#nightwatcherraph

[tmntkiseki]

11 17 and 21

11.) Which version of Raphael is your favorite?

At this point in my TMNT journey, I still have yet to encounter a Raphael that beats the 2003 version for me. It's funny; under normal circumstances, the "angry/aggressive on the outside, soft/sweet on the inside" type of character really does not do it for me anymore, but the thing I really appreciate about 2k3 Raphael is that his short temper and aggression are not only treated as actual problems by the narrative, but it is something that he himself is aware of and is actively working on because, you know, the last thing he wants to do is hurt the people he loves in a blind rage. He really does go through a lot of character development over the course of the series and by the time the controversial Fast Forward season rolls around, he's significantly mellowed out and his relationships with his brothers have improved as a result. (Back to the Sewer may be the one season I truly dislike, but this scene with Raph and Mikey from "Super Power Struggle" has my heart.)

17.) Which version of the Shredder is your favorite?

It's funny; even though I absolutely love 2003 Shredder for how much of a threat he is throughout the series, I much prefer the characterization for the IDW Shredder. I just... love all the lore and depth he's been given as an antagonist. I would need to go back and reread some issues of the IDW comics I've already gone through to give my full thoughts on the guy, but he is pretty much single-handedly responsible for making me like "Yeah, Shredder works much better as a human character."

21.) What is your favorite story arc?

The Adventures in Turtlesitting/Good Genes arc. I am such a sucker for the whole "normally sweet character goes through a monstrous transformation that causes them to attack their loved ones" plot and the fact that Donatello's double mutation was killing him from the inside out added to the stakes of the whole thing. Never mind that the arc showed just how far the brothers are willing to go for each other, even if that meant making a deal with one of their worst enemies IE Bishop. (The arc also brought back Leatherhead after he basically disappeared following the end of Season 3, which I'm very happy about.)

[kobbers]

Hey there! Since you are a Leo fan I wanted to ask. What’s your opinion on Raph? I mean in general but I will say for 12 07 and 03 since those ass my favs.

In general? I love Raph. His archetypal role tends to be one of my least favorites in ensemble casts: impulsive, moody bad boys tend to get on my nerves. I simply don't find their angst and lack of self control Cool or Relatable, no matter how tragic their past is to justify their antisocial behavior.

Raph's frustration, however, comes from a place I can easily sympathize with - his family is on their own and in constant danger. You often get the feeling that he'd like to be part of society in some way, but he can't and that's stifling! The result is a core drive to protect the small circle of family and friends he does have, no matter the cost.

Though the human world is too dangerous to interact with openly, Raph still sees humans as fellow People, and will readily intervene on their behalf. He leaps boldly into action in part because he worries that indecision and delay will give the enemy more time to cause harm (of course, he also finds combat fun and fulfilling, which may occasionally get him into trouble). He may grumble and complain, but at his core Raph is a helper.

My favorite versions of Raph are the ones where he and Leo are almost too similar underneath their wildly different demeanors. Their conflicts usually come down to how they want to approach their goal, not on which goal to approach.

In fact, there's an argument to be made that in D&D terms, my ideal Raph and Leo could both be cast as paladins, with Leo as Oath of Devotion (focused on honor and protecting the innocent) and Raph as Oath of Vengeance (focused on justice and punishing the wicked). Mirage Raph, on the other hand, is 100% a barbarian. So I mean, there's a range of viable interpretations, and the character can be well-written anywhere within it. It's just that the more selfish Raph is, the less I will connect with him.

2003

I thought Blue Swords Guy was the coolest turtle as a toddler, and when I started watching 2k3 as a teenager, my general preference for straightforward paragon types led me quickly back to Leo. I liked Raph the least almost instinctively, purely based on role. But the show won me over on every single brother, and I couldn't even begin to rank a least favorite anymore. Even at his worst early in the show, Raph is just struggling with impulse control rather than relishing violence or being contrary for its own sake. Sometimes he might enter a fight too early or resist retreat, but he rarely enters a fight unnecessarily. He might hide his squishier emotions, but he clearly still feels them. It lays down that core of Raph-as-protector that softens him from his more troubled, bloodthirsty Mirage counterpart. A good bean, 10/10 favorite Raph, heavily influences what I want to see from the character in general.

