I noticed Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem a few months before it came out in theaters and the results were rather mixed with fans upon previews. This is definitely the most original movie based on the Ninja Turtles franchise, and while it gets points for originality, it earns less in quality.
It’s also yet again another reboot of the story, for which nobody needs. They seem to make the turtles significantly younger in personality. Yes they’re the “Teenaged” Mutant Ninja Turtles, but they act more like preteens.
I wasn’t also a fan of the animation style which is kind of like the Miles Morales/Spider-verse movies by Sony. I know it’s personal preference, but while it is cool in a way, I’m just not a big fan of it.
This is also one of the few TMNT movies that do not have Shredder as a villain in any way, shape, or form. Instead, the main bad guy is Superfly, for which I was not impressed at all. There’s definitely a reason that all the other movies rely on using Shredder as a villain.
The fight scenes are also not very impressive in my opinion. It’s more about the turtles learning about themselves, society, humans, and their feelings… rather than ninjutsu.
And the major sins of the movie are two characters I believe it ruined. The first is Splinter, who is not really wise or noble. He acts more like somebody’s weird uncle that the family doesn’t like to talk about. And that last scene with him is just absolutely bizarre.
And last, but certainly not least is the complete butchering of April O’Neil. In most versions of the story, April O’Neil is a pretty attractive grown woman that is a news reporter. This April O’Neil looks like a mutated potato and is some awkward teenager that is almost universally hated by her school peers.
I know I’m in the minority of my opinion on this movie, judging by its high markings on Rotten Tomatoes’ critical and audience reviews. I hear they are planning a sequel in 2026 and I don’t think I’ll even be watching that one for free. Can’t imagine how they’re going to ruin Shredder or Casey Jones for that one. Casey Jones might be a Hockey YouTuber and Shredder might be a Hibachi chef…