Ninja Turtles: The Next Mutation was created in 1997 by
Saban entertainment, distributors of Power Rangers. The series was a live action variation on the popular TMNT franchise after the animated series had finally folded the year before.
Uniting with her lost brothers upon being told of her origins by her dying sensei,
Venus DiMillo, a Turtle separated from the original four when they fell into the mutagen, warns the Turtles of a new threat, the
Dragon Lord and his minions have clawed their way to freedom and are determined to conquer the Earth. The Turtles and must rely on their strength and their new found family member to counter Dragon Lord's insidious schemes, as well as successfully battle other new and dangerous evils arising in New York. From the bounty hunter Bonesteel, to the Vampire Vami, the Turtles are ready to take the fight to the next level.
The series has since become notorious for two things, one for it's cross over with the Power Rangers series, and secondly for it's bad writing, bad production values, and emphasis on Saban-exclusive original characters, as well as the female Turtle Venus herself . Some fans labeled Venus as an affront and one that "took away the uniqueness" of the four of a kind original four male Turtles. Co-creator
Peter Laird has since disavowed her existence entirely and this show remains firmly inferior to the first and present animated endeavors.
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