How Should BIONICLE Be Brought Back?

[BionicleBordeaux]

Toa Mata/Nuva turning into Turaga? Kinda cliche.. anyone can improve to this..

[Hodor]

The only way I can see them bringing back the line is by torching the story and making a new plot. Whole reason the line got canned was the story getting convuluted and too large to attract newcomers. Even the soft reboot done in '09 didn't help, because it was still connected to the near-decade of continuity.

[The Doctor U]

I don't think it should be brought back. There are far too many better things that I want to brought back, like 8th Doctor getting his own tv series, more screen adventures for the crew of Serenity and maybe more Veronica Mars for television. If Bionicle did come back, they should hire Templar guys behind the original MNOLG and Faber to create fantastic new worlds and characters.

[Makuta Miras]

What I'm thinking here is:

1. Half a year or so before BIONICLE comes back, the websites are put up, complete as they were from 2010.

2. The Powers That Be and The Yesterday Quest are finished.

3. HF goes to an island city where strange, bug-like creatures have emerged and are tearing up the island.

4. The "Hero" Factory deploys everything it has against these "Bohrok".

5. The "Heroes" are overpowered and utterly destroyed.

6. The city is leveled.

7. The MU rises from the planet and takes off for Solis Magna.

That is how I believe that the HF story could lead into a return of BIONICLE, but as for the story returning, I think that it would have to be story + sets. Think of it like a chemical reaction, so you have the story, and the sets. When you have story+sets not in the presence of HF, that equals successful return of BIONICLE!!!! But I would want Teridax to come back (Especially seeing as I don't think that he actually could have died in 2010), and 2001 style sets with Rahi-style functions. Definitely.

[25K Now!]

If LEGO ever brings the franchise back, they'll have to pretty much shunt the existing story out of focus for new fans to really enjoy it. Yeah, it's pretty good, but there's just so much that'll confuse anyone to wants to jump in. That's why I think they should pretty much stick to a streamlined, single story that relates to the sets. Keep it simple. They can relate to the old story or mention it, but it's for the best if the new story's more independent.

 

The sets should be what the story should focus on: yeah, they might choose to expand the universe a bit more, but in the end, it shouldn't be ridiculous like the later years of the series.

[Cap'n Shirley J. Puma]

What I'm thinking here is:

1. Half a year or so before BIONICLE comes back, the websites are put up, complete as they were from 2010.

2. The Powers That Be and The Yesterday Quest are finished.

3. HF goes to an island city where strange, bug-like creatures have emerged and are tearing up the island.

4. The "Hero" Factory deploys everything it has against these "Bohrok".

5. The "Heroes" are overpowered and utterly destroyed.

6. The city is leveled.

7. The MU rises from the planet and takes off for Solis Magna.

That is how I believe that the HF story could lead into a return of BIONICLE, but as for the story returning, I think that it would have to be story + sets. Think of it like a chemical reaction, so you have the story, and the sets. When you have story+sets not in the presence of HF, that equals successful return of BIONICLE!!!! But I would want Teridax to come back (Especially seeing as I don't think that he actually could have died in 2010), and 2001 style sets with Rahi-style functions. Definitely.

I think this is cool, but one of the worst things I can see is a hero factory-bionicle crossover. This would most likely simplify bionicle, and the toa would get, god forbid, quasa cores. However, teridax can NEVER die. That has been established. Most likely he would find some ancient warriors or force to command on spherus magna, and they would slowly kidnap matoran/agaori, until the toa/glatorian stopped them. However, I wonder how the agori and matoran and toa and glatorian would be mixed. If they are of the same type/species, this would mean there are more ways to become a toa, as this would entail that the agori turned into glatorian, which has been shown in one of the earlier comics on bara magna. Basiacally, this all means the matoran/agori would turn into toa/glatorian and fight teridax. All in all, if this is along the lines if what happens if bionicle came back, and it's newbie friendly, then the return of bionicle is looking bright. By the way... There has been a new construction theme/style along the lines of Hf/bionicle, so, who knows... Maybe my (and several of yours) childhood will be revived. One can only hope.

By the way... There are supposed rumors of hero factory ending in 2015...

[NorikSigma]

@Cap'n

 

It's only rumours, and seems pretty unsourced. The discussiom topic isnhere:

www.bzpower.com/board/topic/12947-rumor-bionicles-return-in-2015/

 

Um... Also Teridax is dead. Completely. Kablooey. He transfered his soul into the Mata Nui machine. Machine was broken. He did not convert back to gaseous form.

 

He is irrevocably dead. Sorry.

[Cap'n Shirley J. Puma]

I know teridax is dead, but there is certainly some way lego could revive him. As for the rumors, I know those are big if's.

[Azani]

I think this is cool, but one of the worst things I can see is a hero factory-bionicle crossover. This would most likely simplify bionicle, and the toa would get, god forbid, quasa cores. However, teridax can NEVER die. That has been established.

