Mike & Klunk : Ode to "Michaelangelo Christmas Special" (1990)

Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays to All!!

The Turtles inhabit two of my favorite Christmas stories of all-time in any media, the first being the succession of Leonardo Micro-Series #1 & Mirage TMNT #10 & #11 which is easily the peak of the Eastman & Laird era and the loose basis for pretty much the whole second half of the 1990 movie.  I was introduced to this story as a kid via First Publishing's wonderful TMNT collections and still read and flip through it constantly.

If you have no nostalgia or emotional connection to the boys in green and are puzzled as to why this property continues to endure after over 30 years I highly recommend reading these original comics as I think they show just what a solid foundation of story and character Eastman & Laird's TMNT possessed and what separates them from other properties that we'll be inundated with in movies and merchandising until we're all dead (still never gonna watch those new Platinum Dunes movies though, NEVER!!).

The second Christmas tale and the basis for this piece is a much more lighthearted affair, also written and drawn by the turtles' original creators.  It centers on Michaelangelo saving a kitten from the cold, foiling the robbery of a toy store on Christmas Eve, and getting those toys to kids in need.  Introduced here,  Klunk the Cat stuck around.  He even showed up in the story I referenced earlier and passed away in the early 2000s Mirage Comics series to Mikey's great sadness.  I had no idea that he not only made his way into the 2003 animated series, but also made a cameo in the 1987 series and continues to be in the Nickelodeon series of today.

So here's a little piece for Christmas with Mikey & Klunk out in the snow.  Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays!!  Be good to each other out there, in this new year we're gonna need that kindness...
  
Spinner-Rack #1 available On Etsy, Zanadu Comics, Arcane Comics, & at the Fantagraphics Store & Gallery

The first time I came across Klunk, in TMNT: Book IV (First Publishing), attacking Raph as he tries to sneak a peek at his gift from Mike.  I'm not sure the folks at First knew he was going to be orange and I gotta think his appearance in the 1987 animated series cemented this for the long haul.