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Some TMNT stuff really isn't for little kids. |
Snake, Rattle & Roll is an issue of The Mighty Mutanimals, published in June 1992.
Appearing in Snake, Rattle & Roll[]
Major characters[]
- Dreadmon
- [[Jack Finney}} / Man Ray
- Jagwar
- Jess Harley / Leatherhead
- Juntarra
- Mondo Gecko
- Screwloose
- Snake-Eyes
- Wingnut
Minor characters[]
Locations[]
- Desert
- South American rainforest
- Huanu (flashback scenes)
- Garden of Eden (flashback scenes)
Synopsis[]
The Mutanimals follow a trail of rattlesnake bone talismans through the South American rainforest. They are on the Path of the Serpent as they search for Jagwar’s mother, Juntarra. Screwloose and Wingnut have joined the other Mutanimals, and because neither were there when the group shared the vision that set them on this path, Mondo Gecko explains that it’s a long story. He tells the pair that they should socialize more and then they’d know what is going on. Screwloose snaps back that they are not much on church, so Mondo can save the sermon.
Mondo apologizes and then goes on to give them what he calls the fast-food version of Juntarra’s story. She is a remarkable woman, but one who didn’t want to go the good wife route. She wanted to become a person of knowledge, something normally reserved for men. Juntarra set out upon the Path of the Four Winds, going South to the Serpent first, then West to the Jaguar, where she had Jagwar. Eventually she continued her journey, going North to the Dragon and then while heading East to the Eagle, she fought and was captured by a skeleton dude.
Mondo ends the story by saying now they are going to save her. Jagwar then explains that to find her, they must set out upon the Path of the Four Winds as well. The group passes close to a construction site full of workers and bulldozers, and Jagwar says they will leave behind the world of man and journey deep into the heart of the rainforest. The trek takes them through deep grasses, into the water, across a waterfall, and then into the heavy underbrush of the rainforest.
Finally they arrive at a large cave entrance in a mountainside. It is the entrance to the First Path, the First Wind…South…home to the Serpent. Through there they might each shed their past like a snake its skin. Wingnut exclaims that he likes his past and Screwloose recommends they fly up and over instead. Mondo is not happy with the pair, saying they were all supposed to stick together. Jagwar tells him that they will return because there is but one way to the Serpent’s path. He does not see the eyes staring at him from the darkness, but the others do and draw his attention to the humongous snake just as it bursts out of the cave entrance. Jagwar thinks it must be the serpent that is here to test them, but instead it attacks. The Mutanimals fight together as a team, and as the snake is about to bite into Mondo, Wingnut comes flying back and punches the serpent in the head. The serpent responds by wrapping its coils around Wingnut, which destroys his prosthetic wings.
Mondo and Screwloose help Wingnut away from the fight as Jagwar leaps on the serpent’s head and begins scratching at its eyes. Leatherhead and Man Ray use their strength to tie the serpent into a knot. The Mutanimals then flee into the cave and when the serpent tries to follow, the knot prevents it from making it through the opening.
As they are running through the cave, Jagwar wonders how his mother made it past the snake and Man Ray asks if they completed the first path. His answer is waiting at the other end of the cave, where they encounter another snake, this time a large red one wearing sunglasses and a vest. The anthropomorphic serpent welcomes them to the first path and introduces himself as Snake-Eyes. He also tells them that soon they will know why, but first he wants them to tell him what it is they seek.
Jagwar answers for the group, saying they seek to gain the knowledge of the Four Winds and that such knowledge will lead them to Juntarra, his mother. Snake-Eyes remembers her and says that she shed her past with ease. He wants to know if any of them can do the same. Screwloose answers that is no problem and Mondo tells him to lay it on them. Snake-Eyes says he shall as he removes his sunglasses, adding that first they learn why he’s called Snake-Eyes.
His gaze is hypnotic and quickly freezes the Mutanimals. Snake-Eyes debates on who should be first and decides on Wingnut. He senses that there is something weighing on him and wants to know why. Wingnut regresses to his past, when he was just a lad with small and crippled wings and he couldn’t fly the way everyone else could. He is befriended by Screwloose, who is also small and unable to fly. Screwloose comes up with the idea of pooling their allowances and buying Wingnut some artificial wings.
Snake-Eyes wonders if that’s all there is, or if there is more besides crippled wings that weighs them down. It is then revealed that Wingnut’s next memory is of tragedy as his home world is invaded and his parents killed right in front of him. Screwloose becomes enraged that Snake-Eyes forces Wingnut to relive those awful memories. Snake-Eyes explains that the past makes us what we are today, that it forms us, but also holds us back. He says one must shed the past to be free, and then says it is Screwloose’s turn.
Screwloose has other ideas. He zooms at Snake-Eyes and jams his proboscis into the snake’s neck. Since he can’t see Screwloose’s eyes, he demands that the little guy look at him. Instead, Screwloose shoves Snake-Eyes’ head, forcing him to look into a nearby pool of water. Snake-Eyes hypnotizes himself and the other Mutanimals snap out of their spell. Screwloose explains what happened and says that since there’s no telling how long the spell will last, they should get out of there. Wingnut wonders what past Snake-Eyes is reliving. It is a moment from his past when he tricked Eve into eating an apple from the Tree of Knowledge.
Later… The Mutanimals relax around a campfire and are glad they made it through the first path. Dreadmon asks Wingnut how he’s feeling. The answer is that he feels relieved – relieved and relaxed. Jagwar says it is because he has succeeded in shedding the weight of his past. Screwloose smacks himself in the head for jumping the gun with Snake-Eyes before he had a chance to help all of them. He apologizes, but Dreadmon tells him he has nothing to be sorry for because Screwloose did what he thought was the right thing. Jagwar stands a little ways from the group, looking into the sky and thinking of his mother.
Meanwhile, the Eagle follows Death as it rides the horse Beelzy through the desert, with the still unconscious Juntarra across the horse’s shoulders. The Eagle calls out loudly as Death rides straight towards the open mouth of a gigantic skull.