Shintaro

:Not to be confused with the actual place.
Shintaro is the first episode of the thirteenth season of Ninjago and the 145th episode overall. It aired first in English on July 6, 2020, in Australia. It aired in the US on September 13, 2020, paired up with "Into the Dark".http://www.thefutoncritic.com/showatch/ninjago-masters-of-spinjitzu/listings/
==Synopsis==
The ninja are invited to attend the birthday party of Princess Vania in the Kingdom of Shintaro. They bring along Master Wu who is feeling his age...http://www.thefutoncritic.com/listings/20200831cartoon31/
Extended: The ninja are invited to the birthday of Princess Vania of the fabled Kingdom of Shintaro and set sail for Shintaro but are attacked by a pack of Dire Bats, vicious aerial predators who roam the mountains around Shintaro. They are rescued by a regiment of the Winged Guards of Shintaro, led by the brave Hailmar.https://web.archive.org/web/20210214055618/https://www.foxtel.com.au/tv-guide/Ninjago/119370778
==Plot==
At the monastery, Lloyd brings in some laundry into the living room, where he discovers Cole playing video games and eating junk food on the couch while Wu's chicken observes. Lloyd is at first annoyed that Cole is slacking off when they are all doing chores and preparations, especially when he's playing the game they barely got out alive of, Prime Empire. Though Lloyd is initially annoyed, Cole assures him and that Dyer and Unagami worked out the kinks, and the game is good to play now. Lloyd then shrugs it off and joins in, deciding that one match won't hurt.
Outside, Nya and Jay are raking leaves on the training yard while Zane and P.I.X.A.L. are setting up turrets on the base of the gates. Bored, Jay suggests they do Spinjitzu to make things go quicker. Nya believes that Master Wu wouldn't appreciate them abusing the power of Spinjitzu just to make things go by, but she is ultimately ignored as Jay had already done so and put all the leaves into a pile. Just as they are about to go inside, Wu, who caught in Jay using Spinjitzu, walks out of the leaves. Instead of being angry, he walks by and ignores their questions on why he's being so calm.
Lloyd finds Wu in the library, asking why he's been so down and absent-minded lately. Misako then wanders in, asking him the same question. Wu shares his thoughts; he's proud of how much his students have grown, yet this makes him feel like he isn't needed anymore, especially since his help was not needed much on their recent adventures and that he is old. Lloyd disapproves of this, reminding Wu that he once defeated the ninja all at once. While Wu is touched by this, he still feels like he and the others have turned from students to masters.
Outside, the Postman arrived with a letter, which Lloyd assumes that someone found the Teapot of Tyrahn, Pythor, or his father, but the Postman tells him it is an invitation from the Kingdom of Shintaro to attend Princess Vania's birthday. All the ninja get really excited about this and immediately prepare for the trip. Lloyd later tells Wu and Misako about the situation, trying to persuade Wu to come along with them. Wu refuses and states that adventuring is for the young. Accidentally insulting Misako in the process, leading to her forcing him to go.
The ninja and Wu ride the Destiny's Bounty to the Kingdom of Shintaro. Along the way, they admire the beauty of the scenery until they hear a loud sound. Zane then reveals to the ninja that there's a species of bats called the Dire Bats which live in the mountains, which historians have been arguing whether this species actually exists. Jay thinks the entire story is made up but is suddenly grabbed by one. Jay screams in horror as another Dire Bats swipes Nya and attempts to kidnap her, but Lloyd knocks the bat away from Nya. Meanwhile, Kai spots multiple Dire Bats tearing the sails of the Bounty, so he shoots fireballs, attempting to shoo them off. While all of this is going on, Cole jumps onto a Dire Bat and saves Jay who is dropped by the bat that kidnapped him. Jay and Cole are then able to get back to the Bounty when Kai tosses them a rope as they fell. Soon, a Dire Bat attempts to take Wu, but Zane saves him, and the bat instead, hits the pole carrying the sail, which causes the Bounty to tilt to its right and descend rapidly. The ninja brace for impact and are just about to crash when the ship suddenly shudders and seemingly tilts itself back, floating once again.
