The first Michael Bay-produced Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie may have made a lot of money, but it didn’t exactly leave a great lasting impression, so in order to entice fans back for the sequel, Bay and company went heavy on the fan service. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows had everything millennials who grew up watching the ’80s cartoon series could possibly want – Bebop, Rocksteady, Krang, Casey Jones, the Turtle Van and so much more! Unfortunately, all this shameless pandering failed to pay off, with TMNT: Out of the Shadows only bringing in $240 million worldwide on a $135 million budget (most blockbusters need to make two to three times their budget to break even, due to marketing and other costs).
So, where’d it all go wrong? Well, as the Honest Trailer folks at Screen Junkies aptly point out, TMNT: Out of the Shadows was full of fan service, but most of it sucked. Casey Jones is a bumbling dork, Krang adds nothing to the proceedings, and the origin of Bebop and Rocksteady makes no damn sense at all. Also, the Bay Turtles are still hideous freaks that are impossible to look at without laughing/screaming. On the bright side, Out of the Shadows ruining every recognizable Turtles character means there’s no way they can make a third movie, right? Right?
If you’d like to check out more Honest Trailers, you can do that right here.
