Ninjago: Elements of Destiny

"Long before time had a name, The First Spinjitzu Master created Ninjago using the 5 elements of creation. Now, those elements have been passed down to you."

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Vengestone Heart.

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Green Ninja & Jade Princess

Among the Elemental Alliance, one member stands out for being "down to earth" and marketing herself to the people of Ninjago City. The Green Ninja, Master of Flora. This member's popularity would lead to a particular interest from Lloyd among his fascination with the Elemental Alliance, never knowing that the identity of his hero is his own mother.

Rambunctious, cocky, and with the mouth of a sailor that she miraculously keeps out of her public image, Koko is the youngest member of the Elemental Alliance, and thus is treated almost exclusively like a rookie. Acronix, Left hand of Time, in particular often gets stuck with her, turning eventually into a begrudging friendship. While Acronix admits that Misako has grown close to him, he also says that Koko doesn't really know him.

Around the same time-frame, Master Wu, Son of the First Spinjitzu Master, and leader of the Elemental Alliance, discovered a starving orphan girl who had broken into the Monastery of Spinjitzu desperately in search of something to placate her hunger. Motivated partly by kindness, partly by pity, and partly in envy of other child-bearing families across Ninjago city, the sensei adopted the young girl, and named her Harumi, treating her like Royalty and giving her the title "The Jade Princess" after her birth-stone.

Years would pass and the girl would grow increasingly close to Misako, almost seeing the Green Ninja as an older sister. (A bad influence that everyone else in the Elemental Alliance were eager to point out.) Desiring to imitate Koko and the others, and eager to help protect NInjago city, Harumi trained under Koko and believed herself to be ready to unlock her elemental power.

Unfortunately, elemental powers do not come to everyone. And after many increasingly dangerous attempts at unlocking such a power, A tipping point was reached when Koko began to shut Harumi out, believing that she truly was a bad influence that would only hurt Harumi in the end. Hurt that her closest friend would abandon her like that, and even more angry that her adoptive father seemed to agree with such a course of action, Harumi ran away from the Monastery, vowing to achieve her elemental powers no matter what stands in her way.

Man, I really have been holding back on the content, haven't I?

I've been really busy for the last few months and as a result all of the development I've made hasn't even made it past the thought stage. (Although the Full Story Outline document was never any semblance of complete since I first made it.)

Initially I was going to wait way longer to reveal Harumi's role in the story, (Although only about a 4th of it has been revealed thus far,) but I had the idea of making Koko a previous Green Ninja based on how she was the Lady Iron Dragon in the Ninjago Movie, and I knew that was the kind of idea that should be got out of the way early, and one thing led to another, and in fleshing out Koko's doodles I ended up finally making a reference for Harumi, and figured this wasn't a bad time to do her official reveal.

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Okay, so I'm sure that comparing Arin from Dragons Rising to Miles Morales isn't an out-there comparison. (At the very least, There are multiple times where his voice outright sounded exactly like the voice actor that plays Miles in MSM 2017 and the Insomniac games.)

But I find that really funny because I unintentionally and then intentionally had the idea to do something with my AU that makes the comparison even more relevant.

It's been talked about before how the MCU's take on Peter Parker Spider-Man took a lot of notes from the original Comics Miles Morales, basically reverse-inspiring the character traits. Well, making the comparison between Miles and Arin, the obvious choice for Peter is Lloyd.

And the funny thing is, The Lloyd of Elements of Destiny has a number of strong similarities with Arin's overall character in Dragon's Rising. (And Miles for that matter.)

For one, he is inspired to join his sister and co to become a Ninja due to the existence of the "Elemental Alliance," and in particular, an Original Green Ninja that existed back in those days. This original Green Ninja, now retired, mentors Lloyd not dissimilar to how Lloyd mentors Arin or how Peter B. mentors Miles in Spider-verse.

And all this was stuff that I had already laid out for Lloyd's character before Arin existed. I only realized it now while considering the possibility of taking another note from Arin in making Lloyd a "Spinjitzu prodigy." Having him manage to learn Spinjitzu with minimal training or perhaps even all on his own.

This would aid in giving Lloyd a headstart so I don't have to insert too much of a training-time-skip into the story before Lloyd can reasonably start taking part in Ninja adventures and thus we can get into the meat of the story. (It only really worked in the original series for Kai because of the Pilot's distinctly short-form storytelling format.)

