A thread on #RiseOfTheTMNT and the Deconstruction of Sacrifice. (fair warning, this is gonna be pretty long. Also #rottmnt #rottmntfam #saverottmnt )

You gotta love how even in the face of Rise’s message of always being there for your family and the ending where they literally team up with their ancestors, Splinter’s decision to shred his family’s ancient scroll was NEVER seen as a bad thing and he was NEVER shown to regret

that decision, even after Karai showed up.Because despite his family/clan literally being created on the idea of sacrificing one’s self for the greater good, Splinter REFUSED.
Like- remember how proud he was when the boys became ‘real’ ninjas in the s1 finale by sacrificing who

they were (their spirit, their hobbies, their lightheartedness, etc.)?I think that pride was a mix of knowing that his sons had a better chance of surviving an encounter with Draxum or the Shredder and also just feeling like he had fixed his own mistakes and redeemed himself

in the eyes of his family. We know he never made up with his Grandpa Sho, and we know that as much as he loved being Lou Jitsu, there is a small part of him that regrets not following his path and stopping the Shredder when he had the chance instead of being forced to push that

duty onto his sons. Hell, he was even willing to resign himself to a life of loneliness just to protect the Shredder teapot because that’s what Hamatos do for the world. They sacrifice! But the moment - the VERY MOMENT - that one of Splinter’s ancestors suggests that the boys

become martyrs, Splinter is DONE with the idea of ‘tradition’ and ‘honor’ and all that.He no longer sees the Turtles as Hamato Warriors, but as the children they actually are - as his SONS who he loves just as much as he loved his mother and who don’t deserve to die. He knows

there’s another way and he’s going to fight for it, dammit! I also really love how Splinter emphasizes how much he loves his boys for WHO THEY ARE and not because of who they could become or what they could do for the world. Like, that’s just the cherry onthe heartwarming sundae.

But then we jump ahead to ‘Shreddy or Not’ where Splinter, after being told by the hero and matriarch of his family that yeah, he messed up BIG TIME, he sort of falls back into this sort of shame and lashing out. He gets annoyed at his sons for being themselves, and in a sense

he tries to hide their ‘non-ninjaness’ from Karai just as he did in the s1 finale. Not because he suddenly hates his sons, but because he’s once again being confronted with the fact that he didn’t follow tradition and now his sons are at a disadvantage because of his mistakes.

He’s already the black sheep of his family, he doesn’t want to ruin how his Greatx10 Grandmother sees him or his sons anymore than he already has....Except, Karai doesn’t see it that way. Yes, she’s frustrated and a bit annoyed, but she also sees the boys for who they are,

how close their bond is and how much they care for each other, and she accepts this. She loves them for it, just as much as Splinter loves them, and lets them all know that this love they have for each other isn’t a bad thing at all - and this ends up being what saves the day.

It may be wrapped up in a super-epic anime power-up package, but it’s made very clear that Hamato-Ninpo doesn’t rely on honor or tradition or even sacrifice, but on the love that the Hamatos have for their kin and how they will always be there for each other. The fact that

Splinter and the Turtles took this a step forward, making sure to fight by each other’s side and work together instead of following the pattern of sacrifice and having those incredibly strong bonds and feelings of trust in each other - THAT is what makes them the strongestHamatos

and that is what allowed them to defeat Shredder. “Maybe you didn’t teach us everything, but you taught us the most important thing!” “Be there for each other!” “You are not alone!” Not only did this show set out with the goal of showing just how powerful and important the idea

of familial love can be, but it also deconstructed the idea of sacrifice - that while sacrificing to protect someone (or the whole world) is honorable and brave, there can also be consequences to it. It’s not a perfect solution. We see this in how Atsuko’s sacrifice makes Yoshi

bitter and jaded toward his remaining family. We see this in how when the Turtles sacrifice who they are, they may be slightly more ‘traditional’ ninjas but they’re far from ‘perfect’, and we see that sticking to tradition can be just as much as a hindrance as goofing off.

We see this in how, when Splinter and Draxum sacrifice themselves to protect their boys, it’s the tipping point that makes Raph have a breakdown.

And I just really love that - that the Rise crew didn’t do what other fictional stories have done and just hold the concept of

sacrifice up as this bittersweet but ultimately positive ideal,and that there ARE consequences to it. Instead they stuck to THEIR message, that the bonds of family and love can be insanely powerful, and that when you work together and fight together, you can accomplish ANYTHING.