Kai Ninjago - Blog Posts

pov you’re a psychopathic sea creature who would like to dominate ninjago city and you encounter a five foot tall human hedgehog, who seems to have think that you’ve forgotten him, so you attempt to hit him with your tentacle tail

seriously though I wish we had more dialogue between these two.. the interactions r so funny

ninjago’s biggest flaw: death = development

ninjago has this consistent idea that the death of a character leads to the development of either said character, or the characters who grieve the death. while this concept can be written very well, ninjago can’t seem to get it right.

for example, nya’s sacrifice in seabound. i think her death could have been the BEST example in ninjago of how relationships can grow and strengthen over a shared loss. nyas ‘death’ could’ve been written as a wonderful way to deepen relationships between the characters, ESPECIALLY kai and jay. relationship development between those two would have been such a good concept, stabilizing eachother during times of grief, and so cole (who was, im sure we all agree, the most stable post seabound) would not have the burden of trying to help all members of the team, burying his own grief in order to aid the others, just as he had to do when his mother died.

furthermore, nya’s own death could have been a development strike for herself, but the show did not give her and nyad enough time  to show nya once again reestablishing her sense of self, and collecting her memories. this lack of time nya had, and the lack of attention brought to kai’s grieving methods, combined with loss of potential growth between kai and jay, simply proved that what the writers were aiming for (nyas death--> development) did not work out. and im sure u all can think of the other examples where this idea does not work out.

but i think while the death= development IS a problem, there are times where they got it right, and it did lead to development at some point. for example, when the monastery doors collapsed on lloyd, and so he ‘died’ and met with the first spinjitsu master (plot contribution). and, cole’s ‘fall/death’ showed us an extremely rare occasion of kai being vulnerable and scared, and then nya into a phase of blaming herself, which led to kai comforting nya, showing the strength of the bond between the two.

so, ultimately, i believe the true problem, is : ninjago’s inability to correctly and deeply portray grief,  because the entire idea of death= development  is based on how individuals deal with grief (coping mechanisms), how they carry on with it, and the relationships formed/strengthened by it. if grief is written poorly, then death can never lead to development.

yeah everyone focuses about nya’s connection to nyad, but if nya is technically one with the ocean, and nya is basicslly a part of kai, isnt kai basicslly connected to nyad too?? like wouldn’t it be awesome if human nya still had the ability to talk to nyad after she unmerged and stuff?? And since nya can do it kai could kinda do it too??

like if nya could talk to nyad as separate beings, but still be connected, through their magic? and kai maybe not being able to talk to nyad but being able to feel her, embrace her because after all, nyas blood is within him too, and so with alongside shared blood comes shared bonds, right?

can you imagine kai feeling upset or maybe lonely, nya not being there bc maybe she’s on a mission so he sits alongside the ocean, nyad joining him and creating little jellyfish that float around kai, to cheer him up?

can you imagine kai and nyad dancing across the shore, nya secretly recording them from a distance?

and maybe whenever kai goes near the ocean, nya and nyad can both feel his warmth and so there’s an array of fish and various sea creatures that suddenly appear alongside kai, kinda making the ocean a bit more magical?? idk I think It would be such a beautiful concept

*noms them affectionately*

raging over the fact ninjago is ending without giving us major rgb plot content

very dearly beloved yet incredibly detested ninjago writers, since you cannot do it yourself, allow me to give you some guidance. introducing: a guide to writing kai

1: childhood. coping mechanisms, emotions, relationships, and so many other countless things are originated from our childhood experiences. show us how kai took charge, how he reacted when his parents left. did he break down crying, suck it up and get himself together for nyas sake? did his fear of being useless and his habit of undervaluing himself originate from the fact his parents had left him? I want to see kai move on as a child and yet stumble and fall at the same time. i wanna see the unresolved trauma please because we all know our boy has lots of that

2: green ninja. what’s wrong writers?? are you afraid to tell us his true motives for him wanting to be the green ninja? it’s because his constant fear of being worthless leaded to his wanting to be the green ninja? was he scared he couldn’t be able to protect those he loved? did he want to be green ninja out of fear of being undervalued and left behind by the team, like his parents left him behind? so many question so little answers

3: bravery through love. kai canonically represents bravery, but the ninjago short only presented this bravery through physical action. kai is one of the bravest in another act as well: love. kai’s continuation of love and care toward the team and kids in general has been shown time and time again in the show. physically affectionate, supportive, understanding, and caring to each ninja individually is literally kai’s thing. he readily loved his parents even though they ‘abandoned them’ long ago, when nya was not brave enough to (valid, btw). he is very vocal on how much he loves people, especially nya and lloyd. he loves kids and animals alike (making friends with dragons, naturally affectionate with kids). he wholeheartedly loves people despite the fear of not being loved back, and despite his childhood trauma, and i think thats the best and most beautiful kind of bravery. and i think if the show points this quality out for those who cannot see it, it would contribute so much to his character. kai is such a loving person he loves everyone i think i might cry

if you had the chance to redo kai and jay's fight in seabound,how would you do it?

