OFFICIAL 2016 Bionicle Topic

[Heontris]

https://youtu.be/OjhDoXOZEyY?t=78

 

I don't know if anyone noticed this other than me, but...

Go to that link up top (Episode 18 of the BIONICLE 2015 Webisodes).

 

Around 1:18 in, it shows the Toa all standing in front of a pillar.

 

Look to the left side of the image. You see that box? Look at what is in the box. Look familiar? (Hint, it looks a lot like the new pieces on the 2016 Toa.)

 

http://shop.lego.com/en-US/Pohatu-Uniter-of-Stone-71306?fromListing=listing

 

Link to Pohatu because it shows the new piece the best.

[Rooster Nui]

https://youtu.be/OjhDoXOZEyY?t=78

 

I don't know if anyone noticed this other than me, but...

Go to that link up top (Episode 18 of the BIONICLE 2015 Webisodes).

 

Around 1:18 in, it shows the Toa all standing in front of a pillar.

 

Look to the left side of the image. You see that box? Look at what is in the box. Look familiar? (Hint, it looks a lot like the new pieces on the 2016 Toa.)

 

http://shop.lego.com/en-US/Pohatu-Uniter-of-Stone-71306?fromListing=listing

 

Link to Pohatu because it shows the new piece the best.

Sorry to tell you this, but a lot of us here at BZPower already saw that the day it came out.

[Toa of Ice - 1987]

 

https://youtu.be/OjhDoXOZEyY?t=78

 

I don't know if anyone noticed this other than me, but...

Go to that link up top (Episode 18 of the BIONICLE 2015 Webisodes).

 

Around 1:18 in, it shows the Toa all standing in front of a pillar.

 

Look to the left side of the image. You see that box? Look at what is in the box. Look familiar? (Hint, it looks a lot like the new pieces on the 2016 Toa.)

 

http://shop.lego.com/en-US/Pohatu-Uniter-of-Stone-71306?fromListing=listing

 

Link to Pohatu because it shows the new piece the best.

Sorry to tell you this, but a lot of us here at BZPower already saw that the day it came out. 

 

So...but no one thought of mentioning this much earlier after bzpower reveal the high quality lego cached images of 2016 sets 

Edited December 19, 2015 by ---Kopaka Nuva---

[Rooster Nui]

 

 

https://youtu.be/OjhDoXOZEyY?t=78

 

I don't know if anyone noticed this other than me, but...

Go to that link up top (Episode 18 of the BIONICLE 2015 Webisodes).

 

Around 1:18 in, it shows the Toa all standing in front of a pillar.

 

Look to the left side of the image. You see that box? Look at what is in the box. Look familiar? (Hint, it looks a lot like the new pieces on the 2016 Toa.)

 

http://shop.lego.com/en-US/Pohatu-Uniter-of-Stone-71306?fromListing=listing

 

Link to Pohatu because it shows the new piece the best.

Sorry to tell you this, but a lot of us here at BZPower already saw that the day it came out. 

 

So...but no one thought of mentioning this much earlier after bzpower reveal the high quality lego cached images of 2016 sets 

 

Ah, that's true. Fair point. It's a good reminder for those who haven't figured it out, as well. I forgot to consider the leak policy. How dare I.

[phan085]

My Reaction to 2016 Bionicle is...

#Tahu. His addicted to gold?

#Gali. Awesome as [ ]!

#Pohatu. Skinny...

#Lewa. Oh, now HIS ADDICTED TO SILVER?

#Kopaka. Doesn't fit 25 dollar, i prefer Tahu cause wow, his skinny...

#Onua. Who train him as a dragon? Hiccup? (How To Train Your Dragon)   

 

 

Edit: Please don't bypass the filter.

-Wind-

Edited December 21, 2015 by -Windrider-

[admiraltyphoon]

Yesterday I was thinking about how the uniters take ideas from the concept art we saw last year at NYCC (especially The mask part, seen in the top banner, which showed "element lords" combining with the toa, something we see with the creatures).

