Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Difference between revisions

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''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'' (or [[TMNT]]) began as a comic book by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird, who formed the idea from a napkin drawing one of them made while eating at a pizzeria. The first story began as a tale in the vein of [[Frank Miller]]'s ''[[Daredevil]]'', with the four titular ninja battling the Shredder to avenge the murder of Master Splinter's master, Hamato Yoshi. After a fierce battle, they successfully kill him. A surprise hit (often attributed to the unique name), the series continued with applying a [[Fantasy Kitchen Sink]] motif: with time travel, robots, and aliens introduced within the first ten issues. Despite their inauspicious beginnings, the series became so popular that an action figure deal was struck, which then snowballed into an animated series, movies, and every type of merchandise under the sun, turning it into one of the biggest [[Cash Cow Franchise|cash cow franchises]] of the mid-eighties/early nineties.

 

 

* '''''[[Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures]]''''' (1988/1989-1995): Midway through its run, the original cartoon spawned its own comic book, published by Archie Comics. While it initially limited itself to adapting some of the cartoon stories, it eventually evolved into something as different from the cartoon as the cartoon was from the original comic book. This incarnation of the turtles is generally regarded favorably, with a notable contingent of fans clamoring for inclusion of its characters into future incarnations.

* '''[[Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (film)|The movies]]''': Debuting in 1990, the first movie combined events from the comic book with the cartoon's humor. It went on to be extremely popular, breaking records for an independent film and even though reviews weren't glowing, praise was given to the [[Jim Henson]] Shop for the costumes. The resulting two sequels cost more and made less, started to fall into self-parody and ended the series. More than a decade later, the TMNT movie franchise was revived with the 2007 release of the fully-CGI ''TMNT''. Made as a [[Broad Strokes|tenuous continuation]] of the original movies, it received respectable reviews for the animation and character storylines, but was criticized for the main plot mysticism. ''Another'' reboot of the TMNT film franchise was released on 2014, with [[Michael Bay]]'s Platinum Dunes serving as the production company.

* '''[[Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Mirage|TMNT Vol. 3]]''' (1996-1999)': Published by Image Comics, this series was the official continuation of the Mirage continuity, until it was [[Canon Discontinuity|subsequently ignored by Peter Laird]] upon the publication of Volume 4. Mostly remembered for mutilating three out of the four turtles, and for a plot featuring a three-way struggle for leadership of the Foot involving Raphael, who had taken on the Shredder identity after finding his armor; Pimiko, the original Shredder's daughter; and Lady Shredder, a ninja of unknown origin dressed in the familiar armor.

* '''''[[Ninja Turtles: The Next Mutation]]''''' (1997-1998), a live-action Saturday morning show by Saban (guys behind ''[[Power Rangers]]''), aired on [[Fox Kids]] in 1998 shortly after the animated series ended. It lasted only one season before going belly-up. The new series added a new character, [[The Scrappy|Venus de Milo]], a female turtle with knowledge of the art of Shinobi (and playing the foil to the scientifically-minded Donatello). Many fans were [[Fanon Discontinuity|antagonistic]] to the series, and Peter Laird was even [[Berserk Button|more]] antagonistic to Venus, although nobody knows why [[Canon Discontinuity|because she doesn't exist and never did]].

** ''[[Turtles Forever]]'', an animated movie crossing over this incarnation of the turtles with that of the first cartoon, and acting as a celebration of the franchise's 25th anniversary.

* '''Videogames''': By both [[Konami]] and [[Ubisoft]]. Notable entries include:

** ''[[Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (video game)]]'' (1989). An infamously [[Nintendo Hard|difficult]] [[NES]] [[Platformer]]

** ''[[Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Tournament Fighters]]'' (1993-1994). Three different fighting games sharing the name.

** ''[[Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Smash Up]]'' (2009) from Ubisoft. Another fighting game, which combined elements from several different incarnations.

 

'''Other media franchises''': There are also other media franchises of the series, including [[wikipedia:Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles food tie-ins|food tie-ins]] (Ninja Turtles cereal, Chef Boyardee TMNT pasta, Ninja Turtles cookies, etc.); a ''Coming Out of Their Shells'' concert tour that first premiered at the Radio City Music Hall (with Donatello on keyboards, Leonardo on bass guitar, Raphael on drums and sax, and Michelangelo on guitar, as the story had a feel similar to ''[[Bill and Teds Excellent Adventure]]'', with its theme of [[The Power of Rock|the power of rock n' roll]] literally defeating the enemy, in the form of the Shredder (who only rapped about how he hates music), trying to eliminate all music); and a stage show at the Disney-MGM studios theme park in Orlando, Florida from 1990 to 1996.

 

* [[Absurdly Spacious Sewer]]

* [[Action Girl]]: Several, most notably April O'Neil (depending on the incarnation), and Karai.

* [[Adaptation Distillation]]: The 4Kids series and the fourth movie. The first movie successfully blends the original comics and cartoon into a coherent whole.

* [[Adaptation Overdosed]]: You think the list above is already long? Well, there are also the newspaper strip, a series of British-made short comics, two anime [[Original Video Animation|OVA]], two live action musical specials, a couple of novels, several kid's books, magazines and crossovers and heaven know how much toys and merchandise.

