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invisiblehoodie · 16 days ago

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Yōkai in Name Only: Uninspired World Building and the Lack of Actual Yōkai in Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Japanese mythology and folklore are overflowing with very captivating supernatural creatures and phenomenon that are often collectively dubbed yōkai. From the classic and terrifying oni to the rather comical cryptid tsuchinoko, there’s a plethora of strange yet recognizable yōkai that have been conceived by the people of Japan over the centuries. So, as someone who has a deep appreciation for all things yōkai, I was ecstatic when I learned that Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles had introduced yōkai to the lore of the series. But unfortunately, as I continued to watch, I came to realize that RotTMNT has virtually no yōkai in it despite Yōkai being the namesake of the species of supernatural creatures that inhabit the Hidden City that lie underneath New York City.

Aside from Big Mama being a jorōgumo (a spider with the supernatural power to shapeshift into a beautiful woman), no other Yōkai in the series can without a doubt be identified as honest-to-goodness yōkai. There are effectively no explicit references to yōkai and their lore; practically zero designs that borrow directly from depictions of yōkai and basically nothing based on the wealth of legends that involve yōkai. Although, these “Yōkai” are technically just a species derived from once ordinary Earth creatures that were mutated by alien waste and then became “the basis of myths and legends throughout the ages” (again, according to a showrunner on Twitter), they still carry the moniker of “yōkai,” which is loaded with significance. Significance that could have added layers of depth that the universe of RotTMNT was sorely in need of.

As is, the “Yōkai” of Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are just an assortment of anthropomorphic animals, generic monsters (trolls, slime people, skeletons, gargoyles, etc.), and some composite monsters that are bereft of any connection to anything remotely inspired by Japanese myth and folklore. I say this because, well, where are the kappa, tengu, kitsune, and other iconic yōkai? Where are all these very visually distinct and unique yōkai? And, even if they are there, which it’s doubtful that they are, why would they be hidden in the background or in a blink-and-you-miss-it scene and why are they not being utilized as an active part of plotlines?

RotTMNT "Yōkai" Versus Actual Yōkai

Left: Fox Yōkai from Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Right: Kitsune from Hotel Transylvania 3 (2018). Is the Fox Yōkai really a kitsune or just a generic furry? Who knows for sure. A simple visual element that would easily settle this question would be the presence of multiple tails as according to myth kitsune gain extra tails as they age and gain supernatural power. Hotel Transylvania 3 gets this right with its background character who’s clearly a kitsune with her multiple tails.

Left: Sunita is just a generic slime monster. Right: Huginn and Muginn are just gargoyles, monsters of European origin.

Left: Kraken Tom. Right: The Minotaur. Again, both Krakens and Minotaurs are creatures from European legends.

Above: The Hirsuté Resort & Spa guards from the season 2 episode “Bad Hair Day” just appear to be a composited monster. I guess whoever designed them was being very “creative,” but there are all sorts of hairy yōkai that could have been used instead as they would have been more thematically appropriate then… Whatever these things are supposed to be. The design of these monster guys could, possibly be based on Japanese myth (¯_(ツ)_/¯), but for reasons I’ll go into later, it’s unlikely.

In the past, when I had tried to give the series and its showrunners the benefit of the doubt, I had speculated about the representation of actual yōkai in RotTMNT. While there weren’t many that could be positively identified, I still thought that there could be a chance that they were yōkai or at least based on them. I mean, maybe Mayhem is a komainu, Tummytello is an oseichu, Boss Bruce is some sort of Japanese dragon… And that’s when I realized that this game of “Guess the Yōkai” was a fruitless endeavor that illustrates just how little effort, and forethought went into creating and developing RotTMNT’s Yōkai and their world. These representations of Japanese supernatural creatures and phenomenon should have been overt in the series and not something that audience members have to theorize and speculate about.

It wouldn’t surprise me if the crew behind the series had simply slapped the moniker of “yōkai” onto their otherwise unremarkable monsters in their lackluster city to make it a bit spicier than your usual fare— a bit more “exotic,” if you will. They are yōkai in name only, which is a shame, given that if these creatures were actually included in the series, RotTMNT could have had a far more compelling, immersive, and cohesive setting with a ton of story potential. Instead, what we got in the world of RotTMNT’s Yōkai™®© is random nonsense like:

A reference to the 1974 film Zardoz in the form of the Council of Heads, the rulers of the Hidden City

Tiny, sparkling, pink, living unicorns that are used as currency by the denizens of the Hidden City

The crew behind Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles could have been inspired by a treasure trove of age-old Japanese tales, but instead chose to fill it with useless, nonsensical garbage that makes the world feel disjointed and lacking in any creativity that would develop the plot or characters.

That’s bad enough, however, a special mention needs to be made specifically on the lack of kappa representation. As mischievous water imps that bare a strong resemblance to turtles and are one of the most iconic yōkai, it’d be an absolute no-brainer to have kappa feature in the series. Yet in all the showrunners’ infinite wisdom, they don’t.

