Listener Mail: Turtle Talk

today's a very momentous occasion. A new TMNT game, very very exciting. Yeah, this is Shredder's Revenge, teenage muting Ninja Turtle. Shredder's Revenge just came out this morning on the day we're recording. Uh. This is from Tribute Games, and uh, let's see go to MU. I believe it is uh as opposed to being a Konami game, which is of course that's the famous realm of Keenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Arc Beat Him Ups? Now, Rob, have you played any

other games from these developers? Most specifically, have you played the Scott Pilgrim Beat Him Up to D side scroller? Oh? No, no, I I haven't played that one, but I remember when that came out. I remember being impressed with the like the retro look of that game. It's the same people, the same people, which which I think speaks very highly of both honestly, because I think both are wonderful games.

This game just came out today, but Rob and I both have a had a chance to play Shredder's Revenge, and um, it's actually really fun because, um, they've made some references to their own past game in this. Maybe maybe there's more than one, but the main one I've noticed is one of the attacks as April O'Neil is almost identical to one of the attacks as Ramota Flowers. So it's it's um, if you enjoyed that Scott Pilgrim video game from from a while ago, ten years ago,

I think at this point you're gonna love this one too. Yeah, so the to take everybody back, so teenage meeting Ninja Turtles. We're not gonna hit everything here, but I guess that the basic dates to keep in mind, the comics started in eight four, we get the cartoon in eighties seven, and in when we get that first Economi arcade beat him up. I fondly remember this one. And we've been chatting about this one off Mike a lot like this was.

This was seemed like it was everywhere. Maybe it was it pizza hut uh, And of course it was in arcades and this was one of the arcade cabinets that it was just a pleasure to hang out around, even if you weren't playing, and if you didn't have the quarters on you. I have fond memories of watching other people play it. Yeah, most definitely it's um it felt very collaborative in a way that um, I think ultimately kind of couch co op has kind of needed to

fill that place in today's modern world. But especially too, I felt like it was a social engagement when you were at an arcade, whether by yourself or perhaps I got a birthday party or something. You would just hop onto these arcades with strangers and you would all suddenly have like a common goal that you're all working towards. And uh, it's surprisingly um nostalgic to just just just play video games in a public space with strangers. But this one, and I gotta say, a very similar game

in in my childhood was the Simpsons side scroller as well. Uh, those beat him ups were We're just wonderful for just hop on putting a couple of quarters, run out, someone else takes your place. It's just just fun times. Yeah, now they were real quarter gobblers for sure, but yeah, X Men was another one. Uh. Later on Konami did an Alien Versus Predator as well. That was fun, and I don't think that one's ever been released on a

on a true console or port. I think there's some sort of a Konami Arcade cabinet you can buy now and get it that way, which makes me think, well, maybe there's hope because if they can re license it somehow to do that, then surely it could pop up on consoles again. And speaking of kind of pulling up old licenses, are we going to talk about the Cowabunga collection?

Oh yeah, now that's that's not out yet, but it's coming out soon, right, And this is gonna be all the Konami games, including the big arcade games, which again we have that one nine that was then ported to

an S in ninete. Then there was Teenage Meeting Jinja Turtles Turtles in Time from ninety one, um, and then you had some other Konami titles including teenage meeting Ninja Turtles Tournament Fighters, where there was like one version that came out on any S super in ne S. I guess it was one version that came out on Sega in ninety three, and I think there wasn't any S traditional ports as well, like it was it was everywhere. I remember that game being on like every console. Everyone

had an opinion on, everyone tried it out. And also that um, each version I think has had a slightly different roster of characters too. Yeah, it was. I'm not, you know, well informed on the process that goes into these games now much less in but it seems kind of weird in retrospectives, like they basically had the same idea, but instead of like creating the same game on two consoles, they created two different variations on the same theme. It was.

