Is 4Kid's Michelangelo the worst iteration of the character?

[ToTheNines]

Originally Posted by Donnie

I was thinking about making a thread about how when the 2k7 movie came out (and the same holds true to this day) I didn't think the characters in that movie were resembling the 2k3 TMNT at all. There are some character traits that are obviously there, but to me the 2k3 Turtles and the 2k7 Turtles are very different. I never felt like I was watching the 2k3 in a movie...that goes for all 4 of the Turtles, not just Mikey. In my opinion, the 2k7 was just a clusterf*ck of bad direction that had some decent moments...but on the whole, it was garbage. I used to think better of it. That time is no more, lol.

I don't like the 2007 movie either, and Mike was definitely dumbed down in that one... but at least he wasn't constantly intentionally annoying his brothers.

[Cure]

The thing I really liked about Mikey in the movie was that he was ready and willing to check out the noises in that building or whatever, even with a smile on his face, whereas Mikey in the series would have run screaming like a pansy.

I don't get how someone can be so cocky yet so cowardly at the same time. It would have made more sense for Mikey to take on any challenge with a jokey attitude, like when he was in that gauntlet in Shredder's lair.

[ToTheNines]

Originally Posted by Cure

The thing I really liked about Mikey in the movie was that he was ready and willing to check out the noises in that building or whatever, even with a smile on his face, whereas Mikey in the series would have run screaming like a pansy.

I don't get how someone can be so cocky yet so cowardly at the same time. It would have made more sense for Mikey to take on any challenge with a jokey attitude, like when he was in that gauntlet in Shredder's lair.

Yeah, I don't know why the writers pulled Mikey being a chicken out of their asses... he was never really afraid of anything in Mirage, Image, Archie, the old cartoon, or the movies.

[Donnie]

Originally Posted by Cure

I don't get how someone can be so cocky yet so cowardly at the same time.

It's being a teenager. Throughout my youth plenty of people (myself included) have acted cocky or confident but were really scared. Why is that cowardly?

Originally Posted by ToTheNines

Yeah, I don't know why the writers pulled Mikey being a chicken out of their asses... he was never really afraid of anything in Mirage, Image, Archie, the old cartoon, or the movies.

I really liked Mikey being a scaredy-cat, it was a new element to his character that didn't seem out of place to me at all. A welcomed addition to his personality in my opinion!

Oh and I realized I left IDW out of my rankings list - I'm sure it will rank highly when it's fit to judge it. So far so good.

[ToTheNines]

Originally Posted by Donnie

I really liked Mikey being a scaredy-cat

Hm.

I'm out.

[Redeemer]

Originally Posted by ToTheNines

I don't like the 2007 movie either, and Mike was definitely dumbed down in that one... but at least he wasn't constantly intentionally annoying his brothers.

Yeah the movie Mikey was pretty much a stoner....

[ZariusTwo]

Originally Posted by Donnie

I really liked Mikey being a scaredy-cat, it was a new element to his character that didn't seem out of place to me at all. A welcomed addition to his personality in my opinion!

You think being a chickens*it is a welcome personality addition?

[Donnie]

Originally Posted by ToTheNines

Hm.

I'm out.

To each his own my dude, I'm not trying to convince anybody, I'm just showing my devoted appreciation for a very unappreciated character, and I knew that wasn't going to go over satisfactory with the general fandom. But I'm not just gonna agree with the consensus when I genuinely like almost everything about 2k3 Mikey. Somebody's gotta stand up for him! I know I'm the extreme minority...it's all good.

Originally Posted by Redeemer

Yeah the movie Mikey was pretty much a stoner....

Totally. He might as well had a doob in his mouth the entire film. Not that I'm anti-marijuana...but he seriously sounded baked that entire movie. At least in the 2k3 Mikey's personality came naturally rather than in some altered state.

Granted the 2k7 was an hour and a half (was it even that long?) movie, and of course the personality development that each Turtle got couldn't equate to what they got over the course of many seasons, but even with that taken into account the movie still fails terribly, especially with Mike & Don. Leo & Raph were decent, but they were also way too exaggerated - Raph hyped up and wholly confrontational the whole movie...gosh.

Originally Posted by ZariusTwo

You think being a chickens*it is a welcome personality addition?

Like I said, I liked that Mikey had a scared streak. He's a teenager. Teens are sometimes scared, even if you're a mutant Turtle. It was cool to see one of the Turtles show that side, because it's absent from other TMNT media. Mikey is the obvious choice to give the quality to, in my opinion.

