TMNT JOM

What's the deal with the backlash and outrage over the character design of April O'Neil in the new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie?
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#videoessay #tmnt #teenagemutantninjaturtles #ninjaturtles

[@3two3one]

Does J. O. to Shredder qualify as a Foot fetish?

[@pureflix8086]

🥁🥁🤣

[@KariIzumi1]

Bruh 😂👍

[@BlackShardStudio]

Well done, sir.

[@GENERIC_CHANNEL_HANDLE]

This distresses me for _several_ reasons and _deserves_ validation.

[@renaigh]

Cock 'n' Ball Torture.

[@steveng.clinard1766]

Nevermind April, the real travesty regarding the new TMNT character design is that it strongly implies that the TMNT are (mutated) Snapping Turtles (Chelydra serpentina), when long-established canon clearly states that they are (mutated) Eastern Box Turtles (Terrapene carolina carolina). And do I really need to spell out how it is much more difficult and less satisfying to jerk off to snapping turtles than to box turtles? I'm sure many of your regular viewers will back me up on this

[@JanetStarChild]

LOL! That was refreshing. Take my 'like'.

[@KariIzumi1]

You had me in the first half, I'm not gotta lie 👏👏👏

[@Demo5]

TRuueee!!!

[@allanolley4874]

This video is a testament to how funny (to me) a bit can be just by being crude and repeating it over and over can be sometimes, if you do it right. I guess the subject matter of the joke lends it self to mechanical repetition...

[@lkeke35]

I see what u did there! 😂

[@Deondre_Clark]

This is the first time I've heard someone say out loud what's really going on. So funny because it's 100% true

[@NovaSaber]

Characters being made younger for reboots has a larger effect on their characterization than anything else about their appearance, and is also a large part of the reason for making them less "JOM", yet the weirdos rarely seem to complain directly about the age change...because that would be admitting it was done to appeal to kids and not to the people they want to be mad at.

[@jezlawrence720]

Og 80s comic TMNT nerd here. ...this April still looks like a better characterisation than they gave Megan fox to work with, bless her. My favourite April is the one from the first tmnt live action. She was *fab*.

[@Vipre-]

The most impressive part is how you managed to get through that without completely cracking. Maybe it's just great editing.

[@KariIzumi1]

Maybe It's Maybelline© 😂 In all seriousness, my hat goes out to him

[@AndrewD8Red]

Nah, great acting, more like.

[@jimballard1186]

I'm not Steve, but if I was in his position I'd be too disgusted to find any of this funny. The humor would be a very thin veneer, not the reality of how I feel about it.

[@SwiftBG]

I was going to say there's no way he could edit it because there's a clock behind him. Then I noticed that clock doesn't actually work.

[@barbaros99]

I could get past just watching the "momentarily disoriented" part without cracking up. I definitely couldn't have performed it.

[@jemal999]

The fact that there are people who can make it through ANY full length movie without jacking off is truly astounding to me... I barely made it through this episode!

[@WildSeven19]

The one gripe I have with the new April design is that the artist drawing them went back in time and erased every other instance of April from the timeline.

[@feralstorm]

This subject going the way it did, I'm almost surprised there was no mention of the reaction to certain catroon M&M candies being given slightly less fetishy footwear. Pundits seemed rather up front about how they were less inclined to have something melt in their hand.

[@michaelpapp5518]

I’m genuinely surprised you didn’t mention real human adult video star April O’Neil. There’s even a photo shoot with her dressed like the 80’s cartoon character.

[@jakehodgson82]

God damn it I don't wanna be a creep but I know I'm gonna go look that up.

[@LadyAstarionAncunin]

The movie she was in with the turtles was awful. I saw The Cinema Snob review it.

[@scaper8]

Fun fact: She chose her porn name _directly after_ the character. Funner fact: She played April O'Neil in a porn parody of _TMNT_ made by a company that specializes in putting "parody" into their porn parodies.

[@akiraeatsguitarpicks491]

@@jakehodgson82that’s not being a creep dw, that was literally her job

[@euansmith3699]

As an old comic reader, I was confused by the annoyance that April was being shown as Black.Thanks for another great video.

[@--Animal--]

They did the same thing when the batman movie and catwoman being black, dispite Eartha Kitt playing Catwoman in 1966.

