We all have our favorite comic book superheroes, but one group that takes the cake for many of us - especially the 80s kids - are the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. We first fell in love with them during their first true appearance in the 1980s TV show series, but they’ve since had several movies and many TV show remakes. There’s a much less thrilling side to our mutant teens that brings a bit of disappointment with it, though. In spite of all of its positive reception it’s received from its masses of fans, the TMNT franchise has quite a few goofs in its many films.
The 1980s TV series was quite possibly the worst of them all, but the mistakes can be found in each and every series or movie up to the most recent release of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie in 2016. Though there are few discrepancies in the turtles’ personalities, their physical appearances are not very distinguishable. A large amount of these flukes make it much more difficult to tell the difference between the heroes. The issues don’t stop there, though. From problematic continuity errors to visible movie sets, the various TMNT producers have some explaining to do.
25 Are We Supposed To Ignore The Sporadically Moving Objects?
It was sort of common to see objects move for no reason, in older cartoons. The animation technology and resources were much less advanced compared to today’s studios. So, it’s not surprising when we watch throwback TV shows from childhood (or even before our own time) and witness an object move slightly. However, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles has a strong history of this issue in many of the episodes.
You can’t peel your eyes from the mistake
In some instances of this, the object will convulse for no apparent reason. And, of course, the characters don’t even seem to notice it. But how can you not? As a viewer, you can’t peel your eyes from the mistake. A less intense, but more memorable example of this is the case of the ghostly table. The turtles and April O’Neil were conversing with a man performing a card trick while the table shakes mid-performance (and, no, it wasn’t a part of the trick).
24 Ventriloquism Is A Common Talent Amongst The Teen Mutants
There’s a lot of editing involved in the process of creating an animated TV show, we get it. It’s understandable to see how minuscule things can easily be overlooked. A fairly common mistake in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is the mismatch mouth movements (or lack thereof) when the characters speak. The problem with this particular TV show is that it happens A LOT. Which can be annoying, especially when it causes confusion amongst the audience. If you’re not an avid fan of the mutant teens then you might not know which voice actor belongs to each character, which can be a bit annoying when the voices don’t match up correctly.
For instance, in some scenes Donatello and Leonardo swap voice, which is a simple mistake that’s virtually harmless. But, in the above image you’ll notice Leonardo and April are having a conversation, yet Leonardo’s mouth never actually moves. In fact, his mouth isn’t even open!
23 Maybe The Producers Were Forgetting Something…
One of the most important aspects of any cartoon or animation (that, quite literally sets the scene) is the background image. And Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles creators forgot this significant element…a few times. In one particular scene of the episode, “Turtles of the Jungle,” it was completely undeniable that the background was forgotten altogether. At first glance, it’s a little confusing, but upon taking a closer look, you can see that the background was completely omitted. Instead of a landscape, there’s simply a grey background with a cell of a tree. It’s probably not the most noticeable mistake since it flashes to a different scene quickly thereafter, but at the same time, it’s not very excusable. It seems pretty crazy to forget an entire background.
22 ‘Mutant’ Tends To Carry A Stigma…Even If You’re A Superhero
Quite a few errors can also be found in the 2012 series of TMNT. In a particular episode, Michelangelo attempts to return a cat to a man by way of the fire escape stairs. In retrospect, this was probably a terrible choice on Michelangelo’s part right from the start. The cat owner ignores the cat and begins freaking out that a mutant turtle is standing outside of his window. The screaming causes the cat to become distressed and it attacks Michelangelo.
The man disappears entirely from the window
During this scene, the man disappears entirely from the window. He’s completely gone. The creators must’ve become pretty entrenched in the catfight and forgot all about the manic man. On the other hand, who could blame a guy for disappearing after witnessing a mutant turtle return your cat?
