A lot of people are bothered by the differences between Hero Factory and BIONICLE, but today I was thinking about some of the story-related decisions made by the Hero Factory creators that really did do favors for the theme and its fans. Unlimited Heroes: There was something poetic about BIONICLE's "Six Heroes, One Destiny" tagline in 2001, but when you think about it, it was a creative limitation on fans that later BIONICLE story arcs did well to do away with. Back in 2001, there were a lot of
Because everyone else is doing it, and why not? I've never done one of these things before. So if you haven't run out of questions after replying to all the OTHER blog entries, here's one more.
Back from a brief hiatus as I transitioned to life at my new college! I am currently at Wentworth Institute of Technology studying Industrial Design. The first part of my life and art updates is best summed up with this post from the Official My Little Pony topic: Now, my next challenge on Illustrator was to see if I could vectorize and color some existing lineart of mine. The only piece I was able to successfully color with the tools I have now was my picture of Kai and his family from LE
I was just in my room playing with Breez Flea Machine, a set that I got at the LEGO store last week. It's been on my wish list since before it came out, because I really love its design. The LEGO Group really showed great creativity with this year's Invasion from Below sets and I think it totally paid off. Generally the set meets all of my expectations. Non-traditional design? Check. Its tripod build and heavy use of Technic really help it stand out from previous Hero Factory sets. It's also h
Taking the bus down from Boston to D.C., then the Metro to Alexandria. Gonna be hanging out with the brony group from my hometown I recently learned of. It's gonna be tight. Oh, I'm sorry, is my outdated slang bothering you? Let me reconfigure. It's gonna be crucial.
This past week has been a real adventure for me! I have already talked about a lot of what happened but I wanted to put all my thoughts in one place for future reference. On Wednesday my twin brother and I took the train to New York City for New York Comic Con. I stayed with my mom's camp friend Carson, whom I had previously stayed with back in 2012 when I attended New York International Toy Fair. Once again, she was an extremely hospitable host. The reason for going to New York this time, of
Can we talk for a minute about how awesome the Toa Nuva's double-function weapons were? Looking back I think that might have been one of the coolest features they brought to the table. Swords that turn into a surfboard! Blades that turn into ice skates! Axes that turn into flippers! Chainsaws that turn into caterpillar tracks! You saw a bit of this with the Toa Metru designs as well (Vakama's launcher/jetpack, Nuju's spikes/snowshoes, and Matau's swords/wings), but I don't know if it was quite
Is it bad that I think the LEGO Elves are a lot cuter and more interesting as mini-dolls than they would ever have been as classic minifigs? It seems like for a lot of people, the classic minifigure is sacred and untouchable. I disagree. It has some real, meaningful disadvantages. Mini-dolls aren't perfect either, but there's nothing wrong with sometimes or always preferring its advantages (more realistic faces and proportions, less blocky body shape, more detailed outfits) over those of the mi
Give your support! (Proposal is not mine, but I support it whole-heartedly, and would easily buy four or more of these at 40-50 bucks a pop for my family and friends.)
HS01's full coverage of the 2012 LEGO Collectors Preview from the New York International Toy Fair is still forthcoming, but in the meantime Cholie has finished uploading our photos from the event! They can be found here! The LEGO Collectors Preview didn't extend to full Toy Fair admission unfortunately, so we couldn't see other exhibitors' displays. But Chols posed for this pic as we were leaving. I'm sure many BZP members will appreciate it!
