Headcanons

[TheSkeletonMan939]

And just so you know, you're clearly in the wrong on what headcanon means. It has always been used primarily for things fans change. You're thinking of canon-fit headcanon, which is one type of it, not the main type. Its basic meaning doesn't comment one way or another on whether it fits canon; it's about what the individual fan likes enough to see as their own version. And Greg and LEGO do not support your interpretation either; they encourage fans to imagine their own versions and change whatever they like.

Okay, okay, I lose. Whenever I've heard headcanon within other fandoms it's ideas and theories that are not supported but are not refuted by canon; otherwise its fan fiction. Apparently that's not the case here.

 

If that's the way we're doing it, here are a few:

 

- The Barraki are members of Krekka's, Ravager's, and Sidorak's species

- Where do all those crazy species in the Dark Hunters book come from? The Southern Islands.

- The Matoran tribes aren't exclusive to one sex. They're mixed.

- A horrible injury sustained during the Visorak inhabitation of Metru Nui (2005 story year) left Nuju with brain damage that kept him from speaking the Matoran language properly. That's why he learned Gukko.

[ZippyWharrgarbl]

Oh man do I have some headcanons for you.

 

~ Makuta can't regenerate antidermis on their own, but if they lose a lot of it it can be replaced via purified gaseous antidermis from that pool Mata Nui made them out of. Similar to prions, if one of their particles bumps into the new ones it changes the particle into their personal structure and increases the volume of their antidermis. I couldn't find any sources regarding if antidermis was able to be regenerated or not, but I remember reading somewhere that it wasn't and thought that was sort of silly.

 

~ Matoran are made in factories (as in canon), most of which are situated on Metru Nui. Matoran are created in the factory, slapped with a name, and sent on to the schools of Ga-Metru. After being taken through a rudimentary "Hey you're a Matoran, here's some basic mathematics and Mata Nui propaganda" class, they're shipped off to wherever they're needed. Sometimes they're given further education if they're destined to be a healer or whatever. The factories aren't constantly in use and require special permission from the Turaga to operate to prevent the universe being overcrowded.

 

~ Residents of the MU can feel love, they just generally have no idea what it is. Usually it gets mistaken for an illness or allergy to a certain person. Some work it out, though, and connect the weird feeling of butterflies in their stomach to wanting to be with someone forever. Most just avoid the person causing it like the plague.

 

~ I like to think that there was a secret underground Makuta group made up of Makuta opposed to Teridax's plan. They're still arrogant and snobbish as all get out, they just have enough goodwill to not want to commit Grand Theft Great Spirit. They were slated to be killed after Teridax took leadership from Miserix, as in canon, but they managed to fake their deaths or similar and slip away to the Southern islands. I also like the idea of some Makuta having at least a passing sense of decency, like Krika.

 

~ Not all members of a single race, such as the Makuta or Skrall, are evil. In the case of Skrall, after the events of TLR, many of them found themselves freed from the tyrannic rule of Tuma and buggered off to form their own settlement, perhaps even inviting the Sisters of the Skrall along too.

 

~ When Makuta Spiriah augmented the Skakdi, he accidentally made them a lot more prone to rage and violence along with the magic vision powers. Despite this, some Skakdi undertake rigorous meditation to keep themselves calm and collected and basically the giant permanent smile on their face is real 99% of the time and often does not look like they are about to bit your head off. They integrate with Matoran and Agori society on Spherus Magna, though like many of the species associated with evil that also integrated, there is a lot of prejudice directed towards them.

 

The last three points can be summarised by "Not every member of this race is evil".

 

The headcanon in the first post reminded me of one I saw in 2009 (I think) that I REALLY liked. This was around the time people were trying to guess who the traitor from TLR was. Someone suggested that Strakk was the traitor, and I loved that.

[Toa Levacius Zehvor]

And just so you know, you're clearly in the wrong on what headcanon means. It has always been used primarily for things fans change. You're thinking of canon-fit headcanon, which is one type of it, not the main type. Its basic meaning doesn't comment one way or another on whether it fits canon; it's about what the individual fan likes enough to see as their own version. And Greg and LEGO do not support your interpretation either; they encourage fans to imagine their own versions and change whatever they like.

 

Hmm. I redact my addition to the discussion, then. Different interpretations for different fandoms, I suppose.

 

Though, if anything, this has given some more fuel to a really old idea I had. So I suppose some good might still come from this mess.

 

Some more comments on things which caught my eye:

 

Okay, okay, I lose. Whenever I've heard headcanon within other fandoms it's ideas and theories that are not supported but are not refuted by canon; otherwise its fan fiction. Apparently that's not the case here.

 

If that's the way we're doing it, here are a few:

 

- The Barraki are members of Krekka's, Ravager's, and Sidorak's species

- Where do all those crazy species in the Dark Hunters book come from? The Southern Islands.

- The Matoran tribes aren't exclusive to one sex. They're mixed.

- A horrible injury sustained during the Visorak inhabitation of Metru Nui (2005 story year) left Nuju with brain damage that kept him from speaking the Matoran language properly. That's why he learned Gukko.

 

I've always enjoyed, in RPGs, trying to determine origins for the different species. I've always had a certain fondness for Conjurers species; the idea of a whole species of power-hungry, "magic" entities attempting to control various other civilizations always had had an appeal.

 

Nuju with brain damage? Totally canon; I have a dog named Nuju, and that would certainly explain a lot of his issues. Ah, the silly things we do when we're children.

