Why do people act like Turtles having a crush on April has never been done before?

[CyberCubed]

In the first two movies, Michaelangelo had a huge crush on April. In the second movie when Don is calling from their new lair, Michaelangelo grabs the phone away from him and blows kisses to April through the phone. This is during the, "Gimmie the phone" grabbing sequence when they're moving to their new lair.

In the first movie when they're watching April on TV in the news, they refer to her as a, "babe."

Its only in the cartoons and I believe the comics that the Turtles never had a crush on April, but it was quite blatant in the first two live-action movies. So the Nick show doing this with Donatello is nothing new.

[SherlockJr]

You could also argue that Donatello was crushing on April in 2k3, but that was never really emphasized all that much.

[Zany Orange Dude]

I don't quite understand why many are acting this way myself. But my guess is most people just don't like the idea of the two together in a romantic relationship. Or maybe it's because the company came out and blatantly stated that Don was going to have a crush on her. I am not sure.:ohwell:

I personally don't have a problem with Don having feelings for April, so as long as they don't get over the top mushy with it.:tcool:

[SherlockJr]

Probably because they outright stated a relationship (or at least, a one-sided interest on Don's part) was going to happen.

I hope it doesn't get mushy either, though I highly doubt that will happen. The focus of TMNT isn't romance, after all...

[gobo]

Why do people act like Turtles having a crush on April has never been done before?
Selective memory...

[CyberCubed]

Probably because they outright stated a relationship (or at least, a one-sided interest on Don's part) was going to happen.

I hope it doesn't get mushy either, though I highly doubt that will happen. The focus of TMNT isn't romance, after all...

Actually they said a relationship would never happen, they're just playing Don's crush on her for comic relief.

[Jester]

Heck...there's a whole scene of the 1st movie dedicated to the Turtles ribbing Raph for blushing when April mentions him on air...

[oldmanwinters]

Heck...there's a whole scene of the 1st movie dedicated to the Turtles ripping Raph for blushing when April mentions him on air...

And, of course, in the original cut, it was gonna be a little bit more intense than that!

Still... April has never been a contemporary of the TMNT age-wise until this Nick project. I think the teen-mance angle may be what's making most folks nervous.

[Spitfire]

Its only in the cartoons and I believe the comics that the Turtles never had a crush on April, but it was quite blatant in the first two live-action movies. So the Nick show doing this with Donatello is nothing new.

So in everything but two movies then. It may not be a new idea but it's most certainly a horrible one.

[Jester]

Still... April has never been a contemporary of the TMNT age-wise until this Nick project. I think the teen-mance angle may be what's making most folks nervous.
April: You're impossibly fast. And strong. Your skin is... dark green, and scaly. Your eyes change color... and sometimes you speak like - like you're from a different world. You don't go into the sunlight. I know what you are.
Donatello: Say it... out loud. Say it.
April: Mutant Turtle.
Donatello: Are you afraid?
April: [turns to face him] ... no.

What?

[mysterycolor]

April: You're impossibly fast. And strong. Your skin is... dark green, and scaly. Your eyes change color... and sometimes you speak like - like you're from a different world. You don't go into the sunlight. I know what you are.
Donatello: Say it... out loud. Say it.
April: Mutant Turtle.
Donatello: Are you afraid?
April: [turns to face him] ... no.

What?
you had to take it there huh jester.

[Jester]

you had to take it there huh jester.
When Adam mentioned "Teen-mance" it was the first thing that came to mind.

Thank you IMDB for the quote that I modified.

[SherlockJr]

Actually they said a relationship would never happen, they're just playing Don's crush on her for comic relief.

Thank God. If it's comic relief or only shown through subtext, I'll be content.

[FearlessLeader]

April: You're impossibly fast. And strong. Your skin is... dark green, and scaly. Your eyes change color... and sometimes you speak like - like you're from a different world. You don't go into the sunlight. I know what you are.
Donatello: Say it... out loud. Say it.
April: Mutant Turtle.
Donatello: Are you afraid?
April: [turns to face him] ... no.

What?

http://oi44.tinypic.com/2wfpv02.jpg

[BubblyShell22]

I think it's the fact that Don and April will be the same age that has everyone on edge. But if it's a subtle type of crush like he had in 2K3, I won't mind it.

[Candy Kappa]

April: You're impossibly fast. And strong. Your skin is... dark green, and scaly. Your eyes change color... and sometimes you speak like - like you're from a different world. You don't go into the sunlight. I know what you are.
Donatello: Say it... out loud. Say it.
April: Mutant Turtle.
Donatello: Are you afraid?
April: [turns to face him] ... no.

What?

Bad Jester, bad!

[sdp]

I thought they also crushed on her in the OT, at least in early episodes they'd fight and get jealous if April specifically mentioned one of the turtles when she was reporting right? Plus the movies and Don/April in 2k3, hell even the arcade game had some turtles/april moments. I mean it was never a huge part of the plot or anything of the like but it was there.

[EvilStarLegacy]

I think it's just because there's 4 guys and 1 girl in the group. They might not be in love, but don't tell me you don't try to impress a girl(or used to if you're older) when you're with friends. I know they're turtles, but they act like real teenage guys.

[Stingray69]

I thought they also crushed on her in the OT, at least in early episodes they'd fight and get jealous if April specifically mentioned one of the turtles when she was reporting right? Plus the movies and Don/April in 2k3, hell even the arcade game had some turtles/april moments. I mean it was never a huge part of the plot or anything of the like but it was there.

Yea I remember in the game when you save april. She walks up gives your turtle a kiss and they blush and a heart pops up above there head.

[Cowabunga Carl]

I can't remember the episode of the OT but in one when she is reporting the guys start arguing over who she winked at, then she says, "If you must know I was winking at Splinter." So the Turtles crushing on her isn't anything new.

Heck in the episode where April shows up in 2k3 Don says "Leave me and April alone Mikey we're trying to work." To which he replies sarcasticly, "So it's me and Apri now is it?"

[Konchadunga]

I agree with what a guy said about it in an interview I read; the main reason is probably that most people were still kids when it last happened. When you think about it, most fans of these shows are going to be at the age where they think all romance is gross, but they aren't sexually mature enough to find interspecies romance uniquely objectionable. Also because of the young age demographic, there's going to be a limit to how far they will go. It's not like they can show Donatello having sex with April.

Then again... (http://www.i-mockery.com/minimocks/sexual-games/19.php)

[ZariusTwo]

I wouldnt mind April falling for one of the Turtles if it were written right. Remember Alan Moore's Swamp Thing run? When he made Swampie's relationship with his love interest public? Something like that would make for engaging comics.

[Konchadunga]

I confess I've never read Swamp Thing. Still, it's worth noting that a world containing mutants who are arguably more human than animal would probably have somewhat different ideas of what is or isn't beastial. This world thinks it's gross because no other animal looks or thinks that much like humans. If they did, though, I could definitely see how they could fall in love, despite being different species.

However, I think they should steer away from any extensive plots about how an engaged interspecies couple has to deal with the standards of a society that frowns upon such things. It could make a great SciFi story, but it seems like it would detract from the action, adventure, comedy, and other virutes TMNT is valued for, and it's probably too deep for kids.

[stormbringer]

I confess I've never read Swamp Thing. Still, it's worth noting that a world containing mutants who are arguably more human than animal would probably have somewhat different ideas of what is or isn't beastial. This world thinks it's gross because no other animal looks or thinks that much like humans. If they did, though, I could definitely see how they could fall in love, despite being different species.

However, I think they should steer away from any extensive plots about how an engaged interspecies couple has to deal with the standards of a society that frowns upon such things. It could make a great SciFi story, but it seems like it would detract from the action, adventure, comedy, and other virutes TMNT is valued for, and it's probably too deep for kids.

Yeah, a storyline like that would probably be handled better in the comics.

[ZariusTwo]

It could make a great SciFi story, but it seems like it would detract from the action, adventure, comedy, and other virutes TMNT is valued for, and it's probably too deep for kids.


I take it you never watched Gargoyles...

[nintendo2600]

I don't think it's a good idea. Myself I'm not into the whole beastiality bit finding it's way into the TMNT storyline. As "harmless" as they might try to make it in my opinion it has no place.

[stormbringer]

I take it you never watched Gargoyles...

Gargoyles is a good example of how it could be done well, but I'm not sure this show will want the kind of storytelling that Gargoyles had. That show was pretty much a primetime drama in animated form.

[Konchadunga]

I think this show is probably skewing a bit younger than Gargoyles did, and Gargoyles also has the benefit of being it's own entity. TMNT is the sort of franchise that will always judged by how well it fills the shoes of past incarnations. With the large amount of different past incarnations, it certainly has a number of options, but it always has to live up to at least one of them, and many would like it to live up to more.

[Hermano Dyvas]

TMNT and April should never go beyond friendship. Anything beyond that would just be horrifying.

[Mr._Mutant_Man]

you had to take it there huh jester.

You knew someone would. I was thinking "Twilight" myself.

I don't see anything wrong with the Turtles having a crush on April. Odds are the writers aren't going to take it too far, and since the Turtles display so many emotions, I can buy that they would have feelings for April if she was around them all the time, even if it was implausible due to species differences. I think everyone can remember back when they were a teenager, and had a crush on someone that you never had a chance with. Well this would be a really strange version of that. :)

[ZariusTwo]

TMNT and April should never go beyond friendship. Anything beyond that would just be horrifying.

Fifty bucks says you'd like it if it were handled correctly. The fear of the unknown is a lot worse.

I think you'll see it happen one day, in the comics or on tv because It's one of the only dramatic touchstones left to tell with the characters, I don't think they can be billed as "teenagers" and NOT go through something a lot of teenagers reasonably go through. April also needs more dimension, hooking up with Casey is nice, but it seems too obvious, we don't know what it'd be like with a Turtle, hell the people who say it's horrific or disgusting usually make for good antagonists in fiction.

Marrisa Faireborn spent a whole TF series kissing Optimus Prime, Jessica Rabbit fell for Roger, nothing in fiction says "this cannot happen". All things, good, bad, and ugly, eventually find a way to manifest themselves.

I used to be in the same boat as everyone else "Eww, it's disgusting, eww it's just stupid", but the more I think about it, the more I dabble in the many forms of a love story (which don't have to neccersarily be about sex), the more sense it makes for characters to experiment.

[Konchadunga]

All things, good, bad, and ugly, eventually find a way to manifest themselves.

Also, speaking of bad and ugly things manifesting, I'd much rather a turtle fall for April than some crappy fancharacter like Venus. (Because let's face it; that's effectively what she is.). April has been the fanservice character since the 1987 series, and in the 2003 series she and Donatello definitely hit it off.

I also have no problem pairing Mikey with Kala, Raphael with Mona Lisa, and Leo with Karai, and so far Donatello has never really had a romantic interest. I'm not bothered by the possible subversion of her getting with Casey either; differences are what make new adaptations worth watching. I liked seeing Kid Flash get with Jinx in the Teen Titans cartoon or Superboy get with Ms. Martian in the Young Justice cartoon. They're flawed shows and rather inacurate to the comics, but I like them a lot better than the dreary route the comics have taken recently.

[ssjup81]

I also have no problem pairing Mikey with Kala, Raphael with Mona Lisa, and Leo with Karai, and so far Donatello has never really had a romantic interest.
What about Donatello x Irma from the OT series. :tlol:

That aside, I think people may have a prob with this crush thing because it has already been stated that Donny will crush on April as opposed to just hinting around to it and having it open to speculation. Another problem some might have is April being a peer this time as opposed to an older sister or aunt like figure like in pretty much every other version of the series. We know it's not happening, but I guess some are worried that the writers might try to truly imply something with the two beyond friendship or have the feelings mutual or something.

As for me...I don't have too much of a prob with one of them crushing on her...just as long as it stays a one-sided crush on Donny's side (which by the sounds of it, it will). I think going through that would make him an even more interesting character given that he's serious and seeing how he has to subtly deal with it, in a comedic way of course, will be cool to see.:trazz:

[Konchadunga]

But here's an important thing to ask yourself: Would you be saying the same thing if it was Casey Jones crushing on April? Were you annoyed that it was reciprocal in the 2003 show, and they eventually married? If you answer no to any of these questions, then the only logical reason is that Donatello isn't human.

