Tokka and Rahzar
| Tokka and Rahzar | |
|---|---|
| Publication information | |
| First appearance | Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze |
| Created by |
Kevin Eastman Stephen R. Bissette |
| In-story information | |
| Team affiliations | Foot Clan |
| Abilities |
Tokka Enhanced strength Razor sharp claws and teeth Spines on shell Rahzar Enhanced strength Enhanced sences Razor sharp claws and teeth |
Tokka and Rahzar are two fictional mutant villains in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comics and all related media.[1] They first appeared in the 1991 film Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze. Rahzar was played by Mark Ginther and Tokka was played by Kurt Bryant. They were both voice-acted by Frank Welker.
The design of Tokka in the movie was inspired by the drawings of comic book artist and writer Stephen R. Bissette.
Film
When The Shredder found out that the substance that mutated the Turtles had been created by TGRI (Techno-Global Research Industries), he sent his Foot Soldiers to steal the ooze and kidnap head TGRI scientist, Professor Jordan Perry. Shredder instructs Perry to use the ooze to mutate an Alligator Snapping Turtle and a Gray Wolf (kidnapped from the Bronx Zoo) which resulted in the creation of Tokka and Rahzar. However, Jordan had secretly altered the mutagen, and as a result, the two mutants had the intelligence of human infants. Saki ordered the monsters to face him in battle, to teach them who their master was, the infantile mutants misinterpreted the word "master", thinking it meant "mamma" and hugged him instead. Angered, Shredder ordered them to be destroyed, but Perry had sympathy for them and showed Saki their total obedience to him and that, as they were "playing" in the junkyard, partially lifting a skid steer, they had great strength. This prompted Shredder to keep them alive.
Despite their low intelligence, the two mutants' incredible physical strength made them more than a match for the Turtles. On their first encounter at Shredder and Tatsu's junkyard base, the Turtles were ill-prepared and barely managed to escape when trying to save their brother Raphael from capture and rescue Dr. Perry. During the escape they trapped Tokka in a manhole from the waist down. Michaelangelo teased Tokka and tickled the bottom of the snapper's clawed feet. April O'Neil was confronted by the Foot with a message for the Turtles: If they didn't meet the Foot at a construction site near the docks, Shredder would set Tokka and Rahzar out again into Central Park. As many people would get hurt, The Turtles and Splinter agreed that there was no other choice but to face Shredder. But the professor had a plan; with the help of Donatello and Keno, Dr. Perry prepared an anti-mutagen to de-mutate Tokka and Rahzar, which had to be ingested.
During their second encounter at the construction site, amidst a distraction, Leonardo and Michaelangelo trick Tokka and Rahzar into eating the antidote (they froze the concoction into ice cubes and then hid them in a box of donuts, which they then offered to the two mutants as the "ritual of the traditional pre-fight donut"). Rahzar and Tokka devoured some of the donuts with continued coaxing from the Turtles. Surprisingly, Rahzar, regardless of his infant-like mentality, figured that something was wrong with the situation, and crushed one of the donuts in his claw, to discover the anti-mutagen cube. Enraged, Tokka and Rahzar smashed Michaelangelo through a wall and into the Dockshore Club interrupting a crowded dance concert by Vanilla Ice.
As the final showdown commenced at the club, Leo and Raph were fending off Rahzar and Tokka's snapping attacks. Dr. Perry informed them that their repeated burping was slowing the anti-mutagen and that carbon dioxide was needed to speed up the demutation. The Turtles knocked their foes off their feet and flat on their backs with a couple of barrels they found somewhere in the concert, and then the turtles shoved fire extinguishers into the creatures' mouths, which administered the needed carbon dioxide to reverse the mutation. Finally, the antidote took effect and the two mutants returned to their normal animal forms. What happened to them after this is unknown, though it is most likely that they could've been sent back to the Bronx Zoo.
1987 cartoon series
Tokka and Rahzar only appeared once in the seventh season of the 1987 cartoon series. In 1993, they were featured in the season 7 episode "Dirk Savage: Mutant Hunter". They were out-of-control mutants created when the Shredder exposed zoo animals to mutagen years earlier (whether this refers to when he created Bebop and Rocksteady or Groundchuck and Dirtbag, is not made clear).
