Favourite Tmnt version? - Page 2

*Original TMNT Cartoon Fan* · 04-03-2016, 03:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by neatoman

I think I saw the movies on TV when I was a little kid and years later (I think I was 14) when I found a bunch of episodes of the Fred Wolf cartoon and the 4Kids cartoon on Youtube, I watched both and got tired one rather quickly and stuck with the other because it was more fascinating. A few years later I started to read what IDW was putting out and watch the Nickelodeon cartoon around the same time.

Anyway, in case you're curious, I'm just the kind of person who sees problems in nearly everything. If anything the flaws in the stuff I like is more clear to me than things I don't like, that doesn't mean I can't enjoy them.

Did you read any Archie? Most TMNT fans seem to like them.

*Prowler* · 04-03-2016, 04:42 AM

I don't even know at this point any more.

*neatoman* · 04-03-2016, 05:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Original TMNT Cartoon Fan

Did you read any Archie? Most TMNT fans seem to like them.

I am reading through Archie's TMNT comics, I'm not very impressed with it to be honest.

thundermaster612 · 04-03-2016, 05:24 AM

There are a lot of turtle versions I like but I have to go with Nick

cookie jar · 04-03-2016, 05:44 AM

Definitely IDW. Then 4kids cartoon.

*Original TMNT Cartoon Fan* · 04-03-2016, 05:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by neatoman

I am reading through Archie's TMNT comics, I'm not very impressed with it to be honest.

Where are you right now? It's not the 1987 cartoon adaptions or the first storylines following them who are the most popular.

*neatoman* · 04-03-2016, 06:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Original TMNT Cartoon Fan

Where are you right now? It's not the 1987 cartoon adaptions or the first storylines following them who are the most popular.

Past issue 50, the problems I have with are that it feels kinda like TMNT the Captain Planet edition and that it's generally all over the place in terms of pacing and structure.

*ssjup81* · 04-03-2016, 08:26 AM

Hm, I'd have to say the Archie series. Sucks that it didn't get a proper ending.

Masterpiece · 04-04-2016, 04:37 AM

My favorite TMNT version is the Original Movie from 1990.

Always has been. Always will be.

~~TMNTInsighter~~ · 04-05-2016, 12:40 AM

Tie between 4Kids (leaning that way more) and the Nickelodeon version.

~~ABrown~~ · 04-05-2016, 10:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Masterpiece

My favorite TMNT version is the Original Movie from 1990.

Always has been. Always will be.

As with the 1989 Batman movie, it's what made me a fan and will always have a special place in my heart.

*oldmanwinters* · 04-05-2016, 10:29 AM

My favorite version of TMNT would be to imagine a universe built around the look and logic of the original action figure line. Very hypothetical and open-ended!

*plastroncafe* · 04-05-2016, 10:36 AM

Mirage
First movie
Archie/Dreamweave
First season Nicktoon/2k3
IMAGI/Turtles Forever

ShelleyQuick · 04-05-2016, 10:44 AM

2k12, I love other versions, but, 2k12 is my favorite.

*Wesley* · 04-05-2016, 11:04 AM

My favourites are the 2003 Turtles followed by the 1987 ones.

I haven't read the comics aside from a few issues of Archie and the uk Tmnt comic and never watched the first film. I watched the second and third films when I was a kid but don't remember much about them. I watched the fourth film a few years ago and thought it was great. Never saw the the most recent one and have no interest in watching it.

*LeotheLateBloomer* · 04-05-2016, 01:09 PM

The 2003 show is my favorite version overall. Probably the one version I prefer over Mirage. It's hard for me to say which versions I prefer over the others but in terms of TV, I'll go with the 2003>2012>1987>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Next Mutation.

DarkLightDragon · 04-05-2016, 03:03 PM

2k3, then IDW, followed up with Movie 1/2007.

*Jephael* · 04-05-2016, 11:56 PM

It's kinda hard to pick a favorite interpretation, though I've always been very partial to the Archie comics.

