Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles vs. Street Fighter #1
- Writer:
- Paul Allor
- Artist:
- Ariel Medel
- Letterer:
- Ed Dukeshire
- Cover Artist:
- Ariel Medel
- Publisher:
- IDW Publishing
- Price:
- $3.99
- Release Date:
- 2023-06-07
- Colorist:
- Sarah Myer
Like peanut butter and jelly or sour cream and chives, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Street Fighter is the franchise crossover event fans never knew they needed. IDW's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles vs. Street Fighter #1 -- written by Paul Allor, drawn by Ariel Medel, colored by Sarah Myer, and lettered by Ed Dukeshire -- is sure to delight fans of both franchises. Considering the recent release of Street Fighter 6 and the upcoming TMNT: Mutant Mayhem, this book feels timelier than ever.
The first issue of this bodacious crossover sees Raphael and Guile duking it out in a tournament match. According to Donatello, the Ninja Turtles are partaking in this showcase to keep their skills sharpened and to challenge themselves against the best fighters in the world, i.e., the World Warriors from Street Fighter. Somewhere, in a discreet villainous hideout, M. Bison and Baxter Stockman watch on and twirl their mustaches. Bison, in particular, takes a keen interest in Raphael, believing he could be of value to him.
Allor knows what fans want from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles vs. Street Fighter #1. The writer doesn't try to create a cosmic or complex reason to pit these fighters against each other; instead, they provide a simple explanation: These characters just like to fight. In this sense, this story has a lot in common with the narrative structures of the 1987 TMNT animated series and the recent Street Fighter video game. It's no secret the readers are here for a good time and not a long time, and Allor grasps this concept and makes the most of it.
Similarly, Medel lives the dream of drawing an abundance of action scenes and fighting stances. The artist effortlessly adapts to the characters' different fighting styles. If it's about sheer power and strength -- like Raph and Guile's round of fisticuffs -- it's accentuated in their titan-esque postures and breathless expressions after impact. Surprisingly, Dukeshire takes a subtler approach in the lettering when a reader might have expected this to look like an explosive onomatopoeia-laden scene from Batman '66. Instead, the letterer focuses on the characters' dialogue and representations of alarm or discomfort.
Myer is the unsung hero of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles vs. Street Fighter #1. The colorist nails the instantly recognizable palettes of these characters and combines them in a way that pulls the reader's eyes into the page. There's a cheerful and dynamic quality to the colors that makes the book unforgettable and captures the surprisingly similar tone of both these franchises.
Simply put: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles vs. Street Fighter #1 harnesses the spirit of cowabunga. It's a delightful and fun time that doesn't try to reinvent the wheel or be something more than what it is. The comic book's creative team provides Ninja Turtles and World Warriors slugging it out, and that's exactly what was promised in the first place. Maybe they will all share a pizza in the end as they tend to their bruises.