Teenage mutant ninja turtles 2003 cartoon review

I'll give my review of the teenage mutant ninja turtles 2003 cartoon. I'll do my best not to spoil anything because this is a must-watch show for fans of the teenage mutant ninja turtles.

When I was a child, the teenage mutant ninja turtles 2003 cartoon was one of the first TV shows I saw. I stumbled across it by accident playing around with my TV. When I saw it, I instantly fell in love with it. I had so many memories of it. I love this show for various reasons. I showed my friend a few episodes and he was very excited. I watched it with my mom and she was just as invested in it as I was. I watched it whenever it aired on TV regularly. 

Animation: 

The animation was incredible. There was a high attention to detail in every season. I loved how beautiful the natural environment looked in places such as New York City. 

Tone:

I love how the teenage mutant ninja turtles 2003 cartoon knows how to be serious and humorous. When the show gets dark, it gets DARK! The teenage mutant ninja turtles 2003 cartoon is one of the darkest and most violent shows I've ever seen. 

There's some very dark themes such as grief, death, trauma, family, guilt, the list goes on. I'm surprised the Teenage mutant ninja turtles 2003 cartoon got away with much of its content considering how violent it was. I was deeply disturbed by much of what I saw in the teenage mutant ninja turtles 2003 cartoon. It knew when to add mystery and when it did, it was disturbing. 

Here's the perfect example from an unreleased episode called "nightmares recycled." This episode was too violent, 4Kids TV forbade it from airing on TV! This is the episode's script and concept art.   

"Hun (one of the show's villains) runs into the TMNT [Teenage mutant ninja turtles] in a junkyard, but before they can fight, Garbageman (another villain) shows up in a powerful new robotic suit and captures everyone. Garbageman takes his prisoners back to "Recycle World" (apparently his new realm). When everyone wakes up, Garbageman reveals that him and Hun were conjoined twins - but Hun hired a shady doctor to separate them. Hun left his twin behind, thinking that he would perish - but the doc performed experiments on him and turned him into Garbageman. Thus he's looking for revenge against the TMNT and his brother, Hun, and he drops them onto a conveyor belt that's heading for some giant, spinning blades. Our heroes escape and turn the tables on their foe. Garbageman ends up falling into a vat of acid and gets flushed out to sea by Hun. Hun and the Turtles leave, thinking that Garbageman is dead - but the final scene shows a bubbling slick of acid rising to the waster's surface, with something alive within it - so it looks like Garbageman survived the acid bath."

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I can only imagine the trauma Garbageman must've faced remembering his childhood, the shock of his revelation, the list goes on. You can see how violent and cruel the villains like Hun are in episodes such as this. The villains in the teenage mutant ninja turtles 2003 cartoon are far from being heavily sanitized.    

Cinematography:

The camera shots made the teenage mutant ninja turtles 2003 cartoon more intense. At times, the camera faces away from violent acts such as slashing or stabbing which build tension or dread. The camera also focuses on areas such as a character's eyes to reveal his or her intensity.  

Plot:

Many elements of the teenage mutant ninja turtles 2003 cartoon are very creative and work well.   

The show is extremely action-packed. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2003) has made some of the most epic and brutal animated fights I've ever seen! The show does an outstanding job in making you feel like a character or characters are going to die. Nothing feels rushed. 

Characters:

I love all of the characters. The show did a spectacular job of making you feel deep emotions for all of the characters. They all have their own special personalities. All of these characters have strengths and weaknesses. They make choices that positively or negatively affect them. They go through external and internal conflict along with personal growth. Although there are side characters with little to no speaking roles, their mysterious personas can make them either more appealing or disturbing. 

Leonardo - He's the most serious, disciplined, spiritual, and determined leader of the turtles.  

Donatello - He's the most intelligent turtle and knowledgeable in technology along with the kindest. 

Raphael - He's the toughest and angriest turtle. 

Michelangelo - He's the funniest turtle. 

Splinter - He's full of wisdom and insight. He knows what every turtle needs and has a strong spirit regardless of the situation. 

The Shredder - He's very intimidating not just physically but psychologically. He has a strong presence.

Soundtrack:

The soundtrack was phenomenal. It made the show more intense and emotional. I loved how the show mixes different genres well. Rock and hip hop illustrate certain characters. Kabuki-inspired Japanese music makes up the Shredder's theme. The music intensified various emotions such as dread, fear, joy, awe, excitement, joy, sorrow, etc. 

Flaws:

As great as the teenage mutant ninja turtles 2003 cartoon was, it had its flaws. 

I felt some of the romance was unnecessary. It felt like the creators put it there because they didn't know how else to make the characters interesting. The romance felt completely out of character at times. Some of the female characters could've been developed more. 

I don't count the seasons made after 5 and the movie for two reasons. 1) They were awful and felt rushed. 2) They weren't originally planned. Season 5 was supposed to be the last season of the teenage mutant ninja turtles 2003 cartoon. 

I felt one of the show's minor flaws was ruining the mystery behind some characters. Part of the charm was having characters with a mysterious background.   

Acting:

The voice actors were believable and fit naturally with the characters. The Shredder's voice actor sounded like he talking through a metal helmet. I'm not sure how the creators managed to produce that vocal effect but it made him sound intimidating and iconic. 

Overall, the show was an amazing and mostly cinematic experience. The teenage mutant ninja turtles 2003 cartoon brings you on an unforgettable journey full of surprises, excitement, laughter, horror, grief, and so on. That's why I highly recommend you buy seasons 1-5 on Amazon! I hope you enjoyed this review! 

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles season 1 part 1 DVD 

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Season 4 DVD