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Hey all! Recently, I was going through some old files here and found some screenshots/files from BZP from a few years back. I felt a huge level of nostalgia looking at the old forum, and I was sad due to the fact the old skin couldn't be used on this newer site due to compatibility issues. So recently, in my free time, I decided to remake the original skin to work with the current website! Right now, it's an extension for different browsers (Google Chrome, Firefox, Safari, etc.), but if people like it, it can easily be incorporated as a theme option to the site itself! (In the standard theme switcher at the bottom of the page) Here are some screenshots: (More in the Imgur album (High-Res): http://imgur.com/a/e7uBl) It's still a WIP, and subject to further changes and such, but the core concept of it is complete. I've moved the top bar to the bottom, to allow the site to have the original spacing it had. As well as brought back the old logo and gradients. I should be able to release the theme within a week or two, once I work out a few bugs. If you have any suggestions or questions, please let me know! I'd love to incorporate other users ideas if possible. Thanks! -Metax
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Right, so some of you may remember a few months ago when I made an Inika custom theme for my modded Nintendo 3DS. Well I just recently got an N3DS, and decided to make something new and exciting for that to separate it from the other one. Here's what I ultimately came up with: As with last time, if there is enough interest, I am willing to design more for each of the different story years/arcs. For those of you already possessing tricked out 3DSs, you can download both themes here: https://3dsthem.es/?q=user%3AVahkiti
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Or, at least, not a very good one. It has no meaning, and very little life. Source The reason I'm including this is that I know that it will come up in the ensuing discussion. When I say "has no theme" what I mean is that Bionicle G2 has no unified message that it intends for kids to grasp. Other than "buy this toy". But if the toy doesn't symbolize a theme or message, it's not really something one would be proud to display on their shelf and call themselves a Bionicle fan over, would it? Instead, we would be more likely to complain about it. I'm not going to argue that Bionicle doesn't have design motifs anymore, because there is a strong case that they do. But there is not a unifying subject of discourse - the only thing left to discuss is factual surface details of the sets or story. 1) "I am here to battle evil, claim my Golden Mask of Power, and save the Island." is NOT a theme. This is not a theme, this is a commitment to a certain action. If I say: "Today I am going to write ten lines of code, find my old book on dinosaurs, and sharpen ten colored pencils" nobody would call that a theme of a story. What is evil? Why is claiming your Golden Mask important? Why does the Island need saving? You can argue that the Legends video answers these questions: Evil is Makuta, because he was jealous of his brother and made this dangerous overpowered mask, the Golden Masks are needed to give the Toa elemental powers and a fighting chance, and the villagers are at risk of being mind-controlled by "evil" undead bugs. But that doesn't answer this question: Why should I care about what goes on this island in the middle of nowhere? Why should I care about whether the villagers get controlled, whether the Golden Masks get found, whether evil gets defeated here? Who says the Toa are correct about what is evil and what is good? So far I haven't seen any proof that they have things figured out. In fact I see the exact opposite. That's where all the "evil Ekimu" theories come from. 2) "Unity, Duty, Destiny" is NOT a theme. It's merely a trite list of values, thrown together. Also, the concept of unity is distinct from duty which is distinct from destiny. I can have unity with a group of friends with no duty (we could just be hanging out at the mall), and I can be sitting all alone in my room with a destiny. So it's de-unified in and of itself. Further, it isn't a theme because it raises questions about itself. Unified with whom? Duty about what? Destiny where? A theme needs to say something about the concepts it raises. Is it good? Bad? You can argue that "these concepts are good" is implied, but why are they good? Because they are more effective in battling evil? So can my commitment to sharpening colored pencils. Even further, it was mostly introduced this year - it wasn't really a point of 2015's story anyway. 3) "Teamwork" is NOT a theme of Bionicle G2, and neither is overcoming adversity in spite of setbacks (which was Bionicle G1's main theme IMO) The teamwork theme in Bionicle G2 exists in isolated incidences, and is frequently contradicted by the actual story itself. Yes, the Toa have to band together as a team to beat LoSS. Yes, they must unify with their creatures. Yes, Lewa wanders off on his own and gets de-masked by Skull Slicer. But this is contradicted by other parts of the story. All of the Toa get their Golden Masks on their own. Granted, they have the Protectors to help...but then all of them have to rescue their respective Protectors. (Unlike in G1 where they DID have to ask other members of their team for help.) Lewa swoops in knock off the shooting Skull Warriors single-handedly. Kopaka puts up a shield that isn't needed. Pohatu breaks down a door by himself. Lewa beats the Skull Scorpios alone. Onua rescues everyone from being crushed...by his own actions. And Lewa fights Umarak on his own without any sort of loss in the end. The Skull Basher battle is a perfect example of this gone wrong, as the number one advocate of teamwork runs into battle alone, gets defeated, and then the Toa go on to beat Skull Basher...without Onua. The Skull Grinder battle: all the teamwork in the world didn't work. Screw teamwork - I have a hammer that can shoot lasers. The myopic focus on Tahu at the beginning doesn't help, and neither does Narmoto's prideful boast against the horde of spiders when he is off claiming his Golden Mask. As Unikitty would tell us, there is absolutely no consistency. * * * Finally, as I mentioned before, the Toa of G2 treat adversity as if it were a light snack. Enemies? Not really that hard. The amount of success they have is completely unexpected. It took the Toa of G1 eight years of story to accomplish what the G2 Toa do in 8 months, approximately. So that's definitely not a theme of the story. In large part, I think we want G1's theme back, or if not that, some other theme. It is the message, the statement that evil could be overcome, even if it fought back and plotted against me, that once left me proud to say that I was a Bionicle fan. Now, that theme is gone, and I'm still waiting for it to come back. Or for something to come back. The Bionicle I know has not returned.
