#Tmnt 2012 are not abusive

[tmntforeverinmyheart]

Unfamiliar familiar is not just a fic, it is a harmful representation of tmnt 2012.

Infantilizing Mikey who canonically has ADHD, and then going ahead and giving him autism, rubbing salt even further into the wound. As an autistic person, it is absolutely disgusting seeing one of my favorite characters be broken down and destroyed by an in educated idiot, who obviously does not care about the 2012 tmnt characterization or the fact that they have pretty much ruined the tmnt 2012 AO3 tag for so many fans, including myself.

They had a big hand in the creation of the “abused Mikey” trope, which is an absolutely horrible characterization of 12 Mikey and his brothers.

It is harmful by villainizing Raphs anger issues, infantilizing ADHD and autism, not tagging the fic as an AU, as it is so OOC and completely destroys everything Tmnt is about.

Family, the turtles being brothers, being strong and stealthy ninjas. If Mikey couldn’t handle a bit of roughhousing, how would he have gotten through 15 years of ninja training!?

If torable actually watched the damn show all the way to the end, then it would become apparent that Raph goes through character development the most. He changes, is calmer, less aggressive, he’s happier more at ease, because he’s found people in his life who understand and love him for who he is. The change isn’t a flick of a switch, it’s a gradual change over the seasons. Raph is so much more than an aggressive impulsive idiot.

ADHD and autistic people are misrepresented in media, in absolutely horrible ways, and even when autism is done right, it’s always only the one side of the spectrum and never with an actual autistic actor. autism and ADHD do not need to be misrepresented in fanfics as well.

What ever the hell that creature is that torable claims to be Mikey, it’s one struggle after another, and adding autism because you just want to infantilize him is abhorrent. Autistic people are not babys who need to be treated like glass, and representing Mikey as that destroys his character and misrepresents autism in a horrible way.

On a video I did on tiktok about “unfamiliar familiar” I got comments from people saying that they know the author IRL and apparently they are ex-friends and torable was abusive towards them, I’m not saying these claims are true, but I got 3 different people comment about that same thing…🫢

Anyway FUCK YOU TORABLE! FUCK YOU UNFAMILIAR FAMILIAR! FUCK YOU “ABUSED MIKEY” TROPE AND FUCK YOU “RISE ADOPTS MIKEY”TROPE !

[tmntforeverinmyheart]

OH MY GOD, I literally am 2 seconds away from tagging the abused Mikey truthers so that they can read this astonishingly incredible analysis of tmnt 2012. But I won’t tag them and instead reblog this. Because this deserves to be seen. This made my day! You can’t argue with facts! This is so well written, I’m in shock!!! Thankyou for writing this.

PLEASE SPREAD THIS!!

"2012 Mikey is Abused" and other constant complaints that, quite frankly, don't make sense

Since one Reddit user (who shall remain anonymous) inadvertently made me type out an essay I intended to write and post in a more coherent manner at a later date, I will be using their comment and my response.

Anyways, the comment itself starts off fairly normal and agreeable:

But then I see the next three points and my sleep-deprived mind just goes off the rails, so let's start with the second point:

Let me preface this by saying I absolutely do not condone the writing here because everyone under the sun will agree that we could've easily had the "Karai is our sister!?" plot twist without Leo and Karai briefly developing feelings for each other.

The problem is that this brief development of feelings is wildly blown out of proportion by the fandom, so much so that it makes it seem as though Leo and Karai actually had anything legitimate going on between them.

The "incest-eqsue garbage" between Leo and Karai is almost nonexistent outside of the writing room. They openly crush on each other for a whopping six episodes by way of verbally teasing each other and being at odds before Karai tells Leo that she's the Shredder's daughter. That's it. He is not pursuing her after that (hardly ever did, not even to the extent that Donnie pursues April) and Karai isn't remotely fond of him anymore after he broke their deal. Then, after we find out alongside Splinter that she's actually his daughter, he tells Leo towards the end of Follow the Leader. We don't get a reaction, actually nothing on Leo's side since the Foot Clan is mostly absent with April being the main point of conflict, even in Target: April O'Neil because April's forgiveness of the turtles is the main focus.

