Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2003) characters:
The Turtles and Splinter | Allies | The Foot Clan (The Shredder) | Other Characters | The Battle Nexus | The Ninja Tribunal Arc | Fast Forward
The Turtles and Splinter | Allies | The Foot Clan (The Shredder) | Other Characters | The Battle Nexus | The Ninja Tribunal Arc | Fast Forward
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Allies
The Ancient One
The Ancient One
Voiced by: David Chen
Hamato Yoshi's adoptive parent and, for a time, Leonardo's sensei.
- Acrofatic: Much wider than he is tall, but able to kick ass with the best of them.
- Ambiguously Human: Adopted Yoshi not long after WWII, but doesn't appear to have aged since then, he knows Magical Martial Arts and his proportions are rather freakish for a human being. It's at least possible that he's from one of the other dimensions that overlaps with the Battle Nexus, since he probably introduced Yoshi to it, but he could also just be an extraordinary human like the Tribunal members.
- Back for the Finale: He's one of the guests at Casey and April's wedding and takes part in the ensuing battle against the Cyber Shredder.
- Big Good: Shares the role with Splinter in the fifth season after the apparent deaths of the Tribunal.
- Canon Foreigner: He was created for the 2003 series, being the first character to be established as Hamato Yoshi's master.
- Canon Immigrant: He was created for the 2003 show, but also made an appearance in the prequel comic to the 2007 CGI movie, which may or may not be set in the same continuit as the 90s live-action film trilogy.
- Dreaming of Things to Come: In "Scion of the Shredder" he foresees Karai's attack on the lair and immediately sends Leo home to help his family.
- Expy: He is basically the Yoda of this universe. He is a short, funny-looking Trickster Mentor who annoys Leo by asking for food continuously and pretending to be a senile old man who knows the real Ancient One, similar to how Yoda did similar things to Luke.
- Gasshole: Early on, he teaches Leo a lesson on how he can't win all his battles by getting him pit against some near invincible warriors. How did the Ancient One put through Leonardo through this lesson? By farting and alerting said warriors to their presence.
- Honorary Grandparent: To Splinter being Yoshi's adopted father, and by extension, honorary great-grandparent to the Turtles.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: While he significantly softens up in the fifth season (due to the Tribunal generally being massive jerks), he's a bit rough and very blunt, with at least one of his lessons almost getting Leonardo killed, and at one point smacks him over the head for being too long-winded about his troubles. Outside of this, he's a helpful teacher, and he does enjoy Leonardo's company.
- My Greatest Failure: He blames himself for not doing anything about the darkness in Mashimi's heart before his murder of Tang Shen.
- Obfuscating Stupidity: Once Leonardo learns of his true nature, he drops the crazy mentor facade, though he remains fairly whimsical until the fifth season.
- Old Master: An elderly ninja master.
- Only Known by Their Nickname: Only ever known as the "Ancient One". Amusingly, the Tribunal calls him "Young One."
- Put on a Bus: At the end of the fifth season he accepts a place among the Tribunal's ranks and doesn't return until the series finale.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: Leonardo and Michelangelo even wish they could be studying under him over the rough Tribunal.
- Stout Strength: He's quite chubby but still very tough in battle.
- Trickster Mentor: At first.
- Vocal Evolution: After his first appearance, David Chen adopts a much reedier voice when playing the character.
- Warrior Therapist: His training methods may seem crude and even dangerous, but he does help Leonardo in dealing with his anger issues.
The Ninja Tribunal
The Ninja Tribunal
Click to see them out of their armors
Voiced by: David Zen Mansley (Kon), Marc Thompson (Juto) and Lenore Zann (Chikara)
A quartet of long-lived ninja masters who have made it their lives mission to stop the Demon Shredder. Their names are Kon, Juto, Chikara, and Hisomi.
- Amazonian Beauty: Chikara is quite tall and beautiful, and just as deadly a warrior as her cohorts.
- Badass in a Nice Suit: When they attend April and Casey's wedding all dressed up.
- Big Good: In early Season 5.
- The Blacksmith: Juto, the weapons master of the group.
- Canon Foreigner: All four of them were created solely for the 2003 series.
- The Chessmasters: Played a really long game in preparation for the final defeat of the Tengu Shredder.
- Color-Coded Characters: Hisomi is yellow/gold. Chikara is green. Juto is blue. Kon is white.
- The Comically Serious: Hisomi is the most straight-laced of the four and that gets him acquainted with some of the show's more comical characters. Mikey is the one who outperforms him, and in the series finale Gen tries to steal his wedding present for Casey and April.
- Disney Death: They are only revealed to have survived in the ending of the season finale.
- Fantastic Racism: Juto, Chikara and Kon all look down on the acolytes as lesser beings a bit, with Juto outright calling them "worms" even when their doing something impressive.
- Genius Bruiser: Hisomi is the most physically imposing of the four but arguably the smartest.
