I finally finished the season as well. Watched the Monster arc on Halloween night. It was fun, but felt a tad overlong. Like many have noted, it might have been more enjoyable to a degree if the horror homages hadn't been so rampant throughout the entire series (and for the record, I'm not complaining about those whatsoever - I actually enjoyed the great majority of them myself, but I love horror big time so yeah, lol). This just felt kind of "been there, done that" in a way. It wasn't BAD, but it was not a high watermark for the final season IMO. And I'm glad I wasn't the only one who was like WTF at Dracula running around in sunlight at the very end lol.
The "Wanted: Bebop and Rocksteady" 3-parter was fun, but again, I think it suffers from feeling like something we've already seen before in the prior 2012 crossover and even in "Turtles Forever." I disagree with many complaining about the treatment of the OT Turtles in this though - I thought it might've been their best shake yet in this sort of venue. At least this time they were shown how to fight more effectively and they kind of stepped up to being better than they were initially portrayed as being in this universe. Shredder and Krang were fun at first but kind of annoying after 2 episodes. The whole "constant berating thing" just becomes less amusing when it's so forced as a gag lol. Still, a fun watch overall. It was cool seeing everyone in this too, from Casey and April, to most of the Mutianimals as well. I can see how many would prefer this to be the end of the series because of that. It felt like a proper goodbye to several other characters.
Which leads me to "Raphael: Mutant Apocalypse" and man... I gotta eat some crow here lol. I DREADED watching this after reading the spoilers and the divisive opinions on it for nearly 2 months. But yesterday, I took the plunge. All I can say is WOW. This thing really is INCREDIBLE. Intense, amazing action and pacing, and honestly... I think it's by far one of the finest things the team produced for this series and that's really saying something. The scope and feeling of this was IMMENSE. Yes, it was sad and bittersweet in all the ways that have been mentioned, but I think it maintains the wit, fun and infectious energy the 2012 series carried so well overall for 5 years. I was more surprised than anyone that I enjoyed this as much as I did. I expected to dislike it just because the impressions I got outside looking in put a bad taste in my mouth. It feels very good to be proven wrong in this case. This was an absolute masterpiece IMO. The only flaw I might agree with is the somewhat rushed resolution with Leo at the end, but it was still hard-hitting stuff (I CRIED at the "I love you" moment - I mean it SLAYED me). Beautiful final moments too. If you were initially like me and hesitant to watch and accept this as the real, true "ending," then give it a shot - you may be surprised by how much you actually accept it and love the hell out of it.
That said, it sucks it's all over now, but damn, what a ride. Definitely my fave TMNT series to date and will likely remain so until I'm not breathing. Love you TMNT 2012. You will be sorely and truly missed.
And yes, my vote is the Ice Cream Kitty music video is their joyous afterlife lol.
