The appeal of queer headcanons Rise of the TMNT

[@theevildrblue1212]

in the ROTTMNT movie, near the end Raph says, "Don't worry Donnie! this is not a hug, its a rescue!" I love how Raph knows that Donnie wouldn't want a hug.

[@SleepiPotionsXD]

I don't remember this, I really wanna rewatch but I don't like emotion that much

[@arietheapparition]

I dunno why the turtles being queer makes me think of 'the water is turning the frogs gay!' meme😂

[@CaptainLightner]

They're puttin' chemicals in the water to turn the frickin turtles queer!!

[@RealDonatello9000]

@@CaptainLightner BAHAHAH

[@CaptainLightner]

@Idk TURN THE FRICKING TURTLES QUEER

[@xandilo_bones4800]

Those got darn kung fu frogs

[@_docaid]

but they arent fro-

[@PolarCorvus]

As a nonbinary ace autistic who struggled alot with emotion I see the appeal of aroace Donnie. Like I had a total melted down as a teen because I didn't understand what romantic love was supposed to feel like. And personally I can see Donnie in that position, just being very confuse because the love he has for his brother is not the same as the one he's suppose to have for a crush.

[@aurorechaton7604]

I really want to add on to this because I knew I was aroace for a while and was comfortable in that, beyond the natural social discomfort that creates. When I finally had a crush on a fictional character for the first time, I had an emotional breakdown, not because I realized what I was missing, but because I hadn't even realized up until that point how much weight I was carrying with me. As a person who might maybe be autistic, I think the level of introspection and analysis I had done had lulled me into thinking that that meant I had emotionally accepted how I was different, and it wasn't until I finally found this line in the sand everyone's been implying that I finally accepted that I wasn't broken. It's not just that I'm aroace and neurodivergent that I relate to Donnie and project onto him, it's that I saw his trauma responses and insecurities in the series and they mapped pretty well onto how I handled my sexuality. He would absolutely be carrying some trauma about not feeling like enough, and not even show it until the moment he's confronted with it. He's kinda done it before. It's almost a one to one parallel, which makes a head cannon the easy, natural answer. Edit: Watching a little further and adding in that it's just nice to see an aroace character who isn't a robot or otherwise dehumanized in their portrayal (obvs they aren't human). Ik that happens a lot with autism, along with infantalization, but often I can't even find aroace characters just existing because most shows assume romance at some point, even when there's little in the way of a romantic plot. So when they do show up it's an anomaly. Harder to prove the absence and all that. So it's always nice to project onto a character that isn't supposed to be standout in gender or sexuality, at least for aroace rep. Donnie is highly chaotic, sassy, and just a generally fun character. (I honestly don't see him being cold ever?? he's honeslty pretty flamboyant. It's clear when he's feeding into a bit and when he's not to me, but I think that's why allistics tend to see the cold presentation in real life autistics, they don't get the deadpan bits from genuine disinvestment from our surroundings. He's also literally called the funniest turtle in cannon a whole lot, and only sometimes is this due to autistic/allistic miscommunication. He's allowed to have a great sense of humor.) In most shows he's absolutely have a normal romance plot because he's just a cool guy, and supposedly romantically compatible. But because this is TMNT, and because this is a found family version especially, they didn't even consider it, which can come across as an opportunity to latch onto. A character we don't have to fight cannon to relate to in any way. Second edit: I also like to put a note the the creator of the video here less so than to you who I'm replying to that autistic people tend to have a weird relationship with gender and sexuality anyways almost directly as a result of neurodivergency, so any headcannons about aroace and agender Donnie are slightly more supported anyways, although which team he bats for is certainly more up in the air. I believe the rising term in autigender, and the way it was introduced to me it that gender, since it is a performance, becomes a part of masking. You, not entirely in a harmful way, identify more with a gender when you are interacting with others then when you are on your own. I personally feel more cis in public spaces and when I think about classic gender performances. I like the idea of dressing up; I become more feminine, and more definably a woman, but when I'm not thinking about the performance, I simply have no attachment. I don't care. Since this could easily translate to agender presentation, I think this is another safe bet for headcannons. The relation to the masking/performance, and the relatability of sometimes disregarding it. Just food for thought. My thoughts on the others are less concrete, not because I don't heavily relate to them, but just because I have basically no headcannons about the rest. My lack of connection to gender and sexuality means I don't much care about how they show wants me to percieve them or how fans percieve them. I roll with whatever headcannons pop up.

[@Devilspade]

Same

[@hyenaholicproductions9033]

Donnie states in "Donnie Vs Witchtown" that he fears his family only cares about him for his intellect. He repeatedly uses his intellect very eagerly when it comes to April. He also spends a lot of screentime in close proximity. In "The Purple Jacket" he uses his intellect to try to impress Kendra, and who protests? April. She doesn't like Kendra AT ALL. At the end of the episode Kendra blows Donnie a mocking kiss when she is flying away with his beloved tech. A blink and you miss it, but when the Turtles go after Splinter's memories, April is sitting next to Donnie during the ceremony and when he's showing unconscious signs of stress while in there, she wipes his face. They're right in frame together. I imagine that the writers saw the mess that happened with 2012 Donnie, and didn't want Rise Donnie to be such a Simp. The joke is that Donnie THINKS he's giving off emotionally untouchable bad boy vibes but he's such a SUB. I don't care about stupid technical terms like 'Aromantic' - why is it so important to find the right little box to put yourself in? - but us both being Autistic, Donnie just doesn't map out his emotions like neurotypicals.

[@starling1773]

​@@aurorechaton7604Oh my gods I absolutely adore you for putting it into words 💜 /gen

[@trixareecubillas2258]

me fr, but srsly tho, I remember that when I was younger. I often confuse myself with crushes and "wanting to be friends with that bc i think they are rlly cool". I just wish I was educated on that not purely with the aro/ace spectrum but the fact that I don't necessarily need a romantic partner in my life nor feel so alienated with myself bc i dont feel the way the allos feel without society being prickly abt it.

[@erenender66]

i personally like the headcanon that Leo is genderfluid, and Donnie is agender. the main appeal of this to me is honestly just that i like the idea of Leo making jokes about how he stole Don's gender and "now he can't have any cause it's ALL MINE"

[@D0nn1e_AKA_turtleb0i]

I love this

[@mars.mp3]

OMG YEAH, I've seen something like this before and I honestly love that dynamic.

[@a_shiggy_person]

Ha ha Sounds like a funny comic prompt

[@christinatorres8422]

Same

[@christinatorres8422]

Hi shiggy

[@huhnocorn7397]

Another reason that leo just widely accepted to be a homosexual by the rottmnt fandom could be because he’s voiced by Ben Schwartz And from what I’ve herd from a few people is that most of the time when he voices a character they tend to seem a bit fruity

[@Montesama314]

Randy Cunningham is clesrly into a girl named Teresa.... But also clearly very close to his bro Howard. He also can't be stealthy to save his life. I get the "fruity" label.

