–>> FOOLISH – abandoned Turtle art from the Tokka-archives. Unclear why these were made, they may have been web-comic fodder from back in the day when i was doing an infrequent gag, usually one-panel comic format for the old, fairly defunct UNDERMANHATTAN site.
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Sorry for the delay in content the past week or 2, i was recently dealing with hospital issues and real life drama and it did set me a bit behind on the news, i shall amend that with this and upcoming posts. We’ll start with Movie related bits and the like.
TOYARK :: It ain’t no joke .. like it or not these 1/6 scale high-end movie figs are due soon.
Widely known for relying on his engineering genius before fighting, Donatello is second in command to **Leonardo and the brains of the TMNT brothers.
His natural aptitude for ninjutsu, science and technology, Donatello can match the braun with brains and often invents equipment to assist the Turtles in there travels.
With his iconic purple bandana and trusty Bo staff at the ready, Donatello is ready to battle alongside his brothers for peace and Justice.
Nickelodeon ::
NICKELODEON PRE-RELEASES A SPECIAL HOUR-LONG PREMIERE OF TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES EXCLUSIVELY ON
Now through March 15, Turtle fans can watch the special one-hour premiere Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, “Battle for New York” exclusively on Nick.com and the Nick App ahead of its on-air debut Sunday, March 15, at 11:00 a.m. (ET/PT) on Nickelodeon. During the episode, Leo doesn’t trust Slash when he emerges leading a team called the “Mighty Mutanimals.” While the Mighty Mutanimals lay siege to the Techno Cosmic Research Institute, the Turtles must brave the bizarre world of Dimension X to save the enslaved people of New York.
Throughout March, Turtle enthusiasts can participate in “TMNT Mutation Madness,” an interactive bracket-style tournament that will give fans everywhere a chance to cast their votes in four rounds of mutant match-ups counting down to the Ultimate Mutant Champion. While Nicktoons airs mutant-driven Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles episodes, the tournament starts online with sixteen mega-mutants including: Fishface, Spider Bytez, Tiger Claw, Slash, Bebop and Rocksteady, among others competing for the title of Ultimate Mutant Champion. As part of Nicktoons’ “Mutation Madness” each round, will reveal the brackets narrowing from 16 to 8 to 4 to 2, with the Ultimate Mutant Champion debuting March 23. Along with casting a vote every round, fans can enter special sweepstakes for prizes and unlock exclusive content to learn more about each mutant through bios, gifs, images and videos. ..
For more TMNT action, viewers can logon to Nick.com for full episodes, quizzes and games, including “Shadow Heroes” and the recently release, “Mikey’s Day Off.” In the new game, crime has taken the night off, but that doesn’t stop Mikey from relieving his boredom by sneaking around the turtle lair to throw paper balls at his bros.
–>> As i set this letter up, keep in mind that i used to go by my birth-name “David”. With the exception of family and certain close individuals i usually prefer not to go by this name anymore as i have been working on legally changing my name to “Tokka”. But in 1993 i was still under my parents care, so it was different time and case.
Actually this letter from Dorothy Sloan, the former Publishing Assistant at Mirage Publishing during this time was correspondence sent on my behalf from a letter mailed back East by my Mother. I don’t recall the contents of that original letter nor do i recall my Ma mentioning that she had sent it initially. It may have been a surprise planned on her part. There were times my family played an active role in trying to help me obtain my goals. Maybe this was part of that. Tho’ based on this note, my ma also indicated that we would be going on a trip to Northampton, Massachusetts and the Coast inquiring about vising Mirage Studios itself. That trip would never manifest, well not right away. My Ma may have also stated about my wishes to pursue a work in industry.
In the 1990s, early on in my career at Cartoon School – many of my own medical issues would collide with my education in the field presenting a constant need for inspiration and direction, advice and counsel as the road ahead for me would be very “Rocky” to say the least. Cliche or not, or whether Dorthy picked up on this need for a little guidance from my Mom’s words — the suggestions in the note are as relevant today as they were over two decades ago. Perhaps an aspiring young comics professional, a student just out of school, or the struggling comics pro or artist in industry may find a little bit of solace from this letter. If anyone ANYWHERE can gain some positive influence and encouragement from it..by ALL MEANS, please do !! Tokka is right there with you. While my career is slightly taking flight, it’s no where it could be.