 

Oh man do I have some headcanons for you.

 

~ Makuta can't regenerate antidermis on their own, but if they lose a lot of it it can be replaced via purified gaseous antidermis from that pool Mata Nui made them out of. Similar to prions, if one of their particles bumps into the new ones it changes the particle into their personal structure and increases the volume of their antidermis. I couldn't find any sources regarding if antidermis was able to be regenerated or not, but I remember reading somewhere that it wasn't and thought that was sort of silly.

 

~ Matoran are made in factories (as in canon), most of which are situated on Metru Nui. Matoran are created in the factory, slapped with a name, and sent on to the schools of Ga-Metru. After being taken through a rudimentary "Hey you're a Matoran, here's some basic mathematics and Mata Nui propaganda" class, they're shipped off to wherever they're needed. Sometimes they're given further education if they're destined to be a healer or whatever. The factories aren't constantly in use and require special permission from the Turaga to operate to prevent the universe being overcrowded.

 

~ Residents of the MU can feel love, they just generally have no idea what it is. Usually it gets mistaken for an illness or allergy to a certain person. Some work it out, though, and connect the weird feeling of butterflies in their stomach to wanting to be with someone forever. Most just avoid the person causing it like the plague.

 

~ I like to think that there was a secret underground Makuta group made up of Makuta opposed to Teridax's plan. They're still arrogant and snobbish as all get out, they just have enough goodwill to not want to commit Grand Theft Great Spirit. They were slated to be killed after Teridax took leadership from Miserix, as in canon, but they managed to fake their deaths or similar and slip away to the Southern islands. I also like the idea of some Makuta having at least a passing sense of decency, like Krika.

 

~ Not all members of a single race, such as the Makuta or Skrall, are evil. In the case of Skrall, after the events of TLR, many of them found themselves freed from the tyrannic rule of Tuma and buggered off to form their own settlement, perhaps even inviting the Sisters of the Skrall along too.

 

~ When Makuta Spiriah augmented the Skakdi, he accidentally made them a lot more prone to rage and violence along with the magic vision powers. Despite this, some Skakdi undertake rigorous meditation to keep themselves calm and collected and basically the giant permanent smile on their face is real 99% of the time and often does not look like they are about to bit your head off. They integrate with Matoran and Agori society on Spherus Magna, though like many of the species associated with evil that also integrated, there is a lot of prejudice directed towards them.

 

The last three points can be summarised by "Not every member of this race is evil".

 

The headcanon in the first post reminded me of one I saw in 2009 (I think) that I REALLY liked. This was around the time people were trying to guess who the traitor from TLR was. Someone suggested that Strakk was the traitor, and I loved that.

 

Sheesh, that first one's just a scary thought. If someone put it to the first person PoV of Teridax in an alt!verse, casting the Makuta as more misguided than evil, and trying to "fight the system", it could make a really interesting story.

 

You know, I personally never really thought of the Skrall as evil; just extreme. People tend to get all touchy and think "xenophobic warmongers? must be evil", forgetting that this is simply a result of their culture, and their view of the Glatorian being weak (which is, in fact, supported, considering that a Skrall grunt could easily go toe-to-toe with village champions, up until The Legend Reborn shot itself in the foot). Not to mention that the Skrall actually have their reasons, considering that they've spent thousands of years fleeing from shape-shifting robots.

 

And that's it.

 

-Toa Levacius Zehvor

[Boidoh]

 

 I don't remember when we ushered in the Canon Police.

They're like the Spanish Inquisition. They just show up when they feel a Disturbance in the Canon, like someone daring to suggest gender equality and non-Fikou Rahi.

 

 

Quote of the day.

 

 

I don't understand why people hate canonization so much but have these outrageous headcanons that go against major plot points in the story...

you basically just explained it for yourself

 

the people who dont want more canon details added are also more likely to dislike the existing canon and want to headcanon things that contradict it

 

 

If they can ignore basic facts of the BIONICLE universe such as lifespans and gender ratios, they can definitely ignore one obscure dude wearing a mask and having a tool.

[Sharnak the Bohrok Lord]

One of my biggest pet peeves with a story is when a species or race is presented as being inherently evil. Unless there's a reason in-story (like Daleks being genetically engineered) it kind of brings up some unfortunate implications.

 

Speaking of Bara Magna cultures, here's a creepy theory I have. The helmets and armor pieces that Vorox and Zesk wear are not crafted but are taken from large, insect creatures that they've killed. Think of falmer and chaurus from The Elder Scrolls series.

 

Also, I always thought that the head color of heads indicated the skin color of Spherus Magna beings. By extension, the black pieces of skrall are their armor; the red bits are exposed skin. Skrall with green are the exception.

[Sergei Rahkmaninoff]

Hmm... Well, I headcanon Corpus Rahkshi, more or less. Intelligent Rahkshi always appealed to me, but I never knew how to implement the concept until that. I also headcanon that some Skakdi were off of Zakaz trading or something when Spiriah was doing his tampering and therefore lack powers and are nice. Also as many others have mentioned, no tribe-based gender restrictions.

 

And when I opened this topic I didn't expect the Spanish Inquisition.

[Regitnui]

And when I opened this topic I didn't expect the Spanish Inquisition.

 

Sorry. It had to be done.

Also, I always thought that the head color of heads indicated the skin color of Spherus Magna beings. By extension, the black pieces of skrall are their armor; the red bits are exposed skin. Skrall with green are the exception.

