New CGI movie

[JonesyKitty]

My son is seven and he likes it a bit. He enjoys select episodes of the 2012 Nick show and the Half Shell Heroes animated film (but I think that's strictly because of the dinosaurs). He refused to watch the Rise show after we rented a dvd from the library. He watched about 2 mins and was done.

Recently he pulled out his Nick Turtle figures and played with them for a day or two but that was only because I had moved my Neca figures out of the bedroom and into the Ikea cabinet in our living room. I popped in one of the Old Toon dvds and he went right back in his room. Only had an interest in it because I was making stuff for a display diorama and he wanted me to make some things for his Jurassic Park toys (the turtles and April were filling in for the missing JP workers).

I think his turtle phase lasted maybe a year and he was pretty little. We bought tons of nick stuff and it all basically got tossed to the side and went to goodwill or ebay. The only remaining stuff is the Wave 1 characters and my old Party Wagon. They are only pulled out to use as substitutes for missing characters from other toy lines or when I mess around with my displays.

I think the brand is kind of dead to kids. The only other kids I know were only briefly into the toys because they were hand-me-downs. Never something they got into themselves.

[Wildcat]

Nostalgia effects everyone. Theres people who grew up in the 50s/60s and collect stuff from that era and so on. It happens to all generations.

Im positive adults thought the exact same thing about us 80s/90s kids...we did not appreciate anything and were spoiled by tv and video games. That was like the theme of certain things too. We were supposedly the wild generation that showed no respect - kids today do not know how good they have it.

Its funny, now we are suddenly the generation that knew the importance of movies, toys and honoring what came before?

The 80s/90s are extremely glorified and romanticized as the golden age of all things. You can literally see it on forums and YouTube and it will keep going with kids from the 2000s, 10s, 20s etc. This has been proven by every decade in modern times.

Ooh you kids and your newfangled Internet Pads...back in my day if you wanted to play a portable game you needed a hundred AA batteries and a lamp. What if I told you Nintendo did not always light the screen?

[Leo656]

It's so weird, isn't it?

Our generation cared SO much, and still do, clearly. Some of us lost touch with it, or weave in and out of it, but it's safe to say most of us Right Here Right Now obviously never let go of it.

Is it generational? Something in the water? Is the essential concept a lot dumber than we ever thought it was or want to admit? Some combination of all that, or something else entirely?

It's just so weird. I mean, I have my own theories - I tend to lean into it being Our Generation just in general, because there's plenty of other things from that era like He-Man and Ghostbusters that also have passionate fans of a certain age but don't translate well or at all to anyone who wasn't there. I also don't want to write off any or all of those brands as just being too silly or one-dimensional to properly exist outside of their era of origin, although many have made that case, but I don't agree with it.

So all I can figure is, there's something about our collective generation that allowed us to form a much deeper and meaningful personal connection to the things we entertained ourselves with, in ways that generations before and after simply don't. I think it kinda started with Star Wars, but I'm not sure where it ended. But that whole generation of people who are 35-45 now just seems to care a lot more about pop culture stuff as more than just "entertainment".

It's weird.

[newfan]

Not sure about other people's children but it's not the case for my son, he has totally loved TMNT for about 4 years now, he has other interests and he doesn't watch the eps as much as when he found it but they have remained the favourite with Leo being his number one character. One day I will be stuck with a lot of merch/figs to rehome unless this turns out to be a life long thing but I can say it wasn't a waste of money.
So, unless the new movie looks terrible to both of us I will be going to see it.

[Wildcat]

Leo656,

No my point was that every generation DOES care about the stuff they grew up on. Not just us. Most of the things Im into originated in the 80s/90s but I can honestly say I never fell into the mindset that that was the golden age of entertainment like a lot of people do.

You would think I would but Ive always viewed it as...this stuff happen to come out and become popular while I was a kid so naturally I gravitated towards it and some things are just appealing no matter when. Its not because I think they came out during a special time period.

I know Im in the minority with that point of view. At least within my age range.

It may seem kids move from thing to thing and forget previous interests but thats because theyre kids and sometimes its not til youre a bit older that you start to revisit stuff. Then theres certain things you never really put aside even if it seems that way to others.

[AquaParade]

TMNT is like the only modern comic book property that isn't going for teens and adults in a big way. It's pretty messed up.

That said, in the grand scheme of things, Nickelodeon really hasn't owned the franchise that long. These are big, lumbering projects, and I don't mind cutting them a bit of slack as they find their feet with this multi-million dollar franchise. It doesn't mean I'm eating what they are serving, but the "wait and see" approach remains on the table. It helps that they are at least serving delicious appetizers like "TLR", or experimental ones like "Batman vs TMNT".

