Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem Reveals One Turtle is a Massive Otaku

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem has offered Turtles’ fans with a radical new take on the Heroes in a Half Shell. Portraying the legendary mutant heroes as much younger than many of their other interpretations, the movie was greenlit by Paramount for both a sequel film and a television series that will bridge the gap between the first film and the second. Peppering the movie with a number of anime references in its runtime, one Turtle is directly responsible for many of the nods to the medium.

Over the many iterations of the Turtle siblings, each brother has normally fallen into a stereotypical function as a part of the quartet. Raphael is a bruiser who is usually dealing with some serious anger issues. Leonardo usually takes on the role of leader while attempting to set an example for his brothers. Michaelangelo is a “party dude” who will usually hop aboard a skateboard during some of their biggest fights. Donatello has been a brainy powerhouse when it comes to creating weaponry and machinery to benefit himself and his family. In Mutant Mayhem, Donatello is shown to be an anime fan, with a number of popular series being directly referenced as a result.

Donatello: An Anime-Loving Turtle

Donny wishes to attend high school in the new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles like his brothers, and is shown in the film to want to join a school’s “Anime Club.” With the club being promoted with the help of art of My Hero Academia’s Deku, this is far from the only anime reference in the movie. Donatello at one point in the film even expresses his love for Attack on Titan, the bleak anime franchise that is bringing its television series to an end this fall.

Without diving too deeply into spoiler territory, Attack on Titan specifically plays a far bigger role in the film than many might have expected. It’s a testament to how big the anime medium has become in North America that Mutant Mayhem has so many anime references in its runtime. When these Heroes In A Half-Shell do make a comeback in the new tv series and sequel, we’re sure to see more of Donatello’s love of all things anime.

What did you think of Donatello’s love of anime in the latest Paramount movie? Feel free to let us know in the comments or hit me up directly @EVComedy to talk all things comics, anime, and the world of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.