Name for New Animation Style?

[Kuurai]

What exactly is the new animation style for 2015+ called? From the NYCC slide show I think they called it Toon Boom, but that might just be the color editing style name.

[Lyichir]

What exactly is the new animation style for 2015+ called? From the NYCC slide show I think they called it Toon Boom, but that might just be the color editing style name.

Toon Boom is the animation software they're using. The new style doesn't have a name, and to be honest I don't see why it needs one.

[Vraiment]

 

What exactly is the new animation style for 2015+ called? From the NYCC slide show I think they called it Toon Boom, but that might just be the color editing style name.

Toon Boom is the animation software they're using. The new style doesn't have a name, and to be honest I don't see why it needs one.

 

To reference it, the same way they referenced MNOG's style as an influence for the new style

Edited November 20, 2014 by Vraiment

[Aanchir]

 

 

What exactly is the new animation style for 2015+ called? From the NYCC slide show I think they called it Toon Boom, but that might just be the color editing style name.

Toon Boom is the animation software they're using. The new style doesn't have a name, and to be honest I don't see why it needs one.

 

To reference it, the same way they referenced MNOG's style as an influence for the new style

 

I think that's kind of his point — Mata Nui Online Game's style never had a name either, and they were able to reference it just fine without one. If you can say "Mata Nui Online Game's animation style" or "the first three BIONICLE movies' animation style", then why can't you just say "The 2015 webisodes' animation style"?

 

It's true that there's no convenient acronym for "2015 webisode" like there is for "Mata Nui Online Game" or "BIONICLE: Mask of Light" or "BIONICLE: The Legend Reborn", but even when abbreviated, "MNOG's style" is a description, not a name.

[Vraiment]

 

 

 

What exactly is the new animation style for 2015+ called? From the NYCC slide show I think they called it Toon Boom, but that might just be the color editing style name.

Toon Boom is the animation software they're using. The new style doesn't have a name, and to be honest I don't see why it needs one.

 

To reference it, the same way they referenced MNOG's style as an influence for the new style

 

I think that's kind of his point — Mata Nui Online Game's style never had a name either, and they were able to reference it just fine without one. If you can say "Mata Nui Online Game's animation style" or "the first three BIONICLE movies' animation style", then why can't you just say "The 2015 webisodes' animation style"?

 

It's true that there's no convenient acronym for "2015 webisode" like there is for "Mata Nui Online Game" or "BIONICLE: Mask of Light" or "BIONICLE: The Legend Reborn", but even when abbreviated, "MNOG's style" is a description, not a name.

 

 

Formally you are right. But I think that was what OP meant, a easy way to reference or relate it like "MNOG".

 

Personally I think that if Bionicle Gen2 will maintain the same style on the long run, that could be the way to reference it "Gen2 style" or "Okotoverse style" or whatever term settles on the long run.

[believe victims]

Personally I think that if Bionicle Gen2 will maintain the same style on the long run, that could be the way to reference it "Gen2 style" or "Okotoverse style" or whatever term settles on the long run.

 

 

If so, a term like that should rise up naturally, not come up through the current trend of making topics to hamfist a term for it.

[Nidhiki of the Shadows]

It's just animation... I don't see why it needs a name? 

 

-NotS

[Ballom Nom Nom]

 

 

Personally I think that if Bionicle Gen2 will maintain the same style on the long run, that could be the way to reference it "Gen2 style" or "Okotoverse style" or whatever term settles on the long run.

 

If so, a term like that should rise up naturally, not come up through the current trend of making topics to hamfist a term for it.

But BZP members have never been ones to shirk away from hamfisting a name onto something Bionicle-related.

 

~B~

[Kuurai]

My reasoning for this topic is purely curiosity, not to "hamfist" a new term for this new animation style. I can see the reasoning behind not giving a style a name, but I wanted to find out if there actually was a name for it.

[UnderscoreChronix]

I call it Mixel style animation, since it was first used in the Mixels cartoon. 

[believe victims]

I call it Mixel style animation, since it was first used in the Mixels cartoon. 

It's not really the same style, though. It's not as exaggerated and comical, for starters.

 

With its strong, deliberate lines, it's far more like Genndy Tartakovsky's work like Samurai Jack.

[UnderscoreChronix]

 

I call it Mixel style animation, since it was first used in the Mixels cartoon. 

It's not really the same style, though. It's not as exaggerated and comical, for starters.

