So, it is in the spirit of looking back in time that I take a look back at Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles IV: Turtles in Time, a 1992 Konami title for the SNES which came out at the plateau of the Turtles’ presence in the pop culture arena. Today, they’re competing against the Transformers and Smurfs and Thundercats of the world for a chance at the purse strings of nostalgic North Americans not as glossy or as fresh as characters in the Pixar universe or the heroes from the Marvel and DC worlds who have recently been getting their own big budget Hollywood makeovers. They had their moment in the spotlight, strutting on stage with Vanilla Ice singing “Go Ninja, Go Ninja, Go!” – before being plunged into very much the same obscurity as Vanilla Ice.Ī recent animated feature put the heroes in half-shells back out on the streets, but, well-received as it was, it and any subsequent films will never be able inject the same kind of freshness into the series that it enjoyed in the late eighties and early nineties.
But, as time passes, there is bound to be ever more gamers and movie fans who weren’t there to experience Turtle Power first hand.Īt their best, they drew fans to the comic book racks, toy shelves, TV screens, and even to the box office for three live action films in the early nineties.
Undoubtedly, there is a certain generation of people who don’t need that specification when they hear ‘the turtles’, their minds make that immediate synaptic connection to the Ninja Turtles. As it’s been a number of years since the pinnacle of their success, it’s probably best to specify that I’m referring, of course, to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
There was a time when the turtles were bigger than pro wrestling.