The ninja soon discover the Army of Shintaro carrying the underside of the Bounty. At the same time, Hailmar greets the ninja, and explain the Dire Bats to the ninja. He then introduces them to the Kingdom of Shintaro on the horizon.
==Appearances==
===Characters===
====Cast====
*Cole - Kirby Morrow
*Hailmar - Brian Drummond
*Jay - Michael Adamthwaite
*Kai - Vincent Tong
*Lloyd Garmadon - Sam Vincent
*Misako - Kathleen Barr
*Nya - Kelly Metzger
*P.I.X.A.L. - Jennifer Hayward
*Postman - Michael Adamthwaite
*Wu - Paul Dobson
*Zane - Brent Miller
====Mentioned====
*Aspheera
*Milton Dyer
*Unagami
*Upply
*Vangelis
*Vania
====Miscellaneous====
* Acidicus (painting)
* Acronix (painting)
* Arcturus (painting)
* Ash (painting)
* Bolobo (painting)
* Chamille (painting)
* Chen (painting)
* Clouse (painting)
* Cyrus Borg (painting)
* Fangtom (painting)
* Garmadon (painting)
* Ghoultar (painting)
* Gravis (painting)
* Harumi (painting)
* Iron Baron (painting)
* Kozu (painting)
* Kruncha (painting)
* Krux (painting)
* Maya (painting)
* Misako (painting)
* Morro (painting)
* Mr. Pale (painting)
* Nadakhan (painting)
* Neuro (painting)
* Nuckal (painting)
* P.I.X.A.L. (painting)
* Pythor (painting)
* Ray (painting)
* Ronin (painting)
* Samukai (painting)
* Shade (painting)
* Skalidor (painting)
* Skales (painting)
* Soul Archer (painting)
* The Overlord (painting)
* Tox (painting)
=== Creatures ===
*Wu's chicken
*Colossus (painting)
*Fire Dragon (painting)
*Firstbourne (painting)
*Golden Dragon (painting)
*Great Devourer (painting)
*Stormbringer (painting)
*The Preeminent (painting)
*Ultra Dragon (painting)
**Flame
===Events===
* Attack of the Great Devourer (painting)
* The Final Battle (painting)
* Nindroid crisis (painting)
* Second Serpentine War (painting)
* Ghost invasion (painting)
* Alternate timeline (painting)
* Battle for All of Time (painting)
* Fall of Ninjago (painting)
* Liberation of Ninjago (painting)
===Items===
*Bo staff
*Boobytraps and How to Survive Them
*Key-Tanas (pixelated; silhouette)
*Prime Empire
*Samurai X suit
*Shintaro wings
*Soda guzzler
* Anacondrai Blades (painting)
* Djinn Blade (painting)
* Dragon Armor (painting)
* Dragonbone Blade (painting)
* Garmadon's helmet (painting)
* Golden Weapons/Golden Armor (painting)
* Oni Mask of Hatred (painting)
* Realm Crystal (painting)
* Serpentine Staffs (painting)
* Soul Archer's bow (painting)
* Staff of the First Spinjitzu Master (painting)
* Teapot of Tyrahn (painting)
* Techno Blades (painting)
* Time Blades (painting)
** Forward Time Blade
** Slow-Mo Time Blade
* Underworld helmet (painting)
===Vehicles===
*Destiny's Bounty
* Blade Cycle (painting)
* Destiny's Bounty (painting)
* Earth Driller (painting)
* Golden Mech (painting)
* Iron Doom (painting)
* Misfortune's Keep (painting)
* Overlord Mech (painting)
* Samurai Mech (painting)
* Snowmobile (painting)
* Storm Glider (painting)
* Tread Assault (painting)
===Locations===
*Ninjago (realm)
**Dark Island (painting)
***Temple of Light
**Djinjago (painting)
**Endless Sea
***Stiix (painting)
**Ninjago
***Mountains of Impossible Height
****Monastery of Spinjitzu
*****Relaxation room
*****Library
***Ninjago City (painting)
****Borg Tower
***Sea of Sand (painting)
****Echo Canyons
*****Corridor of Elders
***Shintaro Mountain
****Kingdom of Shintaro
*****Palace
*Prime Empire (pixelated)
**Terra Technica
***Marketplace
****Key-Tana Stall
===Species===
*Chickens
*Dire Bats
*Djinns (painting)
*Dragons (painting)
*Ghosts (painting)
*Humans
*Nindroids
*NPCs (pixelated)
*Oni/Dragon hybrids
*Oni/Dragon/Human hybrids
*Serpentine (painting)
**Anacondrai
**Constrictai
**Fangpyre
**Hypnobrai
**Venomari
**Vermillion
*Sky Folk
==Transcript==
For the transcript of the episode, click here.
