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 YOU'RE NOT ON 
 NICKTOONS 
 ANYMORE! 

Some TMNT stuff really isn't for little kids.

IDW 65

Credits

Characters

Christmas Party

Cameos

Synopsis

Michelangelo is briefing his brothers on an imminent operation, putting Donatello in charge of lights, Raphael in charge of security, and Leonardo in charge of coordination. It is soon revealed that they are in the living room in the survival compound of the abandoned church, a previous lair the family lived in before Splinter took over the Foot Clan. Mikey has brought his brothers together to help him plan and execute a Christmas party.

(Mikey has been living here alone for some time, but recently Leo, Raph and Donnie moved back in in issue 64 after cutting ties with their father Splinter, albeit on good terms, after the brothers finally rejected their father's ruthless gangster-like execution of the already-defeated Darius Dun. The brothers are also joined by Pepperoni, Raph's dinosaur pet who finally came to live with them permanently after the events of Bebop & Rocksteady Destroy Everything.)

Donnie has already gathered an enormous quantity of electric Christmas lights, but will need more electricity to power them all. Mikey checks the refrigerator for eggs, but wonders where to find "nog." Raph and Leo are already having second thoughts about the party. Leo reminds Mikey to keep the guest list small with just a few friends, to which Mikey declares that he only intends to invite April, Casey, Woody, Angel and...the Mutanimals, but Leo angrily rejects inviting the Mutanimals. Mikey reluctantly agrees not to invite the Mutanimals and to keep the party small, and asks what could possibly go wrong. As he does this, he carries an armful of eggs and various common kitchen ingredients like milk and sugar, and carelessly drops them all on the counter, breaking some of the eggs in the process. Donnie reappears in full toolbelt mode, asking if anyone's seen his jumper cables. An annoyed Leo glares at his two brothers.

Somewhere else outside amidst warehouses, Raph has Pepperoni on a leash and is visiting with Casey Jones. Casey is surprised that Leo is allowing a Christmas party, but Raph comments on how much has been going on with the family, especially concerning Splinter. Casey thinks the brothers are being too hard on Splinter, but Raph doesn't want to talk about the Foot Clan. Nearby, men are heard arguing over someone's stolen cool ranch potato chips. Casey opens a door, revealing the Purple Dragons, who Casey now leads, and angrily tells them to be quiet so he can talk with Raphael. As the two keep talking, Casey agrees to come to the party, and Raph asks him to "leave the nuts at home" before he and Pepperoni walk away. In a nearby alley, a tall shadowy figure has been eavesdropping on the party discussion.

Donnie is using a staple gun to attach Christmas lights all over the church's rooftop, using a ladder to bridge the large hole in the roof, still not repaired since Baxter Stockman's Flyborg assault on the church in issue 47. As Donnie tries to cross the ladder, a noisy pigeon stands in the way, which Donnie scares away with by flailing his .

The pigeon returns to a rooftop birdcage being attended to by the mutant pigeon Pete of the Mutanimals. Pete can understand the language of ordinary pigeons, and learns about the Christmas party being scheduled at Mikey's house. Pete immediately flies off to inform the rest of the Mutanimals.

Elsewhere in a building's loft, Harold Lillja is shown to be living with his formerly-estranged wife Libby Meitner who is now confined to a wheelchair. Harold has received Donatello's email invitation to the party, but has recently cut all ties with the turtles and has decided to completely ignore the invitation. Libby isn't as cynical as Harold on this matter, and a peck on the cheek reveals how much their relationship has improved.

