Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Mutant Mayhem was released Aug. 2, the latest edition to the worldwide famous franchise which began as a comic book in 1983 by cartoonist Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird. The new movie told a new tale for the ninja turtles Leonardo, Michelangelo, Donatello, Raphael living under their caretaker scientist Master Splinter who himself was turned into a rat from his experiments. Teaching them to fight, the brothers turned into city crime fighting vigilantes. 

The new addition to the franchise is a cartoon animation produced by Seth Rogan, James Weaver, and Evan Goldberg through Point Grey Studios. They have never released a full movie that was a cartoon, the plot and emphasis on the character personalities were well done; however, seeing it animated in a different style was off-putting. Each character got their own shine, precisely placed remarks and slow motion shots were easy to appreciate. 

Something that really stood out was the stylistic change to Splinter’s character. In the 2016 version of the movie “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles”, Splinter encouraged the turtles to explore the world. However, in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Mutant Mayhem, he was timid and scared, almost seeming like he knew something they didn’t, creating an unusual tension within the typically close family. 

The final fight scene between the turtles and villain was childish and unrealistic, and it didn’t do the franchise justice. The movie is child friendly, different in comparison to the 2014 live action version of the movie. The 2014 version seemed more directed towards adults with slight profanity and vulgar jokes most kids wouldn’t understand. If Mutant Mayhem was live action, it would have been better because all the other spin offs of the beloved comic were live action that viewers were used to. This cartoon seemed like a filler to keep the public interested in the franchise since this is the newest release since 2014.