Who Holds The Team Together?

[MikeandRaph87]

I read a listing article on CBR related to Donatello. It cites the 2003 episode " Same as it Never Was" that shows Donatello holds the four together. I always thought of Michelangelo as the heart of the team. Is it Mike? Don? One of the other two? Or does it depend upon the version?

[newfan]

Though there would be arcs/eps over the versions showing each having qualities here I wouldn't really want to choose one over seeing it as more a team effort. I mean though I would lean towards Leo if I had to choose given his role/responsibility/rounded character, they all bring their own contributions/qualities which would contribute here.
2007 showed them all doing their own thing with Leo being absent, but that was just the story for that movie. I don't know what would happen there in other versions(including Splinter stepping to prevent that).

[Original TMNT Cartoon Fan]

Leonardo leads, so he has the ultimate responsibility. But Michelangelo may be the heart.

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

I'd argue the loss of any one Turtle would devastate the team.

Except for Raph. They can get by without Raph.

[Utrommaniac]

Definitely depends on the version. I very much stand by Mike being the one who holds things together in IDW. Especially when things got really bad (like when Don was Mostly Dead). When Raph and Leo are the ones going at each other's throats, it's Mike who gets them to sit down, shut up, and calm down.

Which is probably the reason why in the "Too Many Technodromes Future", Leo made Mike the leader, and his response to not understand why he made such a big bellyache about leadership being a "burden".


In 2012, it was Leo. The whole dynamic crumbled when he left them on their own, especially while Raphael was trying his hand at leadership

[FredWolfLeonardo]

Master Splinter

[Andrew NDB]

Splinter but barring that, Leonardo. It is literally his whole purpose.

[Original TMNT Cartoon Fan]

Originally Posted by FredWolfLeonardo

Master Splinter

But when the turtles are on long-lasting missions without Splinter, it's up to Leonardo.

[DarkFell]

The human allies. (April, Casey Jones, ect.)
I'm going to assume that some of their mutant allies help to keep the Turtle brothers together.
Master Splinter.
Each of the Turtle bro's trying to keep some form of peace / compromise between each other.
Even the encounters / fights have kept the Turtles together.

[FredWolfLeonardo]

Originally Posted by Original TMNT Cartoon Fan

But when the turtles are on long-lasting missions without Splinter, it's up to Leonardo.

Even when the turtles are out on their own, away from their master, his legacy still precedes over them.

Without his ideals having been taught to them in their younger years, they wouldn't be able to hold themselves as a team at all.

[DonnieTello]

Like Cylons said, if any one of the turtles go missing it usually causes problems. Leo is there so they can focus on the task at hand, Raph is there to protect them, and Don is there to find a solution. But without Mikey to keep their spirits up they would all just go off and do their own thing, so my vote rests with him. It makes sense for him to be the heart of the team because he's probably the most emotionally intelligent.

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

Turtles did okay in 2012 without Splinter, right?

Of course, as soon as Splinter passed in Mirage, the family split up... and Mikey STILL hasn't made it back to Earth.

In most iterations, Leo is the one who holds everything together.

When Mike split off from the family in IDW, it didn't ruin everything. Whereas Leo and Don getting brainwashed/shellshocked by the Foot DID. And everybody was fine without Raph's grumpy ass back in the very beginning.

[Utrommaniac]

Yeah, it was pretty much just "I MISS RAPHAEL"

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

Originally Posted by Utrommaniac

Yeah, it was pretty much just "I MISS RAPHAEL"

When Raph runs off in Image, the others always forget him for awhile. Dude had time to take over the entire NYC Foot Clan while the other three were dealing with their own alien/cyborg sh!t in Chicago.

[Utrommaniac]

I mean, yeah, it's kinda easy for things to slip with all that going on.

[IndigoErth]

All of them in their own different ways really. Though on the average day I think it's Leo and Mikey the most. Leo in the physical sense, and Mikey in the emotional/family relationship angle.

Donnie on occasion where only he can save the day and his famliy via his skills and talents. Raph.... he's a tougher one, but he can step up when needed. Though I guess he also makes the others pull together by making them worry about him sometimes. lol

Originally Posted by CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy

I'd argue the loss of any one Turtle would devastate the team.

Except for Raph. They can get by without Raph.

lol Poor Raph.

I dunno, Mikey needs him as Raph is the one who understands (and enjoys interacting/hanging out with) him the most.

Leo needs Raph to keep him on his toes and be pushed to grow as a leader and oldest brother. And to be there to step up if Leo's knocked out of the game.

Donnie... Honestly, I'm not sure. It's kind of hard to even solidly define the relationship between him and Raph. Outside of Raph sometimes being portrayed as picking on him a little, going with the whole bully/nerd dynamic, it otherwise seems just kind of neutral. They exist together, but don't really seem to have as much of a connection.

