| “Even shadows have their uses.” |
| — Garmadon to Kai |
| "King of Shadows" | |
|---|---|
| Season Pilot, Episode 3 | |
| |
| Air date | January 14, 2011 |
| Written by | Dan & Kevin Hageman |
| Directed by | Justin Murphy |
| Episode guide | |
| Previous "The Golden Weapon" |
Next "Weapons of Destiny" |
King of Shadows is the third pilot episode of Ninjago: Masters of Spinjitzu. It aired on Cartoon Network on January 14, 2011. It follows the Ninja in their continuing search for the remaining Golden Weapons, and Lord Garmadon's plot to claim them for his own.
Plot
The Frozen Wasteland.
After retrieving the Scythe of Quakes, the ninja set out to find the next three Golden Weapons. While they were traveling by boat through the Frozen Wasteland to obtain the Shurikens of Ice, Sensei Wu told the four about the Tornado of Creation and its capabilities. Upon reaching the Ice Fortress, Zane attempted to grab the Shurikens, freezing himself in a block of ice in the process. The Guardian of the weapon, the Ice Dragon, awoke, and the other three ninja rode atop Zane's icy cocoon on their way to the boat; they hit a pillar on the way out and broke Zane free.
They then stopped at the Floating Ruins. Atop a chain, with the Skulkin hot on their tail, the ninja sent Jay up. He grabbed the Nunchucks of Lightning immediately; the Lightning Dragon appeared in a flash. Using Jay's invention of gliders, the ninja quickly escaped to the Forest of Tranquility. That night at camp, the ninja celebrated their victory. Sensei Wu told them to get some sleep, but even he couldn't resist dancing in celebration with his students.
The entrance to the Fire Temple.
Later that night, while sleeping, Kai woke up to see Nya standing nearby, calling his name. Nya ran to the Fire Temple, and Kai pursued her swiftly. Upon Kai's arrival, he found the Sword of Fire, the last Golden Weapon needed. He climbed up quickly to Nya, but she revealed herself to be the shadow of Lord Garmadon. Lord Garmadon dropped the real Nya down on a chain, suspending her over lava. To save her, Kai grabbed the Sword of Fire, and sliced his sister free. Lord Garmadon duplicated the Red Ninja's own shadow and used it to claim the Sword of Fire. Unable to strike the rapidly-multiplying Shadows, Kai was quickly defeated, but Wu came to his rescue, using his own shadow to fight off the doppelgangers.
Cole, Jay, and Zane.
Meanwhile, the Skulkin had captured Cole, Jay, and Zane, and had also stolen the three Golden Weapons. The ninja soon escaped, using a sword stolen from Nuckal by Jay. They engaged the Skulkin in battle so as to reclaim their weapons, (Jay lost his voice in the process) but the villains still escaped to the Underworld.
Back at the Fire Temple, Garmadon had awakened the Fire Dragon to prevent the group from leaving. Sensei Wu could think of only one way to stop Lord Garmadon: go into the Underworld and fight him directly. Taking the Sword of Fire with him, the old master sailed down a river of lava. Kai and Nya were left to face the Dragon alone.
Cast
- Cole - Kirby Morrow
- Garmadon - Mark Oliver
- Jay - Michael Adamthwaite
- Kai - Vincent Tong
- Nya - Kelly Metzger
- Wu - Paul Dobson
- Zane - Brent Miller
Transcript
For the transcript of the episode, click here.
Trivia
- The episode title refers to Lord Garmadon, who appears as a red-eyed shadow in the mortal realm and summons the shadow warriors to take the Sword of Fire from Kai.
- Some airings of this episode place it and "Weapons of Destiny" together as a single episode, due to the combined time length being 20 minutes, the normal length of an episode.
- Wu seems to create a tea cup out of thin air when explaining the Tornado of Creation. However, according to Tommy Andreasen, this was not a use of the power of Creation and was simply "A trick to get his point across."[1]
Continuity
- While not called the "King of Shadows" in the episode itself, Garmadon would eventually be referred to this way in "Dread on Arrival" by Harumi, eight seasons later.
- Parts of this episode appeared in "Wrong Place, Wrong Time."
Errors
- When the ninja arrive at the Frozen Wasteland, Jay is wearing his DX outfit.
- It is physically impossible for Wu to create the shadow of an eagle with his hands.
- This may have been an intentional exaggeration for effect.
- When the Fire Dragon appears in front of Wu, Kai and Nya, Wu's mustache has an unnatural shape.
Gallery
For the gallery for the episode, click here.
