Takhamavahu

Probably the set designers just thought it looked better. There didn't have to be logic to it, they were making a toy. It just had to look cool. Then the story was written around that. For Kongu, the movie reused the same four or five CGI models for every background matoran. When they wanted to give that green guy with one line a name for the credits, they just picked out the name of the first le-matoran they could think of. The writers weren't big Bionicle fans or story team members, so they didn't think twice about whether he should have the right mask or not. Then Greg and the story team wrote around it that Kongu changed his mask at some point.

That stinks. That really hampers everyone's creativity a lot. Especially after they've already accepted and made things that don't fit these guidlines in the past.

This is excellent news and long overdure. The warning pop-up is perfectly reasonable.

It was made very clear back in 2004 that on Mata Nui, there is only one sun, and over Metru Nui, there were two. Spherus Magna should probably have polar ice caps, and that's probably what the Nother Frost is, but the planet has been ripped apart and put back together in (geologically) a very short time. They're bound to be a little screwed up at the moment.

They probably have a protocol for that sort of thing, but she hasn't been gone that long and the universe just ended and dumped them out on a new planet, so I don't imagine their beurocracy it particularily efficient with that sort of thing. I think they all have the capacty to work together just fine for a while without needing someone in charge to bark orders at them. Their a pretty close-knit group of teammate, not a military platoon.

Whatever they looked like before they had the ability to shape-shift, Which we don't know. It's up to your imagination. By the time of anything that has been part of the main story, they probably haven't taken those forms in a long time, in favour or more perfect or case-appropriate shapes.

The main problem witht hat is that the island is so small on the face.Aside from the video where it clearly fits neatly, it was established again and again that the eyes lay directly beneath mount Ihu and naho bay. That's why inside metru nui, one of the suns was blacked out and the other was very dim. the eyes arent close enough together, even if they were "cross-eyed" to fit.The tiny island doesnt work with this, and it contradicts the video- the one which announced the major twist that Mata Nui was a giant Robot and it contradicts the statement that the island was created to cover the face, which stuck out of the water (on a subjective note, it also works against the visual poetry that the island was a mask all along.) I'm inclined to live with the inconsistancy if we can, but I worry that new things will be established based on it and make a big ugly gap in the consistency of canon.I flatly disagree that we should consider later information that contradicts as a retcon of earlier stuff. There is too much that was built around those old numbers and works together to be overwritten by one poorly-thought out number given in the last year of the story. It would be much better to just overlook the inconsistency for now, and come up with an explaination for it before we establish anything based on it. My personal preference is to take "40000000 feet" as a hyperbole. I'm not worried about the size of the planet. Its not something we ever really need to know specifically. but it would be illogical to think it's as big as jupiter. that's silly.

The image i used was a grey CG model from the mata nui rising video. It's at a slight angle, so It would be hard to accurately measure. I know that a visual estimate isn't reliable math, but if we did crunch the numbers, I cant see how it would end up being more than four times what it looks.It's an inconsistancy in canon that we'll probably just have to live with.But it's because everything else fits together so well except for that number, forty million, that I'd like to try to trekkie it into working. It would be retconning an awful lot of stuff that made sense and worked for eight years.Perhaps "forty million feet" is someone's hyperbole for describing it. Like Raanu looked up and said "wow, that thing must be forty million feet tall" without actually knowing.Or maybe "feet" means something different between the language on Bara Magna and the Language in the Matoran Universe.But the main thing is that I'm hesitant to come to a consensus on how big Spherus Magna must be based only on information and inconsitant artwork from the last two years of Bionicle.

