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sins-and-wins-with-vix · 7 months

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Everything Right/Wrong with Ninjago “Rebooted” E2: The Art of the Silent Fist

Disclaimers: Show owned by LEGO. This is not a professional review/critique - it’s mainly intended for comedy!

Make sure to reblog, comment, and like, and tell me your thoughts!

- Theme ✅

- How convenient for the animators that Wu’s memories are all in third person ❌

- “No robots…” Lloyd forgets that Zane isn’t dead… yet. ❌

- Where did Nya get a green suit for Lloyd? ❌

- “There’s a reason [Wu’s] lived as long as he has.” Yeah, because he’s part of nearly every mythical, immortal creature in the book. There’s so many different forms of magical DNA in this guy that, frankly, I’m surprised he isn’t radioactive ❌

- “You guys go ahead. I will stay back and watch [the blades].” Wow, they didn’t even try to argue with him, huh? The DISRESPECT ❌

- Wait, why does Nya like Cole? We saw that the two were assigned as a perfect match, but we never saw hints of Nya actually liking him and now we’re supposed to believe she’s suddenly in love with both of them? What?? ❌

- “But Cole… Cole is not Jay (positive)…” OOOHHHHHHHHH🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

- Seriously though, this is such an awful line considering Jay is her canon love interest. And don’t say they didn’t know Jaya was gonna be canon because I do not believe there was a second they were actually going to make Cole and Nya a thing ❌

- I’m not even gonna sin them for tweaking Garmadon’s design from the end of last season because this one is objectively better ✅

- “Check out the new Sensei… lookin sharp!” Jay is a Garmadon simp confirmed and I really don’t know if that’s a sin or not anymore

- “SILENCE” *WHACK* Ohoh, I’m gonna like him, aren’t I? ✅

- How did Zane not notice the blades being stolen from in front of him? He clearly wasn’t sleeping, and Pixal later even says she wasn’t built for stealth ❌

- “Pixal? What are you doing?” “Discontinuing an old droid!” D*mn ✅

- Was that even a Pixal scream? It sounded a lot like Nya ❌

- “How about we take her apart to find out!” Jeez Kai calm down. Imagine what the others would say if he wanted to dismember a human ❌

- “Relax, not a weapon!” Then why didn’t they just bring them inside in the first place?!?! ❌

- “These nindroids are so much fas-“ Give me perfectly timed cuts for 400 Alex ✅

- “wouldn’t that mean shutting down Pixal too?” “Don’t tell Zane!” The ninja don’t even seem to consider Pixal as a living entity. They only even take her into account as a reference to Zane, nothing else. You can’t convince me they would be this chill about taking out the power if a human’s life was on the line. Basically what I’m saying is the ninja are racist ❌

- “We are all different, but I do not feel so different around you…”⬇️ ✅

- “Ever since we left I’ve been worried about [the students].” “Oh, Dareth’s looking after them.” Was that supposed to ease Cole’s worries cuz I’m pretty sure it made them worse ❌

- “Ya know, Cole, you don’t get the credit you deserve. You always put others ahead of yourself! I know the other ninja get all the attention but I just want you to know, you’re a good guy.” This is literally just the writers trying to convince us to care about Cole at a point in which such a small amount of the fandom actually did. I love Cole, I always have, but I think anyone who was in the fandom prior to the Wildbrain era can attest to how ignored he was as a character. This went off on a small rant so to clarify, I’m not sinning this because of how underrated Cole used to be (personally I think that’s more the fandom at the time’s fault than the show itself). I’m sinning this because it felt awkward and forced ❌

- “Don’t tell Jay.” Why? There was nothing inherently romantic about that line, or this situation in general, so what is there to not tell Jay? ❌

- “This is where all of Ninjago gets its power.” Zane mansplains something that even Dareth should be able to determine Pixal already knows ❌

- “I will call you Mindroid!” *angry mindroid noises* Worry not, Mindroid. One day we will join together and seek vengeance against all those who mock us with labels like “fun-sized” and “vertically challenged.” We are living versions of the pocket knife - cleverly concealed until the final moments in which we are revealed to deliver the killing blow.

- “Stupid technology!” Kai said, to the glass case ❌

- “oh who cares about probability!” this is character development… I have absolutely no idea where it came from or how Pixal developed but it sure is there ❌

- How unlucky was Pix that she just happened to land on the ONE laser we’ve seen throughout this entire episode? ❌

- *Mindroid breaks into office* “Great! Now they come in fun-sized!” ✅

- “This is no time for a lesson, Kai!” Actually, the climax generally is the time for the lesson, Jay

- The nindroids might have Storm Trooper aim but that doesn’t make it okay for the ninja to dodge in the worst possible way just to show off ❌

- Lloyd - beloved Green Bean - you’re supposed to cup the water in your hands, sweetie… not just stick your whole face in the pond like you’re bobbing for apples… ❌

- “This is why I took an oath of peace!” Why? So you and your son could get mauled by a giant, robotic dragon?? ❌

- Mindroid dies, and although killing him is 100% sinnable by death, this is actually a sin because he appears unscathed later on multiple times ❌

- Why does it take so long for Pixal to lose power? ❌

- “Your mission was important. I was not. I am to assist; I assisted.” The show never acknowledges how tragic this scene is. Well, it does, but only with Pixane, not Pixal as her own character. We constantly get to see glimpses of Pixal’s insecurities, but rarely see them built on or developed. ❌

- The only source of power for ALL of Ninjago is operated by this one tower and no one thought that was a bad idea ❌

- “We are compatible?” “Yes, yes we are.” ✅

- Look, Pixane is my favorite canon ship, but I still hate the way it happened. It was rushed, under-developed, and just didn’t feel right. ❌

- But also, Pixal only has feelings for Zane once it’s obvious that he feels that way about her so… recipromantic Pixal canon? ✅

Sentence: Mindroid coming for your kneecaps

#ninjago sins/wins #Ninjago #lloyd garmadon #ninjago cole #ninjago jay #ninjago kai #ninjago nya #ninjago zane #ninjago pixal

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toaarcan · 2 years

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Why did G2 fail?

There’s a lot of conjecture in the Bionicle fandom over what killed G2.

For the G1 hardliners, it died because it wasn’t enough like G1, either in sets or story or both. For the grumpy, disenfranchised fans, it died because of Lego’s other themes. For the G2-faithful, there was nothing wrong with the theme itself, it was just the lack of marketing. For the fans who hate modern Lego specifically, licensed themes are to blame. For others, it’s just that toys aren’t really the thing kids love anymore.

But the exact reason why Lego chose to kill it early is something subject to constant speculation and I don’t really think any of them have the whole story, because I don’t think there’s a single reason.

1) Low Sales?

The most obvious suggestion is that G2 was simply a financial failure for a bevy of reasons. G2 simply failed to sell, and was cancelled as a result. Lego are just lying when they said they’re satisfied with its performance.

I don’t think this is the whole story, though.

For one, G2′s cancellation came down so quickly that it doesn’t really track with the theory. At the point where the decision to not produce the third year was made, G2′s first wave would only have been on shelves for a couple of months. And unless it bombed massively, I don’t think that was the case.

Instead, I think G2′s under-performance wasn’t the main reason for its death, but it was a good reason to not continue it.

2) Star Wars?

One of the major culprits suggested by fans is that Bionicle was simply unable to compete with Lego’s own Star Wars constraction sets, which were the hot new thing with the new movies coming out. Why would kids beg their parents for these weird robots when they could have all their favourite characters from the new Star Wars movies instead?

