Sometimes I want turtles other than Donatello to have more specific skills

[Cryomancer]

Anyone else think that they overload Donatello with too many "hats" sometimes? He's somehow a mechanic, a biologist, able to understand stuff from other dimensions, a hacker/programmer, and a ninja all at once. Sometimes more. I think it would be good to see the other turtles get some practical skills as part of the team. What do you think they should be good at?

Some ideas:

Leonardo (or any/all of them, but him especially) seems like he could work as a blacksmith. Someone has to make their weapons right? Doesn't even have to be a big thing, but he could go pick up a hammer and pound on something in the background during a downtime scene. This would feed well into his perfectionist warrior persona, giving him another layer of relationship between turtle and weapon.

Michelangelo I see as a potential gearhead / driving enthusiast. Take how he is presented with skateboards and apply it to other vehicles. Have him work on the van instead of Don when it needs repaired. Have him talking about how he wants to install a spoiler or give it a new paint job or whatever. His usual representation of a thrill seeker would make it believable that he could be a pilot or behind the wheel of a boat as well. This can put him at the wheel of the van while the others fight on the roof/shoot the cannon/track the enemy/etc.

Raphael...I want to see as team doctor, honestly. Justify it as him being so frequently injured that he bothered to learn how to fix himself. If someone gets hurt in a mission you can have him doing temporary splints or tying off bleeding limbs if we're talking about something where they are allowed to bleed. This gives him something theoretical compassionate to do that he can still be gruff and sarcastic while doing.

[MsMarvelDuckie]

Actually, according to the Paladium TMNT RPG book (take it as you will), Mikey has minor medical skills in first aid, which actually makes sense with his compassionate, empathetic nature. He's the field medic, while Don is usually shown to have the more advanced medical knowledge. (ie- splints, treating diseases, etc.) And yes, he DOES have some interest in driving and "tricking out" their rides- but seems to be more of an idea man in that respect, rather than having actual skills in altering them. (Beyond paint-jobs and minor details like rims or spoilers- as shown by his ideas in 2K3.) Mikey is also their chief cook, and apparently is the one with the most skills in sleight-of-hand (ie- pick-pocketing and escape artist,) which might go back to his interest in stage magic in the OT, and also has some skill in using disguises, which might explain why he is always tagged as the "bait".....

Raph is something of a mechanic also, from his working on his bike in 2K3 (alongside Casey, naturally) to the Mirage books where he was the one helping Casey with the truck. Raph also seems to be their main driver, as he can drive both automobiles and bikes. And from the looks of the OT, he was also able to pilot the blimp! (Actually, they all appeared to take turns doing so....) Oddly enough, the Paladium book also tags him with skills in demolitions disposal, though I'm not sure where that comes from, other than the fact that he seems the most likely to want to protect the others from the possibility of failure to defuse a bomb. I can see him taking the burden of doing those kinds of tasks, if only to keep the others out of harm's way if it goes badly.

And apparently, Leo and Raph both already have some sort of blacksmithing skills, as they worked together to make Leo's new swords in the 2K3 series after they ended up at Casey's farm. Leo is also listed as having carpentry skills in the Paladium book, so it seems he can build or repair whatever furniture they need. Interestingly (going by the RPG book), Leo also seems to be the only one with a working knowledge of (or skill with) firearms. Considering his expertise with weapons in general, I'm not entirely surprised by this.

[Powder]

I feel you on that front, definitely, but I do think the Mirage comics gave them more dimensions, and I'd say IDW is setting some things up to do the same. Maybe their skills aren't as practical as what you're saying, but still. Like, Leo is always sort of the spiritual guide, the fella who gets the turtles into the astral plane, or other dimensions & whatnot. I wanna say he forged some weapons in IDW when they got to Northhampton, but I'm not sure. Mikey in IDW can read Japanese, which comes in handy for a lot of what they go through in that series. In Mirage, he's a published writer, so that could explain how the turtles maintain their income, if only in a post-City At War period.

I wanna say there are other examples of this sort of thing but I just woke up so my memory is fuzzy.