Contrary to what you say, their young age is not a factor in making it taboo, because they're both minors and minors do fall in love in real life. True; it often doesn't last in that form, but that doesn't mean it's one-sided while it does. Opposition to the idea of a human/mutant relationship strikes me as very akin to homophobia. No offense to people who express such opposition, but many times this expression is in the form of "Ew; gross." You can think an atypical romance is gross all you want, but that doesn't make it any less real.

So while I don't want Nick to make such a romance a huge part of their show, having it be there at all could teach young viewers to be tolerant of people who lead lives with aspects they might find distasteful. I've heard that one of the turtle's actors from the Old Toon is gay. I bet, however; that kids who saw him as one of their heroes wouldn't stop seeing him as such upon learning that, even if they had homophobic prejudice; instead they would likely rethink their prejudice. Yet his homosexuality was never really publicized. Here they could go further.

[ssjup81]

But here's an important thing to ask yourself: Would you be saying the same thing if it was Casey Jones crushing on April? Were you annoyed that it was reciprocal in the 2003 show, and they eventually married? If you answer no to any of these questions, then the only logical reason is that Donatello isn't human. I didn't know that Casey and April married in the 2k3 series. I've never seen it. Like I've said on other parts of the board, the series seemed to sneak under the radar for me. That aside, April and Casey hooking up is no biggie at all to me, since that's how it was for the comics. I also thought that it was obvious that that's probably another factor why people wouldn't want Donny to crush on April or have it open and set in stone that he will...because he isn't human.Contrary to what you say, their young age is not a factor in making it taboo, because they're both minors and minors do fall in love in real life. True; it often doesn't last in that form, but that doesn't mean it's one-sided while it does. Opposition to the idea of a human/mutant relationship strikes me as very akin to homophobia. No offense to people who express such opposition, but many times this expression is in the form of "Ew; gross." You can think an atypical romance is gross all you want, but that doesn't make it any less real. I don't see how you can really compare a homosexual relationship to a cross-species one. There's nothing wrong with homosexuality...going with another species, is a bit odd to me. I don't mind the crush thing, but for it to go beyond that is iffy to me....but yes, I am a bit of a hypocrite as I loved Raphael x Ninjara in the Archie comics.

Oh, as for the minor thing, I only said it'd be easier for them to have the opportunity to fall for her because she'd be on their level as opposed to a sisterly figure or a motherly one, like in previous versions and mediums where she was an adult doing her own thing and living out her adult life. As their peer, she'd probably hang around with them more.So while I don't want Nick to make such a romance a huge part of their show, having it be there at all could teach young viewers to be tolerant of people who lead lives with aspects they might find distasteful. You can do that without romance, you know. You can teach that we should be tolerant and respectful of all people in a general sense, not just for romance reasons. People would have to learn that about the Turtles way before romance stuff. That aside, I would hate for the show to have a lot of romance in it, unless it dealt with minor characters. Romance, in an action-based series, seems to drag the series down when involving main characters unless it's a main character with a minor character. I've heard that one of the turtle's actors from the Old Toon is gay. I bet, however; that kids who saw him as one of their heroes wouldn't stop seeing him as such upon learning that, even if they had homophobic prejudice; instead they would likely rethink their prejudice. Yet his homosexuality was never really publicized. Here they could go further.Cam Clarke is the gay one who voiced Leonardo and I personally loved his voicing of Leonardo (especially early Leonardo where he sounded really heroic). I kinda disagree with all you said up there, though. Maybe back then where it was rare to see or hear about gay people in a general sense, yeah, but not now. People are more open to it now and also have more exposure to it and knowledge of it. As for myself, I wouldn't have cared one way or the other. I didn't find out about Cam until I was an adult.

[Stingray69]

I don't see what the big deal is. It's not like there going to explore a sexual relationship between the two.

[gobo]

Well, darn. :P

[Vegeta]

April's hot, the tmnt are similar to humans, and turtles have sexual needs. Why is it a surprise they would want to bone April? What else should they be attracted to, non mutant female turtles?

[Konchadunga]

This just reaffirms my earlier arguements: You can't just apply our world's logic to that of the TMNT. It doesn't work because the line between humans and non-human animals is just too thick in our world, hence we call interspecies romance beastiality, but things aren't that cut-and-dried in a world where it seems all chemically-induced motivation produces creatures who are in essence, close to human. Certainly, the mutant turtles have much more in common with athletic humans than normal, slow-moving turtles.

[Metropoliskid41]

I don't see what the big deal is. It's not like there going to explore a sexual relationship between the two.

Exactly, especially since they are really emphasizing the teenage aspect of the series, with the turtles and April being like 13 or 14. If she did have a relationship with one of the turtles I don't think we'd see anything past the occasional holding hands and phone call. I wouldn't mind seeing a Leo and Karai have kind of a Spidey-Black Cat thing dialed down a bit to a 13-14 year old level say in season 3 or so after she has been introduced into the mythos. I don't want any bestial stuff or anything. But I think it can be handled well just as it was in Gargoyles and even as its tackled with Brian dated women in Family Guy.

[Plasticplayhouse]

Yeah its definitely not new, but I'd prefer it not be rehashed. Just feels a little funny to me. You see it in fan art quite a bit. One of the turtles making out with april...yuck! well, at least its not as bad as the fan art depicting brother turtle on brother turtle action, that s#!ts just nasty and its all over deviant art. Whats wrong with people?

[ZariusTwo]

Yeah its definitely not new, but I'd prefer it not be rehashed. Just feels a little funny to me. You see it in fan art quite a bit. One of the turtles making out with april...yuck!

See, reactions like this would make for great fictious racists in the comics if they ever played this scenario out.

[Konchadunga]

Of course if they did that, they'd become quite a target for moral guardians. However, TMNT has always been one thanks to the weapons.

[Coola Yagami]

Honestly, it would be realistic to have a crush on (and even desire) April. She's attractive and is the only female hanging around them the whole time. The beastiality thing, IMO, doesn't even apply here because the real world has no animals that walk, talk and act and even look humanoid enough to be on the same level. Despite them being turtles, April treats them like family, and the Foot and such treat them as they would any other human enemy.

Should a relationship happen? Probably not... it would be too weird, and a Nick show is too kiddy for that kind of twilight romance jazz anyways... even Casey and April barely had any screen time in the 2K3 show because hey, it's an action packed show, not a soap opera.

It would be weird to see them with April, but they should at least be allowed to find her attractive. Minor love interests would be cool, but again, it's a childish show, so I don't see anything past a Leo/Lotus type relationship that is never allowed to actually flourish. Most cartoons have a pre-set staus quo that doesn't change.. which why I liked how Archie comics actually let Ninjara stay and live with the Turtles for a good while before she finally left.

I always find it funny how they usually try to find someone for Raph, probably the most antisocial one.. and as it showed with Ninjara, probably too angry and such to keep anyone. Mikey, being the most human of them, seemed better fitting for finding someone, or at least longing for something like that compared to his brothers.

On another level, poor Master Splinter. He was a human in the old show. He must have missed being able to go out with women before. He seemed to have completely lost himself and completely succumb to just being the sensei rat master....

[TobTurn]

I guess the difference this time is April's age. She's a teenager now, and the turtles kind of actually have a chance with her. (although I don't think many girls would be into mutated turtles). I don't mind them having a crush on her, it's just kinda weird because they're not the same species. As long as one of the turtles don't actually end up with her I'm fine with it.

[Plasticplayhouse]

Honestly, it would be realistic to have a crush on (and even desire) April. She's attractive and is the only female hanging around them the whole time. The beastiality thing, IMO, doesn't even apply here because the real world has no animals that walk, talk and act and even look humanoid enough to be on the same level.

lol, sorry dude but even if i saw a 5 foot female turtle/rat/cat/whatever walking and talking huminoid like, i still would NOT want to doink it.

[Gyt Kaliba]

I agree with the people saying that it wouldn't really be 'beastiality' anymore for one of the Turtles to be with April. Honestly, I'd say if one of them were to be with an actual turtle would be beastiality more than them having a relationship with April. Yes, they may be a different species from April, but as they're all sentient, I'd say it's up to them - or would be if they were real and all. And it would be a pretty interesting plot point to see how the world would react in-story.

Not that I'm expecting the Nick show to take advantage of this idea. :P

[ssjup81]

I guess the difference this time is April's age. She's a teenager now, and the turtles kind of actually have a chance with her. (although I don't think many girls would be into mutated turtles). I don't mind them having a crush on her, it's just kinda weird because they're not the same species. As long as one of the turtles don't actually end up with her I'm fine with it.This is what I was trying to say earlier. It's the age thing. I have no prob with them crushing on her, I find it cute, but with her as a teen...they may have a real chance with her and that sorta weirds me out.

[Metropoliskid41]

Well its a comic book so you can't really take it too serious and get real upset about it. I really don't think it's beastiality when they are sentinent walking talking turtles with souls. I'm not saying I want to see them rail April or anything like that. I'm just saying it's not as gross as its being made out to be. I don't see how its any different than a human in comics having a relationship with a humanoid extra terrestial. Example Charles Xavier and Lilandra from the Shi'ar Empire. Another example of a mutant-human relationship would be Ben Grimm with Alicia in Fantastic Four. Those are accepted by comic book fans with out much dispute, I really don't see how this is any different. Lilandra and Xavier are 2 different species, but no one gets all worked up about it. And Ben is a cosmic ray mutated man that looks much more freakish than a mutant turtle, yet he is able to have a relationship with a Alicia. Its the classic Beauty & the Beast scenario that even Disney tackled.

So I'm saying that it could be done tastefully and isn't totally unreasonable. I'm not a fan of the obscene fan art or turtle cest stuff at all. I don't want it to be graphic at all. But if Mikey has a crush on April I'm not going to be grossed out about it if they are "dating" or whatever. I think it would fall into the same categories as the examples I listed, so no big deal.

[Stingray69]

Well its a comic book so you can't really take it too serious and get real upset about it. I really don't think it's beastiality when they are sentinent walking talking turtles with souls. I'm not saying I want to see them rail April or anything like that. I'm just saying it's not as gross as its being made out to be. I don't see how its any different than a human in comics having a relationship with a humanoid extra terrestial. Example Charles Xavier and Lilandra from the Shi'ar Empire. Another example of a mutant-human relationship would be Ben Grimm with Alicia in Fantastic Four. Those are accepted by comic book fans with out much dispute, I really don't see how this is any different. Lilandra and Xavier are 2 different species, but no one gets all worked up about it. And Ben is a cosmic ray mutated man that looks much more freakish than a mutant turtle, yet he is able to have a relationship with a Alicia. Its the classic Beauty & the Beast scenario that even Disney tackled.


Man those are all good points. The beauty and the beast analogy is probably the closest to the turtles/april. Really there more human then turtle. There body may be a little turtle but there brains are all human. And come on dont go saying no girls would find them attractive look how many people draw animal characters in a sexual way.

[Coola Yagami]

lol, sorry dude but even if i saw a 5 foot female turtle/rat/cat/whatever walking and talking huminoid like, i still would NOT want to doink it.

The scary part is... that's not what all the poor misunderstood 'will never get laid otherwise' Twilight-obsessed fangirls would say....

[Andrew NDB]

lol, sorry dude but even if i saw a 5 foot female turtle/rat/cat/whatever walking and talking huminoid like, i still would NOT want to doink it.

Probably the sanest thing posted in this thread so far.

[BubblyShell22]

I don't have a problem with an April/Don crush at all. Heck, I'm an avid Leo/Karai shipper from 2K3. I don't think it's wrong at all if handled correctly like it was in 2K3 with Don's little crush on April. It was also handled well in the movie, so it's no big deal.

[Konchadunga]

The scary part is... that's not what all the poor misunderstood 'will never get laid otherwise' Twilight-obsessed fangirls would say....

