how was Raph doing it selfishly? Also why canβt Leo being in the wrong for once? Leo was being a hypocrite Raph was doing the same thing he was. Raph wasnβt being selfish.
I explained in the last post how he was doing selfishly!
For this ask I'll take my time to say I never once said Leo did no wrong. Leo did a LOT wrong. He handled things very poorly and could have, and should have done things much better as a leader AND a brother.
There's the "straight up ditching his family for a whole extra year", but for now I'll leave that issue alone and there's at least a reason for that. He deemed himself a failure unworthy of going home. He knew he'd have to go back and tell his whole family he, the great Leonardo, failed in a major task his father hyped him up for. It was shame, and embarrassment, and he couldn't face them. Plus, "these people need me more than my brothers anyway", he literally thought his family was better off without him.
Plus, Leo went through absolute Hell on that year adventure? Straight up torture and had a mental crises because he saw humanity at it's worst first hand? Like to some degree I kinda can't blame him for his mindset being absolutely fucked because he was processing a LOT.
Still, that doesn't make what he put his family through in his absence okay. While I synthase with that feeling of being unwanted and unneeded, Leo's self loathing and probably newfound trauma shouldn't be the reason others suffer.
What I will call out is how Leo handled being home, specifically concerning Raph. He did just straight up try act like he never left and my boy, not on. As Raph said, he couldn't just leave for two years, come back without much of an explanation as to where the Hell he was, clap his hands and go "Alright guys, back to work. =D" because that's NOT how that works and that's VERY unfair to everyone else. Everyone else, who first has to adapt to the return of the brother whose absence they built their lives around because they didn't even know if he was coming back at all, then was expected to just pick up a life they hadn't touched in two years like it was yesterday.
Not how that works and Leo should have known better. I know he was dealing with a lot but he handled things in very unhealthy ways. Immediately taking them topside the DAY he returns to "get back to it" was dumb as Hell. That was only asking for a disaster and the fact it turned out as one was on him. No, Raph being a shithead wasn't but did Leo just expect for HIM ESPECIALLY to follow his orders perfectly when he never even did that before he left??
He also kinda acted like his brother's anger towards him was unwarranted when it absolutely was. I understand Leo's reasonings for not returning home but after seeing firsthand the mess his absence caused I feel like he should have really worked to try fix it. Not.. avoid the issue, pretend it didn't even happen and get defensive whenever it's brought up. Because while I understand Leo was really suffering as well, his brothers suffered SO MUCH and he never even apologized that we saw. Because he just wanted to act like nothing happened, his brothers don't get that closure nor that reassurance. They're just expected to act like their two years of Hell didn't happen either.
Very selfish on Leo's part and very unfair to his brothers who didn't even know if he was still alive because he stopped writing(or Splinter started hiding his letters, I dunno there's very fishy stuff happening regarding that as things said about the letters don't add up.)
I feel like EVERYONE would have benefited with Leo confronting what happened and them all talking about it, as then there would have been closure and understanding. All Leo did by dismissing it was act like their feelings on everything that happened didn't matter and that everything was fine. When, it WASN'T fine and Raph was right to be livid about it.
Raph's behaviour in this movie was also very unhealthy and he should have also done better, but I find it hard to blame him. Both Leo and Raph fall victim to the 'not being able to handle difficult feelings in a healthy manner.' Which is a BIG factor on this movie.
Being open and acknowledging all that happened would not have fixed everything and made it right, but it would've been a very healthy start. But no, Leo would rather die than talk about his feelings and express vulnerability.
Then there's the bit where Leo snaps at Raph with the "If you have something you need to get off your shell, now's the time-" which, again, avoiding and dismissing the very real issue, while also kinda implying Raph was 'the weird one' for having much to say, when he SHOUlD have much to say. Also, HE WAS RIGHT. Leo DID go against Splinter's orders for an entire year!
Leo spent a lot of time getting defensive at very justified anger. Then the whole 'going after the Nightwatcher' even though Splinter told him to go get Raph and said nothing about chasing someone else entirely (to his knowledge), BUT Leo is a dumbass that goes on emotion driven solo missions in like every universe SO that's just Leonardo fashion.
The whole fight is its own thing, it was a big clash of all BOTH of their messes colliding, pointing fingers at each other which they were BOTH right for, then there was a whole third party disaster.
The movie plays out, we didn't even really get closure for Leo's side in the end whatsoever, I like to think after the movie they forced answers and a hard talk out of him.
That whole movie is a big "Both Leo and Raph fuck up badly" and I feel like people don't really understand that. They BOTH were in the wrong, that was the whole point.
The only benefit of the doubt I'll give Leo is that throughout the movie Splinter was constantly treating him like shit and he was the one that kinda ramped up the "You're back, now everything is back to normal!" Although Splinter DID specifically say to 'talk to Raphael', and to take it easy until they were back on their feet and Leo did none of that. BUT I also do feel really bad for Leo as Splinter was very unfair to him, and put far too much on him after he was isolating and only just surviving in a jungle alone for two fucking years. Despite everything I said, Leo is very much a victim in all of this, too.
However one thing I'll ALWAYS defend him for, was that Leo was no hypocrite. As I said in the previous post, Raph was doing his vigilante gig out of selfishness when it wasn't needed or appropriated. Leo did it because he thought he had to complete his training(which was VERY understanding considering his circumstances), and it WAS needed and appreciated. Notice the difference between the New Yorkers fearing Raphael because to them he was a threat, but the Costa Ricans respecting Leonardo because to them he was safety.
Leo did it selflessly. Raph did it selfishly. Both coping mechanisms, both acts of avoidance. Only one was for the better good and relied on. THAT'S the difference and I'll take no "Leo's a hypocrite". He made a lot of mistakes in this movie but that was something he had right.
He saw a threat to New York and sought to get rid of it. That was their job, after all.
