That Matoran with a Vahi Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 So... this was an interesting concept that Bionicle G1 didn't really do anything much with, so far as I can remember. It just occurred to me again a couple of days ago; so I thought I'd throw it out here and see if anyone else could shed some light on it. "Before I go, Chronicler, know that there is a bond between us. [...] I shall be with you in heart. Look for me in your dreams." - Gali, to Takua. Mata Nui Online Game. All that we do know of it, to my knowledge, comes from MNOG. Firstly, this bond exists between Takua and Gali. Nothing it said of where it came from, why or how it formed, only that it was there; as far as I can remember, it wasn't even mentioned until Gali threw it out there at the Kini Nui, but her choice of words implies that it already existed prior to this. It allowed Takua, in his dreams, to see what was happening to Gali; it isn't clear if he saw through her eyes, or (as seems to be implied by MNOG) just saw the events as a third-person observer. It also seems to be implied, though not explicitly stated, that Takua can draw strength from Gali through the bond - although as being 'with someone in heart' is also a real-world figure of speech, that part could mean nothing more than that Gali would be keeping Takua in her thoughts during the struggle. And the bond is broken when Gali enters 'the gates of doom' - i.e. Makuta's lair, due to his powers of destruction - and is never heard of again. I don't know if anyone actually knows, but... I couldn't help but wonder what the significance behind that concept was? Part of me, I will grant, wonders if it was just a gameplay device to show the player of MNOG the events happening underground, the Manas vs. Kaita fight, and has no greater story significance than that; or if, perhaps, it's another one of those things Templar came up with themselves that the story team never confirmed nor denied. If I'm honest, though... I'd kind of like for there to be more to it than that? Does anyone know if the subject of such bonds as these was mentioned in any other story material, or if anything hinted where Takua and Gali's may have come from? It may well just be another of those '01 mysteries' that were surreptitiously dropped from canon and never spoken of again in later years, but... does it feel, to anyone else, like there was meant to be more done with the concept of such bonds, even if it never happened? 1 Quote "New legends awake, but old lessons must be remembered. For that is the way of the BIONICLE." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TuragaNuva Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 I think it was originally just Templar's idea - and as you said, may have just been a quick way of establishing a way for Takua (and thus the player) to see what was happening below in Mangaia. For a long time this mental link was never brought up officially again, but Greg did bring it up in Takanuva's Blog ('07 and '08 is when he really started referencing bits of MNOG in official story material): Quote An idea struck me. I turned to Gali. "Remember, last year, when I was still Takua the Chronicler? You forged a mental link with me so I could see what you saw when you fought Makuta. Do you think you can do it again?" "I ... I don't know," said Gali. Quote Toa Gali shut her eyes. After a few moments, I felt the unique sensation of her mind reaching into mine. For an instant, I could see myself through her eyes (which was pretty disturbing - even I hadn't realized how much I had changed). Then I felt the link snap as she pulled away. Pohatu reached out and grabbed her to keep her from falling. "Amazing," she said softly. "A place where Mata Nui died ... another where the Toa rule as dictators ... your journey here was ... eventful, Takanuva" "Then he is --?" asked Pohatu. "He is," confirmed Gali. "Darker, perhaps, and not quite the innocent Takua or the eager hero we remember ... but he is our friend." What I gather from this description is that Gali can, theoretically, forge a psychic bond with anyone she is close to - but why she is able to do this, or whether any of the other Toa Mata/Nuva can, is unclear. Knowing Greg, I imagine he'd say that it's due to her natural empathy or something similar. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mukaukau Nuva Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 23 minutes ago, TuragaNuva said: [W]hy she is able to do this, or whether any of the other Toa Mata/Nuva can, is unclear. I assume there's a degree of narrative convenience at play, but if I might be able to posit an actual answer to this question. The inhabitants of the Matoran Universe are, to a degree, bio-mechanical; the "bio" part of that designation implies some organic matter in their composition. If the organic parts of a Matoran's body are anything like life on Earth (and they may not be), water (or liquid protodermis) may be contained in their organic muscle mass (or for what passes as their 'blood'). Since Gali is a Toa of Water, she may be able to manipulate the water inside Takua's body and brain (whether she knows consciously that's what she's doing or not) thereby linking the two of them together. It requires a number of assumptions, and I can't say for sure why Gali felt she couldn't do this sort of thing again (even though she was now much more powerful); if I had to chance it, Greg probably remembered the Templar game, thought he should address it, but didn't have an explanation at hand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Master Inika Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 BS01 mentions it, probably just extrapolating from the evidence: Toa have other abilities as well, including the ability to merge into Toa Kaita. Toa can also forge mental links with Matoran. The Toa can project visions of what they see to the linked Matoran.