* [[Alternate Continuity]]: Tons—see above.

* [[Alternate Universe]]

* [[Animal Nemesis]]: The feud between Oroku Nagi and Hamato Yoshi is taken up by Nagi's brother and Yoshi's pet rat, and the Turtles themselves when they mutate.

* [[Animal Superheroes]]

* [[Awesome McCoolname]]: Renaissance Artists and Japanese names and Irish names and Athletes and Violent Verbs and Notorious Conquerors, oh my! Wait; I think I missed some!

* [[Badass Bookworm]]: Donatello.

* [[Badbutt]]: Nearly as iconic to the heroes as [[Totally Radical]] is their application of [[Unusual Euphemism]], at least in the 1987 series. "What the Shell" is one of the most uttered phrases in the 2003 series; at least as often as "Cowabunga" in the 1987 series.

* [[Beauty to Beast]]: April when turned into a fish mutant.

* [[Big Bad]]: Although the different incarnations may have their own individual Big Bads, The Shredder is the most traditional and consistent foe the turtles come across.

** Ironically, he was a [[Villain of the Week]] in the original comic.

* [[Blade Below the Shoulder]]: [[Captain Obvious|The Shredder]]

* [[Bodyguarding a Badass]]: Shredder's Elite Guard.

* [[Canon Foreigner]]: Krang, Bebop, Rocksteady, Venus de Milo, Tatsu, Tokka, Rahzar and many more.

** '''Archie Comics to Mirage''': Cudley the Cowlick

** '''4Kids Cartoon to Mirage''': Foot Mystics, The Battle Nexus, Hun and Bishop,Shredder's armor.

** '''First Film to Mirage''': Charles Pennington

* [[Cash Cow Franchise]]

** '''Fred Wolf series:''' "Cowabunga!" "Turtle power!"

** '''Films:''' "God, I ''love'' being a ''turtle!!''

* [[Conspicuous Trenchcoat]]: The turtles' way of staying hidden. On the other hand this ''IS'' New York, where nobody looks at anybody else, so, fair enough.

* [[Cosmic Keystone]]: {{spoiler|The dimension of the original Mirage Comics for the Multiverse}} in "Turtles Forever".

** Most important is Miyamoto Usagi of ''[[Usagi Yojimbo]]'', who has appeared in the original comics and the Fred Wolf,4Kids cartoons; the turtles have also made the occasional appearance in the ''Usagi Yojimbo'' comic books.

** And ''[[Turtles Forever]]'', a crossover between the 4Kids and Fred Wolf shows. {{spoiler|Did I mention the comics?}}

** ''The Next Mutation'' guest starred in the ''[[Power Rangers in Space]]'' episode "Shell Shocked".<ref>Retroactively, this did get ''[[Power Rangers]]'' to beat ''[[Super Sentai]]'' to the punch at an [[Intercontinuity Crossover]] with an eleven-year gap. For the record, the ''Sentai'' crosover was ''[[Kamen Rider Decade]]''/''[[Samurai Sentai Shinkenger]]''... and ''Shinkenger'' is as just as well loved as ''In Space'', like ''Decade'' is as hotly contested as ''The Next Mutation'' (albeit for different reasons).</ref>

** [[Rayman|Rabbids]] in the ''Smash-Up'' video game. They [[Ruined FOREVER|immediately]] became new [[The Scrappy|Scrappies]] for the TMNT fandom.

* [[Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass]]: Michelangelo, in every incarnation, is the usually the goofball/slacker/fun-loving guy of the group, but when it comes down to having an actual fight....you don't really wanna be on the receiving end.

* [[Cut Lex Luthor a Check]]: Repeatedly subverted by Baxter Stockman. In the Mirage comics, after making a large legitimate fortune with his Mouser robots, he then proceeds to use them to commit terrorism for kicks. In the 1980s cartoon, he tried using them legitimately but was rejected by every pest control company in town ([[You Fail Economics Forever|They Fail Economics Forever]]). In the 4Kids cartoon, he makes a huge legitimate fortune with them, and then starts using them to rob banks simply because he's a greedy bastard.

* [[Distaff Counterpart]]: Venus de Milo, who fit in as an [[Action Girl]] and [[The Chick]] in ''Next Mutation'' since it didn't even feature April as a character.

* [[Ditto Aliens]]: The Utroms; Triceratons.

* [[Dual-Wielding]]: Three of the four turtles use their weapons in pairs, with Donny being the odd man out. Though since his weapon is a bo staff, it's justified (although his original action figure did come with a pair of bo).

* [[Elaborate Underground Base]]: The turtles' lair is usually one of these.

** Except for Leo's swords in the 4Kids cartoon (even though everyone still calls them katanas), or the 2007 CGI movie, one might point out...

*** In the live-action movies Leo is obviously wielding Ninjatos.

* [[Evil Power Vacuum]]: Occurs after the Shredder is defeated at the end of the ''Return to New York'' arc in the Mirage comic books and in the second cartoon.