While there's always the possibility that the writers of a reboot could create a way to revive Teridax, giving him the treatment that many villians in mainstream comic books have recently received, there's no rule that Teridax can't die. Not at all, in fact; if his antidermis, the greenish cloud of gas which he is made up of, dissolves into the open air, he will certainly die. He's extremely vulnerable in that form, which he took for several months between the 2003 and 2006 stories. Other Makuta, such as the eight which were in Karda Nui, have died and been confirmed dead by official story sources. Teridax wasn't any type of super-powered Makuta either- only a clever one, with the support of all the other Makuta.

Edited May 20, 2014 by Artakha's Nephew

[Aanchir]

 

I think this is cool, but one of the worst things I can see is a hero factory-bionicle crossover. This would most likely simplify bionicle, and the toa would get, god forbid, quasa cores. However, teridax can NEVER die. That has been established.

While there's always the possibility that the writers of a reboot could create a way to revive Teridax, giving him the treatment that many villians in mainstream comic books have recently received, there's no rule that Teridax can't die. Not at all, in fact; if his antidermis, the greenish cloud of gas which he is made up of, dissolves into the open air, he will certainly die. He's extremely vulnerable in that form, which he took for several months between the 2003 and 2006 stories. Other Makuta, such as the eight which were in Karda Nui, have died and been confirmed dead by official story sources. Teridax wasn't any type of super-powered Makuta either- only a clever one, with the support of all the other Makuta.

 

Well, with that said, there's also no rule that the dead can't be brought back to life in BIONICLE. Sure, the mechanisms that we know of, such as the Red Star, could not do it. But that has never stopped sci-fi and fantasy writers before. Perhaps in true evil overlord fashion he stored a backup of his memories someplace in case his plan failed catastrophically. Perhaps there's some mysterious artifact that could be supercharged with energy to call Makuta's spirit back to the physical world. Or perhaps a brand-new villain will take on the role of "Makuta" in hopes of following in Makuta Teridax's footsteps. There are plenty of options that will be available to the writers should the LEGO Group choose to revive BIONICLE.

 

I agree that the conflict between the forces of Makuta and the forces of Mata Nui was central to BIONICLE's story. But at the same time, while Makuta's death in the conclusion of the BIONICLE story is an obstacle to overcome, it is hardly an insurmountable one.

[Ghidora131]

The only way I see that Teridax could come back is if someone used the Mask of Life.

That being said, the only advantage the Being who did so is the offchance that Teridax would not murder them immediately.

And also, they would become the most hated Bionicle being of all time.

Edited May 27, 2014 by ghidora131

[Makuta Miras]

The only way I see that Teridax could come back is if someone used the Mask of Life.

That being said, the only advantage the Being who did so is the offchance that Teridax would not murder them immediately.

And also, they would become the most hated Bionicle being of all time.

I thought that the Ignika merely rebooted the power systems in the MU, and anyway, the MU is wrecked. Also, the Being would die immediately. Matoro style. (See my sig) But then again, it would be a painless death. And also...

 

Teridax is my hero.

[Azani]

The only way I see that Teridax could come back is if someone used the Mask of Life.

That being said, the only advantage the Being who did so is the offchance that Teridax would not murder them immediately.

And also, they would become the most hated Bionicle being of all time.

The mask of life doesn't have the ability to resurrect the dead, actually. (That task being among the few life-related things which it cannot do) There isn't even any evidence to suggest that the great beings can do that. Sorry.

Edited May 30, 2014 by Artakha's Nephew

[fishers64]

 

The only way I see that Teridax could come back is if someone used the Mask of Life.

That being said, the only advantage the Being who did so is the offchance that Teridax would not murder them immediately.

And also, they would become the most hated Bionicle being of all time.

The mask of life doesn't have the ability to resurrect the dead, actually. (That task being among the few life-related things which it cannot do) There isn't even any evidence to suggest that the great beings can do that. Sorry.

 

But the Red Star can, and since the Great Beings made the Red Star, they should be able to. Provided that it's a MU inhabitant, that is.

[Makuta Miras]

 

 

The only way I see that Teridax could come back is if someone used the Mask of Life.

That being said, the only advantage the Being who did so is the offchance that Teridax would not murder them immediately.

And also, they would become the most hated Bionicle being of all time.

The mask of life doesn't have the ability to resurrect the dead, actually. (That task being among the few life-related things which it cannot do) There isn't even any evidence to suggest that the great beings can do that. Sorry.

 

But the Red Star can, and since the Great Beings made the Red Star, they should be able to. Provided that it's a MU inhabitant, that is.

 

The Red Star can't bring back beings made of Antidermis. Also, because Mata Nui created the Makuta, in theory the GBs wouldn't know how to "resurrect" or recreate them. But Vultraz is still alive... And he knows how to make more Makuta... And someone might break him out of the alternate GBs' castlemabob... And all of a sudden Vultraz is back in the prime reality, with free access to the pool of Antidermis! In a reboot, Vultraz could be introduced as a malevolent being from an alternate dimension, and the Antidermis island could be buried deep beneath the surface of Spherus Magna. Possibly Vultraz finds a way of turning himself into a Shadow Toa and then brings back the Makuta (If they didn't have their all-too-common curse), and proceeds to conquer Spherus Magna? Vultraz could be kind of like Teridax in the early years.

