TMNT Season 3 Best Episode Tournament Round 2: Match 8 + Tiebreaker

[JTH]

ROUND 2

Well, for a while it looked like we would be down to our final match of Round 2, but now we have 2 matches to settle before the second round comes to a close.

This will be both the 3 vs. 14 origionally scheduled match, along with the tiebreaker for the 6 vs. 11 match.

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Round 2 Polls will last 5 days and will be private polls. This case will be a multiple choice poll where you can select two episodes for both matchups, but of course you can still discuss who you voted for and your reasoning why.

Note: All Round 2 Matches will begin on Tuesdays. Going to keep it uniform, so always be tuned in this time each Tuesday.

To check out the complete up to date bracket, the link is here:
http://www.bracketmaker.com/tmenu.cf...Best%20Episode

Now with that said and done, it's time to take a look at the rare "Tales of the Turtle Tape"!

Official Seed: #3
Where JTH seeded this episode: #1
Total Points Received: 137
Official IGN Review: 8.9/10
Current TV.com Rating: 9.6/10
Highest Rating Episode Received: #1 (ME)
How did it get here?: Recieved Bye

Official Seed: #14
Where JTH seeded this episode: #22
Total Points Received: 21
Official IGN Review: 8.3/10
Current TV.com Rating: 8.8/10
Highest Rating Episode Received: #2 (TurtleTron)
How did it get here?: Defeated The Croaking in Round 1

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Official Seed: #6
Where JTH seeded this episode: #7
Total Points Received: 85
Official IGN Review: 8.8/10
Current TV.com Rating: 9.8/10
Highest Rating Episode Received: #4 (cookie jar)
How did it get here?: Recieved Bye

Official Seed: #11
Where JTH seeded this episode: #21
Total Points Received: 40
Official IGN Review: 8.6/10
Current TV.com Rating: 9.4/10
Highest Rating Episode Received: #2 (GoldMutant)
How did it get here?: Defeated Race with The Demon in Round 1

Winners face each other in Round 3


Which episodes win in your mind, vote away. Remember...HAVE FUN!!!

[GoldMutant]

Quoting once more the previous poll again:

Originally Posted by GoldMutant

I'm going to have to be honest on Battle for New York, it's entirely a missed potential hour long special, moreso than Showdown back in season 1; it's quite possibly the weakest of all the specials thus far and pales in comparison to Annihilation Earth! later in the season.

So on paper, there's some very good potential ideas, among the most noticeable is the introduction to the Mighty Mutanimals for the first time on television, consisting of Slash, Dr. Tyler Rockwell (who has Tom Kenny voicing him now), the now alive Leatherhead and Pigeon Pete. In addition, we get the return to form of concluding the Krang arc, tensions with Leo and Slash, the raid in Dimension X, etc. I won't deny the story it wants to tell, but there are several glaring issues in this episode.

For starters, it's the Mutanimals themselves. Barring the recent comic book origin to tie strings together, what exactly causes them to join forces in the show alone? By this point, Slash and Leatherhead went MIA with the former going wherever after season 2 and LH presumed dead in The Invasion. As for Rockwell and Pete, they feel randomly thrown and beyond brief dialogue explaining the joining under Kurtzman, there's no clue on how these guys formed especially with how they ended up where they are. Furthermore, why is it Leo is the only Turtle to despise Slash; shouldn't Mikey and Donnie have animosity towards Slash after being nearly beaten to death, especially Don? The characters aren't exactly clear in continuity interaction wise; without references to the Kraang back in season 2 Metalhead Rewired and The Invasion it entirely feels like a mashup outside putting LH and Slash in due to being on the Mutanimals in the past.

Outside the main plot, why did Mikey screw with the retromutagen; though later proven in Creeping Doom with his memory, it feels too much like a deus ex at this point. I can't tolerate Mikey's character changing on a weekly basis in the show, and though a great moment it's also one of the worst. Outside no sense of the mutagen set from the previous episode with Karai, Bebop and Rocksteady, why did Mikey think this was a good idea? I thought Michelangelo was a caring individual towards all and would want to save New York, not endanger all citizens from his idiocy.