I think now that Nick has had a few ups & downs, between the success of 2k12 and the crash and burn of the PD films, and apparently "Rise...", they now have a better grasp of what works and what doesn't. And going by that evidence, you have to imagine they will be inclined to take things in a more traditional route, as trying to re-invent the franchise has not been successful for them.

Now, I imagine their idea of traditional to be a mix of the comics and classic cartoon. Something between 2k12 and the 1990 film, possibly. It has to come down to more than just "Fred Wolf" in their minds, because the second PD film's DNA was essentially a mix of Michael bay and the classic toon - an ingredient that couldn't save them.

[Welmanshire]

Originally Posted by AquaParade

That said, in the grand scheme of things, Nickelodeon really hasn't owned the franchise that long. These are big, lumbering projects, and I don't mind cutting them a bit of slack as they find their feet with this multi-million dollar franchise. It doesn't mean I'm eating what they are serving, but the "wait and see" approach remains on the table. It helps that they are at least serving delicious appetizers like "TLR", or experimental ones like "Batman vs TMNT".

I think now that Nick has had a few ups & downs, between the success of 2k12 and the crash and burn of the PD films, and apparently "Rise...", they now have a better grasp of what works and what doesn't. And going by that evidence, you have to imagine they will be inclined to take things in a more traditional route, as trying to re-invent the franchise has not been successful for them.

Nickelodeon have had the turtles for 11 years now, which is over 1/4 of the franchises lifespan. I think if Nick were going to try the traditional route they would have done it by now. I could be wrong though.

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

Originally Posted by Welmanshire

Nickelodeon have had the turtles for 11 years now, which is over 1/4 of the franchises lifespan. I think if Nick were going to try the traditional route they would have done it by now. I could be wrong though.

This. They've had the franchise for a long damn time. Two failed films, some direct to DVD stuff, one successful show that kinda meandered and drifted after a few seasons, and then... whatever the fvck Rise is.

Not to mention the IDW comics, the Mirage reprints, the Last Ronin, and the Image conclusion.

[IndigoErth]

Originally Posted by Leo656

Is it generational? Something in the water? Is the essential concept a lot dumber than we ever thought it was or want to admit? Some combination of all that, or something else entirely?

It's just so weird. I mean, I have my own theories - I tend to lean into it being Our Generation just in general, because there's plenty of other things from that era like He-Man and Ghostbusters that also have passionate fans of a certain age but don't translate well or at all to anyone who wasn't there. I also don't want to write off any or all of those brands as just being too silly or one-dimensional to properly exist outside of their era of origin, although many have made that case, but I don't agree with it.

Imo, a lot of it has to do with kids just having WAAAY more aimed at them now and vying for their attention than we did. I remember when Nick was our only dedicated kids channel, and back then that still wasn't even full time. And now kids have how many channels, kid friendly (or sections of) streaming serivces, apps, websites, games, etc?? (If kids have a harder time learning to focus, well no wonder!)

Sad to say, but to an extent the era of longtime, or even lifelong, passionate fandom may be sort of over, replaced with passing interests and fads before the next flashy thing comes along for ten min. With fewer options it was probably just easier for us to actually become more attached to the things we loved and feel invested in them, rather than it just being the most interesting thing at present to entertain us. At least properties like the TMNT have an older fanbase in place to secure it has a longtime thing to take an interest in and continue being worthy of attention and more media.

[AquaParade]

Originally Posted by Welmanshire

Nickelodeon have had the turtles for 11 years now, which is over 1/4 of the franchises lifespan. I think if Nick were going to try the traditional route they would have done it by now. I could be wrong though.

I thought 2k12 was “traditional” compared to something like Rise or the PD films.
Obviously the Mirage comics are where the roots lie, but in terms of franchise recognition, I think they will revert back to something more traditional with this next film.

One could argue the BvS interpretation was along these lines as well.

[AquaParade]

Originally Posted by CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy

This. They've had the franchise for a long damn time. Two failed films, some direct to DVD stuff, one successful show that kinda meandered and drifted after a few seasons, and then... whatever the fvck Rise is.

Not to mention the IDW comics, the Mirage reprints, the Last Ronin, and the Image conclusion.

The Mirage reprints wouldn?t fall under the ?traditional? category?

Or maybe I lost track of your point.

[NinjaPug]

Little bit of info from Rogen:

?As a lifelong fan of Ninja Turtles, weirdly the ?Teenage? part of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was always the part that stuck out to me the most. And as someone who loves teenage movies, and who?s made a lot of teenage movies, and who literally got their start in their entire profession by writing a teenage movie, the idea of kind of honing in on that element was really exciting to us. I mean, not disregarding the rest, but really using that as kind of a jumping off point for the film.?

https://collider.com/seth-rogen-teen...eboot-details/

[AquaParade]

Thanks for posting that.

The teenage aspect is important, but I'm also glad he made a note to clarify that the other elements matter too. He wasn't prompted to say that, he made a point of it. Interesting to me.

