I love this version of Johnny. He has the perfect mixture of arrogance and wittiness while still being kind and serious at the most important times. I did a song headcanon post for him a while back and had a fun time doing it so I wanted to do another headcanon post for him and other MK characters. If you want to read my other post the link is below.
https://www.tumblr.com/criminalmutantsins/731871981377617920/mk1-johnny-cage-song-headcanons?source=share
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TW: Mentions of abuse (physical/mental), alcoholism, bullying
- Johnny is the middle child with Jimmy being the oldest and Rebecca being the youngest. Jimmy and Johnny don’t get along because Jimmy follows in his dad’s footsteps and makes fun of Johnny for not being masculine enough. He has a really good relationship with Rebecca- affectionately calling her Becky- but their eight-year age difference made it hard for them to connect. Though he is glad she didn’t suffer the same abuse as him, Johnny is also a bit jealous of her because his dad would spoil and treat her like a princess. They call and FaceTime each other once in a while to catch up.
- Johnny’s mom was the one who fostered Johnny’s love for 80s media. Whenever she had a rare day off, Johnny and her would dance and goof around while listening to 80s. His favorite artists were ABBA, Bee Gees, and Queen.
- Johnny’s dad physically and emotionally abused Johnny. His obsession with control and masculinity led him to hurt or insult Johnny if he deemed him “not man enough” or somehow disrespectful. For instance, if he saw Johnny liking something seen as feminine like “chick flicks” he would berate him or if Johnny forgot to do a chore then his dad would beat him. His mother was not aware of the abuse due to working a lot, Johnny’s fear of retribution from his father if he told, and the abuse only occurring when she was not around.
- School was not easy for Johnny. He was targeted for being the quiet kid and not being interested in typical sports (football, soccer, baseball), and being a part of the cheer squad. It ended after Johnny created his Cage persona, portraying himself as confident and witty, and his martial arts skills.
- Johnny watched a lot of 90s sitcoms like “Full House”, “Roseanne”, “Boy Meets World”, and “Saved By The Bell” to cope with his broken family- his mother working almost 24/7, his father’s abuse, and lack of a relationship with his siblings- and bullying at school. He liked (and was jealous) that every problem was solved within 22 minutes and the main character had friends/family who were always there for them.
- He also watched many martial arts such as “Enter the Dragon,” “Crouching Tiger,” “Hidden Dragon,” “Kill Bill,” and “Karate Kid.” He liked to imagine himself being the hero who defeated all the bad guys and saved the world. On top of that, watching the films with his dad was the only good time Johnny had with him.
- Before his mother paid for karate classes, Johnny’s dad tried teaching him boxing at home. It was a horrible time since his dad would get angry with Johnny if he “did something wrong” like messing up a move or not wanting to hit his dad. As punishment, Johnny’s dad would punch Johnny until either he got tired or Johnny attacked back. This stopped when his mom saw his bruises- thinking it was only from school bullies- and signed him up for karate class, which Johnny grew to love and practice all his life. She also paid for gymnastics class after seeing Johnny’s interest in it.
- During his first two years in college, Johnny joined a theater group where he created many meaningful relationships, such as Kelsey, his scene partner for some plays who became a successful actress and singer on Broadway, and Frankie, who was in charge of cosmetics and became Johnny’s first personal make-up artist. After college, the troupe meets every year to catch up.
- Johnny is pansexual. He finds anyone attractive no matter their gender. He realized this in high school, though he didn’t feel comfortable coming out until he moved out for college.
- He met Cris when she was serving them at a restaurant the theatre trope frequented. It was an instant attraction and Johnny gave her his number along with the receipt. He was surprised to see her attending the college too (she was a business major). They dated for two years and got married the year he got his first lead role.
- Being very lucky, Johnny got his big break after two years of working minor roles. At twenty-two, he was a major character- comedic but badass sidekick to the main character- in an action, thriller movie because the directors were impressed by his martial arts and quick wit. The film’s major success and good reception to his character led to his first film as the lead.
- Johnny treats every staff member involved in his movies very well. He always thanks the make-up artists, costume designers, and prop designers for their towards him and his scenes. Interns love him because he treats them like humans- asks about their day and thanks them for their work- instead of errand boys. After filming, he always brings them a box of donuts as a celebration. Even the scriptwriter and stunt coordinator like him since, rather than rudely demanding changes, Johnny works to collaborate with them to make his scenes (and sometimes the movie) better. The only people who disliked Johnny were the directors and it was out of bitterness that most of Johnny’s ideas were better than the original premise.
