Spinjitzu Brothers

Spinjitzu Brothers is a series of canon[1] Ninjago books that take place during Wu and Garmadon's younger years.

Official description

Official description[]

  • Novelty within LEGO® fiction
  • Stories based on research with young readers who want to know what Master Wu and Lord Garmadon were like as young ninja
  • The series delves deep into the LEGO® Ninjago® universe with background stories and also exclusive never-before-seen content from new heroes and villains to brand-new lore
  • Easter eggs for fans
  • LEGO NINJAGO remains one of the most popular LEGO brands
  • 2021 is the 10th anniversary of LEGO NINJAGO with a gold-themed year-long campaign
  • LEGO NINJAGO franchise tie-ins planned from 2022 onwards
Summary

Summary[]

The Curse of the Cat-Eye Jewel[]

Main article: The Curse of the Cat-Eye Jewel

One day, after disappointing their father yet again, the First Spinjitzu Master sent out his sons, Wu and Garmadon, to embark on a journey to the northern ocean to find a mystical tea plant that might be able to cure Garmadon of The Devourer's bite. The next morning, the brothers set out on their journey, traveling through a forest where they fought against a scaly tiger like beast but were nearly overwhelmed by it. Fortunately, the boys were rescued by a mysterious stranger who seemed to be able to perform her own version of Spinjitzu. Following this encounter, the brothers continued to travel until they came across a large mountain where they found themselves confronted by a group of warriors wearing green, cat-themed uniforms. Although they initially attempted to fight off the warriors, the brothers soon found themselves overwhelmed by their opponents' superior numbers and were forced to flee, though their haste and unfamiliarity with the terrain sent them careening off a cliff.

Luckily, the brothers found themselves being rescued by the stranger from earlier, now revealed to be a humanoid cat named Nineko. After expressing an interest in learning Nineko's variant of Spinjitzu, the woman agreed to teach the boys in exchange for their completion of a task for her once they had mastered the art. For the next several days and nights, the brothers trained under Nineko in the ways of Catjitzu, learning a bit about Nineko's past in the process - she had once been a human orphan girl who had been taken in by the boy's father long before they were born, training under him until one day, not long after her eighteenth birthday, the First Spinjitzu Master accused her of stealing one of his katanas and banished her.

With their training now complete, the brothers set off to uphold their end of the agreement: to retrieve the mythical Cat-Eye Jewel from the bandits who had stolen it from Nineko long ago. As they set off on their journey back to the mountain, Wu spotted one of the 'bandits' watching them from the bushes and immediately tackled the man, demanding answers. Introducing himself as Dillon, the warrior revealed that the brothers had been deceived by Nineko, insisting that she was a dark sorceress who had repeatedly attempted to steal the Cat-Eye Jewel from the so called 'bandits,' but in actuality, they were the jewel's protectors - the Order of Felis. Refusing to believe Dillon, Garmadon stormed off to return to Nineko while Wu journeyed onwards with the warrior, both intending to discover the true story. Returning to Nineko, Garmadon would learn to his horror that Dillon's story had been true, leading to his enthrallment under one of Nineko's spells as she sent him out to retrieve the Cat-Eye Jewel. Meanwhile, Wu would find out that Dillon's story had been the truth all along.

Not long after Wu's discovery, he and the other warriors were alerted of Nineko and Garmadon's arrival. Under the influence of Nineko, Garmadon used his newfound mastery over Catjitzu to scale the mountain upon which rested the Cat-Eye Jewel, with Wu in fast pursuit. After both brothers tumbled down the mountain in a bid to claim the jewel, Nineko intervened, grabbing the jewel and declaring victory. Her triumph however, would be short lived, as her specific orders to Garmadon ultimately backfired on her, having ordered him only to "get the jewel" and not to "deliver it to her," resulting in him tackling her and losing the jewel once again to Wu. Frantic, Nineko lunged at Wu in a last ditch effort to claim the jewel, but slipped on the terrain's uneven footing and fell off a nearby cliff, plummeting into the ravine below. With Nineko gone, Garmadon was released from the effects of her spell and both brothers raced once more to the top of the mountain, this time to see who could return the jewel to its shrine first.

The Lair of Tanabrax[]

Main article: The Lair of Tanabrax

Days later, Wu and Garmadon continued to head to the northern ocean until they stopped by at a village. But the brothers soon learned from Hana and Obachan that for the past few weeks, the villagers have been mysteriously disappearing.

Undeterred by these rumors, the brothers agreed to spend the night in the village, later being awoken by the sounds of a man screaming. Rushing outside, the brothers discovered the source of the mysterious disappearances: an army of living Puppets that were kidnapping villagers for unknown means. After driving out the wooden would-be kidnappers, Garmadon and Wu would learn the full truth from their hosts and decided that they would lay out a trap to discover who was the mastermind behind the Puppet kidnappings.