[@KariIzumi1]

Given the reactions about MJ and Ariel, is it really isn't

[@spookyskeptic4978]

Comics were always in the house when I was a kid. I learned to read thanks to my brother and father loving to share them with me. Imagine my surprise when I saw the way April was drawn in the first cartoon.

[@JanetStarChild]

@@spookyskeptic4978 They also made Baxter Stockman white in the classic cartoon; so that's both April and Baxter that got altered like that. In fairness, I believe the show made him white because they thought a black villain would be distasteful.

[@spawnofapathy]

😂 you had too much fun with that. What they often fail to recognize is a character was often made white, not because they needed to be for their story, but because they needed to be so it could have “mass appeal”. Superman doesn’t get published in the 30s unless he looks white. For many characters, their race is not in their elevator pitch description.

[@loka7783]

I also suspect the reason most characters were "white" in the early days was because white people required less shading which means less ink to render repeatedly. More ink = more expensive to publish. Given the fact that TMNT had been rejected by Marvel that meant the creators had to go with a lesser successful company to get published.

[@ZoeMalDoran]

As children of the 80s, my brother and I were really into the 1987 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon growing up (or Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles as it was here in the UK because for some reason the censors didn't want "ninja" in the title) so the only versions of April I'm familiar with are from that cartoon and the 1990 movie. While the 1987 April is "my" April pretty much by default, it was interesting seeing all the other designs she's had over the years. We humans are a strange breed; getting all worked up over the silliest things

[@yensid4294]

As a lover of cartoons & the artform of animation I totally get having preferences for artistic style. There are animated shows/movies I really like the look of & certain animation houses I prefer the look of. Kind of a different discussion when it's always the apperance of female characters in videogames & cartoons/anime that has certain people upset.

[@vancelambert4680]

Why isn't anyone complaining that Bebop, who was supposed to be a black man before turning into a warthog, is being voiced by Seth Rogan?

[@allanjmcpherson]

Well, to be fair. we all know the central aspects of April's character were being white and having a low body fat percentage, and not being a reporter and an ally to the turtles. /s

[@JamesSerapio]

​@@anonymousscience4095 yep. Baxter Stockman's lab assistant. Okay... I need a mouser plushie now

[@Square_Peg]

As a 45 year old man who loved the TMNT when I was younger I really don't care one bit about what they make April look like. Because I grew up and don't watch shows/movies like this anymore, but even if I did I still wouldn't care.

[@SiriusMined]

Steve, my friend, if there was a PhD for humorous sarcasm, you'd have several. That wa epic. 🥰

[@Trikeboy2]

In the original comics, Baxter Stockman was depicted as a tall black man. In the 1987 cartoon Baxter Stockman became a short white dude. Everyone survived that, they can survive this.

[@SanguineQuest]

I think a bunch of them are also really REALLY angry that the Turtles themselves are Zoomers now. Played by teenaged actors, recording their antics with their phones like a bunch of Tiktok-ers, the overall vibe of their sense of humor, the near-total absence of the self-seriousness that has defined the majority of post-80s Turtle incarnations in favor of teenage awkwardness and a sort of world-weary irreverence, it's all very much lazer-targeted at a Gen Z audience. If there's one thing entitled reactionary Gen X 80s kids hate, its when something that originally invented for them tries to appeal to anyone else but them.

[@daelen.cclark]

Teens in the 80’s would have absolutely used TikTok if it existed then. They’d have absolutely used smartphones if they existed then.

[@dmh2k7]

The gall of making the TEENAGE Mutant Ninja Turtles, teenagers! Having said that I wouldn't mind a more serious take based on the comics myself.

[@lkeke35]

Nailed it!😂

[@SanguineQuest]

@@dmh2k7 I'm a big lover of the 2003 cartoon personally, you can tell the creators of that show were deep into the comics.

[@bekkers29]

Right?! That is definitely one of the more annoying things about my generation. Meanwhile, I'm like, oh dear Jeebus, please change everything. So much of '80s media is embarrassing in hindsight.

[@daelen.cclark]

If there weren’t real videos and posts of people whining about a fictional character that changes races and body in nearly every iteration, I wouldn’t believe it.

[@loka7783]

I would, always someone somewhere that is just looking for an excuse to complain. That's been true since humans invented language. :)

[@daelen.cclark]

@@loka7783 Too true. I’m hoping one of these overreactions is just made up as a joke. (It’s getting a sad amount of stupid.)

[@ansalem12]

Finding this video is my favorite thing to happen in like at least a week.

