I had something I wanted to put in this slot this week, but you know what? We're kind of in a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles kind of mood today, aren't we? So I guess let's talk about the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles TV show.
Yeah, we're not talking about the 80s Turtles. We're talking about the 2012 Turtles.
I remember walking into the 2012 TMNT show really skeptical when it first aired. We're talking about a franchise that was at its lowest point to the point that it was really easy to be cynical about this show. And while I'm not going to pretend that this show had me from the theme song (a remixed version of the 80s classic), it's a show that grows on you.
For one thing, it focuses largely on the Turtles' development into ninjas. You see them learning to blend in with the outside world, you see their fighting skills grow over time, and you see them develop as a team. More than that, you also see them as teenagers. The first moment they discover pizza is a memorable one. And no, the latter idea doesn't always land (Donnie being infatuated with April is weeeeeeeeird, bro), but sometimes we don't see enough of the "Teenage" in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
But more than the Turtles themselves, the 2012 series is defined by its villains. The 80s Shredder is remembered as a bumbling comedy figure, something that the crossovers with the 80s show makes sure to remind you of many times. But make no mistake, this is the definitive Shredder. He's an evil bastard completely consumed by revenge and it drives him at every waking moment. There's a moment when the entire world is about to be destroyed unless Shredder and Splinter can stop it and Shredder still opts to murder Splinter, crying out that he'd rather see the world burn than live with the dishonor that he feels Splinter brought him. There is no better Shredder than the second season's final episode, where he goes scorched earth on anything that moves, including giving Leonardo such a thorough beating, it was used to explain his new voice actor in the next season.
There's a lot to touch on that I can't get into due to time constraints. There's Krang reimagined as a race of alien invaders, which later brilliantly tied to the 80s show when it's explained that the classic Krang was a 2012 Krang who got warped to another timeline. There's the season where the Turtles go to space. There's the development of teenage April O'Neil into a genuine ninja in her own right. There's the saga of Shredder's daughter and all of the twists there involving Splinter. And even once everything is over, the show has one final season of side stories that ties everything up in a nice bow.
The 1980s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles hasn't aged so well. Go back and watch it. It doesn't hold up too great. The 2012 show is one of those shows that's going to age wonderfully. It touches on everything great about these characters and puts fun new twists on a lot of the classic 80s ideas. Give it a look sometime. I'm mildly certain it's on Paramount Plus, so go check it out.
