Baxter Stockman is one of the TMNT’s most constant adversaries. Throughout various media appearances, Stockman has plagued the heroes in a half shell.
The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have some deadly adversaries, ranging from their arch-enemy, The Shredder, to the sinister alien Krang. These villains take on many forms throughout the plethora of TMNT media.
One particular constant thorn in the turtles’ side is the devious scientist, Baxter Stockman.
Mirage Comics
The original TMNT series, by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird, introduced Stockman as a blatantly sociopathic criminal scientist. Stockman developed tiny robots called mousers to tunnel into bank vaults, in his words, because “it was FUN!” When his assistant, April O’Neil, discovered Stockman’s plot, he attempted to use his mousers to kill O’Neil. Unfortunately for Stockman, the turtles saved April, subsequently shutting down his operation. Stockman reappeared in volume 2 of the series, becoming a cyborg to take revenge on the turtles. Stockman was ultimately electrocuted and destroyed. In volume 4 of TMNT, it was revealed that Donatello kept the remnants of Stockman’s cyborg body. When the turtle discovered that Stockman injected April with nanobots, making her sterile, Donatello destroyed everything left of Stockman.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1987)
In this series, Stockman originally developed the mousers for pest control. His pitch was rejected, however, as Stockman’s mousers were too effective. Immediately afterwards, Stockman was recruited by the Shredder, using the mousers to eliminate the turtles and their master, Splinter. From then on, Stockman became a lackey for the Shredder. During one of Shredder’s schemes, Stockman was thrown into a portal to Dimension X. While there, a housefly on Stockman’s clothing intermingled with his molecules, mutating Stockman into a humanoid-fly creature. For the remainder of the series, Stockman would remain in this fly-form. At the end of each appearance, Stockman would also constantly be thrown back into interdimensional limbo, before eventually returning.
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Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2003)
This Baxter Stockman told the public that he was developing the mousers to rid New York of its rat problem, much like the ’80s Baxter Stockman. In reality, however, Stockman was using the mousers to rob banks, much like the Mirage version. Stockman also worked for the Shredder, developing new schemes and technology to eliminate the turtles, including the invisible foot ninjas. Stockman was met with constant failure, however, and each failure resulted in severe punishment from the Shredder. Indeed, the Shredder would slowly remove a different body part from Stockman, until, by the end of the series, the evil scientist was nothing but a brain in a jar. Despite this gruesome punishment, Stockman survived, frequently returning to menace the turtles.
TMNT (2012)
After being fired from his place of work, Stockman attempted to break in before being foiled by the turtles. Later, however, Stockman adapts a piece of Donatello’s technology into his own cybernetic armor, becoming much more formidable. Nevertheless, the turtles defeat Stockman once again. Stockman also creates his iconic mousers, stealing from the Purple Dragon gang before they bring him to the Shredder. Just like his previous incarnations, Stockman works for the Shredder, helping him use the mutagen to create new mutants for his army before he is mutated into a fly, like the ’80s Stockman. This mutation is later cured with the retro-mutagen, following the Shredder’s defeat.
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Rise of the TMNT (2018)
This version of the character is named “Baxter Stockboy”, reimagined as a young child who helps out around his parents’ deli as a stockboy himself. Stockboy is a social media celebrity, creating livestream videos for profit. Many of these videos are internet scams, however, forcing the turtles to intervene and stop the young villain. Stockboy swears revenge upon the turtles after they interfere with his online schemes, resulting in several conflicts. Despite his young age, Stockboy is just as technologically gifted as his older counterparts. Indeed, Stockboy was able to remotely manipulate the interior of his parents’ deli and create a robot named “Gumbus.”
The IDW Series
In the ongoing TMNT series, published by IDW, Stockman initially works for the alien General Krang. Stockman was tasked by Krang with genetic and mutant research, a venture which gave sentience to Splinter and the turtles. Stockman also created his mousers, lending them to Old Hob in order to track and eliminate the turtles. Under General Krang, Stockman also developed the massive Technodrome. Currently, Stockman is the mayor of New York City. When he was elected, a mutagen bomb went off, mutating thousands of citizens. Stockman then quarantined the East Side of Manhattan, forcing mutants to stay in this area, which was named “Mutant Town.”
No matter the media, Baxter Stockman will constantly remain a self-interested wild card. This attribute makes him the turtles’ most unpredictable foe.
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