Bionicle Guru

Dude, I AM the archives. Now you kids get off my lawn!

Here, I am compelled to leave a place for you all to discuss the story I am writing.

 

Enjoy!

PREFACE

 

"...I won't write a story; I'll write the truth. But the truth will be like a story."

--Vadim Shefner

This July, I will mark ten years on BZPower. I think for just about anybody reading this, ten years is a long time. I was still very new to the Internet in general ten years ago; just a week or so before joining BZP, I got my first email address (I still use it). BIONICLE was in its heyday, and I had some fun on BZP both keeping up with the news, reading storyline theories, and occassionally contributing stories to the Library. This work, while quite different from my earlier stories, is special because it is a little something I want to leave in order to commemorate my tenth year on this website. It also serves as an apology, of sorts, for having been away for so long. College, the end of BIONICLE, followed by the Great BZP Forum Downtime, and then the pressures of adult life all tore me away from here.

 

Of course, the biggest reason I avoided returning here was the post-BIONICLE disarray. For seven years, I visited BZP exclusively for BIONICLE. Without it, I found it hard to go "off-topic" and let myself use this place for something other than BIONICLE. Even if it was other Lego themes (I still avidly collect and build with Lego), it just was not BZP for me. Maybe it still is not. But I think I still have one more thing to contribute. It surprised me when I figured out what it should be, but then again, it is something I have been thinking about since BIONICLE began, and its evolution brought me to the present in such a way I cannot resist sharing.

 

Hopefully, some of you may find it interesting and nostalgic at the same time. Therefore, let me invite you this time to sit down and read the legend of the BIONICLE...

 

INTRODUCTION: The Coming of the Toa

 

Darkness. Then, suddenly, a light appeared, and Colson was up. It was time to get himself together.

 

"I had some bad dreams," he thought as he put on a shirt. "They were of...the year before. That was the worst." He was finishing putting on his pants when he saw his mom walk by the door to check on him. Immediately, he stopped thinking about his dreams and went to eat breakfast and interact with his family: his mother, father, sister, and cat.

 

His inner monologue did not continue until an hour later, with the wind in his face as he marched forward, up the street from his house. "Those were bad dreams, but like Kopaka said in the comic, 'The scattered elements of my being are rejoined. Now I am whole.'"

 

Colson paused as approached the curb and looked ahead. There, across the street and looming high on a slight embankment, was his middle school and the start of the seventh grade. It was a new school; a chance for a fresh beginning, away from the mire of ignorance and injustice that defined his experiences in school prior to this year.

 

"And the darkness cannot stand before me," he mouthed silently, and then, with a confidence ususual to his age, he stepped off the curb, crossed the street, and marched into the unknown.

 

CHAPTER 1: Of Toa and (Pre-)Teens

 

Kopaka strode into the icy wastes surrounding Mt. Ihu. He knew who he was and what he was looking for. The mask he wore was just one of six that would allow him to find the power to challenge the Makuta who controlled this island. The next one was actually near the top of the mountain itself, so he carefully began to scale the steep cliffs. Far above, the peak of Ihu loomed like a giant white nose, with nary a cloud to be seen.

 

The rumbling, followed by the avalanche, annoyed Kopaka more than it scared him. He was starting to like being alone up here, away from the scurrying Tohunga below and--

 

Colson felt another tap on his shoulder. He turned around cautiously. He did not exactly feel like being sociable in math class.

 

The face of another glasses-wearing kid with brown hair was staring back at him. "Hey," he said, "is that a BIONICLE on your book cover?"

 

"You know of BIONICLE?" Colson asked, a little startled. He never dreamed to inquire if any of his fellow classmates played with Lego sets still. Previous experiences painfully taught him it was fast becoming "uncool" to like Lego openly. It was going to have to become Colson's secret, but since this other kid recognized the Toa drawn on the paper cover of his textbook, maybe it would be OK to admit his newfound BIONICLE fandom.

 

"Yeah, I have a few of them at home. Your drawing looks like one," he responded.

 

"Yeah, it's Lewa, actually. It's not very good; I have better drawings at home of the other Toa."

 

"You like to draw, too!? I draw a lot of stuff.""Really?" Colson was happily shocked, but he was not going to show it. Not yet, anyways. "My name is Colson. What's yours?"

