I see a lot of comments who don’t really like or see the bond between these two, but realistically I think it’s because the two of them have such a critical role in the team’s successes and failures that it’s hard for them to find ways to just be two bros hanging out together outside of when they’re home, and even then, they have their own interests that take away from that. So while the fun part is rarely seen on screen, I think the fact they rely so heavily on each other, even more than the other two, makes up for it. Besides, I have three brothers myself, and try as I might, not all of them receive the same amount of one on one attention.
This comment! Me and my older cousin would have similar interactions where I’m more of the logical one. Not every bond needs to have a fixated and superficial flawless dynamic.
@@haruzes-san3030 but that's just it, why would we have to discern their closeness OFF screen when the writers could've taken SO many opportunities to SHOW us on screen they love and care about each other? Cause too often in this show Leo would downplay Don's own emotions, overlook his work, or just outright criticize him. Which yeah sure what sibling doesn't do that ONCE in a while, but here it just felt like all the time.
I find 12 Don and Leo so interesting, in that they're practically the same person (turtle) in so many ways, and there are some hints that they're actually pretty close offscreen, but onscreen they tend to not get along well. I think a big part of their issue is they each hold themselves to incredibly high (unrealistic) expectations, and because they *know* they're similar, they hold each other to those brutally high standards too. Like obviously Leo and Raph have issues too lol, and Donnie and Mikey bicker all the time, but I feel like Leo and Donnie don't quite expect as much from Raph and Mikey as they do from each other.
Yeah like We got enough of Leo and Raph, Mikey and Raph, Donnie and Mikey bonding... But Leo and Donnie bonding that seems to be very interesting just left out. The only episode they interacted the longest was Heart of Evil in season 5. It's so sad, I love when Leo and Donnie teams up(((
I like your explanation. For me, even if they dont look appreciative enough, deep down there i know theyre very thankful for every support they can get from each other, although mostly are mission related stuffs. But yeah if im being super honest, i still wish they have more casual bonding like how they both did with Mikey.
This is a solid interpretation. While I do wish we got more of them hanging out, in this context it sort of makes sense why their dynamic is the way it is
@@girlsqaudb9193 The timestamp? Just type in the time of the clip u wanna show. For example, I'm on 3:39 of the video. It automatically goes to that part of the video if u just type in the time. Srry, I'm bad at explaining but I hoped this helped :)
They're both leader types, so they both generally lead their own duos, whether it may be Leo & Raph and Donnie & Mikey, or Leo & Mikey and Donnie & Raph, which may be one of the main reasons they often either work at each others' backs or clash face to face in their interactions. Unfortunately, their leadership styles seem to center around one being the oldest and most burdened with responsibilities, and the other being a middle kid with the burden of being seen as useful only for his smarts, so that's usually where those arguments start from. Of course though, as most siblings do, they clearly still stand as the most reliable for the family most times, so whatever.
Sometimes, I don't like how Leo downplays Donnie's feelings. Like how he "apologized" to Donnie about shutting down Metalhead? That just sounded unapologetic to me.
I know, right? And then there's all the other times he should have apologized, but never did. Like when he was guilting him into working on the cure for Karai, who knows how many nights he lost sleep because of that? And when they fled New York, Donnie took all the blame, but they were both right and wrong in their own ways. I feel so bad for Donnie sometimes... (Sorry if this was lengthy, I have a LOT of feelings about this)
@@coralshine27blm12 there was also that time when (im not sure if I remember this correctly) but that dangerous mission Leo went with karai and it ended almost getting Donnie killed. I hate how Leo has shitty sense of judgment when karai is involved and it usually puts his brothers in danger
@@Little_lovely_bunny the only argument i have for this is that love really does make us do stupid things. i know that’s a tired old saying, but it’s a very very true one. coming from personal experience, i have left behind close friends of mine just to gain the approval of someone i liked, which was a terrible and stupid decision, but i was blinded by love. so was leo. his feelings for Karai took over his senses, and she became a top priority for him, and while in most cases a significant other should be a priority, they should not take on such a prominent role to the point where one cannot focus on anything other them. leo is a perfect example of what love, if not handled properly, can do to a person.