Though Leo and Mikey are kind of like that too, so maybe it's just a case of the brothers who are the most different from each other.

[FredWolfLeonardo]

Well, if we're defining "holding the team together" as being effective in battle together, you could make a pretty good arguement for Donatello.

His inventions are so OP in many incarnations that not even the combined help of the remaining turtles, splinter and other allies can compare as being critical in winning the fight.

[Prowler]

Originally Posted by FredWolfLeonardo

Even when the turtles are out on their own, away from their master, his legacy still precedes over them.

Without his ideals having been taught to them in their younger years, they wouldn't be able to hold themselves as a team at all.

Yep. This.

[Powder]

I think we could argue in favor of each turtle, it kinda varies on each iteration.

Donnie is the glue in the OT, Raph in Rise, Leo in quite a number of them, Mikey in IDW, perhaps.

[victory_angel]

Each member of the Turtles has their own roll to play.

Leo is the leader so he is the commanding influence and the one who guides them in what they do as a team. But he holds the responsibility in knowing that one wrong move could result in one if not all his brothers getting hurt or worse on a mission.

Raph is the strength of the team, he is the one who generally punches first and asks questions never. But he also is protective of his brothers so he would have their back whenever they are in danger. Such in how in the 2k3 he would guard Donatello's back on missions where the Genius Turtle would be left vulnerable.
Or in the. 2012 series where he angrily yells, "No one hits Mikey but me!" while they are fighting Splinter.

Mikey is the heart or light of the team, he is the one who reminds his brothers of who they are and what they are fighting for. Such as how in Christmas Aliens, Mikey tells his family that Holiday Cheer shouldn't be with family alone and convinces them to help deliver presents at an Orphanage. He is the one who sees the good even in things look at their worst. Such as when 2k12 Mikey hugs Raph and tells him that Splinter would be just fine even though they all have to fear the worst. He has a childish optimism that lightens even the darkest of moments and helps people warm up to the Turtles more easily then they would if it was just Leo, Raph, or Donnie alone. Such as the little dance 2k12 Mikey does to when they approach Tang Shen.

Donnie is the balance of the team. His mask is purple because he is essentially a combination of both Leo and Raph in that he is often calm and collected like Leo and looks for the solutions that would ensure the conclusion of the mission with everyone unharmed. But like Raph, if you harm someone he cares for you are in for a world of hurt as you face his wrath. This concept is more apparent in the 2k12 version as he does have a rather scary temper sometimes. But aside from being a screamer when he is frustrated...he does fiercely protect those he sees as his family at all costs. Such as being prepared to kill Karai if that absolutely needed to happen when he is fighting her in Target: April O'Neil. But it does show up at times in the 2k3 Donnie such as that moment in Back to the Sewers where he is attempting to restore Splinter before he is informed by Stockman that his brothers would die if he didn't do something to help.
Like Mikey, Donnie does have a grounding influence on his family, but while Mikey is more the Spirit of the team, Donnie is a calming presence and a voice of reason within the family that is often ignored.

The best analogy I've seen with the turtles is having their team be described as a tower. Because a team must stand or fall together and every part no matter how insignificant they may seem is just as important as the stronger parts. If they were, all the same, they would be advertising everything they are to the enemy leaving them defenseless. But as it stands, everyone has a role to play within the structure of their family and that creates a harmony that they must utilize to their advantage in battle.


Leonardo is the tower itself because he has the fortitude to carry the team and keep everything standing.

Raph and Mikey (April and Casey also fit this role) are the walls of the tower and represent the front line and carry both the strength and spirit of the team. They are the ones who are both arms and defends the family. Raph and Casey are the powerhouses who say that anyone who wants to harm their loved ones has to go through them. April and Mikey are the ones who try to keep the situation from escalating beyond their control.

Donnie is the foundation because he keeps everyone stable. He looks for situations that could be used to their advantage. He is the calming presence that helps keeps Leo and Raph from losing their tempers in battle or with each other. If he can't mediate an argument he looks after Mikey who is also affected emotionally by the brewing conflict between his older brothers. Like Leo, Donnie does take a diplomatic route in a situation where he does try to talk down a conflict rather than jump to the "We'll settle this with fists" mentality that does arise in situations. When a mission plan is going south, Donnie quickly comes up with solutions to get the desired outcome. Much of the time in TMNT Donnie is brushed off as the weakest member of the team just because he isn't the strongest fighter. This is something that even the other Turtles are guilty of. But as the series progresses it becomes apparent that what makes Donnie truly a threat is his intellect not his skill as a ninja. He also possesses skills they rely on and need to in order to survive. Not just in being the technician of the family. While all the turtles are skilled in basic triage, Donnie is the only one who can be considered a medic since he knows how to handle and deal with serious injuries, treat illnesses, and develop cures for poisons.