Turtles or Tortoises?
What are they supposed to be? They have feet, so I'd assume tortoise, but Teenage Mutant Ninja Tortoises is even more of a mouthful to say.
shareThey're turtles. Hence the title. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
If you're looking for some kind of rationale, forget it. They're turtles. They're mutants. They're ninjas. They're trained by a rat. A rat who is a mutant. And a ninja.
Yes, Eastman and Laird were at least drunk when they came up with the idea (they've said so themselves - I think it was in the preface to the RPG), so logic was always pretty much out the window.
Quidquid Latinae dictum sit, altum viditur.