#pythor x scales

[nyasyang]

good luck babe! by chappell roan but with pythor and scales

[xenazaria]

Ninjago battle of the bands au, I have so many ideas on this. It's set mostly in the movie verse, with some aspects of the show.

The big bands are:

The serpentine (nobody knows WHY they are popular, but they are. They're not necessarily good, and nobody really likes them, but everyone knows them. Nobody knows why.)

The Preeminent (see below, section EMO)

Sons of Garmadon (see above)

NinjaGo (really popular kpop style band)

Next Generation (dragons rising crew +euphrasia and wyldfyre, their style fluctuates alot)

Other characters and groups show up, but those are the main ones. If someone wasn't mentioned, imagine them as a lesser known band or solo artist.

EMO

So. The Preeminent and Sons of Garmadon are the two main emo/goth esc bands. The goth community is divided on which one is better, and this is one of the biggest topics within it. When it was announced that both groups were competitors in the competition, the people went WILD, and this only grew when it was recently rumored that solo Dj Mr. E was joining SoG.

They're going to lose their minds when the two bands make the announcement they have planned....

Imagine the rest of this like a poster adverting the competition and the bands.

NinjaGo

Members:

Cole Brookstone, son of Lou Brookstone, who had won this competition 12 times before his recent retirement. He's the Dj and the drummer.

Kai Smith, lead singer, plays the guitar. Not much drama with him.

Jay Walker, plays pretty much any remotely electronic instrument you can imagine.

Zane Julien, pianist and backup vocals.

There are rumors of a new member joining, but they have yet to be confirmed. (Spoiler: it's Lloyd. This will cause drama.)

Nya isn't technically a band member, but she's seen with the band enough to be considered one. There are also rumors about her dating the faceless singer Samurai X, though she denies all of these. Her denial does not stop the rumors from spreading.

Wu is basically the bands secretary

Next Generation

Members:

Arin, lead singer

Sora, guitarist and backup vocals

Euphrasia, she plays the keyboard and flute

Wyldfyre, she's a drummer. That is all.

They are a relatively new but still pretty popular band. Winning this competition would be a huge deal for them.

Serpentine

Members:

Pythor, lead vocals.

Scales, he does... Something...

Aspheera she's not in the band Jeff, why did you put her on the list? She's not? Sorry man, I forgot.

Uhhhh... Does anybody actually know the other members? Note to self: do research on this band

The annual Ninjago Talent competition looks forward to seeing you and all of this year's competitors at the competition! Shows will be held at [insert location and times].

Note to Jeff: get better at making posters or were demoting you back to janitor. I'm sick of going back and having to redo the whole poster because of you.

[moonlightblueandicegrey]

My friend: Pythor x Scales

Me: But Scales is married and has a child.

My friend: No! He is married with Pythor and they adopted young Lloyd!

Me: But-

My friend: Pythor x Scales

Me: (opens mouth)

My friend: PYTHOR X SCALES!!!

I like their ship as well to be honest...

@metalatl this is for you

[ninja-guy-yo]

Mostly stream of consciousness breakdown of the new teaser, because this is too big to not talk about

The ninja are in jail, something that has never happened before. Ever /j. The ninja broke into somewhere, before they're arrested. They were all in black gi for the first time since the pilot, so it must have been somewhere they needed to be extra stealthy, since they're colorful gi are usually fine. Maybe them being ninja was outlawed or something before they get arrested. Assuming it's part of the same scene where they're running down a hallway with Aspheera, were they trying to break her out of Kryptarium? And she escaped as is with Wu, while they got caught.

After 8 or so seasons, Pythor is back!!! Glad he's still white, the crystal made that unclear. And his scales are detailed. Has he been here the whole time, or did he do something recently to get put in prison? Guess that debunks him being the Vengestone Buyer, or mastermind in some way.

Mysterious kabuki mask-wearing person and then a Lloyd reaction shot. I have no idea if these are even the same scene, or if it's just cut to look like Lloyd's reacting to them. They have either a hood, or shadowed long hair..

Ronin's hair looks very ginger and very shiny.

The Golden Weapons still look like they did in MotO, and they've been hidden in the ninja's hangar bay. I guess right beneath the ninja's house would be safer than in Borg's vault in the middle of the city.

Skylor has her old eyebrows back, thankfully

The mech vaguely looks like the extremely blurry Samurai X mech image, so assuming that's that. Pixal's nowhere else to be seen in this, so she could be in there.

Really thought that cop dude was Clutch for several hours

Dareth's their getaway driver, and then they're hiding in Twitchy Tim's shack

Those new ninja.. maybe they're some kind of anti-ninja group that was formed by the government to replace them as heroes

Tommy had said an LGBT character appearing was likely, so going by the pride flags on the van, I'm guessing that's the pink-haired woman

Jay has bad luck with trains. Or good luck considering he's still alive

Vangelis in what I assume is prison putting on a new mask, the only obvious Vengestone Buyer-related thing in the teaser, I think

Fugidove makes his grand return in, I assume, is still Twitchy Tim's shack

The boys are fighting, I presume, next to a suspiciously glowing puddle of water

Water Dragon Nya either saved that guy after he went overboard in a storm, or she's going to eat him (it's probably the former). The fact that she's in her dragon form though, maybe shows she's lost her humanity even more over time?

