Everyone online is raving about the recent major revelation: the true name of the original Makuta character, the one and only villain we have seen our heroes battle since Bionicle 2001. It was in 2004 when we first learned that Makuta was not the only one of his kind. We discovered that he was part of an entire Brotherhood of Makuta. Last year, 2007, when it at last became more pressing to distinguish our Makuta from others in the historical storyline, we started calling him the "Makuta of Metru Nui," since he was protector of that region of the world. Then, 2007 leading into 2008, we came to know some of the Makuta's brothers by name: first Icarax in a web serial, then Antroz, Chirox, Vamprah, Mutran, Spiriah... but what of our Makuta? In summer 2007 Greg had posted a poll topic on BZPower asking the community if they wished him to assign the Makuta of Metru Nui his very own name once and for all. The fans appeared to answer with a resounding yes, so the decision was made to pull a name off the list of 10,000-a-piece legalized Bionicle character names and attach it to our favorite Makuta. Last week, Greg released the name.

Teridax: that is now the true name of Makuta. Though fans were largely satisfied, many People had a strong aversion to the presence of the letter 'x' in the name. Most older fans, fond of their old-time character, were expecting a more old-timey Bionicle name, the kind of names that blatantly borrowed the phonics of the Maori language. A whole complaint topic concerning the name quickly appeared online, wailing things such as that "Teridax" sounds too much like "pterodactyl" or "terror." The name, however, is here to stay, as evidenced by its heavy usage in Legends 9.

It was Sunday, four days ago, when I bought Bionicle Legends #9: Shadows in the Sky from Barnes & Noble and started reading the book amid an intense homework load.

Make no mistake: I should be reading way beyond the level the Bionicle series is written at. At my age (I'm practically old and dying), the words of the books do not leave the same mark they formerly would have left; so in my crotchety, aged state, I do not get the same sense of accomplishment of having read a novel. Of course, I shouldn't let you make this mistake either: I do not read other books for fun anyway, because I never feel like I have the time. So I turn my eye more toward the raw plot, though Farshtey does get eloquent enough at times.

Now, the contents of the book formally become open to online discussion on the first of April -- and that's no joke. I am not allowed to reveal any plot details, but at this time I can convey an impression of what you can expect from reading the book.

• The book -- I generally like it, even if it is only 125 pages.
• There's plenty of real team-to-team fighting in this book. You have very powerful heroes fighting villains that are a number of times stronger than they but also crippled by loss of their eyesight. Greg describes some very action-packed combat between these super-powered characters.
• The name Teridax formally appears for the first time. The book beat the race against the web serials.
• If you like Icarax the set, I am confident you'll like Icarax the character. He's ambitious, feared, and known for being the dreaded equalizer-Makuta in Makuta Teridax's stead.
• Makuta's new name, Teridax, is not reserved for use in the book at all. Although not used among the hero characters, the Makuta utter "Teridax" in all casual conversation.
• Greg does not loan most screen-time and character development to the three canister Makuta -- much of the plot revolves around Mutran and even Icarax as well, perhaps even more so than Antroz, Chirox, and Vamprah. Those last three are mostly used as generic opponents in fight scenes.
• Good descriptions of the Karda Nui setting you might not have been clear about before.

This month, BrickMaster issues yet another Lego City set. Being well into my teens, I've long ago fallen out of the practice of regular Lego toy buying. It came as no surprise to me that this mini-firetruck set came with a couple pieces I have never encountered before in my life. First, there are these new yellow pieces for the fron and back bumpers, perfect for attaching headlight and grill pieces. I also laughed over a new piece which is basically nothing more than two small horizontal hand-grip pieces fused side-by-side. Now I've noticed that all the new sets also include those tiny 1x1 slant pieces. They are always used to define better the shape of the model -- in this case, transparent pieces were used for the front headlights.

The set achieves a very rich, solid look. No longer do sets so much appear like they are built from many separate bricks, but have clearly defined contours corresponding to what they might actually be in life-size. Of course, new pices have evolved forth to accommadate this shift. Overall, I enjoy looking at the set sitting on my desk.


I open the packaging, which is placed into my store of previous BrickMaster packages, instruction booklets, and catalogues.


Construction is far from difficult. I encounter a couple new pieces.


The model itself. Another Lego City mini-fireboat set was already sent two issues ago. The fireman guy is loaded with gear in the truck one.





The Mutran Chronicles: Chapter 4 was posted on www.bioniclestory.com today.

Mutran muses on the laughable Matoran Civil War. In his memories -- really just accounts of what happened -- the Makuta assistant to Miserix (name "Teridax" not used, nor title "Makuta of Metru Nui" as the point in history predates that designation) proves his effectiveness when he locks substantial numbers of Matoran from both sides in the Archives and unleashes the Rahi exhibits on them. This act is known as the Archives Massacre. Although Matoran might not have the same confidence of the Brotherhood being a perfectly benevolent organization, the fighting ends, and order is restored. Meanwhile, Mutran is on a mission from Miserix to meet with a legend named Tren Krom.

Predictions: The Tren Krom development will explain Makuta Gorast's connection to the Tren Krom Peninsula, no doubt.