[@SleepiPotionsXD]

Ben Schwartz just plays a lot of homosexuals. I have a feeling he's trying to tell us something (This is a joke!!!!)

[@leo_artsssss]

So about the trans Leo headcanon, it goes much deeper than “he just gives off that vibe.” You see, in the rise movie, we see Leo as an older version of himself in the beginning. He kept his stripes through adulthood, which is only present in female sliders and EXTREMELY rarely male sliders. Also in the movie, Leo has two scares on his chest that resemble ones of someone who has gone through top surgery. Leo’s plastron, or chest shell part, lays flat on itself which is also a female slider trait as male sliders tend to hand it curved into their shell. Leo’s shell is convex instead of concave, aka the female shell. Males usually have a v-shape to their shell. Then Leo’s colour. While we don’t see any other sliders, we know that Leo is much lighter than sliders usually are in real life. This is a trait found in female sliders. Males usually turn darker as they age, but as we see Leo keeps his light shade. (Most of this info I found through research but a Pinterest comment helped me sum it up!) I hold the trans Leo headcanon very close to my heart so hopefully this clears some stuff up!

[@mars.mp3]

Thank you for clearing stuff up! It was a bit difficult to find sources on the sexual dimorphism of the turtles. ALSO I COMPLETELY FORGOT ABOUT FUTURE LEO THE ENTIRE TIME WHILE WRITING, I'M SHAKING MY HEAD MY HEAD SO MUCH RN.

[@veezbeez4015]

wait, can turtles even get surgery? i doubt they'd be allowed in hospitals.

[@leo_artsssss]

@@veezbeez4015 We can assume Donatello did it for him. He is a doctor in the further?

[@alexjewett7455]

Not really. They look more like regular cuts than anything. Also, he wouldn't even need surgery because he's a turtle.

[@Dr_Delicate_touch]

@@leo_artsssss i came in this comment just to say something stupid we have the same profile picture-

[@number13burger]

Honestly, us queer folks just really like cartoons. It's just our thing. Especially for the artists, writers, and animators of our community.😌

[@Batatkacom]

I love the Pansexual Demiromantic Raph headcannon a lot ^^ And that he's cis but so confident in his manliness he's ok with wearing dresses, pink accessories, and doing stuff typically thought of as 'girly' (crotcheting, sewing, having a ton of plushies) I also have a lot of gender envy towards him bc I too wanna be a huge wall of muscle Not bc I wanna kick butt but if Im bigger n stronger I could carry my boyfriend around and hug more peeps ;D But I also love fuzzy pink sweaters, cute skirts and lil bows in my hair I honestly mainly project onto him bc I too have what my friend calls 'older sister syndrome' n his character just hits for me Its so easy to yell at people I care abt when they do smth dumb bc jfc they will hurt themselves Also the self sacrificial mindet is what Im in therapy for - One of my names was even 'Red' b4 I watched Rise n I feel like me being a Raph kinnie was some kind of destiny -

[@mars.mp3]

LMAO PEAK RAPH KINNIE!!! I love the idea that Raph wears dresses and stuff, I think all the turtles would look great in them as well! I personally don't have as much gender envy for Raph specifically because I enjoy being a tiny little guy, but I'm so happy Raph is here to be the huge guy who would pick up boyfriends.

[@nanameii_5746]

When I first heard Of head cannoning I at first thought it was a rude thing to do. I thought it was rude to the creators by taking their characters and rewriting them in your own image. But I’m happy to be wrong and when truly finding out what head cannoning was, I now think it’s a beautiful thing that people can use in order to feel comfortable. I’ve seen others hating on people within the LGBTQIA’s using head canons when they use them in a passive aggressive way. For example the whole situation with Luisa and Encanto. I don’t wanna rant but basically it was a popular head on non that the Luisa(a very strong woman) in Encanto must be trans because strong=trans. It was a toxic take and a lot of people in the LGBTQIA’s community even hated it and told people to stop. Another popular head cannon I remember is in the My hero academia community where a lot of fans fell in love with the idea of kirishima and bakugo (two male characters within the show) getting into a relationship that they actually convinced themselves that’s what the creator intended all along. And once the creator denied the ship, a few fans thought it would be appropriate to send the creator death threats. At the end of the day head cannoning doesn’t harm anyone, so I don’t know why I see others take head cannoning as if they are trying to start a war.

[@mars.mp3]

I remember some of these situations yeah 😭I think the Luisa thing is similar to aroace Donnie, in the way that they're both basing stuff off of stereotypes, that might cause harm to the community. I think it has a lot to do with who is doing the headcanoning as well, like if a strong trans woman is projecting onto Luisa, that is different than a cis person headcanoning her as trans to perpetuate the stereotype.

[@nanameii_5746]

@@mars.mp3 omg yes! I 100% agree !

[@Crimsdoesstuff]

As someone who has made head canons for two okegom characters and my self insert, I can agree that yall are spitting facts

[@discarded.Dishsoap]

I actually thought that people wouldn't like me and it was a bad thing that I couldn't do. But this made me realize that its something that I could do for my own comfort. I thought it wasn't accepted- but I guess it is

[@Crimsdoesstuff]

@@discarded.Dishsoap uh huh

[@smallrat._child]

YES! It always irks me when people only headcannon the emotionally drawn back logical characters as aroace. As an ace (and potentially aro-spec) person who likes to hang out with people and be somewhat social, it always bothers me as I know new aroace-spec people will see these stereotypes and feel like they’re invalid for wanting to be around people. I know I’ve struggled with this myself, in fact I still do sometimes. I’ve never been able to find the right words to express this, so I think it’s nice how well you explained it.

[@mars.mp3]

I'm glad I could help you sort out the mess a little bit! :D the aroace part was the most difficult to write, but I'm happy with how it turned out in the end

[@smallrat._child]

@Coldchary yeah! I actually hc Raph (2012) as pan because he is

[@hyenaholicproductions9033]

SO MUCH. Donnie seems pretty interested in girls to me. Just because he shows his feelings with science rather than roses doesn't mean he'll never hook up (with April). Why is it so important for people to find the perfect little box to tick, anyway?

[@arietheapparition]

I know you didn't mean it in a mean way at all but there are a bunch of wonderful loveless aroaces who don't get squishes, have close friends or even 'love' their family. They are wonderful people regardless and shouldn't be thought of less than. Though I'm very sure that's not what you were insinuating at all. Have a good day!