 I'll see you that and raise you the dark bley being the default 'skin colour' or 'lowest armour colour' for most MU species as well.

[Biff]

Here's one a lot of people are gonna hate!

-Only Norik and Iruni were changed back into Toa Hagah.  The reason being...I have a hard time picturing characters that didn't get a set, so I basically ignore the ones who didn't.

Feel free to scoff and/or laugh at this.

Edited December 22, 2014 by Biff

[The 1st Shadow]

Hmm... Well, I headcanon Corpus Rahkshi, more or less. Intelligent Rahkshi always appealed to me, but I never knew how to implement the concept until that. 

 

Ever heard of the Stage 7 Shadow Kraata? You know, those purple ones. The ones with Matoran-level intelligence and the ability to speak, supposedly.

[Sergei Rahkmaninoff]

That is a very good point and I feel rather ignorant now.

 

Oh well. Corpus Rahkshi is demoted to semi-headcanon now.

[fishers64]

Hmm, this is tricky. I want to say that I've named a few in a previous topic. A lot of my head canon I've turned into fanfiction, though, or is possible ingredients for more. Someone mentioned that these explanations should be interesting - and if something is interesting, I want to write about it usually - and spoiling fanfiction that others haven't read or isn't even published yet isn't my thing. 

 

I haven't taken issue personally with too many story decisions. 2009 still rubs a little. I once wrote a story where the Toa defeated Teridax instead of Mata Nui because I thought that was better, but I've since gotten over that for the most part.

 

I have plenty of Gen 2 head canonish ideas, but those aren't headcanons - they're theories.

[FallenCor]

Figures this topic finally comes up and I can't remember any of my headcanons.

 

No, wait, I remember one: that after everyone moves out of the MU, there's no need for the Matoran/Toa/Turaga (or anyone else, frankly) to have such absurdly long life-spans.

 

Whatever else I had I'm probably reserving for a fan-fic, anyway.

[Taka Nuvia]

The only one that has really grown on to me over the years is a better gender balance. I want both female Ta- and male Ga-matoran, and everything inbetween is perfectly fine too. All that "X can only be male because fire is not for girls" really got on my nerves at some point. :/

[Mjolnitor]

Many of them, and most are mutually exclusive and canon-disregarding ('cause there is too much to fix in canon, and headcanons aren't enough).

 

For example:

 

Most of Dark Hunters we know were the original wielders of their powers - but not current wielders.

When a newcomer with new unique set of powers joins DH, he is given a device that will absorb his powers on death - so his abilities will be preserved.

When a newcomer without any unique powers joins DH, he is given the device wielded previously by one of now deceased hunters - with all the powers.

Eliminator's work is retrieving these devices - mostly from those who don't deserve them.

 

BTW...

 

 

 

 

I don't understand why people hate canonization so much but have these outrageous headcanons that go against major plot points in the story...

you basically just explained it for yourself

 

the people who dont want more canon details added are also more likely to dislike the existing canon and want to headcanon things that contradict it

 

 

If they can ignore basic facts of the BIONICLE universe such as lifespans and gender ratios, they can definitely ignore one obscure dude wearing a mask and having a tool.

 

But isn't adding things that people should ignore in canon, basically, devaluating said canon?

Edited December 24, 2014 by Mjolnitor

[Quisoves Potoo]

But isn't adding things that people should ignore in canon, basically, devaluating said canon?

Not all that is ignored should be ignored, and opinions on what should be ignored vary according to the individual. There are fans who think that Mata Nui's robotic nature should be ignored, and they no doubt think that the canon is devalued by its existence. But there are, of course, plenty of fans who think otherwise.

That said, I believe, Boidoh, that the stated issue with continued canonization is the "canon-snobbery" that purportedly arises from it, not dislike of the details themselves.

[bonesiii]

But isn't adding things that people should ignore in canon, basically, devaluating said canon?

Can we stay on topic, guys? Now you're back to debating canonizations, and we have several open topics for that.

 

Short answer to this is you're apparently forgetting that what makes one person want to ignore something is their subjective personal taste (assuming the thing passes the consistency tests so it isn't a legitimate problem, and that's what we check). Other people who like it don't want to ignore it and in their eyes the value goes up. Especially relevant when the person who values it is the author, and when polls show a majority of support (but even minorities should get nods sometimes, whether pro or anti canonization).

 

This also assumes the value of canon is related to this issue at all which is very debatable, but a discussion best saved for someplace where it's actually on-topic.

[Zidonaro]

Yeah I have a some:

 

- There are male and female Matoran in every element.

- Lewa is female.

- Makuta can get revived in the RS, it's a bit unfair that everyone but them can.

- Lesovikk team was revived

- Yes, Teridax was revived, but he was sealed away forever.

- Mata Nui body was transferred to the ocean. The Matoran then released the energized protodermis flows once again, recreating the Island of Mata Nui. Many Matoran live there for nostalgic purposes.

- The Toa managed to get the RS working again, and a lot of emotional reunions happen, like Lesovikk meeting his deceased brothers again, and the Turaga meeting Lhikan.

Edited December 24, 2014 by Zidonaro

[The 1st Shadow]

- Lewa is female.

 

- Mata Nui body was transferred to the ocean. The Matoran then released the energized protodermis flows once again, recreating the Island of Mata Nui. Many Matoran live there for nostalgic purposes.

