Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2012 TV series, season 1)

The first season of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles aired on Nickelodeon from September 29, 2012 to August 8, 2013. The season introduces the four turtles Leonardo (voiced by Jason Biggs),[1] Donatello (voiced by Rob Paulsen),[1] Raphael (voiced by Sean Astin)[1] and Michelangelo (voiced by Greg Cipes).[1]

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Season 1
DVD cover for "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" Season 1.
Country of origin	United States
No. of episodes	26
Release
Original network	Nickelodeon
Original release	September 29, 2012 (2012-09-29) – August 8, 2013 (2013-08-08)
Season chronology

Production

On October 21, 2009, a press release was made indicating that Viacom had bought the complete rights of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise from Peter Laird for $60 million. Viacom would be developing a CGI animated TV series for its Nickelodeon family of channels for broadcast in 2012. A feature film was released by Paramount Pictures, which is also a division of Viacom in 2014.[2]

Jason Biggs voices Leonardo and Rob Paulsen voices Donatello.[3] In June 2011, it was confirmed that Sean Astin is playing Raphael and Greg Cipes is Michelangelo.[4] In August 2011, it was revealed that Mae Whitman would be the voice for April O'Neil.[5] In April 2012, it was announced that Phil LaMarr would be playing the role of Baxter Stockman and Nolan North would be playing a race of aliens known as the Kraang,[6][7] while Roseanne Barr was confirmed to voice their leader, Kraang Prime.[8] Actress Kelly Hu confirmed her role as Karai in May 2012.[9]

Production art was leaked on the Nickelodeon website before it was taken down. The images showed the designs of all four Turtles, Shredder, Splinter, a teenage April O'Neil and the Kraang, an alien race that combines elements of both Krang and the Utroms.[10] A trailer for the series was released on June 21, 2012, on Nickelodeon USA.[11]

Episodes

Main article: List of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2012 TV series) episodes