[Azani]

 

 

 

The only way I see that Teridax could come back is if someone used the Mask of Life.

That being said, the only advantage the Being who did so is the offchance that Teridax would not murder them immediately.

And also, they would become the most hated Bionicle being of all time.

The mask of life doesn't have the ability to resurrect the dead, actually. (That task being among the few life-related things which it cannot do) There isn't even any evidence to suggest that the great beings can do that. Sorry.

 

But the Red Star can, and since the Great Beings made the Red Star, they should be able to. Provided that it's a MU inhabitant, that is.

 

The Red Star can't bring back beings made of Antidermis. Also, because Mata Nui created the Makuta, in theory the GBs wouldn't know how to "resurrect" or recreate them. But Vultraz is still alive... And he knows how to make more Makuta... And someone might break him out of the alternate GBs' castlemabob... And all of a sudden Vultraz is back in the prime reality, with free access to the pool of Antidermis! In a reboot, Vultraz could be introduced as a malevolent being from an alternate dimension, and the Antidermis island could be buried deep beneath the surface of Spherus Magna. Possibly Vultraz finds a way of turning himself into a Shadow Toa and then brings back the Makuta (If they didn't have their all-too-common curse), and proceeds to conquer Spherus Magna? Vultraz could be kind of like Teridax in the early years.

 

IMO you might want to write to TLG with this idea as possible grounds for a reboot. It actually sounds relatively feasible to produce.

[Aanchir]

 

 

 

 

The only way I see that Teridax could come back is if someone used the Mask of Life.

That being said, the only advantage the Being who did so is the offchance that Teridax would not murder them immediately.

And also, they would become the most hated Bionicle being of all time.

The mask of life doesn't have the ability to resurrect the dead, actually. (That task being among the few life-related things which it cannot do) There isn't even any evidence to suggest that the great beings can do that. Sorry.

 

But the Red Star can, and since the Great Beings made the Red Star, they should be able to. Provided that it's a MU inhabitant, that is.

 

The Red Star can't bring back beings made of Antidermis. Also, because Mata Nui created the Makuta, in theory the GBs wouldn't know how to "resurrect" or recreate them. But Vultraz is still alive... And he knows how to make more Makuta... And someone might break him out of the alternate GBs' castlemabob... And all of a sudden Vultraz is back in the prime reality, with free access to the pool of Antidermis! In a reboot, Vultraz could be introduced as a malevolent being from an alternate dimension, and the Antidermis island could be buried deep beneath the surface of Spherus Magna. Possibly Vultraz finds a way of turning himself into a Shadow Toa and then brings back the Makuta (If they didn't have their all-too-common curse), and proceeds to conquer Spherus Magna? Vultraz could be kind of like Teridax in the early years.

 

IMO you might want to write to TLG with this idea as possible grounds for a reboot. It actually sounds relatively feasible to produce.

 

The LEGO Group would not take suggestions like this. Even if it would be simple for THEM to produce a story like that, taking unsolicited fan suggestions would create enormous complications.

[Azani]

 

 

 

 

 

The only way I see that Teridax could come back is if someone used the Mask of Life.

That being said, the only advantage the Being who did so is the offchance that Teridax would not murder them immediately.

And also, they would become the most hated Bionicle being of all time.

The mask of life doesn't have the ability to resurrect the dead, actually. (That task being among the few life-related things which it cannot do) There isn't even any evidence to suggest that the great beings can do that. Sorry.

 

But the Red Star can, and since the Great Beings made the Red Star, they should be able to. Provided that it's a MU inhabitant, that is.

 

The Red Star can't bring back beings made of Antidermis. Also, because Mata Nui created the Makuta, in theory the GBs wouldn't know how to "resurrect" or recreate them. But Vultraz is still alive... And he knows how to make more Makuta... And someone might break him out of the alternate GBs' castlemabob... And all of a sudden Vultraz is back in the prime reality, with free access to the pool of Antidermis! In a reboot, Vultraz could be introduced as a malevolent being from an alternate dimension, and the Antidermis island could be buried deep beneath the surface of Spherus Magna. Possibly Vultraz finds a way of turning himself into a Shadow Toa and then brings back the Makuta (If they didn't have their all-too-common curse), and proceeds to conquer Spherus Magna? Vultraz could be kind of like Teridax in the early years.

 

IMO you might want to write to TLG with this idea as possible grounds for a reboot. It actually sounds relatively feasible to produce.

 

The LEGO Group would not take suggestions like this. Even if it would be simple for THEM to produce a story like that, taking unsolicited fan suggestions would create enormous complications.

 

I don't really see why it would necessarily be a problem for them, unless the number of written suggestions from fans that were coming in were significantly more than they could process.

[ALVIS]

It's a matter of policy. You see, it's not only the amount of requests they'd need to worry about, but if they were to make money off of a fan's idea, then ethically they would need to pay the fan, but they'd probably rather not, and then we'd get into all sorts of legal red tape and such.