And recently, some prototype pictures of the skull squad were posted in the BZP instagram account, and a certain one caught my attention.

 

What if the designers do the same and next summer's ultimate villain is a combiner between the villains? That would certainly look awesome.

[McNugget]

What if the designers do the same and next summer's ultimate villain is a combiner between the villains?

Here's what it would look like.

Edited December 21, 2015 by Display Name Goes Here

[Rahkshi Lalonde]

eugh, so far i am not liking the 2016 toa, (Umarak n the creatures do pretty well though, Ketar is awkward but it tries...)

 

Opinion time:

 

Tahu- Overpowering metal color, even if it is a vibrant one, lack of primary color (red) and attempt to substitute tr-neon orange in its place, thighs too thin, still probably the best-looking toa this wave.

 

Onua- feet don't match, torso looks lanky compared to last-year's, his creature doesn't add much, overall fairly consistant, a fair design...

 

Kopaka- Discordant colorscheme, randomly swithed handedness, upper-arms too thin for lower-arms thickness, creature doesn't add much.

 

Gali- overall kinda nice, though metal-color still overpowers, orange vorox-armour looks out-of-place, weapon is bizzare and overworked.

 

Pohatu- Discordant colorscheme, lower-arms double-up on the same tr-color, which is always bad, but this time it's a flour color so it's worse. Creature adds /too much/ weapon is kinda odd.

 

and Lewa- Metal-color WAY too prevelant, colors look fine but they're too dulled down by all the silver, needs a shade of yellow, shoulders kinda awkward and close together.

 

overall complaint would be the silver-blend masks are kinda weird-looking the torsos are all same-ey, and i don't like half the weapons. These toa look good for parts, and sometimes even passable on their own, but i don't really like this wave compared to same-time-last-year. :t

[NickonAquaMagna]

The vibe I get from these guys is... they look rough, like they've been through a lot. The 2015 versions are pristine and organized, like they JUST came fresh off that assembly line in the sky, but now they look like they've lost a bit of themselves in battle and had to fill in the blanks with whatever they could find, especially ones like Kopaka.

[abstractAgamid]

Hmm, Onua looks the best to me out of these silhouette-wise (2015 Onua I didn't like. He looked like he was in pain.). Lewa would be the best-looking, but his limbs are bit too short. I like Gali's color scheme a lot, but she kind of has the same problem as Lewa.

[Naota Takizawa]

Everyone's opinions of the 2016 sets in a few sentences:

 

Tahu: Too much gold, not enough red.

Gali: The spinning wheel is stupid.

Lewa: Too much silver, not enough bright green or yellow.

Pohatu: Not enough burnt orange, lime green is ugly. Dark tan pieces are nice to get.

Onua: He's too tall and lanky, his shoulders are flat, the drill hammer blaster is a stupid idea and his feet look out of place.

Kopaka: OMG, dark blue shells! Oh wait, his color scheme is bad. He's not worth getting anymore.

 

Akida: Eww, technic in a bionicle set for next year? Oh well, at least we get some nice pieces.

Uxar: Best creature, 10/10, would buy 10 just for the transparent wings & dark grey claw pieces.

Ketar: His technic function sucks, but he comes with more burnt orange than Pohatu, so I'll still buy him.

 

Umarak: Best set of 2016.

[abstractAgamid]

[citation needed]

 

Actually, Kopaka's silhouette is cool too.

[Regitnui]

I'm still resoundingly indifferent. Probably going to pick up Onua, his creature and a second LoSS, mostly for parts.

[Nescent]

I'm generally impressed with next year's sets, but there are a few things that I really don't like about their designs:

 

Gail has weird proportions that don't add to her character. Also, her limb designs are all sorts of boring.

Lewa's twirling weapons look like they would bump into Uxar's wings when combined.

Pohatu has a messy color scheme, and I prefer this year's burnt orange to next year's dark tan. Maybe my opinion will change when I own the set.

 

Then there are friction extenders on the ankles, which affects several of the sets.