21 You’ve Just Received A Double-Dose Of Leonardo And Raphael
As if the mistakes found in the 1987 version of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series wasn’t infamous on its own, it even had a popularized mistake that has become well-known in many places on the Web. Funnily, the artists actually drew doppelgangers for two of the turtles (Raphael and Leonardo). They hadn’t even noticed the fact that there were five turtles in one frame… Seems pretty detectable to most viewers, but no one in the production of TMNT seemed to catch it before it went on air. If you notice in the image, Leonardo is even stepping on himself! Combined with the fact that Michelangelo is missing from the frame entirely (yet there are too many turtles in the scene) makes it apparent that some sort of mistake must have been made during production.
20 April Doesn’t Know How To Use A Smart Phone
Okay, now this is a slightly understandable mistake (considering the circumstances) but it doesn’t help the film-maker’s reputation, nor the reputation of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise. When April O’Neil first meets the ninja turtles in the 2014 film, she attempts to secretly take pictures of them but fails. Donatello wipes April’s phone and later returns it, only for April to turn around and snap another photo of the crew as they hop rooftops… This is where the sloppy filming comes into play. When April is capturing an image of the turtles the phone screen isn’t even illuminated. In fact, in the last scene, you can actually see her reflection on the phone. This isn’t very believable (obviously), but it’s also an understandable mistake given the fact that the filmmakers don’t actually need Megan Fox to take a real photo.
19 It’s Raining Canisters..?
Many of the often-found mistakes littered about the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series can create a lot of confusion. However, this one is a bit more comedic than anything (even if it doesn’t make total sense). This happens to be the case for one particular scene in which the turtles are fighting aboard the Krang ship. Michelangelo accidentally causes canisters to fall into the floor which then leaks out and somehow causes a monsoon of canisters over the city. This is most-notably figured out once the audience notices the continuity error in the ship’s movement.
The vessel is a mere seven-to-eight foot higher than the shore
The turtles were fighting so long that the ship should’ve passed by April who’d been on land nearby, however, when the canisters begin falling from the sky, they’re practically surrounding her. What’s even worse is the height of the ship doesn’t match up with this scene either; the vessel is a mere seven-to-eight foot higher than the shore.
18 Does Splinter Even Know What He Wants?
At the beginning of an episode of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, “Leonardo, Renaissance Turtle,” Master Splinter along with the four turtles are watching TV, just chilling on the couch. Or so it seems… If you gaze at the characters a bit closer, you might notice Splinter’s facial expression while sitting on the couch; he looks pretty angry. Although it’s not necessarily the most shocking finding to learn that the creators messed up on the emotional expressions of the Master’s face. It’s a mistake that gets an audience curious. What if an entirely different series of events was supposed to unfold during this scene? The original intentions behind many episodes are changed all of the time; this could’ve been another sloppy edit to the initial storyline.
17 Bebop And Rocksteady Just Aren’t Significant Enough
Villains are known to be cowardly at times, but this occurrence might not actually be at the fault of the bad guys (just this once). During the scene, a confrontation involving Shredder and the turtles turns into a gunfight. Bebop and Rocksteady would seem to have an unfair advantage over the turtles during this scene; using their lasers to shoot at the mutants. Of course, they successfully dodge the shots with their impressive martial arts technique. As they’re shooting at the turtles, Stockman decides to show up for the firing frenzy. But just as he flies up, the duo disappears from view. Is Stockman really that intimidating? Or did the artists forget about Bebop and Rocksteady altogether? Obviously, the latter is likely the case, but it’s a bit more amusing to imagine the two clowns are slightly afraid of their own comrade.
16 Have You Ever Felt As If You’re Frozen In Fear?
No one enjoys being the damsel in distress. It’s really…distressing (to say the least). Although, the women of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles take the old saying, ‘frozen in fear’ to the next level. It’s not entirely the fault of the damsels, though. The animators seemed to have forgotten to add movement to the scene. In “The Big Cufflink Caper,” April and Irma are kidnapped and held hostage in a classic, but scary way: dangled over a giant pot of toxic chemicals.
