Why does so much of Bionicle disappoint?

[Sir Kohran]

It seems that if there's one thing almost all Bionicle sets or media have in common, it's that something about them is just not right to someone. Nearly everything was at odds with what fans wanted and could've been done much better. To illustrate this, I've listed every problem I or others have brought up over the years. The first are problems with the line overall, and the others belong to specific points in the line. Enjoy. (Or not, given the list's nature.)

 

 

The storyline was too complicated to follow, took far too long to unfold, and was too dark and serious in tone.

 

The story lost the mysterious fantasy feel of the early years.

 

The later storyline relied too much on books and not enough on engaging media.

 

There were too many characters, and too many transformations, many of which did not resemble the previous forms.

 

There were too many males and not enough females.

 

Romance was made non-canon, robbing the story of sweetness and warmth.

 

Greg’s writing was limited and/or low quality, and he was given too much control over the story.

 

The serials were made up as they went along instead of being part of an overall story, and so were much less interesting.

 

Greg stopped writing the serials despite assurances the story would continue after the sets ended.

 

The movies were too short and rushed, leaving out important information.

 

Most groups of villain sets were just recoloured clones without enough variation.

 

Sets abandoned gear functions and complex designs to focus on cheap gimmicks, dumbing them down.

 

Sets abandoned bright colours for dull and washed out ones.

 

Names abandoned the Polynesian feel for bizarre ones with excessive Ks and Xs.

 

The MNOLG took too long to provide new chapters, and there was nothing to do in the meantime.

 

The Legend of Mata Nui was cancelled, losing a great game, and the remaining CD is not allowed to be released.

 

The Bohrok Episodes were disjointed and mostly lacked proper endings, and also took too long to arrive.

 

The Bohrok Kal arc was completely pointless, and the sets were just recoloured Bohrok.

 

There was no explanation for the Nuva Cube.

 

The redesigned Matoran used the arms of their most recent enemies.

 

Lewa’s dialogue went back and forth between normal and Treespeak.

 

The second MNOLG focused too much on chores with very little story and had glitches, making the game boring and frustrating.

 

The Game had terrible gameplay, and lacked all the promised levels.

 

Takua and Jaller had annoying voices in the first movie.

 

Takua’s name changing when he became a Toa was inconsistent with other Matoran keeping their names when they became Toa.

 

There was no explanation for how Hahli could return up a long vertical shaft she was far too short to even reach.

 

The Toa Nuva had nothing to do in the movie’s climax.

 

Takanuva was introduced as a crucial saviour in 2003 only to do next to nothing until almost the end of the story.

 

Ahkmou being the traitor in 2004 was predictable due to him being a traitor in the first year.

 

The Vahki played no important role in the story.

 

The second movie failed to explain anything about the Great Discs.

 

The 2005 arc was pointless because the ending of the Metru Nui flashback had already happened in the 2004 movie.

 

Vakama turning evil was ridiculous and unbelievable after his hero’s journey in the previous year.

 

The Toa Nuva were not brought back as the main characters in 2006 despite assurances they would be.

 

The 2006 sets included firearms, at odds with the melee equipment of previous characters.

 

The Piraka Rap and Save The Band were cheesy and embarrassing.

 

The VNOLG involved too much wandering around.

 

Heroes was too easy and the gameplay had very little to do with the canon story.

 

The Inika build was used repetitively long after its introduction.

 

None of Makuta’s defeats were for real and the heroes were actually playing right into his hands, cheapening their efforts and making it pointless to root for them.

 

The line ended too suddenly.

 

The Stars were awkwardly designed due to the Av-Matoran build, and redundantly used some characters who had been sets just the year before.

 

 

I'm sure there are others. What I want to know is why are there so many? Were our expectations too high, or did Lego just not take enough care?

[fishers64]

Bionicle isn't perfect. 

 

Very few things in this world are. And if it isn't perfect, human beings will always find things to complain about. It's who we are. 

[bonesiii]

1) Personal taste varies. (So some things will be problems only to some, but still liked by the majority.)

