Many Unhappy Returns

**"Many Unhappy Returns"** is the first episode of the second season of *Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles*, and is the forty-seventh episode of the series overall. It first aired on November 23rd, 2019.

## Characters

* April O'Neil (Kat Graham)
* Big Mama (Lena Headey)
* Donatello (Josh Brener)
* Leonardo (Ben Schwartz)
* Michelangelo (Brandon Mychal Smith)
* Raphael (Omar Benson Miller)
* Shredder
* Splinter (Eric Bauza)
* Baron Draxum (Roger Craig Smith)
* Assistant
* Evil Six
* Foot Clan
	+ Foot Brute (Maurice LaMarche)
	+ Foot Lieutenant (Rob Paulsen)
	+ Foot Recruit (Zelda Williams)
* Fox Bellhop (Eric Bauza)

## Plot

With the third part starting, the Shredder had been brought back to life. Baron Draxum realizes that the Foot Clan used him and wondered why. Foot Lieutenant tells him that they need an alchemist to build him and give the Shredder life. And when Draxum wore the armor, his life essence was drained. The Turtles are no match for the Shredder as the demon disappeared. Leo started to think they have to go head, but Splinter can't take it easy that quickly. But Leo says that they have to go ahead, although that annoys Raph because Leo thinks he is always serious.

The Turtles find Shredder at Albearto's pizzeria and the museum but the demon kept running away. Splinter suggests that they talk to Big Mama. Raph, Donnie, Mikey, and April O'Neil go after the Shredder while Leo forcibly teleports Splinter to the Grand Nexus Hotel.

At the hotel, Splinter tells Leo that Big Mama was his ex. Back then, during the production of the Lou Jitsu film *Crouching Shrimp Hidden Tiger Prawn,* Splinter met Big Mama who worked as a truck driver tasked to drive his trailer and he started to fall in love with her. One night when Splinter asked Big Mama to marry him, she kidnapped him to her Battle Nexus, forcing him to fight. They encountered Big Mama who takes them to a ring like bracelet. Leo tells her that Splinter will fight, much to Splinter's misery.

With Splinter inside the nexus was about to fight the monsters who was till annoyed to Leo, Big Mama says that she can alter things and took Leo's sword and dropped him in the Battle Nexus with Splinter. Leo took one of the mini teleporter coins and grabs his sword and helps his dad to fight the monsters.

They return to New York to meet the other Turtles who are worried but Leo says that they got this. Just in time, Shredder appears and Leo was about to put the collar on the Shredder, but Raph grabbed Leo's arm asking him that if he's sure he can put the collar on. Leo smiles and trusts him.

With their attacks down, Leo puts the collar on Shredder as the dark armor breaks. Big Mama vanquished the Shredder. And because of all this, the turtles and April fell asleep after all fighting for three days. Splinter has a task to take them home and let them sleep after everything had happen. Splinter tells her that they won't able to see each other.

After they left, Big Mama can still change now that she have the Shredder to do her evil deeds as the episode ends.

## Trivia

* This episode was first revealed on Lena Headey's Instagram.
* The episode takes place directly after the events of "End Game".
* Donnie breaks the fourth wall when he says "One season later and I still have full battery. Nice!"
	+ Mikey also breaks the fourth wall by poking Donnie and Raph when they were in different cutaways.
* Starting with this episode, Roger Craig Smith provides the voice of Draxum, rather than John Cena.
* Splinter is revealed to have dated Big Mama back when he was human, and even proposed to her, though they did not get engaged.
	+ Their romantic connection is hinted at in the final shot of "The Ancient Art of Ninja Hide and Seek", when Splinter sneaks into the Grand Nexus Hotel to retrieve a picture of himself (as Lou Jitsu) and Big Mama (in her human form).
* In the scene in Splinter's Battle Nexus dressing room, Leo is drinking tea politely with his pinky finger sticking out; no previous tea-drinking scene in *Rise of the TMNT* had shown this particular custom. It is reminiscent of how the 2012 TV series version of Leonardo was taught this by the little girl he had befriended in the episode "Slash and Destroy", and later in "Buried Secrets" when the Turtles were all drinking tea together, Leo was still holding his pinky out even as none of his brothers were doing the same.
* It was revealed in November 2019 by *Rise of the TMNT* executive producer Ant Ward in a tweet that seeing as his shell covers his own, Leo had foam buttocks sewn into his Lou Jitsu jumpsuit by his Battle Nexus tailor to replicate Lou Jitsu's look.
* Hamato Sho's name was to be revealed by Splinter in this episode in an alternate version of his dialogue, his original line being, "And maybe paid attention to Grandpa Sho's stories about how to defeat the Shredder." However, his name would instead be revealed later on in "E-Turtle Sunshine of the Spotless Mind".
* The Kelb tal-Fenek Yōkai gladiator that loses to Kraken Tom debuted earlier in "Bug Busters".

## Videos

"Many Unhappy Returns" 🕷 Animatic - Rise of the TMNT