Saturday, July 26, 2008

Mighty Mutanimals














What a treat to finally be able to add Jagwar to the Mutanimals toys line-up!
Courtesy of adam, here's a swell pic of our environmental heroes with his awesome customized Jagwar figure.
I love this group shot so much I just had to post it.

Visit The 5th Turtle for more pics!

Could Dreadmon be far behind?

34 comments:

Nolan T said...

Saw this on Murphy's blog.

It's just too cool.

Ugh... what do we have to do to get the rights to these characters back fully to Mirage so we can get some new tales going?

Even for all of its cheese, "United We Stand, Divided We Fall" remains one of my favorite comic book moments ever.

Steve Lavigne Ryan Brown said...

Hi nolan, Mirage owns all rights to the Mutanimals and can do whatever they'd like with them. They just have no interest.


Although in actuality, the Mutanimals are all dead.

E. Will said...

Hi guys, I just found your blog and I just wanted to say thanks for posting all of this awesome stuff. I grew up with the Archie TMNTA series and it is still one of my favourite comics ever. In fact, the first issue I remember buying was the 96-page collection of the first Mutanimals mini-series. I thought I was the only one who loved these comics, because I have tried many times to find some online discussion about them, to no avail - until now.

So thank you again and I look forward to more postings. :)

Steve Lavigne Ryan Brown said...

Welcome e.will !
You've come to the right place for Mutanimals as Murph and I created them way back in the glory days of Mirage Studios!
Ask any questions you like and we'll try to answer them as best we can.

Vaughn Michael said...
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Vaughn Michael said...

See guys I keep telling Peter that they should mix in both Archie & Old Toon characters to the Mirage NECA line because as you can see the casual person remembers those 2 things the most.
It would only help the sales which are already super.
But hey no one listens to me, I've only been collecting this property since it's start.
And watching the people & I see what they want.

He didn't say no though but I think he was just trying to keep me from asking over and over.

Steve Lavigne Ryan Brown said...

Hey, I'm a a huge Neca fan and I'm all for Archie Adventures figures! They have the rights so all they need is consumer desire and great sell-through.

Adam Riches said...

Thanks for the additional props, Ryan! It's super cool to have someone dig your take on their stuff (I think Murph sent you copies of that other thing that I maybe can't talk about yet too? Anyways he said you liked it...unless he was lying ;-) So thanks a ton!

Dreadmon may be a future project we'll see how I'm looking on time, it definitely would be cool to have the whole team together.

As far as the NECA stuff goes...I really think Playmates would be better served to do Mutanimals. NECA has to play it so safe because of the size of their company, if they are already trying to get the most use they can out of the basic turtle and footsoldier molds, I cann't imagine we'll be seeing the TMNT universe get quite that expanded anytime soon, by them anyways.

I really think it would be cool if Playmates did a Jagwar, or Dreadmon mailaway maybe for the 25th...I know when I was a kid, a mailaway of anything (even if it sucked) made it worth ordering. Plus I think secondary characters are the big thing lacking in the 2k3-present Playmates line, not to say they haven't made them but the ratio of turtle to others is like 5000 to 1, I don't ever remember it being so bad back in the day. So perhaps some new (old) blood could be just what the line needs for the 25th, instead of say Mech suits for example...

Vaughn Michael said...

And we all know when we think of modern Playmates we think of suck.

Nolan T said...

This was at the end of '06, from Jim Lawson (nicest guy in the world);
"Mutanimals...wow, I just went down to [Dean] Clarrain's office to find out what was up with them. There is nothing being done with them at this time. He told me that Ryan Brown has approached Mirage with a request to buy back the property, But Mirage is not interested. It seems that they (the Mutanimals) are too tied in with the Fred Wolf Turtles..."

I guess I interpreted that wrong at the time (that RB was attempting to use them... but upon rereading, I interpret it more as "take" them?). So Mirage has the full rights, but is not interested in using them in any way? I guess I just figure with the "Adventures" turtles reappearing next year that there would be some general interest.

And I am very aware of the Mutanimals death. It stands as one of the most confunding moments in comic book killings. But... comic book deaths seem to me the sorts of things that are to be played with from time to time.

Anyways, once I become an insanely successful comics writer, I'll come beg Mirage to let me take a crack at said ressurrection. ^_^

m. said...

I have no f@#$ing idea why Mirage continues to sit on the Mutanimals property. In the heyday of the Archie Turtles hundreds of thousands of kids the world over were reading both the TMNT and Mutanimal comics. To me it's a no-brainer to relaunch the property, or at the very least do action figures of them.

IMO Mirage sits on them because the characters were not created by Peter or Kevin but by combinations of Mirage Studios artists and writers.

Steve Lavigne Ryan Brown said...

You go nolan! Please do become an insanely successful comics writer and resurrect the Mutanimals! Would be great to see!

The deal I mentioned to Mirage was not to "take" the Mutanimals but to license them and then approach other comics companies about the possibilities of launching/distributing a brand new series.

Vaughn Michael said...

Murph that's exactly how I feel also.
As usual we have the same opinion.
And you know what it's true TMNT Adventures was what introduced me to the TMNT's Comic world I didn't even know about the Mirage comics until my uncle showed me them a few months later.

Nolan T said...

I'm really excited about the upcoming five-issue revival of Adventures, and I hope the word gets out to all the former fans. Wish there was some way we could convince Mirage to color the thing, though.

Steve Lavigne Ryan Brown said...

