Xboxtravis

Actual photo of @Swert on March 20th trying hard to not reveal the Bob Thompson surprise but really wanting to tell us all:

I got to handle a prototype Lewa a while back, and the rougher surface is a result of the prototype molds not being polished up like production molds would be. The Miru on Lewa had very noticeable lines from where the milling machine's cuts on the mold and just seemed to have less fine detail in general.

The sun damage on the outdoor ones is probably bad enough I would be surprised if they kept them afterwards.

The one key thing that would have helped if they could survive the Visorak is eventually the real Dume, the six Rahaga and Keetongu all stayed in the city. So if any stragglers were left behind likely Dume et. al. found them and lead them. Its a hard survival, but if Dume's crew could survive 1000 years in the city its likely they could have preserved any Matoran that were also left behind. Another possibility is the trader caravans and travelers who might not have been in Metru-Nui during the Cataclysm, but made their way there after the Great Spirit fell asleep. There certainly seems to be the possibility that some Turaga in one of the continents down "south" would have arranged an expedition of Toa and Matoran explorers to travel to Metru-Nui and determine what happened to it after the cataclysm had occurred, seeing that Metru-Nui was such a major trade center.

Well either way, we should be grateful that we have Greg, Faber and Swinnerton so active in answering fan questions on various platforms. Honestly one Bionicle person I would love to hear their story is Leah Kaae's experience as webmaster of Bionicle.com seeing how influential internet advertising was to the line. She probably had a huge role in how many of us were exposed to the lore as kids.

The only platform I know Bob Thompson is on publicly is LinkedIn: https://uk.linkedin.com/in/bob-thompson-9a08a43 Time to fire up my old LinkedIn account I guess.

They dangled it like a carrot in front of the fandom for seven years, and somehow we didn't catch on until the big reveal. I love it. As for the idea that Bionicle was scheduled only for one year, I have heard that mentioned before but not sure of what source there is for it. Christian Faber or Alastair Swinnerton... maybe? But it raises the question as to when the following years were green lighted though, since animated films have at best a year to year and a half production cycle when rushed, so Mask of Light would have had to been contracted and ordered by early 2002 at best; or about right as the Bohrok wave was still on shelves (we know Lego hired Creative Capers due to their promise to be able to rush out a film every year on a quick schedule). Maybe that explains why the Bohrok Kal (and maybe even the Toa Nuva) exist and sometimes feel like a filler wave... it could have been the stopgap sets to fill up the the release schedule without introducing to many new molds.

They say no man can reverse engine this beast. No really though... good luck with that period. Its such a massive jumble of parts with such a low res single image. If you can pull it off, kudos. Maybe someday we will get lucky and the original creator will surface and post more photos of the model, like what happened with Makuta Miserex recently.

Yep the two I own are on Biomedia Project where they were taken from the eBay listing images. http://biomediaproject.com/bmp/blog/legends-of-metru-nui-storyboards/ Here are the images from Biomedia of the two. I guess I could try and find a scanner to get a higher res version, but I would dare say Biomedia has done a good enough job with just the eBay listing image. Besides I just barely got them framed and don't want to take them down anytime soon!