- The Toa managed to get the RS working again, and a lot of emotional reunions happen, like Lesovikk meeting his deceased brothers again, and the Turaga meeting Lhikan.

1. Just outta curiosity... Why?

 

2. Technically, they wouldn't need the robot. They could just get the Toa Nuva (along with any other Toa of Earth and Stone to create a new landmass, and reshape it to look like the island. Sure, it's take a while, and a lot of elemental power, but it'd be easier than carrying a planet-sized metal man hundreds of miles to the ocean. (Also, all the sources of EP were destroyed. )

 

3. Who's to say they didn't? Greg never finished the story. For all we know, Kopaka and Pohatu and Mavrah found the "sendback" teleportation system and fixed it and sent everyone who hadn't turned into an undead experiment of the Kestora back down to Spherus Magna.

[bonesiii]

Technically, they wouldn't need the robot. They could just get the Toa Nuva (along with any other Toa of Earth and Stone to create a new landmass, and reshape it to look like the island. Sure, it's take a while, and a lot of elemental power, but it'd be easier than carrying a planet-sized metal man hundreds of miles to the ocean. (Also, all the sources of EP were destroyed. )

Actually there's a third and much more efficient option; extract just the camouflage generator from the giant robot's face and move just that. I used that concept in a fanfic, after the idea was discussed once. And there was a lot of EP throughout the giant (and sources being destroyed canonically is irrelevant to headcanon anyways); it's possible some survived somewhere.

[Boidoh]

 

- Lewa is female.

 

- Mata Nui body was transferred to the ocean. The Matoran then released the energized protodermis flows once again, recreating the Island of Mata Nui. Many Matoran live there for nostalgic purposes.

- The Toa managed to get the RS working again, and a lot of emotional reunions happen, like Lesovikk meeting his deceased brothers again, and the Turaga meeting Lhikan.

1. Just outta curiosity... Why?

 

2. Technically, they wouldn't need the robot. They could just get the Toa Nuva (along with any other Toa of Earth and Stone to create a new landmass, and reshape it to look like the island. Sure, it's take a while, and a lot of elemental power, but it'd be easier than carrying a planet-sized metal man hundreds of miles to the ocean. (Also, all the sources of EP were destroyed. )

 

3. Who's to say they didn't? Greg never finished the story. For all we know, Kopaka and Pohatu and Mavrah found the "sendback" teleportation system and fixed it and sent everyone who hadn't turned into an undead experiment of the Kestora back down to Spherus Magna.

 

 

3. Greg did say that they HAD to fix the sendback system if Kopaka and Pohatu were to leave the RS.

[Zidonaro]

 

- Lewa is female.

 

- Mata Nui body was transferred to the ocean. The Matoran then released the energized protodermis flows once again, recreating the Island of Mata Nui. Many Matoran live there for nostalgic purposes.

- The Toa managed to get the RS working again, and a lot of emotional reunions happen, like Lesovikk meeting his deceased brothers again, and the Turaga meeting Lhikan.

1. Just outta curiosity... Why?

 

3. Who's to say they didn't? Greg never finished the story. For all we know, Kopaka and Pohatu and Mavrah found the "sendback" teleportation system and fixed it and sent everyone who hadn't turned into an undead experiment of the Kestora back down to Spherus Magna.

 

 

 

1 - Well back in 2003 when I got his Nuva set, I thought he was a girl. I just discovered he was male when I saw MoL, but I don't care lol.

 

3 - Since Greg never officially finished the story, I thought that we should consider this a headcanon

 

 

 

2. Technically, they wouldn't need the robot. They could just get the Toa Nuva (along with any other Toa of Earth and Stone to create a new landmass, and reshape it to look like the island. Sure, it's take a while, and a lot of elemental power, but it'd be easier than carrying a planet-sized metal man hundreds of miles to the ocean. (Also, all the sources of EP were destroyed. )

Actually there's a third and much more efficient option; extract just the camouflage generator from the giant robot's face and move just that. I used that concept in a fanfic, after the idea was discussed once. And there was a lot of EP throughout the giant (and sources being destroyed canonically is irrelevant to headcanon anyways); it's possible some survived somewhere.

 

 

But doesn't Mata Nui's face sustain the Island in place ? 

Edited December 24, 2014 by Zidonaro

[The 1st Shadow]

 

Technically, they wouldn't need the robot. They could just get the Toa Nuva (along with any other Toa of Earth and Stone to create a new landmass, and reshape it to look like the island. Sure, it's take a while, and a lot of elemental power, but it'd be easier than carrying a planet-sized metal man hundreds of miles to the ocean. (Also, all the sources of EP were destroyed. )

Actually there's a third and much more efficient option; extract just the camouflage generator from the giant robot's face and move just that. I used that concept in a fanfic, after the idea was discussed once. And there was a lot of EP throughout the giant (and sources being destroyed canonically is irrelevant to headcanon anyways); it's possible some survived somewhere.

 

How do we know the "generator" wasn't built throughout the robot's head? They'd have to take the head apart, and then reverse engineer the system to make that work. Unless they were to just detach the head and move that, but even that sounds painstaking. That also assumes that the system runs on it's own and doesn't need to be powered by something like Karda Nui. Remember that the robot is just that huge, so the generator must be of a fairly reasonable size to be able to cover the entire face, and then some.