 

2) Personal taste again in a different amount. (Some things liked only by some, including those who picked them at LEGO, disliked by most.)

 

3) Misunderstandings by complaining fans of just which complaints are in which of the above categories.

 

4) Misunderstandings (or bad prior guesses anyways) by LEGO of just which complaints are in which categories.

 

5) Rarely, objective mistakes made simply because it was their first real foray into major storytelling.

 

6) Sometimes cross-genre things. (For example, Greg is a fan of comic-book style, which fans of that style enjoy and would see as improvement being brought to the books, etc. To me it's more of "tolerable", to a lot of people it feels "low quality." Probably it was good for many target-age kids, but might not have been the best match for them.)

 

And I could go on and on. Basically, lists like this could be made about any franchise. The real trick is discerning just what were objective mistakes (and why) and what were mistakes for the majority (and why), and learning how to avoid them. That's a vast subject that's been discussed out in the many topics discussing specifics here before; I wouldn't have time to try to cover them all here now anyways. But if you think about it and look down your list, you'll probably easily see where most fit.

 

The most important key to this is to learn to entirely separate your own personal preferences from your objective judgment on what is what. And a great way to do that is, if you feel something you strongly dislike (or mildly for that matter), or strongly like is objectively poor quality (or quality), look around in communities, whether in real life or online, to see if you find others expressing different tastes. If you never do, it may be objective. If it's rare, it may be subjective, but still be better for LEGO to try to appeal to as a majority taste.

 

Another key is to remember that complaints tend to be more vocal in online communities, so you have to weight things a little more toward the positive side (but usually not much!).

 

Another is don't judge by posts much; when possible, look for polls. (I've seen things go radically both ways on that; for example, usually there had been about the same number of posts disliking the RS's revival as liking it, but my new poll is showing the dislike is pretty strongly ahead. Yet, my last poll on method of return people want went surprisingly far in the way I personally like. It's hard to predict these things, so polls are often one of the best tools -- just keep in mind that BZP tastes can actually differ from Bionicle fanbase majority by varying margins depending on the subject, and you can't blindly guess which subjects that's true on and which way, so there's still a lot of uncertainty.)

 

Yet another interesting factor is that youngsters will tend to be more accepting of things, while as they age, they tend to turn a more critical eye toward things as they learn the value of constructive criticism -- plus, tastes actually change as we age. This can introduce way more uncertainty, as the things they now start to like might not have actually worked when they were younger, yet others they may actually have liked better and didn't realize it at the time.

 

So, the only really short answer is, "It's complicated." But there's some advice, coming from somebody who's studied this subject intensely over the years since 2003 in Bionicle's fanbase and followed just about every complaint topic, etc.

 

Hope it helps!

[~Shockwave~]

The later storyline relied too much on books and not enough on engaging media.

 

"engaging media"

 

There were too many characters, and too many transformations, many of which did not resemble the previous forms.

 

One could ask why someone would bother transforming to look the same.

 

Man, can you imagine if Transformers did that? Like Optimus would just transform into a slightly different looking Optimus and nothing else. That would be great.

 

Romance was made non-canon, robbing the story of sweetness and warmth.

Oh yes, the only way to add feeling to your story is to have romance in it. 

 

Sets abandoned gear functions and complex designs to focus on cheap gimmicks, dumbing them down.

 

Oh man. It took me hours to build the toa mata. They where so complicated and- Oh wait... No. That's not right...

 

BTW. Anything from gear functions to posability is considered a "Gimmick". The gears where very limiting to how posability could work as well.

 

The 2005 arc was pointless because the ending of the Metru Nui flashback had already happened in the 2004 movie.

 

I forgot the rule where you can't go back in time to explain things in a story if you've already moved passed it. 

 

​I could probably nitpick most of the reasons given. But most of them are opinions, and not backed by much at that. And while having an opinion is great, you presented these as things that where wrong with the story, rather then you not liking them. and some need some explaining to make sense. 

