Official "TMNT Fan Commentaries" Thread

[oldmanwinters]

Hosted at http://fancommentaries.thetechnodrome.com/

Say What?
Face front, true shell-heads! Longtime TMNT fans, Kevin "Jester" McGill and I, have embarked upon an ambitious project to do audio fan commentaries on the various aspects of the TMNT franchise. We’ve started out with the first five episodes of the original cartoon (yeah, so typical, lol), but our grand scheme is a much wider scope. We are open to doing various cartoons, movies, promotional videos, and even comics. Neither of us has a complete collection of resources at this point so keep in mind that we may be initially limited by what DVDs (and comics?!?) we may possess.

How does it Work?
Select your desired commentary track, then start your own copy of the TMNT episode at the same time you hit play on our audio commentary files. Now that wasn’t too hard, was it?

How do we Make these?
It’s a pretty primitive process, but it’s been relatively effective thus far. We both use Skype to communicate with each other. We pop in our DVDs and simultaneously hit play as we start the recording. In earlier episodes, I used Audacity to record our conversation and save it to an MP3 (files are compressed to around 10MB) after removing background noise and adjusting audio levels to try to bring balance to the commentary. As a result, the sound quality wasn't anything close to professional quality. Beginning with "Planet of the Turtleoids," Jester has been recording our Skype call directly, which gives us a slightly improved product.

Why Bother?
We recognize that there sure are a lot of opinion pieces that have been done on the TMNT cartoons. Nevertheless, there are considerably few commentaries that have been done by turtles fans who have a comprehensive knowledge of the totality of the TMNT franchise. Most fans gravitate to one particular aspect and hold bias against others. Kevin and I, like most of the people on this forum, are pretty much hardcore turtles nerds (with a few exceptions that we might have to tolerate), even if we admit to preferring certain parts of the franchise over the others. Our goal is to make informed observations about the subject matter while still trying to enjoy ourselves while rewatching/reading the material. We'll probably try to reconcile seemingly irreconcilable continuity contradictions and fill in the gaps of various plot holes. We have a genuine desire to keep it both fun and classy, so we make an effort to keep our language and humor fairly clean. Also, we want to showcase the TMNT fandom as well as the franchise, which leads me to the next question...

Who can Participate?
From the beginning, we agreed that we want to bring in additional TMNT fans as guest commentators. We think it will be fun to showcase the better side TMNT fan base, although we recognize that it is substantially more difficult to record three people in different locations than it is to stick with our establish routine. Our goal is to try to record commentaries (1-2 episodes per session) at a regular schedule (we’ve been doing it about once a week for the past month, but that pace may change over time).

We don’t want to hurt anybody’s feelings, but we’ll start off by inviting folks who:

(A) are longtime staples in these forums and/or the fanbase at large,

(B) have contributed something significant to the fandom, and

(C) are sufficiently articulate to make solid observations in a recording session while also keeping themselves well-mannered in language and take turns sharing opinions. [Wow…that should count me out – Jester]

Still, it doesn't hurt to ask if you are interested! Jester and I have been recording our sessions around 10:30pm EST once a week. We will try to be flexible to our guest commentators' schedules.

We are always open to doing specific requests, and if you are selected to record a commentary with us, we’ll try to do it on the episode you want. If you don’t really care, we’ll probably just pick a Season 2 episode from the Old Toon.

The History of the Project
This was all really Jester’s idea from back in 2009, but lack of interest at the time left the idea dormant until I proposed we restart the whole project. Initially we recorded “Turtle Tracks” together and uploaded it as a YouTube video. Thanks to Krang’s good graces, we’ve been able to find a home for our audio downloads on TheTechnodrome.com’s main page. On account of all the recent developments, we’ve decided (with Krang's permission) to lock the older thread and make this the “Official” thread for our “unofficial” fan commentaries.

Anything Else?
We welcome your feedback, constructive criticisms, suggestions, and requests!

