Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (initially known as Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles in the UK and some European countries, and retroactively known as TMNT 1987) is an American animated television series produced by Murakami-Wolf-Swenson and the French company IDDH. Based on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comic books created by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird, the series was the first animated adaption of the property. The pilot was shown during the week of December 14, 1987 in syndication as a five-part miniseries, and the show began its official run on October 1, 1988. The series ran until November 2, 1996, when it aired its final episode.

Set in New York City, the series follows the adventures of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and their allies as they battle the Shredder, Krang, and numerous other villains and criminals. The property was changed considerably from the darker-toned comic, to make it more suitable for children and the family.

The show helped launch the characters into mainstream popularity and became one of the most popular animated series in television history. Action figures, breakfast cereals, plush toys, and other merchandise featuring the characters appeared on the market during the late-1980s and early-1990s, and became top-sellers worldwide. A successful Archice Comics comic book based on the animated show instead of the original black-and-white comics was published throughout the late 1980s and early 1990s. By 1990, the series was being shown daily on more than 125 television stations, and the comic books sold 125,000 copies a month.

Characters from the show have been included in crossovers with later entries of the franchise, including the 2009 film Turtles Forever and cameos in the 2012 TV series.