"The Forever War" Officially Canceled

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So, how many times can you get over the cancellation of the TMNT Adventures conclusion, "The Forever War"? Having first been canceled when the title itself was canceled in the mid-90s, and after several on-and-off broken promises throughout this decade that Mirage would publish the 5-part story, fans were given hope that the project might actually see the light of day as it was put on Mirage's schedule as part of the 25th anniversary celebration.

As such, a lead-up TPB was released in July that collected key stories that would lead up to what we would see in "The Forever War." Unfortunately, circumstances seemed to put the project into a holding pattern and its release once again became uncertain.

Now, in light of the recent purchase of the TMNT by Nickelodeon/Viacom, Mirage has been forced to make a definitive decision on the fate of this title, and, unfortunately, the news isn't good news.

In an e-mail to long-time TMNT fan Andrew M., Steve Murphy has made it official that the story is canceled and will not be published.

To get a look at the story that might've been, you can head on over to Murphy's old 5th Turtle blog to see a small glimpse.

I suppose this really isn't unexpected, but it remains disappointing. Once again the Turtles don't get a proper farewell. Alas...

Mark Freedman Assisted Nick on TMNT Deal

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Mark Freedman made the TMNT famous back in the 80s when he and his company, Surge Licensing, Inc., introduced the concept to Playmates toys. The toy deal became a TV deal, and the rest was history. Not much has been heard from Freedman and Surge Licensing (in respect to the TMNT) since their licensing contract expired in the 90s, so it's a bit surprising to hear that the man who helped to make the Turtles a world-wide phenomenon advised Nickelodeon on the deal throughout negotiations, as was revealed in a statement released today.

Some quotes:

Mark Freedman, an advisor to Viacom/Nickelodeon in its milestone acquisition of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and original worldwide licensor, through his Surge Licensing, during the first decade of the property's mega-success, said, "Viacom, with its Nickelodeon and Paramount Pictures companies, and master global toy partner, Playmates Toys, will create Ninja Turtles magic that will succeed on every media platform."

"The Turtles are an iconic property entrenched in the hearts of two generations of fans and Nickelodeon can inventively and creatively leverage the Turtles brand and deliver the most exciting and compelling experience yet," he added.

Freedman, an advisor to Viacom during the negotiations, said, "I have no doubt that the Nickelodeon-Turtles will be a huge entertainment and licensing and merchandising success under the new management team."

You can check out the full press release here.

Panel To Panel Book Plate Now Available (Again!)

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While supplies last, PanelToPanel.net is making the book plate pictured left, previously available with last year's Tales of the TMNT Vol. 5 TPB collection, once again available with copies of the original TMNT Collected Book Vol. 4 from 1990, which collects the classic story "Return to New York."

If you don't have this book plate, this is a deal you don't want to miss. If you don't have this collected volume, this is especially a deal you don't want to miss, since it seems unlikely that we'll be seeing these issues reprinted anytime soon, if ever again.

Get it!

Nerdy Show Episode 10, "TMNT RIP" Now Available

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If you haven't checked it out yet, yesterday's TMNT episode of Nerdy Show is now available.

Thanks to the guys for being great hosts!!

TMNT Smash-Up For Wii: $29.98 Today Only

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Today's Gold Box Deal of the Day over at Amazon.com is TMNT Smash-Up for the Wii, for the low price of $29.98. The regular Amazon price is $46.99, and the MSRP is $49.99, so this is a deal you don't want to miss if you've been holding out on this title. This deal will expire at the end of today, so don't wait!

Get it here!

Tonight's "Nerdy Show" Podcast to Talk Turtles

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I will be a guest on tonight's episode of the "Nerdy Show" podcast. The show records live from 9pm-11pm EDT, with the first hour of the show likely to be Turtles talk. And perhaps obviously, the focus of the discussion will be last week's sale of the TMNT to Nickelodeon. You can check out the live recording at Justin.tv. They hope to have it available for download ASAP, possibly within an hour of completing the recording. At worst, the podcast will be available tomorrow from their Web site.

I'm a little nervous about this, but also excited! And I expect it'll be fun!

Dan Berger Book Plate to be Included with TMNT #1 Color Reprint

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As you'll recall, one of the first victims of last week's announcement was the canceled publication of the "Mirage Universe" book. And with no book to release, that left PanelToPanel.net's awesome Dan Berger-created book plate without a home.

No longer! The book plate will now be included with copies of the TMNT Vol. 1 #1 color reprint (below) that is scheduled for December. At only $3.25 a copy, it's a steal!

Visit PanelToPanel.net to order!