Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Splinter Has Led the Foot since Shredder’s Death, but His Reign May Be Ending

In the current Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comics continuity, Shredder is dead. His old friend turned mortal foe, Master Splinter, leads the Foot Clan, but that reign may be coming to an end.

IDW Publishing obtained the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comic book license in 2009 and launched an ongoing series in 2011. Seven years later, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is still going strong and is on the way towards its 100th issue.

The series takes the “Ultimate Marvel” approach to the TMNT mythology. It mixes elements from the original Mirage Comics series with parts of the 1987 and 2003 animated shows. With Tom Waltz, Bobby Curnow, and Turtles co-creator Kevin Eastman driving the book, the series successfully integrated these different continuities with a modern sheen. The series gives all these disparate parts a consistent tone. It even has shades of Chris Claremont’s classic X-Men run, with long-simmering plots and interpersonal drama being key ingredients.

After 50 issues, in the climax of “City Fall” arc, the Turtles have a climactic battle with Shredder. The Turtles defeat Shredder’s mutant henchman and his granddaughter, Karai, in a ritual gauntlet challenge. That leaves Splinter to face Shredder one-on-one. Splinter is victorious and kills Shredder. Splinter take control of the Foot Clan, claiming he is doing it to keep the city safe and allows Karai to leave peacefully.

Since then, Splinter has proven himself to be almost as cunning and brutal a leader as Shredder did. He has manipulated his allies and killed his foes to further his plans. This has driven a wedge between Splinter and his sons. Michelangelo was the first, leaving the group entirely rather than be a party to Splinter’s actions. Leonardo and the other tried to be more understanding, but eventually, Splinter agreed he could not lead the Foot Clan and Clan Hamato, his family. Leonardo has taken over leadership of Clan Hamato, and the relationship between Splinter and his family has had ups and downs ever since.

But that may all be coming to an end. Karai returned to New York City, now ready to lead the Foot as is her birthright. Leonardo sees this as an opportunity to get his father back without allowing the Foot to become a threat to the city again. He pleads with his father to go along with it.

The most recent issue of the series, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #91, ended with Splinter proclaiming he would step down from leading of the Foot. That sounds like a victory, but things may be about to get messy.

The story leading into Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #100 is titled “City at War.” That’s an homage to the original “City at War” story from the Mirage Comics series. The 13-part saga is considered one of the biggest and most important Turtles stories of all time. That story involves a war breaking out throughout New York as the different faction of the Foot Clan struggle for dominance. Those factions include one led by Karai that seeks an alliance with the Turtles.

The IDW series may be headed in the same direction, with Karai back seeking a peaceful transfer of power. IDW also launched a miniseries titled Shredder in Hell that may be leading up to Shredder’s return. Some old enemies – Metalhead and the EPF – are forming an uneasy alliance. Other factions like the Mutanimals and the Purple Dragons, as well as the devious Baxter Stockman, are still in play. Considering all this, that transfer of power may not be as peaceful as anyone hoped.

Are you excited about the upcoming “City a War” arc? Let us know in the comments!

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #91 is on sale now.