I'm so confused and so intrigued at the same time

[lunarifie]

Rewatching Ninjago:

(With no context other than the episode)

Rebooted episode 4–5

Ninjagos so real for understanding that yes, if everyone no longer had technology they would absolutely get into roleplay unknowingly out of boredom

Cole: watch out Nya, these steps are unstable 😄

Jay: WHY DONT YOU WATCH WHERE YOUR STEPPING—

Jay was so on edge. And for what.

Ik Lloyd was forcefully aged and its so evident in this season that he still holds that ‘childlike’ mindset which isn’t his fault and completely natural. What isn’t natural is him being forced to grow up which is sad to see.

I have an urge to draw scales jr in his lil cool bomber jacket :)

Omfg I forgot they have a whole legend with the ninja as the bad guys I remember that pissing me off sm

Nickname 1: Minnows (Darreth to his students)

The serpentines ‘lair’ is such good world building. To read this setting as a scene in a book would be incredible.

I KNEW IT WOULD BE PYTHOR

Also that's embarrassing

Being Pythor

Imagine having beef with a 14 year old

Like dude let it go. You screwed him over when he was 8 don't you think that's enough.

GIVE LLOYD A BREAK GODDAMN

Thank god Garmadons alive but Lloyd doesnt know that wtf

Oh. I guess the serpentine were kinda right about the golden master.

Thats so weird in a philosophical and prophetic sense.

Nickname 2: Airhead (Kai)

They’re already entering the digiverse? It seems a bit early in the season. Im wondering if the rest of the season will be them just surviving in the ‘game’

Kai: are you sure this wont disintegrate us or something?

Cyrus borg: hm 🤔 im not sure! Lets see 😀

Jay was so cool in the digiverse

I feel like out of all the ninja, Jay’s imagination is probably the most expansive and creative

He thinks the most ‘outside the box’ and I find that neat

Kai is such an old man

Kai: Your the one who called me an airhead!!! (directing at Jay)

Cole: uhhh, no, that was me actually.

Jay: stop being so self-conscious and jump 🙄

How about you worry about your fucking self 💀

This is so stressful literally everyone is having a bad time

LETS GO PIXAL

SAMURAI X!!! Nya is so cool.

Garmadon throwing his evil brother out the window in a nindroid costume is the best entrance ever

Lloyd repeating “I am not alone” as he's getting his golden power extracted from him is such a raw line since his whole life all he's been was ‘alone’

I fully believe all he wants is to just have his loved ones by his side peacefully.

Sweetly ironic how Zane is probably the connection and most in touch with family while he himself, being a robot and losing his father, can be seen as the most ‘family-less’.

Those few seconds where Kai couldn't believe in himself must have been so hard. The fear of being the reason they fail.

Confetti!!! Everyone celebrating!!! They defeated the overlord!!!

Lloyd: crippled in a burning self-destructive airship.

GIVE THIS BOY A BREAK

Overlord escaping from his casket: I... Am freeeee.

Ah, so that's why we still have half a season to go.

[sibillascribbles08]

Who’s the Golden Master Now?

More changeling AU where stuff actually gets crazy

    It was too quiet.

    Lloyd stood in the middle of the city, his father and Kai by his side. The rest of the team had gone about trying to evacuate anyone, preparing for the Overlord’s assault. 

    But nothing happened. 

    Eventually with the lack of activity, Jay and Cole went to slip into the tower to see if they could find anything. Lloyd hated standing by, but someone had to be out here to interfere if their enemies showed up. 

    But it was still nothing. Not even any droids trying to launch an attack. The lack of citizens made the streets so quiet Lloyd almost wanted to panic from the silence.

    His father must have sensed it, putting a hand on his shoulder. “Patience, son, we can’t act without any information.”

    “I know.” Lloyd sighed. “But this is weird. It’s too weird.”

    His stress wasn’t aided by his concern over Cryptor, despite what the rest of the team thought. Pixal said he could be fixed, but they didn’t have the time or resources right now, so the droid remained unconscious back at Nya’s Samurai X base. 

    Lloyd couldn’t pinpoint why he was worried, but he at least knew he couldn’t treat Cryptor like an enemy. Maybe it’s because he related to it. He and his father both aided the enemy in the past, and both of them turned away from it. It wasn’t impossible for Cryptor to decide to do the same.

    Why couldn’t the rest of the team give him the chance. 

    The roar of an engine brought him out of his thoughts. He got into a defensive position before Jay’s roadster came into view. The blue ninja spun it onto the street before parking in front of them. The hatch opened, him and Cole both popping up.

    “You guys will not believe what we found.” Jay laughed, but he also sounded worried.

    Before Lloyd could ask, Cole reached into the vehicle to pull something out of it. In his solid grip was Pythor, the serpentine’s arms tightly bound together. The snake hissed and even tried to bite Cole before he was tossed onto the ground. 

    “He was trying to run for it.” Jay hopped out, lightning at the ready when Pythor tried to move. 

    “But why?” Garmadon pointed his staff at the serpentine. “Speak.” 

    Pythor scoffed before glancing at everyone. He must have decided he was outnumbered and cleared his throat. “Listen, I don’t want any trouble anymore. Just let me go.”

