Summer 2016 Ninjago Images Added to cache.LEGO.com

[Hapori Tohu]

LEGO has uploaded 96 images to cache.LEGO.com depicting the nine summer 2016 Ninjago sets coming to North America in August. This includes our first images of 70590 Airjitzu Battle Grounds (not displayed at any of the Toy Fair events earlier this year), which contains 666 pieces including the ghost of Sensei Yang, brand-new Airjitzu Lloyd and Airjitzu Nya minifigures, two Airjitzu fliers, and two of Yang's pupils. Read on for links to all the new images, then share your thoughts in the Talkback thread!

 

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[xccj]

Nice to finally get some high res picts, this is the best look I've got at the new fig designs.  Still not a huge fan of all of them, but still some nice models here.  Purple ninja is a must have.

 

[Aanchir]

Interesting Easter egg that these pictures reveal: in 70596_alt2, you can see a viewscreen displaying "FILE: PHANTOM NINJA" with a picture of the Phantom Ninja from Greg Farshtey's tenth Ninjago graphic novel from Papercutz. Nothing outside that graphic novel has ever referenced that specific character, and generally the events of the graphic novels are considered non-canon, so to see a reference to one of them in an actual set is mind-blowing!

 

Airjitzu Battle Grounds looks even more awesome than I could have imagined! It's got new brick-built Airjitzu launchers for ground-based battles, in addition to the regular air launchers tastefully disguised as columns. It's also the first set I've seen to incorporate the classic cartoon "stairs-that-turn-into-a-slide". Additionally, I had practically given up on the prospect of getting Airjitzu versions of Nya and Lloyd to go with those versions of Kai, Zane, Cole, and Jay from last year's Airjitzu fliers, so to get both in one set is amazing! For the first arena-style set since 2012, it certainly ups the ante from previous offerings.

 

Some AFOLs are inevitably going to be disappointed that it's a playset rather than something designed specifically to further enhance last year's Temple of Airjitzu. However, it's still a beautiful set in my opinion, and even color-coordinated with the Temple of Airjitzu, so integrating it into the same layout is not out of the question.

 

Ultra Stealth Raider is also still looking incredible, and we now get a clearer look at the transformation function of the lower center section, in which the cockpit switches place with a wheel to become a bike!

 

Overall it continues to be an exciting year for Ninjago fans!

[Wiriamu]

Interesting Easter egg that these pictures reveal: in 70596_alt2, you can see a viewscreen displaying "FILE: PHANTOM NINJA" with a picture of the Phantom Ninja from Greg Farshtey's tenth Ninjago graphic novel from Papercutz. Nothing outside that graphic novel has ever referenced that specific character, and generally the events of the graphic novels are considered non-canon, so to see a reference to one of them in an actual set is mind-blowing!

 

Thanks for pointing this out-I'm a big fan of the graphic novels, and that Phantom Ninja is one of my favorite extra characters. I think it'd be great if she-Seliel's her name-were included in the animated series, perhaps being called upon to receive Elemental Powers and take Morro's place as the Master of Wind in order to maintain balance. The new sets are looking pretty awesome, though that mech in the Samurai X set is kinda lame. I'm curious as to how all these old villains are going to end up working together, especially since some of them are supposed to be dead.

[Rooster Nui]

For once, I'm actually more inclined to buy a Ninjago set than a Bionicle one, probably due to my liking of the spinners that Ninjago has gotten over the years. 

 

Airjitzu Battle Grounds is godly.

[Gonel]

Huh. 666 pieces, you say.

 

In a year of villains, how appropriate.

[Smitty]

How is the ghost sensei looking dude in 70595 Ultra Stealth Raider?

[Aanchir]

How is the ghost sensei looking dude in 70595 Ultra Stealth Raider?

Did you mean "who"? That's Sensei Yang, who invented Airjitzu. He first appeared in the show in episode 48 "The Temple on Haunted Hill", and a statue of him appears in front of 70751 Temple of Airjitzu.

 

The new Sensei Yang minifigure also appears in 70590 Airjitzu Battle Grounds. Considering that in 70595 he carries the same lantern that appears on all the box art for the new story arc and in the recent teaser poster, he probably plays a key role in this new story arc.

[The 1st Shadow]

Anyone else care about the new ninja outfits? Seriously, I love these things! It's like a culmination of every outfit they've ever worn.

You have the emblem and ropes from their first iteration, the armor or padding from the ZX suits, the shaping of the Elemental Kimono, the Airjitzu hoods, and one version of Zane goes sleeveless and wears a bandanna instead of the whole hood like they did with the Tournament robes.

Even Lloyd jumps in on this.

 

But I have to wonder... The Ninja are basically wearing every outfit they've ever had all at once, and they're going up against pretty much every villain they've ever faced. Hopefully, this doesn't mean they're wrapping the theme up with one great big encore season. This year has given us some of the best Ninjago sets by far, and I'd like to see that continue.

 

That aside, I wonder how Clockwork Zane will fit into the story.

 

EDIT: Looking through the pictures of the Samurai X Cave, I notice that Jay's expression looks a little different. The eyebrows are more arched than before. Cool, reprints.

Edited May 23, 2016 by The 1st Shadow

[Aanchir]

Anyone else care about the new ninja outfits? Seriously, I love these things! It's like a culmination of every outfit they've ever worn.

You have the emblem and ropes from their first iteration, the armor or padding from the ZX suits, the shaping of the Elemental Kimono, the Airjitzu hoods, and one version of Zane goes sleeveless and wears a bandanna instead of the whole hood like they did with the Tournament robes.