It could also serve as subtle foreshadowing for the twist of Lloyd being Garmadon's son, as the art of Spinjitzu may just come more naturally to whatever the FSM became to have the power to handle all 4 Golden Weapons himself, even in the case of half or quarter breeds like Garmadon, Wu, and Lloyd.

(I already had the intent of making Wu and Garmadon not have elemental powers of their own, but offset that with a deep mastery of Spinijtzu.)

Lloyd being a prodigy could also end up resulting in pressure that Lloyd finds he can't reasonably handle, hopefully fleshing out his character, something my take on Lloyd, tbh, desperately needs.

(Although I would have to tread carefully, as the act of being excessively hard on one's self and eventually learning not to be is already basically Nya's entire character arc.)

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A captionless meme template version of a picture from my last post.

Be sure to include the tag #ninjago: elements of destiny if you use it for anything.

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Ninjago: Elements of Destiny Pride Month Collection

Here's a collection of images starring the cast of Elements of Destiny for Pride month.

I decided to use this chance to test the waters regarding a design for trans-fem Jay. Thoughts?

It's unlikely any LGBT identity is going to be relevant to Lloyd's overall arc or character, but I thought the 2nd image was a good message to be saying this month.

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You know, it's amazing that I never put this together until now, but it's accidentally incredibly clever that Jay in my AU is supposed to be Trans, cause in the AU, the element of Lightning is supposed to represent Innovation.

Now I just need to decide if he should be trans-masc and his transition happened off-screen between now and his childhood when he first met Wu as a young girl,

Or have her start out as a boy at the beginning but allude to her being trans-fem and have her discovering herself being the key to unlocking her true potential in Season 2.

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Is it just me, or does it feel like the entire existence of the Sons of Garmadon lends really strongly to the idea of Lloyd joining them, which for some reason just never happened?

Like, literally every notable detail I can think of about their group feels like it goes in this direction.

They're named "The Sons of Garmadon." Lloyd is the Literal Son OF Garmadon. Anyone who hears this detail would immediately assume that there's at the very least supposed to be some parallelism or comparison going on. The name even lends to the trope of a group of villains with a rather strong camaraderie to them, making it easy to imagine the SoG enthusiastically adopting Lloyd into their ranks and treating him like a brother.

The leader of this group is Lloyd's love interest for a time. Love is an easy way for a character to get "distracted." Even with what we got Harumi used it as a means of manipulating Lloyd. (albeit with intent to break his spirits rather than convince him to her side.) And if this was to be played straight, it makes sense for the leader of a cult called the Sons of Garmadon to want to literally become a daughter (in law) to Garmadon.

The group's main goal was to bring back Lloyd's father. With the context of the last time we actually saw Garmadon in the series, this seems like a wholly good thing, especially for Lloyd. Garmdon was a benevolent person in Seasons 3 and 4. Even when he was corrupted, he still consistantly cared about Lloyd. Without the context of it not being "the man you remember" there would be no reason for Lloyd to be opposed to this. In fact, it makes perfect sense for this to motivate him to help them.

Lastly, it's a biker gang. Biker Gangs are a trope that overlaps heavily with the trope of a "bad crowd" for a character to fall into.

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Should I rename Lloyd to Kai in Ninjago: Elements of Destiney

Keep the name Lloyd

Change his name to Kai

Voting ended onApr 26, 2023

I'm dumb, I just realized I should've made a poll with my earlier post about renaming Lloyd to Kai.

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There's so much stuff in the story I have to get out of the way before the event that's supposed to be the Season 1 finale.

Am I gonna have to pull a Steven Universe and make the first season twice the length of all the other seasons???

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This may or may not be a stupid idea, but,

You know how in my AU Kai doesn't exist and Lloyd and Nya are the brother and sister?

Well, I never personally liked the name Lloyd, tbh. It never felt like it screamed "main character material," nor did it feel like it fit amongst the other 4 Ninja (Or Nya or Wu) and the only reason he's named that way was for a dumb pun that literally was already played out by the end of the first episode of Season 1. ("Lloyd/Lord Garmadon")

And Lloyd being related to Garmadon isn't even revealed until like 3/4ths into the story in my AU.

So, how bad of an idea would it be to just take Lloyd and rename him to Kai? Not changing anything else about him, still has the blonde hair, is still the green Ninja, is still Garmadon's son, but his name is Kai instead of Lloyd. How bad of an idea would that be?

