Do you know where the headcanon about Leo having an injured knee came from? I see it a lot in fanfics and sometimes in fanarts he has a knee brace
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Oooo, that one I DO not know...🤔 but I can speculate as to why we subconsciously all give him knee injuries. 😅
It may come down to character design.
They're designs says alot about who they are as people.
But before we look at Leo, let's look at Donnie.
(Humor me. I'm going somewhere with this. 😅)
I chose Donnie first because he has a similar build to Leo but also showcases the thoughtfulness behind good character design (of which the Rise team excels.)
Here is one of his character sheets.
The first thing I notice is that Donnie is protected. He's a softshell, so his back is protected, but it's not just that. He's actually protected from head to toe. High impact areas (elbows and knees) are covered with pads. His battle shell is durable but also carries an array of items for whatever comes up. He even protects his eyes with his goggles when the need arises.
All of this shows that Donnie is the type of person that preplans and who thinks proactively. He's ready for whatever may come, which is reflected in his character. He's an overthinker and leaves no detail overlooked in his planning, so his design makes sense.
He is smaller than the others, but he chooses to only have his kneepads and his sash, which holds his weapon (Kusari-fundō, then Nunchaku.) Other than that, he sports decorative stickers. This also speaks to his character; a minimalist when it comes to the essentials, but who also highly values self-expression.
Likewise, his room shows his mindset; the minimal few essentials, with everything else dedicated to expressing himself.
There's something about his design that is different than his brothers...
He has high socks and elbow length gloves, but why are they all so long? Also, he has a sash and satchels, but have you ever seen him take anything out of them that is distinct to his character?
What he keeps in his pouches are so mysterious that we fans had to ask the creators.
The point is, Leo's design is about him looking good and feeling cool, not about practicality or what he would actually need in battle.
Case and point: Where does he store his weapon?
Donnie has a place for his Bo, Raph for his Tonfa, Mikey for his weapons, but Leo has his Odachi and no where to put it. The lack of a sheath for the first ep makes sense, he just got that weapon. But why didn't he wear a sheath afterwards?
Maybe, he doesn't find the value in wearing a sheath.
He'd rather just carry it.
It shows lack of preplanning, and/or his choice to look good vs be practical.
So, when it comes down to the original question; why has the Rise fandom decided that Leo has bad knees?
Maybe it's because, for a turtle that loves to SLIDE on said knees...
Therefore, due to either his lack of planning or his internal bid to look as cool as possible at all times, his future knee pain is inevitable, and we all know it.