@PopCrusher yeah that makes sense , and I don't blame him since he's always having to take care of the other by planning out their strategies and sometimes he doesn't get to enjoy the things he loves or likes so the one time he had something , he reached for it and tried to keep it away from the others
Honestly Donnie just came off as a more calm version of Raph, he absolutely hated working under Leo's leadership and acted under the belief that as the "team genius" he should call the shots which undercut Leo's sense authority. Overall, a recipe for disaster when both sides refuse to back down.
I think you’re greatly overselling Donnie and Leo’s troubles, unless if season 4 changed anything I know Donnie only argued with Leo over anything serious like twice
The amount of times Leo demands and expects Don to have all the answers and solutions while KNOWING putting Donnie on the spot makes him irratable af is just... sad. He doesn't try to empathise with him most of the time. I think Leo understands even Mikey better than Donnie, not to mention Raph. Thank God Mikey was there to keep them from tearing down each other, those boys really needed more mediation :(
Well, to be fair, they are in high stakes missions or just really emotional ones; and Donnie is the smartest one in the family, and has proven his expertise in certain areas time and again. I’m not saying you’re exactly wrong, but I can’t blame Leo either. Raph’s done it too
@@B.K.J not to mention at the end of the day, they’re all just 16-year-olds. Sure trained and mutated, but still teenagers, and I know I was no sympathetic saint when I was sixteen~
Leo has the ideas and Donnie has the details of how. Leo is wise and relies on ninja training while Donnie is smart and relies on technology. Leo being the oldest and he has to deal with a lot of things. Donnie is the third oldest and Raph is the second oldest. Donnie has picked some of the behavioral habits of Leo and Raph perspectively such as Leo's perfectionism and Raph's habits of erupting, sarcasm, or even challenging his leadership.
A lot of people seem disappointed about not much Leo & Donnie on-screen (I feel the same way), but keep in mind that we only see the exciting parts of the group's lives and they are the two responsible ones. So basically, Leo is wrapped up in leading and calling the shots while Donnie is busy thinking and finding solutions. Also, they respect each other's space, so there is little to no conflict in their downtime like there is with Raph or Mikey getting into trouble or annoying people. Also, also, they are both introverts, so neither one actively seeks out attention in their downtime. They do their own things. Raph and Mikey are both extroverts, so most of the fun downtime moments involve them. So, yeah. It's not the writing. They would have had more fun moments like what we wanted to see BEFORE the fate of the world rested on their shells. But the series takes place right when they're introduced to life or death peril, so we see two highly responsible introverts constantly trying to save the day. Annnnnnnnnd, if you want to look at it from another perspective... Leo has adopted the birth order role of "oldest" while Donnie has adopted the birth order role of "second oldest." This makes Leo the parent when no parent is present while Donnie has a desire to help and support the oldest while in the parent role. They really do have AMAZING family dynamics in this series that I have yet to see in any other cartoon.
