u/MDShark101

I think Kai vs. Morro is the most interesting rivalry in the series, even over Morro and Lloyd itself in Possession.

Plus this is the season where Kai finally sets through with what he said about protecting Lloyd in season 1. You'd wish at some point Kai just mentions someone going crazy over the Green ninja is so annoying in itself and everyone blankly staring at him like he wasn't incredibly annoying about it for 2/3 of season 1.

But back to Morro vs Kai. Obviously there's the fact that they're foils and Morro is what Kai would likely become if he never stopped to realize he just wasn't the Green Ninja, if not worse.

The entire season could've driven deeper about how obsession drives you to do things you'd never imagine or even more scenes where Morro is incredibly manipulative.

And knowing Kai has good intuition, but bad at bargaining, Morro could single him out and even manipulate him to sabotage the team. "Want to protect your friend? Sure. Just make sure to stop your friends from following us." Or even Kai could just feel so guilty about losing Lloyd his judgement of wanting to do the right thing could make him do the opposite entirely. Hell if you wanted, he could still feel some guilt about Zane.

This could've pushed Kai to his limits and instead of his old obsession with wanting to be the green ninja, he could become so obsessed with protecting Lloyd, that he'd actually accepts Morro's conditions. Like could you imagine if to some degree Cole becoming a ghost was Kai's fault or Kai "missed" his aeroblade and made one of the ninja unable to reach the moving ship piece during the chase down the mountain? Better yet if he made himself a ghost on accident to fully cement the foil between Kai and Morro, but showing the difference is Kai became a ghost through sheer selflessness and even if he did sabotage the team, he would never put them in that level of danger. In contrast to Morro actively putting himself and even Wu in danger before becoming a ghost.

This also gives Kai a call back about his dislike of water earlier this season and now he has all the reason more to be afraid of it. This is also a good callback about Kai also becoming a green ninja(ghostly hugh) like a pattern of when he wore the suit during his secret training.

the rest of the team recognizes he's just reverting back to his old self trying to ride solo forgetting Lloyd has other protectors and friends too and what Kai has done up to this point has been incredibly reckless.

Plus there's just the fact that Kai doing what he does could be what sets Morro on his own internal struggle to understand why someone would go out of their way to sacrifice everything to save their friend, leading to his own eventual descent into betraying the primordial and still being dragged and giving his speech about how you can only save those who want to be saved, it could even have the same power if he said it to Kai, but Wu is good too.

Idk feel like that has incredible au potential and probably just way too dark for what Ninjago would later become, but the first 5 seasons kinda had great horror elements. I think season 5 going all in would be interesting.

I think there was just more to dig at with Kai and Morro that shows 2 sides of the same coin, but Kai having to understand he isn't the main character of every scenario and knowing when to stop. This could also mirror Zane's sacrifice, but presented as far less noble and almost gross in a way since Zane did his sacrifice out of love, while Kai has always struggled with main character syndrome.

Damn, that's a lot to read. Sorry about that.

I think a lot of people, active and passive in the Naruto fandom want Kakasi to basically be this blank canvas to copy every last jutsu he comes across and wonders why he doesn't use the same jutsu many arcs later and why he only uses a handful of jutsu.

1. Kakashi is probably the most efficient fighter in the series. When he decides to copy an ability, it's to create an immediate counter, but he never spams the ability after in the same fight, because why use a jutsu someone else likely to 2 mastered against them? It would literally be countered. It's also likely an intimidation tactic. Kakashi could easily strike an opponent down if they're too shocked by simply seeing him copy a jutsu compared to the other high tiers just kinda impressed, but never frozen in fear or anything. There's no reason to say he's not already using copied jutsu, but just doesn't mention he copied it, because the original user was just another victim Some of the earliest jutsu Kakashi do seem more like party tricks than actual relevant to fight jutsu like his generic Genjutsu against Sakura or head hunter and thousand years of death. In that amount of time, he could easily kill his opponent depending on their mental state and impressive to low levels like Sakura and Naruto, but not Zabuza or Kisame.

2. He doesn't memorize them all because they're low level. I think for the most part the Sharingan is watching the signs and Kakashi is just reacting to it, which could've started unconsciously and then became something he actually mastered, but it's not like he cares to memorize every variant of shurkien jutsu or fire style that he's come across because they just aren't his fighting style. Which is why he's COPIED over 1,000 jutsu, doesn't mean he's taken the time to master most of them. Which Jiriya confirms to us, sheer jutsu number doesn't matter, which is basically point 1 of Kakashi being efficient, as most of these aren't that.

3. He doesn't have the chakra. Kakashi in most fights he copies an ability, does it one time at the beginning to show that he CAN do it, and likely just a deterrent to show he's the strongest Leaf ninja. Most Kakashi fights are extremely fast pace and the ones that get drawn out, are almost never in Kakasi's favor and if he does win, he barely scrapes by. This is why he's so quick to kunai to the throat, go for Raikiri, or even attempt Kamui when he obtains it because long fights aren't in his favor. He's not a momentum fighter like Naruto. Most of these jutsu are already niche and just aren't worth the chakra drain. In a hypothetical where 10 ninja are using their signature jutsu against him, he's probably just gonna mud wall over using a sequence of jutsu he's copied from the past to create a perfect counter because it's just less draining.

