BRIEF STORYLINE: Dregg's second-in-command, Hi-Tech leads a bunch of Techno Gangster's to a break-in at a Government lab. They search for a device known as a Proton Accelerator, but the turtles and Carter are lying in wait to demolish their plans. A fight scene ensues, but the gang escape with their objective completed, meaning they get their device!
The turtles are angry with Carter because yet again, he is selfish and doesn't behave like he is part of a team like they should be. This puts Carter in a sulk, and he leaves them in his motorcycle.
Back at the turtles lair, Leonardo tries his luck to locate the Dreggnaught with their tracking equipment, but its not a success. Donatello lingers on about the unstable mutagen and is worried about the results from his tests on it.
April contacts the turtles to inform our fearsome foursome that Dregg has landed on Earth and a press conference is waiting to appear on TV.
The turtles don't hesitate and meet April at the Park, where they witness Dregg announce a peaceful and friendly speech to the world, and offers his Molecular Converter, a device that will purify polluted substances like water. The turtles are taken aback, when Dregg is treated like a hero by the people of Earth!
Dregg then asks in favour of ridding pollution, to be given a headquarters to develop his advanced technology and make the world an even better place. New York are happy tp give him this, unveiling his very own skyscraper, the "Dregg Tower".
The turtles can't believe their eyes! They have got to someway prove Dregg is evil and a liar. Unfortunately they can't get inside his new building and are short of any incriminating evidence.
Meanwhile, Carter wants to prove to the turtles he has something to contribute to their force and makes a bogus deal with Dregg to capture the turtles for him.
Dregg accepts this deal hastily. The one problem is, Carter doesn't bother to mention this to the turtles and so, feel betrayed when they are caught by Hi-Tech and his Techno Gangster's and taken to the Dreggnaught.
The turtles are really in a rut here, as they are imprisioned in Dregg's Power Chamber. Can they manage to beat the odds and escape? Can Carter come up with anything to come to the rescue and earn some much-needed respect from the TMNT?
TMNT REVIEW HQ COMMENTS: Not the best of episodes. By now, this new style of TMNT is trying to move away from it's well-acknowledged image before 1994, with Krang and Shredder now absent (for a short while) and Burne, Irma & Vernon gone for good. This episode shows that maybe change isn't best. Why throw out compulsively memorable characters, and bring in ones who are very dry and have un-unique characters about them? Anyway, we can leave more of this talk for the "season overview". At the start, we hear this nice brand new space-themed tune come on as the Techno gang arrive on Earth again to greet the turtles with lasers. The action is stale because of bad viewpoints used. However, the action improves alot after this.
Carter's mutation change brings out the best of the action in the little-taster-fight-at-the-start scenario. At the end of this we have the turtles critisizing Carter that maybe he is not a team player like themselves. This was just bound to happen considering, they don't know each other rather well, and the quick permission from Splinter, to become like them and train Ninjitsu.
Next up is the first appearance of Hi-Tech and Dregg who are aboard the Dreggnought alien spacecraft. Dregg telling Hi-Tech of his plan to win over the people of Earth, is mostly forgettable. He tells him the plan and thats it. Not like the way it was in the Technodrome, was it? There's no abusive insults or remarks to each other, no funny or insightful views on each other, and definetely no one who is as vertically frustrated and challenged like Krang to laugh at(or fear of!). However Dregg surely shows his hideousness of his character, even when he is trying to smile as he is announcing he means the Earthlings no harm. Some scrappy editing here though.
Once again we have some things included in an episode that are similar to a famous blockbuster movie. Oh no, not again, not these unoriginal lazy ideas that are borrowed and slightly tweaked to the TMNT audience, you may think. But hang on there, eerie as it sounds, there's 2 images in this episode that are similar to a famous movie in the FUTURE, in the future after 1995 that is. The cartoon's had its "Aliens", "Robocop", "Terminator" and "Gremlins" moments, and now it's the turn of "Men In Black", which came out in cinema's in 1997. Firstly, Hi-Tech's gang are alien bugs which are the enemies in the "Men In Black" movie. Then there's Dregg's new skyscraper "Dregg Tower", with his spaceship on top, which is very, very, very similar to the building involved in the finale of "Men In Black".
Strong, satisfying action we see next as the human Carter battle the Techno gang, with some nice martial arts moves. The storyline is intriquing, when one minute Carter seems to have turned to Dregg's side, then he explains it all as a trap to lure Dregg to the turtles. He does this twice making the plot a little confusing but also make you have you're doubts though. He was always the good guy really.
When Carter batters the Techno gang, Dregg says "you have passed you're test with flying colours". Hey, wait a minute, didn't Shredder say exactly that when the turtles finished off the Foot soldiers in the 87 season(see my "Enter the Shredder" review)? Are they trying to make Dregg the "new" shredder? It's best not to re-invent the past and just be you're own man...or alien.
Nice sharp editing of Splinter warning the turtles of another mutation to their bodies. The episode improves in the second half.with 2 nice twists in storyline(Carter on Dregg's side or the turtles'?). The ending battle is solid with Hi-Tech in cool looking body armour, but the surprise of Dregg and Hi-Tech coming from behind in the weapons room, wasn't very dramatic nor surprising. One of the worst moments in this episode is the turtles being so unalarmed and slow trying to rescue April who might fall to her death. Just a silly moment there. This episode is strong on the action, but lacklustre in humor.
"DREGG OF THE EARTH" GETS A: 3/5 RATING.