Edited August 23, 2014 by ~Shockwave~

[Toa of Gallifrey]

It seems that if there's one thing almost all Bionicle sets or media have in common, it's that something about them is just not right to someone. Nearly everything was at odds with what fans wanted and could've been done much better. To illustrate this, I've listed every problem I or others have brought up over the years. The first are problems with the line overall, and the others belong to specific points in the line. Enjoy. (Or not, given the list's nature.)

It can't be right to everyone, but someone will like it how it is.

 

The storyline was too complicated to follow, took far too long to unfold, and was too dark and serious in tone.

I personally liked the complicated story. I like a story that takes its time and can take itself seriously. I can understand I'm in the minority, though.

The story lost the mysterious fantasy feel of the early years.

Tbh I'm glad it left, had it stayed too long it would've outstayed its welcome.

The later storyline relied too much on books and not enough on engaging media.

Books are engaging media. Not everyone likes to read but likewise not everyone wants a TV show.

There were too many characters, and too many transformations, many of which did not resemble the previous forms.

I'm a bit on the fence about that. On one hand, too many characters meant a lot got sidelined. On the other hand, it made the universe seem so much bigger. As for the transformations, I liked that they didn't resemble their previous forms much. It gave us something completely new to work with.

There were too many males and not enough females.

Agreed on that.

Romance was made non-canon, robbing the story of sweetness and warmth.

I don't think romance is necessary for sweetness and warmth. I wouldn't be against romance being canon but I'm glad it was never a main plot point.

Greg’s writing was limited and/or low quality, and he was given too much control over the story.

I really enjoyed his writing, thus am happy that he was given lots of control of the story.

The serials were made up as they went along instead of being part of an overall story, and so were much less interesting.

The spontaneous nature of them is disappointing but I always found all of them very interesting.

Greg stopped writing the serials despite assurances the story would continue after the sets ended.

That's on his real life commitments, though.

The movies were too short and rushed, leaving out important information.

I found WoS and TLR rushed, MoL and LoMN were fine Imo.

Most groups of villain sets were just recoloured clones without enough variation.

I assume you're talking about the creatures, because the only sapient villains that were recolored with little variation were the Piraka. The Barraki and the Makuta were extremely varied.

Sets abandoned gear functions and complex designs to focus on cheap gimmicks, dumbing them down.

To be fair, the gear functions limited playability a lot. As for complex designs, they were never that complex. It's just that we got used to the Inika build.

Sets abandoned bright colours for dull and washed out ones.

I agree in that I would've liked more bright colors in between but I can't complain about the dark red and green.

Names abandoned the Polynesian feel for bizarre ones with excessive Ks and Xs.

The Maori lawsuit probably was the cause of this, thus I understand. I don't really have complaints when it comes to the later names, though.

The MNOLG took too long to provide new chapters, and there was nothing to do in the meantime.

It was a free game, though. It couldn't be expected to be developed too quickly.

The Legend of Mata Nui was cancelled, losing a great game, and the remaining CD is not allowed to be released.

It's a real shame about TLoMN, I also wish it were released.

The Bohrok Episodes were disjointed and mostly lacked proper endings, and also took too long to arrive.

I think they're pretty well connected. Can't comment on the time because I wasn't around back then.

The Bohrok Kal arc was completely pointless, and the sets were just recoloured Bohrok.

I agree on that the Bohrok Kal were just recolored Bohrok (though the Krana Kal were sweet) but the arc was hardly pointless.

There was no explanation for the Nuva Cube.

Back then that was just to add to the mysterious feel. Now we actually do have an explanation (albeit a dodgy one).

The redesigned Matoran used the arms of their most recent enemies.

So?

Lewa’s dialogue went back and forth between normal and Treespeak.

Yeah I agree on that, it was a bit annoying.

The second MNOLG focused too much on chores with very little story and had glitches, making the game boring and frustrating.

Yeah MNOGII tried to incorporate too many RPG grindy elements and the ending feels incomplete.

The Game had terrible gameplay, and lacked all the promised levels.

Yeah BTG has pretty bad gameplay and a lack of fun levels. Still love the score, though.

Takua and Jaller had annoying voices in the first movie.

I quite liked their voices.

