Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TMNT), also known in some countries as 'Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles' are a fictional team of four anthro-turtle mutants, who are trained by their sensei, Master Splinter, to become skilled ninja warriors. From their home in the sewers of Manhattan, they battle petty criminals, evil megalomaniacs, and alien invaders, all while remaining isolated from society at large.
The TMNT originated in an American comic book published by Mirage Studios in 1984. The concept arose from a comical sketch by Kevin Eastman during a casual evening of brainstorming with his friend Peter Laird. Using money from a tax refund together with a loan from Eastman's uncle, the young artists self-published a single issue comic intended to parody four of the most popular comics of the early 1980s: Marvel Comics' Daredevil and New Mutants, Dave Sim's Cerebus and Frank Miller's Ronin.[1]
Much of the Turtles' mainstream success is owed to a licensing agent who sought out Eastman and Laird to propose wider merchandising opportunities for the offbeat property. In January 1988, they visited the offices of Playmates Toys Inc, a small California toy company who wished to expand into the action figure market. Accompanied by the popular Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles animated series, the TMNT were soon catapulted into pop culture history. At the height of the frenzy, the Turtles' likenesses could be found on a wide range of children's merchandise, from PEZ dispensers to skateboards, breakfast cereal, toothpaste, school supplies and cameras.
Today, there is a resurgence in the Turtles' popularity with the success of the recent animated series, a new line of Playmates action figures, Ubisoft video games, and a new computer-animated feature film released March 23, 2007.
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[edit] Main characters
- Leonardo - The de facto leader of the Turtles, Leonardo is courageous, decisive, and a devoted student of martial arts. As a strict adherent to Bushido, he has a very strong sense of honor and justice. He wears a blue mask and wields a pair of ninjaken. He is named after Leonardo Da Vinci.
- Raphael - The team "anti-hero", Raphael has an aggressive nature and seldom hesitates to throw the first punch. His personality can be alternately fierce, sarcastic, and full of angst. He has a jealousy towards Leonardo because he thinks that he should be the leader. He wears a red mask and wields a pair of sai. He is named after Raphael Sanzio.
- Michelangelo - The easy-going and free-spirited Michelangelo provides much of the comic relief. While he loves to read comics and eat pizza, this Turtle also has an adventurous side (which includes skateboarding). He is especially known for saying "Cowabunga dude!". He wears an orange mask and wields a pair of nunchaku. He is named after Michelangelo Buonarroti.
- Donatello - The brilliant scientist, inventor, and technology genius, Donatello has a reputation as something of a wise guy. He is perhaps the least violent Turtle, preferring to use his intellect to solve conflicts. He wears a purple mask and wields the bō. He is named after the sculptor Donato di Niccolò di Betto Bardi.
- Splinter - The Turtles' sensei and adoptive father, Splinter is a mutant rat who learned the ways of ninjutsu from his own master, Hamato Yoshi. Splinter's name is a parody of Stick, the man who mentored Daredevil.
- April O'Neil - A former lab assistant to the mad scientist Baxter Stockman, April is the plucky human companion of the Turtles. She embarks on many of the Turtles' adventures and aids them by doing the work that the Turtles themselves cannot do in public. During the early height of TMNT popularity, April was famously depicted as a television news reporter.
- Casey Jones - A vigilante who has become one of the Turtles' closest allies, Casey fights crime with an assortment of sporting goods (baseball bats, golf clubs, hockey sticks, etc.) while wearing a goalie mask to protect his identity.
- Shredder - A villainous ninja master named Oroku Saki who, along with his evil Foot Clan, is the arch-enemy of Splinter and the Turtles. Shredder wears a fearsome suit of armor covered with sharp blades. Also, in many of the earlier, less comic-oriented cartoons and films, Oroku Saki is directly responsible for both the mutation and the death of Hamato Yoshi. Other villains later took on his identity.
[edit] Comic books
[edit] Mirage Studios
The first issue of Eastman and Laird's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles premiered in May, 1984, at a comic book convention held at a local Sheraton Hotel in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. It was published by Mirage Studios in an oversized magazine-style format using black & white artwork on cheap newsprint, limited to a print run of only 3,000 copies. The small print runs made these early comics instant collector items, and within months they were trading for over fifty times their cover price. The name "Mirage Studios" was chosen because of Eastman and Laird's lack of a professional art studio at the start of their career, before their creation made them both multi-millionaires.
