Master Inika

Last time I counted, 261

2005 was fine, 2007 was when lime joints became a problem. 2008 is when all joints became a problem. On that note, I've been having more and more difficulty with original 2001 parts. Not the sockets, but the axle holders, mainly at the area where the Toa's legs and Bohrok's limbs connect to the axle coming out of the body.

Conspiracy theory time: It's actually Xboxtravis, and he's only pretending to be against it here to raise its visibility.

Honestly, the best idea is to just pretend the GSR isn't a thing unless it's directly plot-relevant.

I wait until Saturday Night Fever, then you'll all be the ones feeling silly.

Really, you could ask this question for half of all Bionicle weapons.

When I think of fantasy adventures, I don't think of fisticuffs. Choreographed fight scenes with cool weapons is one of the best parts of fights in franchises like Bionicle. That's not saying it was never, or should never have been, part of it. In particular, the way the Web of Shadows movie gave the Toa Hordika one weapon fused to their arm arguably makes them entirely hand-to-hand fighters. Presumably, most Toa are fully capable of fighting both with and without weapons, through a mix of proper training or experience. I imagine fighting with tools is preferred because of their utility (most Toa tools have secondary uses) and they seem to augment their power to a degree. As for hand-to-hand combat vs. elemental powers, why would any Toa favor physical combat? What benefit is there to punching someone in the face when you can shoot fire or electricity at him from a distance? As to elemental powers vs. "using your brain", the most competent Toa in the series always look for unexpected uses of their powers. Even though it ended up being unsuccessful, Tahu's attempt to trap Panrahk in that column of heat was a good idea.

I can never tell when you are being serious.

This is my first time hearing about this. It's cringey but it's also something I 100% would have been doing ten years ago.

Everyone else beat me to it, but the Rahaga eye piece. I'd always cram the second one between the two pieces to force them apart, but that would bend the axle noticeably even if I only did it a few times. I don't consider the Mata eye stalk to be truly irritating because they seem designed to go together, and even as a kid I could sort of tell. Unlike the Rahaga pieces, the Mata head elements don't have much utility independently, especially the eye part. I also wouldn't necessarily count physically flawed pieces like lime joints.

Bionicle doesn't need a high school. Most Toa learn informally from Turaga or more experienced Toa, but experience alone can also be an excellent teacher. Lhikan was still a novice when all of his comrades were killed by Frostelus, and yet he matured into one of the best Toa.

Headcanon: that is not a bug, that Ta-Matoran is just very rude

Examples of Bionicle paralleling real-world mythological imagery: 1. prophecies/visions 2. places being named after founders/rulers (Artakha and Karzahni) 3. from the perspective of the Matoran, the truth about the Great Spirit Robot probably qualifies as a cosmological revelation 4. emphasis on explanations for why the world is the way it is Not that these are necessarily unique to Bionicle, but it does lean into these associations more than other franchises of the time.

That's a beautiful piece of art, and I wish I could focus more on the art itself and less on the circumstances. About the rule: I'm also not a mod, but I highly suspect there could/should be an exception for anonymous pieces.

If you ask me, Voya Nui Online Game doesn't deserve the name. Not that it's a bad game, but it's not in the same league as MNOG I & II. MNOG was a good game theoretically bogged down by technical problems. It had a lot of really interesting ideas (Kolhii, the trading, etc.) but I suspect the developers rushed it out due to the popularity of the original. I ultimately remember it fondly for the worldbuilding alone. Watching Mask of Light for the first time, having played some MNOG II helped make Mata Nui feel like a more fleshed-out location than it actually was in the film. Ultimately, the early period was lightning in a bottle. LEGO couldn't have kept that train going at that same high energy if they tried. So many things had to go right: the worldbuilding, the toys themselves, Flash and LEGO being in a good enough position to begin with to experiment. The last thing Templar produced for Bionicle were the Vahki animations, and I think they were a nice final contribution and brought a little pinch of MNOG magic to Metru Nui.

It should be noted that the split into Vezok and Vezon didn't seem like a perfect 50/50 split, both physically and mentally. Vezok seems physically unchanged, and among other things it's interesting that everyone (Vezok and Vezon included) seemed to intuitively know who was the original and who was the duplicate. It is accurate to say, in this usage, the Spear separated a portion of Vezok's mind and gave it a physical form, more like a 75/25 split between the two. This is distinct from, say, Vezon splitting a bat into two one-winged animals, a perfect 50/50 split. The Spear was always just a plot device that did whatever Greg thought would be cool at the time, which admittedly it usually was. I personally think Bionicle is best when it is experimental like this, so if your fanfic idea revolves around a cool concept, I think it's worth it to focus on it and not so much on strict canon.

Nice catch.

Potentially. Like real life languages, these terms seem to develop based more on connotation that strict etymology. The Toa Metru and Toa Mahri are both named after the lands where they were active (in-universe). The Nuva, Hordika, Hagah, Inika, Phantoka, Mistika and Mangai are all named after other traits (also in-universe). It is unknown where the name of the Toa Cordak originated from, but seeing as they were the first formal Toa team it may mean something like "originators." It is also unclear if the name "Toa Mata" exists in-universe, because those Toa were already the Toa Nuva when they first learned that other Toa existed. The terms have a degree of flexibility. The Dark Hunters Spinner and Savage are Toa mutated by Hordika venom, so they could be called Toa Hordika, but they weren't part of the Toa Hordika team. Takanuva is considered an honorary Nuva despite not being an energized protodermis-enhanced Toa because of his personal connection to the team. Since Spinner and Savage are never called Toa Hordika in the story, it seems that experiential bonds are more important in this context than biological status.

He would split into Vezom, a fun-loving trickster without a bad thing to say about anyone, and Vezoth, a murderous psychopath.

I don't know, but I sure hope so.

I could see it, even if the Hordika weapon is out of place.

Welcome back, fellow BZP member! I don't think I recall you specifically, but it's always good to meet another forum member.

Welp, I learned something today. I like it. BZP after dark.

Canon answer: Vakama's visions are "glitches" within the Matoran Universe/Great Spirit Robot system that leak him random information, interpreted by Vakama and particularly Nokama as being visions of the future, which they more often than not are in a self-fulfilling way. On the island of Mata Nui, Vakama used the Sacred Fire as a cover for his visions. Real answer: Prophetic visions were all the rage in the early 2000s, so LEGO gave Vakama vague, mystical visions that were narratively interesting.

Awesome model. It combines both versions well in a way I haven't seen before.