Its been so long since I have read Hapka's stuff to comment for sure... but Henry Gilroy on a professional level is the most "I can't believe this guy ended up going to work on THAT" Bionicle writer there ever was, since the dude's work later on in Star Wars animation with Clone Wars and Rebels is legendary. I don't mean that as a knock on Greg myself, but more a kudos to Gilroy and how his career just took off post his work on the original Bionicle trilogy. The one thing I will always credit Greg for though regardless of his writing skill or not, is that Greg always tried to interact with the fandom. In 2004 the idea of a series author being active with fans on forums and early social media was innovative, compared to now where every author has some Twitter page or Facebook page. Greg was very forward thinking in taking advantage of the forums to communicate with fans well before other authors adopted it and he was 15+ years ahead of the curve with it. G2's story failed in execution, but in concept its actually was pretty well rooted; returning to the franchise roots in an island setting. Okoto always felt like it had a chance to become as well regarded as Mata-Nui if it had been given the chance to grow. The sets are also brilliant, I always cringe when I see people online calling G2 sets trash just because "its all CCBS and not Technic!" which is the worst logical fallacy since under the hood there is more true Technic building in function in almost every major G2 set than there ever was in the Inika builds that dominated the end of G1. I usually try and mentally forgive them since I know how rare G2 sets are to get a hold of and its likely many of the line's critics have never handled one themselves in person (I have all the Toa from G2, most of the villain sets and most of the small sets too; so I am fairly familiar myself with hands on experience with all of G2's waves). G2 is criminally underrated set wise. Oh I have a special place for Mask of Light in nostalgia, but there is no denying that structurally its really just a watered down Lord of the Rings with a Bionicle skin. 2003 is kind of a messy year in general, since the Bohrok Kal and Mask of Light arcs are just stitched together and we began to lose a lot of that world building that made 2001-2002 so unique (even if MNOG II was arguably a more expansive look into the world of Bionicle, it was more muddled and not as cohesive tonally as MNOG was two years prior). As far as the films go, I much prefer the later Metru-Nui films since they were able to stand on their own, while Mask of Light is sort of the tacked on finale to what was already a three year story arc at that point. While it was a shame to lose the tribal setting in 2004, Metru-Nui was unique in its form of techno futurism and communicating basic Orwellian concepts in a kids toy.

I never really got into Ninjago when it first came out, but one of my young cousins did since he was a young kid when it launched. He is now 16 with a driver's license in High School, he might still have some interest in Ninjago but there is much more going on in his life now beyond just Lego. Kind of the same issue Bionicle ran into eventually, you just hit a point where the original fandom ages out, its hard to bring in new fans, and eventually it trickles away (until the mid-20 something to mid 30 something year olds get a nostalgia kick and start demanding their old toy back en mass). Its commendable how Lego has kept Ninjago going for so long, but no surprise that its not drawing the same crowds as when it was brand new ten years ago.

It might be the most lackluster explanation, but well its a mask. Its not like the concept of a mask is exclusive to Bionicle since its very much a real world item. So its likely Tuma just recognized it indeed as well, a mask. Even the concept of mask of power isn't unique to Bionicle either, just look at The Mask with Jim Carrey, or the Dragon Priests in Elder Scrolls. Now if Tuma had called it a Kanohi, then I'd have plothole questions. Kanohi is a term that well specific to masks of power in the Matoran Universe, and one that I would gather Tuma would have been unlikely very familiar with.

A few songs I have been going through recently.

No, the Bohrok War scenes online in MNOG style were not from a game. It was a regular "Takua's Chronicle" feature on Bionicle.com. Each new entry had a brief news brief "written by Takua," followed by the animated video. The animation was done in Flash by Templar Studios the same company that made MNOG and MNOG II hence why it's in the same style. Templar also did Flash animations for the Vahki in 2004 too. More info here: https://biosector01.com/wiki/Bohrok_Online_Animations MNOG 1.5 was a much later fan game build.

Okay a few things I have that are unique: Two storyboards from Legends of Metru-Nui (both from the finale on the beach of Mata-Nui, one in particularly is a wide shot showing all the Matoran Spheres washed up on shore). Two ZiosCustoms Resin Protectors mask, one a purple-pink blend the other a transparent clear resin. One painted damaged Kanohi Huna I found in a bulk bin at a used Lego store. It looked like somebody stepped on it once bending it, so I painted it up as an infected mask. Three Eden Sanders custom 3D Printed and painted masks; the Kanohi Oru, the Kanohi Mawu and the Kanohi Varku all based on content from his Reminisce Muzona Guardians fan comic series. As for retail Bionicle sets I have 100% completed all 2015 wide release sets (excluding the Comic Con and Lego Tour exclusives). I am a set and a half away from completing a 2001 collection (Muaka/Kane Ra and Hafu), I also have all the wide release masks from the 2001 mask packs (excluding the Copper Komau and the complete European Misprints although I do have a few of misprints). So I guess I have nearly complete representations of both of Bionicle's "first years" via representing 2001 and 2015 in their near entirety. I also have complete collections for the Bohrok, Bohrok Va, Toa Metru, Vahki, 2005 Titan sets, and Toa Inika. I am missing one Toa Uniter (Pohatu) and three creature sets (Stone, Earth, Jungle) to complete my 2016 hero sets and the final Toa team of the franchise. So yes, all retail sets but I am moving towards completing the parts of the collection that matter to me the most. I have 4/7 of the Great disks (Onu-Metru, Ko-Metru, Ga-Metru and the Great Disk of Time) too. As for non-Bionicle and normal Lego, I have a mismold Darth Vader minifigure head we found once that has a distinct flat edge to a corner of it, and two Iron Man Silver Centurions I managed to get for free from Gamestop once by walking in and asking them if they had an extra ones. Not super rare, but I also managed to grab the SDCC Comic Con Black Widow vs Taskmaster set off Amazon with the exclusive Red Guardian and white suit Black Widow when it was briefly available for a wide release after Comic Con was cancelled last year. Other than that though, I have no real rare and hard to find figures and everything else in my Lego collection is wide release stuff.

