The time has come to dissect more villains from the current Ninja Turtles series, but is this outing as good as its predecessor?  Read on to find out.

The official description from IDW:

Baxter Stockman is busy working for Krang on the Technodrome… or so it appears. Little does Krang know that Baxter has secretly been working on his own project that is both mutant AND machine! But when creation turns on creator, Baxter’s trademark smugness might be in short supply! Will Baxter come up with a plan B in time to save himself… and the world?

When it comes to this franchise there’s certainly no shortage of despicable characters for the heroes in a half-shell to contend with.  And with that in mind this microseries seeks to explore several of the prominent ones in hopes to give the audience a deeper understanding of how they became who they currently are.

Erik Burnham pens a simple narrative that spends a good deal of its time focusing on the dynamics of the relationship between a tough father and a capable son.  We have all the usual staples of family drama touched upon here as the author allows forward momentum in the greater realm of the ongoing series. We get a couple quick glimpses that will easily tease fanboys and fangirls while simultaneously we’re treated with some striking pathos all its own.  To someone who had been a two dimensional character this release does enough to make you feel for Baxter Stockman.

Andy Kuhn handles the art and the talent does a splendid job realizing the scope of the tale.  Each pencil stroke offers up thick and thin lines that highlight the core strengths found here even as the work holds steadfast to the current style while imbuing a wholly kinetic experience.  The end result is something that’s good to look at even if it might seem on face value to be a little bit more low key than what people might certainly expect.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Villain Microseries #2: Baxter Stockman is a good book that’s worthy of your purchase.  Recommended.

4/5