Summary

  • Fans can see themselves in TMNT characters.
  • Out of the Shadows sticks to the spirit of the 80s cartoon.
  • Raphael's wisdom and self-awareness shine through.

The great thing about the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is that fans can see themselves in at least one of the titular turtles. Some may see themselves as the laid-back “party dude” Michelangelo, the brilliant but awkward Donatello, or the confident, decisive leader Leonardo.

Top-Left: Raphael, Donatello, Leonardo, and Michaelangelo from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2003). Top-right: Leonardo from TMNT (2007). Bottom: Michaelangelo, Leonardo, Donatello, and Raphael peeking from under a sewer grate in the poster for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie.
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Leonardo acts as the leader of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and his quotes are full of wisdom that show exactly why he's deserving of that role.

Many shellheads, though, love the “cool but rude” Raphael. He is a Turtle who would much rather fight first and ask questions later. He is always butting heads with his older brother, Leo as well, frustrated with always being number two in the lineup. Some of Raphael's most memorable lines range from the humorous to the heartfelt, showing that he is more complex than simply a hothead.

7 “Let's Just Say We're Four Brothers Who Hate Bullies And Love This City.”

They Are What They Are

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Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows
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Release Date
June 3, 2016
Runtime
112 minutes
Director
Dave Green
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Cast
Pete Ploszek, Alan Ritchson, Jeremy Howard, Noel Fisher, Megan Fox, Stephen Amell, Will Arnett, Laura Linney, Tyler Perry, Brian Tee, Gary Anthony Williams, Stephen Farrelly, Peter Donald Badalamenti II, Tony Shalhoub, Brad Garrett, Opal Alladin, Brittany Ishibashi, Connor Fox, alessandra ambrosio, Stan Demidoff, Greg Hildreth, Dean Winters, Antoinette Kalaj, Alice Callahan, Jane Wu
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Okay, so most Ninja Turtles fans would rather forget the Michael Bay-produced movies ever happened. They should not forget, though, that Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows, is a fun ride, sticking more closely to the spirit of the 1980s cartoon, as well as having a story actually focused on the Turtles.

The Turtles discover a container of purple ooze that could make them human. When Raph finds that Leo and Donny withheld this information from him and Michaelangelo, it puts the team in disarray. The threat of alien brain Krang unleashing his Technodrome on New York City brings the Turtles to consider using the ooze, so that the humans of New York would more easily accept them. When the choice comes, Raph decides that New York will just have to accept their help, regardless of what they are.

6 “Geez. What A Hard Case!”

The Irony Is Lost On Raphael

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Turtles Forever
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Release Date
November 21, 2009
Runtime
78 minutes
Director
Lloyd Goldfine, Roy Burdine
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Cast
Michael Sinterniklaas, Wayne Grayson, Sam Riegel, Gregory Abbey, Darren Dunstan, Marc Thompson, Scottie Ray, Veronica Taylor

The television movie Turtles Forever is a loving tribute to the franchise’s history, drawing elements from both the 80s cartoon and the 2007 TMNT movie. The plot follows the Turtles from the 2003 continuity as they cross paths with their 80s counterparts, transported to the 2003 era by the Shredder’s Technodrome. The story eventually brings both Turtles variants to the home dimension of their original black-and-white incarnations. The 2003 Raphael’s encounter with his gritty predecessor results in an aggressive pushback, prompting Raphael to say this line.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Raphael, Donatello
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These words, followed by the 80s Turtles' amused reaction, demonstrate his lack of self-awareness. He has always been the hothead of the four brothers. Upon meeting a version of him that is even more aggressive, he does not realize how much they really have in common.

5 “First Rule, Ignore Mikey. Your Life Will Be Much Easier.”

Sage Advice For Hanging With The Turtles

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Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
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Release Date
2003 - 2010-00-00
Network
FOX, The CW
Directors
Chuck Patton, Roy Burdine, Susan Blu
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Cast
Michael Sinterniklaas, Wayne Grayson, Sam Riegel, Greg Abbey, Darren Dunstan, Scottie Ray, Marc Thompson, Veronica Taylor
Seasons
7
  • Season 1, Episode 3, "Attack of the Mousers"

One thing Michelangelo loves to do is to drive his brother Raphael crazy. Throughout the franchise, Mikey can be seen pulling jokes on his hot-tempered brother and getting under his skin. While Raphael wants to punch him sometimes, he truly loves his brother. He demonstrates this in the 2003 incarnation when he gives April O’Neil his first rule for living in the Turtles’ world.

