Go Ninja, Go! ‘TMNT II: The Secret of the Ooze’ Turns 30

March 22, 2021

Less than one year after Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles blew the minds of ’80s kids everywhere, director Michael Pressman and writer Todd W. Langen decided to continue the story from the first film, but this time with a bigger budget, more martial arts, and plethora of villains for the shell-heads to fight. On March 22, 1991, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze was released.

Although the first film was a huge success, the creators faced parental backlash due to some of the darker themes. The studio promised a lighter take with the sequel, having it written as much more of a fun science fiction film, than the grittier original that pulled a lot of its story from the comics. In The Secret of the Ooze, the turtles are focusing on finding a new place to live following the aftermath of the first film, and to their dismay, Shredder (François Chau) is still alive and plans to use a canister of the mutagen that originally created the Turtles to create an entire army of mutants.

Pretty much everything about the sequel looked better than the original. Jim Henson’s Creature Shop once again did the animatronics, using a bigger budget to create more lifelike and mobile costumes for the actors to wear. Not only did we have more advanced and better looking/moving Turtles (Google “open mouth Donatello” for some nightmare fuel), but fans were also introduced to Tokka and Rahzar (voiced by Frank Welker), two new baddies created by Shredder, when he used the ooze on a wolf and snapping turtle. This was the first time that any mutated animal enemies were used in the live-action films, so fans of the comics and cartoons were pumped to what they hoped would be the road to Bebop and Rocksteady. We also got to see the Turtles’ new hideout, which I think was the clubhouse in every kid’s dreams.

Not everything went smoothly for the sequel, though. Fans were disappointed to see that the actors that played April and Shredder in part one (Judith Hoag and James Saito, respectively) were replaced, some of the Turtles’ voice actors were changed, and Elias Koteas didn’t return as Casey Jones. Fans were also introduced to Super Shredder, who was played by WWE superstar Kevin Nash. However, the demise of the ultimate baddie came as quickly as he arrived, in one of the most disappointing climactic showdowns I can remember in a beloved film.

The studio knew that the candle was burning quick, and rammed the film through production, which is why the release came within a year of the first film. The Secret of the Ooze felt rushed at times, but still holds a place in my heart, and is the perfect watch when I’m feeling nostalgic. Unfortunately, it was all downhill from there when it came to live-action TMNT movies.

Either way, some great things came out of The Secret of the Ooze. At the time, some of most articulated Ninja Turtles action figures were released for the film (although they did have those weird spots all over them). Recently, NECA released amazing figures of Tokka, Rahzar, and Super Shredder. Plus, you can’t forget about maybe the most memorable thing about the film, Vanilla Ice’s Ninja Rap. Go Ninja, Go Ninja, Go!