OFFICIAL Bionicle 2015 Topic

[Toa of Ice - 1987]

 

 

Am I the only one who wishes Pohatu had a bit more brown? Also, has anyone else replaced that 'dagger' with something that actually looked like a knife?

I just wish he was dark brown instead of dark orange...dark orange is a good color, but I just really like the dark brown...anyway, I think he has a fair amount of brown. What he needs is some tan, imo...

 

I don't have him yet but I'm probably going to replace that with an OoF knife. Cause. It looks like a knife.

 

I feel like Dark Brown might have been TOO dark. It would have seemed a bit out-of-place next to the really bright/pure primary colors of the other Toa. Reddish Brown might have worked, though. Frankly, that was the color I expected a new Pohatu set to use, since quite a few CCBS parts have appeared in that color since 2013... it was a real surprise to instead see a color like Dark Orange that hadn't appeared in constraction since 2003!

 

On the whole, though, I think Dark Orange was probably the right call. Not only is it a classic color for BIONICLE and the stone element, it's also a nice happy medium between the colors of the earlier and later versions of Pohatu. It's bright enough to stand out, but earthy enough that it doesn't overlap with, say, the Fire element. Future stone sets might be able to use other brown or orange colors as accents, but I think Dark Orange will have some real staying power.

 

 

If that's the case then i hope lego doesn't start meddling too much with the stone element color schemes this time around like G1 just because their sales were/are lower than the rest

Edited March 7, 2015 by ---Kopaka Nuva---

[dotcom]

Decided to finally bite the bullet. Ordered Tahu, PoF, Pohatu and PoS at last. Now all I need to finish my winter collection is LoSS. Probably going to wait until April for that, at least. Definitely looking forward to getting the full team at last. Gonna be a pain making enough space for them though.

[Lyichir]

 

 

 

Am I the only one who wishes Pohatu had a bit more brown? Also, has anyone else replaced that 'dagger' with something that actually looked like a knife?

I just wish he was dark brown instead of dark orange...dark orange is a good color, but I just really like the dark brown...anyway, I think he has a fair amount of brown. What he needs is some tan, imo...

 

I don't have him yet but I'm probably going to replace that with an OoF knife. Cause. It looks like a knife.

 

I feel like Dark Brown might have been TOO dark. It would have seemed a bit out-of-place next to the really bright/pure primary colors of the other Toa. Reddish Brown might have worked, though. Frankly, that was the color I expected a new Pohatu set to use, since quite a few CCBS parts have appeared in that color since 2013... it was a real surprise to instead see a color like Dark Orange that hadn't appeared in constraction since 2003!

 

On the whole, though, I think Dark Orange was probably the right call. Not only is it a classic color for BIONICLE and the stone element, it's also a nice happy medium between the colors of the earlier and later versions of Pohatu. It's bright enough to stand out, but earthy enough that it doesn't overlap with, say, the Fire element. Future stone sets might be able to use other brown or orange colors as accents, but I think Dark Orange will have some real staying power.

 

 

If that's the case then i hope lego doesn't start meddling too much with the stone element color schemes this time around like G1 just because their sales were/are lower than the rest

 

Personally, I wouldn't mind some variation, at least in non-Toa sets. The way Stone sets kept changing their main color was frustrating, but not nearly as frustrating as the Metru era where the colors for elements were incredibly similar but also dull as dishwater. Back in 2001, the Toa had consistent colors with the Turaga but villagers and Rahi allowed for plenty of variety outside of that. So I don't think every single set (Toa, villains, villagers, creatures, or what have you) necessarily needs to match the main Toa's elemental color schemes exactly.

 

For what it's worth, I think a team of villains with darker or more muted colors would be a neat way to vary things up, and could allow for new CCBS parts in rare colors like Earth Blue, Earth Green, Dark Red, and Dark Brown.

[Regitnui]

I'd definitely agree on darker colors for villains, especially if they went with the "evil counterparts" theme for a year.