The next evening, Wu laid down in the open to serve as bait while Garmadon hid in the shadows, following the puppets as they took his brother. Following them through a forest and then through a tunnel leading deep underground, both brothers would find themselves face to face with a bizarre man - if he could even be called a man - whose entire body seemed to be made of nothing but shadows, and a mass of writhing tendrils in the place of legs. To Garmadon's horror, Wu immediately sprung himself free of the ropes the puppets had tied him with, declaring that he would put an end to Tanabrax's terror. Unfortunately, Tanabrax immediately ripped Wu's soul from his body through the use of his medallion and Djinn magic. To make matters worse, one of the puppets had spotted Garmadon, forcing him to flee, but not without taking a captive.

Returning to Hana and Obachan's home with his prisoner, Garmadon and his allies would learn about Tanabrax, his history, powers, and goals. Realizing he could not rescue the villagers alone, Garmadon would begin to train the villagers on how to fight the puppets, non-lethally, until they were all ready. Once they were ready, they headed off to the woods to confront Tanabrax and the puppet army. Garmadon, Hana, and Moody went on ahead until they ran into Bunch and Puppet Wu. After trapping Puppet Wu in a chest, Garmadon soon found Wu's unconscious body, along with the villagers that were kidnapped by Tanabrax.

Garmadon demanded Tanabrax to change all the victims back to normal, but the puppet master refused. He fought Tanabrax for the medallion, but had difficulty of fighting him due to Tanabrax's status as a shadow. But by using a mirror, Garmadon distracted Tanabrax long enough to steal his medallion. Moments later, Obachan and Moody arrived and opened a hatched, exposing Tanabrax to the Sun and killing him. After Tanabrax was defeated, Garmadon was able to use the medallion to free all the souls of the victims and placed them back to their original body, but at the cost of Bunch and Moody being dissolved into dust, as they both lost their human bodies long ago.

After the villagers returned to their homes, Obachan instructed them to prepare a feast for a celebration, while Hana thanked Wu and Garmadon for rescuing her brother, Shin. To prevent the medallion from ever be used again, Obachan buried it underground. Wu and Garmadon then decided to have some of Mrs. Uchida's dumplings before continuing on their journey tomorrow.

The Maze of the Sphinx[]

Main article: The Maze of the Sphinx

Continuing their journey to the Northern Ocean, the Sons of the First Spinjitzu Master found themselves inside the Valley of the Sphinx, an arid region of Ninjago in the center of which stood an imposing black pyramid. Venturing into the village's marketplace, the brothers encountered many locals wearing funny hats in the shape of the black pyramid, learning from one of the villagers, Sage, that the residents of the valley worshipped a mythical Sphinx that was said to reside in the pyramid and according to legend, had the ability to grant wishes to those who traveled to meet it.

Curious by the villager's seemingly outlandish claims, Garmadon immediately rushed towards the pyramid, searching for an entrance, while Wu trailed behind, wary of his brother's reckless behavior. In spite of Wu's warnings, Garmadon pushed through the pyramid anyway, trapping both brothers inside as they came face to face with the very much real Sphinx. After revealing themselves as the Sons of the First Spinjitzu Master, the Sphinx agreed to spare them, but they would have to survive her maze and return to her chamber in order to prove themselves worthy of receiving a wish.

Dropping down into the pyramid's maze, the brothers found themselves facing the first challenge: a corridor filled with seemingly endless rows of identical, featureless doors. While Wu carefully examined their surroundings, believing some form of strategy was needed to handle this journey, Garmadon went ahead and began opening doors at random with reckless abandon, triggering every manner of traps until one of the doors activated the ceiling trap. Now panicking, Garmadon relented to follow his brother's idea, the two noticing that the floor tiles had been etched with letters in some form of code. Realizing that they were to follow every third letter, the brothers managed to barely escape the corridor just minutes before the ceiling came down. They had now entered the maze proper.

Journeying through the maze, the brothers walked through countless twists and turns before entering a sand filled chamber, where they were confronted by the Sand warriors. After defeating their foes, the brothers found themselves falling deeper into the maze where they met Shezada, another traveler who had been stuck in the maze for several weeks. Shezada then brought the brothers to her hideout, explaining that she spent a few hours each day exploring new parts of the maze before returning to record her discoveries on a wall etching she had carved to remind herself of the areas she had been to and what to be careful of in each challenge. The next morning, the trio set out again, using paper Wu had brought to transcribe Shezada's carvings into a handheld map and Shezada's experience to make their way through many of the maze's challenges, including the Pokey Passage, the Scorpion Highway, and the Mirror of Dread.