For that matter I think there are a number of TMNT-obsessed fangirls who would doink them. Or at least wank while they doink each other... :teek:

[SherlockJr]

For that matter I think there are a number of TMNT-obsessed fangirls who would doink them. Or at least wank while they doink each other... :teek:

Dear God-- my mind's eye! :dead:

[stormbringer]

dear god-- my mind's eye! :dead:

bwahahaaaa!

[gobo]

Dunno if I should lol or puke first... :tconfuse:

[SherlockJr]

Dunno if I should lol or puke first... :tconfuse:

Just do both at once.

It's scary to think of fangirls (and fanboys) wanking off to Tcest art. I mean, I'm okay with yaoi... but incest? With giant mutant turtles?

Anyways, I don't think there should ever be a canon April x Turtle relationship, but something like Don having a crush on her is fine.

[Zany Orange Dude]

I want to see the humor that Don's crush on April will bring into play! Such as Donnie stuttering over his words like Porky Pig or just rambling on and on in a nervous fit.:tlol:

[Konchadunga]

So long as that bit doesn't completely dominate his character. I thought it was just cringe-worthy how Scooby Doo: Mystery Inc. took Velma from being a smart character to being a whiny, immature fangirl to Shaggy.

[Redeemer]

I want to see the humor that Don's crush on April will bring into play! Such as Donnie stuttering over his words like Porky Pig or just rambling on and on in a nervous fit.:tlol:

This would b really funny I wouldnt mind seeing Don having a crush on April as long as it doesn't dominate the story line AND if it doesnt last forever

[SherlockJr]

Yeah, I hope they keep romantic subplots to a minimum. The last thing this show needs to be is a soap opera.

[gobo]

Soap wouldn't last two minutes in the sewer.

[Zany Orange Dude]

Soap wouldn't, but what about opera?:P

[stormbringer]

Hard to imagine much romance in a sewer, but guess they've gotta do what they can.:P

[Konchadunga]

Mikey: When did it all start? Well; it all began long ago. See; me and Raph were just waiting for some pizza to be delivered.
Raph: Yeah, and I was just banging on some sewer pipes...

[ZariusTwo]

Yeah, I hope they keep romantic subplots to a minimum. The last thing this show needs to be is a soap opera.

Works for Thundercats...

[pannoni1]

I thought April hated opera!

Simply, most view April as the turtles' stepmother or aunt or even big sister, something that is not inclined for have a proper relationship. But I don't think they'll have time for a romance if the Foot/Shredder or some villain of the week keeps attacking. I could easily see Don being best friends with April as his assistant. But a full-blown romance would be silly at best and icky at the worst. Green with Jealousy from the OT was enough for me with another mutant!

[MikeandRaph87]

I thought April hated opera!

Simply, most view April as the turtles' stepmother or aunt or even big sister, something that is not inclined for have a proper relationship. But I don't think they'll have time for a romance if the Foot/Shredder or some villain of the week keeps attacking. I could easily see Don being best friends with April as his assistant. But a full-blown romance would be silly at best and icky at the worst. Green with Jealousy from the OT was enough for me with another mutant!

You share my thought on the matter 100%! Nice quick analysis. To me she is thier big sister and ambassador to the outside world.

[ZariusTwo]

a full-blown romance would be silly at best and icky at the worst.

It's a hell of a lot more interesting than April shacking up with bland boyscout Casey, who's long since had his turn, and it's only "icky" in the minds of people who, as I've said before, make for great racist antagonists in fiction. Replace "Turtle" with "Black man" and you'll see just how silly you're being.

If the relationship were well written, you'd like it.

But I don't think they'll have time for a romance if the Foot/Shredder or some villain of the week keeps attacking!

Either you live a very boring lifestyle or you've never seen one of the gajillion movies where romance blossoms on a battlefield or in a tense situation. 90% of dramas are based on that premise.

[BubblyShell22]

I don't think it would be "icky" at all. The Turtles are humanoid, so they share some human characteristics. And considering that April will be around the Turtles' age, I don't see what's so "icky" about that. Yeah, if she were older, and the Turtles fell in love with her, that would be a different story. But in 2K3 they handled it as a crush, which would be understandable. Don knew he couldn't be with April, but he still had feelings for her, which is normal for a teenager.

[Konchadunga]

It's a hell of a lot more interesting than April shacking up with bland boyscout Casey, who's long since had his turn...

I really don't get why people dislike 2003 Casey. So he had a good heart and more personality besides just an angry vigilante; so what? That doesn't mean he couldn't be badass at times. I especially like his scene causing havoc in the TCRI building--it seemed like it almost had to be a homage to "Corporate Raiders from Dimension X."

[ZariusTwo]

I really don't get why people dislike 2003 Casey. So he had a good heart and more personality besides just an angry vigilante

I don't "dislike" 2003 Casey, he just lost steam over the course of the series, having comic releif family members didnt help much either.

[Jo Dawn]

Its only in the cartoons and I believe the comics that the Turtles never had a crush on April, but it was quite blatant in the first two live-action movies. So the Nick show doing this with Donatello is nothing new.

You could also argue that Donatello was crushing on April in 2k3, but that was never really emphasized all that much.

I'm not reading this whole thread, so this might have been stated before, but as an FYI to anyone wondering, it was intended by the writers of 2K3 that Don had a crush on April. They specifically wrote the scripts to infer it, so this is nothing new at all.

And personally, I never really saw it in the first movies. Just kinda 'boys being boys' when they finally meet a girl. Not a full on 'romantic feeling' thing that 2K3 actually intentionally wrote.

I am interested to see how this is handled. Poor Donnie.

[Donnie]

I'm not reading this whole thread, so this might have been stated before, but as an FYI to anyone wondering, it was intended by the writers of 2K3 that Don had a crush on April. They specifically wrote the scripts to infer it, so this is nothing new at all.

And personally, I never really saw it in the first movies. Just kinda 'boys being boys' when they finally meet a girl. Not a full on 'romantic feeling' thing that 2K3 actually intentionally wrote.

I am interested to see how this is handled. Poor Donnie.

Yeah, I gotta agree with this. It's blatant that Donnie had a crush on April in the 2k3. Numerous references. Nothing new.

Honestly, who cares? The Turtles crushing on April is 100% normal. They are humanoid dudes who have urges. I'm shocked it's that big of a deal to some people.

In the first movie, Mikey clearly was crushing on her. "It was the impressions dude!", "She called me Mikeyyy..."

[BubblyShell22]

Yeah, it's definitely not anything new in that context. There were many references to Don having a crush on April in 2K3. I'm not bothered by it and can't wait to see how it's handled in this incarnation.

[Candy Kappa]

It's a hell of a lot more interesting than April shacking up with bland boyscout Casey, who's long since had his turn, and it's only "icky" in the minds of people who, as I've said before, make for great racist antagonists in fiction. Replace "Turtle" with "Black man" and you'll see just how silly you're being..

because a humanoid Turtle is the same as a person of African descent?


Some people just don't like inter-species relationships

[ZariusTwo]

Some people just don't like inter-species relationships

And those people are closet racists at heart.

[Candy Kappa]

And those people are closet racists at heart.

or they get bestiality vibes from it. The turtles are... Turtles

[gobo]

The turtles are... Turtles
Only imaginarily. Where's the hate for Beauty & The Beast? It's the exact same issue.

[Candy Kappa]

Only imaginarily. Where's the hate for Beauty & The Beast? It's the exact same issue.

true, but I wouldn't call people that had a issue with it racists

[MikeandRaph87]

Its not an original concept. Michelangelo's crush was for a two shot joke in the first film and that was really it. Don didn't have a crush on April it was just Mike making a joke "ohhh,"April and I" because Don was trying to work with Aprill on something when Mike was pestering them. Don might have a cruh on her because she is a science-minded person like him and he likes her for sharing similar field interest. The problem is this is not a movie with it being used for a couple of laughs its an ongoing television show. It would make for good use in their first couple of meetings but after that i don't like the idea. It just doesn't feel right and I don't see Don in love with April even if obiciously one sided. Its one of the two things about the new show that bug me. Its okay for the early episodes but I would hope to see it dropped.

[ToTheNines]

I guess the difference this time is April's age. She's a teenager now, and the turtles kind of actually have a chance with her.

This. In past incarnations, it's kinda been played up as humor since she's much too old anyways.

Yeah, I hope they keep romantic subplots to a minimum.

I tend to lean this way as well... A few episodes of Young Justice have been damn near ruined because of Superboy and Miss Martian. Probably best to play it safe and avoid.

[Lethal Lullaby]

Personally I don't like the idea of Don crushin' on April, but... *exasperated sigh* I. Guess. So... Just as long as they don't go to the point where I throw the remote into the T.V. screen, and start throwing up. (not a fan of romance) :blanksta:

[Redeemer]

^I think most of the people on here agree with you, but it being on Nick I dont think it will last to long.

[FearlessLeader]

This is a kids show aimed at a young male audience mostly, any romance will be kept a minimum. I think more then anything Don's crush will be used as a way for his brothers to make fun of him more then anything else.

[Nintendophile]

This is a kids show aimed at a young male audience mostly, any romance will be kept a minimum. I think more then anything Don's crush will be used as a way for his brothers to make fun of him more then anything else.

Agreed. I could see it being played as maybe Mike, Raph, and Leo being able to talk and joke around with April, but Don maybe getting a little flustered around her, and the rest of the boys tease him about it. Or maybe Don finds an interesting gadget, and makes a point to save it to show to April, and the others give him a hard time about it. Good-natured, brotherly ribbing. :tgrin:

[Cure]

Only imaginarily. Where's the hate for Beauty & The Beast? It's the exact same issue.

Beast is a dude with a curse put on him, not an animal by nature.

[Katie]

I don't understand how being disgusted by beastiality equals being a racist. Seriously, the thought of someone f*cking a dog makes me want to vomit....but I have no issues with anyone because of what shade of brown they might be.

Who cares if a turtle crushes on April. I just don't want them in a physical relationship. At all.

My only disgust is for real life fangirls and fanbois who obsess over what a real life relationship with a real life ninja turtle would be.....to the point that they don't pursue a normal healthy relationship.....and then they whine because no one "real" would love them....but they don't even try to find someone.

[ToTheNines]

Rob Paulsen to Sean Astin on Twitter earlier today:

"We miss you, Raph. Please come back to the lair. Love, Donnie. Oh, please bring Turtle Wax. (got a date with April tonite!)"

True story.

[BubblyShell22]

Seriously? That's hilarious.

And, Katie, I agree with you about the whole relationship thing. Some people take it to an unhealthy level when it comes to the TMNT.

[FearlessLeader]

Seriously? That's hilarious.

And, Katie, I agree with you about the whole relationship thing. Some people take it to an unhealthy level when it comes to the TMNT.

Trust me people acting this way isn't strictly stuck in only Turtles fandom. There is crazy everywhere, sometimes I think it's just more obvious in Turtles fandom because we are small in comparison to a lot of fandoms and all kind of "know" one another. :tlol:

Rob Paulsen is an amazing man, and that's about all I feel I need to say! :tcool:

I am kind of in the "whatever floats peoples boat" area. If people want to ship things more power to them, as long as your not shoving it in my face and yelling at me if I don't agree I won't mess with your make believe dreams.

Though being a fan of Star Trek almost as long as Turtles I have to play devil's advocate and ask if the Turtles are really "animals"?? They are sentient humanoid reptiles which one could argue is an excelled step in evolution. I mean the Cardassian race in Star Trek are large humanoid reptiles and they are "people" and have relationships and offspring with mammal species.

Not that I'm saying the Turtles need to be procreating with anyone in any media anytime soon, it's just something I am curious about peoples thoughts about.

[Candy Kappa]

thing is they aren't evolved. They have gotten contaminated and affected by that, their mutation ain't natural.

And there is the whole thing how "evolution" works in fiction, clearly a humanoid for ain't what all species are going for in the far future.
"In the future. Dogs have evolved to a advanced bipedal being with the ability to speak and create machinery, raging war against humanity."

Ad the Star Trek example can easily be debunked that it's aliens, and they might not be just reptiles, but something entirely else that is compatible with other species/races.