[@richardlbowles]

Thank you, Steven. I've learned something I didn't know before, namely what JOM stands for.

[@jarethhsms]

Happier with that portrayal than when Megan fox played her. Yellow jumpsuit is absolutely required at some point though.

[@JanetStarChild]

Agreed; Megan Fox is the worst April I've ever seen; but then, so are those Michael Bay TMNT movies as well; total abominations.

[@chantony2602]

💯 and also, I’m sincerely impressed with how many times you worked in the phrase “Jack-off.” Well done, good sir. Well done! 😂

[@francoislacombe9071]

Yeah, I wonder what KZbin's algorithm thought of that. 🤔

[@jackabug2475]

I'm impressed with the volume, too, but not particularly happy with his chosen term for masturbation...

[@daelen.cclark]

A well-done use of the phrase. Not many of those.

[@checkoffgames]

We've had a black April already, and April's size isn't really central to her character so far so in addition to practicing bigotry, the group of adults this video talks about are just generally superficial. (Edit) I hadn't even thought about them being perverts.

[@pureflix8086]

"Adults"

[@spirit__fox]

My only real complaint about the new She-Ra is that I was hoping for pants and more armour. Just seemed more practical. Also the costume should have pockets, for my cosplayer friends.

[@rgemail]

That doesn't sound like good J O M if we're being really honest

[@JonSonOfJoe]

I did not count, but I believe you now hold the record for saying jack off the most times in a KZbin video. Very humorous and well done, I applaud you

[@woogywips]

Personally, as someone who loves interacial and BBW porn, this is a VERY welcome development for me.

[@Noname-ut1ye]

Based.

[@chefbennyj]

I'm 40 years old, and the new turtles movie looks amazing. My son and I are going to see it for sure. The trailer was perfect. Love it!

[@billberndtson]

I love that you do these, Steve. Another white guy from my building came up to me yesterday and started to tell me how he was glad I moved into my apartment because the last guy was Puerto Rican and this guy knew ALL about Puerto Ricans because he used to live in New Jersey. I cut him off and left but it was so depressing - both for his racism and his assumption of mine. Thanks for boldly stating your beliefs. 😃

[@suzygirl1843]

It's 2023. Why are we acting like its the 60's?

[@cyberius7042]

@@suzygirl1843 Because some jack-offs think it was better back then 😕

[@JanetStarChild]

@@suzygirl1843 '60s

[@michaelhannell4083]

My problem with the new turtles movie is that Ralph looks like common box turtle but we all know he is a ornate box turtle lol. The real problem is that they casted Jackie chan as splinter and which I think was a bad move considering how he endorses policies and wants to be part of CPC.

[@John73John]

Wait, people are enraged about a piece of media that hasn't come out yet? INCONCEIVABLE! Everyone's always got to climb over each other to be the first one to be mad about something. That's how internet "critique" works now. Like they've never heard that you shouldn't judge a book by its cover or something. Anyway, as far as JOM is concerned, I'm not too picky. I come in many shapes, sizes, and colors.

[@lkeke35]

Points are made!

[@John73John]

@@richardvinsen2385 ...yes

[@literaterose6731]

Not sure I’ve ever heard something with that many repetitions and variants of the phrase “jack off” that I found so utterly delightful. Well done, all thumbs up, thoroughly nailed it!

[@jahipalmer8782]

this is both hilarious and accurate.

[@barbaros99]

Because history doesn't repeat itself but does rhyme, this brings back memories of early casting discussions for the Netflix Witcher series. The idea was floated that Ciri could be Asian in this particular adaptation. This of course caused a riot amongst fans who were absolutely not racist. I was not particularly bright and jumped in suggesting there was no problem with that as long as Ciri was still Ciri. I even suggested she could be Black (which would basically let me have my dream casting of Idris Elba as Emhyr var Emreis). One fan responded that it would make her "too different". That's when it finally broke through to me that it never had anything to do with staying "true to the source material". This person was telling me, in no uncertain terms, that if literally everything about Ciri stayed the same except for the level of melanin her body produced, she would be unrecognizable to him. It was racism, plain as day - the colour of her skin meant more than the content of her character. It's also just completely disrespectful to reduce a character you claim to respect down to a handful of physical attributes. Making April O'Neil nothing more than "female, white, redhead" does *actual* harm to the character. She's also Channel 6's ace reporter, best friends with Irma, and a hero who helps the Turtles (All I really know is the 80s cartoon April). None of these things matter to the people complaining. Also also, and tying it back to the Netflix Witcher, you can absolutely match up a character's physical appearance to the source material, but that Ciri is not Ciri, no matter how white they made her.