- After five years of successful movies and a large, loyal fanbase, Johnny’s career started dwindling fast because the action/martial arts genre stopped trending at the box office and directors believed Johnny was incapable of portraying roles other than witty, comedic action characters. Though, he wanted to try more serious roles and genres other than action and martial arts movies but was scared his fans wouldn’t like it and abandon him.
- This significant drop in his career caused Johnny’s depression to worsen and used alcohol to escape the stress and pain. His wish to rejuvenate his career became an obsession where he would rarely sleep, only focus on work, and neglect his relationship, especially his marriage. These issues and his unwillingness to recognize how damaging they are were the last straw for Cris.
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I would love to meet every voice actor in TMNT 2012, but if I had to pick the one I want to meet the most, Rob Paulsen would be my pick. I love all of Rob's voice roles like Carl from Jimmy Neutron, Peck from Back at the Barnyard, and especially Donnie. Plus, Rob is such a sweetheart and I just want to give him a big hug.
Greg Cipes is my second pick because I love Beast Boy, Mikey, and Kevin Levin.
Seth Green is my third because of Leo and Monty Monogram.
Sean Astin is last.
(If the answer is in Liu Kang's intros, I didn't know because I haven't seen all the character intros.)
I always wondered why Liu Kang had to convert Tarkatans from being a race to a colony of diseased people. It could be that a rule on making a timeline is you can't remove a significant aspect that's involved in every timeline.
I have a theory that Liu Kang tried to remove the Tarkatan race but couldn't because of the Hourglass' interference, so he believed that making it a disease that's hard to spread was the only solution.
I kind of wished that MK1(story or intros) hinted at the limits a Time Keeper has when making a timeline and being involved in it. Maybe I've missed that in the intros since I haven't finished watching them.
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After seeing how much Loki's grown in his series, I really hope we see him return to the movie series. He doesn't have to be the main focus for a whole film, but a few scenes where he's important would be good.
Maybe, there can be a movie where Loki and Thor reunite. From what I remember, the original Loki (the one killed by Thanos) and Thor didn't outright say they loved each other. Of course, you can still express love without saying it but, after seeing them fight for years and resolving it right before Loki's death, seeing them say that they love each other.
I imagine that they see each other, and freeze (Thor because of shock and Loki feeling nervous about what to say), but Thor immediately snaps out of it, runs towards Loki, and bear hugs him. Though shocked, Loki hugs him back, and the brothers start crying. Loki starts apologizing for all the pain he’s caused Thor, to which the latter responds, “I’ve already forgiven you, brother. I missed you so much.” Loki smiles and says, “I missed you too brother.”
Later on, when he has to return to the TVA, Loki and Thor say their goodbyes. Thor tells him that he’s proud of how much he’s changed and is happy he has friends there for him. In turn, Loki tells Thor that he’s proud of him too and jokes about how they are no longer the arrogant fools they used to be. They wish each other happy lives and say, “I love you.” Then it flashes back to them playing as children and being happy.
I think this would be a very sweet way for Thor to move on from the pain of losing Loki. I wish it was acknowledged more in Endgame and Love & Thunder, but his depression was mostly played for laughs instead of developed into a full character arc. It also gives Loki the chance to apologize for some of his mistakes and have a nice reunion with Thor, unlike in his timeline where he was still a villain and Thor disliked him.
Have You Ever Had Cartoon Crushes?
I think maybe most people had cartoon crushes as a kid or something. I’m one of them.
Here are a list of characters I had childhood crushes on:
1. Starfire(Teen Titans 2003)
2. Raven(Teen Titans 2003)
3. Max Goof(Goofy Movies)
4. Danny Fenton(Danny Phantom)
5. Katara(ATLA)
6. Leonardo(TMNT 2012)
7. Li Shang (Mulan)
8. Trunks (Dragon Ball)
9. Finn (Adventure Time)
10. Flora (Winx Club)
There might be more but these are the ones I remember from the top of my head.
Thank you for adding your thoughts to my post. One of my favorite things to do in fandoms is to discuss with other fans about the story, characters, etc.
