Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, our childhood heroes and their adventures against evil villains of New York City, are finally back. Nickelodeon recently offered a sneak peek of the characters in their brand new animated series titled Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, which follows the Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello, and Michelangelo as they embark on a new journey and discover new powers of a mystical world they never knew existed beneath the streets of New York City. The network announced that the series will debut later this year, in September, and will run for at least 26 episodes.
Although based on the original franchise, Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles re-imagines the characters in a fresh way. Raphael is a snapping turtle and the oldest of brothers, imposing himself as a team leader wielding two tonfas in battle. Leonardo, often self-proclaimed coolest brother wields an odachi sword. Donatello, a softshell turtle is the brains behind the team and wields a high-tech bo staff, while Michelangelo is a box turtle and usually the prankster brother, wielding kusari-fundo. Accompanying them is a well-known friend and human ally, April O’Neil, which is also redesigned and is now an African-American girl, as well as Splinter who retains his role of being a father figure to the turtles.
The main villain of the series is Baron Draxum, an alchemist mutant warrior who seeks to mutate all humans and rule over the world. He is voiced by non-other than John Cena. You still can’t see him, but you can hear him, that’s for sure.
The rest of the series cast include Omar Miller (Ballers) as Raphael, Ben Schwartz (Parks and Recreation) as Leonardo, Josh Brener (Silicon Valley) as Donatello and Brandon Mychal Smith (You’re The Worst) as Michelangelo. April O’Neil will be voiced by Kat Graham (The Vampire Diaries) while Eric Bauza will once again voice Splinter, as he did in the original franchise.