@@musicalhearts2879 I'm looking at birth order theory in psychology. The eldest typically demonstrates a desire to take care of the younger siblings to the extent of filling in a parent role. The second eldest shies away from the parent role but is not only willing take up the caretaker role in the absence of the parent(s) and eldest, but also has a strong tendency to help and support the eldest. This is precisely the behaviors we see in these two characters (Leo & Donny). Mikey demonstrates the birth order role of the youngest which entails a mentality of being taken care of. The youngest can be more carefree (or even careless depending on personality) because there is always someone else to take care of any problems that occur. This leaves Raph at 3rd in line by default. This is reinforced by the fact that he does demonstrate more maturity than Mikey but less than Leo and Donny. But what about "the middle child"? In birth order theory, this is the sibling who is not the eldest or youngest and is typically the the one who gets overlooked. They are also typically the peacekeepers. The closest to this role is Donny, though the peacekeeping aspect isn't demonstrated that much. Part of the reason he doesn't is because Donny and Raph have polar opposite personalities. So Donny doesn't have a desire to peacekeep with the sibling (Raph) who is the cause of most of the sibling tension (due to Raph's heightened emotions and emotional outlit being aggression which drives Donny up the wall). The coolest thing about their birth order roles is that they developed naturally. Master Splinter never gave an age order to his adopted sons. He let their personalities determine that. That's a VERY wise decision to make if given such an opportunity. I... didn't mean to nerd out like that. 😳🤓 The characters in this series are just so well-written that it allows me to analyze them in great depth. And I didn't even get to personally types! I love this show!!!😃😃😃
@@liyah7285 True! However, I think that had more to do with paralleling the opening to series that first aired back in the 80s. I don't remember the character writing in that series, so I'm not sure if family roles were reflected or not. Which means... I must do research... 🤔
@@TentenchiAMVs I suppose that’s fair actually. Thanks for taking the time to explain that to me! Don’t apologize for “nerding out”. It’s fun to discuss things. I certainly do it a lot.
I really wish we got to see more of their dynamic in the show, the writers seemed way too focused on Raph & Leo + Donnie & April. They're such an underrated duo, glad Rise gave them justice
@@emptinessitself i'd like to think they would be equally as unhinged as their rise counterparts, but i also know it's pretty hard to reach the disaster twins level of chaotic energy. still pretty close, though.
@@silverdrag0n_ yeah, I mean, if Leo and Donnie will work together and/or being mad that Raph and/or Mikey got hurt they really CAN reach level of chaos of disaster twins (I mean, Donnie nearly did while wanting to kill Vizioso)
3:26 THIS IS WHERE THE AUDIO CAME FROM?? WHY DIDN'T I KNOW ABOUT THIS UNTIL NOW- 12:18 "Splinter's instructions were very clear. We're supposed to stay away from people. And bathrooms."
I like how this shows why they but heads so much. Donnie is the brains of the operation, but he's so smart he's indecisive. Where Leo is the leader so he tries to make snap judgements, but needs Donnie in order to make the right decision. Their conflict is one of necessity for both of them and their family. But it also shows their vaste respect for the other. They both know they need each other in order to make it out alive. And it's made clear that every spat they have never actually bothers the other, because they know where the other is coming from. In short they're two bros that love each other very much, but spend the majority bickering because they respect each other's judgement.
This is one of the most underrated relationships in the show If you notice any time Leo gets an option to pick a partner he always goes with Donnie It makes sense while Donnie is clearly the genius Leo is the second smartest of the group it’s like Logic vs Strategic ability Intelligence vs Common sense the two hold each other to extremely high standards because at the end of the day they’re the two most important members of the team while Ralph is the physically strongest and toughest he’s brash and impulsive Mikey is the most talented agile and the heart of the team but all that being said it’s Leo and Donnie that consistently save the day and it’s implied that they’re pretty close off screen despite being depicted as fighting quite a bit
i feel like one of the only ones who loves the dynamic between these two in 2012. yes, i do get upset when leo puts donnie under so much pressure without really being very apologetic about it, but i think he was always hard on the others and himself because he held himself to such high expectations because he was leader. honestly their dynamic is really entertaining
1:54 he just likes to be accurate guys 🤓🤓 2:04 THE SMILE 💀💀💀 2:35 in shorter matters it tastes like dog water 2:56 his little grumpy walk/stomp 3:37: WHY WAS IT SO LONG 3:50 😮Hey coins😃
I love that Rise made up for all the dynamic 2012 Donnie and Leo were missing. Like the 2012 Donnie and Leo were barely close, they had probably only 2-3 heart to heart moments in the entire series, and that really saddens me. Most of the screentime they had together was just Leo criticising Donnie's works or ordering him to do stuff, and whereas other brother dynamics like Leo and Mikey or Donnie and Raph still had quite a lot of actual bonding, they were just kind of always in each others faces. Often times it was just a lot of verbal arguing and not really anything physical, but they have no particular bond that really makes up for it. Prime example is probably s2 e2, where they were fighting the Squirrelanoids (?), and you could see Raph and Mikey genuinely bonding in this, but Donnie and Leo were just completing their mission. It saddens me because I would have loved to see more of them in 2012. Edit: It saddens me even more that I can't mention my appreciation for Rise having dynamics that 2012 was lacking in without this turning into another "which version was better" war. I don't care which version you like best. My mistake for comparing these two I guess.
