Remember that one day when you could wake up without an alarm? When you would get your favorite bowl of cereal and sit between the hours of 8 and 12? This is a blog dedicated to the greatest time of our childhood: Saturday mornings. The television programs you watched, the memories attached to them, and maybe introducing you to something you didn't realize existed. Updated every weekend.
Despite good ratings and the fact
that The WB wanted a fourth
season, Batman Beyondconcluded
so that Bruce Timm could
utilize his crew at Warner Bros. Animation to bring about the next entry in the
DC Animated
Universe: Justice League. The series saw the previously established Batman (Kevin Conroy) and Superman (George Newbern, replacing Tim Daly who was working on the
short-lived The
Fugitiverevival) forming a team with group of heroes: Wonder Woman (Susan Eisenberg), Green Lantern John
Stewart (rather than the Kyle
Rayner version that previously appeared in Superman:
The Animated Series, voiced by Phil
LaMarr), Hawkgirl
(Maria Canals-Barrera), Martian Manhunter
(Carl Lumbly) and The Flash (Michael Rosenbaum, replacing
the unavailable Charlie Schlatter
from Superman). Both Batman and Superman received slightly altered
designs for the series, with Batman gaining longer ears and blue highlights to
his costume and Superman made bulkier and given facial features to make him
look older (although Superman’s proved unpopular and he was reverted to his
classic design the next season). Flash was portrayed as younger and brasher
than his comic counterpart, and Hawkgirl was given a romantic attraction to
Green Lantern rather than her counterpart, Hawkman. Initially,
Wonder Woman couldn’t be used due to legal issues, but Timm was adamant that
she be included in the series. She was a fish out of water, having just come to
man’s world from the island of Themyscria, and she and
Batman would develop a hinted attraction to each other (as the producers
disliked pairing her up with Superman despite fan requests) that would come to
be dubbed “WonderBat”
on social media.
The Justice League: Martian Manhunter, Green Lantern, Wonder Woman, Superman, Batman, Flash and Hawkgirl.
Justice League debuted on Cartoon Network on November 17, 2001,
becoming the first DCAU entry since Superman to not originally air on Kids’ WB (although it would
make its way there in reruns) and the network’s highest-rated premiere (until
it was surpassed in 2009 by Scooby-Doo! The Mystery
Begins). While the show was still traditional 2-D animation, the
series’ intro was rendered in CGI with a theme by series composer Lolita
Ritmanis. Episodes were generally 2-parters, airing in consecutive weeks.
For the second season, Cartoon Network would air both parts in an hour-long
block and the production was changed to a widescreen format.
Originally, the show was meant to
end at the conclusion of the second season; however, Cartoon Network ordered a
continuation. Rebranded Justice League Unlimited with a new intro and
theme by series composer Michael
McCuistion, the series was overhauled to feature a wide array of
characters (including the original seven) from DC Comics. Some were seen in the previous
entries in the DCAU, but many made their animated debuts such as the
crossbow-wielding Huntress
(Amy Acker), brother
emissaries of the Lords of Chaos and Order Hawk and Dove (Fred Savage and Jason Hervey, reprising their
relationship from The
Wonder Years) and sonic-powered brawler Black Canary (Morena Baccarin). Each episode,
now mostly stand-alone half hours, centered on a small grouping of heroes sent
out as a team to deal with trouble that didn’t require the attention of the
entire, expanded League. Unfortunately certain characters were off-limits; such
as Batman characters due to The
Batmanand Batman
Begins, members of the Teen Titans until their
program ended, Aquaman
characters due to the development of the failed Smallvillespin-off,
and characters from the mature Vertigo
imprint. The tie-in
comic, however, had no such restrictions, and often featured characters
that never made it to the show. There was also meant to be
a film bridging the end of season two into Unlimited, but ultimately
that ended up scrapped by Warner Bros.Unlimited ended after 3 seasons, marking the end of the DCAU until Darwyn Cooke’s Batman Beyond short in 2014.
(Teletoon, Netflix,
Family Channel, January 3, 2015-May 18, 2018)
DHX Media, DHX
Studios Halifax
Serving as
a sequel to the original
series, Inspector Gadget sees Gadget (Ivan Sherry) being brought out
of retirement when his arch-nemesis, Dr. Claw (Martin Roach), is thawed out of
the icy prison he was trapped in by his nephew, Talon (Lyon Smith), and resurrects MAD.
However, Gadget wouldn’t be on the case alone—this time, his niece Penny (Tara Strong) and her dog Brain (Scott McCord) would be his
partners as agents-in-training. The series was produced by DHX Media (now WildBrain), who had come to own the DiC Entertainment library
and the rights to Gadget. The show, now rendered in computer animation,
followed the same basic premise of the original in that Gadget, while equipped
with a powerful assortment of gadgets, was completely inept and it was Penny who
usually foiled MAD’s schemes (a fact Gadget and Claw were oblivious to).
However, being older and an agent meant Penny could fight back and not need
rescuing, nor did she have to work in secret. Talon had his own issues with
trying to get Claw to stop being so old-fashioned and to avoid the mistakes
that lets Gadget win. Penny and Talon shared a mutual attraction that couldn’t be
acted upon due to their being on opposing sides. Penny also a gained a new best
friend and fellow agent, Kayla (Katie
Griffin), whose cheerful disposition and motormouth tended to cripple any
MAD goons she came across.
Promotional artwork of Brain, Gadget, Penny, MAD Cat, Dr. Claw and Talon.
Inspector
Gadget debuted on January 3, 2015, airing on Teletoon (and later the DHX-owned Family Channel) in Canada, as well as on Boomerang and DStv internationally. It was originally
intended to air on Cartoon Network
in the United States but became a Netflix
exclusive first airing that March (Cartoon Network Arabic would
air it in the Middle East). This time around episodes (excluding the first)
were comprised of two 11-minute segments rather than a full half hour. Gadget’s
boss, Chief Quimby (Derek
McGrath), still delivered his missions from peculiar hiding spots, but they
were updated to exploding holograms. The theme by series composers Asher Lenz and Stephen Skratt was a
stylistic update of the original, played over an opening sequence that followed
virtually the same beats. Ultimately, Gadget ran for 52 episodes over 4 seasons.
In November of 2017, the series came to American airwaves on Universal Kids.
A star of stage and screen, she also had a prominent voice over career playing Admiral Rhea Bergstrom in an episode of Wing Commander Academy, Ashlee Walker Club Dupree
in an episode of The Magic School Bus (1994), and Athena in an episode
of Justice League Action, and starred as Meteora Butterfly in Star vs.
the Forces of Evil. She also provided additional voices for The Pirates
of Dark Water.
The Green Hornet was a radio
serial character created in 1936 by WXYZ (now WXYT) owner George W. Trendle
and writer Fran
Striker, with input from radio director James Jewell.
He was the alter-ego of Britt Reid (Al Hodge, Donovan Faust, Bob
Hall & Jack McCarthy), the wealthy young publisher of The Daily
Sentinel newspaper and a descendent of The
Lone Ranger, whom Trendle and Striker also created. He and his loyal
partner and confidant Kato (Tokutaro Hayashi, Rollon Parker & Michael Tolan) patrolled the
city at night with a variety of gadgets and a technologically advanced car, The
Black Beauty. They pose as criminals in order to better infiltrate the criminal
underworld. The Green Hornet ran from 1936-1950, then again for 2 months
in 1952. In that time, it was adapted into two serials by Universal Pictures and a comic book series
that began with Henlit Comics (aka Holyoke) in 1940
and ended with Harvey
Comics in 1949.
Green Hornet, Kato and the Black Beauty.
Trendle had attempted to pitch the
character for television in 1951 and 1958, but nobody was interested in it
until Batmanbecame
a success on ABC. The network decided to take
on The Green Hornet and put it in the hands of Batman producer William Dozier. Unlike Batman,
The Green Hornet was played straight. The Hornet was once again publisher
Britt Reid (Van Williams)
with his trusty sidekick, martial-artist Kato (Bruce
Lee), dedicated to fighting crime after his father was framed, imprisoned
and killed. Only two other people knew their secret: Reid’s secretary Lenore
“Casey” Case (Wende Wagner),
as she did in the later years of the radio show, and District Attorney Frank P.
