Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem Review

Hi there. Lifelong Turtle fan here. It took me a while but I finally got around to seeing the newest film based on the morphed adolescent terrapins, directed by Jeff Rowe (The Mitchells vs the Machines) and Kyle Spears (storyboard artist for The Mitchells vs the Machines), and written and produced by Seth Rogan. It's an animated movie, the second ever after 2007's TMNT.

I have thoughts about it, so let's talk.

I guess I should start by evaluating the movie on its own. Pretending for a moment that I don't have a room full of toys and collectibles based on it, as though seeing this movie with fresh eyes and no preconceived ideas, I'd say the story was solid, if nothing amazing. The action was fun, as was the humor. The characters were memorable and fleshed out, and the art style definitely helps set it apart from other run-of-the-mill animated movies flooding theaters and streaming services.

These teenage turtles actually act like teenagers. They're actually voiced by teenagers as well, which helps. They have an easy chemistry and comradery that sells their familial upbringing. They are young brothers that want many of the things young boys want, but are frustrated that who they are keeps the life they want out of reach.

Martial arts also plays a big role in the events of the story, and the choreography is a stand-out. Incorporating fast (relatively) fluid movement with creative improvisation very reminiscent of a classic Jackie Chan film, whose said films get a spotlight at one point, and who uncoincidentally joins the cast as the voice of Splinter. Watching them learn how to fight while showcasing their talent is joy to see.

I will say the animation style is captivating and creative. Everything looks illustrated, and every line is accentuated with a pen or brushstroke. The etched markings flicker and change frame-to-frame, emulated a handmade appearance, and to help with that the framerate of the animation is reduced in a similar vein to Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. The inspiration is a welcome one, and I hope more animation takes a cue.

That said, the limited animation frames can be a headache for some, or at least old folks like me. Occasionally the action is a little more difficult to follow than it otherwise would've been, but fortunately the virtual camerawork keeps a tight grip on the scenes, and you never really lose track of the overall course of events.

The story has been done many times before, and I'm not just referring to the franchise roots which I'll draw comparisons to later. This is very much a coming-of-age story with every character having a lesson to learn. Each has a goal to achieve, and a flaw to overcome, and they all arrive tidily at their destinations by the time the credits roll. The story thankfully takes moments to pause and allow the characters to breathe and exist in their world, and the introspection helps prevent the painterly looking protagonists from being paper thin.

There's, uh, a lot of pop references though. Take it or leave it, but it will definitely age this like a jug of hot milk.

At this point though, we should probably talk about how it compares to the franchise's past, and for this I'll need to talk about story and character specifics. So consider this your warning: FROM HERE ON THERE ARE SPOILERS!

TMNT has always been a franchise rife with reboots. There's never been a shortage of disparate artistic visions, and while some aspects are considered sacred (I don't think Alien Turtles will ever sit well), it's one of the few long-running IPs where new interpretations are not only common, but welcome.

So some level of open-mindedness is needed when stepping into a new world of TMNT, and I'm happy to say that Mutant Mayhem doesn't actually require you to completely unseat from your comfort zone. For the most part, these are the Turtles we know and love. Their designs are unique, and might take a little getting used to at first (particularly Mikey's), but that's a quick adjustment and what you find underneath is the familiar mannerisms and characterizations that have made them a staple for so many.

Raph is still the angry one, but they've switched that from being an emotional chip to more chaotically unhinged aggression, while still enjoying some fun with his bros.

Donnie is still a whiz, but he's less super genius inventor and more your typical nerd type, complete with somewhat cringy fanaticism for Korean bands and decidedly mainstream anime.

Mikey is still the party dude, but dialed down a little in the zaniness, ditching the surfer vocalisms and reacting in a more grounded way to situations.

And Leo is still the leader, and if anything, his characterization has been amped up a bit.

Leo has the most to learn in this iteration, taking the "teacher's pet" elements of past versions and making it a part of his character arc. His tendency to want to impress Splinter puts him at odds with his brothers (and a new love interest), when his need to tell the truth gets in the way of their wanting to explore the world and disobey their father's orders.

I'm a little disappointed that his leadership is already predetermined in this version, as other stories where he earns the title can give his character and position in the group a bit more credence. But nonetheless he still has much to prove, and the movie gives him a chance to do just that. By the very end, he learns to embrace his brothers' different strengths and bring them together to stop the big baddie.

