So what did we take away from this series?

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

And now, after pages of actual topical discussion, this thread will burn to the ground in a fury (or is that furry?) of "shipping" arguments.

[plastroncafe]

Hmmm. What did I take away from this series:

- I liked take-charge quasi-proactive Splinter.
Really, the Nick Splinter is my favorite incarnation of Splinter, which pains me because it only just slightly tops the TMNT (2007) version because Mako.

- Angry/Frustrated Donnie is all kinds of awesome.
There's just something about the No Chill Donnie that I find endlessly amusing.

- The Casting of non-voice actors as voice actors, and how I started to re-think my position on it.
Normally I'm not a huge fan of non-voice actors doing cartoons, but Biggs and Astin really hit it out of the park with their Leo and Raph.
That first season is just so good.

[ToTheNines]

Originally Posted by CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy

And now, after pages of actual topical discussion, this thread will burn to the ground in a fury (or is that furry?) of "shipping" arguments.

Spoiler:

[plastroncafe]

Originally Posted by CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy

And now, after pages of actual topical discussion, this thread will burn to the ground in a fury (or is that furry?) of "shipping" arguments.

Scaley. Not furry.
Just...you know, for accuracy's sake.

[Jephael]

Originally Posted by Andrew NDB

Stylistically it is/was... interesting. Like IDW, though, another study in "How can we blend together everything TMNT, ever" and not so much, "I have a really original vision for TMNT."

In a weird way I agree with you, but at the same time coming from a creative perspective, I get how it's hard to come up with a truly original spin on something that's already been revamped about a dozen times. There are only so many different ways to tell a story. IDW did have a pretty interesting take on the Turtles' origin, having them be Hamato Yoshi's reincarnated sons and April's powers in this series are really the only big stand-out thing about the show, but aside from that it's pretty much the same old shtick we've seen in past interpretations.

[Technogeek29]

Originally Posted by ToTheNines

Spoiler:

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com...d15ae13265.jpg

Where did you find that?

[ssjup81]

You know, the crushes don’t bother me much. It’s not overly done and isn’t focused on all that much. Leo’s interactions with Karai are just so darn cute on his part. He’s such a dork. lol I love it, even if I don’t “ship” them.

Now, during the first season, Donnie did bother me slightly, but I never found much of what he did “creepy” given the context and how innocent it all was on his part. I didn’t find the “chart” creepy since the episode was showing how Donnie overthinks, overanalyzes, and plans ahead in a general sense…not just with April. His chart, to me, showed me a character with the mind of a great chess player. He considered all his options to try and find ways to hang with her and to get to know her better, and to me, that’s no different from a girl taking a certain path to her class to bump into her crush to talk. The thing about how he knew she would be in the park that one time also didn’t surprise me since he had a photo of him and April IN the park. Makes sense that he would know if she hangs there or not at a certain time if he’s been there with her.

Hm, you know, it’s also like going to the amusement park for the first time. You don’t know what to try or do first because you’d never been there before. Or maybe it’s like a child who’s been homeschooled all their life and then suddenly forced to attend a public school. Of course that person is going to act awkward due to the fact that the experience is new. This is how I viewed Donnie regarding April.

I think the only way this set up would bother me, is if Donnie had never changed, and still came across as awkward around April. I like their friendship and I like how Donnie matured regarding her. He doesn’t act all goofy over her and won’t drop everything at the drop of a hat if April’s involved. The fact that people are still complaining about traits from season 1 which makes me wonder what show some of these people are watching. They drop a hint every once in a while (sometimes for a comedic effect), but they’re nowhere near as prominent as season 1. I just don’t see how anyone could even put PD Mikey and Nick Donnie on the same level here. PD Mikey was creepy. We knew what he was talking about and reminded me more of Nick Casey than Donnie.

Okay, nothing more I can say about this particular topic.

[Coola Yagami]

Yeah, I'll end the crush part with this post.

IMO Don was creepier to the viewers that were all like 'ewww turtles no like girls' than April herself. She never really seemed all that annoyed and awkward as she is, she does seem the type to stand up to him and tell him to cut it out if she was annoyed.