 

That's about it - anything else is nitpicking, and the list of things that I love about next year is much greater. Above all, I love the creative Creature designs, the Uniting feature, the new gear functions (on ALL the sets), the new masks....

[Irrie]

I'm generally impressed with next year's sets, but there are a few things that I really don't like about their designs:

 

Gail has weird proportions that don't add to her character. Also, her limb designs are all sorts of boring.

Lewa's twirling weapons look like they would bump into Uxar's wings when combined.

Pohatu has a messy color scheme, and I prefer this year's burnt orange to next year's dark tan. Maybe my opinion will change when I own the set.

 

Then there are friction extenders on the ankles, which affects several of the sets.

 

That's about it - anything else is nitpicking, and the list of things that I love about next year is much greater. Above all, I love the creative Creature designs, the Uniting feature, the new gear functions (on ALL the sets), the new masks....

You're right, there's something off about Gali. Not sure if it's the arm length or the shoulder position or both. The chest proportions also look a little odd, but I can't quite put my finger on what's wrong with it.

[Toa Imrukii]

 

I'm generally impressed with next year's sets, but there are a few things that I really don't like about their designs:

 

Gail has weird proportions that don't add to her character. Also, her limb designs are all sorts of boring.

Lewa's twirling weapons look like they would bump into Uxar's wings when combined.

Pohatu has a messy color scheme, and I prefer this year's burnt orange to next year's dark tan. Maybe my opinion will change when I own the set.

 

Then there are friction extenders on the ankles, which affects several of the sets.

 

That's about it - anything else is nitpicking, and the list of things that I love about next year is much greater. Above all, I love the creative Creature designs, the Uniting feature, the new gear functions (on ALL the sets), the new masks....

You're right, there's something off about Gali. Not sure if it's the arm length or the shoulder position or both. The chest proportions also look a little odd, but I can't quite put my finger on what's wrong with it.

 

 

For me, it's mostly the bulkiness of the chest piece.

[Irrie]

 

 

I'm generally impressed with next year's sets, but there are a few things that I really don't like about their designs:

 

Gail has weird proportions that don't add to her character. Also, her limb designs are all sorts of boring.

Lewa's twirling weapons look like they would bump into Uxar's wings when combined.

Pohatu has a messy color scheme, and I prefer this year's burnt orange to next year's dark tan. Maybe my opinion will change when I own the set.

 

Then there are friction extenders on the ankles, which affects several of the sets.

 

That's about it - anything else is nitpicking, and the list of things that I love about next year is much greater. Above all, I love the creative Creature designs, the Uniting feature, the new gear functions (on ALL the sets), the new masks....

You're right, there's something off about Gali. Not sure if it's the arm length or the shoulder position or both. The chest proportions also look a little odd, but I can't quite put my finger on what's wrong with it.

 

 

For me, it's mostly the bulkiness of the chest piece.

 

If you look closely you can also see two pistons on either side of the torso that stick out slightly. This is definitely one of the more awkward torso designs I've seen in Bionicle. 

[Nescent]

If you look closely you can also see two pistons on either side of the torso that stick out slightly. This is definitely one of the more awkward torso designs I've seen in Bionicle. 

Indeed, that is what bothers me most about the shape of the new torso armor piece. It's like the Toa have ribs sticking out of their sides. Hopefully it looks better in person.

Edited December 25, 2015 by Nescent

[Naota Takizawa]

Those torso pieces just draw attention to the wrong spot every time I look at the 2016 toa. I'm sure we're supposed to look at something else like the mask, but the cluttered details just rip your eyes out and force them to stare at the pistons.

[Nescent]

The club code "UMARAK," as seen on the bottom-right of this page from the new magazine, leads to some new stuff:
 
http://www.lego.com/en-us/club/member/articles/details/umarak-b3b84c016d1247ebb81980df1aced65d
 
There are descriptions of the Toa-Creature combinations, and also, some interesting info about the new story:
 

It was the Elemental Creatures that hid the Mask of Control from Makuta long ago. So the final gift brought by the act of Unity was a vision revealing the mask’s location. The creatures also showed the Toa a new threat…Umarak, the ancient hunter. The Toa will need all their new powers to enter the Labyrinth of Control and recover the mask!