*pferreira* · 04-07-2016, 09:57 AM

My favourite version of TMNT is the Fred Wolf cartoon just because I was so impressed with it's combination of sci-fi and action comedy. The best version of TMNT is of course the Mirage Volume 1 comic along with the first movie released in 1990.

SKX31 · 04-08-2016, 03:26 PM

Only spent major time with the TV series, so I'm going into some (heh) detail with them:

1. 2K3:

Well, I did not grow up with the show at all (chalk that up to not watching cartoons at the time - it premiered when I was 12) so the nostalgia glasses doesn't exactly apply. Also, I should note: I don't believe that the very tight Mirage connection 2K3 has hurt (or helped) it for the most part. Many cartoons with tight connections to its source material has succeeded and failed for various reasons, so being "true to the source" isn't always a defined factor.

What makes it stand out in my mind is that 2K3 doesn't have that many holes in it until the later seasons, and even the later seasons have some positives about them. I'm defining holes here as overall arcs and details that don't mesh well into the whole, with the triumphant example of this being Don's mutation in Season 4. The storytelling is the most consistent out of the three; for the first four seasons, at least. Time will tell if Nick tops 2K3 in the long run. I'm a fan of most of the characters it introduced - not only Hun and Bishop, but also a couple one-shots like "Not-Cthulthu" and Volpehart.

And even as it wasn't the best in terms of humor, it made up for it by being able to include other elements without forcing it; I may not like 2K3 Casey that much, but 2K3 Capril is the best cartoon TMNT romance - partly due to how it was paced, and partly due to how it was handled. No question in my very biased mind.

Of course, it had a couple of bad episodes - the nuke power plant one is tarnished by its weird Aesop, for example. Some characters don't hold up. I'm looking at you, The Garbage "Wanna-be Eggman" Man. And the mood shifts could be quite jarring (not just how later seasons handled it, earlier seasons had that problem too at times).

But in the end? It's the cartoon I personally adore the most. Does it mean I hate the other two? Hell no.

2. Nick: For a series that takes elements from both previous shows (although it only openly acknowledges FW's influence) there's a lot of expectations to be met here. From both sides, but for different reasons. Has it succeeded? Of course, we can't just say everything yet, however:

On one hand, it helps keep TMNT's experimental spirit alive and even thriving. Loads of pretty unique (okay, a couple not so unique, but still) changes to established characters like IC Kitty and Bishop (who I'm pretty convinced is Mortu, but we'll see on that), some interesting concepts and executions to said concepts (we know that the Earth's probably going to be repaired, but we gotta give Annihilation Earth credit still for pushing a couple limits. Not all of them, but it's a good step.) and also a good balance between serious and lighthearted moments.

On the other, Nick's also been very wonky so far on the details. I agree that the romances have not been handled well, several characters and plot lines (not only Karai, but a lot of Shredder's other henchmen too) have been pushed back too much, and sometimes continuity snarls can make it all a major hassle to figure out.

It's of course harder to compare a still in progress cartoon to two completed (since long ago, 2009's TF - which was 2K3's Grand Finale - was seven years ago soonish). But I'm including it here because a substantial amount has already aired and Nick has progressed from the first episode a lot - three and soon a half season's worth of development. Yes, we still have the Earth-based episodes of Season 4 and the whole Season 5 still in the future (with no confirmed end in sight), but we can look back on what we already have really.

In the end, Nick's not perfect, but I think it's a worthy torch bearer to both FW's and 2K3's respective legacies as cartoons. And an overall solid cartoon on its own. Honestly, it speaks to the strength of the TMNT brand - I can't really think of any other franchise that has had its first three cartoon shows last five seasons or more. Finally I hope that the future holds more great moments for the Nick Turtles and Splinter.

3. FW: Okay, comparing FW to 2K3 and Nick is pretty much impossible. FW started at a time when contained episodes with no real continuity still dominated cartoons (and it had since the 60s. It's worth noting that low budget animation was an important factor from that period because of economic constraints), and when the standard was Transformers, GI Joe etc (even cartoons that hold up better today, such as the Gummi Bears, weren't immune to the industry's pressure at the time). A far cry from the structure and influences that its successors had / have.