Takua’s name changing when he became a Toa was inconsistent with other Matoran keeping their names when they became Toa.

I always felt that was his way of letting go of his irresponsible personality.

There was no explanation for how Hahli could return up a long vertical shaft she was far too short to even reach.

Eh, I just assumed she dug her way out or something.

The Toa Nuva had nothing to do in the movie’s climax.

It was to showcase Takanuva, though. The Toa had to respect Taka and Terry's 1v1.

Takanuva was introduced as a crucial saviour in 2003 only to do next to nothing until almost the end of the story.

I understood that he was supposed to be a crucial savior when it came to awakening Mata Nui. He did his job when he helped the islanders get back to Metru Nui and he did his part in awakening Mata Nui at Karda Nui. His actual destiny has to do with a future GB civil war, though.

Ahkmou being the traitor in 2004 was predictable due to him being a traitor in the first year.

It was supposed to be a nod to that.

The Vahki played no important role in the story.

They were just supposed to be minions.

The second movie failed to explain anything about the Great Discs.

They do explain that they were needed for the Vahi.

The 2005 arc was pointless because the ending of the Metru Nui flashback had already happened in the 2004 movie.

It wasn't really pointless, it was a fun exploration at the Metru's inner structure since they were split up for the most part in 2004.

Vakama turning evil was ridiculous and unbelievable after his hero’s journey in the previous year.

I don't think it's that ridiculous, though it should've been Matau.

The Toa Nuva were not brought back as the main characters in 2006 despite assurances they would be.

I wasn't around to know about the promises, but they were pretty important regardless.

The 2006 sets included firearms, at odds with the melee equipment of previous characters.

It's good to have variety.

The Piraka Rap and Save The Band were cheesy and embarrassing.

Cheesy, yes. Embarrassing? Not that much, it's just funny in retrospect. XD

The VNOLG involved too much wandering around.

Yeah VNOG was pretty bad.

Heroes was too easy and the gameplay had very little to do with the canon story.

Again, Heroes was pretty bad.

The Inika build was used repetitively long after its introduction.

It should've been phased out at some point (maybe the Glatorian era would've been good) but I can see why it stuck. It was kind of a "if it ain't broke don't fix it".

None of Makuta’s defeats were for real and the heroes were actually playing right into his hands, cheapening their efforts and making it pointless to root for them.

That adds to the story, though. It adds threat to Makuta and makes you wanna root for them even more and make their victory that much sweeter.

The line ended too suddenly.

Agreed, shoulda stayed till 2012 as originally planned.

The Stars were awkwardly designed due to the Av-Matoran build, and redundantly used some characters who had been sets just the year before.

I agree about the Stars. It was that or nothing, though. Thankfully we got some cool pieces out of it.

 

I'm sure there are others. What I want to know is why are there so many? Were our expectations too high, or did Lego just not take enough care?

Comments in bold.

[TheSkeletonMan939]

The storyline was too complicated to follow, took far too long to unfold, and was too dark and serious in tone.

 

Well, all the cool kids like dark and violent these days. Can't blame Lego for cashing in on that.

 

The story lost the mysterious fantasy feel of the early years.

 

Well, everything can't be a mystery forever, can it?

 

There were too many males and not enough females.

 

Just another result of the story team trying to make the sets as marketable as possible.

 

Romance was made non-canon, robbing the story of sweetness and warmth.

 

When's the last time you saw robots fall in love? I think the concept of love was outlawed by the story team when they decided that the Bara Magnans would come into play later; they were truly organic beings, while the Matoran were not.

 

Greg’s writing was limited and/or low quality, and he was given too much control over the story.

 

Would you rather have Greg write the story, or let that Cathy Hapka woman write everything? She wasn't that great of a storyteller - quite boring, actually (though, Greg had the advantage of being directly involved with the story team). Maybe Greg isn't that amazing as a writer, but as a storyteller, I think he's marvelous.

 

The serials were made up as they went along instead of being part of an overall story, and so were much less interesting.

 

Yeah, gotta agree with you there. I felt like too many concepts were being thrown at us at once - I liked these stories, but it was so much to keep track of. Some of them went nowhere, like the whole Voporak-Vahi thing, and The Shadowed One simply disappearing.