It's it's interesting, yeah, yeah, but but all fun. I I UM, I have very very fond memories of all of these old TMNT games, even the strange like just kind of one off, seeming like disposable whatever games, Like there was a game Boy one called Follow the Foot Clan. Oh, it's just ingrained in my brain and in my heart. They all the TMNT games really do have a fond place in my memory. Were you were you a turtle in that one? Or were you like a foot clan

member you were a turtle? It was the traditional uh four turtles, you pick one, you go through. And I think this is a very important part of everyone's childhood. Much like today every child knows which um, which Hogwarts house they would be in. Back when we were children in the eighties, everyone knew which to dole they would be, Uh, Rob, which turtle would you be? Had I faced the same question when I fired the new game up this morning, I went. I went right where I would go in

the old days. I went with Donna Tello, with the big staff. I don't know why, but I could just I just remember part of me, remember that that's my my turtle. That's me as well. Hundreds Uh, Donna Tello is my go to turtle. Um. Perhaps we see a bit of the intellectual of Donna Tello and we we we we strive for that. We go, Hey, he's the smart one. I I see myself. I want to be an intellectual too. I think I would be the inventor

amongst the turtles. And also with his bow staff he had a very good reach, which is always just just a positive as well a good reach, and part of me wonders if it's okay, it's not a bladed weapon, so did that have something to do with me being drawn to the staff. But then again, the nunchucks are also, uh a blunt instrument. So I don't know. But I wasn't silly enough to be a Michelangelo as a child, or now I I I could pull off being a Donna Tello. Maybe on my worst days, I could be

a Raphael, But I was never a Leonardo. I was never a Michael Angelo. It just it just wasn't in me. Now, I don't remember Turtles in Time all that much. Uh So, I don't know if you had the same options, but in that first beat him up game, it was just the Turtles to choose from you. That is correct in the Turtles and Time game as well. Yes, I think for most of the entire series, up until the fighting, you could only be the Turtles. But in this new game,

yeah you can. You can be additional characters, including April O'Neil, and you can be Splinter. The second time I played the new game, I I did like an online multiplayer deal where you can have like six different characters at once. I went with Splinter, and he's he's a lot of fun in this as well. I did the same. I started as Donna Tello, and then I wanted to see these other characters, so yeah, I switched to Splinter split.

Splinter has got a lot of a great I guess he's got a great range of martial arts tax which makes perfect sense for you know, he's their leader, you know. And uh. And then also I switched over to April O'Neil, who is also quite good in this new game. And I've heard I have not experienced this yet, but I've heard you can play as Casey Jones eventually. Yeah, that must be an unlock or something. I'm assuming one of

the best things I can say about this game too. See. Um, you know me, rob, I I love music more than anything. That's that's my my thing is. I spent all my time listening to and talking about and doing music. I I host a music podcast, Rusty Needles Record Club. Um the um music in this game is so good that it makes me do something that I never do. I

actually have the volume turned up on my game console. Yeah, literally one hundred percent of the time when I'm playing video games, I mute my game console and I listened to the music that I want to listen to. That's a hundred percent of the time. It's so good in this game that I actually have I don't know, got gone against my own like, uh instincts, and I'm actually listening to the game provided soundtrack and it's wonderful. That's that's a great point. Yeah. I I often do the

same thing with video games. I'll play SOFM over it and just have the game itself muted. But yeah, with this one, they've really done a great job creating the the feel and the sound of of a nineties arcade game.

And I I can't stress enough just how how how good a job they seem to have done with it, because I've seen other games come out that are kind of like a rehash, that are just kind of they're they're tapping into the nostalgia, but they're not really doing something with it like this game seems to have been. It seems to be true to that original vibe, but they've also updated a little bit. You know, there's sort

of uh, some of the gameplay elements. I guess make it feel more like a modern game without feeling like it's you know, gone beyond its roots. I guess I'll stressed real quick though, this is not an AD. We just really like this game. Yeah, yeah, this is not paid for or anything. Um, but they exist. I think they also got some of the old voice actors in

there too. Um oh yeah. Really. I don't think they've gotten all of them, because I know some have sadly passed, but I do believe the four Turtles at the very least are the original voice actors from the original eighties animated series, and so great. It just you get that instant rush of nostalgia and it's it's wonderful. All right. Well, as long as I've got you in here talking about about the Turtles, Seth, what are your thoughts on the movies? I love them. I mean I I grew up through

all three of them, obviously. Well, and it's funny we call them three. I think at this point there's got to be at least eight or nine, you know. Oh yeah, they've been various animated projects over the year, not to mention those live action Michael Bay, I forgot about those. Yeah, I haven't seen any of those I am. I am a purist when it comes to Ninja Turtles. I stopped after the nineties. The nineties were the end of Turtles for me and um, but the original run, the original

three I love to death. The first one felt very gritty and like, very mature, so I felt like kind of like an adult watching it, like you know. And then um, Secret of the Us was a lot of fun because you know, to my childhood sensibilities, it had vindillies, had things like that. And then three three is such a strange thing, like I don't know the accuracy behind this.