 

No, better to just close off any suggestions from fans. That would open a can of worms that LEGO does not want to deal with.

[Makuta Miras]

Just expanding on my idea further up, the Toa could have been mostly wiped out and a small camp exists where an assortment of Toa are hiding from Vultraz and the Makuta, and the Toa work slightly like the Rebel Alliance in Star Wars IV-VI. The camp could also have the Ignika and various other MU artifacts, and at one point the Makuta invade and either 1. The Ignika makes another body for Mata Nui or 2. The Ignika creates itself a body, so Mata Nui would still be dormant. I think this idea would be pretty interesting as a story, mainly becausein the main story, the "good guys" have never been fugitives on the run from an evil state (kind of). If I get round to it, I might write this as a story and post it in the Epics section of BZP. If I do ever do it, I'll put a link in my sig. So basically, for a BIONICLE reboot -

 

WHO NEEDS LEGO? WE HAVE IMAGINATION AND A FAN COMMUNITY!!!!

[ALVIS]

If I get round to it, I might write this as a story and post it in the Epics section of BZP. If I do ever do it, I'll put a link in my sig. So basically, for a BIONICLE reboot -

 

WHO NEEDS LEGO? WE HAVE IMAGINATION AND A FAN COMMUNITY!!!!

 

Now you're talking. However, one thing.

 

 

I think this idea would be pretty interesting as a story, mainly becausein the main story, the "good guys" have never been fugitives on the run from an evil state (kind of).

 

Three words: Reign of Shadows.

[Aanchir]

 

If I get round to it, I might write this as a story and post it in the Epics section of BZP. If I do ever do it, I'll put a link in my sig. So basically, for a BIONICLE reboot -

 

WHO NEEDS LEGO? WE HAVE IMAGINATION AND A FAN COMMUNITY!!!!

Now you're talking. However, one thing.

 

I think this idea would be pretty interesting as a story, mainly becausein the main story, the "good guys" have never been fugitives on the run from an evil state (kind of).

Three words: Reign of Shadows.

 

And also the majority of Legends of Metru Nui, for that matter (and the comics which are concurrent with that part of the storyline). Edited June 5, 2014 by Aanchir: Rachira of Time

[PrimoUltimo]

I think, the Lego shouldn't bring back Bionicle, becouse I'm sure sets would looks like another Hero Factory.

For me Greg should just end serials, and left open end.

Other thing, Lego should let fans making contests for building all charcters/rahi/and others things that we don't now how looks(there was few contests like that).

That's all would make me very happy.

[UnderscoreChronix]

I want Bionicle back, don't get me wrong - But not in this day and age. It would probably get ruined. Lego would probably dumb it down like Hero Factory, give it little to no storyline, one dimensional characters, and seeing some of the things done in HF, I doubt the sets would be much better. Oh and they'd be made of HF pieces too.

[boston100]

two words Solis magna. they are bringing bionicle back and doing an amazing job. only way it could be better is if greg himself was wrighting

[Lyichir]

two words Solis magna. they are bringing bionicle back and doing an amazing job. only way it could be better is if greg himself was wrighting

I'll have to take your word for it, since the majority of their site is unavailable to unregistered guests and so far all I've seen of their plans to develop the story and create new sets are promises and ambition—virtually nothing of substance.

 

If Bionicle REALLY came back, it certainly wouldn't dwell on marginally-relevant characters and plotlines like Solis Magna seems to be doing so far, what with its hopes to continue the serials. It'd be creating new stories with new characters, designed from the ground up with sets in mind. Solis Magna and other attempts I've seen at "Bionicle continuations" only seem to recognize a portion of what made Bionicle great, and that doesn't include the amount of innovation and creativity that went into taking the theme in entirely new directions year after year. In other words, they are at both too ambitious (setting goals that are nowhere near being achieved, that require a huge number of dedicated, like-minded fans to pull off) and not ambitious enough (limiting their scope to what basically amounts to fanservice, and not innovating the way Bionicle itself did).

[Azani]

I want Bionicle back, don't get me wrong - But not in this day and age. It would probably get ruined. Lego would probably dumb it down like Hero Factory, give it little to no storyline, one dimensional characters, and seeing some of the things done in HF, I doubt the sets would be much better. Oh and they'd be made of HF pieces too.

This is a very good point which I wholeheartedly agree with, yet one that often does not occur to members of the community. It's one of the main reasons why I feel as though I would not personally enjoy a revival of Bionicle from TLG at the moment.

 

 

two words Solis magna. they are bringing bionicle back and doing an amazing job. only way it could be better is if greg himself was wrighting

I'll have to take your word for it, since the majority of their site is unavailable to unregistered guests and so far all I've seen of their plans to develop the story and create new sets are promises and ambition—virtually nothing of substance.