2007

The general vibes of this movie are similar to 2k3, which is why it sometimes surprises people that it's supposed to be in the live action film continuity as a sort of TMNT 4.

It's weird as a whole though, because Raph was the director's favorite turtle and it shows - Leo makes a poor foil because he is simply written to be wrong (I HATE his "I'm better than you" line for many reasons, heheh). But in terms of how Raph reacts to everything the story throws at him, it all rings true to character. He's my favorite character in this movie kind of by default, because Leo and Splinter are ~off~ and Mike and Don are mostly just on quip duty. But that doesn't change that Raph's still legitimately solid.

2012

Honestly can't say much about this version - I only made it a season into this show due to general annoyances I had with the writing. I remember liking Sean Astin's vocal performance, at least. And I remember digging the premise of that one episode where Raph tries to be the leader and finds that he's way more comfortable acting on plans than making them.

[dreamstormdragon]

5 for 03 raph again XD

5

One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon. I wish, as a whole we would've gotten to see more time with Raph and Leatherhead. Their friendship is underrated, since they both are good guys, with rough tempers. I really wanted to see more of them bonding together. I also would've loved to see more moments with Raph and Splinter, since their bond is so under-appreciated. Something I didn't appreciate until I was older, was that 03 Splinter NEVER ONCE, made his issue the boys' issue until trouble literally was brought to their doorstep. He was training them, not to avenge his master, but to defend themselves, to be safe if they were ever put in danger. They had to live, a life where stealth was survival.

Me and some friends were pouring over some of the books released for it, for lore reasons and it was FASCINATING how, in Raph's sections there was a LOT of facts, like genuine facts about weapons, historical stuff. Things you'd think would be in Leo's but it wasn't. He's a LOT like his father and I don't think that gets recognized enough.

[turtle--soup]

1 and 7 for 12 raph

1. Why do you like or dislike this character?

I already answered this here, so instead have some images I have saved on my phone of 2012 Raph, why not?

And one of my Build-a-Bear Raph for the hell of it (yes he is sat next to Flat Raph...)

7. What's something the fandom does when it comes to this character that you like?

It's kind of canon I guess, but every 2012 fan fic I've read usually involves Raph being like "omg, [insert brother's name], you're so dumb lol" and then moments later being like '"I would DIE FOR YOU [same brother]" lol. Especially Mikey.

Also I love when people just go 'this boy is awkward af' because... yeah. He's a teenager. He's allowed.

Thank you for the ask!

[turtleshellpage]

I remember 7th grade. One of our teachers found out 3 girls in the class are vaping. Teachers were so shocked, woah, that never meant to happen, blah blah 🙄 guess they don't know half of the school is vaping as well 🤦🏼 #newgeneration

The principal was so angry, she did something I don't think it's legal 🤷🏼

She took their phones and just asked for the password. She looked at all their messages, photos, apps, literally the entire phone memory. After that she called their parents because of inappropriate images she found

But 😶

She continued on us and the entire school. She just asks for a password and tells you to leave the room. We were so scared we deleted EVERYTHING from our phones 😂 at the end she only asked a few more students and we did it for nothing 🤦🏼

Anyway

Wanted to ask how would you react 🙃

If the principal walks to you and says "Gimme your phone. What's the password?" What are you doing?

