After receiving a message from the future, the Lone Gunmen seek answers from the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. And man, those turtles are a ton more helpful than the Ghostbusters ever were.

Here’s the official word from IDW:

The Turtles are doing their best to avoid trouble in Northampton. Unfortunately, trouble finds them in the form of the Lone Gunmen! The fate of the world depends on the Gunmen getting the reclusive Turtles’ help. Add in an undead menace and things are going to get downright dangerous!

After a somewhat flat Lone Gunmen-meet-the-Ghostbusters mash-up, IDW delivers a much stronger third installment to their latest crossover event. Writer Ed Brisson does a nice job of delivering an issue that offers two plots at once. The first, of course, is the meta plot that IDW is busting their ass trying to make work: The Lone Gunmen are desperately trying to find an antidote to the alien plague that’s barreling towards humanity, and they go looking for the Turtles hoping that their mutant blood somehow holds the key. While the particulars of this plot are better developed here than they were in the previous Ghostbusters crossover, there’s still not the sense of urgency necessary to make you run out and buy the next issue. Yes, it’s fun to see these characters engage one another, but the mystery feels static — nothing new is offered, just the same old hunt over the last three issues. That said, there are enjoyable moments and they come from the second plot which Brisson weaves in almost effortlessly: a Turtles-fighting-Vampires escapade that essentially steals the whole show. And makes for the best reading of the issue.

Miran Kim’s art is strong, and does a nice job of placing the Lone Gunmen alongside the TMNT in a way that feels organic and relaxed. While the style is a bit sketchier, there’s tons of fluidity and fun action sequences.

While this crossover event has yet to fully satisfy, X-Files Conspiracy: TMNT is by far the best.

3.5/5