Jump to content

~ShadowBolt~

Members
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    538

  • Joined

  • Last visited

 Content Type 

Blog Entries posted by ~ShadowBolt~

  3. ~ShadowBolt~
    Nuju Metru and I are having a debate about the Mistika. He wanted someone to convince him to like the Mistika more and I decided to help him out.

    CAUTION -- This is pretty long and this is only part one of our debate, but I hope you guys find this enlightening.



    I hope you enjoyed this and please feel free to comment on anything you find interesting here and part two will be coming up in a few days.

    ~SB~
  4. ~ShadowBolt~
    Our debate is finished...



    Kex approved it... So, let me finish up a few things and then I'll let you post it -- if you want to. Just wait for my word.

    Glad to hear it! From what you're saying I assume you like them, but there's a few things that bug you. I'm warm, am I?

    1. Well, since I want to get this done and in my blog, I'll just say Point Discontinued.

    ~SB~
  5. ~ShadowBolt~
    Yep, it's finally here. I present you my review of 8699 Takanuva at a whopping 2,000 words. XD

    Set Review: 8699 Takanuva

    By: ~ShadowBolt~



    Welcome one and all! Today, I bring you a review of everyone’s favorite Toa of Light, Takanuva! Is he as good as everyone says? Are his little issues as bad as everyone says? Well, read on and find out!

    Presentation
    From the design of the box to the instruction manual, these are the first things you see before building the set.


    If you’re an unsuspecting buyer who just happened to be walking down the Lego isle, you have a really good chance of noticing Takanuva’s box. It’s sheer size and the imposing figure looming out of the box is just about the only thing that’ll attract buyers. The box isn’t brightly colored, and nor is it fancy, but it gets the job done with a simple and elegant design.

    In the center, you see Takanuva in a defensive stance and firing his Midak Skyblaster at some unknown target. (You never see the target in the packaging do you? ) Also, his mask is quite large and he looks like he could fall down with that blockhead of his… In the background, you can see the familiar blue/green background of the Swamp of Secrets and the stalactites of Karda Nui high in the sky.

    I personally have a little problem with this, from reading Bionicle Legends 10: Swamp of Secrets, my mental picture of the swamp is entirely different from the box. The swamp is personally a little too bright for my tastes and it doesn’t even resemble a swamp at all at a first glance. However, if you look closer, you can make out logs covered in green plant growth sticking out of the water, muddy islets and the greenish swamp water. It could be darker, but I don’t think it’s half-bad at all.

    Surrounding this is a mechanical design with a circular design carved into it and it’s all in dark blue, which I find pleasant since blue is my favorite color. On the top are the words “Bionicle” and “Takanuva” in all caps. I don’t know why they didn’t give Takanuva the Toa title. It might have boosted sales since a Toa on steroids might appeal to younger fans. On the bottom is the standard age range, piece count, set number section, the address of the official Bionicle website and The Lego Company’s logo.

    Front of Box

    The sides have the same boring text, legal information, etc… However, they added a life-size image of Takanuva’s mask. I don’t know why they did that, but it was a nice touch.

    The back is far more interesting… You see Takanuva in a similar pose, with his action functions below him along with his “amazing” B.I.O. CODE that only leads to a disappointing rotational view of him; basically Takanuva spins around in a circle. On the right, there is an entire column devoted to decent sized pictures of Rockoh T3, Jetrax T6, and Axalara T9. Below them is a group shout of the Mistika.

    Back of Box

    Finally we crack open the box, but I want to tell you how you should open it. Even though the directions say to use the tabs, don’t use them. You’ll end up tearing the whole box open that way. Instead, think of the back flap as a door. Try to open it from one of the corners as neat as possible and if you do it right, it should open very neatly and from the front and sometimes the back, you can’t even tell that it was opened. It works that well.

    Smart Way to Open Box

    Anyways, the pieces pour out (which I’ll cover in a later section) in neat baggies numbered 1, 2, and 3 along with his blades and Midak separate. Along side all these pieces, is the ever so crucial instruction booklet.

