"Serpent Hunt" is the tenth episode of the third season of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2012 TV series), and is the sixty-second episode overall in the series. It first aired on Feburary 1st, 2015.
As the Turtles search for Karai, they have to deal with a city filled with Kraangdroids, as well as Zeck and Steranko, who are hunting Karai for their own means.
The episode starts with some Kraangdroids patrolling the street, while Ivan Steranko watches from a corner. Then Ivan heads into their hideout where Anton Zeck is also hiding. Zeck complains that they need to leave the city and that their food supplies are very low. Steranko agrees, but escaping is nearly impossible since the city is heavily guarded by Kraangdroids. Zeck fears that if they get captured, they may get mutated. But Steranko refuses to get mutated and has a plan to get out of New York: They will find and capture Karai so that they can make a deal with the Shredder: They will trade her for safe passage out of the city.
Over at Antonio’s Pizza-Rama, Michelangelo, April and Splinter clean and tidy up their new temporary home. Mikey then notices that Splinter is obviously preoccupied, though he simply says that his thoughts are elsewhere. While at the back of the building, Donnie is busy working on a retro-mutagen to transform April’s dad, Karai, and other affected people back into humans, but it’s not ready yet. Just then, Leo, Raph and Casey return from a stealth mission from the old lair. They got some chemicals for Donnie’s experiments, a TV for Mikey and Splinter’s family picture. As he looks at it, the Turtles’ sensei remarks that his family can’t be complete without his daughter with him. Everyone resolves to find her, and when Raph mentions that she might have been captured by the Foot or the Kraang, Splinter says he saw her on the streets recently, but he was not in his right mind at the time and couldn't help her. The Turtles are ready to start the search now, though Leo tells April and Casey they need to stay behind.
Meanwhile over at his lair, Shredder is also looking for Karai, and he’s not happy that Fishface and Rahzar have been unable to bring Karai in. He threatens to turn them over to Tiger Claw if they can’t get the job done.
Aided by a DNA tracker that Donnie has whipped up, the Turtles are able to find some snake scales (which Mikey unfortunately mistakes for potato chips). Zeck and Steranko find Karai first, but the Turtles show up in the nick of time, and fight. During the battle, Steranko lines up a shot at Karai with a tranquilizer gun, but Raph knocks him off-balance and he misses. The shot spooks Karai enough to make her flee the scene, and the Turtles have to sneak past a host of Kraang forces before they track her to a warehouse.
Kraang droids make it inside the building, too, but Karai makes short work of them. The boys try talking to Karai, and when she sees Leo, she’s able to focus long enough to transform back from snake creature to something close to human. Leo asks her to return with them, but she says it’s too dangerous. Just then, Fishface and Rahzar arrive, stunning Karai with a taser and keeping the Turtles at bay with a poisonous smoke bomb. The mutants get Karai out to a motorcycle outside the warehouse, but while they bicker over who should get to turn her over to Shredder, Zeck sneaks up and steals the bike with Karai still on it. Zeck brought Karai to Steranko. He then calls Shredder to arrange a meeting at the docks. Unknown to them, one of Donnie’s cyborg roaches is on his shoulder, allowing the Turtles to eavesdrop and hear the plan.
Down at the docks, the meeting goes down as scheduled, Zeck and Steranko proposing that the Shredder provide them with a safe passage out of the city in exchange for Karai's well-being. The Shredder, after arriving with Fishface and Rahzar as backup, remarks that he doesn’t make deals, but will make an exception in this case. His proposal of allowing Zeck and Steranko to leave this encounter alive if they give him Karai is interrupted when Leo shouts out, making the predominant offer: If they free Karai, he'll let all of them walk away with their lives. Both Leo and his brothers leap down to battle the Shredder while Fishface and Zeck face off and Rahzar and Steranko face off, Karai caught in the middle of their confrontation. The Turtles manage to put up a good fight against the Shredder as they score some hits on him, Mikey, Raph, and Leo managing the majority of them. After being knocked into a cargo container, Leo manages to kick both Rahzar and Steranko away from Karai and manages to free her from her restraints with a Katana. He then encourages her to flee while she has the opportunity, whereupon Karai motions to the east toward the city and utters the word “comet” before heeding Leo and escaping into the ocean. Leo begins to puzzle over what she could've meant by that word, while the Shredder rants about the departure of his surrogate daughter. Leo quickly throws smoke bombs in his face, allowing himself and his brothers to escape, leaving the Shredder thoroughly upset. Turning to see that Fishface and Rahzar have captured Zeck and Steranko, the Shredder has his two lackeys take them to Stockman's lab, insisting that someone must pay for the events that have unfolded today.
The Turtles emerge from the docks. Raph complains that they almost had Karai, but Donnie explains that it was too dangerous. Leo tells them that Karai gave him a clue on where she is hiding, as they look towards the east of the city, wondering what she means by "comet."
Meanwhile at Shredder's Lair, Zeck and Steranko were brought to Stockman's lab, where it is revealed that Stockman has prepared warthog and rhinoceros DNA for use in mutating both Zeck and Steranko. Rahzar and Fishface poke fun at the unfortunate duo over their "choices" of mutation, with Fishface sarcastically commenting about the "excellent" DNA that has been selected for them and Rahzar laughing hysterically that Zeck will be turned into a warthog. Zeck yells in fear that he's too handsome to be a mutant. Shredder enters stating that their fates has been sealed. He mutates Zeck first, because he stole the Kuro Kabuto. Steranko watches in horror as Zeck is mutated into a warthog. When it is Steranko's turn to be mutated, he references Shredder about their "friendship" and claiming he'd be more useful as a human than a mutant. But his pleas are not heeded, and he was mutated shortly into a rhinoceros. In the end, both Zeck and Steranko bellowing into the sky in pain, confusion, and anger at being turned into "freaks".
