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April O'Neil, TMNT, TMNT nickelodeon, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
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Nickelodeon’s TMNT to Feature April O’Neil as a Teenager

by Zach Gasior
written by Zach Gasior

In the weeks leading up to the release of Nickelodeon’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles reboot, news has been breaking of certain changes that have been made to the formula. Thankfully, most of the changes are small and probably insignificant, but one of the things that caught my eye was the fact that April O’Neil will be a teenager. It’s not like they’ve turned the turtles into aliens or anything crazy like that (I mean really, who would do something so foolish?), but this is a rather significant change to the original story of the TMNT. To be fair, they have a legitimate excuse for doing this, as Executive Producer Ciro Nieli explains further in recent comments about the show:

“When I remember April, there was a lot of ‘I’m going to work now, don’t mess up the house.’ We’re really playing on the idea of the turtles being teenagers, so it just felt appropriate that if April is going to be a fully functioning member of the crew, she should be a peer.”

 

While Nieli brings up some interesting points about April’s function in the original series, long time fans may still be disappointed. After all, it’s not like she never had time for the turtles, and for many of us she was our first example in film or television of a somewhat strong, independent woman. Making her character a teenager doesn’t necessarily make her more weak or less independent, but it does change certain dynamics about her character that have always held true. That being said, this wouldn’t be the first time that we’ve ever seen her character change a bit. After all, in the original comics April O’Neil wasn’t a reporter, she was a computer programmer. However, she was still an adult, and she was still a pretty powerful female role model.

 

We’re not quite sure yet how this change will affect her character in the new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series, but I’m still pretty hopeful that Nickelodeon’s reboot will remain mostly faithful. Certain aspects of the story may be different this time around, but we’re not talking about Michael Bay level modifications or anything. Still worried? Check out this short clip from the show to ease your concerns, and prepare for its release on September 29th. We’re almost there, TMNT fans! Let’s get pumped!

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TMNT Fashion on The Hundreds, www.TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles.com
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Red, Purple, Orange, and Blue: TMNT Fashion Over Thirty Years

by Zach Gasior
written by Zach Gasior

Speaking broadly, “fashion” isn’t the first thing that comes to mind in a discussion of comic fandom – in fact, the stereotype runs completely contrary: comic fans (including we TMNT fans) are traditionally “style challenged,” to put it mildly.

But in the last ten years, superhero properties have enjoyed an unprecedented mainstream success.  Movies are the big money maker, but the success off feature films like Spider Man, The Dark Knight, and The Avengers have in turn done much for the popularity of other related consumables: naturally, the comics that predate the films have enjoyed a boost in sales, as have action figure lines, spin-off animated videos, and lastly: clothing.

TMNT Fashion on The Hundreds, www.TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles.com

Spend an afternoon at your local mall, or just walk downtown, and you’re likely to see Captain America’s shield or Iron Man’s helmet on somebody’s tee-shirt.  Furthermore, these representations are increasingly stylized and stylish: rapidly vanishing are the poorly produced and unflattering tee-shirts you could order from the back of X-Men, and in their place are distressed fashion tees, superhero-inspired sneakers, and even haute couture pieces debuting on Milan runways – but what’s available for the TMNT fan, and how does it fit into the culture at large?

It seems like most TMNT-themed clothing merchandise reflects only one specific line of fandom: the 1990s cartoon.  There are shirts, bags, and the occasional hoodie representing the Mirage comics, but many of these are knock-offs or unlicensed reproductions.  However, there’s also a swelling market and production of alt-art apparel – Michelangelo’s Pizza tee-shirts, for example, allude to the Turtles in a fun and stylish way without directly depicting the good guys in green.

Although most Turtle fashions revolve around the 1990s cartoon, the style and presentation have changed radically since the first TMNT shirt rolled off a screen printer in 1984: fans today can pick up sweatshirts, tees, backpacks, and even baby onesies.  There are also fun looks like zip-up costume hoodies representing The Shredder or Krang.

Costumes make up a lot of the current TMNT clothing market, and there is a reasonably wide selection ranging from simple plastic masks held on with elastic bands all the way up to custom-made full-body latex and foam suits with plastic weapons costing upwards of five hundred dollars.  Of course, there are also “Sexy TMNT” costumes for the ladies.

 

But in all Turtle fashion ventures, we fans have an interesting reverse stigma to deal with:  while other comic properties have gone from kid-friendly Comics-Code-Authority approved newsstand fair to grittier, darker, and more modern versions, the Turtles took an opposite track, starting as characters in a gory, violent underground comic and evolving into a Saturday morning parody – evidently, this limits the “cool factor” of wearing your favorite TMNT garb in public as such clothing tends to evoke irony rather than true fandom.