It’s a nice theory, and it fits well with the “Grrr, licensed lego bad!” mentality that a lot of Lego fans have these days. But I don’t really think it tracks.

I think it’s worth noting, after all, that the Star Wars constraction sets also failed. They were significantly more likely to succeed, being recognisable and in some cases, iconic characters, and in many respects they were better sets than the offerings from Bionicle G2.

And yet... they were also cancelled prematurely. In fact, they didn’t even manage to get their last sets out, with the AT-RT Clone Trooper and the B2 Super Battle Droid both getting the can before they were ever released.

If the SW constraction sets were selling like crazy and easily outcompeted Bionicle, they wouldn’t have also met an untimely end.

Another, more widely-appealing constraction theme running concurrently with Bionicle probably didn’t help either, but I doubt it was the driving factor behind Bionicle’s death.

3) Ninjas Ate My Budget

Around the same time that Bionicle was reborn, so was Ninjago, inarguably Bionicle’s successor as Lego’s main story theme.

Ninjago has been going on now for longer than Bionicle G1 did, and has gradually lost more and more of its identity, as Lego realise that, whatever ideas they come up with, it’s far more profitable to just staple it onto Ninjago.

D&D? Ninjago. VR videogames? Ninjago. The same cultural appropriation bullshit as 2001-02 Bionicle, this time featuring the Evil Natives trope? Ninjago!

At this juncture, Ninjago is less a “theme” and more a Frankenstein’s Monster of ideas stitched together from the corpses of other Lego properties I think it’s cannibalising Aquazone/Aqua Raiders next.

This is also around the point that Lego’s story themes stopped being three years/six waves, and started being 2.5 years/five waves. The implication is fairly obvious- themes like Nexo Knights, Hidden Side, etc, were all dying out earlier than usual because Ninjago was absorbing money from both consumers and Lego itself.

With that in mind, a lot of fans decided that Bionicle was another victim of Ninjago’s ravenous appetite, and had been deliberately underfunded by Lego, who needed more money to allocate to their proven money printer.

Is this true? Possibly?

There’s no denying that Lego’s other themes have suffered since Ninjago came back, and I’m pretty sure the only reason Monkie Kid’s surviving is that it blew up in China.

But do I think Lego deliberately let Bionicle die to focus on their new golden child? Probably not.

4) Movies.

This, I think, is the big one.

After the success of The Lego Movie, Lego began a massive expansion in what they were selling. Expecting a sales boom in response to the film’s runaway success, Lego were trying to capitalise on it.

Unfortunately... that didn’t really happen.

All those movie tickets did not translate to bought toys, and Lego had to downscale their reach in response. Bionicle G2 was just the most obvious casualty of this retreat.

Above all, I think this is the main reason why G2 died. The times match up, the reasons track with both what Lego said, and the way the line was perceived by the fandom.

#Bionicle #Bionicle G2 #G2 #The Lego Movie #Lego #Star Wars #Lego Star Wars #Bonkles #Bonkle

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ember-not-amber · 2 years

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Here’s some things to know about me & my interests!

- I’m a 20-year-old cishet girl, I have been in a LOT of fandoms or more accurately, I’ve been obsessed with a lot of things and I never stop loving those things even when I fall out of my phases again and again, I eventually have a relapse in my obsessions sometimes. I joined tumblr bc I’ve heard that it is a very accepting place for fandoms and I’ve been on my Instagram fanpage/s for years where I have dealt with a bunch of unwelcome hate in addition to my real life middle school experience that still haunts me to this day, and I’m looking to finally have a safe social space where I won’t get any of that and I can be my true self and fangirl as hard as I possibly can. I’ve also watched Strange Æons’ yt videos about tumblr and I’m very interested in everything that happened in the world and on the internet when I was little and not allowed to have a phone (I’m a 2004 baby).

- My favorite YouTubers are Cody Ko, Athena P, Not Even Emily, ColeyDoesThings, Nickisnotgreen, Daz Games, HTHAZE, Smosh & their other channels, Strange Æons, TheOdd1sOut, Aaron and Jo, Jaiden Animations, Alex’s Corner, Chad Chad, Danny Gonzalez, Drew Gooden, Kurtis Conner, Duncanyounot, Rebal D, YAP TV, and lots more. I used to watch Amy Lee33 when I was 10 or 11 and now her videos are just nostalgic for me, and I used to love the Minecraft YouTuber, Aphmau until a little bit after she started posting content targeted at kids. I really miss her role play videos :(

- My favorite shows (including my childhood shows) are TMNT 2012, Lego Ninjago, MLP, VeggieTales, Manifest, Lucifer, Once Upon A Time, The 100, Merlin, The Summer I Turned Pretty, Boy Meets World, The Amazing World of Gumball, Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir, Anne With An E, I guess I’m kinda invested in Riverdale, I haven’t seen every Friends episode but I’ve seen enough to ship Joey & Rachel, Martha Speaks, Dinosaur Train, Word Girl, Wild Kratts, Wonder Pets, Super Why, Jem and the Holograms, Avatar: The Last Airbender, Odd Squad, Horseland, and Olivia.

- My favorite music artists are Marcus & Martinus, Tiny Meat Gang, Taylor Swift, One Direction, Harry Styles, Ricky Montgomery, and more. To be clear, some of the artists I listen to are artists that I don’t know much about, I just like their music and I don’t have the energy to get to know who they are but I know a bunch about most of the artists that I listen to. I also love a lot of songs from artists that make royalty free music for Epidemic Pop like Loving Caliber, Lvly, and Tape Machines which is all thanks to Aphmau for using their songs in her YouTube videos.

-My favorite movies are Peter Pan (the 2003 live action movie) + many other Peter Pan movies, Mirror Mirror, Rise of the Guardians, Mune: Guardian of the Moon, the 1968 Romeo and Juliet movie, every old Barbie movie, Turning Red (that movie got me obsessed with 4⭐️Town and made me develop a crush on Robaire), and the Tinkerbell movies.

- My favorite ships are Jelsa (Jack Frost from ROTG and Elsa from Frozen) a very nostalgic ship for me that I got obsessed with when I was 10-12 and I’ve never stopped shipping it even though I’m not as obsessed as I used to be, the love square from Miraculous Ladybug, Laurmau from Aphmau’s Minecraft role play series, especially MCD, I used to ship Garmau in addition to shipping Laurmau but I think Garroth’s silliness in Mystreet kinda turned me off from the idea of him and Aphmau together so I just shipped Laurmau. I only ship Aarmau in the Mystreet series bc that’s the only series where it feels right for them to be canon (except for their age gap when they first met😬). Jess wrote Aarmau as the canon ship in almost every series she has created (besides the series that don’t have the characters Aphmau and Aaron in them) and I got really tired of it and wanted something new so I became a BIG Laurmau shipper. Travlyn and Zane~Chan from Aphmau’s series, I’ve shipped Peter Pan with Wendy in the original Disney movie and almost every adaptation of Peter Pan while also having a crush on him, Shirbert (Gilbert and Anne Shirley from Anne With An E), and Jerranne (Jerry & Anne from Anne With An E).