    Pieces and Booklet

    This year, the instruction booklet is a little bit different. It tells you to pour out your pieces on a table, not the carpet and it tells you that you should keep pieces from each bag separate. Not pouring them into one big pile. Also, it tells you that which bag makes which part on Takanvua – bag one makes his body, bag two makes his legs, while bag three makes his arms and weapons.

    It’s not a bad idea, but since I really didn’t need it, I really can’t say anything about it…

    Instruction Booklet 1
    Instruction Booklet 2

    Building
    Half the fun is had building the set. How fun is it to build and how easy or challenging is it?


    Finally, we start the build. This build has to be one of the most interesting and fun builds I’ve ever encountered in my life. It’s so complex that I have to break this up into three sections.

    Torso:
    The design of the torso was a pleasant combination of the old and the new. It uses the familiar Inika torso, but that’s where the old basically ends. Everything else is basically building elongations to the torso and supports for the various limbs on Takanuva. It’s quite fun and interesting.

    My favorite part would have to be Takanuva’s neck. Surprisingly, it is actually double jointed very much the way Maxilo’s was. That allows him some more poseability and it just makes him even cooler.

    Torso Pieces
    Built Torso

    Legs:
    I have to admit this, building the legs is my least favorite part of building a Bionicle warrior set, but I enjoyed building his legs more than previous years. I dunno why… probably because they were extremely customized and extremely interesting for me to build. However, building the exact same leg the second time around is a bit boring, but what’cha going to do?

    The double-jointed design of the knees are pretty clever and I’m sure that would come in handy of one of the sockets in the knees were to crack. Then, the knee could still support the weight of Takanuva fairly well.

    Another thing about his feet is that when you hold the first Technic beam in your hand, you think, “His feet are going to be way too big…” But guess what? They don’t look bad at all.

    Large Leg Pieces
    Small Leg Pieces
    Front of Leg
    Side of Leg
    Back of Leg
    Takanuva w/ Legs


    Arms:
    These were a little more fun for me to build. The design was fairly custom and simple at the same time ( try doing that MOCers! ) Also, another odd thing about the arms is that the shoulder and elbow are not aligned with each other on the arms. It’s not a big deal and it doesn’t bother me at all.

    Arm Pieces
    Lance Arm
    Midak Arm

    Weapons:
    The Power Lance is a weapon that is both complex and simple at the same and it was a fun weapon to build and the result is nice.

    The Midak on Takanuva is just a small upgrade from your standard everyday version meaning that unlike other sets, there is an attachment on Takanuva's that allows it to be attached to his arm. I see it as a better version of my Midak attachment to my Makuta Spiriah MOC from a few months ago.

    Power Lance

    ~~~~~~

    When you’re done building each limb, it’s a simple matter of snapping them onto the basic joint and attaching the support too. The weapons are just placed onto Takanuva and you’re finished.


    Set Design
    Now that the set is complete, we can critique how it looks from every angle. New or interesting pieces can also be examined here.


    Now that you have finished him, Takanuva looks stunning! His sheer height and armored build look incredibly intimidating and cool. Please allow me to go over every part in his body in detail.

    Takanuva Complete

    Torso:
    It looks incredibly well designed from the front. The gunmetal Bitil wing does its job well, and you really can’t tell that it really wasn’t designed to be torso armor at all. Also, thanks to the armor and Takanuva’s large mask, the neck fortunately doesn’t stick out very much, so that’s great.

    The back is honestly a little rough, but it doesn’t look all that bad and if you decide not to buy Takanuva because of the back, I’ll just have to call you dumb. I remember reading another member saying that Takanuva’s Matoran arm supports can be considered as shoulder blades and I have to agree with him.

    The last thing about this torso is that the hip supports don’t stick out on him like they do on Icarax. That’s due to his large design.

    Front of Takanuva
    Side of Takanuva
    Back of Takanuva

    Legs:
    These legs happen to be designed incredibly well and I really have no complaints about them. The gunmetal thigh pads are a nice touch and they don’t protrude awkwardly at all. The gaps on the shins can bother some people but they don’t on me and they really aren’t that big at all in the first place. One odd thing I noticed was that his thighs and shins were exactly the same width, so if you think about it, it’s kind of odd. Usually, thighs are larger and they narrow down to the shins.