Mirage also published a bi-monthly companion book entitled Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, featuring art by Ryan Brown and Jim Lawson, which was designed to fill in the gaps of continuity in the TMNT universe. The title ran from 1987-1989, released in alternating months with the regular Eastman & Laird book.
As the TMNT phenomenon proliferated to other media, Eastman and Laird would find themselves administrating an international merchandising juggernaut. Unfortunately, this prevented the two creators from participating in the day-to-day work of writing and illustrating a monthly comic book. For this reason, many guest artists were invited to showcase their unique talents in the TMNT universe. The breadth of diversity found in the various short stories gave the series a disjointed, anthology-like feel. Fans stuck with the series, and what was originally intended as a one-shot parody became a continuing series that lasted for 76 issues spanning two separate volumes.
In June, 1996, Image Comics revived the title as a more action-oriented TMNT series. Although notable for inflicting major physical changes on the main characters, the events of Volume 3 have been dropped from continuity. Mirage Studios resumed publication of a fourth volume in December, 2001, under the simple title TMNT. After the publication of issue #28, writer Peter Laird put the series on an eight month hiatus to allow him more time to devote to the upcoming movie.
[edit] Archie Comics
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures was a comic book series published from August 1988 to October 1995 by Archie Comics. The initial storylines were close adaptations of the 1987 animated series, but with issue number 5 the series introduced new stories and characters distinct from the show. Ryan Brown, Ken Mitchroney, Chris Allan, Dean Clarrian, Stephen Murphy, and others created a vast new TMNT universe. In their hands the comic immediately diverged from the cartoon series into unique new story arcs, often incorporating social, environmentalist, and animal rights themes.
[edit] Ralston-Purina Mini Comics
In 1989, Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird created a special three-issue series of full-color mini comics for the Ralston-Purina Company. These comics were then put into the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cereal as premiums for kids to collect. These tiny comic books are extremely rare.[citation needed]
[edit] Dreamwave Productions
A monthly comic inspired by the 2003 animated series was published by Dreamwave Productions from June to December 2003. It was written by Peter David and illustrated by LeSean Thomas. In the first four issues, which were the only ones directly adapted from the TV series, the story was told from the perspectives of April, Baxter, Casey, and a pair of NYC cops, instead of the Turtles.
[edit] Manga
The Turtles have appeared in many manga series: Mutant Turtles (ミュータント・タートルズ ) was a 15-issue series by Tsutomu Oyamada, Tadashi Makimura, and Yoshimi Hamada that simply adapted episodes of the original American animated series. Super Turtles (スーパータートルズ) was a 3-issue mini-series by Hidemasa Idemitsu, Tetsurō Kawade, and Toshio Kudō that featured the "TMNT Supermutants" Turtle toys that were on sale at the time. The first volume of Japan's cartoon mini-series followed this storyline. Next was Mutant Turtles Gaiden (ミュータント・タートルズ外伝) by Hiroshi Kanno, which was a re-interpretation of the Turtles story with no connection to the previous manga. Also of note was Mutant Turtles III, an adaptation of the third feature film by Yasuhiko Hachino.
[edit] Daily comic strip
A daily comic strip written and illustrated by Dan Berger with featured for Monday thru Friday an adventure story and on weekends activity puzzles and later fan art sent in by newspaper comic readers, was published in syndication until its cancellation in December, 1996. At its highest point in popularity, it was published in over 250 newspapers.