    “We’ll let you go when we have answers.” Kai’s hands lit up. “Where’s The Overlord? Where’s Zane?”

    The serpentine shivered. “I don’t know why you want your friend back in the first place.” He spat. “He’s utterly mad.”

    “Explain.” Lloyd emphasized. “Tell us what happened.”

    “Fine.” Pythor rolled his eyes. “But don’t say I didn’t warn you…” 

----

    Soon. Soon enough the Overlord would claim the golden armor they forged and their assault on the city could begin. Pythor’s revenge was in reach.

    All the nindroids were lined up. The armor arrived on a cart, since none of the droids could touch it, and it waited for the Overlord to arrive.

    Sadly, in his state, he refused to let the others see him. The army was dismissed, save for Cryptor who refused to leave. Pythor was tempted to argue with him, but something about the droid unnerved him. 

    Finally the doors opened. The Overlord walked in, can in hand. His form still wasn’t completely solid, dark matter oozing off him with the same consistency of honey or oil. Pythor kept those thoughts to himself. 

    “Finally.” The Overlord’s voice still came out as a hiss and a croak. “The golden power is mine. Soon the city will be mine. Then the world.” 

    Pythor tapped his fingers together, trying to his his green. The Overlord reached out to the armor--

    Clang.

    Pythor blinked at the sound, seeing the black armored hand contrasting with the shining gold. He followed it up to Cryptor who stared forward, looking smug.

    “Sorry.” The nindroid said. “But I decided against that.”

    “What?” Pythor and the Overlord growled at the same time.

    “Have you lost it, you bucket of bolts?” Pythor continued. “Need I remind you yet again that you can be reprogrammed.”

    “Then try it.” Cryptor narrowed his eyes. “Without the Overlord in the digiverse you’re going to have a tougher time with that, right?” 

    Pythor opened his mouth but couldn’t find an argument fast enough.

    “I thought about it.” Cryptor picked up a piece of the armor, tapping it against his face. “See, after switching bodies my head was so muddled, but it cleared up a lot after you got booted from the system.”

    Switch bodies? What was he talking about?

    “And I learned about the plan to find this stuff.” Cryptor gestured to the armor. “And how could I pass the opportunity for that upgrade?”

    “Explain yourself.” Pythor snapped. “What do you mean ‘switch bodies?’”

    “What, you haven’t figured it out?” Cryptor lowered the bottom part of his mask so they could see him smirk. “Did that other nindroid constantly insisting he was your general after the power plant got shut down not tip you off?”

    Pythor flinched. “What? You mean he was telling you the truth? That’s--”

    “‘Preposterous?’ Hardly. A simple switch of the harddrive when his guard is down.” 

    “Then you’re--”

    “Zane!” The nindroid kept interrupting. “Or am I even him, I wonder.”

    The Overlord growled. “Stop this nonsense. Get your hands off my armor. How are you even touching it?”

    “What are you going to do about it?” Cryptor--no, Zane--tilted his head. “Going to fight me? I’d like to see you both try.” 

    Pythor still lunged, having faith in his strength. Zane’s grip around the piece of gold tightened before he held out his other hand. Lightning flew from his fingers, sending Pythor flying backwards. The static ran under his scales and he clutched his head to try and focus. 

    “How are you doing that?” The Overlord shouted. “Mere pawns like you shouldn’t be able to touch it, much less use it.”

    Zane shrugged, picking up more of it. “I don’t know, nor do I care. Anything for a better upgrade, right?” 

    One more piece of armor and the nindroid started to glow, gold light coming off him in waves. Pythor thought he was done for, that in moments his body would turn to dust and their plan could continue.

    Instead the armor warped, as if it was melting once again. It wrapped around Zane’s right arm, completely encasing it. Some of it wrapped around his chest and face like spider legs. 

    The Overlord roared and lashed out, his hand morphing into claws like he wanted to pry the armor off of the nindroid. 

    Zane caught his wrist. Golden light exploded. Pythor could only cover his eyes. 

    When he opened them again, the Overlord was gone. Only his cane sat on the ground.

    “Well that’s a nuisance taken care of.” Zane dusted his gi off. “You’re not going to kick up a fuss, are you?” He looked at Pythor.

    Pythor just shook his head, still at a loss for words.

    “Good, then I’m out of here. Taking the rest of the nindroids with me. They’re wasting their time on your stupid little plans.” Zane headed toward the door. 

    “And what are your plans?” Pythor finally stuttered out. “Weren’t you supposed to be one of the heroes?” 

    “Why do you care? Do you want in?” The droid tilted his head back when he looked at Pythor. “Don’t bother. This ‘bucket of bolts’ doesn’t want anything to do with you. I’d count your blessings you’re still around, yeah?” He smiled. “See you around, Pythor.” 

----

    “You have to be kidding me.” Kai finally broke the silence that followed Pythor’s story. 

    “I am not kidding.” Pythor spat. “You can go look in the tower and see for yourself. Now let me go.” 

    “We can’t just let you go.” Lloyd growled. “You’re going to prison, whether you like it or not.” 

    “I’ll keep an eye on him.” Cole said. “Kai, Jay, you two go check the tower.” 

    “I’m coming too.” Lloyd insisted. Partially to see the answers for himself, but also just to get away from Pythor. “We should also get Nya to sweep the city looking for any nindroids.”