Not long after their first battle with the Turtles at the Crystal Palace Mall, they were captured by Dirk Savage. The animated versions were more intelligent and more eloquent, particularly Rahzar. Rahzar states to Tokka, "...You are my only friend."
Tokka has a very uncontrolled appetite which leads him into Dirk Savage's trap which consists of a buffet. The Snapper gets captured by the Mutant Hunter after he devours the smorgasbord. Even though Rahzar made a big deal of his friend being captured, and he was shown attacking Dirk later on, it was never shown if he ever got reunited with Tokka, even after the bad guys were defeated.
Their look in the cartoon was very much like that of their action figures, made two years prior to their cartoon appearance.
In this episode, their names were spelled Toka and Razar.
Toka was voiced by Rob Paulsen while Razar was voiced by Townsend Coleman.
Comics
Tokka and Razhar appeared in two non-canon stories in the Turtle Soup limited series. Tokka was April O'Neil's pet snapping turtle who bit Raphael and became Tokka due to Raphael's mutagen blood. Razhar was a mutated dog created by Krang.
In the current TMNT comic series, published by IDW, Slash bears resemblance to Tokka.
Turtles Forever
During the course of Turtles Forever, Ch'rell the Utrom Shredder uses mutagen obtained from the universe of the 1987 animated series to mutate his human troops, with two of these mutated soldiers taking on forms identical to Tokka and Rahzar. However, they are later dispatched by the 2003 incarnations of Donatello and Raphael with the aid of the 1987 Party Wagon.[2]
2012 series
With Tokka held back, Rahzar is the only known character of the duo who appeared in the 2012 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series, voiced by Clancy Brown.
Despite being introduced as a mutated gray wolf in most incarnations, this one introduced him as Chris Bradford, a celebrity martial artist who is secretly the Shredder's greatest student, armed with a 3,000-year old katana and owning a chain of dojos across the country for the purpose of recruiting Foot Soldiers. Shredder confided in Bradford his twisted version of his past regarding his deceased love Tang Shen, painting Hamato Yoshi as the one who betrayed their friendship. Bradford grew to respect Yoshi, acknowledging he was as powerful as his master, but believed he would never go through with killing his enemy.
He first appeared in "New Friend, Old Enemy," where he was sent by Shredder to kill Yoshi and his sons, tricking Michelangelo into a faux friendship to get to them. Bradford revealed his deception when he captured the turtle, sparking a bitter hatred from him. After the plot failed, Shredder became enraged at his lieutenant's incompetence.
In "The Gauntlet," Bradford was prepared to die with honor than continue his life of shame when confronting the Turtles near a Kraang mutagen bomb with fellow Foot member Xever. The bomb was defused, but Bradford thrusted his sword into it, and the mutagen inside is emptied and washed onto both him and Xever off the building. As the result of previously being bitten by Shredder's pet akita Hatchiko, Bradford mutated into a 8-foot-tall humanoid mutant akita with a spiked back, a large left arm, heightened senses and superhuman strength that Michelangelo dubbed Dogpound, distracting Shredder and inadvertedly saving the Turtles from him. Dogpound is not entirely without scruples, despite being a high-ranking member of the Foot Clan.
In "Baxter's Gambit," He and Xever (whose mutated form Michelangelo dubbed Fishface) pushed Baxter Stockman too far that Stockman trapped both them and the Turtles in a labyrinth filled with deadly traps and foes to kill them all. In response, Dogpound and Fishface were left with no other option but to ally with the Turtles in order to get out of the maze alive, accepting Leonardo's leadership in their effort. When they defeated Stockman, the two groups intend to renew their fight, but being exhausted from the day's trials, they agreed to simply give up for the day.
In "The Pulverizer Returns," Dogpound found himself on the bad end of several vicious beatings from his master. He admitted he has been recruiting virtually anyone to join the Foot, regardless of their skill. When a scheme to develop mutated super soldiers failed thanks to the Turtles, Dogpound received more abuse, and observed the advent of an alliance of the Foot Clan with the Kraang.
