NickonAquaMagna

Hey Vesta! Guess who's going to get violently incinerated! (Man, I HATE that guy...) Let's just say he does get burned today, though not quite like that. Chapter nine is online! Here it is! >> http://nickinamerica.deviantart.com/art/Bionicle-Nova-Orbis-Return-Chapter-9-564809369 Hmmmm... comparing Sein's account of how things went down at the old Matoran settlement with Susurri's, something doesn't add up. In other news, Banhi's character actually comes in useful for something! Yaaaay, finally. Yeah, I know nobody says it, but I'm sure there's someone out there who thinks Banhi is the blandest character in this entire series. Anyway, tune in next time, to see how things go for the Su-Matoran. That's it for today. Feedback is appreciated.

I'd sure like to see the scope itself...

An anomaly? How? I mean... I'm just gonna be real here. I've seen the leaks of next year's sets. And I'm not going to discuss the contents of the leaks, but we all know there's going to be another winter wave of Bionicle sets, and with the release being only a few months away, you'd think lego's gotta show them off sometime before then. If they don't do it at NYCC, where then? Would they just... not show it off again, because Bionicle isn't their baby anymore? it's just another theme now?

Working on coloring the illustrations now. Man, I know I shouldn't be thinking this far ahead, but listening to Jak X's soundtrack is getting me all pumped again for that "Bionicle Racers" arc I wanna do. It won't be for at least another year, but still. Sounds like it would be fun. So picture this... Matoran from the Manibus crew forced to participate in races on a mostly uninhabited island that faced disaster when Ultio decided to make it the point of entry for the Crust Buster, making the island... well, basically an inhospitable hellhole. And now, these Matoran get to spend the rest of their lives there! Oh, and the enemy racers would be these. Of course, these Roboriders would just be Mechanicles with incredibly advanced AI. Wouldn't that be so rad? Just listen to this to get an idea. Heck, listen to the whole soundtrack while you're working on something to have a rockin' time. Most of these tracks are gold, only, like, one or two that are just sorta meh. Ah, so hyped. Who else can see this being Frost's theme as the Matoran racers have to race him on his own ice-themed track where avalanches, cave-ins and whiteouts are an everyday occurrence?

"You WANTED some of this to happen." Just a preview of the next chapter of Nova Orbis. Calor finally grows a pair and confronts Vesta about... well... everything that's happened in the entire series. You'll see. That's it for today.

Silly me. I'll fix them in the final draft. So, uh... yeah, something's fishy about Sein's story about what happened to the old settlement. It doesn't sound like Susurri's recollection of it from chapter 3 (I think?) So who's lying?

