Should Donatello have upgraded from a bo-staff to a naginata?
 

http://www.angelfire.com/dragon/swords/naginata.html

http://www.thesworddepot.net/images/VW-SH1020.gif

And he did, in #20 of TMNT Vol. 1 (Mirage) for a pagae or two. I don't see why he wouldn't long term, though.

No he shouldn't because Ben wields a naginata....

In all seriousness though, Donatello's use of the simple bo is a great contrast to his analytical and technological mind.

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... Are you trying to call me out? :P

Everybody tends to label Donatello as the 'pacifist' Turtle. I don't think that him using a nagi would suit his style or personality.

BTW, beautiful pic! Pure awesomeness. 8) 8)

Nope, I cannot imagine that.

Other than Issue 9 of Volume 1, they do not show earlier weapons for any of the Turtles.

Leo is the only Turtle with a blade. It should be kept that way. Raphael can stab, but cannot really cut or slice.

Yeah, and maybe Mike should upgrade to a grappling hook.

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:P

That pacifist stuff is a real overstatement I think, he can use sharp weapons if he had to and he's been very vicious on numerous occasions.

Night of the Dark Turtle, anyone?

That I agree with, although, I thought it would be cool to see Donatello with a sansetsukon or three-section staff:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...onal-staff.jpg

I've always seen the sansetsukon nunchaku to, perhaps, being an alternate weapon for Michelangelo, or the next step up. He's used them before, too, in Return to New York. I think. One of those comics.

And Don as a pacifist? He's killed plenty of times, even ramming his broken bo into a Triceraton's neck.

A ninja pacifist... yeah, that's a good one. Tell me another.

In the 2k3 cartoon Michelangelo does use this type of weapon:

http://www.4kids.tv/images/uploads/tmnt_wk10-02.jpg

Another good weapon for Don would be a getsugasan or Monk's spade.

http://cooksden.com/wp-content/uploa...B0000C87VE.jpg


For Donatello, even though we're moving out of the realm of real life weapons, I could see him using a metal collapsible bo staff like Robin or a three-section staff that locks into a Bo Staff, like Billy Kane from the Fatal Fury video games, effectively giving him two weapons.

Didn't he essentially use that as his weapon in the Lost Season?

Yeah, let me rephrase my earlier statement.

Donatello (next to Michelangelo) is the Turtle with the least desire to take a life, which is obviously why he and Mikey have weapons with no blades.

I'm not saying they WOULD'NT kill, but only if they had no choice. It all goes down to the 'kill or be killed' phrase, which is just about everytime the Turtles do battle.

The type weapon Don used in the lost season was closer to a spear or yari:

http://www.4kids.tv/images/uploads/tmnt_wk08-02.jpg

I was about to post that myself. I guess I though the curved end was on the bottom not the top.

That doesn't jive with what a ninja is, or what they were trained from adolescence to do. If there's a threat I don't see Don holding back at all.

Not that he would use unwarranted force for a threat that could just be subdued rather than killed.

Donatello has always been the most pacifistic of the Turtles - as much as you can for a ninja. He'd rather not take a life whenever the deed could have been avoided, and this has been shown multiple times throughout the series. Killed Shredder? Because ol' Saki was about to eradicate them all with a thermal grenade. That Elite Foot he capped with a machine gun? If he didn't kill him, he would have slew Karai. Heck, he kept Stockman alive for over a decade just because he didn't want to eradicate a genius.

The bo suits him well, relative pacifism or not. A big, thick piece of oak that can break bones and bash skulls? Who wouldn't want one o' those?

Yeah, but what makes being a ninja any different than being in the Army, or something similiar to that degree?

I don't care what you train in or what your combat beliefs are, not everybody has the urge to take a life. Donatello using a bo instead of a naginata has the possibility of being a example, but I'm not saying that it is.

It all comes down to the thought process and your own conscience. 'Am I a killer, or just trying to protect myself and my family?'

A ninja is a killer. By definition.

You won't find many pacifists enlisting in the Army. Though you might find an equivalent in something like Marine Special Forces, the frogmen, or Navy SEALS in the regimene and mindset. Get in, kill the targets, and get out... swiftly and quietly as possible.

By definition, yes. But I still say it all comes down to whether or not you actually have the instinct to do it.

Besides, dealing with the Turtles, you happen to forget about their code of bushido. And it's kinda tricky to have a logic of honor when you're constantly taking lives.

Basically, my point is this: The TMNT are trained as killers, but that's not their belief. Splinter simply wouldn't condone it. It's all about survival.

Pacifism is pretty much the antithesis of bushido/the Way of the Warrior. bushido is just a code of conduct -- actually, a samurai thing by root -- that Splinter probably just instilled in them to keep them from going too batsh*t insane on the streets of New York.