I also think you guys are exagerrating with it - yeah 2k3 Mikey was definitely a scaredy-cat (again, I don't see it necessarily as a negative trait) but he still kicked ass and even if he complained or whined, still won the day alongside his brothers. He never cowered in the corner when the Turtles went up against a major adversary like Shredder. He pulled his weight plenty, who cares if he was initially scared about it? (And as a side note, it wasn't all the time that he was). He saved the day in "Notes from the Underground", regardless of how scared he was to wander through that creepy city alone. Geez, I'd be scared too!

[Powder]

I think you're a cool dude, but sometimes you REEEEEEEEAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLYYYYYYYYYY reach for your favorite characters.

[Cure]

Originally Posted by Donnie

It's being a teenager. Throughout my youth plenty of people (myself included) have acted cocky or confident but were really scared. Why is that cowardly?

Uh, what? We're talking about two different things. Suppressing fear is not the same as wearing it on your sleeve and screaming like a bitch.

[Donnie]

Let's just agree to disagree. I love 2k3 Mikey, many of you don't. It's cool!

[Mandi-chan]

I don't get the hate for 2007 Mikey. I thought (with what little we got to see of him) that he was really sweet, brave, skilled, and genuinely funny (except the "your mom" joke...but I never found that joke funny back when it was popular anyway). He wasn't portrayed as an idiot, a coward, a jerk, or a lazy ninja. Sure he was kinda dopey and mildly childish (just like the OT and the original movies had him be), but (like those past examples) I found it endearing.

I used to love 2003 Mikey, but as the seasons went by I grew more disappointed and irritated by his lack of growth. I felt like they went backwards with his character, making him seem dumber and more immature every year. But still, I overlooked his faults and defended him when he had his less-than-flattering moments...up until Season 4, that's when he crossed a line that I couldn't ignore.

In the premier episode of Season 4, when the Hamato clan is getting cozy in Casey's old house in the woods, Mikey did the unforgivable. He sniffs at the air, makes a face, and then makes an obnoxious remark about there being a gross burnt-fur smell in the room...with Splinter (who had, in the Season 3 finale, gotten electrocuted and nearly died saving Mikey's ass...thus, why his fur was singed in the first place) sitting right there next to him as he says it. And instead of apologizing for his insensitive and rude remark, all Mikey does is display a stupidly sheepish grin at the look Splinter shoots at him (I don’t remember him apologizing…at least, not sincerely).
From that point on (aside from a couple of notable episodes) I swear Mikey got increasingly worse and never matured. It was frustrating to watch!

[tmnt transformer]

The 4kids michelangelo is perfect version of him.

[Donnie]

Originally Posted by tmnt transformer

The 4kids michelangelo is perfect version of him.

Along with movie 1 Mike, I agree. Just re-watched Grudge Match - still one of the best episodes in my opinion. Who could doubt that Mikey didn't have his serious moments? He totally owned that last half of the episode. Love the bond it showed with him & Leo, too.

[Avatar Yuffie]

Don't get the 2007 Mikey hate either. I just felt like he's just shoved in the sidelines with Don during Leo and Raph trying to be Alphas again, ohidunno.

[Sage Ninja]

well you see personaly I think old toon treated Michaelangelo better as a character than some of the more "serious" mediums of the franchise does. Because even though the old toon was sillier more light hearted version of the franchise, Michaelangelo actually fit the context of that medium. He may had been silly sometiems and had the lable of "the party dude" slapped on him but he was no more sillier than the other turtles.

I feel as if in the old toon he was just as important to the plots as the other four and wasn't ranks of imporatance on the turtles in the orginal toon, as there seems to be in the serious mediums of the franchise. OT Michaelangelo wasn't detached from what was going on around him and reacted to it and was involved. Often times in the more serious mediums I feel they make Mikey's too detached from the more serious stuff and try too hard to make him the "comic relief" to off set the darker events which makes him seem detached from what is going on by having him cracking jokes, making it seem that is all there is to his character.

I really like OT Michaelangelo, and I think he is some what set apart from the more serious versions of Michaelangelo in the sence that, I don't get the "I'm the baby of the group" vibe off of him in this medium of the turtles. Most mediums seem to try to set Michaelangelo up as the baby of the group by giving him characteristics of the youngest, like annoying your older siblings and being some what vulnerable and helpless which sort of puts him in a less than equal position to the other turtles. In the classic toon he's not exactly immature just more into indulging fun stuff and he never purposely tries to annoy the other turtles.

