Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
It's basically all the Jack Kirby creations smashed together with the most 80s shades.
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Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Tournament Fighters (TT Top 50 Edition)
- Thread starter Lokii
- Start date
#43: Armaggon & Karai
Points: 459| Lists: 2 each
“Razor-Tipped Crystalline Armor”
First up best boy Armaggon. As previously stated he's a shark from the future. That's enough. That's all you need. A cool shark man who deals in temporal loops? That has the energy to fuel at least five SFII clones all on its own. But they couldn't leave well enough alone. Despite being a popular character from the comics and several game appearances, Armaggon didn't see a TV appearance until the 2012 show where he not only is no longer a time traveler but now also has a shark shaped samus suit. Simply excessive. A victim of overdesign and not recognizing that a time travelling elasmobranch is all you need.
Then there's Karai. Also a long running character who first appeared in the comics (Mirage not Archie this time), she usually functions as a high ranking Foot or even as Shredder's successor. I wonder if she was originally conceived as a direct parody of Electra, but she has aspects of Talia al Ghul and other 80s ninja-esq frenemies as well. But her weirdest incarnation happens to also be from the 2012 show where she mutates into a snake with snakes for hands.
Snakes on snakes, sharks on sharks, worms on worms. Apparently designing a TMNT c-lister is as simple as remixing an animal with itself.
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I had no idea that Armaggon appeared anywhere else besides Tournament Fighters and the 2012 show. I gotta admit the power suit shark appeals to me on a basic level. I mean, come on! Also he's voiced by Ron Pearlman.
I tend to use Armaggon in the SNES version of Tournament Fighters. He does that "softly floating drop kick" type of move that Dhalsim is famous for but he does it with his teeth. And if you catch the opponent at the right angle he can then combo directly into his grapple which is of course, biting. The sound he makes while he does this ("RUGH! RUGH! RUGH!") never fails to crack me up. The move almost always works on the computer too.
Karai became a favorite for me thanks to her appearance in the 2012 show where she has a tangled backstory as
Splinter's true daughter, adopted daughter of Shredder, and frenemy/crush for Leo
.
Oddly enough she also shows up in the same Tournament Fighters game as Armaggon but this time as the secret final boss after Rat King. Her character design is just ridiculous.
For some reason she's taller than everyone else. She has huge quilted shoulderpads that would make Cable blush. When her super meter fills up she goes legitimately super Saiyan.
She shares almost nothing with the original Karai concept in looks or feel, making me wonder if her design came first and they applied the Karai name to her later. Honestly, a lot of this game feels that way!
I tend to use Armaggon in the SNES version of Tournament Fighters. He does that "softly floating drop kick" type of move that Dhalsim is famous for but he does it with his teeth. And if you catch the opponent at the right angle he can then combo directly into his grapple which is of course, biting. The sound he makes while he does this ("RUGH! RUGH! RUGH!") never fails to crack me up. The move almost always works on the computer too.
Karai became a favorite for me thanks to her appearance in the 2012 show where she has a tangled backstory as
Splinter's true daughter, adopted daughter of Shredder, and frenemy/crush for Leo
.
Oddly enough she also shows up in the same Tournament Fighters game as Armaggon but this time as the secret final boss after Rat King. Her character design is just ridiculous.
For some reason she's taller than everyone else. She has huge quilted shoulderpads that would make Cable blush. When her super meter fills up she goes legitimately super Saiyan.
She shares almost nothing with the original Karai concept in looks or feel, making me wonder if her design came first and they applied the Karai name to her later. Honestly, a lot of this game feels that way!
I'm fairly sure that's her battle outfit from her first appearance in the Mirage TMNT comics. I believe she originated as being put in charge of the NYC Foot to clean up the damage from the Shredder's obsessive vendetta against the turtles.
I had Armaggon at #16 on my list. Big chompy, water projectile shooting, tiger shark uppercutting future shark man monster is cool and a lot of fun to play.