This is just like my own vision in my mind was that some screenwriter went out there and wrote a a like feudal Japan, like you know, melodrama, and you know, almost like Princess Mononoke asked of like you know, warring factions and all that kind of stuff. And then someone was like, oh, well, I can't sell this. Why don't you put some Ninja turtles in it? And so they just do a pass on this script, and in certain Ninja turtles in they're traveling through time and being becoming kappa,

you know, these demons that resemble turtles and uh. And then somehow Ninja Turtles three came out of that. But um no, I I loved the film franchise as a child, and I've actually gone back and rewatched the first one a couple of times as an adult, and I gotta say it holds up pretty well. I haven't revisited two

or three in quite a while, though, how about you. Okay, I haven't watched the three of them as so I don't think I ever saw the third one, but I did watch the first two, saw the first one in a movie theater as a kid, and uh and and loved it at the time. And I've been tempted to show it to my son, who's now ten, and I think, yeah, it sounds like it would be be decent to show to him. You got the I believe Jim Henson's creature shop did the turtle effects. One of the last things

Jim did while he was still alive was was those Turtles. Yeah. I think he also had some inputs on the Dinosaurs television sitcom, but I know that premiered after he had already passed. But but yeah, Ninja Turtles was one of Jim Henson's last projects, which is which is fascinating cool. Yeah, I remember really digging Shredder in it, because Shredder was

always a cool, cool character I I it was. It's weird looking back because at the time when Turtles was big, I thought I was too old for the the action figures. And I wasn't, but I but I wanted the action figures, so like I really wanted a shred or action figure. I really wanted a Crane action figure. But um, but for some reason, I was like, no, I can't. I'm

not supposed to have action figures anymore. There's definitely like a an imaginary line, you know, at all children's minds when they crossed beyond childish things, and it's way too early, like like that line is drawn by the child at a very early age to go no, I can no longer watch cartoons, I can no longer buy action figures.

And I think you get over that after you cross another threshold, like decades later, you're on eBay looking up those those action figures that you decided you were too old for, and you're like, should I pay a hundred and fifty dollars for this? I don't know, I feel like I should. Yeah, yeah, now that's Um, I think that's the stage of every adult's life, is trying to re buy their childhood on eBay. I I know I've

gotten through that stage, so it's it's out there all right. Well, hey, we'd love to hear from anyone out there who has thoughts about teenage meeting Ninja Turtle games, TV shows, and movies. I mean, it's a in comics, it's a it's a media empire. There's been so much of it. I don't really know my way around anything, aside from some of the video games, some of the movies, and of course, uh, I guess some of the television series episodes because I

don't think I ever watched it all in its entirety. There's, um, if you play this new game, audience, uh, there's a lot of fun references to all of the weird little minutia. I'm I'm very very because well versed in the animated series of Ninja Turtles. I own the whole series. I've sadly watch it pretty regularly, and um, there's a lot of fun little references in the new game Shredder's Revenge to the old series. Like here's one of many examples.

There's a lot of unlockables and hidden items hidden throughout the stages. You find one and it's Irma. Irma is April O'Neil's like best friend that works with her at the news station. You find her diary and you can hear Irma's voice going, remember that one time I grew really really big and it's like that was That was an episode of the series where Irma became like, you know, a giantess and she was like, you know, uh much like a Godzilla film rampaging through New York and the

Turtles had to help fix this. That's awesome. Yeah, there's there's there's clearly a lot going on visually in on each level. There's a lot of cool, funny stuff going on in the background. Uh so, yeah, it's a lot of a lot seemed to have gone into this game. Yeah, not an AD, but if it wasn't that I recommend it. Yeah. Yeah, we'll make it fixt your not an AD by not telling anybody where they can buy it. That's you're on

your own. This were an AD, we'd we'd give you more instruction, right, all right, But this is technically listener mail. So I do have a couple of listener mail here to go through and uh and and Seth is going to join me here for this I've got I've got one for stuff to blow your mind in one for weird house. So we'll start with stuff to blow your mind, all right. This one comes to us from Adam Adam Rights. Hello, Robert and Joe. My name is Adam and I'm from Ohio.