One thing to keep in mind is that the Comics in 2010 were wildly inconsistant in how they protrayed the Robots' sizes. The Mata Nui Saga, paintings were even worse for that, but it's ben well estalished that those images are an artist's impression and the scrutible details are inaccurate. (For example, Tahu emerges from the robot in swamp form, all the rahkshi are yellow and the robot's foot is only the size of a building) One dreadful problem that has been a thorn in Bionicle's side since the end of 2008 is that the Robot was described officially as forty million feet tall. That directly contradicts the measurements given of the island, Mata Nui in 2001 which were backed up by the measurements of Metru Nui in 2004. forty million feet (almost the diameter of the earth) is absurdly oversized even at a glance. If the robot is forty million feet (12192 km) tall, then spherus magna must be very very large to support the two robots standing on it, let alone fighting. As big as a gas giant is a little much, but it would have to be larger than a difference in density could pausibly account for, when we assume it has earth or near-earth gravity (which it does as we've seen in movies, videos and had described) If we take the image of mata nui's head fitting neatly under the island (the eyes line up with Naho Bay and mount Ihu) and apply the established measurements of Mata Nui from 2001, 357 kio (489 km) long (about half the legth of Madagascar) and 178 kio (244 km) wide, we come to a much smaller robot than forty million feet tall, unless the robot is 25 times the height of the island that covers more than its head. (eyeballing it, the height of the head is about two thirds the length of the island) That's a pretty tiny head. The average human is 7 and a half heads tall. Even though the robot obviously doesnt have perfectly huma proportions, you can tell by looking at it that it is not that deformed. If I had to eyeball a guess, he looks about 9 heads tall in most pictures. by these estimates (we can venture to do the math properly if you like) the robot should be closer to 9 600 000 feet tall. Less than the diameter of the moon.If Aqua Magna was a little bigger than our moon, and spherus magna reformed was twice as big as earth, (with deinsity and mass etc accounting for its gravity) The robot could lay down comfortably on aqua magna and stand up (with global catasrophic consequences, but we knew that) on bara magna.

It's a kids' movie made to sell toys. The characterisations are simplistic and serve the story in a way that the producers felt kids would understand. (which is a shame because kids are much smarter than they're given credit for) To get the full scope of Matau's personality and development, you'd have to read all the novels and comics too. (and even then, he's limited to about a grade 2 reading level) You won't get a very deep character from a sixth of the spotlight in two ninety-minute movies. Matau is less open about his insecurities than someone like Vakama. He hides behind humour so that he doesn't have to open up. He would rather other people like him as comic releif than risk them not respecting him for who he is. Who he is is an intelligent and talented pilot, mechanic and engineer with a passion for his work and an appreciation for the thrill of danger. He has a strong sense of duty, courage and comradary as a Toa, but it took him time and experience to fully understand the meaning of his responsibility. He puts Vakama down early on, to elevate his esteem and flirts with Nokama because she is the most respected of the group, and her approval would carry more weight than the others. His occasional cynicism and pessimism are also attempts to project himself as smarter. By the time of the Great Rescue and their transformation into Toa Hordika, they have grown as a team. It's been a relatively short time, but they trust each other. Matau opens himself up to them, but the stress of his mission weighs him down. He saw his city destroyed, his people captured and had his entire way of life taken from him. On the new island, Nokama, the best friend he had nearly died and when they returned to the ruins of his home, they were captured, turned into monsters and opposed violently in the rescue of the people they already fought so hard to save. I don't blame him for a second for being cynical about the situation.Inspite of this, he maintains his courge and sense of brotherhood in reaching out to Vakama. He does not waver in his mission or try to give up. As a Turaga, he has made peace with his life and approaches leadership with a renewed sense of whimsy. He's not just helping his people fend of Rahi. He's building a life for them. Even under the guilt of lying to his trusting villagers for a thousand years (about their origins and the nature of their world) he leads with a warm heart and an optimistic temperment.

2008 is what I'd most like to see brought to life, but It'd be better to start with 2006 first and work from there. I don't think the style that Bionicle movies follow would do it justice though.

This is a busy time of year. Almost everyone here is either in school or working. If you're a University student, this is crunch time. I know I'm going to be up to my ears in school until the end of April. After that, there should be more people with time on their hands to get back into this contest, but for now we'll just have to be patient. Bionicle isn't going to get up and walk away in the mean time.

That's a good one. I haven't kept up with Hero Factory like I did Bionicle, but this is a pretty good one. Like I've said about the others, but this one probably more than ever, the face would make an excellent Makuta's mask.

I'd assume they're essentially the same, but better proportioned to the format of hard masks. Kongu's would look more like his right side on both sides probably. There was a story reason for the scaly prtion of his mask. Bonesiii's versions take artistic license and deviate a little farther from the original than I think I would, but they sure look good.

This question pops up every once in a while. I think the concensus is that. though it's never been confirmed, (though I think it actually has, we've just lost the Greg quote) the Metru Nui form is logically the standard. Of all the matoran with sets or official images, they are the only ones without a backstory explaining that their forms are different. Since we know they were mass-produced by the Great Beings, it's reasonable to assume they were built on the same model.

Tarix was called a Toa by Mata Nui, but it was an honourary title. I wasn't a proper Toa as we define one.

As an authorized Contest Judge, I have read and judged this entry:Memento Vivere by Infrared I approve this entry.

