Donatello and Raphael have an early exchange that sums up the whole Rocksteady/Bebop relationship. Essentially, they agree that at the core of these hateful monstrosities, there's a genuinely touching pairing. I'm not into shipping, so I don't think there's any romantic subtext to be built upon. No, Bebop and Rocksteady have the same kind of love shared among the TMNT quartet. It's a rarely explored aspect of villainous groups. They are people, after all. Kind of. So why shouldn't they -- even in the midst of a caper -- be motivated by their emotional entanglements? The pull of fidelity that keeps tethering these two together seems to be woven into the fabric of time. That they are separated across time and physical space, only to be reunited, speaks volumes about their need for one another. This issue continues to shove a lot of explanation through the narrow aperture of the script's actual capacity to give a damn about causality. Characters frantically shout warnings and concerns regarding the damage being done to time while Renet and the turtles keep seemingly making the dire situation worse. Our title characters don't get a lot of on-panel time in this issue. Their roles are as props to be moved about by the typically front-and-center turtles. Their dialog isn’t especially insightful this time around, so I understand why the script is better served by focusing on the turtles and Renet.

There's a pleasant sense of closure that doesn't negate the possibility of future consequence and adventure. This mini succeeds as a mini because it pulls elements of the past into a complete story that looks to the future. I don't expect this to be a crucial read for fans obsessed with canon. But as a supplement to the turtle-focused adventures you're most accustomed to, Destroy Everything gets the job done. It’s funny and surprisingly touching when you consider it’s about a pair of dangerous, time-displaced lunatic freaks.

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TMNT: Rocksteady & Bebop Destroy Everything #5 Writer: Ben Bates, Dustin Weaver Artist: Ryan Browne, Sophie Campbell, Dustin Weaver, Ben Bates Colorist: Bill Crabtree Publisher: IDW Publishing Price: $3.99 Format: Mini-Series; Print/Digital

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