MICHELANGELO Art Scale 1/10 – Iron Studios

Created in the comic books by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TMNT) became a phenomenal success in the 1980s, expanding into a multimedia franchise and garnering a legion of fans worldwide. Formed by four young mutant turtles with humanoid characteristics, genetically altered by a viscous substance called Mutagen or Ooze, the group’s members gained their father figure and master Sensei in the form of an anthropomorphic rat named Splinter, who named them after Italian Renaissance artists. In New York City, their home and base of operations is in the sewer networks, where they remain hidden during the day and venture out on missions at night. Their greatest archenemy is Shredder, the leader of the Foot Clan. Directed by Steve Barron, the independent film Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles from 1990 presents the origin story of Splinter and the Turtles, their initial encounter with the reporter April O’Neil and the vigilante Casey Jones, and their first confrontation with the villain Shredder and his criminal ninja group the Foot Clan. Raphael was portrayed by Josh Pais, the only actor in this film who played a Turtle both physically on screen and voiced his character. With a screenplay based on the early comics and elements from the 1987 animated series, it was the highest-grossing independent film at the time, kicking off the trilogy followed by Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze (1991) and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III (1993). The first live-action adaptation of the mutant quartet, the Turtles’ costumes were designed by Jim Henson’s Creature Shop, a special/visual effects company founded in 1979 by puppeteer Jim Henson, creator of The Muppets show.