Of all the main problems with this episode though, I personally feel is there was no buildup to set this event in stone and the rushed story doomed this episode. Beyond Buried Secrets with the Kraang and brief appearances in Serpent Hunt and Return to New York, it feels like the entire "New York in peril" plot established vanished. A little more time should have been given to set up the stakes, whether it be a Mighty Mutanimals origin or a "meanwhile in NY..... setting." Lastly, considering this is an hour long special, this felt especially rushed, which compared to a simple 30 minute episode makes no sense. Without any sort of idea of what happens outside the basics of "Save the city", Battle for New York feels like a rushed production relying on fans to watch from the beginning to get any involvement, ultimately undermining the entire drive of plot.

I won't undermine the positives though. After all, who doesn't love Gilbert Gottfried appearing? The scenery of Dimension X is just as crisp from season 2 and the epicness is where it succeeds with suspense in conflict. However, it doesn't make up for a lack of substance nor buildup which this needed; as a result it feels the entire story rushed. If it were a 30 minute episode I understand, but not an hour long arc.

I know people might be curious why I put Casey Jones vs the Underworld as my second favorite episode of the season; beyond it being a personal favorite, I nearly feel it contributes more to the story over the hour long episode before it. As the Kraang had almost no influence on the season outside the Triceratons at the very end and me being a sucker for gang war, Shredder's more of the primary focus with Karai and eventually the mind control arc, even with that arc of mixed reception at best.

Where I feel this episode succeeds is in addition to continuation, giving Casey some limelight and the introduction of Bruce L...... I mean Hun (), the biggest strength is it setting up future events. It might not be on an epic scale, but it does play a little low with raising the stakes for future exploration down the line; the dynamic of Casey and Raph also gets a little more usage sorely lacking. Finally, who doesn't love references to the 1990 live action movie ("The class is pain 101, your instructor is Casey Jones."). I guess what I'm saying is the episode's handling playing up Casey as over his head, but succeeds as the rogue vigilante he's known for in the franchise. Ultimately, it handles itself quite well on previous characters with motive and characterization, something Battle sorely lacked.

Then again, the episode is still flawed. Common complaints often stem from the animation of Shredder riding a motorcycle in addition to Casey being extremely over the line. Now the motorcycle I will admit is silly on Shredder (you want a limo instead? ) but Casey has proven to handle himself; he might not be a skilled warrior like the Turtles or April, but he does show a strategy side. He didn't entirely win as he merely got a surprise attack against Shredder, a cheap shot against Tiger Claw and merely beating Rahzar and Xever in a simple hit.

Granted though, Casey fighting underhand does offer the possibility of his own style; if he defeated Shredder then yes that's Gary Stu type writing, nearly in an identical manner to April's powers. However, the surprise shot does offer Casey playing wise something that yet to have been utilized due to the continuous triangle he's often involved in for the show and very rarely gets to shine. Simply put, he'd get his butt kicked still but like Batman, Casey planned because he knew he was screwed (until the Turtles arrived).

Tl; dr: The glaring aspects in Battle for New York plot wise and from a lack of build up make it a severe disappointment among the hour long episodes compared to the surprises from Casey vs the Underworld. Due to this, I place my vote towards the latter.

Now then, on to our current line up. (if I run out of space, I'll continue in another box)

Meet Mondo Gecko I can't say is a bad episode, but it's in no way good either. The only purpose was introducing the new version of Mondo Gecko, voiced by previous Michelangelo voice actor Robbie Rist. Even then, it doesn't contribute much to the plot outside giving Xever something to do after being the laughingstock of episodes for a longtime. Even then, the role was poorly handled for a number of reasons.

The primary issue of the episode is it's randomly thrown in with plot; besides connecting to season 2 with The Mutation Situation, the plot is extremely contrived. If Xever had this business, he easily could have utilized it against the Turtles for nearly an entire season. In addition, why are all these mutants here besides saying "Nobody dies LOL!"? It's overall a very lackluster episode with the saving grace of another returning TMNT star. Then again it has some ups.

