The Creeping Doom

**"The Creeping Doom"** is the 22nd episode of *Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles* season 3 and the 74th episode overall.

***"The Creep takes Manhattan."***

## Official Description

Now that he has a Mind-Worm, Donatello begins working on a cure. However, the smart one finds himself slowly losing his intelligence after being exposed to a chemical he was using.

Meanwhile, the Creep resurfaces in the city thanks to the same chemical and plans to team up with another plant mutant.

## Plot

Donnie is experimenting on the Mind Worm as Mikey begins playing around, much to the purple mask turtle's annoyance. Mikey sees the Foot-Bots head, a Kraang head, Kraang mind control chip, the Kraang Communication orb, the Creep's jar, Slash's spike, Snakeweed's claw, and the dream book, all of which Donnie considers trophies from their previous battles. Mikey accidentally falls and the serum for the Mind Worm spills on Donnie's hand. While he gets something for his hand, Mikey slips and falls along with the items on the shelf. Fortunately, he uses his photographic memory to place the items back on the shelf. But when he leaves the Creep's jar begins to glow.

Later it's busted open and the Creep's Ooze mutates into the Creep himself. At the Dojo Splinter congratulates April on her skills and thinks she's ready to face Leo. The Creep puts his arm in the Mind Worm's serum. While Raph spars with Mikey and Donnie and while Donnie gets distracted by a falling leaf, Raph uses this opportunity to pin him down. Splinter sees that Donnie hesitated and demands why. Donnie explains that his mind went blank. April begins to worry about Donnie and Donnie thinks that a fresh DNA sample would make him feel better until he sees his lab trashed with purple slime. Donnie assumes it was Mikey but he says he wasn't. Mikey wants to help clean but still messes around. Donnie berates him, but in between sentences he calls Mikey "Raph" and he corrects him. April worries even more and asks him if he's okay and Donnie says he has a bad headache and she says says she'll give him an ice pack. Ice Cream Kitty hands her an ice pack and April talks to Splinter and he tells her "...*sometimes the best solution only arrives when you take a step back from the problem"* before telling her to close the fridge or Ice Cream Kitty will melt. At the dojo Leo practices his skills until the Creep sneaks up on to him. He managed to hold him down but the Creep nearly suffocated him. The rest of the team quickly arrives just in time and while Raph was telling some of his wits the Creep begins to glow. He continues to attack until Splinter throws him out of the dojo. The Creep managed to escape and Donnie figured out that he trashed the lab but still wondered how'd he got out. Raph and Donnie blame Mikey who defensively tells them it wasn't his fault. Mikey sees that he took Snakeweed's Claw and while Donnie fears the worst, he forgets what he was saying. Meanwhile, the Creep charges Snakeweed's claw with his energy.

Soon his brothers begin to worry because is frequently spacing out and suffering from amnesia. At the Shellraiser, Donatello isn't focusing on the main task and shuts the Shellraiser off. Leo remembered that Donnie said Mikey had spilled the Mind Serum on Donnie and asked why Donnie's acting dumb and the Creep's acting smart. April managed to pinpoint the location of the Creep and the guys (except Donnie) move to find him. April managed to turn the Shellraiser back on only for Donnie to go missing. At the greenhouse the turtles find the Creep creating a clone of Snakeweed which both Donnie and Mikey dubbed Son of Snakeweed. Mikey, Donnie and Leo take on Snakeweed Jr. while Raph takes on the Creep. Unfortunately they couldn't take either mutant down and are forced to retreat. They manage to lure them to the Shellraiser where April knocks them down and engulfs them with flames. As Donnie is still Mikey-smart, they take him to the lair, while the Creep and Snakeweed's goo and plants combine. Mikey gets the idea of attempting to make an antidote. It only takes Raph and Leo a few minutes to notice Mikey's missing. Mikey finishes the antidote with a pepperoni. The guys see him in the lair and berate him for his foolish acts and while they're arguing, Donnie tries it anyway and it makes him even dumber than before. The guys berate him again until they notice an earthquake. They notice that Snakeweed and The Creep combined their remains into Creepweed.

They go investigate and leave Donnie with April and Splinter. April suggests Splinter's Healing Hands technique but Splinter says it's doubtful. At the Party Wagon, they notice the Creepweed put the people into stasis and the ninjas put on their breathing units. They send Mikey out with the Grass Kicker and while it does buy time, it doesn't help. Leo tries engulfing it again but that doesn't work either as Creepweed picks up the Party Wagon and throws it. Leo's breathing unit comes off and he passes out to the toxic air. Creepweed drags Leo to stasis. Not long after, Creepweed's spikes poke a hole in Raph's filter, causing him to fall unconscious as well. Mikey battles Creepweed and manages to hold him off until it captures Mikey. As it looked like the young turtle's fate was sealed, Donnie came in the Stealth Cycle and used a Weed Killer-like Retro Mutagen gun to subdue him. As it turned out, Mikey's antidote worked after all. At the lair, Donnie stores Creepweed's remains in a locked metal box. Donnie tells Mikey that now he knows what Mikey feels like all the time. Mikey thanks him before realizing he was insulted and lunges out at Donnie in anger.

## Splinter's Wisdom

*Donatello often puts too much burden on himself, sometimes the best solution only arrives when you take a step back from the problem."*

## Trivia

* This episode's plot is similar to the TMNT comic book New Animated Adventures second issue.
* We find out that Donatello has a collection of items from their previous encounters from their enemies (such as a Kraang android head, Snakeweed's claw, Creep in a bottle, etc.).