1083 replies to this topic

[sukapony]

Like/Want: Toxic Reapa, Thornraxx, Jawblade, Black Phantom

Dislike/Donotwant: Everyone else

Really, the Heroes look bad this year. I dislike the reuse of Glat heads, and the designs look really sloppy, in my opinion. And what the heck is up with all white Hero cores? Oh, and Splitface looks bland like you cannot believe. But, who knows? Maybe my opinion will change for the heroes once we get more pictures(like they have for all the previous waves, haha).

However the ones that I do like I think look awesome.

Edited by Squishyfrog, Oct 18 2011 - 01:57 PM.

[Meiko]

Really, the Heroes look bad this year. I dislike the reuse of Glat heads

Yeah, me too. I really like the new head design more than this one. It also gets annoying, because this means that the helmets will attach via + rod, and Hero Factory hasn't been using many of those recently, therefore it won't be as compatible with the newer building system.

[Aanchir: Rachira of Time]

Black Phantom is buy-worthy for syre. The armored him far better than the prelim.

Also, I'm wondering why most of the heroes are $13 now. The whole "more" pieces thing?

Yes, they're more expensive because they have more pieces and larger pieces. They're all fully armored (contrast 2.0 and 3.0 heroes, especially Bulk), have longer limb pieces, armor in new places (e.g. Breez's Samus armor and back armor), and have more weapons. Also, Furno has a propeller pack.
The "sarcasm quotes" imply you believe they're the same size, which they aren't.

I'm glad that they're increasingly dispensing with the gratuitous asymmetry. At least on Two-Face, it's a deliberate stylistic choice, rather than totally arbitrary as on all the 2.0s and some 3.0 heroes.
Also, so much iron grey. It's becoming almost as bad as silver was during 2008.
Rocka, Evo, and Two-Face all have it as their secondary color, and Makuta, Breez, Furno, and Surge all have a few iron grey parts.

I'm still worried that Makuta's Thornax launcher will be pearl grey. That color was an abomination and a blight upon Lego.

What do you mean by Pearl Grey? Do you mean the main silver color used in BIONICLE from 2003-2006? That was 131 Silver, and it was discontinued briefly in 2006 (replaced by 296 Cool Silver), reintroduced in 2007 (replacing Cool Silver), and discontinued for good between 2010 and 2011 (replaced by 315 Silver Metallic). If it's any type of silver, it's 315 Silver Metallic, the current silver color.

Incidentally, the ____ stands for a certain site that has a database for parts and sets. However, since the site has forums I'm not sure if it's OK to name.

Goodness the number of inconsistent color names on this site caught me unprepared. Most of the time I've been on an AFOL forum since BZPower went down, and while AFOLs also use inconsistent color names, there are fewer metallic colors so it's easier to get a grasp on what colors people are talking about from context alone.

[Bambi]

Can't wait for when leaked pictures start coming out.
Oh, my bad.

Edited by Sweetie Belle, Oct 18 2011 - 04:03 PM.

[Dorek]

Looks like the cores do attach with two connection points; if the torso is indeed one piece (stickers or printed), then the core plugs directly into it. Splitface uses the same torso, so you can compare. However, I don't think the cores are going to have absent spaces anymore; it looks like all the space between the H is filled out by something.

[Aedai Rivin]

So is anyone terribly sad about the final death of canisters? Maybe they were getting too expensive to make. Personally, I'm fine with no more canisters.

Rivin

[Daiker]

Seeing as my other post mysteriously disappeared, I'll review each one :P

Black Phantom: By George, I think the new torso piece is working out this time! The weapon looks okay, but thornax launchers are as overused as the axle piece itself. The staff is nice, but the hands still bug me. I think lego should come up with some hand for these titans or else they'll always look like clowns :\ Lego fixed up the lower leg problem (mostly), but the upper legs are always going to always be a problem apparently :\ The I guess "Tentacles" coming out of his back with the spear seem rather off topic, but I can't argue with transparent parts :P Also, the feet also should be worked on.

Furno: ...Underwater? What on Earth is the fire hero doing down there? :P But then again, the blue electric hero wouldn't be too easy to use underwater without shocking everything :P And sure do like those engines of his though. Not sure if I like the silver arm. The chest piece seems very nice, but will most likely be hollow :\ I suppose the cores might not be able to be taken out, due to the fact that EVERYONE has white ones. It doesn't really look as if they could come off anyway, which is pretty disappointing. It's okay, and seems like an okay set.

