This first Post of this Blog is very symbolic for me. Not only is this a genesis of new beginnings as you follow me along on my journey of all things Geeks love, but you will see what I am most passionate about in the Geek World.
Secondly, We will cover the main topic of this post. The premier of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles on Nickelodeon which took place today. I will reflect, express my loves, my dislikes etc. about the first episode. I grew up with the Turtles and it was probably the first geeky thing I ever loved.
I, for as long as I can remember have always been deemed a Geek. I was never any good at sports. I watched a lot of TV, and my earliest memories were of Comic Books of Superheroes, G.I. Joe, Transformers, and Ghostbusters. I still have not grown out of these passions I grew up on and probably never will. I'm a big kid!
So prepare for lots of critiques involving things like Superheroes and the like.
Now that we are done with the formalities of introduction. On to our critique... or to put this simpler, my opinion of the TMNT premier. There has been a very long building period up until this point.
Many fans will have their own opinions but this is the way I see it. Growing up in the 80s you hope your childhood to stay in tact. But Nickelodeon is not the first company that comes to mind with you think TMNT. I was rather quite scared about the acquiring of the franchise.
I saw very early on sketches and it looked as if weapons were being changed. I was like "Oh Hell No they didn't!" Thankfully these changes never went through. But I was still afraid of the content being overly cartoony. The turtles are chillin with Spongebob now.
Now, I know what you are saying. "It's a cartoon, it should be cartoony." Animation has come a long way though. There are cartoons for adult audiences now. They needed to draw a line where it was just childish enough without being considered stupid by adults.
There was another Turtles series before this one and after the 80s. era. They did a great job blending the old fashioned 80s with the hardcore comics that the turtles originally stemmed from.
Nickelodeon's style definitely goes more 80s, right down to the theme song and intro. Accurate, yet spoiled by a rap remix blended with it. Still, I think it will grow on me like fungus.
The turtles have their own unique look with little details. Leo has white scar marks on his face, Raph has a crack in his shell, and Mikey has Ginger like freckles on his face expressing his true child-like nature.
Speaking of child-like nature, Nickelodeon has taken the term "Teenage" literally, and tapped into the fact they are all only 15 years old. So they argue like little kids a lot. But they can also be smart mouthed as well like teens tend to be. Adults can relate to the constant sarcasm. They have also updated their catchphrases a bit. No longer will Mikey scream "Cowabunga" now it's "Booyakasha!"
The voice cast for this time around is Jason Biggs (American Pie) as Leo, Sean Astin (Rudy) as Raph, Greg Cipes (Teen Titans) as Mikey, and Robert Paulsen as Donnie (Rob is actually the original 80s Raph)
If you are a turtles fan from the 80s you can relate to the headache I was getting hearing Raph's voice come from Donnie's mouth. Why they chose to do this is beyond me. However, its still great to see Nick was smart enough to connect some nostalgia.
Rob is putting a new spin on Donnie. No longer is he the anti-social smarty pants. Now he's compassionate of others, often seen as Raph's reason to cause trouble, and is lovelorn for the reinventing of April O'Neil.
Leo is same old Leo, obsessed with leading, duty and honor, but now this time in a more child like sense bowing down to fictional heroes on tv like we all did as a kid. I liked that.
Raph still has an attitude as always, but hes less aggressive this go around and is more sarcastic. I'm sure Nick wasn't too fond of a violent Raph.
Mikey is more kid like than ever. He is the true epitome of your bratty little brother, and it's pretty hysterical.
However, it's impossible for me to take Leo seriously at all. Hearing Jason Biggs' voice you are just waiting for an American Pie moment to happen any second.
Sean Astin surprised me greatly! He's an excellent Raph and at first I thought theres no way he could hack it. Glad to be proven wrong.
As for Rob, again, I wrestle with my feelings over him taking the voice of Donnie, but with great voice talent like his I know he will take Donnie into unexplored territory. There can only be growth for this turtle.
The story is great, there is a more sense of family from the very beginning. The turtles don't even know what pizza is until half way through so this is a true reboot. The series starts with them going topside for the very first time. April is the same age as them so shes not a reporter yet. She seems to be flirting with Don a bit, He fell for her from the very start.
The Krangs are featured as alien invade robots, so this is reminiscent less of the 80s version with only one Krang. A new villain is created, one never seen anywhere in past series or comics.
After an hour premier and some antics and laughs by the four the Shredder is in the shadows and about to make his debut next week.
There is so much potential in this series, I look forward to waking up Saturday mornings once again, just like old times!
Here's a sample of the first episode
Thanks for reading, don't forget to leave a comment and stay tuned for another Geek Critique by me.
-Paul
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