28 June, 2024

TMNT Volume 1 Bookshelf: Mirage Studios, First Publishing and Heavy Metal


for a list of all TMNT posts Click Here

 Here is a list of shelf-friendly collected editions of stories from the Volume 1 era of Mirage Studios’ Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

Due to there being a high number of releases, this list focuses on the books released prior to Peter Laird selling the TMNT property to Viacom. For a list of the various collected editions put out by IDW Publishing see:

TMNT Volume 1 Bookshelf: IDW Publishing link coming soon

Books are ordered based on the Volume 1 Story List. Following this list there is a summary of what wasn’t collected.

Like the Story List, any non-canon stories that were written to be part of the main Mirage continuity are listed in blue. Other non-canon stories are listed in red. Short stories are indicated with “(short)” after their name and colour stories with “(colour)”.

* - indicates reprinted story differs notably from the original version in some way. Details are provided in the notes.

None of these books were released digitally.


Book I

First Publishing (Softcover), 1986
ISBN: 0915419092

Penguin Books (Softcover), 1990
ISBN: 0140149457


Reprints:


The Turtles' Origin is Told (colour) *
(Vol. 1) #1

TMNT VS the Mousers (colour) *
(Vol. 1) #2
The Great Chase (colour) *
(Vol. 1) #3

New:
New Comic Day!
(short) (colour)
Night Life (short) (colour)




Notes:

- (Vol. 1) #1-3 have been colourised for this release.

- The Epilogue from The Great Chase is removed. It is repurposed as a Prologue in TMNT – Book II.

- Includes an introduction by Stanley Wiator.

- Includes three pinups of the Turtles: one from 1983 (Eastman/Laird), one from 1984 (Eastman/Laird) and one from 1985 (Laird).

- “Book I” is absent from the cover (and interior) of the US printing of this book, but was used elsewhere as seen in the pictured UK edition from Penguin Books.


Book II

First Publishing (Softcover), 1987
ISBN: 091541922X


Reprints:


Prologue (colour) *
(Vol. 1) #3

Turtles in Space arc
Rescuing Master Splinter (colour) *
(Vol. 1) #4
Teaming up with Fugitoid (colour) *
(Vol. 1) #5
The Triceraton Homeworld (colour) *
(Vol. 1) #6



Notes:

- All issues have been colourised for this release.

- The Prologue was originally an Epilogue. It was left out of TMNT - Book I’s reprinting of (Vol. 1) #3, but used here instead.

Fugitoid #1 is left out of this presentation of the “Turtles in Space” arc. The concluding part from (Vol. 1) #7 is also absent, but that is included in TMNT – Book III.


Book III

First Publishing (Softcover), 1987
ISBN: 0915419289


Reprints:


All is Revealed (colour) *
(Vol. 1) #7
Team-up with Cerebus the Aardvark (colour) *
(Vol. 1) #8
The Passing (colour) *
(Vol. 1) #9

New:
49th Street Stompers
(short) (colour)



Notes:

- (Vol. 1) #7-9 have been colourised for this release.


Book IV

First Publishing (Softcover), 1988
ISBN: 0915419432


Reprints:


What Goes Around... ...Comes Around! / Silent Partner (colour) *
Leonardo #1, (Vol. 1) #10
True Stories  (colour) *
(Vol. 1) #11



Notes:

- All issues have been colourised for this release.

- For the three-page spread in Silent Partner the left and middle pages are used as a two-page one and the right page is presented by itself.


The Collected Book
- Volume One

[First Edition]
Mirage Studios (Softcover), 1988


[First Edition]
Mirage Studios (Hardcover), 1988

[Second Edition]
Mirage Studios (Softcover), 1990

[Third Edition]
Mirage Studios (Softcover), 2009
ISBN: 0981949703




Reprints:


The Turtles' Origin is Told
(Vol. 1) #1

TMNT VS the Mousers

(Vol. 1) #2

The Great Chase
(Vol. 1) #3

Me, Myself and I
Raphael #1


Turtles in Space arc
Rescuing Master Splinter
(Vol. 1) #4

The Fugitoid's Origin
[Third Edition only]
Fugitoid #1

Teaming up with Fugitoid

(Vol. 1) #5

The Triceraton Homeworld

(Vol. 1) #6

All is Revealed

(Vol. 1) #7
                                       
The Christmas Aliens
Michaelangelo #1

Team-up with Cerebus the Aardvark
(Vol. 1) #8

Kirby and the Warp Crystal
Donatello #1

The Passing
(Vol. 1) #9

What Goes Around... ...Comes Around! / Silent Partner *
Leonardo #1, (Vol. 1) #10

True Stories

(Vol. 1) #11



Notes:

- The first and second editions lack an ISBN.

