A look back at the first episode of the new TMNT

[Andrew T. Hingson]

I dediced to watch the first episode of the new TMNT "Things Change" and its still pretty good but I gotta say the show has come a long way. The voice acting is much more natural, the writing got a lot better and the animation improve a whole lot. Now the backgrounds of the early episodes look so flat and lifeless and the colors are pretty bland and occasionally well... ugly and stick to the same basic scheme overall. Though watching it again has also made we want one thing a whole lot... box sets. Box sets that have episode transfers that don't include the bumpers (they detract from the show IMO). I'll bet season sets or even half season sets would sell pretty well since more hardcore fans would want those than the pretty lame discs they're currently putting out. The show is too rich in continuity to only own parts of the series for future viewings.

[Michael24]

I agree, I wish they would do season or half-season sets, like you said. I have all of the first season DVDs. I fell behind on the season two discs, and when I saw that episodes were starting to appear out of order, I held off on buying anymore for the time being, hoping for box sets somewhere down the line.

[Mandi-chan]

Yeah, same here.

I love the show and hope they do season sets soon! This is one of the few cartoons out there I'm willing to spend my money on.

[Rahxepy]

I'm upset I just visited the annie awards site and it appears TMNT wasn't nominated while a bull S show like the batman was. WTF?

[CyberCubed]

WB shows always get awards, I suspect there is bias just because it's WB.

Watching the first episode of the new show does bring back a lot of great memories. I remember being so excited on Feb. 8th, 2003. The first new TMNT animation in over 8 years.

It was really a great moment just to witness TMNT back on TV, with a new cartoon that was better than ever. It's great to relive your childhood and now your teen/twenties with the TMNT again.

I suspect we'll get DVD Boxsets IN ORDER once the show ends. 4kids/FUNI probably want to make money off the 3 disc ones first.

TMNT is 4kids biggest crowning achievement, and for this show alone 4kids has my praise.

[Rahxepy]

I remember my first time. The Morning of Feb 8 was really good because those heroes in a half shell were back in action. There were so many thoughts running through my head; What are they going to sound like? How's it going to do? are Krang and other favs returning? and mostly is it going to have a good story? THe First episode for me was hard to watch because I was worrying about how other Original fans are going to react to it; if they'll like it. But you know the answer to that.:anime: TMNT I love you with all my heart.

[Simpler Simon]

Sketch will probably disagree with me, but I think production-value wise, the show has changed very little since the first episode. TMNT2003 has always maintained a very consistent standard for animation. The new colouring/tinting is something relatively new in season 4, and I do hope they experiment more with that.

What *has* changed is the threats the Turtles face. Long gone are the days when street punks and foot ninja are threats that can sustain an episode by themselves. There is also much more action/story packed into episodes now, whereas the first few were really lesiurely in setting things up (episode 2 is practically filler between episode 1 and the mouser fight in episode 3).

I still wish we'd seen more of the old lair, though, before the mousers trashed it.

[Andrew T. Hingson]

It truely has changed very little besides fighting coreography and facial slight character design tweaks (there are very very very minor but it makes a diffence). For one thing I compare "Things Change" to "Bad Day" and besides the cool color tints here and there the turtles themselves have remained the same colors and it almost looks dull in normal situations. What really has improved IMO is the backgrounds. They are a lot more interesting for one thing and don't feel so flat. Especially the skyline that has improve a lot over the 4 seasons. But one of the charms of the show is it has the same style in every episode unlike the old TMNT which had a lot of different styles and only a few I'd call... "good looking".

I'm not sure if it's a WB bias because Nick stuff gets nominated more times than not but TMNT certainly should have been nominated if The Batman was.

[CyberCubed]

The new TMNT show in general is ignored by the media. It's almost as if the new show doesn't even exist. I don't know if it's because it airs on 4kidsTV or not, but it really is a shame that it's always in the shadows and doesn't get much limelight.

[Andrew T. Hingson]

It's probably because it premiered on 4kidsTV and no one thought much of it on Miguzi. You'd think people would realize there's a new show though since the toys are selling and every box mentions it airs on 4kidsTV and CN. If TMNT aired on KWB it'd get noticed without a doubt. Heck if it aired on Toonami it would get noticed.

[Rahxepy]

ABout the animation I've noticed in the first two seasons the animation was solid and the characters faces weren't boxey sharp, is a new company animating TMNT now? or is it still the same company?

[Andrew T. Hingson]

It's still Dong Woo according to the credits. They've been doing it since the first season.

[Simpler Simon]

It truely has changed very little besides fighting coreography and facial slight character design tweaks (there are very very very minor but it makes a diffence).

I'm not sure if it's a WB bias because Nick stuff gets nominated more times than not but TMNT certainly should have been nominated if The Batman was.
I wish there was a regular poster from the TMNT production staff on these boards, so we could attribute certain sequences to specific individuals. I'm sure the cool Bishop fight scenes in season 3 were done by one guy in particular, and theres probably also someone else who does the cooler melee battles.

As for TMNT not getting a best animated program nod, neither did JLU, which I find even stranger.

[Andrew T. Hingson]

I wish there was a regular poster from the TMNT production staff on these boards, so we could attribute certain sequences to specific individuals. I'm sure the cool Bishop fight scenes in season 3 were done by one guy in particular, and theres probably also someone else who does the cooler melee battles.

As for TMNT not getting a best animated program nod, neither did JLU, which I find even stranger.
It seems the industry like The Batman or something... Ah well Clone Wars will kick it's butt anyway if Avatar doesn't that is.