(Also, it helps to use the "quote" function on the bottom of someone's post. It informs them via notification that you've actually responded. Copy and paste doesn't do that, you know. Just sayin'.)

 

Which brings me to to another headcanon of mine: Either the GSR was much, MUCH smaller, or the population count was more than just a couple million. Seriously, 1000 Matoran in Metru Nui? My high school had 2.5 times that, and I come from a small town. Yes, I get that there's machinery to do some of the work, but we were given dimensions for the city. Either the entire system (brain, head, robot and all) were much smaller, or the population count was much higher. 

 

 

1 - Well back in 2003 when I got his Nuva set, I thought he was a girl. I just discovered he was male when I saw MoL, but I don't care lol.

 

 

Fair enough. When I first saw the sets, I thought Gali was a guy and Kopaka, Lewa, and Pohatu were gals. The night after I got Gali, one of my friends who knew about the story informed me of how it really worked. Besides, I thought the name "Pohatu" sounded oddly masculine.

Edited December 24, 2014 by ~T1S~

[Toa Levacius Zehvor]

(Also, it helps to use the "quote" function on the bottom of someone's post. It informs them via notification that you've actually responded. Copy and paste doesn't do that, you know. Just sayin'.)

 

I remember the BBCode days. They were good days.

 

Which brings me to to another headcanon of mine: Either the GSR was much, MUCH smaller, or the population count was more than just a couple million. Seriously, 1000 Matoran in Metru Nui? My high school had 2.5 times that, and I come from a small town. Yes, I get that there's machinery to do some of the work, but we were given dimensions for the city. Either the entire system (brain, head, robot and all) were much smaller, or the population count was much higher. 

 

Well, look at it this way. First, the universe is ravaged by the Visorak Horde for so long of a time that there are legends of it in the Metru-Nui archives. Then, the GSR crashes into a planet. You know those videos showing your organs in a car crash, or the effects of smoking? Well, combine the two together, and you have a chain smoker colliding at 100 MPH into a tree.

 

Oh, and since the the 100,000 person population is considered "current", we can also add the following as reasons for further casualties over the 1,000 year span: rogue Visorak groups (see also: Vakama disbanding the horde), the Brotherhood/Dark Hunter War, Zyglak, wild Rahi attacking because few Toa are left, Skakdi and Steltians lost during their own wars, and people silenced by the Order for getting uppity.

 

It's quite easy to guesstimate that less than 1% of the population survived. Talk about grimdark, eh?

 

Now, Metru-Nui is the tough one. As the Matoran were in pods, numbering around 1000, it seems fairly difficult to fake this. But consider the purpose of Metru-Nui: almost all specialty work. Teachers, scholars, archivists, mask-makers, machine operators, and stonemasons. Metru-Nui was never really a city; it was a high-end production factory and tourist attraction, and, under the Coliseum, a massive power plant.

 

Why, then, is Metru-Nui so big? Theory: It used to need to be. Then, after the Toa/Dark Hunter War, Dume started getting a bit paranoid, and began imposing heavier and heavier regulations. Many of the inhabitants, scared of another war, evacuated the city, eventually leaving what can best be described as a skeleton crew, guarded by Vahki and a team of Toa.

 

On the note of being a tourist attraction, it's likely that this remaining space was often used for traders and the like from other islands. However, thanks to canon, we know that prior to the 2004 story arc, Teridax (as Dume) sealed off all entry into the city via the sea gates; it's likely he also threw the foreigners out beforehand, in order to make his plans go smoother.

 

At least, that's the best rationale I can come up with for it. I've never been a big fan of the establish populations, myself.

 

Alternative, if you can make a slightly bigger mental leap: The Visorak actually shipped off most of the population of Metru-Nui to other islands, to be used as Brotherhood slaves. The Toa Metru, as Hordika, found out about this, but were too limited in their abilities to stop it. The Turaga, as a collective, agreed never to reveal this as part of their story; to this day, it is the Metru's greatest shame, and it was actually part of the reason for Vakama's shift - his mind rationalized it was the only way to save those who remained.

 

So yeah. Bionicle remains, as ever, a bleaker setting than the lovechild of Warhammer 40K and H.P. Lovecraft.

 

-Toa Levacius Zehvor

[bonesiii]

But doesn't Mata Nui's face sustain the Island in place ?

Yes; they would need to pick a location already shallow enough, or use Toa (or something like that) to make enough bedrock first.

 

How do we know the "generator" wasn't built throughout the robot's head?

We don't, but it's a headcanon topic, so in some people's versions (like the one in my fanfic), it's small enough to be extracted. I did portray it as not a small single device to take out, though, but a lot of equipment. But however large this device is, it's still easier to move than the entire giant robot.

 

Although I thought of this idea after that post -- if somebody could hook up new computers to the control 'wires' for the giant robot's functions, they might be able to puppeteer it and make it stand and walk to the sea without the Core Processor. But as we know the robot is being dismantled, it's probably too late for that at story present.

 

They'd have to take the head apart

They're doing that anyways. In my fanfic there was another reason they needed to expend the resources, but canonically it's plausible too. However, it is of course unlikely anybody is going to have a need for it in the canon, so unlikely it would happen. But this is a headcanon topic, again.

 

the generator must be of a fairly reasonable size to be able to cover the entire face, and then some.