Does it mean FW was bad? I don't think so, no. At its best (aka. when the staff cared about an episode and tried) it could build a decent or even good / great narrative and story (Season 1 and 2 as well as Red Sky prove that) and the stand alone episodes of Season 3 and 4 could be laugh riots (I love Cowabunga Shredhead and Casey's first two episodes in particular. Screw that, lets say 87 Casey is best Casey. He's gonna clean up the city.). Not to mention, it had a pretty varied rouges' gallery that was both human and mutant.

My problems with FW start with at its worst, when they obviously phoned in episodes. Season 3 and 4 being humongous compared to Season 1 and 2 would probably be factors here, for example (Transformers G1 had a very similar problem, which resulted in rip off episodes, etc.), but my bigger issue lies with wasted potential (as with 80s animation in general). FW had an iconic voice cast, some decent scripters and a lot of momentum going for itM; so I'm pretty dissapointed in retrospect when there's another episode where Shredder had another "Evil stereotypical cartoon plot / Evil monster of the week" (or worse, kidnaps April. Again.). Yes, it was normal at the time - but in hindsight it does cast a major blot on its overall legacy as an cartoon when, again, FW produced great episodes when they cared. That also pushed characters like Leatherhead and Rat King to the sidelines more that they should - to a worse extent that Nick does. At least Xever gets to do something, even if it's minor. Also, the characters who missed, really really missed. No one wants to remember Agatha Marbles, for example. No one.

Overall though, I fully agree with Matt Pellegrini. You can't have FW's best without its worst, and vice versa. It's a confusing mess of episodes, but that's part of its charm really. And that's probably why I'm fascinated with 80s cartoons. On one hand, they did have a huge pop culture impact and they had a lot going for them. On the other, some episodes were obviously phoned in and they didn't end up breaking that much new ground compared to the impactful cartoons from the 90s and decades since (of course, there's been a lot of crap at all points in cartoon history and now, but still).

I'm ignoring the toy angles, the voice casts etc. because all three cartoons had them really. None would've survived and prospered without toys, and I think all three cartoons had in general great voice acting (Is it bad that my mind shifts between three different voices for each turtle? And Splinter / Shredder?).

04-04-2016, 04:37 AM	#29
Masterpiece Random Punk Join Date: Jan 2016 Location: New Zealand Posts: 36	My Favorite TMNT Version? My favorite TMNT version is the Original Movie from 1990. Always has been. Always will be.

04-05-2016, 10:29 AM	#32
oldmanwinters Overlord Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Between yesterday and tomorrow! Posts: 15,499	My favorite version of TMNT would be to imagine a universe built around the look and logic of the original action figure line. Very hypothetical and open-ended! __________________ Experience the TMNT Fan Commentaries! Check out my TMNT fan comic, "Nothing to Fear"! View my sketch work! I'm selling some of my hard-to-find TMNT items!

04-05-2016, 10:44 AM	#34
ShelleyQuick Foot Soldier Join Date: Sep 2014 Location: Spring Hill, Florida Posts: 134	2k12, I love other versions, but, 2k12 is my favorite. __________________ Just a small town girl in a great big world.

04-05-2016, 11:04 AM	#35
Wesley Mad Scientist Join Date: Oct 2014 Location: Republic of Ireland Posts: 1,597	My favourites are the 2003 Turtles followed by the 1987 ones. I haven't read the comics aside from a few issues of Archie and the uk Tmnt comic and never watched the first film. I watched the second and third films when I was a kid but don't remember much about them. I watched the fourth film a few years ago and thought it was great. Never saw the the most recent one and have no interest in watching it. __________________ Donatello: The tracker! It might work. Donatello goes to the back of the Turtle Van Raphael: Shrewd move, Donatello. If we ignore the problem, it might go away by itself. (from The Mean Machines) Last edited by Wesley; 04-05-2016 at 11:20 AM.