[KirkyMonster]

I love that the Palladium books was referenced because I still hold a lot of the characterization from that as my personal cannon. I thought it interesting how underplayed Donatello's weapon proficiency was limited to the Bo and shuriken I always chalked that up to being that he spends so much time doing his machines and not keeping up with every weapon under the sun.

[MsMarvelDuckie]

I thought about adding Mikey's writing, but it didn't seem to relate too much as a "practical skill". At least not outside of Mirage, which is the only place I've seen it. And for some reason, Leo has art under his skills in the RPG book, though I've never seen this anywhere else. Most of the fan art and fics I've seen actually have Mikey as the artist! (Must be his creative and sensitive side showing artistically.)

I DO, however, see Leo doing a lot of origami and calligraphy. Possibly traditional Japanese poetry, as well. Not sure if that counts as practical skills, or just a hobby. Then again, most of the time Mikey's video game, movie, and comic knowledge don't seem particularly useful- until the gang gets into a situation that calls for that knowledge! (Thinking of that one FF episode with the horror film festival, the BttS one with the RPG game, and a couple of the ones with the JF, here.)

[NoName999]

This was one of the few things the 2007 movie got right.

[Powder]

Originally Posted by NoName999

This was one of the few things the 2007 movie got right.

How so? They had jobs, but they suited their pigeon-holed OT based personalities. Not really skills...

[MsMarvelDuckie]

Originally Posted by KirkyMonster

I love that the Palladium books was referenced because I still hold a lot of the characterization from that as my personal cannon. I thought it interesting how underplayed Donatello's weapon proficiency was limited to the Bo and shuriken I always chalked that up to being that he spends so much time doing his machines and not keeping up with every weapon under the sun.

He also had blunt weapons listed, but I believe bo and shuriken are his only specialties. I also use that as a personal canon, too- which I even used in my fan-fics. (Along with Mikey's sleight-of-hand, aka pick-pocketing. It comes in "handy" in one particular chapter, at least, LOL!!)

[CyberCubed]

Isn't Leonardo also shown to be the most about keeping fit?

[Luckyday]

I always see Mikey as a interrogator but more like someone who get a person let his/her guard down. He could be a good public speaker since he's more of a people person.

[MsMarvelDuckie]

I'd say that would be Raph- he's the one with the weights and punching bag, after all. He also is into boxing, body-building, and wrestling, where Leo just has the boxing and body-building under his list. Leo also does Tai-Chi, apparently, but Raph also seems to like any form of motorcycle sports, which can be physically taxing.

Actually, I think all four have their own ways of keeping fit- Mike and Don with skateboarding (going from Don in movie #1 for this, all others seem to show Mike being the main boarder), Raph with any kind of weight-lifting/ wrestling/ boxing, and Leo's Tai-Chi and constant katas. And of course they are all good at swimming, acrobatics, gymnastics, and climbing. I'd imagine Splinter has them on some sort of strict exercise regimen- though I kind of doubt sit-ups are part of it, since as turtles, the shell would make that a moot point for them. (Turtle musculature of the abdomen is vastly different from a human, and they'd have little to show for that type of exercise due to the lack of "abs" as we know them. But take that as just a minor point of anatomy.....)

[pennydreadful]

This is a great thread topic - I'd definitely love to see some of the other Turtles be given specific skillsets.

I can't really think of any 'canon' skills that haven't been mentioned thus far, but does anybody have any headcanons that they'd like to share?

[Technogeek29]

If 2k7 is any thing to go by Leo has good survival skills. Living in the amazon jungle for two years will do that. I imagine they all could durvive in a harsh terrain for awhile if they really had to.

[Warhorse]

Well, Leonardo, even though he's lacked exposure to them, always came across as a gifted equestrian in some of the mediums.

[MsMarvelDuckie]

I assume you're referring to the TMNT III movie? He certainly learned it fast enough there! Good call, though, I forgot about that one.

Oh, another one I just remembered from the movies- Mikey's impressions- vocal mimicry could certainly be useful to a ninja! And my head-canon is that he is very good at it, after so many years making fun of Leo, Raph, or Splinter behind their backs..... (I recall he even mimicked a cat in TMNT III!)

I'd kind of like to see some more unique skills for Raph, too, come to think of it.