Like the Dragonborn race in Dungeons & Dragons, they are a human/Dragon hybrid race, thought they have reptilian apperance, they aren't reptiles. Not even remotely, since Dragons aren't reptiles in D&D.

I personally don't care, I just commented on the whole connecting the TurtlexHuman relationship dislike to racism. Since the turtles are pet turtles, animals turned humanoid. They may have a human-like features, facial expressions, human like arms and legs, pose-able thumbs.

But they are still turtles, and some have turtles as pets.

had they been members of a ancient turtle race, it would probably had been different.

[gobo]

Beast is a dude with a curse put on him, not an animal by nature.
O_O Curses aren't a work of imagination?

[Nintendophile]

thing is they aren't evolved. They have gotten contaminated and affected by that, their mutation ain't natural.

And there is the whole thing how "evolution" works in fiction, clearly a humanoid for ain't what all species are going for in the far future.
"In the future. Dogs have evolved to a advanced bipedal being with the ability to speak and create machinery, raging war against humanity."

Ad the Star Trek example can easily be debunked that it's aliens, and they might not be just reptiles, but something entirely else that is compatible with other species/races.

Like the Dragonborn race in Dungeons & Dragons, they are a human/Dragon hybrid race, thought they have reptilian apperance, they aren't reptiles. Not even remotely, since Dragons aren't reptiles in D&D.

I personally don't care, I just commented on the whole connecting the TurtlexHuman relationship dislike to racism. Since the turtles are pet turtles, animals turned humanoid. They may have a human-like features, facial expressions, human like arms and legs, pose-able thumbs.

But they are still turtles, and some have turtles as pets.

had they been members of a ancient turtle race, it would probably had been different.

Not that I'm taking one side or another, but strictly playing Devil's Advocate here: In our world, bestiality is a huge taboo because it's someone doing something with an animal. But, in our world, we're the only philosophically sentient species. In the world of the Ninja Turtles, now there's mutated animals that are also philosophically sentient. They're able to think, feel, and converse on the same mental level as humans. While they're still animals, now their only difference from us is that they're a different species. So, in the world of the Ninja Turtles, humans are no longer the only game in town when it comes to sentience.

In our world, if you "fall in love" with a sheep, it means you like to "you-know-what" with sheep. In the world of the Ninja Turtles, you could be talking online with someone, fall in love with their personality, then find out they're a mutant sheep IRL.

I agree with FearlessLeader, in that it's more akin to aliens. (Only because that's another type of scenario where there's different sentient, humanoid species.) Of course the Turtles aren't aliens, but they ARE another sentient species. It doesn't matter that they were once regular old turtles. It's what they are now that matters, mutant or otherwise.

So, is a relationship (or sex) with another species bad because they aren't human and aren't smart like humans (like in the real world), or is it bad because they just aren't human (like in the Ninja Turtles' world)?

Again, I'm not taking either side. I'm just laying the question out in a more defined fashion.

[BubblyShell22]

To me, the Turtles have evolved because of the mutagen. They turned from ordinary pet shop turtles into turtles with humanoid characteristics. Could they have children with humans? No, not at all because it would be impossible for such a thing to happen. Could they do so with other mutants, or alien species? Maybe.

However, this won't happen in the show, so I'm not too worried about the romance myself. As long as it's just a crush, I'm fine with it.

[Cure]

O_O Curses aren't a work of imagination?

OK, yeah, pretend like you dunno what I mean. That'll get your point across.

[gobo]

Why so serious?

[Candy Kappa]

Why so serious?

We're on a TMNT forum, need a deeper explanation? :P

[Stingray69]

To me, the Turtles have evolved because of the mutagen. They turned from ordinary pet shop turtles into turtles with humanoid characteristics. Could they have children with humans? No, not at all because it would be impossible for such a thing to happen. Could they do so with other mutants, or alien species? Maybe.

However, this won't happen in the show, so I'm not too worried about the romance myself. As long as it's just a crush, I'm fine with it.

Dint mike have kids in the comics with a alien?

[gobo]

Allegedly.

[Candy Kappa]

Mutant and Alien relationships are fine, as long there is no humans involved. That's just icky :P

[FearlessLeader]

Mutant and Alien relationships are fine, as long there is no humans involved. That's just icky :P

You probably never want to watch Star Trek then :twink:

[Candy Kappa]

You probably never want to watch Star Trek then :twink:

I refuse to see Kirk as human :lol:

[Luzmagica]

Just sharing this pretty screens OT : Season 7 chapter 3:

April and Irma give little kiss to Don... Just good friends... nothing serious...I presume it will be similar for new Nick Toons...

http://img844.imageshack.us/img844/3277/7x03arealsnowjob.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/844/7x03arealsnowjob.jpg/)

There are also some OT scenes where the Don and Mike get reddish their cheeks... I think that is cute ...but nothing actually serious...

:tgrin:

[ZariusTwo]

Funny, everytime someone brings up Donny and Irma, I find most fans fawn over that...but when it comes to April and any of the guys, there like "ewwww"

[BubblyShell22]

I've heard that, too. How does that make sense?

[Jester]

Funny, everytime someone brings up Donny and Irma, I find most fans fawn over that...but when it comes to April and any of the guys, there like "ewwww"
O...k... .

[ZariusTwo]

O...k... .

Seriously, they do. Maybe it has something to do with Irma's willingness to date anything and anyone....

[ssjup81]

Seriously, they do. Maybe it has something to do with Irma's willingness to date anything and anyone....
Yeah, exactly. To be honest, I find the concept of Irma going after Donny hilarious. I wouldn't want it to happen cause...eww, but yeah.:lol:

[shezcrafti]

For fun & lulz:

9 Bizarre But True Love Stories that are More Taboo than Mutant Turtles:


So-called "Serial Killer Groupies" (http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/criminal_mind/psychology/s_k_groupies/index.html) - Women who are only attracted to (and sometimes marry) serial killers.
Dude who's in love with--and openly admits he has sex with--his car (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Object_sexuality http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2012/02/my-strange-addiction-nathaniel-is-in-love-with-and-has-sex-with-his-car.html).
Woman who is in love with and has "been married to" the Berlin Wall (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/2035996/Woman-married-to-Berlin-Wall-for-29-years.html) for 29 years.
Austrian dad who secretly imprisoned and raped his own daughter (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fritzl_case) for 24 years and fathered her children.
Dr. Carl Von Cosel, aka "History's Worst Case of Necrophelia" who was so in love with his dead patient he dug her up and kept her in his own bed (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_Von_Cosel).
People who are sexually attracted to Jesus (http://isitnormal.com/story/is-it-normal-to-be-sexually-attracted-to-jesus-86642/).
Mary Kay Letourneau & 50 other infamous cases (http://www.zimbio.com/The+50+Most+Infamous+Female+Teacher+Sex+Scandals/articles/iiQI_TymUBY/1+Mary+Kay+Letourneau) of illegal female teacher/very young student sexual relationships.
Woman who married her dead fiance (http://www.oddee.com/item_97216.aspx) in the morgue.
A man who loved his horse so much (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human%E2%80%93animal_marriage) he married it -- and told the world about it on Jerry Springer.

[Killer Moth]

Just sharing this pretty screens OT : Season 7 chapter 3:

April and Irma give little kiss to Don... Just good friends... nothing serious...I presume it will be similar for new Nick Toons...

http://img844.imageshack.us/img844/3277/7x03arealsnowjob.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/844/7x03arealsnowjob.jpg/)

There are also some OT scenes where the Don and Mike get reddish their cheeks... I think that is cute ...but nothing actually serious...

:tgrin:

Cute? Sure. Thanks to Rule 34 and the internet, these days, people would expect an orgy, or something. Heh.

And, hey, to prop ZariusTwo's argument, why shouldn't Irma go for it? Hell, she was ready to ask Splinter on a date until she found out the truth about him in "Catwoman from Channel 6." I can't wait to see the middle seasons as an adult, to see Irma's dating habits and preferences in action. (And that one bit with the Rudy cyborg in "Snow Job" was actually interesting, and beat the Kim Possible version -- which was visible a mile away -- by a dozen years.)

I'm fine with a Turtle crush with April for short-time plot purposes, yet I'd think of the internet porn that would come with it. That's good enough to go, "Do Not Want..." from me, anyway. Not the best motivation, but I don't want to think of April, well, like that.

[gobo]

Don't forget that Irma was ready to jump into a marriage with three of the turtles in "Green With Jealousy".

[Killer Moth]

Don't forget that Irma was ready to jump into a marriage with three of the turtles in "Green With Jealousy".

Indeed. I haven't seen that one in years and years. I just want to see it for April's goo-goo eyes at Rocksteady.

And Irma predated Futurama's Metal or Robot Fever a good decade with Rex-1. Heh. Which parlays nicely with the car sex post. How does one do that, anyway? Never mind, I don't want to know.

To be on-topic, the whole crush thing also helps, depending on April's design to some degree. As long as we don't go into lolicon territory with Teen or Nicktoon April, we might be fine. Otherwise, to go with another Futurama reference, "Oh, Your God."

And I'll go apologize for injecting further creepiness into the thread, and go take a shower.

[Mr.Turtle]

bcoz ppl r bored sometimes

[Lisardo]

Yeah its definitely not new, but I'd prefer it not be rehashed. Just feels a little funny to me. You see it in fan art quite a bit. One of the turtles making out with april...yuck! well, at least its not as bad as the fan art depicting brother turtle on brother turtle action, that s#!ts just nasty and its all over deviant art. Whats wrong with people?

Heh, there's already Don/April (2012) smut art too now. I stumbled upon it by accident when I was doing a general TMNT Google image search. And there's also less smutty Don/April artwork on DA as well. Yeah the incestuous brother-brother porn crap is sick, but when you think about it, probably realistic.

[BabyTurtles]

I don't mind DonXApril...but when it takes over Don and April's character...thats when I have a problem....theres sometimes to much crushing in the show.

[Xav]

Yeah the incestuous brother-brother porn crap is sick, but when you think about it, probably realistic.Um, no I don't want to think about it.

[oldmanwinters]

In the UK publications, all the Turtles had it BAD for April:
http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2584/4151861781_7eaaa94627_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/22047800@N07/4151861781/)
"All about April O'Neil" (UK Hero Turtles Annual 1991) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/22047800@N07/4151861781/) by oldmanwinters (http://www.flickr.com/people/22047800@N07/), on Flickr

:tsweatdr::tsweatdr::tsweatdr:

[alliance]

In the UK publications, all the Turtles had it BAD for April:
http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2584/4151861781_7eaaa94627_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/22047800@N07/4151861781/)
"All about April O'Neil" (UK Hero Turtles Annual 1991) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/22047800@N07/4151861781/) by oldmanwinters (http://www.flickr.com/people/22047800@N07/), on Flickr

:tsweatdr::tsweatdr::tsweatdr:

lmfao this is nice

[Leo656]

Watching a few episodes of the new show back to back recently, Don's crush is becoming overbearing. I was hoping it wouldn't end up being the defining characteristic of his character, but it is, and it's just not being done very well.

I'm not against one or all of the TMNT having a crush on April, but the way they're doing it is just making me want to see less of Donatello entirely. If they're still doing the same shtick two seasons from now, I don't think I"ll still be sticking with this show by then. It's getting on my nerves. If they toned it down it would be different, but it's so unbearably front-and-center I can't stand it.

You could turn "Don mentions April" into a drinking game and be hammered by the end credits of any random episode. Too much.

[***First of Two Latin Kings***]

I don't think its over done, I think it just seems that way since he seemed to have a crush on her in the 2003 series but he was very careful not to make it obvious. Its just weird to me that it's Don who has the crush because its usually Mike. It's weird enough that Don is being voiced by Ol' Raph :tlol:

[PApagreg]

Heh, there's already Don/April (2012) smut art too now. I stumbled upon it by accident when I was doing a general TMNT Google image search. And there's also less smutty Don/April artwork on DA as well. Yeah the incestuous brother-brother porn crap is sick, but when you think about it, probably realistic.

