OFFICIAL Bionicle 2015 Topic

[Bfahome]

 

 

This is it guys! Five years of screaming "BRING BACK BIONICLE!" finally paid off.

I guarantee that is not what brought this about.

I believe it is, although Lego will never have the guts to admit it. Its the FANS who kept Bionicle alive during the dark times.

 

Fan interest may have helped its return, but complaining and petitioning and "screaming" didn't.

[Toa Of Virtues]

 

 

 

This is it guys! Five years of screaming "BRING BACK BIONICLE!" finally paid off.

I guarantee that is not what brought this about.

I believe it is, although Lego will never have the guts to admit it. Its the FANS who kept Bionicle alive during the dark times.

Trust us, it's not. Even if the fanbase disappeared, it would probably still be coming back. Bionicle sold well, it was a business decision. Edited December 15, 2014 by TuragaOfVirtues

[Banana Gunz]

Although I agree it wasn't solely the fans who brought it back, the fact that they've been keeping Bionicle alive while it's been gone and keeping interest in it is probably a fair factor in it coming back. Lego could see that there was still interest in this theme, and that probably contributed to their decision to bring it back, whereas if all the fans just abandoned the theme, packed it up and went home, thanks for the good time, then bringing back the theme could've taken a while longer and had less call backs to the original years.

 

But ye, I was pretty upset to see none of the sets on shelves yet. I didn't ask anyone except at the Lego store cause I was tired whether they had them out back, and the employee at Lego worded it in such a way that made it seem like they hadn't received them yet. I sense lies!

[LegoSWfan]

 

 

 

 

This is it guys! Five years of screaming "BRING BACK BIONICLE!" finally paid off.

I guarantee that is not what brought this about.

I believe it is, although Lego will never have the guts to admit it. Its the FANS who kept Bionicle alive during the dark times.

Trust us, it's not. Even if the fanbase disappeared, it would probably still be coming back. Bionicle sold well, it was a business decision.

And this shows that Lego cares far less for its fans than, say, Hasbro dose. Hasbro makes transformers from shows over TWO decades old. Just for us who watched the original show.

 

Lego, on the other hand, only cares about profits, just look at TLM. Product placement at every turn! Yet what does bionicle get? A 2 sec cameo. >

[Banana Gunz]

 

 

 

 

This is it guys! Five years of screaming "BRING BACK BIONICLE!" finally paid off.

I guarantee that is not what brought this about.

I believe it is, although Lego will never have the guts to admit it. Its the FANS who kept Bionicle alive during the dark times.

Trust us, it's not. Even if the fanbase disappeared, it would probably still be coming back. Bionicle sold well, it was a business decision.

And this shows that Lego cares far less for its fans than, say, Hasbro dose. Hasbro makes transformers from shows over TWO decades old. Just for us who watched the original show.

 

Lego, on the other hand, only cares about profits, just look at TLM. Product placement at every turn! Yet what does bionicle get? A 2 sec cameo. >

 

 

If Lego cared solely about money and not the fans even a little bit, they wouldn't have made so many callbacks and designs/ideas from the old Bionicle. Besides, Lego has no use to make sets of the story from say 2004. The old fan base isn't big enough to sustain any sort of support or profit from that.

[dviddy]

As a member of both fandoms, lol at the idea that Hasbro cares more for fans. If you think re-making G1 characters isn't a profit move, I have a mystical island to sell you.

[LegoSWfan]

If Lego cared about the fans, we would see bionicle take a larger chunk of TLM, or them admitting that bionicles return is due to the fans alone.

 

And I was reffering to beast wars.

[Voltex]

If Lego cared about the fans, we would see bionicle take a larger chunk of TLM, or them admitting that bionicles return is due to the fans alone.

 

And I was reffering to beast wars.

 

The return of Bionicle hadn't been announced (nor was it ready to be announced) yet when The LEGO Movie came out, and featuring Gen. 1 of Bionicle in the movie would have been counterproductive to both the film (since it's a dead line), and to the reboot (since the two are separate storywise).

[Nidhiki of the Shadows]

Yeah there were a plethora of factors involved in Bionicle's return, definitely including fan support. But to say it was solely on us is a big overstatement

 

-NotS

[Banana Gunz]

As a member of both fandoms, lol at the idea that Hasbro cares more for fans. If you think re-making G1 characters isn't a profit move, I have a mystical island to sell you.