 

Greg stopped writing the serials despite assurances the story would continue after the sets ended.

 

Greg wrote those serials for free, on his own time, for us fans. You couldn't have expected that to last forever.

 

And, hey, what's Greg up to now? What's that? He's answering every stupid Bionicle question he can on the Lego Message Boards? That's the next best thing! This man is more appreciative and helpful to his fans than a lot of other writers are.

 

The MNOLG took too long to provide new chapters, and there was nothing to do in the meantime.

 

The Bohrok Episodes... took too long to arrive.

 

...

...

 

????????

 

There was no explanation for how Hahli could return up a long vertical shaft she was far too short to even reach.

 

I don't really have a comment on this, but isn't this nitpicking juusst a little? Is this the "so much" of Bionicle that disappoints?

 

Ahkmou being the traitor in 2004 was predictable due to him being a traitor in the first year.

 

Back in 2001 he wasn't Ahkmou. He was the Koli Ball seller. Had anyone even made the connection yet in 2004?

 

The 2005 arc was pointless because the ending of the Metru Nui flashback had already happened in the 2004 movie.

 

 

Vakama turning evil was ridiculous and unbelievable after his hero’s journey in the previous year.

 

It was a little forced, but believable. He was upset, addle-brained, angry, and confused.

 

I'm sure there are others. What I want to know is why are there so many? Were our expectations too high, or did Lego just not take enough care?

 

If these are all your personal problems with Bionicle specifically, I think you're expecting some sort of perfect, infallible story that dwarfs anything before it. This story was meant to supplement a toy line. A toy line. Greg made it known that the story ALWAYS came second to the toys. If this much of Bionicle disappoints you, or anyone, then you must assume the story came first.

 

And Lego for the most part did take care. They made comics books, movies, multiple video games, story serials - heck, they even kicked off the line with a stunning online explorer game. How many other of Lego's lines had received that sort of treatment? How many since Bionicle's end have received that treatment, besides Ninjago with its TV series?

[Banana Gunz]

The story can't be perfect. A lot of these things I wish could be changed but what we got is what we got. And, for the most part I'm satisfied. And believe me, LEGO cared. A lot. A lot of things they did they could've chosen not to. Bionicle was bold, and the first time LEGO made a story by itself that really went places and affected its audience. I wish Bionicle were better than what it is but it's fine for now. Mistakes are easy to make, and plenty were made, but there's something Bionicle did to/for me that few other franchises/stories have managed to do.

[Sir Kohran]

If it wasn't clear enough - these problems/issues aren't all my own. I could care more (for instance) about whether the serial story was planned in advance. And it's true that many are simply a matter of personal taste.

 

I didn't go into much detail on most of these, so to address some things that I didn't make entirely clear:

 

 

 

"engaging media"

 

Stuff like the MNOLG and the movies. Increasingly lacking after 05/06, apart from The Legend Reborn (but that was right before the end was announced and so a bit too late to make a difference). Declining book sales and lack of sales growth overall seem consistent with this.

 

 

 

One could ask why someone would bother transforming to look the same.

 

Well, now that I think about it, the desire for resemblance probably derives from a deeper desire for the characters not to change in the first place.

 

 

 

Oh yes, the only way to add feeling to your story is to have romance in it.

 

When did I say anything about 'feeling'? And many on here have generally agreed that the romantic elements did add something lighter to the early cast and tone.

 

 

 

BTW. Anything from gear functions to posability is considered a "Gimmick".

 

What I was getting at with 'gimmicks' was largely the light-up bits on the 2006 sets.

 

 

 

I forgot the rule where you can't go back in time to explain things in a story if you've already moved passed it.

 

What tension or excitement is there to a story when the ending had already been told? 

 

 

 

Books are engaging media. Not everyone likes to read but likewise not everyone wants a TV show.

 

I simply don't think that's true, given Bionicle's faltering sales when it relied largely on books and the steady performance of the three current story lines that have relied on television with books only as a backup.