You're gonna hate what you see if you google rubaka/akabur for the OT

[DonatelloNinja82]

I take it you never watched Gargoyles...

Totally this...Elisa/Goliath...

Soap wouldn't, but what about opera?:P

Phantom of the Floxy?

Rob Paulsen to Sean Astin on Twitter earlier today:

"We miss you, Raph. Please come back to the lair. Love, Donnie. Oh, please bring Turtle Wax. (got a date with April tonite!)"

True story.

That's just hilarious. I love Rob Paulson!

Trust me people acting this way isn't strictly stuck in only Turtles fandom. There is crazy everywhere, sometimes I think it's just more obvious in Turtles fandom because we are small in comparison to a lot of fandoms and all kind of "know" one another. :tlol:

Rob Paulsen is an amazing man, and that's about all I feel I need to say! :tcool:

I am kind of in the "whatever floats peoples boat" area. If people want to ship things more power to them, as long as your not shoving it in my face and yelling at me if I don't agree I won't mess with your make believe dreams.

Though being a fan of Star Trek almost as long as Turtles I have to play devil's advocate and ask if the Turtles are really "animals"?? They are sentient humanoid reptiles which one could argue is an excelled step in evolution. I mean the Cardassian race in Star Trek are large humanoid reptiles and they are "people" and have relationships and offspring with mammal species.

Not that I'm saying the Turtles need to be procreating with anyone in any media anytime soon, it's just something I am curious about peoples thoughts about.

I totally agree with your Star Trek comment. I became a fan of ST:TNG a few years after TMNT, and there are lots of hybrid aliens on that show...it totally works.

I have nothing against TMNT relationships, as long as they are done right. I view them as sentient humanoids as others have stated. They walk, talk, think, have dreams and aspirations just like any human.

[Luckyday]

Watching a few episodes of the new show back to back recently, Don's crush is becoming overbearing. I was hoping it wouldn't end up being the defining characteristic of his character, but it is, and it's just not being done very well.

I'm not against one or all of the TMNT having a crush on April, but the way they're doing it is just making me want to see less of Donatello entirely. If they're still doing the same shtick two seasons from now, I don't think I"ll still be sticking with this show by then. It's getting on my nerves. If they toned it down it would be different, but it's so unbearably front-and-center I can't stand it.

You could turn "Don mentions April" into a drinking game and be hammered by the end credits of any random episode. Too much.

It starting to get on my nerves too but unfortunately it going to be one of those things that will keep going through the seasons of the show cause the writers think it just so freaking precious.

[Coola Yagami]

I guess another thing that helps with the fangirls is that the Turtles are actually cute in the cartoons. Understandably so, since most heroes or main characters have to be somewhat attractive (unless the show's main thing is, hey, we're different, we got a fat ugly dude as the hero).

We all know real life mutated reptiles that walk and talk wouldn't look attractive. They'd either look like Tokka, or like they do in Out of the Shadows. But that's not how they look like in the cartoons, so yeah, fangirls fall for them.

[BabyTurtles]

Watching a few episodes of the new show back to back recently, Don's crush is becoming overbearing. I was hoping it wouldn't end up being the defining characteristic of his character, but it is, and it's just not being done very well.

I'm not against one or all of the TMNT having a crush on April, but the way they're doing it is just making me want to see less of Donatello entirely. If they're still doing the same shtick two seasons from now, I don't think I"ll still be sticking with this show by then. It's getting on my nerves. If they toned it down it would be different, but it's so unbearably front-and-center I can't stand it.

You could turn "Don mentions April" into a drinking game and be hammered by the end credits of any random episode. Too much.

...I know...it's getting a little crazy.....

[BubblyShell22]

I don't think Don's crush on April is THAT bad. I actually think it's funny, especially in the latest episode where he tried to impress her by rescuing her dad. It was just really sweet.

[DonatelloNinja82]

I guess I'm just a hopeless romantic...I just think Donnie's crush on April is adorable (sadorable?)

[Captain PunchYouHard]

For my taste, it's right at the upper limit. Any more frequent, and it would be obnoxious. I might be willing to see it go deeper and further, but nothing beyond, say, Scott Summers and Jean Grey in the old X-Men animated series. If it turns into Donnie and April holding hands on top of the Empire State Building or some equivalent every episode, I swear I will go back to watching documentaries only. Currently, it's being used as a humor device/something to help viewers identify with the characters - I'm surprised she hasn't friendzoned him yet, due to that factor.

As to the anthro/bestiality aspect: My only personal issue with bestiality, or any other bedroom practice, is consent. Since animals aren't sapient, we can't be sure that they consent even if they seem to willingly participate - this is the same reason many countries have an age of consent and/or some protection for the mentally challenged. The turtles are obviously sapient, and Donnie more than the rest of them. He clearly consents. Maybe April will consent.* If so, I'm all for it - let's celebrate love wherever we can find it.

Yeah, I'm one of those Femsheps who sleeps with Garrus in Mass Effect 2.

Tl;dr: Omnia vincit amor! Donnie/April 4eva! (I refuse to call it Apriltello.)


*I'm talking about just the kissy stuff here, since they're not of age yet.

[DonatelloNinja82]

"Love conquers all..." Latin is awesome. And yes...I don't like Apriltello either. Not too big on when they mash the two names together. April/Donnie is much better.

[Leo656]

Way I look at it, in the context of this show at least they're not going to "hook up", so what's the point of keeping it going or intensifying it? If it becomes a recurring part of the show over a period of years, not only will it become annoying, it will completely undermine Donnie's character into some one-dimensional, delusional, co-dependent sap.

I'm not saying it's completely horrible or the worst thing they ever did, but it's pretty obvious this show will not be exploring any explicit Turtle/April romance, so I hope at some point they let it go and have Donnie move on.

[CyberCubed]

It's probably going to end when Casey Jones debuts in Season 2.

[Leo656]

I'm kinda half-hoping April starts to like Casey leading to Don getting all jealous and a character arc between him and Casey. If this thing leads to something story-wise, fine, but if it's just puppy love with no point or resolution, I'm not a fan of it going long-term.

[JTH]

Watching a few episodes of the new show back to back recently, Don's crush is becoming overbearing. I was hoping it wouldn't end up being the defining characteristic of his character, but it is, and it's just not being done very well.

I'm not against one or all of the TMNT having a crush on April, but the way they're doing it is just making me want to see less of Donatello entirely. If they're still doing the same shtick two seasons from now, I don't think I"ll still be sticking with this show by then. It's getting on my nerves. If they toned it down it would be different, but it's so unbearably front-and-center I can't stand it.

You could turn "Don mentions April" into a drinking game and be hammered by the end credits of any random episode. Too much.
I couldn't disagree with ya more Leo. Saying Donnie's crush on April is his defining characteristic. That's like saying Indiana Jones' defining characteristic is hooking up with a different woman on every quest he goes on.

Donnie's defining characteristic is still what it's always been, an scientist/inventor who more times than not, gets his brothers out of trouble.

And as far as saying it's not being written well; how else are you supposed to write about a character not knowing what to say or do to his first crush, who's very life happens to be in jeopardy?

Now I've said this before and I'll say it again: They made it clear since the pilot that the April/Donnie relationship was going to be one of the bigger deals in the first season and was going to reach its peek in the finale. You guys had 9 months to prepare for this, because it was very clear from the start that this was going to happen.

[Leo656]

Kevin Spacey pretty much told Brad Pitt he was going to present him his wife's head in a box in Se7en, and I don't think having time to get ready for it made it any more unsettling in the end.

......I have no idea why THAT, specifically, was the very first comparative scenario that my mind came up with. :teek:

Oh, also ::::::::::::SPOILERS::::::::::::::::::::: for a movie older than half of the people reading this.

[JTH]

Kevin Spacey pretty much told Brad Pitt he was going to present him his wife's head in a box in Se7en, and I don't think having time to get ready for it made it any more unsettling in the end.

......I have no idea why THAT, specifically, was the very first comparative scenario that my mind came up with. :teek:

Oh, also ::::::::::::SPOILERS::::::::::::::::::::: for a movie older than half of the people reading this.

Because we're wrestling fans, and we think of the crazy crap first. :D

[Leo656]

At first the ending of that movie bothered me. Then I watched Gwyneth in Iron Man again, and after that I felt she deserved it. Am I a bad person?

[Captain PunchYouHard]

The hypothetical alternative is that Nick will realize that there are more 12-to-40-year-old females watching than actual teen boys, and turn it into a shoujo anime.

*ducks thrown objects*

[MsMarvelDuckie]

thing is they aren't evolved. They have gotten contaminated and affected by that, their mutation ain't natural.

And there is the whole thing how "evolution" works in fiction, clearly a humanoid for ain't what all species are going for in the far future.
"In the future. Dogs have evolved to a advanced bipedal being with the ability to speak and create machinery, raging war against humanity."

Ad the Star Trek example can easily be debunked that it's aliens, and they might not be just reptiles, but something entirely else that is compatible with other species/races.

Like the Dragonborn race in Dungeons & Dragons, they are a human/Dragon hybrid race, thought they have reptilian apperance, they aren't reptiles. Not even remotely, since Dragons aren't reptiles in D&D.

I personally don't care, I just commented on the whole connecting the TurtlexHuman relationship dislike to racism. Since the turtles are pet turtles, animals turned humanoid. They may have a human-like features, facial expressions, human like arms and legs, pose-able thumbs.

But they are still turtles, and some have turtles as pets.

had they been members of a ancient turtle race, it would probably had been different.

Not quite true on the Dragonborn- you are likely thinking of the 4th ed version, which not only ARE reptiles (Dragons ARE reptiles- they are listed in every version of the game as such, being cold-blooded, egg-laying, scaly creatures and even related to other reptilian races/species) but are also descended from one or more generations of such hybrids. In 3.5, Dragonborn was the name of a "race" created through a human (or dwarf, elf, etc) undergoing a ritual to be "reborn" with draconic attributes as followers of a draconic god (Bahamut). Prior to that, the only hybrid draconic "race" was the half-dragon (in 2nd ed) which was a true hybrid of dragon and human, dwarf, elf, or gnome, or, as in Dragonlance's Krynn, the Draconians, which were created by "mutating" dragon offspring into a humanoid form while still in the egg via a magical/divine ritual.

The point of this is that there is certainly precedent in other media for true hybrid offspring/mutations of two separate races/species to exist, and even to be able to have relationships with other speices. In Dragonlance, there are at least TWO examples in the novels of a human (or elf in one case) falling in love with a dragon (the metallic dragons of D&D are fully sentient and capable of changing into a humanoid form and living AS such races for extended periods of time if they wish). If such obviously different beings can have offspring, what's wrong with a mutated(or "reborn") turtle doing so?

This is really no different than human/alien relationships- In Star Trek alone there are Neelix/Kess, Tom/Be'lana, Sarak/Spock's mom(forgot her name, but she's human), Ryker/Troi, Kirk/any alien chick, Tasha/Data, Odo/the Bajoran chick on DS9, AltUni Tasha/a Cardassian, etc.... Aliens could be considered a totally different "species" as much as any animal is. And a humanoid turtle is no less "alien" in terms of physical differences than a member of an extraterrestrial species.

Given the prevalence of interspecies relationships in sci-fi and fantasy (because that's what elves, dwarves, and the like are), I don't see what the fuss is about. Why is a turtle/fox/lizard/etc any worse than any of the other romantic matches in fiction? At least it's not necrophilia!! (Which is what a relationship with a vampire would be. Take THAT, Twilight!!) And Gargoyles is one of the BEST examples ever!

[BabyTurtles]

guys...I really think that this Don and April thing is a problem for April....

I mean people who have seen previous incarnations of TMNT know April's role....she's like family to the turtles...a human to help them..a sister to talk too.

but what about people who start with the 2012 TMNT? will they see April as someone more than Don's love interest????

I know that a kid called April "Don's girlfriend..." and nothing more...

are you guys cool with April just being known as "April's girlfriend" for the new TMNT fans coming to the fandom?

[Coola Yagami]

guys...I really think that this Don and April thing is a problem for April....