- I’m not really much of an anime person but I’m really enjoying Toradora at the moment

- My favorite WEBTOONS are (including ones that have been finished for a while) Eaternal Nocturnal, Siren’s Lament, Operation: True Love, Suitor Armor, Maybe Meant To Be, Forever After, Act Like You Love Me!, Adventures of God, Archie Comics: Big Ethel Energy, Succubus x Delinquent, Rewriting Our Love Story, The Kiss Bet, Green & Gold, Date First, Love Later, Go Away Romeo, Unlovable Replacement, Annie Green Hates Girls, Goth Boy & The Jock, Meme Girls, True Beauty, Jackson’s Diary, Internet Explorer, Lore Olympus, Honey Lemon, The Four of Them, Goth Girl & The Jock, Cursed Princess Club, Castle Swimmer, Romance 101, Swimming Lessons for a Mermaid, Mom, I’m Sorry, Sarah, I’m Sorry: Welcome To Our Galaxy, Spells From Hell, A Summer Night’s Dream, Everything is Fine, Stalker x Stalker, Mines & Monster Girls, Drawn To You, Phoenix Drop High, Opposite of Always, Love and Leashes, Before We Knew It, There’s Love Hidden In Lies, Jungle Juice, Let’s Play, Reunion, Age Matters, The Princess’s Jewels, Love Me Knot, The Wendybird, The Wrath & the Dawn, Unholy Blood, LUFF, My ID is Gangnam Beauty, #Killstagram, Crumbs, A Good Day to be a Dog, and Days of Hana

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blizzardream · 1 year

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Hello! :D

I realized I've never really done a proper introduction here so here we are, here's a little intro post. It'll get updated from time to time as things change.

Name's Blizzard! Feel free to call me Bliz too.

They/them preferred

Nonbinary + aroace

Student artist + animator

Hops in fandoms from time to time.

I'm autistic so if I act weird, it's likely because of that.

Extra info under the cut^^

Here's some stuff I'm interested in!

Dishonored

SMT Persona *current hyperfixation: Persona 3

Ninjago (it was literally my childhood)

Flight Rising

The Legend of Zelda (mainly BotW/TotK)

Sonic the Hedgehog

Animal Crossing: New Horizons (not in the fandom)

Team Fortress 2

Horizon (video game series) (not in the fandom)

Undertale/Deltarune (not in the fandom)

Sky: Children of the Light (not in the fandom)

Five Nights at Freddy's

Hollow Knight

Lethal Company

Just so everyone's aware, I'm not comfortable with drawing humans which is why you will rarely find me drawing anything from Dishonored, Persona, or anything like that unless I may have cat designs backed up for them.

Does that make me a furry? I don't know. I like to think not but tbh I don't know the exact definition of a furry.

And a little guide to my tags!

General:

#blizzardream art - my art tag! there's other people on the internet who go under Blizzardream as well, although I've checked and none of them are specifically artists. this is a little bit so you know it's the artist Blizzard and not whoever else might be out there under the same username. (literally nobody calls me Blizzardream anyway. they call me Blizzard IceDragon but not Blizzardream)

#blizzardream animation - animation tag because I animate stuff from time to time when I feel like it! mainly on FlipaClip. most of my animations will also be on my YouTube which is just my online name XD

#bliz talks too much - yeah uhhh I talk a lot in tags or in general most of the time. sorry. actually no I take that back I'm not sorry

#ow bliz that's a lot of tags on a reblog - I think that's pretty self-explanatory. it's not really there as like an organization thing, it's more of a reminder or indicator that I Have Spoken A Lot And Likely Shouldn't Have. it's also an indicator that I probably really love the post I reblogged, soooo

#rb - I always tag my reblogs. just helps with organization and also so you can filter it out if you just wanna see my original posts if you feel like scrolling through my content.

I tend to talk a lot in the tags on basically anything so definitely read through them all if you want to absorb everything I have to offer!

#blizzard blasts - I play trombone in band. Not sorry. I'm also a music enthusiast so I may talk about it from time to time!

#blizzard's ask box - I keep losing this tag so this is mainly to remind myself LMAO but here are my asks! As of writing this I don't get a lot, feel free to drop me an ask anytime and I'll try my best to respond :)

Thanks for reading through everything (if you did) and hope you have a good day/night. And if you're not or if something's going on, I hope you pull through and things get better :)

#artist intro #just an intro post #nothing much #I need to stop rambling but I can't help it! I talk a lot for someone who seems quiet and also used to be the quiet kid in the class #bliz talks too much #blizzardream animation #only because I haven't posted this animation clip anytime or anywhere else on tumblr up until this post XD

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pokemon-ninjago-world · 3 years

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Headcanon/Pokéninjago version of Lloyd’s identity crisis during season 5 of Ninjago

Got ab 12 likes on the announcement post so here we are: This is an essay-sorta-thing about something I thought and wrote some six years ago. It’s been so long since I wrote this I feel cringy reading it, but it’s tenable in Pokéninjago lore. It’s kind of a mix between my headcanon for the show, and canon of my AU, which is why there is mentions of “evolving” and Pokémon types.

Things to take into account:

Idk if there should be content warnings, but depression mention at least. Otherwise, this is pretty much as intense as season 5 went, just a little more angsty I suppose.

I must say that my version of Lloyd and his identity crisis were inspired by a certain artist’s version of him and by a comic they made about the Child’s Play episode’s aftermath. I don’t dare name the artist, since they don’t wish to be linked with the Ninjago fandom anymore, but some of you might know who I’m referring to.

I do not know how psychology stuff actually works, all of this was made on grounds of a couple of high school psychology courses and a lot of imagination `:D

I wrote this originally in Finnish and let Word translate it, so this might be v clumsy at points.

Most of the text is under the cut!

~***~

When Lloyd was just a small cub, closer to three years, his mother had left him in his father's care. Misako knew the boy would become the Green Ninja and Garmadon would become the Dark Lord. That is why she went looking for any ancient knowledge to avoid the final confrontation. Although her heart was torn since she had to leave her loved ones, she knew that she couldn’t just sit on her hands, and that perhaps she was the only one that could prevent the decisive battle between good and evil. It was also her wish that the father and the son could spend as much time together as possible. Thus, Lloyd's earliest childhood memories are about his father, and his recollections of his mother are blurry, obscure, and fading away as he grows up, or mixing with other memories.

Dad meant everything to little Lloyd. Although they lived in the same monastery with Lloyd’s uncle as well, whom he also liked, his own father was still the greatest. Garmadon also loved his child deeply and wanted him to have a happy life. Although the poison in his veins was starting to get a hold of him and he was increasingly drawn to the Golden Weapons, his love for Lloyd and the desire to be with him in anticipation of Misako's return kept him away from them for much longer than if the boy had never existed.

When Lloyd "evolved," he lost some important years of his life, during which a youngster usually developes a picture of himself and his changing body. Lloyd's body changed in a single moment and even though his mind also changed to some degree, it was still mostly on the same level as before, since artificial aging did not bring him the years of experience that growing up normally would. From that moment on, he had to form himself a new image of himself. Frankly, he was facing a fierce identity crisis.

After the episode Child's Play, Lloyd adopted an identity whose foundation was flimsy and unstable. It consisted of a few simple pillars that supported his image of himself. Some emotions, thoughts, and memories that he could not, wasn’t able to or didn’t dare to deal with, secretly and slowly gnawed at those pillars like erosion. They grew into doubt that settled into the cracks like rockfoil.

That flimsy foundation for his self-image, consisted of these elements: I am the Green Ninja. I'm the strongest ninja of all. I’m the son of sensei Garmadon. I’m the grandson of The First Spinjitzu Master. I'm one of the Elemental Masters. I'm a student of Sensei Wu. I'm one of the five elemental ninjas. It's my destiny to protect the world from evil.