Unlikely. All we know is it involves pipes that dump EP across the island and the "generator" somehow controls what results (rare with EP, but seen also with Kraata always turning into Rahkshi armor). This generator itself (aside from the pipes and pumping system) could be any size from as big as Metru Nui to as small as a a few huts. I portrayed mine as of an indeterminate size but fairly big; the pipes would be the main difficulty most likely. I suspect it works by actually programming the EP for what to do, which needn't necessarily take up much space at all.

 

 

 

Which brings me to to another headcanon of mine: Either the GSR was much, MUCH smaller, or the population count was more than just a couple million. Seriously, 1000 Matoran in Metru Nui? My high school had 2.5 times that, and I come from a small town. Yes, I get that there's machinery to do some of the work

Make that most. The Matoran were basically maintenance workers. Their jobs that aren't as obviously about maintenance serve support roles for that indirectly. But an alternate version is valid.

 

(If inefficient; if more of the work is done by people, Mata Nui would be at much greater risk from things like strikes, so things like the Matoran Civil War could be much more fatal, much more quickly, and the idea of concealing what sort of a universe they're in becomes a lot less plausible. Of course, that could solve itself to an extent; if everybody knows, they're less likely to strike! But then you open up the giant to a much greater risk of somebody trying a takeover. Then again, that could make for a fun sort of fanfic too. )

 

Either the entire system (brain, head, robot and all) were much smaller, or the population count was much higher.

?? That doesn't follow. It sounds like you actually don't realize how much is done by the automated towers. (Of course, we don't have a lot of details, but clearly enough can be done to make this dichotomy unnecessary.)

 

It's good to compare it to an advanced factory. Those tend to take up space comparable to a city block or much more, without having anywhere near as dense an amount of people physically present in them as a residential piece of land of the same size. We have situations like this all over the place on Earth now.

 

Why, then, is Metru-Nui so big? Theory: It used to need to be. Then, after the Toa/Dark Hunter War, Dume started getting a bit paranoid, and began imposing heavier and heavier regulations. Many of the inhabitants, scared of another war, evacuated the city, eventually leaving what can best be described as a skeleton crew, guarded by Vahki and a team of Toa.

There's no need to go to such lengths to explain it; see above. When they lost Matoran in Metru Nui, they had new ones made. It's wisest to see the canon population as 1000 for pretty much all of history.

 

 

Off-topic:

(Also, it helps to use the "quote" function on the bottom of someone's post. It informs them via notification that you've actually responded. Copy and paste doesn't do that, you know. Just sayin'.)

I've been over this in another topic. I do try to do that more often now, but it's very inconvenient when the entire post isn't what I'm replying to specifically, and you can see that by simply checking topics you post in. Much easier to copypaste the part in question and hit the quote button when it's selected. And you know, unless you intend to give such a message as this to everybody in every topic you ever post in, you might wanna rethink relying on that. (Might try a sig request, though.)

 

(I don't really have time right now to slap that in, but I'm guessing since you did reply above you don't need it this time. )

[Toa Levacius Zehvor]

Why, then, is Metru-Nui so big? Theory: It used to need to be. Then, after the Toa/Dark Hunter War, Dume started getting a bit paranoid, and began imposing heavier and heavier regulations. Many of the inhabitants, scared of another war, evacuated the city, eventually leaving what can best be described as a skeleton crew, guarded by Vahki and a team of Toa.

 

There's no need to go to such lengths to explain it; see above. When they lost Matoran in Metru Nui, they had new ones made. It's wisest to see the canon population as 1000 for pretty much all of history.

 

Hm. That works too, I suppose. But consider, then, that the Red Star was not truly functional, and that the Brotherhood had already implanted their virus centuries beforehand; construction of Matoran would most likely not have been at optimal efficiency, simply as a result of Mata-Nui weakening.

 

-Toa Levacius Zehvor

[Toa Smoke Monster]

The only thing that I really headcanon is that Krika wasn't killed by Gorast, but instead pulled his body back together elsewhere in Karda Nui and escaped the area before the Energy Storms started again.

[Voltex]

Hmm... I definitely have a few.

 

-Krika isn't actually dead and there is a minuscule chance that he could pull himself back together

-Trans-Tamaru because obviously

-All Matoran types are mixed genders; none of this silly "all male" or "all female" nonsense with no room for anything in between

-Hewkii and Macku are real

-Zaktan is actually the one in control of the gold-skinned being

 

That's about it for now

[Mjolnitor]

Some more.

 

RS's transportalization does not work as intended. It works, but sends resurrected beings... not in the universe they are from - in some random altverse instead. Most of resurrected beings don't leave RS this way, but some do.

[abstractAgamid]

Nice to see memes showing up, good job, guys.

 

I've also always seen headcanon used for stuff that doesn't contradict stated canon, not stuff you'd want changed. (For example, right now, whatever you think the Mangai Toa's masks would be would probably qualify)

 

Also, by stating that this stuff doesn't qualify as headcanon, I don't think SkeletonMan was meaning to attack anyone or demean their theories, just that it's something else.

[ALVIS]

The impossible survival of Krika seems to be a popular item in this thread.

 

I don't see the appeal. He was a tragic character by definition; he wasn't meant to have a happy ending. His death makes his characterization much more powerful. Personally, I don't believe in keeping characters around after they've fulfilled their narrative role*, so although his death was tragic, I'm glad that his character arc reached a fitting conclusion.

 

*For example, one of my biggest issues with The Legend of Korra is that it introduced far too many heroic characters and then never killed any of them off, meaning that the cast became bloated with useless characters by the series' end.