[@mars.mp3]

Oh yeah! I don't think love for others is what determines someone's worth or goodness. I have all the confidence that loveless aroaces are wonderful people as well :] For the video I was operating within the bounds of "there is a stereotype that might cause more harm to the community than good, but let's add some nuance about how Donnie doesn't fully fit that stereotype." Have a lovely day as well! :D

[@lily_flower0686]

I think my main gripe with allistics and allos headcanning characters as aroace is that they just assume that it JUST means that those characters can never have a partner or a family or love and just want to live a life solo. Which is just so far from the truth. Aromantic and Asexual are umbrella terms that can describe many different kinds of experiences that people have with their feelings and attraction (they are tools to help us understand ourselves better). Sure, there are people that are both romantic and sexually repulsed and that's ok! But there are also tons of other people that are on the spectrum and want to have relationships! Whether those are Queerplatonic, romantic or even sexual. The difference is that aroace people just experience those feelings in a very different way compared to what allos might experience. And (Talking about autistic aroace people) compared to what's expected from them in our allistic-dominated society. That's why it's called a spectrum! No aroace individual is going to be the same and that's the beauty of it all! I just really wish more people were educated on that. Then we really wouldn't have these kinds of problems so often. The aromantic and asexual umbrella is absolutely beautiful. Full of all kinds of wonderful people, and wonderful experiences! But a lot of people don't treat it as an umbrella at all. Just as this one-dimensional "I don't love" card. Which just sucks you know... So, anyway! Sorry if I sound too aggressive, this topic just means a lot to me, as an autistic aroace myself. I'm tired of always having to explain to everyone I meet how me, being aroace, doesn't mean I want to be alone forever or that I'm some kind of heartless monster for not viewing sexual or romantic relationships the same way they do. Also, I'm absolutely projecting parts of me on Donnie cause he's my fav! Non-binary Aromantic Bisexual Donatello my beloved 💜🐢

[@dragonnightwing9082]

Fax! And to add to that, aromanticism and asexualism is a spectrum (as I'm an aroace pan myself)! So Donnie could definitely still be aro/ace/aroace and experience romantic attraction :D

[@trixareecubillas2258]

I wholeheartedly agree. Like even though I don't want a romantic partner in my life, that doesn't mean I prefer to live alone. I want to have a family of my own. I want to be with people who can cherish and care for me as I do with them in a platonic way. Like I do love, it's just not in a way society expects me to feel.

[@isabrom5295]

The hc I like a lot but haven't seen that often is mtf trans Raph. Raph has the role of the older sister already (especially in black families the oldest sister has to take care of all the younger siblings while the parents have to go to work (in Splinters cases, he was just (emotionally) neglectful - generally not dilf material)and the oldest son is not as expected to take care of his siblings as the oldest daughter is). The one song from Encanto performed by the oldest sister is also perfect for Raph. Not to say guys wouldn't like cute things or couldn't be cute but Raph is just so sweet and cute but going a step further and saying they were mtf trans would make sense. Raph was dealing with a lot of stressful situations which didn't leave them with much time to question their gender, just like when people were too stressed before the pandemic and when their lifes slowed down they had the time to find themselves. I think Leo actually becoming the leader and not relying on Raph so much would allow Raph to listen to their heart more and try out new things which could result in them discovering those hidden feelings.

[@mars.mp3]

I really enjoyed hearing your headcanon :D I think it's an interesting one for sure

[@GenderfaePlushie]

Anyone can like anything. I approve the hc, but men can like cute things

[@londonhughes5986]

Because Mikey is my favorite I guess I self-project genderfluid as his identity in my head canon. He just is so empathetic and creative while still exuding masculine and feminine energy to me that I love it.

[@mars.mp3]

I've seen gender fluid Mikey multiple times now and I think it's really cool

[@Montesama314]

I could honestly see this Mikey wearing a skirt tuxedo combo at one of April's-school dances. With painted art of his own design, of course.

[@mimsilvernote]

Honestly, I think another reason why Rise Leo is universally headcanoned as gay is because , especially to fans who’ve seen other shows where he gets a love interest, Leo has ended up with the most uncomfortable option, and they want to make up for that. It’s kinda a fandom phenomena where the fans just headcanon away flaws and bad choices in the canon

[@M4rlol]

Defenetly better than him dating his half sister I would say

[@NeyamRye]

Leosagi

[@Montesama314]

@@M4rlol Rise Leo: "Oh, wow, so alternate universe Donnie is with April? Man, they're gonna blow chunks when I tell them back home. So what about you, other me?" 2012 Leo: "Well..." (20 seconds later) Rise: "...You and GRAM GRAM!?"

[@SleepiPotionsXD]

​@@Montesama314lmao

[@ceeford9919]

M4rlol technically Leo has been shipped with his half sister twice. There's Venus De Milo. Who is technically the TMNT's sister as she was mutated alongside them but Splinter had accidentally left her behind. And I heard that the writers even went on to say that despite being raised as brothers the TMNT and Venus aren't related. As a way to justify the possibility of a romantic relationship between Venus and one of the brothers, with the primary ones being Leo and Raph.

[@juliwb6390]

I came here distrustful but left pretty content. I'd been thinking about this topic for a few days, and I really liked how you interpreted and explained everything. Nice video 💜 Edit: Oh, btw, Donnie being in the autistic spectrum is pretty much cannon, as one of the directors said in an interview how it was kind of a headcannon/popular idea between the staff (or smth along those lines) (ok, my English is kinda broken today, but let's just hope Grammarly does its magic and makes this coherent)

[@mars.mp3]

I'm glad you enjoyed your stay!!

[@mars.mp3]

I actually added subtitles, I hope you're proud of me

[@mars.mp3]

@Alice 🟪 been working on getting them to my other videos too! :D want to be more accessible

[@Lol-tr6cu]

very much so

[@CreativelyCAN101]

OOOH SUBTITLES LETSS GOO SUPER PROUD OF YOU✨ also I’m so excited for this video sksksksks

[@keyrinq]

!!! I AM i love subtitles

[@c_elestion]

🏆

[@wolff_claw48]

Do not worry, your voice was lovely and fun to listen to (especially the silly parts), as I too do that when I get bored ☺️✨ and the Donnie art was nice and relaxing to watch! Well done ☺️💕

[@mars.mp3]

Thank you so much! :D

[@Nova-gh5yr]

I love seeing these headcanons! I don't think there's an instance of any of the turtles showing romantic feelings to anyone so really it's anyone's game to headcanon them as whatever! I don't think anything is off limits because of this an that's great. It's just so fun to see what other people view in these turts.

[@dontask9000]

I remember seeing Donnie at first glance and was like “you sir… look very aroace to me” Like, idk it’s difficult to say only because the other brothers never seem to express any love interest in other females (even males) either, so it’s hard to compare how Donnie’s love life is like compared to them when it’s literally all the same thing. The only canon romantic relationship we actually have is Splinter and Big Mama.

[@clyffer3618]

Actually, it is quite simple. You see, they're all aroace. Except Leo. Leo is the diversity allo/hj

[@YvonneLilith]

Hypno and Warren are canon

[@arietheapparition]

The Donnie illustration looks great!

[@mars.mp3]

Thank you!

[@myventilationsystem]

I really love your take on this topic and I found it so fascinating/informative! And I’m glad you pointed out the bit of stereotype with Donnie being a aroace, talking about is a great thing to spread awareness. Also yes Leo is gay and everyone knows it. Also that compilation you used was mine! I’m glad some dumb thing I made can contribute to your video. Thank you!!!