Thus, maybe that is the nature of any type of career in the arts field, design, comics, animation ect. But then again in 1993 i had no idea that my past experiences in industry good or bad would manifest the remarkable ways they would have. I have been actively trying to recover Dorothy’s letter for several years now and am happy to finally be able to share it with everyone digitally. On a final note, the ill-fated trip of 1993 to the East Coast to visit Mirage Studios WOULD happen near 20 years later for Tokka in 2012 and we would go to the sites of Mirage Studios and a few other places and landmarks in Northampton. The places that would make up pivotal grounds for the creation of the TMNT, their friends, enemies and stories. Especially in those important early years of the Teens’ comic book development.
Over at Figure Hobby Club, a member there got a tour of the ThreeZero studio. They were allowed to snap a bunch of photos, and they showcase a few new 1/6 scale figures.
Bebop and Rocksteady Join Shredder on his Quest to Defeat the Turtles During
a Brand-New Episode of Nickelodeon’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Premiering March 8 at 11:00a.m. (ET/PT)
Franchise-favorite villains, Bebop (J.B. Smoove) and Rocksteady (Fred Tatasciore) hit the small screen when brand-new episodes of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles return Sunday, March 8, at 11:00 a.m. (ET/PT) on Nickelodeon. In the action-packed episode, “The Pig and the Rhino,” Donnie finishes a new batch of retro-mutagen, in hopes of saving Karai, while the Turtles find themselves hunted by Shredder’s new vengeful henchmen, Bebop and Rocksteady. Beginning March 8, Turtle fans can watch the special hour-long premiere “Battle for New York” pre-released on Nick.com and the Nick App through March 15. The episode will premiere on Nickelodeon Sunday, March 15, at 11:00 a.m. (ET/PT).
Also beginning March 8, Turtle enthusiasts can participate in “TMNT Mutation Madness,” an interactive bracket-style tournament that will give fans everywhere a chance to cast their votes in four rounds of mutant match-ups counting down to the Ultimate Mutant Champion. While Nicktoons airs mutant-driven Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles episodes, the tournament starts online with sixteen mega-mutants including: Fishface, Spider Bytez, Tiger Claw, Slash, Bebop and Rocksteady, among others competing for the title of Ultimate Mutant Champion. As part of Nicktoons’ “Mutation Madness” each round, will reveal the brackets narrowing from 16 to 8 to 4 to 2, with the Ultimate Mutant Champion debuting March 23. Along with casting a vote every round, fans can enter special sweepstakes for prizes and unlock exclusive content to learn more about each mutant through bios, gifs, images and videos.
For more TMNT action, viewers can logon to Nick.com for full episodes, quizzes and games, including “Shadow Heroes” and the recently release, “Mikey’s Day Off.” In the new game, crime has taken the night off, but that doesn’t stop Mikey from relieving his boredom by sneaking around the turtle lair to throw paper balls at his bros.
–>> I believe this was added to one of the extra “TURTLE FORCE” fan club kits i ordered in the mid-1990s. I’ve always had a feeling however that it may have been part of another cable premium or promotion from SHOWTIME. I think perhaps as a advertising tool for showing one or both of the original TMNT films on either Showtime or TMC or both. Maybe these were standard or extra door hangers acquired by the company that ran the fan club to send to new members who purchased a kit.
I was alerted that the “Environmental Playsets” were part of a series of TOMB RAIDER, LAURA CROFT toys by Playmates – – so apparently they did see some kind of release.
–>> SDCC ’03 would be my first of the California Cons and Playmates had a nice medium-sized presence to help celebrate of the then, still very new 4kids TMNT T.V. show. Michael Dooney himself was on hand much of the time at Playmates’ booth to sign autographs and sketch. Toy giveaways were were done sporadically and this was my first “official” exposure to the TMNT at a convention post previous independent TURTLE MEDIA convention appearances. Most of my personal photos from this Con & particular were accidentally deleted. However this two page spread highlights the most interesting releases of the second wave of the TMNT-2k3 toy line that were on display. Of note are two deluxe boxed sets that were never sent into production. They were incredibly impressive in person. But they were not to see the manufactured time of day and have gone into the PLAYMATES archives for good. The figures however are merely “battle damaged” repaints.
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TOYARK :: It ain’t no joke .. like it or not these 1/6 scale high-end movie figs are due soon.
Comicbook.com :: in case you hadn’t heard; CASEY JONES Confirmed;Stephen Amell Cast As Casey Jones In Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2
3Dprint.com::
