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daylightcommand3 · 6 months

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TMNT (2012) To Me: Official Nickelodeon Message Boards

Back when the show was airing, Nickelodeon.com had a small little section for each show, including TMNT 2012. I plan to go into the website in more detail at a later date, what's important now is one option in a little drop down menu. A tab labeled "Boards".

The tab led to message boards officially run by Nickelodeon. There was one for every show, but I stuck to TMNT. Here, TMNT fans could discuss any and all matters relating to the show. Except for that one post asking about if anybody watches Gravity Falls. This clearly was the only way some kids could talk to other kids online.

The boards looked like this according to the Wayback Machine:

But I remember them having a background like this for some reason:

Also, going through the WayBack machine, I was reminded of the weird emojis they had:

If I recall correctly, I started going onto the message boards around the Parasitica episode. I was a lurker. I didn't have my own account yet. Around season 2-3 I made my own account: fishfan; Fishface was my favorite villain in the show. I still never posted anything.

Regardless, going on the boards was always a magical experience. I was able to hear more about my favorite show. I got a peak into other people's experiences and joys. I got to see the show in new ways. It was beautiful. Let's go over some of these experiences.

Aliens Among Us

A rather simple memory was when a user talked about how they believed the Kraang were real. Or at least aliens. Their TV sometimes glitched and they often heard things outside at night. Looking back I can laugh at how ridiculous it was. It's clear that it was an easily scared little kid making the post. However, at that time I quickly moved onto other posts in order to get my mind off the horrifying implications I was just exposed to.

Pro-Donnie (ish)

The TMNT message boards were my first exposure to ship wars. I was on the frontlines of the Apritello VS Capril ship wars. I was on the side of Donnie as he was my favorite turtle. Also because he clearly put in more effort and time into wooing April. However, the post in discussion is not about my feelings, but the feelings of another user. I don't remember the users name, but their words are ingrained into my head.

"I want Casey to end up with April, so Donnie can be all mine."

I was not a fan of this posts message. As stated before, I was on Donnie's side. Casey seemed like a nice guy, but I couldn't see him in a relationship. What really got to me was the irrationality of ending up with a fictional character.

I didn’t understand self shipping at the time, or even having a crush on a fictional character. So, the concept of dating a fictional character was incomprehensible to me. I swiftly ignored the post.

Leaks

Another post stuck in my mind was a leak of four season 2 episodes. I remember stumbling across a post that detailed the titles and descriptions of the following episodes: The Wrath of Tiger Claw, The Legend of the Kuro Kabuto, Plan 10, and Vengeance is Mine. I was excited, especially for Tiger Claw's return. Yet despite my amazement, I was still unsure if this was the truth.

After what felt like what a year, I finally was able to confirm the leaks. Those episodes were real.

Foretelling

I remember seeing a post stating that:

"stnwfnasie and beoieisp might be Bebop and Rocksteady. The purple mohawk is a dead giveaway."

They said the actual names in the post, but I didn't recognize them at the time. However, the term purple mohawk tipped me off that the master thief in some way or form is connected to Bebop and Rocksteady. Two names which I had no familiarity with. Yet.

Here's how Raph X April can still win...

One post that baffled me was that a user was calling for Raph X April. At that time I really only acknowledge ships pushed by the show. So, this ship just seemed to be complete and utter nonsense. Their evidence was flimsy to me: "The one and only Raphael". He smiled as she said that. She leaned on him in the episode Speed Demon. Utterly ridiculous to a young me.

Crushed

There were a lot of people who had crushes on the turtles. I didn't have a crush on anyone in the show. I was just in it for the cool monsters and robots.

Same Name

There was a lot of role-playing as characters. I remember one in specific about someone pretending to be Shredder reacting to a Nickelodeon website music video about Shredder.

Gender Roles

In going through the WayBack Machine, I've been reminded that there was a lot of girls only and boys only posts, which I often did not respect and went in anyway. I was also reminded that a lot of girls were very adamant that they liked the show, despite it not being targeted at them. Some things never change.

Conclusion

Only now am I able to appreciate how truly special the message boards were. The reason for this whimsy is that there were no adults. I mean, why would an adult go onto a website designed for kids to talk about a show when they could just go on one of their adult social medias. The Nick Message Boards were for kids exclusively. As such there were no adults with no lives spouting their hate and dogshit opinions. All our complaints were trivial and laughably petty. It was a paradise. A safe haven.

The simpler times.

Now that we've established some context, let's go over season 2.