[@mars.mp3]

Omg that was you!! :D I'm glas you don't mind me using it, it made finding clips a lot easier :]

[@anke9796]

Yeah, I don't think Donnie is aroace, since he was pretty crazy over Atomic Lass. He clearly has a crush on her. He even asked her if he broke up with her boyfriend ot sth like that. We also said that he's type is "cute but mean", so he even has his type (maybe of girls, maybe of anything, we don't know). So... I think he's the least possible one to be aroace xd But what do I know?

[@mars.mp3]

I remember him having a type. I think headcanons are still valid even if the show doesn't support it, but I see what you're getting at

[@dragonnightwing9082]

Not saying you have to, but being aro/ace is a spectrum of experiencing little to no romantic/sexual attraction. So he could still be aro/ace and be attracted to them! /Info

[@hyenaholicproductions9033]

Donnie is Autistic and doesn't map out his emotions like neurotypicals. You just gotta stop thinking 'roses' and start thinking 'science', and Donnie is CONSTANTLY courting girls. There are little things too, like Donnie getting smacked with a pink flip-flop before he can start his dress-up montage, or April wiping HIS face during the gruelling simulation when the Turtles go after Splinter's memories, or Donnie treating his inventions like his children. Donnie is totally a sub who thinks he's a dom.

[@LilyShimizu]

I wonder if Usagi would have been a character implemented later on in Rise if it wasn’t canceled/hiatused

[@--violetskiies--9104]

Personally, I really like bi-ace Donnie. The thought that he is completely void of romantic attraction feels like a stretch to me, especially because he is seen having crushes on Atomic Lass and Cherri in the show. Also I identify as Ace myself, so it's kind of projecting for me lol

[@misabelrodriguez1163]

It would be nice to see Ace romances in media, do you happen to know any shows or films that portray that well by any chance? I'd love to watch them

[@--violetskiies--9104]

@@misabelrodriguez1163 I know Bojack Horseman has some, but I have yet to watch the show

[@misabelrodriguez1163]

@@--violetskiies--9104 I've actually heard it does those really well. Anything else you can recommend?

[@sunnyoinkz]

saw lesbian donnie and started frothing at the mouth screaming and sobbing . love this video sm

[@sunnyoinkz]

also i lost my mind every time you quick flashed the flags like a jumpscare. it never fails to be funny, truly the video ever

[@shark_icecream]

I never knew about most of these head cannons but yeah I am acearo myself and find myself much more acting like Mikey and I’m so glad that people break stereotypes even though I’m also okay with the Donnie acearo headcannon, very cool

[@spritethedragon5227]

Dang it, I just spent over an hour detailing all of my thoughts about RotTMNT queer headcannons in a long comment, but my internet glitched so now it’s all gone! I’m very annoyed about this… Here’s a shorter version(I went into much more detail last time): I love the sexual dimorphism thing with Leo, I’ve seen that sort of thing happen with other animal characters as well and it’s always great, even if never intended. He’s trans now - just like me fr Also in Leo news, I too do not clock him as gay when I watch the show myself, except in that one scene where he admires the bone man - skin man fusion. He’s gay in my heart because the fandom says so and that’s okay My favorite headcannon is Mikey as aroace, he has a similar vibe to another character I like that I also headcannon as aroace (that being Sunny from the Wings of Fire books), and I seem to have a genre of characters that I like to consider aroace (and in some cases get annoyed when writers don’t adhere to this) Donnie is cool, just in general This show doesn’t have much romance in it, and that’s cool, both because people can headcannon characters however they want without worrying about the text denying it and because it’s a breath of fresh air from how oversaturated the media and our society are with romance. It’s nice to see other types of love celebrated for a change. In fact, the only thing resembling romance in this show, aside from Splinter and Big Mama being exes, is Warren and Hypno, and I think that’s pretty fun. Allistic allosexuals/alloromantics headcannoning Donnie as aroace can also be harmful, on top of it perpetuating stereotypes about aro and ace people being unloving, because it perpetuates stereotypes about autistic people being unloving, especially in a romantic way. I headcannon Donnie as agender and whatever sexuality he wants to be but with an ace-spec and possibly aro-spec flair, because this is how I project myself onto him I never think about Ralph’s gender or sexuality, so uhhhhh……. his gender is big sibling and his sexuality is being cool and awesome You did a good art of enby Donnie and I liked the parts where you used extra lines as texture and shading and painting his nails was a fun touch

[@mars.mp3]

Thank you for the compliments on the art! :D Honestly I am also very glad there's not much romance in Rise, and Warren and Hypno are so cool together, the little gays. In the original draft for my essay I actually mentioned how aroace stereotypes also reflects badly onto the autistic character, but it was a bit difficult to write it correctly. I also think there's something about the infantilization of autistic people in the ace headcanons, but I didn't mention it because I don't think it applies very well to Donnie, as he is quite independent.

[@mollygreen6372]

I can't wait to see this!!

[@FunWithColeen]

ah yes ty i've only seen a few people feel a bit weird when allistic ppl hc donnie as aro ace but for me as a neurodivergent it feels off that they do so bcz he's neurodivergent, so he can't possibly experience any kind of romantic attraction or even struggles with it, we're not any less sexually or romantically driven just bcz we have a hard time occasionally with emotions and feeds into some not so great stereotypes

[@kendradupree1094]

i'm adopting ace micky as headcanon now i had a squish on him as a child (back in the late 80) that i thought was a crush because i did know what else fixating on a character to that extent could be called

[@mars.mp3]

The turtles are our friends and if anyone tells me otherwise I will cry

[@ymynX3]

personally i like to headcanon both donnie and leo as intersex. I like the idea that they were both afab turtles but when they were mutated with splinters human dna they both became intersex as they had genetic makeup for male and female which explains the plastrons not being flat yet still having feminine traits of their species (donnies shell markings are from the females of his species, not the males). anyway, as a transmasc gay man whos name is leo i think you can guess what i hc for a certain blue turtle /lh also stan bigender lesbian mikey and gnc aroace raph

[@mars.mp3]

Omg those are good headcanons :O I like how there's lore to the intersex one :]

[@GRENNZ-DA-GAY]

I remember Donatello saying something to the atomic las dressed person about him wanting her to get rid of atomic lad or something like that. The way he said it is like how we fawn over fictional characters, like he crushes on the Gamma-ray Lady.

[@crystalhufflepufftheluckyt2758]

When it comes to headcanons, some I like and some I don’t. I’m a open minded person. But I kind of have a fictional crush on Rise Leo and I’m a girl. Don’t get me wrong if Leo gets a boyfriend that makes him happy then that’s great. We’ll see if any of that happens or not

[@tinycarrot8129]

Me realizing that the Bi Donnie head canon is just me projecting onto my favorite character 😮 Also I love when fandoms all collectively agree on one head canon (like gay Leo)

[@churros7104]

In rise of tmnt a lot of people agree Leo is transgender and gay 😌🙌🏽

[@bruhmcbro2704]

rottmnt video essays have become my favorite genre, and this video only confirms it for me. amazing work!

