One of the most common criticisms of Ninjago is how often it rehashes the concept of snake-themed villains. Back in 2012, the villainous Serpentine received praise because at the time, it was a really fresh idea, and they really fleshed out the concept with the different tribes. But then the Serpentine came back as villains for the first half of Season 2. Then Pythor (an Anacondrai) was one of the main antagonists of Season 3. Then Season 4 revolved around a group of cultists who wanted to be turned into Anacondrai…and then they were. And in Season 6, one of Nadakhan’s pirates was a Serpentine (though I’m not sure what tribe he’s from). And Pythor returned in Day Of The Departed. And in Season 7, there were the Vermillion-warriors made up of snakes. The next three seasons were devoid of any snake-themed villains, but then we got the Pyrovipers in Season 11, which people were NOT happy about. It didn’t help that Aspheera was one of, if not the, weakest villains we’ve gotten out of Ninjago.
And now, in Season 15 14, there’s the Merlopians. They use the same pieces as the Pyrovipers, but they’re not snakes, they’re eels…right?
Nonetheless, I find myself agreeing with the detractors that say Ninjago just refuses to stop going back to the “snake villains” well. They can be really creative when they want to. We’ve had the Skulkin, the Nindroids, the ghosts, the sky pirates, the Sons Of Garmadon, the dragon hunters, the Blizzard Samurai, the Awakened Warriors, and the Keepers. Why is it that the show’s creators keep making new snake-themed villains? Did those waves of sets sell better or something?