ALVIS

Primarily because it's considered an immoral mask.

ET, Boidoh does have a point in his latest post. Whether we want the masks or not should be a separate poll, which it is. Trying to settle both of these contentious issues in the same poll would raise all sorts of problems.

1. I personally think Krakua mentioning the Toa Inika to Vakama was just a teaser in Time Trap for the Voya Nui story that next year. It was something for fans to speculate on until it was revealed in 2006. I could be wrong on that though. 2. Since it is an alternate universe, there could be a number of ways for Krakua to exist in it. It's anyone's guess how he became a Toa in that universe. Yes, but if you're going to put a teaser in official media, it should at least make sense in the context of the story!

My original theory was that Krakua would become a Toa when one of those Toa sacrificed their power, but since Greg had Krakua become a Toa offstage before the Destiny War, that theory's shot. The whole vision thing is a classic example of how Greg's "never plan anything" style was more trouble than it was worth, because Vakama didn't even have anything to do with sending the Toa Inika on their mission. Nokama was the one who told them about Voya Nui, but even she didn't expect them to actually go out and try to rescue them. None of it makes any sense in retrospect, which is probably why Greg was always opposed to introducing time travel to the story. It's possible that, in this case, Vakama's vision didn't mean much of anything. Recall that he had that vision while he was trapped in one of Makuta's illusions; that might have interfered with his clairvoyance.

In this case, though, Zidonaro's remarks were actually offensive. Saying "no offense" doesn't turn an insult into honest criticism. However, your second paragraph raises a good point. Boidoh, when there are lines being drawn in the sand over an issue, it would be wiser to pause and think things through before just barging ahead and ignoring the voices of dissent.

That's a really good point. Currently, the Kakama in Time Trap is the only thing that remains of a long-serving Toa Mangai, whose life's struggle was certainly worthwhile but ultimately forgotten. It's quite a tragedy. Now, suppose we run our poll and determine that it was a Kanohi Kakama belonging to, I don't know, the Toa of Earth. What does that contribute to the emotional significance of the scene? Absolutely nothing. The Shadowed One doesn't know what the Toa's element was, nor does the reader, and neither of them needs to. The scene was about the efforts of unsung heroes and the inexorable march of time. While the reader was probably meant to wonder who this Toa was and how they lived their life, worrying about which element they wielded is egregiously missing the point. This is one of the reasons I'm reconsidering my views of canonization. Knowing who wore the Kanohi Kakama does not contribute anything to the lore. It doesn't solve a long-running mystery or fill in a plot hole. It just completes a chart on a BS01 article. Taking all of that into consideration, I've made up my mind, and I'm going to vote "no". This is an unnecessary use of canonization that has lost sight of the original allure of the Toa Mangai.

While that is theoretically possible, it's also rather boring, at least to my tastes.

Actually, according to this poll, the pro-canonization people have a majority of 3 votes. That may be so, but Boidoh does not speak for everyone in the pro-canonization camp. Boidoh has a perspective towards canonization that is shared by some, but there are other perspectives out there which have similar levels of support. I am frustrated by Boidoh's insistence on characterizing everyone who disagrees with him as being "the minority group" because a) it's patently untrue and b) it shows a stubborn unwillingness to accept criticism and consider the fact that other people might have valid opinions, which is a trait any individual seeking to be described as "mature" should jettison as soon as humanly possible. The important thing to note is that everyone who has an opinion about canonization is in a minority group. The vast, vast majority of G1 BIONICLE fans either don't know or don't care about canonization; this is an activity that affects/pisses off only the fans who are most obsessed with G1 story. We are all the minority, and any division among us simply creates even tinier fractions of the fandom as a whole. No one on any side of this debate has any right to consider themselves a majority. ...I want to stress that, despite the above rant, I'm not trying to vilify you, Boidoh. I have defended you on several occasions, and I think you possess an idealistic enthusiasm for BIONICLE that many of the jaded oldies (myself included) are, to an extent, missing. I am simply frustrated that you so often ignore and dismiss your critics. I was the same way a few years ago. Learning to accept other people's perspectives, even if they disagreed with me, was really difficult. But doing so was a huge step in my personal journey of maturity. I think you need to take the same step.

Boidoh, for god's sakes, stop trying to paint yourself as the voice of the majority.

Out of those two, I'd go with Option B. I'd rather put this one on hold while the Kakama poll is running, though.