I see your point about Liu Kang and his abilities but I think Liu Kang had a hand at Smoke being orphaned. In one of his intros with Liu Kang, Smoke asks him if he intended for his family to die. Here’s a link to the video: https://youtu.be/z-r4UecW7PM?si=sHMb4gmKGddNA9oY&t=485 (The intro is at 8:05). Liu Kang’s reply was a bit cryptic and can be interpreted in different ways but I believe it alludes to Liu having to make a hard decision to make sure the timeline went accordingly, such as Smoke joining the Lin-Kuei and befriending the brothers. Also, Liu made plans for Shang Tsung and Quan-Chi to live meaningless lives. I don’t think he would’ve risked letting them live freely without careful planning to make sure the plan kept its course, so I believe Liu Kang is capable of planning people’s lives but in varying degrees. Unfortunately, the game wasn't very clear on Liu Kang’s capabilities and restrictions so most fans have different interpretations of Liu Kang's involvement in how the new timeline turned out the way it is. I do give Liu Kang some slack since he gave up his powers decades (most likely centuries) before Hanzo was born.
Anyways, I should’ve been clear when I said Hanzo’s life seems bleak. I meant before being taken in by Smoke. I don’t think Hanzo not being the leader of the Shirai-Ryu is a bad life. My critique was about how Liu Kang made sure Shao Kahn didn’t have extensive capabilities to become emperor and have Mileena, who was his enemy in the old timeline, be Kitana’s blood sister- a change he must have done before relinquishing his powers- while Hanzo’s life before the Shirai-Ryu was hard. I had that expectation that Liu Kang would give Hanzo what he truly desired- his family- since he did that for Mileena- her MK11 ending hinted at her wanting to be a part of a family. I’m fine with Kuai having the Scorpion mantle because it gives the Scorpion/Sub-Zero a bit more depth and new intrigue. Right now, I’m neutral with MK1 Hanzo. There isn’t anything to go by about his character so I’ll be waiting until future installments to give my full thoughts. I do have some faith that NRS will write MK1 Hanzo well. All I hope is they don’t kill off Kuai Liang only to make Hanzo Scorpion again. It would make the change kind of pointless.
I wanted to be clearer on why I don't like Harumi and Kuai together so far. It's not because I see Harumi as only Hanzo's life. I've grown to like Kuai being Scorpion since it gives the Sub-Zero/Scorpion rivalry more depth, and he still feels like Kuai Liang but with a different title. Going as far as to have Harumi and Kuai get married feels like a tamper to that balance. With that decision, he feels like Hanzo but with a different name right now. I'm still open to changing my mind once new story content is released.
Sort of a side note, but I don't think is a young adult (I searched online and a young adult is usually a range between 18 and 25 years old). Based on his height and appearance, I think he is 14-15 years old (adolescent/early teens range). It is possible for 18-year-olds and above to be short but, in MK1, most male characters are around the same height. If NRS wanted Hanzo to be in the same age range, they would've made him closer to Kuai and Tomas' heights. However, I could be wrong since I'm basing this on the tower ending's art style instead of the game's 3D modeling.
Thank you for reblogging my post and adding your opinion. My favorite part about fandoms is to see fans’ different perspectives on story elements. I enjoyed reading your post. Btw, your art is really good! Your Scorpion Harumi’s design is my favorite.
(Spoiler Warning: Smoke’s Tower Ending is discussed)
I saw Smoke’s tower ending and was surprised to see Hanzo in the new timeline, let alone as a child. Although I’m open to how the writers will handle his character, I’m kind of disappointed that they went this route. When I learned that Kuai Liang would be Scorpion in the new timeline, I expected Hanzo to either not even exist or live a nice life with Harumi and their son. Instead, Kuai Liang is married to Harumi and Hanzo is much younger than them, which is so weird. I really hoped Hanzo would have a happy life and only be involved in the games through mentions at least. Also, this decision paints Liu Kang in a bad light. It’s no secret Liu Kang made sure his allies had a good life while making some of his enemies’ lives (Shang Tsung and Quan Chi) insignificant to prevent them from turning into their past counterparts. So, it makes me wonder why Liu Kang didn’t think to give Hanzo a good life or at least watch over him. It’s shown that Hanzo is a starving orphan forced to steal for essentials. I have no doubt Liu Kang knows about Hanzo’s past since he met the older and kinder Scorpion in MK11 and Raiden has disclosed Hanzo’s past in MK 9. Plus when Liu Kang fused with the Hourglass, he most likely became aware of what happened in MK9 and MKX. He gave Shao Kahn the chance to be a better man by being the Kingdom’s general- a risk that didn’t pay off, yet didn’t give Hanzo what he always desired- his wife, son, and the Shirai-Ryu. It feels so out of character for Liu Kang to not make sure Hanzo had a good chance at life.
If I had the opportunity to write Hanzo’s character, it would’ve been very different. I would’ve made him a former Lin Kuei member(he would be 5 or more years older than Bi-Han) who held the Scorpion title until he retired to Japan- where met Harumi and had their son. Hanzo would’ve also been the one to train Kuai Liang in his fire powers in the latter’s childhood. In his honor, Kuai would take the Scorpion mantle after Hanzo retires. Hanzo could also help Kuai and Smoke form the Shirai-Ryu but Harumi helps in recruiting and training while he takes care of their young son.