[@creative8180]

Since people are doing it, I will too. My LGBTQ headcanons Donnie: He/They, Nonbinary, Bisexual Mikey: Any Pronouns, Demi boy, Demisexual Panromantic Leo: He/Him, Trans male, Homosexual Ralph: He/It, Male, Panromantic Asexual April: She/Her, Female, Lesbian Cassandra: She/It/They, Demi girl, Bisexual

[@Socks_incorporated]

I only just now realised that the two scares on his chest actually look like top surgery scares HOw-

[@Socks_incorporated]

How can I over analyse this man and still miss that out ;^;

[@churros7104]

The scars are exactly where his chest would be If he was human. 🥴 I hold trans and gay Leo close to my heart 🙌🏽

[@froggers803]

I gotta say I love the idea of he/they Donnie where he’s just casually existing with the extra set of pronouns. I’ve only just recently been diagnosed for the tism (✋😔) and for like years I’ve been questioning my gender outside of the norms as a gorl. Your take on Donnie’s autism helping shape his view of gender into something more fluid and easygoing makes it a lot easier to just understand and accept my own view so tysm ! ! We really do be projecting tho💅😔😔

[@mars.mp3]

I love he/they Donnie so much, I'm just projecting my own pronouns onto him, but I can definitely see him using those even without my influence.

[@skulliedoestuff1839]

Finally! Someone with my head cannon for Donnie. I always thought of them being a Demi boy

[@xsweetiebloomx605]

Felt the "just vibing with the extra set of pronouns" thing xD. I'm a she/they Donnie kinnie who adopted they/them pronouns recently, partially in solidarity for my he/they brother, and partially because I've begun questioning my gender as well. Demigirl seems to fit me... Possibly. Idk. I like the flags'colours, too. All I know is that I'm definitely autigender, which only complicates things further, because... *what even is gender lol, idk, and my autism doesn't know either*

[@Montesama314]

Donnie, in a brief moment of gender euphoria, briefly considering taking possession of ALL the pronouns, and that few people like him are worthy to carry such power. Like a rainbow-shaded hammer of Mjolnir. He'd calm down the next day, but he'd put it in the "maybe" list next to "rocket toaster mark III".

[@Owebbbb]

I grew up with the ‘87 show and although I stopped watching it as I got older, I never really stopped being interested in tmnt. I saw some of the reboots before Rottmnt but I found that Rottmnt was one that I liked better than the others, for reasons such as more representation, a really cool art and animation style, and the more unique designs. And with other people making queer headcanons of the characters, that also interested me and got me into watching the show and movie. I’ve only watched the 1st season so far, as I’ve only started watching it recently. I also can relate to the turtles in different ways which is cool

[@venusgin7779]

I headcanon Leo as trans masc and gay for men (partially bc he reminds me a lot of one of my besties who has that identity), Donnie as nonbinary ace bisexual (it’s partially bc I kin him and I’m nonbinary ace, but also: purple flags), Mikey as genderfluid and aroace but would be into qpr-s and in that sense is pan (it’s just the vibe), Raph in my opinion is demiboy or maybe even a trans guy and pansexual(I feel like he also might be the only straight one but he wouldn’t label himself as anything and go with the flow)

[@churros7104]

We have almost the same HC 🥺🙌🏽

[@azureblooet5053]

reasons why leo gay: - has drip - funny / narrative potiential - *the incident* (don swave) - he just like me fr - clothes dont make the turtle. just the entire episode

[@mars.mp3]

I think about the incident a lot

[@oishi_sammich4542]

I loved this video! It's so comforting that my favorite fandom is so nice and friendly! Yall have a nice day!

[@eleanorkang6182]

oh my GOSH your way of describing things is so satisfying YOUR VOICE IS SO??? COMFORTING??? the way you say words is. so wow. IM. MAN the writing for conveying messages as great + the editing was so funny oh my gosh!! THIS WAS SO IN DEPTHS THANK YOU FOR THIS !! 🫡🫡💗🫶🫶

[@mars.mp3]

Aw thank you so much 🥺 This means a lot :]

[@notaninfodump5929]

9:40 I actually was quite nervous to headcannon Mikey as aroace because of the stereotype of aces being naive, buuuuut on the other hand I love Mikey so much and Donnie too.... and Raph... okay, I may just be putting all my favorites as aro/aspec (Leo's also growing on me, halp)

[@tomgraves3057]

I always find character analysis more engaging when people discuss who they are, how they grow etc. rather than what people wish they could be. I get people want to relate to characters but I guess I’d rather enjoy a character for who they are and relate to a character - rather than then projecting myself back onto them, which I find a bit narcissistic tbh

[@Pinkfox02]

i have seen a lot of what you have described but i would like to say a few that i agree with so i like the idea of Donnie being Bisexual but i think hes BI AC just because he doesn't seem to be that kind of person especially with the Atomic Las seams and the Albaerto's with charri tomato. Next Rath and Miky i see a lot about them being Pan and i can see it but i'm not entirely sure. and last April I've seen just as much as April being lesbian then Leo being gay and i agree with both i don't really have and in depth explanation for this head-canon. if you make a part two i would love to hear your opinion on all of this!

[@mars.mp3]

I honestly considered mentioning lesbian April as well because it really is universally accepted, but I didn't have a lot to say about it beyond that, so I left it out. Appreciate hearing your opinions on the headcanons :D

[@JustCallMeJesse]

i didn't except for you to cover leosagi in this and I was taken a bit back by this because I literally had the thought of "haha wouldn't it be funny if they talked about ships lol" and that just happened so I was really surprised

[@bowleowle]

I would also like to let people know that while there is some controversy around it, headcanoning Donnie as aro/ace-spec is totally valid, esp if you're projecting. I HC him as demiromantic asexual cause I think it just fits his character, and as someone on the aro/ace spectrum I find it neat. He's not the only one I headcanon as aspec either. I just know I'm feeling some guilt for "feeding the stereotype" and I want people to know that their headcanons are valid and ok, especially if you're projecting. Also, people tend to forgot that there _are_ people who fall under stereotypes and that those people are just as valid. There is nothing wrong with autistic or emotionally withdrawn aro/ace folks.

[@NealaBeala]

Fun fact: Donnie is written as a canonical autistic character. The creator confirmed it (on Twitter I think)

[@josesosa3337]

Thanks for this. I was worried people were looking too far into it and were going overboard.

[@nicholasrodinos4701]

Ok weird thing I noticed where an abondance of moments were Raph is close to an object/background with the bisexual pride flag colors. I know bi-lighting's a thing and it doesn't necessarily mean the character is, and that it existed before bi people were as 'accepted' as they are now. In the library episode right before Mikey yells Echo there's an obelisk with the colors. I swear it looks way too close to be unintentional. *These other two are just guessing. I'm probably just seeing things that aren't there but yeah.* The Pizza Week episode has a moment during the "I wasn't sure they knew what a week was," where the background looks like a weird upside-downish redder version of the flag. During Donnie's middle-child nonsense the background looks kinda like the colors.

