Foot Elite with twin bladed sword in the 2003 TV series
The Foot Elite Guard also known as Shredder's Elite Guard, is a group of 4 of the most accomplished ninjas in the Foot Clan who serve The Shredder as bodyguards and field leaders. The weapons they use are the trident, spear, ax, and twin bladed sword.
2003 Series
Overview
The Foot Elite from the 2003 TV series appeared to have the ability to teleport and surprise anyone at anytime. They are also extremely skilled with their weapons. Each one carries their own special weapon, a trident, a twin bladed sword, a spear, and a battle axe. The Utrom Shredder sends them out on special missions that need to be accomplished quickly and effectively.
They make their first appearance in The Shredder Strikes Back, Part 1. Once The Shredder appears on the scene, they bow respectfully and engage in battle with Leonardo. While Leo puts up a good fight, he is overwhelmed by their skill and power. They throw Leo through April's apartment window and then hand Leo's swords over to their master, who proceeds to break them in half. In The Shredder Strikes Back, Part 2, they are seen waiting for the Turtles downstairs in April's shop as a trap. After receiving compliments on their attire, they battle Raphael, Michelangelo, and Donatello. They prove to be tough opponents for the Turtles, as they eventually overwhelm them. Once The Utrom Shredder himself shows up in the shop, they stand by his side ready to attack again. The Elite are ordered to finish off the Turtles as Shredder fights Splinter, but they're interrupted by the arrival of Casey Jones. All four of them were knocked out by Casey. They would appear in many more episodes and fight the Turtles many more times. They would also appear fighting alongside the Utrom Shredder in Return to New York and Secret Origins, Part 3.
When the Utrom Shredder was seemingly dead, the Elite led the Foot in a secret civil war against the Purple Dragons and the Mafia. Near its end, they presumed that their master returned, bringing all factions to the old Foot tower. But it was actually Karai in disguise, seeking to restore order. One of the Elite refused to submit to her until she slashed his hat. The Elite would also reappear in Rogue in the House, Part 1 and the Turtles would fight them again in Rogue in the House, Part 2, and Exodus, Part 1 where they are taken out by Bishop when they are trying to protect Ch'rell while he is escaping. They would reappear in Bad Day which would turn out to be an illusion created by the Foot Mystics. When Karai became the new Shredder, the Elite wore new garments. They would fight beside Karai in her attack on the Turtles lair in Scion of the Shredder The Utrom Shredder had four Foot Elite Ninjas even in the 1960s as shown in A Tale of Master Yoshi where in the introduction sequence they would be defeated quickly by Hamato Yoshi, although they would make some cameo appearances during the attack on the Utrom Hideout during the actual episode. The Elite would fight the Turtles one last time in Good Genes, Part 2.
Peter Laird said on his blog that the Elite's teleportation is meant to be "an exaggerated way to show their incredible level of skill in ninja techniques of disappearing and reappearing via a combination of sheer speed and distractions such as smoke bombs".
The Lost Episodes
In The Lost Episodes the Elite can still be seen working for the Foot under Karai. In New World Order, Part 1 they try to attack the Tengu Shredder but are defeated by him when he turns their weapons against them.
Back to the Sewer
Master Khan could also have been one of the Foot Elite due to the fact that he could moves just as fast as them. The Foot Elite theme music also comes on when Khan appears.
Personalities and abilities
Throughout their time on the show, the Foot Elite rarely speak so little is known about their individual personalities. However, it is known that all four of them are completely loyal to whomever they have sworn their allegiance to, showing that they have a sense of honour that the Shredder lacks. The trident wielding Elite Guard in particular seems honourable because he hesitated when he had the opportunity to kill the defenceless Splinter in Rogue in the House Part 2. The sword wielding Elite Guard, who is the leader, accused Karai of sacrilege when he discovered that she was pretending to be the Shredder. However, despite his mighty skills as a warrior, the leader did eventually swear allegiance to Karai after she humiliated him by slicing his hat. The Elite Guard also seem to have a sense of arrogance and like to toy with their victims. During their first encounter with Leo, they easily overpowered him but gave him a chance to catch his breath, knowing that he had no real chance of beating them.
Individually, the Elite Ninja's are formidable opponents but their real strength is shown when they fight as a team. Much like the Turtles, they excel in teamwork, being able to defeat Leonardo, the most skilled of the turtles, with very little effort. During their rematch, Leo claimed her could deal with all four by himself and Raph agreed with him, but in the end it required the combined efforts of all four turtles to defeat the Elite.
The leader of the Elite easily fended off both of Karai's assistants, even though Mikey, Don and Casey had been unable to even touch them. Karai herself was unable to overpower him in one on one combat and needed help from the turtles to defeat him. While the leader usually preferred using his double bladed weapon as a single weapon, he would sometimes disconnect it so that he could fight with two separate blades. He is even able to use his blades to deflect bullets.
The Elite with the battle axe showed the ability to use his battle axe like a boomerang. He was also able to hold his own against Splinter in Rogue in the House Part 2. However, due to the weight of the axe head, he can become vulnerable if one of his blows miss, particularly if the battle axe gets stuck in something, such as when he missed an Utrom in Secret Origins Part 3. By the time he faced the Tengu Shredder, he wielded two battle axes at once, suggesting an increased level of skill that he never got the chance to display onscreen.
The spear wielding Elite is able to throw his spear with lethal precision, coming dangerously close to impaling Donatello right through his skull during their first encounter. In Secret Origins Part 3, he was able to hold his own against Leonardo in a one on one fight.
The Elite with the trident favoured using his long weapon to strike from a distance, specializing in jabbing at his foes and often using his three pronged blade to pin an opponents arms, as shown when he pinned Raph and Leo's wrists in Return to New York Part 2 and Part 3. However, unlike his spear and axe wielding colleagues, he has never been shown throwing his weapon.
The Elite Guard also use smoke bombs to give the illusion that they are capable of teleporting, using their speed and stealth to dart to another location before reappearing in another cloud of smoke.