 

If Bionicle REALLY came back, it certainly wouldn't dwell on marginally-relevant characters and plotlines like Solis Magna seems to be doing so far, what with its hopes to continue the serials. It'd be creating new stories with new characters, designed from the ground up with sets in mind. Solis Magna and other attempts I've seen at "Bionicle continuations" only seem to recognize a portion of what made Bionicle great, and that doesn't include the amount of innovation and creativity that went into taking the theme in entirely new directions year after year. In other words, they are at both too ambitious (setting goals that are nowhere near being achieved, that require a huge number of dedicated, like-minded fans to pull off) and not ambitious enough (limiting their scope to what basically amounts to fanservice, and not innovating the way Bionicle itself did).

 

Lyichir, I know that you don't mean to offend, and that you're speaking from the best information that you can get as a non-registered user on SolisMagna.com, but I can't help but feel a bit offended by your words. I'm not sure if you've been to either the main site or the much busier forums section, but myself and the rest of the SolisMagna.com staff have actually been working tirelessly on updating massive parts of the site and getting our story and set line into production, especially in the last few weeks. By this point, the "Bios" section of the site, which looks completely unfinished, is actually practically finished, though I can't yet show a non-staff member the URL because it is still technically a prototype which still requires proofreading and minute adjustments. Our staff is a serious group of well-known and accredited members of the fan community who are completely devoted to this project. Among them are XONAR, Chro, The Malicious Phantom, and Vahkiti; not immature geeks who think that buying the rights to the IP from Lego is a realistic idea, but established members of the community who have put out high quality, tangible work in the past both on their own and in partnership with others.

 

I'm not sure if you've seen TTV's special The Chronicler's Convergence either; there's nothing necessarily wrong with having not seen it, as you might not be following TTV, but I would urge you to watch it, or at least the section devoted to the work of the SolisMagna.com staff, before making further judgments on SolisMagna.com. In the section, beginning at 28:45 in the video, XONAR and Chro discuss their plans for the project, including a lower cost backup strategy of releasing only building instructions online, as opposed to selling full sets, and an image of a preliminary prototype for one of the headline sets for this summer, their figure of Marendar. They also mention that they are specifically attempting to reduce the size and thus the cost for the set version of Marendar. That video was recorded early in April; though I can't reveal any more images or give any more details about the sets, I can assure you that the staff have made massive progress in designing all sets for realistic pricing and convenience in the last few months.

 

Could you clarify what you're referring to when you cite our lack of the specific resources that gave greatness to Bionicle during its original run? Capable and innovative set designers? Chro and The Malicious Phantom are widely considered to be among the best MOCists working with constraction today. Creative and articulate writers with extensive knowledge of the lore? We’ve got Voltex, XONAR, and, dare I say, myself, all of whom are very talented writers who can work very quickly. A capable marketing team with ample resources? We’ve got the entire BioMedia Project behind us, as well as funds being raised through XONAR’s side business, xonar.org. Creative resources? We have access to 3D printers, access to the talent and full inventory of Modalt Masks, and the 3D modeling and design skills of a certain Guurahk Entertainer. You can’t possibly be referring to our lack of planning to focus on new characters, when Bionicle rarely introduced new characters during it’s original run. It’s worth noting that there wasn’t a single new character who was a “good guy” in the canister sets until the Winter of 2009.

 

In fact, what makes you think that we’ll be focusing mainly on old, unknown, side characters? Sure, we’ll be devoting a story arc to a quest to stop Marendar, who isn’t typically considered well-known, but what makes you think that we won’t be featuring classic, popular, characters too? Is it the fact that we’ll be beginning to continue the story through Greg Farshtey’s unfinished story serials? There’s no law that forces the serials to be nothing but side stories, disconnected from the main plot. Because of the relatively low cost of telling the story in serials posted online, the serials will be our main medium to carry the story for our first year of business. We'll begin by updating a single serial on a bimonthly basis, during which we plan to feature the Toa Nuva, the Turaga, Takanuva, Glatorian, and others. We have to pick up where the serials left off in order to continue them, but soon after we fully intend to showcase the adventures of famous characters who we already know and love plenty.

 

I sincerely hope that you'll consider that SolisMagna.com might prove to be a very successful fan continuation of the Bionicle story. We'd greatly appreciate having an aspiring set designer for TLG as a member of our community; if you wish to join, you can find our forums at forums.solismagna.com.

Edited July 7, 2014 by Artakha's Nephew

[Aanchir]

Copied and pasted from this topic because I don't want it to go to waste:

 

I'd love something like many of the Legend of Zelda games — a new, fresh story taking place in the same universe and featuring many of the classic characters, but not directly tied to the last version. This new story would be in the same universe that previous adventures happened in, and might even have a Tahu, but it won't necessarily be the SAME Tahu — it could just as easily be a character named Tahu to honor a hero of the past.

 

The Great Spirit Mata Nui and Makuta would still very strongly influence the story in some form — perhaps a league of evil Makuta worshippers could be planning new evils in his name, or planning to revive his consciousness in some way. And the new elemental heroes would have to seek the aid of the Great Spirit Mata Nui, whose consciousness resides within the legendary Mask of Life. Boom! You've got your heroes, you've got your villains, you've got the conflict between the forces of Mata Nui and the forces of Makuta, you've even got a mask quest! All the core components of a timeless BIONICLE story.