Fugitoid #1 was only included in the Third Edition.

- The three-page spread in Silent Partner has been shrunk down to fit two pages, with black borders at the top and bottom.

- The first edition contains introductions from Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird.

- The Third Edition contains a text piece detailing the creation of the TMNT. It had some errors so Peter Laird posted an errata on his blog.


The Collected
Tales of the
Teenage Mutant
Ninja Turtles

Mirage Studios (Softcover), 1989








Reprints:


A Tale of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Tales (Vol. 1) #1

Nobody's Fool!

Tales (Vol. 1) #2

All Hallow's Thieves
Tales (Vol. 1) #3

I, Monster
Tales (Vol. 1) #4

Complete Carnage and Radical
Tales (Vol. 1) #5

Leatherhead
Tales (Vol. 1) #6

The Return of Savanti Romero!
Tales (Vol. 1) #7

New:
[untitled Nobody story]
(short)



Notes:

- This book lacks an ISBN.

- Includes an introduction by Steve Bissette.


Tales of the
Teenage Mutant
Ninja Turtles:
Original Vol. 1
Series
Treasury Edition

Mirage Studios (Softcover), 2007
ISBN: 0978702999









Reprints:


A Tale of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles *
Tales (Vol. 1) #1

Nobody's Fool!
 *
Tales (Vol. 1) #2

All Hallow's Thieves *
Tales (Vol. 1) #3

I, Monster *
Tales (Vol. 1) #4

Complete Carnage and Radical *
Tales (Vol. 1) #5

Leatherhead *
Tales (Vol. 1) #6

The Return of Savanti Romero! *
Tales (Vol. 1) #7

New:
Spinal Tapped
Epilogue (short)



Notes:

The original seven issues have had their frontispieces replaced with new ones that connect to the Epilogue.


The Collected
Book
- Volume Two

Mirage Studios (Softcover), 1990






Reprints:


Survivalists
(Vol. 1) #12

The People's Choice

(Vol. 1) #13

The Unmentionables
(Vol. 1) #14



Notes:

- This book lacks an ISBN.


The Collected
Book
- Volume Three

Mirage Studios (Softcover), 1990






Reprints:


Dome Doom
(Vol. 1) #15

Distractions

(Vol. 1) #17

The Shell of the Dragon
(Vol. 1) #18




Notes:

- This book lacks an ISBN.


The Collected
Book
- Volume Four:
Return to
New York

Mirage Studios (Softcover), 1990










Reprints:


Return to New York
(Vol. 1) #19-21



Notes:

- This book lacks an ISBN.


The Collected
Book
- Volume Five

Mirage Studios (Softcover), 1990






Reprints:


A Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Story/Bill's TV Repair Ser. - A Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Story/Totally Hacked!
(Vol. 1) #16, 22-23



Notes:

- This book lacks an ISBN.


The Collected
Book
- Volume Six:
The River

Mirage Studios (Softcover), 1991








Reprints:


The River
(Vol. 1) #24-26



Notes:

- This book lacks an ISBN.

- The introduction to Soul’s Winter: The Collected TMNT Work of Michael Zulli indicates a second trade paperback release of this story was planned (one that would also have included (Vol. 1) #30), but that never materialised.


The Collected
Book
- Volume Seven

Mirage Studios (Softcover), 1991






Reprints:

Dreams of Stone
(Vol. 1) #27

Sons of the Silent Age
(Vol. 1) #28

Men of Shadow
(Vol. 1) #29




Notes:

- This book lacks an ISBN.


Shell Shock

Mirage Studios (Softcover), 1989


Contents:

[New] Bottoming Out (short)

[New] The Treaty (short)

[New] Junk Man (short)

New York Ninja (short)
TMNT Adventures! role-playing game supplement

New Comic Day!
(short) *
TMNT: Book I trade paperback

[New] Teen Techno Turtle Trio Plus One! (short)

Word Warriors (short)
Quest for Dreams Lost #1


49th Street Stompers (short) *
TMNT: Book III trade paperback

Terror by Transmat! (short)
TMNT Guide to the Universe role-playing game supplement

Ghouls Night Out (short)
(Vol. 1) #5 (2nd print)

[New] O-Deed (short)

Crazy Man (short)
Gobbledygook (Vol. 2) #1

D'Ants Fever (short) *
Grimjack #26

The Road Trip (short) *
Anything Goes! #5

Don't Judge a Book... (short)
TMNT & Other Strangeness role-playing game

Fun With Guns (14 pages)
Raphael #1 (2nd print)

