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★ 2003 SERIES · S01 · E09 · THE BEGINNING

GARBAGEMAN

Episode 9 of 144 in the 2003 4Kids series. First aired April 5, 2003.

S01E09
TITLE CARD

01PLOT

One night, a couple of homeless guys are going through the garbage looking for bottles to turn in for money as well as other valuables. They didn't realize a garbage truck was following them. The vehicle corners them in a dead-end alley and grabs them with its hydraulic tentacles.

!The Garbageman oversees his polluting, energy making operations.

The Garbageman oversees his polluting, energy making operations.

!The Professor stands up to the Garbageman.

The Professor stands up to the Garbageman.

The next day, the Turtles visited some of the homeless to find items to help in the lair. They gave them some clothes and received a few things the homeless that they found in

!Don and Raph get ready to attack the Garbageman

Don and Raph get ready to attack the Garbageman

the garbage. When the Turtles mentioned there seemed to be fewer homeless, their friend, The Professor, said that a rumor says a guy called the Garbageman was responsible for taking homeless people during the night. The Turtles aren't convinced, but ask him to pass along anything he hears. However, a little while after the Turtles leave, the Garbageman strikes and kidnaps the Professor, as well as the other homeless people.

The next day, Donatello finds the ruins of the shantytown. He calls the Turtles and they begin their investigation. Wearing trench coats, they hit the streets to question other homeless. They discovered that all the kidnappings happened around the docks. Using Michelangelo as bait, they are able to attract the Garbageman's truck. The Battle Shell fought the garbage truck, but the garbage truck was able to escape. They see it drive off the docks, into the water. Thinking they had won, they are surprised to see the garbage truck driving underwater to a landfill island.

After finding out that the landfill is the "best" in the country, the Turtles swim to the island to save their friends. Once there, they find a bunch of enslaved homeless people sorting through garbage, even some in chains. The Garbageman soon arrives with more slaves and starts to give a speech about how he is recycling the homeless, who do not have any other purpose in society. The Professor stands up to the Garbageman, but is threatened by the guards. The Turtles jump into action and set the slaves free. The prisoners then rebel against the guards and drive them away.

The Turtles turn their attention to the Garbageman, but cannot get a direct hit because of the mechanical arms. But Donatello is able to sabotage the Garbageman's vehicle circuitry. The Garbageman falls into the water. The Turtles jump into the water to rescue him, but are surprised to see an empty wheelchair at the bottom of the river. The Turtles return to the island where the Professor and the fellow homeless have decided to stay on the island because it had food and shelter. Raphael warns him that the Garbageman's evil may come back someday.

02CAST & APPEARANCES

Sam Riegel
Mike Pollock
Michael Sinterniklaas
Wayne Grayson
Frank Frankson
Greg Carey

03OBJECTS, VEHICLES & PLACES

OBJECTS & VEHICLESBattle ShellGarbageman's garbage truckShell Cycle
LOCATIONSGarbageman's landfill islandNew York CityRiver docksSewers of New York CitySewer tunnelsY'Lyntian outpost lairShanty TownVarious streets and rooftops
SPECIESHumanMutant turtle

05MEMORABLE QUOTES

Homeless Man #1: Them guys in the big turtle costumes are back. Homeless Man #2: Yup. Homeless Man #1: Ya ever wonder why they dress up like that? Homeless Man #2: Nope.
Michelangelo: Uh, guys? The shark is here! And he's humming the theme from Jaws!
Michelangelo: T-M-N-T! What you get is what you see! \_Shakes his hips_\ Raphael: You know seriously, you're only embarrassing yourself.
Michelangelo: _[With an Arnold Schwarzenegger voice]_ Something stinks on that island, and it ain't the garbage! Raphael: Yeah! Keep trying Mikey, someday you'll get a winner. Michelangelo: Hey c'mon, that was pretty good!
Garbageman: Garbage is power! Michelangelo: If that's true, then this guy's Superman.

06NOTES & GOOFS

  • As the Turtles run across the island, Leonardo's bandana becomes red like Raphael's, and then changes back.

07TRIVIA

  • This marks the first appearance of the Garbageman.
  • Michelangelo says his catchphrase, "Cowabunga!" for the third time.
  • Michelangelo references Arnold Schwarzenegger, Superman, and _Jaws_.
  • The voice of the Garbageman is Mike Pollock, the same voice actor who voices Doctor Eggman in the _Sonic the Hedgehog_ video game series.

08FAN REVIEW

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Episode data adapted from Turtlepedia / Wikipedia under CC BY-SA. Spot an error? Fix it in the forum.

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