Should I go back and re-watch the original series or...
 

...give the 4kids version a second chance? I went back and tried to re-watch the OG series on dvd and it was cheesetastic (nostalgia was still there). Does the 2k3 to 2009 series do the turtles justice? I've only seen a couple of those episodes and turtles forever was awesome!

Peace!

[By the way the first movie is my definitive turtle experience and the new comics are growing with me heavily.]

Watch both. They're both very good.

They're both different but very entertaining takes of the TMNT franchise.

I hear you dude... My memories of the OG series has long since faded, got to get around to watching both series just needed some more opinions from the field.

Go ahead and watch some episodes of the classic series with some TMNT Fan Commentaries! You never know... it might make it more interesting for you. :tsmile:

The 87 TMNT series is so much more fun, upbeat, and unlike the source material and 2003 cartoon, doesnt take it's ridiculous premise too serious

The 2003 series is a little darker and edgier (yawn) and adapts several of the comic storylines (double yawn), but overall has it's own original backstory and concentrates on being it's own beast rather than be a slave to the gospel of the comics, which I appreciate. Towards the end of it's run it tries (and fails) to be as light and cheesy as the old show.

I was really into the OG series, I'm pretty sure it'll still have its moments (still love the technodrome theme music). The 4kids series though; tried to give it a chance when it debuted, but i said to myself that I was to old for that stuff back then.

I guess the OG villains and allies from the OG series are why I'm leaning towards re-watching that version of TMNT (the rat king, beebop, rocksteady, etc.)

[I'm probably just looking for some "deep" significance in any TMNT incarnation, it is what it is though]

Honestly, I'm having the best time right now reading the new comics. There's a bit of the old, a bit of the new, and it's all pretty exciting.

If you haven't seen 2k3, though, the third and fourth seasons are my favorite. You should definitely give the show a shot.

watch'em all

I think the prevailing appeal to all incarnations is their lust for existence; the desire to fill out their respective universes and the potential to take the narrative anywhere and everywhere. Watch long enough, and you'll encounter film noir detective stories, aliens and alien planets, time travel, mad science, sorcery, and a load of other literary tropes incorporated into the narrative. The shows each have those things, so anyone watching frequently will eventually come across an episode they like.

That said, the overall tone is definitely different. To give you a rough idea of the degree of difference, the Turtles are roughly the same except for Raphael, who is closer to his violent comic counterpart, probably since there's less censorship now, and Splinter is almost identical to the OT version, but everyone else is pretty different. April isn't a newswoman, Casey is still angry and violent but that's not his only trait, and Shredder is much more dangerous.

In general, the original show is a comedy, while the new show is an adventure series. The big advantage of the old toon is you can drop in at any time and watch it and enjoy it, because it's slang and recurring pizza obsession make it more instantly memorable, and in the case of some awful episodes you can skip them and pretend they never happened. The 2003 show has (for the most part) a lot more depth. It's really one long story, so you get out of it what you put into it. That makes it potentially better, but to appreciate it you need to watch it on a binge; like on YouTube or DVD, or you're going to find the plot confusing--and once in a while, you'll probably have to sit through an episode you hate to understand it.

You should do want you want to do instead of letting others choose for ya. ;)

Just needed a general consensus of opinions before investing the time into either series. Was planning on re-watching both series regardless... got to find something to do in-between the comic release dates :tlol:

[what does OT mean? original toon?]

Usually stands for Old Toon

Whats OG?

Ninja Turtles?? O_o That's for babies, dude.

Turtles Forever was the ultimate balance of cheese pizza with cotton candy toppings.

[OG = OriGinal or OG = Original Gangster]

Season 1-3
 

You should at least watch season 1-2 of the 1987 cartoon when the action is cooler, and the awesome "Big Trilogy" of season 3.

Maybe "Old Toon" as well, but that isn't so accurate anymore now that the 2003 cartoon is old, too.

Another thing about the 2003 show--resist the urge to stop watching just because some of your old favorite characters don't appear. It seems this maybe the biggest complaint about the 2003 show, and it's true that it can feel empty without them at first. If you just endure, though, it starts to attain it's own supporting cast that's equally appealing. Perhaps my favorite new character is Renet, whom I'd basically describe as having Irma's personality along with Time Travel powers--as fun as it sounds!

don't worry about all of that dude you do what you do

They're both worth watching though I will say 2K3 has more going for it overall then the OT. It has continuity for one which most of the OT lacks. It has more good episodes. Though the OT has more episodes it's only 37 more and even then it still has less good ones.

Not taking itself seriously doesn't really mean it works any better then 2K3. Many episodes have ridiculous plots that over use the main villains. For a series with a colorful toyline they really dropped the ball when it came to using it. Every time they needed a villain they opted to create some generic mad scientist or equally uninteresting character instead of using the truckload of baddies they already had between the comics and the toys.

I guess if I had to break it down most of the OT is forgettable. A lot of the middle episodes fail to stick out and without an on going story it's easy to forget about many of them. 2K3 has the advantage there. While most of the comic adaptations fall short due to the content being paired down for a kids series it's still a good watch overall. The OT is too but it relies much more on nostalgia then 2K3 does.

A lot of people will complain that 2K3 isn't as funny as the OT but honestly the OT rarely made me laugh, even as a kid. The most chuckles it gets out of me now are from the hilarious use of words like bodacious. 2K3 isn't a laugh riot either but I never came to the series for that.

Comparing the two overall is a bit hard because they're completely different series and I notice a lot of fans, even the ones who watch both, usually like one much more then the other. I'm in the middle with it. I don't watch either all the time. For me the OT is more of a background noise sort of show as 2K3 I will actually sit down and watch.

The 2 OAVs are a fun watch too