EPISODE FORTY THREE
“Junklantis”
Written by Eric Luke
Original Air Date: April 3, 2004
Supervising Producer: Lloyd Goldfine
Producers: Gary Richardson, Frederick U. Fierst, Al Kahn, Norman Grossfeld, Thomas Kenney
Supervising Director: Chuck Patton
Story Editor: Lloyd Goldfine
MAJOR CHARACTERS:
Donatello (Sam Regal)
Leonardo (Michael Sinterniklaas)
Michelangelo (Wayne Grayson)
Raphael (Frank Frankson)
Splinter (Darren Dunstan)
SECONDARY CHARACTERS:
The Garbageman
Various Junklantis guards
Various Junklantis technicians
MAIN LOCATIONS, VEHICLES AND ACCESSORIES:
TMNT lair
Shell Sub
NY harbor
Garbageman’s “whale” vehicle
Garbageman’s “underwater cars”
Junklantis
Synopsis:
Intro: Donatello narrates as we see him and Michelangelo in the Shell Sub approaching the underwater city of “Junklantis” – we then see that they’re about to be attacked by a huge mechanical whale-like contraption built out of junk!
Act 1: Open on a fog bound ship in the NYC harbor as it is attacked by the same mechanical whale-like submarine. The ship goes down.
Cut to the Turtles lair and a TV news update reporting the sinking of the vessel, an event that has been happening far too often over the past month. Donatello unveils the Shell Sub to his brothers and Master Splinter. Michelangelo is really psyched to see the sub and can’t wait to get his chance to ride in it. Don and Mike go off on their maiden voyage, traveling through the underwater tunnels that lead from the TMNT lair to the NY harbor. The Shell Sub heads out into the Hudson River where the guys see an old sunken whaler ship. While the ninjas marvel at this site, they spot an “underwater car” approach and start salvaging metal parts from the old wreck. Don decides to follow the “car” and the Turtle brothers see numerous other underwater cars coming in and out of a domed underwater city. Don pilots the Shell Sub towards the monstrous structure to investigate when the Turtles’ are attacked by the strange whale contraption seen in this episode’s preview…
Act 2: The Shell Sub is captured in the whale ship’s mechanical arms and “eaten”. The Turtles eventually surface inside the whale ship and are met by guards armed with electric prods. Don tries to make peace, but the guards aren’t interested in talk and take the ninjas prisoner. Mike wants to fight, but Donny convinces him to stay cool until they find out what’s going on. The mutants are lead through the huge underwater complex, where they see tons of salvage being brought in and worked on. The Turtles eventually arrive at a staircase, on the platform above is their old enemy the Garbageman! The villain states that he’s happy to see the Turtles, as they’re the ones that gave him the idea to build his underwater city after they defeated him in episode nine. The Garbageman then tells his guards to throw the TMNT into a prison cell, as he plans to dissect them later to fnd out what they are.
Mike and Don are lead to a cell when Donatello tells Mikey that t’s time for them to take action. The Turtles defeat the guards and lock them in the cell, dressing in bulky guard uniforms as a disguise. The TMNT arrive at a rally lead by Garbageman, who is telling his men that their ship-sinking operations are going terrific and their next target is arriving soon – a cruise ship loaded with riches! Don and Mike decide they’ll have to save that cruise ship and all the innocent people on board.
Act 3: Disguised as Junklantis guards, Mike and Don are aboard the whale vehicle as it prepares to attack the cruise ship. The Turtles discard their disguises, take out the nearby gurards and head to the bridge of the ship! On the bridge they meet the Garbageman and more of his men. The TMNT easily defeat the guards and Garbageman is forced to attack – his mechanical arms capture Donatello easily, but Don calls out for Mike to use a nearby oxygen canister to save him. Mikey grabs the tube and sets it under the Garbageman, knocking off it’s lid – the blast of air jettisons the villain into tthe air and smashes his head into the ceiling. Garbageman falls to the floor, knocked loopy. Don and Mike rush over to the ship’s controls and figure out (with onyl seconds to spare) how to steer the strange vehicle away from the cruise ship. Donatello then sets the whale ship on a collision course for Junklantis – to kill two birds with one stone. Garbageman recovers and attacks again, this time his claws smash into a control board and he gets electrocuted. Having set the whale ship on its ceash course, Don and mike retreat to the Shell sub. Dona jumps in the ship and orders Mikey to get the doors open so they can escape. The Sub doesn’t want to start and Mike has a hard time with the controls! Mikey finally decides to do things the old fashioned way and grabs a pipe, smashing the control panel – this actually works. Michelangelo joins his brother inside the Shell Sub, which finally roars to life. The TMNT escape in the knick of time, as the whale ship smashes into Junklantis, creating a monolithic underwater explosion. The blast rocks the Shell Sub, but Donny is able to get in under control and the ninjas head for home. Unfortunately for them, the Garbageman also escaped in a small ship and is chasing them!
Act 4: The Garbageman’s small vessel is also armed with long mechanical arms, which the villain uses to smash the Shell Sub, causing it to breech water. The submarines begin a battle, Donatello using depth charges and torpedoes to defeat his enemy. After absorbing the blast from the torpedoes, the Garbageman’s ship plummets over the edge of a vast undersea cliff… never to be seen again?
The Shell Sub makes its way back to the TMNT lair. Leo and Raph ask what’s been going on. Raph notices the damage that the Shell Sub took and asks what happened, and Donatello replies that it’s a long story.