Hey guys, I hope it's okay for me to post this here (I know it's double posting, and I don't have any art to show per se, but I do have a preview of the next chapter, which should go up tomorrow or the next day.) One week passes Su-Wahi Su-Koro Toa Sein's office, formerly Trux's office, formerly Sein's office, was all cleared out. Most of the Su-Matoran's belongings were packed up, only leaving behind whatever they didn't feel they'd need anymore. A caravan was gathering outside. Trux looked down from the top of the wall. The weather was a bit more forgiving today than it was on most days. It was a good time to leave. He stared back in his former office one more time. He hadn't done much in his time as "Turaga," but he enjoyed what opportunities he had to help people in whatever small ways he could. Still, the idea of just... leaving... as if it was so simple infuriated him. Sein approached him from below. "What's the matter?" he asked, noticing the look in Trux's eyes. "It just seems so... silly now, doesn't it? All these years, we stayed here in our miserable little hovel, waiting for aid from the other Wahis, waiting for a day when we could leave but never mustering the gull to do it. How many years has The North been safe? And NOW we get to go there? Why?" Sein wasn't sure how to answer, at first. "You did what you could to provide for us here, but you let the Turaga boss you around, keep us down, keep us complacent. 'Oh, we'll find a solution someday. We'll find a new place for you to live.' Some of us have left the tribe over the years and integrated into the other ones. We should've all done that, but we were worried that we wouldn't be able to preserve our culture this way. What is there to be proud of in our 'culture'? Survival? Simply existing? We could've been in The North all this time, really LIVING, but we stayed here because we believed it was "cursed." "Yes we did." "And I'm no better. I went along with the Turagas' mind games too, because it just seemed... easy that way, to keep on doing the same thing like we have been for years." "I don't know about that. If anything, our people seemed more well off when I returned then they were when I left. You've done more to improve their lives in a poultry five years than I have in the last five centuries." "Don't... urggh. If it was so easy, if we always could've just packed up our things and left, then why didn't we? Was it really because of the curse?" Sein turned and looked to the distance. "No. I've never believed in a curse. I've always known it was made up." "Then what for? Were you just too afraid to make the journey? Did you think we'd get hurt along the way? You didn't have such reservations when you left the island with Piras and the rest! Hardly any of our people even went on that trip! And for that matter, I don't even know if they would've been better off going or not!" Sein remained remarkably calm through all of Trux's ranting. When he responded, it was with great clarity. "We couldn't go to The North if we wanted to. Not until fairly recently, anyway." "Wha... why not?" "Because it was toxic. That's why I and any of our scouts who ventured a little too far that way in past years returned so sickly. They weren't being attacked by fallen Elder Spirits, they were poisoned by a land turned fowl." Trux didn't feel like ranting any more. Sein continued. "Years ago, when I was a Matoran, one of the first of our generation, I remember living in a great settlement in the north. It was the center of our civilization, for a time. But one day, a... bumbling Matoran fell into a cave a few miles away and accidentally unleashed an army of Mechanicles. We didn't know it was there. Our Toa of the time had long since buried it, and didn't think it would ever be found. But the dormant Mechanicles stored within woke up, swarmed out and destroyed our greatest power source, bringing us to ruin. The fallout was so great that the land was soaked with radiation. We had to move out overnight. Many Matoran were stricken with hideous changes and deformities, and didn't survive for long after that. We vowed never to return, and for most of my time as a Matoran, and a Toa, I dared not either." "The... Mechanicles have always been here?" "No, I don't think so. But they were here before I was. I didn't know what they were at the time. None like myself understood that they were planted here by the "others" years before. We were told they were "mask stealers," because they'd always attack our masks first to weaken us. The Turaga came up with an elaborate backstory for them and everything. All we knew was that we had to stay away from certain parts of the island... and for the most part, we still do, though many have completely forgotten why." "And... your trips to The North you mentioned? You told us you were warding off evil spirits that appeared in your dreams and, in time, would come to attack us." "No... I was investigating the land to see if it was safe. For so many years, I clung to the hope that if I just kept our people safe here, rode out the sandstorms for long enough, the land would eventually come alive again and we could finally make the journey there, to be the first to return home." "And... your last 'battle'?" "That time I returned from The North five hundred years ago? Yes, that time I was so ill, I had to be taken to the Living Fortress so Albus could heal me... He forbade me from ever going there again, saying that if I did, the poison would kill me. And so... I gave up." "And now...? What's changed?" "According to Ahkmou, the land is no longer poisonous. He passed through The North recently, and he even had a fleshling with him, and they both made it all the way to the northern beaches just fine. He says the land has been livable for a few centuries, now. He even met someone who says they've been living there for all that time, in our old settlement. Amazing, isn't it? All I had to do was wait a little longer. We could've gone there years ago." "It is amazing," said Trux, looking down, "I just... hope that our people aren't disappointed by what they find there, and not that anyone tries to stop us. Sorry for being so mouthy, sir." Sein put his hand on Trux' shoulder. Trux looked up, making eye contact. "Don't be. You're just acting like a leader, demanding the truth. At this point, Trux, I don't even care if I find my destiny and become a proper Turaga. You've come closer to that than I ever have. When we settle into our new home... I want you to continue leading the villagers." Trux was speechless. He was trembling, beneath his mask. "And trust me... nobody in their right might would even think of stopping us now. For our future, this is a path the Su-Matoran must take." Sein stared deeply into Trux' eyes with fierce intent as he spoke, almost as if he was speaking to somebody else. So yeah... I know that's pretty big for a preview, but this is going to be a BIG chapter. There will be plenty more to talk about. So watcha' think after reading this bit?

That... wow, that works.

I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree. The "tickle spinner" line is the only one of those G1 jokes I mentioned that was funny to me at all, and even it pales in comparison to Taipu's obliviousness in 2001 or Pohatu getting magnetized to a bunch of goats in 2003, let alone any of the G2 jokes I mentioned. I just generally prefer more lighthearted humor to the sarcastic one-liners and out-of-place pop culture references that characterized so many of the "jokes" in the later years of G1. It got REALLY out of hand when most of the jokes in the final years got stupidly dark. It got to a point where most jokes ended with decapitation, disembowlment, or some other form of mutilation or disfigurement as a punchline. "Look, violence! Yaaay, it's dark and bloody, so that means it's okay for you teens to still be interested in this theme that you liked as a kid." I think they were just trying too hard.

It's just that... Tara Strong voices SO MANY CHARACTERS, and she's so often typecasted to use the same "default" voice and... it just gets annoying after a while, you know? Like you hear a character speak and it becomes impossible for you to think "This is Gali speaking," you just think "This is Tara Strong speaking." I dunno. That's kind of how it is for me when voice actors get known for using one voice most of the time. I love her more out there performances, like Raven in Teen Titans, but that doesn't happen much.