[@evo-is-obsessed]

i love your editing style. you got me laughing and learning at the same time. also there was no need to call me out at 12:50 with "i think we all just want to be ninja turtles ...who are also boys" like PLEASE you are RIGHT but not so loud ToT

[@DrummerrDuckie]

Don't worry, I got called out there as well. You are certainly not alone XD

[@doodleplayer4014]

My hcs: Donnie: Genderfluid, bi, ace (YES IM PROJECTING SHUT UP HES JUST ME BUT A TURTLE) Leo: Gay Mikey: trans, aro Raph: ???

[@isabrom5295]

Not only do Aro Ace people want to not get portrait as emotionless but autistic people also don't want to be infantilized. Autistic people often times are portrait as asexual because of neuro typical people not recognizing us as capable adults, who are able to make our own decisions, who just so happened to need a little bit more help. Autism being a disability also makes us appear less sexual since disabilities are seen as "flaws" and "ugly". Because of autism many are very sensitive which would cause them to get addicted to pleasurable things (like sex) more often. Autistic people are very likely to become victims of sexual violence and a coping mechanism of many victims is becoming hypersexual. I therefore personally prefer to imagine autistic characters as hypersexual pansexuals/omnisexuals (because of them thinking the gender binary is just a made up way of weakening the working class and to give us molds to become perfect slaves for capitalist oppressors).

[@mars.mp3]

THIS!!! I genuinely consider putting something about autistic infantilization in the video, but I didn't think Donnie's case was the best example of it, so I left it out

[@pastelgalaxy0v033]

personally, I enjoy head cannons for the turtle's sense i gives some for some kind of comfort i related with this version of the turtles so I'm kind of beset also i really enjoy the video! also i'm sucker for the non-binary donnie headcannon

[@AttackWaffle]

I absolutely love both the Nobinary and Biromantic donnie headcannon because he just like me fr And also Trans & Gay leo, yes yes yes yes yes. I typically don't love most trans heacannos for some reason but this one is just 👌

[@mars.mp3]

I love projecting onto the turtles, they're also just like me fr

[@anxiousoptimism5517]

Donnie is my favorite. Not just because I'm autistic. (I like to think he'd be my favorite regardless. If not him at least Mikey.)

[@Quantum.Quasarrr]

I’m autistic and lgbt myself (non binary lesbian) and I adore projecting myself onto my biggest kin characters/ fixations. I love the show Steven Universe and heavily fixated on yellow diamond in specific, i Headcanon her as a non binary demisexual lesbian , I myself identify as these terms, gems are sexless but do go by female pronouns, personally I Headcanon her as going by they/it and rarely she when she feels like it due to her just not caring / not understanding gender, and her being lesbian due to her just not having any interest in men or humans for that matter. And her being Demi due to me personally feeling that if she ever were to feel that attraction she would require a strong bond romantically. I also have a Headcanon that yellow is neurodivergent like myself, one of my many Headcanons is that her helmet is a comfort object for her and if she were to loose it she would break down, she also constantly wears it cause 1, it’s comforting to her, 2 cause it muffles sound and loud sounds bother her, and 3, she’s immensely sensitive to smells, in the movie when she went to earth she instantly got overwhelmed with how awful earth smelled, I also feel like she has a hard time with emotions, especially anger outbursts caused by constant stress and sensory overload, she seems a lot happier in future when the environment she is in is much more relaxed and yellow can spend more time doing what she likes instead of being forced to work constantly. I also have a Headcanon that she has a fixation on alien plant life and loves growing different plants, in the episode “homeworld bound” she has different alien plants in her room which I’m a plant mom myself so this made me super exited! I love yellow diamond so much and always will, I relate to Donny a lot aswell , he’s my favorite solely because I relate to him, I also adore the non binary Donny Headcanon a lot, one of my favorites for sure!

[@mars.mp3]

I love projecting myself onto characters as well :] cool to see your interpretation of the character :D

[@churros7104]

I love non binary donnie:(

[@toastingpasta]

They just like me fr

[@Montesama314]

Straight cis guy here (also black), getting teared up at all the comments of people finding their Turtle regardless of labels. Leo and Donnie have been my boys since I was a preteen watching the 2003 incarnation. While I'm pretty certain in my identity, I'm happy that fandoms allow people to find fellow "outsiders" as they work out their own selves. And it really helps that the Turtles here don't feel entirely one note, either. Raph is big and buff, but he's probably the second most emotional with Mikey having a startling amount of heart to give. The autism coding for Donnie doesn't equate to arospec to me, I would have to see more, but I love how he isn't emotionless and still seeks approval and love from those around him, even in his own self-centered show-offy way. Leo is similarly flamboyant, but it hides a guy who is scared of failure as shown in the movie. It's kind of a Spider-Man characterization if Peter was Spidey and was a hero full time. Throwing in my own queer headcanon, I would say that this Leo could actually be the one to feel something towards a Rise!Usagi. He's always seemed to gravitate to strong or assertive men (Lou Jitsu, the skeleton guy, that Guapo guy).

[@drstevenanthony3077]

I'd like to point out that in the first episode of season 2, you can see that raph has a small tail. Not sure about any of the other turtles, but I'm assuming the mutation has something good with the fact that the turtles probably just have really small tails.

[@ZOZObeepboop]

This video is SO good, like the stuff about unaccepting family kinda hit hard (my dad’s side of the family doesn’t even like my bleached hair… or that ive dropped out of college… wait until they find out i have pronouns) AND you’re really funny, i definitely screenshotted some silly little memes and Mikey at the board saying “GAY PEOPLE” and LOVE the silly little guy voice👍♥️

[@michellestrange3188]

I personally like headcannoning Mikey aroace. Mainly cuz I don’t see him being in a relationship. So whenever I see others headcannoning Mikey is pan, I just go “oh wow, I personally don’t see it but you do you” because I know others might feel like projecting their feeling onto Mikey being pan. And I’m totally cool with that! It’s actually really fun seeing what others people interpretation of the same character is. While I headcannon Mikey being aroace others might headcannon him as pan or bi! I’ve seen some gender fluid headcannon for him to! I honestly just feel happy that other people like me can find happiness in just headcannoning these silly little turtles :D

[@mars.mp3]

It's really fun to see the different takes of the community :] like it really is to each their own (probably am not using that expression right)

[@starrywhaleshark]

my friend got me into rottmnt bc its their special interest, and it turned into MY special interest bc the power of autism and so here are some of our headcanons: leo: gay mlm & trans ftm (he/him) and we both agree on this one donnie: bi oriented aroace spec & nonbinary (he/they) which we both agree on as well mikey: genderfluid & pan, but i HC pan oriented aroace spec (we agree he uses all pronouns + some neos) raph: my friend says "token cishet" but i say "no that bro is queer af with pan asexual & bigender (he/she) but ive also seen lesbian transfem raph, ive seen aroace raph, ive seen a lot and i think theyre awesome also theres a lot of neurodivergent headcanons for the turtles that i love (you cannot convince me that theyre neurotypical because theyre not) but i think your voice is really nice and omg youre just like me fr thats crazy :0

[@mooneatsworms]

me hearing every single ace/aroace/trans hc here and going "SHJDEJSJDJDJD OMGG YIPPEE YEAH LETS GOO

[@mars.mp3]

LMAO I'M GLAD THE SILLY VOICE WAS APPRECIATED

[@thenameismiel4205]

Thank you dearly for the subtitles

[@disruppt900]

I have been consumed by my obsession with Rise and these silly fictional turtle people. I also am an autistic aroace and I, of course, completely agree with the aroace Donnie headcanon.

