If TMNT were a new franchise today...?
 

do you think youd still end up loving them as much as you do? Dont get me wrong. I love the turtles. Watch the shows, movies and have collected a bunch of toys.

Its just recently I thought about something. The idea of TMNT doesnt seem that appealing on paper. I mean turtles arnt really considered "cool" animals and by today standards seems more like a gimmick to have humanoid ninja turtles.

Also compared to other stuff I love (Sonic, Transformers, Ghostbusters etc.) TMNT seems like something Id brush off as just another dumb cartoon series of this generation.

I hope you guys understand me.

I can picture myself being born in 1960 and probably just view it as a kids/tween franchise and hold on to my Batman/Superman/GI Joe ways (Scooby Doo would have been my Spongebob), though if I had kids who enjoyed it, perhaps would watch a little with them, as my seven-year old nephew seemed to enjoy my Turtles collection at Christmas, and even made a movie of myself playing with the toys. But since we haven't had a huge kid fad since Spongebob/Dragonball Z/Yu Gi Oh (and those are small compared to Power Rangers/Pokemon), it would be difficult to have a lasting impact.

I think it would be viewed as an anime ripoff.

Color coded teen heroes with Japanese origins fighting ninjas? It would be seen as a wannabe anime.

I would agree with that, plus with the strict enforcement of the Children's Television Act from the FCC it would be difficult to reach such a HUGE audience. (The Act basically led to the extinction of merchandising-driven network cartoons and required educational/informative programming which removed the incentive to produce high quality cartoons.) Yes cable TV is available in more homes now, but still it doesn't have the audience numbers of network TV.

There are network cartoons (all E/I now) on Saturday and Sunday, but they are a ghostly shadow of how prominent they were in television in the 80s and 90s. Either way if I was a kid or an adult, I would eventually flip through the channels to see what the commotion was about and watch a few episodes to see if it WAS worth watching.

I think I would still be intrigued with the TMNT premise and know that it had promise, but the final product really has to be executed well because as we've seen in the numerous films and many TV series that depict the TMNT...it can be wildly addictive or a shuddering disappointment.

I kinda prefer to go in the opposite direction and ask the question "What if the TMNT had been created in the 60s or 70s?"

Considering the attitudes of American culture about violence, etc. at that time. The Mirage comic could have survived underground since it was geared for adults, but as for a cartoon series I doubt it. This is around the time that the Jetsons and Flintstones were popular and most cartoons were solely focused on comedy. I mean if the OT in the 80s was considered too violent at times, airing an OT-similar styled cartoon in the 60s or 70s would be similar to airing the darker 2K3 version during the 80s. If the animators tried to make the TMNT even more comedic than the OT, then it just wouldn't seem like the TMNT somehow.

Furthermore you have to consider the country's cultural acceptance of other worldly cultures. I'm sure TMNT would have been rejected immediately before it could even be planned into a cartoon, especially before the American appeal of the Bruce Lee movies, considering at that time African-Americans were struggling to enter into mainstream culture. So you have to ask yourself could Americans accept a cartoon that has an Asian backstory, much less a Japanese one? (Remember now that the parents of the children at this time had experienced Pearl Harbor and WWII.)

In other words, the 60s-70s wouldn't be the right time to air the TMNT considering its violent material and the story's Japanese beginnings.

I came into this thread thinking it was going to be something like "If this IDW and Nickelodeon run were the first we've ever seen of the turtles would they thrive." So I'll answer that one lol.

I think that this Nickelodeon show is my favorite thus far (not that I don't love the original and the 2003 show but this one takes the cake). And having recently gotten into Avatar (another fantastic Nick show) I think it's absolutely possible I would get into this show about Ninja Turtles. The comic is another story, I'm not really a big comic person and only own a few collected versions of small arcs (like the Infinity Gauntlet and the Civil War). So I dont think I'd be into the IDW series, though I might dabble in the Nick inspired comic.

I understand where you're getting at. Howerer the ot series where not that violent though. After angry calls from parents during the first season, turtles became more of a pizza throwing, wisecracking and fun-loving franchise rather than a violent action-packed ninja-related one.

You forget that even that was considered too violent for the soccer moms. They're just insane that way.

As for me... I'm afraid this would have passed me by if it was an all-new franchise today. I never thought I would see the day that I wouldn't have to watch cartoons and see what's new... but it did. The Turtles are the exception because it's a new version of a show I saw in the 80's and 2000's. Similar to how Young Justice brings me in due to it being about DC superheroes. But those are probably the only shows I follow religiously. Don't really have the spare time to watch TV for the hell of it and see 'what new cartoons they're coming up with nowadays'.

It is so very hard to predict what I would think. TMNT was a huge influence on a lot of kid shows/movies after it became popular, so many of those later properties had elements that were very similar.

So if it premiered TODAY it might seem kind of lazy or derivative because it would not be in the proper context.

What I can say is I've always been fascinated by reptiles and I love the x-men and martial arts. It's possible that it could draw me in if the 2012 Nick show were the very first version.

I think it would be less likely to be pigeonholed as a comedic property if it had been made today. That, and I think they could get away with more stuff, i.e. characters dying or being seriously injured.

I agree that it probably wouldn't have worked in the 60's or 70's. I also agree it would seem more like an anime-rip off.

Is it pigeonholed as a comical series? Obviously cartoons have a limit but I think the Nick and 2k3 series are far more serious than youd think. Especially Nick. I didnt have very high hopes for it, with Nicks downfall, but Im impressed how well put together its been.

All I expected was flashy action and tween cliches that cater to todays audience. The anime style expressions that popup and stuff dont really bother but other that its surpassed my expectations.

I personally NEVER thought the OT was too violent, its just that I pointed out if back in the 80s some (those soccer moms) thought it was too much it really wouldn't have stood a chance in the 60s and 70s.

I guess what I mean is that the comedic aspects are played up more than they might have been if it had come into existence in the last few years. Certainly the last two shows have downplayed some of the slapstick and topical humor of the OT era.

I don't know if I'd have been as big a fan as I am now, but I'm sure I would have been a fan. I haven't changed much over the years. The things I loved as a kid I still love now. And there are some newer things I know I would have loved had they came out when I was a kid. Pokemon, for example. I would have loved Pokemon as a kid.
If TMNT was new I probably wouldn't love it as much as I do now because it wouldn't have the nostalgia factor going for it. Look at Furby. I was in my very late teens or early twenties when that came out and I still love that. TMNT would be no different.