 

 

 

I assume you're talking about the creatures, because the only sapient villains that were recolored with little variation were the Piraka.

 

Yes, namely the Bohrok, Rahkshi, Vahki and Visorak (though oddly the first two managed to be perhaps Bionicle's bestselling villains).

 

 

 

As for complex designs, they were never that complex. It's just that we got used to the Inika build.

 

I'm thinking more of sets like the Rahi, Boxor, and Ussanui. And yes, I know these sets didn't sell especially well.

 

 

 

The Maori lawsuit probably was the cause of this, thus I understand.

 

That was at the very start of the line; for years afterwards many names continued in the initial style (Hahli, Nidhiki, Roodaka, etc). That didn't end until around 06/07. I believe the effect of the lawsuit was that Lego wouldn't use actual Maori words as names.

 

 

 

Can't comment on the time because I wasn't around back then.

 

It took between one and two months for a new one to come along. That might not sound like a lot, but when we were checking the main site almost every day it was a pretty long wait. It didn't help that what we got was a bit underwhelming.

 

 

 

So?

 

At the time some felt it was inappropriate for the heroes to have body parts from their enemies.

 

 

 

I just assumed she dug her way out or something.

 

The movie clearly shows her emerging from the tunnel Takanuva earlier entered down.

 

 

 

I understood that he was supposed to be a crucial savior when it came to awakening Mata Nui. He did his job when he helped the islanders get back to Metru Nui and he did his part in awakening Mata Nui at Karda Nui. His actual destiny has to do with a future GB civil war, though.

 

Part of the problem is that his exact role wasn't specified. I suppose it was largely assumed to be bringing down Makuta, which he appeared to do in the movie but obviously didn't in the long term.

 

 

 

They do explain that they were needed for the Vahi.

 

I was thinking more that their origins and significance aren't made clear (Vakama does eventually use them for the Vahi, but the movie doesn't draw much attention to it when he does).

 

 

 

it was a fun exploration at the Metru's inner structure since they were split up for the most part in 2004.

 

They spent a lot of time together in the books and some comics.

 

 

 

I wasn't around to know about the promises, but they were pretty important regardless.

 

Could you explain that?

 

 

 

That adds to the story, though. It adds threat to Makuta and makes you wanna root for them even more and make their victory that much sweeter.

 

Their victories can't be sweet when they've failed to accomplish anything. The very last victory was genuine, yes, but that was only because the main story had to be ended.

 

 

 

When's the last time you saw robots fall in love?

 

In Bionicle's early years?

 

 

 

...

...

 

????????

 

See what I said further up. I can assure you the somewhat long wait for updates did bother some people.

 

 

I don't really have a comment on this, but isn't this nitpicking juusst a little? Is this the "so much" of Bionicle that disappoints?

 

It's one complaint of many.

 

 

Back in 2001 he wasn't Ahkmou. He was the Koli Ball seller. Had anyone even made the connection yet in 2004?

 

The Comet seller has another (non traitorous) appearance in the second MNOLG, in which he is named as Ahkmou (or some slight variant) for the first time. I'm pretty sure the connection was established.

 

 

 

Could you expand on that slightly?

 

 

It was a little forced, but believable. He was upset, addle-brained, angry, and confused.

 

In the previous year he had been tempted by Makuta himself but rejected it, stating that he "desire(s) only one noble destiny", and later declares "the Great Spirit proclaims it - we are Toa!" It seems unbelievable that after all that he should turn to evil.

 

 

This story was meant to supplement a toy line. A toy line. Greg made it known that the story ALWAYS came second to the toys. If this much of Bionicle disappoints you, or anyone, then you must assume the story came first.

 

I think the problem is that for so many, the story was what drew them to Bionicle, so it did come first.

[Aanchir]

One reason is that BIONICLE was a kids' toyline with a more ambitious story component than the LEGO Group had ever attempted before. They were figuring things out as they went along. Some stuff was successful, some less so.

