Highlights
- TMNT fans have a chance to see the latest reboot, "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem," which could potentially lead to more movies.
- There have been numerous iterations of the TMNT franchise, including a forgotten Japanese OVA called "Mutant Turtles: Chōjin Densetsu-hen."
- The OVA featured the Turtles transforming into "Super Turtles" with the help of a magical stone and had a different storyline than the typical TMNT series. It was not a major hit in Japan or worldwide.
Turtles fans can finally go out and see Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem, the latest Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles reboot from Paramount Animation. Anticipation for the movie is high, and many turtle fans are hoping it will lead to a new series of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movies. While it is always fun to see a new Turtles movie in theaters, as fans of the franchise know this is far from the first iteration of the Green Team.
There have been over a dozen interpretations of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles since the first comic book by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird was first independently released (not even by Image Comics). There are so many different shows, comics, and movies of the turtles that it can be hard to keep track of them all. One iteration that has been almost completely forgotten though is a Ninja Turtles OVA that was made in Japan. What is this piece of unique animation though and what is the story behind it?
What is the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Anime About
The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was adapted into a two-part Japanese Original Video Animation (OVA) titled Mutant Turtles: Chōjin Densetsu-hen (which translates into Mutant Turtles: Superman Legend). The OVA was released in 1996 on VHS. The story of the OVA was quite different from the typical TMNT storyline. In the OVA, the Turtles, along with April and Splinter, are gifted with a MutaStone by a fairy named Kris Mu. This stone allows them to transform into "Super Turtles" for a short period of time (in the same vein as a super sentai show that is popular in Japan). In addition, the stone gives Splinter the ability to transform into a giant humanoid rat.
The antagonist, Shredder, also receives a Dark MutaStone, which he uses to become either a monstrous version of himself or to make Bebop and Rocksteady more powerful. The Turtles, in their super forms, face off against Shredder and his minions, who are trying to obtain the MutaStones and use their power for evil purposes. The Turtles also encounter an original villain named Dark Mu, a creature who was born from the MutaStones. While the series did maintain the core characters and some elements of the TMNT franchise, it introduced quite a few new and unique aspects (especially the idea of the Turtles transforming into super versions of themselves). This is in line with the popular trope of transformation sequences in many Japanese anime. The animation style was also more in line with Japanese anime than the original TMNT series.
The Anime's Production History
Mutant Turtles: Chōjin Densetsu-hen (Mutant Turtles: Superman Legend) was developed as a two-episode original video animation (OVA) series that was intended to be a continuation of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles animated series that ran from 1987 to 1996 on American TV (despite the fact that visually and story wise the OVA has very little in common with the Fred Wolf Films production). The OVA was produced by Bee Media and Anime International Company (AIC), with planning assistance from East-West Connection.
It was released direct-to-video in Japan (as was typical of OVAs). The first episode was released on May 21, 1996, with the second episode being released on December 21, 1996. As of this writing, no DVD or BluRay release of the OVA exists, and none of the companies involved in the production of the series has announced any plans for a re-release.
Was It a Hit In (Or Outside) of Japan?
As with most OVAs released in Japan, Mutant Turtles: Chōjin Densetsu-hen (Mutant Turtles: Superman Legend) was a minor hit at best. That being said, calling it a minor hit may be a bit generous in this case (we can't begin to stress how difficult it was to even find pictures of the show). While official numbers are hard to come by, the fact that no further productions of the OVA were made in any official form suggests that the title was not a particularly noteworthy seller. As for the rest of the world, this is one of the few TMNT productionsthat wasn't a worldwide hit. No official American release exists either.
Over the years since the original release, fans of the anime have taken it upon themselves to translate the title themselves so that fans around the world can see what it is all about. While we don't encourage sailing the seven seas, what we will say is that as of this moment is that there are no current or future plans to bring the OVA to America in either digital or physical format. That being said, it is a wild interpretation of the turtles and an interesting addition to the various lore that have been released. It's just a shame that it has largely been forgotten by all who were involved in the creation of it.