TMNT 2: The Secret of the Ooze

Shortly after last time . . . New York is safe and enjoying it pizza, for the turtles defeated Shredder and his Foot Clan. Or did they? Both are back, and worse, they have a vial of the same ooze that created the turtles. What dastardly creatures will they create with it . . . and have the turtles met their match? And what will they learn of their own origins?

I was disappointed in this 1991 sequel. The tone is sillier and clearly geared towards kids (not inherently bad, but a departure from the original, which the entire family could enjoy). The messages were sparse and undeveloped, relegated to a line here or there that hinted at something greater but never delivered. The best quote brimmed with potential but was left hanging:

Do not confuse the specter of your origin with your present worth.

The movie was rife with nineties pop culture (including Vanilla Ice), which I got but would be lost on today's audience. Ultimately, this was an action spectacle for kids that did more to revisit the past movie than develop the story or characters.

Rating: D