The Mystery of the Rat King - TMNT comics

He was already a very ambiguous character, but things got even stranger once he appeared to be involved in the death of a beloved character. This is the story of the original Rat King.
This is an updated version of the original "Mystery of the Rat King" published last year. I included new information and made some corrections.
WRITTEN AND EDITED BY
Javier S. Montano
NARRATED BY
Spencer Mayo
Fiverr: www.fiverr.com/spencermayovo
The Mystery of the Rat King - TMNT comics
00:00 Iconic Inspirations
03:31 I, Monster
05:04 City at War
07:21 Cold, cold ice
08:23 The Pantheon
10:38 The twist
11:26 Reconstructing the mystery
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[@TheTurtleNexus]

Thanks for watching! What are your thoughts on the mystery of the Rat King?

[@srstriker6420]

Well it is interesting on the Leatherman being the inspiration and his origin which seems to be a time loop but I like it

[@buckycharms5393]

I really like how attached he was to splinter.

[@Hack_Man_VII]

Wait, WHAT?! The original plan for the second movie was Baxter Stockman and the Rat King?! That's what I've wanted to see for years!!! Cruel irony

[@ruffymon]

Oh yes THAT would be a nice Movie. Anyways i enjoyed secret of the Ooze

[@srstriker6420]

Yes I thought it was going to be about the Utroms which I’m not sure about Leatherhead appearing in the movie

[@pious83]

Rat King _could_ just as easily have worked as the villain of TMNT 3. If the scripting for him was far enough ahead.

[@theotherjared9824]

The rat king is a prominent character in the nutcracker. Either the lead child character is shrunk down or the rats and toys around her grow so everything is the same size, then all of them gain sentience and go to war over her custody. The rat king commands the other rats and is particularly large and powerful. Some depictions even give him seven heads. He is eventually slain by the nutcracker. There is some parallels to the TMNT character, such as command over the rats and constantly being in the background, enigmatic until he strikes.

[@monkelad420]

I feel like they should’ve kept Rat King a misunderstood monster, his first appearance made him an Frankenstein like character; I feel like they should’ve stayed with that concept in the comic. The idea of him being an Evil Rat God is kinda dumb, and makes him a predictable character. But I think they made that concept pretty cool in the Idw comic.

[@TheloniusRichtofen]

That's why I'm not a fan of Tales VOL 2, to many retcons.

[@tayloredwards4968]

By far the best version of the rat King was in 2012 TMNT show. Especially when he brainwashed Master splinter.

[@Karlos1234ify]

Voiced by Jeffrey Combs

[@TurtleC0mic]

2003 series rat king was better, that episode I monster was 100 percent accurate to the mirage comics. Better design and accuracy. Accuracy to the mirage comics is what matters.

[@Karlos1234ify]

I never knew he was in the 20p3 series. Must have missed a episode @@TurtleC0mic

[@raulbetancourt5795]

but he was kinda flat.

[@tyronleung5276]

Mirage tmnt needs a source book encyclopedia

[@theotherjared9824]

It almost did, but the deal with Viacom shelved it indefinitely.

[@tyronleung5276]

@@theotherjared9824 well atleast a compendium

[@eddiejmartinez8631]

Are you gonna do any more 2003 videos like the 2003 versions of Splinter and Leatherhead? Or maybe cover the underground mutants such as Quarry?

[@TheTurtleNexus]

Yes, yes, and yes. I'd love to make more 2003 videos. It's just taking me longer to get to those because my current viewership is more focused on certain versions. But I'll get to them.

[@Leatherhead4Hire]

Another terrific video! I love rereading these books and having such a different vantage point on them as an adult in my 40s. I still get some of the same feelings or thoughts as when I was young. But the thought process or way I perceive them now gives them something like a rebirth. As far as TMNT content on KZbin, I must say that this channel is on another level! Great work to those of you who put these videos together!!