[MNOG] Whether or not Toa can be mentally linked with multiple beings, or with beings besides Matoran, is unknown. I agree it was a tragically underexplored concept. I also remembered Gali using the link in 2008 to see if Takanuva was really who he said he was, and it was such a sad moment that these characters who were linked used to be so close but now they had to use the link to disprove suspicions. I'm probably looking too hard into it. Gali's just such a trusting character so I imagine Takanuva must've felt self-conscious about having to prove who he was. There's some kind of adulthood/maturity/innocence metaphor in there somewhere. 3 Quote "You are an absolute in these uncertain times. Your past is forgotten, and your future is an empty book. You must find your own destiny, my brave adventurer." -- Turaga Nokama Click here to visit my library! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Kohran Posted October 9, 2019 Share Posted October 9, 2019 (edited) 22 hours ago, Mukaukau Nuva said: I assume there's a degree of narrative convenience at play, but if I might be able to posit an actual answer to this question. The inhabitants of the Matoran Universe are, to a degree, bio-mechanical; the "bio" part of that designation implies some organic matter in their composition. If the organic parts of a Matoran's body are anything like life on Earth (and they may not be), water (or liquid protodermis) may be contained in their organic muscle mass (or for what passes as their 'blood'). Since Gali is a Toa of Water, she may be able to manipulate the water inside Takua's body and brain (whether she knows consciously that's what she's doing or not) thereby linking the two of them together. You might be right, but I think it was meant to be something more spiritual or mystical, not something explainable scientifically. Bear in mind Bionicle was a bit more 'fantasy' at the start than in later years, note the importance of astrology and prophecies in quite a bit of MNOLG dialogue. The 'real' explanation is that it's a simple way to show the player what's happening to the Toa whilst the player's character isn't with them (apart from the Tahu Charred Jungle scene, everything else in the game is only shown when/if Takua is there for it). Edited October 9, 2019 by Sir Kohran 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iver Posted October 13, 2019 Share Posted October 13, 2019 (edited) Gali was originally meant to be the more "sensitive" one. This is a trope that is common with a lot of female characters from that era, and is ultimately drawn from Spiritualism and New Age hogwash. You seem to be forgetting a simple in-story explanation, though. Av-Matoran can fuse their minds with Toa (and Makuta). Gali, being the most sensitive of the Toa, may have had subconscious memories of that ability. Edited October 13, 2019 by Iver 2 Quote "You humans are absurd, Rook. Furious when you're not in control, terrified when you are. Pull it together." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Great Spirit DM Posted March 23, 2020 Share Posted March 23, 2020 On 10/12/2019 at 11:32 PM, Iver said: You seem to be forgetting a simple in-story explanation, though. Av-Matoran can fuse their minds with Toa (and Makuta). Gali, being the most sensitive of the Toa, may have had subconscious memories of that ability. The "Av-Matoran get inexplicable psychic powers" explanation makes sense, though it certainly makes BIONICLE's power system feel a bit arbitrary. On 10/9/2019 at 3:08 PM, Sir Kohran said: You might be right, but I think it was meant to be something more spiritual or mystical, not something explainable scientifically. Bear in mind Bionicle was a bit more 'fantasy' at the start than in later years, note the importance of astrology and prophecies in quite a bit of MNOLG dialogue. The 'real' explanation is that it's a simple way to show the player what's happening to the Toa whilst the player's character isn't with them (apart from the Tahu Charred Jungle scene, everything else in the game is only shown when/if Takua is there for it). The strictly correct answer to the original question is that Templar Studios probably came up with it as a way to explain the climactic cutscenes. As BIONICLE lost its initial grounding in mystical elements, I feel like it shifted into science fiction territory a little bit. BIONICLE has always had something of a hard magic system for the Toa, but at first it was far vaguer for everything else. Makuta, the Great Spirit, the prophesies... all of these things existed and had effects on the plot, but no one knew how they worked. Then as BIONICLE entered into the "grittier" phase in the Mask of Life arc, answering a number of those questions contributed to a de-mystification of the previously fantastical world. 1 Quote Conflux: BIONICLE Tabletop Combat System Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheZOMBIEJ Posted March 23, 2020 Share Posted March 23, 2020 i didn't know Gali was psychic! that's cool! my love and respect for her has reached beyond the peak ov Mount Ihu! she will forever be my favorite Toa! i mean wow! psychic powers? who'd a thought! <3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lenny7092 Posted March 23, 2020 Share Posted March 23, 2020 1 hour ago, TheZOMBIEJ said: i didn't know Gali was psychic! that's cool! my love and respect for her has reached beyond the peak ov Mount Ihu! she will forever be my favorite Toa! i mean wow! psychic powers? who'd a thought! <3 Well, I think she is like the only known Toa who learned how to do a mental link with another member of her kind, like Takua. It’s normal for Toa to do that. It’s weird, but it’s a cool power because either Takua or Gali can see the other’s eyes, even if they are far away from each other. Plus, when Lewa, Pohatu, and Kopaka combined with their Av-Matoran partners, they did something similar, too. Quote I like Lego, Bionicle, and Hero Factory! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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