Quotes
"Anton Zeck - I'm starving, all our food is gone and we're down to moldy ketchup and dead cockroaches! Ivan Steranko - Secret headquarters, mine. Moldy ketchup cockroaches, mine!"
"Fishface - Eh, Master Shredder, Karai is just to scaly... I-I mean, stealthy. And the city is so big.
Rahzar - She's as slippery as a serpent... Hm, I mean... we looked everywhere, master."
"Steranko - This is funky fresh. Snake skin, recently shed, I'm better hunter than my brother Boltak.
Anton Zeck - Stop messing with that butt-nasty skin, put you eyes right down there, son. The beast is hiding.
Ivan Steranko - Da, now I go make her sleepy nap time. Steady... Steady... Turtle face? Mother Russia!"
"Raphael - Freaks? Nice outfit! 1987 called, it wants it’s jumpsuit back!
Anton Zeck - Wha-wha-what? You're making fun of my suit? I'm gonna smash your dang head!"
"Ivan Steranko - Turtle pests! You're like fleas on back of powerful Russian bear!"
"Michelangelo - It's ok, Karai. It's me, Mikey, your brother."
"Fishface - Nice job back there, amigo. I will take her to Master Shredder.
Rahzar - Wait, why do you get to take her to Shredder?
Fishface - Because you are too big and bony to ride this bike."
"Ivan Steranko- Ho-ho, nice work, Comrade Zeck. You get snake girl and steal cool looking motor-scooter.
Anton Zeck - I barely made it, Big S. The street's so full of Kraang. Let's dial Shredder and get the heck out of dodge."
"Donatello - I planted a whole bunch of spy-roaches on Steranko during the fight. Pretty sure he ate most of them, but there’s still one little guy left."
"Shredder - I don't make deals, but perhaps, this is worth the exception. Give Karai and you will leave this city alive.
Leonardo - Let her go and I'll let you all walk away alive."
"Fishface - You talk too much, and that says a lot coming from me."
"Leonardo - Karai, you have to go. Hurry. Don't let them take you.
Serpent Karai -(Points to the east) Comet… Comet.
Leonardo - Comet? (watches as Karai escapes into the ocean) Wha-What does that mean?"
"Anton Zeck: I DON'T WANNA BE A MUTANT, I'M TOO HANDSOME! THE LADIES LOVE ME!!
Shredder: You stole my sacred helmet, HUNTED MY DAUGHTER! Your fates are sealed.
Ivan Steranko: No! No! Shredder, how long have we known each other? It is ten years, heh?
(Shredder ignores Steranko while Baxter Stockman prepared the DNA infusion with the mutagen)
Shredder: Anton Zeck is first, for stealing the Kuro Kabuto.
(Fishface starts to push Zeck towards the pool of mutagen)
Anton Zeck: Can we talk about this G!?
(Fishface pushes him into mutagen)
(Anton Zeck mutates in agony while Steranko nervously watches with Rahzar chuckling nearby)
Anton Zeck: (After becoming Bebop) Oh no, look at me! I'm a dang warthog!
Shredder: And now, Ivan Steranko, my 'old friend', your animal is apropos.
Ivan Steranko: Let us become reasonable, I'm more useful to you as normal guy, not mutant!
(Shredder again ignores Steranko and nods at Rahzar, who nods back)
Ivan Steranko: Нет, нет-!!
(Rahzar kicks him into mutagen)
Ivan Steranko: Нееееееет-!!!
Ivan Steranko: (After becoming Rocksteady) Uhh, don't feel so well... oh nyet, look at me!
Anton Zeck: They've turned us into FREAKS!!!
(The two reborn Bebop and Rocksteady then roar and squeal)"
Errors
When Leo tries to reach Karai back to her normal self he appears reflecting in her snake eyes, but the reflection is not inverted, the straps for his katana appear in the same position.
After Casey puts his mask on in Antonio's Pizza-Rama, there is a shot where it appears as untextured and completely white.
Ivan Steranko's last name is misspelled "Sterenko" on the monitors in the final scene.
Trivia
A preview of Bebop and Rocksteady's mutation was shown at the NYCC 2014.
Karai is revealed to have limited control over her mutation and is slowly becoming more serpent-like by the hour.
Raphael's "1987 called, it wants its jumpsuit back!" line is a reference to April's outfit in the 1987 series.
Anton Zeck's moves were based on a few of Michael Jackson's dance moves.
At one point, Zeck even quotes Jackson's Shamone from Jackson's song "Bad".
There's a Weo Peo arcade machine in the pizzeria, a reference to the Neo Geo arcade and console system.
Although the computer screen in Stockman's laboratory showed the silhouette of a white rhino, Rocksteady's nose is shaped as the one of a black rhino's.
When Zeck and Steranko mutate, part of Zeck's suit fused into his body, but Steranko's outfit changed drastically with no explanation.
Fishface says his first word in Portuguese in the series: Amigo (friend).
Ivan mentioned he has a brother named Boltak who's a great hunter.
Karai is revealed to have a mouth on the back of her snake head.
