Turtle Power! How many of you remember the TMNT fondly from your youth? I know I do. I personally grew up with the 2003 series and it still holds a special place in my heart. But I’ve grown to love other versions of the Turtles over the years as well. Long time readers will know this isn’t the first time the Turtles made headlines on GF. My colleague reviewed Shredder’s Revenge a little over a year ago. So when I heard they would be coming to one of my favorite card games, you can bet your kunai I was excited and honestly? They’re pretty fun to play with.
Although the TMNT ninja’d their way into the Lorwyn Eclipsed prerelease a month ago, this week marks their proper debut in the MtG scene. The set doesn’t prominently feature or focus on any one version of the Turtles but instead features characters and moments from across turtle history in general. In addition to the TMNT and Master Splinter we all know and love, other familiar faces in this set include April O’Neill, Casey Jones, and even characters you might not be familiar with - like Jennika and The Neutrinos. 
Of course also present are classic Turtles villains. Shredder, Krang, Rocksteady, Bebop, Baxter Stockman, the Triceratons and even Savanti Romero. There’s a lot of familiar faces and a lot of danger around every corner in this set.
The main mechanic of the TMNT set is the new keyword “Sneak”. A variant of "Ninjutsu" from the Kamigawa sets, “Sneak” lets players get a sneaky card in by returning an attacking and unblocked creature to the hand. A lot of cards with this effect either sneak in for a reduced cost compared to being cast normally or have additional effects that trigger upon using sneak. “Sneak” works well with the other new keyword “Disappear”. “Disappear” signifies effects that trigger if a permanent left the battlefield that turn. Sneak a card in, then get a bonus for doing so. Definitely ninja time! Also present is “Alliance” returning from Streets of New Capenna. "Alliance" effects trigger upon a creature entering the battlefield under your control, representing the turtles and their allies.
Speaking of, each turtle shows up in different rarities and they have different effects which suit the particular turtle. Leonardo cards for example, value teamwork and have effects that buff them or their allies(Leader in Blue has a "Sneak" effect that provides a nice boost to your creatures if you can get it off). Donatello, being the smart turtle, focuses on artifact synergies with his cards(Gadget Master for example, creates copies of artifacts). Raphael is the aggressive turtle, and his cards show it! Raph cards are focused on being offensive and keeping pressure(Raphael, the Nightwatcher gives attacking creatures double strike!). Finally, Michelangelo likes to buff himself and teammates, and so his cards focus on +1/+1 counters and synergies(Mutant BFF makes it so creatures with counters can’t be blocked by more than one creature at a time).
I love how the Turtles are represented here and I love playing around with them to see what combos and shenanigans I can get up to with them. It’s Turtle Power at its best. To top it all off, the preconstructed Turtle Power! Commander deck is flavored like one of the video games. The main turtles - Leonard the Balance, Donatello the Brains, Raphael the Muscle and Michelangelo the Heart all have “Partner - Character Select” allowing the player to choose their characters(although the deck itself requires one of them to be Leo for the sake of color identity). With cards like Game Over, Continue?, High Score and Double Jump//Flying Kick, the deck is oozing(get it?) with the flavor of those old beat em ups.
The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles set for Magic: The Gathering is out now! Play it at your local card store or on MTG Arena and show the world some turtle power! What are your thoughts on the TMNT set? Good cards or was it a bust for you? Let us know and we’ll see ya next time Magic features furry, or shelly, friends!