* [[Exposed Extraterrestrials]]: In all of their incarnations, the turtles are seldom seen wearing anything besides their bandanas and weapons, unless it's part of a disguise.

* [[The Future]]: Plays a significant part in several incarnations, particularly in the Mirage and Archie comics, which had several stories starring future versions of the turtles, and the second cartoon, whose setting for the entire sixth season was the year 2105.

* [[Generican Empire]]: The Federation.

* [[Getting Crap Past the Radar]]: In the episode "Fallen Angel" in the 4kids series, Leo (in disguise) asks Raphael "What is the deal with humans and clothes?" Raph's response? "You ever see a human in his skivies? Trust me, It's not a pretty sight." So what does Raphael do with his free time?

* [[Good Republic, Evil Empire]]: Averted all to hell in the 4Kids series. Both [[The Federation]] (humanoids) and [[People's Republic of Tyranny|The Republic]] (Triceratons) are pretty nasty.

* [[Government Agency of Fiction]]: D.A.R.P.A. in the Mirage comic books and its animated counterpart, the Earth Protection Force.

* [[Highly-Visible Ninja]]: The turtles, of course. There are other ninjas present too (some of the Shredder's minions for an example) who stand out from the crowd.

* [[Honor Before Reason]]: A trait seen in most incarnations of Leonardo. It goes both ways though- either he is commended or, if something goes horribly wrong, grievously injured.

* [[Hot Reporter]]: April O'Neil.

* [[Human Aliens]]: A large part of the Federation, including most of its army.

* [[If I Can't Have You]]: The reason why Oroku Nagi beats on Tang Shen in the original comics, and why Oroku Saki and Yukio Mashimi kill her in the movie and the 4Kids cartoon, respectively.

* [[Interdimensional Travel Device]]

* [[Medium Awareness]]: A regular feature of the first cartoon.

* [[The Merch]]

* [[Merchandise-Driven]]: ''TMNT'' didn't start this way, but it moved in this direction once the toy line became hugely successful. Ironically, it was originally intended as a slightly [[Darker and Edgier]] ''parody'' of merchandise-driven cartoon series and comics. Then the creators realized it was becoming one, and just rolled with it, and now the series has become the archetype for such franchises. It's even had a parody or two.

* [[Mistaken for Aliens]]: Occurs to the turtles a lot, once the existence of aliens is actually made known to the general population.

* [[Ninja Pirate Zombie Robot]]: Do we really need to explain this one? Besides the obvious, there are also robot ninjas.

* [[Non-Lethal Warfare]]: Depending on the incarnation.

* [[No Transhumanism Allowed]]: Partial aversion. The 4Kids series has a cyborg and an infomorph, but only villains are non-organic, for the most part. Honeycutt, an [[Brain Uploading|uploaded man]], is a subversion.

* [[Old Superhero]]es: The original Justice Force.

* [[Pragmatic Adaptation]]: The original movie and 4Kids cartoon.

* [[The Professor]]: Tons: Donatello (when he's not a [[Teen Genius]]), Professor Honeycutt, Leatherhead, Glurin, Professor Obligado, Dr. Chaplin... Ironically, the one guy actually called "The Professor", from the 4Kids cartoon, isn't an example.

* [[Red Oni, Blue Oni]]: Raphael and Leonardo. Heck, even their headband's colors match.

** Also, Michelangelo and Donatello, to a lesser extent.

* [[Sibling Team]]

* [[Sixth Ranger]]: Venus de Milo in ''The Next Mutation''.

* [[Stealth Hi Bye]]: These guys could give Batman a run for his money at this.

* [[Stock Ninja Weaponry]]: Frequently used by the turtles.

* [[They Would Cut You Up]]

* [[Third Option Adaptation]]: Splinter defeating Shredder in [[The Movie]].

* [[Those Two Bad Guys]]: Bebop and Rocksteady.

* [[Thou Shalt Not Kill]]: Used or averted, depending on the incarnation. The Fred Wolf animated series and its spin-off comic book use it; the original comic book, movies, and 4Kids animated series generally don't.

* [[Time Police]]: Renet and Lord Simultaneous, who form part of a larger, if unseen, organization.

* [[Title Theme Tune]]: All of the western cartoon themes.

*** It's ''usually'' only Mikey. Raph has a Brooklyn accent in the films too, and even in the Fred Wolf cartoon series Mikey was the only one to sound like a surfer dude, though they all used "Cowabunga."

* [[Trademark Favorite Food]]: Pizza, at least in the Fred Wolf cartoon and movies.

* [[Turtle Power]]: [[Trope Namer]].

* [[Uncanny Family Resemblance]]: Ananda to Battling Bernice (daughter/mother)

** Nearly all fans seem to agree (based on the average confirmed starting ages per post-comic continuity, if given any) that the four are fifteen, and gain a half-year per season or age in real-time (week-for-week).

* [[Vitriolic Best Buds]]: Casey and Raph tend towards this in most continuities.

* [[Volleying Insults]]: Done playfully between Casey and Raph in the Mirage comics, in a scene which was later adapted for the first movie and 4Kids cartoon.

* [[Widget Series]]: Seriously, the only reason this franchise makes any sense is because we're so used to it.

 

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