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Nahhhh, cause listen up Ninjago tumblr, I'm about to take ya'll on a ride

Misako, right? Lloyd's mom, dropped him off at a boarding school designed to teach kids to be completely evil when he was literally a fucking baby, we forgave her for some reason and now she's sorta kinda not really involved in Lloyd's life.

So, here's the issue: Lloyd is a fucking blonde We all know this, it's a funny laugh in the fandom, silly blonde little emo- Take a look at his parents, though. Neither of them were blonde. In fact, both of them were literally brunettes.

Now, obviously this isn't actually indicative of anything, considering that being blonde is a recessive gene and that both Garma and Misako could have easily had it. But then you remember that Wu, who was blond, was actually fighting Garma for Misako at one point, and that she was convinced she loved both of them before that letter got swiped. Then you remember that in her debut, she and Wu had some pretty high-strung romantic tension pretty much off the bat and continued to have it throughout the entire series.

But, hey, maybe Misako just regrets who she chose, she's not a homewrecker and Lloyd is still Garmadon's son.

But then I feel obligated to remind you about how the Spinjitzu brothers acted in their youth. Garmadon is portrayed as responsible and mature since day 1, while Wu is shown time and time again to have been childish and naively optimistic. Even at his lowest points, though, Wu is consistently portrayed as unfailingly good natured and trusting to the point of fault- retaining this trait even as a much wiser man. Remind you of anyone? Because, ya know- But, hey, maybe you're not convinced. After all, Garma was a pretty good person before the poison got to him, and even after that he did his best to make Lloyd feel supported as much as he could, being an evil warlord trapped in the underworld, and all that. Allow me to continue, then. Ignoring the fact that Misako and Wu continued to have a weird flirtatious thing going on and off for several seasons, there's also the fact that, of the First Spinjiztu Master's two children, Wu was the one influenced by the Dragon, by the 'light', so to speak. Then you have Lloyd, the only grandson of the FSM. No matter how hard he tried, he lacked the resolution it took to even properly pretend to be evil, and we swiftly learn this is because he is destined to be the Green Ninja, a wielder of light and energy that is meant to directly oppose the shadows. Anyway, both of them are blond, and while there is no solid proof of Misako being a whole ass liar about who Lloyd's dad is, my personal disdain for her has led me to take this list of thematic connections and fucking run with it-

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See, no comment on this as a theory, but this is one of the two reasons why I want to have the Spinjitzu brothers swap hair-colors in my AU.

Not just cause it sorta clears up the genetic connection Lloyd is supposed to have, but also cause I like the idea of the Spinjitzu brothers ending up on opposite sides of the hair-color spectrum as they originally had.

Like, Wu was originally a Brunette, Garmadon was originally a Blonde, but fast-forward to current year, Wu has aged and has a pure white beard, while Garmadon has become what I can only describe as a charred corpse with jet black hair. (Like he was shown to be in that one short from the Pilot era.)

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I think I'd rather wait to give context for this.

Feel free to guess which characters these guys were merged into in the comments, tho.

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You know, if Lloyd ever does end up getting a villain arc, I hope it involves the Scroll of Forbidden Spinjitzu. Cause while everyone has used it at some point, Lloyd was noticeably always the one that was on the receiving end of its corruptive influence when that effect was being demonstrated to us in the Fire Chapter.

Add to this the fact that Lloyd understands that it has a corruptive influence strongly enough for him to actively try to talk Zane into releasing it in the Ice Chapter, which means that for Lloyd to end up using it, he'd need to really be driven to an intense emotional tipping point, which frankly is the kind of villain arc this series could use.

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When it comes to my Ninjago AU I've probably put way too much thought into the 4 (actually 5) cardinal elements, their symbolism, and the role they play in the storyline, but one idea I really like I'd like to put out there is Ice and Water being the same element.

Basically, the idea goes as such. "Ice" isn't actually, in itself, an element. The 4 Cardinal elements actually consist of Fire, Lightning, Earth, and Water. But, highly disciplined water masters can make use of the pseudo element of Ice by simply manipulating the water into solid form. The Shurikens of Ice were named as such due to the existence of this heightened form of water mastery.

Zane, however, is a special case. The only known elemental Water master who took to Ice first. He's just unique like that.

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Basically, my AU's version of the Ninja

They're all nerds. :)

I haven't posted anything in a while about my Ninjago AU, (Current working title: "Light and Shadow") but I have 2 huge things for it in the works that I've been working on basically since my last post about it. So for all of the probably 4 people here who are interested in this, look forward to that!