This made it easy for Morro to destabilize and crush Lloyd’s self-esteem. Morro proved himself to be stronger and more independent than Lloyd, and that he could win him over and over again, no matter how hard Lloyd tried to fight back. Lloyd felt weak and desperate. Two pillars of his self-image collapsed to the ground and the masked emotions and doubts that chipped away at the other columns began to grow and intensify: He was not the strongest ninja and was therefore unable to protect the world from this evil.

This also affected his view of him as the Green Ninja. Although logically he still was just that – the Golden Weapons and his powers had proven it – he could not help but think that maybe Morro really was supposed to be the Chosen One. His identity was cracking, which ate away at his strength and self-esteem. Being a Psychic Type, his greatest strength resided in his psyche, and whenever his mind was in an unstable and vulnerable state, he couldn’t do his best, even if he had used everything he had learned. Losing his father fairly recently had already struck a dangerous notch in his mental stability.

Even though Lloyd was still his father's son, it didn't feel the same when he was no longer with him. Finally, he was only driven forward by his relationship with his other loved ones. He had to do everything he could to stop Morro from harming his friends. By protecting them he was also protecting the last intact remnants of his Self.

Lloyd did everything he could to resist Morro's possession. From time to time a memory of his friends and the will to keep them safe increased his "self-control," weakening the ghost's hold on him. However, a long, grueling time in constant motion, without water and nourishment, poisoned by a cold, vindictive spirit, steadily filled his mind with anguish and despair. Doubts penetrated deep into the tears of his self-image, breaking everything old until he no longer knew who he was. Only with the last bits of his mental strength could he interfere with Morro's possession so that he failed to clear the other ninjas out of his way.

Then, when Morro broke away from Lloyd's body, the Espeon felt like nothing more than an empty, broken shell floating aimlessly in the dark, beachless sea. He was unable to live up to any of the expectations and goals that had been set for him. Now, he was used as a trade-in item in the market of the world’s destiny. He longer had the strength or power to save even his best friends. He was as helpless as a newborn pup and all he could do was to stand by and apologize when he was traded for Realm Crystal.

Somewhere from his past, he dug up one last spark of strength. Already as a child, he had been left alone with unfriendly people, who then had ignited that stubborn flame in him: the desire to fight the cruel, unjust and repressive world. His body still had more strength than his mind, and this momentary burst of grit made him kick the Crystal out of Morro's hand. This, however, caused him to end up in the freezing stream, all his energy used up. There was not much left but a primitive desire to survive and a little strength to keep his head afloat before the cold numbed his muscles.

Lloyd's mind was in shambles. Images, memories, shattered fragments of his adopted identity… they all churned in his tired, blurred consciousness. Unintentionally, he began to go through the feelings of uncertainty, fear and inadequacy that he had denied from himself for years. The present seemed more surreal than the memories. He relived moments that had had a revolutionary impact on his life: When the golden weapons pointed him out as a Green Ninja; when he grew up under the influence of Tomorrow's Tea; when he met his mother and became to know her; when he unleashed the Golden Dragon in the Temple of Light; how he fought the Overlord who was possessing his father; how he harnessed his True Potential; got his father back; lost Zane; reunited his friends again and felt great togetherness with the other Elemental Masters. When he lost his father again. And when Morro possessed him.

Lloyd was lost. If it wasn’t for his friends and their care, he would have sunk deep into depression (and, on the other hand, drowned or, at the very least, died of hypothermia). When Kai carried him out of the FSM’s tomb, it triggered a very clear memory of the day when the Master of Fire had fulfilled his potential and Lloyd had been identified as the Chosen One. That day, Kai had come to save him from an erupting volcano and carried him to safety. Now, Lloyd felt like he was that little scared cub again, who had for a moment thought he was going to burn to the ground in the boiling lava of the volcano. He remembered how Kai's closeness had brought a feeling of immediate security around him. Even though the mountain had raged and wanted to kill them both, Lloyd had known he didn’t have to be afraid. Kai was there. He'd protect Lloyd. There was no reason to fight the fear anymore, he didn't have to pretend like he was tough. He was carried by someone older and stronger, whom to rely on.

The feeling was so intense, the memory so vivid that Lloyd was overwhelmed by an inexplicable, immense grief. The sadness of being forced to give up a carefree childhood so early on, to take on an enormous responsibility and assume a role that seemed too demanding for such a small boy to perform. He had had to grow up way too soon. He started shaking from holding back the tears. He didn’t mind since he thought Kai was probably assuming that he was shivering from the cold. But when Kai said quietly and understandingly: "Shh... It's okay... Don't worry about it," the last wall of pride and fear fell, and Lloyd could no longer repress his weeping.

At this point, he slowly began to build a new identity on the ruins of the wrecked one. He understood that even though he was the Green Ninja, it didn’t make him greater or more important than the others. He had more magical power than anyone else, but he was still only a person just like them. He could hesitate, too, and fail. There was no way for him to do anything more than what he was capable of, mentally, physically, and skill-wise. That’s all there was to offer, and if it wasn't enough, there were others whom he could rely on. Others, who would catch him when he ran out of strength. He wasn't the last link to hold the whole structure together.

These ideas developed slowly in Lloyd's exhausted mind. Slowly, he got stitched back up from the fragments of his previous self-image. This time, however, his new identity was not something that was given to him from the outside, in which he would have had to fit himself, but it was a solid, authentic self-image created as a result of self-reflection. It was still obscure, uncertain and seeking its form, and its growth was overshadowed by fear. But the conversation with his father drove away that last fear. The fear that Morro was supposed to be the Green Ninja instead of Lloyd. His father assured that Lloyd’s qi had no influence on how he should live and act. He should live the way his heart told him to.

In the end, although Morro managed to beat Lloyd one last time, this time he did not break down. He was more intact now, he had more inner strength, and he knew for sure he wouldn't be abandoned. That the fate of the world wasn't really up to him. He may have been part of the story, but after all, he wasn't the protagonist, at least not the only one of them.

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luescris · 3 years

Text

NS15 SPOILERS, LONG POST, BEWARE!!!!!!

Aight so here we gooooo eps 11 and 12 thought process lmao

Ep 11:

YESSSS ANTONIA AND NELSON FINALLY!!!! I LOVE THEMB HDG,,

FREAKING...,,, THEY SHOWED UNAGAMI FOR LIKE FIVE SECONDS GOD I LOVED THAT SO MUCH!!!!!!! I HOPE HE'S HAVING A GOOD LIFE WITH HIS FATHER ✨💖💖✨💖💕💖💕✨✨💕✨✨✨

I didn't know the names for the ice cream shop were made by fans until after watching the eps I love that the creators included people like that holy cow?!????????? Fucking love that-

For a minute I thought Cole's voice was different and I got s c are d and almost cried-,,,

mMMMMMM KALMAAR YOU EVIL SQUID DASTARD NO ONE LIKES YOU he looks so freaking smug and I hate it

rayandkairayandkairayandkai-

KALMAAR LEAVE THOSE KIDS ALONE I SWEAR IF YOU TRY TO HURT THEM YOU WILL BE CATCHING THESE HANDS

That guy jamming to the original Weekend Whip is honestly me I'd be doing that same thing HDHSHSH

KALMAAR NOT KNOWING HOW TO DRIVE A FREAKING CAR I KNOW ITS COMMON SENSE BUT THAT WAS HILARIOUS AHAHSHHSJSHSHAGAHS

Kai: "Remember me?" Kalmaar: "oF coUrsE I rEmeMbeR yOu I sAw YoU fIvE minUteS aGo iN tHe stReEt!!!!!!!" 👌👌👌👌👌👌👌👌👌peek comedy on god

kalmaar don't yoU FUCKING DO IT I SWEAR ON THE MASTER IF YOU TRY TO HURT THESE CHILDREN

KAI!!!!!! OH NO!!!!!!!! BUT ALSO FORESHADOWING???!?!?!?!?!!!!!!!!!! HDHSHDHDHHHHDHSHSH I DO NOT LIKE THIS,,,,!!!