 

But another reason is of course the way fans shaped their expectations. BIONICLE was a very multifaceted franchise, even though the LEGO Group tried to keep certain things consistent. If you got particular enjoyment out of one of the forms BIONICLE took and expected all other forms to measure up to that expectation, you were bound for disappointment. You see this in ANY franchise — I know that the Transformers franchise in particular is VERY divided over which version of the franchise was the best, as are many superhero franchises. But one thing about BIONICLE that sets it apart from those is that on its surface it was trying to present one solid, unbroken continuity. This is very different from (for example) the Batman franchise, in which many of the movies depict decidedly different versions of the Batman mythos.

[Pomegranate]

Different people have different tastes, different experiences. Bob Jones may have hated everything about it and John Smith may have loved everything about it, and the rest of us would be somewhere in between them. You may as well add everything that ever happened in Bionicle to that list, because someone somewhere will have hated it-- whether it was a quote or a set or a story decision or a game-- and that's basically guaranteed. Everyone can find something to nitpick and ignore, or praise and worship. Compiling a list of every single complaint that you've ever heard doesn't really... do much. Some will agree, some will disagree. 

Edited August 23, 2014 by Pomegranate

[Fry]

I'm not going to waste my time replying to every point so I'll paraphrase it: I agree with everything save MNOG II (especially LOMN)

Edited August 24, 2014 by PrismWind

[~Shockwave~]

If it wasn't clear enough - these problems/issues aren't all my own. I could care more (for instance) about whether the serial story was planned in advance. And it's true that many are simply a matter of personal taste.

 

I didn't go into much detail on most of these, so to address some things that I didn't make entirely clear:

 

 

 

"engaging media"

 

Stuff like the MNOLG and the movies. Increasingly lacking after 05/06, apart from The Legend Reborn (but that was right before the end was announced and so a bit too late to make a difference). Declining book sales and lack of sales growth overall seem consistent with this.

 

I spent five straight hours reading a book. Anyone who says they aren't "engaging media" obviously isn't reading the right ones.

 

We could argue about the quality of bionicle books in general. But that doesn't seem to be what you are getting at. 

 

 

 

One could ask why someone would bother transforming to look the same.

 

Well, now that I think about it, the desire for resemblance probably derives from a deeper desire for the characters not to change in the first place.

 

 

That wouldn't go over well. And rereleasing characters in new forms keeps them relevant. If the main Toa got one release Lego wouldn't have kept them relevent very long. That's at least part of the reason Takanuva wasn't relevant for awhile. And rereleasing sets that already exist to keep them relevent doesn't bring on proggressive building techniques and just looks lazy. So that's not the answer either.

 

 

 

Oh yes, the only way to add feeling to your story is to have romance in it.

 

When did I say anything about 'feeling'? And many on here have generally agreed that the romantic elements did add something lighter to the early cast and tone.

 

 Warmth and and sweetness would tend to coincide with the form of emotion you where using. And emotion is synonymous with feeling. I'm not saying it wouldn't add anything. I'm saying it's far from the only way.

 

 

BTW. Anything from gear functions to posability is considered a "Gimmick".

 

What I was getting at with 'gimmicks' was largely the light-up bits on the 2006 sets.

 

We can't read your mind. Be specific.

 

 

 

I forgot the rule where you can't go back in time to explain things in a story if you've already moved passed it.

 

What tension or excitement is there to a story when the ending had already been told?

 

You mean like the tension of knowing the turaga make it to Mata-Nui intact with all the matoran? From the start of the 2004 story ark? Or the tension of knowing that they all turn into turaga?

[Nato G]

I gave up reading through all of the replies about halfway through. Is this seriously an entire topic devoted to complaining about every little thing you people didn't like about Bionicle? It was an experiment, Lego's first attempt at creating a story-based theme, and look how far it went. Overall, I loved it. That doesn't mean there weren't little things here and there that could have been done better, or whatever, but I'm not going to start a topic to list my complaints about it. 

 

Everyone has different tastes, and that was part of what I personally think made Bionicle great. It kept changing, every year in both story and design, to adapt and grow and evolve. It grew up with me. The sets grew more complex and creative, and the story only improved.