Rocka: Wow. That's all I can say. This has to be my favorite set. The gold, will allow for the recreation of his 2.0 form and the helmet is absolutely amazing :D I'm not sure about the little tentacle things on the back (Is this a running thing?). The asymmetry is very nice on those arms, and that weapon is just amazing. The shield looking thing on thing on his arm looks very nice as well. I would also just like to point out his bottom legs use the bottom leg piece with two holes, as well as the uppers with one. I tried out the legs, and I think that it looks pretty nice.

Evo: Very nice. A lot of gunmetal used, and I like it :D The chest piece is nice, and so is the helmet. Other than that, it seems hes a pretty average hero, and he pulls it off pretty nice :D Although I'm very saddened that lego refuses to make a size 5 yellow cladding.

Surge: He's okay. The lime is a nice touch, but I could use a bit less. l am liking the blue electric too :D

Breez: Well, what do we have here. The female character with "High heels" and what's on top? The bulkiest arms in the hero line :| If lego was trying to pull off a female look, I would say they made here look like a generic hero, but with a bit more bulk. I guess that maybe would be good...? I'm also not sure how those little rockets can keep her up. I guess the same way Gali Mistika's did. Not sure if anyone noticed, but it appears that there's another 1.0 foot on the back! I suppose that there's something else propelling her. The weapon is nice, as well as the shield.

Toxic Reapa: TRANS GREEN CLADDINGS <3 Reapa looks well thought out, and I have to say, this may as well be one of the really good villains... that'll probably be ruined in the TV series :\ He is a must buy for me. Looks like people with the TNGM will have some more to MOC with.

Thornraxx: TEALTEALTEAL. Lego seems to be going all out with colors on these villains <3 Very nice parts in this, and is that a size 5 ORANGE cladding I spot? Oh goodness these villains have it all! Not too much to critique again.

Jawblade: This set is one of the lesser villains. It appears to be a shark with arms. Presumably Furno's enemy. The parts though are very nice though.

Splitface: Seems to be a combination of Thunder and Explode. The theory of the villains breaking out and being mutated seems to be becoming more plausible. The torso piece might as well be an only motive for buying him, along with the head :\ He doesn't seem to have much pizzazz as the other villians, and seems to be made using mostly 2.0-3.0 parts. Thornax launcher is also dissapoint.

So most of these guys are worth buying, at least most of them at least. The new parts seem very nice and definitely worth buying. I will definitely be getting these. After I break the bank with these 3.0s :P. The idea of these zippers are absolutely tearing me apart though. The little holes for hanging them are absolutely heartbreaking ;__; All they need is to make the containers plastic, and whoop! There goes my hope! Anyway, looking forward to them.

Edited by Daiker, Oct 18 2011 - 05:15 PM.

[Chibinuva]

I just discovered Rocka's little rubber harpoon magazine on his left shoulder. That was a very creative move, and it manages to make him look good too!

And is that legit teal on Thornraxx?!

Heck yeah it is! Or rather, it's teal, and that's good enough for me.

Am I the only one getting a real Samus vibe off of Breez? I mean seriously, those massive shoulder plates. And the hand cannon probably doesn't help.

Nope, you're not the only one. That's a major part of why I like her.

-Mesonak

Same here. Here are my thoughts on the sets:

Breez: The double sword are a nice way to set her aside as the leader, along with the white color scheme. I'm really digging that Samus look. Also, rocket boots FTW!

Furno: The white goes nicely on him as well, and those jets look perfect for underwater combat. The spear on his launcher is a nice touch as well, though I personally think he should have a different colored head (maybe yellow.)

Rocka: The helmet looks kind of weird IMO. However, the epicness of his translucent green shield and thornax piece, along with a decent amount of gold armor more than make up for it. Plus, he's one of the cheaper sets.

Surge: Kinda weird that they changed his hero core and gave him green instead of yellow. However, the green and blue look well together (even though I would have preferred yellow,) and the weapon recolor is a plus. The gill is also a nice touch, as I always though he should have a cord to channel his electricity into his weapon.

Evo: I think there should be a little more armor on the other arm, so his arms are bulkier than his legs, to fit with that gorilla vibe I'm getting from him.

