“Life at best is bittersweet,” is a sentiment I certainly felt last month with the release of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Saturday Morning Adventures #41 last month, which would in fact be the final issue in IDW Publishing’s ongoing comic book series set in the beloved world of the classic 1987 cartoon. As much as fans like myself want to mourn the end of a beloved comic book title, it seems more productive to celebrate the phenomenal work of the creators involved. Like any creative work, it’s a team effort but I think much of the book’s success can be attributed to one particular member of rotating artist team, Sarah Myer.
An unabashed TMNT fan since childhood, Myer wears their love of the Heroes in the Half-Shell on their sleeve. So it’s not hyperbole to say that TMNT: SMA was a dream project for the prolific comic creator. During New York Comic Con, I had the wonderful opportunity to sit down with Myer to reflect on their tenure with the Turtles and even discuss their next major project.
The interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Taimur Dar: Two years ago, you were on a TMNT anniversary panel at the New York Public Library and you said something incredibly profound about how your identity and self-worth as a comic creator isn’t tied to the TMNT. I would love to hear how you’ve been able to keep that mind with TMNT: Saturday Morning Adventures coming to an end?
Sarah Myer: That is such a great question. It’s one I think a lot of artists who work on their dream job can relate to. Honestly, I had emotionally prepared myself for Turtles to end at some point. In particular, I knew I would have to with Turtles because a) there’s so many people who work on it and so many iterations and possibilities b) because it’s a dream job and I’m thankful for that opportunity, it almost felt like a dream that was too good to be true. I was worried about that for a few years. I still enjoyed and savored working on it as much as possible. But I did make sure I was mentally healthy and emotionally ready when it did end. I was able to enjoy my time, but I’ve moved on and done a few projects since then and I am working on some other projects now. But I’m always hoping for more Turtles when it happens.
Taimur Dar: How would you say working on TMNT: Saturday Morning Turtles has changed your career or made more people aware of your work?
Sarah Myer: Definitely. There’s been an interesting crossover between people who have been reading the Turtles comics that I illustrated and they’ve been interested in learning more about my graphic memoir work with First Second Books. The graphic novel and First Second Books publisher world is very different from Turtles monthly comics. It’s been awesome to see those two worlds come together in readership. I definitely had some crossover from readers who would say, “Hey, I really loved Saturday Morning Adventures and I checked out Monstrous too. And now I’m going to be reading more First Second books.” That’s been really amazing.
Taimur Dar: You and Dan Schoening rotated the art duties for TMNT: Saturday Morning Adventures. I’m curious if writer Erik Burnham crafted certain stories specifically with you in mind?
Sarah Myer: I’m not really certain if it was written with one of us in mind. I will say that I noticed, to my amusement, I tended to be selected [for] the Mister Ogg [stories]. I don’t know if that was just keeping it consistent because I had drawn more Mister Ogg from his first appearance in the series or because they were like, “Hey! Sarah seems to be the person to go-to for sad, strange little men.” Also Ace Duck was a character that I drew the first appearance in the Saturday Morning Adventures comic. I was very happy I got to draw his reappearance. I can’t say for sure [about art assignments]. Sometimes it was luck of the draw or scheduling. I think Erik had mentioned it wasn’t necessarily something he could or did dictate anything in regards to that.
Taimur Dar: I love the little touches you add to the script. For instance, I saw in the backmatter for the final issue of TMNT: Saturday Morning Adventures that the script called for one panel for Raphael to make a timeout sign with his hands. But you had him do it with his sai. What’s the approach when it comes to not restricting yourself to the script?
Sarah Myer: If I do anything that’s super out there, I would check first. If I add a little embellishment in regards to gesture, I always make sure it will not change the meaning of the intended moment. I just thought it would be a fun touch for Raph to use his sai. Definitely if anything more extreme, I would check with Erik and Nickelodeon and Paramount.
Taimur Dar: Were there any plotlines or ideas for TMNT: Saturday Morning Adventures you and the creative team wish you had a chance to do?
Sarah Myer: Personally? I had been pushing for a long time, casually, that I wanted to draw the “King” storyline in ’87 or find a way for Kirby to make an appearance in Saturday Morning Adventures. It kind of got teased but Dan got to draw that. I’m very happy for Dan but I’m like, “Aw, man!” That was something that I would’ve liked to do more with but I’m happy it made it into issue #41. That’s definitely one thing. I also would have enjoyed seeing a little bit more of an exploration with the multiverse. I’d like to do the Saturday Morning Adventures version of Turtles Forever but with a little bit more respect to the ’87 Turtles in terms of their abilities because it would be hosted in their universe.
Taimur Dar: Finally, with TMNT: Saturday Morning Adventures wrapping up are there any upcoming projects that you’re able to tease?
Sarah Myer: I can’t say too much but you might not have seen the last of me drawing the Turtles character in some iteration. I’m going to be doing a lot of self-published things like some sketchbooks including some Turtles sketchbooks. I’ve got a graphic novel that I’m working on with First Second Books/Macmillan that is a full length 155-page graphic novel young adult adaptation of Hans Christian Andersen’s The Little Mermaid. That is something I’m writing and illustrating. I just gotten the script and thumbnails approved so I’m ready to move onto pencils.
Stay tuned to The Beat for more news from NYCC ’26.
