Raphael
Raphael (Raph) is the second-oldest of the turtles. He wears a red bandana and fights with twin sais. He has probably gone through the most dramatic character changes and roles between different shows.
TMNT 1987
This Raph is more or less the comic relief of the group. He often teams up with Mikey in providing the majority of the humor. His description in the show is "cool, but rude." This Raph is sarcastic and mouthy, always having the perfect comeback and joke for every situation. He's pretty lighthearted, much as the series is, and mainly relies on sarcastic quips.
That's pretty much all there is to him, making him a bit of a one-dimensional character. This Raph is also the only turtle to break the fourth wall multiple times in episodes.
TMNT 2003
This Raph went through a major redesign of his character and he's more in line with his comic book incarnation. In this series, Raph is the classic tough guy with a soft side. He's extremely strong, hot-headed, and has a major temper. Unlike the others, Raph doesn't train out of necessity; he trains for pure enjoyment and to unwind. He's usually the first one to jump into battle and the first to react to any of Mikey's antics, usually with a slap to Mikey's head.
This Raph still retains some of his sarcastic humor, occasionally making snarky comments, mostly about Mikey, or to get on Leo's nerves.
Despite his outward bravado, Raph is a bit of a softie and cares fiercely for his brothers. He's extremely protective of them, especially Mikey; whenever one brother is in danger, Raph is the first one to jump in and help. Raph fights with a lot of emotion, which explains his hot-headed personality. Unfortunately, while this makes him a fierce fighter, it does cloud his judgement and causes him to make mistakes.
Raph does have moments of intense anger that almost seem manic. He usually uses this anger to fuel his fighting and to make him stronger. However, this anger can cause him to lash out and become quite vicious. In one episode, he almost kills Mikey in a moment of clouded anger, an action that severely shakes Raph up. He realizes that he has an anger problem, so he has a bit of self-hatred complex going on as well.
I feel that in this particular series, Raph is the most unstable emotionally of the brothers. He's constantly at war with himself, trying being tough and wanting to protect his brothers. He hates showing emotions besides anger, and he struggles to show his brothers just how much they mean to him. He couldn't live without them.
Raph is also constantly arguing with Leo, mainly because the two are complete opposites. Leo is calm and collected with a bigger picture in mind, while Raph is hot-tempered and more focused on the situation now. Raph is often guided by his emotions and he bases his decisions on that, while Leo thinks more with his head and his moral code. The majority of their arguing involves Leo making a plan, and Raph being against the plan, or wanting to just storm the enemy. Another major arguing point is Raph choosing to go against Master Splinter's rules, and Leo trying to follow them. Raph is often questioning Leo's judgement and leadership. However, although he sometimes shows a bit of resentment towards Leo being the leader, he still is willing to follow Leo. I think deep down, Raph realizes that Leo is more suited to being a leader than he is.
In this series, Raph is shown to be afraid of bugs. He responds extremely violently to all types of bugs, usually exclaiming, "I hate bugs!" It's mostly for comic effect, but is also shows a crack in Raph's tough exterior.
TMNT 2012
This Raph is interesting. In this series, Raph doesn't seem to have as many anger issues but he is more violent and smart mouthed. He still retains that tough guy attitude and love of fighting. But there are more moments of him picking on his brothers, which shows a more teenage side. It borderlines on bullying, but it makes sense, since Raph is a tough guy and having a teenage aspect of that would seem a bit bullying.
However, there are more moments that undermine that tough exterior. This usually happens whenever Raph is shown caring for his pet turtle, Spike, or whenever any of his brothers is in danger.
Unlike 2003 Raph, this Raph is shown to be developing more in character and personality. He recognizes that he has a temper and he works on it, although he does fail often. His temper doesn't seem to be quite as vicious as previous Raph incarnations, but he does have more of a mean streak. He's that classic tough jerk who doesn't like to admit that deep down, he cares about his family and things important to him.
As usual, Raph and Leo butt heads in this series. At the beginning, Raph resents that Leo was chosen as the leader. He feels that he should be leader since he is the strongest and he was shown to beat Leo in combat. But this resentment escalates more to the point of Leo leaving the team for a bit and Raph taking over. This proves to be disastrous with Raph freezing up on a mission and being unable to make a quick decision, which results in Mikey getting injured. At this point, Raph recognizes the burden of leadership and is willing to turn it back over to Leo. This shows an odd development between the two brothers. From then on, Raph still would antagonize Leo, but he stopped openly questioning his leadership.
As with the 2003 show, Raph cares very deeply for his brothers, although he hates showing it. He does have a few moments of vulnerability. Whenever one of his brothers is in danger, Raph reacts the most. He can't stand to see them get hurt, and he's the first one to jump into action if it means saving his brothers. He is a bit more open with his emotions than his previous incarnations, although he still tends to brush off any sentimentality.
In this show, Raph is also shown to be afraid of bugs, specifically cockroaches. Unlike 2003 Raph, 2012 Raph eventually admits his fear and works on overcoming it.
Raph is the second shortest out of the brothers and the stockiest. He's got a ton of muscle. He also has a notable jagged chunk missing out of his shell. He has green eyes, and is the only one in the family to have them.