The Survival Game (short)
(Vol. 1) #4 (2nd print)

Not One Word! (short) *
(Vol. 1) #1 (5th print)

[New] A Splinter in the Eye of God? (short)

You Had to be There (short) *
(Vol. 1) #7 (1st print)

Complete Carnage an' Radical (short)
(Vol. 1) #3 (2nd print)

The Howl (short)
Turtle Soup (Vol. 1) #1 

Night Life (short) *
TMNT: Book I trade paperback

Technofear!!! (short)
Gobbledygook (Vol. 2) #1

It's a Gas (short)
(Vol. 1) #6 (2nd print)

[New] Meanwhile… 1000000 BC. (short)



Notes:

- This book lacks an ISBN.

- New Comic Day!, 49th Street Stompers, D’Ants Fever, The Road Trip, You Had to be There and Night Life are all stories that were originally in colour, but which are presented here in black and white.

D’Ant’s Fever is listed on the contents page as Rick’s Dive. Artwork and dialogue have also been altered throughout the story to replace references to “Munden” and “Munden’s Bar” with “Rick” and “Rick’s Dive”. The instructional sign on the door at the start has also been altered to a cautionary one: “No Standards, No Morals, No Ethics, No Conscious. Enter At Your Own Risk”.

- The final page in Not One Word! Was originally a landscape image rotated to fit on a single page. Here it is turned into a two-page spread. It is slightly cropped, losing some of the laughter effects that extend outside the border of the artwork.


Soul’s Winter:
The Collected
TMNT Work of
Michael Zulli

Mirage Studios (Softcover), 2007
ISBN: 097870293X








Reprints:

Soul’s Winter/Soul’s Withering.../Soul’s End
(Vol. 1) #31, 35-36


A Splinter in the Eye of God? (short)
Shell Shock trade paperback


O-Deed (short)
Shell Shock trade paperback


Failed Instant (short) *
Turtle Soup (Vol. 2) #4



Notes:

- The contents page lists Soul’s End as Soul’s Withering Part Two, with Soul’s Withering… being titled Soul’s Withering Part One.

- Failed Instant which was originally in colour, is presented here in black and white.

Includes an introduction by Steve Bissette.


TMNT 25th:
A Quarter Century
Celebration

ISBN: 9781935351153


[First Edition]
Heavy Metal (Softcover), 2009


[First Edition]
Heavy Metal (Hardcover), 2009


[Second Edition]
Heavy Metal (Softcover), 2011


[Second Edition]
Heavy Metal (Softcover), 2011


[Second Edition]
Heavy Metal (Softcover), 2011


[Second Edition]
Heavy Metal (Softcover), 2011









Reprints:

Me, Myself and I (colour) *
Raphael #1

Complete Carnage an' Radical (short)
(Vol. 1) #3 (2nd print)

You Had to be There (short) (colour)
(Vol. 1) #7 (1st print)

Fun With Guns (14 pages) (colour) *
Raphael #1 (2nd print)

The Shell of the Dragon
(Vol. 1) #18

49th Street Stompers (short) (colour)
TMNT: Book III trade paperback

The Unmentionables *
(Vol. 1) #14

Turtles Take Time (colour)
(Vol. 1) #33




Notes:

- The same ISBN is used for each edition.

- Me, Myself and I and Fun With Guns have been colourised for this release.

- The black and white artwork in The Unmentionables is presented here sepia-toned.

- Includes an introduction by Kevin Eastman.

- The second edition adds a Gallery, mostly featuring clean cover art from various releases.

- IDW Publishing would later release a hardback version of this book.


Challenges

Mirage Studios (Softcover, Hardcover), 1991


Challenges

An original Graphic Novel, split in to short tales (Origin, Splinter, Raphael, Michaelangelo, Leonardo, Donatello).



Notes:

This book lacks an ISBN.

- Printed significantly smaller than other books on this list (digest size).


Not Collected (but available elsewhere)
With the stories listed above, the original graphic novel Challenges is the story that is furthest along on the Volume 1 Story List, with nothing past that point collected. However, most of the stories before then were collected, although D’Ant’s Fever and The Road Trip were unavailable in their original form. That’s also true of Silent Partner and Not One Word!, but to a much lesser extent.