Knowing she would look at everything? 😂 Your private conversations with family, friends, social media, phone gallery, everything? (Imagine ur 13-14 years old)

@wrecking-it-raphie @ezgurple @rufwooff @redlotuz @randomcerealbrand @racky000 @turtlevariabilis @turt1esstuff @untitled-tmnt-blog @indieyuugure @iredoodles @ilovebeinaturtle @onionninjasstuff @porplewisteria @phewgitoid @pezhead @allyheart707 @alichu707 @stormy-m00n @disasterpartyyy @dotbot2012 @donnie-rp-blog @heckitall @justatoxictaurus @justasmallflick @knuxthefangirl @lara-cairncross @luna1star10 @luckynesser @lionalovit @yanteetle @xxlea-nardoxx @chessman-protocol @ceruleanterrapin @charcoaldustonmyfingers @bigb22374 @bluefeather-tmnt @butthead7 @neonzeontmnt @nightwatcherraph @ninnosaurus @matryoshkalex @mybasementpanda

😘

[dorky-pals]

Main Masterpost

Hi I'm Dorky! I'm a tmnt Fanfic author and I have the biggest brainrot for all iterations!

I am a minor (15), pronouns She/Her, cis&straight ally.

tcest, proship, pedophilia, DNI

You can chill in my DMS with me if you ever want to talk about turtles or just slide into my inbox!

Fun Fact: I run the turtle dedication week blog here where I send out prompts dedicated to one turtle!

A have a few ongoing stories that I've been writing fell free to check them out!

Brain Dead -ROTTMNT, Under the table -TOTTMNT, Therapy Don -2003

These wonderful people are my tmnt moots go check them out they're all wonderful!

@donatellokinnersinner -the responsible parental figure

@lucatea -the moot i see as a brother

@b1ankslate -that one friend who randomly teaches you how to crochet but they dont even know how to do it.

@vicbutnotactually -unhinged cousin

@nightwatcherraph -the cousin who teaches you how to scoop out your enemies eyes out with spoons because they have trauma.

@noodleskeleton -noodles

@greyartx -that one guy who shows up randomly one day and know you have a friend

@genetello -the friend that somehow has better grades than you do

@howzaboutsomewaterysalt -unhinged best friend

@tae-rhymeswithslay -the only friend who has a pencil you can borrow

@yis-memestation -the absent one

@liya4kar -the other absent one

Other socials- AO3, DISCORD - @dorky_pals

Master list to my rottmnt au Brain Dead here

[whattraintracks]

Thanks @nightwatcherraph and @yellowhollyhock for tagging me!

Tag Game: Put your 4 favourite characters from 4 pieces of media as options and let your tumblr pals decide which one most suits your vibe then tag 4 people

no pressure tagging @languajix @lycanthropiclesbians @iztarshi @ezrahayls

[yellowhollyhock]

what is raphibians?

ehehehehehe

so very glad you asked

raphibians is the ship name for Raphael, Mona Lisa, and Genghis Frog. the founders and experts are @pumpkinpie59 @majachee @ilovebeingaturtle

If I'm posting raphibians I'm most likely referring to the 1987 versions of these characters, but thanks to @nightwatcherraph I'm a ramona shipper across multiple versions (some of which don't even have Mona Lisa aksjsj) and I like the idea of adding Genghis, he completes them so in 87. 1987 Raphael's personality is different so it would be like, kind of a different ship, but still much potential to be very cute

Actually I've had the thought of 03 punk frogs for a long time but it's for a SAINW spinoff crossover project. After Shredder really started taking power, Bishop leaned into developing a mutant army, which naturally got out of hand and you end up with mutants all over the world, some on Shredder's side, some underground just like the human rebels. But in canon not-sainw story line Bishop never develops a stable mutagen. Unless... hmmm

idk we'll see (eventually... probably)

anyways! yayay raphibians ❤️💜🩷

[terrahlee-cup]

@nightwatcherraph requested iteration lore so I shall provide (very vague for now) lore:

-[Begin Audio]- ???: I was introduced to the so-called "big project" today.

???: I wish I wasn't. 

???: What the hell are they thinking?

???: This is so dangerous.

???: Someone's going to end up killed.

[Pause]

???: If they haven't been already.

???: Fuck.

???: I'm going to be talking to this thing a lot more than I thought.