Overall, I think Raph's character has changed the most of the turtle brothers throughout the different series. Going from a sarcastic smart mouth to a tough softie made Raphael one of the more interesting characters as far as development goes. I also think it's great how the new series is giving him more depth and vulnerability, which makes him more intriguing as a character. He's more than just the tough guy who hates admitting his feelings; he's a teenager who fights with his brothers, but loves them anyway.
Anyway, those are my thoughts on Raph. Until later, folks!
TMNT 1987
 |
| Source: fanpop.com |
That's pretty much all there is to him, making him a bit of a one-dimensional character. This Raph is also the only turtle to break the fourth wall multiple times in episodes.
TMNT 2003
 |
| Source: turtlepedia.wikia.com |
This Raph still retains some of his sarcastic humor, occasionally making snarky comments, mostly about Mikey, or to get on Leo's nerves.
Despite his outward bravado, Raph is a bit of a softie and cares fiercely for his brothers. He's extremely protective of them, especially Mikey; whenever one brother is in danger, Raph is the first one to jump in and help. Raph fights with a lot of emotion, which explains his hot-headed personality. Unfortunately, while this makes him a fierce fighter, it does cloud his judgement and causes him to make mistakes.
Raph does have moments of intense anger that almost seem manic. He usually uses this anger to fuel his fighting and to make him stronger. However, this anger can cause him to lash out and become quite vicious. In one episode, he almost kills Mikey in a moment of clouded anger, an action that severely shakes Raph up. He realizes that he has an anger problem, so he has a bit of self-hatred complex going on as well.
I feel that in this particular series, Raph is the most unstable emotionally of the brothers. He's constantly at war with himself, trying being tough and wanting to protect his brothers. He hates showing emotions besides anger, and he struggles to show his brothers just how much they mean to him. He couldn't live without them.
Raph is also constantly arguing with Leo, mainly because the two are complete opposites. Leo is calm and collected with a bigger picture in mind, while Raph is hot-tempered and more focused on the situation now. Raph is often guided by his emotions and he bases his decisions on that, while Leo thinks more with his head and his moral code. The majority of their arguing involves Leo making a plan, and Raph being against the plan, or wanting to just storm the enemy. Another major arguing point is Raph choosing to go against Master Splinter's rules, and Leo trying to follow them. Raph is often questioning Leo's judgement and leadership. However, although he sometimes shows a bit of resentment towards Leo being the leader, he still is willing to follow Leo. I think deep down, Raph realizes that Leo is more suited to being a leader than he is.
In this series, Raph is shown to be afraid of bugs. He responds extremely violently to all types of bugs, usually exclaiming, "I hate bugs!" It's mostly for comic effect, but is also shows a crack in Raph's tough exterior.
TMNT 2012
 |
| Source: turtlepedia.wikia.com |
However, there are more moments that undermine that tough exterior. This usually happens whenever Raph is shown caring for his pet turtle, Spike, or whenever any of his brothers is in danger.
Unlike 2003 Raph, this Raph is shown to be developing more in character and personality. He recognizes that he has a temper and he works on it, although he does fail often. His temper doesn't seem to be quite as vicious as previous Raph incarnations, but he does have more of a mean streak. He's that classic tough jerk who doesn't like to admit that deep down, he cares about his family and things important to him.
As usual, Raph and Leo butt heads in this series. At the beginning, Raph resents that Leo was chosen as the leader. He feels that he should be leader since he is the strongest and he was shown to beat Leo in combat. But this resentment escalates more to the point of Leo leaving the team for a bit and Raph taking over. This proves to be disastrous with Raph freezing up on a mission and being unable to make a quick decision, which results in Mikey getting injured. At this point, Raph recognizes the burden of leadership and is willing to turn it back over to Leo. This shows an odd development between the two brothers. From then on, Raph still would antagonize Leo, but he stopped openly questioning his leadership.
As with the 2003 show, Raph cares very deeply for his brothers, although he hates showing it. He does have a few moments of vulnerability. Whenever one of his brothers is in danger, Raph reacts the most. He can't stand to see them get hurt, and he's the first one to jump into action if it means saving his brothers. He is a bit more open with his emotions than his previous incarnations, although he still tends to brush off any sentimentality.
In this show, Raph is also shown to be afraid of bugs, specifically cockroaches. Unlike 2003 Raph, 2012 Raph eventually admits his fear and works on overcoming it.
Raph is the second shortest out of the brothers and the stockiest. He's got a ton of muscle. He also has a notable jagged chunk missing out of his shell. He has green eyes, and is the only one in the family to have them.
Overall, I think Raph's character has changed the most of the turtle brothers throughout the different series. Going from a sarcastic smart mouth to a tough softie made Raphael one of the more interesting characters as far as development goes. I also think it's great how the new series is giving him more depth and vulnerability, which makes him more intriguing as a character. He's more than just the tough guy who hates admitting his feelings; he's a teenager who fights with his brothers, but loves them anyway.
Anyway, those are my thoughts on Raph. Until later, folks!
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