I consider guys like Urkel and Screech to be creepy since the girls they're after are clearly annoyed and bothered by them and yet they persist. April would still hang out with Donnie which is kinda the opposite of what anyone wouod want to do if they were creeped out by someone.

The biggest deal was the time Don finally let April go and she seemed horrified. I mean, Don wasn't leaving the team nor kicking April off the team nor did he say they couldn't just be friends anymore, nothing would change except he'd stop acting romantic around her and April didn't want that, and then she kissed him.

Casey.... was just a third wheel. If he wasn't so stupid and unlike able, or was just more interested in action than girls like the OT, (and more competent) he woulda been better. Or introduce him in season 1. The writers just wanted a love triangle in a ninja turtles cartoom.... for some reason. Honestly if people weren't all 'turtles and humans, ewww' and Casey wasn't already April's guy in other media, noone would have been pushing this idiot on April.

The final problem is, tmnt just isn't meant to have romance. There really isn't any room for that since it is mostly action and tragedy. Much like DBZ that also didn't have much romance. Sure characters get married and have kids but the series doesn't dwell on that. They hint some characters like each other, then time skip, then bam, married and kids... and now that we got that out of the way, back to epic battles and new transformations. So just hint that casey/don likes April and then off to fight the foot. Noone expected a romance subplot in the series, let alone a love triangle, and I'm sure most of the kids watching the show are still in the 'ew girls' stage... so they really just shouldn't have bothered.

Anyways here's hoping season 5 ends with an epic new end boss shredder-replacement type villain for generations to come, much like Bishop was in the past cartoon, and... I guess Lord Dregg was in the OT. This is your last chance to really be new and original and create an awesome new story arc for future series to draw inspiration from.

[Metalwolf]

Originally Posted by Coola Yagami

So based on the posts I read, I can only guess that the only thing future incarnations will take away from this is possibly giving each turtle their individual design and body type.

I really doubt we'll see any Nick original characters like Tiger Claw or Snakeweed ever again unless they start popping up in other media like movies and in the comics. I assume the next big show will be focusing on its own original villains, alongside shredder and the foot of course.

Like I said, I just don't see any actual plots here that are worth recreating since 90% of the plots are already from past versions. Even now some people here are hoping for the battle nexus in the next season which is, again, just another rehash, instead of something brand new. The battle nexus itself was brand new in 2K3 and we wouldn't even be talking about it if they didn't have the creativity to make it in the first place. I mean, I doubt fans will be demanding the psychic April plot line be brought back in future incarnations.

I think the only cool visual worth adapting is the rain of Mutagen cannisters if they decide to go the 'lots of mutants route'.

And I also hope the next series doesn't run through the silent partner/return to new york and triceraton/Fugitoid arc a third time.

Definitely the kind of post I would have made if I hadn't been so crabby that day.

Originally Posted by Technogeek29

I don't mind those stories but I seen them twice in both recent incarnations so skipping over them is fine by me in the next. I see everyone says unique designs but this is the first cartoon version to do use it. The first one with the Turtles not being carbon copies with different weapons or mask is the 1990 film. Tigerclaw has the chance of making a resurgence within the franchise, but the others most likely not. Xever and Bradford if they show up again most likely won't be mutated or used very heavily.


...........

All in all it doesn't have a lot of stuff that doesn't already exist and it's original concepts are over shadowed by Mirage/FW/2K3 (to a lesser extent) content that we eat up more than it's original content. No seriously read the majority of the post here, the reused concepts are the things we get the most hyped about.

Originally Posted by CyberCubed

Wow, as if IDW doesn't do mostly the same thing? Outside of some unique aspects like the Pantheon, the vast majority of IDW's plotlines and characters are just new takes on old stories we've seen for years.

The fact that we're about to begin another "Bishop tracks down the Turtles and other mutants story" in IDW says enough in itself.

I quoted both of these posts, because I think they illustrated why it seems TMNT seems to be endlessly reusing old concepts. Fans constantly want old storylines brought back, and and so it's all the studios/comics give to them. I'm wondering if this will harm TMNT in the long run, when the iterations just keep redoing the same old things?

As for Nick, I do wonder if they will end up sitting on it too. All they care about is the Sponge, and I wouldn't be surprised if they keep milking that show to death (even to the point of getting a new voice actor if the one voicing the Sponge meets his Maker.)