 

"Peter--"

 

Colson and Peter had to stop since their teacher was going to resume the lesson. But lunch was soon; Colson thought he could perhaps find a place to sit in the cafeteria now that he found someone with some common ground.

 

When lunch finally came around, Colson and Peter reunited outside of the food lines to find a seat. All the tables were the same length and were all more or less full. At the very end was a smaller table, a different table that was oriented north-south as opposed to east-west. There sat four other guys. Colson turned to Peter and said, "I see a potential spot. I don't know those people, though."

 

"Well, let's go over," Peter rejoined optimistically.

 

Colson followed behind, but he could not be so hopeful. Like Kopaka coming down the mountain with Pohatu, Colson couldn't be quite sure if the people he was about to meet would be friends...or enemies.

 

To be continued!

 

--Since apparently this is a rule of the forum, I guess I'll link you to the Review Topic: http://www.bzpower.com/board/index.php?showtopic=9201

Wow! nobody's commented on that poster witht he whale that faber said he's been planning for 6 years.THAT looks cool. It'd be like bionicle, but different. wow.

I don't know. I saw it and immediately thought, "Cybernetically/genetically-altered whales battle evil, nature-destroying corporate machines!". LOL. Not really. But I do see this going in some ecologically-retro, 90s-style "Captain Planet" vein of conflict. But I will Mr. Faber surprise me.

I'm glad I can come to BZP and see enthusiasm for all these projects! On one other site I frequent, all the old fogies are grumbling and snorting at us young whipper-snappers for getting licensed ideas like these passed and not their baroque AFOL dreams. I'm particularly stoked for the Back to the Future Time Machine.

Nothing was more heinous than the clustermuck that was the 2005 story. I don't blame anyone in particular for it; I think that after four years of rampant success with the theme, BIONICLE tried to take things to the next level just by "exploding" the story. Like 2004, we had the same heroes, a movie, and the comics. However, since 2003 had altered the canister release cycle by being a year with two sets of villains, 2004 and 2005 had to awkwardly avoid dealing with the canister villains until their summer release dates. They did well in 2004 by having the Toa Metru's first antagonist be a giant plant (the Morbuzahk, which clearly could not be a set) and keeping the Vahki and the Dark Hunters "behind the scenes". However, such a clever idea was not implemented in 2005. To make matters worse, Lego did this RIDICULOUS opposite release of the Visorak and the Toa Hordika. In Spring 2005, the Europeans had Visorak, Sidorak, Roodaka, Keetongu, and the Rahaga. In the USA, we had the Toa Hordika and Rahaga only. Suddenly, the Visorak did not need to kept in the "shadows" story-wise like the Vahki the year before. But it caused a lot of chagrin to have Hordika in the USA with no Visorak to battle, and vice-versa in Europe (though I dare say they at least had Keetongu and the Rahaga as partial hero subsitutes).With this weird set release pattern, the story took a turn for the convoluted. Now, the Toa Hordika had to battle not only Visorak, but their primal, bestial natures that were slowly taking over their minds. This is a sound idea, and it is still a great part of the BIONICLE story, since it comes to question what it means to be a Toa (up until that point, the only time we saw "dark-side" Toa was whenever Lewa wore an infected mask and when he was Krana'd). As a result, the Toa Hordika's quest was two-fold.

• [*]Rescue the remaining sleeping Matoran and bring them to the new island above.[*]Find a way to return to their normal Toa Metru selves.

Things now start to get convoluted. The Rahaga told the Hordika of Keetongu, but suggested that in the meantime, they learn to control their Rahi instincts and altered powers. Vakama doesn't really jive with this, becomes frustrated, and leaves the team. This was all seen in the movie "Web of Shadows". However, we all know that wasn't the only story source. Before defecting, Vakama and company encounter and battle strange creatures aligned with Sidorak and his horde. They also go a mini-quest to find the Mask of Light. This was detailed in some online videos. Then, there was an aborted online comic concerning the Hordika's quest for sleeping Turaga Dume. Then, in the comics, we got a flashback to when the Rahaga were Toa themselves, and of how they came to be transformed. Then there is all that stuff in the movie.Your head might not be spinning, but I'm sure if you were 7 or 8 or however old you were seven years ago, this was frustrating to follow. I'll break it down again with the numbered bullets.