Even Lloyd jumps in on this.

I agree, the new outfits are great!

 

But I have to wonder... The Ninja are basically wearing every outfit they've ever had all at once, and they're going up against pretty much every villain they've ever faced. Hopefully, this doesn't mean they're wrapping the theme up with one great big encore season. This year has given us some of the best Ninjago sets by far, and I'd like to see that continue.

Don't worry, the theme is definitely continuing. Design director Simon Lucas and writers Dan and Kevin Hageman confirmed it here, here, and here. Don't forget that there's still the LEGO Ninjago movie coming out next year.

 

In fact, LEGO actually confirmed last summer in their employee magazine that "we now regard Ninjago as an evergreen product on par with Lego City". If Ninjago continues to perform as well as it has been lately, it should be around for many years to come!

[The 1st Shadow]

 

Anyone else care about the new ninja outfits? Seriously, I love these things! It's like a culmination of every outfit they've ever worn.

You have the emblem and ropes from their first iteration, the armor or padding from the ZX suits, the shaping of the Elemental Kimono, the Airjitzu hoods, and one version of Zane goes sleeveless and wears a bandanna instead of the whole hood like they did with the Tournament robes.

Even Lloyd jumps in on this.

I agree, the new outfits are great!

 

But I have to wonder... The Ninja are basically wearing every outfit they've ever had all at once, and they're going up against pretty much every villain they've ever faced. Hopefully, this doesn't mean they're wrapping the theme up with one great big encore season. This year has given us some of the best Ninjago sets by far, and I'd like to see that continue.

Don't worry, the theme is definitely continuing. Design director Simon Lucas and writers Dan and Kevin Hageman confirmed it here, here, and here. Don't forget that there's still the LEGO Ninjago movie coming out next year.

 

In fact, LEGO actually confirmed last summer in their employee magazine that "we now regard Ninjago as an evergreen product on par with Lego City". If Ninjago continues to perform as well as it has been lately, it should be around for many years to come!

 

Oh, yeah. I forgot about the movie.

 

In any case, I do like this culmination of all the past seasons Ninjago has seen. Since it's not the end, perhaps this will mark the next step into something bigger and better. Wrapping up the past with a nice big bow, preparing us for the next grand stage in their journey.

[xccj]

Don't worry, the theme is definitely continuing. Design director Simon Lucas and writers Dan and Kevin Hageman confirmed it here, here, and here. Don't forget that there's still the LEGO Ninjago movie coming out next year.

 

In fact, LEGO actually confirmed last summer in their employee magazine that "we now regard Ninjago as an evergreen product on par with Lego City". If Ninjago continues to perform as well as it has been lately, it should be around for many years to come!

Have we actually got a confirmation that they're not just rebooting the whole theme? It's been a fairly continuous story for the past few years, but it sounds like the movie will not be based in the universe of the TV show. Maybe they're pulling a Bionicle, where it's the same characters and basic themes, but a completely different storyline where they can start from scratch in the movie?

 

[Lyichir]

 

Don't worry, the theme is definitely continuing. Design director Simon Lucas and writers Dan and Kevin Hageman confirmed it here, here, and here. Don't forget that there's still the LEGO Ninjago movie coming out next year.

 

In fact, LEGO actually confirmed last summer in their employee magazine that "we now regard Ninjago as an evergreen product on par with Lego City". If Ninjago continues to perform as well as it has been lately, it should be around for many years to come!

Have we actually got a confirmation that they're not just rebooting the whole theme? It's been a fairly continuous story for the past few years, but it sounds like the movie will not be based in the universe of the TV show. Maybe they're pulling a Bionicle, where it's the same characters and basic themes, but a completely different storyline where they can start from scratch in the movie?

 

 

We haven't heard anything conclusive one way or another. The movie summary could be describing a reboot, but it could just as easily be an Inika-esque situation where a new generation of Ninja is introduced (possibly trained by the originals), or even just a scenario where the movies occupy a separate but distinct canon but the TV series continues from where it left off afterward.

 

In any case, it's a very different situation from Bionicle, since in that case the theme was rebooted only after a lengthy spell of inactivity. And regardless of what happens to the story, the theme itself will be continuing one way or another—there's hardly any chance of it ending either at the end of this current story arc or after the movie.

Edited May 24, 2016 by Lyichir

[Aanchir]

 

Don't worry, the theme is definitely continuing. Design director Simon Lucas and writers Dan and Kevin Hageman confirmed it here, here, and here. Don't forget that there's still the LEGO Ninjago movie coming out next year.

 

In fact, LEGO actually confirmed last summer in their employee magazine that "we now regard Ninjago as an evergreen product on par with Lego City". If Ninjago continues to perform as well as it has been lately, it should be around for many years to come!

Have we actually got a confirmation that they're not just rebooting the whole theme? It's been a fairly continuous story for the past few years, but it sounds like the movie will not be based in the universe of the TV show. Maybe they're pulling a Bionicle, where it's the same characters and basic themes, but a completely different storyline where they can start from scratch in the movie?

 

 

No confirmation one way or the other at this point. The movie description we got does sound like it could potentially be a new continuity, but it's hard to tell whether that means the end of the current TV show continuity, or another continuity that will exist just for the movies (like how the latest TMNT movie universe is separate from the ongoing TV show on Nickelodeon, or the Transformers movies are separate from the current batch of Transformers cartoons). The one thing we know for sure is that Ninjago, in some form, is continuing.