Rat King (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles)

Rat King
The 2003 TV series version of the Rat King.
Publication information
Publisher	Mirage Studios
First appearance	Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #4 (Feb. 1988)
Created by	Jim Lawson
In-story information
Team affiliations	The Pantheon
Notable aliases	Monster, Ghost, The Rat, Ha'ntaan, The Slayer, The Ultimate Slayer, Dr. Victor Falco
Abilities	Capable of communicating with and telepathically controlling rats Enhanced strength Enhanced speed and agility Cloaking Healing

The Rat King is a fictional character from the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles multimedia franchise. The character was created by Jim Lawson and first appeared in the comic Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #4 written by Jim Lawson and has made various appearances since, in the comic books and other media, such as animated series' and video games.

The Rat King was born and raised in Boston and later migrated to New York, he remains one of the more enigmatic characters in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, with various appearances depicting him as either a villain, a neutral character and even an ally of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. The Rat King has distinguishable attire, which consists of filthy, tattered rags and, most prominently, various bandages covering his body. The Rat King has apparent telepathic influence over rats.

In the Mirage Studios Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comics, the Rat King makes his first appearance in Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #4 as the story's main antagonist. After residing in a swamp for several months, the Rat King (who remains unnamed until the end of the issue) decides to venture into a nearby abandoned industrial park and use it as shelter against the oncoming winter. There, the Rat King happens upon the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and their friend Casey Jones, who had come to the industrial park to train. Believing the Turtles and Casey to be other "monsters" who wish to take his territory, the Rat King proceeds to stalk them throughout the park, even capturing Michelangelo and leaving him to be devoured by the rats (Michelangelo later escapes). The Rat King is eventually defeated by Leonardo who, in a duel with the Rat King, flings several shurikens at him, which knock him off balance, sending him plummeting into the bowels of a silo.