#tmnt to me #tmnt #tmnt 2k12 #tmnt 2012 #nickelodeon

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daylightcommand3 · 4 months

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TMNT TO ME: 2012 Season 2

My memories of episodes. Any episodes not included are ones I completely forgot about. (Now with pictures!)

Anytime MOUSERS appear in an episode, this image will appear to show my love for them:

This image will be seen a lot in this personal retrospective:

Mutation Situation

A very fun return to the series. I remember feeling like the second season started not too long after the end of the last one. Probably because there were pretty sizable gaps between episodes often. While an unusual and unnerving opponent, the fight scene with the Biotroid goes hard, especially when everything literally goes sideways.

Invasion of the Squirrelanoids

Properly horrifying.

Follow the Leader

Love Footbots. Ever since Shredder allied with the Kraang, I was wondering why he didn't use robot soldiers. The normal Foot Soldiers were clearly useless.

Mutagen Man Unleashed

Even in mutated form, Timothy is still a pain in the ass. They should have shattered him. Awesome design though. This episode was my introduction to love triangles, though at the time I merely thought of Casey as an obstacle to Donnie x April, not as a rival. Speaking of Casey, even though I had no knowledge of previous incarnations (or that previous incarnations existed) I knew Casey was going to be someone big as they put emphasis on his name reveal.

Mikey Gets Shellacne

Great to see Baxter again. I plan to make a whole post on this in the future, but I didn't like Rahzar (I'm lukewarm on him currently). Seeing Dogpound be discontinued was and still is disappointing. I mainly didn't like this episode because Mikey looked so disgusting. I made sure to avoid this episode.

Target: April O'Neil

Chrome Dome was also cool.

Slash and Destroy

Intense. Not even Shredder hurt the boys this badly. In this episode they were all limping and bruised and maskless. It was as insane for me then as it is now. The lack of masks really showcase how vulnerable they were. This episode cemented Slash as one of the turtles' biggest threats for me. The pain the turtles were in made it clear how much Slash wanted them DEAD. He had them beaten to a bloody pulp.

The Good, The Bad, and Casey Jones

My first thought when Casey’s fear of rats was revealed was “Gee, I hope for his sake he doesn’t face the Rat King.”

The Kraang Conspiracy

The turtles gaining another human ally made me more certain that Irma would join the group.

Fungus Humongous

I know I watched the premiere of this episode. I think it was around this episode where I started getting sick of Donnie's crush of April. I was rolling my eyes when his greatest fear was April hating him.

Metalhead Rewired

Very fun episode. It was great to see SpiderBytez and Snakeweed again. They had such cool designs and were the DNA for the beginning of the show. It always bothered me we never saw more of them. It's always nice to see Metalhead. Catching all the Star Wars references was so cool to me because back then I was a bigger fan of Star Wars.

Of Rats and Men

This episode convinced me that Irma was going to join the turtles once she learned about them. She was helping them fight the Rat King. The scene of her helping the turtles (without her knowing) reminded me heavily of how Casey helped the turtles fight Mutagen Man (without him knowing).

The Manhattan Project

An absolute banger of a mid-season special. Both new threats were great. Loved the Kraathatrogons. Big worms are always fun. They were all a nice challenge for Donnie, April, and Casey. The real star of this episode was Tiger Claw. The show does an amazing job of setting him up. Instead of just saying he's a force to be reckoned with, they prove it (unlike a certain canine and fish). Tiger Claw easily takes down the turtles on his own. He goes toe-to-toe with Splinter for a good while (unlike a certain canine and fish both going down in one hit). Tiger Claw's plan allows him to successfully capture Splinter. He gets an incredible amount done in his special. He cemented himself as one of the turtles' most powerful and skilled foes.

Mazes & Mutants

Great to see Leatherhead again! Even if wasn’t actually him. I was not the biggest fan of Rockwell's return. Not being a Lord of the Rings fan made this episode a bit grating with its constant references.

The Lonely Mutation of Baxter Stockman

Throughout the series I was wondering when Stockman would become a mutant. Most humans in this series don't stay human for long, so for Stockman to be human for a whole season and a half was an anomaly. Thankfully this episode beautifully delivered. Stockman-Fly rocks. Love his changed voice. Love his new design with the big claw hand (big fan of asymmetry). The sideways mouth was a disgustingly amazing detail. It was everything I was hoping for from a mutation of my favorite bad guy. The final fight with everyone having different means of traveling through the air was so much fun also.

Newtralized!