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Anyone have ideas for any new Lego Themes? Not reboots of past themes or things like that; more along the lines of movies/shows you'd want lego sets of or just ideas you have that you'd like to see as a full on line? As for me, I'd kinda like to see some Greek Mythology lego sets; Mt. Olympus, Greek architecture, that sort of thing. If that's not "marketable enough" Just slap the name Percy Jackson on it and add those characters in haha. That should fulfill that wish! But I'm curious to hear other peoples' ideas!
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Decided to test my luck the other day at making a custom theme for Ninjhax/Tubehax/Ironhax. I'm debating about making nine others to correspond with each of the ten story years, but first I wanted to gauge interest, and see how much of the 3DS/Homebrew community converges with that of BIONICLE to see if it would be worth the effort. If I do so, they may also be hosted on BioMediaProject as soon as I get approval. (Even staffers need to ask first. ) You can download the theme here: http://3dsthemes.com/Search/Bionicle (Sorry there's do direct link. The 3DS themes site is designed a little weirdly. o-O) EDIT: It looks like somebody else beat me to the punch on a Mata theme. I'm probably still going to do that one myself after. The bottom screen background bugs me because there's no display setting in which the text in the image won't be obscured by icons or folders.
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What was the first Lego theme that you were a fan of? Mine was Lego Harry Potter. I've been a fan since I was 5 or so (2003). It wasn't until 2006 that I discovered Bionicle.
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This topic is simple: which Lego set is the best Lego set in your opinion? Support your opinion with valid reasons, because saying a set is the best because it is "cool" doesn't really explain much. Remember- Brickset is always ready if you forget a set name.
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You know LEGO? Of course you do! They are a pretty good company, and have mostly deserved their high status among toy industries. But, throughout the years, LEGO has made some strange decisions with their lines of toys, and I am going to list some of them in no order. Avatar: The Last Airbender Great show, but odd sets. I didn't get any of the whopping two sets that we got for the line, but they look okay. Nothing major about this line, nothing particularly horrible, it's just odd. Probably a cash-grab regarding the popularity for the show at the time. Ben 10 Yet again, another possible cash-grab. Ben 10 exploded in popularity during it's first run, and it was hard for anyone not to notice the ten-year old Benjamin wearing an ultra-powerful watch called the Omnitrix. So, during the second Ben 10 wave, LEGO released six constraction sets of six forms that come with the new Omnitrix powers. These sets were very forgettable, and had very simplistic builds that didn't really catch anyone's attention. While popping into my local toystore to get a few CITY sets, I thought I would pick up the Humongosoar (or whatever it was called) set. Why not? These consisted of few pieces, and weren't that interesting. I'm not bashing on the line for being simplistic, because it was just an innocent experiment. Time Cruisers Now this theme is pretty weird. I know I shouldn't be bashing on this theme so much, as it is an earlier System set, but these sets are still pretty strange. I know that the 'time travel' aspect is a main reason for all the weirdness, but the builds are all over the place. One particular set called the Flying Time Vessel is supposed to be a boat.. crossed with a plane... crossed with a pirate ship... what? The sets in general look like sets slapped together by the creative director's nephew, and shipped off and mass-produced to be sets. Weird. Znap Now I'm really scraping the bottom of the barrel. While scrolling through themes on Brickset to look at some Viking sets (awesome sets, by the way), I found this theme. So I took a quick look, and the sets looked repulsive. It's an odd attempt to make vehicles out of the Technic line, and this was most probably the first try. Seriously, the sets look like they are made from straws! It's still pretty funny, since it looks like a LEGO knockoff when LEGO themselves made them. Yet again, a little dud on a good reputation. And... Galidor Oh boy. Galidor was an epic fail by LEGO. First of all, these look like cheap action figures made in China. There is absolutely nothing that makes it unique to LEGO. It's just your run-of-the-mill action figure. Second, the figures look horrible, and at times, terrifying if you look at some of them. I can't even explain how bad it is. Before you leave this post or write a comment, go and look up Galidor. Have fun laughing hysterically. Nice try LEGO, should have stayed content with Bionicle. So? Have I introduced you to any themes you haven'y heard of? Disagree with me? Do you also think the Vikings sets are awesome? Give me your opinion.
