How old were Shredder and Karai supposed to be?

[CyberCubed]

In "City at War," Karai has what seems to be a teenage daughter. That would mean Karai at least had to be in her 30's waaay back in Volume 1. Which means in Volume 4 she's in her late 40's.

Meanwhile, Oroku Saki had to be old as the Turtles grew for 15 years with Splinter after Hamato Yoshi had been killed. Likewise in Image, Shredder's daughter Pimiko seems to be in her 20's at least.

How old do you picture them in the various era's?

[Andrew NDB]

In "City at War," Karai has what seems to be a teenage daughter. That would mean Karai at least had to be in her 30's waaay back in Volume 1. Which means in Volume 4 she's in her late 40's.

Meanwhile, Oroku Saki had to be old as the Turtles grew for 15 years with Splinter after Hamato Yoshi had been killed. Likewise in Image, Shredder's daughter Pimiko seems to be in her 20's at least.

How old do you picture them in the various era's?

Always imagined Karai either being the same age as Saki or with a good few years older. She had a teenaged (or older... seemed about 20 in City at War, but hard to say) daughter in City at War, and City at War was only about 4 years after Vol. 1, #1.

[Billbeaux]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't it mentioned--somewhere--that the Foot sent Saki to NYC when he was 18?

Just talking to myself here, but I believed her daughter to be more like 16/17. Approx. the same age as the Turtles at the time. Moreover, I personally theorize that Karai got pregnant when she was very young (I'd say no older than 18 ).

[ToTheNines]

If Karai is head of Japan's Foot Clan, she pretty much has to be older than Saki.

[shuriken]

Karai was probably like 35 during City at War, having had a kid at like 18 would make her daughter be 17. Saki on the other hand was 18 when he was sent to NYC. It took him a few years to grow his Foot Clan, so he probably sought out and killed Yoshi at the age of twenty. When he fought the Turtles he would be 33 years old. Making Saki two years older than Karai. At least that's how I see it.
Well Karai could have become the head of the Japanese Foot Clan after Saki's death so not necessarily ToTheNines

[Nelson]

If Karai was 35 during CAT then she would be 50 in volume 4 . :S

[Andrew NDB]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't it mentioned--somewhere--that the Foot sent Saki to NYC when he was 18?

Yeah. TMNT #1.

Just talking to myself here, but I believed her daughter to be more like 16/17. Approx. the same age as the Turtles at the time. Moreover, I personally theorize that Karai got pregnant when she was very young (I'd say no older than 18 ).

Obviously there's nothing to dispute that, necessarily... but based on what?

[Billbeaux]

Yeah. TMNT #1.



*facepalm*



Obviously there's nothing to dispute that, necessarily... but based on what?

Nothing to dispute it, but nothing to concretely support it either. I guess it all depends on how old you want to assume Karai is in v4. For my money, I believe her to be an extremely well preserved 50-55 at that point (approximately a decade older than Casey...give or take). As for the daughter's age...again, total toss-up. Without digging into my C@W run, I seem to recall that up until her death she was pretty non-distinct. Whatever the particulars, I think we can pretty much agree that Karai was a young mother (18 might be pushing it...but she couldn't have been too old).

[Andrew NDB]

My only problem with it is that Karai doesn't strike me as someone that would've been an irresponsible youth, squeezing out kids as a teenager and all that. In fact, culturally... you just don't see a lot of that in Japan, and that's not even getting into something as closely knit and guarded as the Foot Clan.

My thoughts are that she was about 40 in City at War, maybe a little older. I don't know that she necessarily became leader of the Foot by sheer prowess, so I suspect she became such by blood -- i.e., her dad was the Faceless One, he died, and as the eldest child she became leader.

The only thing that's a little off is how she'd be well over 100 in that future Tales with Raphael in Japan... but who knows what sort of modern medical marvels she was enjoying. And as a Foot member, who can literally bring back the dead with worms... who knows.

[Billbeaux]

For what it's worth, she sure looks her age in that future issue.

40 in C@W wouldn't be out of the question. That would put the birth of her daughter at some point in her early/mid twenties, if you hold with the (admittedly plucked out of thin air) theory that her daughter was approximately the Turtles' age. I don't necessarily know that it would be a matter of her being irresponsible (although she is human...). Perhaps she was married to/romantically involved with another (older?) clan member and nature took its course.

By that reckoning, it would put her at approx. 55 in v4. Given that she's essentially an Olympic-caliber athlete, it's not a stretch to suppose she might still be at or near her physical peak at that age.


BTW, correct me if I'm wrong, but I have Casey's age, circa v4 as being approx. 42/43 (if you use "Hun" as a reference point, which states that he was 17 when Hun attacked him eleven years prior, which would make him 28 in that issue).