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Kevin Hinkle Chats With BZPower


Black Six

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I'm still catching up on a lot of things after BrickFair New England, which was a blast. I had some of the most fun there that I've had at any other convention, met a bunch of awesome people, and caught up with some old friends.

 

But before the convention, I asked you guys for some questions. At Kevin Hinkle's TLG Q&A I asked a few, but wasn't able to get them all in. So on Saturday during the public hours we sat down away from the crowds for a little bit to chat and go through some others. What you see below are not exact quotes, they're sentences constructed from the notes I was taking on my tablet typing away as fast as I could. Please do not treat them like infallible quotes that could not possibly be wrong and must certainly represent LEGO perfectly.

 

Questions are in italics, responses are in bold.

 

How long until Galidor comes out on DVD?

When you find it and burn it to a disc.

 

How are you doing?

A little overwhelmed lately due to the changes on the team - really just trying to continue to deliver on the expectations of the community and assume the new responsibilities. It's tough but I'm hanging in there.

 

When are we getting old fire back?

[Kevin had a really clever reply for this that I forgot to write down. :(]

 

Who's your favorite Toa?

Lhikan.

 

What year of BIONICLE was your favorite?

2006 because of the cartoony styles of the Piraka.

 

Were Bionicle-themed sandwiches ever considered a viable option during the theme's 9-year long run?

I can neither confirm nor deny. Sandwiches? Really?

 

Q: THANK YOU FOR THE PIZZA

Q: ALSO YOU'RE RIGHT THE SUPERMAN: RED SON ARC IS BRILLIANT

Q: YOU ARE MY HERO KEVIN

I'm glad to know you read that.

 

How is the Hero Factory theme doing in terms of sales?

Okay, not stellar, but not 'oh my god get rid of this line right now.'

 

How is the constraction category as a whole doing?

We're still trying new things to see what we can do with it.

 

Is there ever any chance of bringing Christoffer Raundahl or another Hero Factory designer to a convention in the United States?

That would be awesome but I do not get a say. I just decide which event gets designers - only one or two a year to spread across the conventions.

 

What has The LEGO Group's experience with their expanding social media presence been like?

They've learned a lot from it - testing new waters and expanding. They're trying to rope it into a single voice/channel of communication.

 

What kind of considerations go into determining whether a theme gets a page on a social networking site? As an example, currently LEGO Ninjago, Duplo, and Legends of Chima all have official pages on facebook, whereas LEGO Friends does not and the LEGO Hero Factory one has not been updated in over two years.

It's based on marketing drive - what does the company want to push and when?

 

What can expect from the future of LEGO Digital Building?

It will still be in existence, we're still exploring that realm of the LEGO experience.

 

How Chima doing? Is doing as well as LEGO has hoped?

It is doing well; there's still a lot more data to collect.

 

What sort of opportunities are there within LEGO for mechanical engineers?

Most likely in the Czech Republic and Mexico where a lot of the moulds are made and manufacturing is done.

 

How successful is the Collectible Minifigure line lately? Are they going to continue?

Extremely successful and has introduced LEGO to other retailers. Definitely going to continue.

 

Have you guys made any strides in the color purple? I've seen purple in a considerable number of new sets, so I'm wondering if there's anything behind that (new science, heightened demand, market research, etc).

It's a little of all of those. If it's a licensed set it's going to have it, but otherwise they're always making improvements in quality and color consistency.

 

I'd like to thank the BZPower Community for all their love and support and have very much enjoyed meeting the staff and members at conventions. I enjoy talking to you all - keep up the great stuff and keep Bionicle alive!

 

As always I want to thank Kevin for supporting BZPower (and now BioniLUG). We really appreciate all your hard work and look forward to hanging out with you whenever we can!

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What year of BIONICLE was your favorite?

2005 because of the cartoony styles of the Piraka.

 

2005 The piraka lol, I guess it's too long gone

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What year of BIONICLE was your favorite?

2005 because of the cartoony styles of the Piraka.

2005 The piraka lol, I guess it's too long gone

 

 

It's called a typo. :P
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What sort of opportunities are there within LEGO for mechanical engineers?

Most likely in the Czech Republic and Mexico where a lot of the moulds are made and manufacturing is done.

Well nuts, time to change my major.

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Still no word on whether or not he dreams about farm animals.

If you do get to ask that I'll await anxiously for the response. XD

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