Though, I still hold some faith that NRS will write the new Hanzo well. I guess I’m just disappointed because I wanted Hanzo to finally live a happy life where his family stays alive. He was one of my favorites in the MK9-MK11 era so I can’t help but feel a connection towards him.
Am I the only one who was annoyed the writers kept “tricking” the audience into thinking Shredder was dead?
It was so annoying. I was fine with it the first time since one fake death usually happens in shows. But doing this over 4 times is excessive and bland. This writing choice really made it hard for me to keep going with TMNT 2003. Killing off the Shredder wouldn’t have been the end of the world. Bringing new villains would have been fun and unique. A version of Shredder was the villain for every season except S6. There was Utrom Shredder, Karai Shredder, Demon Shredder, and Cyber Shredder.
This over reliance was the show’s crutch.
I still enjoyed watching the show tho.
Please respect other opinions. Thank you
I don’t love TMNT 2003.
Before watching this version, many fans said 2003 series was the best version. I didn’t have a lot of TMNT content to watch so I tried it(with some high expectations). I really liked it and had a fun time watching it, but I wouldn’t say it’s the best version- there isn’t a best version imo. I had some issues with it such as some intriguing moments from the show that wasn’t further explored like Leo’s first loss, and traumatic injuries from the Shredder and Donnie’s reaction of the alternative universe in Same As It Never Was. They were good but I needed more. Season 6 and 7 were not great and was tough to go through because of the sudden tone and art style change.
Though, it’s my second favorite version so far.
I like 2012 April.
I already made a post about this so I will shorten my explanation.
I have many reasons, but I’m going to say only two or three reasons since I don’t wanna bore you guys to death.
I don’t hate April because she is a victim of bad writing. TMNT 2012 has overall great writing, but there were some mistakes. Apritello is a big example.
When I ignore the bad moments, April is a really good character. Is she my favorite? No, but she had great potential.
Rise has one of the best family dynamics.
When I watch the show, I can tell that the Turtles love each other no matter what, which is a big thing in the fandom. I enjoyed their brotherly relationships since their was rarely an physical confrontation between them compared to how much 2012 Raph hits the other brothers. I don’t like hitting people, unless I need to protect myself, so I always felt a bit uncomfortable with all the hitting in TMNT 2012. I’m not saying TMNT 2012 had bad brother relationships, it’s my favorite because the raw moments the turtles had always warmed my heart. If it happened too often, the moments would have less of an impact.
I think TMNT 2003 went a bit downhill after season 4.
I feel like the storylines after season 4 were not as good. They focused mostly on mystical things, which is fine, but having so many versions of the Shredder was annoying for me. I know it might sound rude, but I think the show should have ended after season 4.
The 2003 Same As It Never Was storyline was not executed as greatly as it could be.
I feel so bad for critiquing the 2003 version since it looks like I don’t like the series. That’s not true, I really like the series and I applaud it for doing storylines like SAINW and Leo’s PTSD.
The reason why I don’t feel like SAINW didn’t live up to its full potential is because of the length of episodes it could have taken and how it didn’t seem to bother Donatello afterwards.
If SAINW was not added in the Ultimate Draco storyline, I think more episodes like an extra one would have been a better idea. The episode felt pretty rushed and I really wanted to learn more about the future like what happened to Casey, why Hun and Stockman betrayed Shredder, and the circumstances right before Future Donnie disappeared.
Leo’s storyline collided with Donnie’s potential character growth, which makes me upset. I adore Leo’s growth, but the other brothers had so much potential. Maybe some hints of Donnie’s fear of the future or the brothers being separated would have made up for it, but it didn’t happen. All the future Turtles’ deaths didn’t seem to affect Donnie like I thought it would.
2012 Fugitoid should have passed away.
I feel so bad for saying this, but for the better of the story, Fugitoid coming back to life was not a great choice. I love Honeycutt, but his sacrifice would have had a lot of impact on the reality of heroes dying. 2003 TMNT did this really well. Some good people died and it symbolized how dangerous and important it is to fight for what is right.
TMNT 2003 had too many characters, which ruined some development for more important ones.
I feel pretty bad for criticizing TMNT 2003 so much, but I still really like it. Every cartoon has its flaws and I’ve noticed more on TMNT 2003 since I’ve been binging it.