I mean people who have seen previous incarnations of TMNT know April's role....she's like family to the turtles...a human to help them..a sister to talk too.

but what about people who start with the 2012 TMNT? will they see April as someone more than Don's love interest????

I know that a kid called April "Don's girlfriend..." and nothing more...

are you guys cool with April just being known as "April's girlfriend" for the new TMNT fans coming to the fandom?

Don't really see the problem. It's a whole new series. It's also the series in which Karai is 'Leo's girlfriend' and Shredder's top two mutants are a fish and a dog, NOT a rhino and a warthog, and if you mention Kraang to the kids, they'll make a 'Kraang-speak joke' and not think about a talking brain. Ask a kid what is Mikey's catchphrase and he'll say booyakaha, not cowabunga.

[BabyTurtles]

Don't really see the problem. It's a whole new series. It's also the series in which Karai is 'Leo's girlfriend' and Shredder's top two mutants are a fish and a dog, NOT a rhino and a warthog, and if you mention Kraang to the kids, they'll make a 'Kraang-speak joke' and not think about a talking brain. Ask a kid what is Mikey's catchphrase and he'll say booyakaha, not cowabunga.

it is a problem. April is the main girl representing all the girls.
she shouldn't just be "Don's girlfriend" that sucks!! :cry:

so let me get this straight...most of you guys are cool with April mainly being a love interest to Donnie??...........I don't mind her being one...but if that's 80% of what she is...then I guess I'm gonna be the odd ball and not like her.....


Karai is something more....she has complications that she puts above her relationship with leo. She has the task of getting rid of the turtles...she has also found out more of the Kraang's plans. she has Shedder to think about.

like I said...I don't mind the girls being love interest....but unlike April...it doesn't take over Karai's character....and it isn't talked about every time she's shown.

[Bossa Nova]

I'm totally agreeing with Baby Turtles on this. April (and Karai) have always been awesome female characters because they have a personality of their own. I'm not thrilled that the OT constantly made April a damsel in distress, but even then she had a totally fiery attitude and completely stubborn. She was still her own person. There are so few females in this show, that it is a problem that they're seen as nothing more but the "love interests" for the turtles. Yeah, this kind of cliche is done all kinds in kids shows, it doesn't make it right.

As to the original topic, the turtles crushing on April in past versions never bothered me very much because it was subtle, played off for a one-time gag and then over with. Don's crush on April has been milked the entire season and it's passed the point of irritating, especially since she has shown absolutely zero interest in him and he continues to repeat the same goofy actions over and over again. Every time she and Don are on screen together, I can be assured I'll get some silly joke between them about his crush on her as opposed to allowing April do something else that might show some of that character development a lot of folks seem to be missing. This may be the one version of her I dislike because not only is she boring, but she can't even be the mature one and flat out tell Don to stop with his advances since she clearly doesn't want them.

[TurtleTitan97]

I think it's safe to say April isn't gonna just turn into Donnie's "love interest". I mean, even Leo, Mikey, Raph don't think he has a chance with her. I personally don't mind Don's crush because it's been played for laughs, but I highly doubt it's gonna turn into anything serious. So far this season April has shown no sign of having a crush on Donnie.

[BabyTurtles]

I think it's safe to say April isn't gonna just turn into Donnie's "love interest". I mean, even Leo, Mikey, Raph don't think he has a chance with her. I personally don't mind Don's crush because it's been played for laughs, but I highly doubt it's gonna turn into anything serious. So far this season April has shown no sign of having a crush on Donnie.

the problem isn't whether or not Don and April are gonna get together! I don't care about that if it's done well :ohwell:

the problem is that they show Donnie gushing over April waaaay to much!

every time she's shown there's a 98% chance Don is gonna say something to her about his crush! it's cute when it's shown now and then, but not every time she hits the screen! that time can go to something more valuable! like interacting with someone else!

heck, sometimes she says literally one thing and Don can use up all her screen time by being awkward!!

I just......want to like April....but I can't like a girl thats mainly a love interest for guys....

wouldn't you guys have a problem if Casey was only a love interest for April again? and every time he's shown 98% of the time it's about April??

[NinjaPug]

It's not like Don having a crush on her is the only thing going on with April's character. She's being trained by Splinter and has a huge role involving the Kraang invasion. She's the most developed supporting character on the show.

[raph27]

And yes...I don't like Apriltello either. Not too big on when they mash the two names together. April/Donnie is much better.

Like how Peeta/Katniss is Penis:D:D:D

[BabyTurtles]

It's not like Don having a crush on her is the only thing going on with April's character. She's being trained by Splinter and has a huge role involving the Kraang invasion. She's the most developed supporting character on the show.

just because she has plots surrounding her, doesn't mean she's developed as a character.

character development is knowing the characters pet peeves, quirks, flaws, what they do, how they interact with others...and how they grow as a character.

it's not all about how good she's getting in training or why the Kraang want her.
it's about April's personality and how she interacts with the other characters.

lately she just stands there....without an voice...only talking when the plot needs her..

[NinjaPug]

I guess I just don't care what April's pet peeves are. I'm glad they're doing something interesting with her character outside of simply being a damsel in distress every episode.

[Luckyday]

You know, this is the reason why I didn't want Irma be a teenager in the show. The role of a love interest is almost never treated as a character in most shows.

[Bossa Nova]

It's not like Don having a crush on her is the only thing going on with April's character. She's being trained by Splinter and has a huge role involving the Kraang invasion. She's the most developed supporting character on the show.

She has things happening TO her, that doesn't mean we've seen how she's dealing or really reacting to any of this. Although I personally don't like the idea of April training to become a ninja, her training with Splinter was nice because we actually got to see a small part of her personality. This whole Kraang thing? Sure, she's important, have we even seen at ALL how she feels about this? Is she scared? Is she angry? Does she possibly have any memories that could give her insight as to why this might be happening? Once again, these things are happening to her, it doesn't mean she's developed from them.

[BabyTurtles]

I guess I just don't care what April's pet peeves are. I'm glad they're doing something interesting with her character outside of simply being a damsel in distress every episode.

.....would you like the turtles if they had no personality but were kickbutt?

I'd rather have a damsel in distress with a personality than a kickbutt one dimensional girl. :ohwell:

[NinjaPug]

.....would you like the turtles if they had no personality but were kickbutt?

I'd rather have a damsel in distress with a personality than a kickbutt one dimensional girl. :ohwell:

This is where you and I differ. I expect the Turtles to have defined personalities and strong character development because the show is about them. To me April is a supporting character that is there to help move some of the plot and help with the development of the main characters. Having something interesting happen to her is more important/entertaining to me than simply seeing her interact more with the other three Turtles.

[Avatar Yuffie]

Can I hope that when April becomes Casey's love interest, there shouldn't be anymore complaints?

[Gwydion]

I'm in agreement with both BabyTurtles and Bossa Nova on this one. Pretty much everything they've said up until now I agree with wholeheartedly. I will specifically point out something Bossa Nova mentioned in regards to the original question for this thread, though - it's not the fact that one of the Turtles has a crush on April that's bad, it's how it's portrayed.

In previous versions, it's a passing comment or gag, not something brought up every episode that is currently pretty much defining two of the main characters, April and Donnie. And the fact that April is encouraging it despite pretty clearly not feeling the same really rubs me the wrong way. I'm guessing the writers' intentions are that she's just trying to be nice, but it just comes off as if she's manipulating him, as if she purposefully calls/texts Donnie because she knows he'll drop everything for her. Again, I'm aware this isn't their intention, but that's just kind of the vibe I get from it. Since we don't really know much about April as a character, there's nothing to prove she's not doing that aside from the fact that she's April O'Neil, the main female protagonist in the TMNT franchise so of course she's not like that.

[allie300]

This is where you and I differ. I expect the Turtles to have defined personalities and strong character development because the show is about them. To me April is a supporting character that is there to help move some of the plot and help with the development of the main characters. Having something interesting happen to her is more important/entertaining to me than simply seeing her interact more with the other three Turtles.

Yep I agree with you 100% I watch ninja turtles for the turtles not April O'Neil,to me ever other character is there to help move the boy's story along so personally I have no problem with how she's being portrayed right now and the Don/April thing doesn't bother me in fact I find it amusing but who knows maybe in the second season she'll get the character development some think she needs and with Casey showing up that can either put to rest Don+April or help move it along we'll just have to wait and see.

[Bossa Nova]

This is where you and I differ. I expect the Turtles to have defined personalities and strong character development because the show is about them. To me April is a supporting character that is there to help move some of the plot and help with the development of the main characters. Having something interesting happen to her is more important/entertaining to me than simply seeing her interact more with the other three Turtles.

It's fine to care more about the turtles than April. After all, it is their show. But when Nickelodeon decided to make April the focus of everything instead of the turtles as being "the key to everything", then I really don't think it's that outlandish to want to have any sort of reason to even care about her by giving her some sort of well-developed personality. If the turtles themselves were somehow the key to the Kraang plot (which I personally would have preferred because hey, like you I watch this show for the turtles), then sure, I really wouldn't care so much about April's lack of depth because yes, she is just a supporting character. But that isn't the case here. Nick has made her much more than a supporting character and with that I feel they're lacking in their responsibility in transforming her into someone viewers care about.

[BabyTurtles]

It's fine to care more about the turtles than April. After all, it is their show. But when Nickelodeon decided to make April the focus of everything instead of the turtles as being "the key to everything", then I really don't think it's that outlandish to want to have any sort of reason to even care about her by giving her some sort of well-developed personality. If the turtles themselves were somehow the key to the Kraang plot (which I personally would have preferred because hey, like you I watch this show for the turtles), then sure, I really wouldn't care so much about April's lack of depth because yes, she is just a supporting character. But that isn't the case here. Nick has made her much more than a supporting character and with that I feel they're lacking in their responsibility in transforming her into someone viewers care about.

exactly. also since she is representing the girl side of the TMNT fandom, I would think Nick would care a little to give her some personality. cause as much as I love the the boys...having a girl ONE girl to relate too would be nice. they don't need to go all out...just a little scene here and there to establish her personality, hey they could even switch out some of those Donnie loving April scenes for it.

[Electric]

i honestly think people are over reacting. Yes donnies crush on april is a recurring reference in this show. if they actually date it on-coming seasons great? but this april has not just been shown as a love interest. Can we recall that shes the center of an invasion. Or when she snuck into a kraang lab. or spied on shredder. shes training to be a kunoichi. she fought karai. donnies love for her isnt taking away anything from her character.
As for interacting with others, shes been shown training alone with splinter multiple times, she had a talk with leo about karai. Yeah she talks to donnie more than anyone, but its only the first season, theres plenty of time for other interaction.
And how is her supposedly only being donnies love interest any different from her being caseys in 2k3? she was more of just a love interest for casey tin 2k3 then she has been so far for donnie in this series, as in shes actually shown without donnie.
People complaining about how they cant like this april because of donnies crush gets really annoying since its just them trying to see it that way, and trying to find fault in this relatively small change in the series

and please quit saying april has no personality yet. she does. shes stubborn, brave, tries to get by in school, devoted to her family and is motivated by her father. donnies crush takes away more from him then it does from her. plus with irma and casey coming, well get to see her people interaction develop, and thats in the second season, so just wait

[Lisardo]

I guess another thing that helps with the fangirls is that the Turtles are actually cute in the cartoons. Understandably so, since most heroes or main characters have to be somewhat attractive (unless the show's main thing is, hey, we're different, we got a fat ugly dude as the hero).

We all know real life mutated reptiles that walk and talk wouldn't look attractive. They'd either look like Tokka, or like they do in Out of the Shadows. But that's not how they look like in the cartoons, so yeah, fangirls fall for them.

That is very true about fan girls. The turtles aren't babes, but they are sorta cute, in a weird way. The more realistic turtles look like Kerma and Tokka. Oddly enough tho, I noticed the turtles on that OT ep, "Planet of the Turtles", have the rounded faces like the TMNT do. Hmm....