Top: Karai (left) fighting Leonardo (right). Bottom: The four Turtles from left to right: Michelangelo, Leonardo, Donatello, and Raphael
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Raph doesn’t deliver the rule with any malice. He just casually sits down on the couch next to April and says it with a smile on his face. Raphael knows that this is just the way Michaelangelo is, and he wouldn’t be his brother if he wasn’t.

4 “What’s A Guy Gotta Do To Get Some Food Around Here?”

Typical Teenagers

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Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
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Release Date
March 30, 1990
Runtime
101 minutes
Director
Steve Barron
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Cast
judith hoag, Elias Koteas, Brian Tochi, Leif Tilden

In 1990’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Raphael leaves the Turtles’ temporary hideout in April’s apartment, only to be mercilessly beaten by several Foot Clan ninjas. Raphael falls into a coma from his injuries, and Leonardo keeps constant watch over him at April O’Neil’s farm, where she, the Turtles, and vigilante Casey Jones go to hide after the Foot Clan destroy her apartment.

When Raphael awakens, his first words are a request for food. It is a silly line to deliver, but it is also a very realistic line coming from an adolescent mutant. Teenagers are always eating, and Turtles need their fuel as well.

3 “A Jose Canseco Bat? Tell Me You Didn’t Pay Money For This.”

In that same 1990 Turtles movie, while taking a walk around New York outside the Turtle lair one night, Raphael runs into hockey-stick-wielding vigilante Casey Jones. When Raph disrupts his beating up of a couple of street criminals, Casey engages him in a fight, swinging two baseball bats. Raphael intercepts one, then sees the bat up close. This prompts the line and an accompanying facepalm.

The quip about the bat is a jab at former Major League Baseball player Jose Canseco, who, at the time of the movie’s production and release, played for the Oakland Athletics. Canseco had a few run-ins with the law, including charges of reckless driving and carrying a semi-automatic pistol in his car in California. Even without this context, it is still a hilarious line.

2 ­“I’m Through Taking Orders.”

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TMNT
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Release Date
March 23, 2007
Runtime
87 Minutes
Director
Kevin Munroe
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Cast
Nolan North, James Arnold Taylor, Mitchell Whitfield, Mikey Kelley, Mako, Sarah Michelle Gellar

­While many shellheads fondly remember the original live-action Turtles movies, the 2007 animated film TMNT should not be passed on. The Turtles not only face a new enemy, but struggle to come together as a family. During this time, Raphael spends his nights living a secret double life as the motorcycle-riding, chain-wielding vigilante known as Night Watcher.

When Leonardo confronts Night Watcher and unmasks him, tensions between him and Raph reach their boiling point. Raphael is sick of Leonardo being in charge of him. When Leonardo tells him he doesn’t have the temperament for it and claims to be better than him, Raph is determined to settle the matter once and for all.

1 “Fighting Is For Grownups, And That’s Only If You Got No Other Choice.”

Director

Stuart Gillard

Cast

Elias Koteas, Paige Turco, Vivian Wu, Shab Shimono, Stuart Wilson

Release Date

March 19, 1993

Runtime

96min

Raphael has always had a temper. He is easily triggered, and he would much rather use his fists than his head in tough situations. The Turtles’ Master Splinter has tried to manage his anger, but with limited success.

Those efforts seem to pay off, though, in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 3, the most maligned of the original film trilogy. The Turtles find themselves transported back in time to Japan by an ancient scepter. There, Raphael befriends a young boy named Yoshi. While the child is eager to fight the daimyo, Raphael advises him that fighting is only a last resort, and that he should be enjoying his childhood while he can. Here, Raphael passes on the wisdom of his teacher and acts as a father to a new generation, or an older one, depending on how one looks at it.

Leonardo and Michelangelo in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Mutant Mayhem
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TMNT: Mutant Mayhem is full of fun, silly lines that will stick with fans for a while after watching it. Here are just a few of the best quotes.