 

It’s tough to say where coupling of Turtles and style will go next, but it’s likely that the new Nickelodeon series will probably reinforce the perception of TMNT as kid’s fare, and so we probably won’t see our favorite celebrities sporting red masks and nunchaku with the same swagger as they now sport rhinestone-encrusted Superman T-shirts (at least, maybe, until the new movie comes out), but that doesn’t mean that we fans can’t express our pride by wearing our green hearts quite literally on our sleeves.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Big Face Laplander Cap

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Big Face Laplander Cap

TMNT Party Rockin Tee
TMNT Party Rockin Tee

TMNT Raphael Flip Tee

TMNT Raphael Flip Tee

Juniors TMNT Shirts

Juniors TMNT Shirts

TMNT Sexy Tank Dress

TMNT Sexy Tank Dress

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TMNT Mutation In Progress
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New Information Revealed About Nickelodeon’s TMNT Series!

by Justin Bozung
written by Justin Bozung

San Diego Comic Con 2011 had some special news in store for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. The “Mutation in Progress” event was held to give a behind the scenes look at the new TMNT animated series on Nick. Tickets were limited and only available to a lucky few. Much was revealed about the new TMNT series. Continue reading to hear about the Characters, Vehicles, and more of what we’ll see in 2012.

CHARACTERS/CAST

 

Leonardo (Jason Biggs) — He is the self-proclaimed leader of the group. However, at the beginning of the series he really doesn’t know how to be that guy yet. He uses the katana!

Michelangelo (Greg Cipes) — He is the “younger brother” of the four. He’s a goofy fun-loving guy, but that’s no cause for underestimating this class clown’s fighting skills! He uses the nunchaku and they extend into kusarigama!

Donatello (Rob Paulsen) — He’s still the techno geek we know and love! Like a real Ninja, he can use his environment to invent great things! He also has a slight crush on April. He uses the bo and it reveals a hidden yari blade!

Raphael (Sean Astin) — He punches first and asks questions later! He’s quick-witted and full of sarcasm! He competes with Leo for leadership of the brothers. He could do it, too, if he weren’t so hotheaded. He uses the sai!

Splinter (Hoon Lee) — Formerly Hamato Yoshi, he’s often depicted as frail and old, this new Splinter is a bit younger so he can be a formidable opponent against the Shredder like he was in the first season of the original show!

April O’Neil — She’s got short red hair, a yellow shirt, black shorts, and sneakers! She’s 16 (to be a peer to the Turtles) and learning to be a kunoichi (female ninja) from Splinter himself! Oh, and she’s in no way “emo” like previous reports might’ve suggested. It’s a big change, but it was better than bringing back Venus DeMilo for a female peer to the Turtles.

Shredder — A no-nonsense ninja master and leader of the Foot Clan, he’s a very competent foe who has devoted himself to the destruction of Hamato Yoshi and his Turtles. He’s the scariest Shredder has ever been! His mask sort of reminds me of this version of him. He has the “black/gray/purple” color scheme of the original cartoon as well as a cape, his shirt is sleeveless, and he’s lightly armored in the torso area. Also, his blades are much more intense than any previous version of the Shredder.

The Kraang — With an android body more similar to the Utroms from the original comics, these brains with menacing ugly faces and squid tentacles out their sides conduct mutagen experiments on random victims they kidnap. They also, like the Utroms, have human disguises that go over their android bodies.

Foot Clan — Some are human, some are mutants, and some are robots! These ninja warriors wear something much more similar to an authentic ninja uniform! They’ll provide a little comic relief, but only to accent Shredder’s seriousness and it won’t take away from the fact that they’re much more difficult to beat than they were in the original show.

VEHICLES

Party Wagon — Remember the Turtle Van from the original TV show? Think of it as a reworked subway train car that has wheels that drop down so it can go onto the street!

Sewer Bike — A three-wheeled Turtle-themed motorcycle that’s armored on the side. However, when it drops into “stealth mode”, the armor makes a Turtle Shell design on the top. It reminded me of a Turtle-esque version of the Tumbler and the Bat-Pod from the recent Batman movies, only the Turtle inside leans back instead of forward.

REAL NINJUTSU

The Turtles aren’t just ninja in name only in this series, on board the writing staff is a guy who practices ninja-derived arts from the Genbukan Ninpo Bugei. So, while the Turtles will kick butt and while they will eat pizza, the authentic ninja lifestyle will be incorporated into the Turtles’ lives like never before!

 

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