Wednesday, September 17, 2014

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - A Chinatown Ghost Story


After three foolish Purple Dragons release the spirit of an ancient Chinese sorcerer from a dagger they find themselves with an immediate power upgrade with control of lighting, thunder, and wind. Donatello (Rob Paulsen) and Casey Jones (Josh Peck) are forced to put the rivalry over April's (Mae Whitman) affections aside when Ho Chan (James Hong) chooses to dump the three idiots in favor of his new mindless soldiers: Leonardo (Jason Biggs), Michelangelo (Greg Cipes), and Raphael (Sean Astin).

With April and Irma (Kate Micucci) captured and his brothers under the control of an incorporal entity (whose ability to touch solid objects is pretty inconsistent throughout the episode) Donatello works with Casey to free his brothers (using the magical powers of pizza) and trap the ghost before he drains the lifeforce out of his captives to return himself to the land of the living.

Karai's (Kelly Hu) transformation and absence is mentioned in passing, but that plotline is left dangling in favor of fun adventure that makes good use of James Hong as the crazed Chinese sorcerer (an obvious homage to his role in Big Trouble in Little China). Although Donnie and Casey aren't exactly best buds by the end of the episode, their teamwork suggests that their interactions may finally start evolving beyond more than just fighting for April's attention. Despite being captured, April turns out to be the true hero showing off stealth early in the episode and perfect timing during the climax as her actions ultimately defeat Ho Chan and return him to the prison of his dagger.

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