Ninjago (previously known as Ninjago: Masters of Spinjitzu until 2019) is an animated epic-fantasy superhero television series produced by The Lego Group. It was created to coincide with the Lego Ninjago line of construction toys, which is based on the characters and events of the series. It centers on the fictional world of Ninjago, telling the story of a group of six teenage ninja and their battles against the forces of evil. The series was created by Michael Hegner and Tommy Andreasen, two Danish film producers. The storyline was written by the Hageman Brothers until the ninth season; their successor as the head writer was Bragi Schut. The series features the voices of Jillian Michaels, Sam Vincent, Vincent Tong, Brent Miller, Michael Adamthwaite, Kirby Morrow, Andrew Francis, Kelly Metzger, Paul Dobson, and Mark Oliver. The voice cast was recorded in Canada for its entire run. The music was scored by composers Jay Vincent and Michael Kramer.
The series was in continuous production for over a decade and celebrated its tenth anniversary on January 14, 2021. It began with two pilot episodes in January 2011, which were followed by two 13-episode seasons that aired from December 2011 to November 2012. Both the Lego theme and the series had an intended shelf life of three years with the second season planned as the original ending. However, the success of the series and its product line led to the show continuing production, with thirteen more seasons, a special, a feature film adaptation, and a four-episode miniseries being released. Ninjago: Masters of Spinjitzu was produced in Copenhagen, Denmark, by Wil Film ApS for its first ten seasons. The production was relocated to WildBrain Studios in Canada for the eleventh season, and the series was retitled Ninjago. The series concluded on October 1, 2022, with the second part of the fifteenth season being released on Netflix in Australia and New Zealand.
In Denmark, where the series' original production companies are located, it premiered on Cartoon Network. In Canada, the series was broadcast on Teletoon and YTV.
A sequel series titled Ninjago: Dragons Rising, set in the same continuity, debuted on June 1, 2023.
Synopsis The show is largely set in the fictional realm of Ninjago. While featuring historically designed buildings and traditional clothing, Ninjago exists in a modern setting centered around the large metropolis of Ninjago City, which features skyscrapers, current-age and futuristic vehicles, modern electronics, mechas and other futuristic technology. The plot focuses on a group of six teenage ninja fighting against the forces of evil, who are also defined as "Elemental Masters", characters who have elemental powers such as fire, water, ice, earth, life, lightning and even technology).
The series began with the ninja team being formed and trained by their ancient master Sensei Wu in the fictional martial art of "Spinjitzu", which is the main fighting method depicted in the show. The ninjas' base is a flying junk ship named "Destiny's Bounty", which has varied in design over the course of the series. The pilot episodes introduced the four original ninja characters named Kai, Cole, Jay and Zane and Kai's sister Nya who becomes a ninja later. The character Lloyd Garmadon was introduced in the first season, titled Rise of the Snakes.
The series incorporates a detailed fictional lore, which is woven into the storyline using character dialogue and flashbacks. The lore mainly focuses on the history of the First Spinjitzu Master and his creation of the island of Ninjago:
Cast and characters
Lloyd Garmadon (voiced by Jillian Michaels in Seasons 1–7 and Sam Vincent in Seasons 8–15) is the Green Ninja and Elemental Master of Energy (later known as Life). His weapon is a katana. His dragon is Energy Elemental Dragon. His elemental power grants him the ability to manipulate energy. He is the current leader of the ninja, son of Garmadon and Misako, nephew of Master Wu and the grandson of the First Spinjitzu Master. Lloyd makes his debut in the first season following the pilot episodes as a mischievous child wanting to be an evil warlord like his father, which results in childish schemes that are foiled by the original four ninja. Lloyd is reformed by the ninja and Master Wu, before discovering his destiny as the prophesied Green Ninja. While initially mischievous and naive, Lloyd is tempered by experience over the course of the series to become a mature, wise and skilled ninja. Although he is depicted as the youngest member of the team, Lloyd's character has been developed to be its natural leader. Kai (voiced by Vincent Tong) is the Red Ninja and Elemental Master of Fire. His weapon is Sword of Fire. His dragon is Fire Elemental Dragon. His elemental power grants him limited pyrokinesis and heat resistance. Kai is fiercely loyal to his friends and family, often willing to do anything to ensure their safety. He often acts on emotion instead of reason, causing him to be hotheaded, cocky, and rash. He also has a strong sense of responsibility towards his friends. Kai is the older brother of Nya and son of Ray and Maya. His love interest is Skylor Chen. Cole (voiced by Kirby Morrow from the pilot episodes–Season 14 and Andrew Francis in Season 15) is the Black Ninja and Elemental Master of Earth. His weapon is Scythe of Quakes. His dragon is Earth Elemental Dragon. His elemental power grants him limited earth manipulation and super strength. Described as the original leader of the ninja, he is loyal to his friends and family and has a special love for food, especially cake. He is the son of Lou, a member of a barbershop quartet, and Lilly, the previous Elemental Master of Earth. Jay Walker (born Jay Gordon) (voiced by Michael Adamthwaite) is the Blue Ninja and Elemental Master of Lightning. His weapon is Nunchucks of Lightning. His dragon is Lightning Elemental Dragon. His elemental power grants him