- Good Is Not Nice: They're the chief leaders of the opposition to the Tengu Shredder, but they're almost complete assholes in doing so.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Juto, Chikara and arguably Kon have (many) moments of being unnecessarily mean-spirited and insulting towards their acolytes but do show concern for each other when the Foot Mystics attack and are working for a greater good when they could easily use their powers for evil conquest instead.
- Lightning Bruiser: All of them are both tough physical combatants and capable of moving at great speeds, especially Hisomi and Chikara.
- Meaningful Name: Chikara's name is the Japanese word for "Power". Her specialty is physical strength.
- Mystical White Hair: Kon and Chikara (Hisomi is bald and Juto's is black).
- Omniscient Hero: Kon has precognition abilities, which help them with their Chessmaster bit, but have the side effect of adding to his arrogance.
- The Omniscient Council of Vagueness: Initially, anyway.
- Physical God: Became these through years of training.
- Really 700 Years Old: They've been around since about 300 BC. They refer to the Ancient One as "Young One".
- Sacrificial Lion: Their apparent deaths force the Turtles to confront the Tengu Shredder on their own.
- Shonen Hair: Kon's hair is pretty wide and spiky.
- The Smurfette Principle: Chikara is the only female member.
- So Proud of You:
- When Mikey cracks the secret of super speed and matches him step for step, Hisomi bows his head as a show of respect. In the same episode, Kon commends those able to manifest their spirit totems, particularly Leo for displaying a dragon spirit.
- At the end of the arc, Kon says they are all very proud of the Acolytes for defeating the Tengu Shredder.
- Token Good Teammate: While Hisomi is still kind of a jerk, he's much more constructive and helpful as opposed to the other members, who tend to berate the students even when they do something correct.
- Took a Level in Kindness: It's subtle but Kon-Shisho shows a little bit of pride and being impressed as he watches their pupils develop, as well as some protectiveness of them when their temple is attacked. In the series finale they're much nicer in their few appearances, with Kon even comforting Casey's mother when she cries happy tears over her son getting married.
- The Voiceless: Hisomi is the only member to not speak. Justified since he embodies silence, one of the three pillars of ninjutsu.
- We Used to Be Friends: With the Tengu Shredder.
- What the Hell, Hero?: This is how Splinter (and the audience) react when the Ninja Tribunal refused to do anything about the Utrom Shredder, even allowing him to kill Master Yoshi. Justified when it's revealed that they are forced to let that happen because without Yoshi's death, Splinter and the turtles wouldn't have been mutated.
- White Mask of Doom: Juto-Shisho is the most sinister of the group and either wears a kabuki mask or has his face turned red and white somehow.
The Acolytes
The Acolytes
Voiced by: David Moo (Faraji Ngala), Rebecca Soler (Joi Reynard), Britton Herring (Adam McKay) and David Chen (Tora Yoshida)
Four martial artists who were kidnapped along with the turtles to serve as the Ninja Tribunal's apprentices. Their names are Faraji Ngala, Joi Reynard, Adam McKay, and Tora Yoshida.
- Always Someone Better: Faraji and Leonardo, while close friends, each feel that the other is more skilled and impressive in some aspects.
- Amazon Chaser: Adam is in love with Chikara.
- Back for the Finale: They're guests at Casey and April's wedding, and fight against the Cyber Shredder.
- Bash Brothers: Tora with Mikey, Faraji with Leonardo.
- Canon Foreigner: They were made exclusively for the 2003 series and don't seem to be based off any characters from a previous franchise installment.
- Color Motif: Joi always wears green.
- Genius Bruiser: Adam, who is the brawniest of the four and helps Donatello with his inventions.
- Interspecies Romance: Joi and Raphael have a bit of Ship Tease, but it doesn't go anywhere.
- Last Episode, New Character: They each appear in the Season 4 finale.
- Must Make Her Laugh: Well, make him laugh. Mikey is always tying to amuse Tora with jokes.
- Odd Friendship: Tora with Michelangelo. The other pairs demonstrate similar personalities and interests, but Mikey is a snarky goofball and Tora is serious and reserved.
- Overshadowed by Awesome: While they all prove badass in their own way, they aren't on the same level as the turtles.
- Sacrificial Lion: They eventually come back, but their "deaths" serve this purpose.
- Satellite Character: Each acolyte establishes a rapport with a particular turtle, whom they revolve around—Faraji befriends Leo, Joi bonds with Raph, Tora develops an Odd Friendship with Mikey, and Adam befriends Don.
- Take Up My Sword: Faraji gives his sword to Leonardo when it looks like he's dying, and Leo carries it for the rest of the season.
- The Smurfette Principle: Joi is the only girl of the Acolytes.
- Tomboy with a Girly Streak: Joi, who is a decent ninja who wears exercise clothes and sneakers, but also has a decent hairdo, lipstick, and wears a nice dress to the wedding in the finale.
Enemies
The Tengu Shredder / Oroku Saki
The Tengu Shredder / Oroku Saki
Voiced by: Scottie Ray
The original Shredder, namesake of Ch'rell's identity, and the antagonist of Season 5.