Bshshdhsh Nelson and Antonia really are such good friends I hope we get to see them again one day,,,, :pleading face emoji:

Also last thing but uh I freaking l o ve the music for both this episode and the one in season 11 like it's so lively and fun with comedic feel to it and just y e s

10/10 episode I love it aaaa

Ep 12:

Ahahahahahaha even more foreshadowing now I just love going through this so much thanks Ninjago (((((((:

Benthomaar narrorating tho augh I love this fish boy so m u c h ahsghdksj,,

Benthomaar:

Me: HDJSJSHSHSH💕💕💕✨💕💖💕💖💕💖💕💖💕💖💕💖💕💕💖💕💖💕💖✨✨✨💖💖,,,,!!!!!!!!!!

Anyway Lloyd jinxed them all Kalmaar does have the amulet woops-

OH HELLO WU I LOVE YO-!!!! *gets stabbed and kicked off stage*

RAYANDKAIRAIANDKAIRAYANDKAIRAYANDKAI--

Wu: "You're not leaving with that amulet Kalmaar!!!!!" Kalmaar: "aCtuaLlY I aM I'm LiTeRallY dOiNg iT rIgHt nOw hERe WatcH!" *turns and slowly starts """tiptoeing""" away* "oH lOoK, tHis iS me LeaVinG wItH tHe amUleT!!!!!" I'M SORRY BUT WHY WAS THAT SO FUNNY TO ME HSHSHDHSHHS????? I HATE HIM BUT HE'S FUNNY HOW-

AND LITERALLY THE NEXT SCENE HE WAS LIKE "thAt wAs a RhEtoRicaL qUeStiOn I doN't waNt tO heAr it!!!!" AHHSHSHSHAHAHAAH EVIL SQUID MAN FUNNY but also I want to squash him like bug

AND WHEN GRIPE DROPPED THE ANCHOR ON HIS FOOT, THEN FREAKING KICKED THE ANCHOR WITH HIS OTHER FOOT?!??!?!?! I HAD TO PAUSE IT I WAS LAUGHING SO HARD TOP PEEK COMEDY HAAHGEGSHSH

MMMMM NICE ENTRANCE NYA NICE ENTRANCE Kalmaar looked legit afraid I love that Very Much :))

MYA AND RAY FIGHTING TOGETHER?? ZANE AND PIXAL FIGHTING TOGETHER???? COUPLES DOING COUPLE THINGS THAT'S WHAT I LOVE TO SEE 💕💕💕💕💕💕💕

BENTHOMAAR SAVING NYA AND BENTHOMAAR FIGHTING KALMAAR AND BENTHOMAAR BEING A GOOD PERSON BUT THEN HE GOT HURT AND KALMAAR IS EVIL AND I HATE HIM

Oh yeah forgot Kai didn't know about Nya's new ability lmao hdjsjshdg Also mmmmmmmm I have a bad feeling about this amulet :)))

gets flashbacks to Star Wars Rebels when Ezra was talking to the Space Whales and their eyes glowing blue and using them to take him and Thrawn away and stranding him for five plus ye a r s a n d-

BENTHO GETS A TOUR OF THE NINJAS HOME??? NOT ONLY THAT BUT HE GETS TO STAY WITH THEM????!?!?! I KNOW HE WON'T STAY LONG BUT GOD IMAGINE THE SHENANIGANS HHHHHHHHH AND HE WAS SO HAPPY ABOUT IT TOO LIKE AAAAAA BABY BOY I LOVE YOU SO MUCH 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

The Ninja immediately adopting Bentho into their family the second they meet him is honestly the Whole Ninjago Fandom and I fucking love that.

KAI AND RAY.....,,, ON GOD BEST FATHER-SON RELATIONSHIP IN THE SHOW CURRENTLY I LOVE YOU TWO SO HHRJS THEY'RE BOTH SO ADORABLY STUPID I CAN'T HELP BUT JUST AHSHHSJAJBTJSJ💕💕💖💖💕💖

The ninja making references to A Certain Place (ALSO PLAYING POLE WHICH THEY HAVE APPARENTLY??????????)

Me not knowing what they're talking about: *zeroes in on Zane* ZANE ZANE ZANE MY BELOVED I LOVE YOU LOOK AT YOU SMILING YOU FINALLY GET TO BE HAPPY MY TWO BABIES ARE IN ONE ROOM THE LOVE I FEEL AAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Next scene shows Shintaro:

Me, in Beyonce Meme voice: SHINTARO?!?!?!?!??!

LOOK IT'S VANIA QHSJSUDHSHHSHSHS I HOPE SHE'S LIVING A GOOD QUEEN LIFE <3<3<3<3

MMMMMMMM I k n e w there was something off about that Amulet, y'all ain't ready for what happens next (((((((:

10000000/10 points had A lot More Thoughts for this one than last one obv lmao XDDD

#lego ninjago #ninjago seabound #seabound spoilers #ninjago #my stuff #random #can you tell i had lots of emotions #im sorry but i love them all okay

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forgive-me-your-highness · 3 years

Note

The Sun is rising. Time for answers.

1. What’s your favorite song? Is there a reason why?

- You Are My Sunshine, my mom sings it to me

2. Do you listen to podcasts? Which ones?

- Not podcasts but I do put on Radio TTS as background noise.

3. Pastel, neon, or dull colors?

- Out of the three I’d pick Pastel

4. Tell me anything you want people to know about you :)

- I’m obsessed with frogs

5. Do you like stickers?

- Sometimes!

6. If you were a mythological creature, what would you be? Why?

- Possibly a Siren. That or Winged Folk

7. Tell me something you love about one or more of your moots but don’t tag them in it :)

- I always grin whenever I see a LoZ mutual on my dash, they’re really funny and have great taste.

8. Any fandoms you’re in that aren’t on main?

- Ninjago, How to Train Your Dragon, Rise of the Guardians

9. If you had to choose a different name for yourself, what would it be? Why?

- I have two different names I’ve chosen. Eden is my little, she’s very sweet. I also use Sky since I’ve taken a liking to the name.

10. Hypothetically you were to learn another language! Pick one :D

- German since I am learning it!

11. Favorite scent?

- Cinnamon Apple

12. Name someone who’s really pretty (non-romantic), it can be a friend or celeb, just compliment someone :D

- My friend Strawberry is adorable and I’ll protect her with my life <3

13. What’s your love language?

- Physical Touch & Words of Affirmation

14. Do you like makeup? Why?

- Only eyeliner for the most part

15. What are your pronouns?

- They/She!

16. What’s something not-deep you’re scared of?

- Wild animals

17. Something/someone that gives you good vibes?

- Lullaby!

18. Do you draw? Can we see a doodle if you do?

- I do draw. I liked the colors but got lazy with the line art lmao.

19. Do you have any books you’ve loved recently?

- At the Edge of the Universe by Shaun David Hutchinson

20. Free choice! Answer anything you want to from this list or make up your own question and anwser it :)

- I’m currently seriously looking into a dog to train tasks like “Cover” and “Crowd Control”.