I feel like the writers focused more on “siblings fighting” part of their relationships rather then…ya know..an actual sibling relationship. Like I get it, siblings fight, but not like how the turtles fight, it’s more so playful bickering/annoying each other but there’s no actual hostility, the ‘12 turtles *bully* each other most of the time, I think the writers just thought it funny.
@@secretskele1045 Yeah, I agree, while there was some hostility between me and one of my older brothers for a few years, that was mostly because he had to walk through my room to get to his and then we'd constantly annoy each other, but that got a lot better once my brother moved rooms. We actually get along very well now. But the turtles are always in each other's faces and they're always so hostile towards each other, it sometimes doesn't really feel like they actually love each other.
@@secretskele1045 i hear this a lot about the 2012 turtles especially but kinda disagree with this? i had an older brother and our fights were *really* bad, so i found the fights between the brothers kinda relatable. we're both chill now but i think sibling fights vary from person to person lol, especially when ur ninja mutants trying to save the world multiple times
I always think that the only reason why sometimes 2012 series feels a bit odd is because how the writings can be a little bit unbalanced at times. sibling fights are normal, but the way the writers handled it can be a bit too much. hence why people keep bringing up the fact about how Mikey is abused by his brothers. which I personally think it's dumb
I'll get hate for this but rise of the tmnt was the worse tmnt TV series and it's cancelation furthers my point. I'll take the 2003 and 2012 approach any day over how underwhelming rise was.
I never saw Leo and Donnie as mean to each other, they didn’t have a special bond like Leo had with Ralph and Mikey but they clearly respected each other. Leo whenever he needed something was always quick to turn to Donnie something he doesn’t do to any other turtle. The reason Leo will get stressed and pressure Donnie sometimes is usually because Leo in this show much like 2003 doesn’t like not being able to act and having to rely on others, like the episode he realized they couldn’t infiltrate Shredders Lair as a team so he wanted to do it alone for instance. But if he’s in circumstances where he can’t think of anything it makes him panic and crack down harder on Donnie sometimes because Donnie IS his last resort for tactics, not Ralph or Mikey. Outside of that tho, Leo and Donnie don’t have much in common, the only reason Rise can have Leo and Donnie moments is simply because Leo doesn’t have a leadership position anymore so he’s free to really interact with his brothers in ways he couldn’t before. But as a result I think Ralph gets less moments with Donnie although I could be mistaken on that
yea thats how i always saw it to... I dont think Leo belittles Donny perse. For me i put it this way.... Leo is a mix of donny's smarts, raph's strenght, and mikeys natural talent. So when he needs someone to come up with a plan he knows that donny is quite literally the only other strategist on the team and since Donny is technically and scientifically gifted, Leo NEEDS donny to " get them places, or make the right weapon".