[edit] Television series
[edit] 1987 animated series
On December 14, 1987, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' first cartoon series began, starting as a 5-part miniseries and becoming a regular Saturday morning syndicated series on October 1, 1988 with 13 more episodes. The series was produced by Murakami-Wolf-Swenson Film Productions Inc. Mirage Studios does not own the rights to this cartoon series, so changes made in the 1987 version of the TMNT have not translated to other versions. Here, the Ninja Turtles are portrayed as four wise-cracking, pizza-obsessed superheroes who fight the forces of evil from their sewer hideout, and make their first appearance in masks color-coded to each turtle, where previously they had all worn red. The cast included new and different characters like Bebop and Rocksteady and the Neutrinos. Original characters like Splinter, Shredder and the Foot Soldiers stayed true to the comics in appearance and alignment only. Instead of being Hamato Yoshi's mutated pet rat, Splinter was a mutated Yoshi himself. The Foot Soldiers changed from human ninja to an endless supply of robotic grunts, allowing large numbers of them to be destroyed without anyone dying (this was a very important decision in terms of the show's teenaged audience; excessive violence would have pushed the show to a higher rating, outside of the target demographic). Krang, one of the series' most memorable villains, was inspired by the design of the Utrom, a benevolent alien race from the Mirage comics. The animated Krang, however, was instead an evil warlord from Dimension X. Baxter Stockman, whose race was inexplicably changed from black to white, was rewritten as a shy and meek lackey to Shredder, later mutating into an anthropomorphic housefly.
Starting on September 25, 1989, the series was expanded to weekdays and had 47 more episodes for the new season. There were 15 new syndicated episodes for the 1990 season. There were also the 13 "Vacation Europe Episodes", which did not air until USA Network started showing reruns in late 1993, most likely because of animation or schedule problems.
On April 21, 1990 a drug prevention television special was broadcasted on ABC, NBC and CBS named Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue that featured some of the most popular cartoons at the time; representing TMNT was Michelangelo.
Starting on September 8, 1990 (with a different opening sequence), the show began its run on CBS. The CBS weekend edition presented a full hour of Turtle Power, initially airing a couple of Saturday exclusive episodes back to back.
On September 17, 1994, (with a different theme song, opening sequence, and end credits background) the series continued with one episode per week, but big changes were made to the series. Starting with the 1994 season, the format of the series was changed to a more action-oriented show, removing many character building scenes and the cartoon feel of the series. The opening sequence was completely changed to one where clips of the 1994 Season were used instead of animation specifically for the intro. The theme song was changed to a techno beat and scenes from the 1990 live action movie, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were intercut with new scenes from the 1994 Season. The sky was changed from a blue sky to a red sky with gray clouds to give the show a darker tone, similar to what was done with the original Spider-Man animated series in seasons 2 and 3. The series ran until November 2, 1996 when it aired its final episode. Its enormous popularity gave rise to numerous imitators, including the Battletoads, Cheetahmen, Wild West Cowboys of Moo Mesa, Stone Protectors, Street Sharks, Biker Mice from Mars and battle bridges.
Currently, the first 105 episodes are available on DVD.
[edit] Ninja Turtles: The Next Mutation
In 1997-1998, the Turtles starred in a live-action television series called Ninja Turtles: The Next Mutation that follows the events of the movies. A fifth turtle was introduced, a female named "Venus de Milo" who was skilled in the mystical arts of the shinobi. The series seemed to be a loose continuation of the movie franchise, as Shredder had been defeated and the Ninja Turtles encountered new villains. Other connections to the feature films include the fact that Splinter's ear was cut, the Foot Soldiers were humans, and the Turtles lived in the abandoned subway station seen in the second and third movies. The Next Mutation Turtles even made a guest appearance on Power Rangers: In Space, a live-action show that was popular at the time.[2]
However, The Next Mutation never caught on with fans, and it was canceled after one season of twenty-six episodes. Since its cancellation, the program has been considered apocryphal by most of the TMNT fanbase, and Peter Laird has disavowed all knowledge of the character Venus de Milo, while Kevin Eastman is more open to talk about her.
[edit] 2003 animated series
On February 8, 2003, the Fox Network revived the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise with the help of 4Kids Entertainment as a Saturday morning cartoon in the "FoxBox" programming block, which has since been renamed "4Kids TV". The 2003 TMNT cartoon series is produced by Mirage Studios[1], and Mirage owns one-third of the rights to the series. Mirage's significant stake in creative control results in a cartoon that hews more closely to the original comics, creating a darker and edgier feel than the 1987 cartoon, but still remaining lighthearted enough to be considered appropriate for children.
