Jennika

Jennika
Textless cover variant of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Jennika #1. Art by Brahm Revel.
Publication information
PublisherIDW Publishing
First appearanceTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #51 (2015)
Created by
In-story information
SpeciesHuman turned mutant turtle
Team affiliations
Partnerships
Abilities
  • Versed in ninjutsu, stealth, espionage and various hand-to-hand and ranged combat disciplines
  • Superhuman agility, speed, and strength

Jennika, also known as Jenn or Jenny, is a superheroine appearing in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comics published by IDW Publishing. She was introduced in issue #51 of the first IDW Publishing comic book series in 2015, and was developed by Tom Waltz and franchise co-creator Kevin Eastman.[1] She was designed by series artist and writer Sophie Campbell.[2][3] Jennika is the second female mutant turtle character in the franchise's history, after Venus[4][5] and preceding Lita[6] the year after her mutant form first appeared.

Jennika is depicted as a human assassin for the Foot Clan, though she eventually allies herself with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. After being severely wounded by Karai, Jennika is transformed into a mutant turtle when Donatello uses Leonardo's blood to give her an emergency blood transfusion.[7] As a mutant turtle, she wears a yellow mask and wields tekkō-kagi.[8][9]

Starting from issue #117, Jennika was revealed to be bisexual, forming a new romantic relationship with one of the mutants of Mutant Town, the pig mutant Sheena, due to their shared love of music.[10][11]

In addition to the mainline Turtles comic book series by IDW, Jennika has also been the lead in the three-issue miniseries Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Jennika in 2019, which was followed by the six-issue sequel miniseries Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Jennika II in 2020.

  1. ^ Hayner, Chris E. (July 24, 2019). "Ninja Turtles Co-Creator Talks Adding Jennika To The Mix, Rise Of The TMNT, And More". GameSpot. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
  2. ^ Yehl, Joshua (July 15, 2019). "New Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle's Mask Color and Weapons Revealed". IGN. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
  3. ^ Arrant, Chris (October 29, 2019). "Longtime Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles fan Sophie Campbell leads the five into a dynamic new era". GamesRadar+. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
  4. ^ Twining, Stephen (March 1, 2020). "TMNT: Meet The New Female, Punk-Rock Loving Turtle". Screen Rant. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
  5. ^ Marston, George (February 24, 2022). "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles brings back Venus De Milo, the original female Turtle". GamesRadar+. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
  6. ^ Sophie Campbell (w). "", no. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 101 (January 8, 2020). IDW Publishing.
  7. ^ McGuire, Liam (September 11, 2020). "The Fifth Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Was Originally a Human Being". Screen Rant. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
  8. ^ Morris, Bryce (November 14, 2020). "TMNT: The Fifth Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Explained". Screen Rant. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
  9. ^ Rowe, Brendan (May 22, 2021). "TMNT: Who Is Jennika, the First Female Ninja Turtle?". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
  10. ^ Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #117 (June 9, 2021)
  11. ^ Blattberg, Eric (September 26, 2023). "13 Things You Need To Know About The 5th Ninja Turtle, Jennika". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved October 20, 2023.