A Line in the Sand

*“It has arrived, brother. Did you not you hear me? The next Time Blade has arrived.”*

— Krux to Acronix about the arrival of the Slow-Mo Time Blade

**A Line in the Sand** is the fifth episode of the seventh season of *Ninjago: Masters of Spinjitzu* and the 69th episode overall. It aired on Cartoon Network on May 19, 2017, in the United States.

## Synopsis

*While the Ninja fight to save MegaMonster Amusement Park, Jay struggles to defend his family's home from the Vermillion Warriors. But the arrival of the Emerald Time Blade, with its ability to slow time, leads to a desert chase as our heroes try to reach the Blade before the snakes get it![citation needed]*

## Plot

The ninja drove to Mega Monster Amusement Park in order to prevent the Vermillion from taking more metal. There, Lloyd ordered Zane and Cole to help the riders on the roller coaster while the others spread out. While Nya angrily asks who stole her suit, Kai found a symbol inside the Vermillion warriors' helmet. After fighting off several more snakes, they realize that Jay is not with them.

Meanwhile, Ed and Edna try to push the snakes away from their junkyard when Jay arrived. He shocks most of the snakes, but his bike was taken apart and he's unable to get his parents to safety.

Krux questions why Cyrus won't build the apparatus and suggests he just doesn't want to. After Machia motivated him to do his job, the Slow-Mo Time Blade fell and slowed-down time. Acronix finally located the location at the Eastern Sea of Sand with the BorgWatch and Machia told them Blunck and Raggmunk's troops are closer to it than they are.

Machia sends a message to Blunck, and they left the junkyard after kidnapping Edna. Additionally, the vermillion at the amusement park left, confusing the ninja. They realized another Time Blade must have arrived, and Zane was able to figure out the location. They left to find the Blade.

Ed tries to comfort an upset Jay and was able to raise his spirits up. He asked Ed where the nearest bus stop is, but instead, he gets an early birthday present: a regular motorbike. However, it falls apart, and they worked together to make the Lightning Bike.

The ninja and Vermillion made it to the desert, but Raggmunk made them crash. He got the Time Blade and tried to slow down the ninja, but accidentally shot their own troops instead. They eventually hit the ninja, and Jay came to save his mother. However, due to Blunck and Raggmunk fighting over the Blade, they accidentally make a bubble big enough to slow down the ninja and their own Army.

Jay used his Lightning Bike to save his mother and knock the Time Blade away. However, he can't slow down and told them to get his dad and to meet him at the Temple of Airjitzu. The ninja took the Time Blade and Lloyd used it to slow down the Vermillion. They used the jet to escape, as it was the only remaining vehicle that still worked.

Raggmunk and Blunck sent a message to Machia saying they failed. Machia informed the twins of this, and then assured them they will retrieve the Blade.

## Appearances

### Characters

* Acronix
* Blunck
* Cole
* Cyrus Borg
* Ed Walker
* Edna Walker
* Jay
* Kai
* Krux
* Lloyd Garmadon
* Machia
* Nya
* Raggmunk

### Items

* BorgWatch
* Time apparatus
* Forward Time Blade
* Slow-Mo Time Blade

### Vehicles

* Lightning Bike
* Ultra Stealth Raider

### Locations

* Endless Sea
* Ninjago
	+ Ninjago City
		- Mega Monster Amusement Park
	+ Sea of Sand
		- Ed & Edna's Scrap N Junk
	+ Vermillion Swamps
		- Vermillion Dome of Doom

### Species

* Humans
* Nindroids
* Oni/Dragon/Human hybrids
* Vermillion

## Trivia

* The name of this episode comes from the phrase "a line in the sand," which means a point from which one cannot turn back.
* Footage from the battle in the desert was used in the music video for "The Temporal Whip."
* Nya saying that Jay was like "Greased Lightning" when he was driving the Desert Lightning is a reference to the song "Greased Lightnin" from the 1978 musical Grease, which Danny Zuko and the T-Bird gang sing while they are repairing a hot rod.
* Tommy Andreasen revealed the name of this episode before its release. He has also stated it may be his favorite episode in the season.
* In Czech translation, the episode is called "The Second Time Blade".

## Continuity

* At the start of the episode, when Nya knocks an enemy off a Ferris wheel, the Wilhelm scream sound effect is used, marking the seventh time the scream is used after "Home" "The Rise of the Great Devourer" "The Last Hope" "Rise of the Spinjitzu Master" "The Art of the Silent Fist" and "The Greatest Fear of All."
* Wu doesn't appear in this episode at all, marking the ninth time he makes no appearance in an episode, with the previous episodes in which this occurs being "Only One Can Remain", "Spy for a Spy", "The Forgotten Element", "Enkrypted", "Misfortune Rising", "On a Wish and a Prayer", "My Dinner With Nadakhan", "Wishmasters" and "The Way Back".
* When Edna is kidnapped by the Vermillion warriors, and the warriors at Mega Monster Amusement Park retreat to find the next Time Blade, part of the score of "The Memory Switch" is used.

## Errors

* When Jay first drove into the time bubble and looked at the rest of the ninja, another Jay can be seen, who was actually supposed to be Cole.
	+ When asked if nobody checked the episode before it aired, Tommy Andreasen said, "Lots of people checked... and missed it. They are dead now."
* The official description erroneously describes the Slow-Mo Time Blade as the Emerald Time Blade. This is also the case for the next episode, "The Attack."
* When Zane flies to the roller coaster's tracks, his Aeroblade from Possession can be seen strapped to his back.