 

Certain aspects of the storyline could be simplified, naturally. It'd be great if the Matoran race and the Agori race could be consolidated in some form, so keeping track of so many coexisting and culturally congruent races and tribes would no longer be essential. Also, obviously, you want to ensure that new fans do NOT have to research previous storylines to fully understand the current one. A short recap of what came before is fine, as are occasional callbacks, but the focus should be on telling a new story, not on pandering to older fans.

 

As far as sets are concerned, it should use the current building system or whatever the next evolution of that might be. Going back to an obsolete building system wouldn't make a lick of sense — if the designers didn't think the new building system offered superior building opportunities they would never have introduced it in the first place, especially since many of the same designers were involved with both BIONICLE and Hero Factory. This year's HF sets are every bit as complex as BIONICLE sets of comparable size and price point.

 

Speaking of price point, I like how this year's sets are all priced in multiples of $5. It makes comparing sets of different sizes easier. By all means, let's keep that up. However, I would not complain one bit if the LEGO Group returned to having sets larger than the $35 price point or smaller than the $10 price point. They already showed this year that they can design a quality $5 set. And I'm sure they could still design a high-quality $40 or $50 set if they thought they could sell one — just look at this MOC by Christoffer Raundahl (designer of Tahu, Kopaka, and the Bahrag, and one of this building system's inventors). I'd happily buy that or something like it for $40 or $50.

 

An adventure game like the Mata Nui Online Game to set the scene and promote the sets would be a dream come true! And with its simple controls, simple learning curve, and colorful graphics, it could be fantastic in this era of mobile gaming.

 

The overall tone should be mythical, mysterious, and adventurous, but not too dark or gritty. Look at the Mata Nui Online Game, the LEGO Ninjago TV series, or the TV series Avatar: The Last Airbender for examples. You don't want a storyline that alienates younger fans, nor one that is too wrapped up in its own pretensions of maturity to be lighthearted or fun, but obviously you also don't want a storyline that has no sense of emotional depth. A:TLA and Ninjago also demonstrate how you can have an episodic storyline with a clear lesson for each installment without abandoning any sense of continuity.

 

The target age range should be more or less the same as what BIONICLE originally targeted: ages seven and up. Smaller sets could be ages six and up, larger sets ages eight and up, but the theme as a whole should be catered to the same audience as the mid-size sets which form the backbone of the theme. Incidentally, this is also basically the same as the target age range for today's Ninjago and Hero Factory sets, so this isn't the old codger in me talking — this is what has been proven to work time and time again. Now, when I say "and up" I don't mean the sets shouldn't have an upper limit to their recommended age range. Either 14 or 16 will do. It really doesn't make a big difference as far as set design and storytelling are concerned, I don't think — the goal should still be to make the sets and story understandable and enjoyable for kids as young as seven.

 

Annnnd I think that about sums it up. It goes without saying that this is all personal preference, of course.

[Tahu3.0]

bionicle's return should be that the matoran were reconstructing houses reestablish to a new environment then the brotherhood of makuta returns to destroy the city's and collect crystals to bring the makuta back to life and then the new toa arise to bring peace and stop the brotherhood of makuta.

[Azani]

bionicle's return should be that the matoran were reconstructing houses reestablish to a new environment then the brotherhood of makuta returns to destroy the city's and collect crystals to bring the makuta back to life and then the new toa arise to bring peace and stop the brotherhood of makuta.

Unfortunately, The Brotherhood of Makuta does not exist as of story present, because all Makuta from the core dimension except for Miserix are dead.

Edited June 17, 2014 by Artakha's Nephew

[Lyichir]

 

I want Bionicle back, don't get me wrong - But not in this day and age. It would probably get ruined. Lego would probably dumb it down like Hero Factory, give it little to no storyline, one dimensional characters, and seeing some of the things done in HF, I doubt the sets would be much better. Oh and they'd be made of HF pieces too.

This is a very good point which I wholeheartedly agree with, yet one that often does not occur to members of the community. It's one of the main reasons why I feel as though I would not personally enjoy a revival of Bionicle from TLG at the moment.

 

 

two words Solis magna. they are bringing bionicle back and doing an amazing job. only way it could be better is if greg himself was wrighting

I'll have to take your word for it, since the majority of their site is unavailable to unregistered guests and so far all I've seen of their plans to develop the story and create new sets are promises and ambition—virtually nothing of substance.

 

If Bionicle REALLY came back, it certainly wouldn't dwell on marginally-relevant characters and plotlines like Solis Magna seems to be doing so far, what with its hopes to continue the serials. It'd be creating new stories with new characters, designed from the ground up with sets in mind. Solis Magna and other attempts I've seen at "Bionicle continuations" only seem to recognize a portion of what made Bionicle great, and that doesn't include the amount of innovation and creativity that went into taking the theme in entirely new directions year after year. In other words, they are at both too ambitious (setting goals that are nowhere near being achieved, that require a huge number of dedicated, like-minded fans to pull off) and not ambitious enough (limiting their scope to what basically amounts to fanservice, and not innovating the way Bionicle itself did).