Black Phantom: He is rather epic, and his build looks large but rather sleek, as opposed to being a giant hulking brute. I think this is a good step for titan builds. The scorpion on his launcher looks epic, and the sword/mace staff is pretty awesome. Helmet reminds me of Nuparu Inika's mask.

Jaw Blade: While not a humanoid, it's nice to see some more rahi animals using the new system, and he pulls it off quite nicely, especially since it's a fish. The recolored furno blades and new helmet also look beast, though I think it should look a little more fish-like.

Split Face: Nice two-face impersonator. He does pull it off pretty well, including that awesome mask and chest piece. My only real gripe is that his launcher should be red to mask, but still nice regardless.

Thornraxx: That helmet is very intimidating (kinda looks like Mantax's,) and the design is once again pretty good. Also, while the color scheme is a little off due to the teal, IT'S FREAKING TEAL. Sorry, but I never got the Tarakava, and this has some new limbs piece. At only $7.99 I'll be picking up a few of these just for the parts.

Toxic Reapa: I'm literally drooling over all those trans-green armor pieces. The Mahrii gills and fire are nice, plus I like the incorporation of system piece for tanks, something I was expecting. As another cheap villain, I'll probably pick up a couple copies of this guy too for parts.

I'm loving these new sets. While there's a couple more things I'd like (some more purple parts, along with heroes that have translucent/purple/teal as a main color,) they're getting pretty close, and by releasing a couple sets like this each wave they can get people to buy more sets.

[Meiko]

So is anyone terribly sad about the final death of canisters? Maybe they were getting too expensive to make. Personally, I'm fine with no more canisters.

Rivin

I don't think that it's the "death" of canisters. LEGO is simply trying something new, and attempting to reduce the production of plastic (now don't say "BURN" when you comment saying that LEGO bricks are 100% plastic, I already know ) in canisters. Paper/Cardboard is a renewable resource, while plastic comes from oil, which isn't renewable.

[Dorek]

Don't forget, the Mahri tried to do away with the canister sets, and look how that turned out =P

[Kojol]

Black Phantom is buy-worthy for syre. The armored him far better than the prelim.

Also, I'm wondering why most of the heroes are $13 now. The whole "more" pieces thing?

Yes, they're more expensive because they have more pieces and larger pieces. They're all fully armored (contrast 2.0 and 3.0 heroes, especially Bulk), have longer limb pieces, armor in new places (e.g. Breez's Samus armor and back armor), and have more weapons. Also, Furno has a propeller pack.
The "sarcasm quotes" imply you believe they're the same size, which they aren't.

I'm glad that they're increasingly dispensing with the gratuitous asymmetry. At least on Two-Face, it's a deliberate stylistic choice, rather than totally arbitrary as on all the 2.0s and some 3.0 heroes.
Also, so much iron grey. It's becoming almost as bad as silver was during 2008.
Rocka, Evo, and Two-Face all have it as their secondary color, and Makuta, Breez, Furno, and Surge all have a few iron grey parts.

I'm still worried that Makuta's Thornax launcher will be pearl grey. That color was an abomination and a blight upon Lego.

What do you mean by Pearl Grey? Do you mean the main silver color used in BIONICLE from 2003-2006? That was 131 Silver, and it was discontinued briefly in 2006 (replaced by 296 Cool Silver), reintroduced in 2007 (replacing Cool Silver), and discontinued for good between 2010 and 2011 (replaced by 315 Silver Metallic). If it's any type of silver, it's 315 Silver Metallic, the current silver color.

Incidentally, the ____ stands for a certain site that has a database for parts and sets. However, since the site has forums I'm not sure if it's OK to name.

Goodness the number of inconsistent color names on this site caught me unprepared. Most of the time I've been on an AFOL forum since BZPower went down, and while AFOLs also use inconsistent color names, there are fewer metallic colors so it's easier to get a grasp on what colors people are talking about from context alone.

Pearl grey is the name which I understand is commonly used to describe the silver used on the 2006-2010 sets, while I use silver to mean the darker, more metallic shade used from 2002-2005 and 2011. Note that Black Phantom's Thornax launcher looks to be a flatter color than any other silver parts in the images.

[Zarohum]

Well, black Phantom went from the worst to best villain ever! AWESOME!

[Meiko]

Also, is this "Official Topic" approved by the staff as an official topic? I'm just making sure.