#frosch ribbits #The Lulls and Sun saga continues #toad and frog ask too many questions

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lloydskywalkers · 4 years

Note

We all know how much you love Kai Nya and Lloyd, they’re amazing so that’s very understandable ;) but what abt the other three, anything you like specifically about their characters? Sorry if this is a weird ask. Love your writing btw, you’re awesome 💙

Oh gosh thank you so much!!

I’m gonna start with Cole because gosh I love an earth boy, Cole is such a kind and genuine character and he deserves SO much more than he gets in the show. Cole is actually one of the characters I’m drawn to writing for POV-wise the most, after Kai and Lloyd I think. He’s just — I love his voice, if that makes sense? I was actually watching season 4 earlier this week, and the scenes where he’s trapped with everyone else under Chen and working with Zane to escape are some of my absolute favorite. There’s a bit where he goes nuts with the rotomachine/rocket/thing they build and he’s just…blasting the heck at the cultist guards, and Jay’s like “slow down pal!!” and Cole just giggles, what a menace I love him.

One thing that’s always got me about Cole is the interesting position he’s in, because while he does have a living parent at the start of the show, he can’t rely on him or contact him because he’s lying to him. In a realer sense the ninja are his only family, or the ones who really know him, and we see that in how genuinely he cares for them, and steps up into that older-brother type role — he’s the one calling out for Kai in the volcano, he’s the one admitting he’s wrong first to Jay, he’s the last one up the rope on the Bounty, he’s the one who takes it so hard on himself that he lost the Traveler’s Tea.

Also Day of the Departed still physically hurts me because Cole is desperate and determined and still so kind and I as a person do not focus enough on the fact that he was dead for a whole season or two, and how that had to affect him.

hndjfgh this is just gonna turn into another overly long rant isn’t it

Moving onto Jay, I adore Jay, he has some of the funniest lines and deliveries in the show and I love how expressive he is, he’s just such a bright and dynamic character to me? But he’s also genuine, he’s smart and determined and ready to admit when he’s made a mistake. And he’s got that bravado sort of confidence where you can see how anxious and worried he gets over stuff, and boy if that isn’t the Most Relatable thing ever — but he’s still here, fighting for his family and keeping the “power of positive thinking!” and I love him.

Jay also has two living parents (not counting his biological ones, which ninjago PLEASE give this boy closure there, does he even know about Libber yet) and his relationship with them is so sweet and genuine?? Gosh there’s this part in season 7 where he drops everything to go race for his parents when he realizes the Vermillion are after metal, and I think that’s one of my favorite Jay episodes because of how quick-thinking and sharp and driven he is there.

I would also just like to give Jay a gold star for being the only person in the Ice Chapter to have himself somewhat together, everyone’s going to pieces in the Never Realm and bless Jay Walker he’s over here holding off the ice troops with lightning while everyone else has a breakdown.

And Zane, oh Zane you are the most difficult for me to write because I feel like I can never do your character justice, but I love you too. Zane’s a little more difficult for me to connect with, but he won my heart right along withe everyone else those first few episodes. What’s the one where he goes after the falcon and finds the Bounty, Home I think?? One of my faves hands down, and it’s thanks to Zane. The whole episode where he finds his dad and he makes the connection to free the sea monster instead of killing it is also Very Good, and the MOTO scene where he snaps at Garmadon for assuming he’d have no feelings!! Go off, Zane. He’s such a genuinely kind and good-intentioned and caring person, and it BURNS that I know he has to live with the knowledge of what went down in the Never Realm now >:’((

Also like — Zane is a pure-hearted boy, he’s sweet and gentle but like heCK does that purity run all the way through, he a hundred percent has the same snarky/petty streak of asshole running through him every single other one of these kids do. He freezes Jay in an ice block and uses him as a footrest in revenge, he sends Cole in on a mission where he has to sing knowing full well he doesn’t want to, he’s every bit a menace as everyone else is.

This is why i can never write short fics I can’t even do short repLIES but yes, there is a lot I like :D

#answered #long post #i should put it behind a read more but i cant get it to work on mobile hsndjk #i love them all is the gist of it #Anonymous

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savannah-the-caracal · 6 years

Text

Nobody Asked for it, you got it

Fic Recommendation list :D

Like the title says no one really asked for it, but I felt in the mood to do one so why not? Lots of fandoms are here, so feel free to read through and see what there is that catches your interest ^^

There are links to both FanFiction and ArchiveOfOurOwn ;)

Minecraft: Story Mode Movie Mode - The first Watching the Game fic on FF (and one of the only 3), Movie Mode is a well written fic by @Toni4eyes, who captures the characters in an amazing way. In-Progress

The Return of the Lost - If you’re favorite episode is 6, then this little capturing moments of Stampy, Stacy, and Dan’s lives is absolutely for you. It’s very sweet, and though it’s currently only six chapters long, this fic by MitziRae is sure to capture you hook-line-and sinker

Building Blocks - If you love imagining the Old Order adopting the New Order, than look no further than this fic written by @raintagwasalreadytaken. Honestly, all of her fics deserve to be on this list, but due to conservation of space I’ll just link this one and let you guys discover the rest of her works on your own

Hybrid: Cinematic Mode - Similar to Movie Mode in the fact that it’s a watching the game, this piece by @arizaluca is simply stunning. Featuring the gang watching, not the original game, but in fact an alternate universe of Ariza’s (a hybrid universe).

Rebel of Sky City - You love writing or drawing that Sky AU for MCSM AU Month? Then Rebel of Sky City, written by shielddrake42 needs to be your next stop. Featuring Jesse, the daughter of Isa, and Lukas, the son of Milo. Need I say more?

Fingerpainted Bruises - Also by @toni4eyes, unless you’re like CaptainSparklez and think Radar is evil (still laughing about that from his walkthrough btw) then stay away. But if you’re like the other 99% of mcsm s2 players, and think Radar is a precious bean whom Jesse should adopt to make Ivor a grandpa, then you MUST read this fic, as well as its sequel Makeshift Band-aids

Danny Phantom

Jack’s Wish - Who doesn’t love a good reveal story? Well this one, although perhaps not the BEST written, is still one of the best plots I’ve seen.

Frequency - Yup, another reveal fic. Expect it from me alright? I’m freaking addicted to them. This one has a bit more of an eavesdropping plot, but it’s still pretty good.

How to Train Your Dragon

To Start Anew - Hasn’t been updated in three years, but it’s time travel. ‘Nuff said.

Justice League (the cartoon, not the new movie)

Privacy - It’s cute, just...just read it alright?

Legend of Zelda

Dimensional Links - Ever want all of the Links to meet up? Wish granted right here. It was updated this year so I THINK it’s still going, but don’t quote me on that.

The Wolf - The fic you all wanted the moment you played/watched Twilight Princes, even if you didn’t know you wanted it.

Warriors

Different - A fox growing up as a cat, learning she’s a fox, and all hell breaking loose. I’ve been reading this fic since my early days on FF (when i was twelve.)

Tigerclaw’s Second Chance - Exactly what it sounds like, a Time Travel piece in which Tigerclaw is given a chance to change things

Resilience - This is a really good fic involving a Windclan kit being taken to Riverclan, becoming a medicine cat, and lots of other crazy things.