I've been listening for two years and I am catching up on some of your recent episodes. And I just found the Cauldron Part one and two. And oh boy, I have a great example of a very great cauldron slash jar. You must see elden Ring Possible two Game of the Year features one of my favorite characters in any video game named Iron Fist Alexander, who is a glorious giant sentient pot image included below for listeners. Alexander has stubby little legs and long arms that he utilizes

for his legendary spin attack. You first encounter Alexander partially stuck in the ground, and you help him out by knocking him out of the hole. He tells you that he is on a journey to be the greatest warrior in all the lands. Throughout the game, you find him in various wild environments that signify his quest for strength and glory. You will later find Alexander inside of a volcano because he is attempting to harden his shell in

order to be a stronger fighter. Spoilers. This epic quest line comes to an end very near the final boss of the game, where Alexander knows things are coming to an end and wishes to fight you, and the bitter sweet fight does not end well for him. Side note. There is also a well hidden, tranquil little town in one of the first areas of the game called Jarberg. All of the residents of Jarburg are also sentient pots from small to giant, possibly suggesting the small pots maybe children.

This is a peaceful town and it is very much frowned upon by the Elder Ring community to disrupt their way of life. Though this has no scientific, historical cultural relevance, I'd still wanted to share this wonderful gym of characters with you guys. Cheers, Adam, I'm looking at pictures of Iron Fist Alexander now, and he is beautiful. Yeah uh Now, I was familiar with this game, I haven't played it. I think Joe might have some apologies Joe for for

jumping ahead and looking at this one. We can always come back to this in another listener mail. But Seth, have have you played this game? I haven't. I I'm in the same boat as you. I've I've heard that it's a wonderful game. I've seen people enjoying it in the world. But man, this this is gorgeous. So many um images of Iron Fist Alexander on the Internet, and so many art projects people have made in in um in tribute to Iron Fist Alexander. My favorite one I'm

seeing here lots of Etsy stuff. One it looks almost like a little chia pet version of him, so growing out the top of the cauldron is a nice little fern and beautiful, beautiful stuff. I'd love to jump into this series sometime because everyone who talks about it speaks so glowingly of it and and clearly is connecting to on such a such deep level. I'd heard that it had like really weird bosses, and I heard that it was really hard, but I didn't know that it had

any kind of humor to it. So it's I'm actually more inspired learning that there's a character like this in a town like this in this game. I completely agree. I've played so much Legend of Zelda and um that that classically has a lot of humor and frivolity, and

you know, I guess wonder to it. And I always pictured the elden Ring series being kind of like a grim dark modern take on that same kind of fantasy adventure and seeing a creature like this, this feels like a Zelda character looking at these images, and you're right, it does. It changes my perspective on this series. It makes me think I need to play it. And I will say I this is I think ultimately culturally relevant to our discussions here on the show. So thanks for

writing in. All right, this next one is going to be a weird house cinema suggests, and um, I guess both of these have a lot in common. They're both suggesting bits of media that I haven't checked out. Uh. This is from a listener by the name of Rob. Rob writes in and says, I think both of you all are fans of Jorge Louis Bohees, so you might enjoy tackling the Alex Cox film Death and the Compass,

starring Peter Boyle and Christopher Eccleston. It's an expanded adaptation of Boroo short story of the same name, in which a detective investigates what appears to be a series of ritual murders by Hastim. I haven't seen the film in a few years, but I recall that it's very weird in a number of respects narrative structure, dialogue performances, score by the post punk group Prey for Rain, and superstylized cinematography incorporating lots of fish Is lenses, blurring effects, and

so forth. I think it's weird enough for WHC. It's certainly an obscure film, and one that is perhaps of interest only to Alex Cox completest and Bohey enjoyers, since it is, to my knowledge, the only feature link adaptation of a Bohe story. It seems to be available on Amazon Prime Video and on DVD. Wonderful. Yeah, thanks for writing in about this, Rob. I have not seen this film,

but I was looking it up a little bit. Um. I guess the first thing I have to mention is that I haven't even seen Alex cox Is Repo Man, which I realize is probably a kind of a cult film heresy to admit if you've seen repo man, I've seen a number of them. So which which one is the Alex Cox one? Is that the one where they

are stealing the organs of people? Because because there's there's a musical, which I believe is like what read both of musical, right, And then there's like the one I think there's one that has the Mighty Ducks guy in it. You know, Oh, yeah, that's the one that's the Alex Cochlinx one has Harry Dean Stanton and Emiliustz. That's the one I've seen. I apologize Emilio for referring to you as the Mighty Ducks guy. I'm sure you've enjoyed that.