[pennydreadful]

Originally Posted by MsMarvelDuckie

I'd kind of like to see some more unique skills for Raph, too, come to think of it.

Ditto; I'd like to see some skills that sort of tie in a bit with his softer side.

[Warhorse]

Originally Posted by MsMarvelDuckie

I assume you're referring to the TMNT III movie? He certainly learned it fast enough there! Good call, though, I forgot about that one.

Oh, another one I just remembered from the movies- Mikey's impressions- vocal mimicry could certainly be useful to a ninja! And my head-canon is that he is very good at it, after so many years making fun of Leo, Raph, or Splinter behind their backs..... (I recall he even mimicked a cat in TMNT III!)

I'd kind of like to see some more unique skills for Raph, too, come to think of it.

That was part of it, but I've seen him on a horse in the OT, in some of the comics, and I remember seeing one of his bio stats listing him as liking horses.

[Luckyday]

Originally Posted by pennydreadful

Ditto; I'd like to see some skills that sort of tie in a bit with his softer side.

Nick show illustrated with this by making him good with animals by making him a pet owner of turtle (I seriously want that to become the norm in TMNT universe) and and being able to get normal pigeons to work with him.

[Cryomancer]

You guys are bringing up a lot of good concepts I totally forgot about, like Michelangelo being a cook and Leonardo on horses (which is surprisingly common across the years, although when would he ever have learned?). I did have the Michelangelo as a published author stuff in mind as well but was thinking more practical at the time I wrote this. I suppose if you want to bring next mutation into it, he ran that radio station thing too.

The RPG books do have lots of interesting little factoids that are probably of dubious canon nature but are fun to read. The guns thing is slightly surprising but I could see it. The turtles are sort of inconsistent about guns, usually they hate them but will use them anyway when the time is right. I'm pretty sure Mirage had Leonardo mention disliking guns and Raphael enjoying them at least once or twice? Been awhile.

There is probably an argument to be made for Raphael as the best uncle to Shadow, but I wonder if that might just be one of those things where he got the issue spotlight most of the time.

Feel free to bring some other characters into this discussion too. Splinter has had a few esoteric skills shown off before, like knowledge of poisons and how to treat them (makes sense for a ninja of course). And of course the ability to teach, meditation, and astral projection.

I'd probably feel that Donatello would be a LOT more believable if the other techy characters were ever really around to help him ouside of major story events. They did that a bit with April in 2003 and it was nice, and worked especially well with the details of the fast forward future. Fugitoid usually disappears and Leatherhead tends to go crazy or into space/self-imposed exile so they rarely get to collaborate. Casey working on the truck in the movie is still a well-liked scene so many years later, after all.

[pennydreadful]

Originally Posted by Luckyday

Nick show illustrated with this by making him good with animals by making him a pet owner of turtle (I seriously want that to become the norm in TMNT universe) and and being able to get normal pigeons to work with him.

Yeah, my headcanon is that he's a big softie with animals... even if NickRaph says he's not a cat person (I bet he so totally is!)

Originally Posted by Cryomancer

You guys are bringing up a lot of good concepts I totally forgot about, like Michelangelo being a cook and Leonardo on horses (which is surprisingly common across the years, although when would he ever have learned?). I did have the Michelangelo as a published author stuff in mind as well but was thinking more practical at the time I wrote this. I suppose if you want to bring next mutation into it, he ran that radio station thing too.

I was going to mention Mikey's pirate radio station... the Sewer Hour! Though since we're out of the 90's now, maybe a more modern Mikey would have a podcast. Or some sort of Youtube channel where he reviews the latest issues of his favourite comic books.

Feel free to bring some other characters into this discussion too. Splinter has had a few esoteric skills shown off before, like knowledge of poisons and how to treat them (makes sense for a ninja of course). And of course the ability to teach, meditation, and astral projection.

Well I don't know that this is a particularly useful skill per se, but my headcanon loves the idea of Splinter having skill with horticulture - maybe developed from his knowledge of poisons and homeopathic remedies. The idea of Splinter having a little garden of bonsai just makes me happy.

Given that he's the most zen and in touch with his spiritual side, I always thought that he'd be able to play some type of Japanese instrument as well - even if it was just the wind flute or something.