Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Series Is Ending With Issue #150

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #150 will go down as the last issue in the current run. The heroes in a half-shell have been a prominent part of IDW Publishing's lineup for a decade, introducing new characters and stories that have resonated with fans. Just look at the recent success of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin, for example of the kind of content TMNT is putting out for IDW. As for the main Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series, the release of its 150th issue later this year will bring it to an end... at least for now.

IDW announced that Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #150 is the final issue. It's being touted as a double-sized landmark issue, celebrating more than a decade of storytelling. The creative team consists of writer Sophie Campbell, artist Vincenzo Federici (Armageddon Game), and longtime TMNT creatives colorist Ronda Pattison and letterer Shawn Lee. Also returning are former series artists Dan Duncan, Fero Pe, and Campbell. As for the story, it features Donatello traveling to the past to stop the colossal and cosmic time-consuming megalodon called Armaggon from erasing the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles from existence.

Even though Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is ending, IDW promises that a new series will launch to take its place. IDW recently renewed its TMNT license ahead of the franchise's 40th anniversary, so you know big things are being planned to celebrate.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles creators comment on final issue

"I still can't quite believe I've gotten to work on this much TMNT, I thought for sure I'd get the boot in the first year but nope – here I am four years later still here against all odds," Sophie Campbell said. "It's really been amazing, truly a dream job. I wonder what my 10-year-old self would think if she knew what she'd go on to eventually do. The fact that this chapter is ending and I'm leaving the series is bittersweet, I'll miss it for sure but it's time to move on and let somebody else have a shot at the Turtles, and I'll be back for more before you know it, whatever form that might take. As two great men once said, 'change is constant' and 'life at best is bittersweet.'"

"The meaning of this experience as a TMNT artist is too much for me to describe. If someone has had the opportunity to listen to my crazy speeches at NYCC panels in the last two years, they know that the TMNT were the main reason to make me choose this job when I was seven. And that's it!" Vincenzo Federici added.

"When Tom Waltz asked me to be the artist on Armageddon Game I was so excited that I stopped sleeping for two days! Then, at the end of that event series, I was asked to be the main artist on the ongoing series until issue #150 and this was the ultimate blast. I was truly inspired by the previous artist's job, this helped me to create a personal vision of the TMNT and their world. This Road to #150 is an amazing run, full of surprise and action. Many revelations will be made and the fans will be delighted by them. I feel that TMNT is an evergreen title and they are able to cross generations. I put all of myself into these pages."

"Back in 2011, when I was first asked to join Team TMNT at IDW as the ongoing series writer, I was praying I'd at least get four issues of the story I'd concocted out to the public before I was run out of town," Tom Waltz said. "But before I knew it, four issues became 12, then 25, then 50... and suddenly I was at issue #100, and it was time to hand the main writing reins over to the amazingly talented Sophie Campbell. And here we are now, on the final stretch of The Road to 150, and Sophie has taken our beloved TMNT series to new and exciting heights during her fantastic run, all the while maintaining the core consistency of what makes a TMNT tale a... well, a TMNT tale. Family, friendship, relatable protagonists, nuanced antagonists, real-world dangers and drama mixed with gritty street action and fantastical adventures, and on and on. It's all been there every step of the way for Sophie's fifty issues, and she's gonna wrap it all up with one mind-blowing bow on top. What a great time to be a shellhead!"

"For me, the IDW TMNT Comic Book Universe is a definitive one. When it was launched in 2011, Tom Waltz proposed to bring together elements from the first 25 years of storytelling, and from all various TMNT Universes, and with the help of a small army of extremely talented artisans, and nailed it brilliantly for 100 consecutive issues," Kevin Eastman said. "Passing the baton off to Sophie Campbell for the following 50 fantastic issues solidified this TMNT foundation as the place where anything is, was, and has been possible. This wonderful place has been our collective 'home' for the past 12 years, and although we may see a 'conclusion,' but after 40 years of adventures, we won't see an end."

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #150 goes on sale April 10th. Let us know your thoughts on the landmark issue in the comments!