BRIEF STORYLINE: On a gloomy and damp night, the turtles wrap up in their trenchcoats and fedoras(a type of hat), as they fiigure out clues into a mob gang's crimewave all over the city. Donatello does a tough-guy impression and narrates this pulp story about banks getting "taken down by the mob". He is telling you, the viewer, all about this. This mob are using highly slick technology that is very remiscent of Shredder/Krang's equipment. Donatello mulls over which city hoodlum would have the guts to ally with Shredder. His suggestion is Tony "The Butcher" Vivaldi.
April tells her friends, the turtles, that the police exposed it was Vivaldi doing the bank robberies. She also knows that he likes to hang out at a club named "The Meat Rack". When the turtles set off for the club, and April returns to Channel Six news, a little statue of a Maltese Hamster catches her eye from an antique shop window. April has an urge to buy it.
They enter the shop, and April buys the statue for a cheap ten dollars and arranges for it to be delivered to her humble abode. Michaelangelo is ecstatic to see an antique pizza-maker, but he cannot afford it.
Just as April and the turtles leave, an extended black limousine pulls up at the antique shop. Tony Vivaldi steps out and we see him for the first time. He goes into the shop, holding a gun at the old man behind the counter and demands for the same statue that April bought, the Maltese Hamster. The old man informs him that it has been just sold, so Tony and his gang try to wreck the place.
Not far away, April and the turtles agree to meet up. Michaelangelo, with great luck, finds a quarter on the street. He hasn't forgotten about that antique pizza-maker and wants to buy it. He dashes back to the shop, only to find carnage, and Tony aiming his gun at him. One of Tony's goons recognises its a "ninja turtle", who they were told to hunt down. Using an electronic gadget, the gangster easily captures Michaelangelo.
Meanwhile, the other 3 turtles worry about their missing comrade, and return to the antique shop. They are distraught when they find the place wrecked, and learn that Michaelangelo has been kidnapped by Vivaldi. They decide to split up to improve their chances of finding him. Next, Raphael is nicked by Vivaldi. Leonardo and Donatello go on the search, along with master Splinter.
Splinter is eager to get into the action, and the 3 of them head back to the antique shop region. Unluckily they are confronted by Vivaldi and his gangster's. He captures Leonardo and Splinter using the same Krang-type gadget. Donatello struggles to escape, and is eventually buried in rubble all in part due to the laser gun blasts from Vivaldi's mob. Is he dead?
Nope. Donatello survives and strains and squeezes himself out of the rubble. Battered and bruised, he heads over to the Channel Six building and get some back-up in the form of April.
Meanwhile, Tony Vivaldi is getting screamed by Shredder, now revealed to be the mastermind behind the robberies. Vivaldi has not got the Maltese Hamster which Shredder wants, despite all the Technodromes weapons he has provided Tony with. Vivaldi whines he can't possibly can't search every antique store in town. Shredder gives him hell, as there is already a device given to him, that can make quick work of that. It's a super-conducting magnet, which, when adjusted to "antiques" it will magnetise all antiques within a 50 mile radius to zoom to "The Meat Rack". The Butcher is visibly astonished. So the whole city is bombarded by floating antiques. Donatello and April follow the direction of these antiques.
In the store room of the "Meat Rack", April and Donatello overhear in a hiding place, Vivaldi telling Shredder he still can't find the Maltese Hamster. However, as Donatello and April try to crawl away, a crate gets knocked over and they have to scramble quickly as Vivaldi's mob has discovered their presence! Will they manage to scrape away from "The Meat Rack"? Can they save Splinter, Leonardo, Michaelangelo and Raphael? And what is so important about this Maltese Hamster?
TMNT REVIEW HQ COMMENTS: Quite a bad episode for this cartoon. However a nice start, with a unique technique. It features the turtles in the streets in their trenchcoats and hats. Donatello's voice is actally narratting the thoughts in his mind, in this tough street-wise drawl. It's like they are copying a detective or mafia film.This occurs throughout the episode, and makes this episode much to remember about.
There's also a unique use of editing when there is a flashback to the robbing of the bank by gangsters. It's like the picture wobbles then fades. Not long after this, there'a funny line from the antique shop dealer, who says to the turtles, "scram, before you're mush breaks some antique mirrors!". When the turtles enter the antiques store, the editing is sub-standard. Later on, there's nice build-up by the turtles to what April sees in the antique store's window. The turtles think it's something important but she is only refering to this Maltese Hamster ornament. This is ironic on how the turtles react disappointingly, while that same ornament is the key to this whole adventure happening in the first place.
When Tony Vivaldi and his gangsters come to the antique store threatening the dealer for the Maltese Hamster, it's badly edited but has a good choice of music. The gangster's capture alleged elimination of the turtles is executed well. The capture of Raphael is one of the better parts of the episode. Meanwhile, the capture of Leonardo, Michaelangelo and Splinter is quite good.The best thing about this episode is the mystery of why the Maltese Hamster is so popular all of a sudden, and the solving of this caper by Donatello. A bit different in TMNT standard storylines. Plus, the alarming rate of the turtles getting caught and their last hope Donatello could've been killed by the falling rubble caused by the gangster's laser guns.
In the TMNT cartoon there were some names given to people or places that sounded downright silly. However, not here for the hideout of Vivaldi's gang is called the cool name of "The Meat Rack". Appropiate for Vivaldi's "The Butcher" nickname. Good gangster name too. It makes a refreshing change that Shredder doesn't turn up until halfway through the episode. Well, he is nearly in every episode of the 193 conducted!
The device you see dragging in all the antiques from all over the city has some other absurd other objects it could pull in like men's underwear. Thats just for comic effect! This scene is another well done scene. Shame most of the episode wasn't like this.
Donatello bumping into a REAL police detective is all quite funny, but does it have to have all this clumsy editing around this scene? One of the better scenes is when April and Donatello enter the club/disco area of the "Meat Rack", and one of the worser is Vivaldi discovering April and Donatello in hiding. The Maltese Hamster flashback sequence showing it's origin, is another piece of floundering editing. Quite silly dialogue too.
As we come to the climax, Shredder pops out clumsily of the module quite humourously, thanks to Bebop or Rocksteady's bad driving and landing. The best part at this harbour scene is Vivaldi discomfortably confirming to Shredder he doesn't have the Maltese Hamster, followed by Shredder's reaction. The action is half-bad, and not a sight impressive. Because they do not actually show them fighting, it just flicks from the start to the end when the gangsters are all tied up. This is like they have censored the actual action. So it's a let-down. On of the most memorable images is the Maltese Hamster melting in Shredder's hands, which has instructions inside on how to use this to power the Technodrome and back up the the Earth's surface.
Our finale scene is better and funny, where it's like the very start again, with Donatello's voice-over and Raphael chimes in with "Put a sock in it!".
"THE MALTESE HAMSTER" GETS A: 2/5 RATING.
