Average age of a general TMNT fan in 2017?

[Original TMNT Cartoon Fan]

Does anyone have the idea what the average age of a general TMNT fan in 2017 might be? I wouldn't be surprised if it's 30 or something.

[neatoman]

The Fred Wolf cartoon was at it's height of popularity in 1989 and it's target audience were around 5 years old. The Movie made the following year was also a much bigger hit than it's sequels, both of which came out within a 3 year period.

So assuming most fans became fans around 1989-90 and were between 3-7 years old at the time, that would put the avarege fan at 30-35 years old.

Of course, this is assuming the majority of current fans grew up with the FW cartoon at it's height and don't dismiss it as a stupid fad they grew out of. If you were 25 and started reading Mirage when it first came out, you're nearly 60 years old. And let's not forget there's been 3 other shows aimed at kids in the 21 year period since the FW cartoon was cancelled.

Again, I'm a little skeptical to idea that 90% of current fans did grow up ca 1990.

[IndigoErth]

FW may have been goofy, but I'm not sure I'd agree that they were aiming at the kindergarten demographic back then. lol I was 10 in '89, which seemed like the more common age group, give or take a couple/few years. My sister was 4 going on 5 in '89, and while she somewhat liked the Turtles, I think in part because I did, her attention was more on younger shows.

Hard to say what the "average" is now though, it spans so many age groups. You'd literally have to have a poll that the majority of fans out there of all ages respond to.

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

Originally Posted by neatoman

The Fred Wolf cartoon was at it's height of popularity in 1989 and it's target audience were around 5 years old. The Movie made the following year was also a much bigger hit than it's sequels, both of which came out within a 3 year period.

So assuming most fans became fans around 1989-90 and were between 3-7 years old at the time, that would put the avarege fan at 30-35 years old.

Of course, this is assuming the majority of current fans grew up with the FW cartoon at it's height and don't dismiss it as a stupid fad they grew out of. If you were 25 and started reading Mirage when it first came out, you're nearly 60 years old. And let's not forget there's been 3 other shows aimed at kids in the 21 year period since the FW cartoon was cancelled.

Again, I'm a little skeptical to idea that 90% of current fans did grow up ca 1990.

I'd believe upwards of 50%. 90% is way off base, though.

[Panther10]

I'm 33 and right within the butterzone of the target demographic. Too young to read the comics at the time but I was just old enough in the late 80s to watch the original show and enjoy the toys, the movies and everything else that came afterward.

[neatoman]

Originally Posted by CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy

I'd believe upwards of 50%. 90% is way off base, though.

Seems like a decent estimate.

Originally Posted by IndigoErth

FW may have been goofy, but I'm not sure I'd agree that they were aiming at the kindergarten demographic back then. lol I was 10 in '89, which seemed like the more common age group, give or take a couple/few years. My sister was 4 going on 5 in '89, and while she somewhat liked the Turtles, I think in part because I did, her attention was more on younger shows.

Hard to say what the "average" is now though, it spans so many age groups. You'd literally have to have a poll that the majority of fans out there of all ages respond to.

3 is the youngest I could imagine and 7 is the oldest I could imagine. I think saying the actual target was closer to 10 than 5 doesn't seem right. Around 10 seems like an age where the average could still get into the show "unironically", but to me it seems like an age where they would be more interested in something like the Simpsons or Seinfeld.

[sdp]

It's an evergreen property, there are fans of all ages, but if you mean specifically of the fad era TMNT then we're about 30, some of us younger and some of us older. Some like me were babies when the OT started airing and others were already 10 or so, so yeah fad OT fans can be about ten years apart.

[CyberCubed]

It's pretty obvious given what gen of TMNT you grew up with:

-Original cartoon TMNT fans are now in their late 20's or early 30's.

- 2k3 era TMNT fans are in their early/mid 20's.

- Nick era TMNT fans are mostly kids or teens


Of course there's some overlap here and difference, and original Mirage fans have got to be in their 40's or 50's now.

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

Originally Posted by CyberCubed

It's pretty obvious given what gen of TMNT you grew up with:

-Original cartoon TMNT fans are now in their late 20's or early 30's.

- 2k3 era TMNT fans are in their early/mid 20's.

- Nick era TMNT fans are mostly kids or teens


Of course there's some overlap here and difference, and original Mirage fans have got to be in their 40's or 50's now.

Yeah, all five of them.

[TurtleWA]

Just judging by the forums daily birthdays I would say late twenties early thirties but leaning more towards early thirties. Like Cubed said though the average age changes depending on what gen your a fan of. But just lumping all TMNT fans into one average age, hmm not sure.