Newtralizer and Slash made a pretty cool duo. Loved the Kraang-Walker. It was the coolest shit I’ve ever seen. I would have loved a toy of it. Once again, huge Star Wars fan at the time. The end frame for this episode was one of the coolest. It perfectly captured how Newtralizer would return, stronger than ever.

Pizza Face

Everyone disregarding Mikey annoyed me to no end. Still does.

The Wrath of Tiger Claw

An epic return by one of TMNT's coolest villains and a satisfying moment with Karai's realization.

The Legend of the Kuro Kabuto

This is my favorite episode. It just has so much good stuff going for it. The introduction starts off strong. The reintroduction to Steranko (or Weapons Dealer to a young me) does wonders to catch you off your feet. His collection is cool, unique, and a great way to establish the resources this man has available and why he specifically wants the helmet. Zeck's (or Master Thief as I knew him) introduction perfectly captures his goofy and zany personality that I loved. More importantly, it showcased that he liked being thief. He didn't have to steal the spear of destiny. He didn't have to make a replica out of marzipan. He especially didn't have to make Weapons Dealer lick it. But Master Thief did because he wanted to. His introduction makes it clear that (unlike Fishface) Master Thief loves being a master thief. It's not just a profession; it's a passion. He jumps with joy and laughs when stealing. And I agree with that one message board user who said that Master Thief using his mohawk as a weapon is amazing. I liked the lore dump over the Kuro Kabuto. It's so cool to hear the history of The Foot Clan and Shredder's iconic helmet. This particular flashback is so intriguing because for all the grandiosity put behind Koga Takuza, he is never brought up again. The idea of the helmet granting leadership of the Foot Clan is constantly referenced in later seasons, but the founder is only mentioned once, despite the amount of buildup and focus in the flashback. Strange. After the flashback, we get to the highlight of the episode: The Foot Clan on a mission. This episode briefly flips the script of a normal episode. Usually, the turtles are running through the rooftops on a mission. In this episode, the mutant henchman are running through the rooftops on a mission. They even split up into pairs just like the turtles do. Seeing them banter was cathartic. Sad that Stockman couldn't say anything this episode, but his "conversation" with Fishface was still good. Tiger Claw and Rahzar's conversation was obviously a highlight. The chase for the helmet and the fight over it were both so fun. Still, Master Thief managed to steal the show. The line:

"Why is this town so full of freaks?!"

is stuck in my head. All his lines and bits are just so funny. He was so gleefully smug as he made his escape. He even took his defeat in stride. Weapons Dealer basically says to him: "I'm going to beat the ever-loving shit out of you." And Master Thief says:

"That's to be expected."

I thought it was a shame that we would never see him again. He was clearly made to be a one-time enemy.

I was also not expecting Karai bomb.

Plan 10

I remember the marketing for this episode more than the actual episode.

"Who's who? And what happened to Raph?"

I also remember the "pinching your own butt" joke being heavily featured in the trailers.

Vengeance is Mine

I cannot forget this episode. I can never forget this episode.

I always rationalized Leo’s goal of freeing Karai as “Leo loves his family and will do anything for them. Of course he’ll try to save his sister.”

But then, in this episode, you can pinpoint the exact moment my stomach drops.

The two following shots confirmed my horror.

(Brings back painful memories, doesn't it?)

I was nauseous after this brief scene. I nearly didn't finish this episode. The "reward" for finishing this episode was discovering that Karai's inbetween form at the very end was the creepiest shit I had ever seen.

A Chinatown Ghost Story

I could swear this episode came WAY earlier in the season.

Into Dimension X!

I was so excited to see Leatherhead again (for real this time). Dimension X is a fun and wacky place. And it's so good to see Mikey put his brothers in their place. And make them listen to him.

The Invasion

"Finally, it took the whole season, but Irma is finally joining the group."

I was flabbergasted at the reveal, especially since it was Iago from Aladdin of all things. The season finale did not pull any punches. Casey and Raph running through the streets was a sight to behold. Leo's gauntlet was intense. The mech was epic. Leatherhead vs Shredder was everything I ever wanted. Even without the context of previous incarnations, the window scene is unforgettable.

Me seeing April's Dad being mutated AGAIN:

Splinter's defeat was also punch to the gut. I knew he wasn't dead, but still.

The team leaving for the woods was a dour yet perfect note to end the season on.

Looking Back

According to my memories, season 2 was the height of my devotion to TMNT 2012. I was glued to the TV and made sure to catch every episode. I can’t say the same for the following seasons, but that is a story for another time.

Tune in next time when I shall go over my experiences with TMNT gaming.

#tmnt 2012 #tmnt #tmnt to me #teenage mutant ninja turtles

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