glad you asked, dearest anon.

firstly, I would keep the fighting. but i'd make it LONGER. kai and jay would fight, but they'd argue alongside it too. i need to kai to say "she's my sister jay," PUNCH "i loved her so fvking much too" KICK and then i need kai to shed some tears and then i like to think his power is kinda linked to his emotions so he's crying and the flames are getting bigger and bigger and kai's winning the fight and then yk more arguing and tears and angst because im insane and then:

i need water nya to address jay AND kai. the fact that she only addressed jay HURT ME IN WAYS I CANNOT EXPRESS.

Grief: Kai and Jay

I chose to focus on those two because of one sole reason: the IMMENSE contrast between the ways Jay and Kai handle grief. Complete opposites.

before i Start i wanna say I don’t have anything against jay, I love him too guys

Jay, time and time again, shows self centeredness in times of grief (again, not saying it’s his fault that’s just how he copes) He leads himself to believe that only he ever loved this person, and that no on else feels the same way. jay is also very expressive- he cries, he mourns, he is verbal throughout his grief. for example, he talks to water in order to feel some grasp of nya close to him- it shows how expressive he his with his longing for her. furthermore, two more examples:

the widely known one: Kai and Jays fight. JAY is the one who suggested they shouldn’t be a team anymore, he is the one who started the fight, and he’s the one who said no one loved/missed nya BUT him.

now, one might say

“But Kai was inconsiderate! He knocked down Jay’s water glass!”

lemme tell you buddy. jay shouldn’t be talking to water glasses in the FIRST place. secondly, this was kai’s way of showing concern, and allow me to remind you that kai still bothered to show concern for jay, when even before the fight jay was saying things like “only I miss nya” “I love her” “we are nothing without her”

secondly, did u guys notice the immense regret and sadness when kai knocked his glass over?

LOOK AT KAI’S EXPRESSION. he is DEVASTATED. he didn’t MEAN to. and on top of that, he is closing his eyes. if you’re a total kai observer, like I am, you’ve noticed that he looks away or dissociates if situations are too emotionally overbearing for him (nyas death, both times, when chen tells him about the fact that his parents might be evil and left them on purpose, etc etc). kai even said sorry, in a heartbreaking tone. he UNDOUBTEDLY would have apologized more profusely if jay didn’t attack immediately.

the other example is Season four, episode two. The ninja were in chens place discussing Zane’s death. jay says “I moved on. I feel guilt. These are not good feelings!” again, kai feels like he is being indirectly attacked, due to jay subtly suggesting that only he feels guilt. kai then says, “You think you feel bad? Imagine how I feel!”

and you might think oh but Kai is being self centered now. no. He’s not. Because remember what Lloyd told him before? Lloyd said Kai was selfish, for wanting to die instead of Zane. Kai felt suppressed and used jays words as a chance in desperation to vocalize some of his pain because he had no other chance to. And every time kai stated ANYTHING related to Grief, it’s automatically considered selfish whereas when jay does it it’s totally fine. kai’s feelings are ALWAYS being dismissed.

Kai handles grief destructively. He drinks, blames himself, mentally tortures himself. He literally has never cried in front of the others and silences his grief because he is criticized for it, especially by jay. It’s not that he isn’t vocal, it’s the fact that he CANT be. He’s SCARED to be.

both were in immense pain, but, and I literally don’t even know how many times I’ve said this, but the show needs to properly address this problem. kai being portrayed as selfish during grief is UNFAIR, and does not make sense AT ALL, when everything he says or does contrasts ‘selfishness’.

all the ninja have unique characteristics and they are so individually unique and reflect their nature

for example,

kai’s smile ( + dimples <33333 ) is bright, fearless, and contagious, his eyes radiate love and warmth, his laugh energetic and filled with enthusiasm

jay’s freckles remind you of stars, his smiles are timid yet adorable, his laugh loud and silly

cole’s hugs make you feel at home, eyes embedded in admiration and protection, his laugh is strong and smile is gentle yet valiant

lloyds laugh is quite mellow, voice smooth and soft, eyes curious yet immensely fond

zane’s words are a striving source of comfort, eyes tender, voice calm and patient, smile polite yet encouraging

nyas eyes remind you of calming waves against a shoreline (or when she’s mad, the complete opposite), voice firm and assertive, smile bold and daring

Kai <3

lloyd <3

your honor, I indeed firmly believe that nya and lloyd are taller than kai

the superhero: lloyd         

    the supervillain: kai 

the mayor: nya

can we have kai and nya content??

