Clutch Powers

> "*All I did was adventure. Now all I'm gonna do is cash big checks for writing books about those adventures!*"
> ― Clutch Powers.
>
>

## General Information

### Alias(es)

Professor Powers
Dr. Powers

### Occupation

Archaeologist
Writer
Film director
Actor

## Behind the Scenes

### Voiced by

Ryan McPartlin (The Adventures of Clutch Powers)
Ian James Corlett (Ninjago)

**Professor Clutch Powers**, also known as **Dr. Powers**, is a famous adventurer and member of the Explorer's Club. He supposedly created the Blade Cup after finding and retrieving a Fangblade from a pyramid in the Sea of Sand. He helped the ninja enter the pyramid in the Desert of Doom and accidentally release Aspheera. He was blasted away by the hands of Aspheera and survived despite several injuries, including a broken leg.

Not long after that, Clutch became part of Misako's team to explore the Island of the Keepers where they were captured by the Keepers of the Storm Amulet, which he stole.

Eventually, Clutch revealed the amulet to the other members of the Explorer's Club, where he proceeds to show them a false slideshow of his expedition. When Wu and the others arrive to reclaim the artifact, Clutch poorly tries to claim his innocence before Kalmaar arrives. Clutch again acts out of cowardice for his selfish behavior and gives the amulet to Wu before running off. The other members of the club then revoke him from the title of Explorer of the Year.

## History

### Background

Clutch was a member of the Explorer's Club and collecting priceless artifacts on his adventures, including one of the Scrolls of Forbidden Spinjitzu. He dreamed about winning the Explorer of the Year reward every single day of his adult life.

Clutch wrote a few books about his adventures, such as *Boobytraps and How to Survive Them* and *Famous Places That I Will Find Before Anyone Else*, the latter of which mentioned the Heart of the Mountain in Shintaro Mountain.

Clutch had a competitor named Hageman, who he held in high regard. At one point, Clutch supposedly went to a pyramid, found one of the four Fangblades, and turned it into the Blade Cup. Clutch later on obtained an Amulet of Protection and was told from someone that it could protect him from danger, even though Clutch wasn't sure to believe him or not. Eventually, Clutch stopped exploring for ten years.

### Meeting the Ninja

#### Exploring Aspheera's Pyramid

He discovered the pyramid in the Desert of Doom and was interviewed by Gayle Gossip, who asked him about what was in the pyramid and he replied stating that he is not going inside because there are booby traps only a ninja could survive.

The ninja came to him and asked him to help them enter the pyramid and he refused. At that moment, his intern, Dwayne, alerted him to a call from Cecil Putnam, saying that his membership had expired because he had not explored in over ten years. Clutch then decided to help the ninja enter the pyramid, he helped the ninja get past a simple suspension bridge. He then told the ninja not to touch a cobweb because it was a trick wire, However, Jay kicked it, causing Clutch and the ninja to fall down a ramp into a room full of spikes. Kai used his fire to destroy several spikes allowing them all to survive before coming across the skeleton of one of Powers' competitors who never came across the chapter of spikes in his book. Cole then used his super strength to let them get through a closing door and into the tomb of Aspheera. They found a wall with a puzzle of the Snake Sorceress and Jay and Nya finished the puzzle releasing her. While the ninja fought Aspheera, Clutch Powers escaped and went outside the pyramid where he was confronted by Aspheera, he taunted her with his ancient Minkan Amulet of Protection. The Snake Sorceress used magic to cause the pyramid to erupt. Clutch then jumped off the ledge of the pyramid and slid down the side. He was then launched toward Ninjago City on a rock.

#### Hospitalised

Clutch landed in Ninjago City and was found by Nelson and Antonia who asked him what happened and he weakly told them that the ninja were in trouble. He was injured in the accident and was carried off in an ambulance. Knowing this Nelson and Antonia went to the Monastery of Spinjitzu and warned Wu.

#### Refusing to Help the Ninja

At the hospital, it is shown that Clutch has a concussion and a broken leg before asking a nurse to raise his bed. Later, while writing a memoir, Lloyd, Nya, and Zane visit him, requesting his help on finding the second Scroll of Forbidden Spinjitzu, but after telling them that it was with the Explorers Club, he refuses to help them further, going as far as claiming he was feeling lightheaded, causing the nurse and some orderlies to kick the three ninja out, clicking his tongue at the angered Lloyd.