[edit] Fast Forward
The show's fourth season left the "Ninja Tribunal" story arc with a cliffhanger finale. This storyline was left unresolved when, on 2006-07-29, the show began a radical new direction under the subtitle Fast Forward, and the Turtles find themselves time-traveling to New York City circa 2105. Peter Laird and other staff writers had been working on a fifth season for the 2003 animated series that would have resolved the "Ninja Tribunal" storyline, had the decision to produce Fast Forward not been made. The 13-episode "lost fifth season" has been confirmed for a release on DVD in the near future, and several episodes were available through the 4KidsTV On-Demand cable service before being abruptly pulled.[3]
[edit] Direct to Video Specials
[edit] Anime
In addition to the American series, a Japanese exclusive two-episode anime OVA series was made in 1996, titled Mutant Turtles: Chōjin Densetsu Hen (ミュータント・タートルズ超人伝説偏). It is made in a similar silly style to the 1987 cartoon.
Episode One was made to advertise the TMNT Supermutants toys. It featured the turtles as superheroes, who gained costumes and super powers with the use of "Muta-Stones," while Shredder, Bebop and Rocksteady gained super-villain powers with the use of a "Dark Muta-Stone." In super sentai fashion, the four Turtles can combine their power to form the giant Turtle Saint.
Episode Two was created to advertise the Metal Mutants toys in which the characters gain Saint Seiya-esque mystical metal armor that can transform into beasts. The seven Japanese Mutanite Stones encased in a magic mirror that control the Metal Beasts are based on the sun, moon, and the Five Elements
[edit] Specials
In 1994, two live action, direct-to-video releases were released. Both were twenty-five minute videos. They were called "We Wish You a Turtle Christmas" and "Turtle Tunes".
[edit] Feature films
[edit] Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990)
The first film, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, closely follows the storyline from the Mirage comic books, in addition to some of the more lighthearted elements of the cartoons. This movie presents the origin story of Splinter and the Turtles, their initial encounters with April (Judith Hoag) and Casey (Elias Koteas), and their first confrontation with Shredder and his Foot Clan. Directed by Steve Barron and released by New Line Cinema, the film showcases the innovative puppetry techniques of Jim Henson's Creature Shop. It remains one of the highest grossing independent films of all time.[4]
[edit] Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze (1991)
The second film, entitled Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze, expands on the Turtles' origin story while claiming the distinction as Vanilla Ice's film debut. It also introduced the Turtles' human friend Keno (Ernie Reyes, Jr.) and Shredder's mutant henchmen Tokka and Rahzar. The original story was to include Bebop and Rocksteady at the insistence of the studio, but Laird and Eastman fought tooth and nail to prevent their inclusion, settling on Tokka and Rahzar as a compromise. The original ending to "Ooze" would also reveal the benevolent TGRI scientist, Jordon Perry (David Warner), to have been an Utrom. But due to budget constraints, plus the fear he may be mistaken for the character Krang, the plot twist was abandoned.
[edit] Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III (1993)
The third film in the series is Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III, which features Elias Koteas reprising his role as the character Casey Jones, and Corey Feldman reprising his role as the voice of Donatello. The plot revolves around the "Sacred Sands of Time", a mystical scepter which transports the Turtles back in time to feudal Japan, where they become embroiled in a conflict between the Daimyo and British traders.
[edit] TMNT (2007)
The Turtles' fourth feature film, entitled simply TMNT, was released March 23, 2007. Unlike the previous films, it utilized 100% computer-generated imagery, produced by Imagi Animation Studios and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures and The Weinstein Company. Chronologically, this movie takes place after the previous three films. According to a press release, "the PG-rated movie will derive its tone from the original comic-book series and will be slightly grittier than the previous live-action pictures. The storyline focuses on an ancient legend of five brothers and thirteen monsters, taking a giant leap from any preceding turtle movies yet gave small evidence to the fact that the 3 movies had preceded this one. The animation was created in Imagi's state-of-the-art facility in Hong Kong."[5] The teaser trailer was released July 20, 2006.[6] A second trailer was released January 17, 2007.[7]
The movie takes place after Shredder's defeat, with the team essentially broken as Leonardo is training in Central America, Donatello and Michelangelo have jobs, and Raphael spends his time as the vigilante 'Nightwatcher'. Leonardo returns when Max Winters, an immortal warrior who tried to take over the world 3,000 years ago, begins hunting for alien beasts and stone statues of his former Generals. However, tensions begin to rise between Raphael and Leonardo over the leadership of the team. The Foot Clan also make an appearance, with Karai leading them. It is hinted towards the end by a comment by Karai that the Shredder is either not dead, or there is a new incarnation of the Shredder in the Foot Clan.