Leo eventually attempts to tell Karai the truth in Wormquake! and The Manhattan Project and she obviously doesn't believe the poor guy, she just wants to kill the turtles and Splinter at this point. Leo doesn't tell her because "he still likes her", but because, in his own words, it would change everything. She deserves to know the truth and Splinter shouldn't have his own daughter cursing him at every waking moment. When she tricks the gang into bringing her to the lair under the guise of her finally accepting the truth, Leo is ecstatic and his first thought is for her and Splinter to make amends. He's upset that Raph still can't fully trust her in the end when she fought alongside them (who can blame Raph though, he's cradling an unconscious brother after a plan gone awry), and that's the end of that.

They dedicate two episodes to the guys attempting to rescue her because Leo has enough brain cells to worry about what the Shredder could be doing with her, and Raph makes a jab at Leo on one instance when they find her (there is absolutely no romantic undertone, Raph just picks at his old crush on her and their tendency to tease each other at the worst times). Then, when she wants to get back at the Shredder for ripping her away from a life she never knew was her's, Leo attempts to aid her because he knows it isn't wise to face someone like that alone, especially with his henchmen there.

There's one last self-aware jab at their past feelings in S5, of which Karai awkwardly remembers and forgoes mentioning, and that's the last you see or hear of that.

As much as I dislike it, I'd take this narrative over the Donnie-April-Casey hurricane any day.

It seems that 2012 Mikey's mere existence is a sore spot for fans because Jesus Christ this gets brought up way too much.

Mikey is not written as a complete idiot, he's written as someone who doesn't see a reason to take everything so seriously, has odd habits, and doesn't always think things through, yet is shown to be highly capable and intelligent when the situation calls for it. Yes the writers left much to be desired at times, but to say they wrote him to be a "complete idiot" and left it at that is just offensive. I'll ignore all the miraculous things Mikey can do with Kraang stuff and Dimension X and focus on what other things he's shown to be capable of.

Mikey was a temporary learning model for Donnie in how to fight without thinking, or in better terms, how to fight instinctually without becoming bogged down by your own mind. Splinter's lesson is shown in a comedic manner, but that's ultimately what helped Donnie defeat Falco.

Another interesting thing is his ability to keep his composure when no one else around him can do so. I mentioned this briefly in another post, but it really stands out to me how he put Leo at the top of his priority list in Invasion Part 2. He's as worried for Splinter as Raph and Donnie are, but they have with them a crippled and unconcious Leo who needs medical attention asap, compared to martial arts master Splinter who's older and wiser than the three of them combined at times. Even when they eventually find Splinter and lose him, he keeps the gang in line by reminding them, as well as himself, that Splinter can take care of himself.

Along with that is when Splinter was kidnapped in The Manhattan Project. Mikey was quick to intervene when Raph was angry with Leo for allowing Tiger Claw to coax him into calling Splinter, and he reminded the two of the problem at hand: they have Splinter, let's go find him and take him back. There are so many other moments when he becomes the levelheaded one in response to the chaos or disorder surrounding him.

Mikey is a highly skilled fighter, he's emotionally intelligent, he remembers the weirdest things that eventually aid the team, he's street smart, he's a fast learner (ex: Bradford's secret kata, as well as the temporary use of the plasma katana in Target: April O'Neil), he's great at distracting enemies without needing to become bait, he gets insecure about things, he has photographic memory, he's the most outgoing of his brothers and therefore ends up with the most friends, he's quick to adapt to a situation and think of a plan, he can throw together seemingly random ingredients to create exactly what Donnie would struggle to create, he knew exactly what to do to find Casey after his run-in with Tiger Claw, the list goes on.

Heck, just to add to this, Mikey is the one who saves the day in three separate stories in S5. 1) His temporary electric powers save the world from Dregg and the Newtralizer, 2) he convinced Frankenstein's monster to join their side, retrieved the scepter from Savanti and Dracula (he accidentally broke the scepter while he was at it, but that helped) and cured Raph and Donnie of their vampirism, and 3) he was the one who repaired Kavaxas' seal and made him reopen the portal to the Netherworld so the dead could return.

