Garmadon

Lord Garmadon is the evil lord of the Underworld and the older brother of Sensei Wu. His son is Lloyd Garmadon. He starts off as the primary antagonist of the pilot episodes, and later as an anti-hero in the first season. He is once again the main antagonist in the second season of the Ninjago TV show.

Early Life
When Garmadon and Sensei Wu were young children, they were best friends. One day, they were sparring and Wu's katana was accidentally knocked over the wall of the Monastery. Garmadon went to retrieve it - despite his father's warnings to stay in the Monastery - and found the katana near some bushes. Before he could pick it up, he was bitten by a strange green snake and passed out.

Garmadon was ill for a time, tended to by his father and brother. Unbeknownst to anyone at the time, Garmadon had been bitten by the Great Devourer, infecting his very being with pure evil. As a result, Garmadon became increasingly violent and selfish, blaming Wu for his change. However, he still managed to resist the corruption for a time, marrying Misako and fathering his son, Lloyd. As the Devourer's venom continued to corrupt him, Garmadon began to grow distant from his family - nonetheless, he remained deeply fond of them and secretly hoped that Lloyd would not follow the path of evil he was slowly being drawn towards.

After the First Spinjitzu Master passed away, Wu and Garmadon swore to protect the Golden Weapons of Spinjitzu. Around this time, Garmadon finally succumbed to the Devourer's poison, attempting to claim the Golden Weapons for himself. After a climactic battle with his brother, he was struck by lightning and banished to the Underworld, where he was confronted by Samukai, King of the Underworld and the Skulkin Fire General. Determined to escape his new prison and claim the Golden Weapons, Garmadon defeated Samukai in a duel, allowing him to take control of the Underworld and the Skulkin Army.

Way of the Ninja
After many years of teaching the skeletons about Spinjitzu, Lord Garmadon sent them to steal the map leading to the Golden Weapons from Kai and Nya's blacksmith shop, Four Weapons. The Skulkin failed to claim the map, but they did manage to capture Nya, who Garmadon decided would be a useful asset.

The Golden Weapon
When the Skulkin failed to retrieve the first Golden Weapon, Garmadon changed tactics; he ordered Samukai to pursue Cole, Jay, Zane, and Kai on their search for the weapons, but to hold back just enough to let the Ninja claim them.

King of Shadows
Once the Ninja had three of the four weapons, Garmadon tricked Kai into going into the Fire Temple by using a false image of Nya to lure him. He then forced Kai to use the Sword of Fire to free Nya, before summoning Shadow Warriors to take the powerful Sword. Sensei Wu arrived just in time to save Kai, but he was not able to stop Garmadon from awakening the Fire Dragon to stop them from leaving. In desperation, Sensei Wu used the Sword of Fire to cut off a platform of rock and fall into the Underworld. Garmadon then ordered Samukai, who had already stolen the Scythe of Quakes, the Nunchucks of Lightning, and the Shurikens of Ice, to return to the Underworld and retrieve the Sword of Fire.

Weapons of Destiny
Sensei Wu snuck into Lord Garmadon's Dark Fortress and confronted his evil brother in the throne room. Garmadon sent a horde of Skulkin to retrieve the Sword of Fire, but Sensei Wu easily defeated them with Spinjitzu. Unperturbed by this, Garmadon sat on his throne and forced Wu to battle Samukai, who was wielding the other three Golden Weapons. Samukai eventually defeated Sensei Wu, prompting Lord Garmadon to demand the Golden Weapons. However, Samukai refused, planning to use the weapons to reclaim control of the Underworld; at this, Garmadon laughed, revealing that Samukai's betrayal was the final step in his plan. As the Skulkin General of Fire disintegrated and transformed into a portal, Lord Garmadon explained that not even he could wield the power of all four Golden Weapons at once - instead, he had intended to create a portal to a dimension where he could become strong enough to do so. With that, Lord Garmadon entered the portal, vowing to return one day and claim the Golden Weapons so that he could remake Ninjago in his own image.

Tick Tock
When the Serpentine were released and united under Pythor, Sensei Wu left the Ninja to seek aid, but not before revealing some of his and Lord Garmadon's past together. Sensei Wu then used Traveler's Tea to open a portal to the dark dimension in search of Lord Garmadon.