 

I'm not saying remaking the G1 characters isn't smart profit-wise, but it counts for more than just that. They didn't just remake the characters, but they also kept very true to them. There are a lot of features in the new sets that could've not been there and wouldn't have made the sets worse, but were.

 

 

If Lego cared about the fans, we would see bionicle take a larger chunk of TLM, or them admitting that bionicles return is due to the fans alone.

 

I'm sorry, but that is just very wrong. Bionicle's return isn't solely due to the fans, and they have no reason to admit that considering it isn't true. And not saying that doesn't mean they don't care about the fans. They want to introduce Bionicle as something anyone can love, and not just the limited size of the old fan-base.

 

And making them take a larger chunk of the market isn't necessary to have a great theme. There are a lot of factors as to why they didn't make it as big, and when you look at it realistically, they have made it pretty important considering it was the only theme to get representation at NYCC, which got it some serious advertizing. Just throwing it out there without actually being a million percent sure whether it'll be worth the amount of effort put into it is ridiculous. The reboot already has thirteen sets in the first wave, and about five more for the second. That's a pretty good number for the theme at such an early stage in its return.

 

EDIT: Whoops, I thought TLM stood for "The Lego Market". I'll reply to that in a different post.

Edited December 15, 2014 by Banana Gunz

[LegoSWfan]

See? TLM was nothing but a cash grab for Lego.

[Bfahome]

See? TLM was nothing but a cash grab for Lego.

It was an extremely entertaining and well-made movie, and if the only thing you got from it was "LEGO's making money off of this" then I feel very sorry for you.

[NickonAquaMagna]

 

I swear, Maine is always the last state to get these. We won't be seeing them around here until LONG after Christmas. Oh well...

It's a toss-up.  I know I couldn't find Mixels ANYWHERE I looked in Bangor until like a month after everyone else, but I'm hoping bigger lines like BIONICLE aren't always subject to the same delay.

 

 

Wait, BANGOR?! Small world... That's where I went to look for the Toa today, at Toys R Us and Target. Huh. Crazy.

[LegoSWfan]

Honestly, the six Toa will most likely (almost certainly) the LAST things I get from Lego. I already have a list of megabloks Halo sets I'm getting for 2015.

 

 

See? TLM was nothing but a cash grab for Lego.

It was an extremely entertaining and well-made movie, and if the only thing you got from it was "LEGO's making money off of this" then I feel very sorry for you.

It really wasnt that great of a film, entertainment wise. Either.

[Banana Gunz]

Bionicle didn't need a larger role in TLM. Be happy it even got an easter egg at all.

 

TLM wasn't just a cash grab. It was a movie with an honest and inspiring message, it was well made and made so many references to the fans and old themes that saying Lego didn't care is just kidding yourself, because they didn't have to do any of that.

 

In fact, the word "Lego" wasn't even used in the movie at all. Aside from the title, it didn't act like an advertizement where it reminded you every ten seconds that this was a movie about "LEGO". It was far more than that.

 

The movie was meant also to get it a foothold and larger recognition in the world and media. It expanded their name quite generously in my eyes, considering how big the market for film in the world is.

 

Putting more Bionicle in there would've been worth almost nothing for anyone. Putting in just a little to excite the old fans and make them feel remembered was all that was needed. Bionicle just doesn't fit in the movie in general. It's quite different and alien to many when they think of LEGO, and would've not contributed much to the story, considering how solid it was already.

Edited December 15, 2014 by Banana Gunz

[bioniclepluslotr]

Did anyone notice the instructions are up?

[believe victims]

If Lego cared about the fans, we would see bionicle take a larger chunk of TLM, or them admitting that bionicles return is due to the fans alone.

 

First of all, no. Bionicle, even in its heyday, was far divorced from the basic LEGO that everyone knew of. Pull your average schmuck off the street, ask them what LEGO is, Bionicle likely won't even blip into their memory. The LEGO movie was about celebrating LEGO as the culture sees it. Bionicle is at most a very small part of that, and honestly I don't see how they could have shoehorned in a larger role for it.

 

Second, Bionicle's return is not "due to fans alone". While I don't doubt fan interest played a role in its return (though congratulating those who threw a temper tantrum at its cancellation would be a misstep), there is also a business angle to it, which is because TLG is a business, and making money is their job. If a decision does not make them money, they won't take it unless it has some other upside to it, because they are a business, and businesses care about profits, because without profits a business sinks like the Titanic: by breaking in half, falling to the ocean floor, and having a sappy movie made about it.