[@bellcurve0]

I appreciated that FINALLY the TEENAGE turtles.. are actually portrayed as teens and not seemingly roided up adults. If this is ignorant and disrespectful of mutant humanoid turtle physiology. My apologies.

[@kennethcunningham2572]

Ngl I didn't get the acronym until it was explained

[@richetoku]

I had no problem with the new April, I was not even thinking about at first. Only time I had a problem with the characters was with the Michael Bay Turtles. They did not seem like Teenagers and were huge and April did not really click as April for me, but every version of Turtles has been different in many ways but the core concept has been kept intact. I am sure this upcoming movie will be the same.

[@shellnet411]

Oh what about the green M&M is that when they said flat out tucker Carlson dead

[@shellnet411]

I think it's gonna suck because it was made after 1999 but I'm just old I like the movies all three of the first 3

[@JanetStarChild]

@@shellnet411 Ditto; with the '07 movie being rather 'meh', and the M.Bay movies being gross abominations, and now this new movie looking infantile and stupid, it really does seem like there will be no worthy successor to the original trilogy. What's more, even the third movie is one of the better TMNT films now! Oh, how the mighty TMNT franchise has fallen.

[@wtaione]

All other details aside, When any version of April O'Neil doesn't have a yellow jacket I do get kinda sad about it

[@SevenFrenchies]

Who cares about April ... I'm all knotted and twisted about the turtles being brownish-gray instead of green. That's *my* JOM, you slobs! :P

[@alexpage4355]

Despite growing up with the same version of the turtles as Steve, I always preferred the version of April from the 2003 series, myself, but that had more to do with her being a smart, capable character in her own right, rather than a token damsel-in-distress, not anything specific to her character design.

[@JanetStarChild]

That's not really fair nor accurate. April in the '87 series was a surprisingly strong female role-model (for the time). April is a well-educated, business-oriented, take-no-shit go-getter who rose up to be the star reporter of Channel 6 News, and out-performs her male counterparts (i.e. Vernon). April lives independently as a single woman, needing no man nor children to complete her life. April wears a practical, utilitarian jumpsuit with plenty of pockets. Sure, she fills it out nicely, but some women are just built like that and it shouldn't be held against her. April may be a regular "damsel in distress", unfortunately (product of the time, what with videogames and their 'save the princess' trope), but she was never portrayed as a coward nor weakling; even getting in the fray, dishing out some martial moves and occasionally saving the Turtles for a satisfying role-reversal.

[@alexpage4355]

@@JanetStarChild The fact that you had to qualify it with "for the time" kind of proves my point. I never said '87 April was a _horrible_ character, just that I felt the '03 one was better. '87 April was very much cast from the same mold most writers were using for Lois Lane, at the time (another good character who was being poorly served): a snoopy reporter determined to chase her story at all costs, even when it's clearly foolish to do so, purely so she can later be rescued by the hero(es), when she gets in over her head. No that wasn't _all_ of her stories... but it represented an unhealthy percentage of them. The fact that it was a product of its time isn't an excuse. Meanwhile. '03 April had brains and tech savvy enough to even keep up with Donnie at times, while being much better able to defend herself when necessary. Given that Donnie was always my favorite of the bros, for being the brains of the crew, that first point is honestly enough to push her over the top for me, all by itself.

[@JanetStarChild]

@@alexpage4355 Valid points; fair enough. That all said, it's cathartic that classic April is a playable badass in the new TMNT: Shredder's Revenge game!

[@GumbosGhost]

This isn't new, hope they don't watch Batman 66 and see Eartha Kit replace Julie Newmar as Catwoman, their heads might explode

[@FoxDragon]

Given how many TMNT movies have been released over the last couple of decades and how few of them I have heard about before they came out, this was a really great marketing decision XD

[@francoislacombe9071]

Green lit background: "We are the Borg. Lower your shields and surrender your ships. We will add your biological and technological distinctiveness to our own. Your culture will adapt to service us. Resistance is futile." Couldn't resist. 😜

[@heyitswesty]

yet another thing I can use as a litmus test to weed out redpillers

[@wesleypatterson2284]

My favorite reaction was Melonie Mac's, saying that this April is proof that Hollywood hates "traditional femininity". Gee, it's almost like traditional beauty standards are toxic and based on Euro-centric viewpoints *shrugs*

[@heypeopleitsmatt]

But seriously good points , idk why these guys are so butthurt over a cartoon . I mean I know why, they're racists . So I guess that pretty much explains it lol

[@John73John]

It's because everybody just has to try to be the first one to be outraged about something. That's how you get views. If it wasn't the color or shape of April's skin, then it would be something else.