What I like about OT Mike is that his humourous side wasn't forced. He doesn't try to be the funny guy and his mostly funny momemts are do to his mannerisms. And I don't think Michaelangelo in the old toon was flakey I think his priorites where just diffirent from the other turtles. But what I really appriciated about his character is that the show let him progress with the story. When Red Sky came along and the the plots and turtles became more serious, so did he. The writters didn't try to play him down and or make him more wacky to off set the more serious tone the show had taken to "balance things out". The writters actually treated his character with respect and realized he was just as much apart of the TMNt as the three turtles and let him evolve and and toughen up just like the other turtles. I'm not to found of Red Sky but at least when the show made the turn around they let Michaelangelo progress (with out changing his over all personality) with it instead forceing him to be the clown and comic relief. Which more than more "serious" and "dark" versions of TMNT has given him.

[Donnie]

Originally Posted by Avatar Yuffie

Don't get the 2007 Mikey hate either. I just felt like he's just shoved in the sidelines with Don during Leo and Raph trying to be Alphas again, ohidunno.

I'm being a little too hard on 2k7 Mike maybe, although he would still be my least favorite version. To be fair, my overall semi-recent (although I was never too happy w/ Mike in it from the get-go) dislike for that movie as a whole probably influences that decision.

Originally Posted by Sage Ninja

making it seem that is all there is to his character.

What I like about OT Mike is that his humourous side wasn't forced.

The writters actually treated his character with respect and realized he was just as much apart of the TMNt as the three turtles and let him evolve and and toughen up just like the other turtles.

I have to clarify that I don't dislike OT Mike, like I said I do like him. Could do without his surfer slang, but you have great points throughout your post, and I agree that he never seemed like the younger brother to me in the OT. Then again, I never minded that Mikey has been recently casted into that role.

What I quoted is all your opinion, and I think the writers of the 2k3 respected Mike just fine, let him evolve, and for the most part kept his humor tasteful. But at this point I feel like I'm beating a dead horse!

[Jester]

This is Mikey:

Spoiler:

[BubblyShell22]

Wow. Now, that's a good explanation as to why Mikey's the way he is sometimes. Thanks for sharing that, Jester.

[MikeandRaph87]

Originally Posted by Sage Ninja

well you see personaly I think old toon treated Michaelangelo better as a character than some of the more "serious" mediums of the franchise does. Because even though the old toon was sillier more light hearted version of the franchise, Michaelangelo actually fit the context of that medium. He may had been silly sometiems and had the lable of "the party dude" slapped on him but he was no more sillier than the other turtles.

I feel as if in the old toon he was just as important to the plots as the other four and wasn't ranks of imporatance on the turtles in the orginal toon, as there seems to be in the serious mediums of the franchise. OT Michaelangelo wasn't detached from what was going on around him and reacted to it and was involved. Often times in the more serious mediums I feel they make Mikey's too detached from the more serious stuff and try too hard to make him the "comic relief" to off set the darker events which makes him seem detached from what is going on by having him cracking jokes, making it seem that is all there is to his character.

I really like OT Michaelangelo, and I think he is some what set apart from the more serious versions of Michaelangelo in the sence that, I don't get the "I'm the baby of the group" vibe off of him in this medium of the turtles. Most mediums seem to try to set Michaelangelo up as the baby of the group by giving him characteristics of the youngest, like annoying your older siblings and being some what vulnerable and helpless which sort of puts him in a less than equal position to the other turtles. In the classic toon he's not exactly immature just more into indulging fun stuff and he never purposely tries to annoy the other turtles.

What I like about OT Mike is that his humourous side wasn't forced. He doesn't try to be the funny guy and his mostly funny momemts are do to his mannerisms. And I don't think Michaelangelo in the old toon was flakey I think his priorites where just diffirent from the other turtles. But what I really appriciated about his character is that the show let him progress with the story. When Red Sky came along and the the plots and turtles became more serious, so did he. The writters didn't try to play him down and or make him more wacky to off set the more serious tone the show had taken to "balance things out". The writters actually treated his character with respect and realized he was just as much apart of the TMNt as the three turtles and let him evolve and and toughen up just like the other turtles. I'm not to found of Red Sky but at least when the show made the turn around they let Michaelangelo progress (with out changing his over all personality) with it instead forceing him to be the clown and comic relief. Which more than more "serious" and "dark" versions of TMNT has given him.

Its like your sharing my brain! That is pretty much why I like the classic cartoon Michelangelo so much. Forget the nostalgia and classic VA that is why. Though I am found of the 8th season Red Sky not the rest unless its the Shredder/ Krang three parter or that Chronos one. Great post,Sage!Great post!