[Prowl Nightwolf]

Well I just finished uploading my Video for my Hero Pack shipment package. Wanted to post it here but wasn't sure where to post a topic...

[dotcom]

I'd actually prefer paler colors over darker ones...a wave with, say, spring yellowish green, sand blue, brick yellow, etc. would be pretty cool. Or perhaps a blend of both paler and darker colors...spring yellowish green with some earth green would be awesome.

[Nescent]

Well I just finished uploading my Video for my Hero Pack shipment package. Wanted to post it here but wasn't sure where to post a topic...

 

If it's a review you can post a topic for it in Bionicle Discussion.

[Bfahome]

I'd like to see a mix of light/pastel and dark.  With good layering I think the contrast would look darn cool for certain kinds of characters.

 

For instance, I know Umbra wasn't the most popular set but I actually thought the colors looked pretty neat.

[Toa Chuck]

Personally, I love the dark orange, and the bright neon green is a lot better than I thought. My main issues with Pohatu are the over use of silver (a different secondary color would be nice, maybe vardy tan?), lack of bulk or anything to make him anything other than a generic toa build, and the size of the weapons. I like the boomarangs, but they are a bit too big for my liking.

[Blueblur21]

 

...Why does he have it? I get that he needs something to fight while flying, but the animations don't even show him using it.

Don't the animations show him flying with his boomerangs in hand and on his feet? I remember the fron of the box shows him riding a whirlwind while carrying the boomerangs. If the animations do too, it might mean that the boomerangs aren't strictly necessary for 'tornado riding', and instead just speed him up while doing so.

 

 

If that is the case, wouldn't them being put on his feet be kind of redundant? 

[bohrokman]

 

 

...Why does he have it? I get that he needs something to fight while flying, but the animations don't even show him using it.

Don't the animations show him flying with his boomerangs in hand and on his feet? I remember the fron of the box shows him riding a whirlwind while carrying the boomerangs. If the animations do too, it might mean that the boomerangs aren't strictly necessary for 'tornado riding', and instead just speed him up while doing so.

 

 

If that is the case, wouldn't them being put on his feet be kind of redundant? 

 

to me, in the animations and comics it seems as though when they get their golden masks they learn how to use their weapons for something other than surf boards, skis etc

[Bfahome]

 

 

...Why does he have it? I get that he needs something to fight while flying, but the animations don't even show him using it.

Don't the animations show him flying with his boomerangs in hand and on his feet? I remember the fron of the box shows him riding a whirlwind while carrying the boomerangs. If the animations do too, it might mean that the boomerangs aren't strictly necessary for 'tornado riding', and instead just speed him up while doing so.

If that is the case, wouldn't them being put on his feet be kind of redundant? 

Not necessarily.  They could be used for added control, speed, or ease.  Gali seems like a good point of comparison.  She could already swim fine when in her Mata form, but once transformed into her Nuva form she had her Aqua Axes to use as swimming fins.  It carries over to the new Gali as well, who can probably swim fine without her fins; they just make it easier.

[Ballom Nom Nom]

But yeah, decided against opening my Hero Pack. Figured it's gonna be worth a pretty penny in the future.

Given that they're being given away for free with every purchase, I think they'll be rather common and thus not worth much in the future. Rather like the TNGM...

 

~B~

[Banana Gunz]

(Oh man, first post in a while...)

 

So, it's been some time since the line was released and... am I the only one who now feels underwhelmed? I wasn't a fan of the original Bionicle until later years so I don't have a good knowledge of what it was like back then, but it feels like we got these sets and... that's it. There's still the monthly animations, but those are so short and feeble in the story they give that I don't really feel driven by Gen 2 so far.

 

I mean, we don't have a cool and interesting/detailed world or any way to explore, which 2001 at least had. The MNOG made Mata-Nui more than just a description, but rather turned it into a reality. Gen 2 hasn't shown anything quite as interesting so far. The map is dull and plain, and there is nothing in particular that makes this world cooler and more memorable. One of the most successful parts about the original Bionicle was how interesting and memorable the environments of Mata-Nui, but here I just feel let down.