[Lisardo]

I'm kinda half-hoping April starts to like Casey leading to Don getting all jealous and a character arc between him and Casey. If this thing leads to something story-wise, fine, but if it's just puppy love with no point or resolution, I'm not a fan of it going long-term.

For some reason, I was never huge on the whole April/Casey relationship. It's sorta cute I guess, the whole opposites attract. But I dunno....seems 'forced' in every version it's in (minus OT as that relationship really never happened). Personality-wise, I think April and Don have more in common, in both 2k3 and 2k12. Hopeless romantic I am, admittedly. Tho I agree with others here that the whole Don crushing on April in 2k12 may be a bit much.

[Captain PunchYouHard]

If you ask me, Nick is smart enough to try to appeal to both genders (or all preferences, if you want to be strictly accurate). I don't think the TMNT2012 turtles being cute is a coincidence. I think they're following the example of anime/manga series like Bleach or Hellsing that have something for everyone.

[Shark_Blade]

Looks like they're inspired by Teen Titans to me. Which is a good thing.

Anyway, those "people" are not everyone. Who cares, they're probably the minority. There's lots of cross-breed interspieces relationship I.e. Mass Effect, Twilight, Shrek, etc.

[Konchadunga]

i honestly think people are over reacting. Yes donnies crush on april is a recurring reference in this show. if they actually date it on-coming seasons great? but this april has not just been shown as a love interest. Can we recall that shes the center of an invasion. Or when she snuck into a kraang lab. or spied on shredder. shes training to be a kunoichi. she fought karai. donnies love for her isnt taking away anything from her character.
As for interacting with others, shes been shown training alone with splinter multiple times, she had a talk with leo about karai. Yeah she talks to donnie more than anyone, but its only the first season, theres plenty of time for other interaction.
And how is her supposedly only being donnies love interest any different from her being caseys in 2k3? she was more of just a love interest for casey tin 2k3 then she has been so far for donnie in this series, as in shes actually shown without donnie.
People complaining about how they cant like this april because of donnies crush gets really annoying since its just them trying to see it that way, and trying to find fault in this relatively small change in the series

and please quit saying april has no personality yet. she does. shes stubborn, brave, tries to get by in school, devoted to her family and is motivated by her father. donnies crush takes away more from him then it does from her. plus with irma and casey coming, well get to see her people interaction develop, and thats in the second season, so just wait

Not to sound like a broken record, but I think the issue is filler episodes. Yes; April is the center of the story arc...which is one of two story arcs...both of which sometimes have no big part in an episode. Developing a character like April is hard in their current modus operandi. It's easy to give the Turtles fun personality quirks, since they'll always be in the episode, and they'll get their quips in even during a fight. Stick April in the fight with them every time a new villain poses a threat, though,and there's the following risks:
1) She gets in serious trouble, or at least gets in the way, because she's not tough enough.
2) She is tough enough, and as such garners criticism for getting too tough too fast.

I would prefer an arc, where April had a lot of development, they get to some sort of conclusion for the whole crush thing, and the Kraang conspiracy is a consistent threat. Yet obviously that isn't what they chose.

[Gwydion]

i honestly think people are over reacting. Yes donnies crush on april is a recurring reference in this show. if they actually date it on-coming seasons great? but this april has not just been shown as a love interest. Can we recall that shes the center of an invasion. Or when she snuck into a kraang lab. or spied on shredder. shes training to be a kunoichi. she fought karai. donnies love for her isnt taking away anything from her character.
As for interacting with others, shes been shown training alone with splinter multiple times, she had a talk with leo about karai. Yeah she talks to donnie more than anyone, but its only the first season, theres plenty of time for other interaction.
And how is her supposedly only being donnies love interest any different from her being caseys in 2k3? she was more of just a love interest for casey tin 2k3 then she has been so far for donnie in this series, as in shes actually shown without donnie.
People complaining about how they cant like this april because of donnies crush gets really annoying since its just them trying to see it that way, and trying to find fault in this relatively small change in the series

and please quit saying april has no personality yet. she does. shes stubborn, brave, tries to get by in school, devoted to her family and is motivated by her father. donnies crush takes away more from him then it does from her. plus with irma and casey coming, well get to see her people interaction develop, and thats in the second season, so just wait
Have to disagree with you on the bolded part. Am I a big fan of the idea of romance in a TMNT show? No, I'll admit that, but I'm not against it when done well. Had the change of having Donnie crush on April been handled better, I wouldn't have cared. I am not "trying" to see it that way, I'm not going out of my way to find faults with it, that's just how I see it. It's my opinion. It's not better or worse than yours - it's just an opinion, and one I'm going to stand behind.

And while "no personality" may be a bit of an overstatement, the one she has is pretty vague. I don't expect her to be as well fleshed out as the Turtles, but she's still pretty 1 dimensional at this point. I hope this changes as I really want to like this April.

Also, not trying to pick a fight, but why should we have to wait until season 2? Seems sad to introduce her so early only to hold off showing more of her personality until 26 episodes in, especially when there were already a lot of opportunities.

[BubblyShell22]

Honestly, I believe the crush is played for laughs on Don's part since April certainly hasn't returned his advances. But maybe she's not doing that because she knows it wouldn't work, and she doesn't want to hurt him. Either that, or she's thinking about breaking it to him gently, but she can't work out how to tell him. That's the way I see it anyway.

As for development, I agree that she hasn't had much within the last few episodes, but plenty of earlier episodes show that she's more than just Don's love interest. She's the one the Kraang want, she's headstrong and stubborn, and she's even willing to risk her life to not only rescue her father but to help the Turtles find out what Shredder's plan is in "Panic in the Sewers." Heck, she even wanted to hitch a ride with Dogpound and the Foot.

[JTH]

For people saying that it's not well written, if this was just 1 writer for the show, I'd understand. But you have to remember this first season had about 6-7 writers writing episodes (And they're not in back to back order to boot) Different writers have different opinions, like and don't like different things.

Look at Jeremy Shipp, how many episodes did April even appear in on Shipp's episodes? 2 is all I remember (Panic in the Sewers & New Girl in town *NGiT Which was also for only about 30 seconds*)

Writers wrote their own style in Season 1 which made some episodes seem more off kilter than they should. Some of the writers wrote April's development very well, others didn't do any period. And per result, I think Season 2 the group is going to have a much collective arc for each story.

[Raphaeline]

I don't see the problem with cross-species relationship.

These turtles are not animals, they are intelligent, like aliens could be.

Maybe it's because I'm a big fan of Star Wars, where humans go out with people from other species (humanoid of course but not humans) and it seems very natural. I'm very open-minded about that.

Do you have problems seeing a human with an elf in the Lord of the Rings? or a human and a twi'lek in Star Wars? that kind of couples are very popular. (And fanboys are heavily crushing on twi'leks girls even if they're red/blue/green and have tentacles on their head!)

So why not a mutant turtle. They cannot be handsome the way a human can be handsome, but your criterias change totally when you know that it's a different race I guess. They're still humanoid after all, they're not Krangs! :lol:

[Konchadunga]

I don't remember any major interspecies romance in any Star Wars movie (though to be fair, I quit the prequels after the first), and I don't count the expanded universe. The one thing of that nature I recall is Princess Leia saying "I'd sooner kiss a wookee (than Han Solo)", which implies that some interspecies romance is considered to be gross in that universe.

Still, I don't mind it in a TMNT show, but what I really mean is I wouldn't mind it because it's interspecies. Rather, I'd mind it if it dominated a series that should be about beating up baddies. April kissing Donatello for going through a lot of action to rescue her, and deciding she does return his feelings for her, is fine, because that would be it implemented in a way that doesn't hamper the action. A whole episode based on the ramifications of an interspecies romance would just be annoying, though.

[CyberCubed]

I hope all those 12 year old shippers on tumblr have heart attacks when they see April falling for Casey next season. I bet some of them will even quit watching the show over it.

Shippers are crazy.

[Avatar Yuffie]

And it's not as if interspecies romance is new in TMNT. Mirage!Leo and Mikey had relationships (human and alien respectively), TMNTA had Raph and Ninjara (and later Mezcaal, which he married though he still pined for his first flame which I really didn't like). Heck, the OT even had Mikey crushing on an alien and another human... and if you count Irma hitting on Don while he hilariously say no, that too.

I ship 2k12 Don/April but as far as canon is concerned, it's one-sided. Even his brothers all say it out loud. And I don't believe it's getting anywhere.

[Shark_Blade]

I hope all those 12 year old shippers on tumblr have heart attacks when they see April falling for Casey next season. I bet some of them will even quit watching the show over it.

Shippers are crazy.
Some even threaten Nickelodeon that they would quit watching the show should April choose Casey and leave Donnie.

It's madness on tumblr.

[BubblyShell22]

I wouldn't quit the show if April fell for Casey, but I don't think it's going to happen right away if at all.

[Raphaeline]

I don't remember any major interspecies romance in any Star Wars movie (though to be fair, I quit the prequels after the first), and I don't count the expanded universe.


It's because you don't count the expanded universe, which is HUGE, and full of interspecies romances.

But even in the movies, the twi'leks are the official "slaves prostitues" of the galaxy, you see them in the new trilogy as well, at the arm of non-twi'leks males, flirting with humans, etc. You can even see Boba Fett in the first trilogy flirting with alien women at Jabba's place.
http://www.dvdactive.com/images/editorial/screenshot/2009/8/bobaflirt2004.jpg

And I don't even count all the inter-species romances in popular games like Mass Effect, Dragon age 2, SWTOR, etc.


I don't think that inter-species romances are only for an adult public, you can see that also as a naive love between two teenagers (like Donnie) who don't care about the species. It doesn't seem to be chocking any kids to see Donnie in love with April or Leo with Karai.

[Electric]

Also, not trying to pick a fight, but why should we have to wait until season 2? Seems sad to introduce her so early only to hold off showing more of her personality until 26 episodes in, especially when there were already a lot of opportunities.

Because the show isn't about her? She's a main character yes, but the show is focused on the four turtles, so naturally the first season should focus more on them and their development, while including some other character development where they can. So April not fully being developed until season 2 should be no issue at all

The show is called "teenage mutant ninja turtles", not "human alien hybrid April"

[drgon78]

"Human Alien Hybrid April", I would watch that show.:lol:

[Raphaeline]

Yeah I can totally imagine her in the opening syaing "I love being an Hybrid!" :lol:

[drgon78]

It would be better then "The Adventures of Normal April" as she does battle with her most hated foe, the decimal system, and her famous battle cry "I hate Math".

[Konchadunga]

I hope all those 12 year old shippers on tumblr have heart attacks when they see April falling for Casey next season. I bet some of them will even quit watching the show over it.

Shippers are crazy.

Now that's just cruel. People die from heart attacks, and Don/April shippers are a welcome relief after I've been exposed to Turtlecest.

Also, I don't think Nickelodeon would go to such lengths promoting this romance if they were just going to break it down hard.

The issue is that maybe they've written themselves into a corner they'll need to fight to get out of. If there's a love-triangle with Casey, if April just goes with him and Don just breaks down in tears, if Don and April get together; either way, there's a big risk of some angsty, plodding dull plots along the lines of the "Emo Leo" episodes of the 4Kids show, or worse, Mutant Ninja Turtle Gaiden. It's true that Donatello's silly crush is getting old, but at least it just bogs down one character; not the whole plot.

[BabyTurtles]

Now that's just cruel. People die from heart attacks, and Don/April shippers are a welcome relief after I've been exposed to Turtlecest.

Also, I don't think Nickelodeon would go to such lengths promoting this romance if they were just going to break it down hard.

The issue is that maybe they've written themselves into a corner they'll need to fight to get out of. If there's a love-triangle with Casey, if April just goes with him and Don just breaks down in tears, if Don and April get together; either way, there's a big risk of some angsty, plodding dull plots along the lines of the "Emo Leo" episodes of the 4Kids show, or worse, Mutant Ninja Turtle Gaiden. It's true that Donatello's silly crush is getting old, but at least it just bogs down one character; not the whole plot.

I don't see why April can't just like Casey (judging from the Casey trailer...April seems annoyed by him)...she doesn't need to like Donnie, she even said she saw him and the other turtles as brothers.

