The "What could've been" thread.

[Lance_Steele]

This thread is basically about what you would change about the OT. As dear as this series to me I cannot help thinking what I could have changed about it. Like with the removal of Mike's chucks. I understood that certain regions would not go for it(the PAL countries) but I still think it was lame to give him a grappling hook knowing full well all the turtles used them. They could have used Tanfa's(night sticks), a meteor hammers(ball in chain), or even freakin Kali sticks. But noooooo... We get get the stupid grappling hook nicknamed "the turtle line"... LAME! I would have at least had him use the Kali sticks. I think they are badass. Even John freakin Rambo used them once! I wouldn't change much else except maybe changing "Shredder triumphant" from season finale to a series finale. You can tell it could have ended everything right there. It would also retcon the "red sky" seasons in It's entirety. Plus I think it should have ended on season 7.

For the fair people of the Technodrome forums what would you guys change?

[TurtleTitan97]

I'd have the show keep the same animation and tone from the first season of the OT. The fight scenes were awesome in that season. I'd also have Mikey keep his chucks.

[MikeandRaph87]

Lets see..
Top ten are
-Keep the nunchucks.
-Keep the Channel Six News Crew when Dregg came in. Burne could have been the dirving force of Dregg's campaign against the TMNT and then see with the reprecussions and characterization that would result in the aftermath.
-Keep it going after "Divide and Conquer" because Shredder and Krang were thorwn into Dimension X with Dregg so its no reason to say they the greater enemy are done if Dregg comes right back. Have a decisive ending that does not involve Donatello burning microwaved popcorn.
-Give Rat King an origin.
-Remove Tempestra with General Traag in her place in "Night of The Rogues" and replace Zack with Mondo Gecko. Neither belonged in that episode IMHO.
-Razhar and Tokka deserved a second episode as did Beserko. Beserko got overshadowed by The Shredder when he could have been a better lead villain than Dregg especailly with the Krang connection.
-Instead of Landor and Merrick why not Krakus fill their role?
-In "Turtles To The Second Power" I would have perferred the '88-'93 design used to differentiate the two sets and would have looked cooler animation wise.
-Stronger continuity!
-Resolution to the Baxter Stockman the Fly plot.

and a bonus...Scumbug to have gotten an episode to himself.

[Type 97 Chi-ha]

I would have had Leatherhead have more of the Eastman and Laird type of tragic character, rather than the Justin Wilson clone he was.

[Leo656]

Those are all pretty good ideas.

I think most of us, even those who loved the show, are mostly in agreement on where it could have been stronger.

I would have kept the tone and art closer to Season One and had more episodic continuity without abandoning single-episode arcs. Maybe added more characters from the Mirage books to see how they'd be "remixed" into the OT style. Tokkah and Rahzar could have had a lot more episodes. I think as a kid I was hoping they'd add Ninjara from the Archie book, or some of the other characters, that would have been cool to see also.

I think my biggest gripe with the series ending is that it felt like there was a lot more they could still do, but I think by the time it did end everyone agreed the moment had passed.

[Icebot]

There should have been a explanation of when and how April quit her job at Channel 6 to become a freelance reporter, also what ever happened to Bebop and Rocksteady after Turtle Trek.

Definitely Baxter turning back into a human.

I would have had Dregg's microbots repair the Technodrome after Divide and Conquer, that would have been perfect.

[CyberCubed]

Pretty much all the recurring villains and friends deserved a lot more appearances. More Foot and Rock Soldier fights too.

And retconning the Red Sky seasons is utterly moronic. If anything I would have liked to see 52 episodes in that style bringing back old characters after Dregg's defeat.

[the_minimizer]

Have an actual battle between the Technodrome and the military.

In the Big Blowout, the Technodrome was primarily used to steal the power antenna and open the portal to Dimension-X. If Krang returned fire on the military it would have been more dramatic but instead Krang ignored them. His rock soldiers were going to do all the fighting.

Another possibility would be to have the Dreggnaut and Technodrome both come after the turtles.

If Drakus saw the Technodrome in Divide in Conquer, he'd be happy. Or maybe he' be mad that the turtles destroyed it instead of him. I don't know.

[pannoni1]

Since we've had episodes air out of order with regards to the plot (especially with the Season 4/Europe mess), it wouldn't of hurt if there was a "Secret Origins" (Since the name hadn't been coined yet) season, that was a prequel to the series. Such a story could have really given life back into the series if it was done during the Red Sky era so it would provide more episodes to repeat. Also, a retcon would have been a bold concept in animation since it was hardly known at the time. Check this thread out for my ideas:

http://forums.thetechnodrome.com/showthread.php?t=36301

Also, have an episode explaining why Michelangelo doesn't use his nunchucks and why the Turtles suddenly stopped with the pizza when Red Sky came, and also perhaps an episode that shows why Red Sky happened to explain the sudden change. I easily could have envisioned some Dimension X aliens contacting Krang and Shredder on Earth that they need special powers, and that the Red Sky was caused by the Technodrome's beam that caused the sky the change, along with improving the enemies' power.

Finally, I would have liked to see a resolution to the Vacation in Europe arc since they never formally said that the trip was over.