Back in the church, Leo has finished cleaning up the living room as Mikey brings out a big punch bowl of eggnog. Woody Dirkins arrives with several pizzas in tow to complement the party snacks already set out. Raph and Pepperoni return accompanied with April O'Neil and Angel Bridge. Woody is immediately enamored with Angel. As Leo is overwhelmed gathering people's coats, Mikey introduces Woody to Angel, the two having never met before. Woody makes some flirty chatter with Angel, much to her disgust. Woody asks Mikey if there's a mistletoe around, but Mikey informs him that Angel is even tougher than Raph, but Woody is confident that it will take a lot to scare him. That very moment, Slash walks in, apologizing for coming uninvited. Woody begins to panic, since the last time he saw Slash, the turtle was a violent monster of low intelligence who almost killed him. But that Slash is now just an old memory, as this Slash is as articulate as he is affectionate, presenting Mikey with a festive gift bundle of assorted candy bars. Mikey immediately wraps his arms around Slash, the two not having seen each other since issue 54. April melts at the sight of how cute Mikey and Slash are together. Mikey tries to reassure Woody that Slash won't hurt him anymore, except by giving him cavities. Slash apologizes to Woody for their previous encounter and shakes his hand. Woody, though still obviously panicking, accepts Slash's gesture. Mikey asks where Slash has been; Slash has been exploring the city. Mikey finally welcomes Slash to the party, and Slash comments how it's good to see him and the other Mutanimals after so long. Leo is immediately suspicious about this, and his suspicions are confirmed that very moment as Pete has just arrived unannounced with Herman, Sally Pride, Lindsey Baker, Man Ray, Mondo Gecko and Seymour Gutz in tow, all uninvited but in the holiday spirit. (Old Hob and Hun are not present.) Sally explains that they arrived through the basement entrance, as it was the only way to fit Herman into the compound. Leo and Raph want to know how the Mutanimals even heard about this party. Ray, who is already helping himself to the eggnog, mentions the eavesdropping pigeon, who Pete identifies as his cousin Jimmy. Pete announces he has brought worm goulash and a karaoke machine. Mikey takes the goulash off Pete's hands, setting it far off to the side. Pete introduces himself to Woody, who finds Pete even scarier than Slash. Casey arrives with some bags of cool ranch chips, immediately startled by the sight of a party that is turning out to be much bigger than what he had discussed with Raph earlier.

A montage of random party moments follows. Ray declares the eggnog needs more "nog," and Herman obliges by spiking the eggnog bowl with a flask of hard liquor. Raph panics at the sight of Pepperoni eating all the pepperoni pizza. Lindsey has heard that April has started working with Stockman again—she is. Woody is still trying to find a way to get together with Angel. Pete's goulash has gone missing, much to his concern. Angel wonders when to expect Kitsune or Hun to suddenly drop in. Mondo is staring at the Christmas tree, revealing that a sugar buzz has left him completely stoned. As Herman becomes more inebriated, he makes a low-brow joke about "contracting crabs." April and Casey, who had previously broken up in issue 55, are shown getting noticeably more friendly on the couch. Pete is singing "The Twelve Days of Christmas" on karaoke, much to Sally and Mikey's annoyance. Casey gives April a refurbished tape recorder to help her with her research. Woody points out the mistletoe to Angel and tries to kiss her, but Angel splashes her eggnog in Woody's face. Seymour asks Leo where the fourth brother is, as Donnie has not yet shown his face at the party. But Donnie walks in carrying jumper cables, asking everyone to come outside.

It is nighttime, and all the party goers are gathered out in front of the church, now thoroughly covered with Christmas lights still turned off. Donnie, remarking that Harold will be sorry he didn't see this, attaches two jumper cables to a device, immediately lighting up the entire church's exterior in a very indiscreet display for all of Manhattan to see. Soon it becomes impossible to ignore as all the city blocks surrounding the church experience a blackout even as the church's lights still shine bright.

Elsewhere, Agent Bishop and his subordinates were close to triangulating the mutants' location, but they observed a massive electrical anomaly before the trail went cold—half the city is having a power failure.

Outside the church, the party guests are gazing at the beautiful church lights as Raph teases Donnie about the unforeseen side effects. Pete realizes that, in spite of the blackout, his karaoke machine is battery-operated, and soon starts singing "When The Lights Go Down". Slash happily delights in Pete's singing even as April, Casey and Lindsey desperately cover their ears. Mikey apologizes for party's unplanned complications, but Leo declares it the best Christmas party ever.

In the epilogue, late at night, the living room is still a mess from the party, but the four brothers are asleep each in their own bedroom, Pepperoni asleep in a smaller bed next to Raphael's. In Mikey's room, Mikey has left out a plate of cookies and a glass of milk—traditional cookies and milk for Santa Claus. An unseen figure takes one of the cookies and drinks half the milk, leaving behind a wrapped gift. Mikey awakens to find and open the gift—a new pair of nunchucks. Outside the still-brightly-lit church, Splinter walks off with the cookie.

Gallery

Trivia

  • In the IDW Chronology, this story and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Universe issue 5 take place on the same day, but Universe issue 5 explains the whereabouts of Old Hob, Hun and Leatherhead.
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