GUYSSS!!! Kai is AMBIDEXTROUS!!

I WAS REWATCHING THE OLDER SEASONS AND, he holds the sword of fire with his LEFT HAND. AND IN RECENT EPISODES  holds swords in both hands and USES THEM with both hands and HOW HAVE I NEVER REALIZED THIS?!?!?

ninjago headcannons ll

-kai sleeps like a cat

-jay loves eating chobani yogurt (incase you don’t know, it’s a brand of yogurt that has one little thingy full of yogurt and the other thingy u can flip over and add cookie dough or chocolate chips or whatever)

- nya and kai are those crazy madmen racing on the street ways that all the moms shake their heads at

- nya cannot parallel park but she can tokyo drift

- one day lloyd hit his head on the table so kai hit the table back.

- cole can digest anything ( poisoning him to death? lol nice try he loves to nom poison)

-kai bought lloyd most of his game/comic collection

- nya has a bellybutton piercing

part one

rgb siblings + sensei wu

part one

part two

I get sad when someone says one ninja sacrificed more than the others for ninjago

like no :( they all hurt so much all their sacrifices are equally painful :((( give them hugs please

Kai and Nya VS Kai and Lloyd VS Lloyd and Nya

i’ve lately been seeing a lot of people comparing the rgb siblings relationships from one another... so I’m here to give my thoughts. before we begin I just want to clarify that I do NOT believe one relationship is more significant than the other. kai loves nya and lloyd EQUALLY, lloyd loves kai and nya EQUALLY, and nya loves kai and lloyd EQUALLY. ok! point made! jolly! also just a quick read on the image: colors correspond to each ninja (green= lloyd, etc), and the arrows work like this: 

kai-----(kai’s relationship with image the arrow points towards)---> nya

Kai and Nya:

now, in their childhood, I believe kai played the parental role more than the older brother role (this still remains unchanged). nya simply played the roll of a little sister. HOWEVER. as nya got older, i believe her relationship with kai changed. instead of playing the little sister, she ALSO slowly accustomed herself  to a parental role with kai, and before doing so playing the role of an ‘older sister’. Im thinking until around the age of 12 she played little sister, maybe after 12 and until she became samurai x an ‘older sister’ and then after samurai x she accustomed  herself into a parental figure toward kai. Also, I do think as nya got older kai slowly eased himself out of ‘ parental’ and into ‘older brother’, but parental is and will ALWAYS be the default relationship with nya. Naturally, both are ‘parental’ in different ways: kai focuses much more on emotional support for nya, offering approval, comfort, nurturance, and love. nya focuses on self-affection, meaning supporting kai in terms of accepting himself, showing that she loves him (not directly, but through gifts/actions), etc. both ‘parent’ eachother in ways the other needs it

Kai and Lloyd;

this one is easy. kai was an obvious father figure/older brother figure to lloyd since day one, and we’ve seen him rotate between them both frequently. kai’s ‘parental’ style remains the same as it was with nya, he offers lloyd approval, comfort, nurturance, and love. and as an older brother, protects him and teases him (just like he does with nya). lloyd played the role of a younger brother, even considerably a son throughout the show. he looks up to kai as a role model, etc

Nya and Lloyd:

both are younger siblings. thats it. THATS ALL. because nya protects lloyd and loves him, lloyd loves nya and they spent lots of time (DEF DOING MISCHIEF.) when the others were out on missions (when lloyd was a kid and nya was not a ninja). they have a rlly mischievous bond, and definitely a lot of chaos when together

-----------------------------

first off, the BIGGEST similarity when it comes to how  kai treats nya and lloyd (two slightly different relationship) is: parental LOVE. kai openly loves them both and always SHOWS it.

now, the biggest ‘difference’ is kai. nya and lloyd both have a more ‘respectful’ relationship with kai. yes, if nya got the chance she would soak him in water and if lloyd got the chance he would pour flour on kai. yes, kai and lloyd are double trouble and kai and nya are partners in crime. which is why im not talking about chaos, bc all three relationships have equal heaps of it. im talking maybe that nya and lloyd wouldnt curse in front of kai as often, and maybe listen to kai more than they would listen to the other (for example, if kai said to do ‘x’ then nya and lloyd would probably do it, but if nya/lloyd told lloyd/nya to do ‘x’ then theyd be stupid and ‘fight’ abt it). idk. just thoughts.