==Trivia==
*Narrator: Cole
*Although the Ninjago history mural is shown, Pythor, Cryptor, Min-Droid, and Cyrus Borg from the Rebooted mural are never visible.
**Pythor is still visible in The Rise of the Snakes mural.
**Borg is still visible in The Hands of Time mural without his artificial limbs.
===Continuity===
*This episode marks the first appearance of the Postman and Misako since "Endings."
*Lloyd reveals he is aware of the existence of the Teapot of Tyrahn, either suggesting that Jay and Nya informed the other ninja about Nadakhan and the events of Skybound or that Lloyd learned of the teapot in some other way.
*Cole plays Prime Empire in this episode.
**He also mentions Unagami and Milton Dyer while assuring Lloyd that Prime Empire is safe to play.
*Garmadon, Pythor, and Aspheera are mentioned.
**As well as that, the events of Secrets of the Forbidden Spinjitzu and Prime Empire are mentioned numerous times, such as the ninja's battle with the Pyro Vipers, and their journeys to the Never-Realm and Prime Empire.
***When Lloyd says that Wu fought all of the ninja at once and kicked their butts, he refers to the events of "Wasted True Potential."
*Referring to "legendary fabled kingdoms," specifically the Kingdom of Shintaro, Wu says, "Once you've seen one, you've seen them all." This is the same as what Nya said about palaces, specifically the Royal Palace, in "The Mask of Deception."
*Kai shooting fire and saying "Shoo, bats!" as the Dire Bats attack the Bounty is reminiscent of him tossing the Starteeth away in "The Last Voyage" and saying "Good riddance, water vampires!"
*Since this season, the title card of the first episode of the season always appears above or below the Monastery of Spinjitzu.
===Errors===
*Although at the beginning of the episode, Jay sums up all the leaves in the courtyard into one ridge, when the Postman arrives and the ninja look at the invitation, there are no more leaves in the courtyard.
**However, it is possible that Jay and Nya somehow got rid of them in the meantime.
*When the Postman tells Lloyd about not delivering invitations from Shintaro everyday, Lloyd's torso appears to be gray as if he was wearing his Hero suit, with his Season 11 shoulder pad.
*When Kai is jumping up to climb the sails of the Destiny's Bounty, he doesn't have his gloves on.
*When a Dire Bat grabs Jay off the Bounty, Cole's eyes are briefly red.
*When Zane rescues Wu from the Dire Bat's attack, Wu's staff falls to the deck but is no longer visible throughout the episode.
**However, since they landed close to the edge of the Bounty, it's possible that the staff was knocked overboard.
==Video==
Ninjago - Shintaro - Cartoon Network
==Gallery==
For the gallery of the episode, click here.
== Translations ==
==References==
de:Shintaro (Episode)
ru:Шинтаро
Category:Episodes of Master of the Mountain
Category:2020
Category:Episodes
es:Shintaro (Episodio)