His ultimate-attack combines his uppercut with summoning a huge screen high wave of water which either does massive damage or does a lot of chip damage and sets your opponent up for a grab.
Still, the idea has been done before.
His ultimate-attack combines his uppercut with summoning a huge screen high wave of water which either does massive damage or does a lot of chip damage and sets your opponent up for a grab.
These do fit quite well with the broad existing canon / mythos.
Well, GI Joe did have the season where Cobra Commander was mutated into a snake but he didn't have snakes for hands.
Still, the idea has been done before.
Dhalsim's does have drill kicks (yoga spear) that are like that but Armaggon's "air swim" attack is more like Dhalsim's drill headbutt (yoga mummy).
She also has some of the most ridiculously overpowered normal attacks of any non-SNK fighting game character. (She would honestly fit in right well with any of the boss characters from their games.)
Or is she turning into a Japanese demon / oni?
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Yeah, it seems to be more or less based on the costume she's wearing on the cover of her first appearance issue.
I haven't read this arc but the images of her from the interiors seem to mostly show her in the typical ninja gi that you usually see her wearing in other appearances. Still the game's design remains bizarre in the context of all the game's other characters and the choices for its colors, moveset, animations, and so on.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
I'm doing the master list now and I'm a little confused. Ice (Ice Baby) has 48 points but ranks lower than Wyrm, who has 40, War (45) and Krang's Body (47). Does this bump up the Iceman?
Agreed Ninja Rap should be ranked #1 to avoid confusion.
Just a typo. Vanilla Ice got 39 points.
jpfriction
(He, Him)
The ice man gets robbed again. This is dancing with the stars 2016 all over again.
#42: Utroms
Points: 52 | Lists: 2
The Utroms are a race of brain-like creatures who came to Earth to study its wildlife, only to crash-land and strand themselves here. Disguising themselves as humans, they established a base in New York City and manufactured the strange substance that became known as retromutagen ooze…which would eventually result in the mutation of the homeless ninja master Hamato Yoshi as well as the creation of his adopted sons, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
The Utroms first appeared in the early issues of the Mirage comics, where they initially clashed with the turtles who believed the Utroms had kidnapped their master. Ultimately the ninja teens helped the marooned aliens find their way back to their homeworld. Outside of the comics, the Utroms were the inspiration for Krang, who shares elements of their backstory and also rides around in the tummy chamber of a human(-ish) body.
The Mirage versions of the aliens, however, were more or less neutral, with no Earth-conquering ambitions. Later adaptations would scale them in different directions or meld their backstory with that of Krang’s. But because Krang was ultimately more visible than the Utroms - thanks to the deluge of media attention on the animated series and Playmates toyline - many don’t even realize that Krang had more mild-natured cousins in the original stories.
I think the Utroms are a fantastic concept that fits right into the Turtles universe, and the TCRI/Utrom storylines from the Mirage comics are my favorite parts of that early run. If you’re curious about these brainy buddies, I highly recommend checking out the Mirage comics, which have been handily collected by IDW, or watch the early 2000s 4Kids cartoon series for an animated version of the Utroms that closely follows the Mirage concept.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
Yeah, I was surprised reading the original books despite cribbing a lot from Frank Miller (in a loving yet quirky way, back when loving Frank Miller was still possible), it is heavily Jack Kirby influenced (not even just the issue where Donatello teams up with Jack Kirby). The Utroms are very Kirby creations and I love that this early on, as goofy as the concept of TMNT is, it moves from a relatively grounded story with some ninjas then throws them into a cosmic adventure story with Triceratops Men very quickly, establishing a more "anything goes" style to the series.
#41: Mona Lisa
Points: 53 | Lists: 2
"Favorite Hobby: Lookin’ good and feelin’ fine"
And surely they did, for in season 4, episode 17 Raphael Meets His Match an environmentally conscious college student named Mona Lisa was transformed by an evil pirate's nuclear submarine into a sexy lizard whose main trait is that she is a girl. It seems like she was set up to be Raph's reoccurring girlfriend but for whatever reason she never reappeared. The dream of a 5th, girl turtle is one the franchise has long been chasing and Mona Lisa was their first attempt at bat. Interestingly, it was Eastman and Laird who are responsible for the lizard-mutation twist, albeit in a roundabout way.
