I really don't think The Last Ronin benefits from all these prequel stories, and I think the writers and editors know that too, which is why the book bounces back and forth from prequel to sequel with four new turtles.

Mikey's journey through Asia gets repetitive very quickly, with each stop having him meet a new friend, learn from them, and then said friend being brutally murdered to fuel Mikey's PTSD. It feels excessive and doesn't add anything interesting to Mikey's psychology or journey through the "Ronin-verse".

The stories with the O'Neil family and their new turtles do some interesting world building by fleshing out what happened to other well-known factions from TMNT history, but the turtles' constant bickering didn't endear me to this new generation of turtles at all. I think the writers just don't know how to write children in a way that's not annoying, because they're written much more mature towards the end of the book and are far more tolerable. I think if you're interested in these new turtles, you can still skip this story and be perfectly fine going into Re-Evolution. Collectors will love the hardcover since it's really nice quality, but if you're here for a good story, skip this and wait for Re-Evolution to come out.