I believe in the beginning of the show, the 2012 series did a good job of allowing each Turtle to interact with one another, but it slowly started to die off as the series progressed and each Turtle would only really stick with another
I personally think it depends really, but you got a point. there isn't much going on in season 1 so the writers still have space to make them interact with each other more. season 2 onwards however, they literally have to jump left and right to get on with the plot. it was heavily plot driven, which makes sense but thus makes it hard to find a time for them to actually interreacting but that doesn't mean we didn't see many of them, like these videos I compiled. each seasons have their fair amount of moments, the difference here is that season 1 moments usually longer while the others are not
Their dynamic is great, both are people who have to figure out solutions. Donnie handles with the tech stuff, and Leo with the leadership and team planning stuff.
always saw leo have a closer bond with raph cause they were both the fighters of the team but then again donnie and him are the thinkers of the team. Also because leo is just a balance of brain and brawn he buttsheads with both of them even if he is not the same type of brains and brawns as either
I feel like Leo is the middle ground of the team. He's strong but not as strong as Raph, he's smart but has not as smart as Don, and he's incredibly agile but not as agile Mikey
I get what people say about Leo being mean but I think it really just comes from a place of respect. He knows he can count on Donnie but also puts too much pressure on him because of it.
"WHY DIDN'T U TELL ME?!" "well, bc i wanted us to fail.... OBVIOUSLY I DIDN'T KNOW!" lol this is my favorite lines from them both! also the "how can they see us donnie?! idk, let me text them and find out!" i can't 😭😂 (edit)
i think Leo and Donnie are probably a lot closer than some of these moments indicate. i mean sure they clash sometimes, but those clashes are never really personal. it's usually about what to do in situations where everything's on the line. that's just a product of interdependent roles and responsibilities. so if anyone's supposed to be having those disputes, it's *them*. sure there's not a lot of heart-to-heart moments between the two, but that's because they don't really need to have them. you never have to ask yourself if they're actually on the same team (as opposed to all the heated moments with Raphael).
@@bonddragon9944 my main argument is that their conflicts are ones of absolute necessity whereas conflicts with Raphael are a lot more personal. you don't see them hugging it out or anything like that because you don't need to. there's never a moment where their loyalty/regard for each other is in question. i mean it's possible and probably likely that they don't open up to each other enough but this is an action-adventure show we're talking about.
1:08 was the best scene ever! The fact that Leo was cared about Mikey getting hurt,and that he never wants to get mikey injured - he was being so protective of his little brother,and that warms my heart🥹
Donnie-“really special” Leo- “ok I’m gonna regret this but why is he special Donnie” Donnie- “because I outfited him with a remote control camera helmet” Leo- “well that explains why your special” GOT ME DEAD-
@@paprika059 I read the wiki, because the first actor made controversial jokes and was fired, don't know abou the second one before they changed to seth.
just wanna say thank u for doing these sibling videos for all of the brothers! i've been really enjoying watching all of them and seeing all the funny moments all of them have :)
9:00 was just so heartbreaking💔 If Leo haven’t fought the shredder,he wouldn’t have lost his old voice. Leo was my favorite turtle out of all of them since he was just confident. He stood out of all the brothers,he was just an amazing turtle.
I like this take on Donnie more. He's Donnie but he's not afraid to step up and challenge Leo as a leader and take on the leader role himself. Which is why he and Leo clash in the way that they do. Unlike Leo and Raph's relationship being Raph feeling petty towards Leo. Donnie legit just feels there's some things he'd do better or differently.
I love their duo ppl say that they r toxic I feel like Leo doesn’t mean to put a lot of pressure on him, you can tell he feel rlly bad abt it (still he shud be more mindful of it) other than that I love how they show little wholesome moments like these
10:44 Anybody notice a change in expression in fugetoid as Leo and Don complain about space travel? EDIT: 13:13 this oughta be the freakiest moment I’ve seen.
They are the smartest ones, they arent agree most of the time, but we can see how they can get along pretty well when no one put the stress of being the genious/leader on their shoulders
yeahh i used to dislike leo when i was younger because i thought he was too mean to donnie. this video reminded me why i felt like that lmao. but hey they’re still brothers at the end of the day 😭
I swear if i was donnie i would cry everyday. Like i would diffuse the bombs crying, build metalhead crying, decrypt kirby's message to april crying. Like damn i respect donnie for being smart and all that, but my man needs a break.
