Enter the Shredder


 * This article was transwikied from Wikipedia.

Enter the Shredder is episode number 2 of the 1987 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon series. It is the second episode of season 1 (1987). This episode of the show is part of the Heroes in a Half Shell arc. It was produced by Kara Vallow. It was written by David Wise and Patti Howeth and directed by Yoshikatsu Kasai. It originally aired on December 15, 1987, in syndication. It is available on DVD on the box set released on April 20, 2004.

Summary
Oroku Saki, who is commandeering the Technodrome in its escape under New York City and is furious that his "mighty Foot Soldiers were defeated by a bunch of Turtles," is summoned to the bowels of the Technodrome by Krang. Krang, a gelatinous creature that looks like a talking brain, is likewise upset that Oroku Saki, despite the vast technical knowledge that Krang has provided for him, has been unable to provide the evil alien with a body so that he may "lead his legion of followers out of Dimension X and into this world to crush it."

Krang then suggests that when Oroku Saki tried to destroy Hamato Yoshi with the Mutagen it in fact made him stronger because of his contact with the rats. Oroku Saki picks up on this line of thought and realizes that if he were to expose his own thugs to the Mutagen, along with wild animals, he could then defeat Yoshi and the Turtles.

Back at the Lair, Splinter is convinced that his old enemy, Oroku Saki, is the mastermind behind the Robotic Ninjas and offers his help in tracking down the Technodrome.

Within the Technodrome, Oroku Saki "convinces" two street gang members, Bebop and Rocksteady, to undergo an experiment that will enable them to get even with the Turtles. This experiment involves the Mutagen and the stolen rhino and warthog from the city zoo. Two robots were sent out to steal the animals.

Splinter is captured by Oroku Saki after trying to track down the Technodrome, and the Turtles soon attempt to rescue him. After a series of obstacles (including closing walls and psycho robots) the Turtles find Splinter strung up from the rafters within a cavernous room. As they prepare to cut him down, Oroku Saki enters, accompanied by four of his Foot robots. He tells the TMNT that Hamato Yoshi knows him as Oroku Saki, but they can call him "The Shredder". He congratulates the Turtles on their prowess and suggest that they join his Foot Clan. He also suggests that they "owe everything to him," because by using the Mutagen (in an effort to destroy Hamato Yoshi), he mutated the Turtles. When the Turtles refuse, Shredder summons the mutated Bebop (warthog) and Rocksteady (rhino), who are easily defeated along with the four Foot robots. The Turtles cut Splinter down and return to the city surface only to have Bebop and Rocksteady burst through the street, with laser rifles blasting. Once more the Turtles defeat them, this time by leading them into the city zoo and entrapping them in a cage. April will not let the Turtles out of her sight until she gets the whole story. Later, the robots free Bebop and Rocksteady. When the robots say Shredder wants to see them, they respond by stating they would rather stay in their cage.