[oldmanwinters]

While the main page features the episodes listed chronologically (episode order), this thread will list them in order of our recording sessions. We usually record two episodes per session based on a common theme and occasionally refer back to jokes we've made in previous commentaries.
(right-click to “Save As…”)

"Peeling Back the Onion": How David Wise Made the TMNT into a World-Wide Sensation

1. Turtle Tracks [as a Video!] (Fred Wolf Toon- Watch with TMNT Volume 1 DVD)
2. Enter the Shredder Video forthcoming! (Fred Wolf Toon- Watch with TMNT Volume 1 DVD)
3. A Thing About Rats (Fred Wolf Toon- Watch with TMNT Volume 1 DVD)
4. Hot Rodding Teenagers from Dimension X (Fred Wolf Toon- Watch with TMNT Volume 1 DVD)
5. Shredder and Splintered (Fred Wolf Toon- Watch with TMNT Volume 1 DVD)
   
   
   History of Hamato Yoshi & the Foot Clan
6. Legend of Koji (Fred Wolf Toon- Watch with TMNT Season 7 Disk 3: The Donatello Slice DVD)
7. White Belt, Black Heart (Fred Wolf Toon- Watch with TMNT Season 7 Disk 3: The Donatello Slice DVD)
   
   
   Mind-Boggling Animation Mistakes!
8. New York's Shiniest (Fred Wolf Toon- Watch with TMNT Volume 2 DVD)
9. Were-Rats from Channel Six (Fred Wolf Toon- Watch with TMNT Season 4 Disc 4 DVD)
   
   
   An Out of This World +40-Minute Special!
10. Planet of the Turtleoids (Fred Wolf Toon - Watch with TMNT Season 10 DVD)
    
    
    Kids, Meet the Turtles... Again
11. Things Change (4Kids Toon, Watch with Attack of the Mousers DVD)
12. Attack of the Mousers (4Kids Toon, Watch with Attack of the Mousers DVD)
    
    
    Invasion of the Guest Commentator #1: Stephan Reese
13. The Maltese Hamster (Fred Wolf Toon- Watch with TMNT DVD Volume 3)
14. Mr. Ogg Goes to Town (Fred Wolf Toon- Watch with TMNT DVD Volume 6)
    
    
    Turtles to the Future!
15. Future Shellshock (4Kids FF, Watch with "Fast Forward Vol.1: Future Shellshock!" DVD)
16. Once Upon a Time Machine (Fred Wolf Toon - Watch with Turtles' Awesome Easter VHS)
    
    
    Happy Belated Halloween!
17. The Darkness Within (4Kids Toon, Watch with TMNT Volume 3.5: "Mutants & Monsters" DVD)
18. All Hallows Thieves (4Kids Toon, Watch with TMNT Volume 3.5: "Mutants & Monsters" DVD)
    
    
    Garbage Time!
19. Garbageman (4Kids, from TMNT Volume 3: "The Way of Invisibility")
20. Muckman Messes Up (Fred Wolf, from TMNT Season 5 Disc 2)
    
    
    Babies... They're Babies!!!
21. Four Turtles and a Baby (Fred Wolf Toon- Watch with TMNT Season 4 Disc 1 DVD)
22. The Starchild (Fred Wolf Toon- Watch with TMNT Season 7 Disk 3: The Donatello Slice DVD)
    
    
    Tribute to James Avery
23. The Old Switcheroo (Fred Wolf Toon- Watch with TMNT Volume 3 DVD)
24. Ninja Sword of Nowhere (Fred Wolf Toon- Watch with TMNT Volume 4 DVD)
    
    
    Conversation with the Writer: Francis Moss
25. The Fifth Turtle (Fred Wolf Toon- Watch with TMNT Volume 3 DVD)

[Jester]

Well COWABUNGA! good to see the new thread up and running.

[Donnie]

Love the idea and if you guys would like a third person for a 2k3 episode, let me know!