    Arms:
    They look great and there really isn’t anything bad to say about them. I quite like the Takadox heads, but they’re pretty freaky at the same time too. The claws are a bit awkward for me, but if I keep his hand pieces at a angle, they look much better.

    Umm... Takadox? You don't mind getting off of my shoulders, do you?

    Weapons:
    The Power Lance is a very interesting weapon that looks powerful and elegant at the same time. Surprisingly, the blades are very sturdy on the lance and they don’t seem to move about very much.

    The Midak Skyblaster attachment is really clever because it allows Takanuva one free hand and thanks to the supports, they don’t weigh down the sets at all. Best of all, it looks great!

    ~~~~~~

    Before we move on, allow me to describe Takanuva’s new and interesting pieces in detail. The new pieces include: the new Avohkii, the gunmetal Bitil wing, and the white claws on his hands.

    The recolored pieces include his white socket joints (not pictured), two white Hordika feet, the two gunmetal Pohatu propeller arms, and the large white piece that makes up the bulk of his legs.

    New Pieces

    You know, Takanuva really doesn’t have that many new pieces, regardless, it really doesn’t give him the “feel” that he is old, but he doesn’t give the feel that he is “brand-spanking new”. You know what I mean?


    Playability
    The other half of the fun is in playing with the set. How well does the set function and is it enjoyable to play with?


    I haven’t played with Takanuva yet, but I have posed him quite often. From what I can tell, he is incredibly poseable, but the supporting joints tend to limit his movement in some ways.

    The one think I really look forward to with Takanuva is the knowledge that when I play with him he won’t fall down like Maxilos would and that his joints won’t loosen like mine Brutaka did…

    Unlike most sets, Takanuva boasts a total of 16 points of articulation including his double-jointed neck and claws. That’s an incredible number for any Bionicle set and it makes Takanuva even more fun to play with.

    I could blab on and on, but I think this review is long enough and I’ll just let the pictures do the talking.

    Smackdown
    Against the Wall
    Piggyback

    Final Thoughts
    Once it's all said and done, how does the set stack up? Should I get it?

    Pros
    What's to like?It's Takanuva. Avohkii resembles old version. The design is great and he is heavily armored. Weapons are stunning. Color scheme pattern is very similar to his old version. Is incredibly stable. Is incredibly stable. Still has white. Cons
    What’s not to like?His back is a little rough. Might seem too big for a Toa for some people. Some people may not like the blue and red pins (I don’t mind them) The lack of gold may irk people (Again, I don’t mind it) Gallery

    There you go! Hoped that review helped you decide whether to get Takanuva or not and I hoped you enjoyed reading it.

    ~SB~
  6. ~ShadowBolt~
    Hello BZPower members. You may have read about many people's colorful opinions for and against the Mistika. While I respect and understand both sides of the argument, I have grown sickened and tired of all of the bashing and irrational arguments against the Mistika.
     
    To combat this, I am forming a little "league" or club, whichever you prefer, to "stick up" for the Mistika.
     

    Anti - Mistika Bashing League Guidebook
     
    Motto:
     
    "No Mistika should be bashed!"
     
    Goal:
     
    We, the members of the Anti - Mistika Bashing League pledge to defend the Mistika to the ends of the World Wide Web wherever they are bashed and flamed.
     
    Rules:
    No flaming or spamming any member who bashes the Mistika. If a member gets in trouble because of a Mistika involved flamewar, the League is not responsible. Also, the League will cut all ties from that member and that member will be banned. You will follow all club related directions given by me or by your club superiors. League Roster: 
    Leader:
     
    ~ShadowBolt~
     
    Members:
    ~Sernakann~ Bfahome -Rho- ♣Makuta's black heart♣ rebooter6 Midnighter matoran jala11 Gravitic Ghost Rider The Last Tohunga -Evolution- Vamprah: Silent Hunter Slurpy Axalara Teragion Moi Janaro the skull reactor Commander Hothead TMNT: Half Shelled Heroes toa hordika tahu Yue Izumi Bite my shiny metal armor Tirade Toa Roman Nara Chaplain Xavier -Macku- Return of the Pit Jailer! biogio Dark Hunter 554 Dark Lord Zhalath The Mega-cool Phantoka -Colea- Taki Ghosti Nuhrii the Metruan falling sheep Takua the Wanderer Toa of Water and Ice Poirua master Darnok (toa human) Razsek Moatau Dr. Tahu Mistika Avalon Kalija Clarification: MUST READ!
     