It's probably a good thing she was a one off because, again, her two traits were being a girl and wearing a skin-tight leotard.
Mona Lisa would be redeemed in subsequent variations. In the IDW series she's got a street-smart nerd-girl vibe that has been largely de-sexualized, The 2012 show goes even further by making her totally alien. Here she's Y'Gythgba, a warrior lizard from outer space. Her visual design is almost completely lacking feminine signifiers, instead she gets to be a badass in a cool mechsuit. And she still gets to date Raph! It's just wild Nickelodeon went all in on a turtle/lizard romance.
But, what might have been...?
I like how the 80s design is just barely not a turtle. She's got the same face and everything but the artists removed the shell and added a long tail and wham it's a lizard lady. I have to admit I like the pink scarf a lot. The Playmates toy came out way late in the line so she didn't even get to have her own package art and her filecard shows a sad black and white photo of the figure. It isn't the best at blazing new trails for the TMNT property but still in a toyline that was always hurting for ladies that weren't versions of April O'Neil I'm glad she existed at all.
As usual though, the 2012 version is the best of all worlds. By the time she shows up Raph is the only turtle bro with no love interest up to that point and you're starting to think he's not going to have one and probably he's just fine with that. The Salamandrians (of which Mona is a member) are basically Klingons so it makes a great deal of sense that violent Raph would find his life's love among a people whose language is combat. And it's fun to watch him swoon while repeatedly having his ass kicked.
As usual though, the 2012 version is the best of all worlds. By the time she shows up Raph is the only turtle bro with no love interest up to that point and you're starting to think he's not going to have one and probably he's just fine with that. The Salamandrians (of which Mona is a member) are basically Klingons so it makes a great deal of sense that violent Raph would find his life's love among a people whose language is combat. And it's fun to watch him swoon while repeatedly having his ass kicked.
Widdle Tiny Octo had some feelings, I’ll say that much.
Mecha Space Lizard is definitely a big improvement
Mecha Space Lizard is definitely a big improvement
#40: Hostess Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Pies
Points: 55 | Lists: 2
Hostess fruit pies are mass-produced baked confections that have been available in the American market for decades along with many other similar processed sweets like Twinkies, Ho-hos, and Ding-dongs. The pies are flaky pastries filled with fruit-flavored custard and had their own mascot - Fruit Pie the Magician - but are probably better known for functioning as the secret weapon of many an established super hero in the bizarre full-page ads seen in mainstream comic books during the 1970s and 1980s:
Even more bizarre, the pies had a brief but beloved crossover with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles in the early 1990s. The pudding-filled pastries got a glaze of green frosting (gleefully described as “mutagenic goo” in the TV ad) and each pie also came with a free sticker.
Many raised in the era speak fondly of these snacks particularly nostalgia curators such as Dinosaur Dracula who probably has a real one sitting in his freezer. I sadly was never able to try them. Though 1991 was primetime kid era for this Dracula, I don’t even remember seeing them, and even if I did, my raft of various food-related allergies I had at the time would likely have prevented me from enjoying them.
So if you ever got to try a turtle pie, please speak up!
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
I don't know if I've had them but in my brain I can taste a pizza pocket filled with pudding.
I had them on occasion. I didn't know I was eating a sacred food at the time. I didn't like the pudding filling so much compared to the traditional fruit mush. At least those have some texture. With a turtle pie you bite through the hard crust and get a mouthful of goo.
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Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
I mean, it sounds like it's for me but keep in mind I didn't learn the joy of fruit filling until much later. For some reason I loved cold fruit but not hot fruit (especially hot apple) and especially fruit and pastry/bread. They didn't work as a duo for me and it took a long time to turn around on that. Still am not the biggest fan of raisin in bread. To me, they are more perfect for cereals.
