"Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" Classic Series Talkback (Spoilers)

Yeah, but there's different origins for many of the Ninja Turtles characters on the show as opposed to other mediums. For instance, Splinter and Leatherhead got different origins depending on whether you were reading the comics or watching the TV show. It's still the same character.
 
Know something funny I noticed?

That every time something happens to where the team is split and two of the Turtles captured, it's almost ALWAYS Leo and Mike that are taken out, leaving Raph and Don to save them. There's a lot of that in the CBS seasons.
 
As much as I like Toei (in terms of their animated projects and products), I always thought that TMS really had a better handle on animating projects for American Markets. Toei's animation for TMNT, Muppet babies, and a couple others seemed stiff (outside the animated openings), but TMS had fluidity throughout. Some of their stuff was quite breathtaking. Especially what they did for Disney and Warner Brothers.

I'd almost wonder what would have happened if they animated TMNT instead of Toei. You'd have quite a lot more movement and subtlety in the work. that's for sure.
 
Donatello was the hero of 90% of the episodes in the old toon. Seriously, the guys would have been lost without him. He comes up with the solutions to save the day in almost every episode, and he makes a better leader than Leonardo in most of the eps.

The writers must have really loved Donatello, because this version of him is always in the spotlight. In other TMNT media he tends to get the least focus while Leo/Raph get the most and Mikey is the comic relief, but in the old toon Donatello ruled all.

This is basically my favorite incarnation of Donatello. He's aggressive, smart, and is a pretty good fighter as well. Plus I love his voice, it just works. :D
 
I thought the very first episode of TMNT had great design as did the 3rd and 4th of the first season IIRC but the 2nd and the 5th were horrendous looking. The show never really stuck to one style until the red sky seasons though.

And yes the stand-in Raph in various episodes of season 3 was awful, even worse than the stand-in Donatello.
 
For favorite character, it was Donotello all the way for me. He was smart, and for some reason I really liked his voice. Coming in second is Mikey becase he's just a fun character all around.



I still have the Super Bebop and Mighty Rocksteady tape, and my uncle used to have the Cowabunga Shredhead tape.
 
They're not the same character. Ray was a green colored mixed breed fishman. Ray Fillet was specifically a mantaray fishman who was blue. That's like saying Tokka and Slash are the same character because they're both evil mutant turtles. (similarities between both of those brainless from origin turtles noted, though Slash eventually gets smart... sorta).
 
The original turtles was/is one of my all time favorite cartoon series. I was a huge Mikey fan and even broke him off in to a little "series" of his one that I called the Radical Squadron(this was year before Swat Kats), it was similar to Marvel's Secret Wars mini-series in which the Fugitoid tried to beam the Turtles to this Alien world that was in desperate need of heroes, but in stead of Leo,Don, Ralph and Mike, he got Mike, Ace, Genghis Frog and Mondo Gecko and Metalhead and now the six of them had to save this world from evil and find a way back home(I'm amazed I still remember all of that)

Ace was and still is one of my favorite figures, I always saw him as sort of this tough as nails type of guy who had a big heart but didn't show it much. I figured that he probably missed being human and although he was happy with his friends their was something missing in his life, that he could never get back.
 
If this series ever does a blu-ray release, I hope they do voice fixes for the stand ins. I'm going to mention it to lions gate at the NYCC next week.

If JAmes Avery can't do the voice anymore, I hope they can find someone who can imitate it pretty closley, like the new Doctor Claw voice guy who only looses it when he yells....

Neil
 
I wouldnt get my hopes up for a re-dubbing or a blu-ray release. Especially re-dubbing, which I don't think would happen in a zillion years.
 
Slash and Tokka have different names, though. In addition they both appeared in the 80s cartoon so they couldn't be the same character. Ray Fillet and Ray both have the same first name. If they never say Ray's last name it could very well be Fillet. There isn't a seperate character who appears on the show who's called Ray Fillet so they could very well be the same character. I mean, what about Napoleon Bonafrog? His action figure looked completely different than the character on the show, but it's still the same character.
 
The same can be said about Baxter Stockman. The toy was more bulkier and had human hands. Of course this is a text book case of inaccurate depictions of the toys in a cartoon to promote the toy.
 
It'd be a possibility if BCI Eclipse got the license. Look at the spectacular job they did with the Filmation shows. Now, just imagine what they could with a GOOD animated property like TMNT.
 
Keep in mind sometimes the toys come out before they appear in the show, or vice versa.

The designs for the toys don't always match what they look like in the show.
 
MOST of the figures didn't resemble their cartoon counterparts. I mean, Shredder was shirtless (NEVER understood that decision), the turtles didn't have pupils, and Splinter was more rat like as a figure. I think the toy designs came first, then the 'animated' deisigns were tweaked and improved to make them more kid friendly.
 
That's how it usually happens, if you read Cereal Geek Magazine, the have a section talking about from Toy to Toon, showcasing how very different a character can be from the original concept for the toy and the final version that shows up in the cartoon.
 
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