    This League is not meant to forcibly make people like the Mistika, but defend the Mistika whenever someone says they hate them because "they are epic fail", "are ugly", etc...


    Any questions, comments, or suggestions?
     
     
    ~SB~
  10. ~ShadowBolt~
    Wahoo! Today where I live, summer starts at precisely 7:59 (if I heard the newscaster right) tonight. Only problem is that it's cool and rainy which isn't typical June weather...

    ~SB~
  12. ~ShadowBolt~
    For those of you who are dying to see them, it's not anytime soon, so most likely, I won't be the generous BZPer to bring you the first pics.

    Okay. My parents just told me that we are going on "vacation" to Virginia to visit some relatives. While I'm there, we'll take some time to visit the Lego store in Tyson's Corner mall near Washington D.C. I've been there before and that's when I got the Mahri.

    I'll be going in late July so I'll have an EXTREMELY high chance of finding the Mistika there.

    Until then, I'll be saving up money and building up my bank account which took a recent big hit from buying Vamprah and Toa Ignika to build the Niazesk (I already had Pohatu).

    ~SB~
  13. ~ShadowBolt~
    The biggest thing that disgusts me here on BZPower and on other forums is the fact that many people irrationately bash the Mistika and there are very few people around here to keep that in check and argue against them.
     
    To counter that, I am starting a club that anybody is welcome to join. Our goal will be to argue and defend the Mistika every time a BZPer bashes or states (if it's reasonable to argue against it).
     
    That's all I have to say for now and I'll think of the details at some point.
     
    Any questions?
     
    Members Sign Up List:
    ~ShadowBolt~ ~Sernakann~ Bfahome -Rho- ♣Makuta's black heart♣ rebooter6 Midnighter matoran jala11 Gravitic Ghost Rider The Last Tohunga -Evolution- Vamprah: Silent Hunter Slurpy Axalara Teragion Moi Janaro the skull reactor Commander Hothead TMNT: Half Shelled Heroes toa hordika tahu Yue Izumi Bite my shiny metal armor Tirade Toa Roman ~SB~
  14. ~ShadowBolt~
    Today, my homeroom teacher gave me his collection of Wheaties boxes. Y'know, the ones with sports players on them...? Anyways, I'm glad to have them and I hope to sell them either on eBay or keep them? Also, does anybody know of any websites that have the prices for Wheaties boxes?
     
    By the way, the ones my teacher gave me were collector ones and some of them were valuable.
     
    ~SB~
  17. ~ShadowBolt~
    Woot! I finally have Bionicle Legends 10: Swamp of Secrets and it definately was worth the wait... Greg did a really good job with the shocking twists and suspense. Can't wait for the final battle!!!!
     
    Oh yeah... could somebody PM me a text copy of the second part of the "The Kingdom". No Adobe Reader on my computer... :blush:
     
    ~SB~
  18. ~ShadowBolt~

    I'm A Lawyer!

    By ~ShadowBolt~,

    Not exactly... But my class is having a mock trial in Social Studies and I'm the prosecutor. I'm really surprised about how smoothly this trial is going because the other lawyer (defending lawyer) is not doing a very good job. She's not the most assertive person in the world but anyways, we are having fun.
     
    If you guys care, the case is about one person in my class stole a "minature pony" from a farm that he works at under suspicious circumstances but he returned it two days after he "stole" it. Any questions/advice?
     
    ~SB~
  20. ~ShadowBolt~
    Hey blog readers, I need some help.
     
    For computer class we got some photos off of the internet for a project but after we did that, my teacher asked my class about if we knew of any good photo hosting websites. I knew of three and my teacher knew of one of them but not the other two. So, to help us expand our knowledge of good photo hosting websites, I want to see if you BZPers knew of any other websites.
     