    “He took them with him.” Pythor shouted after them. “They’re all gone.”

    “Like we’re going to trust you.” Lloyd spat. Kai put a hand on his shoulder. 

    Lloyd sighed, picking up his pace and trying to ignore his own thoughts. Why did Zane do this? What did he mean by “or am I even him?” Lloyd was suddenly very frightened by the idea that their friend hadn’t been in there for a while. 

    But if that was the case then who was he? Where did he come from?

    This was all too confusing. Part of him hoped Pythor was telling the truth, that this nightmare was over, but if that was the case it still left them with too many questions.

    Most of which Lloyd may never get the answers to.

[textsfromninjagoblog]

💜🎂Happy Birth-Date, Pythor X Reader for @anti-cosmofangirl (Part 1)💜🎂

Bright sun and cool breezes gently swept through the village of Jamanikai. Excitement abounded as happy couples strolled through the streets, while the fountain in the center of the square peacefully bubbled away. Meanwhile, merchants from all around were setting up their stalls for the Valentine's Day festival.

It would be hard for anyone not to feel giddy amid the chattering and joyful bustle, but this afternoon was extra special for you. That's because today was your birthday!

This was the first time you ever celebrated your day outside of Ninjago City, and you couldn't wait to see what the festival had in store. Your friends who'd been here in past years had only hyped you up farther, with tales of rose petals floating down the village's waterways, to talented kabuki street performers, to the sugary delicacies in the window of the sweets shop!

However, according to the schedule pamphlet you'd picked up, there'd still be a while to wait before the festivities began; so you decided to check out some of the area's natural beauty in the mean time.

You found a small trail leading into the nearby forest. As you maundered up it, the songs from the birds that perched in the pines sounded crisply through the air; while the last piles of snow seeped into the earth. You closed your eyes and took a deep breath of contentment, barely remembering the last time you felt so calm....

...that is, until you took just one more step forward!

"AHHHHHHHH!" You screamed as the ground gave way from under you!

Even though you'd braced for the sudden impact, it still stung immensely as your body landed in the soil. Slowly cracking your eyes back open, you could see the hole you'd fallen through and hazily estimated that it'd been at least a ten foot plunge! Turns out, the melting snow had made the ground more than a tad unstable.

"Great," you thought as you dusted some of the rubble off yourself, "how do I get myself out of here?"

Turns out the answer to that question was just a few feet away, bickering amongst themselves!

"Now remind me," Skales hissed, "why are we taking the mountain path back to Ouroboros? There's much faster routes..."

"To throw those troublesome ninja off our trail!" A certain Anacondrai replied matter-of-factly, "I've heard tell that their patrol's have been rumbling directly over the tunnel to the desert!"

Suddenly, the loud crash and scream from your fall boomed through the cave! The duo slithered quickly ahead towards the source, expecting that they'd spoken of the devil and would soon be doing battle with a particular team of Spinjitzu masters!

But as they neared the cave-in, some of your struggles to get un-stuck from the earth could be faintly heard. Pythor signaled Skales to halt as they examined the situation from a safe distance.

"Excellent," Pythor exasperatedly said, "now I'll have to divert some Constrictai to fix this mess before it's discovered..."

"A bit late for that, with a land dweller down here." Skales snarked back.

"Well at least it's not a Ninja!" Pythor replied.

The Anacondrai turned his attention to the mound of rubble.

"Hello, you there!" He called, "Are you alright? Can you stand?"

"I think I'm OK!" You called back, happy that some kind of help had found you.

You'd finally managed to wriggle free enough to stand, using the cave wall for support. However, when you went to take a step, a sharp pain shot from your right ankle! You let a yelp of discomfort and lost your balance; though you reacted quickly enough so that you leaned your back onto the dirt wall versus falling flat on the ground again.

"Just what I thought..." Pythor muttered as he slithered into view.

Your heart nearly stopped when you got the first glimpse of your mysterious savior. The deep purple hue of his scales glistened in the small rays of light that filtered in, with his gold and gemstone laden ornamentation only adding to his regal appearance. His keen eyes glowed an arresting fuchsia, and they were unwaveringly fixed on you.

"Y-you're, you're, an Anacondrai!" You mustered through your shock, quickly realizing just how dangerous your situation had become!

"An astute observation," the Serpentine said, curving his long neck so that his face was now level with yours, "now, are we going to just stand around talking about the obvious, or would you like some help for that leg?"

"I guess I could use a hand..." you said, trying to bite back your nerves.

"Well, we should be on our way then!" Pythor said as he held his arms open. "No need to be so frightened, I don't bite."

He couldn't help but let a small chuckle at his own joke as he scooped you into a bridal carry. At this point, Skales had also emerged from the shadows, shaking his head at his ruler's antics. You couldn't believe what was happening!

"Why would any Serpentine soldier, let alone an Anacondrai, be so nice to a human?" You thought, now a captive as the three of you continued your course.

The truth was, Pythor had no clue why he felt so generous towards you. Land dwellers like you were too far beneath him to be of much concern; yet your pathetic state was oddly..... endearing..?

He wasn't quite sure what was happening, but he'd decided to just go along with it for the time being. After all, this could prove to be a golden opportunity!

"Perhaps I'll be able to bribe some intel out of her on the Ninja," Pythor schemed to himself, "worse come to worse, we could just use her as bait for a trap!"

