Takeshi (2012 TV series)

"This is the Foot Clan you promised me? I must say Master Shredder, I am disappointed."

- Tiger Claw speaking to Shredder

Tiger Claw is a Mutant tiger assassin/bounty hunter, who becomes an ally of The Shredder and an enemy of the Turtles in the 2012 animated series.

History
Tiger Claw was mutated as a young Japanese boy and grew up as a circus performer, before becoming a part of the criminal underworld. Decades ago in a Kraang experiment, he was exposed to their mutagen and thus transformed into a tiger mutant. Tiger Claw worked as an assassin and mercenary and earned such a good reputation that the Shredder eventually hired him. He has excellent Martial Art skills and is also the Shredder's most dreaded, yet revered assassin and bounty hunter from Japan (Shredder finds him on his journey to Japan and enlists him as his newest henchman). During his career Tiger Claw lost his tail during a duel with a rival who took it as a trophy, and Tiger Claw has been relentlessly searching for the person who took it from him with a vow to make him pay. He has traveled many lands - and his weapons are only prizes of his conquests. He Might be Hamato Yoshi's youngest brother

In the episode "The Manhattan Project, Part 1", Shredder returns from his sojourn in Japan for a few months, only to reveal that he brought back Tiger Claw, whom he calls the "most feared assassin in all of Asia". Instantly, Karai is dismissive of him, and her feelings turn even more sour once Shredder tells her that he will be replacing her with Tiger Claw as his brand new second-in-command.

The Shredder tells Tiger Claw to find and capture Splinter and the Turtles, commanding Karai to follow Tiger Claw's orders...Tiger Claw quickly locates and fights the Turtles, and he ultimately forces them to call upon Splinter by threatening to kill Michelangelo. Splinter arrives and seems to have the upper hand throughout most of the battle, but he is then shot in the neck by Karai's poison dart. With his final ounces of strength, Splinter throws Shuriken at the ropes binding his sons and tells them to flee immediately.

Tiger Claw and Karai then take an unconscious Splinter back to Foot Headquarters, and Tiger Claw pours a bucket of water on him to wake him up. The Shredder prepares to execute the rat, when Karai convinces him to let him meet his end in combat and with honor. With some persuading from Tiger Claw, The Shredder agrees. The Turtles soon regroup and interrupt, brawling with The Foot to save Splinter.

Following the Turtles, Tiger Claw, Karai, Rahzar, and Fishface quickly catch up and attack all of them on a rooftop. During the fight, Tiger Claw is knocked onto a fire escape. When he leaps back up to get back into the fight, he seemingly meets his demise when he falls into the huge mouth of a Kraathatrogon that April and Casey had just ridden up to the surface before being pulled through the portal and into the 1987 TMNT's universe.

In The Wrath of Tiger Claw he returned from other dimensions having fought numerous enemies. Due to the battles he fought he now has an eye patch over his left eye and his right ear has been torn. He now wants revenge on the turtles and there allies. The Shredder orders him and Karai to find the turtles and Splinter and destroy them. While running along the rooftops Tiger Claw tells Karai why Shredder sent her with him, because she knows where they hang out and who there friends are. They head to Murakami's restaurant where they attack him and threaten him for information on where the turtles live, Murakami tells them he doesn't know where they live and Karai objects to what there doing stating "there's no honor in this" while Tiger Claw states "i did not come here for honor". Later when the turtles returned to the restaurant they found the place trashed by Tiger Claw. Later Casey and April and Irma leave a movie theater, April then senses someone is following them, so all three split up. Tiger Claw goes after Casey, while Casey tries to fight him off Tiger Claw turns out to be too strong for him and throws Casey off the building they were fighting on.Later when Karai has convinced the turtles too take her to the lair she activates a tracking device that will allow him to find them, but having finally learned the truth about her father Karai then makes a plan to lure him away from the lair. While following the tracking device Michaelangelo thinks of a place where they can lead him, they lead Tiger Claw to a butcher's shop. While in the meat locker the turtles attack him, but he takes the fight into the shop where they fight. Tiger Claw beats the turtles then offers Karai the chance to finish them off, she then turns against him and attacks, she is defeated by Tiger Claw and then held hostage by him. He threatens to kill her if the turtles dont let him go, and so they do and he escapes with karai.

Appearances

 * "The Manhattan Project, Part 1"
 * "The Manhattan Project, Part 2"
 * "The Wrath of Tiger Claw"

Gadgets
Tiger Claw has a big sword sharp & ready for hand-to-hand combat, but his two main weapons of choice are modified pistols which can blast both red lasers and freeze rays - and he also has nets for capturing his adversaries. Tiger Claw also has a jetpack on his back for both evasion and escape.

Trivia

 * Tiger Claw in Japanese is Tora No Tsume, which is also a type of katana sword.
 * In The Wrath of Tiger Claw Tiger Claw returns from another dimension after being swallowed and taken there by a Kraathatrogon in the episode The Manhattan Project. Escaping the Kraathatrogon by cutting it open and fighting his way through multiple dimensions to get back, in the process he lost his left eye and had his right ear torn.

Gallery
Tiger Claw/Gallery