 

The amount of story we're being exposed to is limited. We haven't seen the novel or book or whatever yet, and we don't even know if it might be at all good or interesting in any way. These animations are all we have, and they don't measure up despite how pretty they might be. It feels rushed and uninteresting, and there's nothing to make this story stand out. Sure, this is only the first year, but I feel like I've waited a long enough five years for this, and I'm just let down by the amount of conventions and lack of depth so far. Alright, Lego wants to appeal to kids, but even the kids aren't getting a lot to love about the new Bionicle.

 

The thing about Bionicle is that it's more than just a toy line. The story was one of the most defining aspects of it for me and to try and focus on one more than the other is a big mistake that can cripple the line. If the story doesn't build up to more than this, Gen 2 will fail because there should be a large supply of story and material to keep the fuel going for themes like this that are meant to build into a larger story, not like Ultra Agents and such which, although have characters and casts, don't focus around them and are made simply to crunch out some sets. I don't feel captivated, I don't feel excited and I don't feel like Gen 2 is something I haven't seen before. It doesn't stand out from past stories like it, and doesn't even have characterized villagers to bring the world some life like the old Bionicle did.

 

I don't mean to start any arguments, but I've reached the point where all that excitement and adventure learning about the sets and story and seeing them at Comic Con has worn off. My Gen 2 sets have sat on my shelf for a pretty long time now since the lack of story has been making lose some interest in Bionicle. If there was more material to keep up with, I would probably want to play around with them more, but as it is I'm losing interest.

 

Gen 2's biggest edge is how it could and does have some real opportunity for mystery. I want to learn more about the temple of time, Okoto, the toa's origins, the history of the protectors and so much more, but we're not getting much new information, ideas or bits of story. The feel of this year is getting less and less unique without seeing more of this new world, and I just feel that this year is not doing a very good job of keeping me hooked on the story. It's falling short in my eyes, and that's really sad and disappointing, and I hate to see that happen.

 

Does anyone agree? I dunno, I really don't want to say things against gen 2 but it really isn't grabbing my interest with how slow it's moving...

[Jobber]

 

But yeah, decided against opening my Hero Pack. Figured it's gonna be worth a pretty penny in the future.

Given that they're being given away for free with every purchase, I think they'll be rather common and thus not worth much in the future. Rather like the TNGM...

 

~B~

Come talk to me in 40 years.

[Ballom Nom Nom]

 

 

But yeah, decided against opening my Hero Pack. Figured it's gonna be worth a pretty penny in the future.

Given that they're being given away for free with every purchase, I think they'll be rather common and thus not worth much in the future. Rather like the TNGM...

 

~B~

 

Come talk to me in 40 years.

 

Well, of course any current set would be valuable if left unopened for 40 years. In the short term, though, it's less likely to be particularly valuable.

 

~B~

[fishers64]

I agree with Banana Gunz on this. So far the theme is kind of a washout storywise. (I feel like I've said this 500 times by now though, to the point where I feel like it's so obvious it need not be said.)

 

Really, the most common argument against all of the storyline-is-lackluster points is that Bionicle G2 is supposed to appeal to kids. Bionicle Gen1 was supposed to appeal to kids too, you know. Heck, even Ninjago and the Lego Movie are supposed to appeal to kids, and they have a story.

 

Bionicle G2 has no excuse. Especially since "story" used to be associated in the same breath with that name.   

 

 

 

But yeah, decided against opening my Hero Pack. Figured it's gonna be worth a pretty penny in the future.

Given that they're being given away for free with every purchase, I think they'll be rather common and thus not worth much in the future. Rather like the TNGM...

~B~

 

Come talk to me in 40 years.

