Radio Free Ninjago is the third episode of the ninth season of Ninjago: Masters of Spinjitzu and the 87th episode overall. It aired on July 14, 2018 in Australia, and aired on August 11, 2018 in the United States, as part of Hunted: Part 1.
Synopsis
Lloyd must find his voice as he leads a small resistance to capture the airwaves in Ninjago City. Meanwhile in the First Realm, Iron Baron takes the Ninja on a dragon hunt.[1][2]
Plot
Kai, Jay, and Zane continue their fight against the Dragon Hunters in Dead's End, as their Elemental Powers have now been exposed with Jay regaining his sanity in the process. Heavy Metal arrives with a powerful blade, which has Vengestone-like abilities as it absorbs the ninja's Elements. Heavy Metal manages to incapacitate the trio.
In Ninjago City, Ultra Violet's TV show continues, with the Postman being her latest target. The Resistance starts building an armored vehicle that will help them retaliate against Lord Garmadon. In a bid to improve Lloyd's leadership, Mystake has Karlof battle Dareth, with Lloyd motivating Dareth as he's being overwhelmed. Mystake tells Lloyd that as others inspire him, he'll inspire others, and tasks him with hacking Ninjago's airwaves and sending its people an influential message.
In the Realm of Oni and Dragons, Kai, Jay, and Zane are imprisoned in the Dieselnaut, where they speak with Iron Baron. Baron acknowledges his disdain for the First Spinjitzu Master, calling him a coward, and plans to use the ninja as bait to catch a dragon. Cole and Wu remain disguised and join Baron and his Hunters as they head off to capture a dragon. That night, the Hunters prepare to hunt for a dragon. Cole and Wu learn that Heavy Metal's blade came from a bone of the Firstbourne—the mother of all Dragons, who wields all the Elements and was responsible for the loss of Iron Baron's limbs. Shortly after, the Hunters spot a Dragon with the Element of Wind. A chase breaks out, with the dragon ultimately being detained; Cole and Wu briefly meet with the imprisoned ninja and vow to escape the realm and save the Dragons.
Back in Ninjago City, Lloyd, Skylor, Shade, Mr. Pale, Neuro, and Griffin Turner use their skills and powers to raid Borg Tower, from where they'll hack the airwaves. After Skylor's powers averted an encounter with Lord Garmadon, the Elemental Masters arrive at Ultra Violet's set. They trap her crew and film Lloyd, who delivers a message to Ninjago. Initially, he's overwhelmed with sorrow and despair, remembering his fight with his father—but gains the courage to speak against him and rally the people of Ninjago. Harumi and the others burst into the room, finding that they've finished recording and escaped out the window, leaving Ultra Violet and her men tied up on the floor, and a clip of Lloyd saying "The resistance never quits!" on loop. Harumi states that its time to take out the garbage as she watches the Elemental Masters escape.
Appearances
Characters
Cast
- Arkade - Michael Donovan
- Chew Toy - Scott McNeil
- Child - Tabitha St. Germain
- Cole - Kirby Morrow
- Daddy No Legs - Ian James Corlett
- Dareth - Alan Marriott
- Fisherman - Brian Drummond
- Garmadon - Mark Oliver
- Harumi - Britt McKillip
- Heavy Metal - Kathleen Barr
- Iron Baron - Brian Drummond
- Jay - Michael Adamthwaite
- Jet Jack - Rhona Rees
- Kai - Vincent Tong
- Karlof - Scott McNeil
- Killow - Garry Chalk
- Lloyd Garmadon - Sam Vincent
- Luke Cunningham - Michael Adamthwaite
- Misako - Kathleen Barr
- Mystake - Tabitha St. Germain
- Neuro - Paul Dobson
- Nya - Kelly Metzger
- Mr. Pale - Kirby Morrow
- Passerby - Heather Doerksen
- Shade - Andrew Francis
- Skylor - Heather Doerksen
- Ultra Violet - Maggie Blue O'Hara
- Warrior - Andrew Francis
- Wu - Madyx Whiteway
- Zane - Brent Miller
Non-speaking
Mentioned
Miscellaneous
Creatures
- Firstbourne (mentioned)
- Slab
- Wind Dragon
Events
- Attack of the Great Devourer (indirectly mentioned)
- Fall of Ninjago (mentioned)
- Nindroid crisis (indirectly mentioned)
- The Final Battle (indirectly mentioned)
- Ultra Hunt
Items
- Dragon Armor (mentioned)
- Dragonbone Blade
- Karlof's metal fists
Vehicles
- Dieselnaut
- Destiny's Bounty/Destiny's Wing (Destiny's Bounty; mentioned)
Locations
- Ninjago
- Ninjago City
- Kryptarium Prison (TV screen)
- Realm of Oni and Dragons
- Dead's End
- Firstbourne's nest (mentioned)
Species
Transcript
For the transcript of the episode, click here.
Trivia
- The fourth wall is broken when Jay says, "Do you see there are kids in this audience?" and he and Kai look directly toward the camera.
Cultural references
- The episode's title is a reference to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.
- Neuro can do Mind tricks, similar to how a Jedi does in the Star Wars series.
- Ultra Violet's enactment of her catching the mailman resembles the skits from the arcade game PAC Man in which Ultra Violet resembles Pac Man and the mailman reassembles Blinky. To add to this, Ultra Violet grows in size after going offscreen for the first time, which is what happens to Pac Man too.
- Iron Baron claims that a week's rations will be given to the Dragon Hunter who brings them to him in chains at the beginning of the episode. This may be a reference to the book Animal Farm, where Napoleon claims that any animal who brings Snowball to justice will get a bushel of apples.
Continuity
- Garmadon can sense the presence of not just his brother, Wu, but also of his son, Lloyd.
- Jay's breakdown/insanity from Episodes 85 & 86 has ended, and he is now back to normal once again.
- The Postman reappears in this episode, making his traditional cameo for another season.
- Skylor can use her powers to fuse other Elements, creating the fusion Element, Shadow-Light.
- Simon, Tommy, and Noble are confirmed to have been arrested by the Sons of Garmadon, as shown by several pictures.
- The fight against his father still haunts Lloyd as it was the reason he lost his powers and the reason that the city is in shambles.
Errors
- When Ultra Violet is first shown on Ultra Hunt, her mask appears to be a bit larger than normal.
- Chopper Maroon appears in 3 places at the same time; one with Ultra Violet at the Radio Station, another sitting at the bar at Laughy's, and a third next to Killow.
- However, the latter had different attire, and it's possible one was Nails.
- When Lloyd says, "We're almost there. Come on," his mouth doesn't move.
- When Lloyd finishes his speech, and Misako and Mystake are looking at the TV, P.I.X.A.L's helmet is on backwards.[3]
- While the Dragon Hunters were talking about Firstbourne, Daddy No Legs stated that Heavy Metal took the Dragonbone Blade from her. Even though, "Two Lies, One Truth" revealed that the Dragonbone Blade was actually stolen by Iron Baron when he and the other Dragon Hunters went to Oni land to get it.
Videos
Gallery
For the gallery of the episode, click here.