[PApagreg]

Originally Posted by Tarris Vaal

* A greater focus on Stealth and Ninja skills, and a willingness not to shy away from darker subject matter. Yeah 2k3 had its moments too - fair enough - but even 2k3 didn't end a series with Splinter dead and the planet obliterated. It never showed a giant mutant stamping on a hero's arm with a gruesome snap. Nor did it show skeletal bodies of known characters or have a friendly character go insane and break a major protagonists bones on screen (April vs Raph). Nick has shown it can go that extra step and more importantly that doing so is to be Encouraged!



I'm sure there was more, but I think that covered everything important.

Overall this has been a good solid series with some risk taking and experimental ideas that - though they may not have worked well all the time, did at least try them and in many cases succeeded.

I don't know about the ninja part, I mean sure they were more like Ninjas compared to the 2k3 series with more examples of stealth(like you said) and pragmatism but it seems like the writers sort of downplayed it after season 2 hell I remember more examples of Casey acting like a ninja then the turtles in season 3.

As for the darkness yeah blowing up the Earth seem dark on paper but the cast barely reacted to it and the fact that hot chocolate and the promise of space adventure seemed to calm their nerves didn't really helped much, hell April and Casey barely reacted that their families and friends got sucked up by a black hole.

[victory_angel]

Originally Posted by ssjup81

You know, the crushes don’t bother me much. It’s not overly done and isn’t focused on all that much. Leo’s interactions with Karai are just so darn cute on his part. He’s such a dork. lol I love it, even if I don’t “ship” them.

Now, during the first season, Donnie did bother me slightly, but I never found much of what he did “creepy” given the context and how innocent it all was on his part. I didn’t find the “chart” creepy since the episode was showing how Donnie overthinks, overanalyzes, and plans ahead in a general sense…not just with April. His chart, to me, showed me a character with the mind of a great chess player. He considered all his options to try and find ways to hang with her and to get to know her better, and to me, that’s no different from a girl taking a certain path to her class to bump into her crush to talk. The thing about how he knew she would be in the park that one time also didn’t surprise me since he had a photo of him and April IN the park. Makes sense that he would know if she hangs there or not at a certain time if he’s been there with her.

Hm, you know, it’s also like going to the amusement park for the first time. You don’t know what to try or do first because you’d never been there before. Or maybe it’s like a child who’s been homeschooled all their life and then suddenly forced to attend a public school. Of course, that person is going to act awkward due to the fact that the experience is new. This is how I viewed Donnie regarding April.

I think the only way this set up would bother me, is if Donnie had never changed, and still came across as awkward around April. I like their friendship and I like how Donnie matured regarding her. He doesn’t act all goofy over her and won’t drop everything at the drop of a hat if April’s involved. The fact that people are still complaining about traits from season 1 which makes me wonder what show some of these people are watching. They drop a hint every once in a while (sometimes for a comedic effect), but they’re nowhere near as prominent as season 1. I just don’t see how anyone could even put PD Mikey and Nick Donnie on the same level here. PD Mikey was creepy. We knew what he was talking about and reminded me more of Nick Casey than Donnie.

Okay, nothing more I can say about this particular topic.

I agree. Donnie's initial efforts to try and attract April's interests were more childish in nature than actually creepy. Think of it as an equivalent of a little boy coming up to a little girl and saying "Do you want to hold my hand?"

Up until the Turtles were 15 they had lived underground in what is practically an all-male society. The only exposure to the fairer sex as it were, was through TV and Donnie's computers. So all they really would have understood about females is that girls were different.

Splinter would have had the talk about puberty and the whole birds and bees thing. Just so they would know and understand that aspect of life. And because of this, they understood the whole intercourse aspect is something they really will never have ever. Then Donnie sees and falls in love with April.

Donnie clearly wants a full relationship with April, but doesn't want to push her more then she feels she is comfortable with. Which is why every time he slips up and calls her his "Princess" he tries to back peddle and cover for it.
So he seeks companionship in her, not a mate.

Casey on the other hand in season 2 seems to think of April as a conquest as he does asks when they are going to go on a real date. And than states his idea is a place that is more intimate. (In otherwords a place where they can make out.)