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You saw nothing.
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Well for those of you who aren't aware of what this was cybots was a cancelled lego theme that was in development during 1995, I'd recommend you look at the brickipedia page on the planned theme(there you can view the prototypes and back story). Links here:http://lego.wikia.com/wiki/CYBOTS So what do you think of the theme? What do you think the models would have looked like(had they gone past the prototype stages)? Could it have been successful? And had this theme been released how do you think it would have affected the future of constraction themes?
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So, there's already a thread (or, at least, there was) about a licensed theme that you want LEGO to do. This thread is somewhat similar to that, but this time, you can say anything you want LEGO to make. It could be a single minifigure, it could be a licensed theme, it could be a non-licensed theme, just anything. Anyway, the three I can really think of, right now, would be a minifigure of Edgar Allan Poe, a series of system-style H.P. Lovecraft creatures, and a line of City-kind of stuff, but placed in Europe in the 1800's. So, we'd get vehicles, buildings, and all that jazz. It would be pretty darn cool. What do you guys want/NEED.
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So I was thinking about how Bionicle was probably being brought back (yeah, probably, I'm like, 99.99% sure) and I was wondering about what steps would be taken to improve it. As you know, Bionicle was a great theme but it suffered from some bad mistakes. But then I wondered, what if Bionicle isn't the #1 story to go back to? I remembered the theme that started it all: Throwbots (or Slizers). Throwbots was a really cool theme with a lot of potential. It could've been taken so many places if LEGO hadn't made the mistake of canceling it (though it did sorta eventually lead to Bionicle), for it was a really interesting concept. Look at it this way: One of best things about the Glatorians era (and for some, the only thing) was the idea of having gladiators fighting in arenas! It's a really cool and really smart idea. Throwbots has that, and that could be a really sweet edge to a really sweet story. Plus, they'd have elemental powers making them even more exciting! Having a theme that centers around beings with really sweet powers fighting in arenas is really good, story-wise, and marketing-wise. Imagine what stories you could have with a theme like that! You could input serious social issues and ideas into it to make it really rich, such as slavery and war. After all, the Slizers' world is a split one. They didn't live so much in harmony as the matoran did (to my knowledge, I'm no Throwbots expert). You could eventually have a year where there is rebellion and such, to really amp up the story, kinda like the Hunger Games! And imagine how good it is for marketing! There could be so much collectibles for kids to get their greasy little hands on, and as we all know people love factions, tribes, anything where they can pick and choose to become a part of! The Throwbots world is perfectly set for this and you can make your own Gladiator! The sets would probably have some extra functions again (for things like throwing disks and actual fighting) and maybe even an arena set, kinda like the Ninjago Spinjitzu ones! Throwbots/Slizers is like gold, because it is an open and familiar world that any fans can love and become accustomed to. So do you agree? Should we get a reboot of Throwbots/Slizers? Are there any other ideas you'd like to add onto mine, or is there anything you'd like to change? I'm open for discussion!
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So, how many of you remember Exo-Force? Exo-Force was theme involving humans battling robots in giant mech suits. Backstory: The humans leader, Sensei Kieken, had created robots to help as aids to the humans, but the head robot, Meca One, rebelled. The humans battled the Meca One and his robots until the mountain they lived on split in half. The humans rebuilt their settlements and built bridges to connect the 2 halves of the mountain, but then the robots reappeared and took over one of the halves of the mountain. The humans defend their half using battle machines the Kieken created. The theme had a bit of japanese style art and storytelling that made it popular with the anime/manga fandom (there's a name for the fandom, but I can't remember what it is), but the theme was generally well-liked by average lego fans (like me) as well. The story was incredibly in-depth and was probably one of the best stories created to go along with a theme, ranking up there with themes like: Bionicle, Knights Kingdom II, and Ninjago. I liked the theme because of the battle mechs, which were some of the most innovative designs I had seen lego come up with since bionicle. Post your thoughts on the theme here.