???: I don't even know why they wanted me.

-[End Audio]-

[nightwatcherraph]

Ask game! 21 and 23

My fave story arc?

I answered here https://www.tumblr.com/nightwatcherraph/755879301382094848/tmnt-ask-meme-18-who-is-your-favorite?source=share

One my favorite fanfics oh that’s urs easy it’s skin by @halogalopaghost I love the whole raph is trans masc thing and I like this author’s graphic description of surgery

[dreamstormdragon]

03 raph for the ask game

3: My Non-Romantic OTP For this Character

For 2003 Raphael!

My favorite friendship, for 2003 Raph is his friendship with Casey. These two are each other's ride or die friendship.

Raph and Casey will always go to bat LITERALLY with each other.

They also help each other, ironically mellow out. When they first meet each other, they're at their most tense in that moment, but as the series goes on, Casey is just part of the family. He's not afraid to tell Raph what he NEEDS to hear, not what he wants to hear and vice versa. There's no need for sparing their feelings, they can handle it. And I love that. Cause let's remember: At any point, Casey would've after EVERYTHING they've been through, been 100% in the right to walk away.

And he didn't.

You only risk your life and limb for family and Raph and Casey's friendship/bond as brother figures to each other is AMAZING.

Also, Raph is Casey's wingman, let's be real.

He basically went: "I am trusting you, with my sister DO NOT SCREW THIS UP!" when it came to April.

Casey's farmhouse is his second home, it's just as important as the Lair.

I was rewatching The Monster Hunter the other night and just... aahh.. Farmhouse arc episodes are always so good.

So yeah, there's my thoughts. Thank you!

(From this ask game )

[dreamstormdragon]

Don and Raph are coffee drinkers Leo likes only tea Mikey can’t stand the stuff lol unless he puts cream and sugar in it XD

YES! I love this! To piggyback off this!

Leo got his love of tea from Master Splinter and is the one who makes it exactly how their father likes it.

Raph and Donnie are coffee drinkers and I could see Donnie, absolutely salvaging one of those fancy coffee grinders and making it like new. Raph does like a good cup of tea, since in Touch and Go, he and Mrs. Morrison had a nice evening drinking tea, but he's useless in the morning without coffee on a normal day. Mikey is a hot chocolate man, piled high with whipped cream.

[turtle--soup]

1 for all Raphs

1. What do you like or dislike about this character?

Wow. Buckle up kiddos - I may be here for some time...

Mirage Raph

My favourite thing about this idiot boy is that he goes at everything full force. Everything. There is no chill with this guy. And yes that means he's sometimes very aggressive. But this Raph is also very emotional - like when he thinks Splinter is dead when they find him in a tank in TCRI and Raph immediately bursts into tears and rushes to retrieve his sensei's body.

He can also be a silly little goofball sometimes - the antics he gets up to while the others are preparing Christmas dinner and putting up decorations in the Leonardo Microseries issue puts me in mind of 2003 and 2012 Mikey. I think he's the one that the 'teenage' part of the series title applies to most out of the Mirage Turtles, at least in the parts I've read, and I love how messy and rough he is because of that.

1987 Raph

My boy! (Heads up - I am likely to say this more than once...)

Okay, part of my love for this particular red boy is nostalgia. I grew up with the 1987 cartoon and Raph has been my favourite turtle for as long as I can remember. Little me thought he was the funniest (I was right) and Rob Paulsen was in other shows I watched (that man was everywhere back in the day it seemed) so he felt familiar too I guess?

But outside of that, I love his trademark sarcasm. Being someone who deals with Situations badly and kind of automatically responds with sarcasm and eye-rolling to cover up for the fact that I am genuinely uncomfortable or nervous... yeah, he's a relatable kinda guy! Role model. Absolute icon. The silly ever.

1990s Movie Raph

I don't know how to word this exactly, but he's really cool? Like, actually cool. In an awkward, grumpy 90s teenager kind of way.

