Every once in a while Saturday Night Live knocks it out of the park with a sketch. This time around, it’s the animated commercial for Middle-Aged Mutant Ninja Turtles. And if some of the jokes in this instant classic hit a little too close to home—and not in that they remind you of fond, childhood TMNT memories—don’t worry: We promise you’re not alone.
Laughing Squid picked up on the new animated sketch, which aired as a part of SNL’s April 11 show. For those who missed SNL’s special “at home” edition, the cast and producers managed to assemble the entire episode from their respective homes, with the show’s various stars streaming their own solo sketches. All of which can be found in their entirety here.
![Michelangelo in SNL's Middle-Aged Mutant Ninja Turtles Sketch.](https://legendary-digital-network-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/13044416/middle-aged-TMNT-body-image-1-04132020.jpg)
Saturday Night Live
Even amongst the other content in the unique SNL episode, Middle-Aged Mutant Ninja Turtles still feels like it’s particularly special. Leonardo driving his spoiled kids to school, Raphael disappointingly weighing himself on the scale, and Michelangelo pouring a bottle of booze down the sink as he gets sober are all hilarious, yet poignant moments, and the new TMNT theme song is just as catchy as the original.
All of this to say that Middle-Aged Mutant Ninja Turtles should definitely become its own show—perhaps on Adult Swim or Hulu? At the very least it should be a recurring segment on SNL until mass quarantine mandates are lifted. After all, the episode’s host, Tom Hanks, did say in his in his opening monologue that “It is a strange time to try and be funny, but trying to be funny is SNL‘s whole thing….”
What do you think about Middle-Aged Mutant Ninja Turtles? Do you think this sketch deserves its own show, or is it simply a desecration of canonical TMNT properties? Cowabunga in the comments, dudes!
Header Image: Saturday Night Live