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I was thinking about Bionicle, and then some other themes, and then how similar some themes are to it. I thought I'd start a poll to see what everybody else thinks.If your opinion isn't an option, choose "Other" and state it as a reply. Also, please don't say that Bionicle is the closest thing to Bionicle.
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To those of you who still play with LEGO Bricks, do you ever make crossovers with different themes? My bro and I did that with Star Wars and NinjaGo a few days ago, even making a sequel where Boba Fett secretly hitches to NinjaGo with the Ninjas and must find a dimension hopper in order to go home.So do you? If you do, share what you've done here.-Sybre
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It seems that the creations of Bionicle consistently tended to backfire on their creators. From the Vahki, whose intended purpose of keeping order and dealing with Rahi turned dangerously awry, to Mata Nui's Makuta going terribly wrong, to the various Great Being creations not working as planned and getting out of control. This is strongly counter to Lego's message, which is an encouragement of creativity and innovation. Lego's creation (Bionicle) turned awry, and no longer served their purpose at hand, so, in the true vein of all things Bionicle, they went and tried to shut it down.Thoughts? Objections?
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It's what you've all been waiting for...:-)Legends of Metru Nui Notes• Main Character: Vakama• Secondary Major Character: Lhikan• Theme: “He must learn to believe in himself. Only then will he find his destiny.” This film focuses on self confidence, like the last film focused on self-discovery.• In some respects, this film is a direct sequel to the last film – we move from self-discovery to self-confidence, which are themes that build on each other – you know who you are, now you should be confident in it. The self-reliance theme, however, gives Mata Nui less of a role, so they had to include some plot to work him in.The Very First Scene• Mega-neat animation here, with the Miramax logo fading into a pillar of light. The light is an allusion to the last film, in which Vakama says “Light found itself and illuminated our destiny.” So this is what the light revealed, thus the column of light.• Since the sea was noticeably absent in the last film, we are working it in here quite nicely.• The light of Mata Nui shines through the red “Toa-rock” indicating that light will be shown through the “Fire characters” throughout the film, which it is. Vakama is the “Takanuva” of this film, even though it doesn’t feel like it. His visions show destiny just like Takuanuva’s light at the end of the first film, but more subtle. This makes the film a little more complex and engaging then the last one.• And the darkness doesn’t completely fill up the “Toa-rocks” completely either, showing that not all hope is lost.• The end of the scene shows Mata Nui being squeezed between two rocks that represent Makuta, and then we see Lhikan shoving two dark things aside, which, if you read the novel, are suva doors. This tells us the Lhikan is interested in resisting Makuta, even if we didn’t get it from the introduction. Also, both Mata Nui and Lhikan both meet bad ends at the end of the film, and in Vakama’s visions the two aren’t distinguished well.• Lhikan is also remarkably similar to Jaller. Just as Jaller helps Takua find his identity, Lhikan helps Toa Vakama to be more confident in himself, and both do it just before they die. Jaller comes back, and Lhikan doesn’t; after all knowing who you are actually takes you further than being confident in yourself, the films imply. Both actually do the opposite of what they are supposed to early in the film, Jaller by doubting, Lhikan by being captured. They are also the first people who appear in their respective films. And don’t wear that Kanohi Hau, pal, it is the kiss of a glorious death.• Instead of a Lame Matoran calling other Lame Matoran’s Name, the film’s pace is quick. 10 seconds in, Lhikan is performing cool acrobatic stunts to stay out of energy webs. (This is one of the reasons this film was better than the last one. Many reasons.)• And then we get the fall scene, and because this is Bionicle 2: Legends of Metru Nui, the film about self-reliance, Lhikan pulls out of his fall by his own resources and bails. The observers are the professional discouragement team led by Krekka. No, wait…• Also, before I leave Lhikan behind, I should point out that in some respects Jaller and Lhikan are foils in the fact that Jaller’s presence for most of the film led to problems for Takua, and it is Lhikan’s absence in this film that causes the most problems. Lhikan has great confidence in Vakama, but Jaller has zero confidence in Takua. Jaller actually has more parallels to Mata Nui, since he came back from the dead and was exposed to forgetful sleep. And you know what the Matoran used to represent Mata Nui? A Kanohi Hau Mask, which Jaller and Lhikan both wore. Jaller and Lhikan both are incomplete, fuzzy pictures of Mata Nui! This would explain the strange scene on the stairs to the chamber of Life where Lhikan says “As long as you remember me in your hearts, I am not truly dead.” or something to that effect. It almost refers to that point where Mata Nui’s spirit goes dormant in the Mask of Life, leaving a legacy behind, but never truly dead. So Lhikan = Jaller = Mata Nui, approximately speaking, like Lhikan ~ Jaller ~ Mata Nui, but that looks weird. If you knew that already, I might have discovered a new connection or two for you. So Tahu’s Kanohi Hau is (literally) a red herring. Back to the story:Introducing: The Toa Metru!