[Andrew NDB]

What exactly are we talking about? The active TMNT fans that would consider themselves "in the fandom"? i.e., looking to discuss it online, joining clubs, etc.? Late 20s-40s at this point, some smattering of 50s. Some younger riffraff brought in from the 2k3 show that have found enough other TMNT material to keep them afloat in the community. But even all of this together is, really, only a tiny amount of people. Not even 10,000. Probably less everyday.

The actual millions of fans that watch the cartoons and buy the toys (I mean apart from the, y'know, maybe the 150 30 year-old dudes eagerly awaiting the next batch from Playmates, yet perpetually disappointed with the given quality, of course) at any given time before something better comes along? 4 years old to 12, and 12 is pushing it.

[IndigoErth]

Originally Posted by CyberCubed

-Original cartoon TMNT fans are now in their late 20's or early 30's.

I'm 38... was only 8 when the series started. That means late 20s and early 30s were only infants or nonexistent at the time, so...

Granted it played in repeats a long time, but where does it get lost that late 30s plus was the prime viewer at the start.

Originally Posted by neatoman

Around 10 seems like an age where the average could still get into the show "unironically", but
to me it seems like an age where they would be more interested in something like the Simpsons or Seinfeld.

Simpsons maybe, what kid didn't like watching that with family back in the day. Though Seinfeld? Cultural difference maybe... I think your 10-year-olds of the time were already 14 on the inside. Though to be fair, I never liked Seinfeld at any age.

[neatoman]

Originally Posted by Andrew NDB

What exactly are we talking about? The active TMNT fans that would consider themselves "in the fandom"? i.e., looking to discuss it online, joining clubs, etc.? Late 20s-40s at this point, some smattering of 50s. Some younger riffraff brought in from the 2k3 show that have found enough other TMNT material to keep them afloat in the community. But even all of this together is, really, only a tiny amount of people. Not even 10,000. Probably less everyday.

The actual millions of fans that watch the cartoons and buy the toys (I mean apart from the, y'know, maybe the 150 30 year-old dudes eagerly awaiting the next batch from Playmates, yet perpetually disappointed with the given quality, of course) at any given time before something better comes along? 4 years old to 12, and 12 is pushing it.

Well, yeah, that goes without saying. Of course the audience mainly consists of kids at this point. It is the fanbase more active after childhood we're talking about.

[CyberCubed]

The Nick cartoon started in 2012, anyone who was 10 years old in 2012 is now a 15 year old teen. That's why I said even the kids who grew up with the Nick cartoon are now teenagers.

[MrPliggins]

I was about 10 when I first saw tmnt toys in the store and on tv in 1988. Many of my friends watched the show too, so it wasn't just 5-year olds.
But Seinfeld? I didn't get that show when I was 15, let alone 10. I think it's great now, though.
As for today, probably kids 5-12 are the biggest fan base. As a 38 year old, the new stuff barely interests me, so the demographic is probably the biggest fan base.

[Prowler]

I'd say the biggest TMNT fans are adults who grew up during the Fred Wolf Turtlemania fad and never let go of it, like many of us here, so about 25-35, I'd say. Then I suppose come those who got into the Turtles with the 2k3 series and then decided to check the past.

Let's wait until Nickelodeon cartoon fans become adults. As they stop being kids and get into their mid-late teens, most will probably forget about the Turtles for a while. Maybe as adults many of them will revisit the franchise for nostalgia sake.

[mrmaczaps]

I'm 36 now, was a fan of the show but lost interest and didn't really come back to the fandom until about 2009 with my purchase of TMNT v1 #5... Just a hair too young for being an original fan of the Mirage comics but probably a little too old to stay a fan of cartoons and then coming back to it. And I've not seen much of the 2k3 series. Being into comics since 92 brought me to a better enjoyment of the printed material rather than tv shows.

[Tetsu Deinonychus]

Originally Posted by CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy

Yeah, all five of them.

TMNT was already successful comic or it wouldn't have gotten a TV show in the first place! ...but, on the other hand it lost a lot of it's "Indie street-cred" when Indie comics fans decided they "sold out" to cartoons and toys and abandoned it, so if that's what you meant, I guess you got a point.

[Original TMNT Cartoon Fan]

I was 9-10 when watching the original series and reading Archie.

[pferreira]

I'm 34. I was about 7 maybe 8 when the series was shown.

Originally Posted by IndigoErth

FW may have been goofy, but I'm not sure I'd agree that they were aiming at the kindergarten demographic back then. lol I was 10 in '89,

Definitely not! It was aimed at 7-13 year olds.