 

With its strong, deliberate lines, it's far more like Genndy Tartakovsky's work like Samurai Jack.

 

I see what you mean. 

[fishers64]

Okotomation.

[Banana Gunz]

I agree with the ideas against forcing a name for something that doesn't need one. Perhaps having a way to reference Gen 2 or such can be important so as to speed things along, but at this point I've noticed there are way more acronyms for stuff that doesn't need them. When I first joined, I sometimes got a little confused as to what a certain acronym meant, and they were oddly specific. The animation style is definitely something that has no reason to be named.

[Blueblur21]

I really wish they'd have used CGI like the first generation. The characters looked so realistic and awesome and caught people's eye. This new style is too cartoony and makes it look lame.

[dotcom]

I really wish they'd have used CGI like the first generation. The characters looked so realistic and awesome and caught people's eye. This new style is too cartoony and makes it look lame.

It's a cartoon, man. I will never understand using "cartoonish" as a criticism of cartoons. That is what they are! Why even make a cartoon if you're not going to take advantage of the medium by doing "cartoony" things? The fact of the matter is cgi could never match the expressiveness and character that the new style allows. Being "realistic" by essentially just having the toys do whatever isn't particularly exciting, either.

[RichardT1977]

 

Personally I think that if Bionicle Gen2 will maintain the same style on the long run, that could be the way to reference it "Gen2 style" or "Okotoverse style" or whatever term settles on the long run.

 

(I apologize for this...)

 

Heeeeeeeeey, fancy Legos,

Oop, oop, oop, oop,

O-ko-to-verse style!

[Blueblur21]

You're kidding, right? That's what got the toys popular in the first place. Kopaka stopping a blizzard with a mere wave of his hand? How awesome was that?

 

But to be impartial, I will wait until more cartoons are released. The trailer was decent, so hopefully it gets better.

[dotcom]

You're kidding, right? That's what got the toys popular in the first place. Kopaka stopping a blizzard with a mere wave of his hand? How awesome was that?

Uh, no? Not kidding. Certainly cgi for promos and stuff can help, well, promote the sets and whatnot. But for telling a story and doing so in a matter that allows for expressive characters and more diverse design, 2d animation is usually easier to work with, and cheaper, too. Besides, I think that creating its own visual style and not just doing what the original did for its animation is a good thing.

[fishers64]

To those who don't like the new animation style, I raise you these animations for the Piraka in 2006. That's the most similar I could find in BioniClassic to the new version - 2D, strong black line. 

 

And I don't know about you, but those animations IMO are unquestionably awesome, and they didn't even have actual characters talking. Yeah. The 2015 ones have voices, which is an improvement.

 

In fact 2-D animation is one of the defining characteristics of early Bionicle - every year from 2001 to 2006 had a 2-D animation series. While they got less and less canon as the years went by, they still were part of what made early Bionicle awesome. 2007 onwards didn't have one...until 2010ish, with the Mata Nui Saga. They got away from it, and problems happened. I think going back to it may be a good idea.

[Archon~]

Has anyone noticed that it's kind of similar to the animation of Samurai Jack? A little more vivid, but very similar.

[Aanchir]

Has anyone noticed that it's kind of similar to the animation of Samurai Jack? A little more vivid, but very similar.

Very much so! I've also heard and made comparisons to the original Star Wars: Clone Wars microseries (created by Genndy Tartakovsky, the same person who created Samurai Jack), both in terms of the animation style and the bite-size length/format of the episodes.

 

I don't think there's any reason to think we're no longer going to get any CGI adverts. The adverts for the toys themselves are almost certainly going to include CGI, just as most LEGO ads do. But the webisodes will use a more stylized look, which frankly is consistent with tradition — BIONICLE webisodes have pretty much ALWAYS been characterized by a more stylized look, from the ones Templar Studios worked on between 2001–2004 to the Search for the Mask of Light animations in 2005 to the Piraka Online Animations in 2006. Even though the last two series were done in CGI, they had a graphical, cel-shaded look that resulted in a similar "cartoony" look.

 

Personally, I really love the new style in part BECAUSE it's so stylized! It looks amazingly creative, and has already shown how well-suited it can be to both comics and animation, bringing a sense of consistency to the franchise's visual identity. Also, I'm sure it will inspire all kinds of fanart (already I've seen some great stuff, like the wallpapers created by Vezok's Friend right here on BZPower). Plus, it will allow the characters to show a lot of personality just as the animations and cutscenes from Templar Studios did back in 2001–2004.

