In Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, April O'Neil is the Ninja Turtles' first human ally and friend.
Physical appearance
April O'Neil is a teenage black girl with curly burgundy hair styled in two high buns with bangs, black eyes, dark brown skin, and a thin figure. She wears a long yellow t-shirt and a cropped green varsity jacket with 3/4 sleeves and a button closure (typically found on the right side). Her jacket has light green trim and a "5" print over its heart and back. She wears black capri leggings, yellow high-top sneakers, a black choker around her neck, and a pair of red cat-eye glasses with yellow lenses.
In "The Purple Game", her pajamas consist of a blue graphic t-shirt with a pink cat face on the front and yellow sleeves, a pair of green cuffed sweatpants, blue socks, and a green satin headscarf.
In the third part of the season 2 finale, "Anatawa Hitorijanai", April wears a green double-slit dress under a cropped yellow zip hoodie with white accents and long black fingerless gloves paired with her usual black capri leggings and yellow high-tops. She also styles her hair in a high ponytail, tied back with a yellow hair tie, rather than in a pair of buns.
Personality
April is upbeat, quick-witted, and adventurous. She tends to be a more go-with-the-flow type spirit in the way that she is adaptable and often matches her energy with those around her.
April is shown to be incredibly brave as seen in "The Gumbus" when she was enjoying the fiasco in the Stock & Shop while Michelangelo and Leonardo were freaking out. She is also quick to jump into action. However, while she doesn't like waiting around, she isn't known to be detrimentally impulsive.
She has a selfless and heroic streak such as in "Warren & Hypno, Sitting in a Tree" when she frees Warren Stone from a mystic gauntlet Baron Draxum was trying to collect to ensure he and Hypno-Potamus could stay together. She also has a forgiving nature, befriending and learning to care for Draxum despite all he has done even before most of the Turtles. Although she can be rude at times. Like in "The Fast and the Furriest" when Donatello accuses her of stealing the Turtle Tank and, being annoyed by him and his brothers breaking in and being accused of something she didn't do, uses a bat to get the Turtles out via the window.
April has insecurities as seen when she was trying to sell cookies, but is unable to get customers due to her somber approach. She can be discouraged by repeated failures, but her capacity to self-motivate allows her pick herself up. Even so, she isn't too shy or proud to ask for and accept support from others and regularly leans on those she trusts.
April tends to be more responsible compared to the rest of the Mad Dogs, taking accountability for her actions and trying to heal harm she may have caused more often than them, but is still plenty immature.
Bio
April is a true New Yorker and a real firecracker: upbeat, wisecracking, and confident. As the Turtles' only ally, she loves them like brothers—and along with her pet, Mayhem joins them on all their epic adventures.
Abilities
April is quite agile and powerful on her own. Her fighting style is reminiscent of street fighting and she has a natural talent for improvisation. April has also showcased several ninja skills, such as blending in with her surroundings, acrobatics, and shows signs of being knowledgeable about ninjutsu.
Weapons
- Baseball bat: Her main weapon. It was a normal bat until the events of "Donnie vs. Witch Town", wherein it was infused with the magic inside Gentry's miniature cauldron, thus becoming a mystic weapon.
- Giant spatula: Used in an online motion comic to attack Meat Sweats.
- Smack-a-Vole mallet: Used in "War and Pizza" to attack animatronic voles animated by Albearto.
- Green staff: Used in "Mystic Mayhem" to attack Huginn and Muninn.
- Makeshift "bow and arrows": Used in "The Gumbus" to attack the robotic Gumbus; they are made out of a rolling pin and sausages, respectively.
- Ring blade: "Borrowed" from Hypno-Potamus in "Warren & Hypno, Sitting in a Tree", and used to cut off Warren Stone's arm which contained a gauntlet.
- Mop: Used in "Always Be Brownies" when she was fighting the Brownie Clan.
- Tray: Used in "Always Be Brownies" during her battle against Julia.
- It was revealed in "Cloak and Swaggart" that April has skills in cooking.
Relationships
Family
- April's Parents
- Carol O'Neil: Her mother. Their relationship in depth is currently unknown as of "The Purple Game".
- Mr. O'Neil: Her father. He has never been shown, and their relationship in depth is currently unknown.
- Hamato Clan: She has been a friend of the family for years, but she had become family to the clan long ago. This has allowed April to tap her own Hamato Ninpō power.
- Hamato Karai: In "Anatawa Hitorijanai", Karai reassured April that she had always been part of the family. After Karai died, her spirit resided inside April so that Karai, through April, could help the brothers master the Hamato Ninpō in order to defeat the Shredder.
- Hamato Yoshi / Lou Jitsu / Splinter: They share great chemistry and trust for one another, both as friends and as fellow ninja. April usually addresses Splinter as "Splints." More than once, when Splinter accompanied April to the surface, he disguised himself as a human teenager named Randall. Shadow of Evil Always Be Brownies
- Mad Dogs: The Turtles are April's closest friends and she is like a big sister to them. She often fights alongside them.