There's likely other reasons. These are just contextual but there's also the possibility of meta context, where in a fight Kishimoto wants Kakashi to lose or draw, he doesn't have Kakashi see or use certain jutsu so readers don't just ask why he didn't use x jutsu in a scenario to where he wins.

Regarding Elemental masters, I think having 1 active master at a time is fine, but the way Ninjago goes about it is unexplained and kinda a mess imo like if the stars aligned for certain masters to die or something, I'd get it, but at the same time it's like if you spent your whole life drawing and then for whatever reason you had a kid and just lost your ability draw only for them to obtain it. Is that not kinda dumb?

Nya and Maya are probably the best example. Regarding Nya, it's said it can skip generations, but it's also hinted Nya would've eventually gotten a dragon since Episode 1.

So was Nya really a late bloomer or did Wu intentionally not train her this whole time? Not only that does that mean Maya still had her powers while trapped by Krux(or Akronix)? Because Maya never died, so did she lose her powers when Nya was born or did Nya unlocking them actively strip Maya?

There's also the whole can of worms with Lloyd. Lloyd being born or unlocking his powers meant Jay, Cole, Kai and Zane could hold the elemental weapons, but couldn't actively use their elements without a source(Golden weapons and Elemental Blades). So who did Ray forfeit his powers to? Kai or Lloyd? Because Kai is technically a skipped generation by the fact Lloyd weilded Fire, but Wu could've technically just picked up anyone and would that person just become the master of fire instead of Kai?

Not only that, but how exactly do Elements choose a new host? Morro died for years and Wind never found a new host until he died again, but like earlier Maya and Ray never died and they still lost their powers. Do they actively sense when to align to execute certain things like certain Elemental masters needing to die in the birth of a new one or the 4 core elements actively skipping their supposed heirs to seek out Lloyd?

There's also the transfer. Lloyd and co. Had to do a whole ritual but at the same time Zane changed a day after meeting the master of Ice, so did he become compatible with his powers twice? Why did Lloyd specifically have to go to the Tower of light to do it?

Can Cole just decide one day he wants to give his powers to someone already alive and not in his blood line or are his powers glued to him until he dies?

Starting off, Zane is my absolute favorite character ever since my rewatch in 2020 and incredibly slept on.

The Pilots he's kinda the weakest link, but it's basically a Kai story, so whatever. Season 1 gives him so much to do and he is responsible for the Ninja acquiring the Bounty, which in my opinion is far more important and iconic than the Monestary, but not only that the episode teaches about found family and not to mistreat people because they're "weird"

His next focus episode regarding his true potential is where everything from this point changes, but Zane only becomes more interesting. He learns he has a past life and he's not "human" but regardless he's able to maintain his identity of being a protector. I'd say his true potential scene is as important as Kai's since both of their's impact them as characters forever and far more relevant than Jay and Cole at the time.

Zane kinda coast again in season 2, until they find Dr. Julian on the island, where Zane resolves the issue of the Kraken/Leviathan(I forgot) but showing he's observant and sees solutions where other's don't.

but season 3 Zane only goes further to show that being "human" isn't about flesh and blood and family is more than blood relation. Zane and Pixal probably have one of the best love stories in the series only rivaled by Jay and Nya.

I think Zane's death is an ultimate telling of love from someone who otherwise shouldn't feel it and despite the incredible garuntee of death, Zane sacrifices himself for his found family.

From this point on I think Zane being a focal point to the ninja team survival is good for all the characters involved, granted had any character died, they'd all be depressed, but I think it's kinda paid off by the fact the ninja all go to Chen's island even though there's no garuntee Zane is even really there.

But season 5 onward is where Zane being a Nindroid is overplayed in my opinion. Plus I failed to mention ever since his reveal as a Nindroid, Zane kinda becomes a punching bag or at least receives harsher beatings than the other ninja would in the same situation or has to have a seasonal gimmick that happens because he's a robot.

I also just never liked the design with the cheek bones or whatever on his face. Always much preferred Zane with a human face or even half revealed face in season 1s finale.

This is supposed to be Nemisis right hand man and he gets a whopping 1 fight on screen where he loses and creates the biggest plot convenience in the season.

Yes, he turns Jupiter evil for a couple weeks, where it immediately fails when we see both characters again and he's just used for Kenta to aura farm, but he hasn't done anything for us to care otherwise and he gets to be apart of Nemisis final form when all he contributed was a fragment of his bum beyblade to somehow interrupt the seal all cause the battle arena wasn't perfectly smooth.

Joannis could've taken his spot and we all probably would've felt just a pinch more about the contribution of the seal failing