[Makaru]

Also, is this "Official Topic" approved by the staff as an official topic? I'm just making sure.

Hence the "as approved by Makaru" in the opening post.

Edited by Makaru, Oct 18 2011 - 07:14 PM.

[kalhiki]

I was looking at Splitface's picture and I noticed something:
That space station in the background looks oddly similar to Tanker Station 22. I'm sur it's just a coincidence, though.
Speaking of Splitface, the red half of his face is kinda creepy after looking at it for a while. It has a nose...

Kalhiki

[Meiko]

Also, is this "Official Topic" approved by the staff as an official topic? I'm just making sure.

Hence the "as approved by Makaru" in the opening post.

Didn't see that, sorry.

[Akuna Toa of Sonics]

For some reason these guys remind me of the Phantoka..
I want Black Phantom so bad.

[Aanchir: Rachira of Time]

Some things I ought to mention. First of all, Thornraxx's "teal" will not be the color from Kongu or earlier System sets like the Rock Raiders theme. That color is long discontinued and is not in the current-palette. It will almost certainly be Dark Azure, one of six new colors added to the palette in 2011, some of which will make their first appearances in sets in next year's LEGO Friends theme (a new theme for girls). Dark Azure actually appeared in some sets this year: specifically, the Spongebob set Heroic Heroes of the Deep and all the Alien Conquest sets (for the uniforms).

Additionally, the cores are NOT permanently attached to the torsos. We know this because the same torso pieces are used for the Ultrabuild Iron Man and Joker figures in next year's Super Heroes theme.

[Kojol]

Some things I ought to mention. First of all, Thornraxx's "teal" will not be the color from Kongu or earlier System sets like the Rock Raiders theme. That color is long discontinued and is not in the current-palette. It will almost certainly be Dark Azure, one of six new colors added to the palette in 2011, some of which will make their first appearances in sets in next year's LEGO Friends theme (a new theme for girls). Dark Azure actually appeared in some sets this year: specifically, the Spongebob set Heroic Heroes of the Deep and all the Alien Conquest sets (for the uniforms).

Additionally, the cores are NOT permanently attached to the torsos. We know this because the same torso pieces are used for the Ultrabuild Iron Man and Joker figures in next year's Super Heroes theme.

I already knew that, and I feel like many people did, but...
*looks up pictures*
...NOOO!
It's... blue. It's very blue.

Lego, I am dissapoint.

[Dorek]

Additionally, the cores are NOT permanently attached to the torsos. We know this because the same torso pieces are used for the Ultrabuild Iron Man and Joker figures in next year's Super Heroes theme.

You can see it on Splitface too, but yeah, they are attached via connector points somehow.

Some things I ought to mention. First of all, Thornraxx's "teal" will not be the color from Kongu or earlier System sets like the Rock Raiders theme. That color is long discontinued and is not in the current-palette. It will almost certainly be Dark Azure, one of six new colors added to the palette in 2011, some of which will make their first appearances in sets in next year's LEGO Friends theme (a new theme for girls). Dark Azure actually appeared in some sets this year: specifically, the Spongebob set Heroic Heroes of the Deep and all the Alien Conquest sets (for the uniforms).


Additionally, the cores are NOT permanently attached to the torsos. We know this because the same torso pieces are used for the Ultrabuild Iron Man and Joker figures in next year's Super Heroes theme.

I already knew that, and I feel like many people did, but...
*looks up pictures*
...NOOO!
It's... blue. It's very blue.


Lego, I am dissapoint.

I dunno, people do keep seem to be heralding it as the return of teal =P

Obviously it won't be the same color, but the purple that has been recurring since last year isn't identical to the purple made a few years ago, either, and I don't really see people complaining about that. It's a brand new color, and even though it isn't the same as the teal from the olden days, it is similar, and so represents new possibilities and a fun, wider palette for us to experiment with.

Edited by Dorek, Oct 18 2011 - 09:20 PM.

[Toa Xemnas of Crystal]

These sets are cool-ish. The heroes are better and taller, and they have launchers (I guess LEGO got pressured into giving them launchers, like Bionicle). Breez's sword weapon looks cool, so it has potential for MOCing.
The villains are okay... Jawblade reminds me of Pridak, Splitface is like a cross between Two-Face from Batman and Thunder, and Thornraxx is like a Mistika Makuta. I really don't like Toxic Reapa, mostly because of his name, and because he's too much like Meltdown. Black Phantom is, unfortunately, another clone of Fire Lord... but skinier.
Overall... they're cool. But since they're the best so far do you think that Hero Factory may soon be ending?

