Riyu

Overview

“I've been helping this one with his ninja training. He's shown much potential. I anticipate his first Spinjitzu tornado will be soon. If he keeps up his hard work.”
Rontu about Riyu to Sora, "For Whom the Bell Tolls"

Riyu is a Mountain Dragon that is a member of the ninja. Distinguished from his herd, Riyu stands out as a remarkable dragon due to his dragon power. His power gained the attention of Ras, who has the Claws of Imperium capture him before Riyu attempts to escape, only be recaptured along with Arin, a Spinjitzu prodigy, and Sora, whom he boosted her the power of Technology, until all three were rescued by Lloyd Garmadon and became his students.

Abilities

Abilities[]

“Well, you certainly have a special energy about you, little one.”
Arrakore to Riyu, "The Last Djinn"
  • Draco-Ergokinesis - Like other powerful dragons such as Source Dragons, Arc Dragons, and Thunderfang, Riyu is capable of manipulating his dragon energy.
    • Sparks - Like all dragons that possess a high level of dragon energy, Riyu has the ability to share his dragon power with Elemental Masters. For instance, he once transferred his dragon power to Sora, allowing her to tap into her Elemental Powers until she unlocked her True Potential. Another instance occurred when Riyu granted his dragon power to Nya, which helped her create a psychic link with Kai and connect with Dragon Ivory.
      • Elemental Power Augmentation - Riyu can increase the powers of Elemental Masters with his dragon energy.
      • Psychic link transmission - By using his dragon energy, Riyu can extend his psychic link to others linked to the person he is communicating with. A notable instance of this occurred when Riyu transferred some of his dragon power to Nya, enabling her to speak with Kai and establish a connection with Dragon Ivory.
    • Power Overload - During "Beyond Madness", Riyu displayed the ability to overload the Earth Dragons using his own dragon energy, which left him physically exhausted him.
  • Spinjitzu - Riyu can perform Spinjitzu, which was taught to him by Master Rontu. He used this ability for the first time in "Chaos Reigns" against Kur in the Djinjago's Cave of Bells.
  • Flight - Riyu has the ability to fly, allowing him to travel long distances quickly.
  • Expert tracker/Enhanced Smell - Riyu is an expert tracker thanks to his great sense of smell.
  • Family link - Riyu has a deep connection to his tribe, allowing him to find them wherever they are using only his instincts.
  • Psychic link - Riyu possesses the ability to form psychic connections, demonstrated when some of his scales landed on Kai, allowing him to communicate with Kai even while he was stuck in the Nether-Space.
  • Empathic Perception - Riyu has the ability to sense the emotions of other dragons, which was evident in his realization of the Dragonians' corruption.
  • Enhanced Strength - Despite his appearance, Riyu has enhanced physical strength, allowing him to lift up Zane’s giant robot form with ease.
  • Bipedalism - Upon becoming an adult, Riyu can now stand on his two legs more easier now and even fight with improvised weapons as he did against an Elemental Monster in Seed and Soil.
  • Prehensile Fingers - Upon reaching adulthood, Riyu is now able to manipulate his front paws like hands to grasp and manipulate objects with precision, enabling the dragon to wield weapons.
Personality

Personality[]

Riyu might look small but he's big and strong at heart. He cares deeply for his friends, especially Arin and Sora, as they were the ones to save him from the Claws of Imperium and reunite him with his herd. He's especially incredibly brave and loyal towards all his friends and ready to help them when they need him or are in danger. He’s always ready to protect his friends and yet very curious. Always ready to stand by his friends’ side, he now flies into action in order to protect them or keep them safe.

Appearance

Appearance[]

As a baby Riyu was a blue-gray dragon with a few white scales on certain parts of his ridged body, green eyes with black irises, and small wings with light blue membranes. When using dragon energy, his eyes glow white.

Upon maturing into a teen, Riyu has grown taller, his scaly skin became a little lighter, his white scales, including additional ones, have changed to gold, his wings have become larger with the arches having gold accents and blue-white lightning-like markings on the membranes, and his tail end is similar to an anchor. No longer a baby, his eyes have become smaller in comparison to the entirety of his head.

Upon changing into an adult, Ryu has grown bigger and taller than the Ninja, gained gold armor on his shoulders, around his ankles and wrists and a red band around his mid section and bigger blue-white lightning-like markings on the membranes.

Relationships
Official descriptions

Official descriptions[]

Baby Dragon Riyu[]

FIRE! ICE! LIGHTNING! EARTH! Ummm...Tech?!?