I'm on the fence. In this specific case, I don't really mind. Assigning Kanohi to the other Toa Mangai would both give them some individuality and give some neglected Kanohi more bearers. Some fan artists/writers might complain that their creativity is being stifled, and I hear and understand that perspective. However, other fan artists/writers who are less interested in choosing all the details of the Toa Mangai might find that official mask/element combinations would give them more direction. It certainly is true that "a Toa of Ice with a Kanohi Garai" has a stronger personality and mental image than "a Toa of Ice". However, looking at the big picture, I am becoming somewhat disillusioned with the intense level of canonization going on here and in the LMB thread. Are we going to have a similar poll to determine the masks of all the Toa Cordak now? I am not sure I want that to happen. I don't think G1 canon should be viewed as some sort of puzzle where we have to fit in all the little pieces. I would rather picture it as a painting left unfinished. A better use for canonization would be to finish the broad strokes of the painting, rather than adding more details to what has been done. I haven't voted, and I won't be voting until I come to a conclusion -- which I may not do. In the meantime, I am doing some thinking about how much G1 minutiae means to me, and I would encourage everyone else to do the same.

A better phrasing for my position would be something along the lines of "I think that canonizations can contribute and have contributed positively to the saga, but that they can also cause harm and should be (unofficially) regulated". That's a fairly longwinded way to put it, but it's the gist of my stance on the matter. We actually don't even know if the tower was blown up, or if everyone escaped. The only thing that Greg has said is that the cursed GB escaped without the knowledge of "the heroes", and that Greg "wasn't going to kill all those characters at once". We don't know how many he would have killed, or if they would have somehow stopped the tower from exploding, and we don't know because he refuses to answer these questions. (However, we have learned that the Toa Mahri are now free.)

I was drawn in by the title, and then disappointed to find that the OP only addressed one of the three concepts mentioned in the title. Allow me to weigh in on the other two. Makuta is already coming back. "The Legend" and promotional materials indicate that this incarnation of the character will reprise his role as the Big Bad, so you should be satisfied -- unless you are referring to Makuta as a species. If you'll permit me, bringing them back would be a terrible idea. The idea of multiple Makuta was never very popular in G1, especially because it meant the writers had to find a new name for the OG Makuta, which was even less popular. What's more, the Makuta race was incredibly over-powered, even by G1's standards. In a low-power setting like Okoto, they would be nothing less than physical gods, and the Toa wouldn't stand a chance. Rahi should come back, though not necessarily as Rahi; I'd be fine with them just being called "beasts". We're not actually sure if they have come back or not: the Skull Spiders and their Lord appear to be beasts, but their Lord (from what little information we have) seems to demonstrate intelligence and the ability to use Masks of Power. Regardless of that, I would like to learn much more about Okoto's fauna and flora. Proper, detailed, immersive world building is key to drawing in an audience and making them stay. It was one of G1's most redeeming features (in the early years, at least), and for G2 to skip out on that would be a terrible mistake. As for more elements: I'm not averse to the idea of a few more masks (and their respective elements) being introduced. Light, Storm, and possibly Sound stand out as good candidates. The more esoteric and abstract elements from G1, however, would not fit G2's setting whatsoever, and should be avoided at all costs.

(Long post incoming! Who says bonesiii is the most longwinded person in S&T?) I wish there were an option that more closely fits my stance on the matter. I am, all things considered, in favor of canonizations. Most of them were pretty harmless, and some contributed positive things to the story. As a BS01 editor, I am especially biased towards the ones that gave us names for background characters or details, such as the Toa Mangai, Nektann (the warlord), and so on and so forth. For example, the Crescent Scythe was assigned no official name, and would probably have been simply referred to as "Blade (Nektann)" by the wiki. The whim of a young fan (who definitely wasn't me; I'm not blatantly giving a self-promoting example, no sir) gave us a name we could use for future recordkeeping. (Of course, we wouldn't really have needed future recordkeeping if someone hadn't asked if the scythe could channel Nektann's water power, and Greg hadn't said yes. But I digress.) However, I have begun to grow weary of canonizations, especially ones that I see as especially trivial and pointless. For example: I didn't originally care about the elements of the Toa Mangai, but when it got to the point that there was only one unknown left, I was okay with Boidoh's poll to determine the final Toa's element. Call it a compulsion to "complete the set". A poll to determine the Toa's Kanohi, eh, I was fine with that as well, because there were too many masks out there with not enough bearers. The current poll to determine the Toa's weapon, though, is completely frivolous, and I don't see the use of it. Any fan writer or artist who depicts this Toa can choose their weapon for themselves. Besides being weary, I am also wary of some canonizations, because I think they can actually be harmful to the story. I'm not talking about canonizations that contradict previously established canon; Dorek et al. make sure none of those "forgetcons" get recorded on BS01. I'm talking about the times when an innocent yet ignorant fan asks a useless question, ex. "Why do the Toa Metru and Toa Nuva use different set builds? Are they different kinds of Toa?" and gets an annoying, confusing, and needlessly complicated answer, ex. "When a Matoran becomes a Toa, their armor takes the shape of their idea of what a Toa should look like". The answer does explain the difference, but it also complicates the process of becoming a Toa and adds a psychological factor to every Matoran-to-Toa transformation. Subsequent instances that didn't comply with this on-the-fly answer, such as the Toa Inika, were given bizarre explanations to try and bring them in line. The whole thing is a hot mess. The answer to such a pointless question should have been something noncommittal like, "They're wearing different styles of armor. Deal with it", which would have both answered the question and avoided all of the problems that followed. Questions like these are what caused the overcomplication of G1 BIONICLE, and may have contributed to its demise in 2010. This can't be blamed solely on the fans or Greg; it takes two. Thankfully, Greg has recently been more guarded with his responses to such questions in the LMB thread, and has avoided creating more complications like these. I still worry that it could happen again. That's why I am especially wary of the "ask me anything about BIONICLE" vibe Greg encourages. However, on the whole, I think the canonizations are harmless and sometimes even helpful. I ask Greg questions with the intention of tying up loose ends (ex. whether the Toa Mahri were freed in Sahmad's Tale) or clarifying elements of the saga that were unclear. I am not really concerned with acquiring new information, or "leaving my mark on the canon" by naming something or canonizing a theory. As with all things, there are both good and bad things that can come out of canonization, and so it should be handled with caution. We can't expect all of the posters on the LMB thread to be aware of this, but the BZPower and BS01 people who utilize the LMB threads should do with responsibility and restraint.

