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Shadow Khan
Episode written by Martha Moran

     The scene opens with the Double Dragons on a stakeout in their Dragon Cruiser.  A garage door opens, letting out Countdown and Sickle, who are driving a stolen truck carrying a load of missiles.  The Dragons give chase and deploy their harpoon-type weapon.  The weapon latches onto the back of the stolen truck and the Dragon Cruiser quickly wraps the attached cable around a light post, securing it.  The line goes tight, stopping the Shadow Warriors' stolen truck dead in its tracks.  Unfortunately for Countdown and Sickle, the momentum, combined with the abrupt stop, causes the cab to disconnect from the cargo bed, sending it flying.  Despite Sickle's stern warning, Countdown attempts to blast his way out of the cab with his shoulder-mounted rocket launchers.  The two then crawl out of the demolished cab only to get their butts kicked by the Double Dragons.  Plot foiled for now.
     The Shadow Master is pissed about this.  He is tired of the Dragons constantly foiling his plans.  He needs to increase his power, and not simply through technological means.  He orders his minions to find him something to do this and they are not to return until they have it. 
     Cut to the next scene, which takes place in an arcade.  Danny, a young boy in his teens, is in the middle of a video game championship and about to win it too - until his father walks in and distracts him.  His father, Dr. Linquist, takes him outside to show him and the Dragon Masters a scroll he uncovered which depicts an ancient underground Dragon Dojo.  It mentions something about the "Dragon Claws," but the archeologist can't make out the rest.  Billy takes the scroll back to the dojo so he can translate the rest.  Jimmy and the Linquists head for the ancient site and it becomes apparent from Danny's statements that he is severely misinformed about the martial arts.  Jimmy begins simple lessens to correct Danny's fallacies.
     From below a sewer grate we see Ice Pick spying on the group.  We can guess what he's going to do with the new information.
     Back at the Dragon Dojo, Billy discovers that the scroll warns of the danger of removing the Dragon Claws.  It will unleash the most powerful Shadow of them all, the Shadow Khan.  A quick flashback shows the Oldest Dragon telling Billy of the Shadow Khan, but no new information.
     Jimmy and the Linquists are now at the underground site.  In Danny's clumsiness, he sets accidentally off a booby trap, but is saved by Jimmy before he can get hurt.  However, Danny doesn't realize just how close he came to death.  Jimmy leads the way and finds himself in a large room that looks suspicious.  He dodges a series of traps before reaching the switch that deactivates them.  Danny is a little too impressed by this, thinking it's awesome.  The Linquists catch up and the three head toward a room filled with gold, only to be caught off guard by a trap door that sends them flying down a chute leading deeper underground.  Jimmy and Danny end up in one area, but Dr. Linquist is separated from the other two. 
     Dr. Linquist ends up in the chamber containing the Dragon Claws.  They are lying on top of a shield with a skull on it.  The doctor removes the claws and the shield comes to life with the eyes starting to glow.  It hypnotizes Dr. Linquist and tells him to find the Master of Shadows.  Dr. Linquist carries the shield with him and eventually encounters his lost companions.  However, the shield shoots discs at both Jimmy and Danny that create holograms of their greatest fears.  For Jimmy, this creates an image of his alter ego, the Shadow Boss.  For Danny, it creates a giant robot like something out of a video game.  Both run away terrified of what they are seeing. 
     Jimmy encounters Ice Pick, Sickle, Blaster and Countdown while running away from the image of the Shadow Boss and accidentally trips the booby traps he previously deactivated while fighting the Shadow Warriors.  Chaos ensues and Countdown goes beserk, blasting everything in site.  The temple begins collapsing and Billy runs into the area calling for Billy.  However, a huge block falls on Jimmy, and Billy is unable to life it.  Billy apologizes to Jimmy and runs off to save Dr. Linquist, leaving Danny to help Jimmy.  Jimmy can't budge and Danny gets upset because events are not turning like they do in video games.  He can't accept that Jimmy is helpless at the moment and takes off running, only to trip and fall right in front of Billy, who grabs him.
     Dr. Linquist meets up with the Shadow Warriors and the shield hypnotizes them too.  They blast the temple some more, sealing the heroes in.  Then, they head for the Shadow Master. 
     Jimmy manages to get out from under the large stone and meet up with Billy and Danny.  Danny's attitude gets out of controls again though, and he runs off (again).
     Dr. Linquist and the Shadow Warriors encounter the Shadow Master.  The shield introduces itself not so politely as the great Shadow Khan and demands that the Shadow Master to release him from his prison.  The Shadow Master isn't so gullible though, and he quickly realizes that Khan needs his help to get free.  Shadow Master doesn't have to release Khan, and he tells Khan that he had better strike a deal if the Shadow Master is even going to entertain the idea.  Khan grants the Shadow Master new armor and a weapon that will freeze his enemies with terror, this being the shield itself (the Shadow Khan's prison). 
     Billy bandages up Jimmy's leg when Danny reappears carrying the Dragon Claws.  The brothers are surprised to see that he survived touching the artifacts since only the pure of heart can touch such objects and survive.  The twins take hold of the claws and blades emerge from them, transforming them into the Dragon Claw daggers.  The dagger helps Jimmy's leg to heal and the brothers decide to let Danny in on to their little secret.  They transform in front of him and the Oldest Dragon appears.  The Oldest Dragon informs them that they must stop the Shadow Master before Khan is released.  Khan is a powerful being that the Oldest Dragon sealed away a long time ago using the Dragon Claws.  The brothers touch the daggers to their swords and undergo a second transformation giving them a samurai-style armor.  The Oldest Dragon tells the twins to hurry.  The daggers' power will only last so long.
     The brothers try to figure a way to bust out of the temple when they notice water leaking from above them.  They blast the water pipes and ride the resulting flood (atop stone blocks) straight through the barricade and toward the Shadow Master.  The three fight and the brothers use the Dragon Claws to overpower the Shadow Master, whose armor disappears.  Naturally, the Dragon Masters don't finish off the powerless Shadow Master. 
     Danny says that he can't believe that the brothers are going to let such an evil man get away.  Why don't they destroy him?  Jimmy hands Danny his sword and tells him to go ahead.  Danny can't do it though, and the Shadow Master disappears, laughing at their weakness. 
     Dr. Linquist returns and the four live happily ever after, or something like that.

     Dojo Master's review: This episode reminds me of the Power Rangers.  As that series progressed, the Rangers would get bigger and more powerful zords (those giant robots ripped off from Voltron) and form these giant bazooka machines that would just blast the shit out of anything that blinked.  It was wonderfully stupid - I mean the kind of stupid where oversized Legos strapped with cannons would fire a nuclear energy blast at a Japanese actor waddling around in a rubber octopus suit on a 1/10 scale model set. 
     The answer to a shallow series such as this is to give them bigger guns.  Now the Dragons have to undergo two transformations and there is the constant discrepancy through most of this season about who has reached the second level of transformation and who hasn't.  It's a constant battle of firepower and the show still has the lovely moral teachings at the end.  Cheap.  Very cheap.  But it's going to get worse.

Rating: B+