Eventually, the trio arrived at the second to last chamber, located in a part of the maze Shezada had never been to before. In this room, the trio were faced with two tunnels, each on opposite sides of the chamber, and seemingly nothing else. Unsure of which way to go, they at first walked up towards the rightmost tunnel, but backed away after hearing a series of loud moans emanating from both tunnels. Not long after, the trio found themselves confronted by an army of Ghouls, all streaming out of the two tunnels. Shezada and Garmadon fought their way through the rightmost tunnel before realizing that Wu had not been following them. Forced to turn back for him, Wu revealed that he had been thinking about the room's challenge. Since they had initially fallen down upon entering the Sphinx's chamber, surely the way out must be upwards and not through either of the side tunnels. At that moment, the platform beneath the trio began to rise, taking them just outside of the Sphinx's chamber.

Outside the Sphinx's chamber, the trio were faced with their final challenge: a dozen of the Sphinx's Beetle warriors that they had to overwhelm in order to reach the doors to the Sphinx's chamber. With her quest so close to an end, Shezada immediately charged at the warriors, easily slicing through one with her spear. To her surprise however, it turned out she was able to seemingly cut down the warrior so easily because it was not a singular being, but rather a mass of thousands of individual beetles stacked together into a humanoid shape. Working together, the trio fought their way through the horde of insects before pushing open the doors to the Sphinx's chamber, revealing the mythical beast's grinning face. "Happy to see us?" asked Garmadon sarcastically as the Sphinx shook her head. "No, I'm grinning because your happiness will soon be dashed." she replied. At that moment, a sudden coldness took hold of Shezada as her skin began to turn a sickly green and the whites of her eyes turned black as night.

Cackling, the Sphinx revealed that during Shezada and Garmadon's second journey through the tunnel of ghouls, one of them had managed to bite her and now the infection had taken hold, transforming her into one of them as well. Nevertheless, as a reward for having successfully survived the trials of her maze, the Sphinx now bestowed upon the group a singular wish. While Wu attempted to bargain with the Sphinx, Garmadon quietly looked at Shezada's near lifeless face as he knew in his heart what had to be done. "Heal her! Back to the way before she got bitten by the ghoul!" demanded Garmadon as his wish, to which the Sphinx obliged, restoring Shezada before opening the exit from the pyramid for the weary travelers.

Once they had safely left the Sphinx's Pyramid, Shezada gave Garmadon a kiss on the cheek in thanks as he sheepishly offered her to continue traveling alongside him and his brother. Shezada however, declined, stating that she had to journey onwards to find more treasure to help her people rebuild their village, disappearing into the crowd as the valley's locals swarmed the trio with many questions about their survival in the pyramid. Watching as Shezada departed, the brothers decided to check out some of the other food vendors in the valley before resuming their journey to the Northern Ocean, though Garmadon now privately wondered to himself if it would be his fate to turn evil as both his brother and father feared.

The Chroma's Clutches[]

Main article: The Chroma's Clutches

After many days of traveling, the brothers found themselves climbing to the top of a mist covered mountain. As they trudged through the lush vegetation that covered the steep slopes, Garmadon was excited to finally have a change a pace compared the previous places the brothers had traveled through, though Wu remained cautious. Suddenly, a strange creature resembling a monkey but possessing the ears of a dog emerged from the fog, crying out "Follow me!" In stunned silence, the brothers curiously followed the creature to the top of the mountain, upon which rested a large estate with a young woman painting a portrait in front of the estate's villa. Spotting the brothers, the woman turned and welcomed them, introducing herself as Peri and offering the two weary travelers a place to stay for the night and nourishment to help them regain their strength.

Unable to turn down such an offer for free meals and lodging, the brothers graciously introduced themselves and followed their host into her home, briefly admiring her hallway which was filled with beautiful paintings, some completed and some in various states of completion. Peri explained that the finished works had been made by her father, in whose footsteps she was trying to follow. Although Wu attempted to ask for more details about Peri's father and her family, she seemed strangely reserved about that particular subject and would say nothing further. Garmadon noted this peculiar behavior but dismissed it as a case of Peri just having limited social skills due to her apparent isolation living at the top of a mountain. Later that night however, Garmadon was awoken by a series of strange howling, and after realizing it was not a dream, he began to follow sound through the villa until arriving at its source behind a closed door. As he approached the door, Peri suddenly stepped out and stood between Garmadon and the door. She seemed shaken and could not meet her guest in the eyes, but nevertheless insisted that the strange howling Garmadon had been hearing was just the wind, as its quite windy at the top of the mountain.