 

Besides that, the new style clearly isn't being used as an excuse to skimp on detail. Many of the backgrounds we've seen for the new animations are rich in detail, with dramatic lighting and dynamic visual perspective. They are arguably even more detailed than some of the Mata Nui Online Game backgrounds have been!

[Banana Gunz]

I agree with Aanchir here. One of the greatest and most important parts about how you show your story through animation is to have it stand out. 3-d animation looks good, but in this case it looks better for commercials and such. 2-d animation is easier to develop a unique style that people will recognize and associate the line with. Plus, it's more versatile and can show stuff through a somewhat more exaggerated style such as emotions through expression.

[Blueblur21]

Wait, they have VOICES now? Okay... This changes everything.

[dotcom]

Wait, they have VOICES now? Okay... This changes everything.

Well, kinda? As far as we've heard it's just a single narrator who will "speak" for the characters in occasion, I believe.

[Aanchir]

 

Wait, they have VOICES now? Okay... This changes everything.

Well, kinda? As far as we've heard it's just a single narrator who will "speak" for the characters in occasion, I believe.

 

We have heard that the narrator will be doing specific voices for each of the characters, though, so it won't just be like the BIONICLE podcasts/serials that Greg narrated. If you've listened to any high-quality audiobooks, that might be more like the experience we'll be getting. Though of course, we haven't gotten to hear what any of the voices are like so far — we've just been told that one of the creators really likes Pohatu's voice.

[Blueblur21]

I really hope they get someone like Candi Milo for Gali's voice. That'd be a dream come true for me.

[bioniclepluslotr]

Wait, how many animated videos are there?

[Aanchir]

Wait, how many animated videos are there?

So far only one (the "Legend" video) has been released for the new BIONICLE, but we've been told there will be a lot of them.

[UnderscoreChronix]

I really hope Tahu has his MoL voice. In MoL the voices for the Toa were a bit.... 'meh', but Tahu's voice was spot on.

[Aanchir]

I really hope they get someone like Candi Milo for Gali's voice. That'd be a dream come true for me.

I really hope Tahu has his MoL voice. In MoL the voices for the Toa were a bit.... 'meh', but Tahu's voice was spot on.

From what we've heard, the same person who narrates the videos will also be providing most if not all of the voices. However, that's not to say all the voices will be the same, just that they will generally be provided by the same voice actor, like in an audiobook (or, for that matter, most Homestar Runner cartoons).

[RichardT1977]

I hope this is simply a web animation series like the first few years of Classic Bionicle and the online games then. That level of animation, with only one actor voicing all the characters, feels like it falls short of what modern audiences would expect of a TV series.

[Aanchir]

I hope this is simply a web animation series like the first few years of Classic Bionicle and the online games then. That level of animation, with only one actor voicing all the characters, feels like it falls short of what modern audiences would expect of a TV series.

Yeah, currently this is just a web series and there are no plans to put it on TV. If it did get eventually upgraded to a full TV series, there would probably be a larger voice cast.

[Munty]

Back on topic a lil' bit, isn't it way too early to try and pin a name on this style? The old style is simply referred to as the MNOG style but the MNOG wasn't released a few months before the franchise was in the shops was it so we seem to be reeeeally rushing to give a name to something which (as others have mentioned) doesn't even really need one...

 

Personally I think if it DOES get given a 'name' it should relate to the story arc we get with the first years releases. MNOG isn't really a good name, just a reference. It should really have been referred to as something more like the 'Mata Nui Style' as that's the arc that used this animation style. So this new style could simply be referred to as the 'Okoto style' as that's where the story is happening and it's fairly unlikely that too many subsequent stories will occur in the same place so if the story moves onto another location and the art style changes we can just do the same. 

 

Honestly though what's wrong with just saying the 'old art style' and 'the new art style'? It's not like we all saw the name of this topic and couldn't understand what it referred to without reading the OP after all...

[Aanchir]

Personally I think if it DOES get given a 'name' it should relate to the story arc we get with the first years releases. MNOG isn't really a good name, just a reference. It should really have been referred to as something more like the 'Mata Nui Style' as that's the arc that used this animation style.

Technically, the Mata Nui Online Game's style was also used for the Vahki Online Animations in 2004. So "Mata Nui Style" would be a bit of a misnomer.