No.	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date [12]	Prod. code [12]	US viewers (millions)
1 2	"Rise of the Turtles"	Michael Chang and Alan Wan	Joshua Sternin and J. R. Ventimilia	September 29, 2012 (2012-09-29)	101 102	3.92[13]
Part 1: On the 15-year-old Turtles' very first trip to the surface, they witness the teenage April O'Neil and her psychologist father's, Kirby, abduction by the sinister Kraang. Very taken with April, Donnie convinces the others that it is their sworn duty to rescue her and her father. Part 2: The Turtles find out where the O'Neils are being held and infiltrate their hideout; even if it means battling the mutant-plant Snakeweed. Villain: Krang
3	"Turtle Temper"	Alan Wan	Jeremy Shipp	October 6, 2012 (2012-10-06)	103	3.25[14]
During a fight with the Kraang, Raph loses his temper when he is insulted by a caustic New Yorker named Vic, who videotaped the Turtles and threatens to expose them to the world. When three of the Ninja Turtles try to rescue Vic from the Kraang, the Turtles' attempt to rescue him and get rid of the footage goes horribly wrong when Vic is mutated into the mutant spider named "Spider Bytez",[15] who then beats up the Turtles easily. Raph then learns to control his temper and defeats Spider Bytez despite his harsh insults. Villain: Vic and Krang
4	"New Friend, Old Enemy"	Juan Jose Meza-Leon	Joshua Hamilton	October 13, 2012 (2012-10-13)	104	2.80[16]
To prove that Turtles can be friends with humans, Mikey uses a social networking site to befriend Chris Bradford, a famous martial artist who is secretly Shredder's most promising pupil. Villain: Chris Bradford and Xever
5	"I Think His Name is Baxter Stockman"	Michael Chang and Ciro Nieli	Joshua Sternin and J. R. Ventimilia	October 20, 2012 (2012-10-20)	105	3.40[17]
Splinter grounds the Turtles for a week when Mikey was skateboarding in the lair. When the Turtles sneak out against Splinter's orders, they lose their new T-Pod (which has a military intelligence chip) and now must retrieve it from Baxter Stockman, a former TCRI inventor who uses it to upgrade his new armor in revenge on his old company for firing him for an incident with spilled copier toner. Villain: Baxter Stockman
6	"Metalhead"	Juan Jose Meza-Leon	Tom Alvarado	October 27, 2012 (2012-10-27)	106	3.61[18]
Weary of using his simple wooden bō to fight the technologically-advanced Kraang, Donnie creates Metalhead, a remote-controlled robot turtle reverse-engineered from Kraang technology, to fight in his place. When Metalhead malfunctions and falls under the control of the Kraang, Donnie must find a way to stop his invention. Villain: Krang
7	"Monkey Brains"	Alan Wan	Russ Carney and Ron Corcillo	November 3, 2012 (2012-11-03)	107	3.69[19]
After teaming up to investigate the disappearance of local British neuroscientist, Dr. Tyler Rockwell, April and Donnie encounter a British bizarre psychic mutant monkey. They come to realize that the monkey is actually Rockwell, whose was used in an experiment involving mutagen and monkey DNA by his colleague, Dr. Victor Falco. Villain: Dr. Falco April's strong inherent psychic and extrasensory abilities are implied here.
8	"Never Say Xever"	Michael Chang	Kenny Byerly	November 10, 2012 (2012-11-10)	108	2.92[20]
Following a fight with the Purple Dragons at a noodle shop, Leo fears his act of mercy has come back to haunt him when Shredder sends his Foot Clan after the Turtles again, with Xever Montes, a Brazilian street thug who he freed from prison and trained as his street contact, in charge. Things get worse when Montes holds the noodle shop's blind owner, Mr. Murakami, hostage. Villain: Xever and the Foot Clan
9	"The Gauntlet"	Juan Jose Meza-Leon	Joshua Sternin and J. R. Ventimilia	November 17, 2012 (2012-11-17)	109	2.80[21]
After April receives a warning from her imprisoned father which arrived on a pigeon mutant named Pete, she and the Turtles embark on a mission to save him and stop the Kraang from detonating a mutagen bomb in the city. But the Turtles aren't prepared for anything when the Shredder makes his move on them and an accident that involved the mutagen inside the bomb turning Bradford and Xever into the akita and snakehead mutants "Dogpound and Fishface". Villain: Krang and the Foot
10	"Panic in the Sewers"	Alan Wan	Jeremy Shipp	November 24, 2012 (2012-11-24)	110	2.92[22]
Following a nightmare involving Shredder defeating the Turtles, Splinter ends up putting the Ninja Turtles in training 24/7. The Ninja Turtles soon defend their home in the sewers when Shredder orders Dogpound and the Purple Dragons to destroy it with chlorosulfonic acid (an extremely dangerous chemical that reacts violently to water). Villain: Foot Clan
11	"Mousers Attack!"	Michael Chang	Kenny Byerly	December 8, 2012 (2012-12-08)	111	3.37[23]
The Purple Dragons mug April in order to steal her phone. Simultaneous threats from the Purple Dragons and from Stockman's mechanical MOUSERS force the Turtles to split into 2 groups: Leo and Raph, and Donnie and Mikey. Leonardo and Raphael contemptuously consider their two brothers the more expendable half of their team, only to find themselves in dire straits without them. Villain: Baxter Stockman and Foot Clan
12	"It Came From the Depths"	Juan Jose Meza-Leon	Russ Carney and Ron Corcillo	December 15, 2012 (2012-12-15)	112	3.46[24]
After the Turtles rescue an anger-prone American alligator mutant from the Kraang, Mikey nurses him back to health and befriends him. The Turtles learn that the alligator, Leatherhead, has the Kraang's power cell, which must never be returned to them. Villain: Krang
13	"I, Monster"	Michael Chang	Jase Ricci	January 25, 2013 (2013-01-25)	114	2.61[25]
The Turtles must save the city and Splinter's mind from Dr. Victor Falco who is now the terrifying Rat King. Villain: The Rat King
14	"New Girl In Town"	Alan Wan	Jeremy Shipp	February 1, 2013 (2013-02-01)	113	2.33[26]
Snakeweed returns and begins abducting people. Tired of Raphael's constant criticism while trying to stop Snakeweed, Leonardo lets Raphael try his hand at leadership. While away from the group, Leonardo meets a female Foot Ninja named Karai, who tries to lure him to the dark side. Villain: Karai
15	"The Alien Agenda"	Juan Jose Meza-Leon	Kenny Byerly	February 8, 2013 (2013-02-08)	115	2.42[27]
Leo and Raph fight over whether or not they can trust Karai. The Turtles get their first look at high school when April's school project draws attention from the Kraang. Karai learns about the existence of the Kraang and tries to tell Shredder, but he is uninterested. Karai then follows the turtles into a Kraang research facility, where she is found by Raph, which ultimately leads to a battle between the Kraang and the Turtles. Villain: Krang and Karai
16	"The Pulverizer"	Alan Wan	Russ Carney and Ron Corcillo	February 15, 2013 (2013-02-15)	116	2.55[28]