• Because we don’t care much about identity here, the six Toa are promptly identified in what qualifies as Backstory. Then another cool action sequence with Vakama and Lhikan, and finally we get to that Lame Matoran chatty sequence we’ve all been waiting for.• Vakama’s first vision is similar to the Mata Nui-being-crushed/Lhikan-shove-open-sequence, which could almost qualify as an overuse. When Mata Nui is crushed, Vakama (and consequently the entire Matoran population) is going down with it. Vakama doesn’t get it.• “You should not blame yourself Vakama. You are a mask maker, not a Toa.” And how does Turaga Dume happen to know about these intimate details about Lhikan’s capture and what Vakama thinks? That should have been a red flag…and then Vakama’s voice evidences fear, which is unusual in the presence of a Turaga. Respect, yes, but fear is a little off. Coliseum: Round One• This is our first reference to the sea in this film. Because there was no mention of Po-Koro or the sea in the last film, we see lots of Po-Metru – and the sea.• This is a pattern from the last film. In MoL, the first time Takua does the kolhii match, he fails miserably, and the second time he succeeds – when it really counts. The first time the match was controlled, was done in an arena, with the Turaga watching. The second time the kolhii match is completed, it is against Makuta. The second time, Takua had discovered his identity. In LoMN, the “Sea of Protodermis” is repeated twice, first in an arena with a Turaga watching, and the second time, with Makuta, where it really counts. The second time, the Toa were considerably more confident of their abilities and did not botch it the second time. Moral: training pays off.• The Toa leave the stadium by bringing down the statue of Toa Lhikan. In the second round, they really do leave over Lhikan’s dead body, by bringing him down.• The Great Disks don’t work in the arena, and the Mask of Time isn’t too effective in the end. They are crutches that Vakama falls back on instead of himself.• On the self-reliance end of the spectrum, unlike last time where Takua and Jaller were defeated by others, the Toa Metru were busted by a machine. Takua’s defeat was his own fault, but the Metru never had a chance. That’s a foreshadow of the ending… all those inside the robot never have a chance against Makuta, whereas those outside (Spherus Magna’s) problems are their own fault.The Chute, Kikanalo, and a guy named Nidiki.• Nidiki and Krekka are mighty slow on the flight side, or Matau is a very fast chute jumper. In fact, it might have been cool to have Matau snatched out of the air by the Dark Hunters, Matau fight them off and crash them to the ground, and…but now I’m speculating.• Because we cannot Fire-bash like we did in the last film, we Air-bash because we can. Matau is actually supposed to be a comic relief character in an otherwise dark and depressing movie, but…he is pretty stupid. That and the infamous Krekka.• That vision hanging from the chute…the giant Lhikan next to the small Vakama is a picture of how Vakama thinks of himself. And, yes, that UDD symbol in the sky, the giant Lhikan to the giant Mata Nui, which was represented by the UDD.• Bottom line: Bionicle is generally partial to the water and ice personages. Nokama generally isn’t beat up, Gali owns the world, Hali gets to make epic speeches and play epic kolhii and be “Hali the Barabarian” and so on. Matoro saves the universe, Kopaka owns the world, but Nuju is…well, Nuju. But because in this film, Vakama is the owner of this tale, even Nokama gets her comeuppance on Matau’s accurate comment about “bad things happening in the desert”. This is actually, in part, a self-fulfilling prophecy by Matau.• “It’s amazing what you can learn when you aren’t always speak-teaching.” Then Nokame finds her mask power as translation, which is a speak-teaching power. Irony. By the way, all the Toa’s Mask Powers do fit them exactly, which is true even of the Toa Nuva, even if it is less of a personality fit. The only possible future exception to this rule is Kongu and Nuparu’s swapped powers, which the organic masks is another really strange concept…and I am getting off topic again. Bossy Onewa= mind control, always-wanting-to hide Vakama=invisibility, and so on. It make sense. • Lhikan says “Without self-discovery you will never find your destiny.” What, didn’t you all watch the last film?