 

Well, of course any current set would be valuable if left unopened for 40 years. In the short term, though, it's less likely to be particularly valuable.

~B~

 

That is if we even have Lego sets in 40 years and haven't moved on to Tony-Stark hologram projections by then.

[Toa Chuck]

I must agree.

While Bionicle G2 has been fantastic set wise, the story is a real let down. They seem to be trying to overcompensate fixing old Bionicle's complexity, to the point where half the main characters don't even have names or personalities. I mean, Ninjago and Chima gave every single character a name, and those were complete flops (oh wait).

 

Really though, my main issue is that the story isn't taking itself seriously. Remember MNOG? Sure it was lighthearted, and there was plenty of humor, but it still took itself seriously. The enemies were actually threatening. You got the feeling that the island was in real danger.

In G2, the threat level is little more than a bunch of spooky scary skull spiders rampaging around remote areas of the island that can be defeated with pretty much any AOE elemental attack. There is no drama. We know the Toa will win, because there is no real reason for us to think otherwise. Not to mention that the Toa's personalities have been dumbed down to the point that I'm actually rooting for the bad guys.

 

I just don't get it. With Ninjago (and to a lesser extent Chima and Hero Factory) doing so well story wise, I had high hopes for Bionicle. I just don't get it. Oh well. At least the sets are great.

[Regitnui]

I think the fact that TLC has those other moneyspinners means that we're not going to get the same level of media saturation and almost-forced "look, this is cool, you want to buy it" marketing. We were all 14 years younger then. Of course it was better. Now we're highly discriminating adults (though we have some mental children here if nothing else) so have higher standards. Is TLC really going to spend more timtime and effort aiming a complex story at us when they can target the next generation of kids?

[Jobber]

I think Ninjago has an advantage due to the fact that it's a system theme, instead of a constraction one. 

 

Since it's apparently so successful, Lego's more comfortable putting more effort into things like the storyline. The fact of the matter is, the constraction genre has been on the decline and why would a company put assets into a theme that's probably not going to be profitable? Yeah, there's that obvious nostalgia factor, but does that really affect overall sales?

Edited March 8, 2015 by The Bone-Snatcher

[Ballom Nom Nom]

There is no drama. We know the Toa will win, because there is no real reason for us to think otherwise.

Did you ever have reason to doubt the Toa winning in the original run of Bionicle?

 

~B~

[fishers64]

I think the fact that TLC has those other moneyspinners means that we're not going to get the same level of media saturation and almost-forced "look, this is cool, you want to buy it" marketing. We were all 14 years younger then. Of course it was better. Now we're highly discriminating adults (though we have some mental children here if nothing else) so have higher standards. Is TLC really going to spend more time and effort aiming a complex story at us when they can target the next generation of kids?

That's making the false assumption that the theme is aimed at us. It never was and it never is. Even City has "cops and robbers" videos that are better than these story animations. All of that is aimed at kids. 

 

Even the Piraka animations from 2006, as non-canon as they were, did a better job of establishing characterization, engaging their audience, and telling a story than these animations do.

 

The fact of the matter is, the constraction genre has been on the decline and why would a company put assets into a theme that's probably not going to be profitable? 

This gets into the chicken-or-the-egg style problem: does constraction's decline contribute to the lack of story? Or is constraction declining because we haven't got any story?

 

Personally I think it's the latter, but I'd like to see evidence to the former. I don't know what focus-group evidence they're using to do their story management, but it comes off to me as missing the obvious. Every other action figure line that I know of has a story. Every other successful Lego theme that isn't evergreen has a story. And there isn't much story to go on here. And the figures aren't selling that great. 

 

Don't mind me though, I have a huge bias. But this just stares me in the face. Come on!

 

(I'd think that Ninjago's story is a big contributor to its popularity and success too, not just the fact that it's System.)