Once Bitten, Twice Shy
Upon arrival, he immediately meets Lord Garmadon, who has now grown four arms in order to possess the Four Golden Weapons. Garmadon attacks his brother with his new weapons and a group of Mud Monsters, but halts his attack when Wu manages to warn him that the Serpentine have captured Lloyd. Forming an alliance with his brother in order to save his son, Garmadon led Wu across the wastelands in search of a way to return to Ninjago.

The Royal Blacksmiths
As they climbed the Mountain of Madness, Garmadon and Wu were beset by Craglings. The brothers used Spinjitzu to fend off the rock beasts, and continued their journey. Eventually, they found a portal that sent them back to Ninjago.

The Green Ninja
Once Sensei Wu returned to the Destiny's Bounty, he explained the situation; Lord Garmadon would be staying with them until Lloyd was saved from the Serpentine. Although the Ninja were skeptical of his cause, they agreed, and promptly discovered that their old foe had picked up several odd habits, such as brushing his teeth with a dagger, "sunbathing" in the middle of a raging storm, and eating nothing but Condensed Evil. During his stay, Lord Garmadon also had to deal with the suspicions of Kai, who was the most distrustful of his motives. The two ended up fighting after Kai spotted Garmadon holding the Golden Weapons. Kai eventually triumphed - however, to his disappointment, Garmadon allowed himself to be defeated as he was only gathering the Weapons at Sensei Wu's request.

Lord Garmadon accompanied the Ninja to the Fire Temple, in order to both retrieve a Fangblade and save Lloyd from the Serpentine. There, Lord Garmadon defeated several Serpentine and saved Lloyd, but the temple ended up collapsing due to the volcano's instability, causing Lloyd to lose his footing and become separated from the group. Despite his protests, Garmadon was forced to leave with the other Ninja before the volcano could erupt; fortunately, Kai managed to save Lloyd by unlocking his True Potential. Back on the Destiny's Bounty, Lord Garmadon was reunited with his son at last, and learned that Lloyd was the Green Ninja. Lord Garmadon's pride in his son's great potential was deflated somewhat when everyone realized that this meant Lloyd was destined to meet his own father in a battle for the fate of Ninjago.

All of Nothing
Lord Garmadon stayed aboard the Destiny's Bounty while the Ninja were searching for the final Fangblade. When Lloyd suggested that they instead focus on retrieving the other three, Lord Garmadon pointed out that they had no idea where the Serpentine were hiding. This led Nya to realize that the snakes were hiding underground, and the two Garmadons were left aboard the ship while the Ninja investigated the Serpentine's main base located in the Constrictai Tomb.

Unable to resist such an opportunity, Lord Garmadon attempted to hack into the Destiny's Bounty computer systems to gain information on the Ninja. When Lloyd discovered him and accused him of betraying the Ninja's trust, Garmadon admitted that he couldn't help it, having evil literally running through his blood. He also took the opportunity to tell Lloyd that Sensei Wu had a great destiny set for him, and that Lloyd could still make whatever choices he wanted for his life. When Nya reported that they were captured by the Serpentine and being held hostage, Lord Garmadon was going to help, but Lloyd refused to allow him, telling him to leave instead.

However, Lord Garmadon returned in short order, breaking into the Slither Pit with the Skulkin Army in tow - thanks to Lloyd, he had realized that he did have a choice: the choice to fight the Serpentine and ensure that he would be the one taking over Ninjago. While the skeletons fought the snakes and Lloyd freed the Ninja, Lord Garmadon personally engaged Pythor in battle, although the Anacondrai quickly broke off the battle to make his escape. After retrieving the Fangblades from Pythor, Lord Garmadon and the Ninja escaped back to the Destiny's Bounty. With the Fangblades in the Ninja's possession, Garmadon decided to depart, believing that he was no longer needed. Before he left, he assured Lloyd that he was very proud of his son's destiny, even if it meant that they were destined to battle each other for the fate of the world.

