#Lone Rat and Cubs

[rosekatara]

Just wanted to share a little bit of cuteness overload I "stumbled" upon, on purpose🥹

🐀🐢🐢🐢🐢

[misteria247]

Hello,

I need another set of eyes and you are the resident expert on all things 12 Mom Leo related.

Was he seriously watching over his siblings as a turtle tot as they waited for Splinter to get back?! Or is he not the one sitting up and I’m looking at the wrong turtle…

First off I'm super flattered to be known as the 12 Mom Leo expert in the residency I'll carry this title with pride fr fr.

To answer your question, I do believe that is Leo! Cuz if I'm recalling correctly it's the same turtle tot who crawled over to Splinter and showed interest in his katana. Which just makes this even more cuter because that means this dorky loser literally hatched out of his egg full on ready to Mom the hell out of his brothers and I'm living for it dude.

[s0fti3w1tch]

I want you all to know that this episode has irreversibly changed my brain chemistry and the clip with Splinter names the turtles is looping constantly

[mikittalabs]

just watched mutant apocalypse and i can't help but notice how the ending almost implies the turtles and mira die at the end. like the oasis is some kind of afterlife. before they arrive, there's that sign that says "the end" and the "the" almost looks like blood if you squint. plus the sky right before the 3rd episode ends actually looks like a normal sky instead of the wackass shit in the rest of the arc. and that whole group picture with splinter. and the transition into the final scene is raph waking up on that rock. like. hm.

[craacked-splatters]

Just a father and his sons :))

Hee hee I'm evil >:))

But seriously tho I still can't believe the creators orphaned them like that😭

I have always been curious about the turtles childhood and what their upbringing must've been like growing up. Especially since this version they never stepped foot out of the sewers until they were 15.

Lone rat and cubs is one of my top favorite eps out of the whole show. It's so bittersweet to watch and it genuinely brings me to tears knowing the futures they're all gonna have to endure and how much they grow into as ppl.

Wish we could've seen more of Splints being a dad. I wanna see the moment Mikey started calling him Papa, see him play more with his 2 eldest and feeding Don's curiosity for the world around him. I want to know more about this family cmon gimme gimme

Fun fact! this was all triggered by that one EP where splinter drunk fights his kids💀 ( it's the way he fought his sons, especially when he blew a raspberry on leo, that made me think)

I'ma call it 2012 Papa!Splinter doodles & this is gonna be pt 1✨

[delhe-dalim]

I rlly loved to watch Lone rat and cubs! In fact, it's my fav episode ☝️ And I think it's not necessary to explain why.

[awzominator]

Day 13 Scars

the amount of effort I had to put into these and they still don’t look how I want is frustrating but alas time is not on my side

ramblings under the cut

Mikey: Gave Mikey Lichen Burns from that one time he got disintegrated and then reanimated via electricity. He died n got better and honestly it is one of the most violent injuries that I recall for him. Like he plays it off so easily cuz he has super powers and all that jazz but that’s so messed up. Also Raph yelling for him OOOFFFFF will never forget how filled w rage and hurt that dude was. He was ready to kill ❤️ Such a wild episode and I love how Mikey was so depended on in order for the plan to succeed. It was Mikey’s turn for the Self sacrificing bit and he crushed it

Leo: Get Shreddered idiot!!! The fucked up knee and throat from when he got beat up and thrown thru the window. This is def my fav event to happen which is a wild thing to say. It’s the most obvious thing to go for but I personally loved the farmhouse arc and Leo’s need for recovery. That dude is still not well and is repressing stuff but they don’t have time to heal. Their lives are too chaotic, too much is on the line, and Leo can’t afford to take the time to heal 100% none of them can tbh. I know a lot of ppl hate how 12 handled his knee injury but I loved it Bc it’s obviously not better but he’s a stubborn idiot who chooses to push everything down and out. He is the healthiest turtle for sure. I’m pretty sure in later episodes his knee gives out a few times don’t quote me tho it’s been a few years aha

Raph: His broken shell! After watching Lone Rat and Cubs and seeing where it came from, I always wondered if Splinter looks at it with loads of regret. A physical sign of his short comings that one time they almost got caught by the Kraang. A warning and a constant reminder they’ll never be safe, that splinter wont always be able to protect his babies no matter how hard he fights. I also like to HC he becomes the most hovering and overprotective of Raph while he’s still recovering Bc that shell broke so easy. Honestly seeing screen shots of close ups of Raphs shell is awesome to see both shell and plastron are broken.