Donatello converts Leatherhead's subway car into a battle van, which Mikey names the Shellraiser. While taking the Shellraiser for a test drive, the Turtles meet their first fan, a teenager dressed up to fight crime as "The Pulverizer", who turns out to be a lazy teenage boy with no self defense skills whatsoever. But meanwhile, Stockman perfects a pair of cybernetic legs for Fishface using stolen Kraang technology, and the Kraang search for their lost power cell. Villain: Krang and Fishface
17	"TCRI"	Michael Chang	Joshua Sternin and J. R. Ventimilia	March 1, 2013 (2013-03-01)	117	2.15[29]
While breaking into the hostile environment of TCRI headquarters upon being told of its location by Leatherhead, the Turtles discover the true intent of the Kraang: to open a portal to Dimension X and begin an all-out invasion. The Turtles resolve to stop them – even if they end up having to fight the rock monster Traag. During the fight, Michelangelo finds a Kraang Data Storage Device. Donatello de-codes the device and discovers that the Kraang are after April. Villain: Krang
18	"Cockroach Terminator"	Juan Jose Meza-Leon	Jeremy Shipp	March 15, 2013 (2013-03-15)	118	2.19[30]
Donatello creates a "spyroach" to spy on the Kraang in TCRI. They learn that the Kraang are planning on drilling into the Earth's core. Then, the spyroach becomes accidentally mutated. When the Turtles find the Spyroach, they find out that it is targeting Raphael, because he tried to destroy the spyroach earlier, since he is afraid of cockroaches. Villain: Mutant Cockroach and Krang
19	"Baxter's Gambit"	Alan Wan	Jase Ricci	April 5, 2013 (2013-04-05)	119	2.30[31]
Following a three-way fight between the Turtles, the Foot, and the Kraang, Stockman convinces Shredder to let him use a foolproof plan. Unbeknownst to them, his true intentions with the plan involve seeking revenge on the Turtles (who have been foiling his plans) and Dogpound and Fishface (who have been abusing and threatening him) by luring them all into a deadly labyrinth called the Maze of Doom. Now the Turtles, Dogpound, and Fishface must form a temporary truce to get out of the Maze of Doom alive. Meanwhile, Splinter works to find the right weapon for April as she learns more about Splinter's past. Villain: Baxter Stockman
20	"Enemy of My Enemy"	Michael Chang	Kenny Byerly	April 12, 2013 (2013-04-12)	120	2.31[32]
When a Kraang invasion scheme threatens to destroy the Turtles and put the whole world in danger, Karai offers an alliance with the Turtles. After declining Karai's offer, the Turtles eventually decide that teaming up with Karai might be a good idea when Karai mentions weapons that are being shipped to the Shredder that she could steal. However, when the Turtles plan on destroying the Shredder once and for all, Karai's loyalty to the Turtles vanishes and now the Turtles must deal with Shredder and Karai as well as the Kraang. Villain: Krang
21	"Karai's Vendetta"	Juan Jose Meza-Leon and Sebastian Montes	Russ Carney and Ron Corcillo	April 27, 2013 (2013-04-27)	121	3.05[33]
After the Turtles discover a Kraang plot to turn Earth's water into Kraang water, they infiltrate an undersea Kraang base guarded by a sea creature from Dimension X. Shredder interrogates a captured Kraang droid and learns that April is not only an ally of the Turtles, but the key to the Kraang's ability to take over Earth, so Shredder sends Karai to capture her. April is skilled at evading Karai, but when cornered, she is terrible at fighting and is beaten up, but manages to escape by using a lesson that she learned from Splinter when Karai shows sympathy for her losing her mother. Villain: Karai and Krang
22	"The Pulverizer Returns!"	Alan Wan	Jeremy Shipp	May 11, 2013 (2013-05-11)	123	2.78[34]
Splinter has the Turtles switch weapons (Leo gets Donnie's bo staff, Donnie gets Raph's sai, Raph gets Mikey's nunchucks and Mikey gets Leo's swords) and having them use whatever is nearby as makeshift weapons in combat. Meanwhile, Shredder learns about the mutagen from the captive Kraang operative where he states that the mutagen has unpredictable results. When Shredder plans to create an army of mutants, the Turtles must rely on the help of the Pulverizer (who was recruited into the Foot) who volunteers to gather information on the inside on their behalf. When he carelessly agrees to be a test subject for a stolen supply of mutagen, the Turtles attempt to rescue him. Villain: Krang
23	"Parasitica"	Michael Chang	Pete Goldfinger	July 20, 2013 (2013-07-20)	122	2.19[35]
While investigating a destroyed Kraang hideout, the Turtles are attacked by a giant mutant wasp, which stings Leo. After the wasp dies they find an egg, which Leo says should be brought back to the lair. That night, Raph tries to destroy the egg but Leo, who is under the influence of the wasp's toxin, is determined to protect the egg. Leo bites Raph, infecting him as well. Mikey and Donnie attempt to cure them, although Donnie gets infected before he can finish the antidote. Donnie instructs Mikey on how to prepare the cure before succumbing to the infection and biting him. Mikey knocks him out, then finishes the antidote while desperately fighting off the influence of the bite, and administers the cure to himself and his brothers just as the egg hatches. Mikey then kills the newborn wasps with the Shellraiser's cannon. Villain: Parasitica
24	"Operation: Break Out"	Michael Chang	Jase Ricci	July 27, 2013 (2013-07-27)	124	2.15[36]
In an attempt to impress April, Donatello breaks into a secret Kraang detention center alone in order to rescue Kirby O'Neil. He manages to rescue Kirby, although they end up trapped in the detention center with a deadly prisoner called the Newtralizer. Meanwhile, April is hearing sounds that even Splinter can't. The Turtles successfully escape the Newtralizer and bring Kirby to their lair, where he re-unites with his daughter, although they are unaware of the fact that Kirby has fallen under the Kraang's control. Villain: Kraang and Newtralizer
25 26	"Showdown"	Juan Jose Meza-Leon and Sebastian Montes and Alan Wan	Joshua Sternin and J. R. Ventimilia	August 8, 2013 (2013-08-08)	125 126	3.14[37]
Part 1: After learning that the Kraang are planning an invasion, The Turtles engage in a difficult battle as they make a desperate assault on TCRI to shut down the Kraang's portal before it summons the Technodrome, and in order to save April whom the Kraang managed to capture with the help of Shredder. They destroy TCRI, but not before the Technodrome comes through the portal. Part 2: The Turtles must infiltrate the Technodrome in order to save April. Meanwhile, Splinter faces off against Shredder after defeating Dogpound and Fishface. When Splinter recognizes Karai as his own now-teenage daughter, Miwa, (whom Shredder had told that Hamato Yoshi was the ruthless murderer of her mother Tang Shen), he retreats in sorrow; unable to fight against his own child. Back at the Technodrome, the Turtles must get through Kraang Prime to get to April before Kraang Prime can use her inherent mental abilities in order effectively trans-mutate the human race into fellow Kraang. Villain: Shredder and Kraang