I am way behind writing up my Brickfair recap, so I'm going to just go over some of the highlights. Shortly after I arrived, I learned that Delwyn Buckler got featured on the back cover of the event program! Awesome! Here's my haul from vendors and yard sales. It includes a lot of cool stuff, including a bunch of useful Hero Factory parts, six LEGO Friends mini-dolls for customizing, and a UV light for my MOC during the World of Lights event on Friday. At the live auction on Friday, Nukaya's B
I recently have been spending a lot of time researching the origins of 2001-2003 BIONICLE names. One area I have nearly completed my research on is that of locations. Bear in mind that these are mostly 2001 names, so they are derived from various Polynesian sources. I intend no offense to those cultures where the words are still in-use, and do not claim to have confirmation that the cited languages are the actual sources for the names (if I remember correctly, many names were drawn by LEGO from
Who else is planning to enter? So far there haven't been any entries, but I'm sure some of the more talented artists here already have entries in the works and are simply devoting more time and attention to them than I have. I finished drawing my entry this morning, but I may add more detail. Right now it has very little shading, but I'm hesitant to shade much more than the background details, and I'm certainly not planning on inking this one. It looks very nice right now in graphite, and whil
So 2013 was a mixed bag for me. On the one hand, I've done an amazing amount of MOCing this year. Many of the MOCs I've created are ones I'm incredibly proud of. I've created some art, too, though not a whole lot, all things considered. I've gotten a job (albeit a temporary, part-time job I'd never have gotten without my mom pulling some strings). I had the time of my life at Cloudsdale Congress (which exposed me to the incredible brony music scene), attended lots of fun brony meetups both in Bo
Didn't want to double-post in the Ninjago: Masters of Spinjitzu TV series topic, so figured I'd post it here to make sure the BZPower crowd knew to expect a new episode. If you've seen the trailer for this one (which aired during the LEGO Star Wars special The Empire Strikes Out), you know that this upcoming episode introduces the Stone Army as well as Also I have it on good authority that this next episode will start the plot moving along at a rather exciting pace. There's lots of good m
The first of two articles I wrote for New Elementary previewing the new BIONICLE parts has been posted! Check it out here! The second post, still to come, will be focusing on the new mask and weapon pieces. And after that, expect some actual set reviews! I've already mostly finished writing the first, and I've recently gotten word that another shipment of sets is headed my way for review. I'm hoping for one of the Protector sets — I could probably spend at least half a post talking about their
So I will be attending Brickfair this weekend, and it will be my first Brickfair since BZPower forums came back (as it will be for a lot of people, I'm sure). Want to find me? Chances are I'll spend some time at the BIONICLE table with the BZPower crew and some time wandering the floor, but as identification I'll be wearing my 2009 BIONICLE hat and, of course, my name badge. My name badge this year is smaller than it has been some years, but should be just as distinctive with its four dif
You know, I fully understand that there are a lot of people who will never like Hero Factory. And I respect that. Tastes differ, after all. But something I'll never understand is how often I hear claims about 2010 Hero Factory sets being better than subsequent series. It seems like selective memory at its finest. Let me refresh your memory: in 2010, there were 15 sets total. Six of those were heroes like this one or this one. Let's run through the features, shall we? Two-piece limbs. The bea
I'm going to Comic Con. And since Eurobricks is graciously providing two passes (one for me and one for a companion of my choosing) I'm bringing my brother Lyichir along. I'm honestly somewhat grateful that it's only going to be for one day, because this is going to be a VERY new experience for me and I'm sure having to plan for three or four days on such short notice would be incredibly overwhelming. I also realize that I haven't blogged about BIONICLE's return since the initial leaks back in
Hey y'all, sorry I've been pretty quiet lately. I've been working at the Hasbro photo studio in Pawtucket for the past three months, which has been amazingly fun, but has also slightly limited my ability to gush about what toys I'm excited for. My internship ends this Friday, so hopefully after that I'll be able to get back in the swing of things! What my internship hasn't limited, surprisingly, is the creative energy to keep building in my free time. In fact, during the month of July I create
Hey, everypony! I know I haven't blogged in a while but I figured I ought to share what my plans are for Brickfair VA this year. Yep, my brothers and I will be going again this year, as has become a tradition. I'm a bit sad that this means I can't make it to BronyCon, which is going to be in Baltimore the very same weekend, but hopefully next year the two events will be scheduled on different weekends but BronyCon will remain near my home in Virginia. Anyway, I've already registered my MOCs fo
I was just reflecting on which BIONICLE books I liked most and least, and I got to thinking about something. While the serials are often heavily criticized for being bloated, aimless, and an obstacle to new BIONICLE fans, I'm starting to get a sense of why they were introduced in the first place (other than as a free online method of story dispersal). The books in the year 2006 were among my least favorite. At many points felt like the characters were rushing from one battle or crisis to anoth
