DVD Review - Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Complete First Season

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Complete First Season
Voice Cast: Jason Biggs, Rob Paulsen, Sean Astin, Greg Cipes, Mae Whitman, Hoon Lee
Studio: Nickelodeon
Release Date: October 7, 2014
Retail: $35.98
ASIN: B00LN87984
Running Time: 625 minutes
Rating: Not Rated
Buy Link: Amazon

Review:

Available to this on DVD from Nickelodeon is the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Complete First Season, featuring all 26 episodes on a 4-disc set. Special Features include 6 "Making Of" Animatics, Theme Song: Karaoke Music Video, Animated Comic Books: Tales From The Turtle Lair Part 1-6, and The Mutation of a Scene (New Girl in Town, The Pulverizer, TCRI, Cockroach Terminator, Baxter's Gambit). Included in the set is a 16-page sample of the upcoming coffee book Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Ultimate Visual History by Andrew Farago.

Nobody ever imagined the kind of phenomenon that would occur when the first Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comic book was printed in 1984 by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird. Now 30 years after their debut, the series is still going strong with new issues being released by IDW Publishing, this summer's blockbuster film is headed for Blu-ray in the middle of December and Nickelodeon is currently airing the third season of the third animated series on Friday nights.

The Nickelodeon series borrows the best bits from the original 1987 series and the 2003 reboot, which finds Leo, Donnie, Ralph and Mikey battling an alien race known as the Kraang, Shredder and his Foot Clan and dozens of deadly mutants. Along with their master Splinter and their human friend April O'Neil, the Turtles must protect New York City at all costs.

Episodes on the 4-disc set are:

Disc 1

Rise Of The Turtles (Double-Length Episode)

Turtle Temper

New Friend, Old Enemy

I Think His Name Is Baxter Stockman

Metalhead

Disc 2

Monkey Brains

Never Say Xever

The Gauntlet

Panic In The Sewers

Mousers Attack!

It Came From The Depths

New Girl In Town

Disc 3

I, Monster

The Alien Agenda

The Pulverizer

TCRI

Cockroach Terminator

Baxter's Gambit

Disc 4

Enemy Of My Enemy

Karai's Vendetta

The Pulverizer Returns!

Parasitica

Operation: Break Out

Showdown (Parts 1 + 2)

I've been of a TMNT fan ever since I saw the first episode of the original series back in 1987, but I was a little skeptical of the computer-animation being used for the new incarnation. Once I saw the Rise Of The Turtles, all my worries were over. The series is actually well-made, has a great voice cast and it has become its own show, but at the same time it has paid homage to the 1987 and 2003 cartoons. Last year, Nickelodeon released the entire first season in three volumes (Rise of the Turtles, Enter Shredder and Ultimate Showdown), which did upset some diehard fans as they wanted the complete season set. Now, those fans are finally getting their wish, but they might be slightly disappointed with this release. Besides from the cool cover-box and the coffee table booklet, there is nothing new here. Actually, the same three volumes are included in this set, so if you have already purchased the previous releases, then there is no reason to buy it. The good news is that the set is only retails at $35.98 and is currently being sold on Amazon for $12.96, which is about the same price of just one of the volumes. Overall, I did enjoy watching the episodes on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Complete First Season. If you don't already own the volumes, then I recommend buying this set as you can't beat the price.