Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-1255374-20151111163045/@comment-26132616-20160316211059

My point is Julian is this: even if the Northampton arc failed to run through with references to the Kraang invading, compare it to the space arc. Put aside these brief appearances, they reversed time in the latter; literally the biggest TMNT arc you can do to deliver the family theme. If in the hands of a smart writer, they'd convey the Turtles developing as a family unit to be together, even in times of trouble. I hate that kill off; at least Return to New York in this series tried something. Considering the only worthwhile thing Splinter did in season 3 was in The Fourfold Trap in a deus ex resolution to Karai's situation, he did nothing. I love they went with father vs daughter to end it, but it's a difficult road to reach.

With season 2, Splinter gave relatable advice to Don and Raph in Mutagen Man Unleashed and Slash and Destroy; you can make an argument against it, but we can use such advice for real life. The latter episode is a perfect example of what Gli states on family from the earlier seasons and remains one of my favorite episodes. Then was Of Rats and Men for Rat King yet again, the Karai episode arc (Vengeance is Mine, Wrath of Tiger Claw, and The Manhattan Project), the mutant acceptance of Lonely Mutation of Baxter Stockman, and finally The Invasion. He did more that season and was more impactful to see him thrown away instead of a forced kill to make Annihilation: Earth a difficult finale to stomach emotionally.

@Gli: Basically this. Beyond the Known Universe is a bad opening; personally it's because of Dregg's motive, but the characters behaved stupidly. I at least hope future writers can use this as reference: you have an important character like Splinter, make him an important key to the story. I can't stand how Splinter has taken such a backseat to establish plotlines that go nearly nowhere and even if "it'll return, just gotta keep watching ;)" occurs (typical Auman response on Facebook), it's ridiculous. I'm not asking for much, just some dialogue to make the Turtles become better as a unit with Casey and April, not shoehorn in Splinter appearances to say "Hey guys, he's still here!"