One Step Forward, Two Steps Back

Title card.

**One Step Forward, Two Steps Back** is the thirteenth episode of the Prime Empire Chapter and the thirty-third episode of the first season of *LEGO Ninjago & My Little Pony: Living the Pony Life*. It is based on the LEGO Ninjago episode of the same name.

## Synopsis

Now that the Ninja and the Mane Six have the first Key-Tana, they have to make their way to Terra Technica, to enter the Speedway Five-Billion for the next Key-Tana. But, they unfortunately don't have enough credits to enter the race. They soon learn that the finals of the DJ-Pon Dance Showdown Competition are coming really soon, which is their only way to win the credits they will need in order to take part in the race!

## Plot

### Meeting Milton Dyer's Mother

At Ninjago City, Zane, P.I.X.A.L. and Master Wu walked through the streets of the city, following the directions to Milton Dyer's childhood home. Zane says that there might be a chance that his parents might still be living there and P.I.X.A.L also adds that hopefully they could help them. Zane says that from what Unagami is doing, he is a criminal, so they have no choice. Wu tells him that they must handle this in the right way, which Zane agrees.

Knocking on the door to the apartment, Mrs. Dyer opens it and asks if they need help. Wu says if they could meet Milton Dyer. Mrs. Dyer becomes surprised and asks if they really do know his son, with Zane responds with a no, in some way. He explains the situation of *Prime Empire* and that it is important that they find him. Mrs. Dyer recognizes her son's talent of game, making P.I.X.A.L. realize that neither she knows where Milton Dyer is. She confirms this and welcomes them inside, thinking that maybe they could find something that would help them find out where he is.

Inside Milton's old bedroom, Mrs. Dyer tells them that she never thought her son could make a career of video games, and how since making the last game, *Prime Empire*, they haven't seen him since. P.I.X.A.L. shows Zane a photo of Milton and his friend graduating, they ask if that was Milton and who was that with him. She says yes, but doesn't remember who that friend was. Before they leave, Mrs. Dyer asks for when they find Milton Dyer, tell him that they miss him.

### Back in Terra Technica

Back inside *Prime Empire*, Jay welcomes the team to Terra Technica. He explains that the Yellow Key-Tana is here and the only way to achieve it is to enter and win the Speedway Five-Billion. Wanting to know what that was, they watched on a giant screen of the race going on, also witnessing the danger it held. The team then goes to register the race by talking to the Admin Droid, a helping robot that gives people advice in racing and also registers players to the race. Asking to enter the Speedway Five-Billion, the Admin Droid tells them the entry fee is 200 credits each and since the team of five is entering, it would cost 1,000 credits. The Ninja pull out their credits, which everyone held an average amount, except for Kai. Wanting to know what he had spent most of his credits on, Kai shows them that he had spent it on a new Avatar. Changing into his Avatar, Kai turns around and shows them the details, with Jay being the only one impressed. As Nya tells them they need to find a way to get more credits and that they are 317 credits short, they are all ambushed by Red Visors, forcing them to fight.

As they fight, Nya notices that the weapons are being damaged. Knowing that it will cost credits to upgrade them, she tells her friends not to do so. However, Jay's Kusarigama breaks when being surrounded by a group of Red Visors, forcing him to spend 100 credits to upgrade it. He is able to take the enemy out but is told off by his team for spending his credits. As they begin looking for a quest that pays, the same TV announces a dance competition is being held and the winners receive 500 credits.

### Dance Dance Revolution!

At the competition, Nya and Jay compete together as a dance couple. Believing Jay is a bad dancer, Kai, Cole, and Lloyd think they stand a low chance of winning. Once the competition begins, Jay and Nya get off to a good start with their moves from *Dancy Pants*, surprising their friends. They both notice another couple dancing and are doing just about as good as them. Noticing how worried Jay is, Nya tells them they have something as an advantage, Chemistry. The two begin to step it up, getting them more points. Knowing how well they're doing, the dancers from earlier make their way to them. One of the rivals pulls Jay aside and threatens him before pushing him back to Nya. Kai, Lloyd, and Cole congratulate their friends and encourage them.

As the competition goes on, the theme changes and two dancers mess up, disqualifying them. Cole jokes around by picking up Kai and dances with him, giving them "tips" while Kai hits him. Another pair messes up their groove, losing their place in the competition as well. The dancers that threatened Jay and Nya earlier shove another pair of dancers over, throwing them out of the game too. Feeling threatened by Jay and Nya, one of the rivals attempts to kick them out by kicking Nya in the heel, making them both realize that they are cheating to win.

Red Visors appear at the scene, getting the attention of Kai, Lloyd, and Cole. Knowing that they were here to kill them and that Nya and Jay are close to winning, they go to fight the Red Visors and keep them busy.

Hearing gunshots in the crowd, Nya and Jay see Kai defeat two Red Visors, only to run out of view while being chased by more. Some of the Red Visors attention gets caught by the pair and try to shoot them. Seeing that they were so close to winning, Jay and Nya use the Red Visors as an advantage by fighting them while also dancing, getting them more points and messing up the other dancers moves, the ones who were cheating, much to their annoyance. Cole gets cornered by three Red Visors and, for the first time in years, performs the Triple Tiger Sashay and defeats them.

Jay and Nya see only 30 seconds remaining, more Red Visors are approaching, and the other dancers are ahead of them by at least 1,000 points. Knowing that in order to win, they must perform a big dance move, Nya jumps at the Red Visors and kicks them away, telling Jay to catch her. Jay panics, knowing that they never performed that move. Nya denies this and says that she trusts him, as she runs at him. Jay then tosses Nya in the air, spinning her around until Jay holds her up by the foot, then throws her back up. As she spins again, Jay then catches Nya by the hands while she is upside down and they spin, tripling their points. As they perform the move, Jay happily announces his love for Nya, again, and she smiles at him.