The silence in the tunnel had began to get awkward by now, Skales's occasional glares not helping matters.

"Apologies for not introducing myself sooner," Pythor said, attempting to break the ice, "I'm Pythor P. Chumsworth, who might you be?"

"I'm (Y/n)," you replied, "(y/n) (l/n)."

"I should've guessed you were called something so lovely." He said, hoping his charisma would charm you just as had done with that brat Lloyd.

"Oh," you stammered, feeling your cheeks begin to flush, "thank you."

~~~~~

In no time, the three of you had arrived to the legendary lost city. Skales took his leave, apparently fulfilling an order to gather some Constrictai and begin construction on the cave-in.

The ancient pillars took your breath away with how they glittered against the sand; your anxieties slowly being replaced by curiosity with your new surroundings. It was definitely a relief for you to be above ground again, as that tunnel was starting to get claustrophobic.

"Where are we headed?" You absentmindedly asked, trying to soak in each passing alleyway of the mysterious city.

"To the infirmary, of course." Pythor replied, "The Venomari are some of the best when it comes to medicine, you'll be fixed up in no time!"

He'd taken notice of your wide-eyed expression and couldn't help but smile. He knew the Serpentine's ancestral stronghold was truly a marvel to behold, and to a human who might've believed it all to be a myth, it must've been like walking into a fairytale. He somewhat envied the innocence and pure wonder that shined in your eyes.

Soon enough, the two of you made it to the infirmary. Your nerves were starting to return as Pythor gently laid you down on the stone examination table.

"Great, are they going to spit their poison in my eyes?" You thought, "What if this is actually some kind of trap!?"

Before your thoughts could fully run away from you, however, a Venomari healer slithered into the room. They gasped in shock when they saw you, clearly taken aback by the sight of a land dweller.

"Oh, she's no enemy," Pythor reassured the other Serpentine, "she's my guest. The poor thing took quite a spill on our way is all."

"I see," the healer replied, having regained composure as they examined your ankle, "that's pretty twisted up, but as long as she doesn't put any weight on it for the rest of the day, it should be fine by tomorrow morning."

The healer then rummaged through a nearby cupboard, producing a small jar of lime green cream.

"This is going to be cold," they warned as they scooped out some of the substance, "but it'll take away most of the pain."

You tensed up as the cream made contact with your skin. You shut your eyes tight, expecting to soon be higher than a kite from whatever crazy venom was surely in the foreign substance....

But instead, your joint felt pleasantly numb.

You tentatively cracked an eye as you flexed your ankle, breathing a sigh of relief. Pythor couldn't help but to snicker at your reactions.

"Anticipating something a bit more....hallucinogenic?" He teased.

"Was it that obvious?" You replied with a sheepish smile as the healer helped you onto a set of crutches.

~~~~~

Finally discharged from the infirmary, it quickly became obvious that there wasn't any way you were going to get back to Jamanikai in time for the festivities.

Despite this, you weren't disappointed. In fact, you actually weren't fully sure how you felt, especially in regards to the charming snake at your side. Lost in thought, you let out a small sigh as you and Pythor slowly made your way back through the crowded streets.

"Is something wrong?" Pythor asked, sensing how you'd become distant.

"Nothing really," you replied, the butterflies in your stomach growing worse, "I guess this is a far cry from how I was planning on spending my birthday is all."

This development was a curveball, but one that Pythor knew he could work with. Now was his chance to impress you!

"Well then," he replied, "this calls for a Slither Pit! After all, that's how we celebrate most things around here."

"Sounds good." You said, without a single clue as to what you were in for, yet kind of excited all the same.

[parachutingkitten]

Season 1 Analysis

STANDARD DISCLAIMER: I am going to be applying the concept of criticism to a TV show you presumably love and adore as much as I do. If you do not want your idea that the show is immaculate to be challanged, I would not advise reading past this point.

Mood for this season: Logic? Nahh...

I'm taking three film classes right now, I only rip it apart because I love it! (Sry, if I seem a little overly critical at times)

So, let's start with some background (you get to learn about me, yay! This is what you came here for. Right?). When the original series (seasons 1 and 2) came out in 2012, my little brother, at the age of six, was THE target audience for lego ninjas that you could battle and spin really really fast. I... am five years older than him. He collected sets, and he even bought me a spinner pack with the "girl character", the "blue one", and one of the skeletons so that I could play with him. To this day they are the only legos I own, but they sit in an altoids tin in my night stand. It was right before our family moved to Germany (we're a military family btw) that our parents purchased the disk episodes of seasons one and two. When you live in Europe, you tend to want to do a LOT of traveling. Every weekend, I kid you not, we went to another country. Which means road trips. And road trips mean movies. I would always let my brother choose what we watched, because he was the one who would get fussy and upset, so we watched a lot of Kung Fu Panda, and Madagascar, and a LOT of Cars (as in plural movies. I quote Cars 2, regularly), but the thing we watched most often was those niniago DVDs. Because you could just auto play those episodes one after another for a seemingly endless movie that would last until you arrived. So, I've seen these episodes a few times. Like, A LOT of times. Drilling these episodes into my mind over and over is what made me obsessed with it later (but we'll talk about that when we get to season 3).