[@akiraeatsguitarpicks491]

Why can’t people just focus on real problems? The world isn’t going to end because April is black, I can assure you. You’re not gonna die if you don’t JO to cartoon women. You’re not going to get an illness from accepting things are different.

[@thatsecuritylady]

Meanwhile, I'm over here just getting excited because she's left-handed!

[@JanetStarChild]

It's those little things that make the real difference.

[@floriangunzer6244]

Jeez, Lois. Steve, that was an epic burn. I could see the smoke trail from the other side of the pond, regardless of the curvature of the earth.

[@Shatterhand2049]

I think my sarcasm detector exploded. Anyway...while I'm sure the tendency towards over-sexualization of a female animated character is definitely a factor in this, I'm comfortable in assuming that it's a distant second in the top two reasons for this new controversy that's not, in any way, a controversy. When all is said and done, it's the same anti-"wOkE!1!!" garbage these "totally-not" bigots (in other words, the usual Fandom Menace suspects and their smooth-brained followers) always spew while hiding behind the "this stuff didn't need to be changed" rhetoric. Sure; maybe there was no specific need to change the character design of April O'Neil yet again, but there's also no justifiable reason to object to it so vehemently...unless the person or people objecting are racist. That's the whole thing about the use of a term like "woke" (or any of its derivatives). No one who's legitimately not racist/sexist/transphobic/homophobic/etc. would ever, EVER have a reason to use that term as an unironic, derogatory descriptive. As soon as anyone utters that word and is being serious with its use, then they might as well be announcing to the world "I'm a bigot in one way or another, but I'm too much of a coward to just admit that, so I'm hiding behind this blanket term". It's reached the point wherein the moment I see or hear anyone use it unironically, I automatically tune that person or group of people out, because I know they have nothing of intellectual or moral value to say.

[@NoxUnboxed]

It still blows people's minds when you remind them that she's sometimes not really real in the comics either. He was a drawing brought to life by the character Kirby King's magic pencil.

[@JanetStarChild]

I never liked that; April's bizarre origin makes the Turtle's and Splinter's origin downright normal in comparison. The only thing intriguing of the concept is the existential crisis aftermath.

[@wesleywyndam-pryce5305]

wait what, king DeeDee is in tmnt???

[@jivey15]

I'm in the Camp that doesn't find any April O'Neil hot. Casey Jones on the other hand...

[@DrewLSsix]

The next live action Casey Jones is set to be played by Patrice O'Neil, thats.... not a problem is it🧐?

[@auldthymer]

Thanks, Steve: guess what I'll be thinking about when I see this movie /s

[@wrongtown]

Don't act like you weren't going to be already. /s

[@uosdwiSrdewoH]

Is the new April overweight? Are they body shaming an animated character for not looking like a stick figure?

[@jan-rs6im]

Steve! you are so awesome - you say what is so important and necessary - and so tongue in cheek all the way - call it what it is - racism - we can't deal with it if we don't speak of it - keep up the excellent work

[@buckocean7616]

The problem with this video is that the people who need to see it, aren't going to. Steve, as almost always, is 💯% on target. The "Go Woke Go Broke" brigade never fails to amaze me with their petty, and to me, ridiculous crusade. I'm looking at you, The Quartering. 🤬🤬

[@thetrin]

The unfortunate truth is exactly what you said. That the people that don't need to see it, will watch it, and those that need to, will ignore it. The "go woke go broke" brigade doesn't like getting called out on their shit, and they carefully curate their reality such that they will not engage with anything mildly challenging.

[@HobGungan]

Debate and rebuttals like this are less about changing the other person's mind (which is not technically impossible, but just barely), and more about educating the collective audience on why said person is wrong and potentially dangerous, and change *their* minds before they follow the same path.

[@daelen.cclark]

“Whine of woke, end up broke.” Does that sound more fitting?