[Regitnui]

 

 

I think the fact that TLC has those other moneyspinners means that we're not going to get the same level of media saturation and almost-forced "look, this is cool, you want to buy it" marketing. We were all 14 years younger then. Of course it was better. Now we're highly discriminating adults (though we have some mental children here if nothing else) so have higher standards. Is TLC really going to spend more time and effort aiming a complex story at us when they can target the next generation of kids?

That's making the false assumption that the theme is aimed at us. It never was and it never is. Even City has "cops and robbers" videos that are better than these story animations. All of that is aimed at kids.

 

Even the Piraka animations from 2006, as non-canon as they were, did a better job of establishing characterization, engaging their audience, and telling a story than these animations do.

I never said that the line was aimed at adults. I said the opposite, in fact. Where did I make that assumption? I treid to point out that nostalgia might be a factor in why many people's judgement of Gen2, storyline and sets. We were children when the first generation came out. We would've thought the story was absolutely wonderful, even if it was nonsense. The story grew up with us, until we got into the age where our parents weren't buying Lego and we didn't have enough to buy on our own. The story was too complex to draw new buyers in, and so, collapsed under its own weight.

 

Now, we have a new generation of children and a new generation of Bionicle. In fifteen years, are they going to sit here and complain about how (a hypothetical) Gen 3 doesn't meet the standards of gen2? Probably. By then, they'll be adults, and we'll have our own kids who love (the hypothetical) gen3 like it was gen1.

 

Has anyone here who complains about the story actually asked a child what they think? I dare say the children (+/-10 years old) have much more positive things to say about this generation than we do. In fact, this is their gen 1. Are we really going to be like the Pokemon fandom who belittle anything that comes out after their introduction to the franchise? Let's not be snobbish because gen2 isn't like our memories of gen1.

[Torchbearer]

Has anyone here asked someone that wasn't raised with BIONICLE? Great, glad to hear none of you did. Because guess what? I barely knew what BIONICLE was until June last year and even I think the new line is being handled poorly plot-wise. Great concepts, terrible usage.

 

Mask of Creation hasn't got anything on MNOG, and the Bohrok animations were far cooler that the current mini-movies.

[Millennium]

I'd like to see a mix of light/pastel and dark.  With good layering I think the contrast would look darn cool for certain kinds of characters.

 

For instance, I know Umbra wasn't the most popular set but I actually thought the colors looked pretty neat.

 

Hooray! I really loved Umbra too and his color scheme as well, it was an original combination of sorts that we should see more often.

 

Anyway, I think I'm going to get Lewa today. Don't know why or how it came to my mind to get one of the new sets, I just want to see with my eyes and hands the new wave.

 

On another note, I wanna say something. I do not think this new Bionicle is going very far, good sales or not. Not if the story-telling is limited to those lame webisodes centered on an idiotic hero-protagonist who doesn't know what to do or anything and all they do is babbling about evil and similia. The comics and MNOG back in 2001 had a completely different approach and feel, with considerably less consistent amounts of cheese. Yet kids liked it, and for almost ten years. Maybe it's the kids of today who are different, or the approach of adults towards them. This came to me only after the last episode, anyway, the other ones were quite nice (with the exception of the mask of ultimate power thing. Seriously? Why not call it mask of chaos, or mask of destruction...). I hope that the book coming out this summer (even if it, like all Bionicle books before, will probably never be available in Italy) won't be on the same line of the webisodes, and that it gives more insight on the Okoto people and society like MNOG did. If the sales do really well, a line of comics would be welcome, too.

 

 

Has anyone here asked someone that wasn't raised with BIONICLE? Great, glad to hear none of you did. Because guess what? I barely knew what BIONICLE was until June last year and even I think the new line is being handled poorly plot-wise. Great concepts, terrible usage.

 

Mask of Creation hasn't got anything on MNOG, and the Bohrok animations were far cooler that the current mini-movies.

 

I guess that what you said just confirms what I already think. LEGO has to do some better job if it doesn't want another (premature) flop.