The positive thing about this is Seth Rogen does know how to write *real* teenagers, the like of which we actually haven't really seen in TMNT. I'm not sure that they will actually go that route with Nick being in charge, but I think it could bring a sense of realism, and therefore heightened drama. Just make sure to give the Foot Clan a sense of dread.

Really, the biggest red flag for me right now is the director, unless Seth is planning to be as hands on in that aspect as he seems to be in the writing. Nothing against "Jeff Rowe" other than the fact that he is relatively unproven. Seems like he comes from a television show called "Gravity Falls". He could be perfect for the job, just don't expect me to have faith in him based on that, relative to who other studios are hiring to direct their comic book properties.

[Andrew NDB]

Originally Posted by AquaParade

The positive thing about this is Seth Rogen does know how to write *real* teenagers, the like of which we actually haven't really seen in TMNT.

Which, again, if we're talking about the TMNT, they really shouldn't be anything remotely like (normal human teenagers). So that's less of a "positive" thing and just a thing.

[80gmrp]

Originally Posted by AquaParade

Really, the biggest red flag for me right now is the director, unless Seth is planning to be as hands on in that aspect as he seems to be in the writing. Nothing against "Jeff Rowe" other than the fact that he is relatively unproven. Seems like he comes from a television show called "Gravity Falls". He could be perfect for the job, just don't expect me to have faith in him based on that, relative to who other studios are hiring to direct their comic book properties.

Well, in all fairness, speaking as someone who has seen a bit of Gravity Falls, it wasn’t 100% kiddy. While not as edgy as Invader Zim, it did have some similar themes thanks to the paranormal context of the main story, even going as far as openly referencing the Illuminati. That in mind, we could’ve ended up with a much more iffy director choice.

[IndigoErth]

We've had some attempts to make them act like "real teenagers," and generally it's come down to stupid stereotypes. That at this point end up out of character in some cases.

I'm ready for my normal-acting "teen in name only" Turtles back. Hell, I've long been ready for try to other direction and drop the "teen" part from the title for a bit.


But Rogen supposedly meant the TMNT when he mentioned "kids animation" in that podcast or whatever it was. *sigh*

[AquaParade]

Originally Posted by Andrew NDB

Which, again, if we're talking about the TMNT, they really shouldn't be anything remotely like (normal human teenagers). So that's less of a "positive" thing and just a thing.

They shouldn't be exactly like human teenagers, sure, but at the same time, they've always had humanistic and teenage traits. Raphael being a hothead in his first micro-issue, all the goofing around that you see in the Mirage short stories, etc. Those were all aspects of being a teenager, in the way they showed either a lack of maturity or highlighted their playfulness.
And they are clearly learning something or other from humans or they wouldn't speak english and have a home decorated full of human-like comforts and entertainment.

It can be easy to get caught up in semantics, but I don't mind seeing them as teenagers if it means they occasionally show a lack of judgement, or naivety, lack of control, or an eagerness to experiment and engage with the outside world. Or maybe it allows them to just screw up and use poor judgement.
I don't think them acting as teenagers means they need to be caricatures or just plain stupid. Although there is a good chance we get that.

Originally Posted by 80gmrp

Well, in all fairness, speaking as someone who has seen a bit of Gravity Falls, it wasn’t 100% kiddy. While not as edgy as Invader Zim, it did have some similar themes thanks to the paranormal context of the main story, even going as far as openly referencing the Illuminati. That in mind, we could’ve ended up with a much more iffy director choice.

I've never seen it so it's cool to get your perspective.

[Galactus]

Way to say all the wrong things, Seth. Off to a great start.

[ssjup81]

Originally Posted by IndigoErth

We've had some attempts to make them act like "real teenagers," and generally it's come down to stupid stereotypes. That at this point end up out of character in some cases.

I'm ready for my normal-acting "teen in name only" Turtles back. Hell, I've long been ready for try to other direction and drop the "teen" part from the title for a bit.


But Rogen supposedly meant the TMNT when he mentioned "kids animation" in that podcast or whatever it was. *sigh*

You know, I like how they were portrayed in the 2012 series. They were pretty teen like there in some ways. They came across as naive at times since they had been hiding out underground for so long and a bit awkward. So in that regard I feel they were portrayed okay there.

[80gmrp]

Originally Posted by ssjup81

You know, I like how they were portrayed in the 2012 series. They were pretty teen like there in some ways. They came across as naive at times since they had been hiding out underground for so long and a bit awkward. So in that regard I feel they were portrayed okay there.

You raise a good point. As much as I needed time for all the family bickering to grow on me, I can't say that isn't inacurrate to what I've both been and experienced when it comes to teenagers. Still, the fact that the Collider article mentions looking forward to lack of grit is worrisome for me, speaking as someone who prefers both that and deep stories...