By: Kevin Eastman, Bobby Curnow, Tom Waltz (story), Mateus Santolouco (art), Ronda Pattison & Ian Herring (colors)
The Story: Just because they’re all a bunch of reptiles doesn’t mean they can’t be family!
The Review: City Fall has been by far the most ambitious storyline on this series yet, not only for its scope—the sheer number of characters involved is nothing short of impressive—but also for the layers in its plot. On one level, the arc is about a city under threat from a massive reorganization in its society from an invading force. Yet beneath all that, this arc is about family, and the loyalty one does or doesn’t owe as a result of that bond.
So even though City Fall ends with Shredder’s ultimate and near-absolute triumph, having taken effective control of the city’s underworld, the issue spends hardly any time relishing in the event. Instead, we see the members of Shredder and Splinter’s respective camps grappling with the consequences the battle they just survived, all forced to reevaluate their definition of family in light of this most recent trial.
You heard right; Shredder, too, considers his inside circle a kind of family, though an exclusive one, open only to those who “earn” their way in. In the abstract, this sounds like a completely sensible notion. After all, isn’t that the entire point of contention between Casey and his dad? His dad attempts to play on their incontrovertible blood bonds to gain—not earn—forgiveness and an ally; Casey rejects him in favor of a family of his own choice, one that’s shown as much devotion to him as he gives to them.
So what’s the difference between that and the Shredder testing Karai’s dedication in his previously lavish treatment of Leonardo? If anything, Shredder’s actions expose how subjective the standards of a family by choice can be, and in his case, his standards revolve entirely on how his “family” can serve his needs. For Karai, it wasn’t enough to be merely his granddaughter, or the person responsible for maintaining his clan in his absence or even for his return to the living. More than confirming her loyalty and competence, Shredder wanted to ensure her subservience. That’s the self-centered, sociopathic sense of family he has. Little wonder, then, that in his past life, he murdered his own father to seal his rise to power.
Little wonder, too, that Apolex lashes out at Shredder at the climax of the battle, screaming, “You don’t know anything about family! Only how to kill and destroy! You’re a monster! I trusted you!” The question is what prompted this sudden and dramatic reversal. It’s the only moment in the issue that comes out of nowhere and feels completely unsold, largely because you never see what catalyzes it nor does it ever seem to find some resolution. It just strikes like a bolt of lightning, smolders, then dissipates, leaving no sign that it ever happened.
This is in contrast to the state of the Turtle family after recovering Leo and fleeing to safety. Despite this small victory, there’s an uneasiness pervading the group at the end of the issue, with everyone still licking their wounds and Leo acting particularly distant and jumpy. We have to keep in mind that despite recovering his memories of his brothers, he still leaped to Shredder’s side against Splinter during the battle, indicating something of his Kitsune conditioning still lingers. Family has been the greatest strength of our heroes; Leo’s uncertainty threatens that.
Just when you think Santolouco’s art on this title can’t get any better, it does. It seems that his linework has only grown more refined over time, becoming more delicate without losing any of its confidence. Small panels now have an intricate level of detail that never get overwhelmed by the vivacious colors. Santolouco has also clearly reached a high comfort level in drawing his beloved characters; they’ve lost all their pert, exaggerated features in favor something more credible and attractive. April and Angel in particular no longer look like anime characters, but still retain their respective spunkiness and grit.
Conclusion: Pure, action-packed entertainment from start to finish, but with a strong, consistent theme underlying the proceedings.
Grade: A-
– Minhquan Nguyen
Some Musings: – From my rudimentary (read: Wiki) research, Musashi and Kamizumi, the names Leo chose for his swords, were also the names of master swordsmen from the days of yore. Good choice.