04-05-2016, 11:56 PM	#38
Jephael That whack job behind you Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Carlisle, Pennsylvania Posts: 8,143	It's kinda hard to pick a favorite interpretation, though I've always been very partial to the Archie comics. __________________ "I like it. Simple, but effective!" Raphael; The Mean Machines - 1988

04-03-2016, 05:24 AM	#24
thundermaster612 Mad Scientist Join Date: Nov 2015 Location: Ninjago City Posts: 1,214	There are a lot of turtle versions I like but I have to go with Nick

04-03-2016, 05:44 AM	#25
cookie jar Hench Mutant Join Date: Apr 2014 Posts: 264	Definitely IDW. Then 4kids cartoon.

04-03-2016, 08:26 AM	#28
ssjup81 Foot Elite Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: Central Virginia (Back in the US) Posts: 4,734	Hm, I'd have to say the Archie series. Sucks that it didn't get a proper ending.

04-05-2016, 12:40 AM	#30
~~TMNTInsighter~~ Banned Join Date: Jan 2016 Location: South Carolina Posts: 429	Tie between 4Kids (leaning that way more) and the Nickelodeon version.

04-05-2016, 01:09 PM	#36
LeotheLateBloomer Foot Elite Join Date: Aug 2013 Posts: 3,117	The 2003 show is my favorite version overall. Probably the one version I prefer over Mirage. It's hard for me to say which versions I prefer over the others but in terms of TV, I'll go with the 2003>2012>1987>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Next Mutation.

04-05-2016, 03:03 PM	#37
DarkLightDragon Mad Scientist Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Michigan Posts: 1,026	2k3, then IDW, followed up with Movie 1/2007.

04-07-2016, 09:57 AM	#39
pferreira Foot Elite Join Date: Feb 2010 Posts: 2,514	My favourite version of TMNT is the Fred Wolf cartoon just because I was so impressed with it's combination of sci-fi and action comedy. The best version of TMNT is of course the Mirage Volume 1 comic along with the first movie released in 1990.

