Controversies Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

the title screen tmht version, altered due censorship.

upon tmnt s first arrival in united kingdom , ireland name changed teenage mutant hero turtles (or tmht, short), since local censorship policies deemed word ninja have excessively violent connotations children s program (in ireland, however, first season aired teenage mutant ninja turtles before change teenage mutant hero turtles ). consequently, related turtles (comic books, video games, toys, etc.) had renamed before being released in these nations, in german-speaking countries.

the lyrics changed, such changing splinter taught them ninja teens splinter taught them fighting teens . policies had other effects, such editing out use of michelangelo s nunchaku (which @ time banned james ferman, chairman of bbfc, appearing in films , toning down usage of turtles weapons. head problem off, showrunners elected remove michelangelo s nunchaku entirely during season three, replacing them grappling hook called turtle line served mikey s signature weapon rest of show s run.

in italy, spain , portugal, kept michelangelo s nunchaku tmht logo seen in intro, not edited reflect title in each of translations. in spain cartoon aired in regional tv channels , had different dubs in addition castillian: galician , catalan; in galician version, title tartarugas mutantes ( mutant turtles ) used. italian , european portuguese dubs had few edits.

however, when live-action movie came out in 1990, ninja of title kept in uk. in time, nunchaku scenes retained in previously-censored movies such of bruce lee. same went pal releases of video games, had michelangelo s weapon of choice visible , usable. time of 2003 tv series, these censorship policies had been abolished, , no changes have occurred in content of show. name teenage mutant ninja turtles remained unchanged 2003 tv series. result, in uk, 1987 tv series still called teenage mutant hero turtles , 2003 tv series called teenage mutant ninja turtles. in 2009, lionsgate home entertainment released 25th anniversary collectors edition on region 2 dvd in uk. 3-disc set contains episodes of seasons 1 , 2 , 4 episodes final season, 1-disc dvd first few episodes of season 1. release features original, unedited episodes under ninja turtles title, , marks first time show has been released , left uncensored in uk.