[Machias Banshee]

Great idea, guys! I've listened to all of them so far.. great stuff. I wouldn't mind throwing my two cents in in the future, maybe with the 2k3 series...

Now what comic books are you guys thinking of doing? Movie adaptations included, or just Mirage/Image/Archies?

[Jester]

Can we get this stickied?
Koji and Black Belt, White Heart are recorded. I'll clean up the audio when i'm not "working". I use quotes, because I'm at work right now....

[GK Punk]

Originally Posted by Jester

Can we get this stickied?

You got it.

[Jester]

♫♪Have I ever told you your my hero?♪♫

[oldmanwinters]

Thanks, GK, we appreciate it! We hope the fan community will find the next two commentaries worth their time! They are on the themes of the structure of the Foot Clan and Splinter's personal history.

[Canadian Turtle]

Hey guys!

This sounds like fun, let me know if I can help. I have a deep knowledge of aspects from the other side of the screen as a result of spending two years of my life interviewing those who bring TMNT to the world. There are untold stories on a grand scale, so maybe I can lend some cool insight.

[Jester]

We'd love to have you along.

[oldmanwinters]

Oh, yeah, Canadian Turtle, your experience is too good to pass up! What episode(s) or other media would you like to cover?

[Canadian Turtle]

Originally Posted by oldmanwinters

Oh, yeah, Canadian Turtle, your experience is too good to pass up! What episode(s) or other media would you like to cover?

Tough answer! Some of the best knowledge and history that I know is pretty exclusive stuff has more to do with the toy line and the first movie. The cartoon history I am involved with has more to do with the voice talent rather than actual behind the scenes (for now). Its the first movie that I can really dig into. That said I'd have to clear it first, but would love to help non the less.

[oldmanwinters]

Originally Posted by Canadian Turtle

Tough answer! Some of the best knowledge and history that I know is pretty exclusive stuff has more to do with the toy line and the first movie. The cartoon history I am involved with has more to do with the voice talent rather than actual behind the scenes (for now). Its the first movie that I can really dig into. That said I'd have to clear it first, but would love to help non the less.

I've become increasingly interested in the show's writing talents. Did you get to have any interaction with the creative team in your exploits?

[Jester]

And you knew where I stand on OT voice actors...THEY ARE AWESOME!
Ever hear why Rob was gone during the European Vacation?

[oldmanwinters]

Jester and I have uploaded two new episode commentaries, and these episodes happen to be two of the finest of the whole series' run!

• The Legend of Koji
  
• White Belt, Black Heart

These episodes give us some fascinating insights into the history of Hamato Yoshi and the origins of the Foot Clan!

http://fancommentaries.thetechnodrome.com/
Check 'em out now!

[Jester]

Adam and I have recorded New York's Shiniest and Were-Rats from Channel 6. We have plans to do another recording session Wednesday and after that Adam will be on vacation for a week...which gives me time to try and track down (a) guest commentator(s)

If you're interested shoot me a PM with the episode (or other piece of TMNT media) you'd like to help us do a commentary on. I'll talk it over with Adam and we'll work to schedule a time when the 3 of us can do it.

[Jester]

Our resident cretaphobe mentioned that it might be helpful to post which disk the episodes could be found on...so:

1. Turtle Tracks (with Video!) From TMNT Vol. 1.
2. Enter the Shredder (Video forthcoming) From TMNT Vol. 1
3. A Thing About Rats From TMNT Vol. 1
4. Hot Rodding Teenagers from Dimension X From TMNT Vol. 1
5. Shredder and Splintered From TMNT Vol. 1
6. Legend of Koji From TMNT Season 7 Disk 3: The Donatello Slice
7. White Belt, Black Heart From TMNT Season 7 Disk 3: The Donatello Slice

[Cure]

Wait. Who's afraid of chalk?

[Jester]

It was a lame pun (like you'd expect any less)...there is no word for "fear of crayons" so I made up a word.