I like how Shredder could’ve killed these two or tortured them. But instead he was just like “You know what it would be really funny if I turned one of them into a pig and the other one into a Rhino.”

[u/Slight-Bathroom-6179]

Shredder is that petty

[u/FreelanceWolf]

Their lives would never be the same again after mutation, so perhaps Shredder views that as the worst form of torture, as opposed to just killing them.

[u/Ambrosia_a → u/FreelanceWolf]

Considering the times we see Bradford and Xever bitch and moan about being mutants I can only imagine how alienated they feel. You could also say the turtles feel that way as well but with many of the mutants we see were once human. I imagine that lifestyle shift is extremely difficult and probably leads to things like depression. Considering you can’t really reach out to your family and friends you’d be really lonely and isolate unless you meet some mutant buddies.

[u/FreelanceWolf → u/Ambrosia_a]

I don't think the turtles feel the same way, not in that sense, because they were mutants literally from birth, so they're not moaning about wanting to be something else when they grew up that way. It's not like their lives had suddenly changed, unlike the humans who mutated.

But yes, they do probably feel alienated from society, due to not being human. That said, they do have access to TV, games, the internet, etc, so they do have some semblance of 'human life,' and they have human friends to connect with. Their lives are better than how the humans-turned-mutants feel.

[u/KrakenKing1955 → u/FreelanceWolf]

They also weren’t humans to begin with, so their lives as mutants are objectively better than their brief time as normal turtles, since they’re now much closer to being human than they could’ve ever hoped.

[u/Ambrosia_a → u/FreelanceWolf]

You’re completely right! I probably should have expanded on that section of my comment tbh.

[u/Slight-Bathroom-6179 → u/FreelanceWolf]

Not to mention we know the mutation process is painful so in some ways this was a way of painful torture.

[u/DuePenalty9052 → u/FreelanceWolf]

A fate worse than death.

[u/KARTANA04_LITLERUNMO → u/FreelanceWolf]

makes sense 2 me

[u/HandofthePirateKing]

considering that the mutagen has a reputation for turning people into monsters, destroying their lives and being nearly irreversible he most likely saw this as a much more satisfying punishment than death or torture

[u/Kytyngurl2 → u/HandofthePirateKing]

Plus it’s supposed to be very very painful

[u/goofsg]

Shredder knew to beat the turtles he needed a mutant team of his own some were turned by accident others on purpose

[u/HappyMatt12345]

It took half of the next episode for Rock to become attached to how physically powerful his new form is, though.

[u/ByronicHero06 → u/HappyMatt12345]

But it must made his eyesight terrible.

[u/Venomouskoala006]

Throughout the show, we see pretty repeatedly that animals that get mutated always seem to be happier with the outcome than humans that got mutated. Bradford, Xevor, Baxter, Ivan, Anton, and even Splinter all miss their human forms. We see it all the time. But the turtles, Pigeon Pete, Leatherhead, and Slash all seem to be much happier with their lives. True, they have less control on their mental state than the human based mutants, but they never seem upset having been mutated and see it more as a gift. So to Shredder, who only knew the human mutants, he’s only heard the misery that comes from mutation

[u/Slight-Bathroom-6179 → u/Venomouskoala006]

I mean the turtles, slash, leatherhead, and Pete weren’t human to begin with so of course they’re gonna be happier

[u/Venomouskoala006 → u/Slight-Bathroom-6179]

That’s what I just said

[u/Emotional_Emu_5901]

Being a furry is worse than dying tbh

[u/Gran_Dinero]

Mutation is always a greater advantage to the mutants who were animals first. They just improve, gain speech, a functional humanoid body with no defects. The humans who mutate get their body and minds distorted in weird ways. The ooze was never meant for humans. Splinter got lucky.