[edit] Toys and merchandise
Among the first licensed products to feature the Ninja Turtles was a pen and paper RPG entitled Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Other Strangeness, published by Palladium Books in 1985 and featuring original comics and illustrations by Eastman and Laird themselves. The game features a large list of animals, including pandas and sparrows, that are available as mutant player characters. Dark Horse Miniatures produced an attendant set of lead figurines. Palladium allowed the license to lapse in 2000, in part due to declining sales stemming from the kiddification of the animated and live-action incarnations to that point. However, Palladium's publisher, Kevin Siembieda, has indicated a potential willingness to revisit the license given the franchise's recent moves closer to its roots.[8]
[edit] Action Figures
During the run of the 1987 cartoon, Playmates Toys produced hundreds of TMNT action figures, along with vehicles, play sets, and accessories, becoming one of the top collectibles for children. Staff artists at Northampton Massachusetts based Mirage Studios provided conceptual designs for many of the figures, vehicles and playsets. The line featured many different variants of the TMNT, such as "Farmer Mike" and "Classic Rocker Leo." In addition, Playmates produced a series of TMNT/Star Trek crossover figures, due to Playmates holding the Star Trek action figure license at the time. Playmates continues to produce TMNT action figures based on the 2003 animated series.
[edit] Video games
The first Famicom/NES TMNT game was the single-player Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, released by Konami/Ultra in 1989. It was unique in that at any point, the player could switch from one turtle to the next to take advantage of each Turtle's strengths. In addition, the player starts off in a strategic map where the player may explore sewer holes as well as engage patrolling enemy foot soldiers before entering any in-game portals. The game would also be released on the Amiga home computer, in an almost identical conversion.
Also released by Konami in 1989 was the first TMNT arcade game, also titled simply Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. This side-scrolling "beat-em-up" was ported to the NES as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Arcade Game and in March of 2007 to the Xbox 360 as TMNT 1989 Arcade game though Xbox Live Arcade by Ubisoft. This led to an NES-only sequel, entitled "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 3: The Manhattan Project", which used the look of the arcade game, as opposed the first NES game. The next Turtles game, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles IV, was released in 1991 as an arcade game, and was later ported to the Super Nintendo as in 1992. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Hyperstone Heist was also created for the Sega Genesis in the same year, and used many of the art assets from TMNT IV.
As the video game series progressed, programmers began to incorporate unique signature moves for each Turtle, as well as game features such as "Versus mode" and "Time Attack mode." When the Ninja Turtles' popularity began to decline in the mid-nineties, the video games changed direction. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Tournament Fighters was released as a one-on-one fighting game similar to the Street Fighter series. It is of note that, whilst this game would see release on both the Megadrive/Genesis and Super Nintendo consoles, though using similar art assets, the games are essentially different (a common occurrence for 16-bit licensed titles of the era; see Disney's Aladdin).
Konami also acquired the license to adapt the 2003 animated series into a video game franchise, resulting in a new series of games with the same button mashing gameplay as the old TMNT "beat 'em ups." Ubisoft has recently announced they will create games based on the upcoming 2007 animated feature film.[9]
[edit] Food tie-ins
During the height of their popularity ('88-'91) the Turtles had a number of food tie-ins. Among the most notable of these products was Ninja Turtles Cereal, produced by Ralston-Purina as a kind of "Chex with TMNT-themed marshmallows" which also came with a small pouch of; Pizza Crunchabungas, pizza flavored corn snacks in the shape of pizzas (the commercial starred the Ninja Turtles as Will Vinton-created claymations); Hostess Ninja Turtles Pudding Pies, featuring a green sugar crust and vanilla pudding inside; and Royal OOZE Gelatin Desserts, distributed by Nabisco under "Royal Gelatin" in three different flavors: orange, strawberry, and lime. Shreddies used to give out TMNT toys in their boxes when the cereal advertising was still geared toward children. One example of a TMNT prize was rings featuring a character on the cartoon. There was also green Ninja Turtle ice cream with different toppings according to which turtle flavour you ordered.
