“We’re looking for a few good mutants!”
We are writing this at the last quarter of 2020 and realize by the time of this article more TMNT reveals are likely being revealed left and right from NECA, but we at SpeekyGeeky like to dream big, and figured while we wait for those reveals, it might be fun to envision which figures we may see for the rest of 2021 (and if some of these end up getting revealed before we post this, then, well, that’s just how the Anchovy Pizza Crust Crumbles).
For fun-sies and the sake of this article, we’ll assume 2021 will follow the same release pattern as 2020 and break this down using that as a template. This will mean 4 Target 2-pack waves with 6 characters in each wave, 4 deluxe figures, 2 loot crate exclusives, a SDCC exclusive (typically 4 figures) and a smattering of smaller scale characters which equal 38 all together.
Seeing as we are writing this in September of 2020 so we have no idea how close we’ll get to what is actually revealed, but it is still fun to get some guesses out there. We imagine you’ll have some characters that top your list too, so feel free to join the discussion in the comments below.
11/27/20 UPDATE: NECA Official Instagram reveals the first image of an additional Target exclusive 4 pack, this will change our total count from 34 to 38, picture directly below.
12/24/20 Update:
As was to be expected, in our delay to "go live" with this article series, NECA has now revealed even more amazing characters (a couple of which we had predicted correctly for our list for predictions of characters we hope to see in 2021, so yay/whoops?) In the newest reveals, NECA confirms:
-Chrome Dome (In Series Accurate scale!):
The SpeekyGeeky quicktake: So shiny! So massive! This is the version we've always wanted, and now we'll have it. Such a fun reveal. The opportunities for posing on our shelf or for imaginative play depicting old Dome as the threat he always felt like on the show is greatly inspiring.
-Ace Duck:
The SpeekyGeeky quicktake: Ace was actually one of our guesses so we are pretty tickled pink by this reveal (we'll provide our concept art below NECA's official post below). NECA doesn't seem to reveal who will be his two-pack cohort yet, so our guess is that this will be revealed fairly soon as well, unless they view him as a single character boxed deluxe figure (like Metalhead), which seems unlikely. Our best guess on who Ace will be paired with? There is a big alarm going off in my head saying this was likely meant to be paired with Usagi Yojimbo (which would be the ultimate dream combo), but perhaps they hadn't been given the "go ahead" by Stan Sakai yet. If that is not the case, our next best guess would be either that Ace would be paired with another short screen-time "good guy" character who is still a fan favorite like __ or they'll mix it up and pair him with another winged character like Wingnut...though with the latter, we are quite certain they are saving Wingnut to be paired with a series scale accurate Screwloose, more on that below in the article...so perhaps Brick "Bugman" Bradley (also referenced later in article) or Lord Dregg's Bat Minion better fits the bill.
-The Punk Frogs: Napoleon Bonafrog, Attila The Frog, Genghis The Frog, Rasputin The Mad Frog (4 pack) (12/31/20 Update: NOT a 4 pack, but two 2-packs):
The SpeekyGeeky quicktake: We assume will be a Target 4 pack, too early to be announced as an SDCC exclusive, so Target Exclusive is most likely scenario. We are pretty impressed with how well NECA captured their animated faces, demeanor, and shading. Even though it looks a bit like they used largely the same head-sculpt (with the exception of Napoleon it appears), they masterfully captured the core of each character and we are thrilled by how they look.
-Turtles In Disguise 4 pack (12/31/20 Update: Pigeon Pete now also confirmed to come with this set):
The SpeekyGeeky quicktake: It's the first time shown without disguise masks and their full costumes, again we assume this will be a Target Exclusive. It's exciting those who weren't able to get the turtles the first, second, or third time around now have a opportunity, it's also exciting for those who like to have every variant/show accurate variations we've never seen in toy form yet (which, spoilers, describes us to a fault). We like how this appears to be new head sculpts that really hammer in their series appearance, and it gives us goosebumps thinking about all the various other series disguises we've never seen in toy form that NECA will pepper into the line down the road. The reveal of Pigeon Pete is incredibly exciting. Technically we were teased with this character hidden within the SDCC display a couple years back, but the fact he is now officially confirmed fills us with great joy as this was a character we have wanted in our collection for quite some time.
-Both Bunny Bebop and Bunny Rocksteady
The SpeekyGeeky quicktake: This is our first time seeing these characters together and it brings us immense joy. We love the deep dive nature of these variants and are pumped to get our hands not just on these, but with the prospect of Train Ticket Taker's Bebop & Rocksteady and Train Conductor Shredder down the road too (likely also through loot crate).
12/31/20 NECA's Trever Zammit explains to The Fwoosh that the Punk Frog's won't be a four pack, but rather two spaced out 2 packs. He also notes that Vernon/Rat King two pack and Mondo Gecko/Muck Man will be coming out first quarter of 2021, along with Pigeon Pete coming with the Disguise Turtles 4 pack (so those will be counted within the number count of those confirmed for 2021)
1/15/21 NECA reveals that Kerma will be paired with Mondo Gecko in new image over at the Fwoosh.