Scanlon (Walter Brooke),
changed from being a police commissioner in order to minimize comparisons to Batman.
Sentinel police reporter Michael Axford (Lloyd Gough), no longer Britt’s
bodyguard, was determined to get the scoop on the Hornet. Additional
differences between previous versions were Hornet and Kato wore masks molded to
their faces rather than one that covered the full face or goggles, Hornet
carried a vibrational weapon called the Hornet’s Sting as well as a knockout
gas gun, and Kato had darts hidden up his sleeve.
The Green Hornet meets Batman and Robin.
The Green Hornet debuted on
ABC, who owned WXYZ since 1946, on September 6, 1966. Nikolai
Rimsky-Korsakov’s orchestral interlude, “Flight of the Bumblebee”,
had become synonymous with the character through the radio series, so the TV
show used a similar jazz-styled theme arranged by series composer Billy May, conducted by Lionel Newman, and a trumpet
solo by Al Hirt. Dozier served
as the series’ narrator as he did on Batman, and the characters would
cross over twice. Unfortunately, The Green Hornet did not duplicate Batman’s
success for the network and they cancelled it after a single season. However,
it left a lasting impression thanks to Lee as it introduced both him and true
martial arts to American audiences, increasing the popularity of both and
propelling Lee into a movie career. ABC aired reruns of the series until July
1967, and since then it has made sporadic rounds on various networks.
Created in 1933 for the radio
by WXYZ (now WXYT) owner Georg W. Trendle and writer Fran Striker, The Lone Ranger was
a masked cowboy vigilante. He began as a Texas Ranger named John Reid (Earle Graser until his death, Brace Beemer for the
remainder, and several fill-ins), the sole survivor of an ambush on him and
five of his fellow Rangers by a gang led by a man named Bartholomew “Butch”
Cavendish (Bill
Saunders). He was found and nursed to health by Native American Tonto (John Todd). Reid
adopted the guise of the Lone Ranger to bring Cavendish to justice with Tonto
and his trusty horse, Silver, by his side, and to continue to protect the west.
As the Ranger was never identified as such verbally, those he helped were often
left to ponder “Who was that masked man, anyway?” at the end of each episode.
The show proved immensely popular, running until 1956 and spawning two Republic serials and
books
largely written by Striker. In 1949, Trendle brought the series to television
with Clayton Moore in the title
role and Jay Silverheels as
Tonto.
The Lone Ranger, Tonto and Silver.
The
Lone Ranger debuted on the fledgling ABC, who bought WXYZ in 1946, on September 15,
1949. Like the radio show, it used the ending of the “William Tell Overture”
by Gioachino
Rossini as its theme, which has become synonymous with the franchise as a
result. 78 episodes were filmed and aired for 78 weeks, then rerun all-over
again for another year. It became the first hit for the network, earning an Emmy nomination in 1950. For the next batch
of 52 episodes, Moore was fired over a contractual dispute and replaced with John Hart. It was believed that
the mask would hide the change and keep the audience invested, but he was
disliked in the role and his episodes weren’t aired again until the 1980s. In
1954, Trendle sold the rights to Jack
Wrather who produced another 52 episodes after promptly hiring back Moore.
For the final season, only 39 episodes were produced, as that had become the
industry standard, and Wrather fronted the money to produce them in color
despite ABC still broadcasting in black and white. Wrather decided to skip
dealing with the network and went on to produce two theatrical films, while
ABC kept the show in daytime reruns for years.
For the history of Alvin and the Chipmunks, check out the post here.
With the popularity of Ross Bagdasarian’s creations, Alvin
and the Chipmunks, riding high with hit songs and album sales, the time had
come to expand the brand onto television in a more permanent basis. Bagdasarian
teamed-up with Format
Films, who redesigned the Chipmunks into more physically distinguishable
and cartoonish characters, and created storyboards
for a pilot episode to shop around to the networks. CBS ultimately bought the concept and
commissioned the creation of the show. It would be broken up into three
segments: the first was a standard Chipmunk misadventure, featuring Alvin, Simon, Theodore and their
hapless guardian, Dave
Seville (all Bagdasarian). In keeping with what made the characters so
popular, that would be followed by a song segment, and then a second song to
close out the episode. Additionally, the Chipmunks would appear in commercials
for their primary sponsors: Jell-O and Post Cereals, both owned
by General Foods. In
between the two songs was an original creation: scientist and inventor Clyde Crashup (Shepard Menken, impersonating Richard Haydn’s Edwin Carp
character) and his sidekick who only spoke by whispering in his ear, Leonardo. Clyde would tend to
invent something that already existed but with his own flair added. And,
usually, those inventions would backfire.
The Sevilles: Dave, Alvin, Theodore and Simon.
The Alvin Show, named for the
most popular character in the group, debuted on CBS on October 4, 1961.
Bagdasarian would handle the music along with Charles E. King and Ken Lowman, with direction and
arrangement by Johnny Mann.
The series ran in black and white for two seasons in primetime before moving to
the Saturday morning line-up and being colorized. By the end of the 60s, the
individual Chipmunks segments were combined and the show was sold into
syndication as Alvin and the Chipmunks, making its way to NBC Saturday mornings in 1979. Ultimately, a new series would emerge through Bagdasarian’s son, Ross, Jr., and
daughter-in-law, Janice Karman.
Clyde and the original animated Chipmunks would make appearances on that show.
In 1994, Nickelodeon acquired the broadcast
rights for The Alvin Show and re-aired them in their original form, less
one song to make room for commercials. They also incorporated various segments
into their own program, Weinerville.
To date, only a few episodes and segments have seen release to home media,
and the program itself has not been broadcast since Nickelodeon dropped it.
When I Love
Lucydebuted in 1951, it became a hit for CBS
and sponsors were clamoring for more shows like it to bring attention to their
products. NBC commissioned a similar
production of their own with physical comedienne Joan Davis as the lead. I
Married Joan centered on the antics of scatterbrained and clumsy housewife
Joan Stevens who tended to get herself into a variety of pratfalls all designed
to show off Davis’ physical skills. Early episodes would set up their stories
by featuring her husband, mild-mannered community judge Bradley Stevens (Jim Backus), relaying it to
people appearing before him in his court. These wraparound segments were
abandoned after a few episodes, allowing the stories to stand on their own. In
the second season, Davis’ daughter, Beverly Willis, would play her
younger sister Beverly Grossman for several episodes.
The Stevens have a guest for dinner.
I Married Joan debuted on NBC
on October 15, 1952. To help entice Lucy’s audience to check it out, the
first season was directed by Lucy season one director Marc Daniels. NBC scheduled it
against the first half of the popular Arthur Godfrey and his
Friendson CBS, resulting in it getting marginally decent ratings.
Fortunately the scandal that followed Arthur Godfrey’s on-air firing of singer Julius La Rosa caused an
irreparable decline in Godfrey’s popularity, allowing Joan to get
significantly better ratings for the second season. Unfortunately, this boost
was temporary as the ratings plummeted again when ABC
debuted Disneyland. That, combined with Davis’ reported health problems
(although she continued to make appearances up until her death), led to the
show being cancelled after 3 seasons and 98 episodes. The following season, NBC
moved reruns to its Saturday morning line-up for a year. Beginning in the
1980s, the series has had a sporadic syndication run on CBN (now Freeform), ION Television, AMG TV and Decades
network. Episodes have also been screened at the annual Mid-Atlantic Nostalgia
Convention.