The Day of The Great Devourer
Unfortunately for Lord Garmadon, Pythor snuck aboard the ship and reclaimed the Fangblades, allowing him to return to The Lost City of Ouroboros and awaken the Great Devourer. Lord Garmadon was visiting Ninjago City's tea shop, looking to return to his dark dimension, when he saw a news report showing the Ninja struggling to contain the Devourer. He immediately hurried to the battlefield, arriving just after the Great Devourer defeated the Ultra Dragon, and told the Ninja that the only way to defeat the Devourer was to use all four Golden Weapons at once - which only he could do.

Despite their suspicions, the Ninja gave their weapons to Garmadon, telling him about the weak spot on the Devourer's head. Lord Garmadon asked the Ninja to prevent the beast from moving so he could get a clear shot at its weakness, before running off with an evil laugh. He proceeded to observe the Ninja's battle against the Great Devourer from atop a skyscraper - when the serpent was immobilized, Lord Garmadon dealt the finishing blow, proclaiming it was out of revenge for turning him evil. He disappeared in the aftermath of the Devourer's destruction, taking the Golden Weapons with him.

Darkness Shall Rise
After sneaking out of Ninjago City, Garmadon found the remaining Serpentine and won them over by demonstrating his newfound powers, recreating the destroyed Destiny's Bounty as the Black Bounty. Offering the new ship to the Serpentine, Lord Garmadon gained the allegiance of the snakes - apart from Skales and the other Generals - and led them aboard the Black Bounty.

Lord Garmadon directed the Black Bounty to the Golden Peaks, the birthplace of the Golden Weapons, where Garmadon could uncover the secrets pertaining to the power of the Golden Weapons. He also informed the Serpentine of the prophecy of the Green Ninja, explaining that he must prevent Lloyd from reaching his true potential. One of the Constrictai suggested killing Lloyd, but Lord Garmadon had him locked in the brig, subsequently forbidding the Serpentine from hurting Lloyd. Instead, Garmadon explained that they would focus on destroying Sensei Wu and the other four Ninja - without his teachers, Lloyd would never reach his full potential, and Garmadon's plans could continue. Eventually, the Black Bounty arrived at the Golden Peaks, where Lord Garmadon united the Golden Weapons into the Mega Weapon.

Pirates Vs. Ninja
Lord Garmadon attempted to use his new weapon against the Ultra Dragon, but to no avail. Hastily blaming the Serpentine's poor navigation skills for ruining his shot, he retreated to the Black Bounty's cabin to angrily ponder why the weapon refused to obey him. In the process, he stumbled upon the journal of Captain Soto, the original owner of the ship, and wished for a better crew to man the Black Bounty. This time, the Mega Weapon responded, recreating Captain Soto and his crew of pirates, but Garmadon was severely drained of energy in the process. He then realized that the Mega Weapon could only create, not destroy, shortly before being locked in the brig (along with the rest of his Serpentine crew) by the pirates. After Captain Soto's crew was apprehended, Lord Garmadon reclaimed control of the Black Bounty and escaped from the Ninja.

Double Trouble
Now aware of the Mega Weapon's power and limitations, Lord Garmadon called his Serpentine together for a brainstorming session on how to beat the Ninja. Despite claiming that there were no bad ideas, he had several Serpentine thrown overboard for suggesting insane things (such as recreating the Great Devourer, creating another group of pirates, or making the biggest ham sandwich ever seen in Ninjago) before hitting upon the idea of making evil mirrors of the Ninja themselves. Using spare clothes the Ninja left aboard the ship, Garmadon used the Mega Weapon to create the Bizarro Ninja and sent them to eliminate their counterparts. When the Bizarro Ninja were destroyed, Garmadon contacted the Ninja's Ultra Sonic Raider to vow that he would get his revenge, only for Lloyd to cut the transmission with his newly-honed powers over lightning.

Ninjaball Run
For his next attempt, Lord Garmadon created a false company, "Darnagom Enterprises", and attempted to destroy Dareth's dojo, where the Ninja were training Lloyd. To get the money they needed to save the dojo, the ninja entered the annual Ninjaball Run - when Garmadon found out, he joined the race himself with the Black Bounty. When the ship's cannon fire missed the Ultra Sonic Raider (thanks to the Ultra Dragon bumping into the Black Bounty), and the Serpentine warriors failed to prevent the Ninja from refuelling on the fly, Garmadon used the Mega Weapon to create a vast chasm that the Ninja would never be able to cross.