I love the relationships this boy makes with people - he's so surly but everyone seems to be able to see straight through that, and he's just so adorable with Yoshi in the third movie! Also that bit in the third movie when he gets all excited about how clean the water is... He's a sensitive little guy really!

2003 Raph

My boy! (See?)

I love this boy like... so much. I have Many Emotions!

He is such a sweet little guy. Yeah sure, he will take every opportunity to throw shade and throw hands, but he is so protective of his family and anyone else who he thinks deserves it. Which is a surprisingly large about of people.

I love how he interacts with Tyler in Lone Raph and Cub and with Mrs Morrison in Touch and Go because I think they're good episodes to show how adaptable he is with others. He approaches different people differently and is pretty sensitive to their emotions - like when Leo is going through it at the start of season four Raph steps up and responds in the way that he thinks will help Leo most...

Yeah, I could probably go on for ages about 2003 Raph! But I won't...

2007 Raph

Ah, Mr Abandonment Issues! I love the fact that he's missing his big bro really mad that Leo hasn't gotten in contact and everything's changed and he's uncomfortable about that the others just don't seem to care that there's still crime on the streets so obviously the only thing to do is give himself an edgy name, dress up and take on all the thugs in New York City by himself. Obviously. Batman gets it.

Honestly though I love him. I just really wish there had been some less tense interaction between him and Donnie and Mikey...

2012 Raph

He does a really good impression of someone who doesn't care for someone who's so highly strung!

One of the things I love most about him is how Disney Princess he is with small animals lol

I also love his fighting style (2012 is good with fight scenes!)

2014/OotS Raph

You know when Mikey is introducing all of them and he says that Raph is a big cuddly teddy bear if teddy bears were incredibly violent? He's... not wrong!

My favourite scenes for him include the one where he's racing to save his brothers in the 2014 movie and he is just tearing through everything and everybody who gets in his way and he just throws this one guy at a wall like he's just throwing like a pillow or something (MM Raph does this too in the No Diggity scene!) and the bit in the aeroplane in OotS. Also just the fact that when he finds out that Leo told Donnie to forget about them turning into humans without consulting the others, most of Raph's issue with that is 'but what about Mikey though?' He's just... such a big baby!

Batman vs TMNT Raph

He is. So square.

Like the shape, not the 70s slang.

Just... a wall of turtle.

He is gruff as all hell and I love his relationship with Damian Wayne. Raphs just like to adopt small boys, apparently.

Has anyone read the Batman/TMNT comics btw? Just thought I would take the chance to ask! There are two whole Raphs at the same time in Batman/TMNT 3!

Mutant Mayhem Raph

--

My boy my son my terrible child!

He's so full of chaotic energy when he's in his comfort zone - fighting and messing about with his bros - but when he uncertain about something he can get really quiet and looks for reassurance. If you look at him in the background when other characters are talking, a lot of the time he looks like he's really trying to take everything in. I feel like he's naturally a worrier, like Leo, but he tries to hide it by being loud and angry. One of the things I really want to see in TOTTMNT and the MM sequel is how he gets on with Bebop and Rocksteady now they're living with them in the lair! They had a lot in common in MM and I've always wanted Bebop and Rocksteady to make friends with the turtles because I love those idiots! We'll see...

I'll just briefly mention a few more that I haven't actually seen much of...

I haven't read much of IDW but I liked Raph in the Turtles in Time time travel thingy bit that I read I guess? He seems pretty standard?

I've seen like... one episode of Rise so far. Raph seems like a sweet dude, and I love his voice. I am interested to see the tough guy/ big softie ratio getting played differently when I do get around to it!

I'm two episodes into Next Mutation. Raph is kind of a meathead but honestly I feel like that's just the vibe of the show?

Uh. I watched Choujin Densetsu-hen once many moons ago? From what I remember, Raph in that is just a Japanese take on 87 Raph?? I need to watch that again...