04-08-2016, 03:26 PM	#40
SKX31 Random Punk Join Date: Sep 2015 Location: Stockholm Posts: 47	Only spent major time with the TV series, so I'm going into some (heh) detail with them: 1. 2K3: Well, I did not grow up with the show at all (chalk that up to not watching cartoons at the time - it premiered when I was 12) so the nostalgia glasses doesn't exactly apply. Also, I should note: I don't believe that the very tight Mirage connection 2K3 has hurt (or helped) it for the most part. Many cartoons with tight connections to its source material has succeeded and failed for various reasons, so being "true to the source" isn't always a defined factor. What makes it stand out in my mind is that 2K3 doesn't have that many holes in it until the later seasons, and even the later seasons have some positives about them. I'm defining holes here as overall arcs and details that don't mesh well into the whole, with the triumphant example of this being Don's mutation in Season 4. The storytelling is the most consistent out of the three; for the first four seasons, at least. Time will tell if Nick tops 2K3 in the long run. I'm a fan of most of the characters it introduced - not only Hun and Bishop, but also a couple one-shots like "Not-Cthulthu" and Volpehart. And even as it wasn't the best in terms of humor, it made up for it by being able to include other elements without forcing it; I may not like 2K3 Casey that much, but 2K3 Capril is the best cartoon TMNT romance - partly due to how it was paced, and partly due to how it was handled. No question in my very biased mind. Of course, it had a couple of bad episodes - the nuke power plant one is tarnished by its weird Aesop, for example. Some characters don't hold up. I'm looking at you, The Garbage "Wanna-be Eggman" Man. And the mood shifts could be quite jarring (not just how later seasons handled it, earlier seasons had that problem too at times). But in the end? It's the cartoon I personally adore the most. Does it mean I hate the other two? Hell no. 2. Nick: For a series that takes elements from both previous shows (although it only openly acknowledges FW's influence) there's a lot of expectations to be met here. From both sides, but for different reasons. Has it succeeded? Of course, we can't just say everything yet, however: On one hand, it helps keep TMNT's experimental spirit alive and even thriving. Loads of pretty unique (okay, a couple not so unique, but still) changes to established characters like IC Kitty and Bishop (who I'm pretty convinced is Mortu, but we'll see on that), some interesting concepts and executions to said concepts (we know that the Earth's probably going to be repaired, but we gotta give Annihilation Earth credit still for pushing a couple limits. Not all of them, but it's a good step.) and also a good balance between serious and lighthearted moments. On the other, Nick's also been very wonky so far on the details. I agree that the romances have not been handled well, several characters and plot lines (not only Karai, but a lot of Shredder's other henchmen too) have been pushed back too much, and sometimes continuity snarls can make it all a major hassle to figure out. It's of course harder to compare a still in progress cartoon to two completed (since long ago, 2009's TF - which was 2K3's Grand Finale - was seven years ago soonish). But I'm including it here because a substantial amount has already aired and Nick has progressed from the first episode a lot - three and soon a half season's worth of development. Yes, we still have the Earth-based episodes of Season 4 and the whole Season 5 still in the future (with no confirmed end in sight), but we can look back on what we already have really. In the end, Nick's not perfect, but I think it's a worthy torch bearer to both FW's and 2K3's respective legacies as cartoons. And an overall solid cartoon on its own. Honestly, it speaks to the strength of the TMNT brand - I can't really think of any other franchise that has had its first three cartoon shows last five seasons or more. Finally I hope that the future holds more great moments for the Nick Turtles and Splinter. 3. FW: Okay, comparing FW to 2K3 and Nick is pretty much impossible. FW started at a time when contained episodes with no real continuity still dominated cartoons (and it had since the 60s. It's worth noting that low budget animation was an important factor from that period because of economic constraints), and when the standard was Transformers, GI Joe etc (even cartoons that hold up better today, such as the Gummi Bears, weren't immune to the industry's pressure at the time). A far cry from the structure and influences that its successors had / have. Does it mean FW was bad? I don't think so, no. At its best (aka. when the staff cared about an episode and tried) it could build a decent or even good / great narrative and story (Season 1 and 2 as well as Red Sky prove that) and the stand alone episodes of Season 3 and 4 could be laugh riots (I love Cowabunga Shredhead and Casey's first two episodes in particular. Screw that, lets say 87 Casey is best Casey. He's gonna clean up the city.). Not to mention, it had a pretty varied rouges' gallery that was both human and mutant. My problems with FW start with at its worst, when they obviously phoned in episodes. Season 3 and 4 being humongous compared to Season 1 and 2 would probably be factors here, for example (Transformers G1 had a very similar problem, which resulted in rip off episodes, etc.), but my bigger issue lies with wasted potential (as with 80s animation in general). FW had an iconic voice cast, some decent scripters and a lot of momentum going for itM; so I'm pretty dissapointed in retrospect when there's another episode where Shredder had another "Evil stereotypical cartoon plot / Evil monster of the week" (or worse, kidnaps April. Again.). Yes, it was normal at the time - but in hindsight it does cast a major blot on its overall legacy as an cartoon when, again, FW produced great episodes when they cared. That also pushed characters like Leatherhead and Rat King to the sidelines more that they should - to a worse extent that Nick does. At least Xever gets to do something, even if it's minor. Also, the characters who missed, really really missed. No one wants to remember Agatha Marbles, for example. No one. Overall though, I fully agree with Matt Pellegrini. You can't have FW's best without its worst, and vice versa. It's a confusing mess of episodes, but that's part of its charm really. And that's probably why I'm fascinated with 80s cartoons. On one hand, they did have a huge pop culture impact and they had a lot going for them. On the other, some episodes were obviously phoned in and they didn't end up breaking that much new ground compared to the impactful cartoons from the 90s and decades since (of course, there's been a lot of crap at all points in cartoon history and now, but still). I'm ignoring the toy angles, the voice casts etc. because all three cartoons had them really. None would've survived and prospered without toys, and I think all three cartoons had in general great voice acting (Is it bad that my mind shifts between three different voices for each turtle? And Splinter / Shredder?).