### Prime Empire Incident

#### Discovering a Mysterious Artifact

While walking on the streets in Ninjago City, Clutch Powers discovered the Teapot of Tyrahn.

Clutch Powers later watched Jay while he was on the Blue Dragon.

### Exploring the Island of the Keepers

Shortly after the return of the ninja and Wu from Shintaro Mountain, Misako decided to go and confirm her theory about the Island of the Keepers and navigate the storm belt, so she traveled to the storm belt with Wu and Clutch Powers with his interns. However, when they went to the island, they were hit by storms and were wrecked on the island. Later, they set up a tent and made a large *HELP* sign out of stones in case someone went after them. Shortly afterwards, they went to the jungle to explore the island.

Clutch, Misako, Wu, Dwayne and two of his interns moved along the jungle before he reprimanded his interns for nearly damaging his tanning bed, since it costed him a lot of money he made from selling books, much to the annoyance of Wu and Misako. Later, he complained about having chopped vines all day and gives Dwayne his machete before continuing onward, until they come across a Stone Golem, which scared off his interns, and his tanning bed. They all attempt to fight, but the golem soon surrounds them.

When the ninja are sent to a cell, they meet up with Wu, Misako, Clutch Powers, and the interns. After Lloyd freed the group, Clutch Powers and Dwayne attempted to steal the Storm Amulet, but are caught and later tied to a wooden pole.

Dwayne cuts Clutch free before he uses the ninja's diversion to steal the amulet and attempted to take one of the ninja's catamarans, only to be caught and electrocuted by Nya, and tries to feign innocence, claiming he didn't know the amulet was in his bag.

### Taking the Storm Amulet

Although Nya stopped him in a robbery, he managed to steal the Storm Amulet and replace it with a fake. Clutch then proceeded to take it to the Explorers Club, where he was accepted back as a member.*[citation needed]*

### Theft of the Storm Amulet

Clutch was running away from the Explorer's Club right before Kalmaar and the Maaray Guards left with the Storm Amulet.

Following Kalmaar's defeat, Clutch was present at Nya's memorial.

### Vengestone Conspiracy

Clutch was running across the street ending at the Mayor's Office with the Teapot of Tyrahn.

Clutch was later seen with the Teapot of Tyrahn, running out of the way from the Noodle Truck of Crime.

## Personality

While in earlier seasons it is implied that he was a hard working explorer, Clutch now acts differently from the man he used to be. He is shown to be lazy, as he didn't want to explore the pyramid in the Desert of Doom until he realized that his Explorer's membership would expire. Clutch is also very self-centered and occasionally abusive, like when he made one of his interns act as a seat. His narcissism can be seen in "Riddle of the Sphinx", where he claims that he led an expedition to the Island of the Keepers, saved the ninja and fought off a serpent. As seen with his drawings, he also made it so that Mammatus gave him his crown and the ninja would bow down to him, which also shows a rather childish side to him.

Clutch can be unreasonable at times and even cowardly and selfish. When Aspheera attacked the ninja, Clutch escaped, claiming he was going to get help. His selfishness is shown in "Under Siege" when Lloyd, Nya and Zane came for his help to retrieve the other Scroll of Forbidden Spinjitzu at the Explorer's Club, Clutch refused to get out of bed since his leg was broken, although he claimed that he wouldn't go with them anyway, showing that he was fine with the destruction of Ninjago City. His cowardice is further shown when Kalmaar attacked the Explorer's Club and demanded the Storm Amulet, which Clutch handed over to Wu without a second of thought and ran away screaming as the ninja and the other members of the club fought off Kalmaar and the Maaray Guards.

He can also be incredibly ignorant and impulsive, as he continuously attempted to steal the Storm Amulet all for the stake of his status as an explorer, even though the results would end in disaster for him and his "allies".

Despite his many flaws as an explorer and overall as a person, Clutch does seem to contain vast knowledge about exploring and is surprisingly cautious at times. Most notably when he was exploring the pyramid with the ninja, he knew if there were traps in the area and told the ninja to stay aware. He was also considerate enough to attend Nya's memorial, appearing sad at her disappearance.