- Donatello: April and Donnie are close friends though they do seem to argue regularly, if only to a moderate degree. She often seeks his help with her school and social life despite his propensity to accidentally make her problems worse. War and Pizza The Purple Jacket Donnie vs. Witch Town
- Leonardo: April gets along well with Leo and enjoys his playful nature. Despite being older than him, she doesn't seem to feel compelled to tell him what to do and just lets him do what as he wishes for the most part.
- Michelangelo: April and Mikey are quite sweet towards one another. Mikey loves hanging out with April whenever he has the chance. The GumbusApril and Mikey together are the ones most responsible for helping Baron Draxum adapt to his new life. Repairin' the Baron Mystery Meat
- Raphael: April and Raph have a very good relationship although she is occasionally annoyed by his imagination and high energy. He, as the leader, takes care of her and there seems to be an unspoken understanding between them as the two eldest Mad Dogs and they support one another thoroughly.
- Mayhem: After the events of "Mystic Mayhem", April adopted Mayhem as her pet and he seems to live with her at her apartment. They get along great and when April is in trouble, Mayhem tries his best to find a way to protect her.
Friends and Allies
- Todd Capybara: April and Todd worked together as part of the B-Team in "End Game". Todd later served lemonade to April in "Battle Nexus: New York". His Cuddle Cakes Puppy Rescue was a safe haven for April and the Mad Dogs after the destruction of the lair and during April and Karai's teaching of the Hamato Ninpō to the Mad Dogs.
- Baron Draxum: They started off as enemies throughout season 1. As seen in the season 2 episode "Repairin' the Baron", Draxum moved into the apartment directly above April's in the same building. Once Draxum became a regular part of the family life, he started working at Autry Cafeteria in April's high school. In "Mystery Meat", April is shown to help monitor Draxum's situation, including helping him adapt to his new human workplace, conceal both his Yōkai identity and mystic power, and reel in some of his old bad habits. Over time, April and Draxum were shown to have become unlikely friends and allies with a good working relationship. As friends, April usually addresses Draxum as "Barry" while Draxum usually addresses April simply as "O'Neil".
- Franken-Foot: April and Franken-Foot worked together as part of the B-Team in "End Game".
- Gentry: April befriended Gentry during her visit to Witch Town in "Donnie vs. Witch Town". The mystic power of Gentry's pot accidentally transferred to April's baseball bat, finally giving April a mystic weapon on par with those possessed by the rest of the Mad Dogs.
- Cassandra Jones / Foot Recruit: April and Casey were enemies for most of the series, but Splinter, who had befriended Casey in "Always Be Brownies", tried unsuccessfully to get April and Casey to set aside their differences. April and Casey wouldn't join on the same side until they helped the Hamato Clan destroy the Shredder in "Rise".
- S.H.E.L.L.D.O.N.: April and S.H.E.L.L.D.O.N. worked together as part of the B-Team in "End Game".
- Stanley / Bullhop: April and Bullhop worked together as part of the B-Team in "End Game".
- Sunita: April is Sunita's friend and lab partner in biology class ever since she enrolled in her school. Like April, Sunita also wants some "normalcy" in her life, despite being a Yōkai concealed in the human world. They share a love of unicorns and hang out regularly. Operation: Normal Cloak and Swaggart
Enemies
- Albearto: April fought Albearto when he came to life and terrorized several children at Timmy’s birthday party. War and Pizza
- Big Mama: April, Draxum, Foot Recruit, Splinter, Todd and New York City's entire population were trapped inside the Mystic Orb in "Battle Nexus: New York". After Draxum helped April, Foot Recruit and Splinter to escape, April helped the group oppose Big Mama.
- Foot Clan: April was unwittingly working for them as an employee of the Foot Shack. However, upon learning the true nature of her employers, she aided Splinter in his attempt to keep a piece of the Kuroi Yōroi out of the Foot’s possession.
- Foot Brute and Foot Lieutenant: April's one-time employers at the Foot Shack. Shadow of Evil
- Oroku Saki / The Shredder April cooperated with Casey, Draxum, and the combined Hamato Clan to finally destroy the Shredder. Rise
- Kendra: April has known Kendra since kindergarten and seems to dislike her, labeling her as a "stuck-up jerk" along with the rest of her club members. However, her and Kendra's personal history beyond that is currently unknown. The Purple Jacket
- Mezmer-Ron / Hypno-Potamus: April confronted Hypno-Potamus during his attempt to make her high school disappear. Hypno! Part Deux But later helped him rescue his, in her own words, "best friend/roommate/it’s complicated", Warren Stone. Warren & Hypno, Sitting in a Tree
- Baxter Stockboy: April helped expose Baxter's monster hoax in "The Gumbus". and teased him about his last name coinciding with his job position.
- Warren Stone: April is a fan of Warren Stone, and has been part of the Warren Stone Fan Club since 2010, even after he deliberately put her and the Mad Dogs in danger in his and Hypno's conflict with Baron Draxum.