The following comes from an authorized Contest Judge: No inaccuracies or errors were found in your entry. Unless another judge or member finds a problem later, your entry is likely to go on to the polls.

Too bad the plug in the front isnt a little lower. It would be perfect for Kanohi.Those villains' heads look like they attach in the fron though. They'd make good Makutas' masks.

Infrared, just repost all that info on what you changed in your story's thread and I'll approve it.

You can itallicise the "I" if you like, but it isn't necessary. The rest is all good by me.

As an authorized Contest Judge, I have read and judged this entry:Memento Vivere by Infrared I see problems with this entry. Minor stuff. Two minutes to fix.

The following comes from an authorized Contest Judge: At least one inaccuracy or error has been found in your entry. After reading this judge post, you are authorized to edit your entry to fix these errors. After editing to fix these things, please post in the entry topic saying what you changed. Grammar, "but you’d need to be a De-Matoran to hear the loudest booms of thunder, if there even is any.""If there even were any." Also, you don't have to, but I highly reccomend that when you describe the rebuilding, mention that Karkahni made Reysa exchange his mask, as he always did. Unless someone wants to challenge me on that. I'm having trouble finding a quote in the text, so I could be wrong, but I'm quite sure that it wasn't just Jaller & co. but all of Karzahni's new arrivals who he made exchange their masks as a sign of leaving their old lives behind. Unfortunately, I think it's part of the contest rules, that you're not allowed to specify exactly which mask he had or receives. It's a detail that the contest wasn't given persmission to establish. Other than that, this was a great story. Very well written, and I always appreciate a story from the perspective of an otherwise minor character.

Kra is not the technical prefix for Shadow. It's a fan-created term.Greg once said he probably would have used the term "Kra-Matoran" if Shadow Matoran were a proper matoran type, but they're not.

Dume is an unelected ruler, who has been at his position for thousands of years with no known term limit. Dume announces the news himself, with apparently no other journalist media present. He also has direct control over what goes in the archives and what doesn't, as well as what is closed to pubic access. The Matorans' employement opportunities are devided based on gender and colour. Though money is used, everyone happens to be more or less equally wealthy. The most valued workers, like Vakama, are the ones who are fiercely loyal to the system and long to reconstruct it even after it crumbled because its infrastructure was breached almost effortlessly by one person. Everyone shares the same belief in the same great spirit and dedicate their lives to his will. Anyone who is abnormal (like Takua) is looked down on and frequently arrested. Those, like Ehrye, who aspire to move up to better careers are unable to for thousands of years. The society has existed in this format since the end of the civil war, and has (as far as we've ever been shown in the story) gone, at least publicly, unchallenged. Either Metru Nui is a place where, conveniently, everyone beleives the same things and have dreams and aspirations which agree with the mooth-running society, or Metru-Nui's government has a darker side than we've been shown.That said, Bionicle is a story for kids. It wouldn't surprise me at all if the solution was, in fact, that everything's hunkey-dory and everyone agrees on what's right and wrong. If it just so happens that every Ta-Matoran's dream is to be a crafter, and every Onu-Matoran loves being an archivist, that's because it's a kids' story which isn't about political strife. It's about good guys fighting bad guys with mask powers.After all, Metru Nui has no military. It hasn't needed one. Almost every threat it has faced has been beaten by a Team of Toa, a Vakhi squad, or a rag-tag group of unlikely heroes. Contrary to the film, Legends of Metru Nui, there are only about a thousand permanent residents in Metru Nui. They probably don't need a structured government the way a country of millions does. As long as Dume listens to people's greivances and resolves conflicts with sporting events, everyone (with their conveniently idealogical agreement) should be happy. If you asked Greg, I bet he'd answer something like that. That the story is for kids, and it's not about matoran politics, and you should just enjoy it for being a fun adventure. Unfortunately, the everything-just-happens-to-work-smoothly theory leaves the Bionicle story as a whole, with that major weakness. For us, the fandom, who take it all way too seriously, because we're geeks and we like to, this theory strains our suspension of disbelief. In real life, people don't agree. In real life, people have different values, different beleifs, different lifestyles, different ideals. In real life, no society could possibly work the way Metru-Nui does, and so we are always left with the conundrum that either Metru Nui is a politically extremist totalitarian regime and no one seems to mind, or that the Bionicle story takes place in a universe that just doesn't have the depth to cover much more than action, adventure and cool superpowers, that good and evil are divided by mickey mouse morals, and that the only people who aren't completly content with their role in society happen to be the ones with monstrous features and violent personalities.