[@Shoulderpads-mcgee]

The concept of an aroace Mikey put so much joy in me. I don’t think I would have ever considered it on my own but that is a delightful and refreshing take. Like a sip of Todd’s lemonade

[@shadowabrami485]

Donnie- “you’re so cute but so mean why do I always go for your type”

[@mysticcatcatcatkittycatcat9758]

I love how they included aroace because myself I am aroace and I love that they included this one

[@Spookfishspecter]

I HC Mikey as aroace because he just like me fr fr and I HC him as trans because why not. Also male box turtles have a little dent in their plastron and Mikey doesn't have that, so It's just a nice way for me to connect my love of science to this show ^^ Edit: wrote this before you mentioned the plastron thing with Leo lol

[@mars.mp3]

I love trans Mikey

[@mooneatsworms]

REAL REAL REAL

[@Fl4v0r_]

Me encanta como respaldas lo que dices, tanto como desde tu punto de vista o con investigación :3

[@hanakosan4404]

I do feel confused seeing some of these headcanons sometimes. No mean thoughts about them, it's just that I guess I don't recognised myself in some of those attributes? I'm autistic and queer but I relate to Raph and Mikey the most and while I adore Leo and Donnie too, I don't really act like them yet they're the ones that are universally recognized as queer coded and autistic respectively. Way more than Mikey and especially Raph. So that's make me feel less legit like I should recognize myself in them except I don't, if that make sense? That being said, headcanons are fine and fun and I do love Gay Leo, Trans Leo and Bi Donnie! And as you said, Donnie is a good autistic representation and far away from the usual stereotypes, with his theatre kid attitude for once! And I love that he doesn't care about gender roles at all with the clothing (I'm pretty sure none of them does, that's my headcanon!) And damn, I feel you on the gender envy for the Rise turtles, like strongly. Overall, that was a very nice and fun video ^--^ I really liked how you approached headcanons as something personal and harmless even if we don't all have necessarily the sames

[@mars.mp3]

I get what you mean about not relating to the characters you feel like you're supposed to identify with 😭 Like I often don't identity with Donnie "as much as I should" as an autistic person, and that makes me go "AHHHH am I autistic enough?", But really it should be okay to indentify with whoever, not every queer or neurodivergent person is the same! :]

[@hanakosan4404]

@@mars.mp3 I'm glad I'm not alone in that case x') That being said I headcanon Raph as a bit of a "man lover" too and I like to think Mikey is somewhere on the autism spectrum too ^-^ But even if those are just my own thoughts I still love those damn turtles. They're all are various beautiful models of healthy masculinity!

[@fibromiteready2fight809]

I know that Mikey is canon adhd but I’ve seen ppl hc him as Audhd (autism and adhd) and seen a few autistic Raph headcanons. I am also the most like them so I get it.

[@lizardparty_]

u are doing gods work with the rottmnt videos they capture how i feel abt the series so wonderfully. also no it is not just you when you said that we all just want to be mutant turtles who are boys i felt that on a spiritual level

[@thespookycore4344]

I'm surprised you didn't cover bi splinter or gay Draxum hcs. I think bi splinter is mostly explained as "he was a martial arts actor in the 80's look at him" and Draxum has a lot of queer coded villain energy and also just the way he looks at Lou Jitsu in that one flashback.

[@d-v1199]

The funny part is that Draxum is against humans, right? So when he saw Lou, a human for the first time, he's awestrucked. That yokai man is not being subtle, even his gargoyle lackeys acknowledge his fascination/attraction during the musical sequence.

[@callmeh_avocado651]

A video all about queerness AND my favorite show? My my, my heart has been hugged today (although you didn’t need to call me out like that with the projecting bit XD)

[@mars.mp3]

This video was specifically for people like you ☝️ the queer turtle fans are my favorites

[@Eva_Blue_Blanket]

I’d like to start off by saying that this was a lovely video essay! I really love your voice :3 It was really nice to have you talk about your own experiences! I just really love the way you talk and hshshs /pos I sorta forgot there’s the aroace Mikey headcanon floating around! Most of the time I just see gender-fluid Mikey (both I love tho) Personally I’m a pretty big enjoyer of ace Raph, he gives me so many happy vibes and ehshdhsjx I love him sm Donnie has chosen all of the above, he’s simply ascended beyond our understanding as a being Leo fruity af lmao

[@mars.mp3]

Thank you so much! :D I have seen gender fluid Mikey as well and I do adore my genderqueer turtles.

[@jigglyfruit09]

OK these are my thoughts on this 💜bi or ace 💙GAY🏳️‍🌈 🧡trans ❤not just yet (Also I love the fact Donnie looks like he has eyeliner)🤩😍

[@Lemon_Pup]

There is in fact a link between neurodivergency and questioning gender identity, and more importantly, identifying as non-binary (linking to the non-binary Donnie headcanon) I would suggest looking into a few articles or videos of professionals talking about the topic to explain why and go into more detail :)

[@badmemoryneko]

I love that im only one minute in,and already 90% of the pics are leo

[@SPIDEYPAWZ]

i actually rlly like this video!! I’ve been living off the scraps of the last three tmnt series to fuel my obsession but tmnt video essays like this make me super happy and I love watching them :D As for my headcanons, non binary donnie for the win (cus I love projecting on them), I also think that Leo’s intersex and gay, Mikey uses any pronouns, is genderfluid & ace, and the headcanons I have for Raph is that he’s a trans guy and bisexual. I also think that donnie would be a huge vocaloid fan (more specifically a hatsune miku fan) but that’s about it.

[@pluffering6661]

Alright, I have lots of feelings so I'm just gonna speedrun through them!! Donnie: I like to think that he's Demiromantic Asexual. I just like it a lot! I also like thinking that they use he/they pronouns! Mikey: Bisexual! (This is me projecting because I relate to him so much!) I think he uses He/She pronouns (Also projecting) Raph: Surprisingly, I don't have any headcanons for him! I just enjoy listening to what other people say! I don't relate to Raph very much so I don't really project onto him either. Leo: Gay. Fruity. So Gay. Also I adore Leosagi. I don't really care whether he's shipped with Miyamoto Usagi or Yuichi Usagi. To me they're both pretty interchangeable and I love both takes. Alright I'm done! I stopped myself from writing a whole entire essay!

