New writers?
 

Are there different writers on these episodes now from who was writing the earlier episodes? I ask because I'm just not enjoying the show as much as I was when it first started. My girlfriend and I both used to laugh during almost every episode and really liked how clever the dialog was but now I'm just kind of bored throughout. The "filler" episodes to sell toys seemed to become fairly regular and now I feel like the whole story line is becoming "filler." I hope this is not the case and that the show gets back to what made it great initially!

They're the same group of writers. Not sure why you're not laughing, the last couple of eps have been great sans the Cockroach ep.

I like the fact that the last episode was a more serious one. It definitely had a few funny moments but they're also building a strong story. Leo had a big decision to make, and neither choice was wrong or right but both have consequences. That's life. Looking forward to whats next.

Aside from "Cockroach Terminator" and I suppose "The Pulverizer" (I don't consider it filler but everyone else does :ohwell:) there haven't been any filler episodes. There are a few different writers working on the show, and some wrote certain episodes while the others wrote different ones. You can look at all the writers for each episode here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...2012)_episodes
Plus, the most recent episode and the one coming up are more serious episodes rather than funny ones.

Well one thing is that comedy sometimes needs to take a backseat to allow the plot to advance. While humor has always been a strong part of the TMNT, it's just one of the many aspects. There has to be emotional depth, character growth and development, all kinds of action and ninja badassery, etc. You can't expect it to be funny funny funny. We're obviously progressing into some serious biz in the end of the season, so it's a must. On the other hand, I don't know what kind of fan you are. You're the only person I've seen who feels this way so far (that I've seen). Maybe it's just that the nostalgic appeal of it has worn off for you or something.

When I asked Russ Carney if he was writing the season finale, he told me that "Sternin & Ventimilia wrote all "tentpole" episodes (major episodes that set up S1 story arc), but all staffers pitched in.".

Blame Playmates for "Turtle Temper", "Cockroach Terminator",etc.

The only 3 weak episodes was Spiderbitez episode, The Pulverizer, and The Cockroach Terminator ep.

Aside from that I've liked every other episode.

...I Liked all 3 of those......

The weakest is the Pulverizer episode for me, since the doofus didn't add anything to the story and making things worse. At least Zach (OT's fifth turtle) saved the day.

But hey, not to the point I dislike the series. Still entertaining overall. :)

Same here, althought I liked The Pulverizer for having Fishfaces legs.

I'd say a good setup for a 26-episode season is:

-2 Tentpole episodes
-1 comedic/silly episode
-1 "Fan Favorite" episode (introducing Baxter, Leatherhead, etc.)
-1 Tentpole episode
-1 character episode (deals with a particular character's emotions to build them and/or exploits someone else, perhaps eventually became a fan favorite. The IDW Micro-series is the comics equivalent.)
-1 Fan Favorite episode
-1 comedic/silly episode
-2 Tentpole episodes
-1 Fan Favorite episode
-2 character episodes
-1 comedic/silly episode
-1 Tentpole episode
-3 character episodes
-1 Fan Favorite episode
-1 Tentpole episode
-1 comedic/silly episode
-2 character episodes
-3 Tentpole episodes

This leaves a total of 10 tentpole episodes crucial to the series' plot, eight character building episodes that can leave a big analysis come the tentpole episodes, four fan favorite episodes to throw some casual fun to fans (perhaps to sell some toys), and another four episodes just to be goofy with cheesy villains and/or good comedic skills. This IMO is an ideal balance to keep a show entertaining. You want to have enough episodes to keep the overall plot interesting, a fair number of episodes to provide growth to the characters to give them real personalities, and only a few episodes that provide nostalgia/pleasure and a few episodes to provide slapstick action. That's why there is Ciero Nielli, who approves all of the scripts to makes sure each season flows along smoothly.