Oh, for god's sakes. It is waaaaaay too early for us to turn into spiteful old curmudgeons and start hating on the next generation. Millennials haven't even hit three decades yet. It's also too early to criticize BIONICLE 2015 for being too simple. The Okoto storyline is simpler than the Mata Nui saga for three reasons: A, because it has not even begun yet, whereas the Mata Nui saga ran for 10+ years; B, because it is meant to avoid some of the problems of its predecessor, which included an overly convoluted backlog of irrelevant details caused by worldbuilding gone wild; and C, because keeping the world small and simple allows writers to focus on the plot and the characters, rather than the rampant speculation and background details that dominated the Mata Nui saga.

Physics doesn't just stop working because of distance. No matter how far you go in our universe, the laws of physics will continue to exist in the same capacity, unless you cross into a black hole. Spherus Magna cannot exist in our own universe, because it blatantly disregards our laws of physics, and functions on an entirely separate system.

The Mata Nui saga and Okoto are entirely separate continuities, and take place in different universes. The only real "connection" is that BIONICLE 2015 is heavily inspired by BIONICLE 2001. Rumors of a storyline connection are just that: rumors.

Okay, I didn't mind the element poll, and I didn't mind the Kanohi poll, but this is just silly. I'm not going to be participating in this one.

This thread reads like the Adventurer's Vault from any edition of D&D. Lots of magic items, some with applicable or utilitarian powers, some with powers that would only be useful once in a blue moon (if then). You have a great creative streak; this much is obvious. However, if you ever go into the business of Kanohi forging, you might want an idea checker on staff. Just a suggestion.

Greg Farshtey has weighed in on the subject. He believes that the Mask of Rahi Control would make the battle too short, that the Rua, Aki, and Mask of Elemental Energy should not be options, and that immoral masks are out as well.

After looking over the posts and the relevant Kanohi pages, I've decided on the Mask of Healing. I can tell you from my experiences in D&D that any group of potential dragon-slayers needs a healer, especially if it's a group of 11. (Also, going through each round of combat would an agonizingly long time... which might explain why the battle lasted a month.) There's also this little tip to keep in mind: Bo-Matoran are known to make excellent healers. A Toa of the Green would be an even better healer, since they could create any plants they needed for remedies. This would also validate the Green as an ideal element: it wasn't necessarily meant to combat the dragon, but to patch up the other ten Toa and keep them on their feet.

Why is the Kadin in the third section with the EM masks? That seems like a typo. I'm going to wait until arguments are made for or against certain masks before I vote.

Well, there you have it, folks. I'm adding the relevant information to BS01 now. Greg also gives his permission to have a poll determine this Toa's mask. At this point, we might as well name the character Toa Hapori and make them the canon embodiment of BZPower, since everything we know about them is through fan canonizations.

Boidoh, don't forget to run the results by Greg. The fans' opinions count for something, but only he has the power to officially establish canon.

I know right? I always have to explain that it is a science-fantasy work, akin to legendariums like DC, Marvel, Star Wars, and Masters of the Universe. (Sometimes Doctor Who crosses into this genre but I never mention it lest I be verbally mauled by time traveling faux-norman huscarls from Planet X) I've always disliked the label of "science fantasy", since it's just an excuse to set a plotline IN SPAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACE and then proceed to blatantly ignore every field of science. But, then again, that describes BIONICLE pretty aptly.