Unfortunately for him, Nya had recently installed a flight mode in the Raider, allowing the Ninja to catch up to the Black Bounty and narrowly win the race. Enraged and disbelieving, Lord Garmadon left his ship to protest the results - thereby giving Lloyd the chance to reclaim the Black Bounty with his Ultra Dragon. Still weakened from the use of the Mega Weapon, Lord Garmadon was only saved from arrest when Skales pulled up in the Serpentine Bus, forcing him to allow the Serpentine Generals back into his army in return for the escape.

Child's Play
Lord Garmadon led the Serpentine into the Ninjago Museum of History, where he used the Mega Weapon to revive a prehistoric monster called the Grundle. The Ninja interfered with the process, forcing the villains to retreat, but the Grundle was still revived - unbeknownst to Garmadon, the Ninja themselves had also been reduced to children as a side effect.

Wrong Place, Wrong Time
Bent on destroying the Ninja once and for all, Lord Garmadon retreated to Ouroboros, which he apparently repaired at some point to make it livable again. While preparing his forces for a final assault, he was attacked by the Ninja, including a teenaged Lloyd. Shocked at his son's growth and improved powers, Garmadon retreated, wishing that the Ninja had never existed in the first place - this gave him the idea to create a portal to the past and change the future to ensure that Lloyd would never become the Green Ninja.

Disguising himself as a Skulkin, Lord Garmadon snuck aboard the Skull Truck and deliberately prevented the skeletons from abducting Nya, intent on removing Kai's motivation to become a ninja. On the way back to the Underworld, he overheard Nuckal commenting that he thought he saw two Kais, and realized that the Ninja of the present had followed him to the past. Lord Garmadon was in the Skulkin camp in the Forest of Tranquility when the Ninja secretly delivered Nya to the skeletons; to counter the Ninja's interference, Garmadon sought the aid of his own past self, quickly explaining the situation and formulating a new plan.

When Past Kai saved Nya in the Fire Temple, he found himself attacked - not by his own shadow, but by the present version of Lord Garmadon. The present Ninja were forced to intervene, but Garmadon held them off until Jay got the idea of using the Golden Weapons of the past against the Mega Weapon. The combined energies destroyed the Mega Weapon and undid all of the changes to the past - with the present apparently changed so that Garmadon never created it in the first place.

The Stone Army
With his Mega Weapon destroyed, Lord Garmadon pursued other means of gaining power; namely, seeking out the Island of Darkness mentioned in Captain Soto's journal. Taking the Serpentine Generals along, Garmadon rode a Rattlecopter over the Endless Ocean, looking for any sign of the island. At that point, Skales tricked Garmadon by claiming to see the island - when Garmadon went to look, the Hypnobrai General pushed him out of the Rattlecopter and declared himself leader of the Serpentine.

Ironically, Skales' betrayal led Garmadon to the object of his quest; when he came to, he found himself on the shores of the Island of Darkness. The Overlord appeared before him and led him to a large boulder with four handles, telling Lord Garmadon that this was the first step towards his true destiny. When Garmadon turned the dials, the full Island of Darkness arose from the sea, and the Overlord revealed his plans to upset the balance of the world so that Garmadon could remake Ninjago in his own image.

The Day Ninjago Stood Still
To Lord Garmadon's dismay, the next step towards his destiny involved scaling a series of rugged cliffs and mountains. He demanded to know why he had to prove his evil worth to the Overlord, but the enigmatic entity merely urged him onward, promising that a great power awaited at the end of the trial. Gritting his teeth, Garmadon carried on, eventually arriving in front of a strange clock with a dark helmet on a pedestal. At the Overlord's command, Garmadon took the helmet, causing the clock's hands to begin moving - the Overlord revealed that the former would give Garmadon control over the Stone Army, while the latter was counting down to the final battle between light and darkness. Pleased with this new development, Garmadon triumphantly announced his return to the darkened skies above.

The Last Voyage
With the Stone Army at his command, Lord Garmadon began travelling the Island of Darkness, observing the army's operations. He was confused to see most of the soldiers working in mines, but the Overlord explained that they were searching for a dark material made of concentrated evil, which they could use to build an ultimate weapon against the Ninja. Garmadon laughed maniacally at this, declaring that he liked the sound of that.