[Ehlekdude]

This will be second best wave IMO (after 1.0). Black Phantom is okay, Toxic Reapa is kinda cool, Thornraxx is great, Jawblade isn't great and SplitFace is also great. As for the heroes, Furno, Breez, Surge and Evo are all good, and Rocka is just magnificent. I doubt HF will be ending soon, though.

[Big Macintosh]

Some of the heroes look insanely bulky. Furno with a jetpack wins my approval. Best one so far is probably either SplitFace or Surge.

[Meiko]

Some things I ought to mention. First of all, Thornraxx's "teal" will not be the color from Kongu or earlier System sets like the Rock Raiders theme. That color is long discontinued and is not in the current-palette. It will almost certainly be Dark Azure, one of six new colors added to the palette in 2011, some of which will make their first appearances in sets in next year's LEGO Friends theme (a new theme for girls). Dark Azure actually appeared in some sets this year: specifically, the Spongebob set Heroic Heroes of the Deep and all the Alien Conquest sets (for the uniforms).

Additionally, the cores are NOT permanently attached to the torsos. We know this because the same torso pieces are used for the Ultrabuild Iron Man and Joker figures in next year's Super Heroes theme.

I already knew that, and I feel like many people did, but...
*looks up pictures*
...NOOO!
It's... blue. It's very blue.

Lego, I am dissapoint.

It's not blue, it's Dark Azure. It's a newer color, used in some of the Spongebob and Cars sets I believe.

[Toa of Pumpkin]

Gueeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeess what time it iiiiiiiiiiis!


Breez
Wow, if Lego ever wanted to make that character feminine, they've certainly given up now. With those shoulders, any attempt at feminine proportions has been cast away.
In addition, now red is everywhere except the hero core, removing the color from the one place it makes sense and effectively trashing her entire color scheme.

Evo
Oh, so you took out the purple. Nice job.
I wanted purple, lego. I wanted that purple and instead of making me a purple here you snatched it from the only one to ever have it.
Also, it would seem instead of letting TT make all of their weapons into guns, Lego took a preemptive strike and just gave all the characters guns to begin with.
Considering they're all launchers, now we'll know if DV's being paid to say nice things about sets.

Furno
Okay, so old helmet back. that's a plus, but Furno what have they done to you
They've removed your yellow except in a decal, they've outfitted you with the ugliest, bulkiest jetpack they have, and you over all the rest mark the death of symmetry.

Rocka
Silly Rocka, why does your clip have spears when your gun shoots spheres?
Oh, I see, it's supposed to look like a bow. Silly Rocka, guns aren't bows.

Surge
Lightning isn't blue. Gunmetal and silver togather only clutter up your color scheme. Your shoulder armor looks ridiculous.
Those are all of the things your friends are too nice to say to your face, Surge.

Jawblade
Okay, so the smaller villains aren't as bad? There, I said it.
Now explain to me why this guy is spiny. Sharks aren't spiny. I don't know of any large predatory fish that is spiny. Spines created drag. If you're gonna be spiny, you'd better not want to go very fast.
Also why does the robotic shark have HANDS.

Split Face
Hello, Two Face. No Batman here.
Yeah, so, lego, you don't seem to get the whole bisected color thing. If you're gonna do it, go the whole hog. I don't want black with my red or red with my black. That doesn't look very split.

Thornraxx
So weird teal that isn't Kongu teal, orange, and black with a hint of red.
So we've given up on color schemes, I see.
Also, why does everyone have these random tubes sticking out of theme? That seems like a poor decision in canon. The must get snagged all the time.

Toxicreap
So it's basically Meltdown but he's lime green.
Okay.

Black Phan-dumb
Ohohoho, so Lego saved their biggest monstrosity for last. He's got the build and horns of the Fire Lord with the big stick of the Witch Doctor and the random flaily things on his back of Rocka.
So yeah, the perfect terrible Titan.
In addition, the weird rounded armor does not complement the original angled armor in any way, shape, or form. The mace head is rounded and blocky, nothing like earlier maces and certainly not a good improvement.

I'm done.

As in, I'm done-done. This wave has helped me lose all faith in this line.