The Shredder's Heralds / Foot Mystics
The Shredder's Heralds / Foot Mystics
Click to see them in Season 1 and 4
Voiced by: Sean Schemmel (Metal, Earth and Fire Mystics) and Brian Maillard (Wind and Water Mystics)
The Tengu Shredder's heralds, who had been forced to serve the Utrom Shredder until they engineered their freedom.- Ascended Extra: They were one-off villains for the penultimate arc of the first season, and voiceless. They return early in the fourth season, and nearly mentally break the Turtles, discover the location of their lair, and facilitate a plot that leads to the return of the Tengu Shredder, becoming the Big Bads for the first half of the fifth season before returning to their role as his Dragons.
- Arc Villain: They only serve as major antagonists during Season 5.
- Because You Were Nice to Me: A non-romantic example; though they deem Ch'Rell an "Utrom abomination", they appreciated his large amount of respect for their powers when they served him, in comparison to his daughter, who cares less what they think.
- The Bus Came Back: After being absent for about two seasons, they return in the beginning of Season 4.
- Canon Immigrant: They were made for the 2003 series but eventually got incorporated into the Mirage series
- Diabolus ex Nihilo: Even though they get an expanded role, there is no explanation as to what they are or where they came from. Their first appearance is almost abrupt, with the Turtles suddenly finding themselves fighting against explicitly supernatural enemies. Lessens later on as we learn the Utrom Shredder acquired their seal at some point.
- Elemental Powers: Fire, Water, Wind, Earth, and Metal.
- The Dragon: For the Demon Shredder.
- Laser-Guided Karma: In hindsight, the Foot Mystics more or less got what they deserved through the Tengu Shredder being a Bad Boss who either punished them brutally or showed little concern for their lives since the Mystics themselves brutally killed and gave little mercy to lower ranked monsters like the Kappa demon who failed to defeat the Turtles and the Acolytes.
- Logical Weakness: How Splinter defeats them the first time with the Sword of Tengu, using to throw whatever element the weak to against another. In his own words "Fire melts metal, water quenches fire, earth swallows water, and wind scatters earth." The wind he simply beats with the Sword of Tengu: "And I shall quell the wind!"
- Mistreatment-Induced Betrayal: The reason they turned on Karai. Unlike Ch'rell, she had no respect for them and ignored their opinions, declaring that since she possessed the Heart of Tengu, they would do whatever she pleased.
- Revenge Before Reason: Despite their loyalty to the demon Shredder, they are obsessed with getting revenge on Karai. They question him why he isn't concern to punish Karai for using his name, he tells them he cares more about ruling the world. Though they don't wish to deter their master with his plans, this does not sit well with them. They also fume over the Shredder's lack of action when the Turtles and their allies attack their fortress.
- Right for the Wrong Reasons: They immediately advocate killing Karai, but only because they want payback for how badly she treated them. It turns out that would've actually been very wise tactically, as Karai being a Shredder herself meant she could (with enough concentration) drain the Tengu Shredder of his energy and give the Turtles a fighting chance.
- Suddenly Voiced: They speak in the Season 4 episode "Bad Day".
- Undying Loyalty: To the Demon Shredder, despite his abuse.
- Unexplained Recovery: Are seemingly killed by Splinter in their debut only to reappear with no explanation.
- The Voiceless: Neither of them speak in the first season until the fourth season.
- Voluntary Shapeshifting: They can take on other forms besides their default two.
- You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: Demon Shredder let them get killed.
Bone Demon
A henchman of the Foot Mystics who was tasked with infiltrating the Lap of the Gods when the Turtles were very young.
- Dem Bones: He's a distinctly non-human skeleton creature with wings, a tail, and creepy teeth.
- Invisible to Adults: The Mystics gave him a special amulet that prevents "the wise and world-weary" from seeing him. Whereas the Turtle Tots could point right at him, Splinter and the Ancient One were initially at a great disadvantage during the fight.
- Small Role, Big Impact: His attempt to claim the artifacts is how the Ninja Tribunal came to view the Turtles as having the potential to become acolytes one day.
- Starter Villain: Zigzagged. He's the very first villain the Turtles ever fight, but he only appears in a flashback episode more than halfway through the series.
- Would Hurt a Child: Because the Turtle Tots could see him, he warned them to keep their mouths shut or else. Later, while pummeling Splinter and the Ancient One, he promises the kids that they're next.
The Kappa Tengu
A tribe of demons who protect an artifact for the Tengu Shredder.
- Elemental Shapeshifter: They can turn into water and use this to fight the Turtles and the human Ninja Acolytes.
- Lizard Folk: They're a dangerous group of carnivorous reptilians.
- Spikes of Villainy: They serve an evil overlord and have spikes sticking out of their backs and heads.
- You Have Failed Me: The Heralds harshly rebuke them for failing to protect the artifact and then combine their powers to destroy their trembling subordinates.