There’s simply one frozen frame
The two can be heard exchanging conversation as if they can see the turtles arriving at their rescue, but it doesn’t really look like that. There’s simply one frozen frame that can be seen while the characters talk to one another, but they’re not so much as even flinching to see the turtles that they’re talking about. I’d be terrified of falling to my own doom, but I doubt I’d be able to stay completely still.
15 The Technological Era Has Forgotten About A Few Things From The Past
The latest Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles live-action film was highly-anticipated. The franchise has quite a huge fan-base (and with good reason) so millions of people had good expectations for this movie. Although, the new movie had some flaws of its own. A funny mistake (although understandable from a modern-day perspective) was a scene in which April O’Neil finally found a payphone to contact her cameraman, Vern. When he answers the phone, he immediately says, “O’Neil,” implying that he knew who was on the other line in spite of the fact that she called from a payphone. Which means he couldn’t have possibly known who was on the other end. Some could argue that maybe Vern was expecting a call from April, but it’s still odd considering he was answering an unknown number.
14 It’s Safe To Assume That Video Chat Isn’t Ready For Krang Yet
The Krang is a notable villain and also the first creepy cartoon character that some of us remember as kids. Apparently, the artists were feeling those bad vibes too because they completely eliminated his image during a video call between him and Shredder in the episode, “Invasion of The Turtle Snatchers.” At first, it seems like maybe there’s supposed to be bad reception and it’s a fault of the device, but that’s quickly disproved once viewers notice that Krang’s bubble walker is still visible…just not him. Krang’s body goes MIA before the communication fizzles out, but the bubble walker hesitates on the screen. We weren’t exactly smitten with the looks of Krang to begin with (but that’s kind of the point), so that probably worked out better for everyone, mistake or not.
13 Nothing Is Safe From Elimination
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles has its fair share of mistakes, but none are quite so obvious as the vanishing objects and body parts. In the defense of the artists, it’s clear that the scenes were drawn over the course of several frames. Which means that it’s highly possible to make mistakes and allow them to go unnoticed. On the other hand, it seems like these missing pieces should be pretty important to the scene (like the very rug a character is dancing on).
The mat disappears out of thin air
The 2012 series of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles has a slight problem with this phenomenon. In the episode, “Showdown: Part 2,” the whole crew dances in celebration of their victory at the end. When Leonardo’s moment in the limelight shows itself, he begins dancing and performing the moonwalk on a white mat. One frame later and the mat disappears out of thin air.
12 Was This Intentional Randomness… Or…?
It’s not completely clear why the creators of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles decided to include a live skeleton in the festival scene of the episode, “Four Musketurtles.” Although, it’s safe to assume that this could have also been a mistake. Many of the characters are dressed up for the carnival festivities that are taking place, however, this “costume” is a bit more challenging to explain away.
The skeleton is completely see-through and waves his arms about in excitement (which eliminates the possibility that he is a cardboard cutout). I know, the TV show is about a bunch of turtle-transformed-teenagers stopping crime while being taught by a legendary sansei that also happens to be a rat, but come on. The skeleton wouldn’t even be able to hold in his meals. Now that’s pretty unbelievable. I suppose I should also mention that this scene also briefly includes a little, dancing teddy bear found within the crowd.
11 It Seems Like The Artists Don’t Even Know Which Turtle Is Which
Quite possibly the most confusing mistake a TV show could make is to exchange the colors of nearly indistinguishable-looking characters. This happens so frequently throughout Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles that it’s kind of annoying… In the photo above, you can see that Leonardo and Raphael’s colors were swapped. From the perspective of anyone who is trying to get into the show, this must be even more perplexing because you’re trying to learn the characters and since they’re nearly identical (with the exception of their weapons and garb) it makes sense to remember them by their colors. This isn’t the best idea for a new viewer, though, because the artists were extremely inconsistent with the coloring. It seems like they could hardly remember it themselves. As for longtime fans of TMNT, this is an agitating aspect of the animation.