• [*]Rescue the sleeping Matoran and bring them to their new island home.[*]Find a way (Keetongu) to return to their norma selves.[*]Find the Mask of Light with the Makoki Stones and keep it away from the Visorak.[*]Rescue the real Turaga Dume.[*]Find and redeem Vakama.[*]Defeat Sidorak, Roodaka, and the horde; keep Makuta from being freed.

Out of those six quests I outlined, five of them were going on concurrently, and I may even be forgetting some things, since there were books as well. In any case, the first half of 2005 was really hard to follow, and hopefully, you'll agree with me. As convoluted as many say years like 2006 onwards were, 2005 really was the most jarring for fans after 4 years of relative consistency and stability.

I really miss the Black Knights, Spyrius, the Royal Knights, Aquazone, and BIONICLE, but alas, their time has truly passed. In this age of cutesy minifigure overload, good-vs.-bad-in-one-set, and increasing Chinese plastic production, I feel like it is best that my old childhood favorites rest in peace.

I had to log in again to share my thoughts on these wonderful conceptual sketches and designs. It's really fascinating to consider what was once "Bone-heads of Voodoo Island" then became "Doo Island", followed by (?) "Bionic Recur Unit", and finally, "BIONICLE".I liked the rather intricate Tohunga face designs. Though they clearly would not have worked from a set design perspective, they are true to the technological-tribal fusion that defined BIONICLE right from the start. The names are interesting as well...Zuul gave me a laugh. "Are you the Keymaster?"I believe that "first map" of Mata Nui was included in the liner notes for the BIONICLE Music CD that came included in the Powerpack set. Makes me so glad I sprung for that set on a complete whim when I saw it in Wal-Mart over 10 years ago.It was always the little details that made BIONICLE so awesome. Whether it was physically present, like in the designs of the masks and sets themselves, or in the storyline, leading us on this epic quest and great mystery, it made BIONICLE more than just an ordinary Lego kid's theme with good guys and bad guys. With a name like "Doo Island" and a location shaped just like a face, it strikes me that as a concept, BIONICLE could have just been Hero Factory in scope. While that would have been fine and dandy for Lego and fans alike, it was the refinement of the concept by people like Christian Faber that took BIOINCLE somewhere beyond the ordinary and into that rare spectrum of true greatness that will know no loss to the cycle of toy fads over the years, instead firmly entrenching itself in the memories and hearts of kids and (now) adults for a long time to come.

Yeah, you know I'm excited. I've more or less anticipated this day for years. Lego better deliver the goods with more gusto than they did for Pirates of the Caribbean. LotR should rival, even surpass, Star Wars sets in terms of awesomeness and design. I can't wait to see what June 2012 holds in store for us with these new sets.

I still can't get over how the sets come in BAGS. I might mistake it for a snack and eat the pieces while watching TV! My poor teeth.

Hmm.... COOL STORY, BROS. Anyway, I like turtles.

If it's not Merlin Entertainment, my bet is it's some foreign artist trying to exhibit his or her work in the most attention-getting way possible. I only say "foreign" because the sentence structure of the phrase, "No real than you are" is indicative of more than a mere typo with the omission of the (supposed) word "more". Alternatively, that could be the artist's intent, since previous giant mini-figures had the same statement, worded the same way.

Maybe it is better to list what I DON'T have, because that will give a clear indication of what sets of "six" I possess. 2001: Nui-Jaga, Huki, Maku, Kongu, Onepu2002: Lehvak Va, Nuhvok Va, Pahrak Va. BIONICLE Master Builder Rahi set2003: Gahlok Kal, Tahnok Kal, Nuhvok Kal, Jaller and Gukko, Takua and Pewku2005: Rahaga Iruini, Gaaki, Kualus, Bomonga, Keetongu, Roporak, Suukorak; all the playsets (2005 was a weak year, set-wise in my opinion)2006: Axonn, Piruk, Velika, Umbra, all the playsets (I always found the playsets ridiculous)2007: Defilak, Morak, Gadunka, Karzahni, all the playsets2008: Vamprah, Mutran and Vican, Tanma, Gavla, Kirop, Icarax, Bitil, Axalara T9, Jetrax T6, Vultraz, Mazeka2009: Metus, Atakus, Zesk, Vorox, Strakk, Malum, Tarix, Tuma, Cenedox V1, Kaxium V3, Baranus V6, Toa Mata Nui2010: Gresh, Takanuva, Tahu, Skrall Pretty much everything else, aside from combiner sets, I have a complete set of. As far as collectibles go, I have a full set of Noble masks and Nuva masks, including their powerless, protodermic versions. I'm one black Kakama shy of a complete set of original 2001 Great Kanohi, and that's it. I'll probably never have a full Krana/Kraata/Kanoka collection. Not that I really want that, though.