limited electricity manipulation. He is also a skilled mechanic and is technologically savvy. Jay is inventive and quick-witted, often using comedy to alleviate stressful situations. He is easily excitable and prone to freaking out when in crises but, like the other ninja, is intensely loyal to his friends, especially his girlfriend Nya. He is the son of Cliff Gordon and Libber, the previous Elemental Master of Lightning, but was adopted and raised by Ed and Edna Walker. Nya (voiced by Kelly Metzger) is the Light Blue ninja and Elemental Master of Water. Her weapon is a trident. Her dragon is Water Elemental Dragon. She is the original Samurai X. In early seasons she wears red as Samurai X and later, dark red. Since the release of The Lego Ninjago Movie, she has primarily been depicted in gunmetal grey. Her elemental power grants her limited hydrokinesis. Although she is not an original member of the ninja team, Nya joins when her skills as the Elemental Master of Water are needed to defeat the ghosts and the Preeminent in Season 5. Tough and determined, she refuses to let anyone tell her what to do. Though she can sometimes be stubborn, Nya cares about her friends and family, often making the most mature decisions of the group and serving as emotional support. As a skilled mechanic, she often constructs vehicles for the other ninja. Nya is Kai's younger sister, the daughter of Ray and Maya and the girlfriend of Jay Walker. Zane (voiced by Brent Miller) is the White Ninja and Elemental Master of Ice. His weapon is the Shurikens of Ice. His dragon is Ice Elemental Dragon. His elemental power grants him limited cryokinesis. Zane is intelligent and calculating, often providing intel to the ninja when required. Initially, he lacks normal social skills, such as a sense of humour, but it is later revealed that Zane is secretly an android (or "Nindroid"), a fact unknown to both the ninja and Zane himself. Though he is still logical and matter-of-fact by nature, his brotherhood with the other ninja has enabled him to develop more human characteristics. He is the son/creation of Dr. Julien. Sensei/Master Wu (voiced by Paul Dobson, Caleb Skeris as a baby, Madyx Whiteway as a child) is Elemental Master of Creation, ancient master of the ninja who frequently wields his father's staff. His dragon is Creation Elemental Dragon. He is Lloyd's uncle, younger son of the First Spinjitzu Master and brother to Garmadon. Because of his Oni heritage, Wu has lived for thousands of years. Lord/Sensei Garmadon (voiced by Mark Oliver, Kai Emmett as a child) is Elemental Master of Destruction, Lloyd's father, Wu's older brother, Misako's estranged husband, and older son of the First Spinjitzu Master. Garmadon is the main antagonist of the pilot episodes and an overarching antagonist of the first two seasons. In Season 2, he is cleansed of evil and becomes a sensei to the ninja in Season 3. In Season 4, he is sacrificed to the Cursed Realm and resurrected in Season 8 as a being of pure evil. After conquering Ninjago, his reign of terror is finally brought to an end by Lloyd and he is imprisoned in Kryptarium Prison. In Season 10, he is released to help the ninja defeat the Oni, after which he walks free. In Season 15, he reappears to help the Ninja fight the Overlord. Because of his Oni heritage, Garmadon has lived for thousands of years. P.I.X.A.L. (Primary Interactive X-ternal Assistant Life-form) (voiced by Jennifer Hayward) is a Samurai X and a female nindroid who makes her debut as an assistant to her creator/father Cyrus Borg in the third season. She joins the ninja team after being influenced by her fellow nindroid Zane. She is disassembled in Season 4, but is then uploaded into Zane's system as an artificial intelligence. In Season 7, she secretly rebuilds herself and becomes the new Samurai X. She often provides technical support to the ninja while serving as Zane's love interest.
Episodes
Production and development
Concept In 2009, The Lego Group proposed to make an original intellectual property about ninja, which focused four ninja with elemental powers. The Lego Ninjago theme concept originated in the Lego Ninja theme, which was released by The Lego Group in 1998. This theme was then replaced by Lego Knights in 2000. In 2011, Lego Ninjago was launched and included some of the concepts from the Lego Ninja theme, such as dragons and fortresses, but also combined this with a modern setting. The Ninjago: Masters of Spinjitzu television series was created by Michael Hegner and Tommy Andreasen, two Danish film producers.
During the early development of the concept, The Lego Group conducted ethnographic research with children to determine their interests. Cerim Manovi, Senior Design Manager for the theme recalled, "Ninjas crystallised themselves because we were, like: 'What's the greatest hero entry point?' We showed them superheroes, everything – but ninjas just grabbed kids right there". The Lego Group had been attempting to develop a toy line based on ninjas for several years but a product range had never been successfully developed due to the limitations of the concept. This changed once the idea was developed into a high concept fantasy theme. Researchers at The Lego Group began testing ideas for enemies and eventually skeletons were chosen as the main antagonists in the storyline, following research conducted with six-year-old boys. The skeletons were considered to be the perfect adversaries for the ninjas because they looked inherently evil and fantastical. Other initial concepts for the enemies, such as snakes and robots were rejected, but then used later in subsequent seasons of the series. The ninja characters were given different coloured suits and unique elemental powers to make them more interesting and give them individual personalities. The motivation for the ninja characters was initially presented as a fight about obtaining four golden weapons.