Although some stories have yet to be collected anywhere, a lot of them would later be collected by IDW Publishing. Full details are on the IDW Bookshelf page, but for quick reference, the following stories were later collected by IDW in some form:

The Lesson: A Tale of the Triceraton Marines (short) Grunts#1

Choices (short) The Puma Blues #20

Casey Jones, Private Eye (short) Mirage Mini Comics

Donatello: The Ring (short) (colour) Turtle Soup (Vol. 2) #1

Twilight of the Ring (Vol. 1) #37

Juliet's Revenge (Vol. 1) #42

Halls of Lost Legends (Vol. 1) #43

The Violent Underground (Vol. 1) #44

Leatherhead, Too (Vol. 1) #45

Masks (Vol. 1) #46-47

Shades of Gray (Vol. 1) #48-49

City at War (Vol. 1) #50-62

In addition to the IDW releases, Dark Horse Comic would release Usagi Yojimbo/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Complete Collection which includes the shorts Turtle Soup and Rabbit Stew (Turtle Soup (Vol. 1) #1) and The Crossing (Usagi Yojimbo (Vol. 1) #10).

Not Collected
The story King For a Day which appeared in The Collected Gizmo trade paperback is not available in a TMNT-branded book, nor is Gizmo and The Fugitoid (Gizmo and the Fugitoid #1-2), but as neither feature the Turtles, that is understandable.

Many of the other stories that feature on the Story List, but which haven’t been collected can be summarised as “stuff from Turtle Soup”. From the original one-shot there is Turtle Dreams and Apparition. From the mini-series there is Turtles Attack!!! which ran across all four issues, The Purpose of Fear and The Name is Lucindra from #1, Raphael: Snapper from #2, Sweat, Sweat, Sweet Renet, The Ring of Death and Crack in a Hard Heart from #3 and finally, from the fourth issue, Fifteen Years Later... and Thoughts on Paper.

The remaining uncollected stories from the Volume 1 era are Sky Highway ((Vol. 1) #30), A Christmas Carol (Michaelangelo Christmas Special), Muscle & Faith (only available on the Flying Color Comics website), North By Downeast (Casey Jones #1-2) and Old Times (Plastron Café #1).

14 June, 2024

TMNT Volume 2 and 3 Bookshelf


for a list of all TMNT posts Click Here

Here is a list of shelf-friendly collected editions of stories from the Volume 2 and Volume 3 eras of Mirage Studios’ Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (well Image Comics in the case of Volume 3).

Compared to Volume 1, there are less options available, but the bulk of the stories have been collected, albeit mostly in a different form to their original release.

Books are ordered based on the Volume 2 and 3 Story List. Only TMNT collected editions are detailed here, but this is followed by a brief summary of other releases. Finally there is a list of what hasn’t been collected.

Like the Story List, any non-canon stories that were written to be part of the main Mirage continuity (so Volume 3) are listed in blue and any colour stories are indicated by “(colour)” after their name.

* - indicates reprinted story differs notably from the original version in some way. Details are provided in the notes.

All books were also released digitally unless indicated otherwise.


The Mirage Years:
1993 - 1995

IDW Publishing (Hardcover), 2025
ISBN: 979-8887242743




Not yet released, but listed as containing (Vol. 2) #1-13

Potentially featuring the original colouring and may not be released digitally, but TBC.

More Details to follow.


Classics Vol. 8

IDW Publishing (Softcover), 2014
ISBN: 1613779613


Reprints:


Memories of the Future (colour) *
(Vol. 2 #1)


Winds of Change / Evolution (colour) *
(Vol. 2 #2-3)


Intruders / Death Race (colour) *
(Vol. 2) #4-5


Notes:
- All issues are recoloured rather than using the original colours.


Classics Vol. 9

IDW Publishing (Softcover), 2015
ISBN: 1631401107


Reprints:


Killer on the Loose / Confrontations / Face Off / Victory? (colour) *
(Vol. 2) #6-9 


Notes:
- All issues are recoloured rather than using the original colours.


Classics Vol. 10

IDW Publishing (Softcover), 2015
ISBN: 1631402845


Reprints:


Descending into D.A.R.P.A. / The Rescue / The Escape/ The Final Battle (colour) *
(Vol. 2) #10-13 


Notes:
- All issues are recoloured rather than using the original colours.


   Bodycount

Image Comics (Softcover), 1996
ISBN: 1887279369

Heavy Metal (Hardcover, Softcover), 2008
Hardcover ISBN: 0981489506
Softcover ISBN: 1932413991

IDW-Topshelf (Hardcover), 2018
ISBN: 1603094320


Reprints:


Bodycount (colour)
Bodycount #1-4



Notes:
- Only the IDW-Topshelf version was released digitally.

- The Heavy Metal and IDW-Topshelf versions change all the white page borders to black.