Upon rewatching... they are exactly as I remember. There were no real surprises, so I don't feel like I have too much to say shock value wise, but that doesn't mean I don't have anything to say.

Plot

I've made a joke post about this before, but season one does fall into the treasure hunt formula. Find a fang blade. Lose it. Look for next one. Repeat for the next few episodes. Same thing can be said for the true potential. Find what holds them back emotionally, overcome it by the end of the episode to save the person/people you needed to fix your relationship with, glowing orb/pillar to make you certifiably awesome. For four. Episodes. Straight. Even if you space out the episodes where the ninja get their true potential, or when they find the fang blades, it would keep you on your toes a bit more. This being said... it does greatly help to give every episode a PLOT purpose. Every one of those "previously on ninjago" recaps was shoving a bunch of stuff in there. Most ninjago episodes do serve a purpose (except of course the atrocity that is the first half of season two - we WILL get to that next time) at least character development wise, but it is nice to have meaningful plot development too and keep a consistent pace throughout the season. This season certainly keeps up the pace. There is not an episode you can just miss. Even with the recap, you would still probably be confused. One thing that NO OTHER SEASON has over this one, hands down (aside from season 9 maybe, idk yet) is flow from season to season. Planning benefits this season GREATLY. It carries over things from the pilot, and sets up more to come in the next season. Watch them all together and it flows more naturally than any other season bookends. (Although I will say all the ninjago season transitions are smoother than any of Chima's [I will not touch that rabbit hole EVER again])

Characters

Character interaction is AMAZING this season. You really get to know the characters and feel all their growth equally. Every. One. Of. Them.

Think about it, Wu has an arc with his brother, Lloyd has an arc with the green ninja, Nya has an arc as samurai x, and it goes without saying that all of our regulars have an arc. And... that's about it. Those are all the characters. And I think that's why this season works so well.

You have four main characters, a handful of side characters, and they all get time and focus. Everyone has something to do during this season. As the season's go on and we accumulate more and more characters there's less screentime to go around, and the characters can suffer for it. There's a reason by season 6 they were literally REMOVING characters from the show. They don't have time to get distracted by Kai and his petty problems and drama this season, cuz Jay needs some focus for once, and we'd like to give him a little development gosh darn it! But I'm getting ahead of myself. This season works really well. Just because I feel like I should, I'm going to give you a breakdown on my feelings on new characters as they pop up or change dramatically, and because this is the first season, that means we get to do it for... all the characters! So here we go.

Nya

She's good this season. She's the most responsible in the group. The samurai x reveal was handled really well. Making all the ninja jealous of her really worked to give her credibility. She's just the right amount of strong and independent while still retaining her femininity. It goes WAY down hill when season 3 hits, but as for season 1 Nya I actually really enjoy her.

Wu

I mean... what are you going to say? He's Wu? Anyone have a problem with Wu? No? Good, moving on.

Kai

So... this is where my bias comes out. Quick piece of info, my elemental personality is water... so like the opposite of fire. I see a little bit of myself in each of the ninja... except Kai. And I think that's why he's my least favorite. Don't get me wrong! I don't hate Kai or anything! He's got some good lines (episode 5 comes to mind) he's adorkable enough. It's not hard to play or to write a hot head, but it's hard to play or write a hot head that I personally enjoy. I think what Kai is missing for me personally is the tripping over himself because of his attitude, and sarcasm. Sarcasm and sass. It's there, it's just not as prevalent as I personally would like it. He has a lot of opportunities and theoretical development, I'm not sure too many of them were taken advantage of fully, or maybe they just didn't read the way I personally can grasp it, but none of it felt very completed or meaningful. Like I said, I'm a water gal, so maybe I just can't relate and that's why it's not as powerful. I'd be interested to see your rankings of the ninja and how they line up with your own elemental personality. There's got to be a correlation there, right?

Conclusion, just not for me

Cole

Cole and Jay are tied for second favorite in general. It fluctuates from season to season depending on what's going on, but for season 1 Jay has Cole beat. I think the only reason just being screen time. Goodness knows Cole has been a bit neglected in that category, but hey. He's still really good for what he's got. I think in real life I probably act the most like Cole. I try to be serious, responsible and a leader and then I just get goofy sometimes. I love his true potential episode! It's funny, and heartwarming, and the only episode actually about him, so it's fun to see!

Conclusion, just needs more love

Jay

Jay is then, my second favorite for the season. He's funny. What else can I say? Personal opinion; Jay freakouts are the best this season. Especially at the climax. He just has that pure goofball-ness to him this season that makes his humor not annoying and actually relatable and funny. I also love his family to death! He loves them, he knows it, we know it, and the interactions between them are precious! It really is the way he plays off of other people that makes him enjoyable. He has a lot more dry humor here than other season, which I am partial to. I've got some kinks to work out with this one in later seasons but for now, he's good.

Conclusion, No, I'm the real Jay!

Zane

...My baby! Especially this season he is so innocent, loving, caring, and mysterious that I can't help but love the heck out of this guy! I am a sucker for a good mystery! He has this whole other world he's a part of with his "sixth sense" and falcon and running away at night. It's unique and special to him and it's really cool! Plus, there is SO much ATMOPHERE that comes with this guy and MAN I LOVE it! It's all just so beautiful. I love interactions between him and Jay, I love his mutual respect with Cole, I love EVERYTHING. This season and the next have the most growth for him, and it shows.

