Why does Donatello get the short end of the stick?

[jignat]

Hi,

Im a long time TMNT fan coming out of retirement b/c of the new movie. Anyway, I wanted to ask if if anybody feel that Donatello is unfairly shoved to the side most of the time in tmnt stories.

Except for when they need tech stuff, I feel that he is the least liked turtle of the group and doesnt get the spotlight that much.

Mirage vol 1: (only mirage i have read is 1-4, 10/11, crtny, city at war) seems like the responsible one, hates guns, etc. is repsonsible for shreds 1st death.
Ok

80 toon: is there for Tech stuff primarily. doesnt like humans. Not much memorable character stuff

90 live action: is mikey's partner in jokes , Could tell he was smart.
91: smarter/tech wise. One of the best moments in the film: Donatello talks to splinter about the tcri tube breaking , wondering about their purpose in life. It was short , but cool (its been a while 10 yrs since i saw tmnt2 )
93: totally forgot 3 lol
NM: same as above

TMNT 1 game nes: His weapon does the most damage woot!
havent seen 03 show.

[Buslady]

well i can tell you in the 2K3 series, Don seems to get the girls. -.-
He has or had a crush on April, and liked a couple other babes.
Don's gotta big piece in the newer series. They even did a Don/Raph team up eppie which was very odd. and it was great!

[Aignatius]

Nah, I don't think Don has it so bad.
Don just doesn't seem to have the kind of personality that grabs the most attention. He's the quiet one who likes to go off and work or read or draw in his sketchbook by himself often. :)

[Rooish]

I do feel that Don gets shoved aside often; in the 2003 toon, whole episodes can go by where he says only a few lines. But he does have a lot of episodes where he is very cool. Also he pretty much ownes Mirage Volume 4 comics (although they are not being published right now).

[Revan]

Although I won't argue Don's lack of screen time, he is paramount in their endevors.

2k3 -- Built the Battle Shell - Tunneler - Turtle Bike - Slider - Shell Sub...

OT -- Built the Van - Blimp - and hundreds of other things.

The episodes would have been much more dull without don and his inventions.

[CyberCubed]

Donatello had quite a number of spotlight episodes to himself in the original cartoon, not to mention he played a pivotal role in many others.

The writers kind of had Don act like the second leader in the old show, in a lot of the episodes he's giving the orders.

[Aignatius]

Although I won't argue Don's lack of screen time, he is paramount in their endevors.

2k3 -- Built the Battle Shell - Tunneler - Turtle Bike - Slider - Shell Sub...

OT -- Built the Van - Blimp - and hundreds of other things.

The episodes would have been much more dull without don and his inventions.

See? He's too busy to be in the spotlight all the time. :D

[themaxonline]

I often think that it's Don that holds the group together. Sometimes when I'm watching episodes of the old cartoon, I wonder what they'd do without him as it's usually him that explains to the others what the situation is or whatever. He may not be in the forefront but I would probably argue that when it comes to the big fight, he might be the most important turtle.

[Sage Ninja]

exactly. Donatello is the turtle that the group can not do with out. And that is in pretty much any given medium of the turtles. In the New toon the team was basically crippled when Donatello was turned into a giant monster of him self when the mutant epidemic arc of season four was in place. And Like others have mentioned, Donatello was basically top turtle in the classic series and was the second leader after Leonardo. And unlike in other mediums, Donatello was quite an effective fighter in the old toon and was pretty much the second skilled after Leonardo.

The only mediums that sort of gives Dontello the short end of the straw is the movie universe, where they tend to focus on Raphael and Leoanrdo and their agnyst the most.

[shellofinsanity]

well he was my 2nd fav after leo, and he may not be in the limelight, but i cant imagine not having him around, i mean who is gonna build all the gadgets the other 3 need, or fix what the other 3 break

[SpiderHulkThing]

i think that certain episodes may have him downplayed a little, but the same goes for almost all the turtles. Mikey seems to get the most attention in the old series as well as the new because of the comic relief. I've seen episodes where i felt that raph wasn't very invovled and the same with leo as well. I think it just depends on the episode.

[Brock]

I think Don gets respect. He's all over the new Mirage series and the first trade paperback collection of the new Tales of the TMNT are ALL Donatello issues -- he intros the stories and is featured in each comic.

[gobo]

Why does Donatello get the short end of the stick?
Nice guys finish last. :ohwell:

[LogicDonny]

He has a stick!
Oh no!! No it can't be! The stick.. speaking of the stick.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5kFrCINpl8

there's no way don can beat this guy! lol.