- Rupert Swaggart / Meat Sweats: April helped Sunita retrieve the cloaking brooch that Meat Sweats had stolen from her friend Sunita. Cloak and Swaggart
Others
- Dale: A fellow student at April's high school. Dale has a crush on April that she does not return. Hypno! Part Deux April does not want Dale to be harmed, though. Mystery Meat
- Taylor Martin: A popular girl at April's high school who April tried unsuccessfully to befriend. Hypno! Part Deux
Quotes
- "I don't care how long you've been working here. I'm a vertebrate, I'm in charge." ("Mystery Meat")
- "How'd you even get in there?" ("War and Pizza")
- "Hi, Donnie. You have nine seconds to tell me why you just broke down my door." (The Fast and the Furriest")
- "Give me back my money...and the rat." ("Always Be Brownies")
- "Not that I don't like old ladies. My grammy's an old lady." ("Operation: Normal")
- "Just like you planned, right, Rodell?" ("Shadow of Evil")
- "You guys crushed it! Give me five—or three." ("Mystic Mayhem")
- "Usually it's just a lot of clip-clopping, but lately it sounds like a dinosaur on a trampoline." ("Repairin' the Baron")
- "Raph. You were looking right at us." ("Snow Day")
- "♪ If a robot bear comes to life or mystic monster's causin' you strife just run to the door lickity-split and it's 10% off your next visit ♪" ("Many Unhappy Returns")
- "Ooh, you're gonna wish you were a ghost, Gumbus." ("The Gumbus")
Trivia
- This version of April marks the first time she is designed as black (and non-white in general) in a TMNT TV series or film and the second time she is unambiguously black in a licensed TMNT work in general.
- The original version of April in the Mirage continuity was inspired by TMNT co-creator Kevin Eastman's former wife, the late April Fisher, who was biracial. The fictional April O'Neil's earliest appearances were in a state of flux. She was designed as a white character in her first and second appearances in "TMNT vs. the Mousers" and "The Great Chase", but her third appearance in the 1985 Mirage comic "Rescuing Master Splinter" portrayed her more closely resembling the real-life April Fisher with a racially ambiguous appearance. April's character design then stabilized into a white woman with black hair (with the exception of the colorized version of the Guest Era story "Egyptian Adventure" where she was portrayed as a black woman in the second printing) and would remain white through her redesigns in many different iterations until her character in 2018's Rise of the TMNT.
April Fisher with Kevin Eastman.
April O'Neil in the colorized second printing of "Egyptian Adventure" from the Mirage Guest Era.
April O'Neil from Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
- The original version of April in the Mirage continuity was inspired by TMNT co-creator Kevin Eastman's former wife, the late April Fisher, who was biracial. The fictional April O'Neil's earliest appearances were in a state of flux. She was designed as a white character in her first and second appearances in "TMNT vs. the Mousers" and "The Great Chase", but her third appearance in the 1985 Mirage comic "Rescuing Master Splinter" portrayed her more closely resembling the real-life April Fisher with a racially ambiguous appearance. April's character design then stabilized into a white woman with black hair (with the exception of the colorized version of the Guest Era story "Egyptian Adventure" where she was portrayed as a black woman in the second printing) and would remain white through her redesigns in many different iterations until her character in 2018's Rise of the TMNT.
- This is the second teenage incarnation of April after the 2012 incarnation of her.
- In this incarnation, April has a pet Yōkai named Mayhem.
- A running gag in this series is April having a different job almost every time she appears with her period of employment usually ending by, or before, the end of an episode.
- According to one of her official character bios, April is revealed to have a job at a pizza shop, which is how the Turtles get their pizzas in this series.
- The Turtles also get a friends and family discount because of their connection to April.
- It is unclear, however, if this is actually the case in the series itself, she is never shown delivering pizza except in the comics.
- She gets fired from her job at a restaurant called Albearto's after the events of "War and Pizza".
- In "Mrs. Cuddles", April works as an actress on Mrs. Cuddles' television program.
- In "Shadow of Evil", April works at a shoe store called the Foot Shack.
- According to one of her official bios, April loves the Turtles like brothers.
- "Aprillllll O'Neil!" is April's catchphrase often said while charging into battle.
- According to the Junior Novel "Ninja Power", April has known the Turtles for 5 years.[1]
- As revealed in "Warren and Hypno, Sitting in a Tree", April has been a member of the Warren Stone Fan Club since 2010.
- As mentioned by Donnie in "Operation: Normal", April seems to have a fear of cosplay wizards.
- It is shown in "The Purple Game" that April lives with her mother.
- In "Many Unhappy Returns", April reveals that she has a crane license.
- April tends to act like the second-in-command to Raph.
- April presumably has pierced ears as she wears a pair of hoop earrings in "Hypno! Part Deux".
- April is the originator of the phrase "This whole situation" and she uses it in more situations than the other Mad Dogs do, who usually only use it as a way to refer to their mutation.
- April has knowledge in video editing. This is shown when she filmed and interviewed the Turtles for the sixth annual Lair Games.
