Look, I’ll be real with you guys I wasn’t even planning on watching this new Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles show but after my brother told that it’s actually hilarious, I had to give it a shot and my God was he right.
Look, I grew up watching the 2003 TMNT so I was VERY skeptical about this Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. However, when I saw the trailer for it, I was intrigued but not sold on it yet. That quickly changed once I watched the first episode. So the narrative for the Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is as follows:
Deep in the sewers of New York City, Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello, and Michelangelo are four mutant turtle brothers in their early teens who go on new adventures where they end up “tapping into mystic ninja powers they never knew existed”, while “learning” to work together as a team and navigate the perils of the modern age and hidden realms in order to fulfill their destiny to become a team of heroes
Leonardo (voiced by Ben Schwartz) is a a red-eared slider who is the “self-proclaimed ‘coolest’ brother”.
Raphael (voiced by Omar Benson Miller) is a common snapping turtle who is the “oldest, physically the biggest and strongest brother”. In this incarnation, he serves as the team’s leader.
Donatello (voiced by Josh Brener) is a softshell turtle who is the “genius of the team”. He has a sidekick drone named Sheldon along with many other battle shells that he makes in order to help him in battle because of his species.
Michelangelo (voiced by Brandon Mychal Smith) is a box turtle who is the “youngest jokester, prankster brother”. He is an artist, and is also called the “wild card.”
The humor works man, I’ve caught myself laughing out loud on numerous occasion and trust me, I rarely laugh to anything. The animation is one of its quirks, sporting a really fancy, over-exaggerated animation that lends to action in the show. The new twist that they’ve given to each of the turtles really had an interesting effect to the show. Now, instead of Leo being the leader, Raphael has taken up the mantle of leadership. Instead of them fighting warlords and ninjas, they’re goofing off and having fun. It’s weird to me but it works. Heck, even April O’ Neil was kinda cool…kinda, I’m still working on adjusting.
The only and I mean, the ONLY thing that annoyed me was Master Splinter. I wished they hadn’t went with that design but I’m sure it will grow on me with time. Listen, don’t judge this show just because they changed it up. If we’re being real, none of the TV series have ever captured the true brutality of the turtles. Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is dope for what it’s going for and I’m gonna keep watching it to see where it’s gonna go.
I’d recommend you to really sit down and watch it with a open mind. Shit is hilarious and a great way to pass time. Watch the first FULL EPISODE (for FREE) of Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and see for yourself!