[Nidhiki of the Shadows]

Also just to say, during the Comic-Con reveal the director of the relaunch said something like "I just want to thank you guys, it was you (the fans) who brought back Bionicle". Just because LEGO doesn't downright suck up to the "entitled" fans in press releases and launch information doesn't mean they don't recognize us. 

 

Besides, I don't think we tried so hard to bring Bionicle back simply for recognition. We did it so we could see the toy line we cherish return, did we not? Why are we acting like LEGO owes us something? 

 

-NotS

[LegoSWfan]

It sickens me how many of you bionicle "fans" think bionicle is only a part of Lego, bionicle made Lego what it is today. Bionicle is the greatest thing Lego came up with.

[Banana Gunz]

It sickens me how many of you bionicle "fans" think bionicle is only a part of Lego, bionicle made Lego what it is today. Bionicle is the greatest thing Lego came up with.

 

Well, that's your opinion. There are some in the community who don't like Bionicle because it simply doesn't interest them (and other questionable reasons...). I do believe Bionicle deserves recognition for what it is though. Bionicle practically saved Lego at one point and is a very important part of it, but I don't think it's accurate to say it is the whole of it, or else it wouldn't have been discontinued in the first place. Bionicle is important to Lego, but it is not the pure definition of them.

Edited December 15, 2014 by Banana Gunz

[AdaptingChaos]

Did anyone notice the instructions are up?

Yes it was mentioned a while ago. I was actually able to build Tahu Master of Fire with the official instructions from the huge amounts of parts I was able to get from the NYCC VIP Lego Bionicle event.

[Aanchir]

LEGO cares plenty about their fans. The LEGO Movie had plenty of references purely for fans' sake. References to not just BIONICLE, but also to all kinds of other niche LEGO themes such as Fabuland, Blacktron, classic Space, and Adventurers. Considering BIONICLE's niche status in the adult LEGO fan community and the fact that it hadn't been a current theme in over three years, I know plenty of BIONICLE fans are grateful that the theme got referenced at all.

 

Besides that, it's not like the LEGO Group heavy-handedly dictated which themes the creators of the LEGO Movie should reference and which they shouldn't. Thus a lot of the references were entirely at the creators' discretion. That's why you saw references to themes like classic Space or pop culture franchises like Batman that factored heavily into the creators' own life experience.

 

BIONICLE is an important part of LEGO. But it's one of MANY important parts. The fact that BIONICLE saved LEGO at one specific time doesn't mean its contributions automatically outweigh the net contributions of all other themes. If a fireman saved me from a fire, that doesn't mean that fireman's actions would be the single most important thing that ever happened to me.

Edited December 15, 2014 by Aanchir

[Nidhiki of the Shadows]

 

It sickens me how many of you bionicle "fans" think bionicle is only a part of Lego, bionicle made Lego what it is today. Bionicle is the greatest thing Lego came up with.

 

I agree that is the best thing LEGO has ever done, simply because I have so much attachment to it. But it is still a part of LEGO, and LEGO is a company that needs to make profit or crumble. Bionicle might have saved LEGO from a financial crisis and obviously they are quite aware of that, having books and editorials published about its success. But did you expect them to just rebrand themselves Bionicle and sell bricks off to the side as a result? No, Bionicle was a theme like many others (and not the only success, mind you, Star Wars was a big part in saving LEGO as well).

 

-NotS

[LegoSWfan]

 

 

It sickens me how many of you bionicle "fans" think bionicle is only a part of Lego, bionicle made Lego what it is today. Bionicle is the greatest thing Lego came up with.

Well, that's your opinion. There are some in the community who don't like Bionicle because it simply doesn't interest them (and other questionable reasons...). I do believe Bionicle deserves recognition for what it is though. Bionicle practically saved Lego at one point and is a very important part of it, but I don't think it's accurate to say it is the whole of it, or else it wouldn't have been discontinued in the first place. Bionicle is important to Lego, but it is not the pure definition of them.

Yes, and as an opinion, I have a right to say it.

 

For me, all Lego is is star wars and bionicle, I could care less about their other lines.

 

Now that we've gotten all of that out of the way, anyone know if Toa Kaita can be made with the new builds?