Young Justice (show not comic)

That Torturous Thing Known as Time Travel - Read somewhere private so WHEN you start laughing, no one thinks your crazy ;)

Look into the Future - Exactly how it sounds

Marvel Cinematic Universe

Weaver of Silk and Dreams - There are no words that can properly describe this amazing alternate universe, so just go and read it for yourself.

Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Chat Noir

The Marinette Project - Pure fluff and romance involving MariChat, Adrienette, Ladienette, and LadyNoir. Quite possibly the best and sweetest Ladybug fic I’ve read. Bring your toothbrush.

Coco

Remember Not to Forget - READ. THIS. IMMEDIATELY AFTER WATCHING COCO! THIS NEEDS TO BE THE SEQUEL!!!!!!!

I’m into Fitness - ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Movie Night - Kinda rushed, but still hits all the right points. Also (as far as I’m aware) the first watching the movie fic for this fandom, so give it some slack ;)

Trolls

Piece by Piece - Single Gray Dad AU that is just the cutest thing ever <3

Move on Up - The ending is really rushed (at least for me) but this is a really cute Breek fic (branch x creek) and a really clever soulmate au

Ninjago

Blood is Thicker than Water, but so is Sludge and Tar and the horrible coffe dad tried to make one time - Do I really need to say anything?

The Pain in our Tears - Just a cute little headcanon that I totally agree with

Crossovers

They’re Us -- Young Justice meets Justice League. Hasn’t been updated in a while, but still worth your time reading.

Lean on Me - Smurfs Meets Trolls, with the cutest crossover pairings to ever exist. 66 Chapters and still going strong. (does have some chapters you may want to skip, but there ARE alternate versions on FF)

Bluetiful - The inspiration for Lean on Me, this is probably the only Smurfs meets Trolls fic rivaling with Lean on Me for best fic award.

Green Ninja - All of the Lego Movie worlds combined (Lego Movie, Lego Batman Movie, and Lego Ninjago Movie) focusing on Lloyd (green ninja) and Ma and Pa Cop. It’s much better than I make it sound ;)

Brick by Brick - Teen Titans meets Young Justice, in the form of mind-swapping.

Whooo that’s a ton of fics xD Took literally over an hour to write this lol

#fic rec #mcsm #danny phantom #warriors #httyd #young justice #justice league #trolls #smurfs #coco #mcu #zelda #lego universe

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loveinlilies · 3 years

Text

Tagged by @fandom-kitsune !! Thank you :D I love these kinda things! Will put before a read more for convenience :)

🌸 - Why did you choose your url?

I'm an artist, and I'm super into all types of art- but I mostly use it as a means to get out feelings, so it was a recent reference I needed! I tend to like drastic things in art so...

🌸 - Any side blogs?

Yep! I'll tag the ones I'm comfy with

@stims-n-stars is my side stim blog (admin has intense anxiety so :))

@baby-im-in-bliss lovecore sideblog!

🌸 - Do you have a queue tag?

Yep! It's lapin's luggage

Drawings/creations are #lapin's lead marks, answers are #lapin's voicemail

🌸 - Why did you start your blog in the first place?

Originally art! Going to make a seperate one for that soon though.

🌸 - Why did you choose your icon?

It was between him and kumon, so I chose my ultimate comfort character. This art specifically has my favorite coloring of the artist so I love it!! I really wanna make an art sideblog :)

🌸 - Why did you choose your header?

I personally don't think we say we appreciate people enough, and words have intense weight, so I hoped to share ones that impacted me too. <:)

🌸 - What’s your post with the most notes?

I had two drawings- one of cole from ninjago (yep) and Yuri from ddlc (I cosplayed her-) with like 200? I have no idea where it is...

🌸 - How many followers do you have?

189 of you? Hello! I do hope you're enjoying your stay.

🌸 - How many people do you follow?

294...it's time for cleaning because I don't even see half of them...I interact/take note of mutuals though!! So ur safe

🌸 - Have you ever made a shitpost?

Haha...often...I love to see/share em though. Maybe I should share my a3 tiktok edits...

🌸 - How often do you use tumblr every day?

Haha...honestly a lot for art ideas since the alg recommends me stuff out of my usual taste! Most of the times I'm on when a moot just left lol

🌸 - Did you have a fight/argument with a blog once?

Not really? I had someone call me out on something but people are mature here so! Glad we can talk it out.

🌸 - How do you feel about “you need to reblog this post”?

Eh. Forcing people to do stuff- i dont like, so treat others the way u wanna be treated. (If its money Ill rb for good luck though.)

🌸 - Do you like tag games?

Uh- next question answer because I don't know the difference <:o

🌸 - Do you like ask games?

Yes!!! I love to learn more abt ur interests and like what you like!! I'm here to support u :)

🌸 - Which of your mutuals do you think is tumblr famous?

Oh man. Most of you? I don't really know how tumblr fame works but if I see you a lot I automatically associate u with it so <:) mutuals u have space in my noggin'

🌸 - Do you have a crush on a mutual?

Not really! I would like to be friends but otherwise I'm demi so <:)

☆anyone who would like to join feel free! I would like to tag 7-oh-ta1 because I didn't see you do it yet, but no pressure! Just like to know the moots :D☆

#lapin's loudmouth #tag game #ask game #Thank yiu for the tag!! this was seriously fun #I'm glad to have artistic mutuals too!!#lapin's voicemail

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aberrantchaser-blog · 7 years

Text

The Lego Ninjago Movie Spoiler full Review

Table of Contents: Personal Background, Review, crush/love letter, Ambivalent, Things I wish they: expanded on, had, had done, Irritated slightly by, kept in, noticed. The things I enjoyed: thought clever, funny, lessons, liked, tugging on Heart Strings, Fun observations.

Background I’m not part of the Ninjago show fandom (though I have seen spitbrix’s & tannerfishies’s videos on the subject). I just saw the 1st TLNM trailer on May 21st & have been intrigued ever since & somewhat crushing on Lloyd Garmadon for 4 months. My crush kind of died yesterday, after I’d seen the film twice. Why? read on to find that out, & what I thought of the film in general.

Review If I were to give this film a letter grade it’d be a C, not an A as it didn’t do everything right, not a B as it didn’t have only a few missteps, but not a F because I don’t think the film failed so badly as to warrant that grade, or a D for barely passing.

No the final grade I’m giving this film is C for average, not extremely good or extremely bad, just in the middle, maybe somewhat forgettable to general audiences. To me at least this film causes me enough pain to want to forget it sometimes.

When this film lands it lands well, the heart of the story is well executed, when it doesn’t stick the landing it drags the score/grade down, but not enough to ruin 100% the film/or my experience of it.

Sure I came out of the film feeling mainly disappointed, I had spent around 3 hours with the film, & $15.59 for my 2nd viewing, but just because it disappointed me doesn’t mean I want other people to not see it, or for this film to bomb at the box office, as I’d like the Lego aesthetic to still be present on the big screen, & would like Lego to do well on future films advertising in house brands.

In crush terms, yo Lloyd the makers of the film set up a great profile (marketing) for you, yet the “date” I went on with you showed that you weren’t as great as your profile set you up to be. The allure, intrigue, mystery I felt for you made me want to get to know you, & your story was wanting. The charm you showcased in trailers also seem to have been lost/cut out in your film. (I had hoped that your film would make me fall for you more, that the time I spent obsessing over you wasn’t wasted, that you as a whole would be worthy of my attention when I finally got to see your story.) I suppose 1 sad irony of this situation is that I wasn’t able to take my owned/your representative minifig to see you on the big screen on the day of your film’s premiere.