The brothers don't always take him as seriously as they should or listen to him, and that's understandable at times, but when they do, they're reminded of the fact that Mikey, in his own way, is intelligent.

If I had a dime for every comment I've seen about this, I'd be rich enough to buy the TMNT series from Viacom and right every wrong they made with the 2012 series.

These abuse allegations are as bad as people putting Markiplier in the same tweet as problematic Youtubers and saying something wild like, "these content creators should've been cancelled a long time ago." I feel like people who say the brothers abuse Mikey are either an only child or genuinely have a warped sense for what actually counts as abuse, and I'm not even trying to be mean, those are just my thoughts. I shouldn't even have to comment on this, but the fact that people are still seriously believing that to this day is shocking.

Would you also like to say that Raph was abused in Turtle Temper when Splinter had the boys ceaselessly taunt him in that little exercise? Or that the boys abused Raph everytime they downplayed his anger? Or that Raph abused Donnie by threatening to hit him if he didn't find Snakeweed's hideout? Or that Leo abused Donnie everytime he stressed him out by rushing him for answers? Or that Donnie abused Mikey because Mikey flinched 2cm to the right when Donnie raised his hand to playfully knock at his noggin? Or that Leo was abused by the team because they took forever to view him as their leader? Or that Splinter abused the boys because he was "too rough" on them during training?? Or that April abused Donnie because she "constantly led him on"? Or that Xever and Bradford abused Baxter???

I'm losing my mind over here

Mikey is never physically or emotionally abused by his brothers, the show speaks for itself. But if you somehow aren't listening, go look up a textbook example of abuse, or better yet, look at Karai.

Abuse is the Shredder locking Karai in a dungeon when she tries to escape to her real family and going so far to become a peak manipulator by saying Karai was hurting him by making him lock her away. Worse than that, he starts brainwashing her with mind controlling worms so she has no choice but to obey him. Even before then, he's lowkey uncaring of her wellbeing: he treats her like any other soldier of his and doesn't listen to her when she tries to tell him something. He doesn't address her concerns about the Foot bots nearly finishing her off, instead telling her, "disobedience comes with a stiff penalty, especially for my daughter," when she objects to him telling her not to take action against the turtles while he's gone.

He only ever pays her any attention or gives her praise when it benefits him and his vendetta against Splinter.

Splinter and the turtles are the farthest thing from the image of a family filled with abusers. Raph openly apologizes to Mikey when Splinter tells him to stop picking at him in Shellacne, Raph comforts Donnie when the brainiac is somber after forcing Timothy into the equivalent of a cold sleep, Raph apologizes when his anger gets the better of him and he hits Leo harder than intended, Donnie apologizes when he realizes he shouldn't insult Raph when the guy is visibly upset, Leo regrets doubting Donnie about Metalhead, etc., etc.

Even beyond apologies, Raph is the quickest to entertain Mikey and vice versa during a mundane moment, Donnie never kicks Mikey out of the lab, Leo plays around with Mikey when the situation doesn't call for him to be their fearless leader, and Splinter is quick to advise Mikey during Karai's Vendetta and Shellacne. There are even times when the guys just go along with Mikey's antics because there's no harm in doing so, and often times Mikey needs a moment to be silly.

If you think play fighting, teasing, or getting a little physical with a sibling is the equivalent of abuse, particularly in the context of TMNT of all things, you need to do some revaluation.