Top Cat was one of the
prime-time sitcoms developed by Hanna-Barbera Productions
in their early years. It was partly inspired by the East Side Kids--tough
kid characters that starred in a series of films from Monogram Pictures
between 1940-45--but took most of its inspiration from The Phil Silvers Show. The
titular Top Cat (T.C. to his friends, voiced by Arnold Stang impersonating Silvers) was the feline leader
of a gang of alley cats comprised of simple-minded Benny the Ball (modeled
after his voice actor Maurice Gosfield,
who also starred in Silvers), enthusiastic and devoted Choo-Choo (Marvin Kaplan, invoking Woody Allen), the ironically-named Brain
(Leo De Lyon), laid-back ladies’
man Fancy-Fancy (John Stephenson)
and beatnik Spook (also Lyon). T.C. would summon his gang by clanging two
garbage can lids together and then proceed to lead them on a series of (often
illegal) get-rich-quick schemes. Standing in their way was beat cop Charles
Dibble (Allen Jenkins), who
often put a stop to their schemes but was unable to evict them from the alley
or get them to stop using the police call box phone for their personal use.
Signed art of Dibble looking on as Brain, Benny, Fancy-Fancy, T.C., Spook and Choo Choo cause a ruckus in the alley.
Top Cat debuted on ABC on September 27, 1961, featuring music from
regular Hanna-Barbera composer Hoyt
Curtin. Co-creator William
Hanna called it one of the wittiest and most sophisticated shows he
produced that had a rare appeal to audiences of all ages. Unfortunately, the
show was only a modest success and only lasted a single season of 30 episodes
that ABC would rerun as part of their Saturday morning schedule. However, that
was just in America. Top Cat was a massive hit in Mexico, Chile, Peru
and Argentina, and T.C. has been regarded as one of the most famous cartoon
characters ever in those territories. In 1988, Hanna-Barbera produced a 2-hour
television movie called Top
Cat and the Beverly Hills Catsthat aired as part of their Hanna-Barbera Superstars 10series
of telefilms, and the characters continued to appear or make cameos in other
Hanna-Barbera shows. Mexican animation studio Ánima
Estudios would produce and release a theatrical film in 2011.
While it did well in Mexico, the English dub was widely panned. In 2015, they
released a CGI prequel
that fared no better, even in its home country.
Jeff
Franklin Productions, Miller-Boyett Productions, Lorimar-Telepictures (season
1), Lorimar Television (season 2-6), Warner Bros. Television (season 7-8)
Created by Jeff Franklin, Full House centered
on recently widowed neat freak Danny Tanner (Bob
Saget, John Posey in the
pilot) getting help from his best friend, comedian and impressionist Joey
Gladstone (Dave Coulier), and
brother-in-law, rock and roller Jesse Katsopolis (originally Cochran, played by
John Stamos), in raising his
three daughters: eldest D.J. (Candace
Cameron Bure), middle Stephanie (Jodie Sweetin), and baby
Michelle (shared by twins Mary-Kate
and Ashley Olsen). They
moved into his San Francisco house and misadventures followed as three vastly
different single men tried to deal with the trials and tribulations that
accompanied three girls growing up. Eventually, the titular full house became
even fuller when Jesse fell in love with and married Danny’s television morning
show co-host, Rebecca Donaldson (Lori
Loughlin), and they had two boys of their own, Nicky and Alex (twins Blake and Dylan Tuomy-Wilhoit), while taking
residence in the attic after it was converted into an apartment.
A full house indeed: Jesse and Becky with their boys, Joey, neighbor Kimmy Gibbler, Danny, Stephanie, Michelle, D.J. and her boyfriend, Steve.
Full House debuted on ABC on September 22, 1987. The series’ theme,
played at various lengths throughout the show’s run and in reruns, was
“Everywhere You Look”, performed by Jesse Frederick and composed by
him, Bennett Salvay and
Franklin. The show, like most family-oriented sitcoms at the time, dealt with
real issues families often faced in a combination of laugh-filled and heartfelt
messages. Despite an unusually high writer turnover rate, the show remained
incredibly popular throughout its run, becoming the springboard to launch fellow
ABC programs Home Improvement,
Family Mattersand
Hangin’ with Mr.
Cooper. It would go on to become the flagship program of ABC’s TGIF
programming block before jumping back and forth between Tuesdays and
Fridays. Ultimately, ABC decided to cancel the show despite its strong ratings
due to rising costs of production, not even giving it a proper final episode. The show would go on in reruns for years on
various basic cable channels, such as TBS and
Nickelodeon, as well as streaming on Hulu.
In 2014, after a lot of back and
forth with rumors about a potential movie spin-off, Netflix announced plans to produce a
spin-off sequel series. Fuller House debuted on February 26, 2016 and
ran for 5 seasons. It followed a widowed D.J. who moved back into the family
house and got help from Stephanie and her childhood best friend, Kimmy Gibbler (Andrea Barber), in raising her
boys Jackson (Michael Campion),
Max (Elias Harger) and Tommy
(shared by twins Dashiell
and Fox Messitt). If that
wasn’t enough, Kimmy had her own daughter, Ramona (Soni Nicole Bringas), from
her failed marriage. The rest of the original cast except the Olsens,
including former guest-stars and recurring characters, would pop in from time
to time to offer help or just add to the comedic chaos.
And so we come to the end of our year (and 2 months) long celebration of Saturday mornings. From the 1950s through today, a variety of shows both live and animated have entertained the youth of the world. And while the shows themselves and the viewing methods may have changed, there's no doubt that these programs will continue to resonate for a long time.
Thanks for joining us on this journey. When we began, we had no idea there'd be the level of craziness that 2020 ended up being. Hopefully what we did was able to give you some enjoyment during those months in quarantine--or just as a general distraction from everything. While we didn't quite accomplish as much as we hoped, we think we did these programs justice.
With that, Saturday Mornings Forever will be taking a bit of a break. We'll be showcasing reruns for a time while we plan for the next phase of the site. Oh, don't worry--these won't be reruns to YOU, just shows that didn't originate on Saturday mornings that ended up airing there over time. Those are usually quick, short entries that will allow us some rest and time to get ahead.
In the meantime, continue to follow us on Facebook and Twitter where we post upcoming new episodes and Saturday morning-based comic releases, as well as other various news items that come our way. See you soon!
For the history of the Ninja Turtles, check out the post here.
In 2009, Viacom (now ViacomCBS) purchased all of Mirage
Studio’s rights to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise; although
Mirage was still allowed to publish a number of Turtles comics a year. They
began production on new Turtles media, including a cartoon to air on
Viacom-owned Nickelodeon. The resulting
series was the first to feature the Turtles rendered in computer animation (with
the 2007
animated film being the first time overall) that also served as a love-letter to the
franchise; blending in elements of every incarnation to date.
The new heroes in a half-shell.
The series could be seen as a spiritual sequel to the 1987 animated show,
as it was decidedly more light-hearted than the 2003
version with humor derived from a number of anime influences; such as extremely
deformed features during emotional outbursts. Like the 1987 series, the Turtles
were raised and trained by Master Splinter (Hoon Lee), a former member of the Foot
Clan known as Hamato Yoshi that was mutated into a rat by the same mutagen that would mutate
the Turtles from his pets into human hybrids. Leonardo (Jason Biggs) was the
leader who took his role and training very seriously, often struggling with his
own doubts about his abilities; Donatello (Rob Paulsen, who originally voiced
Raphael in the 1987 series and only took the role after clearing it with former
co-star Barry
Gordon) was a mechanical genius and developed the various gadgets the Turtles
would use, such as their communication devices, the T-Phone, that played a midi
of the 1987
series theme.; Raphael (Sean Astin) had rage issues that he often took out on
his brothers, but was fiercely loyal to his family; and Michelangelo (Greg
Cipes) was the youngest in the clan and showed it with his intense love of
video games, skateboarding and pizza. Aside from their bandana colors and the
shade of their skins, each Turtle featured unique body features for the first
time: Donnie was the tallest with a gap between his teeth and brown eyes; Leo
was a bit shorter than Donnie and had blue eyes; Raph had a chip in his front
shell and green eyes; and Mikey was the shortest with a childlike face adorned
in freckles. The Turtles’ trademarked battle cry “Cowabunga!” was updated to
“Booyakasha!”, proclaimed mostly by Mikey.