Donnie: UGHHH THIS DUDEEEE !!!!! Literally had the hardest time Bc he goes thru a lot also but it’s more emotional and mental dude is fuked up in the head fr. I asked several ppl for help Bc I didn’t want to do another lichen burn thing from Karai’s trap. In the end I played around w the suggestions to see what would look most appealing to me. The scars on arm are from Slash (such a good episode thank you for the suggestion 🙌) as his arm was injured and in a sling at the end of the episode. The head scar def a big creative liberty Bc he does get injured there a lot ahah. I was thinking of Fourtrap again which lead to thinking about the time that Leo blew him up accidentally during is emo phase XD

[cookieturtle26]

TMNTEMBER CHALLENGE DAY 2

Fav episode: Tales of the Yokai // Lone rat and cubs

I really like these two episodes, so I couldn't choose only one 🥲

[bigbluefishi]

splinter and his bebes 🥹 rewatched lone rat and cubs and it’s such a good episode aaaaghh

[shantechni]

I think an awful lot about Splinter believing in the start of the series that he'd lost his humanity.

For the sake of someone named Pete, I will go through the events in chronological order for once-

In Lone Rat and Cubs, Splinter tells the turtles about their time spent running from the Kraang before they found their forever home, and we learn that Splinter didn't easily slip into his new role. Sure, he cared for the turtles, kept them fed and sheltered them from the elements, but he still called them "creatures" and "turtles" before naming them. He didn't see this as an opportunistic situation where he miraculously became a father to a second batch of kids, but rather that he'd fallen into a pool of misfortune and would need to live with this new form while protecting himself and the turtles.

"What terrible deed did I do in a past life that such a curse has befallen me?"

As he considers the turtles' growth and the possibility of a future with them, he then begins to view himself as a potential father. He explains that he wondered if he had the discipline to be a proper father, especially after the loss of his first family, and he realizes it was something he wanted to be regardless of discipline or odd circumstances.

And so, he claims the turtles as his own, and accepts his role as their father.

Though he'd grown accustomed to being a mutant rat over the years, he still draws a line between "Hamato Yoshi" and "Splinter" without knowing it, albeit a blurry and ephemeral one drawn in ever changing sand.

We hear Splinter in the second episode of the series talking about the loss of his family, his home, and his own name. He more or less tells Leo that being mutated erased whatever connection he formally had to the name "Hamato," and the idea is further supported by a similar and more somber scene in I, Monster. Splinter fights off the Rat King's control as he again laments that his entire clan and family, even his humanity, is gone, and he has nothing but the turtles left for him in this new life. Fortunately, he retains his sense of self post mutation, and he's presented from the beginning of the series as one who's in control of himself, both to his sons and friends of theirs, as well as any enemy that comes their way.

However, that presentation of control gives us a bit of a look into his psyche and allows us to consider the idea of him still struggling to come to terms with not being human anymore.

With the introduction of the Rat King, he's taunted by a potential loss of that control for the first time and it shakes him to his core. It makes sense for him to be shaken up since all that'd be left without him is a mindless, humanoid rat who'd lost touch with the human it used to be. Which is why it's so compelling that his sons, particularly Leo, are so adamant about reinforcing the fact that his mutation doesn't erase who he is. It's incredibly noteworthy what Leo says to him when trying to break the Rat King's control over him, "Remember who you are!"

Not who he once was, or the human he used to be, but who he is.

They never viewed Splinter as a separate being from Hamato Yoshi.

The boys aren't strangers to Splinter's old life before them, and they're very much aware of everything he'd lost; the guy talks about certain things frequently enough for them to know his tragedies and recite them without skipping a letter. It's his recollections of the tribulations he suffered through that helped them understand that his life with them is undeniably disconnected from his life with Tang Shen, but not unrelated.

He's still Hamato Yoshi, and his place will always be with his family.

Having been defeated by Splinter, the Rat King runs to find another way of tormenting him, and his perfect target is fear.

Though we got a brief look into this during their first encounter with Falco's twisted appearance, it's not until Of Rats and Men that we get further insight into another layer of Splinter's concern with his rat half: the repercussions that could result from the loss of control.

Throughout all of his years of raising his sons, not once did he ever treat them with the intention to frighten them and make them wary of his every move. The Rat King can easily use that fear to his advantage and weaken Splinter's mental stability enough to figure out how to make mutants similar to him. And he truly makes use of that fear by turning Splinter into his personal puppet.