Conclusion, there's a reason we call him the pure one

Romance

Kinda adding this one last minute, but I think it needs to be here. All we got this season is Jay and Nya but BOY has their relationship changed! This is the single one thing that caught me off guard. I forgot what their relationship, especially before Jay's true potential, is like. Honestly, I love it! They're so awkward and clumsy around each other at first, and then grow into this understanding couple of one another. There's not too much emphasis on it, but it's sprinkled in everywhere. I like it! Maya approved!

Villians

The devourer arc is one of my favorites. Maybe it's the nostalgia tingles at work again, but the snakes are ninjago's quintessential villains. Nothing can ever hope to replace them. It feels natural in the plot, they have their own culture and beliefs, and their motivation makes sense. You have your legitimately scary villains and bumbling comic villians in perfect balance. Scales starting as second in command was an amazing call. It proves he has power he's earned, is not easily put down and sets up his lust for power to be explored later. Pythor. Oh man oh man Pythor. I am a sucker for ATMOSPHERE and his introduction is BEAUTIFUL. Utilizes the rule of 3s and completely subverts your expectations with that eerie empty tomb. I love it! So manipulative! So sly! They aren't my all time favorite villians, but they're certainly among the best the show has to offer.

Garmadon is also there. He's half good half bad... sorta. Idk. He's not especially interesting, at least compared to the snakes and what they're up to. Let's be honest, he's just waiting around to get awesome in season 2 ;) I do like when he comes in with all the skeletons like, "yeah, no one likes you. Screw snakes!" Only to walk that COMPLETELY back next season, but you know. Whatever.

Lloyd... should I put him here? He's enjoyably annoying for a little bit... and then just annoyingly annoying. It's not too bad. He has some redeeming moments. Once he's the green ninja and has some responsibility on his shoulders, he gets a lot better.

Climax

... I love it. I don't know what else to say. It's tense, it has proper build up, the threat is real, they get desperate, they come up with a creative solution, they work together, there are stakes, there's good action, good drama, good humor. I don't have any complaints. I can't touch this one. There are minor things, but I don't think they're worth bringing up. Go watch it. It's freaking awesome. Enough said.

Humor

Pretty good this season. There are a few eye roll lines, but that's in all the seasons. Things can get kinda stupid, but for the most part, especially some of the more subtle humor really works.

Favorite line of the season, Cole's "I don't like metaphors" episode 11 - All of Nothing. You're welcome.

Drama

Not overly saturated this season, which is kinda nice. I mean, there's always "drama" but as far as heavy stuff, we have Zane's whole crisis thing, and then the Garmadon family reunion. I'll get to how I feel about the Zane stuff down below. As for the Garmadon stuff... it's fine. Gets a lot better next season, but for now... fine.

Spotlight Episode

So for every season I'll choose one episode that stood out to me to either praise or criticize in detail. There are a lot of episodes that come to mind for season 1 for one reason or another. The one about the power of rumors (also known as the pink ninja episode), lloyd rescuing the team, Cole's true potential is a classic episode with a good mix of heart and comedy, and of course THE FINALE, but because I am biased, and because I am a sucker for personal drama, season one's spotlight episode is episode 7, Tick tock, Zane's true potential. This was by far the episode me and my brother watched together the most. Aside from the movie Cars, it's probably the one piece of media we have scene the most times together. The episode begins by establishing Wu leaving, the ninja are at a loss of what to do and then... THE FALCON. Best character this season! XD seriously, the falcon theme is one of, if not my favorite piece of music in the show. Certainly the most memorable. And most importantly it kicks in the ATMOSPHERE! Have I mentioned ATMOSPHERE?

ATMOSPHERE

I am a sucker for some good ATMOSPHERE (no, I will not stop spelling it in all caps), and BOY the falcon chase scene! Zane is slowly taken away from his team members in order to reflect upon himself, and as he runs through the snow by himself to follow this bird you can see his determination, curiosity, desperation, and just that Zane factor that makes you go "awww, my child! He must be protected!" (Even though, you know, he was built to protect and all that) but just AGHH! I can't put into words for beautiful this whole sequences is! Go watch it right now! Look at that beautiful Zane! Listen to that music! That FREAKING MUSIC AGGHHHHHH! I LOVE IT SO AGGRESSIVELY! LISTEN TO IT! LIKE SERIOUSLY, LISTEN, HERE'S THE LINK!

https://youtu.be/2p07cgwwYws

It makes my heart SO happy! Idk if I'm the only one who feels that way about this scene but oh... oh how it gets me. Every. Time. Michael Kramer and Jay Vincent are freAKING GODS!

Okay. I'm done with the falcon chase. Now onto, like... the part of the episode people care about. The tree house, again, an amazing location. Unique, and mysterious, and as soon as he walks in, you just get this sense of memory. The flash back is ADORABLE and the others finding him... I think this was handled pretty well. Their reactions seem genuine (I mean, I would want to get out of there as soon as humanly possible too XD) and you can feel the genuine concern from all of the ninja, trying to help their buddy out in their own ways.