The fact that this scene from season 2, episode 12A, “E-Turtle Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,” includes probably the only representation of a kappa in the entire series is a travesty in and of itself. And, to add insult to injury, it’s just an inanimate, ordinary toy, so it’s not even a tsukumogami! As a kappa enthusiast, I scoured the series for any glimpses of kappa, and they just don’t appear to even be background characters. To not feature kappa in a TMNT iteration that supposedly has yōkai in it must be the biggest misfire I’ve ever seen in a work of fiction. Thank kami that there are fans out there who create fan work that right this wrong, but the fact that the series itself neglects even any mention of them is, to put it bluntly, fucking stupid and ass backwards.

Aside from RotTMNT being especially goofy for being a No-Kappa Zone, there is one thing that the series oddly seems to take cues from and it’s not Japanese folklore: it’s Undertale.

A race of monsters that consists of a hodgepodge of creatures are forced deep under the earth by humans. Among them, there is a sheep-like/goat-like monster authority figure who guarded the other monsters and who then sacrifices innocents in a cruel bid to gain the power needed to propel monsters out of exile and revolt against humans. This character is then later redeemed after being convinced that humans aren’t all that bad.

Which fictional species, setting, and character does this description apply to? A. Monsters, The Underground, and Asgore Dreemurr B. Yōkai, The Hidden City, and Baron Draxum C. All of the above

I won’t accuse the folks behind Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, namely the showrunners, of being plagiarists or of ripping off Undertale and its creator. These similarities may very well just be a coincidence, and besides, I’m not very familiar with Undertale. I do find it interesting that there is quite a bit of crossover fan work from fans of both RotTMNT and Undertale, as if those fans are picking up on the similarities between the two works. For reference, Undertale was released in 2015 and RotTMNT was released a few years later in 2018. All I’ll say is “that’s weird, that’s suspicious” and leave that debate to people who’re familiar with both RotTMNT and Undertale.

After reviewing interviews with the showrunners, Ant Ward and Andy Suriano, it became clear that world building, even for the Yōkai and their Hidden City, weren’t a priority for them and that drawing from Japanese culture and history weren’t in their roster of influences on the series. They talk about being influenced by things like Franco-Belgian comics from the 1960s and 1970s, science fiction illustrations from the 1970s, the 1960s Batman television series, and, specifically in the case of the Hidden City, the 1986 film Big Trouble in Little China. The closest the pair come to even mentioning anything having to do with Japanese anything is the following in a 2018 interview with Screen Rant, where Suriano says: “And we obviously pulled a lot of anime reference, you’ll see a lot of that, especially in our action sequences.”

In none of the interviews I saw did they mention being influenced by Japanese culture besides that aforementioned quote. I’m fairly convinced that neither of them did any substantial research into yōkai and their lack of commitment and interest in the subject definitely shows. Even in the slew of Twitter threads, there’s not much indication that the staff writers were that familiar with yōkai lore either. Overall, information on RotTMNT’s diet brand of yōkai is scant, not well documented, and, with the way Twitter is, in danger of being deleted or not visible to the public (as an aside, the creators and writers could have created a few reddit AMAs to answer questions that could then be much better archived; Twitter/X is an awful way to respond to fan questions, especially important world building-related questions).

Anyway, since the crew behind Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles put little to no thought into their portrayal of yōkai and monsters in general, I have some recommendations for anyone with even a passing interest in those topics:

Artists

Toriyama Sekien: Prolific 18th century artist and scholar whose work depicting yōkai has greatly influenced popular, contemporary portrayals of the supernatural in Japan.

Shigeru Mizuki (RIP): Renowned manga artist whose work has further popularized yōkai. GeGeGe no Kitarō being his best-known work (Editor’s Note: Medama-oyaji, “Eyeball Father,” is a way better father than RotTMNT Splinter).

Rumiko Takahashi: Famous manga artist whose work often dabbles in yōkai-related lore, best seen in works like Urusei Yatsura and Inuyasha. In Urusei Yatsura, yōkai are aliens and the lead character, Lum, is a cute girl version of an oni.

Individual works

Yokai Monsters (1960s): Film trilogy produced by Daiei Film. Famed film director Takashi Miike loosely adapted the second film as The Great Yokai War (2005).

Summer Days with Coo (2007): A young kappa (Coo) unexpectedly meets a human boy, and they spend a bittersweet summer together. Directed and written by Keiichi Hara and based on books by Masao Kogure. (Editor’s Note: as a fan of kappa, I adore this movie. It’s so sweet, sad, and Coo is the cutest little thing ever, 100/10).

Cryptozoo (2021): In a world where all mythical and folkloric beings and creatures exist and are known as cryptids, a woman makes it her mission to provide a safe haven for them in the form of a zoo. Chaos ensues. Directed and written by Dash Shaw. (Editor’s Note: the art and animation are beautiful, the soundtrack is amazing, and Shaw shows a real appreciation for the supernatural beings and creatures represented in the film, also two yōkai, a baku and tengu, are featured in the film).

Having looked through all the Twitter threads, the interviews, and whatever else from the crew of Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, I’m left feeling that when it came to developing the setting and monsters of their world, there was a real, tangible lack of passion for it all. That lack of true drive and curiosity to learn about yōkai as well as the culture and history that surrounds them is so palatable. It’s that lack of fervent commitment to storytelling that played a role in the adaptation flopping and flopping hard, because most people, even children, could tell that there was very little care taken in developing a well-thought-out setting. It’s all just bad storytelling. Plain and simple.

#tmnt #rottmnt

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