[Ian]

Simple Simon: I wish there was a regular poster from the TMNT production staff on these boards, so we could attribute certain sequences to specific individuals. I'm sure the cool Bishop fight scenes in season 3 were done by one guy in particular, and theres probably also someone else who does the cooler melee battles.
There's a guy over at the TMNT section of the Superhero Hype! Boards called The Boardman, who's one of the series' storyboarders; he's been giving out info on the storyboarding process, as well as the occasional Storyboard sketch, for the last year or so.

Althought I think the series didn't hit its stride until The first set of Shredder episodes, I still think of Things Change as one of the best cartoon pilots I've ever seen--second only to Gargoyles. In twenty minutes (a relative rarity, since most action cartoons seem to favor two-to-five-episode pilots), the writers: re-introduced the turtles; destroyed the old lair; established the series' themes; introduced the Battle Shell, the new lair, and three villains; and killed off the Purple Dragon's Leader.


What *has* changed is the threats the Turtles face. Long gone are the days when street punks and foot ninja are threats that can sustain an episode by themselves. There is also much more action/story packed into episodes now, whereas the first few were really lesiurely in setting things up (episode 2 is practically filler between episode 1 and the mouser fight in episode 3).
I'm not sure if this counts as "production values", but it should be noted that only Michael Ryan remains of the original writing staff--the rest have all left. There's also subtle differences in writing: for example, the characters have stopped expositing on past events (such as when the Foot ran them out of their lair--they mentioned that in every episode until The Shredder Strikes Back), and the show has gotten undeniably more violent. Plus, I do think the show looks better, overall ; I don't think there's been an episode yet that looks as bad as season one's worst.

As for the in-episode pacing, it seems as "leisurely" as always--there hasn't been an episode yet when one doesn't see the guys just hanging out. If anything this season seems more relaxed--only two or three episodes have seemed as action heavy as, say, The Shredder Strikes Back or Return to New York, and there have been few real threats to the turtles. Maybe I'm not getting what you're saying.

[Simpler Simon]

In twenty minutes (a relative rarity, since most action cartoons seem to favor two-to-five-episode pilots), the writers: re-introduced the turtles; destroyed the old lair; established the series' themes; introduced the Battle Shell, the new lair, and three villains; and killed off the Purple Dragon's Leader.
Thats pretty amazing when you put it that way, which you have.


There's also subtle differences in writing: for example, the characters have stopped expositing on past events (such as when the Foot ran them out of their lair--they mentioned that in every episode until The Shredder Strikes Back), and the show has gotten undeniably more violent.
Or when flashbacks lasted nearly two minutes and covered "search for splinter" through "turtles in space" and "secret origins." that was definitely a low point for the series (or any series), and yes I'm glad they're utilizing the teasers more effectively now.


Maybe I'm not getting what you're saying.
Hmm...if u know your James Bond, I consider early season 1 to be "from russia with love", whereas the series is much more "goldeneye" now. not quite as cut and dried as that, but with all the mutants, monsters, seemingly immortal government agents, p.o.ed female ninjas and gang leaders climbing the underworld ladder, the boys can't turn off the tv and use the throne without someone trying to kick their shell.

[Andrew T. Hingson]

And while most of the turtles still remain a little "naive" comparing how all them are to the oldet episodes show a progression of their characters and in a sense shows how they've been tainted over the years of battle since then. It seems like in "The Darkness and the Edge of Town" the turtles didn't have much of a care in the world and had a innocent quality to them but it wasn't to last once Shredder pushed them too far.

[NightwingAngelo]

I loved that episode. One of my favourites, especially since that's where it all began. It's hard to believe how far this show has progressed, with the turtles only starting off with Foot Ninjas and Raph and Leo arguing about everything almost every episode. :D


(episode 2 is practically filler between episode 1 and the mouser fight in episode 3).
I don't know if the 2nd episode was really much of a filler. I think the writers just wanted to take their time ot get tings going, so they went a little more indepth to the job that April did in being an assistant to Dr. Stockman rather than us having to ask what on earth she was doing later on.

With that said, don't get me wrong here. I know what you mean and it's pretty much correct when you think about it, I'm just getting a little technical.;)


The new TMNT show in general is ignored by the media. It's almost as if the new show doesn't even exist. I don't know if it's because it airs on 4kidsTV or not, but it really is a shame that it's always in the shadows and doesn't get much limelight.
Yeah, that's what I hate as well. It's so... hidden in the shadows (no pun intended to the Turtles :p ). I don't think they want to recognize it either. I'm sure we all have some suspicions why, but nothing much to base anything off of. Who knows thoug... maybe it is because of 4kids?
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Anyway, I'm looking forward to whatever the show cooks up heading into the last half of the season. Usagi coming to visit at the halfway mark was just perfect in setting up whatever it is to come.

[Dark Fact]

I still remember this episode like it was yesterday. I also remember all the hype 4Kids put into this show before the grand premiere (cheesy as they were). The opening monologue with Leonardo introducing himself and the scene with the turtles confronting the Purple Dragons was pure gold. The show was finally going back to its roots with the original comic. The characters weren't a bunch of total irreverent goofs (with the exception of Mikey), they were very serious and dedicated to their role as ninjas. The villains were also pretty threatening as well. You knew that by watching that episode, this was how the turtles should be as the way Laird intended. :)

Fast forward to today, and I'm still watching this show religiously. Yup, 3 seasons later, and the show is still good! :cool:

I wonder how many fanboys got an erection after seeing the new April for the first time? :)