Captain Pulodo The flamboyant and famous pirate captain of the Vo-Hoto is a famed lady's man and sworn enemy of Kulta's Skull Raiders. Pulodo is a famed folk hero among the coasts of Okoto and its surrounding islands. His armor consisting of bright blues, gold and red-yellow Kanu Bird feathers makes him a distinct figure on the Vo-Hoto's deck. Chef Harke Rescued from the Skull Raiders by the Vo-Hoto's crew, Harke still bears his scars from his imprisonment under Kulta's crew and their harsh treatment of him. A killer cook, both in terms of his sense of the gourmand and his fierce sword abilities, Harke when not in combat dedicates himself to preparing seafoods from the waters the Vo-Hoto sails. First Mate Delk First Mate Delk, cursed to silence via the cursed Varku he wears is a mysterious but trusted figure on the Vo-Hoto. Delk's experience with navigation makes them a fine guide to sailing the waters of the open sea for those patient enough to understand Delk's non verbal communication. Kanohi Varku Designed, 3D Printed and painted by Eden Sanders. The axle is a bit of a tight fit, I don't know if I will ever be able to get it off the head I put it on, but it looks very nice and fits the nautical pirate theme I wanted with these figures. According to Eden Sander's lore for his Muzona Guardians series the Varku is a cursed mask that silences its user and makes them mute.

Sometimes I am an odd one out, but I absolutely adore the CCBS system. I popped off "the hood" of a few of the official G2 sets to show what I mean, with Skull Basher, Onua (2015) and Lewa (2016). I removed their chest armor and right arm and leg armor but left on their left limb armor to show the contrast of how the pieces fit over the skeleton. Three sets, each one with a distinct differences in body build and function all achieved by the skeleton variations. Onua has a gear function akin to 2001 sets, Skull Basher has a relatively unique boxing function that allows its arms to swing to cut with its axes. Lewa has a waist swivel function with custom upper arms and lower legs that are build using the old 2009 shell piece as a base piece and with other Technic and CCBS parts to lock it together. Lewa's old Bionicle heritage is not just visible in the 2009 shells, the classic 2002 Bohrok eyes are there along with the 2009 Glatorian necks (also used on Skull Basher) are both used too, of course not counting the Technic pins and axles that have been around forever now. Yes the armor shell textures are not as detailed as the original single mold parts were, but what they lack in detail they make up in versatility. Three sets, three unique functions all released within a year apart. CCBS is just a robust and very flexible system, but its important to remember its 100% backwards compatible with original Bionicle parts too. I have a few MOCS that try and blend both systems because honestly they all share the same ball joints and the same Technic pieces, so don't limit yourself to just one or the other. CCBS gains in robustness and versatility what the Inika build (2008 and 2009 in particular with their cursed sockets) lacked.

Beach chant with me guys, "oooohhhOOOH" *seagull squak* "ooohhhOOH" Jokes aside, your aren't wrong.