& Yet your platonic chemistry with your dad, your desperation in wanting to fill that dad shaped hole in your life, & you working through your mixed emotions on your dad was what saved your film for me.

In short you weren’t a horrible date, but you weren’t the best you could have been either. Like your mom who expected the best of your dad, & her wanting the best for you, I too expected the best showing from you, which I didn’t get, but I still do want the best for you despite that disappointment, just maybe not with me in whatever possible futures still exist.

The rest of this post will be a list of either emotions, followed by what parts of the film invoked that emotion in me, or things I wish the film had done, & maybe not done or likes & dislikes.

Ambivalent: I’m not sure this film should get a sequel. I’m also unsure about recommending this film.

Expanding on Lloyd being bullied. Dorling Kindersley hereby abbreviated to DK’s Essential Guide memorably detailed the harassment Lloyd faced in school, producing a spirited protective response among fans, the book also generated sympathy for Lloyd in me, but that sympathy really had nowhere to go in the film.

Kate Howard’s adaptation of the film into the jr novel did flesh this issue out as well, 1 memorable exchange being Kai offering a hug out the anxiety/stress thing, + articulating that Lloyd was finding it tougher to cope with the ostracization.

Things I wish they:

Expanded on Koko’s backstory. The team’s camaraderie.

Had: More Martial Arts. For a martial arts film, this film has a surprising lack of it. Only showcase of martial arts moves I recall is Lord Garmadon vs Wu, & slightly during Garmadon’s 2nd attack, with Wu beating up mooks while Lloyd steals the Ultimate Weapon, hell Wu gets most close quarters combat scenes! Only scene involving other people were when the ninjas were fighting Garmadon’s many fired generals, & that scene was too brief. The ninjas return to the city after Garmadon steals the Ultimate Ultimate Weapon is more of a showcase of each ninja’s individual elemental powers, not martial arts. The Ninja Formation Featurette set up my expectations to be high, I’m disappointed at the result. (especially considering I had forbidden kingdom on the brain when I went to see the film.)

When DK’s Essential Guide bought up the ninjas relying too much on their mechs, I didn’t know the issue would extend to the majority of action/fight scenes in the film.

I really wish they had kept in that scene with Lloyd & the baby which they showcased in Trailer 1 + Outtakes, especially what they had in outtakes! That showed good physical comedy reminiscent of Jackie Chan’s old work. At least we would have 1 ninja having time to adequately showcase their martial abilities/skills.

More time, really felt like film was too short to do all it could have.

More interior shots of the Destiny’s Bounty.

Had done: Had the ninjas use their personal weapons. DK’s Essential Guide as well as the 1st time we saw the ninja in Trailer 1, hyped me up for that.

Instead both above issues/scenes are kept to the 1st few scenes of Good Morning Ninjago.

Speaking of the other ninja, while I expected this film to lean more to Lloyd + friends, instead of being a true ensemble piece, & expecting not to be disappointed with that, I am surprisingly sad about the other ninjas not each getting much time to shine. Hell if I hadn’t read the Essential Guide or seen the Behind the Bricks Featurette, I likely would have no or very little sense of their personalities.

A more personal beef was I wish they could have showcase Lloyd’s dragon mech more. It hurt when the mechs got totaled by Meowthra, but it didn’t hurt as much as it could have. Wish the film could have shown us the Ninja 1st debuting the mechs, then montage the ensuing status quo of ninja mechs beat garmadon, that would have made it really hit home when the mechs weren’t able to beat the Garma Mecha Man, signifying a change of the status quo in Lord Garmadon’s favor, & have the pain of the mechs being lost hurt that much more when Meowthra totals them.

Like Ghost in the Shell Have a montage of the city to get to know the place, Lloyd parkouring home after the 1st day isn’t enough, all that have 1 or all of the Ninja be able to take a moment & just appreciate their city, find it beautiful, like that mind controlled garbage guy did vs the Major in her invisibility suit.

Dorling Kindersley hereby abbreviated to DK’s Essential Guide + The Making of the Movie excerpts made me really interested in Ninjago City, just a shame we didn’t get to explore it more.

DK’s Essential Guide actually set up a lot of things that wasn’t in the film. Like each member of the team getting an arc, & using their preferred weapons in hand to hand combat, their personalities, detailing Lloyd being bullied, Garmadon’s army, really expected that new General #1 who tore off Lloyd’s arm to play a bigger part, like she took over the Shark Army ala Starscream when Garmadon left to track Wu, giant stone dog guards that would guard the Ultimate Ultimate weapon temple, & help Jay complete his arc. Maybe the ninjas using a Tornado of Creation to rebuild the city after Meowthra’s destruction. Maybe more expansion on Lloyd/The team all being Master Builders. The DK & Lloyd’s Scholastic book give the impression that Lloyd designed & built the teams’ mechs himself.

Irritated slightly by: the use of hard knock life. the Ultimate Weapon random montages.

Kept in maybe trailer 2’s going back to roots, & what Lloyd says before his arm is torn off, I haven’t felt this good in a long time, & Lloyd’s yeah but I feel like there’s more to Garmadon that I need to know.

What I Noticed: the film is more consistently heartwarming, but the marketing was more consistently charming, funny.

Some shots were definitely made to be seen in 3d, especially some in the mech battle in Garmadon’s 1st attack, I saw the film in digital.

eyeofthewolfe, I really envy that you’re 1 of the people who aren’t feeling like me, I want to be part of this in-group of yours. But ultimately I’m not, hope you’ll still accept my point of view as valid, & that we can continue to talk while still respectfully disagreeing with how we each see the film.

Since I want to end on a good/happy note.

What I thought was Clever took my 2nd viewing to recognize the parallels between each Lloyd/Dad scene + the concept of catch, granted I like they were more subtle with it in the Behind the Bricks featurette.

The Inner Piece metaphor, which I should have also taken literally considering this is a lego film.

The 6 or so cut shot of the effect of Lloyd’s Dragon Mech Missile Massacre.

Some of what those poor fired generals said to Lord Garamdon when he asked for suggestions.

Despite being somewhat irritated by not calling it, all said fired generals banding together to become antagonists.

Wu’s lines about defying the [The Mentor Dies] trope.

Funny some of what Garmadon does during that GMA style montage & other attacks on the city.

Apparently Wu’s like Sun Wukong’s master Old Boy in the odd birth department.

Lessons learning to see things from a different point of view.

Learning to rely on something else besides tech.

Liked the score, voice acting.

Tugging on Heart Strings nearly every scene with Lloyd & his dad whether bickering or bonding. The scores A Wish & A Ruined City, Arm Popping Flying Lesson, The Lady Iron Dragon, Here Kitty Kitty, Big Hug.

& the Koko/Lloyd scenes.

Lloyd, Misako, Nya teaching the fired generals new life skills.

Fun facts 1st viewing 1 kid I presume gasping in outrage when the Kid referred to Lloyd as just a kid.

2nd viewing really like some kids commentary on how Wu couldn’t die & other show references. Wish I could recall what jokes got the most laughs though.

Lloyd really reminded me of RWBY’s S2 Blake in worrying bout what the antagonist was up to, which the vol 5 theatrical showing was advertised in the theater I was seeing the film in.

That & he was a nice mix of Atla’s Zuko/Luke Skywalker in the dad issues department, although Lloyd/Wu’s bond more reminiscent of Zuko/Iroh.

Maybe another comparison could be made between this film’s familal relationship & Despicable Me.

#the lego ninjago movie #TLNM #cinemajago #Lego Ninjago Movie #LNM

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