The next day, after a lovely breakfast, the brothers briefly learned more about Peri's family, specifically that her mother had passed away three years prior and her father and younger sister were "gone" but would be "back soon." Believing that Peri had been touchy about the subject because it was naturally a difficult matter for her and that she was undoubtedly lonely, the brothers agreed to stay for a while longer, assisting Peri with her daily chores before posing for a portrait for her. Unfortunately, both brothers would fall asleep during the painting process and when they awoke, the found themselves in a strange forest, much different than the flora of the mountain, and Peri was nowhere in sight. Suddenly, Peri appeared in view over the horizon, seemingly now a giant, stating apologetically that she had to be sure the brothers would help her before disappearing once again. Realizing that Peri had somehow transported them into one of the paintings adorning the villa, the brothers briefly attempted to escape before being approached by a white deer with crystal antlers, introducing herself as Jelena.

From Jelena, the brothers learned the full truth of Peri and her story. Peri was the daughter of Mindaro, a famous magician and painter who discovered that he could channel his magic into his portraits to bring them to life. Mindaro had been inspired by the natural beauty of Ninjago and aimed to preserve it through his works, which were defined by vibrant colors, beautiful landscapes, and on occasion, even mythical creatures. Life was good for Mindaro and his family until one day, three years ago, Mindaro's wife - Violet - suddenly took ill and passed away. Reeling from his grief, Mindaro became despondent and his daughters attempted to encourage him to begin painting again, hoping it would allow him to mend his broken spirit. While Mindaro did pick up the brush once more, he no longer painted with the same energy or vitality that he had once been so renowned for, instead painting now only in shades of black, white, and gray to emphasize his sadness. To make matters worse, Mindaro's magic, having intermixed with his grief and paint, brought to life a monster that would become known as The Chroma. The Chroma then attacked its creator, dragging him and Indi, his youngest daughter, into its portrait as it aspired to cross over into the real world. And ever since then, for three years, Peri has been trying to free her family and destroy the Chroma. Having learned this truth, the brothers now agreed to take on the challenge of defeating the Chroma, traveling across Mindaro's various portraits, guided by Jelena, in the process.

Upon entering the Chroma painting, the brothers found themselves in a desolate and bleak world of gray, where not long after, they encountered the Chroma itself. Unable to defeat the massive cloud like being, the brothers were forced to retreat, making their way to a cave where they encountered Indi and Mindaro and learned more about their current plight. Realizing that happiness and joy were the Chroma's weaknesses, and that this could be applied through the use of color, the brothers, Mindaro, and Indi began to form their plan of attack. Venturing from the safety of their cave, Wu and Garmadon held back the Chroma's army of Grays while Indi and Mindaro lowered the portrait's protection spell to speak with Peri, encouraging her to add splashes of color to the monochromatic portrait. As the Chroma began to approach, having sensed the lowering of the barrier, Mindaro began to use his magic to manipulate the added colors, only to discover he could not. Before he could give into despair, however, Peri reminded him that the girls' late mother, and Mindaro's late wife, had always believed in him, just as she believes in her father now. With his hope restored, Mindaro rose to his feet and began to manipulate the colors as Wu and Garmadon used their Spinjitzu to hurl those colors at the looming Chroma who suddenly paused as the colors made contact with its gray mass.

Writing and howling, the Chroma reacted to the bright colors that had now been splattered against it, soon exploding into a myriad of bright light that transformed the once desolate and bleak wasteland into a lush and sunny paradise. Where the Chroma once stood now stretched an enormous rainbow, reaching from one end of the landscape to the next. Victorious, Mindaro opened a portal to the real world, finally allowing himself and all others trapped inside the paintings to step foot into the real world for the first time in years, where he and Indi would be reunited with Peri. As the brothers stepped out, Mindaro expressed his thanks to the brothers as Peri profusely apologized to the two, but they were willing to immediately forgive her. After some time later, the brothers said their goodbyes to Mindaro and his family before once again continuing their journey to the Northern Ocean.

Trivia

Trivia[]

  • Wu's appearance on the covers resembles his appearance in Hunted, while Garmadon's appearance resembles his young movie design that was seen in concept art.
  • The concept is based on market research that showed young fans wanted to learn more about Wu and Garmadon in their younger years.[2]
  • According to Tommy Kalmar in Episode 43 of TTV's NinjagoCast, these books take place during a particular part of The Book of Spinjitzu.[3]
  • Unlike the other ninja, Zane and Lloyd have different designs instead of the ones they have in the show.
    • While Zane is featured to having his human cloak on, he is depicted to have black eyes instead of blue ones. He also has his pre-movie hair piece in the prologues, while he has his post-movie hair in the epilogues.
  • The fifth and last book of the series, Tea Time Terror, was planned, but ended up being replaced by a LEGO DREAMZzz book.
Gallery

Gallery[]

References

References[]

  1. ↑ https://x.com/TommyAndreasen/status/1310970613335457793
  2. ↑ https://www.ameet.eu/lego-books/lego-books-2021-publishing-programme/
  3. ↑ https://youtu.be/3mnXinRQ4Co?t=5746