Edited March 8, 2015 by Millennium

[Torchbearer]

 

 

Has anyone here asked someone that wasn't raised with BIONICLE? Great, glad to hear none of you did. Because guess what? I barely knew what BIONICLE was until June last year and even I think the new line is being handled poorly plot-wise. Great concepts, terrible usage.

 

Mask of Creation hasn't got anything on MNOG, and the Bohrok animations were far cooler that the current mini-movies.

 

I guess that what you said just confirms what I already think. LEGO has to do some better job if it doesn't want another (premature) flop.

 

Oh, don't get me wrong. They've got the basics nailed down. MoCR has some real potential if they would make it more than just combat and the mini-movies would be better off if they were at least half a minute longer. Set-wise, they're doing great, but they dropped the ball on certain aspects.

[Millennium]

 

 

 

Has anyone here asked someone that wasn't raised with BIONICLE? Great, glad to hear none of you did. Because guess what? I barely knew what BIONICLE was until June last year and even I think the new line is being handled poorly plot-wise. Great concepts, terrible usage.

 

Mask of Creation hasn't got anything on MNOG, and the Bohrok animations were far cooler that the current mini-movies.

 

I guess that what you said just confirms what I already think. LEGO has to do some better job if it doesn't want another (premature) flop.

 

Oh, don't get me wrong. They've got the basics nailed down. MoCR has some real potential if they would make it more than just combat and the mini-movies would be better off if they were at least half a minute longer. Set-wise, they're doing great, but they dropped the ball on certain aspects.

 

Yeah, that game was really boring and repetitive. Nice visuals and all, but after a while I'd rather be bored and do nothing than to play it. I guess they weren't aiming for a MNOG-style game - even if, considering the weight of the game app, one would think it has something more than cool graphics. 

Edited March 8, 2015 by Millennium

[Iblis]

On another note, I wanna say something. I do not think this new Bionicle is going very far, good sales or not.

 

Anecdotal & hardly indicative of overall sales, but I've heard first hand that they're flying off the shelves in a number of Australian stores, a few friends of talked to in other states have heard similar...

 

Not if the story-telling is limited to those lame webisodes centered on an idiotic hero-protagonist who doesn't know what to do or anything and all they do is babbling about evil and similia. The comics and MNOG back in 2001 had a completely different approach and feel, with considerably less consistent amounts of cheese. Yet kids liked it, and for almost ten years. Maybe it's the kids of today who are different, or the approach of adults towards them. This came to me only after the last episode, anyway, the other ones were quite nice [...]

 

Yeah, IDK how much or how many kids like it but there is much more cheese to other content than G1, it was certainly there in G1 but there is more in G2; no I don't have specific evidence here, but the 20~ minutes of G2 video content vs almost any random selection of 20~ minute G1 content should highlight this, I've yet to see a contrary debate that doesn't make me suspect the 'debatee' is either unaware or has forgotten certain content, or alternatively just deluded, but maybe someone will prove us wrong?

 

[...] (with the exception of the mask of ultimate power thing. Seriously? Why not call it mask of chaos, or mask of destruction...). I hope that the book coming out this summer (even if it, like all Bionicle books before, will probably never be available in Italy) won't be on the same line of the webisodes, and that it gives more insight on the Okoto people and society like MNOG did. If the sales do really well, a line of comics would be welcome, too.

 

Chaos is to mainstream, and clearly there is no chance that Ultimate Power, could do anything other than evoke Narm er, outdated may-mays... even if they don't exactly line up...

 

Honestly though I would've thought Destruction, might seem less "edgy" than Chaos, but maybe more so.... regardless they picked a clear and concise name that has the added bonus of appealing to mops^[sic] ...maybe?

 

We can hope that the mobile/online game gets a good update, sure I doubt it will have much story and yes it is hugely repetitive ATM * I doubt that will change but it's not horrible for burning time but...