Personally I don't think a simulation was ever the intent of the G2 story team, but instead they were very heavily suggesting something happened with the Mask of Time itself. This is their words in the 2015 story bible. Take the translation a bit loosely since it was likely written in English, translated to Russian which is the language fans got a copy of it in, then translated back into English; but the original intent of the story bible is very much intact: "TIME CHANGES EVERYTHING" "We want to draw from the original [initial] plot of BIONICLE®, but not to be limited by it. We’re going to achieve this with the following trick. The original story involved the Mask of Time, which granted its owner the ability to alter the flow of time. But the Mask of Time was a half-mask. Here is our trick: the second half of the Mask of Time is located on the island of Okoto. The six Protectors use it to summon the Toa." "We believe it will be enough to link the two plotlines and awaken the imagination of the longtime fans. With this, we encourage them to come up with their own explanation. What exactly “happened” is not important to us, but we need this trick, because it allows us to tell the story of BIONICLE® anew." "Thus we’ve come to “the beginning”, but the circumstances have changed. The characters are the same, but the island and the plot have changed." "This allows us to achieve three goals:" "1: We’ve come up with a new beginning, “not burdened” by what happened in the past." "2: Using the mask known to longtime fans, we support [maintain, encourage] their interest – encouraging them to fill in the blanks and come up with the story that links the two worlds of BIONICLE®." "3: We can use the treasure trove of previously created content, but do it dynamically. We can use it as a source of inspiration without getting bogged down in the details." On the next page, there is a rough timeline of the G2 world history showing (although not detailed) that G2 was created by the Great Beings followed by an ancient "pre-historic" era before the arrival of the Mask Makers Ekimu and Makuta leading into the G2 story bits we are familiar with. Now how the Mask of Time played a role in creating G2 is left open ended, but it really does seem to support that G2 is a very real and very existent world in the "Bionicle Multiverse" and that the Great Beings we are familiar with from G1 had a strong hand in creating it (sort of meta commentary there since I always felt the Great Beings were almost author inserts for the teams at Lego and Advanced in both generations of the franchise... but oh well ). So I feel pretty confident in saying that it being simulated can be ruled out quite easily (the G1 Mask of Time of course being created after the creation of the Toa Mata and them being placed in stasis), but how G2 was created is still unanswered and left to the imagination of fans. I bet an Olmak user in G1 could easily hop to G2 though if they wanted though if G2 is indeed a parallel universe of sorts.

What type of plug is it based on? I have a bit of a weird curiosity on what different plugs look across the world and I genuinely want to know if its based on a real one somewhere.

Why does this work so well? I mean the Matoran gender thing bugged me because I am used to the human 50/50 population split between genders, but this explanation for Matoran being more a 5:1 ratio makes a lot of sense.

I assume they have all the same main senses humans would have (and maybe then some), but its possible the method of function might be different. Yes they can smell but we don't know if it functions like a biological nose or if its a cybernetic device that translates the smell to their brain. We know Matoran can eat, but its not done often via their mouth but instead absorbing nutrients through their body via coming into contact with food; but we do know they still have the ability to taste and eat via their mouth because we have in the novels mention of Nokama tasting water and orally applying herbal medicine. So this suggests that some bodily functions might have dual methods to them, both oral eating and "hand absorbing eating" both exist and function for Matoran and the same might apply to their other senses. I actually wish Lego had given us more details on Matoran anatomy functions, but I imagine going to deep into it would have lead to some questions Lego wasn't ready to answer which is why we only got a superficial understanding of Matoran biology. The closest we ever got to a canon dive into it is some Toa concept art from Mask of Light that showed how the skeleton and armor interacted with muscles.

I dunno normally I would say the Rahkshi heads would be a bit much, but in this case I think exaggerating the female form actually works since it brings to mind traditional ship figureheads and art depictions of mermaids which really bring to mind the nautical nature of the Mahri arc. Kind of an "ahoy matties thar be mermaeds in these thar waters" type thing.

On a dark night, Ko-Matoran and visiting Kohli players gather around the warmth of a fire along the cliffs of Mt. Ihu to listen to Turaga Nuju tell ancient tales and legends. Matoro, the sage's translator gestures and speaks alongside the Turaga bringing his birdspeak to the common tongue.