[edit] Live appearances
[edit] Concert tour
To further add to the Turtles' popularity, a concert tour was held in 1990, premiering at Radio City Music Hall. The "Coming Out of Their Shells" tour featured live-action turtles (in costumes similar to the films) playing music as a band (Donatello; keyboards, Leonardo; bass guitar, Raphael; drums & sax, Michelangelo; guitar) on stage around a familiar plotline: April O'Neil is kidnapped by the Shredder, the turtle guys have to rescue her. The story had a very Bill-n'-Ted-esque feel, with its theme of 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 (Interestingly, the first two films featured rap in their soundtracks). A pay-per-view special highlighting the concert was shown, and a studio album was also released. The track listing is as follows:
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Since the tour was sponsored by Pizza Hut in real life, there are many references to their pizza. Empty Pizza Hut boxes are seen onscreen during the "Behind The Shells" VHS. As part of a cross-marketing strategy, Pizza Hut restaurants gave away posters, audio cassettes of "Coming Out of Their Shells," and "Official Tour Guides" as premiums.
The original show of the tour was released on video with a making of video also released. The song "Pizza Power" was later used by Konami for the second arcade game.
[edit] Disney-MGM Studios
On June 30, 1990 the TMNT arrived in the "New York Street" section of Disney-MGM Studios theme park in Orlando. Emerging from their Turtle Party Wagon, they would "ninja dance" across the stage while April performed the theme song to the show. After the main show was done they would pose for pictures and sign autographs.
The Turtles made appearances in Walt Disney's "Very Merry Christmas Parade" to sing their own rendition of "Santa Claus is Coming to Town". They also appeared during the Easter parade dancing to their single "Pizza Power!" The Turtles' live shows and appearances ceased production in 1996.
[edit] Cultural impact
As the self-published creation of two amateurs, the wildly lucrative TMNT inspired thousands of fans to self-publish their own comics, usually in black and white. The growth of independent comics, already underway when TMNT was launched, suddenly exploded, fueled by creators hoping to achieve the success of Eastman & Laird and speculators hoping to profit from the exploitation of supply and demand. Several new publishers such as Eclipse, First, Comico, and Dark Horse Comics grew to prominence during the 1980s independent comics boom. The economic effects were even felt in the UK comics industry. As Eddie Campbell would later write, "suddenly, because of the Turtles, the game was open to everybody." [2]
Although the TMNT had originated as a parody, the comic's explosive success led to a wave of small-press, black & white comic parodies of TMNT itself, including Adolescent Radioactive Black Belt Hamsters, Pre-Teen Dirty-Gene Kung Fu Kangaroos, and a host of others. Dark Horse Comics' Boris the Bear was launched in response to these TMNT clones; its first issue was titled "Boris the Bear Slaughters the Teenage Radioactive Black Belt Mutant Ninja Critters." Once the Turtles broke into the mainstream, parodies also proliferated in other media, such as in satire magazines Cracked and MAD Magazine.
[edit] Controversies
[edit] Mainstreaming an underground sensation
In keeping with their parody of "grim 'n gritty" comics of the early 1980s, the Turtles engaged in a greater amount of overt violence in the pages of the early Mirage comic book series. As the TMNT were introduced into the mainstream, they were radically redesigned for a younger audience. This evolution incensed a core group of fans who had faithfully collected the independently-published comic series from its inception. They accused Eastman and Laird of selling out their indie roots in favor of corporate greed. In issue #19 of Eastman and Laird's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the creators published an editorial addressing these concerns. It stated, in part: "We've allowed the wacky side to happen, and enjoy it very much. All the while, though, we've kept the originals very much ours – forty pages of what we enjoy and want to see in our books, whether it comes from our own hands or from those of the talented people we work with."