Well, one thing I've recently come to realize that makes the Protectors' names interesting to me is that, while they don't feel like parts of one unified language to me the way most of the Toa's names do, they DO compliment their respective Toa's names quite nicely. Some of them, anyway. Tahu and Narmoto sound like they're part of the same language, like if the fire villagers had their own tongue. Very forward and strong-sounding, like they're really trying to make an impression on you. Lewa and Vizuna sound almost lyrical, and very emotional. Very fitting for jungle/forest people who jump around in the trees, singing songs an' whatnot. Gali and Kivoda sound spiritual and somewhat otherwordly. Onua and Korgot sound rock solid and indomitable. The only ones that still sound odd to me are Nilkuu, which to me sounds more like a Ta-Matoran or Ko-Matoran name, and Izotor, which sounds like a Vo-Matoran name to me. Aside from those, however, I think the Protectors compliment their respective Toa nicely.

I wish these "startup" companies would just give up and die. The world is a nicer place without them stinking up the toy aisle.

Weirdly, these same people, in a classic case of projection, try to foist that on us by saying WE'RE so nostalgic that's we're blind to how "objectively bad" the new sets are. That if only we could be more "objective," we'd see the way and agree with them that these are copies, clones, Hero Factory in disguise, what have you. As for me, I dunno if I'll ever feel that rush again, but building Tahu after asking someone at Target to fetch him from the back of the store for me and rushing home that night, well, it came pretty close to giving me that feeling.

I guess not. And yeah, the way the horns are framed in some of these shots made me laugh. They're just absurd, like a caricature out of a comic book. You gotta figure out a way to get the extra arms. That's easy. You can either design some fake ones and attach them to your other arms with fishing line or something. Or, you can just make some non-moving ones that attach to the top of your shoulders and just sort of sit there. People have done it before.

This took a looooooooot of work to make... though mostly near the end, where I ran into some issues rendering it. Anyway, I know I'm late to the party with these guys, but here goes. So, whatcha' guys think? Is this a serviceable one-stop review for the summer wave that covers all the desired bases and more? It's going to be the last review I post until 2016, so... yeah, may as well get your own general thoughts on how this year has been out there now, especially with the next and possibly final online animation going up, tomorrow. Enjoy. Feedback is appreciated.

I think he's looking for his gear.

Hi, Skull Basher. Bye, Skull Basher.

Yeah, I've been getting a few complaints about there not being enough characterization, just events and exposition, and I did plan to delve into this stuff eventually, so I figured, "Eh, may as well get to it now, while the Toa have some downtime." Okay, so I've got good news and bad news. Bad news first- No chapter this week. The good news is that it's because I'm working on the video review of the summer wave. So if I get it done quickly enough, chapter 9 will be up next Friday. I also have a good idea of how long "Return of The Toa Miro" is going to be. I should have this arc wrapped up in another ten chapters, maybe 11, 12 tops. So yeah, I should have this year's story done before the end of the year at the rate I've been going. Still gotta get that Skull Villains review online, though.

Chapter 8 is online! Here we go>> http://nickinamerica.deviantart.com/art/Bionicle-Nova-Orbis-Return-Chapter-8-561020111 So... lotta things to discuss in this chapter. Thrill-seeking, survivor's guilt, coping mechanisms... Oh, and Attra's back. Wooot. Yeah, this is one of those more... "talky" chapters, and there's gonna be a few more before the plot really kicks into high gear. So I hope you guys like exploring characters, 'cause that's what we're doing. That's it for today. Feedback is appreciated.

Chapter 8 goes up on Saturday. Just letting you guys know, now. EDIT No wait, scratch that. Gonna try to get it online, today.

Chapter seven is online. Read on >> http://nickinamerica.deviantart.com/art/Bionicle-Nova-Orbis-Return-Chapter-7-559626314 Not much happens in this chapter. Just a bit of a breather on the morning after the attack, and we get to see the Toa Miro interacting a little bit. That's it for today. Feedback is appreciated.

Chapter 7 goes up today! Be ready!

The set's fine, really, but let's not kid ourselves... the main reason to get this set is to pair it up with Darth Vader, cause these two look GREAT together.

There is another teaser from the beginning of the year, where you can just barely make out what he looks like in a state of disrepair.

Okay, last one. Dang... his original design (what was shown of it) was already bizarre enough. Now he looks NOTHING like he did before. Certainly not like any Toa we've ever seen. What does this mean? Just how advanced has his body become? Who's inside? Eh, we'll find out later. That's it for today. Bout time I wrapped this up. Now, the story can continue like normal. Feedback is appreciated. Quite the team, huh? I'm sure I'm not the first to whip up a "scary" Toa team, so I wonder how this measures up?