[@Mad-Bassist]

LOL! Brilliant! I do find radical character changes to be jarring sometimes, such as Michael Clarke Duncan playing Kingpin in the Daredevil movie, or Katee Sackoff as Starbuck. In the end it didn't matter because both actors were excellent, and I just enjoy it with a "parallel universe" viewpoint. The first Superman movie taught me that at age eleven with the radical crystalline redesign of Krypton. It was nothing like the comics, but it looked great and made for a mysterious atmosphere when seen in a theater. Okay, I didn't approach this with the J.O.M. thing, but that's what makes this video hilarious to me, as it probably is a major part of the unpleasable fanbase's problem. There are art websites and newsgroups for that sort of thing. I'd like to see the uproar if we ever get a live action Thundercats movie and they change Cheetara in any way, heh heh.

[@calebleland8390]

Personally, I prefer to rub one out to Harley Quinn from Batman: TAS. But to each their own. Great video as always, Steve. At least they aren't putting changelings in the new TMNT movie. 🤣🤣

[@joshv.1490]

This should be a public service announcement.

[@torquetheprisoner]

lol people complane if something is not comicbook accurate now there complaining that something that is comicbook accurate.

[@torenatkinson1986]

Thank you for taking the time to explain what JOM stood for to this old out-of-touch white man

[@danielland3767]

This is the most brilliant piece of work done yet Steve...the ability to call out the racism but then switch to JOM...is freaking brilliant. Fun fact Dr. John H. Kellogg one of 2 brothers of the Kellogg cereal company created Frosted Flakes to stop people from masturbating

[@bushybeardedbear]

That was Cornflakes. Frosted Flakes / Frosties came much later. And thanks to furry thirst trap Tony The Tiger, they likely produced a significant increase in self pleasure.

[@karlrobertosterman]

I lean more towards Dr. Doofenschmurtz' daughter from Phineas & Ferb.

[@sleepinggorilla]

Steve is absolutely right. I do think that adaptations of IP with strong visual aspects have a responsibility to make the characters look the way they do in the comics. When they make a Catwoman movie, I expect that character to be Selena Kyle. If we are going to see the Avengers for the first time on screen, I expect them to look the way they do in the comics. When you make an X-Men movie I expect to see the Uncanny X-Men. Then there are characters that were always race swapped, like Namor who should be Polynesian or West India, that are just being swapped back and given proper treatment. I thought the depiction of a Mayan society that went to live underwater was beautiful. We have years of April O’Neal. Let them try something different.

[@iseeundeadpeople9]

It's not the first time she's black. And she changes with every series. She's like Doctor Who. The only reason for this outrage is racism.

[@tonygilbert5256]

Holy shit... I was too busy looking at the new April's pants and totally didn't get the issue until Steve pointed it out. First I saw the hair and then looked at the not yellow pants and thought "neat."

[@pureflix8086]

Ive only ever known "hazmat suit" april. I felt fox was terrible, because she really was just eye candy to sexy up an okay movie.

[@renaigh]

April can be whoever the writers and artists want her to be, but Casey Jones better be Aggressively Canadian.

[@JanetStarChild]

LOL! Agreed!

[@michaelreindel6975]

As an aside, how often does this franchise get rebooted? From a non-fan perspective, it seems to get rebooted seemingly every other year… 😵‍💫 And, yup, the same predominately middle-aged white dudes were complaining, LOUDLY, that the teenaged girls portrayed in the *She-Ra* reboot weren’t, uhmn, “sexy” enough… 😳 It’s shocking how soOOooo many people are determinably @$$holes. Really does explain a lotta the horrors throughout history… 😱

[@ladyaceina]

reminder the 87 version of april these ppl love so much was HATED by her creators

[@st.anselmsfire3547]

I have to say that the way the American right has embraced being weird and pathetic in the post-Gamergate era is not something I anticipated back in the early 2000s.

[@gamewrit0058]

"My problem with your problem is . . ." 😎👍

[@karnielcashumphries683]

The best part is that non of these people never even expressed any interest in TMNT

[@barq6994]

I do find it odd it seems redheads are the ones always changed, mostly in DC: Jimmy, Iris and Wally, Starfire, and Batgirl. Marvel changed MJ, Ravona Renslayer (Loki) and I think Heimdal has been a redhead (but he's had several different hair colors). Ariel is another redhead. Annie was race swapped and so was Triss from the Witcher. Don't forget about Bow in the She-Ra series, Rosalind Walker from Sabrina, Issac in Castlevania and Ripcord in GI Joe. There are articles about this swapping out redheads trope that's started.

