TMNT Tidbits #2: Season Four and Tales of the TMNT

Welcome back to TMNT Tidbits - a thing I haven't done since September 2015! In this post I'll be discussing some things that I've wanted to mention about the current TMNT series but have never had enough material for to create a full post. Note: Most of this post will talk about things relating to Season 4 and the beginnings of Tales of the TMNT, so if you're not caught up, this is your official spoiler alert!

Seth Green as Leonardo
First and foremost, I want to give a shout-out to Seth Green, who has done a wonderful job of playing Leonardo for the past two seasons of this show. If you've been following my blog for a while you'll remember that I wasn't entirely on board with the voice change at the end of Season 2, but was warming up to it after seeing the Season 3 premiere. Now that we've had full two seasons of Seth Green as Leo, I can state with authority that he did a wonderful job as the official replacement for Jason Biggs. (I still love that his voice change is a permanent reminder of the experiences he had leading up to it. That is so great.)

Fugitoid
David Tennant as the Fugitoid was one of the best things about the first half of Season 4. Much like the Doctor, future versions of this character will be hard-pressed to live up to his performance. Well done.

Mona Lisa
I was super excited for the introduction of Mona Lisa in early Season 4, as she was a character I'd been hoping would appear since I started watching the show. I even signed a petition to get the producers to consider adding her to the series - and it paid off! Mona Lisa showed up a few times in this season, and I was ecstatic every time. I loved her character and the tests she and Raph went through as a couple. (I know the "love at first sight" thing was a bit of a push and definitely trying to appease the fangirls, but I don't even care. It was awesome!) Zelda Williams did a great job as Mona Lisa and I can't wait to see more of her in Tales of the TMNT.

April
I had a really hard time rooting for April this past season, mostly because of her attitude that consistently grew worse over time. I didn't mind that she became a full-on kunoichi so much as I did the fact that when she reached that status her arrogance shot through the roof. (Granted, the crystal wasn't helping that, but still.) Although "The Power Within Her" resolved the issue of her obsession with the alien crystal she obtained in space, I don't feel that it helped her grow as a character any. Perhaps we'll see more positive development from her in Tales of the TMNT. One good thing I can say about her is that she looks great with her hair down!

New Female Characters
Season 4 introduced a new primary female character in Shinigami, whom I wasn't entirely fond of initially but am kind of starting to like now that she's had a few episodes. We were also introduced to Alopex - Tiger Claw's sister, HELLO! Her introduction, while brief, added a whole new layer to her brother's character and I really appreciated that. The showdown between the two was as epic as it was dark and gruesome. I also really, really loved that Raph was given a very intentional line, saying that Alopex is cool, but she's "no Mona Lisa." I know there are Raph x Alopex shippers out there, but I always have been and always will be a die-hard Raph x Mona Lisa shipper. I was beyond happy about that line. With all of that said, I kind of have a feeling Alopex was a one-time appearance; a nod to those Turtle fans who remember her from the comics.

Casey Jones
Casey Jones has really been pushed to the sidelines recently, and I'm not digging that. He's always been a great, beat-'em-up ally for the Turtles, so the fact that April is getting more on-screen butt kicking time than he is bugs me to no end. I also am really upset that he is not paired with April. The show has been very intentional about growing her and Donnie's relationship, but not hers and Casey's. It has ALWAYS been Casey and April. Always. They got married at the end of the 2003 series. I'm just saying...Casey needs to see more battle action, and at least a little more romance. Seeing some more character development would be nice, too.

Season 4 Finale
It took a year and a half full of constant hiatuses, but we finally got the Season 4 Finale we'd all been waiting for...and it was heart-wrenching, to say the least. I have to admit I had a feeling that Splinter would go for real this time, so when it finally happened I wasn't surprised, but that doesn't mean I didn't still bawl my eyes out. The funeral scene gave me the worst kind of feels. But even though I did want the guys to get Shredder for good as well, I honestly didn't expect him to go down as easily as he did, especially with how much they've struggled even to put a scratch on him up until this point. Leo holding Shredder's head at the end was a nice nod to the 2003 series, though.

I feel like I would have enjoyed the end of the season more if it wasn't also the end of the series. You can argue that Tales of the TMNT is "Season 5" all you want, but if it has a different name, it's not part of the same series. It's a spinoff. That's how I see it. The end of TMNT left a lot of questions unanswered and loose ends to wrap up, but I'm hoping/expecting that Tales of the TMNT will be touching on a few of those issues.

New TMNT Series
Tales of the TMNT is set to premiere on March 19. It will be a 20-episode spinoff show that focuses on life and adventures after Splinter and the Shredder are gone. We'll be introduced to a new villain voiced by Mark Hamill (so excited!) as well as revisiting some old conflicts and meeting new but familiar faces. I am most looking forward to Mona Lisa visiting Earth and the introduction of USAGI YOJIMBO!! YES!! Oh my gosh when I saw that trailer I flipped out so hard you don't even know, guys! I've been hoping for him since DAY ONE and now he's finally on his way! YES!!

I'm also really hoping that Tales of the TMNT will wrap up some loose ends concerning Karai (will she de-mutate? does she ever get around to calling herself Miwa?), Casey and April (as mentioned earlier), whether Rahzar and Fishface died in that last battle (I'm guessing yes), and etc.

Another new series was announced following the end of Season 4 - Rise of the TMNT. I don't know much about this one as it is not set to premiere until 2018, but I do know that it will be 2D-animated, targeted for a younger audience, and follow the Turtles on more mystical and magical adventures beneath the streets of NYC.

That's all I've got for you this time, folks! Thanks for following my nerdy TMNT posts from the very beginning of the show back in 2012. You'll be seeing plenty more as we move into Tales of the TMNT starting this Sunday, as well as Rise of the TMNT next year. BOOYAKASHA!