Not only did Splinter condone it, he encouraged and insisted on it.

Which makes them even more complex. They train under a ninja way, but they also have samurai tendencies. Besides, if Splinter didn't instilled that conduct within their heads, would you think for one microsecond that they'd be considered 'the good guys'?

Heh, probably because he lacked the youth to go 'batsh*t insane' on the Shredder himself.:P

From what I'm reading in your posts, you're pretty much going the comic route. And since I never really had the pleasure of reading them myself, I understand where you're coming from.

But based on my ideals, I'm still saying that you mostly choose who you are and what you decide, no matter what weapon you wield, what style you train under, or what philosophy you live by.

Probably. The Splinter thing is point of interest... especially since he didn't even accompany them on their fight.

The source material of the TMNT, yes.

You probably weren't raised and conditioned from birth to one day assassinate someone.

Last time I checked, no.

Besides, it was a canister of ooze that started this whole discussion in the first place.

I would love to see Don fight with that thing, and occasionally it would be really interesting to see all the turtles fight with blade weapons. On a regular basis, however, I think that the bo is just his weapon. It's more of an occam's razor fighting method, ie. the simplest weapon is often the most effective.

heh.. I always find it interesting that alot of people are under the impression that a bo isn't a "lethal" weapon. It has no blades and points, but that doesn't take away from the bo the ability to beat a person into a bloody, broken, mangled, painful death.

The staff is such a fantastic weapon with so many practical uses. It's one of the oldest weapons conceived from raw materials in nature, and it's one of the most global weapons, with just about every culture in the world having staffs.

I have to say infact that the bo is one of my two top favorite melee weapons. The katana being the other.

Anyway, no I don't think Donatello should have "upgraded" to the naginata. I wouldn't even call it an upgrade. The bo is such an excellent weapon as it is.

My top 2 are the nunchakus and of course, the nagi.

Just like the bo, it also has culture. The only difference is that it has a friggin' blade attached to it.

Like Ryona just mentioned, it wouldn't be much of an upgrade for Donny. Just a change of weapon with a greater kill risk.

I think this video pretty much sums up just how badass non-bladed/non-pointy weapons are..

I dunno... the bo is all well and good against untrained, unbladed combatants... but imagine if Don walked into a room full of well-trained Elite Foot all brandishing daisho. Or worse, no-dachi. They could just hack his bo in half and then cut him up like piecemeal.

Maybe if his bo-staff wasn't wooden he could play off the reach factor better.

Heh, Bruce Lee could kill you just by looking at you. :lol:

Well, that's a good point. But I think a fight of one skilled warrior versus a group of skilled warriors is pretty unfair already.

Even Leonardo, the most skilled and dangerous ninja turtle, and weilder of the most lethal weapons of the four, is unable to fight a massive number of ninja (plus Shredder) alone without nearly dying, as we saw in the Leonardo #1 Mirage comic.

well... what I've heard that he uses the Bo cause he's the pacifist and want to wield a nonlethal weapon, when that's said the Bo is extremely lethal and can shatter swords and easy kill a person.

The Bo is superior to the sword due to its force and length.
And the Bo and Naginata have a whole different style, unless he'd trained with it before he'll be more unbalanced with just switching instantly weapon

True. Though TMNT vs. Foot has always come down to... trained ninja vs. ninja trained... that much more.

Quite right. Though he seemed to be able to kill no one but two Foot Elite simultaneously in Return to New York, and then go on to kill Saki himself solo. He seemed to learn from his mistakes quickly, especially after coming out of that coma.

Stop listening to whoever is telling you that. It's a fanfiction, or a children's spin-off thing.

yes I have trouble beliving that since the Bo is far more lethal than the Katana

Are you serious? More lethal than the katana? My dear boy, the katana is designed to be a killing instrument. The bo, while it can be lethal, is not designed to be lethal. Understand?

Infact of the group of weapons.. katana, bo, sai, and nunchaku.., the katana is the only one of the four that is designed for killing. The others are more so for protecting oneself.
Simply put, the bo, sai, nunchaku, and other Okinawan weapons are for self-defense. The katana however is a weapon for war.

If I remember correctly, isn't that what it says in his 'bio'?

Probably not word-for-word, but that's the direction they're trying to go.

he calls himself a combination of a pacifist and a ninja in the bio on their website

When I was a wee kid, I stole an old broomstick from the kitchen, duct taped it around and felt like like Donatello.

I've just started with Bo, and its tough to use it, and really creepy when aiming for the head of my training partner

That bio isn't based on the Mirage Donatello.

One of my favorite fight scenes using staffs:







Give Don the Ultimate upgrade.:)

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_bLaSJk-pyF...+Mac-10+sm.jpg