## Relationships

### Allies

* Kjeld Playwell - Superior
* Clutch Powers' Team
	+ Brick Masterson
	+ Peg Mooring
	+ Bernie von Beam
* Explorer's Club
	+ Cecil Putnam
* Dwayne - Former Intern
* Ninja
	+ Lloyd
	+ Kai
	+ Jay
	+ Cole
	+ Zane
	+ Nya
* Wu
* Misako
* Paperboys
	+ Antonia
	+ Nelson
* NGTV News
	+ Gayle Gossip

### Enemies

* Mallock the Malign
* Skulkin
	+ Skelly
	+ Bones
* Oni
	+ Omega - Attempted Killer
* Squidman
* Hageman † - Former Partner
* Pyro Vipers
	+ Aspheera
* Keepers
	+ Mammatus
	+ PoulErik
* Stone Guardians
* Ronin
* Henchmen
* Merlopians
	+ Kalmaar † - Attempted Killer
	+ Gripe
	+ Maaray Guards

## Bibliography

* *Boobytraps and How to Survive Them*
* *Famous Places That I Will Find Before Anyone Else*

## Behind the scenes

* He was an adventurer in *LEGO: The Adventures of Clutch Powers*. His appearance in the series is a reference to that movie.
	+ The Czech version of Season 11 is the only one where Clutch is voiced by the same voice actor as in the movie.
* Cecil Putnam's comments in "Boobytraps and How to Survive Them" that Clutch has "not explored in over 10 years" is a nod to his film, which was released in 2010. However, the statement is not technically true in terms of real-life dates, as only nine years had passed between the film's release and the television premiere of this episode.
* His name is a pun on "clutch power", the force that keeps LEGO bricks together.
* Despite predating *Ninjago*, 40342 LEGO NINJAGO 2019 Minifigure Set is the first time that Clutch has ever appeared as a Minifigure, and so far he has only appeared in *Ninjago* sets.
* He is the second Ninjago minifigure to have the utility belt piece (originating from Batman from *The LEGO Batman Movie*), the first being Skylor from the Hunted set 70651 Throne Room Showdown.
	+ However, his belt piece is recolored and printed on in the series, unlike Skylor, whose belt was a separate piece in the series.
* Like Misako before the fifth season, Clutch's LEGO minifigure lacks the pocket prints on his trousers in comparison to his appearance in the show.
* While Clutch's hair and torso are near identical to his 2010 counterpart in the movie *LEGO: The Adventures of Clutch Powers*, his legs are now dark tan, while in the film they were blue.
	+ Clutch's current appearance also has facial hair, having some stubble and sideburns.
* Clutch is similar to Johnny Thunder from LEGO's *Adventurers* theme, in that they are both classic LEGO adventurer characters who have later been released in other LEGO themes with more modern, updated designs.
* His hairpiece is Lloyd's and Garmadon's old hair piece, just with different coloring.
* When asked why Clutch was brought into the series and given the personality he was, Tommy Andreasen stated, "He’s been part of Ninjago since episode 9. And entertainent. Sometimes that’s all the reason you need."
* Bragi Schut stated he loves Clutch Powers and that "he’s a very fun character to write."

## Trivia

* He was mentioned by Cole in the episode "The Royal Blacksmiths," which aired seven years before his first physical appearance in "Questing for Quests."
* It's possible he was the one to bring the Giant Stone Warrior back up from the bottomless pit between "The Stone Army" and "The Greatest Fear of All."
* He wears an eye patch despite not needing it, and he often switches it from left to right.
	+ According to Tommy Andreasen, Clutch wears his eye patch to make himself look cool.
* Vania appears to be a fan of Clutch Powers, as she mentioned his books in "The Real Fall" and "Masters Never Quit."
	+ She often quotes some of the lines from his books.
* In "Sweatin' to the Goldies," Clutch wears a slightly altered version of the white tuxedo design of Indiana Jones from the LEGO theme of the same name.
	+ This is the second time a version of Clutch Powers has used a torso from Indiana Jones, as Clutch in his original movie used the main brown jacket design of the character.
* In the Polish dub, Clutch Powers is named Max Powers, a play on the phrase "max power".

## References

1. ↑ The Riddle of the Sphinx
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Boobytraps and How to Survive Them
3. ↑ The Real Fall
4. ↑ The Royal Blacksmiths
5. ↑ Questing for Quests
6. ↑ The News Never Sleeps
7. ↑ Under Siege
8. ↑ Would You Like to Enter Prime Empire?
9. ↑ Game Over
10. ↑ The Island of the Keepers
11. ↑ Uncharted
12. ↑ The Gift of Jay
13. ↑ The Tooth of Wojira
14. ↑ Papergirl
15. ↑ The Turn of the Tide
16. ↑ Public Enemies 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5!
17. ↑ The Council of the Crystal King