• The Toa walk right past the canisters that would have solved their mystery for them about the "odd storage containers". This wouldn't have changed very much...• …although it might have convinced the Toa to ride just a bit faster in the scene that follows. This is scene is supposed to be comic relief between two major action sequences.• This movie focused a lot more on action then the last film, it is a lot less mystic and a whole lot faster paced, less of a fantasy opera and more of an action film. I don’t know about you, but I think younger kids tend to like those better.• Vakama says “Toa Lhikan will be forever in your debt.” He is living in Toa Lhikan’s shadow the whole film. Only his death allows him to be himself, a parallel to the last film with Jaller’s death in the last film.The End• All the major villainous characters in this movie have the ability to fly in this film, and the only hero that really does is Lhikan.• The Toa were trying to get back to the Great Temple, but were stopped by Makuta. When the Toa Nuva tried to get the Great Spirit back, they got Makuta instead.• The last vision: It is difficult to see because everything happens so fast, but in the middle of images from the previous visions and their real-life fulfillments, there is this picture of Toa Vakama standing in front of the Great Spirit Rock, which is being closed upon. I am pretty sure this means that Vakama is the last hope for the Great Spirit, which is also the purpose of the Vakama-as-Matoran vision when he runs toward the last remainder of light. Whereas Lhikan and Jaller are representations of the Great Spirit, Vakama is the Great Spirit’s guardian, his friend, even. Every battle he has fought, and will fight, is not because he doesn’t have a choice, but because he has an affection for the people of Metru Nui and the principles they live by, and the person who gave those principles to them. Vakama, at first, doesn’t believe he can live up to the standard of others that have come before, like Lhikan, but he does. That’s part of what made Time Trap so great, is that Vakama can finally live with himself, he knows exactly who he is and want he wants, and he will stop at nothing to get it. Finally!• In contrast to Time Trap, Vakama is an absolute coward, cowering behind the Mask of Time and Lhikan to try to avoid getting pulverized. Then he hides (literally) behind his mask of concealment.• Only when all Vakama’s crutches (Lhikan, the Mask of Time) are removed does he come out and say – “I don’t need to, I’m a Toa.” Lhikan’s death frees Vakama to work out his own problems without the old hanging over his head.• “If Toa Lhikan could not defeat me alone, how can you?” I love that line, because the proper answer is “With one Mask of Time”(Time Trap). But the temporary answer Nokama gives is fine, too, and it takes away, slightly, from the over dominance of Vakama here. • At the end, the UDD symbol is in the sky over Mata Nui. It’s up there. I never would have guessed.The End (movie 2)
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Bionicle Mask of Light Main Character: Takua There is an obvious element to this, but while Jaller was introduced first, it is Takua’s name he is calling. When Jaller and Takua separate, the camera follows Takua. Secondary Major Character: JallerEven though he’s dead for a major part of the film, and absent for a segment, he is a major influence on Takua and other characters. Major Theme of the Film: “Remember who you are! Remember your destiny!” This film emphasizes identity more than any other concept, with vignettes showcasing each Toa’s unique identity, and the end with Takua recognizing his own identity. There’s actually an entire group identity rediscovered at the end of the film – that all the characters in the film(except for the Toa Nuva) are actually displaced denizens of an island city.Story: The Very First scene: Is the biggest foreshadowing of the end of Bionicle, and yet it is so easily dismissed by the most avid fans, who had heard the “Legend of Mata Nui” and/or read the thing countless times before this film ever existed.The first thing you see is the Amaja Circle, a huge sand pit, with brown pillars surrounding it that are just glanced over by the camera. Look familiar? It looks like Bara Magna. If the surroundings are Bara Magna and Mata Nui is on Bara Magna and the six villages divide off of Mata Nui…it tells you that the Matoran are inside the Great Spirit and will come out into Bara Magna. The camera places the citizens of the island of Mata Nui as observers, which they are on Aqua Magna. Even Makuta comes in from the sky of Bara Magna to take on Mata Nui…so close, and yet so far!Further, everything Vakama says in that scene is absolutely true, we just don’t know how it is yet. That scene cloaks the truth about Mata Nui and Makuta in a thin layer of confusion, just so we can’t see was really is any more than the Matoran can. Second Scene: The Lava Breaks: