This is a continuation of a previous article I did on issue one so spoilers ahead. Issue one we found out that Michelangelo was the last turtle standing and the other brothers were dead. We also found out that April was alive, and she helped to rescue him. So, with that out of the way lets get to issue two. Issue two starts with April having a dream about the night her and Casey got engaged. Both cook a feast, and they are just waiting on the turtles and Splinter to make their way over.
The First Brother to Fall
Suddenly Raphael burst through the door covered in blood. Donatello and Michelangelo come behind him holding Splinter who is bleeding out. Casey and April ask where Leonardo is, and they tell him he is holding off the foot. He comes through the door moments later safe and sound. Casey asks what happened to the truce between the two groups. Raphael tells him “Well I guess the truce is over”. Casey grabs his bat and tells the brothers “It’s body count time”. But before they could formulate a plan. Splinter seemingly dies and Ralph sneaks out on his own.
Ralph then goes back to the sewers and begins to torture members of the foot. Asking them “Where is Karai?” he finally finds her, and she is admonishing the foot soldiers. Ralph makes it known that he came back to kill her, as ralph goes through the foot soldiers he is taking damage from all over. Arrows in his tactical vest and on his ribs, he finally gets to Karai, and the two fight. This is where Ralph says, “You killed my dad!” this is where I assume Splinter has passed from his injuries.
Short Term Happiness
Even though we have yet to see it on the panel, the fight ends with Ralph and Karai going into the water. Where Karai stabs Ralph in the throat killing him. Even though we knew this was coming it is still brutal to see one of the legendary turtles die. That is the flash back portion of this thirty-two-page issue 2. Let us talk about what is going on in the present day in this comic. We find out that April has prosthetic arm and leg, we also know from issue one that April has a daughter with Casey and her name is Casey. We find out that she is one of the leaders of the resistance movements. She does not give Michelangelo no choice when she tells him that she is going with him to end this fight.
Now onto Michelangelo we find out where he has been all these years after his brothers and father died. He went to the mountains where he thought he was going to die. But instead, his mutant abilities only enhanced. He became stronger as you can tell by his physique in this story. But also, he can heal much faster, just as he was starting to get some peace in the mountains. Some outsiders see him and decide to try and kill him for being a mutant, but Michelangelo takes them out instead.
He then realizes that the reason he is living is that his destiny has not been fulfilled. He knows he must end the battle that he and his brothers fought for so long together. That is when he decided that he needed to become the last ronin. So, that tells us where Mikey went after all the loss he endured. But there are still some questions. Like when did they find out that Ralph was dead? It is no surprise that he was the first to go. If you are a TMNT fan you know Ralph is a hothead.
True to the End
Also did they all go on their own at one point? And is that how they all ended up dead? This is one of the better TMNT stories and I know the delays are annoying to fans. But if this five-issue story continues this way then it will be worth the wait to see the journey and conclusion to this story. As of issue two we have Casey, Donatello, Michelangelo, and Leonardo left. We all know who survives but we do not know how the rest perish.
Also, how did April survive all of these years on her own, with a fake arm and leg and with a daughter? Now I am guessing here but I would expect the issue fives fight scene to be one of the most epic fight scenes ever. We will have this resistance whom we have yet to meet vs the foot. Mikey vs the grandson of Shredder and who knows what role April will play but my money is we will see her perish protecting her daughter giving Mikey that shot in the arm he needs in order to kill everyone and everything that has ever hurt him or his family.