 

Lyichir, I know that you don't mean to offend, and that you're speaking from the best information that you can get as a non-registered user on SolisMagna.com, but I can't help but feel a bit offended by your words. I'm not sure if you've been to either the main site or the much busier forums section, but myself and the rest of the SolisMagna.com staff have actually been working tirelessly on updating massive parts of the site and getting our story and set line into production, especially in the last few weeks. By this point, the "Bios" section of the site, which looks completely unfinished, is actually practically finished, though I can't yet show a non-staff member the URL because it is still technically a prototype which still requires proofreading and minute adjustments. Our staff is a serious group of well-known and accredited members of the fan community who are completely devoted to this project. Among them are XONAR, Chro, The Malicious Phantom, and Vahkiti; not immature geeks who think that buying the rights to the IP from Lego is a realistic idea, but established members of the community who have put out high quality, tangible work in the past both on their own and in partnership with others.

 

I'm not sure if you've seen TTV's special The Chronicler's Convergence either; there's nothing necessarily wrong with having not seen it, as you might not be following TTV, but I would urge you to watch it, or at least the section devoted to the work of the SolisMagna.com staff, before making further judgments on SolisMagna.com. In the section, beginning at 28:45 in the video, XONAR and Chro discuss their plans for the project, including a lower cost backup strategy of releasing only building instructions online, as opposed to selling full sets, and an image of a preliminary prototype for one of the headline sets for this summer, their figure of Marendar. They also mention that they are specifically attempting to reduce the size and thus the cost for the set version of Marendar. That video was recorded early in April; though I can't reveal any more images or give any more details about the sets, I can assure you that the staff have made massive progress in designing all sets for realistic pricing and convenience in the last few months.

 

I can’t imagine what you're referring to when you cite our lack of the specific resources that gave greatness to Bionicle during its original run, either. Capable and innovative set designers? Chro and The Malicious Phantom are widely considered to be among the best MOCists working with constraction today. Creative and articulate writers with extensive knowledge of the lore? We’ve got Voltex, XONAR, and, dare I say, myself, all of whom are very talented writers who can work very quickly. A capable marketing team with ample resources? We’ve got the entire BioMedia Project behind us, as well as funds being raised through XONAR’s side business, xonar.org. Creative resources? We have access to 3D printers, access to the talent and full inventory of Modalt Masks, and the 3D modeling and design skills of a certain Guurahk Entertainer. You can’t possibly be referring to our lack of planning to focus on new characters, when Bionicle rarely introduced new characters during it’s original run. It’s worth noting that there wasn’t a single new character who was a “good guy” in the canister sets until the Winter of 2009.

 

In fact, what makes you think that we’ll be focusing mainly on old, unknown, side characters? Sure, we’ll be devoting a story arc to a quest to stop Marendar, who isn’t typically considered well-known, but what makes you think that we won’t be featuring classic, popular, characters too? Is it the fact that we’ll be beginning to continue the story through Greg Farshtey’s unfinished story serials? There’s no law that forces the serials to be nothing but side stories, disconnected from the main plot. Because of the relatively low cost of telling the story in serials posted online, the serials will be our main medium to carry the story for our first year of business. We'll begin by updating a single serial on a bimonthly basis, during which we plan to feature the Toa Nuva, the Turaga, Takanuva, Glatorian, and others. We have to pick up where the serials left off in order to continue them, but soon after we fully intend to showcase the adventures of famous characters who we already know and love plenty.

 

I sincerely hope that you'll consider that SolisMagna.com might prove to be a very successful fan continuation of the Bionicle story. We'd greatly appreciate having an aspiring set designer for TLG as a member of our community; if you wish to join, you can find our forums at forums.solismagna.com.

 

I'm sorry about my rudeness. I was in a bad mood. I'll look into the resources you linked at some point, but what I had seen up until now on BZP hadn't seemed promising. Perhaps it was just a matter of what audience you were trying to win over, but all I had seen were promises like "No colored pins" (which can sometimes be a good design decision but more often suggests pandering to AFOL pretentions) and "large complex sets" (which may have just been talking about villains like Marendar, but I was worried it meant overdesigned, MOC-like models). Perhaps that's exactly what was meant. And if so, you know what? That's probably fine. There's no reason why my personal opinions about a Bionicle continuation should dictate how you or anyone else attempts one, especially if you've got the team and the dedication to pull it off.

 

The truth is, I just don't want a Bionicle revival that picks up exactly where the serials left off. Yes, there were hanging plot threads, but that's because of how meandering and aimless the serials, especially those in the last year written in the absence of sets, tended to be. My ideal Bionicle revival would have to have some sort of time skip, allowing for a soft reboot. You could still work in those loose plot threads as flashbacks or something a ways into the story, but honestly I've seen so many Bionicle fics that so fundamentally misunderstood where the series got its charm that I've become quite disillusioned with the whole idea of a "fan continuation" (especially one that tries to reestablish Bionicle's constricting complexity from the get-go). At this point, even if Lego themselves attempted a revival, I might not get back into it unless it started by dropping me into the unknown, and establishing that same sense of wonder as 2001 Bionicle did, before any attempt to establish ties with the previous story could take place. Before I commit to reading any new Bionicle story it has to quickly make me care, and characters like Marendar don't.