April and her Tessen.
Their primary human friend/ally,
April O’Neil (Mae Whitman), received the most dramatic changes of the series.
She was depicted as a teenager like the Turtles, leading to Donnie having a
tremendous crush on her (which eclipsed the one depicted in the 2003 series)
and attempting to impress her constantly and win her affection. She was also a
human/Kraang hybrid, the result of her mother (Renae Jacobs,
who played April
in the 1987 series) being experimented on. As a result, she developed strong
psychic powers that would grow as the series progressed. As with several other
incarnations, she began training with Splinter in order to better defend
herself and participate at times in the Turtles’ missions. She was given a Tessen
(war fan) by Splinter and later adopted a dragon tanto (short sword) as her
weapons.
Casey Jones: vigilante.
Similarly, their other human
friend/ally Casey Jones (Josh Peck) was made a teenager; becoming involved with
the Turtles after April was assigned to tutor him in school. He still wielded a
collection of sports equipment as weaponry and patrolled the city as a
vigilante, often helping the Turtles in their fights with the battle cry
“Goongala!” Casey also had a crush on April, which put him in a rivalry with
Donnie that lessened as the show progressed.
The Kraang.
The first and constant threat to the
Turtles was the alien race known as the Kraang (all Nolan North). Krang
(Pat
Fraley) was a villain created for the 1987 series based on
the aliens known as the Utroms
from the original Mirage comics. Like Krang, the Kraang resembled sentient
brains and piloted humanoid robotic bodies where their stomachs would be, which
were often disguised as the same man in a suit when operating in public
(although there were different types of bodies they could use for various
situations). They had no individual will, operating with a hive mind and
possessing a limited and repetitive grasp of the English language. They were
led by Kraang Prime (Roseanne
Barr
initially, Rachel
Butera later on), an Utrom scientist that discovered the
mutagen created within giant worm creatures and utilized it in evolutionary
experiments. There was also Kraang
Subprime (Gilbert
Gottfried), who served as the Kraang’s spy and spent a lot of
time posing as April’s best friend, Irma
Langinstein (created for the 1987 series and resembling
Velma
Dinkley, who was also voiced by Kate Micucci).
The Utrom High Council: Pawn, Queen, Rook and Bishop.
The
Utroms
in this universe were those who resisted Kraang Prime’s mind control and fought
back against them. The Utroms were led by the Ultrom
High Council comprised of members named after chess
pieces: Bishop (North), loosely based on antagonist Agent
Bishop from the 2003 series, was the original designer of
the exo-bodies the Kraang used and was Subprime’s brother; Queen
(Cassandra Peterson),
who piloted a recolored version of the autonomous Kraangdroid Ms.
Campbell (also Peterson) who posed as a scientist with an
interest in April; Rook
(Miccuci), who created the Irma droid model and held a grudge against Subprime
for stealing her design; and Pawn (North), who piloted an undisguised exosuit
that had an additional curly mustache and spoke with a French accent.
Shredder and Karai.
Eventually,
the Turtles’ customary foes of the Foot Clan would provide trouble for them as
well; sometimes at odds with the Kraang, other times working with them. They
were led by Splinter’s old friend, Oroku Saki, aka The Shredder (Kevin Michael
Richardson). This Shredder was adopted by the Hamato Clan after the original
Foot were defeated, but became angry and bitter upon learning his origins and
unrequited feelings for Tang
Shen
(Minae Noji), Splinter’s
wife. A conflict saw Saki accidentally kill Shen and end up badly burned, and
in retaliation he stole their daughter, Miwa, and raised her into this show’s
version of Karai
(Kelly Hu).
Leo became infatuated with Karai despite her being their sworn enemy, but her
allegiances changed once she learned the truth about her origins. Both she and
Shredder would end up mutated by mutagen; Shredder willingly to heal battle
wounds, making him grow more massively muscular with natural retracting claws,
and Karai accidentally, turning her into desert horned viper although she was
able to shift back into her human form and assume hybrid variations of both.
Bebop and Rocksteady in the hizzy.
The
Foot was initially comprised of actual human ninjas but were eventually
supplemented with various versions of Footbots
(like the 1987 series, which allowed the Turtles to commit limited acts of
violence against them). Shredder also had several mutants in his employ. Bebop
(J.B. Smoove) and Rocksteady (Fred Tatasciore) were his primary muscle. Bebop
started as Anton Zeck (named after comic artist Mike Zeck),
a professional thief with high tech gadgetry that used his dancing skills in a
fight and was eventually mutated into a warthog. Rocksteady was Ivan Steranko
(named after comic artist Jim Steranko),
a Russian arms dealer and artifact collector that was mutated into a white
rhinoceros (the fact that he’s Russian was possibly an allusion to the Marvel Comics villain Rhino).
Baxter
Stockman (Phil
LaMarr) was a brilliant scientist brought in to
reverse-engineer Kraang’s technology. He was mutated into a humanoid fly after
too many failures and was put in charge of mutagen experiments. A running gag
had the Turtles always misremember his last name. Newly created for the show
was Xever Montes (Christian Lanz), a crime boss of the Brazilian mob in the
city, and Chris Bradford (based on Chuck
Norris, voiced by Clancy Brown), a world-famous martial
artist who used his dojo chain to recruit for the Foot. Eventually both were
mutated: with Xever becoming a giant snakehead dubbed “Fishface” and requiring
a breathing apparatus and robotic legs, and Bradford into the humanoid Akita
dubbed “Dogpound”. Bradford was further mutated into the near-skeletal
werewolf Rahzar (based on the creature
that debuted in the 1991 film Teenage Mutant
Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze). Eventually
allying with Shredder was Tiger Claw (created in 1985 for a Turtles
tabletop RPG by executive producer Brandon Auman,
voiced by Eric Bauza), a Japanese assassin and bounty hunter that was mutated
into a tiger. He was the most competent of the mutants, and the most dangerous.
The Turtles and the Mighty Mutanimals.
Other
characters included The
Purple Dragons, a street gang led by Fong
(Andrew Kishino)
in the absence of Rahzar or Fishface and later Hun (modeled after Bruce Lee,
voiced by Bauza), who had a rivalry with Casey; Don Vizioso
(Brian Bloom),
an obese crime lord in the Italian mafia; The
Rat King (Jeffrey
Combs), a sleazy scientist that was mutated into being able
to control any kind of rat and could only see through the eyes of his white rat
companion, Aristotle; Metalhead,
a sentient turtle bot created by Donnie from Kraang tech; Newtralizer
(created for the show based on rejected toy designs by Ryan
Brown and a character executive producer Ciro Nieli
created as a kid, voiced by Danny Trejo),
a member of the alien Salamandarian
(humanoid newts and salamanders) race and an intergalactic bounty hunter that
hated pretty much everyone;Ice
Cream Kitty (franchise co-creator Kevin Eastman),
a stray cat that ate mutagen-covered ice cream and became cat made of ice cream,
living in the Turtles’ freezer; Kirby
O’Neil (Keith
Silverstein), April’s father and a scientist (like
the 2003 series) who was briefly mutated into a bat; and the Mighty
Mutanimals, a team of mutants brought together by private
investigator and journalist Jack
J. Kurtzman (based on Jack Kirby,
voiced by Robert
Forster) to fight the Kraang which included Slash
(Corey Feldman,
who voiced Donnie in two of the movies), Raph’s mutated former pet tortoise, Leatherhead
(Peter Lurie),
a flushed pet alligator mutated by the Kraang, Pigeon
Pete
(A.J. Buckley),
a dim-witted mutated rock dove obsessed with sourdough, Mondo
Gecko (Robbie
Rist,
who voiced Michelangelo in the films), a high school skateboarder that
accidentally had mutagen dropped on him and his pet gecko (and who adopted the
“Cowabunga!” cry), Muckman (a nod to The Toxic Avenger,
voiced
by Nolan North & Grant
Moninger), a sewer worker turned into a walking pile of
garbage and had a partner in the form of his sentient left eyeball, Joe
Eyeball (also Moninger), and Doc
Rockwell (Frank
Welker for vocal effects, Tom Kenny
for speaking), a neuroscientist mutated into a chimpanzee that gained telepathy
and telekinesis.