[@ActuallyDoubleGuitars]

The art style is gorgeous in general in the film.

[@4Babaganouj]

Wasn't April a TV reporter? She wasn't a teenager. Maybe she was retconed? I'm fine with retconning for new stories if that franchise doesn't care about continuity (which they do not... TMNT had guns, Spliter was once originally a human, and yes, April was a reporter). That said, for modern audiences, I can see an online influencer type April being more popular... or any color or weight.

[@peterhellgren2962]

Not surprised at all. I mean, we have people in this world who are upset that mascots for certain candy aren't quite as sexy anymore. It's a very, very weird world we live in.

[@kensmith2285]

Very nice video. The original April from the comics looks pretty good

[@valemontgomery9401]

“I’m not invested in this discourse, therefore it’s stupid.”

[@snuggie12]

TIL: April wasn't always a white red-head, and sometimes when you think something stands for something prior to watching a video...it does.

[@codbug]

April being depicted as black is great! There should be absolutely no outrage over April being black, but not because it was established in the original comics---it wasn't. This is a myth that supports an otherwise good position. I've seen these same couple of cherry-picked images being passed around as though they were her original design and that they're black-coded for having curly hair. In some ways it comes across as racial stereotyping, and cultural ignorance rather than honest representation of the source material. In Eastman and Laird's original TMNT comics, April is introduced in issue #2, depicted as a computer programmer with pale skin (pinkish when later colored), straight hair (colorized as reddish brown), and a blue jumpsuit. There is no explicit coding for her being of a particular race. It's however established from interviews that in the earliest concept designs, Laird originally drew her as Asian, but then stated he drew her as white-coded in the actual comic. He also noted that Eastman would probably disagree as April was named after Eastman's ex-wife who was black/white mixed. The curly hair design is introduced in issue #4, where April returns to her apartment to greet the turtles and explicitly mentions getting her hair done at a "new-wave place." This issue was released in 1985 during the height of the perm craze that people of all racial backgrounds were participating in. There is no explicit racial coding within the comics itself, additional context though would suggest her race was white-coded, but ambiguously so. At the end of the day, this shouldn't be used as an argument for WHY April should be depicted as black in modern media. There are far better, more honest, and simpler arguments for her being black than a misinterpreted appeal to the original source material.

[@EchoJ]

You say “misinterpreted” when Eastman repeatedly said in interviews that he saw April as mixed _like his half-white half-black ex_ that they named her after. Why do you dismiss Eastman’s opinion and elevate Laird’s? The photo I’ve seen of Eastman’s (ex)wife shows a (mostly) white-presenting woman, so imo that’s why the comics character appeared so racially ambiguous. It’s not rocket science 🤷🏾‍♀️ The fact is, there were differing opinions between the co-creators, so in truth, anyone saying the character is a POC is just as right as someone who “sees” a white chick. You needn’t try to make one ‘less accurate’ than the other.

[@JanetStarChild]

It's possible that April getting that perm was a soft retcon to make April black (or mixed or other). When I learned that April was based on Kevin's then girlfriend, a black woman, that became my head-canon for April in the comic books.

[@codbug]

@@JanetStarChild That's perfectly valid, yeah. My main point was that there was nothing explicit in the comics one way or the other, so it's kinda weird to cite it. But yeah, I agree, she does strongly resemble Eastman's ex post issue #4

[@jackabug2475]

Steve, that was great, but next time you need to make a video like this, could you please consider _not_ taking my name in vain when referring to people jerking off?

[@sobertillnoon]

I'll jo to a cartoon every now and again. And every time I find a cartoon unattractive I take to the internet and complain about it instead of just not jo-ing to that particular toon. It is better this way

[@TheFlyingSailorYT]

I regret I forgot that April was a POC in the original material. Easy to do with Hollywood whitewashing the character.

[@tasoth]

Think you forgot an important part of this nonsense. It's adults getting mad at a KIDS! Cartoon.

[@Darbobski]

Love TMNT :) And I don't care what April Oniel looks like. She is closer to the source material as a black girl, but I don't care about the canon of TMNT. They could have made her another turtle and it would not have ruined my day.