[Logan]

They could've had the Archie comics explain the red sky, what with the main writer being on the environmentalist bandwagon and all.

What I would change... hmm.

Have the Shredder be like he is in "Get Shredder" ALL the time. That is, a credible threat.

Tone down some of the tongue-in-cheek humor and breaking the fourth wall. I find it off-putting when a show continuously makes reference to the fact that it's a show. As a kid, it kept me from immersing myself in the fictional world of the Turtles.

Make weapons and actual fighting more common again. Keep the slapstick to an absolute minimum.

Bring back the Triceratons! Also Casey Jones, because he's hilarious in the OT. And Creepy Eddie. (Just kidding)

[ZariusTwo]

Originally Posted by Lance_Steele

It would also retcon the "red sky" seasons in It's entirety. Plus I think it should have ended on season 7.

Oh that's sensible, end season 7 on an ominous note with Splinter saying Shredder and Krang will be back soon and then not follow up on it.

Get past your cliched fear of change and realize the red sky seasons were pretty decent overall.

[Jephael]

About 5 years ago I made a YouTube video about what I would've changed with the classic series.

PART 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mbzqTJwB7yQ

PART 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vv0MX5g4F6I

[MikeandRaph87]

Originally Posted by ZariusTwo

Oh that's sensible, end season 7 on an ominous note with Splinter saying Shredder and Krang will be back soon and then not follow up on it.

Get past your cliched fear of change and realize the red sky seasons were pretty decent overall.

Splinter said that same thing at season 8's end. It made the viewer anicipate more from Shredder and Krang the following Fall,but instead Dregg showed up.

[MrPliggins]

It would have been cool to learn more about Krang's backstory, how Shredder and he met, and get a resolution for Usagi. I felt bad for him, forever stranded in a strange world where he doesn't belong.

[Killer Moth]

First off, no, we shouldn't give Rat King any origin -- we learned the hard way with the Mirage version, haven't we?* Heh. Although, I will admit the 2003 version was decent in its scope.

Actually, the syndicated season finales do work as good series finales (especially "Big Blow Out," which does explain the asteroid retcon in "Plan 6 From Outer Space"). But I'm with Zarius, as much I liked Shredder Triumphant, the Red Sky episodes were quite decent.

As for "wish-lists,"

-Baxter having an ending or not treated so shabbily is a given.
-The Technodrome, as per that Cracked article everyone loves, shouldn't have to deal with all those power issues (cheap plot-point it may be). C'mon, it was always awesome to see the Technodrome doing stuff, to borrow from Invader Zim.
-Origin episodes or proper introduction episodes for Scumbug and Antrax.
-Devote a single episode to Chrome Dome, for a second re-match. He had two appearances, but really could have used a third. (Not to mention for fun, have him encounter Alpha-1 and inspire him to take on Shredder/Krang. The two Foot Soldier robot leaders together in an episode, we'd watch.)
-Use Scale Tail, Scratch and others from the original toy line (yes, including Pizza Face).
-Karai to be in Red Sky, if only to carry on the Foot Clan arc. And/or, having the actual Foot Clan address and deal with Shredder's time as leader.
-Dealing with Red Sky, bring back Krakus, Bezerko and Col. Winter.
-Reformat H.A.V.O.C. with past evil mutants we know (hi, Leatherhead and Slash). Or, at least, bring back the other mutants from Season 1 (you know you want to see Lizard-Mohawk in action).

Man, I could do this all day. Heh.

*As for exploring Krang and Shredder's backstory, it reminds of the famous Noodle Incident from Calvin and Hobbes. Watterson decided not to explain, as the fans' explorations were sure to be more humorous (plus dashing high expectations of what could it be vs. the reality). I personally would love it, yet because of the Noodle Incident principle, it probably was for the best not to explore the matter. Let the fans figure out for themselves. What I'm curious is that did Wise, Wolf or anyone considered this principle when devising the Shredder/Krang relationship, or they had planned to address the origin in later seasons, but never got around to it. Or, they just never bothered or didn't care, which is also quite possible.

Edit: Also, introduce Slash in Red Sky, instead. Chances are his action figure design probably have made it or close enough, in light of the newer darker, angular designs. Vs. when he actually first appeared, as that badass design would have really stuck out during that point of the series' life and its even more kid-friendly tone. If nothing else, it would explain why the animators did what they did with him, instead going with a straighter figure-to-animation transition, as done with Scumbug, Chrome Dome, Antrax and so on.

[Lance_Steele]

Originally Posted by ZariusTwo

Oh that's sensible, end season 7 on an ominous note with Splinter saying Shredder and Krang will be back soon and then not follow up on it.

Get past your cliched fear of change and realize the red sky seasons were pretty decent overall.

No I am not afraid of change. I just think if anything change the tone sooner than later. Like if the red sky seasons were on season 4 or so. It felt like they changed too late. Like when MC Hammer tried being gangsta. I just felt it was on too long. Ten years is a long time for a cartoon.

Also I did not like the red sky series much because i think it kinda suck. I still watched it but by then I was beginning to become a teenager so my interests changed a little. I watched and liked the '03 series because it was different.

But if I did go with the red sky seasons I would say they should have had a resolution for Krang and shredder. And the "popcorn incident" should never have been the ending. It was lame.