[edit] Children and consumerism
For many parents in the late 1980s, the Ninja Turtles phenomenon represented the latest in a series of shrewd cartoon-toy marketing strategies, a trend that had proven very profitable with Masters of the Universe, Transformers, and a host of other "good vs. evil" action-adventure franchises. Parents often found themselves at odds with children who demanded scads of toys and accessories after being subjected to so-called "30 minute commercials" delivered via after-school television.[10]
[edit] "Hero" Turtles
Upon TMNT's first arrival in the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Germany, the name was changed to "Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles" (or TMHT, for short), since local censorship policies deemed the word ninja to have excessively violent connotations for a children's program.[11] Consequently, everything related to the Turtles had to be renamed before being released in the UK. The lyrics were also changed, such as changing "Splinter taught them to be ninja teens" to "Splinter taught them to be fighting teens."
The policies also had other effects, such as removing Michelangelo's nunchaku (which were at the time banned from appearing in even 18-rated movies) and generally toning down the usage of all the turtles' weapons. After many seasons of never using his nunchaku, they eventually disappeared entirely, replaced by a turtle shell shaped grappling hook called the "Turtle Line".
By the time of the 2003 TV series, these censorship policies had been abolished, and no changes have occurred in the content of the show. The name "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" remained unchanged for the 2003 show. As a result, in the UK, the 1987 program is still called Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles and the 2003 program is called Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
[edit] See also
- List of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles characters
- List of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles episodes (1987 series)
- List of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles episodes (2003 series)
- Anthropomorphic Superheroes
[edit] References
- ^ I Was a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle (2007-01-26).
- ^ "Power Rangers in Space: Shell Shocked"!
- ^ Official TMNT FAQ
- ^ Trivia for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990), Internet Movie Database
- ^ Imagi
- ^ Trailer for TMNT (2007). (Requires QuickTime)
- ^ Trailer 2 for TMNT (2007). (Requires QuickTime)
- ^ Meadows, Chris (2007-02-19). Kevin Siembieda Interview, Part 2 (mp3). Space Station Liberty. Retrieved on February 20, 2007.
- ^ Ubisoft to create video game based on 2007 TMNT movie
- ^ Seiter, Ellen (1993). Sold Separately: Parents and Children in Consumer Culture. New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press. ISBN 0-8135-2198-X.
- ^ Cohen, Susan. "Teenage Mutant Ninja Television: Who's winning the battle over kids' TV?", Washington Post Magazine, 1991-04-07.
- Eastman, Kevin (2002). Kevin Eastman's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Artobiography. Los Angeles: Heavy Metal. ISBN 1-882931-85-8.
- Wiater, Stanley (1991). The Official Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Treasury. New York: Villard. ISBN 0-679-73484-8.
[edit] External links
[edit] Comic books
[edit] 1987 TV series
- Original Theme Song Lyrics
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1987) at TV.com
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1987) at the Internet Movie Database
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1987) at the Big Cartoon DataBase
[edit] 2003 TV series
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2003) at TV.com
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2003) at the Internet Movie Database
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2003) at the Big Cartoon DataBase
[edit] Movies
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990) at the Internet Movie Database
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze (1991) at the Internet Movie Database
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III (1993) at the Internet Movie Database
- TMNT (2007) at the Internet Movie Database
[edit] Tour
- The Coming Out of Their Shells Tour on Google Video
- The making of the Coming Out of Their Shells Tour on Google Video
[edit] Video Games
| Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles |
|---|
| The TMNT Franchise |
| Comics: Eastman and Laird's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles | Tales of the TMNT | Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures | Daily comic strip TV series: 1987 cartoon (episode list) | The Next Mutation | 2003 cartoon (episode list) Films: TMNT (1990) | TMNT II | TMNT III | TMNT (2007) Games: Role-playing games | Video games Other related articles: Food tie-ins | Action figures |
| The TMNT Universe |
| Characters: Leonardo | Michelangelo | Donatello | Raphael | Splinter | April O'Neil | The Shredder | List of characters Races and organisations: Foot Clan | Utrom | List of races and organisations Objects and places: Battle Nexus | Dimension X | Magical objects | Planets | Robots | Technodrome |
