Board Thread:Questions and Answers/@comment-1362555-20140519102441/@comment-995426-20141105145614

Well, I think the time since Splinter's absence is a time when the characters have been forced to grow up a little more. Think about it&mdash;in the first and second seasons, Splinter has been a strong parental and authoritative presence, making binding decisions and handing out punishments when they did something wrong. But Leo hasn't just been severely physically injured (and perhaps mentally injured as well, if Mirage has been any guide for the future), but they're all now having to take care of themselves, without their father there to guide them. Growing up and maturing into adult decision making was a theme in Mirage, and this series kept driving home the point of what still-immature teenagers they are, however fun and hilarious it's been. I think season three's changes have actually been rather ingenious in giving the characters (April included) opportunities to grow and mature in ways they perhaps weren't ready for before. It's not like I expect a rating change from TV-Y7 to TV-PG or TV-14 or anything like that, but it wouldn't be the first Nickelodeon series that gradually matured along with its target audience (Avatar and Korra come to mind).