Anyway, the show has too many arcs and characters. Too much for any to gain development. Like the Rat King. I would’ve loved to see him more since he was so interesting. And the Monster from season 4. I was so upset when we didn’t get back to him. He deserved a happy ending, and his story would have been great development for Bishop, good or bad.
2012 Karai’s redemption arc was not handled that great.
To be honest, her arc was always a bit shaky to me. What surprised me most was how fast Karai’s mind was changed. All her life the Shredder was her father, but when almost once Splinter revealed the truth, she switched. I don’t think that would’ve happened so soon since, usually, kids that handle trauma like that kind of try to rationalize or try to make sense of it all. It would have been better if Karai was having this mental battle as she was working with the Shredder. She would be neutral though because she doesn’t want to hurt the Turtles and Splinter if what they said was true.
2012 Karai is overrated.
Don’t get me wrong, 2012 Karai is my favorite version, but she is not as developed as some people say.
Her arcs with finding the truth about everything and “curing” her of the mutation were not handled well, especially the latter. It took the last halves of season 2 and 3 to save her. Was I only one annoyed that the group looked for so long, only for the retro mutagen to not work? 😑
She’s on my list of wasted great characters along with April and Casey.
In the 2012 series, female characters are not as well written as male characters.
This is one of my complaints with the 2012 series. Most of the female characters were either reduced to love interests or severely sidelined. April and Karai are the biggest victims with this.
April had great potential to be a great character, but the love triangle ruined it. If they solved this plot line already, April’s character wouldn’t have suffered as much. Can’t determine if fans would like her more, but that’s my opinion.
With Karai, she was a love interest at first, but then this Splinter’s daughter plot line happened. Tbh, I think this decision was last minute because I hope to god the creators were not promoting brother/sister romantic relationships of any kind. Anyway, that story was going along until that wild goose chase trying to cure her from the mutation(which didn’t work). After that craziness, she was just sidelined and there was barely any Splinter/Karai moments(one of my biggest disappointments with the show). It would have been amazing to see her journey as the new Shredder, but I don’t blame the creators for that because they had a limited amount of episodes.
2012 April is not op.
Oof.. I’m gonna get so many disagrees on this. 😂
The reason I’m saying this is because of the and my definition of overpowered. Overpower: defeat with superior strength.
While rewatching the show, I looked closely through April’s fights, especially with her powers. Usually, overpowered people defeat supposedly stronger opponents without explanation.
April has rarely beaten someone stronger than her except once with TigerClaw, but with the Dragon’s Tail kick and a sneak attack, not her powers. She used her powers with the Shredder, Shini, Kavaxas, and many more enemies. She lost every time. The only time April won with her powers was against that evil Aeon and it was severely weak.
I would say April is not very close to the fighting level with the Turtles, especially with Raph and Leo. If they went full force on her, she would lose, even with her abilities.
2012 Leo has better characterization than 2003 Leo.
I really like 2003 Leo but he can be pretty bland. He only ever focused on training and meditation. He was also too perfect in some areas. However, S4 made him better in those areas.
With 2012 Leo, I like that he has more interests than training and has a reason why he wants to be the leader. He also messes up and doesn’t get the full swing of being the leader until half way through S2. For me, I think realistic character progression is very important for a show.
I like 2018 April’s design.
I admit, I was shocked when I learned that April’s race was changed, but I have no problems with it. There’s more diversity.
The only thing I don’t like about her design is her hairstyle. I don’t like the pigtails. Much preferred finale look with the high ponytail.
*This is purely my perspective. I’m mostly talking about the 2017 version but both could work in this*
I’ve been rewatching the Darkwing-centered episodes so I could do an analysis on Drake. I really like him and is in my top 10 list. I see a lot of myself in him. He’s also an adorable dumb*ss.
Anyway, after watching these episodes, I came up with a theory on why DW doesn’t like Gizmoduck.
In Drake’s eyes, being a hero is willing to risk everything for the world’s protection, especially your own body. His inspiration is a fictional version of DW who is willing to get himself hurt to get the job done.
Drake looks down on heroes who don’t follow this ideal, which is where is disdain for Gizmoduck comes in.
Fenton wears a suit to protect himself and hold his gadgets-which is not bad; Iron Man does it. Yet, Drake sees the suit as Gizmo’s “cowardice” or “reluctance” to be a real hero. He sees himself as a better hero because he doesn’t wear protection.
This is how I think Drake processes this, “I’m better than Gizmoduck because he is a regular person who is not willing to risk everything. I don’t wear a stupid suit to protect myself.”
What are your thoughts? Do you think this could be accurate? 😁