Blithe
07-17-2007, 10:30 PM
Much discussion has taken place exploring the dynamics between Leonardo and Karai and certainly most of this precipitated by their shared roles as leaders. I won’t deny that given an opportunity to sit down over tea and ruminate on leadership, responsibility and ninjitsu that Leo and Karai would find some common ground. However, I haven’t seen much discourse regarding parallels between Splinter and Karai. Personally, I think those parallels are gosh-darn interesting and worthy of exploration.
One of the most poignant moments for me in City at War was the death of Karai’s daughter. I was surprised at how gut-wrenching I found it. Up until that point, we didn’t realize that this mostly off-screen aide of Karai’s was her daughter. Suddenly, we’re presented with this electric shift between Karai as imposing Foot leader and Karai as a grief-stricken mother.
Karai, like Splinter, through whatever channels, ultimately made a choice not to shield her daughter from the Foot, but to bring her directly into the fold. Neither Splinter nor Karai were ever naïve to the dangers this would undoubtedly expose their children to. For Splinter, it was a matter of honor and vengeance, for Karai… a family trade? A daughter who chose following in her mother’s footsteps (yeah, no pun intended)? Like I said, I don’t know what lead up to her daughter taking the role she did, but ultimately Karai allowed it and like Splinter, had to resign herself to the consequences that could reap.
Whereas losing one of his sons was probably a recurring nightmare for Splinter, Karai was the unfortunate parent who had this nightmare become a reality. How easily this sudden loss of a child could have so easily been Leo, Raph, Mike or Don. Lucky for Splinter (and for us) that this was not a reality in his lifetime. At that moment, who better could truly relate to Karai than Splinter himself?
Karai and Splinter could speak beyond the borders of leadership and delve into their shared (and unique) experience as parents raising children in The Foot or in the shadow of The Foot. What motivated them, what they feared, what reservations they had and what, if any, compromises they had to make with their own consciences to make the decisions they did.
Alas, my comic collection is woefully incomplete and I’ve never seen any interaction between Splinter and Karai. If there ever was any interplay between these two characters, I’d love to be clued in as to how they perceived one another. I know Karai thought well of Splinter and she was at his funeral was she not? Can’t recall and I’m too lazy to check right now.
Like I said, the concept interests me and besides which, I've always thought Karai was a brilliantly crafted character. The way I see it, the loss of her daughter in City at War wasn't just a quick way to flesh out the storyline, it was a reminder of what could have been with Splinter and the turtles. It's easy to get overly confident that the turtles will always return home safely to Splinter - after all, they are the stars of the comic book. And fortunately as it turned out, as long as Splinter was alive they managed to do so; however, as readers we need to remember not to take that for granted.
One of the most poignant moments for me in City at War was the death of Karai’s daughter. I was surprised at how gut-wrenching I found it. Up until that point, we didn’t realize that this mostly off-screen aide of Karai’s was her daughter. Suddenly, we’re presented with this electric shift between Karai as imposing Foot leader and Karai as a grief-stricken mother.
Karai, like Splinter, through whatever channels, ultimately made a choice not to shield her daughter from the Foot, but to bring her directly into the fold. Neither Splinter nor Karai were ever naïve to the dangers this would undoubtedly expose their children to. For Splinter, it was a matter of honor and vengeance, for Karai… a family trade? A daughter who chose following in her mother’s footsteps (yeah, no pun intended)? Like I said, I don’t know what lead up to her daughter taking the role she did, but ultimately Karai allowed it and like Splinter, had to resign herself to the consequences that could reap.
Whereas losing one of his sons was probably a recurring nightmare for Splinter, Karai was the unfortunate parent who had this nightmare become a reality. How easily this sudden loss of a child could have so easily been Leo, Raph, Mike or Don. Lucky for Splinter (and for us) that this was not a reality in his lifetime. At that moment, who better could truly relate to Karai than Splinter himself?
Karai and Splinter could speak beyond the borders of leadership and delve into their shared (and unique) experience as parents raising children in The Foot or in the shadow of The Foot. What motivated them, what they feared, what reservations they had and what, if any, compromises they had to make with their own consciences to make the decisions they did.
Alas, my comic collection is woefully incomplete and I’ve never seen any interaction between Splinter and Karai. If there ever was any interplay between these two characters, I’d love to be clued in as to how they perceived one another. I know Karai thought well of Splinter and she was at his funeral was she not? Can’t recall and I’m too lazy to check right now.
Like I said, the concept interests me and besides which, I've always thought Karai was a brilliantly crafted character. The way I see it, the loss of her daughter in City at War wasn't just a quick way to flesh out the storyline, it was a reminder of what could have been with Splinter and the turtles. It's easy to get overly confident that the turtles will always return home safely to Splinter - after all, they are the stars of the comic book. And fortunately as it turned out, as long as Splinter was alive they managed to do so; however, as readers we need to remember not to take that for granted.