Tales of Leo

“Tales of Leo”
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2003) episode
Season Code:	S01E19
Episode:	19
Original airdate	September 13, 2003
Written by	Marty Isenberg
Supervising Producer	Lloyd Goldfine
Producers:	Gary Richardson
	Frederick U. Fierst
	Al Kahn
	Norman Grossfeld
	Thomas Kenney
Supervising Director	Chuck Patton
Story Editor:	Lloyd Goldfine
Episode chronology ← Previous Next → "The Shredder Strikes Back, Part 2" "The Monster Hunter"

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Season 1 February 8, 2003 - November 1, 2003 List of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles episodes

Episodes: Things Change A Better Mousetrap Attack of the Mousers Meet Casey Jones Nano Darkness on the Edge of Town The Way of Invisibility Fallen Angel Garbageman The Shredder Strikes, Part 1 The Shredder Strikes, Part 2 The Unconvincing Turtle Titan Notes from the Underground, Part 1 Notes from the Underground, Part 2 Notes from the Underground, Part 3 The King The Shredder Strikes Back, Part 1 The Shredder Strikes Back, Part 2 Tales of Leo The Monster Hunter Return to New York, Part 1 Return to New York, Part 2 Return to New York, Part 3 Lone Raph and Cub The Search for Splinter, Part 1 The Search for Splinter, Part 2 Season 1 – Season 2 – Season 3 – Season 4 – Ninja Tribunal – Fast Forward - Back to the Sewer

"Tales of Leo" is the nineteenth episode of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2003 TV series). It first aired on September 13th, 2003.

Characters

Major Characters

• April O'Neil (Veronica Taylor)
• Casey Jones (Marc Thompson)
• Donatello (Sam Riegel)
• Leonardo (Michael Sinterniklaas)
• Michelangelo (Wayne Grayson)
• Raphael (Frank Frankson)
• Splinter (Darren Dunstan)

Minor Characters

• Baxter Stockman (Scott Williams)
• Hun (Greg Carey)
• The Shredder/Oroku Saki (Scottie Ray)
• The Police & Fire Departments
• Foot Ninja (flashback only)
• Foot Elite (flashback only)

Main Locations, Vehicles and Accessories

• April's Apartment Building
• City streets
• Casey's Grandmother's house in Northampton, Massachusetts
• Foot HQ

Episode

Voice-Over Introduction

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The Shredder: My revenge is complete. My hated enemies thought they had destroyed me, but I am not so easily destroyed. I was merely biding my time, awaiting the right moment for my ninja forces to strike. And they struck hard. They herded my enemies to me like sheep to the slaughter. And even though allies foolishly came to their aid, my enemies were forced to make a cowardly retreat. But vengeance was mine, nonetheless. At last, the turtles are no more!

Plot Synopsis

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The four turtles, Splinter, April and Casey are still trapped in the old walk-in cooler, as April’s apartment building burns rapidly. The Shredder and the foot have already left the scene, due to the sudden arrival of police. However, New York’s finest have arrived too late to stop the inferno, and it also looks like our heroes will go up in flames with the building! Fortunately, however, April suddenly remembers that the motor that used to power the cooler was removed a few years back, leaving a hole in the exterior wall that leads outside.

Raph moves some boxes out of the way and finds a flimsily installed patch over the old motor opening. He quickly pries the patch off, and they all crawl through the opening into the adjoining alley. Once they pull the unconscious Leo outside, the crew beats a hasty retreat away from the fire. The group watches as the building explodes into flames. With Leo to care for, the Turtles and Splinter don’t know what to do next. April’s place has burned to the ground, which has left her homeless and it’s still too dangerous to return to the lair. Just when all hope seems lost, Casey comes up with an idea and he offers to take everyone to his grandma’s old farm in Western Massachusetts. No one will find or bother them there...

Master Splinter and the Turtles, including the unconscious Leo, huddle in a U-Haul trailer attached to Casey’s old ’57 Chevy. It’s freezing cold outside as they leave the city, and it only gets colder as they head north to Massachusetts. When our heroes finally arrive at the dilapidated farm, the Turtles are almost frozen solid and Leo is in real bad shape. Casey and April get a fire going in the fireplace ASAP, as Leo is placed on a couch and covered with a heavy blanket. Gradually, everyone warms up, but Leonardo remains, more or less, in a coma.