In "Showdown," Dogpound retold the Shredder's backstory to Fishface, and was easily defeated by the invading Splinter.
In "Mikey Gets Shellacne," Dogpound expresses great disdain with his mutated form, lamenting the loss of his agility. He has also lost his rank as second-in-command, with Karai being placed in charge of the Foot while Shredder is away. Dogpound finds hope when he is ordered to forcibly return Stockman to the Foot, believing the scientist can turn him human again. However, Dogpound ended up falling into Stockman's vat of mutagen, undergoing a painful secondary mutation into a lean and bony mutant werewolf-like version of his previous muted form with amazing agility and canine claw projection that Michelangelo dubbed Rahzar. Having regained his speed and stealth, and retained his strength, he proceeded with attacking the Turtles, but got electrocuted instead.
In "The Manhattan Project," he welcomed Tiger Claw into the Foot upon the Shredder's return from Japan, congratulating him on his capture of Splinter. Upon his introduction to his subordinate's new form, Shredder only briefly commented that he looks terrible.
"The Lonely Mutation of Baxter Stockman," Rahzar witnessed Shredder mutating Stockman into Stockman-Fly, gleeful at the fate that befell his hated comrade. When he learned of Donatello's retro-mutagen, Rahzar attempted to claim it to become human again (while he was comfortable with his Rahzar form, he would prefer to be human again), but failed.
In "The Legend of the Kuro Kabuto," Rahzar took part in the massive hunt for the Shredder's stolen helmet, forming a sincere friendship with Tiger Claw, despite the disparity in their species (Rahzar identifying himself as a dog), and it is later revealed that Rahzar holds command whenever Tiger Claw is absent, making him Shredder's third-in-command.
In "The Invasion," he joined in the Kraang-Foot invasion of New York, but was defeated by Michelangelo, who tossed a couch on him.
In "Vision Quest," Rahzar appeared as a vision to attack Michelangelo.
In "Serpent Hunt," he took part in another hunt to find Karai, only to come into conflict with Ivan Steranko and Anton Zeck, who he helped Shredder subdue and mutate into Bebop and Rocksteady.
In "Casey Jones Vs. the Underworld," Rahzar battled Casey Jones several times during a search for chemicals and chastised the boy for casually identifying himself to the Foot.
Games
Although the old TMNT videogames are based on the 1987 cartoon version of the franchise, and the first game listed here came out in 1991, two years before Tokka and Rahzar appeared on that show, the two mutants are nonetheless part of three of the games.
They are in both versions of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles in Time once again voiced by Frank Welker. In the original arcade version, they are the bosses of the pirate ship level, while in the Super NES version, they have been moved to the new Technodrome level. They are paired together as a double-boss. They can team up in their attacks in the SNES version; one of their moves involves Tokka withdrawing into his shell and Rahzar hopping on top and riding around the screen chaotically like a skateboard. Their low intelligence from the movie is also included in the game: they will often accidentally hit each other instead of the player, and will take damage for it. In the Super Nintendo Version, Tokka is also able to use an ice breath attack, while Rahzar uses a fire breath attack. Just like in the movie, when the player defeats them in the game, they de-mutate to normal animals. It is possible to attack Rahzar after he has de-mutated. He makes a 'Yelp' sound. Also, in the game, their names have the spelling of the movie, not the later spelling of the TV show. The Super NES version borrows a quote from the movie which Tokka and Rahzar said, right before the fight: "Master say have fun." "FUN!" In the movie, they say this when they're tearing up a backstreet to lure the Turtles into a confrontation.
They also made an appearance in the NES game Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III: The Manhattan Project. Here you must fight them as separate bosses. Rahzar appears in the Technodrome level immediately before Shredder, and uses an ice breath attack. Tokka appears as the boss of the rooftop level and carries a shield for blocking jump kicks. Plus, there was an electric billboard in the background and Tokka would be able to uppercut you into it, making you take double damage. Also, in this game Rahzar's name is spelled Rahzer.
They also return in the modern remake Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles in Time Re-Shelled for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. They again are featured as a double-boss in the pirate ship level.
References
External links
- Dirk Savage: Mutant Hunter at the Official Ninja Turtles website.
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