Such was (and is) my love for BIONICLE that from Day One, I knew I would get everything I found awesome about it. Some took longer than others, and for a while, my Holy Grail was Cahdok and Gahdok as well. But, I scored them brand new in an opened box in 2009 off eBay, and built them for the first time this past summer. WOW, was I enthralled. I even bust out the old Exo-Toa and re-built it, along with Tahu from 2001, and recreated some epic battles in the Bohrok nest. Such a nostalgia trip from a very happy time in my life. It makes me even gladder now to know I have my holy grail for BIONICLE. I have since turned to obtaining "Holy Grails" for each of the other Lego themes I grew up on, but that's for another topic.

Chronology is a little iffy in my memory now, but I'm fairly sure Skopio XV-1 was the last BIONICLE set I purchased. It was on sale for 50% off at Lego S@H and I snapped it up. This was July 2010. I may or may not have bought the Stars "Rahkshi" that same month before I bought the Skopio. I'm hoping it was the Skopio, because that Stars set is a weaksauce way to end 9 wonderful years of BIONICLE collecting.

In retrospect, I forced myself to be pretty stringent on buying "Titan"-sized sets due to the cost, so when I did buy one, I made sure that I would absolutely love it. But I did make one misstep with Turaga Dume and Nivawk. By October 2004, I was just greedy at the thought of having a complete 2004 BIONICLE set line-up, and TD&N was the only unique set I was missing. For completion's sake, I was happy, but later on, the Metru-style body for Dume and the incredibly waif-like build for Nivawk left much to be desired. Not to mention that Dume did not come with a staff and Nivawk was barely in the movie BIONICLE 2: Legends of Metru Nui.

I was in college for the past 4 years of my BZP existence, and while during that time I abandoned creative projects on BZP that I was enjoying in high school, I didn't stop dropping in and commenting on various topics from time to time. The BZP Forum Downtime (BZPFDT) this summer came at a strangely coincidental time, as I was finishing up my biggest projects in school, graduating, enjoying my last summer at home, and then starting work in the oilfield as an engineer. That's where I am now, and it's even more time-consuming than college was. Now BZPower is back, but let's face it. I'm not the same BIONICLE fan I was a year ago, or even 2 years ago. BIONICLE has become a firmly-etched part of my pre-adulthood life, my adolescence, and I shall treasure my memories associated with it fondly. One of those ways will hopefully be on here, BZPower. My only worry is that the community will become too disparate or entranced easily by other interesting things. I know it's bound to happen, but as long as there is a core, sizable unit of members on here who still like to chat about "the good ol' days", I'll be sure to chime in with some remark, sincere or sardonic. Hopefully more of the former.

Oh, this is going to be good! BZP Down 2: Lose Control Down Hard 2: Down Harder How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Downtime Gone With the Forums Dirty Downtime 2: Boring Nights One Flew Over Summer's Downtime Episode V: The Downtime Strikes Back The Nutty BZP Forums 2: The Downtime! The Downtime Reloaded (followed by Revolutions???) Hapori Tohu Downtime Superstar! Mad Members 2: The Downtime Warriors Ace Downtime 2: When Real Life Calls I can go on all night...haha.

I believe my first set was from a alien theme Lego had back in the day. It was this big UFO set. Its top could detach and be a smaller UFO. Also, a little vehicle could roll out of its side. I don't remember the name of this set though. Just thinking about it brings back memories...

Hey, I think you are thinking of 1997's Alien Avenger, a great set that I myself got for my birthday that year. Alien Avenger on Brickset My first set, however, is from 1991. It is 6510 Mud Runner. Still a proud part of my collection!