M- IMO down deep, I think Mirage just doesn't get the Adventure title.

Nolan T said...

Is "Mirage" synonomous w/ PL, or are there more folks over there who don't get it?

'Cause I see a lot of the same names still involved in Tales, etc.

Adam Riches said...

It's seems everything TMNT post-relaunch has been targeted primarily towards the creations of PL and KE and only the few characters extremely synonymous with the TMNT (like Leatherhead or Rat King) stayed around.

If Mirage already owns the rights to all these things though, it does boggle the mind a little why they wouldn't use them. Even if they were only put in the cartoon or comic as a cameo appearance, they would then be eligible for merchandising (or action figures at least). Not only that but it gives a little more variety to the property, while also giving Playmates/Mirage more money in the long run, one would think.

Plus I hate to keep beating a dead horse here, but music turtles, mech suits, alien hunter characters made up just for the line, etc. etc. Why spend time and money making new ideas that don't seem to be received all that well in the first place, when clearly there are good ideas sitting around people are clamoring for? The logic behind that confuses me to no end.

I know it’s unrealistic to think TMNT will ever be what it was in 1989-1993 again, and Playmates can’t just churn out new figures on a whim like before, but even if they made just 1 new/old character per series it would make everyone happy. Then they could still keep making whatever else it is they feel the need to.

Vaughn Michael said...

It's nice to see some people get it, it's a shame the big wigs don't and seem like they never will.

Nolan T said...

I'm not one of those persons who was pissy about "omg, NO SHREDDER" in the recent CGI TMNT flick, but I am baffled that there's a resistence to expanding and playing with the existing universes.

With the various incarnations over the years, and the delays and lack of interest in the main title there seems little chance that a definative cannon will ever reach the masses, so why not develop niches within the franchise?

Steve Lavigne Ryan Brown said...

Mirage = Peter Laird and Gary Richardson.

Steve Lavigne Ryan Brown said...
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Steve Lavigne Ryan Brown said...

Yes, adam it is baffling. Every other property I know exploits every single nuance they can find!

dark turtle said...

VM said...

And we all know when we think of modern Playmates we think of suck.


Heh. Right on, dude.

I keep hoping we'll see the Mutanimals again someday. Even a mini-series, 5 issues long, would be great.

Nolan T said...

I'm not lyin' when I say I have plans for the Mutanimals in the future. I think it'd have to be longer than five issues just because I know there's a lot of the old creative team who would like to get their hands on 'em if someone had the right pitch to bring them back, and it wouldn't be fair not to share. :)

~ tOkKa said...

-->> So cute, Adam ..


♦ ♦

side note ::

If you guys are only being exposed to Ryan's ' other ' creations .. W.W. C. O. W. Boys of Moo Mesa.. the brilliancy and fun .. only thru' the TMNT X-overs.

That's a damm shame and you are depriving yourselves the relization that the spirit of TMNT and Mutanimals DOES live on within' that property !!

AND THAT IS is ALL Ryan's..

and if you are also not supporting that..then well that's an even bigger shame.

I'm sorry.

>v<

Roseangelo said...

I know I'm late to the party, but that Jagwar figure is awesome!

The up side of Mirage refusing to acknowledge the contributions of the other artists to the overall success of the TMNT is that I get to buy awesome original artwork from them. If they ever got rich off of their talents it'd cost me $20 for a scribble from them at a Con. Well, unless they were awesome. And actually, I believe all of them are...

Steve Lavigne Ryan Brown said...

Rose, our loss is your gain.

Roseangelo said...

I hope you realize there was sarcasm there. :)

~ tOkKa said...

-->> Too much pizza.. gained weight ..

i'm so fat .. ~~**


>v<

Steve Lavigne Ryan Brown said...

Yep Rose ;)

Mondo Gecko said...

If you’ the creator of the mutanimals wants their resurrection. soon I will release over 500 pages of mutanimals comics i have drawn. No time intervention,,, im using the turnstone.. mondo gecko will be its last, permanent and final host. along with a new mutanimal I am creating. theres a plot a story and a history for each mutanimal i have planned. And yes in my comic candy and Mondo have kids get married and mondo finds out his family history is a little more complex than he was led to believe. its in its rough draft but you can check out 3 fan comics based on the new mutanimal Syrix Warsong here.
http://anubiskrytes.deviantart.com/gallery/#mutanimals-present-syrix-warsong-warpath-1-o
this is only the tip of the ice berg. Soon more pages will arrive. i know there a mess. They need some serious line work done. And a few more place holder pages to go in between. And no the phoenix in this comic is not jean grey. As I said I’m using the turnstone. It can be shaped into anything its user can imagine. So mondo being a slayer fan and an x-men fan. Phoenix was born Mondo’s imagination; Syrix only shares this power due to the fact that he is his lost twin brother. Who also faced Null and tore his head off. I have great plans and wishes for the mutanimals..
United we stand divided we fall for if we fall we shall rise again. {{Mondo gecko 5 days after M-day (mutanimals doomsday and resurrection)}}

~ tOkKa said...

-->> ..wow..another optimistic appeal !!

Think fans are screaming at this point.

>v<

Mondo Gecko said...

yes i say bring em back:) they were cheated. give the ol gecko the turnstone and you will have a real fight against null, null is death turnstone represents life and imagination. only gecko is the only one i can think of that would be perfect for the task

~ tOkKa said...

-->> ..your illustrations have a sweetness to 'em, Dan.

>v<