Your hc about kai being spared from prank wars bc of big brother privileges is so right I love you. I can imagine a massive prank war going on and kai having no idea its happening because lloyd specifically intercepts any pranks that would affect kai

anon… I love you MORE!!

imagine Kai just waking up on the morning wearing cat slippers and walking outside and he sees all the ninja on the floor and he looks at Lloyd and Lloyd shrugs and says, “prank war.”

half the time kai doesn’t even know a prank war is going on because

1) the master of pranks (Lloyd) does not touch him

2) anyone who lays a prank on Kai is to be demolished by the master of pranks

random ninja fam hcs?

anon YOU READ MY MIND I WAS GONNA POST SOME JUST NOW LOL

--ummmm of course they all collect squishmellows

-Cole, Kai and Jay would inflate an air mattress for the sole reason of riding it down the stairs

- The team makes clay rings together and for eachother (wu comes home and it’s a clay-tastrophe)

- WATER BALLOON CHALLENGE but nya kills everyone so its over in the first five seconds

- BLINDFOLD COOKING with zane and kai but somehow they always end up making the best food ever (the others are not allowed to participate bc they can’t even cook with their eyes open)

-everything jay owns has his name on it but the others still steal his stuff.. sorry jay..

- lloyd always wins prank wars. everyone is a victim except kai bc kai has older brother privileges

-KARAOKE NIGHT..... but cole is banned from singing. dw he can dance though

- kai hosts face mask parties bc he has a drawer dedicated to facemasks

-who needs a slushie machine when you have ZANE!

-kai does nyas makeup +hair +chooses her outfit when she goes out on dates w/jay

part two

kai and lloyd

Lloyd, Nya, and Zane vs Cole, Kai and Jay in an escape room:

Team #1:

Lloyd (the leader + idea maker ): nya you search that area and be on the lookout for map coordinates and zane can you please help me with these pots I think these designs are hinting something

also lloyd: *oni growls* at everything…

Nya (the theorizer + hint refuser): ok guys so according to my theory these coordinates should be the password to unlock the safe because the ID card numbers are proportional to the- NO LLOYD WE DONT NEED HINTS WE ARE BETTER THAN THAT.

also nya: smash smash frustration BASH

Zane (the analyzer + clue organizer): according to my database this is a long, forgotten language used by an ancient civilization decades ago. no one has ever deciphered it before. i shall translate it in a few seconds. apologies for the delay. allow me to organize the clues, I’ll section them in different categories and label them individually.

also zane : [grabs a detective hat and wears it, declares his newfound ownership over it] oh? what do you mean it’s the property of the escape room?

Team #2

Cole (the muncher+ the holy observer): guys look I found a trail of crumbs maybe if we follow it we can find something! [is staring at his own crumbs]

also cole: hmmm that painting MOVED. let’s check it out. yes it’s totally a color wheel it’s certainly hinting towards a certain art type we should investigate all the painting in that art type let’s go woo!! guys is that a THREAD of string on the floor? that’s the same fabric on the coat!!

Jay (the toucher of everything + the creative one ): what’s this what’s that hey guys check this out ew this is sticky don’t come here everyone I’m gonna touch everything

also jay: ok guys I made this mini electronical gps by myself with the limited materials we found! slay!

Kai ( secret passageway finder, the riddle solver): ooo is this a lever how about this maybe this is the lever oh man THIS IS DEFINITELY a SECRET passageway oh wait no it’s not oops sorry

also kai: so I solved all fifty riddles and found 68 secret passageways do u guys think that’s good enough?

guess which team always wins.

MORE RGB HEADCANNONS PUHLEASE

here you go love:

-kai and nya WOULD do the ‘thats my f-ing evil twin’ tiktok trend with eachotehr. they’d slay it tbh

-zane taught kai origami so now kai leaves origami hearts in random things that nya and lloyd possess and he thinks they don’t know it’s him but they know ( and they love it).

-when the rgb siblings go to a pool lloyd and nya tip over every floaty kai rests on

-they have a 3 minute long handshake.

-if lloyd nya and kai are on the same laser tag team the opposing team is SLAUGHTERED within SECONDS.

-lloyd and nya are cooking?? my dear, the only thing they cook is disaster

-LISTEN hear me out : kai does ballet

-lloyd loves sour patch and sometimes kai will throw a handful of sour patch at him. randomly. for no reason. lloyd NOMS THEM ALL UP. not a single one lands on the floor.

crying screaming sobbing on the floor because no one loves nya and lloyd the way kai does

he’s always looking at them with unconditional love

people ask me why I’m so distraught over ninjago ending and when you tell them it’s because your emotionally attached since it’s been there since your childhood and you’ve grown up with it and even though it does injustice to your favorite character it still has your favorite character and you sound like a crazy person when in reality you just can’t let go of something that brings you comfort so easily even though it’s just some stupid tv show