[@kartavianmacrath7219]

Dude!!! I think if this April had been the April when we were kids, I might have been as hung up on her as my little brothers were... I am just saying. I loved the turtles, never really cared about April... I am sorry, I loved the two ladies that played her in the movies, because they were excellent actors and did a great job of making believe that both were the same character from the same movie... Yeah, all Aprils look vastly different, I was too focused on Raphael saying Damn so much. Great video dude.

[@JanetStarChild]

In fairness, kids are meant to identify with the Turtles, whereas adults can identify with April. That was the case for me; loved the Turtles as a kid; totally identify with April as an adult. Also, April is our relatable surrogate into the wacky world of TMNT.

[@davidrohde2636]

I could careless what April looks like, even tho she was originally drawn as a black woman in the comic. I just think that the turtles have a uncanny valley to em. I still going to watch for the love of tmnt.

[@LadyAstarionAncunin]

They complained about Aloy in Horizon Forbidden West, saying she was "fat," which was IN-SANE because she has a snatched waist and is in shape. They also complained about her looks, when she looks like a regular, pretty young woman. Also, maybe it's just me, but Aloy comes across as ace. She doesn't care about people finding her attractive or not. She had a handsome king offer her to be his queen and she was like, "Nah, I'm busy saving the world." They also complained about how many minorities are in the game. Guess they thought we'd all be wiped out in the future. Oops! They also make no sense when discussing characters like Vivienne in Dragon Age: Inquisition and Mel Medarda in Arcane, calling them annoying and saying there's just "something" they don't like about them [but I can guess it's because they're unambiguously black women with power and grace -- so, "uppity"]. Meanwhile, they love the manic pixie dreamgirl who pinwheels her way senselessly throughout the plot in the latter case, causing destruction. Hmm. Variety is the spice of life. I didn't even entertain the Michael Bay films because 1. he's a hack, 2. he's incredibly ignorant about minorities if not low-key racist, 3. the turtles and Splinter look creepy, but I still have the original live-action film. And that's still my favorite April O'Neil based on her attitude/personality, not her looks. But I'd be interested to see what this version of April is like too! To this day, I don't think anything is touching the first live-action film. Those costumes are still legit! I mean, did Bay even _see_ Splinter?? Incredible! They're like original Robocop and Darth Vader to me: They're timeless realizations of a concept that age well regardless of the time.

[@cornflake233]

Heck… I’m gay… I kind of found Michelangelo attractive. 😂

[@while.coyote]

The TMNT I'm waiting for is a group of just regular dudes who wear turtlenecks.

[@Gorandius1256]

Next thing you know they'll start spelling her name O'Neill and she won't have a sense of humor

[@christopherwilson3754]

The only problem with this video is it's pretty much perfect and says it all.

[@GeneralBulldog54]

I adore this amount of candor and great walk down TMNT lore history, but, folk don't use 'jacking off' any more. It's suuuch an antiquated term. The modern term for males performing that kind of act is called 'fapping.' I presume it's supposed to be an onomatopoeia for the sound the act makes and was made popular by the celebrity iCloud hack of 2014 aka "The Fappening." Anyway, that was just a grody PSA, sorry. April being black being viewed as new is so weird. She literally had an 80's jerri curl and was originally a scientist's aide for the equally black Baxter Stockman, the two being made white starting with the '87 cartoon where it also changed the color of the turtles headbands and increased their heights slightly. Now, while many will claim this is part of a growing trend of making traditionally white redhaired characters black called gingerswapping (which apparently stems from an anagram of the term 'ginger' (oh yeah, it's messed)) with examples being Ariel from The Little Mermaid, Jimmy Olsen in Supergirl, MJ for the MCU, Hawkgirl, Cyclone, Iris Allen and now with April except the latter isn't really accurate along with the other examples. In fact, with April it's quite the opposite.

[@TCMcBiscuits]

I figure I oughta be able to grind one out as long as someone wears a yellow jumpsuit. Be it April, Irma, Casey, Krang, Savanti Romero, Doc Feral, I'm not picky.

[@packerchu]

A young black Irish-American in a movie with talking bipedal reptiles that can eat pizza? Broke my suspension of belief for this/sarcasm.

[@packerchu]

Wouldn’t having sex with an adult Ariel still had been a problem because she was originally not fully human?

[@Changa_Husky]

More to the question: Is Splinter daddy hot? Really that is the metric I use for TMNT movies. But I do not begrudge any version where Spliter isn't hot.

[@captainpatspopculturesteam2300]

Aside from all the masterbation talk, really… it’s just racism and child-men being angry about whatever new thing is brought out.