[butterfilledpockets]

PHEW that one took a WHILE! hid lottsa little details in this time :)

I am so excited for all these guys to meet (I have written the dialogue and drawn teh thumbnails) I really hope you guys liked this one because i am actually quite proud of these pages :D

previous ---- part 10 ---- next

[peach-moths]

Shaking the bars of my cage @browniesarethebest fic A Mother's Love is so good

Please I need everyone to read it right now

[sweeneydino]

Whoopsies

[yippee-optimistically]

there is a shockingly low amount of tmnt on this blog for how long ive been into it. big tmnt'12 dump bc ive been trying to binge it recently

general sibling interactions.. very attatched to the idea of karai getting to be their sibling + i was so sleepy i kept thinking abt the turtles brumating

more sibling karai. thought itd be funny if bc of the yokai/time travel ep when mikey did that weird dance at baby karai he was implanted in her brain as an automatic Favorite. hes so peculiar

read this fic abt the aftermath of shellacne. the last line from donnie has been repeated by my sibling since i sent it to them

ougugghhh into dimension x you are so famous to everyoneee.. 1st one is me thinking abt how mikey had to be So insane to get a KRAANG SKULL? strange guy. and i dont remember which one but i read a fic where mikey's breathing apparatus breaks n he ends up getting used to the dim x air and um. consequences back on earth

RENET!!!!!!!!!!! renet tilley you are SO FAMOUS TO ME milf shirt is bc april in s3e1 really makes it sound like mikey was the only one doing house chores. cooking cleaning caring for animals etc. single mom

!!!! concept for a weirrrddddd savage mikey rep thatd be in his head in Journey To The Center of Mikeys Mind. was thinking that instead of being outside in that checker floor area, hed stick around core mikey. protecting him n protecting that last bit of childhood innocence. hed stand very tall and intimidating. core probably wouldnt even really know where he came from?? smth abt the brain blocking out traumatic memories. i like him

tang shen aus... more specifically inspired by this fic that i need to finish catching up on.. mikey and karai sibling relationship is so special 2 meee

2012 LEO YOU ARE EVERYTHING 2 MEEEE wishing so bad we got to see more of him and mikey.. mikey and his brothers ... ougghhhhh

and a little bit of smth from a personal iteration im working on ... definitely excited to post abt them once i have more solid outfits designed

[chaos-potat]

⚠WARNING⚠

This chapter contains homophobic language and verbal abuse

Tim tends to quickly internalize things like this, his emotions move quickly, Tim can't always notice he's breaking down till he can barely speak.

Janice, Tim's mom, isn't the most stable person, she has a kind of hatred for Tim. His brother, Zach, was the favorite and it was clear growing up. Zach was smart and quiet, the only time he spoke up was when Tim helped him, they saw Tim making Zach louder as an issue. After their parent's official divorce and Zach moved towns with their dad, Janice changed a lot, she was upset that Tim actually wanted to stay in New York, she wanted Zach. Tim loves his brother but he wanted to stay to keep Donnie and Casey civil with each other, he begins to regret that as he feels he's failing at even that.....

First (ever) | Last | Next (written) First anniversary comic

[endless-brainrot]

still not used to making my own posts but i wanted to point out that when leo came home looking like this (i forgot which episode it was)

mikey thought hed been crying, and IMMEDIATELY jumped off his chair to hug him

HE LOVES HIS OLDER BROTHER.

[sapphiretanto]

Probably one of the most little brother moments I’ve ever seen

Also some random screen shots:

[sketchiefoxie]

Mikey squinted when he saw his reflection. He didn’t look normal. The face staring back at him was incredibly familiar, like having déjà vu. Round face, freckled cheeks, orange mask, big blue eyes. Hadn’t he drawn this yokai earlier? The filmy layer on the screen crept away, starting from the outer edges, creeping towards the center, revealing the face behind. It was a turtle mutant of sorts. Big eyes, medium length black hair, yellow freckles, and an orange bandana tied around his neck. The stranger’s eyes widened as he stared at Mikey, expression full of curiosity. In a flash of blinding light, the two switch places, a Mikey and a Mikey, in two separate worlds. Or: Rottmnt Mikey swaps places with 2012 Mikey, and the two go through life changing events. Rottmnt Mikey has to help banish the Krang a second time, in a new universe, while 2012 Mikey uncovers a mystery within his newfound family, potentially tearing them apart.

I finally posted it!! Whoo!! Ok, here you all are, you said you'd rather the inconsistent schedule so I listened and posted the first chapter!! You're all welcome!! I hope you all enjoy!!