Their points make it up to 99999 as the competition ends. As they win their 500 credits, another Red Visor appears to attack them but is trampled by the crowd rushing to Jay and Nya and toss them up and down in the air. As the Red Visor, lying on the ground, Kai gets his attention and punches him in the face.

The scene then switches back to the Admin Droid, watching a video, the Ninja arrive, ready to pay the Entry Fee. The Admin Droid collects their credits and asks for their team name to race. Jay speaks up and says their name is "The Fast Chickens", much to everyone's confusion. The Admin Droid tells them to get their vehicles ready by dawn. Knowing they need to get their own vehicles by tomorrow, Jay, along with Kai, switches to their Digi Robes and tells them he knows a place where they can get some mobiles. As they leave, the Red Visors appear again. One contacts Unagami and tells them they have entered the race. Unagami tells them that if they need vehicles to enter the race, he knows who they can get them from, and orders them to find Scott.

## Cast

* Admin Droid - Michael Adamthwaite
* Applejack - Ashleigh Ball
* Avatar Akita - Tabitha St. Germain
* Cole - Kirby Morrow
* Dance-Bot Announcer - Paul Dobson
* DJ-Pon 3 - Tabitha St. Germain
* Fluttershy - Andrea Libman
* Game Narration - Adrian Petriw
* Gaming Tailor - Ashleigh Ball
* Hair Salon Gamer - Zara Durani
* Indigo Zap - Kelly Sheridan
* Jay - Michael Adamthwaite
* Kai - Vincent Tong
* Kaya - Nicole Bouma
* Lemon Zest - Shannon Chan-Kent
* Lloyd Garmadon - Sam Vincent (Andrew Francis as his singing voice)
* Minuette - Rebecca Hussain
* Mrs. Dyer - Mary Black
* Nya - Kelly Metzger (Shannon-Chan Kent as her singing voice)
* P.I.X.A.L. - Jennifer Hayward
* Pinkie Pie - Andrea Libman
* Princess Cadance - Britt McKillip
* Princess Celestia - Nicole Oliver
* Princess Luna - Tabitha St. Germain
* Rainbow Dash - Ashleigh Ball
* Rarity - Tabitha St. Germain (Kazumi Evans as her singing voice)
* Sour Sweet - Sharon Alexander
* Spike - Cathy Weseluck
* Starlight Glimmer - Kelly Sheridan
* Sugarcoat - Sienna Bohn
* Sunny Flare - Britt Irvin
* Sunset Shimmer - Rebecca Shoichet
* Trixie - Kathleen Barr
* Twilight Sparkle - Tara Strong
* Unagami - Dean Redman
* Wu - Paul Dobson
* Zane - Brent Miller

## Transcript

* One Step Forward, Two Steps Back (Transcript)

## Songs

* Arcade Life (Version 2)
* Build Me a Profile

## Locations Visited

* Ninjago
	+ Ninjago City
* Equestria
	+ Crystal Empire
		- Crystal Castle
* Prime Empire
	+ Terra Technica
		- Scott's Garage
		- Gamer's Market
			* Sweet Snacks Cafe
			* VR Beauty Salon
			* Boot Up Boutique
		- DJ-Pon Dance Disco

## Differences between this episode and the original Ninjago episode

* Rarity and Spike dance with Jay and Nya.
* ????

## Trivia

* **Narrator**: Nya
* The title card for the first part resembles the Prime Empire Chapter of the poster, with Jay, Kai, Lloyd in their Avatar forms.
	+ However, Lloyd does not wear his avatar suit until the next episode.
* This episode marks Master Wu's first physical appearance since Rainbow Roadtrip.
* This episode also marks the first appearance of Princess Cadance in the spin-off series. She was last seen in "Awakenings."
* Scott, Richie, Hyper-Sonic, Anthony Bruton Nelli, and Racer Seven also appear in this episode but don't speak.
* Akita first appears in the Prime Empire game, and she discovered that she cannot transform into an animal form in the game.
* This episode marks Jay's first appearance in his Digi Suit.
* Kai wears his avatar in this episode, though he switches back to his Digi Suit.
* Rarity's avatar is seen for the first time.
* Counting on the short "Let's Dance!," and the episode "Dance Magic!", it is the third one to focus on dancing.
* Cole performs the Triple Tiger Sashay for the first time since Snakes and Galloping Galas.
* The Crystal Prep Shadowbolts join the Ninja and the Mane Six for the Speedway Five-Billion race, because of their hard work.
* LEGO versions of Andrea Libman, Tabitha St. Germain, Sam Vincent and Michael Adamthwaite made their cameo appearances in this episode as audience, despite not speaking.
* Parts of the video involving Jay and Nya dancing is used as "Valentine's Day: The Moment of Love" on the LEGO YouTube channel on February 14, 2021, as part of Valentine's Day.

## Easter Eggs

* There are some few references to *My Little Pony Equestria Girls* special, Dance Magic
	+ The Shadowbolts are discussing at the Sweets Snacks Café which is similar to them discussing at the diner.
	+ The plot is similar as they decided to gain credits to enter the Speedway Five-Billion, similar to the Mane Seven saves enough money to save Camp Everfree.

## Errors

* When Lloyd uses the tire against the Red Visors his shoulder pads disappear and then appear again.
* Adrian Petriw was credited for voicing Scott in this episode despite Scott not speaking in the episode.