There's still a considerable amount of concern on the turtles' end that pierces through that fear though. After Splinter teleports across the room to distance himself, Leo looked ready to leap to his side, and the others, despite being threatened literal seconds earlier, remain where they are and are equally concerned.

Eventually, the Rat King strikes again and everyone begins to piece together what's going on when Splinter loses it. Mikey is absolutely terrified and staggered by what happened, and Raph and Donnie tread with caution while Leo and April are the first ones to approach Splinter.

The TV gives them extra confirmation that Falco is back, and to everyone's surprise, Splinter refuses to help them fight Falco, even when Casey is dragged down a manhole by one of the mutated rats in their first attempt to clear the streets. It's not an easy choice for Splinter to make because we see how guilty he feels for his refusal, but the gang doesn't fault him for refusing either. No matter how much they want for Splinter to join them, he's right to worry about what the Rat King, now stronger than before, could force him to do.

April speaks for everyone though when she tells him they all believe in him. They make it known that they aren't afraid of what may happen, and they especially aren't afraid of him.

Unsurprisingly, Splinter changes his mind at the last minute, and, with the help of a recently mutated cat, he chases Falco down to deal with him once and for all. Protecting his family takes priority over his doubts, and by the end of the episode, he overcomes his fear of the Rat King controlling him.

He has his humanity, and that's what makes him different from the rat Falco constantly made him out to be.

And for the first time in the series, in The Lonely Mutation of Baxter Stockman, he says out loud that he has his humanity and is thankful he's fortunate enough to still have it when others lose it post mutation.

I previously went a bit more in depth about it in this post but the boys have witnessed Splinter grappling with being a rat, particularly with the Rat King's meddling, and Donnie sincerely believed giving him retromutagen would be something he'd want. This was clearly an idea that's been weighing on Donnie's mind for a while considering that he seemingly kept quiet about his plan until he completed the retromutagen, and he's the most upset when he has to use the remaining dosage for Kirby.

But Splinter tells him and the other turtles he's content as he is and wouldn't do anything to change himself this far in. And the boys all seem content with his answer.

With the invasion of the Kraang and his defeat at the hands of the Shredder, Splinter again comes face to face with his mutated genes, and there's no Rat King stringing him along this time. He'd been swallowed by delirium with the lack of familial support to pull him out of it, and he became spiritually disconnected from his body as a result. The gang is initially caught off guard by Splinter's state, but they quickly get over it and work to subdue him.

While the boys are pulled away into battle, April uses her powers to sift through Splinter's memories and, after showing him the time he asked her to train with him, we see a memory with the turtles, Karai, and his only family portrait from before his mutation:

Seeing his family is what manages to bring him back to his senses.

We the audience, as well as Splinter, figured that was the end of his troubles with being a mutant rat, but Shredder decided to bathe in some super juice and sent Splinter careening a thousand feet into a dark cavern, the same one Splinter sent Falco down two seasons ago. Being thrown into near total darkness with a fairly debilitating injury and fever was the perfect recipe for him to begin hallucinating, and he believes the Rat King is attacking him when he's most vulnerable. But just when he feels himself slipping further away, his mind goes straight to the day his sons celebrated their 15th mutation day, and just beyond them is Tang Shen.

He regains his clarity, grasps that Falco's been dead the whole time, and is immensely relieved to see Donnie and Mikey after what he'd been through.

"Perhaps a teacher, but never my master."

Falco inadvertently taught Splinter that he's always had his humanity, and his family serves as a reminder of that fact by remaining a constant and significant pillar for him.

His family is his humanity.

[kiraleestudios]

Day 2: Favorite Episode!

I might not be able to do every day, but Lone Rats and Cubs has always been one of my personal favorites.

[da-rulah]

Hello :)

I would love to request the Papas with a s/o who is basically a Disney Princess with animals and is constantly bringing home something new and unusual. Like ducklings in the bathtub or baby opossums in the dresser drawers. They think they get used to it until they bring something new and unusual, forever keeping them on their toes.

This is such a cute idea. 🥹 I've given it some thought, and I hope you enjoy!

Primo

It started when he found you hiding a stray puppy in one of his sheds. There was no way he could ever be mad at you; he wonders why you'd hidden it from him to begin with.

He'd given you the space to nurse the puppy and watched on with a softness in his eyes. This was one of those things he loved about you; your soft gentility.

One morning, he found you in the same shed with a box full of newborn fox cubs. They'd been abandoned, and you couldn't leave them out in the cold...

Primo relented easily, smiling to himself and offering to help.

This continued - filling the shed with animals you kept finding in need. They seemed magnetised to you. It astounded Primo...