Meanwhile, in the Foot Headquarters, Hun is conversing with Saki about the Turtles' recent and apparent demise, and how they should be celebrating their victory. Saki then explains that the Turtles surmised that Saki had perished. Not wanting to make that exact same mistake, Saki wants positive proof that the Turtles truly died in the fire. Baxter Stockman (who's in a wheelchair wearing a neck brace and with a mechanical left hand) then enters the room and says that he could use a device of his creation to get hard DNA evidence...only if The Shredder will allow Stockman to study the mysterious exoskeleton (that Saki fished from the river), once the proof of the Turtles' demise is presented. Saki agrees, though he warns Stockman that he had better not fail again - or he will receive his third and final punishment. Baxter says not to worry - If the Turtles died in the fire, he will find the evidence.

Back at the farm, everyone is worried about Leonardo’s lack of recuperation. In an effort to communicate with Leo’s lost spirit, Donnie asks if it would be a good idea to converse with the grievously injured Leo. Splinter approves, and Donnie proceeds to tell Leo about a time when they were younger and how, when Donnie and Leo were playing with Donnie's remote-controlled car, it fell into the sewer water and Donnie pursued it effortlessly in an attempt to get it back. Donnie ended up getting his foot stuck beneath a wooden board underwater, only for Leo to save him at the last second. Mikey and Raph also proceed to tell Leo a heartfelt story; Mikey tells Leo of the time when he couldn't break Leo's concentration while the latter was perfecting his Ninjutsu skills, and Raph also tells Leo a heartfelt story. With each story, Leo begins to stir a little bit more.

Meanwhile, in N.Y.C, Stockman goes to the site of April's destroyed shop, but he can’t find any evidence whatsoever that the Turtles, or anyone else, died in the blaze. Fearing the repercussions of facing The Shredder empty handed, and wanting the opportunity to study the exoskeleton, Baxter manufactures some evidence to deceive Saki (a red cloth that he puts eyeholes in to make it look as though it's Raphael's mask).

At the farm, Splinter tells Leonardo the tale of how Leo was able to conquer his fear of heights when he was younger. Things still look bleak, as the Turtles fear that Leonardo has died of his wounds, but Leonardo suddenly mutters, "No fear" and wakes up! Everyone is overjoyed and excited to see that the boy in blue is back, even though there is still a long road to full recovery. Leonardo thanks them all for bringing him back, and falls asleep again as the others are ushered out of the room by Splinter.

Back at The Foot Headquarters, Saki is utterly deceived by Stockman's ruse and tells the mad scientist that the exoskeleton will be delivered to his lab in the morning. Saki then leaves, cheered by the news that his foes are apparently dead. The episode concludes with Stockman evilly laughing about The Shredder's gullibility, and that he has seized his opportunity to study the mysterious suit, thus enabling himself to deal his own form of punishment in the near future...

Quotes

• 'Michelangelo': (shivering) Man, it sucks being coldblooded.

• Casey: Alright, so it needs some fixin' up. The place got a little run down since grandma passed away.
  (April makes soot fall from the chimney; Mikey coughs)
  'Michelangelo': When was that, in the late Jurassic?
  Casey: Dude, ya' live in a sewer.

• (After a young Leo saves a young Don from drowning, both are panting heavily)
  ''''''Young''' Donatello: What, you didn't get the car?

• ''''Splinter: It is said that the voice of a loved one can guide a lost spirit back to its home.

• 'Raphael: We thought you were gone, bro.
  'Leonardo: I-I was..but you brought me back. All of you.

Errors

• Stockman was incorrect about the classification of turtle the order of turtle is Testudines not colonia and the class of turtle is not ambedendia its reptilia

Trivia

• This episode is ranked #10 on the TMNT Top Ten.

• In Michelangelo's flashback, he asks Leo where his "Game Guy" is, this is obviously a spoof of Nintendo's Game Boy.
• Most likely to keep the turtles looking more human, whenever a flashback of the young turtles occurs, their eyes are given irises.
• At the episode beginning based on Issue #10 "Silent Partner".

Gallery

• Tales of Leo/Gallery

External links

• "Tales of Leo" at The Official TMNT Web Site