Each season was broken up into story arcs. The first season largely
introduced the world and characters as the Turtles learned about and put a stop
to the Kraang’s invasion of Earth. The second season featured the Kraang’s
second, more successful attempt with a greater focus on mutagen and the mutants
it created. The third season began the practice of splitting the season up into
two arcs that generally connected into an overall story. The first arc saw the
Turtles driven out of the city and having to go to April’s
family’s farm in Northampton, Massachusetts
to recover and retrain themselves for a rematch with the Kraang. There, they
encountered a group of mutated frogs bent on world domination known as the Punk
Frogs, but were turned off of the idea through Mikey’s friendship with the
super-chill Napoleon
Bonafrog (Jon Heder, who played Napoleon Dynamite). After returning to
the city for the second arc of the season, they encountered Renet (Ashley
Johnson), an immature and rash Assistant Time Master in Training who took them
back in time to rescue a pre-mutated Hamato Yoshi, and the alien Triceratons, who were willing to
destroy the Earth to eliminate the Kraang.
Leo recovering from his injuries.
During
production of the second season, Biggs was in the midst of an alcohol abuse
problem when he fired off a series of offensive “jokes” on social media. They
were offensive enough that a number of people contacted Nick in displeasure.
When the tweets didn’t stop, Nick was finally forced
to fire Biggs from the show. Dominic Catrambone was brought
on to finish out the season, doing a near-perfect impression of Biggs for
consistency. Seth Green auditioned for the part--claiming because Leo was his
wife’s favorite Turtle--and won
the role. To explain away the noticeable difference in his
voice, Leo’s throat was “damaged” in a battle and didn’t heal correctly,
resulting in a change in his vocal cords.
Promo art of the Turtles in space with Fugitoid and a looming threat.
The fourth season’s first arc saw a major change for the series as a
friendly robot scientist named Professor
Honeycutt, aka Fugitoid (David Tennant), rescued the
Turtles, April and Casey and took them into space 6 months in the past to
prevent the Triceratons from succeeding. They encountered and battled against a
variety of aliens, as well as made new friends: such as Raphael’s crush, a
fight-loving Salamandarian he nicknamed “Mona Lisa” (Zelda
Williams). The Turtles even found time to traverse dimensions and team-up with
their 1987 counterparts, with Cam Clarke, Gordon, Townsend Coleman and Paulsen
reprising their roles of Leonardo, Donatello, Michelangelo and Raphael,
respectively (the 1987 Turtles cameoed before in a season 2 episode).
Succeeding in their mission, the Turtles returned to the city for the second
arc which dealt with April’s growing powers, new mutants such as Tiger Claw’s
estranged assassin sister Alopex (first introduced in
the IDW comics, voiced by Noji),
and the return of Shredder enhanced by mutagen as a nod to his form in the second film. During
a winter break in the season, a special, Kicking Shell and
Taking Names, aired on November 25th, 2015, which
caught viewers up with the story so far.
The fifth season ended up being the most dramatically changed of all. The
original plan was always to end the show at five seasons, and Nickelodeon made
no efforts to extend that as they were looking to do another reboot for the
franchise. The season was split into seven different story arcs that
didn’t necessarily connect, the show was renamed Tales of the Teenage Mutant
Ninja Turtles (which was the name of a companion
comic series), and given a new opening title sequence and theme song (the sequence
was also modified depending on which arc it aired within). Seven episodes would
also make their debuts on sister channel Nicktoons rather than
Nickelodeon proper. “Tales from the Beyond – The Kavaxas Saga” saw the
Foot taken over by Tiger Claw and attempting to resurrect the Shredder with the
aid of mighty demodragon Kavaxas (Mark
Hamill). “Alien Tales – When Worlds Collide Saga” was a two-part
storyline that saw Mona Lisa and her superior, Sal
Commander G’Throkka (Keith David) arrive on Earth
looking for help to deal with Newtralizer. “Samurai Tales – The Samurai
Turtles Saga” had the Turtles travel to an alternate Feudal Japan inhabited
by anthropomorphic animals where they had to aid samurai rabbit Miyamoto
Usagi (Yuki Matsuzaki) in accomplishing his quest. Usagi was created in comics by Stan Sakai, which were eventually
published by Mirage. Usagi had crossed over with the Turtles multiple times,
with the first being in the anthology Turtle
Soup, and has been featured in all three Turtle cartoons. “Tales from
the Past – Lone Rat and Cubs” was a one-shot flashback episode that
showed how Splinter came to find the Turtles. “Tales from the Future – Raphael:
Mutant Apocalypse Saga” was originally intended to be the series finale,
following Raphael in a dystopian future reminiscent of Mad
Max, to put a cap on the timeline the crew had built and not
allow anyone else to add on to it.However, it was decided
to render
the episodes non-canon and taking place in an alternate
dimension. “Monstrous Tales – Monsters vs. Mutants Saga” featured the
return of Renet as she took the Turtles back in time to battle against the
classic Universal
Monsters and prevent them from taking over the present. “Crossover Tales – Wanted:
Bebop & Rocksteady Saga” became the true series finale, with 1987
Shredder (Richardson) and Krang (Fraley) employing the 2012 Bebop and
Rocksteady and finding that their plans became infinitely more successful.
Four of the five cartoons the Turtles frequently enjoyed.
Ninja Turtles was critically
acclaimed throughout most of its run, racking up numerous award nominations for
Daytime Creative Arts Emmy Awards, Annie Awards, Kids’ Choice Awards, Producers Guild of America Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award and a British Academy Children’s Award. It
ended up taking home three of the of the Creative Arts awards. In 2015, Nick
produced a 2D special called Half-Shell Heroes: Blast to the Past, which
was done in the style of Playmates Toys’
Half-Shell
Heroes action figure line that was directed at younger fans.
Beginning in 2016, Nick would produce a series of shorts by various creators
and done in various animation styles. The first three debuted at 2016’s San
Diego Comic-Con before heading to YouTube. The following year, Nick released a
series of “Summer
Shorts” on YouTube expanding on the concept. A sub-series, TMNT
Team-Up, had repeated entries;
totaling six altogether.
Long-time franchise merchandising partner Playmates Toys released a new line of toys that
began before the series aired its first episode. Seven waves of figures were
released between 2012 and 2014, which included playsets and roleplay toys. LEGO produced several
sets in that timeframe as well. In 2014, Build-A-Bear Workshop released a series
of plush versions of the Turtles and themed accessories. Diamond
Select Toys produced a series of Minimates
mini-figures. The first wave released in 2014 as blind bags at Kmart and comic shops and in 2-packs at Toys
‘R’ Us, with both retailers getting their own exclusive characters along with
the common shared ones. The second wave in 2015 skipped Kmart. Other
merchandise included clothing, bedding, bookbags and more. At San Diego Comic Con in 2024. NECA
announced they would be producing new figures based
on the series beginning in 2025.
Danger of the Ooze game cover.
Several video games were released in relation to the show. The first, Rooftop Run, was a mobile game
developed by Nickelodeon
Interactive in 2013 that featured the characters constantly moving forward with
screen taps controlling various actions based on their location and what
obstacles are in range. Out of the Shadows(not to be confused
with the 2016 film of the same
name) was released by Red Fly Studio and Activision for home consoles.