Um. Yeah.

tl;dr - I'm a sucker for characters who have 'opposing' character traits and 'tough guy who's actually an absolute sweetheart' is one of the best examples of that I guess?

Apologies to any Raphs I may have missed! I am very forgetful!

--

Anyway, thank you for the ask and I'm sorry I took so long to reply! (I kept getting carried away...)

[turtle--soup]

I agree we need more the boys acting like turtles. Raph grunts and growls and makes a lot of angry noises now imagine those being actual turtle noises lol

Oh honestly yeah!

I would love to see them hissing and grunting when someone attacks them from behind, and I would love to see them biting enemies if they get desperate. (I feel like Raph is the most likely candidate to do this in most iterations, but I can totally see the others doing this too! In Shredder's Revenge Splinter uses his teeth for some attacks - 1987 Splinter who was a human who got mutated into a rat - so why the turtles - who have (usually) always been turtles - can't bite people as a treat I don't know...)

Also! I love the idea of them making chirping noises when they're excited or happy. I've read a few fan fics where they do this and it's too adorable for words. Just imagining April or Casey hearing them do that for the first time and being like "did you just chirp???" and the turtles being like

"Maaaaybeeeee..."

Lol

[dreamstormdragon]

I have bigger respect for the 07 movie as an adult probably because Raph is so mood in that movie. I wish we got that sequel. Any thoughts on that? The sequel was gonna be about Mikey joining the foot. And I think the other was the boys get turned back into normal turtles? Cant remember but I do remember foot Mikey.

Oh man, I remember reading about both of those and watching this really interesting Old Turtle Den video about the cancelled TMNT movies. I really recommend checking it out:

As for my own opinion, I think it's a shame 07 wasn't given a good chance, as well, because both concepts sounded fascinating as this is an older Michelangelo, he's been around the block, he's unfortunately had to work minimum wage... and then his brothers are all back together, the team is working again and then something comes along and changes his family and he has to find a way to fix it? Fascinating shit to me and I wish we had gotten that movie or at least a concept. I think Foot Infiltration is ALWAYS an interesting concept and I love seeing it play out in the TMNT-verse and in ficts as well. I never considered, Mikey for that role though, usually I picture Raph or Leo, but if he was doing it for family, I could see Mikey doing scarily well among them. Depending on how you view which TMNT, the 07 movie is for, if this is Battle Nexus Champion, 03 Mikey... It's SCARY when he gets serious, because he is CAPABLE of doing just as much damage as Raph or Leo if he goes rogue.

I love Lost Media and discussing cancelled TMNT projects always is a fun rabbit hole because there is SO much we never got to see and it's incredible. Like a HALLMARK TMNT movie of all things?

So yeah, I think both of those movies could've been an interesting concept, with pushing Mikey into being the one to take full responsibility and shoulder the weight of the family on his shoulders. With the Last Ronin movie and game on the rise, I am very, very curious how that is going to play out and what their going to do, to ensure the tone of that story stays true to itself. I wish, in this day and age where we're getting a fully animated and mature Transformers movie, we would get a fully animated TMNT movie again, on that level. I cant' speak for the Rise movie as I still need to finish Rise, but I do wish in the future we could see another fully animated TMNT movie.

I'm thrilled, Nightwatcher Raph is getting his own comics now, which makes me hopeful maybe the 07 universe, can get some love on the big screen again... or even just a netflix movie. I will take that.

[turtle--soup]

I am the same as you it’s always Raph. I just find him so relatable lol. Like wanting to help people being passionate struggling with my emotions.

Honestly, yeah? Like I can relate to all of them to a certain extent but Raph is absolutely the one I relate to the most.

Like, every single version of this boy is secretly a big softie with a huge heart and a lot of insecurities that just get buried under layers of sarcasm and anger and emotional distancing (if anyone wants to argue with me on this they can but I really do mean every version that I have seen) and I'm like... same. 😅

I love them all, they are such good boys and great characters - but no matter what, I always end up getting attached to Raph just that tiny bit more.