[Iben]

Looking at the Lego online shop, I'm quite disappointed to see that Gali, Pohatu and Lewa area all €17,99 instead of €14,99. To me this is extremely confusing, given that both France and Germany have them at 14,99; while Belgium and the Netherlands have them at 17,99.

 

TBH, although I'm most certainly going to buy them anyway, I do feel like the price-point of 17,99 is quite high for these figures. I don't really understand where the sudden price change came from, as Tahu and Onua both remain unchanged. If anyone is able to clear this up for me, I'd really appreciate it.

-Iben

[Naota Takizawa]

Looking at the Lego online shop, I'm quite disappointed to see that Gali, Pohatu and Lewa area all €17,99 instead of €14,99. To me this is extremely confusing, given that both France and Germany have them at 14,99; while Belgium and the Netherlands have them at 17,99.

 

TBH, although I'm most certainly going to buy them anyway, I do feel like the price-point of 17,99 is quite high for these figures. I don't really understand where the sudden price change came from, as Tahu and Onua both remain unchanged. If anyone is able to clear this up for me, I'd really appreciate it.

-Iben

Lego probably needs more money to profit after the costs of molding the new pieces or casting them in new colors.

[32one]

You're right, there's something off about Gali. Not sure if it's the arm length or the shoulder position or both. The chest proportions also look a little odd, but I can't quite put my finger on what's wrong with it.

If you lower the arms by one module, Gali should look better as she would no longer be high shouldered and her hands would reach a more normal position (wrist at hip, hands mid thigh when fingers out). The problem is that the torso shell would likely obstruct her arm articulation more than it already does.

[Takametru007]

Based on the design we're seeing so far, here's what sort of villains I think we might see for the summer wave (assuming they have the 5-set pattern again). Four of them will most likely be beasts of some kind, akin to the monsters from the Jungle Planet year of Hero Factory. Either that, or bestial hunters/poachers like Umarak. (maybe the Voodoo Brothers will make an appearance)

 

Most likely, we will be seeing a Makuta set. Personally, I think it since Umarak has the MoC, the Makuta set would have the MoUP. I think the 3rd year may actually revolve around the Mask of Time, with this year finishing off the three main masks.

 

It'l be interesting to see the summer wave- I can't wait!

[Tahtorak ate my house!]

Hmm... Here's what I feel overall about the Masters and Uniters.

 

2015 Masters:

• Each Toa has pretty unique builds that befits their character/elements and the impressions their G1 counterparts left upon us. However the resulting builds work nicely for some of the Masters while not so much for some other Masters.
• Unique masks and weapon designs that also pays homage to G1 Toa Mata and Toa Nuva. Weapons are generally perfect especially due to their "interchangeable modes" (even though they share some common pieces), while the masks are like the builds - work for most Toa and a little less so the rest few.
• Features HF-inspired parts and smooth-designs that some liked and others disliked.

2016 Uniters:

• Features "technic/mechanical design" details that are characteristic of classic Bionicle, which is pretty nice.
• Generic builds and mask designs among the Toa. Some of the builds work while others don't. The Nuva Symbols are a nice touch however 
• Weapons felt less function-orientated and features common "flame designs", but otherwise are pretty unique to each Toa.

[Regitnui]

Unlike last year, the set reviews are making me less enthused about the new sets. Umarak seems about the only one worth getting for the character, though I do want the MoCo. Other than that, I'll just be buying parts packs if I buy any other one, like my PoJ and PoS. (Though they did turn into a pretty cool Ekimu's guardsman after I took the parts I needed.)

[Iben]

 

Looking at the Lego online shop, I'm quite disappointed to see that Gali, Pohatu and Lewa area all €17,99 instead of €14,99. To me this is extremely confusing, given that both France and Germany have them at 14,99; while Belgium and the Netherlands have them at 17,99.