10 We Just Can’t Get Enough Michelangelo
Most people would like to claim that Raphael is everyone’s favorite ninja turtle according to numerous fans as well as top comic book heroes lists (most of which don’t even include his brothers). He’s got that charisma and independence that just seems to attract a lot of attention, not to mention he’s fairly headstrong. Although, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles creators might have wanted to defy this longstanding perception (subliminally, anyway).
Here’s your dose of subliminal messaging for today
In “Turtles of the Jungle” the four brothers find themselves in a fight with a gigantic ape, unfortunately for Michelangelo, the ape rips him off of his leg, shoving him into the asphalt. Or so you think… When you take a closer look at the frame, a second Michelangelo appears right beneath the first almost instantly. It’s like he’s an unlimited edition! If you didn’t already love Michelangelo the most, here’s your dose of subliminal messaging for today.
9 Rocksteady’s Fate Is Still In The Works
In a scene of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, an unsurprising series of events unfold in which the notorious villain, Rocksteady, is scooped up from a small boat by a giant squid. The producers failed to catch yet another flaw of their many, insurmountable continuity errors. The viewers can watch as Rocksteady is abducted from his perch, then seconds later he reappears in the boat right next to his pal, Shredder, who’s still attempting to save Rocksteady from the squid. Kind of bizarre, huh?
It’s one thing to mess up a timeline a little, but forgetting that you drew the character in distress (who is supposed to be in a different frame altogether) right next to the character that’s saving him is a sign of lazy editing. Of course, Shredder saves Rocksteady at the end of the scene, but we all know that Rocksteady probably had minimal issues making it back onto the boat on his own anyway…
8 The Turtles Could Be Deaf, Or Just Extremely Unobservant
Some mistakes are kind of obvious continuity errors, in retrospect. Yet, no one seems to catch them during the process of production. An evident fluke in the episode, “Zach and The Alien Invaders,” the ninja turtles’ biggest fan (and fifth turtle) Zach gets kidnapped by aliens and finds himself unable to call the turtles for help. In the scene, Zach is trapped inside, banging on a window in a failed attempt to get the turtles’ attention. A few seconds later, Zach is seen being kidnapped, but the window is wide open and he’s acting as if it’s still closed… That’s a pretty clear problem that discredits the entire undetected kidnapping! Wouldn’t somebody hear him? Luckily, the turtles save Zach later on in the episode. Otherwise, we’d really have some complaints for the producers.
7 The Store Owners Aren’t Even Sure What They Want To Sell
Even the tiniest slip-ups can make a perfectly comedic moment, if you can ever spot them. “Unidentified Flying Leonardo,” happens to be hiding one of these little nuggets of humor. The scene depicts a street with a few cars driving down it, the frame then moves to the storefront of one shop that was visible in the last frame. It’s apparent that during the creation of this scene the artists must have taken a break between frames because the store name changes within seconds. At first, the shop owners are selling cream and less than ten seconds later they’re selling grain. The owners seem to be pretty indecisive about their products, otherwise, the creators may have been unsure of what best fits the aesthetic of that street.
6 No Wonder No One Wants To Be Around Shredder
This one is pretty interesting and odd once you truly think about it. In this scene, Raphael obviously attacks Rocksteady while Shredder…uh…begins doing squats? A vlogger pointed out that it appears as if he’s actually letting it rip. During the scene, Shredder stays in that position for the duration of Raphael and Rocksteady’s little run-in.
It seems as if the vlogger might be right
One look at Rocksteady’s face in this scene and it seems as if the vlogger might be right. Either, the creators completely forgot to give Shredder action for a few seconds or Rocksteady’s horrified expression was given rightfully so. There were never any suggestible noises to confirm this theory, although, we must admit that there was either a flaw in the sound effects or in the artwork itself.
