During SDCC 2023, IDW announced a sequel to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin is arriving later this year!
If you haven’t read The Last Ronin yet (don’t worry, even if you haven’t kept up with TMNT it’s accessible and fun), now is the time to do it. During a panel at last week’s San Diego Comic-Con, IDW announced a sequel to the bestselling story is on the way with TMNT: The Last Ronin II – Re-Evolution!
Guided by Casey Marie Jones, the formidable and strategic daughter of April O’Neil and the late Casey Jones, the next generation of Ninja Turtles – Yi, Uno, Odyn, and Moja – will face the ultimate enemy! Will the young heroes be able to adapt to the pressure of a city at war? Featuring new foes and foils, this exhilarating and compelling next chapter in the Ronin-verse is overflowing with turtle power as THE LAST RONIN team returns to continue the stunning story. TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES: THE LAST RONIN II – RE-EVOLUTION is co-written by Eastman and Tom Waltz, illustrated by Ben Bishop, Esau Escorza and Isaac Escorza, colored by Luis Antonio Delgado, and lettered by Shawn Lee.
“The real heart and soul for me with dusting off and bringing THE LAST RONIN to life three years ago was my belief that ‘Every beginning must have an end,’” said Eastman. “With all the respect in the world for my co-creator Peter Laird, I wanted to bring full circle to what we started in 1984 and set out to do in 1987. With THE LAST RONIN, with my friend Tom Waltz and an incredible gathering of brilliant artisans, we accomplished that 33 years later. A very fitting end indeed.”
Eastman is happy to reunite with his fellow creators behind THE LAST RONIN and expand the Ronin-verse. “The incredible surprise on coming out of the end of that journey, was the opportunity to continue to tell stories beyond that ending. All new characters, in a whole new universe to really sink our teeth into and the best part – with all the original crew back to make sure we get it right. I can’t wait for you to see what we have in store for them.”
Waltz reflected on the original mission statement behind THE LAST RONIN. “When Kevin Eastman and I got together to adapt and update the future TMNT outline that he and Peter Laird had written together in 1987, our hope was always that we’d be creating an evergreen tale that longtime TMNT fans would enjoy for years to come.” Waltz continued, “Little did we know – and much to our absolute pleasure – THE LAST RONIN would become a publishing sensation, a New York Times bestseller, far surpassing our initial hopes and expectations. And not only was it successful, it offered Kevin and I the opportunity to revisit what we’ve lovingly come to call the Ronin-verse in the form of prequels and sequels – first with THE LAST RONIN: THE LOST YEARS and THE LOST DAY, and now with THE LAST RONIN II – RE-EVOLUTION.”
Waltz added how honored he is to continue exploring the future of the franchise. “I couldn’t be more excited and humbled to help bring the next generation of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles to the world… awesome new stories and characters that stand firmly and respectfully atop the shoulders of the beloved legacy of their original namesakes. We’re going to have our pizza and eat it, too!”
TMNT Senior Editor Charles Beacham is confident this sequel will be something really special for fans of the Heroes in a Half Shell. ”Kevin, Tom, and the rest of the team have cooked up something truly incredible for this next chapter in the THE LAST RONIN story. Yes there’s more Turtles. Yes there are exciting new enemies, but even more than that, there’s a lot of heart. I can tell you that this book is a labor of love for ALL involved and it shows.”
TMNT: The Last Ronin II – Re-Evolution issue #1 is set to hit stores this December.
