|
Some TMNT stuff really isn't for little kids. |
Full Circle is a story in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures Special issue 9, published in the summer of 1994 by Archie Comics.
Appearing in Full Circle[]
Major Characters[]
Minor Characters[]
- Barbarians
- Mystics
- Witch
Locations[]
- Glum
- Turtles' Lair
Storyline[]
In the lair, Michaelangelo and Raphael argue over which TV show to watch. Donatello says that he’d like to hook up the trigonometry video game he developed, and Leonardo, who is lying on the couch, tells them to keep it down as he’s trying to sleep. Master Splinter holds his head and privately laments teenagers.
Mike and Raph start fighting over the remote, which results in the TV being broken. Leo is pleased because now he’s sure he can rest, but Don immediately breaks out his tools and gets to work on repairs. However, Leo sneaks up and grabs Don’s toolbox and runs off with it, telling his genius brother to catch him if he can. Don gives chase, threatening Leo, who simply taunts him in return.
Splinter decides things are getting really bad if Leonardo’s is getting out of hand, but rather than scold them, he tells all four to carry on. To himself he thinks that boys will be boys and teenagers will be teenagers. He sets off to find a quiet spot to meditate, pondering how to overcome his sons’ perceptions of each other. To progress in the art of ninja, he tells himself, one must concentrate both on inner strength as well as the attributes of your comrades.
Settling in to meditate on a secluded river bank, Splinter is interrupted by the appearance of Cudley the Cowlick. He has been observing Splinter and has noticed that he’s troubled. Cudley wants to know if there is anything he can do. Having a sympathetic ear on hand, Splinter lays out his worries about his children.
Cudley interrupts by shouting “Headrush”. He tells Splinter that Headrush is the perfect solution and proceeds to tell a story about a band of brutish barbarians who invaded the region of Glum. The barbarians were rugged, earthly and vulgar. On the other hand, the natives of Glum were not earthly, instead they consisted exclusively of mystics, witches, and magical beings.
As a result, the barbarians banished the conjurers from their homeland. One witch decided to give the barbarians a piece of her mind by leaving behind Headrush, the mischievous mole. She gave Headrush the power to play with beings’ minds. Headrush can convince someone of things that aren’t so, make them say or do things they normally wouldn’t, and he can also telekinetically manipulate inanimate objects.
The barbarians want to annihilate Headrush, but his powers of imperception made it impossible for them to get a hold of him. Cudley then proclaims that only he has power over Headrush. Since Cudley has the ability to manipulate time, space and dimensions, he could conceivably transport the barbarians back to the moment before Headrush was enchanted. If the barbarians were to witness the enchantment, the spell would be broken and Headrush would be rendered powerless.
Headrush has sworn allegiance to Cudley, because he is the only being who could expose him. Splinter is convinced that Headrush would make a powerful ally, and even before he can ask Cudley to summon him, Cudley spits Headrush out onto the sand.
Right away Headrush is ready to start his mission, but Splinter tells him they must have a plan. Soon Splinter is back at the lair. The turtles are still arguing – Leo says that Stallone is the toughest, while Mike argues that it’s Van Damme. Raph says nobody kicks butt like Stephen Seagal, and Don claims that Schwarzenegger can lick ‘em all. The four turtles start brawling. Splinter watches for a moment and then finally yells at them to “Stop it this instant!”.
Splinter scolds them, telling them he is ashamed of them and that he is going to have to send them on a retreat. He tells them they must take a long walk through the sewers, to follow the tunnels through, and not to return until they have come full circle.
As they walk, the four turtles try to figure out what Splinter is trying to prove by sending them on this walk. Leo says he’s sure Splinter wants them to clear their heads, and Don wants to know of what. Suddenly Headrush appears in front of them and tells them to try nasal spray, since that always clears his head. Then he disappears and reappears behind them, telling them they should always watch their backs.
He then introduces himself as Phineas T. Headrush, and that they can call him H.R. for short. When Don expresses doubt over his claim of enhanced speed, Headrush admits that he might know a few tricks… a few thousand to be exact. Annoyed, the turtles walk away, telling Headrush to move on. Headrush tells them not to worry, they won’t see him again – and then thinks to himself “at least not until the time is right”.
Continuing on their way, the turtles soon find that the tunnels are getting dark, so dark that they can’t see where they’re going. Leo tells them they have to choice but to keep going and that they get around on sheer turtle instinct, at which time they step off onto a steep incline and proceed to slide down.
The turtles land on a conveyor belt that leads to a pair of giant, crushing gears. They all turn to run away from the gears, but the belt is moving too fast. Raph says that since Don is mechanically inclined, he should know what to do, but an invisible Headrush zaps him and Don admits he doesn’t know what to do.
Since Don is dazed and confused, Raph throws one of his sai into the gears and jams them, much to his brother’s relief. When they check on Don, he says he’s recovered now, though he doesn’t know what came over him. Disgruntled, Raph says they need to keep going because he doesn’t want to spend the day walking through the sewers.
He takes a few steps and then suddenly the floor around him is in flames. His brothers shout for him to jump over the flames, but Raph is frozen in place and unable to move. Mike quickly pulls out his nunchaku and spins them to extinguish the fire. When Leo tries to ask Raph if he’s okay, Raph snaps at him, which causes Leo to snap back. Mike interrupts to brag about his big save, and says he sure could go for a …
Suddenly a giant pizza appears behind him. It has hands, eyes – and a mouthful of teeth. As it looms over Mike, Raph shouts out that he’s the pizza freak and asks what he’s going to do. Mike is in a daze however, and Leo recognizes the yellow glow around his head as being familiar. He says that if he’s right, there’s nothing Mike can do, so Leo pulls his katana and slices the pizza into pieces. As he helps Mike to his feet, the nearby Headrush gloats.
Before they can proceed, they are suddenly attacked by numerous projectiles in the shape of arrows and axes. Leo spots a doorway down a tunnel, but when Raph tells him to lead the way, a yellow light surrounds Leo’s head and he’s too paralyzed with apprehension to move.
Don decides it’s his turn to act and he uses his bō to bat aside the projectiles. When they are dealt with, Leo comes to and guesses that he had a glow around his head which made him as helpless as the others.
The brothers begin to discuss the pattern emerging from their unique battles. Because the experiences were based on each turtles’ individual talent, and said turtle was paralyzed, it forced the others to excel in areas they normally wouldn’t. Raph then realizes they really do need each other – that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
The brothers all apologize for taking each other for granted and the still invisible Headrush is delighted. Leo then leads the way to the glowing door at the end of the tunnel. They stand in front of the door and wonder what’s on the other side, and then enter…
To find themselves back in the lair. They greet Splinter, who notes that they seem to have bonded. They tell him they have, after going through some harrowing experiences. As they start to tell him of their adventures, Raph says not to leave out the odd mole-like creature who appeared out of nowhere. Just as he’s speaking, Headrush appears next to Splinter.
The turtles leap to their feet and draw their weapons, but Splinter steps in front of Headrush and tells them he is a friend. He explains that Headrush is a magical being who came to Splinter’s aid to teach them an object lesson by altering their reality.
After Splinter shares the entire story with his sons, Mike decides that Headrush is kind of charming and that they should take him along next time they are cruising for dudettes. Headrush says they should just call him Rudolph Molentino.
Splinter tells his sons that they should never forget the day’s lesson of honor and respect and that it begins at home, for the closest of brothers make the strongest team of all.
Notes and Trivia[]
- Headrush will return in “Be a Star”.
- During the argument over who is toughest, Schwarzenegger is misspelled "Scwarzenegger" and Steven Seagal is misspelled as "Stephen".