 

Of course it lost the mystery and the nostalgic feel. Of course the characters changed. Of course there were some things that people didn't like.

 

I can think of something else that shares those qualities: LIFE.  

[Reznas]

I fail to understand this trend of "Bionicle is a disappointment" topics. There have been three or four in the past couple of months...and it's kind of annoying.

 

Here's the deal, if we look for every problem in every story, or in anything in life, for that matter, all we will ever find is disappointment. Stories aren't perfect, because they're made by people, who aren't perfect either. It's getting slightly irritating that so many people expect Bionicle to be perfect when that's a false expectation. The majority of this site still enjoys Bionicle, that's why we've stayed four years after it ended to continue discussing it. It really ruins the mood when people come in and try to tell us why we shouldn't like Bionicle.

 

Can I make a simple request and ask those who are trying to pick apart Bionicle to please just let it be? You've made your point.

 

-Rez

Edited August 24, 2014 by Reznas

[toa kopaka4372]

Different people have different tastes, different experiences. Bob Jones may have hated everything about it and John Smith may have loved everything about it, and the rest of us would be somewhere in between them. You may as well add everything that ever happened in Bionicle to that list, because someone somewhere will have hated it-- whether it was a quote or a set or a story decision or a game-- and that's basically guaranteed. Everyone can find something to nitpick and ignore, or praise and worship. Compiling a list of every single complaint that you've ever heard doesn't really... do much. Some will agree, some will disagree. 

Yes, this summarizes my opinion perfectly. I could compile a list of what made BIONICLE great and it really wouldn't prove anything either. Some will agree, some will disagree.

 

Also, goodness, what's with the onslaught of negative topics lately? 'BIONICLE was only good from 2001--2004', 'Where did BIONICLE Go Wrong?' and now this. We should be able to objectively look and criticize a story we love, but it's beginning to feel like overkill.

[Fry]

I fail to understand the trend of "Bionicle is unfair" topics that have been going around...

Am I the only one who isn't disappointed by Bionicle? I never really had any expectations. The only thing that really bothers me is the build quality towards the end. In all seriousness, Bionicle is a masterpiece compared to some other lines... and I'm surprised that Lego actually came up with such a cool story, 2001 especially. I guess that I am a little disappointed that they left the whole mysterious feel of 2001. Well, never mind, I am really disappointed that LOMN wasn't released, but that's about it. The fact that a Lego toyline has even a remotely good story is amazing in and of itself so I wouldn't be complaining. 

Edited August 24, 2014 by PrismWind

[TheSkeletonMan939]

 

 

Could you expand on that slightly?

 

 

Oh yeah, I'd love to. That was my "I can't even begin to understand the logic of this" face.

 

According to what you said, WoS was pointless because we already saw what happened to the Matoran in LoMN. Well, dang. Doesn't that meant all of 2004 and 2005 were useless? I mean, it took place in the past.

 

The Star Wars prequels must be useless too, just because we know what happens already. And any flashback in any book or movie, because those take place in the past.

 

Anyone who says Web of Shadows was bad for taking place in the past is, quite frankly, terrible at life. Looking back on the past deepens our understanding of the present - therefore, we understand better Vakama's character, and how he feels about his confidence as a leader. We also learn how Makuta got out of his cage between Legends of Metru Nui and the 2001 story year. We have a better understanding of why the Matoran and Turaga can't just go back to Metru Nui whenever they feel like it - there are Visorak remains and mutated Rahi everywhere, and the Matoran have no protection against that.

[MrSciFiGuy]

Nothing is perfect, but the heart and effort remains the same throughout the saga. Discrepencies happen, and the fact that is a child-targeted/marketed story doesnt always help. When anything goes on long enough there's plenty to nit-pick at. Just look at any other story that has gone on for a long time. I have people who love Dr. Who to death, but the second something new comes out they say its the end and everything is ruined and etc...

 

I think Bionicle is great the way it is. In the end they did the best they could every year to deliver an exceptional product and story. 

[Klak]

It has its flaws, but I'm sure we can all enjoy the times we had as Bionicle fans. And if the series comes back, then this is our time, friends.