Be it similar hilarious anthropomorphic characters or iconic heroes from other universes, chances are that the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are acquainted with them in some medium. No matter the IP, crossovers are always fun to see, whether in comics, video games, film, or even action figures, with these turtles experiencing all of the above.
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Though they may be called teenagers, they’ve been around a long time and had plenty of opportunities across their licensing to interact with characters from other popular series, and these are their best ones so far.
10 Sonic
TMNT had a brief run-in with Sonic the Hedgehog (in the sewers no less), during the tenth issue of Sonic’s Archie Comics series. In the ’90s, both TMNT and Sonic were published under Archie Comics, so the crossover between the iconic anthropomorphic blue hedgehog and the green turtles was bound to occur.
It was more of a cameo moment than a full-on team-up, but really cool to see nonetheless. It’s a funny panel of Sonic being Sonic and zooming fast in his usual movement to find a way out of the sewer, while the turtles are walking right across from the hedgehog and commenting that they may be in the wrong sewer or even the wrong comic!
9 Garfield
In a 1992 publication of the official TMNT Magazine, the talking mutated turtles meet the talking cat Garfield and his dog sidekick Odie. It’s quite a short encounter, with Garfield attempting to be sneaky and pose as a turtle cleverly named “Garfello” in a ploy to steal some of the group’s pizza.
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Garfield volunteers to guard their pizza while they’re away on TMNT business, not even hiding the pizza cutter he brought, but then the four see Odie with a shell over the dog’s face and immediately kick them out. Classic Garfield.
8 Riverdale
Speaking of Archie comics, the teenage turtles also got to interact with some of the teenagers over at Riverdale High in the crossover comic ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Meet Archie’. It’s finally nice to see these guys meeting people their age, and living it up with a pizza party at Pop’s Chock’lit Shoppe rather than fighting their usual suspects (although after rescuing Veronica).
Given how camp and supernatural the world of Archie comics and the town of Riverdale gets, the way the turtles make an entrance by Cudley the Cowlick dropping them off between dimensions seems perfectly normal and has Archie and Betty believing aliens arrived. It’s too bad Riverdale wasn’t on Paramount+ or Nickelodeon because this crossover would’ve been a sight in live-action.
7 Street Fighter 6
TMNT are no strangers to having their own video games in addition to the animated and live-action movies and TV shows, but they’re now also available in the world of Street Fighter 6. Your avatar in World Tour mode can either be something of your personal touch and customization, or you can become Raphael, Leonardo, Donatello, or Michelangelo, which does cost some currency to unlock.
The crossover with the Street Fighter universe continues outside the game as well. In early June 2023, around the time of Street Fighter 6’s launch, a new crossover comic book series from IDW Publishing called Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles vs. Street Fighter brought the two properties together in the comics world.
6 Usagi Yojimbo
The Usagi Yojimbo crossover began in the original 1987 animated series and comic books but is now happening in the video game realm, with the Shredder’s Revenge Dimension Shellshock DLC making the samurai bunny a playable character in the TMNT beat ’em up. Created by Stan Sakai, Miyamoto Usagi is a ronin katana-wielding rabbit wearing a blue robe whose ears are bound in a samurai topknot.
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This collaboration between Usagi and the turtles makes perfect sense as they’re both anthropomorphic martial artists, especially since the brothers also had The Last Ronin storyline. Usagi returned in a new five-part comic series titled Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles/Usagi Yojimbo: WhereWhen, and his character was also featured in the 2012 animated series.
5 Cobra Kai
No, the turtles didn’t appear in liv action on Netflix’s Karate Kid sequel Cobra Kai, but there was an action figure crossover set between the two properties. Therefore, if you want to see the turtles choreograph some fight sequences with the characters in Cobra Kai, you can make it happen yourself.
There’s a set with Leonardo and Miguel Diaz, Michelangelo paired with Ralph Maccio’s Daniel LaRusso, Donatello with Johnny Lawrence, and Raphael versus John Kreese. It’s a collector’s dream to see these iconic martial artist characters together as action figures.
4 Ghostbusters
There’s always something strange in their neighborhoods of New York, so it’s only a matter of time before the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles meet the Ghostbusters team in yet another comic book outing. The turtles are used to their world’s sci-fi creatures, but now they’re in for a tale of the paranormal and use their traditional martial arts weapons alongside proton packs.
This crossover happened across four issues, with the standard explanation that the turtles transported themselves to an alternate dimension. Ghostbusters is also an iconic ’80s series with lots of video games, and seeing the dynamic ghost-hunting heroes Ray, Winston, Peter, and Egon partnering with the turtles feels like a childhood dream come true.
3 Batman
An even bigger crossover event than Ghostbusters for the ninja turtles was them teaming up with none other than DC’s Batman in Gotham City. In addition to the six-part comic book crossover, TMNT and Batman have the animated movie Batman vs. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, starring Troy Baker as Batman and Joker and Darren Criss as Raphael.
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The sewers are a prominent location in Batman lore since Killer Croc lives down in them, and the turtles have their run-in with the Batman villain in the comic. The film adapts the epic storyline from the first comic book issue with the turtles becoming their own Gotham Knights and joining Batman, Batgirl, and Robin to stop Ra’s al Ghul allied with Shredder.
2 Injustice 2
Another DC crossover for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was in Injustice 2 as DLC fighters, and you could play as either Raph, Leo, Don, or Mikey and face off against the entire roster of DC characters. It’s quite the treat to actually be able to use the turtles’ weapons in-game and see them beat up foes like Flash and Superman and deliver some of their signature humor.
The animations are crisp, and the details on the turtles, from their character models to the skateboard Michelangelo gets as a weapon, are spot-on. Even the pizza makes it into the game, with the turtles enjoying a slice after winning a battle before throwing the rest of the box at the camera.
1 Power Rangers
There’s nothing like seeing two childhood favorites coming together on the television screen. In 1998, the television series Ninja Turtles: The Next Mutation crossed over with Power Rangers in Space in the episodes ‘Save Our Ship’ and ‘Shell Shocked.’ And there was a new female turtle member with a light blue mask named Venus de Milo featured in The Next Mutation.
The turtles trick the Rangers first into thinking they’re on their side when they’re really helping Astronema, as they’re under her control, but then break free of her hold and team up with Saban’s heroes to take her down. In the 2020s, these teams crossed over once more in several comic book issues.
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Did you know the turtles partied with Archie’s pals at Riverdale? And that’s just one of the best TMNT crossovers! Read More