[@churros7104]

I agree with Donnie using he/they 🥺 in my opinion he's ace and Non-binary. Leo is transgender and GAY GAY GAY GAY GAY GAY

[@carpeted-bathroom96]

I think I have a new favourite commentary/ analysis channel 👍

[@mars.mp3]

Welcome to the group of my adorers, in which there are many

[@kikiqt2442]

I’m not one for having head cannons too much but I do have 1 for the show. My HC is that Ralph is dyslexic. Mainly because I believe I am dyslexic and I recently found out 1 out of every 5 people are dyslexic and there are the four turtles + April so I thought one would be. I think there is an episode where he couldn’t write a word and somebody corrected him to??? I can’t remember lol. I thought it would be interesting lol there’s literally no the reason. 😂

[@fishfinn2204]

i clicked on this video, fully expecting to hear the "haha blue turtle gay" and yet i was kinda shocked you brought up leo and usagi

[@mars.mp3]

Haha blue turtle gay

[@fishfinn2204]

@@mars.mp3 everyone agrees haha blue turtle gay

[@thevulpinecollective]

I don't have a headcanon for raph, but here's what I got for the other 4 ig: leo is gay. idk what else to say on that there's just zero doubt in my mind that that's a whole boykisser right there april is sapphic. ive seen some very cute domestic april/sunita and they have my heart. mikey doesn't really identify as anything. most things take priority over that whole mess, like his brothers, his art, saving the world, yknow. so he's never really bothered to think about his feelings on relationships beyond familial or platonic. its very much a 'if the feelings happen, they happen and he'll think about it then' sort of deal. donnie uses he/him but like not because he particularly identifies with them? he's just gone by them his whole life and doesn't really identify with any other pronouns. very much nonbinary. also demi/biromantic, and ace.

[@kuro7539]

Personally I also love to headcanon that Donnie identifies with Xenogenders :] Like Techgender !

[@mars.mp3]

Omg yeah!! I like that :D

[@thenameismiel4205]

I don't want to mean it in a mean way but people that hate on headcanons in general are pretty stupid. Like, what do you mean i'm not allowed to have a subjective interpretation of a show/characters and project myself into fictional characters?? Of course, you don't have to be invested into a fiction to enjoy it or find it entertaining. So many people watch movies and don't care at all about the plot, character designs (choices of clothing, makeup, accessories, etc.) or characters arc/developement, world building, but that doesn't mean it's fine to shit on people that want to imagine more?? Like, I'm allowed to be more invested and take things more seriously for the fun of it. I love imagining and sharing my ideas with people, and i deeply love seeing so many people see themselves into fictional characters. I saw a quote from tumblr that is very accurate imo in that case: "The ground is soft, and I'm ready to dig". So many shows have so much potential ("the groud is soft"), to make more, to interpret more, imagine more ("and I'm ready to dig"). Fanfiction are literally so powerful because it's basically people seeing potential and going "if you're not going to give me the representation i want, I'll make it myself". Fanfiction became extremely popular and still is because people will see potential between two men, we want more, but general media is homophobic, so we just do it ourselves. People gotta understand when it comes to lgbt headcanons, is that if we actually got good, positive and diverse lgbt representation, we wouldn't "need" to make our own headcanons. And even so, we still would be allowed to make our headcanons, we're not forcing anything onto any characters (if it happens, it's toxic and completely different. "Forcing" headcanon by saying they are canon is toxic AND a lost of time considering we all have subjective opinion when it comes to possible "proofs" of characters sexuality). Headcanoning is just supposed to be imagining ideas and sharing them. :) There shouldn't be anything harmful about it. A lot of people that are against lgbt headcanons are just lbgtphobic. They wouldn't mind if it's just imagining a character liking a certain color, but when it comes to sexualities, it upset them. I have a theory that for a lot of people that hate on lgbt/neurodivergent headcanons, is because it upset them to see that they relate to a character an lgbt/nd person relate to too. Sorry for the rambling x) i really liked your video, your voice is really soft and i love the little drawings of you :)

[@milliondoller06]

Or maybe because you people obsessed of the sexuality or gender of character that doesn't matter in the long run

[@CreativelyCAN101]

OMG THIS WAS AN AMAZING VIDEO!! Lovely work on the editing and I really enjoyed hearing the different headcanons I personally really agree with Leo being Trans it brings me a lot of comfort as well!! I see Donnie being bi and ace, Mikey being Pan, and Raph being aroace✨ ALSO I LOVE THE LEOSAGI SHIP AAAH I NEED RISE SEASON 3 WITH LEO MEETING USAGI!!

[@mars.mp3]

Thank you!! :D crossing my fingers for a rise season 3

[@mimimoomoo2902]

Leo Gay Head Canon and aroace Donnie definitely makes sense to me and tbh I have no problem with it because hey they make funny stuff out of it people are enjoying the show like I do and I love that I just love connecting with people about the same thing and I see head cannons as someone really like the show and I’m ok with that.The ROTTMNT is one of the best tmnt in my opinion along with the 2012 one I like how you talked about it in the video and I definitely understand more about it now as well 😊❤❤

[@rorycharlesworthington]

(I'm still only on the Donnie section lol but:) I definitely headcanon Donnie as bi-ace and kinda demi-boy using he/they/it pronouns hehe

[@mars.mp3]

What a great video! I love when the turtles are gay and also trans!

[@Earwax76]

The thumbnail *wheeze of death 💀

[@mars.mp3]

LMAO, I'm glad my genius is appreciated. There were other more professional looking thumbnails I could have chosen, but in the end I did it for the meme.

[@Sillyturtlezzthefuzzies]

I like gender-fluid mikey personally,because he’s a lot more joyful and generally is happy I’m gender-fluid myself relating to him a lot,gender could be confusing and with mikey he just seems to act more on how his mood is this is all my option btw!!

[@glitchout_303]

at 1:45 you got me with how Owl House took Luz ^_^ at 5:42 no reason, she was adorable here ^-^ 10:39 of course he isn't straight, his knees are bent! end thought? yes ^-^ also Sunfur, you seem really fun :D

[@weezerfan360]

I personally headcannon transmasc Leo In a silly way, Leo is a red-eared slider and male red-eared slider stripes fade after the reach 5 years old, and if we look at Future Leo, he still has dem red stripes so ermmmm Leo is a lil bit fruity

[@mars.mp3]

I COMPLETELY FORGOT ABOUT FUTURE LEO, THAT'S SUCH A GOOD POINT

[@epaomirimiri]

You really had me worried for a minute, talking about how 'uh yeah queer people like cartoons'. Like, there's a lot of queer-coding in the shows that have the most passionate queer audiences and it wasn't put there on accident. The creators are fostering their audience on purpose with lovingly crafted references to queer culture and positive portrayals of queer-coded characters even when it's a hard sell to make their queerness explicit. Sometimes it's not cynical.

[@alexread00]

Thank you so much for this video, my favorites headcanons are non-binary Donnie, aroace Donnie and trans Leo, and aro ace Mickey, I just found out recently and I love it

[@avibingplaylist6381]

I love the artwork in this video

[@EGV88]

I'm glad you agree on the Leo headcanon.