an excruciatingly long ramble about the '03 turtles and the enneagram 🐢 pt1

this is the first of a 5-part series i shared back in 2023 where i analyzed the 2003 turtles through an enneagram lens. thought i'd cross-post/share them here, too; i'm proud of them, spent well over a year researching/writing them, and wanna ensure they're kept for archiving purposes. i might tidy a thing or two while cross-posting but, for the most part, these will be in the original state i posted them in.

i'll share them over the next week instead of dropping them all at once.

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i’ve been working on this ‘project’ on/off for a year, and i need to get it out of my system. this is me posting the first part to force myself to stop fidgeting and hit the ground running.

i love the enneagram. i think it’s a useful tool not only for self-growth but also for character-writing and understanding. since 'typing' the boys, i've referred back to this tool while writing them or rewatching the series, and it's infuriating how much sense certain things start to make. to me, anyway!

as a heads up? this is going to be a big analysis over a series of posts. i have a lot to say fldjsfkl (i'm so sorry). i will try to keep it organized and understandable.

consider this the introductory post!
posts will be linked below as i finish them.
[ raph ], [ leo ], [ don ], [ mikey ]

some small disclaimers before we get started:

• this is concerning the 2k3 incarnations of the boys only, and seasons 1-4 are given the most weight.


• i don’t take “”birth order”” into consideration. no one--not even them--knows the order they were born/hatched in. i won’t be referring to leo as ‘the oldest child’ nor mikey as ‘the youngest’, etc. when it comes to ‘filling a role’, sure, they do that just fine, but i tend to avoid referring to them in an actual birth order or approaching them from a birth order mindset. they step into roles rather than there being an established order. the 03 boys will frequently ‘switch roles’ depending on their circumstances and company.


• these are also, obviously, my own thoughts/observations, and i’m not any sort of professional. I’ve just done reading and research and thinking. whether you agree or not is up to you, i’m not your mom, go--do whatever you want, it’s fine it’s good, i don’t care, blah blah blah, etc.

OKAY. an introduction and briefing:

( intro & briefing )

if you want my opinions immediately, and without further exploration or analysis, here they are:

Raph is an 8 and has a 7 wing
Leo is a 1 and has a 2 wing
Don is a 5 and has a 4 wing
Mikey is a 7 and has a 6 wing

but if you want more details (including what the heck a ‘wing’ is), come along with me while i do some giant ass posts on the boys and how they align with their core numbers.

i'm especially excited to talk about "City at War" from the perspectives of an 8 and a 1, how mikey is a complicated combination of a lotta moving parts and almost stupidly self-aware, as well as "Same as it Never Was" and don's 5 and the fact this boy never talks about his goddamn horrors. like i warned: these are gonna be quite lengthy, but i’ll be breaking it up as neatly and in the most digestible way possible. as well as keep the meme-ing to a minimum. …but i make no promises.

i have an order i'm going in, and raph's up first.

ough. the second half of september sure did come and go, and it's kinda wild feeling like i barely remember any of it. been trying to crawl back into my various routines, get back on the workflow schedule for art, world-building, maybe even writing a bit more regularly again. i still have this vague sense of overwhelm chewing on the back of my head, but i'm kinda just starting to accept that might always be there. or, at least, it'll be there for a good long while.

but! being back in a routine has helped me start paying attention and actually holding onto things again, which is making it easier to focus on online spaces outside of my main haunt. my hope is that once i've finished a birthday illustration for my nana, i'll start carving out some time to really explore what all can be done with dreamwidth when it comes to coding galleries, formats fic and other writing are usually shared in, and a handful of other things. something something, mom said it was MY turn with the instruction manual, something something. will probably continue to be quiet until that illustration is done, though. until then!

my name’s hannah (she/her/they), and i’m a storyteller and artist.

here you will find my art, writings, meta-thoughts, world-building, and general chatter about things i enjoy, whether it’s my original works/characters or fandom shenanigans! i tend to be a wee bit of a recluse, but i'm trying to be a little better about exploring creative spaces and participating in community.

i can also be found on ao3 and tumblr, the latter being my primary haunt. 

fandoms i'm creating in: teenage mutant ninja turtles (2003), teen titans (animated series), silent hill
fandoms i partake and lurk in: malevolent (podcast), life is strange (2015), fullmetal alchemist: brotherhood

current projects:

• world-building for liáfsini
  • conlanging liáfsian
  • celtic/irish research
  • leviathan method ; 34 of 52 sections complete
  • finalize liáfsian designs
• nyxram profile
• birthday illustration for nana
• evaluate fics & which to focus on
• finish scar maps for '03 turtles

this'll be a good enough opening for now, i guess! just trying to break the place in, haha.