Character Spotlight: Ace Duck

The current run of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comics by IDW is trying to more or less be the definitive TMNT story by synthesizing all the Ninja Turtles media that came before it. As such, that means it has had a ton of canon immigrants and will continue to have many more.

This week: Ace Duck!

Ace Duck is an interesting character because he always gets the chance to touch Ninja Turtles continuities, but never gets to hold on and make an impact. He was first created by Peter Laird in 1988 when Playmates asked for new characters for the Ninja Turtles toy line:

Playmates changed his look a bit and gave him the name Ace when they released his figure the following year.

In November 1989, he made a cameo in the 1987 series, but he was a fictional character on a tv show so he never interacted with the Turtles.

He made his comics debut in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures #7 the following month, and despite nominally taking place within the animated series continuity, this comic had a much different version of Ace that was a pro wrestler on a distant planet.

He was mentioned as an idea for a henchman in the 2012 animated series in the episode "The Lonely Mutation of Baxter Stockman" (2014), but never actually seen.

And then he appeared in the IDW series in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Dimension X #4 (August 2017) where he was a witness that the Ninja Turtles were looking for.

Whether he'll continue to show up remains to be seen, but it would be cool!

Wakanda Salute

Canon immigrants happen for all kinds of reasons. The two most common are that the creators are homaging an adaptation they loved (usually as kids) or that the creators are trying to create synergy with a new adaptation for various reasons. Occasionally, like with the hit movie Black Panther, it's both.

Black Panther, to put it simply, was a phenomenon. It made more money in the US than Marvel's The Avengers, it has a chance of beating The Avengers in the "adjusted for inflation" category, and it just. won't. leave. the theatre. It was released on February 16, 2018, and as of this writing, it's still there! Keep in mind that Avengers: Infinity War was released A MONTH ago. It was released on dvd THREE WEEKS ago. This just doesn't happen. The only reason it would still be in theatres at this point is if it's still making money, and to still be doing that at this stage is a testament to how successful it is.

The movie was a cultural success as well. And one of the things that started popping up from the movie the most was the "Wakanda Forever" salute. Here's an example from the movie:

And here are some examples from real life:

It's no surprise, then, that it didn't take long to make it into the comics, as seen here in Black Panther #171 (March 2018):

Note that it's expressed with a "Hail Wakanda!" instead of "Wakanda Forever!", but the sentiment is still there.

Location Spotlight: Palmadise

The current run of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comics by IDW is trying to more or less be the definitive TMNT story by synthesizing all the Ninja Turtles media that came before it. As such, that means it has had a ton of canon immigrants and will continue to have many more.

This week: Palmadise!

Palmadise is an alien world in Dimension X that first appeared in the Archie series Mighty Mutanimals #9 (June 1993). It's the homeworld of Slash in that continuity, and it was covered in palm trees until they were all cut down to build the president's mansion.

IDW's Palmadise is...a little bit different. Debuting in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Dimension X #4 (August 2017), it's still a world in Dimension X - as you can tell by the name - but instead of being an unspoiled tropical paradise...

...it's Space Vegas.

Character Spotlight: Captain America (Peggy Carter)

Recently, Marvel has brought back Exiles, a series about a team of superheroes from across the multiverse whose goal is to save the multiverse. This month (May 2018), an alternate Captain America joins the team - Peggy Carter!

This version of Captain America first debuted in Marvel Puzzle Quest in June 2016. Presuming the two characters have the same backstory, this Peggy was friends with Steve Rogers before he became Captain America and took his place in the Super-Soldier Program when he died prematurely.

And this might actually be a double immigrant, because her costume seems to be based on a mixture of the outfits in Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) and Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015), albeit with a dapper tie that Steve didn't have:

Character Spotlight: Tatsu (sort of)

The current run of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comics by IDW is trying to more or less be the definitive TMNT story by synthesizing all the Ninja Turtles media that came before it. As such, that means it has had a ton of canon immigrants and will continue to have many more.

This week: Not Tatsu!

In TMNT Universe #12 (July 2017), Karai runs afoul of a biker chick who shoots her in the shoulder. Later, it turns out the girl, named Natsu, is the granddaughter of one of Karai's new business partners.

Now, there's no character from the movies or tv shows named Natsu. But there is a Tatsu.

In Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1989), Tatsu is Shredder's right hand man and helps train the Foot members. Originally, Natsu was supposed to be Tatsu, but the writer discovered he was not able to use the character. So here's the interesting question: will Natsu grow into a role similar to Tatsu? Or will she be her own thing? After all, Karai is currently in charge of the Foot, so it's very possible Natsu could become her second-in-command. But she could also go in a completely different direction, such as taking over the Purple Dragons or something.

Either way, she was originally meant to be Tatsu, and she's in a position that she could take a similar role as him, so I'm going to count it.