oh
and what do we have here
(Irk: TURTLE WOUNDS TURTLE WOUNDS THEY’RE TURTLE WOUNDS
But why are there only scratches in that one spot-
THEY’RE FUCKING TURTLE WOUNDS
The animators wouldn’t-
But it fits too-
TURTLE WOUNDS
STOP THAT
*twitches heavily*
Someone did point this out in the tag before and I went back to check and HOLY SHIT THERE THEY WERE but I KNOW it’s not supposed to look like that but IT LOOKS LIKE THAT
Even on accident this show manages to fuck with my feelings with this stupid character
Fuck you, Mike)
Oh my God… but… what if…. what if…. WHAT IFFFFFFFF.
But wait you never see those markings again so there goes my theory.
Yeah, the markings vanishing at the same time as the bite marks does indicate that it just came from that. (Well, common sense indicates that too, but, you know.)
Still… it’s a picture of how Mike’s arm may have looked in the past.
I do hold the dreary-as-usual headcanon that cutting used to take place - either Mike used it to cope or Mal used it to punish - but it stopped long enough before Total Drama that no one there would have noticed. If Mike was doing it, he learned better coping skills; in Mal’s case, he stopped coming out long enough for the marks to fade.
I’m overthinking this one little design choice of how to portray a teenage boy who just got mauled by snapping turtles.
I would like to believe it’s indicative of how Mike used to cut (a headcanon I am 10000% on board with).
I actually never considered it being a form of punishment that Mal would use. Seeing it from that perspective is eye opening. It could be then inferred that even after Mal was defeated the first time, Mike grew to use it to punish himself, as he felt he deserved to be punished sometimes. I like to think that Mike also suffered depression due to his condition (depression has a nifty little habit of latching onto people with other mental disorders).
I honestly feel like Mike has the most likelihood and potential for a shockingly dark backstory.