The SpeekyGeeky quicktake: YASSSS! Kerma has always been one of our "How the heck did they skip over this guy in the original toyline" top picks, we are thrilled to finally welcome this Alien Turtle from Shell-Ri-La onto our toy shelves! We also hope to see the "in disguise" version down the road as well.
2/21/21 UPDATE: Whelp, it looks like we were right on the nose with at least half of this one (though we suspect the other half might be making an appearance as a deal-sweetener in the 2022 Loot Crate line). Loot Crate announced today that SCRAG would indeed be making it into the NECA line as an exclusive for those who commit to purchasing all four TMNT crates. It also appears, from the silhouettes, that the additional figures may be
Quick Immediate Thoughts: Just call me Stimpy because I am suddenly singing HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY. If you are anything like us, Scrag in particular has been seen as the holy grail of characters we never knew if we would get. Leave it to NECA to go beyond our wildest expectations. We don't yet know which version of Scrag we'll be getting, but here's hoping for something along the lines of the Vernon that came with Rat King where Scrag will have the ability to be posed either as a punk human or Mutated Bat.
In this multi-part series of articles, Mr. Geek-E reveals the Top 38 NECA Classic Cartoon Figures that he hopes to see in 2021, starting with 2021’s first wave of figures:
Our Hope For 2021 NECA TMNT Wave 1
WINGNUT & SCREWLOOSE
A common element that many people tend to forget, likely because of the original toy line and the Archie comic that released around the time of the episode, is that Wingnut and Screwloose were actually VILLAINS and not GOOD GUYS in the 1987 Cartoon. That’s right, posing as “Sergeant Rambo”, Wingnut and his (significantly less tiny) companion Screwloose were looking to invade Earth, and would have gotten away with it too if not for some quick thinking by Donny, Mikey, and their honorary “5th Turtle” Zach.
This "flightful" duo have always been two of my favorite characters, from their absurdist "superheroes beyond their prime" costumes (which again, in this cartoon context, it is still unclear why they went with that motif if they intended them as villains), to their general aesthetic and overtly goofy banter. The fact that we have never had a full sized and fully articulated Screwloose yet (unless you were like me and pretended “Needlenose” from the original toy line was just an extra mutated version of him) helps to put this duo at the tippy top of our essential figures list of who we want to get sooner than later.
RAY FILLET & MONA LISA
The cartoon version of Ray Fillet’s similarities with the toy and Archie comics version start and end with their name. While the original toy of Ray Fillet was a radical looking Manta Ray with equally fun color changing chest plate action, the cartoon version was an amalgamation of aquatic sea life that looked nothing like his other counterparts, but was still quite cool in a host of additional ways.
His unique appearance alone is worth getting pretty excited about. The dude was part lizard, part octopus, part manta ray, part eel, part sea urchin, part catfish, part blowfish (and these are only the ones we know about), basically what Mimic was to X-men, Ray Fillet was to the world of TMNT. Add in his ability to go toe to toe with all four turtles, and the fact that we've never had a figure off of his likeness and it is certainly enough reasons to firmly land him as one of our must have character’s.
Even though Mona was only featured in one episode, she managed to steal Raph's and the fans hearts. The closest thing to a romantic interest for Raph in the series and easily standing on her own in a scrap (both hand to hand and mentally), it was always fun to hold out hope that she would make another appearance someday. Fun fact, Mona Lisa was originally envisioned to be a female Turtle (which, honestly, going by the name, shouldn't come as a huge shocker to most astute fans).
To really see our nerdy hearts wriggle on the line, pair Mona in a 2-pack with Ray Fillet and sprinkle in that classic "Stinkor" treatment to give this set an aroma that will make any shelve wilt under that pungent sea air.
BRICK BRADLEY “BUGMAN” & DOCTOR DOME
Even heroes have those they look up to and Bugman is the closest thing in the world of TMNT to fitting that bill. Bugman is part Superman, part Spider-man, if Clark Kent or Peter Parker actually changed their physiology entirely when they jumped into their hero persona.
Come to think of it, a more apt comparison to Bugman's transformation might be Curt Connors or Man-Bat. While it certainly would be fun to have a 2 pack where it captures Bugman's transformation from human to...ahem...Bug, it would be hard to have good ol’ Brick Bradley without having him face off against his arch nemesis (and longtime TMNT staple, going ALL the way back to "Mirage" days) Dr. Dome.
I don’t think anyone would be too upset if they happened to throw in Bugman's human face in addition to his mutant one. I was kind of hoping they would have done something similar with the oversized Baxter Stockman so we could have both human Baxter (or Barney?) and fly, but here’s hoping his pre-mutation version is still coming down the road too.
Even though his screen time was severely limited in the Fred Wolf series (technically his sole appearance is a mere few freeze frames with Michaelangelo imitating the comic book voices at the beginning of the episode “Michaelangelo Meets Bugman”), there is just something so incredibly cool about his domed brain encompassing design that looks like something straight out of an old 1950’s science fiction serial. We can only imagine what magic NECA would devise with that translucent skull of his, a character seriously needed and missing in our collection.
You can also check out Mr. Geek-E's youtube video on pt. 1 here:
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