- The Heavy Metal release has a printing error: the thirty-sixth story page is replaced with a duplicate of the thirty-ninth.

- All releases include a seven-page bonus “A Look Back” by Kevin Eastman, providing background information on the story as well as small images including sketches, layouts and inked pages.
  • The Heavy Metal edition removes the 1996 date from the final page sign-off, but is otherwise the same as the original Image presentation of the bonus material.
  • The IDW-Topshelf edition has a different layout style for the bonus, but uses the same images and text, until the final page which replaces the 1996 text with a 2018 written piece, similar in tone and including additional thanks.

- The IDW-Topshelf release was also available with a (convention exclusive) Black and White cover.


Teenage Mutant
Ninja Turtles

    Image Comics (Softcover), 1997
               ISBN: 1887279563




Reprints:


(Vol. 3) #1-5  *


Notes:
- This book has not been released digitally.

- This reprinting of the first Volume 3 arc features an extra story page between the second and third issues.

- Includes an introduction from Eric Larson, with comments from members of the Image creative team as well as (Mirage CEO) Gary Richardson, Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird.


Urban Legends 
- Volume One

    IDW Publishing (Softcover), 2019
                ISBN: 1684050197




Reprints:


(Vol. 3) #1-5 (colour) *
(Vol. 3) #6-8 (colour) *
(Vol. 3) #9 (colour) 
*
(Vol. 3) #10-11 (colour) 
*
(Vol. 3) #12-#13 (colour) 
*

Notes:
- Issues are listed here as Volume 3 for simplicity, but these are the Urban Legends versions that colourise the issues.

- The #1-5 arc lacks the extra page that was added in the Image trade paperback.

- With this volume only printing up to #13, the arc from #12-16 is split across volumes.

- "Volume One" is absent from the cover of this release, but is used in the indicia.


Urban Legends 
- Volume Two

    IDW Publishing (Softcover), 2021
                ISBN: 1684057302




Reprints:


(Vol. 3) #14-16 (colour) *
(Vol. 3) #17-18 (colour) *
(Vol. 3) #19-23 (colour) 
*
Urban Legends #24-26 (colour)


Notes:
- Issues are listed here as Volume 3 for simplicity, but these are the Urban Legends versions, so (Vol. 3) #14-23 are now colourised.

- With each volume printing thirteen issues, the arc from #12-16 is split across volumes.



Non-Turtles reprints of interest

Much like TMNT there have been numerous collected editions of Usagi Yojimbo and Savage Dragon and these reprints have included stories the Turtles guest starred in. Whilst this summary doesn’t aim to be comprehensive, here are some options for the crososvers of the Volume 2 era:

Shades of Green which originally appeared in Usagi Yojimbo (Vol. 2) #1-3 was included in Usagi Yojimbo – Volume 8: Shades of Death and also The Usagi Yojimbo Saga – Book 1. Both of these ditch the colour of the original issues and present the story in black and white. Both books have also received a digital release.

Perhaps the best option for Shades of Green (at least from a TMNT point of view) is Usagi Yojimbo/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Complete Collection which not only reprints the Volume 2 era crossover (again in black and white), but the three Volume 1 era stories as well.

There are also multiple options for the Savage Dragon crossovers, though it should be noted that only the Savage Dragon issue for each is included and not the Mirage one-shots. This means the conclusion is missing from the first crossover and the opening part is absent from the second.

For the first crossover The Savage Dragon #2 was included in Savage Dragon - Volume 2: A Force to Be Reckoned With, Savage Dragon Archives - Volume 1 (also released digitally) and Savage Dragon: Ultimate Collection – Vol. 1. The Archives release is in black and white.

For the second crossover The Savage Dragon #22 was included in Savage Dragon - Volume 6: Gang War and Savage Dragon Archives - Volume 2 (also released digitally). The Archives release is in black and white.
The issue is also listed for the forthcoming Savage Dragon: Ultimate Collection – Vol. 3.

The Savage Dragon #22
was slightly expanded for the collected edition release, with the addition of two extra (single image) pages towards the end. As it is the first issue in the collection, the Kindle preview for Archives – Volume 2 allows the full issue (including the extra pages) to be read.


Not Collected
Although much of it differs from the original presentation in some way, the bulk of the stories from the Volume 2 and 3 eras are available in book form.

As mentioned, the Mirage halves of the Savage Dragon crossovers (The Savage Dragon/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1 and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles/The Savage Dragon #1) have not been collected.

Sticking with crossovers, Dreamstone from Creed/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1 has not been collected either.

Finally Galahad from Big Bang Comics (Image series) #10 also lacks a shelf-friendly book release.