Splinter seems to understand that Donnie's feelings towards April are deeper than just a crush. When Donnie first speaks up in the first episode about how there were two innocent people who had been abducted and that they didn't have a year to wait to be rescued. Splinter at first is angry that Donnie is speaking out of turn, but after Donnie pleads his case further. Splinter seems to sense something then turns looks at the photo of his wife and child and says "Yes, go save these people."

If it had just simply been a crush, Splinter would have simply said "I know you want to do what you feel is noble, but you don't know these people. Let the authorities on the surface deal with the abduction."

To the other Turtle's Donnie's infatuation towards April is seen as just a crush or in the case of Raph, a happy little delusion that will only end up with Donnie getting hurt.

This is why Raph spells it out for Donnie in episodes such as "Operation: Breakout" and "A Foot too Big" where he needs to accept that April is not going to return his feelings in the way he wishes she would.

Or comforting Donnie...(at least what Raph views as comforting) by telling him to not to be so upset that April is gone and that she would be back when she calmed down.

But the moment when April divorces herself from the Turtles does affect her as well. Take the moment when she catchs Donnie following her.

Some people have confused shadowing with stalking. Stalking is following a person in a way that makes a person feel uncomfortable, threatened, or harassed.

Shadowing is just following a someone closely. And Donnie was only shadowing April to make sure she was okay.

April only attacked him because she sensed she was being followed not that she was being threatened. And as annoyed as she is that Donnie was following her when she had told him she never wanted to see him again. When she turns away from him she looks more sad than angry. So she clearly misses the Turtles, but she feels that being apart from them is for the best

[Original TMNT Cartoon Fan]

Kraang-Utrom conflict.

[CyberCubed]

I definitely like the idea of the Kraang simply because mind controlled Utrom. It finally connects the link between Krang and the Utroms dating back to the original cartoon.

[Original TMNT Cartoon Fan]

Four episodes, four weeks break. All the time (not even counting the summertime breaks and Advent-Christmas-New Year breaks between late-November and mid-January), and at least one season spanning over entire years....

[Technogeek29]

Something to add, IDW Leo loves to play video games but pretends not to like them because Mikey keeps beating him Raph even said it to him. He even nicked named his Katana's like a dork.

[myconius]

Originally Posted by technogeek29

something to add, idw leo loves to play video games but pretends not to like them because mikey keeps beating him Raph even said it to him. He even nicked named his katana's like a dork.

musashi and kamiizumi

[myconius]

i'd really like to see this naming of the swords (MUSASHI AND KAMIIZUMI) explored.

it'd be even funnier if they weren't the typical names of the famous historical figures that he named them after, but of some (made-up) Anime characters instead.

[neatoman]

Originally Posted by CyberCubed

I definitely like the idea of the Kraang simply because mind controlled Utrom. It finally connects the link between Krang and the Utroms dating back to the original cartoon.

I just liked that the Kraang were brainwashed Utroms because I didn't like the idea of the of the Kraang simply being this show's version of the Utroms. Renaming the Utroms "The Kraang", making them outright villains, giving them a hivemind and a redundant speech pattern just never sat right with me, so I felt relief when they made it clear that the regular Utroms still existed as part of this version.

[Ashwolf]

Originally Posted by neatoman

I just liked that the Kraang were brainwashed Utroms because I didn't like the idea of the of the Kraang simply being this show's version of the Utroms. Renaming the Utroms "The Kraang", making them outright villains, giving them a hivemind and a redundant speech pattern just never sat right with me, so I felt relief when they made it clear that the regular Utroms still existed as part of this version.

same here, when i 1st heard about the kraang being a whole race, i was soooo "uhhhhh, no, just no" but glad it actually is still utroms as the race

[Original TMNT Cartoon Fan]

Originally Posted by neatoman

I just liked that the Kraang were brainwashed Utroms because I didn't like the idea of the of the Kraang simply being this show's version of the Utroms. Renaming the Utroms "The Kraang", making them outright villains, giving them a hivemind and a redundant speech pattern just never sat right with me, so I felt relief when they made it clear that the regular Utroms still existed as part of this version.

I like both the Kraang and the Utroms in general.