Jeff Cannata

While three of the fiercest warriors in human history—a Viking raider, a ninja in feudal Japan, and a WWII pilot—are killers in their own right, they are merely prey for their new opponent: the ultimate killer of killers.

In the spring of 1984, a strange new comic book sat beside cash registers in select shops, too big to fit in the racks, and too weird to ignore. Eastman and Laird's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles presented a completely original breed of super hero. It was too bizarre, too crazy. It broke all the rules and should never have worked. Until it sold out. Again and again and again. For 30 years. Now, peek under the shell and see how this so-called "happy accident" defied every naysayer to become one of the most popular and beloved franchises in the world.