Q: What exactly is Legends of Ninjago???
A: Legends of Ninjago is an ongoing FanFiction novel series, written by Rhapsody of Pinkiemachine Studios. It follows the same basic plot as the TV show, but with its own unique twists and turns, allowing for a more mature audience to enjoy it.
Q: Does this mean that there will be more mature themes?
A: Well, in some ways, yes, but probably not in the way that you're thinking. There will be story arcs revolving around subjects like: depression, post traumatic stress, grief, and other more 'mature themes,' but the stories are meant to be for anyone age 12--24, or even older, I won't judge.
Q: Who are Ann Jing and Keaton Haruto?
A: Ah, yes. The question everyone's been asking. Ann and Keaton were characters that I remember reading
about in another FanFiction years ago, back before season 5 had come out. (I remember that because this was before we knew who the real Water Ninja was) Anyway, I fell in love with the characters and decided to use them in my own story. (However, these girls are a far cry from their original descriptions. I may have tweaked them a bit ;) They are sisters, students of Sensei Wu's, and they are both very skilled ninja.
Q: What are their backstories? And why do they have air and water powers?! What about Maya?!
A: Ah, ah, ah, no spoilers. If you want to know that, I suggest you read the books ;)
Q: What's the point of writing this fanfic if you're just going to tell the same story?
A: Don't get me wrong, I LOVE the original series--it's been with me for years--but as the show goes on, and as I grow up, I've just realized a few things. 1: Putting on an episode of the show is great for relaxing and maybe a laugh, but the world building is SO SHALLOW! And I've been having a harder time getting into it because of that. (But that's just me) 2: There's so much wasted potential! The writers have done an amazing job setting up a world and story that are creative and engaging and interesting, but there's no follow through. (Or decent continuity, for that matter) There are a ton of things that they could have done with the show, but didn't. 3: Continuity problems. At first, the boys (Kai, Cole, Jay, and Zane) don't have powers, they just use the Golden Weapons, and then Lloyd gives them his powers, BUT then in season 4, we learn that lots of other people have elemental powers, and that somehow, the boys were born with these powers? And they were passed down from their parents? (This is just one small example) And 4: The characters are also lacking depth in their personalities and relationships.
In short: It's a kids show. Big surprise. But the thing is, it could be so much more than that if it was given the chance to shine, which is what I want to do. 1: I want to expand the universe and stories with more complicated themes, high stakes battles, and layers of mysterious plot twists to make it more engaging for older fans like myself. 2: I'm going to capitalize on all the wasted potential and craft new stories and twists to make my plot unique and new. 3: I'm going to fix all the continuity problems as best as I can, and if I goof up, please tell me! 4: I'm going to deep dive into each character's personality, flaws, struggles, and relationships to make them feel more real, relatable, and to add more emotional stakes to the story. I realize that I might be taking this too seriously, but that's kind of the point here. To write a story that fans can take more seriously.
Q: Does this mean that you're gonna re-write EVERY SEASON?
A: Just up until Crystallised. As well as The Day of the Departed special, and a handful of other shorter stories.
Q: Where can I read Legends of Ninjago?
A: You can read it here on my website, or on FanFiction.net (my username there is still just Pinkiemachine) or, I'm on Wattpad, OR you can check out my YouTube audio book covers, but they're not all done yet, so I would suggest reading them if you're that interested. I post every Saturday.
Q: How many books are out right now?
A: At the time of me writing this, (June 2023) the first two books are out, Brotherhood and Rise of the Serpentine. The Third book is currently "airing" so to speak. One new chapter every Saturday on fanfcition.net, here on my website, or on Wattpad. (most of the time...)
Q: But what about NYA?! She's the REAL Water Ninja! How come Ann has her powers?
A: Rest assured, I do not plan on forgetting about the show's most iconic leading lady. There is a very good reason as to why I decided to make this change, but to divulge any more information would mean giving away spoilers for future books. For now, I plan on making Nya shine in other ways.
Q: Why did you change the shurikens of ice to daggers?
A: Great question. You see, on my path to make the story a wee bit more realistic, I studied up on real life ninja as best as I could, including the weapons they used. Now, shurikens were definitely part of their arsenal, 100%, but the Shurikens of Ice make very little sense because shurikens are essentially one-use weapons. Meaning, you throw them, they hit their target, and maybe you get them back? They do not float in the air. Or come back to you like a boomerang.
Knives and daggers were also in the ninja's repertoire and they were generally more... reusable. Besides, you can't fight with shurikens the way Kai fights with a sword. They are used purely for long range attacks and quiet killings (assassinations). While we're on this topic, I also thought about changing Cole's scythe to a war hammer because hammers make more sense, but it turns out war hammers are a European weapon, meanwhile there were some accounts of people using war scythes in old Japan. Though there were very few. So that would have been an unnecessary change, and besides, I took a poll, and no one wanted the hammer.
Q: How can we, as readers, react to you and give you feedback?
A:Great question! I love getting comments from you guys the most. I beleive you can submit comments on FanFiction.net without having an account, but you do need an account to leave a comment here on my website. Don't worry, though, you don't have to pay, it only asks for your email. I just love hearing what parts of the story were your favourite, or which parts you think might need work. It helps me understand what I'm doing right and what I need to work on.
Q: Why have you made Sensei Wu the head of the Military?
A: Okay, listen carefully because I'm only going to say this once: Sensei Wu is NOT the head of the Military! The Emperor and his Generals are the head of the Military. In this AU, Sensei Wu's past has intertwined with the army and war because, Wu being who he is, it would only make sense that he would help his country in this way. However, at the time the story takes place, Wu is RETIRED from active Military duty. He is now the ADVISOR to the Emperor. I hope this cleared some things up.
Q: Are you gonna include more Jaya moments? Also, who will be Samurai X? Nya or PIXAL?
A: Of course there'll be more Jaya moments! What kind of Ninjago fan would I be if I didn't include the OG ship? And also, Spoilers. You'll find out in time.
Q: Are you gonna include all the background characters like Dareth and Vania and the Elemental Masters?
A: Well of course. There literally wouldn't be a story without half of those characters.
Q: What do think about "Ninjago Dragons Rising?"
A: I have not seen it. I have no plans to see it. I have lost interest in the new show. I have my own story to write, and it ends after
Crystallised, so... yeah.
Q: Are you going to write more than just three books? Also, do you have any tips for computer colouring?
A: Yes. As stated before, I am going to write every book up until Crystallised... I know I've been bad about updated recently... I've hit a rough patch. A bit of writer's block. But my plan remains the same. Also I suck at "computer colouring" so I don't have an answer.