A TMNT x Stranger Things comic will explore the dynamic between Eleven and Raphael

With IDWs, things get a little weirder on the streets of New York City in July Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles x Stranger Things.

Everyone’s favorite Hawkins sextet – Eleven, Max, Dustin, Mike, Will and Lucas – look forward to a nice summer trip from the suburbs to New York City, according to IDW’s press release, but “a threat both bizarre and familiar.” needs help from Michelangelo, Donatello, Leonardo and Raphael.

In other words, that’s a lot of teenagers. But writer Cameron Chittock (Mapmakers and the Lost Magic) says he has mastered it.

“It’s a big cast, but the mystery in the middle of the story splits the group in two, which gives us a little more room to really dig into the character dynamics,” Chittock tells Polygon by email. “Some of those combinations that I knew I wanted to explore from the start, like Raphael and Eleven. Others surprised me while writing, like Donatello and Max. With the Turtles hosting the Hawkins kids in New York City, the series explores how these two groups of teens have been shaped by where they come from, for better or for worse. It’s hard to imagine anyone more suited to those themes than Will Byers, and his perspective comes to the fore and has fascinating ripple effects on the other characters. Perhaps none more so than Leonardo, and their scenes together later in the series will probably end up being my favourite.”

Art on the series will be provided by TMNT comics veteran Fero, who says the look of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles x Stranger Things was inspired by the same era of TMNT comics the Hawkins kids would have read, back in 1984 when Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird first published their superhero parody comic through their own Mirage Studios.

“I think of the Mirage era very much as an indie comic style,” says Fero, “stark and gritty but with a special energy and attention to detail. There’s a certain influence from Frank Miller from the 300 And Ronin era too. I would like to balance the use of shadows with that classic touch of halftone shadows. I have used them a lot in the running Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series as an homage to the early comics, and I think they now fit perfectly with this story!”

The first issue of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles x Stranger Things will hit comic book stores on July 12. Check out the full cover of the song below: