TMNT: BATTLE NEXUS #3 (IDW PUBLISHING)
The Tournament rolls on and Raphael’s time to fight is now. His opponent knows him well and has a bit of an axe to grind with him. His opponent is none other than his ex-girlfriend Alopex and she is really ticked off. Who will leave the arena as the victor and who will be zapped away to the Prison Dimension?
TMNT: Battle Nexus #3 - Story By Tom Waltz, Paul Allor, Sophie Campbell, Caleb Goellner, and Erik Burnham – Script by Sophie Campbell - Art By Vitor Cafaggi – Colors By Luis Antonio Delgado - Letters By Tom Napolitano – Edited By Andy Khouri & Jake Thomas - Published By IDW Publishing
Credit: IDW Publishing
*** POSSIBLE SPOILER WARNING ***
STORY OVERVIEW:
This issue opens giving us a backstory for Savanti’s guard Ninjara. We learn that she is a Ninjara Clan Warrior named Umeko, and she is not going by a different name or working for Savanti by choice. We now pick back up in the battle arena where Raphael is taking on his ex-girlfriend Alopex. After admitting that he was wrong and choosing to team with Saki even though he knew what he had done to Alopex’s family was unacceptable. This does not stop the fight but does make Alopex think. Suddenly after brawling for a bit longer both Raph and Alopex start laughing and stop fighting. This infuriates Savanti, who declares them both losers and zaps both away, even though it breaks his own rule. But we get no rest as Donatello is selected next, and he has already figured out his opponent, and it will be a truly metal fight.
WRITING:
This issue gives us some more backstory before jumping back into the battle arena. The choice of revealing small bits of backstory in the beginning of each issue not only reveals truth about what is going on but also allows for more action as there is no need to waste an issue on backstory. Sophie Campbell does an awesome job of curating the story in this issue. Revealing the past between Raphael & Alopex and then allowing Raph to own up to his wrongs, brings a great deal of emotion to the story. The way the fight ends is creative and shows once again that Savanti for whatever his reasons are lets his hatred of the Turtles rule his life and judgement. Finishing with the logical tease of Donatello’s opponent sets up the next issue perfectly.
ARTWORK:
The artwork in this issue once again hits the mark and does a great job of bringing this weird world to life. Vitor Cafaggi brings this issue to life with his art and does an amazing job bringing the characters in said world to life. The fight sequences between Raphael & Alopex look fantastic and really make the reader feel like they have a front row seat. The little personal touches each artist gets to put into the artwork of the issue they are creating really stands out and makes the art feel fresh each issue.
Complementing the artwork is a spot on color pallet making each panel jump off the page. Luis Antonio Delgado does a fantastic job of using color to breathe life into the awesome artwork. The different colors that he uses really ties everything together. Well, the letters by Tom Napolitano allow the reader to know exactly what tone the story is conveying.
Check Out My Review of TMNT: Battle Nexus #2
Final Thoughts:
TMNT: Battle Nexus #3 continues to allow the bigger story to unfold, well delivering some hard hitting and emotional action. The story just keeps heating up and building until we finally hit the crescendo. The biggest thing to be excited about is that we only have to wait two weeks for the next issue. This is a solid pick up at the LCS, and a must for your Pull List.
FINAL GRADE: 9.8/10
Let me know your thoughts on TMNT: Battle Nexus #3 in the comments below. Thanks for reading!