Especially you @burritello3000 since you seemed pretty excited lol

Anyways, I'll add this fanfic to my masterpost later, gotta run to work!! *Blows you all kisses*

[nerves-nebula]

I sometimes get uncomfortable around arguments about if certain characters are abusive or not- obviously I see this the most with 2012 tmnt and nobody really needs my opinion but I keep thinking about it so here’s some words to chew on.

Keep in mind I haven’t seen much of 2012 so I’ll mostly be talking about the WAY I see these discussions being had here, rather than the show itself.

I doubt the creators intended for the turtles to be abusive and I kind of just assume that everything they do is within the genre of slapstick kids show. But I also don’t think people who cringe away from the way they treat each other are reading too much into it.

I’ve seen people argue that ppl who think the brothers are abusive just don’t have siblings and that’s an insane take to me. Obviously its probably hyperbole in some instances but as someone with more siblings than most of the people I know, I 100% see the abuse reading of this series. It’s a very obvious idea to latch onto for me as someone who HAS been abused by my siblings- and who’s probably been abusive too.

The main thing that really gets under my skin is when people point out how much the turtles actually care about each other as evidence against abuse. Cause that doesn’t make any sense ??? you can abuse people you love and care about deeply.

And it really rubs me the wrong way when I see a post that’s like Raph can’t be abusive because he does X nice/cute things with Mikey or something like. That’s not how abuse works. You guys have to know that right?? Abuse isn’t just a person being mean 24/7 without pause.

A bit of a tangent coming up, but growing up, I really hated Mabel from gravity falls. not because she is inherently any more annoying or selfish or anything than other characters but because the way she treated dipper was extremely triggering for me as a child with a lot of anxiety. Like if Mabel was real and my sibling, I would’ve considered a lot of the shit she did abusive. Obviously I’m normal about her now cause I’m not 12 anymore but the biggest hurdle about watching that show when I was younger was that I would sometimes be brought to tears of frustration, imagining how scared and distressed I’d be if Mabel did that shit to me.

THE POINT of this tangent is that saying “the 2012 turtles aren’t abusive because I do that stuff with my siblings all the time/cause teenage boys are just like that” isn’t a genuine critique because abuse isn’t just about the action it’s about the relationship. Punching your sibling who’s actually ok with being punched isn’t abuse. Punching your sibling who really doesn’t want you to, and who you KNOW really doesn’t want you to, and who you KNOW would be genuinely upset by being punched? That is abuse.

And I find it annoying because I think we’re all aware that abuse was likely not the intent of the show. (Probably not even the text of the show but once again can’t say for sure) Maybe some dysfunction for drama, but probably not abuse, so you’re really just arguing against someone’s headcanon/personal interpretation of this show. And it’s like.. ok you have a different reading cool I guess.

In the show they aren’t treated as abusive, but fandoms are built around exploring different aspects of art that weren’t explored in canon. So I guess idk why this is a big deal.

Idk I think people have this idea that abusive = evil and always wrong. But abuse is just someone hurting you repeatedly and refusing to stop for whatever reason.

And with a show like 2012 where it’s all played for laughs it can be hard to tell if that’s how they are with each other because they’re ok with it or if that’s how they are cause they don’t know any other way. The turtles are kind of really mean in 2012, and wether that’s a familiarity kind of meanness or not is up to you in fandom, yknow?

Does Mikey actually consider Raph hitting him as like a fun part if their banter or is he coping with jokes about being physically abused? You decide! Like genuinely it can be either and I think that’s fun!

I mean obviously you all know what i’d pick, but that’s because I’m blissfully aware of what I want out of stories and what i want is nuanced discussions of abuse.

Personally, I acted very similarly to the 2012 turtles when living with my siblings, but I didn’t actually fucking like it. It was a defense mechanism because being genuine would only be met with ridicule. So I’m not inclined to agree that it’s fine because it’s just what they do.