When Takua first finds the mask, the mask glows with light, and Takua, bending forward to read this language, which he obviously has seen before, almost puts on the mask, like he is drawn to it. Only Jaller’s remark about imminent danger stops him, and when he throws the mask to Jaller, the light of the mask abruptly dies.All three of the first trilogy of Bionicle movies begin with a fall, a literal one. In this case it is Takua falling, and is saved by the fact that he is falling with the Great Toa Tahu, who stops and redirects his fall. How Takua stops falling is important – he will only achieve his goals in the film by riding on the backs of others, like the Toa and Jaller. Jaller observes…and he is the one who has the most doubt about Takua and his identity, and who believes Takua is dead after his fall. The “you could have been________bones” lines are actual tie-togethers of Jaller’s doubts. You survived that fall; You survived Makuta; that irresponsible Matoran who I didn’t think could do anything that great.Remember this: The enemy of self discovery is doubt, the enemy of self – confidence is circumstance, and the enemy of leadership is tyranny. The “observers” of each of the three falls represent these three failings. Also, the movie Mask of Light is actually two stories in one: Takua’s journey to find himself and Toa Nuva vs. Rakashi. It is actually Tahu who falls in the first scene; and Tahu is correspondingly beat up the entire movie. He does come out of it, however. It’s also one of the few times Mask powers are used in the film, and it is by far the most noticeable, with most uses rather implicit and not stated.The Kolhii Match First of all, we must acknowledge that Ga-Koro owns all. They win the Kolhii match, Gali runs to the rescue of Tahu’s village, Gali heals Tahu after he has been poisoned, Gali implicitly tells Kopaka to go rescue Onua and Pohatu, and Gali and Hali see the Ta-Matoran to safety after the Rahkshi attack. Not to mention the awesome speech Hali gets to make at the end. This makes up for the fact that we never see Ga-Koro or Ga-Wahi in the film. Not that anybody cares, since we have seen it in two online games and one set of animations. However, if not for the fact that Vakama says it at the beginning and Hali at the end, we would have never known that the setting was an island. The Kolhii match occurs both at the beginning and the end of the film, the first time with Takua losing, and the second time with him winning; this pattern is repeated in Legends of Metru Nui with the “Sea of Protodermis”. Po-Koro is actually the most overlooked village in the film. There’s a small argument that Jaller might be in Po-Wahi when Takua finds him, but that is meaningless. And Pohatu doesn’t really get too much of a show here, and that scene with the Rahkshi down in Onu-Koro was a not-really-that-great. Also, when the Mask of Light comes out of Jaller’s pack, the Mask is just a piece of dim protodermis until it gets thrown about, but when the Mask throws all its light on Jaller, it is on Takua’s foot. And then Tahu the bold buffoon jumps to the wrong-right conclusion. Jaller does find the seventh Toa; but it was the seventh Toa who threw all the light on Jaller in the first place!Two short male characters set out on a mission regarding a golden object. Sounds a bit like MoL and LotR. Sadly, some people missed a few things.T&J leaving, Gali Nuva Meditation scene to Destruction of Tahu Koro. (And yes, I did mean Tahu Koro) “Do not take your journey lightly” Bad joke, Vakama. By the way, when Takua fails to “walk in the light” is when he gets in the most trouble (Onu-Koro, dark cave).The scene with the Rahkshi involves Makuta passing his hand into glass pillars (intangibility powers) while he says “…their destiny I must shatter.” Piece of irony that is actually those glass pillars that shatter later.Then is Gali’s vignette scene where her identity is revealed. The meditation “floating” is either the strength of Gali’s thoughts, bad animation, or a Mask of Levitation. Remember, the Toa Mata/Nuva could have multiple masks in one; this was before it was declared that Toa could only use one Mask at a time, so I’m tempted to go with the latter. This scene is probably the ultimate picture of beauty ruined by the Rahkshi. The first showdown with the Rahkshi is at Kini-Nui, and so is the last, and both occur after Gali meditates. Talk about a pattern.This is also the film with the most gymnastics done by the Toa (Wos probably comes in second. Maybe.).