    The ones we have:
    Flickr (the one my teacher has heard of) maj Photobucket So that's what we know of. Any other good ones you guys know of? Please only suggest websites that are appropriate for BZPower since it will definately be appropriate at my school. Also, don't suggest brickshelf since that only has Lego images.
     
    Thanks,
    ~SB~
     
    By the way, I'll have a Pohatu and Photok review for you guys sometime this week or next week, but not definitely this weekend since I'm going out of town for my baby cousin's baptism. Expect the Photok review first.
  21. ~ShadowBolt~

    Set Review

    By ~ShadowBolt~,

    Kinda...
     
    Well, I know you BZPers have read many set reviews of the Phantoka and their Matoran counterparts, but I was wondering, what set would you like me to review so you can get another opinion on it? Also, I'd be willing to review Toa Ignika if you would prefer a review of him, but I would rather not do a review of Mutran & Vican, Antroz & Radiak, Lewa & Tanma, and Icarax.
     
    So, please, say which set would you like me to review. Free cyber-cookies for anyone who gives a suggestion!
     
    ~SB~
  22. ~ShadowBolt~

    Onions

    By ~ShadowBolt~,

    For the next few days, I will hate onions with a passion.
     
    Why?
     
    Well, I think sorting the good onions from the rotten ones and then repackaging them had to do with it. First, lemme tell you the whole story.
     
    Today, I went on a school field trip to a large food bank that provides food to people who are in desperate need of it. For those who don't know, a food bank is a place that accepts donations of all kinds of food and redistributes it to homeless shelters, food pantries, and soup kitchens.
     
    Anyways, my school is having a food drive and the food we receive is going to go to the food bank we visited (and that's why we went there in the first place). Originally, we weren't going to do any volunteering (packing food), but something came up and we had an opportunity to volunteer.
     
    The older kids went on the packaging floor since you have to be above 12 to do that and the younger students went and labeled boxes in another room. Since I was older than 12, I got to go on the packaging floor to repackage onions.
     
    We had to repackage the onions because the food bank recieved its onions in large bags with about a hundred or so onions in each and we had to take the "good" ones out and put them in smaller bags while we threw out the rotten ones. For sanitary reasons, we all wore disposable gloves like the one your dentist might wear while examining your teeth. Thank you since I touched some pretty nasty onions that were black and mushy and others had what looked like a fungus on it. Eww. For your info, we threw out more onions than we repackaged. That's how bad the onions were.
     
    Anyways, we got the job done and after that, we took a tour around the warehouse. Very interesting things there. I saw a machine that was designed to crush hundreds of cans of food that were dented or expired into relatively small cubes. Wonder where the juice in the cans went? Well, they are drained out of the machine into large barrels and mixed with other unusable food and given to pig farmers in the area as pig food for free.
     
    Well, that pretty much sums up my trip to the food bank. Please feel free to ask any questions and give any comments. Also, I'm glad I ate my lunch before I went there...
     
    ~SB~
  23. ~ShadowBolt~
    This blog is pretty much done but I want to hear you guys opinions on this. Please provide suggestions, content block topics, any things I should add, and stuff like that. I would really like to hear what you guys have to say.
     
    Also, if someone wouldn't mind, could you rate my blog? It doesn't have to be five stars, it could be one or two. I'm just tired of seeing gray stars all the time.
     
    Thanks,
    ~SB~
  24. ~ShadowBolt~
    So, that's the question I want to see answered by you guys. Many of you have seen me around the forums (Sets & GD), so from the content of my posts and my time here, do you guys still consider me a newb/noob or a "regular member"?
     
    Please be serious and truthful.
     
    ~SB~
  25. ~ShadowBolt~

    Mistika Nuva

    By ~ShadowBolt~,

    Recently, after reading Janus' Janice's thoughts on the Mistika in his her blog, I realized that I haven't given my thoughts on the Mistika Nuva. Well, as much as I hate to admit it, I have mixed feelings about the summer Nuva. One part of me wants to say that I like the Nuva and I am happy with them and another part of me wants to say that I am slightly disappointed in them. Personally, I think I'm in the middle of the two sides of the spectrum.
     