Reception

References

1. Lowry, Brian (2012-09-26). "Variety Reviews – Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles – TV Reviews – - Review by Brian Lowry". Variety.com. Retrieved 2012-10-20.
2. "Tuning in to TV: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have new series, toys". The Washington Times. July 29, 2012. Retrieved July 23, 2013.
3. Lowry, Brian (2012-09-26). "Variety Reviews – Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles – TV Reviews – - Review by Brian Lowry". Variety.com. Retrieved 2012-10-20.
4. Franich, Darren (July 14, 2011). "Sean Astin voicing Raphael in new 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'". Entertainment Weekly. New York City. Retrieved February 11, 2012.
5. Rob Paulsen. "Voice of April O'Neil revealed". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved 2013-07-16.
6. "Episode 36 Guest: Phil Lamarr". Rob Paulsen Live. 2012-04-13. Retrieved 2012-07-07.
7. "Episode 38 Guest: Nolan North". Rob Paulsen Live. 2012-04-27. Retrieved 2012-07-07.
8. "Exclusive: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Guest Cast Includes Roseanne Barr – Today's News: Our Take". TVGuide.com. 2013-01-18. Retrieved 2013-07-23.
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28. "Friday Cable Ratings: 'Gold Rush' Wins Night, 'Bering Sea Gold', 'WWE Smackdown','Merlin', 'Jessie' & More – Ratings | TVbytheNumbers". Tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com. Retrieved 2013-10-17.
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32. "Friday Cable Ratings: 'Masters' Coverage Wins Night, 'WWE Smackdown', 'Spartacus', 'Da Vinci's Demons','Yukon Men', 'Vice' & More". Tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com. 2013-04-15. Retrieved 2013-10-17.
33. Pucci, Douglas. "Nickelodeon ratings (April 22-28, 2013)". Son of the Bronx. Blogspot. Retrieved December 22, 2014.
34. Pucci, Douglas. "Nickelodeon ratings (May 6-12, 2013)". Son of the Bronx. Blogspot. Retrieved December 22, 2014.
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36. Son of the Bronx (2013-03-08). "Son of the Bronx: Nickelodeon ratings (July 22–28, 2013)". Sonofthebronx.blogspot.com. Retrieved 2013-08-14.
37. Sara, Bibel (August 9, 2013). "Thursday Cable Ratings: 'Alien Sharks' Wins Night, 'Pawn Stars', 'Burn Notice', 'Sullivan & Son', 'Graceland', 'Project Runway' & More". TVBytheNumbers.com. Retrieved August 9, 2013.

External links

• Official Website Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles