Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-31255465-20170923034221/@comment-33165688-20171109204135

Asfaloth12 wrote: AngelBridge,  Thanks :D

'''"A polished turd"... That to me is exactly how I'd describe the MA arc.'''

Indeed.

'''Ease up Fishface II. Not only is the arc underrated,'''


 * Insert hysterical laughter*  ....Are you serious?  I've seen a disturbing number of people fawning over it, just because it's "dark".  And those who are criticizing it have very good reason to do so.  It was extraordinarily lazy writing.

but just because it really did happen 

No, it contradicts canon too badly to fit into the canon timeline. Could work as some form of an alternate reality. Personally, I like the idea that somebody jokingly mentioned on another site:  that Raph wrote a self-insert Mad Max fanfic

nor does it mean it has to be taken so seriously.

Then, you and Ciro should have no problem with fans (and Nickelodeon) logically treating it as non-canon. A disturbing number of fans tend to have temper tantrums when we do so.

'''the family theme, the search for each other and for salvation despite the loss of seemingly everything, Leo mirroring the Shredder, etc. also contribute to MA’s underrated factor. '''

There wasn't much of a "search for each other". Leo did not remember who he was, let alone his family, so he wasn't looking for his brothers. Mikey wasn't searching for the others because he believed they were dead. Raph and Donnie did not search for Mikey until Mira came along because...they believed their brothers were dead.

Re:  the "family theme". If you're going to make a canon TMNT finale, you should have all of the turtles in it. Having one of the turtles show up only at the end doesn't count (and even Mikey was absent for the first part). Also, what about Karai and April? Even Casey? They became part of the Turtles' family. The girls did not even get a mention. A broken tessen and a motorcyle don't cut it. Pretty unfortunate implications there...ignoring the strong female characters.

the origins of the mutagen bomb still don’t

For an alternate reality, not so much. Still a little lazy, though. For a canon series finale, yeah, it would have mattered. In fact, it would have been essential. Which is why I'm glad it's not canon :)

Seriously though, if there’s anything really worth moaning and groaning about, it’s Season 5 in particular

To each their own. As an adult, I refuse to throw a temper tantrum when somebody dislikes something that I like ;)

Season 5 is probably my least favorite season (a lot of that is likely due to Splinter's absence), but  I actually  enjoyed  the other arcs,  especially Lone Rat and Cubs, as well as the Kavaxas arc. I just view them as cool side stories. The real canon story wrapped up with Requiem/Owari (though Kavaxas works nicely as an epilogue).It was appropriate that this was the last season; I really missed Splinter and the show isn't the same without him. Seriously, Mutant Apocalypse was easily the weakest arc, and frankly a waste of the animators' and voice actors' talent. Time that could have been used to resolve any plot lines left hanging.

'''In this way, I don’t have to start a revolt (which is what this whole thing really is, let’s be honest!) and then resort to playing pretend with the series. :p '''

Thinking for myself is a "revolt"? ......Wow. And noticing massive plot holes (more like a plot abyss) isn't "playing pretend". It simply means that I don't suffer from craniorectal syndrome, and so am able to notice when things don't add up. "Playing pretend" is some of the ludicrous things certain fans are coming up with to try to (unsuccessfully) force the arc to fit canon... and failing spectacularly.

Also, Ciro Nieli is not God. He may have wanted this to be the "true ending", for very dubious reasons. But, that ultimately  doesn't matter. He can attempt to end the series however he wants. BUT....he has absolutely no control over how we, the fans, interpret it. His work is not immune to criticism. If we notice massive continuity errors and logically treat it as non-canon, then he  can't do a darn thing about it :D

He also doesn't have any control over what Nickelodeon does with it (as Easol1 has mentioned). They are the owners, like it or not, and they are, amazingly, doing the right thing by making it non-canon. Nickelodeon seems to be taking the "alternate reality" stance, judging by their phraseology. Sort of an Elseworlds kind of thing, perhaps. Which I am totally fine with, because it permits more wiggle room in how things preceding the events had unfolded rather than demanding that you ignore huge chunks of continuity.

And the way the season overall is presented is pretty much in line with that one writer's take on it: a bunch of disconnected stories that don't seem overly connected to canon. I wonder if that was how the season was presented thematically to the non-lead writers.