Has a new elemental power been discovered? And is it linked to the bond between Sora and the impossibly cute, curiously powerful baby dragon Riyu? Mystery surrounds this tiny, cuddly creature, but Arin, Sora and Lloyd know that he needs protecting...[2]

(Super) cute[]

Riyu, a young dragon, is brave yet unaware of his limits. He never looks before he leaps – not good when your wings aren’t big enough to fly![3]

Play Stories[]

  • STRENGTH: Bravery
  • TALENT: Risk-taking
  • SECRET FEAR: Not helping his friends
  • ULTIMATE GOAL: To be the Source of Balance

YOUNG HEROES AGAINST EVIL FORCES![]

The dragon of the team
- Rescued by Arin and Sora
- Can activate Sora's inner powers
- Comes from a place called Three Peaks
- Cannot fly yet, but jumps and hops[4]

The Youngster[]

Riyu might be small but he has proven to be an essential part of the Ninja Team. And he hasn't even unleashed his full potential![5]

71810 Young Dragon Riyu[]

Soar into the sky high above the Shadow Forest with the young ninja dragon Riyu. Then swoop Riyu back down into battle with Arin riding on his back wielding a climbing hook and katana sword to take on a dangerous Wolf Mask Warrior. Back on the ground, you can team up with Sora as she battles the evil warrior who wants to seize Riyu. It’s down to you to stop the Wolf Mask Army![6]

LEGO.com[]

Riyu is a young dragon rescued from Imperium by Arin and Sora. He's brave but small and doesn't understand his own limits. His genuine concern for others pushes him to take risks.

71855 Ninja Dragon Riyu's Battle[]

Team up with Arin, dragon form Nya and Riyu for some epic battles! Riyu can soar into the sky before swooping down armed with a large sword and a shuriken to take on the villainous Mutation Monster and Loyalist. Watch out for their dangerous weapons! The ninja must triumph as the fate of the Merged Lands is at stake.[7]

Appearances

Appearances[]

Sets

Boxed Sets

Polybags

Ninjago: Dragons Rising

Season 1

The Elemental Mechs

Season 2

Season 3

Season 4

Other mini-movies

Books

Comics

Ninjago Magazine

Video games

Etymology

Etymology[]

Riyu's name is based on the Japanese pronunciation of “Ryū” which is referring to a Japanese dragon, a symbol of strength, wisdom, and prosperity. However, the pronunciation is different, being 'Rye-u', as opposed to 'ryu.'

Trivia

Trivia[]

  • He is the second dragon to be voiced by Brian Drummond, the first being Zippy.
    • Just like Zippy, he can also act like a dog in certain moments.
  • He was inspired by Kevin Burke's dog, Robbie.[8]
  • The specific classification of Riyu as a dragon remains unknown, as he distinguishes himself from his herd by possessing extraordinary abilities typically associated with powerful dragons. Notably, LEGO.com suggested that Riyu is a Source Dragon or possesses similar powers,[9] despite the rarity of such dragons, with only seven known to exist.[10]
  • Riyu is the second character to have aged into a teenager in Season 2 of his series, the first was Lloyd Garmadon when he grew older in Season 2 of the original series. However, unlike Lloyd, he aged naturally.
  • After Flame and Ultra Dragon in general, Riyu is the third dragon to appear physically in more than one regular set (although Firstbourne has a BrickHeadz set and Ice Dragon Creature has a mini-build) and the one that appears in the greatest number of sets, having a baby dragon minifigure that appear in many sets and several brickbuilt versions.
  • Riyu is now the third of the younger generation of Ninja to perform Spinjitzu. The first two Ninja were Arin in "The Merge: Part 1" and then Sora in "The Final Game".
    • Unlike Sora however, because of Rontu's training, Riyu did a full Spinjitzu tornado where Sora only did the semi-full tornado that Arin also did before "Truth and Lies".
    • Speaking of, Riyu is now the second of the younger generation to do a full Spinjitzu tornado, the first was Arin as seen in "Truth and Lies".
    • With Riyu now learning and using Spinjitzu, that means all four of the main Ninjago: Dragons Rising cast knows Spinjitzu. The other three are Lloyd, who first did Spinjitzu in "Pirates vs. Ninja", Arin, who first did Spinjitzu in "The Merge: Part 1" and Sora, who first did Spinjitzu in "The Final Game". Riyu first did Spinjitzu in "Chaos Reigns".
Video

Video[]

Translations

Translations[]

Language Name
Chinese (Simplified) 阿尤
Czech Ryiu
French Riyu
Japanese リュウ
Korean 리유
Ukrainian Раю
References