Zane's true potential feels really earned, and his thing that holds him back was established as soon as the series began. He was different and weird and he didn't know where he came from. Coming to accept what he is, accepting his past and finding an identity of his own is what gives him the power to unlock it.

Now, just for fun and because I know I'm going to hear it in the comments like "why is Zane's discovery of identity more valid than anyone else's? What about Kai! His true potential is entirely based on finding his purpose!" And yes. Theoretical commentor you make a valid point, but I think the key difference is in the identity they find when they unlock it.

Zane accepts his personality, his past, and his robotic nature as himself and can be proud of who he is as his own person. The thing that held him back was vague and sort of indefinable, and what he became afterwards was concrete, solid, and dependable. That's why you feel like the character has gotten stronger.

Kai goes in the opposite direction. The thing that holds him back is that he wants to be the green ninja. That's solid and concrete. The problem then becomes that you know exactly how the potential will play out. He's going to face something, discover he's not the green ninja, and come to terms with it. And his ending identity is much more vague. His purpose is to protect the green ninja... okay, what does that mean? What kind of a person does that make you? He didn't change as a person, his views about a certain topic where changed. Those are two very different levels of progress.

And I know you can argue that it wasn't the green ninja thing he needed to get past, he needed to get past his pride and all that, but even if you make that argument that conclusion is harder to reach and less apparent than Zane's progress as a character. Zane's progress is entirely centered on him. Kai's progress will never be separated from Lloyd. Just watch the episode. It feels like a Lloyd episode. I remember thinking the first time I watched it when he came out of the volcano "wait... what was his true potential? Why is this happening?"

Anyway, that's my little soap box rant. I hope I didn't offend too many Kai fans. Again, it's probably just my water bias coming into play. I know there's a frame work in place for development of all these characters, and every single one of them gets an arc and theoretically everything should work out and make sense and work beautifully and perfectly, but sometimes when you step back and look at it, it's just a matter of "but does it work?" And maybe it's a matter of opinion, but Kai's potential didn't work for me.

I've been on this way to long. I'm stopping now.

Misc

I really like the suits this season. They're all unique and the masks... compliment the Lego head shape nicely? Does that make sense? It makes them look a bit cuter. Anyone else see that? Idk, maybe I'm just going crazy.

Watch this season thinking about how the snakes become good in season 3...

I want more of the Pink ninja.

I love scales and his slight incompetence. Not total, just slight.

This exchange:

Pythor: I hardly have any friends

Lloyd: Woah! I hardly have any friends too!

Pythor: You don't say!

All together I really like this season. Light hearted, funny, good action and characters. Not super compelling or anything, but it doesn't need to be. Second best season for nostalgia tingles in general, third best for me personally. Most of this is a matter of opinion, so don't fret too much over anything I say. I'd love to see your thoughts/rankings/comments/disagreements in the notes! That's the point of this thing!

If there are any aspects of the season I skipped, let me know, I'm not perfect.

Thanks for reading! And if you got this far... I don't know. Work the word saxophone into your comment. Bonus points if it makes sense!

-Maya (a.k.a. parachutingkitten)

[yoshimickster]

Ninjago confusion:

Lloyd: I just don't know...why am I the leader?

Jay: Hey yeah, why ARE you leader again?

Wu: Because he is the green ninja, and destined to lead you all.

Kai: Really? That's kind of weak, and I'm not just saying that because of my Red Ranger complex.

Cole: Honestly we've all taken the role of leader and saved the day time and time again, maybe we don't really HAVE a leader?

Jay: Also we were all his teachers once, now he's in charge? That's weird.

Wu: It is his destin-

Nya: Shut the fuck up old man, we're still mad at you for fighting Acronix alone!

Jay: Seriously, you're old and barely have powers, we're young and have SEVERAL powers...not...nearly as much as in season 1 for some reason, but its something!

Nya: And while we're questioning things, why can't I be Samurai X AND the water elemental? Hell, why do I have to be a ninja at all?

Wu: Uh, well you see-

Cole: And what idiotic strategy is fighting alone? There's literally over a DOZEN elemental masters in action, and you didn't call any of them, including us?

Skylor: Do I still have my powers or don't I? ITS CONFUSING!

Kai: Are we still a thing? Why haven't we pursued that?

Jay: What happened to my parents?

Kai: What happened to MY parents?

Moro: Why can't I come back as a ghost?

Garmadon: Why can't I come back period?

Misako: Why do the writers insist on acting like I'm in love with Wu, when it looks more like I'm his nursemaid?

Lloyd:How could I have even been born 10 years ago when logically my mom is just as old as you and couldn't logically bare a child?

Scales: Where the hell have I been?

Pythor: Why do I still think I can take over the world despite sucking so much?

Zane: If elemental powers are passed through bloodlines, how am I(a nindroid) an elemental?

Echo Zane: Does Zane still know I exist? Am I an elemental?

Pixal: Why can't Borg industries make me a new fucking body?

Borg: Why can't I make myself cybernetic legs like that chick in Arrow everybody hates for no good reason?

Master Chen: How is it I'm the most despicable and cunning villain so far, yet somehow look hilarious and stupid? Also vaguely racist.

Nadakhan: Hello?! THREE WISHES! SOMEBODY SAVE ME!

Kai: And those are just SOME of the many questions we have.

Wu:All good questions that I will *ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ*

Kai: Friggin dammit, not again.