[Iblis]

It really wasnt that great of a film, entertainment wise. Either.

 

In your opinion.

 

The movie has a 7.9 / 10 on IMDB so... from 160'000+ reviews, so a lot of people thought it was a good movie, which probably means that a lot of them found it somewhat entertaining. Great? Maybe not, but still a good movie.

 

Edit oh and;

Now that we've gotten all of that out of the way, anyone know if Toa Kaita can be made with the new builds?

 

Wairuha Master of Wisdom, a MOC which just uses Bionicle pieces from their 2015 sets etc.

Edited December 15, 2014 by Iblis

[Klack]

It sickens me how many of you bionicle "fans" think bionicle is only a part of Lego, bionicle made Lego what it is today. Bionicle is the greatest thing Lego came up with.

Not that I disagree with you, but Lego Star Wars had a bigger effect than Bionicle did in bringing the brand back into the spotlight again.

[Lyichir]

It sickens me how many of you bionicle "fans" think bionicle is only a part of Lego, bionicle made Lego what it is today. Bionicle is the greatest thing Lego came up with.

It sickens me how many Bionicle "fans" like you think that Bionicle is the only part of Lego with any merit, that Lego's other properties (which very often share the same talent that made Bionicle great) are "cash grabs" and that Lego hates its fans just because they don't pander to us to the exclusion of fans of their other themes. Whiny, entitled "fans" like you hurt the overall fandom's reputation.

[Klack]

 

It sickens me how many of you bionicle "fans" think bionicle is only a part of Lego, bionicle made Lego what it is today. Bionicle is the greatest thing Lego came up with.

It sickens me how many Bionicle "fans" like you think that Bionicle is the only part of Lego with any merit, that Lego's other properties (which very often share the same talent that made Bionicle great) are "cash grabs" and that Lego hates its fans just because they don't pander to us to the exclusion of fans of their other themes. Whiny, entitled "fans" like you hurt the overall fandom's reputation.

 

Too many opinions are being thrown around as fact.  

[Banana Gunz]

 

 

It sickens me how many of you bionicle "fans" think bionicle is only a part of Lego, bionicle made Lego what it is today. Bionicle is the greatest thing Lego came up with.

Well, that's your opinion. There are some in the community who don't like Bionicle because it simply doesn't interest them (and other questionable reasons...). I do believe Bionicle deserves recognition for what it is though. Bionicle practically saved Lego at one point and is a very important part of it, but I don't think it's accurate to say it is the whole of it, or else it wouldn't have been discontinued in the first place. Bionicle is important to Lego, but it is not the pure definition of them.

Yes, and as an opinion, I have a right to say it.

 

For me, all Lego is is star wars and bionicle, I could care less about their other lines.

 

Now that we've gotten all of that out of the way, anyone know if Toa Kaita can be made with the new builds?

 

 

Yes, you do have a right to say your opinion, but the way you say it makes it feel like you're trying to brand it as fact and saying that others should be ashamed if they feel differently than you.

 

Lego is not just Star Wars and Bionicle, and it is just way off to say that about the company as a whole. Other themes have influenced and inspired countless people such as myself. If you don't care about those other lines personally, well that's fine, but recognize that others do and that they are meaningful.

 

 

I know Aanchir and Lyichir made a nice Kaita. I don't think Lego made instructions for them directly though.

Edited December 15, 2014 by Banana Gunz

[Nidhiki of the Shadows]

Now that we've gotten all of that out of the way, anyone know if Toa Kaita can be made with the new builds?

Since I feel this is going to be buried under the forthcoming argument, here's Aanchir and Lyichir's take on Wairuha using the Master sets. Considering how awesome this build is, the answer to your question is heck yes!

 

As for official Kaita models, hmmmm I doubt they will surface as Kaita but something similar as a combiner model could appear throughout the year.

 

-NotS

[LegoSWfan]

Banana Gunz.

 

I was simply stating my opinion, I had no intention of it coming off as fact.

 

And I recognize other Lego lines, I just don't have any interest in them, I only like bionicle and star wars sets. That's all.

[dotcom]

 

I was simply stating my opinion, I had no intention of it coming off as fact.