     
    The Mistika do have several things going for them but other things seem to bring them "down".
     
     
    I really like the recolored pieces that the Toa have and the new pieces they have are pretty good also. The only thing I really don't like about them is the lack of similarity they have to the Phantoka - the two teams barely resemble each other from what I can see.
     
    Personally, I'm quite disappointed in Lego for not making the Mistika resemble their old Nuva counterparts like the Phantoka did.
     
    It wouldn't hurt to give Tahu and Gali variations of Inika torsos and Onua a Piraka or a brand new torso. Tahu and Gali would both look taller compared to the other Nuva like they were in 2002 and Onua would be of similar height but a hunch back also like in 2002.
     
    The color scheme of the Mistika kind of annoys me a bit. Onua would be great if only Lego didn't put red fins and blasters on him. Well, I can fix that when I get Axalara T9 so I can switch Axalara's silver fins and jets for Onua's red ones. In my mind, Tahu and Gali kind of ruin the "flow" the other four Mistika had. Their color schemes look pretty good right now, but I would prefer it in dark gray like the others so they match them. About the Mata colours, I don't know if I would prefer them, they might look too bright for swamp combat (after all, brightness tends to give you away if you want to remain camouflaged). The Metru blue and red are fine for now.
     
    Also, I kind of wish Gali and Onua both had melee weapons or at least, a bladed weapon attached to their Nynrah Ghostblasters along with their current attachments. But I'll reserve my final opinion until I find out what the the Nynrah blasters do. Maybe it'll make up for the lack of weaponry.
     
    The masks is another area where the Mistika fall short. Onua's mask would look better if it was a designed slightly more streamlined and less Krahkaan-like. Gali's mask needs to look more feminine. Maybe a resemblance to Tanma's mask wouldn't hurt at all. Tahu's mask would look better if it was designed as a more mechanical version of Lihkan's Hau.
     
    These things above are all the things I don't like about them but basically I'm nitpicking every little detail. All of these things are just little things and when they add up, they look like a lot.
     
     
    There are also several good things about the Nuva.
     
     
    Though the color scheme on all the Mistika Nuva could be changed in some ways, I like the selection of new pieces and recolored ones Lego has made available. The most interesting pieces I see are the recolored silver limb pieces on Gali and Tahu, the Nynrah with accessories, the masks, the jets, and the miniature fins.
     
    Personally, I think Lego did a good job with the basic design because the Mistika look like they're designed for some swamp combat. They don't need the high-speed streamlined equipment the Phantoka have since you can't go to fast in a swamp - otherwise, you'll hit a tree. But they don't look extremely aerodynamic similar to helicopters. Helicopters are pretty streamlined but they aren't meant to go very fast, and they can maneuver very well since they can do things planes can't.
     
    The Nynrah look very very interesting. They appear to be fired using air pressure by pushing a accordion-style bladder on the back. For some reason, the blasters look like a combination of a Cordak Blaster (air pressure firing) and a Zamor Launcher (the style of the blaster). Simple yet effective. Also, I noticed that the hole where you slide in the Nynrah projectiles might be able to fit a Cordak round too. Interesting.
     
    The silver limb pieces on Tahu and Gali are very interesting and I thought they merited a paragraph in this article. Finally, we have silver lower leg limbs in the Piraka form and the Inika form. For some reason, when I see them on Gali and Tahu, they look slightly overwhelming but they look pretty good anyways. For Mocers, these pieces will be very useful and I plan to build a "Toa of Protodermis" Moc with them and the light gray pieces found on Nuparu Inika.
     
    So, that's what I have to say about the Mistika Nuva. They are really good sets and they have good pieces but the lack of recognizable similarity to their past forms or even the Phantoka is disappointing. Also, another thing I realized was that Gali and Onua really didn't have any weapons in their Toa Mata forms so now, the lack of weaponry is not that big of a deal for me anymore.
     
    If you guys have any comments or questions, please feel free to drop a comment. This thing took me a day to type so please drop a comment. Free cookies for anyone who does so!
     
    ~SB~
     
     
     
     
×
×
  • Create New...