While not a direct adaptation—utilizing different designs and voices for
starters—it was heavily inspired by the mythos of the cartoon and featured
elements introduced in it. Another mobile game, Mutant Rumbledeveloped by Swappz
Interactive, utilized a toys-to-life model and required the purchase of figures in
order to get the whole experience of the game. The second console game, simply
titled Teenage Mutant
Ninja Turtles, was released a month later from Magic Pockets and Activision. This
game was a direct adaptation, using both the show’s aesthetics and season 2
voice cast. In 2014, WayForward Technologies and Activision
released Danger of the Ooze, which was set between
seasons 2 and 3 and introduced the Salamandrians before the show did. Battle Matchfrom Tiny
Castle Studios in 2015 was a mobile block-matching puzzle game based on the space
theme from the 4th season. Red Fly returned in 2016 with a new
mobile game called Portal Power, where a player could
control one or all the Turtles with various dragging and swiping motions. In
2017, Ludia,
Inc. released the mobile game Legends, which was a
turn-based RPG that used an in-game collectible card system to award items and
characters. China got their own exclusive game with Rěnzhě
Guī OL, which was a 3D action brawler. Additionally, Leap
Frog had several educational games featuring the
Turtles and they appeared as playable characters in 2018’s Nickelodeon Kart
Racers. Lee would reprise the role of Splinter—albeit the 1987 version—in
2023’s Nickelodeon
All-Star Brawl 2.
Nickelodeon
released the entire series onto DVD, typically by breaking up a season into
various volumes before releasing the season as a whole. Domestically, each
season was split across three
volumes while international releases were expanded into four.
The international releases eventually resulted in a complete
season released shortly after the final volume, while only
the first
and second season saw any full release domestically until the complete
series was finally released in 2022. Additionally, a
compilation DVD, Pulverizer
Power, was released containing
all of the appearances of the Pulverizer
(Roger Craig Smith)
character; a teenaged fan of the Turtles who tried to be a superhero and ended
up mutated into Mutagen Man. Half-Shell
Heroes was released on its own in 2016, and three episodes
were made available for download onto LeapFrog’s LeapPad as Turtle-y
Epic Face-Offs. The series could be streamed on Hulu, with episodes
available for purchase on Amazon
Prime Video and iTunes,
and was gradually added to Paramount+
season by season.
EPISODE
GUIDE: Season
1: “Rise
of the Turtles” (9/29/12) – On their first trip to the surface, the Turtles
witness April and her father being taken by the Kraang and a smitten Donnie
convinces the others to rescue them. “Turtle
Temper” (10/6/12) – Raph has to control his temper in order to defeat the nosy
Vic after he’s mutated into Spyder Bytez after filming the Turtles in action. “New
Friend, Old Enemy” (10/13/12) – Mikey tries to prove they can be friends with
humans by befriending famous martial artist Chris Bradford, who happens to be
Shredder’s pupil. “I
Think His Name is Baxter Stockman” (10/20/12) – The Turtles sneak out when
they’re grounded and accidentally allow Baxter Stockman to find their new T-Pod
and use it for his revenge. “Metalhead”
(10/27/12) – Tired of his weapon, Donnie uses Kraang tech to make the
remote-controlled robot turtle Metalhead to send into battle in his stead. “Monkey
Brains” (11/3/12) – April and Donnie investigate the disappearance of a British
neuroscientist whom they discover was mutated into a psychic monkey by Dr.
Victor Falco. “Never
Say Xever” (11/10/12) – The Foot Clan launches a new attack with a Brazilian
street thug Leo trained to be his street contact in the lead. “The
Gauntlet” (11/17/12) – After April receives a message from her father, she and
the Turtles set out to rescue him from the Kraang and end up facing the Foot as
well. “Panic
in the Sewers” (11/24/12) – A nightmare has Splinter training the Turtles 24/7
just as Shredder launches an attack on their lair. “Mousers
Attack!” (12/8/12) – The Purple Dragons attacking with Stockman’s MOUSERS
forces the Turtles to split into two groups. “It
Came From the Depths” (12/15/12) – The Turtles rescue Leatherhead from the
Kraang and discover he has stolen their power cell. “I,
Monster” (1/25/13) – The Turtles must save the city and Splinter after Falco
turns himself into the rat-controlling Rat King. “New
Girl in Town” (2/1/13) – Tired of criticism, Leo lets Raph lead the fight
against Snakeweed while Karai attempts to lure him to the Foot. “The
Alien Agenda” (2/8/13) – April’s science project attracts the attention of the
Kraang while Karai tries to convince Shredder that they even exist. “The
Pulverizer” (2/15/13) – Donnie converts Leatherhead’s subway car into a battle
van and their test drive brings them face-to-face with their first fan: a
teenager in a costume called The Pulverizer. “TCRI”
(3/1/13) – The Turtles infiltrate TCRI and discover that the Kraang plan to
launch an invasion and are after April. “Cockroach
Terminator” (3/15/13) – Donnie’s spyroach not only gives the Turtles valuable
intel, but ends up mutated and targeted Raph since he tried to destroy it earlier. “Baxter’s
Gambit” (4/5/13) – Baxter lures the Turtles, Dogpound and Fishface into a
deadly labyrinth to get his revenge on all of them. “Enemy
of My Enemy” (4/12/13) – Karai offers to help the Turtles against the Kraang
invasion, but changes allegiances when they seek to destroy the Shredder as
well. “Karai’s
Vendetta” (4/27/13) – The Turtles discover the Kraang plan to change the
Earth’s water into their own while Shredder sends Karai to capture April, the
key to the Kraang’s plans. “The
Pulverizer Returns!” (5/11/13) – Not only does Splinter make the Turtles switch
weapons, but they must rely on The Pulverizer to get them intel from within the
Foot. “Parasitica”
(7/20/13) – A mutant wasp ends up putting all but Mikey under its thrall, leaving
him the only one to finish Donnie’s antidote before he joins them. “Operation:
Break Out” (7/27/13) – Donnie tries to impress April by rescuing Kirby himself,
getting them both trapped with a deadly prisoner. “Showdown,
Part 1” (8/8/13) – The Turtles launch an assault on TCRI to stop the Kraang’s
portal, but are unable to succeed before the Technodrome comes through. “Showdown,
Part 2” (8/8/13) – The Turtles infiltrate the Technodrome to save April while
Splinter discovers that Karai is actually his daughter, Miwa. Season
2: “The
Mutation Situation” (10/12/13) – Stopping the Kraang’s mutagen shipment to
Shredder leads to the Turtles accidentally causing Kirby to mutate into a
vampire bat. “Invasion
of the Squirrelanoids” (10/19/13) – A mutated squirrel burrows into a homeless
man and multiplies within him. “Follow
the Leader” (11/2/13) – With Shredder in Japan, Karai leads the Foot and
captures Leo with their new Footbots. “Mutagen
Man Unleashed” (11/9/13) – Donnie grousing about April tutoring Casey leads a
mutated Pulverizer to seek to make April his special friend. “Mikey
Gets Shellacne” (11/16/13) – Mikey plays with some rejected retro-mutagen that
gives him a dangerous infection, and Baxter has the only centrifuge needed to
make his cure. “Target:
April O’Neil” (11/23/13) – Karai sends an advanced Foot Bot called Chrome Dome
after April, forcing her to put aside her grudge and call on the Turtles for
help. “Slash
and Destroy” (11/30/13) – Slash ends up mutated and Raph happily teams-up with
him, until he learns Slash wants to kill his brothers. “The
Good, the Bad and the Casey Jones” (2/2/14) – Casey decides to protect the city
and follows the Turtles back to their lair, inadvertently leading the Foot
there as well. “The
Kraang Conspiracy” (2/9/14) – April insists on accompanying the Turtles on a
mission to TCRI, and along the way they learn something about April from a man
named Jack Kurtzman. “Fungus
Humungous” (2/16/14) – Mutated sentient mushrooms cause the Turtles to live
their worst fears, and Leo must push through in order to help his friends. “Metalhead
Rewired” (2/23/14) – The Turtles are concerned over the upgrades Donnie gives
Metalhead and discover the Kraang are capturing mutants to control them. “Of
Rats and Men” (3/2/14) – Mikey adopts a pet cat who ends up mutated into
sentient ice cream, and Splinter must overcome his fear of the Rat King in
order to defeat him. “The
Manhattan Project” (3/14/14) – Donnie and Casey team-up and discover giant
worms that are the source of mutagen, and Shredder returns with a new mutant in
tow: Tiger Claw. “Wormquake!”