I think (web!) comics could do wonders for the series, but for the most part I think the sets are wonderful, & maybe it's not entirely a bad thing for the toys to carry the toyline with minimal supplementation; even if those 'supplements' are what I adore. (Mind you I'm already buying doubles of the sets...)

[masterchirox580]

On amazon UK most of the prices for the sets have been inflated slightly and some are quite low on stock, this is a good sign as it could mean they're selling quite well, one thing that's of interest is that the protectors can range anywhere from 7 to 21 pounds, a whole 11 pounds higher then their original price, those protectors must be popular huh... 

[Banana Gunz]

I think the fact that TLC has those other moneyspinners means that we're not going to get the same level of media saturation and almost-forced "look, this is cool, you want to buy it" marketing. We were all 14 years younger then. Of course it was better. Now we're highly discriminating adults (though we have some mental children here if nothing else) so have higher standards. Is TLC really going to spend more timtime and effort aiming a complex story at us when they can target the next generation of kids?

 

Remember, that complex and interesting story is what got so many kids hooked onto the original Bionicle. My first exposure to Bionicle was the MNOG, and it was strange and fantastic and full of cool details and such. The media was always bold and powerful, and I don't think many would disagree that kids should immediately get dumbed down or lesser quality media just because they're kids.

 

That awesome and detailed story was what got us as kids interested in Bionicle, and it's not just our higher standards speaking now. It's what proved to be Bionicle's strength and standard that got us hooked, and getting rid of that could prove to be a mistake.

[MitriX75]

I filmed a stud launcher firing in slow motion; it is my gift to you.

 

[Toa of Gallifrey]

 

I think the fact that TLC has those other moneyspinners means that we're not going to get the same level of media saturation and almost-forced "look, this is cool, you want to buy it" marketing. We were all 14 years younger then. Of course it was better. Now we're highly discriminating adults (though we have some mental children here if nothing else) so have higher standards. Is TLC really going to spend more timtime and effort aiming a complex story at us when they can target the next generation of kids?

 

Remember, that complex and interesting story is what got so many kids hooked onto the original Bionicle. My first exposure to Bionicle was the MNOG, and it was strange and fantastic and full of cool details and such. The media was always bold and powerful, and I don't think many would disagree that kids should immediately get dumbed down or lesser quality media just because they're kids.

 

That awesome and detailed story was what got us as kids interested in Bionicle, and it's not just our higher standards speaking now. It's what proved to be Bionicle's strength and standard that got us hooked, and getting rid of that could prove to be a mistake.

 

I think by complex story they mean the complexity of later years that so many people dislike (although that alone is what got me into Bionicle since I love a story like that).

[bioniclepluslotr]

why are there still no Bionicle sales in any stores

[Ballom Nom Nom]

why are there still no Bionicle sales in any stores

There actually already are some sets on sale at Target, such as Gali and Onua.

 

~B~

[Irrie]

why are there still no Bionicle sales in any stores

I saw some at Barnes & Noble today. 

[Nidhiki of the Shadows]

Did you ever have reason to doubt the Toa winning in the original run of Bionicle?

~B~

 

Yes. So much yes. 2006-2008 were all years where I sincerely doubted things would end easily for the Toa. 2006 may have been more obvious in terms of the Toa winning, but the stakes were high and I was engaged with the story. It was an intense race for an elusive object to save a god-like figure's life, with equal focus on sides of good and evil. In that sense, 2015 is a bit like 2006, but with less interesting characters and villains, lower stakes and more screaming.

 

2007 had an unexpected moment in Mata Nui's death. At that point, I'm sure many readers of the story were shocked and wondering how they would solve this. Though the Toa did technically succeed at the end of that year, the death of one of their members was not an obvious, or victorious, outcome. 

 

And of course in 2008 the Toa actually did lose. That was super unexpected as well.

 

I hate the reasoning that "Oh, we were kids back then so OF COURSE it was better to us". No. As an adult, I can look back on 2001 objectively and say "Though it was simple, they tried hard with their worldbuilding". I look at 2015 and say "there is nothing here for me to digest".

