Leatherhead (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles)

Leatherhead
Interior artwork from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles vol. 4, 58 (May, 2016 IDW). Art by Mateus Santolouco.
Publication information
Publisher	Mirage Studios
First appearance	"Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" vol. 1, #6 (1988)
Created by	"Ryan Brown (comics)"
In-story information
Notable aliases	Jess Harley
Abilities	Enhanced strength Experienced in hand-to-hand combat Razor-sharp claws and teeth Heals in an accelerated way Prone to rage attacks

Leatherhead is a fictional character in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comics and all related media. He was created in 1987 by Mirage Studios artist Ryan Brown. He is a mutated, anthropomorphic alligator and appears in numerous TMNT versions.

Originally Leatherhead was nothing more than an infant alligator which had escaped a robbery at a pet store and found its way into the sewers. While in the sewers, Leatherhead was found by a pair of TCRI Utroms who decided to bring the creature to their headquarters. During his stay with the Utroms, Leatherhead was exposed to Mutagen which caused him to mutate into a humanoid and intelligent being.

Living with the Utroms, Leatherhead ended up being separated from his "family" when the TCRI building self-destructed. The now homeless Leatherhead was forced to live in the sewers where he was continually attacked by a big-game hunter called Mr. Marlin. During one attack by the hunter, Leatherhead met the Turtles. Aiding Leatherhead in defeating the hunter, the Turtles decided to allow Leatherhead to live in their old home.

Eventually, four Foot Clan ninjas encountered an eye-patch-wearing Leatherhead in the sewers. Fearing that Leatherhead would kill them, the ninjas tried to get on Leatherhead's good side by promising to aid him in creating his Transmat Device. Accepting the help, Leatherhead and the ninjas set to work creating the Transmat, only to be interrupted by the Turtles. After a brief skirmish, the Turtles learned that the Foot ninjas were actually helping Leatherhead. Embarrassed by the incident the Turtles decided to aid the mutant alligator. Eventually, the Transmat Device was complete, so Leatherhead could finally reach the Utrom Homeworld. Unfortunately, instead of teleporting Leatherhead, the device simply blew up in his face. This failure was too much for Leatherhead to handle and in a fit of rage, Leatherhead killed his two Foot assistants and vowed revenge on the Turtles, whom he blamed for wrecking his attempt to get "home."

Leatherhead later resurfaced in Volume 4. He makes an appearance at Master Splinter's funeral. He is then seen wrestling a mutated Raphael in the sewers before swimming off. It is unknown what his current relationship with the Turtles is, but Raphael's comment that he hopes he didn't hurt Leatherhead would make it seem as if they're at least on good terms.