The best thing about the episode was easily the race itself. While extremely cartoonish and over the top, it was a very entertaining spectacle to watch. In addition, there are homages to classic eras such as the beat of We Will Rock You by Queen and Mikey yodeling like Tarzan is a plus in my book. However, while entertaining it comes at the cost of a previous episode and while fun shouldn't come off a dark, yet lackluster episode.

Then we get to Return to New York, a return to the norm with plot relevance and references to the Escape to New York movie itself in music and style. Quite the adventure to reestablish the broken down New York City from the Kraang infestation. Throw in the Elite Shredder from the Mirage Comics and 2003 series and you got a shell of a journey. The concepts are quite good for the episode and while I also throw a vote to it, I feel there are several problems with the episode that make it extremely rushed.

The major issue of this episode is it's plot with Splinter; ever since the takeover, Splinter is transformed into a savage rat without any sort of comprehension of the world. (poor Casey though. ) This is what I feel is the episode's biggest flaw, it heavily rushes the story of the return, showing Shredder the Turtles live, and Splinter back in the group. I'm sorry to say, but even with the potential it's quite rushed. With the amount of time of references in Northampton, I'd expect more of a subtle time handling the episode.

Instead of it though, we have an extremely rushed episode to get back to norm; despite the action present, the deus ex writing involving Splinter's return through April is a serious cop out. Combine that in with extremely rushed narratives and ultimately Return is far from a great episode. It's heavily flawed compared to Meet Mondo Gecko in terms of story telling with rushed developments.

All that said, I still vote Casey vs the Underworld again just like last time, my stance on it hasn't changed. And even though Mondo is filler and I have less of an issue with it, I'm going with Return in terms of plot, even if poorly done overall.

[GoldMutant]

Bumping thread up for the heck of it.

[JTH]

Bumping up this.

Less than 12 hours to vote and another tie in the tiebreaker, will someone help one of the two win?

[Aaronardo]

I'm kinda astonished Battle for New York is winning this tiebreaker. It was lame enough as a standalone episode, but this was only amplified by being an hour-long special. That episode just pales so much in comparison to other hour-long specials in this show. I'd go more in detail with that if GoldMutant didn't already explain it so well.

[Ninturtle]

Originally Posted by Aaronardo

I'm kinda astonished Battle for New York is winning this tiebreaker. It was lame enough as a standalone episode, but this was only amplified by being an hour-long special. That episode just pales so much in comparison to other hour-long specials in this show. I'd go more in detail with that if GoldMutant didn't already explain it so well.

It's Return to New York not Battle for New York.

[Ninturtle]

Originally Posted by GoldMutant

Quoting once more the previous poll again:


Now then, on to our current line up. (if I run out of space, I'll continue in another box)

Meet Mondo Gecko I can't say is a bad episode, but it's in no way good either. The only purpose was introducing the new version of Mondo Gecko, voiced by previous Michelangelo voice actor Robbie Rist. Even then, it doesn't contribute much to the plot outside giving Xever something to do after being the laughingstock of episodes for a longtime. Even then, the role was poorly handled for a number of reasons.

The primary issue of the episode is it's randomly thrown in with plot; besides connecting to season 2 with The Mutation Situation, the plot is extremely contrived. If Xever had this business, he easily could have utilized it against the Turtles for nearly an entire season. In addition, why are all these mutants here besides saying "Nobody dies LOL!"? It's overall a very lackluster episode with the saving grace of another returning TMNT star. Then again it has some ups.

The best thing about the episode was easily the race itself. While extremely cartoonish and over the top, it was a very entertaining spectacle to watch. In addition, there are homages to classic eras such as the beat of We Will Rock You by Queen and Mikey yodeling like Tarzan is a plus in my book. However, while entertaining it comes at the cost of a previous episode and while fun shouldn't come off a dark, yet lackluster episode.

Then we get to Return to New York, a return to the norm with plot relevance and references to the Escape to New York movie itself in music and style. Quite the adventure to reestablish the broken down New York City from the Kraang infestation. Throw in the Elite Shredder from the Mirage Comics and 2003 series and you got a shell of a journey. The concepts are quite good for the episode and while I also throw a vote to it, I feel there are several problems with the episode that make it extremely rushed.