[~kh]

 

two words Solis magna. they are bringing bionicle back and doing an amazing job. only way it could be better is if greg himself was wrighting

 

I'll have to take your word for it, since the majority of their site is unavailable to unregistered guests and so far all I've seen of their plans to develop the story and create new sets are promises and ambition—virtually nothing of substance.

 

If Bionicle REALLY came back, it certainly wouldn't dwell on marginally-relevant characters and plotlines like Solis Magna seems to be doing so far, what with its hopes to continue the serials. It'd be creating new stories with new characters, designed from the ground up with sets in mind. Solis Magna and other attempts I've seen at "Bionicle continuations" only seem to recognize a portion of what made Bionicle great, and that doesn't include the amount of innovation and creativity that went into taking the theme in entirely new directions year after year. In other words, they are at both too ambitious (setting goals that are nowhere near being achieved, that require a huge number of dedicated, like-minded fans to pull off) and not ambitious enough (limiting their scope to what basically amounts to fanservice, and not innovating the way Bionicle itself did).

 

 

That's exactly what my opinion is of the project too large, and revival projects in general. Thinking too big and too small is exactly the kind of rut that so many of these projects fall into. Additionally, creativity seems to be stunted for a lot of them; there's too much of a willingness to stay generic that never elevates any project above mildly interesting fanfiction.

[_Macku_]

MNOGIII. That would be a great way to start bringing back Bionicle, and it could give both new and current fans a chance to explore the Bionicle universe, even if an entirely new universe is created. I say bring back a few characters that played small parts in the previous storyline, but make the rest of the characters new.

[Oroki]

If Bionicle were to be brought back, I want it to be a comedy anime about Toa Norik and Iruini.

[Alyska]

I'd like to see a total reboot- new continuity, new characters, new plot elements and twists.

 

With regards to things like the MU being a robot- that could be kept, but played out differently- ie, Teridax might not take control, Mata Nui may not have been put to sleep, the original purpose of the MU robot may be different, etc.

 

The Toa and other characters would be familiar but different. They'd have different names, mask powers etc, but we'd see familar elements to their personalities... We'd all be saying things like  "That plant guy is like a Toa version of Vezon"  "This is what would happen if Tahu had psychic powers..." "...She's just like Kopaka but with a sense of humour" "Did Nuparu and Helryx raise a kid together or something?" Something that invokes nostalgia without being repetitive.

[Great Being Velika]

Personally, I don't think it should be brought back. When I was a lot younger I was one of those "OMG ZERO FACTORY IS ######!!!1!!!!11!" types of guys. Now that I've matured a bit (a lot ,actually), I've come to the realization that if it did come back it wouldn't be the same. It would probably have a different story arc and use the new building system which, quite frankly, doesn't feel like Bionicle to me.

Edited July 5, 2014 by Great Being Velika

[Aanchir]

Personally, I don't think it should be brought back. When I was a lot younger I was one of those "OMG ZERO FACTORY IS ######!!!1!!!!11!" types of guys. Now that I've matured a bit (a lot ,actually), I've come to the realization that if it did come back it wouldn't be the same. It would probably have a different story arc and use the new building system which, quite frankly, doesn't feel like Bionicle to me.

Even if you personally don't think you'd enjoy a new and updated BIONICLE, doesn't the thought of a new generation of fans having a similar experience to what you had back during BIONICLE's original run hold some appeal?

[Zidonaro]

A reboot. I want a MNOG style game where you could explore the new land. A lot of information as well, like villages and everything. Lots and lots of promotional videos, cuz who doesn't love them ? 

[Jam Pot Studios]

A reboot. I want a MNOG style game where you could explore the new land. A lot of information as well, like villages and everything. Lots and lots of promotional videos, cuz who doesn't love them ? 

 

Yeah, with the same level of mystery and intrigue as the original game. The actual Flash software is more sophisticated now, so a MNOGIII could look (and sound) amazing.

[Great Being Velika]

 

Personally, I don't think it should be brought back. When I was a lot younger I was one of those "OMG ZERO FACTORY IS ######!!!1!!!!11!" types of guys. Now that I've matured a bit (a lot ,actually), I've come to the realization that if it did come back it wouldn't be the same. It would probably have a different story arc and use the new building system which, quite frankly, doesn't feel like Bionicle to me.

Even if you personally don't think you'd enjoy a new and updated BIONICLE, doesn't the thought of a new generation of fans having a similar experience to what you had back during BIONICLE's original run hold some appeal?

 

I kind of said the wrong thing. What I meant was more of why I hope it doesn't come back instead of why it shouldn't come back. I know that if it does come back (which is seeming more and more likely), I could just not take part in it. Sorry about this misunderstanding.