But the the biggest character arc is shared by all the Turtles, and that is a need to be accepted by humans and maybe have a normal life. At first they think this can only be done if they're publicly seen as heroes, and thus begins a vainglorious quest to track down the notorious Super Fly and be filmed doing it, winning the adoration of society. Eventually... This is in fact what happens, but not before learning a valuable lesson that saving humans for the wrong reasons is still the wrong reason. I do like that they didn't just toss this point under the rug, at least.

So yes, by the end, the Turtles are presumably world famous. There aren't a lot of iterations of the franchise that go this route (one unfortunate point of similarity is 2016's Out of the Shadows). And they finally get their dream of attending high school, and even going to prom. Though Leo's infatuation with April will have to go unrequited for a little longer, even as they share a dance.

And this is perhaps the element that I think will hopefully help the movie stand out favorably from the others. These are genuine teenagers, with real teenage problems, wants, and desires, and the core of their story really revolves around that most of all. They want nothing more than to be accepted and not feel alone, and at one point when it seems that they might be swept up into a new family of mutants bent on killing all humans, it's actually believable that they'd be tempted.

This is helped in no small part due to how they were raised. Splinter in this version is a loving but flawed father figure. Unfortunately he is not mutated from Hamato Yoshi here, but his origin as a rat explains why he hates and feels ostracized by humans. As he continually stresses to his sons, the human world will never accept them. They will kill or "milk" them as soon as they get the chance. And he reemphasizes this point with a story he retells whenever they start to stray from a life hidden away: When they were still small, he tried to bring them to the surface and join a party in the streets, and the immediate freakout of the crowd almost got them killed.

Super Fly and his mutant menagerie tell a similar story. Their paralleled experiences not only connect them to the Turtles, but also gives Super Fly a string to tug on in order to bring them into the fold. Ultimately though, his views skew too extreme, even for his own gang, but it serves a useful counterpoint to Splinter's worldview and gives him a good reason to relinquish his strictness over his sons.

At one point when looking on at the carnage of a giant "Super Duper Fly" terrorizing New York, Splinter reflects (and I'm paraphrasing), "We need to save them. And we need them to see you save them. Because I want them to like you, because I know them liking you will make you happy, and I want YOU to be happy!"

It's a meaningful moment and it really gives this Splinter a depth rarely seen in the TMNT universe.

While some of the differences in the story help to lend it gravitas, other differences are explained away more humorously. It's always been more difficult to justify how a simple rat mutating into a humanlike anthropoid could be a martial arts master, versus someone who already was a master being made rat-like, but I don't mind how its done here. After his experiences with humans, he wants to protect his family, and learning martial arts is the best way he can think to do it. And he learns, of course, by watching classic kung fu movies (many starred by Chan himself) and instructors on YouTube. (Maybe that's also why Splinter talks like Jackie Chan? It's never explained.)

Michael Bay's TMNT films tried something similar, where their rat studies a manuscript washed down the sewers, but in that movie it seemed like a cheap cop out. In Mutant Mayhem its handled with an unserious grace that fits the tone of the movie.

Of course there is no Shredder. That one is teased for the sequel (or series), but you do have an archvillain from TCRI whose last name is suspiciously Utrom. Hmmm, interesting!

There is a Baxter Fly Stockman, but he doesn't mutate here. Not much is known or shown of him, but the mutant antagonists (including Super Fly) all spring from him and his research, not (oddly) TCRI, although I guess he might be connected to them.

That means Bebop and Rocksteady, while in the movie, aren't working for Shredder, and aren't even bad guys by the end. None of the (remaining) mutants are. It's rather daring, and I'll be interested to see how that plays out in the future. The changes certainly don't hurt the story, and give them an avenue to diverge further from some of the more tired tropes.

One nitpick I'll levy though is how humans are handled in the story. They are caricatures, really, and their instant disgust with the mutants is so over-the-top it almost seems played for laughs. But I don't know if it was meant to be (the tone is a little hard to read here), and that's perhaps the one aspect where I think a bit more seriousness could have helped sell the emotion of those moments better.

Overall the simple but heartfelt story, well choreographed action, and the creative look of its artistic design give it a leg up over most other TMNT films, especially the last two live-action debacles. I'll have to see how this one sits with me over time to really know how I feel about it (I remember thinking I liked Out of the Shadows at first, but that certainly wore off). As it is, I'd seat this one above the underrated 2007 animated movie, FAR above the third live-action movie, but I don't think it can quite top the sheer nostalgia mega-force that is the first two Jim Henson films. But then nothing's perfect.