Namely, a full summary of the plot, and Updated redesigns for the 4 Ninja (Plus full designs for Lloyd) fully rendered with cool elemental FX and everything.

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My Ninjago AU - The 4 Ninja

This is Outdated

Go to this post for the updated version and more about the AU

As I said in my original Ninjago AU post, The 4 Ninja are young adults months away from graduating high school. In secret, these 4 train under Master Wu, son the first Spinjitzu Master, to protect Ninjago from danger and evil after the end of the fabled council of elemental masters.

As part of their training, they have acted as protectors of Ninjago City from hoodlums and criminals. They must train and fight threats of escalating magnitude, all while keeping their identities hidden from their school and their families, which led to them taking up the semi-fake part-time job of playing music as a band.

Nya Smith - Ninja of Fire

Age - 18 Codename - Ember

Lloyd's adopted elder sister.

Hotheaded but rarely hot-tempered, Nya's grit, willpower, and willingness to listen to her teammates make her an effective leader. She also has a protective instinct, which usually is used on her brother, but occasionally comes out on her team.

Wu met her as a young teenager when she vandalized his sister Misako's shop. Orphaned at a young age by the mysterious disappearance of her father, the bitter young firestarter was formed into a rude delinquent by her questionable childhood environment. Wu, however, saw that she could be a good person if she was only given the kindness and love of a family, so he convinced Misako to adopt the young girl. With the flames of bitterness inside her heart being molded into a protective passion. She eventually became the founding member of the Ninja after she protected Wu from an attacker by unleashing her elemental power of fire.

Jay Walker - Ninja of Lightning

Age - 18 Codename - Spark

Quick-witted and quickly-scared, Jay may seem like a comic-relief, but when its up to him to help his friends, the lengths he'll go know no bounds. Brilliant inventor and brilliant fighter, backing this bird into the corner may be the last mistake you ever make.

Wu met Jay as a young girl whose custom-built toy malfunctioned and bumped into Wu before crashing and ceasing to work. Disillusioned, she was close to giving up her dream of becoming an inventor. Before Wu sat down and encouraged her to never doubt that she can do great things just because of a simple mistake. Nearly a decade later, Wu would find Jay testing a pair of mechanical wings, and succeeding in flight. Seeing the sense of inspiration in the young man led Wu to see the spark of elemental power inside.

Cole Morrow - Ninja of Earth

Age - 19 Codename - Mountain

Strongly charismatic, competitive, and easily distracted, Cole comes off as the typical handsome jock, or burly brute, but he's dependable no matter the situation. The emotional rock of the team, he also often has to reign in their chaos.

Wu met Cole while meditating at the top of a mountain that Cole and his friends were climbing for sport. Surprised to find an old man at the top of such a steep rock, Cole's competitive spirit led to him climbing an even more dangerous mountain weeks later, a mountain he may've been ready for, but his partner was not. Wu would visit the funeral of Cole's boyfriend to console Cole, telling him that competitiveness can be a wonderful quality when you don't let it cloud your judgment, encouraging one to better themselves, a desire most honorable. Cole took the advice in stride and vowed to make up for his partner's death by becoming better and learning from his mistakes. The determination Wu saw made him inspired him to recruit Cole, for his will was strong as stone.

Zane Julien - Ninja of Ice

Age - 19 Codename - Crystal

Quiet and perceptive, Zane is often described as cold and calculating. While he may not show very much emotion, he is very considerate. With a special awareness and the ability to evaluate every fine detail, he is a master strategist essential to any major plan.

Wu met Zane wandering in the forgotten woods. Lost not in a literal sense, but feeling lost in the metaphorical. Having recently discovered that he was not human, as his inventor father had led him to believe, Zane ran away. Wu assured him that just because he is made of Metal and wire does not mean that he is any less than flesh and blood. After reuniting the android with his creator, Wu would meet Zane again several years later. Having made close friends with a a pupil of his father's, Wu saw Zane finding his clan despite his differences. While he hasn't yet told them of his nature due to the pain it's caused him in the past, Wu saw a cool head, a heart of steel, and most importantly, a compassion and affinity with his band that lead Wu to discover the power of ice hidden inside.

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My Ninjago AU - Garmadon

Continuing off of my last post, here are some more sketches for my Ninjago AU, This time focusing on the role Garmadon plays in the story.

Keep reading