[Toa Levacius Zehvor]

The impossible survival of Krika seems to be a popular item in this thread.

 

I don't see the appeal. He was a tragic character by definition; he wasn't meant to have a happy ending. His death makes his characterization much more powerful. Personally, I don't believe in keeping characters around after they've fulfilled their narrative role*, so although his death was tragic, I'm glad that his character arc reached a fitting conclusion.

 

*For example, one of my biggest issues with The Legend of Korra is that it introduced far too many heroic characters and then never killed any of them off, meaning that the cast became bloated with useless characters by the series' end.

 

I blame the Red Star business, personally. The whole idea of characters being resurrected in such large numbers is a real slap in the face for some, but other seems to have embraced the happy ending.

 

Now, of course, there are ways to do it in a satisfactory way - for instance, the Kestora getting bored, and going about their experiments in a way to make Karzahni vomit profusely. Maybe a few forced Kaita and so forth wandering about, or "incomplete" resurrection attempts lying propped open on tables. The sort of thing which shows "fate worse than death" instead of "neverending story".

 

But we'll never know, now.

 

-Toa Levacius Zehvor

Edited December 25, 2014 by Toa Levacius Zehvor

[bonesiii]

I've also always seen headcanon used for stuff that doesn't contradict stated canon, not stuff you'd want changed.

I presume you mean in other fanbases. Here it's clearly been the other way around. (And this topic is the first place I recall seeing anybody suggest that other fanbases normally use it a different way.) But the more you know, as they say.

 

I'd suggest the difference is probably related to this being LEGO, and "your own version" has been pretty much inherent to LEGO and thus the LEGO fandom for a long time; sets are designed to be taken apart and made into your own creation, so we tend to see stories as designed to be altered in our versions too.

 

Personally, I don't believe in keeping characters around after they've fulfilled their narrative role*, so although his death was tragic, I'm glad that his character arc reached a fitting conclusion.

 

*For example, one of my biggest issues with The Legend of Korra is that it introduced far too many heroic characters and then never killed any of them off

Unless there's a good reason as there is in LOST for death to tend to accompany a character's "narrative role" (in LOST, getting over their main personal hurdle), this is generally a bad idea. Not saying Krika should have survived, but we have another reason in his case -- implausibility. IMO the whole idea of "killing off" (as in, by the author, not things in the story universe) is the problem, and doing any authorial guiding in a story, either to remove them or keep them, is problematic. (Unless you're going for a fourth-wall type of story on purpose I guess.) If a character dies, OR survives, it should be because that's what would actually happen in-story.

 

But that's me.

[Phovos]

Most of my headcanon could easily exist without affecting anything in the canon story. And it mostly involves Bohrok, Vahki, Rahkshi and Visorak. It's mostly ideas like "Tahnok-Kal is still technically alive and is plotting its revenge" or "There's more than 6-7 breeds of Visorak" or "Some Vahki go insane and become nothing more than simple Rahi" or "There are loads of other Bohrok nests out there, including an entire nest of Bohrok-Kal".

 

The only bit that does affect canon is the idea that Lehvak-Kal fell from orbit, landed on Voya-Nui and accidentally pushed the entire story in a different direction by making one of the Piraka trip up.

Edited December 25, 2014 by Phovos

[Quisoves Potoo]

Unless there's a good reason as there is in LOST for death to tend to accompany a character's "narrative role" (in LOST, getting over their main personal hurdle), this is generally a bad idea. Not saying Krika should have survived, but we have another reason in his case -- implausibility. IMO the whole idea of "killing off" (as in, by the author, not things in the story universe) is the problem, and doing any authorial guiding in a story, either to remove them or keep them, is problematic. (Unless you're going for a fourth-wall type of story on purpose I guess.) If a character dies, OR survives, it should be because that's what would actually happen in-story.

But what actually happens is up to the author.  Contrivance of plot and artistic verisimilitude are not mutually exclusive. A story require a structure that serves the desired narrative effect. No one would want a version of Hamlet in which the titular Prince simply returns to England uneventfully. The off-stage attack of the pirates, Hamlet's separation from his ship, and consequent return to Denmark are obvious contrivances to allow for most of the remaining principals to die horribly. And yet, the story would lose something without them, and they don't contradict anything established about the world of the play. Is there any previously established reason for them to happen? No. But are they consequently invalid? By no means. 

Edited December 25, 2014 by Quisoves Pugnat

[ALVIS]

 

I've also always seen headcanon used for stuff that doesn't contradict stated canon, not stuff you'd want changed.

I presume you mean in other fanbases. Here it's clearly been the other way around. (And this topic is the first place I recall seeing anybody suggest that other fanbases normally use it a different way.) But the more you know, as they say.

 

I'd suggest the difference is probably related to this being LEGO, and "your own version" has been pretty much inherent to LEGO and thus the LEGO fandom for a long time; sets are designed to be taken apart and made into your own creation, so we tend to see stories as designed to be altered in our versions too.

 

Personally, I don't believe in keeping characters around after they've fulfilled their narrative role*, so although his death was tragic, I'm glad that his character arc reached a fitting conclusion.

