The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is one of my favorite franchises, and it has been rebooted so many times. One thing that remains special about TMNT however, is that all of the animated versions are good. And Michaelangelo remains my favorite ninja turtle throughout all of them.
Michaelangelo throughout all iterations is typically described as the party dude, he’s not that bright but he loves pizza and brings the right vibes. He means well, and he’s the one who will usually make the most quips, akin to Spider-Man. However with so many versions and adaptations of him, there are bound to be differences between them. And in this article I want to talk about the differences between the some of the version of him. Notably; 2003’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, 2012’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
Ok considering they did nothing to change the show’s name, I will be referring to them as 2003’s Mikey and 2012’s Mikey, and even “2003 did- while 2012 did-” just for simplicity’s sake. Rise of TMNT will be shorted to just Rise.
2003’s Michaelangelo is a jokester, he likes to be in the center of attention a lot of the time and he likes making other people smile. His thought process can be a little simple, but he deeply cares about his family. He can be a bit of a scaredy-turtle but when things get real Mikey is a spectacular fighter just like all of his brothers.
2012’s MIkey however, is really childish and aloof. A lot of the humor that arises with this version is due to him not paying attention. Such as in the beginning two parter where he neglects his duty of watching over someone, and later the show directly tells us that Mikey had no idea what their plan was while they were carrying out the plan.
Leo: “We made them think we were in the van-”
Mikey: “But we weren’t in the van…”
Mikey is just as good natured and kind in this version, however they dumbed him down beyond belief for cheap humor rather than writing banter between the brothers. 2003’s Mikey is more carefree and go with the flow, meanwhile 2012’s is more oblivious.
Rise’s Michaelenglo is extremely emotionally intune, he is aware of his own feelings and is not afraid to act on it. He brings the biggest ‘younger sibling energy’ ever. He shares a few traits with 2012 however they are highlighted better in Rise, being his hyperactivity and how trusting he is. Rise’s Mikey is the most adaptable of the group, being the first one to unlock mystic powers in the pilot “Mystic Mayhem” and is the one who is the most skilled at using this power. Rise of the TMNT: The Movie confirms that their mystic power relies on emotion, which makes sense considering how open and vulnerable Mikey is with his feelings.
2003’s Mikey also gets a lot more time to breath on his own, while 2012’s Mikey rarely gets the spotlight. Both shows give us a glimpse of what happens when Mikey saves the day. 2003’s “Turtle Titan” and even the three parter “Notes from the Underground” focus on Michaelangelo. The former focuses on Milkey coming to terms with not needing praise and public approval for his heroic actions as he uses his Ninja skills to stop some bad guys. Notes from the Underground, although not being Mikey centric, highlights very good moments for us. Donnie, the tech smart guy, actually takes Mikey’s advice about a crystal that ends up working. There’s not much exchange or acknowledgement of his good idea, but Donnie took his suggestion to heart. As the plot progresses, the bad guy captures and manipulates the three other turtles leaving Mikey alone, and from the get go he distrusts the bad guy. Once it is revealed that the bad guy was using the turtles, the other 3 are quickly incapacitated leaving Mikey to save the day. To which, the turtles praise him for saving their shells. 2012 rarely splits focus from the group, however there is an episode where Mikey is the savior. 2012’s Parasitica sees the turtles being controlled by parasites, going down one by one until Mikey is the last one. He succeeds using Donnie’s formula to reverse the effects at the last minute, curing all the turtles. During this, we still see him tripping over himself falling over making the antidote. And his brothers, instead of thanking him or praising him, they are in shock and disbelief that he did something smart.
Two episodes that I like from both Rise and 2012 are the episodes “Nothing but Truffle” and “New Friend, Old Enemy” where both see Mikey trusting someone new only to be taken advantage of. Both episodes are really good when it comes to handling this aspect of Mikey’s character because the shows never hound on Mikey choosing the wrong friends, the lesson is that some people are bad and you have to recognize it. Not that you have to never trust someone new, which I believe is an important thing to realize. I also want to praise Rise for showcasing Mikey’s hyperactivity during fight scenes, he is leaping all over the scene, never sitting still for even a second, he is all speed. I really appreciate how even Mikey’s fighting style is distinct and shows off his personality.
In 2012 the narrative of the show is a lot harsher towards Mikey, and he is often punished for being hyperactive and aloof. He is beaten down on by his brothers, always doubted and never taken seriously. In “Rise of the Turtles” no one wants to be partnered with Mikey. In “I think his name is Baxter Stockman”, Mikey outlasts, kites, and outplays Baxter Stockman and yet Leo gets the big hero shot victory despite it being all of Mikey’s efforts. The relationships between the brothers in 2012 is a lot more rude rather than being banterful like 2003. In 2003, Mikey was treated equally with his own strengths. He isn’t a weight that drags them all down like how 2012 portrays.
One of my favorite aspects about Mikey is the fact that despite his jovial personality he is still a capable fighter, in fact he has more potential than his brothers. 2003’s Mikey wins the Battle Nexus, an intergalactic battle tournament where all of the best fighters participate. In 2012 “Monkey Brains” Mikey managed to dodge and block a few hits from Master Splinter (his father) with his eyes closed listening to music. Rise’s showcasing of Mikey having an easier time with the mystic arts than all of his brothers. Its showcases like that, that Mikey has this potential, are what really puts him over the edge as my favorite turtle.