[Bulik]

woah, this is epical
im definately gonna buy some of these sets this year

it appears that this has half in the air, and half underwater. 2008 re-do
and furno looks like tahu did in 08. terrible

oh, and sme look on ice planet.
maybe they split up? or maybe they just have some in air, some on surface, and some under surface ice

Edited by bulik, Oct 19 2011 - 07:05 AM.

[Kojol]

It's not blue, it's Dark Azure. It's a newer color, used in some of the Spongebob and Cars sets I believe.

My point was that it looks a lot bluer than teal was, which is disappointing.

Gueeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeess what time it iiiiiiiiiiis!


Breez
Wow, if Lego ever wanted to make that character feminine, they've certainly given up now. With those shoulders, any attempt at feminine proportions has been cast away.
In addition, now red is everywhere except the hero core, removing the color from the one place it makes sense and effectively trashing her entire color scheme.

Evo
Oh, so you took out the purple. Nice job.
I wanted purple, lego. I wanted that purple and instead of making me a purple here you snatched it from the only one to ever have it.
Also, it would seem instead of letting TT make all of their weapons into guns, Lego took a preemptive strike and just gave all the characters guns to begin with.
Considering they're all launchers, now we'll know if DV's being paid to say nice things about sets.

Furno
Okay, so old helmet back. that's a plus, but Furno what have they done to you
They've removed your yellow except in a decal, they've outfitted you with the ugliest, bulkiest jetpack they have, and you over all the rest mark the death of symmetry.

Rocka
Silly Rocka, why does your clip have spears when your gun shoots spheres?
Oh, I see, it's supposed to look like a bow. Silly Rocka, guns aren't bows.

Surge
Lightning isn't blue. Gunmetal and silver togather only clutter up your color scheme. Your shoulder armor looks ridiculous.
Those are all of the things your friends are too nice to say to your face, Surge.

Jawblade
Okay, so the smaller villains aren't as bad? There, I said it.
Now explain to me why this guy is spiny. Sharks aren't spiny. I don't know of any large predatory fish that is spiny. Spines created drag. If you're gonna be spiny, you'd better not want to go very fast.
Also why does the robotic shark have HANDS.

Split Face
Hello, Two Face. No Batman here.
Yeah, so, lego, you don't seem to get the whole bisected color thing. If you're gonna do it, go the whole hog. I don't want black with my red or red with my black. That doesn't look very split.

Thornraxx
So weird teal that isn't Kongu teal, orange, and black with a hint of red.
So we've given up on color schemes, I see.
Also, why does everyone have these random tubes sticking out of theme? That seems like a poor decision in canon. The must get snagged all the time.

Toxicreap
So it's basically Meltdown but he's lime green.
Okay.

Black Phan-dumb
Ohohoho, so Lego saved their biggest monstrosity for last. He's got the build and horns of the Fire Lord with the big stick of the Witch Doctor and the random flaily things on his back of Rocka.
So yeah, the perfect terrible Titan.
In addition, the weird rounded armor does not complement the original angled armor in any way, shape, or form. The mace head is rounded and blocky, nothing like earlier maces and certainly not a good improvement.

I'm done.

As in, I'm done-done. This wave has helped me lose all faith in this line.

Somehow, I both agree with every one of your points, except for your evaluation of Black Phantom, and came to the opposite conclusion.
On the other hand, you didn't really go into detail on Toxic or Rocka, who are two of my favorites.

And you have to admit that teal and orange is better than crimson and lime green.
No, I have not forgiven Lego for Spiriah yet. I know it's been three and a half years.
And, if nothing else, we get teal and orange.

I do agree with you on the purple thing, especially. We got teal, at least, though.

Also, on Surge, you only got some of the things people say about him behind his back - He's anorexic, the helmet looks silly with the torso, he's got too much lime green, and the sword looks silly.
IMO, Breez is the only one here whose 1.0-style helmet looks good. Rocka's hat is better than his 3.0 hat, but it's still weird, Evo's hat looks ridiculous, and Furno's just looks bad to me for some reason.

Edited by Kojol, Oct 19 2011 - 08:42 AM.

[Aanchir: Rachira of Time]

I'm done.

As in, I'm done-done. This wave has helped me lose all faith in this line.

Wow. Haven't seen such a scathing, closed-minded review in quite a while. Starting to remember why I lost touch with the BIONICLE fan community.

