The following sections of this BookRags Literature Study Guide is offprint from Gale's For Students Series: Presenting Analysis, Context, and Criticism on Commonly Studied Works: Introduction, Author Biography, Plot Summary, Characters, Themes, Style, Historical Context, Critical Overview, Criticism and Critical Essays, Media Adaptations, Topics for Further Study, Compare & Contrast, What Do I Read Next?, For Further Study, and Sources.
(c)1998-2002; (c)2002 by Gale. Gale is an imprint of The Gale Group, Inc., a division of Thomson Learning, Inc. Gale and Design and Thomson Learning are trademarks used herein under license.
The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Encyclopedia of Popular Fiction: "Social Concerns", "Thematic Overview", "Techniques", "Literary Precedents", "Key Questions", "Related Titles", "Adaptations", "Related Web Sites". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Guide to Literature for Young Adults: "About the Author", "Overview", "Setting", "Literary Qualities", "Social Sensitivity", "Topics for Discussion", "Ideas for Reports and Papers". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
All other sections in this Literature Study Guide are owned and copyrighted by BookRags, Inc.
The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon characters—Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello, and Michaelangelo—were one of the greatest cross-media phenomena of the 1980s and early 1990s. The Turtles, ordinary pets mutated into superheroes, began as an underground comic book created by cartoonists Peter Laird and Kevin Eastman in the mid-1980s as a spoof of such comics as the mutant X-Men and the grim, urban Daredevil. An instant smash, the Turtles soon branched out into other media, including films, an animated television series, multiple toy and merchandise tie-ins, even a live-action television program. The success came at the cost of their identity, however, as the original, funky nature of the Turtles comics became more cartoonish and child-friendly to better facilitate their mass acceptance.
"Eastman & Laird & Their Pet Turtles." Comics Sense. July1987, 50-52.
"Lights! Camera! Turtles!" Comics Sense. August 1989, 17-19, 50.