But yes, I have seen that. And yeah, that that's that is definitely yeah cult film Cannon, But no, I I've I've the funny thing when you were describing this, I definitely haven't seen the film, but I think I might have read the book so or or the short story more specifically, So, yeah, that this sounds fascinating. Yeah,

the short story I'm more familiar with. Certainly, it's kind of a noir detective tale that involves like the ultimate over in textual intellectualized string of murderers and the ultimate over intellectualized investigation of said murders. Like most Bohe stories, it's it doesn't just scream for cinematic adaptation, So it would be interesting to see how they ended up tackling it and putting it together on screen, expanding it and

so forth. Um. There's been a number of i think generally short adaptations of Boree stories over the years, and I've never actually checked one out. I don't know. They tend to be very I guess high minded, artsy attempts, which is kind of interesting given that just on paper, a whole lot of Borhe stories have some sort of speculum element to them. They would seem to line up with a lot of you know, weird films and horror

and supernatural. You've got minotaurs and stabbings and dream people coming to life and haunted books that go on forever. I think y'all could have some fun with us, for sure. Yeah, so I'm gonna add it to the list. Uh, got a growing list of films to consider and uh, and then you know, week to week, it's also just kind of based on on what what we're interested in and what's drawing in our attention. It really is a never

ending list. No matter how many films, uh, you guys go through on Weird House Cinema, the list just always going to grow. I mean, I mean, there are so many films perpetually in production, things from the past that get resurfaced, and it's just wonderful. As long as I'm here on the show, I'm gonna make a suggestion for this list. You ready, Robin, Oh, yeah, let's have it. One of my favorites in the realm of Weird House Cinema.

You know, I have an animation background, so there's a very u soft place in my heart for this film. It's from It's Yon spank Mars Alice. Have you ever heard of this? Um, I haven't seen it. I think I've seen the case for it at Video Drome, and I think I've seen some shorts from the filmmaker in question.

Yeah so so. Jan spank Mar is a wonderful surrealist U animator, usually stop motion style, and this was his first film in after he'd been building up to it for like decades of making these shorts and um, yeah, it's it's just the Alice in Wonderland, you know, adaptation that we've seen many many times before, but it all takes place with a live action girl playing Alice, and whenever something changes her size, she'll shrink down into like literally a doll, like a China doll, and then she'll

like grow up and it'll just be like these extrange limbs and everything she encounters within like a dilapidated house. That's all Wonderland is, and so therefore all the creatures she interacts with are like taxidermied animals, or like a skull, or like um, I don't know, a jar filled with thumb tacks, like just whatever strange things, or would be sitting on a shelf in an old, dilapidated house. Those

are the elements that come to life there. There's one of my favorite parts when the caterpillar uh comes to life. It is an old sock with a pair of dentures in its mouth, sitting on a door knob. Absolutely beautiful. So imagine that stop motion animated. It's just incredible. Anyway, I could give you guys a million recommendations, but um, I always think to myself, that's the one I want Robin Joe to watch, all Right, we'll put it on the list. Yeah, I've never seen it. I think I

saw his two thousand film Little Oh Tech. And and of course I've seen some films by the Brothers Quay who were very much inspired by his work. Yes, yes, Brothers Quay are definitely in the same realm for sure. Yeah. Yeah, I think I went through a phase at one point where I was like, this is what I'm gonna be into. I'm gonna be into weird Europeans stop motion films. And I might have been off more than I could chew at the time, so it end up not lasting super long.

But I saw a few things in there that would be be need to dive back into that world at some point. All right, well we're gonna go ahead and close out this episode here. Um so just to to remind everybody stuff to blow your mind. Find it wherever you get your podcasts. Uh. Listener Mail publishes on Monday their core episodes on two season, Thursday's short Form Artifact or Monster Fact on Wednesdays, and then on Friday's most serious matters are set Aside and It's weird. How cinema time?

Uh seff tell us one more time where folks can find Rusty Needles Record Club. Sure. If you like hearing me talk um, you can hear it every week every Friday. I host a show called Rusty Needles Record Club. You can find it in all the standard podcast places wherever you listen to podcasts. Basically, myself and a guest we listen to an album and then talk about it. It's like a book club, but for music instead. That's what

we like to say. And uh, it's a good time if you like music, if you like chit chat about music, and you don't really have any like, you know, music friends around you, you want you want that surrogate to to have some uh music nonsense chit chat at about That's That's what I'm here for, all right. Yeah, Joe has been on there at some point. I'll come on there, just waiting for the stars to align on that. Yes, all right, And hey, if you want to reach out to any of us, just drop us a line at

contact at stuff to Blow your Mind dot com. Stuff to Blow Your Mind is a production of I Heart Radio. For more podcasts my heart Radio, visit the I heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.