Island of Darkness
Lord Garmadon proceeded to set up a base camp where the ultimate weapon could be constructed, monitoring the Stone Army's progress on both building the weapon and mining Dark Matter. Suddenly, the Overlord appeared, warning him that the Ninja had made it to the Island of Darkness in search of The Temple of Light. Garmadon deployed his forces to capture the Ninja, only to eventually learn that the heroes had succeeded in their quest, enhancing their powers far beyond their previous limits - worse yet, Lloyd had gained the power of the Ultimate Spinjitzu Master, making him even stronger.

Atop the cliff where the Celestial Clock rested, Garmadon commented that the Overlord's army wasn't as indestructible as they had thought. The Overlord was unperturbed, claiming that their strength was also growing - the ultimate weapon would be completed just as the countdown reached zero, and then nothing would stop darkness from overwhelming the light at last.

The Last Hope
Lord Garmadon began increasing the defenses around his camp, worrying that the Ninja might try to attack him directly before the ultimate weapon could be completed. The Overlord commented that his resolve seemed to be wavering, despite Garmadon's denials. The Overlord's prodding over his reluctance to kill Lloyd eventually caused Garmadon to snap at nearby soldiers, telling them to double their effort on the ultimate weapon's development.

When General Cuso came in to report capturing a prisoner, Garmadon was surprised to see his wife, Misako. They former couple argued about Garmadon's path to evil, and the villain admitted that he had wanted Misako to see things his way so she could rule by his side. As he lamented that Misako was one of a very small number of people who could truly understand him, Garmadon realized that he had been tricked - Misako had stolen the Helmet of Shadows in a last desperate attempt to halt the Celestial Clock.

Enraged at the deception, Garmadon pursued Misako and the Ninja in a massive, four-armed robot that proved immune to anything his foes threw at him. When the Overlord reminded him that the Ninja could turn the Stone Army against him if they wore the Helmet of Shadows, Garmadon resolved to chase them down personally, conducting a furious chase through the jungle. Just when he finally had the Power Drill in his grasp, Lloyd arrived and disabled the robot with a powerful blast.

Lord Garmadon emerged from the wreckage, weakened and vulnerable, but his son hesitated to kill him, allowing the Stone Army to catch up with the Ninja. Garmadon left the rest of the chase to his minions as he regained his strength, but eventually noticed a strange beam of energy soaring over the trees. The Overlord told him that the countdown had ended and the final battle was about to begin, leading Garmadon back to the base camp and revealing that the ultimate weapon was finally complete. Presented with the weapon - dubbed "Garmatron" by the Overlord - Lord Garmadon gleefully declared that it was more beautiful than he could have imagined and joined the Overlord in laughing triumphantly.

Appearance
Initially, Lord Garmadon appeared as a normal boy with brown hair. After being bitten by the Great Devourer, he gained pale skin and glowing red eyes. Upon being struck by lightning and falling into the Underworld, his body became completely black, with a lined face and visible ribs and teeth. His hair became quite messy-looking while turning black like the rest of his body. He wears a purple sash around his waist and later gains Samukai's helm - a silver helmet with a bone on it.

His time in the dark dimension has given him four arms, an armored chestplate, a darker helmet, and new blades. After arriving on the Island of Darkness, he gained a new helmet that also gives him control over the Stone Army.

Weapons
He wielded the Mega Weapon between the episodes Darkness Shall Rise and Wrong Place, Wrong Time. He formerly used the Golden Bolt as his main weapon during the 2011 wave; however, he has never been seen using the weapon in the TV Show.

Trivia

 * He is one of the four characters in Ninjago to have four arms, the other three being Samukai, the Giant Stone Warrior, and General Cosu.
 * He has a different helmet in 2012 than the one in 2011. The 2011 one is silver and the 2012 helmet is dark gray.

Set Appearances
Normal: Four-Armed:
 * 2256 Lord Garmadon
 * 2505 Garmadon's Dark Fortress
 * 2506 Skull Truck
 * 2507 Fire Temple
 * 9446 Destiny’s Bounty
 * 9450 Epic Dragon Battle