Personally, I think Breez and Evo are excellent-- they're my favorite Heroes. I miss the purple on Evo as well as the colored Hero Cores, but for the most part the color schemes have stayed fairly consistent between forms. Evo's purple really couldn't have worked all that well because there is no transparent fluorescent purple color, although I wish there had at least been a trace of it on his torso decoration like most of the Heroes have.

Jawblade and Thornraxx are our two most imaginative builds for canister-sized sets so far. Thornraxx doesn't seem to use any regular torso bone pieces at all. Naturally, I'm a bit skeptical about non-conventional builds since it's harder to predict what they'll look like from all angles, but it's nice to see TLG not sticking to humanoids. As for why a shark with fists, I'd say something that wacky is pretty awesome in my book.

I can see how a lot of your criticisms are valid, but I feel you are ignoring a lot of the positive aspects of this upcoming wave. If you're dead-set on hating Hero Factory so be it, but in general this upcoming wave makes a lot of improvements on past waves in spite of what I'd consider minor disappointments.

[Kojol]

Now explain to me why this guy is spiny. Sharks aren't spiny. I don't know of any large predatory fish that is spiny. Spines created drag. If you're gonna be spiny, you'd better not want to go very fast.

Hybodus disagrees with you.

Thornraxx looks to be built with two Waspix connector pieces held together by a 5-length technic beam. As both LDD and my collection lack this part, I can't really visualize how he'll look in real life.
Jawblade, on the other hand, can be mostly built in LDD. However, I can't see his belly in the picture, and so don't know how he'll look, either.
I want to know how Toxic is built. He's got three of the 3-length cladding and his head all coming out of the chest/belly region. I'm guessing more Waspix.

However, my best guess is that they'll look fairly solid from most angles. I'm really looking forward to this line, for the first time in years.

[Everclearrr]

Definitely getting Reapa for all that awesome trans lime.

[sukapony]

*snip*
Also why does the robotic shark have HANDS.
*snip*

I'm going to guess it's so they can handcuff him with those fancy new parts, but aside from that it's pretty silly. Kind of like the line itself. Of course, I don't remember the rule that says toy robotic sharks in a totally made-up universe absolutely HAD to follow EXACTLY what REAL sharks look like TO THE LETTER. Neither do I remember the rule that says real life aerodynamics have to apply to a children's toy. Heck, if you want that just find some shark action figure that qualifies, don't look to Lego for that kind of thing.

Also, Toxic Reaper is pretty much different from Meltdown. Their only real similarity is that they have toxic storage tanks on their backs. Heck, Reaper shares more similarities with Corroder and no one would argue that they're very different. >_>

[Kojol]

*snip*
Also why does the robotic shark have HANDS.
*snip*

I'm going to guess it's so they can handcuff him with those fancy new parts, but aside from that it's pretty silly. Kind of like the line itself. Of course, I don't remember the rule that says toy robotic sharks in a totally made-up universe absolutely HAD to follow EXACTLY what REAL sharks look like TO THE LETTER. Neither do I remember the rule that says real life aerodynamics have to apply to a children's toy. Heck, if you want that just find some shark action figure that qualifies, don't look to Lego for that kind of thing.

Also, Toxic Reaper is pretty much different from Meltdown. Their only real similarity is that they have toxic storage tanks on their backs. Heck, Reaper shares more similarities with Corroder and no one would argue that they're very different. >_>

Besides, once you accept the robot shark super-villain, it's unreasonable to not accept that it has arms.
My initial reaction to Toxic was "bulbous Corroder", not "green Meltdown".

My rankings:
1 - Thornraxx
2 - Rocka
3 - Toxic Reapa
4 - Black Phantom
5 - Evo
6 - Jawblade
7 - Breez
8 - Splitface
9 - Furno
10 - Surge

The villains are much cooler (on so many levels) this time. Well, ignoring Black Phantom (who's cool, but uncreative and not anything special) and Splitface (whose only reason for existing is the Two-Face gimmick).
The colors!
The creative design!
The cohesive appearance! (Well, other than Thornraxx's color scheme)
The rare parts!

Also, Hero Factory seems to be further distancing itself from Hero Factory by reducing the number of heroes and making their designs more varied. Also, they seem to have decided to do away with the elemental themes for good, as the red guy is in water and seems to get less focus (or, at least, weaponry) than the green or gold guys, and the gold and yellow guys have no element. Really, Surge is the only set to still have an elemental theme.