He surprises you one day, having emptied the old shed of any of his gardening supplies and instead, asking the Ghouls to build you your own little animal sanctuary.

He figured you needed a less cluttered, cleaner and friendlier space for all your little rescues.

Secondo

He tries to argue with every new animal you bring home, but you've already overrun your shared quarters with three rabbits, two ferrets, a wounded crow and a raccoon

That raccoon was the last damn straw; they were supposed to be vicious! You couldn't keep that here?

But the thing just sat around blinking at him, eating scraps most of the time.

He grumbled and groaned about it like an unexpected new father would.

But you come home from your duties one evening and find him knelt at the edge of the bathtub, shirt sleeves rolled up past his elbows, cigarette between his lips as he coos and whispers to the ferrets who are playing in the water beneath him.

The rest of your furry friends are surrounding him, avoiding the water but calmly enjoying his company too.

He looks so soft, fussing over all of them as if he hadn't been grumbling over their very existence.

"See, you do love them," you smirked, leaning against the door frame.

"Amore, I would kill or be killed for them. But no more..." he told you sternly.

He was not going to like what was waiting for him in the living room.

Terzo

Total enabler.

He becomes aware of your little obsession very early in the relationship and his favourite little trick, is to tell you "you only got one? But it'll be lonely" and give you puppy dog eyes.

Obviously, you cave every time, finding friends for your rescues.

Your apartment is like Noah's fucking Ark - two by two of everything.

He loves it though, and insists that you name the first, he name the second, every time.

He must say, the weirder the animals get, the more difficult life in your quarters becomes but hey, he likes the challenge.

He figures that soon enough he'd be able to open up "Papa's Petting Zoo" for the Ministry children.

He does indeed make a joke to you about Papa's "Heavy Petting Zoo" that was saved for you and you alone. He couldn't resist.

Copia

He started it.

He had two rats when you first started dating, but he just kept bringing them home with him.

And so then, every time you came across a rat that needed shelter, you would bring that little guy home to an ever-growing adoptive family.

Copia's face would light up every time, and together you'd spend the entire evening brainstorming names.

Eventually the enclosures you had for them had to keep getting bigger and bigger, until eventually, your apartment was overrun and their enclosure was the entire living room space.

Neither one of you minded of course, happy to give them the freedom they desired.

[imagionationstation]

BRO

As many times as I’ve seen Lone Rat and Cubs, I’ve never actually processed this background before 🤣

Like, I was always paying attention to the main scene, and just assumed that Raph was joyously being aggressive in the background, as he’s been known to do.

AND THEN I REALIZE-

Raph’s just back there beating Donnie right under Splinter’s nose!

Legit- kickin him while he’s down! THE HECK! 🤣 /affectionate

(He’s a literal baby, you haters. Back off.)

But then Donnie decides that he isn’t going to lay there and take it.

SURPRISE!

Tiny Donnie says that two can play this game.

It seems a tiny Raph can dish it, but he cannot take it.

Only flail them tiny arms~ 🤣

Aaaah, righteous vengeance. So satisfying.

[delhe-dalim]

Stuff in common I found between Obi-Wan Kenobi (Star Wars) and Splinter (Tmnt2012) bc that happens when u are hyperfixated with fictional characters:

-Both being badass powerful and wise jedi/ninja masters, responsibles for the main characters' training (Anakin/Luke-the turtles)

-Mental powers

-Both went into exile after some heavy events that changed their lives (the Great jedi purge / mutation)

-They had a brother in the past, but things didn't turn well :(

-Both lost the woman they loved (bruuuhhh)

-Trauma™

-Buuut despite all their suffering and pain, they never went to the dark side (well maybe Splinter for a lil bit, but that was the damn Rat King's mind control, not his will 🤓☝)

-This thing I noticed in the Tmnt 2012 artbook (this rat kinda reminded me of obiwan, now I know why)

-At some point they appear as force ghosts lol👻

-These little details that had me 👁👁

*Facepalm*

*strokes his beard*

robeees

-Sweet moments with children 😭

The whole Lone rat and cubs episode and the bond between Obi-Wan and little Leia had me like 🥹🥹

idk I'm a big fan of cuteness so watching that made me happy

-According to the character database, both are INFJ -Whatever this type of character is called, I like it

Although their context of their stories are different, I found curious to notice some similarities! so here I am, sharing them and thanking you for reading this far

[awzominator]

Day two!!! Protect the baby!!

Lone rat and Cubs my beloved