Once again though, I doubt it was on purpose. And if you don’t think that they’re abusive then congrats! The show probably doesn’t either! So I just don’t see why people get super upset about it. Don’t you love that someone got a different story out of the same media??

Anyway obviously it doesn’t super matter and I don’t really have a horse in this race. I just got a bit annoyed with the way abuse is discussed and as a hobbyist Abuse Analyst I thought I’d weigh in.

I wrote this instead of going to sleep and it’s sooo late and also so much longer that I meant for it to be… y’all better not have bad takes in response or I’ll be annoyed as hell tomorrow morning, guh.

[tmntforeverinmyheart]

What’s your opinion on 12 Raph?

I love him so much! He’s a softie with a rough exterior and he struggles with his emotions. Which like same…

It hurts to see ppl call him an abuser, cause he’s not. He’s just a kid, a kid who can’t handle his anger and lashes out towards the people he loves. He hurts the ones he loves, and feels awful after.

I can relate, I yell at my little brother constantly, doesn’t mean I don’t love him.

Does Raph go a bit overboard sometimes with his bullying, absolutely, but Mikey doesn’t show signs of hatred and fear, he loves his big brother. They’re each others favorite bro, they push each others buttons, mess with each other.

Mikey loves Raph and Raph loves Mikey. Is the family dynamic dysfunctional, yes. Does that mean it’s bad, absolutely not!

Every family is dysfunctional in some way. There’s no such thing as perfect in family’s.

Of course, there are family’s that are abusive.

Tmnt 2012 is NOT one of them.

[imagionationstation]

I would not say that I enjoy being blocked in any fashion or that I intend to/plan to invade the privacy of any Tumblr user who did so, but when it’s by a fellow 2012tmnt fan, I gotta wonder why.

I’m just picking up the glass jar that prevents interaction and squinting to peek inside like “How do I not cater to you? What could I have done? How did I hurt you? Why are you mad?”

I hardly ever get a glimpse. And yet, I wonder.

[narratorstrash]

Hot take; you can tell EXACTLY the kind of person someone is just by asking them to describe 2012 Mikey & Raph’s dynamic (bonus points if you can figure out if they’re either an only child or the youngest sibling)

[tmnt-obsessed-ace]

OK MY LIST OF BRIBES FOR EVERYONE SO YOU WILL VOTE FOR 2012RAPH

I WILL DRAW HIM IN A FAIRY PRINCESS DRESS!

I WILL DRAW MONA'S REACTION TO THE DRESS!

I WILL MAKE AN ENTIRE ASS ANIMATIC FOR RAPH!

I WILL WRITE AND PUBLISH THE FINAL FOUR CHAPTERS OF ARC ONE OF WHEN THE WORLD CRUMBLES (on tumblr because I am still in ao3 jail :c)

@teenagemutantninjaturtleshowdown

TAKE THE BRIBES ANS VOTE FOR RAPH!!!

[manyunhappygreenies]

I agree with the tier list but I'm curious why idw and 2007 are on the bottom half and not like 2012 splinter? Or even rise they were both pretty bad fathers

I'll answer rise and 2012 first because 2007 and idw fuel me with so much anger.

DISCLAIMER: I love Rise Splinter and 12 Splinter but they are not without flaws!!!!!

Trigger warnings will be in tags please adhere to them!

[Rise Splinter Start]

I put rise splinter in "you're okay" tier because Hamato Yoshi (will be calling rise splinter "Lou" from now on for context) did his very best and tried to make the very best out of a terrible situation.

He had lost his mother at a very young age and dealt with an emotionally neglectful grandfather who had only cared about a Hamato's duty to their clan up to his late teens into adulthood. [This undermines Karai's sacrifice in the first place. As she had sacrificed herself out of love for the world around her and the love of her father. Not because of a sense of duty.]