[Riglax]

I dunno guys, but the 1.0 helmets on Furno, Breez and Surge were not a good choice. They just look sort of outdated, old, and don't really go smooth with the new build that was applied.

On the other hand, Rohka and Evo are the first Hero Factory sets I've actually wanted to get. They look amazing.

[Meiko]

I can't wait until these are launched. I personally think that Hero Factory is a great successor to BIONICLE. I don't get why so many people have to patronize the line.

[sukapony]

I don't get what's wrong with Jawblade having arms. A shark with arms is sorta silly, but so is a motorcycle with arms and people seem to love Slizers/Throwbots ;P

-ck

It's because Slizers/Throwbots/Roboriders didn't replace Bionicle.

Edited by Squishyfrog, Oct 19 2011 - 02:09 PM.

[Toa of Pumpkin]

I don't get what's wrong with Jawblade having arms. A shark with arms is sorta silly, but so is a motorcycle with arms and people seem to love Slizers/Throwbots ;P

-ck

It's because Slizers/Throwbots/Roboriders didn't replace Bionicle.

I'd take offense, but that's what they say to all HF criticism.

[Evex_Wolfwing]

I'm just glad that Black Phantom doesn't seem to have those Shoulder "supports" Fire Lord has. We just need to work on the upper legs, and I think Lego will have a decent Titan build.

Which will then become repetitive.

And we will complain.

As usual.

Also, I noticed that those Furno Blades can be used as plain old fins, if you don't like Jawblade having arms.

[Makaru]

It's because Slizers/Throwbots/Roboriders didn't replace Bionicle.

I'd take offense, but that's what they say to all HF criticism.

Both of you, quit it.

[Aanchir: Rachira of Time]

The villains are much cooler (on so many levels) this time. Well, ignoring Black Phantom (who's cool, but uncreative and not anything special) and Splitface (whose only reason for existing is the Two-Face gimmick).
The colors!
The creative design!
The cohesive appearance! (Well, other than Thornraxx's color scheme)
The rare parts!

I don't see why people dislike Thornraxx's color scheme so much. It's a pretty normal color scheme from my perspective: a primary color, a contrasting secondary color, and a couple neutral colors. The only thing arguably throwing it off is the transparent red of his eyes and tail. For the most part, it's as cohesive as most of the Visorak color schemes.

Also, Hero Factory seems to be further distancing itself from Hero Factory by reducing the number of heroes and making their designs more varied. Also, they seem to have decided to do away with the elemental themes for good, as the red guy is in water and seems to get less focus (or, at least, weaponry) than the green or gold guys, and the gold and yellow guys have no element. Really, Surge is the only set to still have an elemental theme.

Don't you mean from BIONICLE?

I'd actually argue this next wave's set designs are closer to the elemental motif than the previous two waves, considering the elemental patterns on the heroes' torsos. Potentially the story as well. 2.0 and 3.0 characters really had nothing to do with their elements-- their weapon effects in the TV series stayed the same as in Rise of the Rookies, but this was mostly just a visual effect (especially considering Stringer 3.0's "plasma gun" having the same effect as his sonic weapon from the first wave). Putting Furno underwater could very easily be a deliberate choice in order to take him "out of his element" in a literal sense.

As far as elemental weapons are concerned, Breez also still has it about as much as she did before. After all, her sword is just as "breezy" as her boomerangs could be considered to be (at least design-wise).

[Daiker]

*snip*
Also why does the robotic shark have HANDS.
*snip*

I'm going to guess it's so they can handcuff him with those fancy new parts, but aside from that it's pretty silly. Kind of like the line itself. Of course, I don't remember the rule that says toy robotic sharks in a totally made-up universe absolutely HAD to follow EXACTLY what REAL sharks look like TO THE LETTER. Neither do I remember the rule that says real life aerodynamics have to apply to a children's toy. Heck, if you want that just find some shark action figure that qualifies, don't look to Lego for that kind of thing.

Also, Toxic Reaper is pretty much different from Meltdown. Their only real similarity is that they have toxic storage tanks on their backs. Heck, Reaper shares more similarities with Corroder and no one would argue that they're very different. >_>

And I wonder how on Earth they're going to cage an aquatic villain

And I would say TR is closer to meltdown. Mainly because Corroder is a quadrupedal.