Raphael (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles)

Raphael
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles character
Raphael
Textless Planet Awesome exclusive cover variant of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #84.
Art by series co-creator Kevin Eastman
First appearanceTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1 (May 1984)
Created byKevin Eastman
Peter Laird
Portrayed by
Others:
  • Jason Logan (Operation Blue Line)
  • Ronn K. Smith (The Coming Out of Their Shells Tour)
  • Eric Anzalone (understudy in The Coming Out of Their Shells Tour, Gettin' Down in Your Town, We Wish You a Turtle Christmas, and Turtle Tunes)
  • Danielle Silveira (The Mystery of the Cliffs)
Voiced by
Others:
In-universe information
SpeciesMutant turtle
AffiliationTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
WeaponTwin sai
Family
HomeNew York Sewers, United States
Abilities
  • Mastery of ninjutsu, kobudō, chi gong, and stealth
  • Superhuman agility, speed, and strength
  • Mastery of sai and tonfa
  • Self-replication (Rise of the TMNT)

Raphael, nicknamed Raph, is a superhero and one of the four main characters of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comics and all related media.[1] In most iterations, he is depicted as the most aggressive of the turtle brothers, physically the strongest, and often at odds with his brother, Leonardo.[1]

He is usually depicted wearing a red eye mask; in this regard, he is the only turtle to retain this color since the original incarnation of the characters, as the remaining turtles received different colors at a later time. Raphael wields twin sai as his primary weapon. He is commonly portrayed in media as speaking with a Brooklyn accent. Raphael is known for his temperamental and cynical personality, being short-tempered, aggressive, sullen, maddened, sarcastic, and rebellious.[2] The origin of Raphael's anger is not always fully explored, but in some incarnations appears to stem partly from the realization that they are the only creatures of their kind and ultimately alone, while also bothered by the injustice the helpless and innocent suffer. Despite his fiery personality, he has shown a soft side on many occasions, mainly to Michelangelo.

Raphael is an opinionated and independent character who chafes under authority. He serves as the team's enforcer. The combination of his personality and role contributes to his rivalry and frequent arguments with his brother and leader, Leonardo. When he feels as though Leonardo's decision is not in the best interest of the family, for whatever reason, he is sure to voice it.

However, in the most recent versions of the franchise, Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, his role as protector takes precedence over his traditional characterization and his dynamics with his brothers. In this series, Raphael is the eldest brother and his dynamic with Leonardo is effectively swapped—with Raphael now admonishing Leonardo for his irresponsible attitude and disregard for his role as leader.

Like all of the brothers, he is named after a Renaissance artist; in this case, he is named after the 16th-century Italian painter Raphael.[3] In 2011, Raphael placed 23rd on IGN's Top 100 Comic Book Heroes,[4] a list that did not feature any of his brothers. He is the only Teenage Turtle brother whose name does not end in the letter "O", even though the artist he got his name from is "Raffaello".

  1. ^ a b Greenberg, Harvey R. (1990-04-15). "Just How Powerful Are Those Turtles?". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2018-06-12. Retrieved 2010-08-07.
  2. ^ Simpson, Janice C. (1990-04-02). "Show Business: Lean, Green and on the Screen". Time. Archived from the original on December 5, 2014. Retrieved 2010-03-03.
  3. ^ TMNT Origin Story Archived 2012-06-01 at the Wayback Machine, official site. Retrieved 2007-11-16.
  4. ^ "Raphael - #23 Top Comic Book Heroes - IGN". Uk.ign.com. Archived from the original on 2012-01-25. Retrieved 2013-09-06.