouldn't otherwise know these were robots.
Then there's Shredder straight up holding a knife to April's neck, which is pretty dark for what's supposed to be a goofy villain. Last issue, he tried to gun Rocksteady down with friendly fire, too. I'm kinda liking Fleetway Shredder. The guy really, really wants to kill people and he tries so hard, but he just can't keep from screwing up.
Also, what's April supposed to be dressed as?
This is a costume party, isn't it? I mean, I have suggestions, but they'd get me in trouble with Feminist Frequency.