Lou moves to America in order to separate himself from his trauma, never addressing it but rather repressing it. In hopes he can move on and start a new life, which he fully intended when he proposed to Big Mama. [Though it's never spoken directly or stated directly in the show, it's implied Splinter was ready to even have a family with her because he loved her so much]

This is quickly torn to shreds when Big Mama reveals she's a Yokai crime boss [essentially] and human traffic [yes. HUMAN TRAFFICS] Lou to New York to become a champion in her Battle Nexus. While in the beginning of the show it's depreciated as Lou Jitsu loved being a Nexus champion we quickly learned in "Many Unhappy Returns" he in fact did not relish being a champion and was clearly traumatized by Big Mama's actions.

> Enter Baron Draxum

Lou is human trafficked once again and this time is experimented on, his DNA used to create turtle super soldiers that will be trained and raised to murder humans. [This show is super fucked up now that I think about it.]

And after completely destroying Draxum's lab, being freshly mutated into a rat man. Stripped of his humanity, he now has 4 turtle sons dropped into his lap.

TLDR: Rise Splinter did the very best he could in a terrible situation and struggled to overcome his own generational trauma. His actions are explained, not excused. He needs therapy, his sons needs therapy. He needs to make up for his neglectful behavior [which we do see towards the end of season 1 and into season 2] and understand his children are in no way shape or form obligated to forgive him.

[End of Rise Splinter]

[Start of 2012 Splinter]

My reasoning for putting 2012 Splinter in "Seek therapy before having kids" tier is because Hamato Yoshi [will just be calling him Yoshi for context] has been a parent before, while brief and tragically separated from his child for many years, on top of losing his wife.

Yoshi did as I would feel did the best he could but could have definitely done better. He's freshly traumatized, well into his 30s, maybe early 40s [?] And moves to America from Japan. [Clearly he needs therapy]

Yoshi clearly was not expecting to be a parent again, so soon after losing his only daughter. [perceived]

He loves his children, though he more often than not struggles to actually connect with them and see them as his sons rather than just clan members. I would consider this emotionally neglectful [?]

I personally always headcanoned this as a trauma response. A subconscious way to protect himself from the hurt of losing another child. And it's clear that Yoshi's trauma over losing miwa has manifested for his sons as well, as we see in the episode "Panic in the Sewers" one of the first episodes we actually see Yoshi PUT HIS HANDS ON HIS SON outside of training. And it's very clear that he was in fact hurting Raph. [Intentional or not. He still hurt his son.]

He loves his sons very much. But please. Get therapy.

[End of 2012 Splinter.]

Cracks Knuckles

[Start IDW Splinter.]

FUCK THIS STUPID ASS RAT I HATE HIM SO FUCKING MUCH. ESPECIALLY ESPECIALLY AFTER THE EVENTS OF CITY FALL.

YOUR SON IS CLEARLY TRAUMATIZED BY NOT JUST OROKU SAKI BUT YOU, HE IS AFRAID OF YOU ANGRY AT YOU AND DESPITE YOU KNOWING THIS YOU STILL CHOOSE TO INVADE HIS SPACE, PRIVACY AND COMFORT ZONE. FUCK YOU!

That being said the entire Trauma and storyline with IDW Leo being brainwashed was handled poorly and clearly written from a stigmatized view. I'm not surprised that his recovery was handled just as poorly.

[End of IDW Splinter]

[Start of 2007 Splinter]

Fuck you. You literally look like the cheetah from Cheetos you nasty, emotionally and physically neglectful fuck!!!

The only time you EVER paid attention to your sons was when Leo came home. 2 YEARS AFTER YOU SENT HIM TO CENTRAL AMERICA.

You did NOT care about Raphael's feelings about Leo's departure or return, nor the abandonment issues he had developed and the resentment that he had for you and his older brother.

You did NOT care that Donnie had to pick up the slack and pay bills so YOUR CRUSTY CHEETO LOOKING ASS COULD WATCH THE NEWS AND YELL "BOYS" WHEN LEO CAME HOME AND THEY CONVENIENTLY WENT OUT TO FIGHT CRIME

I DON'T THINK YOU EVEN ACKNOWLEDGED MIKEY UNTIL THE END OF THE MOVIE AFTER LEO WAS SAVED

TLDR: FUCK 2007 SPLINTER.