TheTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtlesfranchise is undeniably incredible, but there’s one obvious component that it’s missing: an anime. I am a huge anime fan, and I have been for a few years. However, deeper than that, I’m an animation fan. Ever since I was little and then into my adult years, my adoration for animated storytelling has remained the same. There’s something so special about transporting an audience to a realm beyond our own; to explore familiar topics in a new, creative way.
Outside of anime, I have recently been diving into theTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtlesfranchise. After all, few characters have defined the animation industry like those four brothers have. However, a few years ago, I admittedly had no idea thatthis franchise was actually heavily inspired by Japanese culture and anime, but it makes perfect sense.TMNTfits perfectly alongside legendary icons likeSuper Mario Bros.,Sonic the Hedgehog,andStudio Ghibli’sfamily-friendly projects.
When I found out aboutTMNT’sJapanese roots, I was taken aback, but not too surprised. After all, I truly consider Japan to be the art capital of the world (step aside, Hollywood!). What shocked me more was the massive hole I discovered in theTMNTfranchise after learning about its origins.With the franchise’s explosive success that it has seen in the past few years, there is one flaw I can’t help but notice: its lack of an anime adaptation.
Super Mario Bros. Has An Anime Few Know About, And It Needs A Reboot ASAP
Super Mario Bros. is primarily known as a legendary game series, but it actually has an anime that few know about, and it needs a reboot ASAP.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Seems Pre-Built For An Anime
If Any Franchise Deserves an Anime Adaptation, it is TMNT
My favorite installment in theTMNTfranchise is theRise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtlesseries, no matter how controversial that opinion may be. As I was re-watching the series, I began to noticeall of the Japanese Easter eggs hidden throughout the series, seemingly as a tribute to its inspiration.For example, the villains are called “yokai,” a term in Japanese folklore that refers to supernatural entities and spirits. Even in Michael Bay’s infamousTMNTlive-action adaptations, the main villain’s origin story revolves heavily around Japanese Samurai legends.
In addition to the countless Easter eggs hidden throughout the franchise’s numerous projects, the overall themes ofTMNTmatch up perfectly with familiar anime tropes. Each of the turtles falls into a classic anime “stock character” category. Still, they do it so well: the tough and rugged older brother (of course, Leo may also be considered the oldest in some installments), the reckless middle child, the quirky brainiac, and the loveable youngest sibling. Furthermore, it goes without saying that theTMNTseries wouldexcel as a Shōnen anime series, filled with action-packed animations, slice-of-life filler episodes, and epic side quests.
How The TMNT Would Need To Change To Fit Into An Anime
One Painfully Obvious Issue Would Need to Change in the TMNT Franchise For It To Work as an Anime
Much of theTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Franchiseis pre-built for an anime series. However, over the years and countless remakes of the four turtles’ stories, there is one giant issue that would need fixing in order to fit into an anime: there is a lot of controversy surrounding the series’ utilization of Japanese culture and folklore.
TheoriginalTMNTcomicsand characters were created by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird, two writers in the 80s who found Japanese culture quite interesting, hence the whole “ninja” thing. As I mentioned, many ofTMNT’sfranchise installments include Easter eggs, butfew of them actually honor their Japanese roots.
One of the most notable controversies was (not surprisingly) withMichael Bay’s 2014Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtleslive-action feature. Originally, William Fichtner (Prison Break) was set to adapt the role of Shredder in the film. However, director Bay receivedan onslaught of “white-washing” complaints from dedicated fans, stating that because Japanese Samurai heavily inspired Shredder, he should be played by a Japanese actor. There was some discussion surrounding the “ethnicities” of the turtles as well, but that was put to rest; after all, they are turtles.
Tohoru Masamune was later cast in the role, appeasing the outraged fandom. However, it seems that Masamune and Bay were indifferent on the matter, which was also a concern for fans, as shownin an interview with ComicBookMovie.com. While the originalTMNTcomics did not come from Japan, comic writers Eastman and Laird were primarily inspired by ancient Japanese Samurai and folklore, so much so that the turtles were almost given Japanese names.
