Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Heroes Of The Week

By Joel Hanek

When the evil Michael Bay attacks, these Turtle boys don't cut him slack.

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Heroes are Splash Page's Heroes of the Week because they're about to take on their biggest foe yet: the reboot. Ever since Michael Bay announced his involvement with the new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles reimagining "Ninja Turtles" and declared that the heroes in a half-shell would have a new alien origin, the internet has been incensed. Everyone from the original movie voice actors to one of the co-creators of the characters has spoken out against the alleged abomination spawned by Bay. Being a child of the '80s and having thrown a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles-themed party (in my childhood and recently), I too have my serious reservations about "Ninja Turtles."

But first, a few words in defense of Michael Bay. Please, sir and/or madam, put down the knife and hear me out before you stab your internet screen!

While personally I feel like Michael Bay's films can feel a bit like hokey action-by-numbers pabulum and, more often than not, cut any semblance of logic out of the storytelling—the man can make a blockbuster. The numbers speak for themselves. Also, Bay has already proven that he can take a dusty franchise from the '80s and turn it into one of the biggest selling properties in movie history, so if that means a new generation can enjoy the Pizzaholics (it's a nickname I'm trying out, take it or leave it) then I'm all for it.

The other defense I have for Mr. Bay is that this isn't the first time the Turtles have been rebooted. Compare Kevin Easterman and Peter Laird's original source material to the animated series of yore or the live action films of the '90s and they could not be any more different tonally. In the gritty origin comic, the Turtles murder Shredder, and no marshmallow and anchovy pizzas were to be had in celebration.

That being said, I do not think that just because the Turtles have been rebooted before means that this impending interpretation is one that should be embraced. While very little details about the project have emerged, director Jonathan Liebesman has said that he will keep the "essence" of the characters, but the fact that they will have an alien origin is disheartening because they are tragic figures. These are human teenagers, who have been horrifically transformed by toxic waste and must live their lives as turtles in the sewers because society will not accept them—yet these heroes toil on and fight for good for the sake of good.

Ok, perhaps that was a bit dramatic—they're talking humanoid Turtles who like pizza, after all—but my biggest fear is that having wise-cracking pizza eating aliens will up the camp from sometimes corny to just plain cheesy and start to resemble other groan-worthy movies that feature party loving aliens of the past.

I'm still hoping it can be done well, and until I see some actual footage from a new class of live-action Turtles, I will still have hope. Until then, the battle will be long, and that is why we salute you Leonardo, Michelangelo, Raphael, and Donatello.

PS. Does space aliens mean that we'll see Krang make it to the big screen? You can never have enough Krang.

Welcome to Hero of the Week, our weekly salute to the heroes keeping the comic book, movie and television scene something to look forward to day in and day out. From actual superheroes to the actors and filmmakers who bring them to life, you can tell us who your heroes are in the comments and on Twitter!