What was the TMNT fandom like in the "dead period?"

[CyberCubed]

1995/1996 marked the end of what was essentially the first generation of TMNT. Mirage Volume 2 ended, the original cartoon ended, and the Archie comic series ended. The movies were also done at that point.

Although immediately after we got the Image series and Next Mutation, both wound up being short-lived.

What was the TMNT fandom like from 1997-2001? On TV we had to deal with a female turtle and in comics we had to deal with the Turtles being mutilated. And then after that there was nothing to discuss really until Volume 4 began with no indication if we'd ever get another cartoon.

[Jephael]

It's funny, that was actually the time I decided to get back into TMNT.

[Andrew NDB]

What was the TMNT fandom like from 1997-2001? On TV we had to deal with a female turtle and in comics we had to deal with the Turtles being mutilated. And then after that there was nothing to discuss really until Volume 4 began with no indication if we'd ever get another cartoon.

For me personally and I know many others, in terms of the fandom it was like a TMNT renaissance creatively. Dozens upon dozens of other fans all working together and independently on fanfics and TMNT websites, there was a "Ring of Green" that flourished, a Fanfic Archive, and all sorts of TMNT lists and whatnot.

[Luzmagica]

For me personally and I know many others, in terms of the fandom it was like a TMNT renaissance creatively. Dozens upon dozens of other fans all working together and independently on fanfics and TMNT websites, there was a "Ring of Green" that flourished, a Fanfic Archive, and all sorts of TMNT lists and whatnot.

I´m agree with you!!! Also adding the hunting for the items for complete all kind collections....TMNT never went out....! :tcool:

[Andrew NDB]

From my perspective, for the fandom it was an immeasurably more positive time than say, the period immediately following news of the Nick buyout.

[Newton Gimmick]

I think the fandom was okay then. The net was still relatively new, people were just excited to have a fandom at all, honestly. Things were still pretty positive. Of course, then NT came around and everyone started making shivs and the showers weren't safe anymore.

[Venom]

That was the period I sort of fell away from the fandom for a few years; I kept up with ninjaturtles.com, read the TMNT Mailing List, and browsed some sites on the "Ring of Green" Andrew mentioned. I got the occasional comic when I saw it, but yeah, for the most part ut was a fond memory up until I saw a blurb in Wizard about TMNT #1 (Volume 4) coming out fall '01. :D

[pannoni1]

I feel like the Internet may have saved TMNT's franchise, and at the very least caused the G2 comeback to happen sooner than planned. Most shows wait at least a decade before the last episode of the original series ends; TMNT only took 6 years! But for me, I find that TMNT mentions would be butt jokes and was just uncool among kids, that was the era of Pokemon! I tried to avoid TMNT as much as possible to my collegues and kept it at my home. But if I discovered TMNT online sooner, I would have felt a bit more comfortable given that those posters were trustworthy and the only "real" fans that survived the backlash from the first generation.

[CyberCubed]

I imagine its also because by 1997, all the original kid fans of TMNT were now teenagers. So as teenagers, they were now old enough to reflect back on the cartoon from their childhood and discover the comics.

Most people didn't even get into the Mirage comics until after the original cartoon ended. Makes me wonder what happened to all those old comic fans who got into TMNT via the comics first instead of the cartoon.

[KM3K]

I imagine its also because by 1997, all the original kid fans of TMNT were now teenagers. So as teenagers, they were now old enough to reflect back on the cartoon from their childhood and discover the comics.

That sounds like me. I enjoyed the original cartoon and archie comics as a kid and found the mirage comics in 1996. Even though these comics were the originals, they were new to me and it felt like the TMNT were growing up with me.

After a while I finally collected a lot of the mirage comics, including the last issue of vol. 2, where I learned of the Image series, which I then followed monthly. After Vol. 3 concluded, I drifted away from the TMNT until Vol. 4 came out. Since Vol. 4 started, I've been following the TMNT comics closely and filling in all the holes in my TMNT comics collection.


Most people didn't even get into the Mirage comics until after the original cartoon ended. Makes me wonder what happened to all those old comic fans who got into TMNT via the comics first instead of the cartoon.

I have wondered that too. Did anyone here collect the early Mirage comics when first released?

[Herald7]

I feel like the Internet may have saved TMNT's franchise

Absolutely, the Internet did that for a lot of franchises, giving the fans an outlet and way to participate that they hadn't had before.

[CyberCubed]

Absolutely, the Internet did that for a lot of franchises, giving the fans an outlet and way to participate that they hadn't had before.

Its actually hard to imagine that when we were younger there was no internet. No way of discussing things besides with your friends and no way to hear news of upcoming stuff.

Disturbing.

[Filespit]

I was still in middle school during this period, so I don't remember that much. What I do remember though is that TMNT was dead over here. No one in my class or at my school liked TMNT anymore, except for me, which led to me getting a lot of stick for still liking them. They had become "silly to like" during this period among the kids here.

I remember I checked the TMNT.com website and was introduced to The Next Mutation. I instantly liked the style of the show, and got the "movie" on VHS (probably just a few episodes tied together). I liked TNM back then, but now I can't stand it. That's my memory of this period.

[Herald7]

Its actually hard to imagine that when we were younger there was no internet. No way of discussing things besides with your friends and no way to hear news of upcoming stuff.

I remember around '95 how exciting it was to be able to suddenly communicate with other fans of movies or shows that I liked. Particularly if no one else I knew in real life liked them. You didn't feel quite as weird, lol.

[Zog the Equalizer]

I was just a kid a when everything ended (only about 7) and hadn't really gotten into the comics yet or even heard that they existed. But for me, it never really ended. Or at least I was oblivious to it for the first few years. With all my toys and movies and what have you the turtles stayed one of my favorite things. By the time I noticed it had hit a low point, the new series was on the horizon and I had heard about the comics.

[Original TMNT Cartoon Fan]

I think it was a time of much fanfiction, not so much more.

[plastroncafe]

That whole "dead" time period happened when I was in college, and didn't have money for comics, so...I basically forgot about turtles for a while. So I have no idea what the fandom was doing. Heck, I've only started paying attention to fandom within the last few years...so there's that too.

[lethrhd]

its funny thats when i got back into the turtles as well (2001) we all thought that the turtle franchise was pretty much "dead" at that point.. depressing time, hard to believe its a decade later and theres another series on the way

[FearlessLeader]

The "dead time" is actually when I first got the internet and got back into the fandom myself.

All I clearly remember was that there was a lot more really good solid fan fiction out there. Not that there isn't good fan fiction now it just out weighed the bad back then.

[oldschoolturtlesfan]

Absolutely, the Internet did that for a lot of franchises, giving the fans an outlet and way to participate that they hadn't had before.

Couldn't agree more. Not just in comics, but fans of anything now had a better chance of their voice being heard.