Nevertheless, many fans view theTMNTfranchise as a failed attempt to incorporate Japanese culture into American media. Should the series be adapted into an anime, this issue would obviously need mending. Instead of sporadically mixing in tidbits of half-accurate Japanese legends, history, and folklore, aTMNTanime could easily create a story centered around the roles of the Samurai, ninjas, and familial philosophies which are so prominent in Japan.
The TMNT x Naruto Crossover Proves Just How Much The Turtles Make Sense in Anime & Manga
TMNT’s Recent Collaboration Proves This Is the Best Time For an Anime Adaptation
The history ofTMNTin Japan’s entertainment industry is a long and confusing one, but it only proves just how much Leo, Raph, Mikey, and Donnie deserve their own anime and manga series.In the 1980s, Japan got its firstTMNTTV releasein the form of a cartoon from Murakami-Wolf-Swenson Inc. However, due to a bizarre distribution plan to get the turtles on every screen in Japan possible, the show was released in three different versions, with three different dubs.According to TMNT Entity, this led to some out-of-character voice actors:
“This dub is recognized for a few bizarre oddities, such as Donatello having a rather deep, gruff, and manly voice (provided by Huruta Nobuyuki) while Raphael had an inexplicably effeminate tone (provided by Seisuke Kameyama…whose last name ironically means “Turtle Mountain”). Perhaps most perplexing of all, the Shredder regularly referred to Krang as ‘Mr. Krang.’” ~ TMNT Entity
Since its rather catastrophic premiere in Japan, theTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtleshave teamed up with a variety of other franchises. In 1995, following the cancelation of a TV TokyoTMNTseries, a revival franchise was quickly put together under the commission of Takara, which was the distributor of the Playmates TMNT toy line in Japan.Mutant Turtles: Legend of the Super Mutantshad its first run in 1996 as a two-part OVA animated series produced by Bee Media, complete with its own toy line, comic series, and original theme song by Hironobu Kageyama (previously known for “Cha-La Head Cha-La inDragon Ball Z).
While the two OVA’s were considered light-hearted, tongue-in-cheek pokes at Japanese children’s series,they are known to this day as the onlyTMNTanime installments as of 2024.Furthermore, around 20 manga volumes of various (primarily reused)TMNTstories were published as well. However, most of them are rarely known by fans today, as they were primarily created to promote toy lines with little effort put into their actual stories.
Despite the chaotic history of theTMNTfranchise in Japan, 2024 has proven to be a much better year for the fandom. In addition to IDW relaunching their long-runningTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtlecomic series and continuing their Last Ronin Saga, they are approaching one of the most iconic collaborations in 2024:TMNTxNaruto.
In the upcoming four-issue series, written by Caleb Goellner (Sonic the Hedgehog) and illustrated by Hendry Prasetya (Mighty Morphin Power Rangers), the heroes in the half-shell will team up with Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, and Kakashi to go up against the evil Foot Clan. This legendary collaboration coming up in the near future leaves me (and perhaps otherTMNTfans as well) believing thataTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtleanimemakes perfect sense now more than ever.
As aTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtlesfan who has recently been diving into a few of the most controversial installments, likeRise of the TMNTand Michael Bay’s live-action films, I have never been more convinced that we deserve an anime adaptation. From the built-in familial values to the Japanese legends that define the story, it seems like an obvious choice to turn into an anime series, or at least one newer than the previousTMNTOVAs released back in the 90s.
With the franchise’s massive announcements in 2024, including Paramount’s newTales of the TMNTseries, it is now only missing one thing: aTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtlesanime adaptation.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TMNT) is a multi-media franchise that began with Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird’s comics in the 1980s. Throughout the years, their comic books expanded to movies, TV shows, video games, and toys. Most notably, the animated Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles ran for nearly a decade and has become a nostalgic staple of the ‘80s and ‘90s. Several other movies have featured the four anthropomorphic turtle brothers (Leonardo, Michelangelo, Donatello, and Raphael), including the trilogy of live-action films in the ‘90s and the more recent movies Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and its sequel Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows.