 

Personally, I don't think that you came across as passing your opinion as fact here. It's just that your opinion was really, really rude. Saying that it sickens you how we think, and putting "fans" in quotation marks, as if the fact that we don't put Bionicle on a pedestal doesn't make us fans? It makes you come across as extremely antagonizing and dismissive, and it's not cool. You're entitled to your opinion, you are not entitled to insult others with it.

[LegoSWfan]

Well I'm sorry it came out that way.

[Klack]

Well I'm sorry it came out that way.

I'm on your side, friend. 

[LegoSWfan]

Aww

 

And I will do my best to moderate my posts to no sound so offensive.

[Sir Kohran]

 

I was simply stating my opinion, I had no intention of it coming off as fact.

 

Personally, I don't think that you came across as passing your opinion as fact here. 

 

Personally, I think he did. Look at the words in question:

 

"bionicle made Lego what it is today. Bionicle is the greatest thing Lego came up with."

 

Do you see 'I think' or 'in my opinion' anywhere?

[LegoSWfan]

In my opinion bionicle made Lego what it is today I think bionicle is the greatest thing Lego came up with.

 

Better?

[Zeb]

Can't wait to see something as beautiful as this again:

 

 

-NotS

Where was this picture taken? I've never seen any store that ever carried this many sets from just one Lego theme. Normally, that amount of shelf space is half of the entire Lego isle! That's a crazy number of Lego Bionicle sets.

 

 

 

This is it guys! Five years of screaming "BRING BACK BIONICLE!" finally paid off.

I guarantee that is not what brought this about.

I believe it is, although Lego will never have the guts to admit it. Its the FANS who kept Bionicle alive during the dark times.

 

It was partially the fans, but the petitions did nothing. It was the fans who created MOCs, wrote stories, filmed animations, and kept discussing it. It was also because of money.

 

 

 

 

 

This is it guys! Five years of screaming "BRING BACK BIONICLE!" finally paid off.

I guarantee that is not what brought this about.

I believe it is, although Lego will never have the guts to admit it. Its the FANS who kept Bionicle alive during the dark times.

Trust us, it's not. Even if the fanbase disappeared, it would probably still be coming back. Bionicle sold well, it was a business decision.

And this shows that Lego cares far less for its fans than, say, Hasbro dose. Hasbro makes transformers from shows over TWO decades old. Just for us who watched the original show.

 

Lego, on the other hand, only cares about profits, just look at TLM. Product placement at every turn! Yet what does bionicle get? A 2 sec cameo. >

 

In my opnion, The Lego Movie was far from product placement. It was the best film Lego has ever produced. The writers took what could have been a really long Lego commercial and turn it into an amazing film. It has fantastic humor and a deep message. Bionicle only got a 2-sec cameo, not because it wasn't important, but because there are other themes, too. Fabuland, Friends, and other Lego themes were/are important too, but they only got short cameos as well. Bionicle isn't the only fantastic Lego theme, you know. The writers grew up with Classic Space-minifigures, not Tahu the Toa, so that's another reason Bionicle had only a short cameo. More people were going to recognize Benny than Tahu. And advertising the old Bionicle wasn't the best idea since Lego was about to reboot the whole line.

 

If Lego released a classic Tahu, how many people would buy it? Just like the Lego Legends theme (A series of re-releases of classic Lego sets from the 90s and earlier), it would not sell very well. Transformers has a larger fanbase than Bionicle, so Hasbro is able to sell figures like that. The Constraction fanbase is small. Bionicle's fanbase is even smaller. I'm not saying Lego absolutely loves their fans, because after all Lego IS a corporation, but they are not blind to their fanbase. Bionicle 2015 is proof of that. Remember, Lego has to balance between doing what the Bionicle fanbase wants and what is going to make Bionicle be successful and continue to have a fanbase.

 

Well, that's my opinion.

Edited December 15, 2014 by Makaru

[Pohatu: Uniter of Stone]

It sickens me how many of you bionicle "fans" think bionicle is only a part of Lego, bionicle made Lego what it is today. Bionicle is the greatest thing Lego came up with.

Bionicle is a part of Lego. The greatest thing Lego ever came up with was the interlocking brick system that is sturdy, fun and has nearly all pieces compatible.

(To an extent. Yo can't attach a 2001 Kanohi Hau to a minifig space helmet.)

[Nidhiki of the Shadows]

^ @SuperGeniusCreator - Might wanna remove that picture, it's still considered a leaked image

 

Also I got that image from this old BZP article. That should give you the information you want!

 

-NotS