[Coola Yagami]

I'm sure the writers thought in advance how they were gonna end this before they even started. I mean, that's what I would have done.

And where I can buy the first issue of April VS the Decimal System???

[BubblyShell22]

I don't see why April can't just like Casey (judging from the Casey trailer...April seems annoyed by him)...she doesn't need to like Donnie, she even said she saw him and the other turtles as brothers.

Yes, she does see them as brothers and hasn't returned Don's affection even though she probably knows he feels more for her than just friendship. It's just that she hasn't been able to break it to him how she really feels yet. Who knows if she will?

As for her liking Casey, I'd like for it to be a gradual thing if it happens at all. First she could be annoyed by him but as time goes on, she begins to like him and gradually builds a relationship. After all, not all teenage girls are boy crazy at first.

[Luckyday]

I just hope that it won't that dumb bickering couple dynamic that we've seen in 2k3 series. I swear if that is the case then I'm going back to the Donnie/April bandwagon.

[drgon78]

I don't care if she thinks of Donnie as a friend or more as long as she doesn't fall for Casey like most other incarnations then I will be fine.

[Captain PunchYouHard]

AFAIC, April can stay single. I dislike the paradigm that a woman has to have a romantic partner to be happy.

[drgon78]

I am fine with April being single since she is only sixteen and not every teen character has to have a love interest.

[BabyTurtles]

guys don't give your hopes up.....I'm pretty sure Casey is gonna be a love interest for April...

in an interview with Ciro, the person asked if there was gonna be anything between Casey and April (some sort of relationship)

Ciro responded and I quote "well she's a cute girl....and she's been in the sewer with 4 turtles....maybe for at least a year....having a boy show up kinda close to her age....it might do something......"

[Konchadunga]

I just hope that it won't that dumb bickering couple dynamic that we've seen in 2k3 series. I swear if that is the case then I'm going back to the Donnie/April bandwagon.

Dumb?! You thought that was dumb? I think that's only natural. They're very different people; of course they're going to bicker. I call couples narmishly flattering each other, ala Romeo and Juliet, dumb. Bickering adds character to a relationship, and gives a chance for humor. Plus the turtles bicker all the time, so why shouldn't they?

@BabyTurtles: Please link that interview.

[BabyTurtles]

Dumb?! You thought that was dumb? I think that's only natural. They're very different people; of course they're going to bicker. I call couples narmishly flattering each other, ala Romeo and Juliet, dumb. Bickering adds character to a relationship, and gives a chance for humor. Plus the turtles bicker all the time, so why shouldn't they?

@BabyTurtles: Please link that interview.

http://www.ign.com/videos/2013/07/19/teenage-mutant-ninja-turltes-greg-cipes-peter-hastings-ciro-nieli-comic-con-2013

starts around 5...something

...just start at 5:00 XD

[FlogginMcMurryZombiePizza]

Probably because they outright stated a relationship (or at least, a one-sided interest on Don's part) was going to happen.

I hope it doesn't get mushy either, though I highly doubt that will happen. The focus of TMNT isn't romance, after all...

If it goes any further, it's going to straddle a "bestiality" line

[victory_angel]

April may know how Donnie feels about her. But I don't think she's entirely aware of her feelings for him. Yes there is the argument that she thinks of all the turtles as her brothers at best, and that probably doesn't want to tell Donnie she doesn't feel the same way because she doesn't want to hurt him.

But she has a closer relationship with Donnie then the other Turtles. Mostly because he was the one helping her find her Father (which he has fulfilled) helping her with her studies. But there are some hints she may like him more then friends at the end of TCRI she runs up and hugs him as if saying 'I'm glad your okay'

And in Enemy of My Enemy when Donnie we was commenting about how it was too bad they couldn't trust Karai. And April with responds with a jealous sounding "It's okay, I get it. She's your mortal enemy, but hey she's pretty."

In previous incarnations there wasn't much competition for between April and Casey so there wasn't any question that April and Casey would be together.

Yes Donnie's crush with April was there for laughs and that his overly anxious come on's did get old really fast. And yes there will likely be a step back on Donnie's part once Casey show up. But we have also seen moments where Donnie can be really mature in his feelings for April, and that's the Donatello were going to see more of in the up coming seasons.

And even if in the end the whole DonO'Neil pairing is just a happy delusion, I rather it just be a happy delusion and have a good ending. Rather then building it up only for nothing to happen with it.

[Luckyday]

It would be nice if there was some closure. You hardly get to see closure anymore these days.

[Konchadunga]

It might be nice, but I could see them ignoring it. If they want to steer away from doing a downer story, they could just change Donatello to be less interested in April, and then sometime later, give April an interest in Casey. Since it looks like the Kraang will basically defeated in the finale, and Kirby saved, it's likely April won't need to spend so much time with the Turtles, so then Donatello could just get over it.

Now that I think of it, though, I could really see April not getting with anyone in this series. She is, after all, much younger than in other incarnations, and so are Casey and Donatello.

[Bossa Nova]

It might be nice, but I could see them ignoring it. If they want to steer away from doing a downer story, they could just change Donatello to be less interested in April, and then sometime later, give April an interest in Casey. Since it looks like the Kraang will basically defeated in the finale, and Kirby saved, it's likely April won't need to spend so much time with the Turtles, so then Donatello could just get over it.

Now that I think of it, though, I could really see April not getting with anyone in this series. She is, after all, much younger than in other incarnations, and so are Casey and Donatello.

This is exactly what I'm hoping for. Crushes at this age hardly ever last forever, and it would be wonderful to see Don mature and grow passed this naturally instead of drawing out some irritating drama/jealousy fest over Casey. It sucks that Don's friendship with Casey could be jeopardized over something so stupid. Do we know exactly when in Season 2 Casey might be introduced? If it isn't until later then that would certainly give time for Don's feelings to fade for April, plus it's not as though April has to fall for Casey right away either...actually that would be preferable since those two hardly have anything in common anyway and it's amusing to watch their initial friction.

[Raphaeline]

But Casey is in priority Raph's friend and not especially Donnie's friend. So there could be tension at the beginning.

Or April might dislike Casey at first (as she does in the 2k3 series) and the relationship can slowly change.

[Coola Yagami]

guys don't give your hopes up.....I'm pretty sure Casey is gonna be a love interest for April...

in an interview with Ciro, the person asked if there was gonna be anything between Casey and April (some sort of relationship)

Ciro responded and I quote "well she's a cute girl....and she's been in the sewer with 4 turtles....maybe for at least a year....having a boy show up kinda close to her age....it might do something......"

That's kinda cold. I can imagine poor Donnie saying 'I'M A BOY!!! AND I AM CLOSE TO HER AGE!!!'

[victory_angel]

it would be wonderful to see Don mature and grow passed this naturally instead of drawing out some irritating drama/jealousy fest over Casey. It sucks that Don's friendship with Casey could be jeopardized over something so stupid.

Oh really, I was actually thinking that if a love triangle between Donnie/April/Casey does come about it would have been a mirror of the love triangle between, Hamato Yoshi/Teng Shen/ Oroku Saki.

However the one difference between the D/A/C paring and the HY/TS/OS pairing is that Donnie in the end just wants April to be happy. So in the end he will accept her choice because it's the honorable thing to do.

[Electric]

Oh really, I was actually thinking that if a love triangle between Donnie/April/Casey does come about it would have been a mirror of the love triangle between, Hamato Yoshi/Teng Shen/ Oroku Saki.

However the one difference between the D/A/C paring and the HY/TS/OS pairing is that Donnie in the end just wants to be happy. So in the end he will accept her choice because it's the honorable thing to do.

best thought yet

[Avatar Yuffie]

Don and Casey never had a relationship, much less a friendship. It's been handwaved in the comics too.

[BabyTurtles]

That's kinda cold. I can imagine poor Donnie saying 'I'M A BOY!!! AND I AM CLOSE TO HER AGE!!!'

I just thought about that now :lol: that was cold.

but I'm sure Ciro meant human boy :)

but....if Don and April aren't going anywhere..I want this crush thing to end this season....
so then when Casey comes there won't be unnecessary tension...

[Luckyday]

I just thought about that now :lol: that was cold.

but I'm sure Ciro meant human boy :)

but....if Don and April aren't going anywhere..I want this crush thing to end this season....
so then when Casey comes there won't be unnecessary tension...

http://www.droidforums.net/forum/attachments/galaxy-nexus-development/52263d1320779832-get-your-jelly-bean-now-vg20948_second-scruffy-futurama.jpg

[Lisardo]

Back to the original topic, I totally forgot about this OT episode! In this scene all the turtles and even Splinter are crushing (or lusting..?) on her, lol!

http://youtu.be/a0o-oJJ6hIQ

or try here:

http://youtu.be/FThulrPqk5g

[TigerClaw]

Back to the original topic, I totally forgot about this OT episode! In this scene all the turtles and even Splinter are crushing (or lusting..?) on her, lol!

FThulrPqk5g

or try here:

http://youtu.be/FThulrPqk5g
Good fine. :)

[Coola Yagami]

I just thought about that now :lol: that was cold.

but I'm sure Ciro meant human boy :)

but....if Don and April aren't going anywhere..I want this crush thing to end this season....
so then when Casey comes there won't be unnecessary tension...

Part of me wishes it would go somewhere, and part of me doesn't. I just feel it's a real shame to waste so much focus on it in the first season, for it to just vanish in the second. Kinda hoping Casey DOESN'T fall for April and vice-versa, but seeing him rescue her in the trailer kinda indicates it might happen. I just see April as not into that kind of violent maniac... and Casey being too much into 'kicking ass' and thinking 'girls are lame' to be thinking about girls that way.

It would be kinda funny if there was some mutant girl that thought Don was cute and she was jealous. Like... I don't know. Some kind of thing where 'she'd never go out with him cause he's a mutant turtle, but she doesn't want some other mutant flirting with him' kinda thing. But I'm also confused on the issue of probably not wanting to see them as a couple since there's never been a past incarnation of Don and April as a couple. April was always older sister and I guess a crush for all four of them, but she never was actually going out with any of them. Perhaps it wouldn't be such an issue if April was already Don's official girlfriend in Mirage or the 80's cartoon or something. But since it's never been done before, doing it now would be kinda jarring. Like Leo and Karai actually making out or something. In the 4Kids show they just had some sort of mutual respect but it never went that far, and don't even mention Mirage, so seeing them get that far in the Nicktoon would also be weird.

[BabyTurtles]

Part of me wishes it would go somewhere, and part of me doesn't. I just feel it's a real shame to waste so much focus on it in the first season, for it to just vanish in the second. Kinda hoping Casey DOESN'T fall for April and vice-versa, but seeing him rescue her in the trailer kinda indicates it might happen. I just see April as not into that kind of violent maniac... and Casey being too much into 'kicking ass' and thinking 'girls are lame' to be thinking about girls that way.

It would be kinda funny if there was some mutant girl that thought Don was cute and she was jealous. Like... I don't know. Some kind of thing where 'she'd never go out with him cause he's a mutant turtle, but she doesn't want some other mutant flirting with him' kinda thing. But I'm also confused on the issue of probably not wanting to see them as a couple since there's never been a past incarnation of Don and April as a couple. April was always older sister and I guess a crush for all four of them, but she never was actually going out with any of them. Perhaps it wouldn't be such an issue if April was already Don's official girlfriend in Mirage or the 80's cartoon or something. But since it's never been done before, doing it now would be kinda jarring. Like Leo and Karai actually making out or something. In the 4Kids show they just had some sort of mutual respect but it never went that far, and don't even mention Mirage, so seeing them get that far in the Nicktoon would also be weird.

maybe thats part of my problem...I see April as a big sister for the turtles not a potential love interest.

I'm usually the type of person that doesn't mind new things in shows....but April and Donnie...just never sat well with me...

[Raphaeline]

In the comics or the 2k3 series we could see April showing the turtles her new haircut or new Halloween costume, and they say she's beautiful, but that's all. (I mean, they didn't act like on that video of the 87 series :lol: )