Splinter... A mutant all along?

[Leonardo]

There's a rumor that Splinter may have been a mutant way before he made contact with the turtles and the mutagen. Eastman and Laird have actually both hinted this possibility from what I've read.

So then... Was Splinter born an abnormally smart and adaptable rat? Was he originally a lab rat that under went minor mutation?

The origin of Splinter is perhaps the biggest mistery in the TMNT universe.

[leonardo the 2nd]

But if Splinter would have been a rat and not an human, wouldn't the turtles be a mixture of turtle and rat instead of turtle and human then?

[Leonardo]

I'm not refering to the Splinter from the original animated series. I'm refering to the Splinter from the Mirage comics, movies, and new animated series.

Also, the mutagen (not the kind from the oldschool series) doesn't deliberantly change a creature into human-like form. And the mutagen doesn't get effected by organisms (It only effects organisms). What it does is it hyper evolves a creature through millions of years of evolution within a short period of years. The TMNT "evolved" to suit their enviroment. That's why they're humanoid.

[KROW]

I have no clear answer for this. The best I can deduce is that Splinter was a normal rat that was specially trained like any other pet could be. Maybe the peaceful environment Hamato Yoshi provided in their home allowed Splinter's mind to absorb and expand and take in more knowledge.

*shrugs*

[Ra]

Krow's is probably the one to go with here unless/until stated otherwise in the comic. Hamato Yoshi was a peaceful man, so you have a peaceful enviroment to go with him. Besides, I'm pretty sure Splinter was a highly intellegent rat to begin with, experimented with or not. Some animals are natually smart. My dog, for example, is as smart as hell, and all my family and myself had done was encourage her wit. Now we swear she is nearly human; my dad caught her moving her mouth, trying to speak. Maybe it was the same with Hamato and Splinter

[leonardo the 2nd]

I don't know the mirage comix...

[shellsweet]

i donno! now its confused me! but i have to go with the smart pet rat story! i mean my dog is smart! so who knows!

[Raven]

I never really got how Splinter could just suddendly start teaching him self what Hamato was doing, I just could never buy that idea.

But if he was already a mutant then that would make perfect sence....I say this because every animal I have every been around is....um not that smart.....(such as my cat running into walls head first.....)

[KROW]

raven said:

I never really got how Splinter could just suddendly start teaching him self what Hamato was doing, I just could never buy that idea.

Yeah, I never bought it, either. I actually liked Splinter's origin in the old toon better; it just made more sense than the Mirage version.

On the other hand, the Japanese have been known to train animals to do the darndest things. Perhaps ninjitsu was what Yoshi tried teaching Splinter, instead of finding items in a maze or trying to communicate with electronic buttons.