#4 APR 21, 2018 · 8 yr ago
I remember this show very well from the 1980s, like anyone around at the time! Although I didn't see this opening story until 2014! However, I did have the comics, and they told it pretty much exactly the same, maybe the odd line omitted here and there but nothing major.
First off, the voice cast - almost every one of the main cast, I know from something else as well.
Cam Clarke (Leonardo, Rocksteady) was also Dogtanian, as well as Rigodon in the Willy Fog series.
Barry Gordon (Donatello, Bebop) was also Razor/Jake in SWAT Kats.
Rob Paulsen (Raphael) was also Rude Dog.
Peter Renaday (Splinter, Vernon) was Mandrake in Defenders Of The Earth, and Valiant's father in The Legend Of Prince Valiant
James Avery (Shredder) was also in The Legend Of Prince Valiant as Sir Bryant
Pat Fraley (Krang) was Bravestarr
The only main cast members I don't know from other cartoons are Townsend Coleman (Michelangelo) and Renae Jacobs (April).
This opening 5-parter gave me back a bit of faith when I saw it for the first time. I loved this show as a kid, but saw a few episodes again when I was 20 and cringed. I looked at it and thought, "I used to love this?" - which is probably why it took me over a decade to finally watch these opening episodes, but I was glad I did. It's a lot better than most of the episodes that came later.
One slight quibble I have with it is that while there is a distinct sequence to these five episodes, each taking place on consecutive days, it doesn't feel as continuous as it might be, never a whiff of a cliffhanger between any of them. Oh well, I guess the same charge could be levelled at the establishing story to both Thundercats and Defenders Of The Earth, and I've never pointed the finger there, so I'll not make a fuss.
One other oddity is that at times it feels more like Raphael is the leader as opposed to Leonardo.
OK, onto the specifics of the individual episodes.
Turtle Tracks - as with your standard superhero movie formula, we start not with the heroes but with the person who is our eyes and ears in their world, April. She is our foot in their door, she asks the questions we need to know the answers to. The story is well told. It's fairly straight, just introducing the characters with plenty of action and not much real plot. I like how they keep Shredder in the shadows in this first episode, again typical "hide the villain at the beginning for greater mystery", used to good effect in the Bond films, not to mention Dr Claw in Inspector Gadget, and in a different way even Mumm-Ra! And yes, making the Foot Soldiers robotic meant they could actually destroy them. It's like in Defenders Of The Earth, where numerous Ice Robots got blasted, smashed or melted during the show, but it never happened to the Men Of Frost.
Enter The Shredder - our first proper view of Shredder, and a formidable looking villain he is too. All those blades make him look like someone you wouldn't want to get on the wrong side of. We also get our first proper look at the Technodrome, and this is perhaps the one big disappointment in animation terms. The very first shot of it should convey its enormous size, but its first shot is in a medium long shot of it moving beneath the earth. We have absolutely no reference point for its size. It could be 200 feet or just 20 feet for all we know. That aside, there's good moments. I like the ending when April is reading them the story of the tortoise and the hare, their favourite fable! Also Rocksteady and Bebop make their animal debuts here. We get a scope of their strength but also their comical henchman nature.
A Thing About Rats - introducing Baxter Stockman. It's here that the continuous feel to the show gets a little less, as I mentioned above. This part and the next one don't really further the story in any way. Also, Baxter himself was a little too downtrodden. A mad scientist on the side of evil should have the feel of being an evil genius. If Rocksteady and Bebop can be likened to Monkian & Jackalman (either way around I guess), then Baxter is arguably the Vultureman of this group. Shredder at a pinch could also be likened to Slithe, although how much you want to compare Krang to Mumm-Ra I'll leave to you. The most interesting thing about this episode is Krang's decision to help Michelangelo stop the mousers at the end. Of course he has his own motives for doing so, as he wants Shredder to fail so he'll be forced to build his body!
Hotrodding Teenagers From Dimension X - agreed that this episode is the weak point of the story, it's the most gratuitous. They could probably have cut this part, and the previous one, and just made an even better 3-parter, more continuous too. We learn a bit more about what goes on in Dimension X, and even Krang's embarrassment at not having his old body, although surely his generals knew this already? As for the Neutrinos, they are just gratuitous comic guest stars, like the Sun Imps in Visionaries or Kremzeek in Transformers. The most significant part about this episode is the debut of the Turtle Van.
Shredder & Splintered - a worthy conclusion to the story, the retro-mutagen gun which could cure Splinter to human form but return the turtles back to their normal selves is a great concept to place in the hands of the villain. This has many memorable scenes, mainly the fight between Splinter and Shredder, very Obi-Wan v Darth Vader (and not for the last time!), and the Turtles v Rocksteady & Bebop, one sequence I remember well from the comics. Also when Krang finally gets his body, and is able to grow to enormous proportions - now that is well done. The final conflict, where Splinter destroys the retro-mutagen gun to save the turtles, is also great.
All in all, a good start to such a legendary show. Not surprising that it was good, as it was written by David Wise, the main writer of Defenders Of The Earth (he wrote about a third of the episodes for that show), and also quite a few Transformers episodes.