(3/14/14) – Donnie figures out a way to stop the worms and send them back while
the others try to rescue Splinter from Tiger Claw and Karai. “Mazes
& Mutants” (4/27/14) – The Turtles try to relax by playing a game, but a
mutant sparrow ends up sending them into the game for real. “The
Lonely Mutation of Baxter Stockman” (5/4/14) – When Stockman ends up mutated,
he kidnaps April in order to force the Turtles into giving him the retro-mutagen
Donnie discovered. “Newtralized!”
(5/11/14) – Casey’s inability to handle bigger threats puts a rift between him
and Raph just as Slash returns with a partner of his own. “Pizza
Face” (5/18/14) – Mikey has to save his friends from being possessed by living
pizzas. “The
Wrath of Tiger Claw” (6/8/14) – Tiger Claw works with Karai in trying to
discover the Turtles’ lair, but she ends up learning her true origin and turns
on the Foot. “The
Legend of the Kuro Kabuto” (6/15/14) – The Turtles set out to rescue Karai by
offering Shredder his helmet that a rival had hired two thieves to steal. “Plan
10” (6/22/14) – Raph’s mind ends up switched with a Kraang and he has to find
his way out of the Technodrome before they can initiate their next plan. “Vengeance
is Mine” (6/29/14) – Leo manages to free Karai but she goes after Shredder for
revenge and ends up falling into a vat of mutagen. “A
Chinatown Ghost Story” (9/12/14) – The Purple Dragons release the ghost of a
powerful martial artist who wants to drain April’s mental energies. “Into
Dimension X!” (9/19/14) – Leatherhead warns the Turtles that the Kraang have
perfected the mutagen, sending them into Dimension X to infiltrate their
fortress. “The
Invasion, Part 1” (9/26/14) – Shredder joins the Kraang as they launch their
invasion on New York. “The
Invasion, Part 2” (9/26/14) – The Turtles’ lair is destroyed, Leo faces-off
against Shredder’s men and soldiers, and Splinter and Leatherhead face-off against
Shredder himself. Season
3: “Within
the Woods” (10/3/14) – The Turtles are driven out of the city and spend the
next 3 months recovering and planning at the O’Neil farmhouse. “A
Foot Too Big” (10/10/14) – Donnie encounters Bigfoot and tries to protect her
from a collector, which results in her developing a crush on him. “Buried
Secrets” (10/17/14) – The Turtles discover a Kraang ship under the farmhouse,
along with--April’s mother! “The
Croaking” (11/7/14) – Sulking after getting in trouble causes Mikey to end up
inadvertently joining mutant frogs’ takeover of a nearby city. “In
Dreams” (11/14/14) – April uses her powers to try and free the Turtles from
vampiric Dream Beavers while Casey looks for help in the real world. “Race
with the Demon!” (11/21/14) – Donnie and Casey build a hot rod together to take
on a mutant car. “Eyes
of the Chimera” (1/11/15) – Weakened April and Leo are left to rescue the
others from a mutant Chimera. “Vision
Quest” (1/18/15) – Splinter’s astral projection visits the Turtles and tells
them they must face their enemies in a vision quest to prepare to return to the
city. “Return
to New York” (1/25/15) – The Turtles return to find the city overrun with
Kraang and an amnesiac Splinter held captive by Stockman and three mutants
created from Shredder’s DNA. “Serpent
Hunt” (2/1/15) – The Turtles search for Karai, as does Zeck and Steranko who
hope to use her to gain Shredder’s favor and protection from the Kraang. “The
Pig and the Rhino” (3/8/15) – The Turtles resume their search with a batch of
retro-mutagen, and this time so do the newly-mutated Bebop and Rocksteady. “Battle
for New York, Part 1” (3/15/15) – The Turtles encounter a Kraang resistance
force called the Mighty Mutanimals and end up in disagreements with them on how
to carry out a mission. “Battle
for New York, Part 2” (3/15/15) – The Turtles and Mutanimals team-up to rescue
people from Dimension-X and battle Kaang Sub-Prime and Mrs. Campbell. “Casey
Jones vs. the Underworld” (3/22/15) – Casey tries to prove that he can handle
the city’s criminals on his own—unfortunately, they’ve all joined up with the
Foot. “The
Noxious Avenger” (4/26/15) – A garbage man is accidentally mutated during a
Turtle battle and Bebop and Rocksteady attempt to trick him into helping them. “Clash
of the Mutanimals” (5/3/15) – Shredder uses his mind-control serum to take
control of Slash, Dr. Rockwell and Raph. “Meet
Mondo Gecko” (5/10/15) – Mikey and Casey meet a skateboarding mutant Gecko that
Mikey becomes fast friends with, but Casey has his suspicions. “The
Deadly Venom” (5/17/15) – Shredder controls Karai into attacking the Turtles,
and Shredder teaches Leo a healing mantra that could counteract her venom. “Turtles
in Time” (8/2/15) – The Turtles must help a clumsy Time Master in Training
retriever her time-controlling scepter from an evil mutant Time Master. “Tale
of the Yokai” (8/9/15) – Trapped in the past, the Turtles encounter a younger
Hamato Yoshi and Oroku Saki and witness their rising rivalry. “Attack
of the Mega Shredder!” (8/16/15) – The Turtles attempt to steal one of the
worms to counteract the mind-control serum, encountering Shredder’s biggest
mutant yet. “The
Creeping Doom” (8/23/15) – Mikey fooling around in Donnie’s lab causes Donnie
to lose his intelligence and a revival of the Creep and Snakeweed. “The
Fourfold Trap” (9/13/15) – Karai captures the Turtles and places them in deadly
traps while Splinter must face her to free her from Shredder’s control. “Dinosaur
Seen in Sewers!” (9/20/15) – Raph meets a delusional alien dinosaur that seems
to put fear in the Kraang. “Annihilation:
Earth! Part 1” (9/27/15) – To stop the invasion of the Kraang and the
Triceraton Empire, the Turtles team with a Kraang rebel to take out the
Technodrome. “Annihilation:
Earth! Part 2” (9/27/15) – The Turtles must rescue Mikey from the Triceratons
while Shredder is forced to join forces with Splinter to stop the destruction
of Earth. Season
4: “Beyond
the Known Universe” (10/25/15) – The Turtles travel back in time with the
Fugitoid to keep the Triceratons from completing the weapon they’ll use to
destroy Earth. “The
Moons of Thalos 3” (11/1/15) – As they escape the Triceratons on an icy moon,
Raph meets and develops feelings for a Salamandarian. “The
Weird World of Wyrm” (11/8/15) – Investigating a wrecked spacecraft leads to the
discovery of Wyrm, who can grant three wishes. “The
Outlaw Armaggon!” (11/15/15) – The Turtles find themselves between an alien
bounty hunter and a space station AI system. “Riddle
of the Ancient Aeons” (1/10/16) – The Turtles go through an ancient alien
temple for a piece of the black hole generator. “Journey
to the Center of Mikey’s Mind” (1/17/16) – The Turtles travel into Mikey’s
subconscious via April to root out some microscopic aliens. “The
Arena of Carnage” (1/24/16) – The Turtles team-up with a convicted traitor to
escape the Triceraton’s arena while the others work to free them. “The
War for Dimension X” (1/31/16) – The Turtles must gain the trust of the Utrom
Council to get the next piece of the black hole generator. “The
Cosmic Ocean” (3/13/16) – The Turtles journey through the cosmic ocean where
they must prove themselves worthy to its queen to get the next piece. “Thrans-Dimensional
Turtles” (3/27/16) – The Turtles are sent to the 1987 universe where they