[@Katfish1216]

Tmnt 2003 and 2012 adapted the rat King story well

[@alfrancisbuada2591]

Ah another fascinating insight into the interesting world of TMNT

[@supernerd5781]

That 2nd movie idea is awesome but I can absolutely see why it didn't happen after the backlash the first movie received

[@theotherjared9824]

I have a theory that the 2 different splinters have something to do with the battle nexus. It has access to multiple versions of earth, so two different splinters swapped places for some reason. This alternate splinter had a heart attack and died, but the original is still out there in other worlds. Volume 4 would end with the original splinter also dying, likely in a heroic fashion, and fully passes the torch to his sons. This can set up for a volume 5 set decades in the future where everyone is older and they need to pass the torch to their now adult children.

[@TheloniusRichtofen]

I really wish Laird and Lawson would finish their run, with help from Eastman on writing Laird is 69. Im just saying.

[@nazishhussain2712]

Nice update

[@pious83]

From someone who only knew the Rat King from the '87 Cartoon. The comics made him far more interesting than anything the show did.

[@MorphingGrid101]

Can't believe how much of the comic "City at war" was adapted to TMNT 2012!

[@srstriker6420]

Well as I said before my theory on the 1987 rat king being a Vietnam Veteran as we don’t his and the Mirage counterparts real name is, I’m going to call them Herman as the 1987 version could have been a flute player and amateur chemist at university until the draft came up (you could use your imagination on that either he went willingly or try to avoid the draft to go to Canada but failed to) like the Kent state riot, when he was in Vietnam he could have ptsd seeing everyone dead and rats everywhere and while he came back (8:46 something similar to this) home injured he probably got the same treatment like all the other veterans where everyone accused of him of things like killing babies and all that because it was a unjustified war and his family most likely disowned him and had no where else to go he went to live in the sewers and started to lose his memories and seeing rats everywhere started to make him think he is a rat and that’s where we get the Rat king. I heard that not only was he supposed to be TMNT secret of the Ooze but in the sequel of the 2007 animated movie where he would most likely be in the second one with the return of the Shredder and that it would be based on the City at War I guess he would be the grim reaper for Splinter I know that the Pantheon in the IDW TMNT are gods, but theses ones just appear to supernatural people who control animals, I wonder was the IDW Rat king ever been called Loki and Set the god of chaos throughout the centuries?

[@TheTurtleNexus]

IDW Rat King was implied to be Loki (among other similar characters).

[@srstriker6420]

@@TheTurtleNexus I thought he would be

[@willnelson4192]

13:12 if they add rat king in the 3rd movie and not some time travel nonsense that would be the best tmnt live action movie of all time

[@srstriker6420]

Well I never knew about the leather man being the inspiration but the rat king with the rats having their tails tied together but I also thought that he was inspired by the black death plague because of the rats and I guess the pied piper which was brought in for the 1987 version So it appears to be a time loop is what you’re saying like a Groundhog Day thing? 9:42 that one looks like Batman and I wonder was the rat king helping Splinter and his sons against the ice oni because he seemed upset when he picked up the flower?

[@TheTurtleNexus]

I am not sure what to think about the reasons for Rat King appearance on that Christmas day. I don't think the writer had anything in mind about it, given how enigmatic the character was.

[@srstriker6420]

@@TheTurtleNexus yeah because I’m not sure who side was he on anyway

[@wallygator92]

Jackie Earle Haley would make a great Rat King.

[@silentb8997]

Yeah Me Too!

[@husni1998]

So Can bruce wayne be bat king ?

[@TheTurtleNexus]

I think Barbatos would take the place of the Bat King in the DC universe.

[@husni1998]

​@@TheTurtleNexus @TheTurtleNexus tht werid part is the fact that the pantheon dont have a turtle deitie maybe one of the turtles is destined to become one

[@srstriker6420]

@@husni1998 well I thought a Bat king to be a alternative version of Batman who is a vampire while his Justice league are monsters

[@TheTurtleNexus]

@@husni1998 Probably because Murphy already introduced a Turtle "deity" before that represented Earth.

[@keithbrown8236]

Where are these colored pages from vol 4 coming from?

[@TheTurtleNexus]

I colored them myself to make the illustrations clearer.

[@keithbrown8236]

they look great, love your videos and the work you put into them @@TheTurtleNexus

[@buckycharms5393]

Yo, what’s your favorite tmnt comic?

[@TheTurtleNexus]

It's a tough decision, but I always remember "The Path" as one of the best (the story I covered in my "Michelangelo is different" video).