The major issue of this episode is it's plot with Splinter; ever since the takeover, Splinter is transformed into a savage rat without any sort of comprehension of the world. (poor Casey though. ) This is what I feel is the episode's biggest flaw, it heavily rushes the story of the return, showing Shredder the Turtles live, and Splinter back in the group. I'm sorry to say, but even with the potential it's quite rushed. With the amount of time of references in Northampton, I'd expect more of a subtle time handling the episode.

Instead of it though, we have an extremely rushed episode to get back to norm; despite the action present, the deus ex writing involving Splinter's return through April is a serious cop out. Combine that in with extremely rushed narratives and ultimately Return is far from a great episode. It's heavily flawed compared to Meet Mondo Gecko in terms of story telling with rushed developments.

All that said, I still vote Casey vs the Underworld again just like last time, my stance on it hasn't changed. And even though Mondo is filler and I have less of an issue with it, I'm going with Return in terms of plot, even if poorly done overall.

I don't really get how the story in RTNY was rushed , Returning to New York, checking the lair, finding Splinter, and checking Shredders lair isn't something that needs to have a lot of time focused on. And April calming Splinter down made sense I mean she's been able to do that with Rockwell and it's even brought up now with Fugitoid. When ever someone loses control over themselves April usually helps them so it's not just a one and done ability given for plot convenience.

[GoldMutant]

Originally Posted by Ninturtle

It's Return to New York not Battle for New York.

He's referring to the tiebreaker between Casey Jones vs the Underworld and Battle for New York, not Return to New York facing Meet Mondo Gecko which has an obvious result. The tiebreaker is what Aaron meant.

[Ninturtle]

[QUOTE=GoldMutant;1533444]He's referring to the tiebreaker between Casey Jones vs the Underworld and Battle for New York, not Return to New York facing Meet Mondo Gecko which has an obvious result. The tiebreaker is what Aaron meant.[/QUOTEI realized that after I posted , I thought I deleted that comment.

[GoldMutant]

Originally Posted by Ninturtle

I don't really get how the story in RTNY was rushed , Returning to New York, checking the lair, finding Splinter, and checking Shredders lair isn't something that needs to have a lot of time focused on. And April calming Splinter down made sense I mean she's been able to do that with Rockwell and it's even brought up now with Fugitoid. When ever someone loses control over themselves April usually helps them so it's not just a one and done ability given for plot convenience.

(I'm aware of what happened no worries)

I judge the episodes overall on season on what happens, only references to previous seasons when needed otherwise it's a standalone judgement. The problem of the episode is Splinter. Just like last time when I brought up the Mutanimals' origin, it's severely rushed. That's the whole problem with the episode, it condenses everything too far without anytime to play out the events in question.

Splinter being feral we rarely ever see minus mind control, so there's plenty of opportunity for conflict. Instead, we see it for a moment after returning to the lair briefly with a rescue planned before the raid on Shredder happens where April uses her powers and then episode ends practically. See, I summarized what happens in the whole episode major event wise in one sentence. That's my problem, if Northampton didn't slow the pacing too badly, I can see the episode having more and even see it as two parts.

When compared to previous incarnations, the return plays up nicely with suspense on overcoming the odds, determination and all the heroic words to describe the end of the Foot. (or a dent in 4Kids) None of these events have anytime to play out with the concepts they introduce, such as the aforementioned "Savage Splinter," the Elite Shredder, etc. That's my gripe; then a cop out with April's powers hurt the episode even further just to return back to the norm instead of all the drama that can occur.

Even though I favor Return on a story structure, it has severe pacing issues alongside season 3, and is personally one of the absolute worse in pacing of the season.

Battle I already said my feelings on, it's heavily rushed and plays up cliches further and does nothing to add appeal to the story. Even with older elements in and newer concepts introduced, it doesn't give a feeling at all for what's occurred in New York at all. We know nothing of the Mighty Mutanimals barring the recent comic for Nick, Mikey's idiocy nearly doomed NYC, each Turtle sans Leo possess no grudge to Slash, etc. It's not a good special in the slightest and is the worst episode of the season pacing wise, especially for being a midseason finale.