 

*For example, one of my biggest issues with The Legend of Korra is that it introduced far too many heroic characters and then never killed any of them off

Unless there's a good reason as there is in LOST for death to tend to accompany a character's "narrative role" (in LOST, getting over their main personal hurdle), this is generally a bad idea. Not saying Krika should have survived, but we have another reason in his case -- implausibility. IMO the whole idea of "killing off" (as in, by the author, not things in the story universe) is the problem, and doing any authorial guiding in a story, either to remove them or keep them, is problematic. (Unless you're going for a fourth-wall type of story on purpose I guess.) If a character dies, OR survives, it should be because that's what would actually happen in-story.

 

But that's me.

 

 

"Authorial guiding" -- what do you mean by that? It sounds awfully like just plain writing to me.

 

My stance wasn't necessarily that I want a saga to be soaked in the blood of its characters, but rather that I don't want characters sticking around with nothing to do. They clutter up the plot and distract attention from more worthy characters. As such, I think they should be removed from the action once they have run out of things to contribute to the story. Death is a very effective way to remove them. When done right, it can also be used to tug at the audience's heartstrings, especially if the doomed character was somewhat popular.

 

You are correct, though, that death should only occur when it's reasonable. Not every character's story arc naturally leads to a death, and for some, it would be jarring and a little unnecessary to kill them off as soon as they're done. There are many other ways they can exit the spotlight, some of them quite mundane. But for an "epic saga" like BIONICLE, the plot of which relies on a sense life-or-death intensity, character death is especially useful, because it both removes side characters and preserves the tension in the story.

 

In other words, you could say it... kills two birds with one stone. 

[Regitnui]

Krika 'died' in the same way as Dr Manhattan in Watchmen; He managed to put himself together through time, and it might be possible for Krika to eventually return, but in a severely hamstrung or overpowered form.

[Ford]

My head canons include:

1. The Rahkshi could become a sapient, individual species if given the chance, just like Matoran. This includes being able to communicate through speaking and written languages.
2. In alternate universes, the gender ratio among Matoran variants are 50/50 (male/female).
3. Not all Matoran of the same element have the same eye color.
4. Antidermis can turn anyone into a Makuta as long as they are "destined" to become one, sort of like the effects of Energized Protodermis on certain beings.

I'll see if I can think of more in the future, but in the meantime, have at my thoughts!

[Regitnui]

:

[*]The Rahkshi could become a sapient, individual species if given the chance, just like Matoran. This includes being able to communicate through speaking and written languages.

 

I like this. They'd probably be a Chaotic Neutral race of snake-people. It's believable because level 7 Kraata are sentient in their own rights, though still enslaved to their parent Makuta's will.

[Trijhak]

Let's see here.

 

GENERATION ONE (2001-2010)

 

• Both the Great Beings and Mata Nui were neglectful creators, much more so than in canon.
• A few thousand years after the reformation of Spherus Magna, both the MU and SM inhabitants realised the above and decided to vilify Mata Nui, while praising Makuta for having the guts to challenge him.
• The Order of Mata Nui; Helryx especially; was denounced personally by Mata Nui shortly after the SM reformation, for falsely claiming to have been acting in his interests while killing anyone (including Matoran) who knew the location of Artahka and nearly coming close to making Mata Nui's impossible, much closer than the BoM ever did.
• Miserix was not the last remaining Makuta. There were others in hiding, of varying benevolence and malevolence to Matoran. They only appeared united and wiped out because of the rise and fall of the BoM.
• The Matoran Civil War still permeates parts of Matoran society today.
• The Northern Continent has large populations of Su/Bo/Vo/De/Fa Matoran, who are so common on the continent that matoran of other tribes are a very rare sight. 
• Relating to the above, matoran not of the main six elements can survive much harsher environments, with the exception of the Matoran who lived on Mata Nui, which was admittedly harsh in some areas.
• The Shadow Takanuvas never existed, since they were introduced and promptly did nothing.
• The 2005 story was different. The Hordika never happened, instead the Toa Hagah were attempting to save Metru-Nui from the Visorak, having encountered the Toa Metru who knew nothing of how to fight the Visorak, which is why the Toa Hagah were there instead. 
• The Order of Mata Nui regularly hunts down lone Toa and tries to force them to join the OoMN, if they refuse, they are outright killed. Due to this, the OoMN are responsible for about 33% of all Toa deaths. 
• The Dark Hunters are not at all that secretive. Many rumours are spread about them to deter intruders instead. 
• The Red Star eventually crashed into Spherus Magna and caused a catastrophic event. 
• Due to the above, Spherus Magna would be thrown off of its orbit, and experience regular earthquakes and odd gravity shifts.
• Due to the above, Spherus Magna would eventually collide into Solis Magna: the second destruction of Spherus Magna.
• Various beings from other dimensions would visit throughout the timeline, since olmaks exist.
• Vorox and Zesk started living in the remains of the two Mata Nui robots, prototype and final.

GENERATION 2 (2015-????)

 

• Okoto is not camouflage for a giant robot's face.
• Ekimu  and Makuta were just as villainous as each other. Ekimu was just more discrete about it.

[Phovos]

My head canons include:

• The Rahkshi could become a sapient, individual species if given the chance, just like Matoran. This includes being able to communicate through speaking and written languages.

I can get behind this. The same could easily happen for other beings like the Vahki too.

 

I actually have my own headcanon where, in a separate universe, Matoran are replaced by Bohrok, with the Kal as Turaga and Rahkshi as Toa. The Rahkshi defend the Bohrok villages from feral 'Sons of Mata Nui', the Toa Nuva.

 

Since the multiverse is canon in Bionicle, technically anything we say could happen.