“The Toa of Water approaches! The Toa of Water-““Is here. Sound the alarm.” Meanwhile, while Gali was doing great things, Tahu flips into the scene, annoyed at having been awakened from his nap. After Nokama says “Rahkshi”, Vakama adds his addendum to her statement to keep all the Matoran in line with his crazy tale of reality he has spun. “If I don’t add this additional comment, the Matoran might think we’re crazy!” Tahu makes a stupendously bold proclamation that is immediately proven wrong. The Ta-Matoran have to be bailed out by Gali, who has to be bailed out by Tahu.Ko-Area. Second, we must acknowledge that Kopaka owns the world, having defeated three Rahkshi on his own, where the rest of the Toa pretty much get stomped by them. He bails Tahu and Gali out in Onu-Koro, as well as Onua and Pohatu. Yes, Jaller, the real herald has the mask. The next segment of the movie is a fight over who’s the herald, which is pretty stupid since Jaller really is the Herald, but Takua is actually the Toa, which is better than the Herald. “I’ll find the seventh toa whether you are the true herald or not.” Not. Except the person he is supposed to find is the one who is leaving him, angry and quitting. Note that Makuta attacks Takua, not Jaller. He wants to discourage Takua so he doesn’t become what he should. He doesn’t care about Jaller at all.There is something about the scene between Pohatu and Onua in that scene when they first meet the Rahkshi. Some people have claimed that it beats up on Pohatu for a reason that I cannot remember. It does, however, obviously chew on Onua, characterizing him as an overpowered buffoon, which is not only insulting, it is inaccurate.For a film that focuses on identity, it is highly intolerant of some people’s identities. If you aren’t Gali, Kopaka, or Hali, Jaller, or Takua, you don’t have a place in this film.“Kopaka, do you think the Turaga are right about us? Have we lost our unity?” Kopaka thinks, We have. Pohatu and Onua aren’t here…and then he goes and rescues them. At least, that is how I picture it. You can tell this is a kid’s movie.The Mask of Light was never at Onu-Koro, but the only person who could be killed and, in doing so, stop the creation of the seventh Toa was.“Mata Nui, where does my destiny lie?” Cue earthquake. Cue massive earthquake and Giant Robot Face comes out of island. It is part of the destiny of everyone on the island. The other thing, Mata Nui is actually below, so an earthquake makes some sense. It also forshadow’s Jaller’s death and getting back his life thru Takua’s actions at the end. It is Takua who gets him out of precarious position; it is Takanuva who brings him back from the dead.Kini-Nui Since I’m already stating the obvious, the “we will not be broken” is actually a use of shared mask of shielding.How in the world did Pohatu get his climbing claws back in all that mess? He must have had a spare set. Which begs the question of why Lewa wasn’t carrying a spare when he was fighting the Piraka later. Poor planning skills?How is it that a blast of fear can cripple Pohatu, but on Takua wear off pretty quick?Makuta’s Lair The UDD symbol made of Energized protodermis. Do I even need to mention EP’s connection to the three pieces of rock the UDD symbol represents? No, I do not.“Let’s take a closer look behind that mask.” Masks and identity again.I’m going to take a rudimentary guess and say that the giant door is actually an emergency escape hatch for Mata Nui’s body, which explains how the inhabitants of Metru Nui were later able to escape to Spherus Magna so quickly.The End (of the first movie)
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I think that LEGO should do a Zombie Infection theme. Your probably thinking that LEGO would never make a Zombie theme because it would be too violient and scare little kids. Well, the zombies don't have to be bloody or scary. They made a zombie Minifigure, so what's the difference here? They've made a theme about surviving a monster invasion before with "Dino Attack". They had guns and were shooting the dinosoars, so what's the difference with zombies? So, LEGO, it won't be too violent, and honestly, if you put 12+ on the box you can't really get sued, because no 12 year old will ###### his pants at LEGO Minifigures, and it would be a good way to attract a older audience. Sets: (What the sets should be.) Graveyard Infection: A couple of tombstones, a dead tree, a pistol, a few zombies and a human. $ 6.00 Zombie Car: Includes two human minfigures, a zombie, a two-seated car, and a pistol. $15.00 Gas Station Barricade: Includes three human Minifigures, two zombies, and a small gas station with a bench and some chairs to barricade. Has two guns and one crowbar. $35.00 Escape Plane: Includes one human pilot, a plane, two bats, and 4 zombies. $40.00 Home Barricade: Includes one small house, benches, chairs and a TV to barricade with, a function to break the door off of it's hinges, 4 humans, 5 zombies, one skeleton, 3 guns, and a getaway buggy and motorcycle. $60.00 If you have any set Ideas, please post them and I will be happy to post them up there ^ if they are not already said and reasonable! I would buy all of the Zombie Infection sets. What do you think of my idea? Discuss.
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So, anyone remember Rock Raiders? I only ever got one set ( the small one that contained most ofthe characters) and the computer game. I recently re-installed and started playing the game and wasreminded how fun that game was.So, anyway, discuss the Lego theme Rock Raiders here.