 

TBH, although I'm most certainly going to buy them anyway, I do feel like the price-point of 17,99 is quite high for these figures. I don't really understand where the sudden price change came from, as Tahu and Onua both remain unchanged. If anyone is able to clear this up for me, I'd really appreciate it.

-Iben

Lego probably needs more money to profit after the costs of molding the new pieces or casting them in new colors.

 

It's just weird that only Belgium and The Netherlands have these higher prices though. Normally we're in the same price-class as our neighbouring countries, which is often just a literal dollar to euro conversion ( so 14.99$ becomes €14,99 ). This is still the case for Germany and France, but not for us; which is what's so confusing to me. It's not that the prices of other products in Belgium/Netherlands really differ that much; so I'm guessing Lego made an error somewhere. Because I don't really consider the lower-price Toa's to be worth 17,99.

 

I know it might sound a bit cheap, but hey, not everyone has a big Lego-budget

 

-Iben

[masterchirox580]

So wait the creatures are from thousands of years ago? So I wonder if they're going to explain the history of Okoto more this year? 

[admiraltyphoon]

So wait the creatures are from thousands of years ago? So I wonder if they're going to explain the history of Okoto more this year? 

Hopefully we get another The Legend-style episode with the creatures. I wonder if they had any relationship with the MM or were neutrals.

 

Also, does anyone know what was the inspiration for Umarak's legs (e.g. chicken, deer, etc.)? I'm making a similar MOC and I want to make an improved version of them.

[Jobber]

Can't wait to pick up all the sets up at once in a few days. They'll be a nice, objective, contrast to the 2015 sets on the shelf.

[Tarvaxx]

I feel that while the 2015 Toa were great humanoid figures, I think the 2016 Toa are great TOA figures. Throughout G1 the Toa have always had their own unique set of proportions, and that was one of the many reasons I loved them. They were similar enough to us that connecting with them was easy, but they were different enough that you could easily tell them apart from other humanoid-like beings. One of the best things about BIONICLE was that it was really weird but at the same time very interesting and mysterious. I think the early commercials are a good example of the feel they went for. 

 

 

 

So wait the creatures are from thousands of years ago? So I wonder if they're going to explain the history of Okoto more this year? 

Hopefully we get another The Legend-style episode with the creatures. I wonder if they had any relationship with the MM or were neutrals.

 

Also, does anyone know what was the inspiration for Umarak's legs (e.g. chicken, deer, etc.)? I'm making a similar MOC and I want to make an improved version of them.

 

We're not getting anymore animations. We are getting the netflix show though. 

Edited December 26, 2015 by Tarvaxx

[Wazdakka]

Is G2 Kopaka 2016 (from the Kopaka and Melum Unity set) supposed to be a $15 or $20 type of figure?

[Lyichir]

Is G2 Kopaka 2016 (from the Kopaka and Melum Unity set) supposed to be a $15 or $20 type of figure?

$15. Kopaka and Melum Unity set is a $25 set, and Melum is about the same size as the other $10 Creatures.

[Aanchir]

I feel that while the 2015 Toa were great humanoid figures, I think the 2016 Toa are great TOA figures. Throughout G1 the Toa have always had their own unique set of proportions, and that was one of the many reasons I loved them. They were similar enough to us that connecting with them was easy, but they were different enough that you could easily tell them apart from other humanoid-like beings. One of the best things about BIONICLE was that it was really weird but at the same time very interesting and mysterious. I think the early commercials are a good example of the feel they went for.

I'm a bit confused at how you arrived at these conclusions. To me it seems like the opposite is true. The 2015 Toa's proportions were a lot more unique AND more like past Toa sets than the 2016 Toa's generic proportions.