team-up with themselves to battle Krang and Kraang Subprime. “Revenge
of the Triceratons” (4/3/16) – Fugitoid’s intelligence gives Donnie an
inferiority complex as the Triceratons attack. “The
Evil of Dregg” (4/10/16) – Raph has to get out of his slump when Mona Lisa
betrays him in order to rescue his brothers from Lord Dregg and Armaggon. “The
Ever-Burning Fire” (4/17/16) – The Turtles go after the final piece on a lava
planet but end up losing them all. “Earth’s
Last Stand” (4/24/16) – The Turtles return to Earth and attempt to change
history before it’s destroyed again. “City
at War” (8/14/16) – April transitions into a full kunoichi while Karai takes
over the Foot and tries to make amends for a gravely-wounded Shredder. “Broken
Foot” (8/21/16) – Partnering with Karai and her Foot to go after Shredder’s
assets proves too dangerous a proposition. “The
Insecta Trifecta” (8/28/16) – Raph has to overcome his fear of bugs to help the
others stop Stockman’s minions Scumbug and Antrax. “Mutant
Gangland” (9/4/16) – Don Vizioso decides to fill the void left by Shredder with
his new anti-mutant weapons and takes Donnie and Mondo prisoner in the process. “Bat
in the Belfry” (9/11/16) – Donnie’s examination of the Sol Star fragment
accidentally brings four of Mikey’s favorite comic characters to life. “The
Super Shredder” (11/6/16) – Amped up by the mutagen that was keeping him alive,
a new Super Shredder challenges Splinter to a duel to the death. “Darkest
Plight” (11/13/16) – The Turtles desperately hunt for Splinter while April and
Karai face off against the Super Shredder. “The
Power Inside Her” (11/20/16) – Tests Donnie runs on April only succeeds in
allowing her to become host to a powerful elder Aeon. “Tokka
vs. the World” (2/5/17) – Tokka comes to Earth looking for the baby that Raph
took back with him. “Tale
of the Tiger Claw” (2/12/17) – The Turtles try to befriend mutant assassin
Alopex, but as she’s so bent on destroying her brother Tiger Claw she cuts
Casey with one of her cursed blades. “Requiem”
(2/19/17) – With his mutagen stabilized, Super Shredder finally kills Splinter
at the site of their very first encounter. “Owari”
(2/26/17) – Splinter’s spirit informs the Turtles that Super Shredder survived
their last encounter, and they head off for their final confrontation. Season
5: “Scroll
of the Demodragon” (3/19/17) – The Turtles may have defeated their old foes,
but a new threat begins to rise. “The
Forgotten Swordsman” (3/26/17) – Karai, Kavaxas and Tiger Claw all search for
the Kuro Kabuto for different reasons. “Heart
of Evil” (4/2/17) – Donnie’s anger towards Don Vizioso puts the Turtles’
mission to steal the hart of Shredder from him in jeopardy. “End
Times” (4/9/17) – Having failed to stop Shredder’s resurrection, the Turtles
must stop Kavaxas from destroying the world. “When
Worlds Collide, Part 1” (6/18/17) – The Turtles team-up with Mona Lisa and Sal
Commander to stop the Newtralizer’s attack on the Ultroms. “When
Worlds Collide, Part 2” (6/18/17) – The heroes seem to be losing the battle
until Mikey returns with new powers similar to Newtralizer. “Yojimbo”
(7/23/17) – The Turtles end up in an alternate dimension where they must help rabbit
ronin Miyamoto Usagi on his quest. “Osoroshi
no Tabi” (7/30/17) – Usagi leads the Turtles to a haunted forest where they
face highly dangerous Yokai spirits. “Kagayake!
Kintaro” (8/6/17) – Reaching their destination, the Turtles and Usagi must keep
dark forces at bay to allow Kintaro to fulfill his destiny. “Lone
Rat and Cubs” (8/13/17) – Homato Yoshi must learn to deal with his new mutated
form on the run while caring for four baby turtles. “The
Wasteland Warrior” (9/22/17) – Raph and Donnie traverse the mutant wasteland to
keep ahead of a road gang and end up meeting warrior Mira, the last of her
tribe. “The
Impossible Desert” (9/22/17) – Raph, Donnie and Mira find Mikey who takes them
in from the desert, but their reunion is short-lived as their adversaries find
them. “Carmageddon!”
(9/22/17) – Raph, Donnie and Mikey discover Leo is still alive, having been further
mutated into Maximus Kong. “The
Curse of Savanti Romero” (9/27/17) – Strange monsters interrupt the Turtles’
Halloween by threatening to transform the city. “The
Crypt of Dracula” (9/27/17) – Renet takes the Turtles to Transylvania to stop
Savanti Romero from recruiting the actual Count Dracula. “The
Frankenstein Experiment” (10/4/17) – Savanti extends his recruitment to the
Frankenstein monster and plans to unleash his creatures on the 21st
Century. “Monsters
Among Us” (10/11/17) – Renet and the Turtles return home only to discover they
made things worse as their world is now run by monsters. “Wanted:
Bebop & Rocksteady” (11/12/17*) – 1987 Shredder and Krang hire Bebop and
Rocksteady to carry out their plans. “The
Foot Walks Again!” (11/12/17*) – The Turtles train the 1987 Turtles to deal
with tougher threats while April and Casey recruit Karai and Shinigami to help. “The
Big Blowout” (11/12/17*) – The Turtles team-up with the Mighty Mutanimals to
stop 1987 Shredder and Krang from destroying their Earth. *Released
on DVD on September 12, 2017. Special: “Half-Shell
Heroes: Blast to the Past” (11/22/15) – The Turtles accidentally end up back in
the Jurassic era and must find their way home. Shorts: “Don
vs. Raph” (7/22/16) – Don and Raph have it out to prove who’s the better
between them. “Turtles
Take Time (and Space)” (7/22/16) – April buys a scepter that ends up sending
the Turtles through time and dimensions. “Pizza
Friday” (7/22/16) – The Turtles disguise themselves so that they can sneak into
April’s school and partake of pizza Friday. “Teenage
Mecha Ninja Turtles” (6/4/17) – An aged Mikey mentors four teenagers in
turtle-shaped mech suits in protecting a futuristic NYC. “TMNT
Team Up! #1 ‘No Fly Zone’” (6/11/17) – Shredder talks smack over text; Splinter
breaks some boards; Bebop and Rocksteady explore their bromance; Casey Jones
announces he’s back; Baxter ruins the Turtles’ new wax job. “Boulangerie”
(6/18/17) – The Turtles go under cover to explore the wonders of Paris. “TMNT
TeamUp! #2 ‘Flora the Fedora’” (6/25/17) – Leo crashes into a pothole; the
Turtles race through the sewers; April has toilet trouble; Shredder learns he
can’t fly; Leatherhead talks gumbo; Krang boops a couple of pregnant women;
Bebop and Rocksteady watch a creepy cartoon; Raph needs his soy sauce. “We
Strike Hard and Fade Away into the Night” (6/18/17) – The Turtles and April try
to keep a crystal out of Krang’s tentacles. “TMNT
Team Up! Comic-Con Exclusive” (7/18/17) – The Turtles head to Comic-Con where
they meet Kevin Eastman. “TMNT
Team Up! #3 ‘Turtle: Impossible’” (7/30/17) – The Turtles have a Saturday night
binge party; the Turtles don’t believe a news report about a giant pigeon; a
Foot Soldier takes a lunch break; Splinter shares cage wisdom; Ace Duck crashes
into rubber duckies; Sherdder ducks his mother; Donnie tries to defuse a bomb
while the others “help”. “TMNT
Team Up! #4 ‘Big Daddy’s TV’” (8/13/17) – Leo gets run over by a train;
Shredder shows off his new TV; Mikey pretends he’s Donnie; Rat King tries to be
dramatic; Bebop and Rocksteady sing another song; Casey creeps out the gang.