[ikology]

it just makes sense because of the personality he has
People in the real world who are the Donnie type get pushed to the back a lot too by attention grabbing Mikey-types, and troublemaking Raph types

and as for Leo, he probably just go the time and attention he did because he was the leader

I don't think any of us could imagine the Turtles without Donnie though
And I don't think the Turtles would last long without him either

It's true though
check it out,
<----- even in the avatar I found for the forums Donnie gets shoved under a sewer cap lol ;)

[Rooish]

Well, at least he looks happy about it. :)

[gobo]

He's crying on the inside. :lol:

[Ninjinister]

I guess you are forgetting who it was that killed the original Oroku Saki AND Baxter Stockman....

[Rooish]

Heh, yeah. Mikey was the one who was completely useless for that first issue.

[shellofinsanity]

mikey is useless the most of all the turtles lol

[Rooish]

Touché.




;)


(I actually don't think he's useless; he's my main shellback. But I think he's gotten the short end of the stick often enough.)

[Spawn Guy]

(Waits for this to spiral into a Mike bashing/defence thread)

Why does DOn get the short end of the stick? Because it broke.

AHAHAHAHAHA! Ohhhhhh my...

[blueoakleyz]

I just want to point out what an awesome pun this topic's title was

[Jo Dawn]

I think...

I think that Don is pushed to the side a bit... But that's just his character, his nature. He's quiet, unassuming. He's surrounded by three very strong, different personalities (though Leo and Raph aren't that different). Of course he's going to seem to pushed to the side.

But he's reliable. Likeable. Like Buslady said, gals flock to him because of that. (And yessss, he likes April. Just had to say that as much as possible, hehe). So, really... I wouldn't feel bad for him. Probably, he likes it that way.

And, when push comes to shove he is important, and not just for his technical capabilities.

Ya know... Like the saying says: "Speak softly, and carry a big stick."

[shellofinsanity]

yea Don is valuable, and well smarter than the rest, he has his usefullness and i cant imagine not having him around. HE is the brains, leo is the leader, raph is the muscle and mikey is the comic relief

[Sage Ninja]

Touché.




;)


(I actually don't think he's useless; he's my main shellback. But I think he's gotten the short end of the stick often enough.)

he has gotten the short end of the stick mostly in the mediums where the premise is darker and more serious. Its like the serious mediums don't want to give Michaelangelo his due as a character and just make him the comic relief.

**waits to get flamed**

[triplexxx]

Quite a huge percentage of the turtles accomplishments in 2k3 (possibly around 70-80%) would not have been possible without Donatello's expertise available. With that in mind, I don't see how exactly he was underused.

[Starkiller]

A lot of people have mentioned that Donatello is the turtle the other three could not stand to lose i.e. the silent leader. Leonardo says as much in the movie during his discussion with April. I personally think the group couldn't stand to lose one member. Mikey holds the group together with his childish, humorous qualities and creativity; Donnie supports the group with a strategic and perceptive mind; Leonardo is a born leader; Raph is the fierce defender: Heart, Mind, Spirit and Strength, which is precisely why they're so strong as a team and entertaining to watch.

[The Terror of Death]

SAINW is a good portrayal of a world without Don in the new toon.

[triplexxx]

A lot of people have mentioned that Donatello is the turtle the other three could not stand to lose i.e. the silent leader. Leonardo says as much in the movie during his discussion with April. I personally think the group couldn't stand to lose one member. Mikey holds the group together with his childish, humorous qualities and creativity; Donnie supports the group with a strategic and perceptive mind; Leonardo is a born leader; Raph is the fierce defender: Heart, Mind, Spirit and Strength, which is precisely why they're so strong as a team and entertaining to watch.
That's exactly the case, I couldn't say it better myself, every turtle is equally vital to the team. And remember what Leonardo said in Grudge Match: "If one of us goes down, we all go down." I feel this is extremely important for TMNT fans to acknowledge, which is why I stress it so much on this forum and others, so that every turtle is given equal praise and no turtle is neglected, cause if any turtle was neglected too much, it would eventually destroy TMNT fandom.

[Spawn Guy]

I fail to see how like one more than the others counts as neglect, or how it could threaten a fandom. I mean, I love Leo out of all of them, but I don't buy anything TMNT puerly for him.

[triplexxx]

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying people aren't allowed to have a favorite TMNT, even though I myself don't. The statement I made wasn't really aimed towards the fans but rather more aimed towards the creators, writers, dirctors, & producers of the cartoons, movies, and any incarnations. They are the ones who can't neglect to give the turtles equal glory on television or in any other place, because the shows and whatnot are supposed to be about all of them.

[Spawn Guy]

And we get that. Not as much as we'd like, I'll admit, but not so bad that the franchise is going to come crumbeling down around us.