 

2015 Gali had almost the same proportions as an average Toa Metru, just with upper arms one module longer. 2016 Gali's shoulder joints are the narrowest any Toa's shoulders have ever been (7 modules) and her legs and arms are the same length as in 2015, but her torso is two modules longer and her shoulders one module higher relative to her neck joint. 2015 Tahu had basically the same proportions as a typical Toa Inika, except his arms were four modules shorter. 2016 Tahu's legs, arms, and shoulders are the same size as the 2015 version, but his torso got two modules longer. None of these changes make them more "Toa-like". The only way I can think of that the 2016 Toa proportions are more "Toa-like" than the 2015 versions is that their torsos are flatter.

 

EDIT: I tried to edit this post as much as I could for clarity, but proportions are tough to describe in text in a way that makes them easy to visualize! So I whipped up an LDD file as visual reference.

 

 

From left to right: typical Toa Mata, average Toa Metru, typical Toa Inika, 2015 Gali, 2015 Tahu, 2016 Gali, 2016 Tahu. As you can see, 2015 Gali and Tahu's 2015 proportions are pretty close to the proportions of the Toa Metru and Toa Inika. 2016 Gali and Tahu's proportions aren't very much like any previous Toa.

Edited December 27, 2015 by Aanchir

[Tarvaxx]

The Toa Inika had insantely long arms and legs while having a flat torso, while taking into account that the general body shapes and part shapes of every Toa was unique and weird compared to that of a normal human being. I like that kind of weird. 

Edited December 27, 2015 by Tarvaxx

[Aanchir]

The Toa Inika had insantely long arms and legs while having a flat torso, while taking into account that the general body shapes and part shapes of every Toa was unique and weird compared to that of a normal human being. I like that kind of weird.

I mean, I can understand liking the weirdness of Toa Inika proportions. It just doesn't make sense to me to think of those and the 2016 Toa's proportions as the same kind of weirdness, since they're practically polar opposites — the Toa Inika had short torsos and long arms and legs, the new Toa have long torsos and (in many cases) short arms and legs. In pretty much every way other than torso thickness, the Toa Inika/Mahri/Phantoka/Mistika were far more like the 2015 Toa than the 2016 ones.

Edited December 27, 2015 by Aanchir

[masterchirox580]

I'm amazed by the prices of the new sets. 7 Pounds for a creature, 10 for a smaller toa, and only 20 for the unity set. Did the gearbox really ramp up the prices that much?

[Aanchir]

I'm amazed by the prices of the new sets. 7 Pounds for a creature, 10 for a smaller toa, and only 20 for the unity set. Did the gearbox really ramp up the prices that much?

Since the prices in the US stayed the same, and the GB prices are now closer to straight conversions of the US prices, I imagine it has more to do with LEGO just trying to smooth out some of their international pricing discrepancies than anything that changed about the set designs themselves.

[Wazdakka]

 

I'm amazed by the prices of the new sets. 7 Pounds for a creature, 10 for a smaller toa, and only 20 for the unity set. Did the gearbox really ramp up the prices that much?

Since the prices in the US stayed the same, and the GB prices are now closer to straight conversions of the US prices, I imagine it has more to do with LEGO just trying to smooth out some of their international pricing discrepancies than anything that changed about the set designs themselves.

 

 

Nah, things are generally more expensive in the U.K., so British consumers are (comparatively) more willing to pay more than their U.S. counterparts. It's all about price discrimination; a profit-maximizing firm will maximize profit separately in each market. 

[Lyichir]

 

 

I'm amazed by the prices of the new sets. 7 Pounds for a creature, 10 for a smaller toa, and only 20 for the unity set. Did the gearbox really ramp up the prices that much?

Since the prices in the US stayed the same, and the GB prices are now closer to straight conversions of the US prices, I imagine it has more to do with LEGO just trying to smooth out some of their international pricing discrepancies than anything that changed about the set designs themselves.

 

 

Nah, things are generally more expensive in the U.K., so British consumers are (comparatively) more willing to pay more than their U.S. counterparts. It's all about price discrimination; a profit-maximizing firm will maximize profit separately in each market. 

 

Well, yes. But the cheaper prices of this year's Bionicle sets in the U.K. seems to suggest that Lego thinks that discrepancy could afford to be a little less extreme.