 

2001's monthly updates gave us a brand new chapter of a large point-and-click adventure that progressed the story. They had bi-monthly comic books and a completely interactive website that listed Mask Powers, elemental powers, villagers and their personalities clearly and in full-detail. 2015's monthly update consists of a 90 second cartoon. That's all we have gotten in the last three months, aside from a mindless hack'n'slash game and one-paragraph descriptions.

 

So no, 2001 didn't have the illusion of being "better cause we were kids"; it DID have more content.

 

LEGO doesn't have an excuse. They don't have to go all-out on the storytelling, but nine 90-second cartoons spread through six months are not going to contain enough story to keep a viewers interest and compel them to return to the site. How difficult is it to have periodic story updates in forms of chronicles like they did in 2002 to go along with the Bohrok animations? That's a lot more exciting and at least helps with storybuilding and keeping the followers engaged in an ever-evolving story.   

 

I feel like the mentality of the new story team was that "the expansive worldbuilding made Bionicle complicated, so lets get rid of that", which is completely wrong. The serialized nature of the storyline that lasted for 9 long years was the problem. The overwhelming amount of sidestories and timeline changes were the problem. The abrupt changing of main characters was the problem. The worldbuilding was what made the first 3 years of Bionicle so engaging to a new audience. And if I, at six years old, was captivated by the large expansive world of Bionicle, the island of Mata Nui and its inhabitants, why wouldn't a six year old enjoy that now?

Finally, this years marketing for Bionicle is pretty minimalist. Thankfully, it seems like this month is focused on getting the word about Bionicle around because of its focus in LEGO Stores, the promotional polybag and catalog exposure. Regardless, I'm pretty disappointed with LEGO's treatment of the new line so far. If you are going to make it more accessible for kids, then promote it better. For goodness sake, the Facebook page is better at getting information around than the actual official site. Guess what else? You have to be pretty much above the target audience to even BE on Facebook. That, plus the comic-con event and the AFOL-targeted gold mask contest leads me to believe LEGO is expecting the adult community to keep the franchise afloat. In that case, don't dilute the story to the point where it loses its flair. As Lewa would say, don't "halfash" it. 

 

-NotS 

[Banana Gunz]

 

Did you ever have reason to doubt the Toa winning in the original run of Bionicle?

~B~

 

*snip*

 

-NotS 

 

 

Wow, couldn't have said it better myself!

[believe victims]

Has anyone here asked someone that wasn't raised with BIONICLE? Great, glad to hear none of you did. Because guess what? I barely knew what BIONICLE was until June last year and even I think the new line is being handled poorly plot-wise. Great concepts, terrible usage.

 

Mask of Creation hasn't got anything on MNOG, and the Bohrok animations were far cooler that the current mini-movies.

 

How old are you? Are you within the target audience? Being new to the theme is only half the battle as far as being able to judge the actual effectiveness of the line; if you're not a kid, chances are you're still viewing it through the lens of an adult who thinks everything they grew up with is the best that could ever have been, and thus will be more critical of new things.

 

Do I wish we had more than 90 second animations that waste valuable time providing a recap almost every episode when they really don't have the time to spare? Of course! But at the same time, I can also recognize that my little siblings are completely in love with them, and are thrilled to be able to be a part of the series their big sister was a fan of.

 

 

2001's monthly updates gave us a brand new chapter of a large point-and-click adventure that progressed the story. They had bi-monthly comic books and a completely interactive website that listed Mask Powers, elemental powers, villagers and their personalities clearly and in full-detail. 2015's monthly update consists of a 90 second cartoon. That's all we have gotten in the last three months, aside from a mindless hack'n'slash game and one-paragraph descriptions.

 

So no, 2001 didn't have the illusion of being "better cause we were kids"; it DID have more content.

 

I wish this was the first time I saw G1's multiple, often conflicting sources of story presented as a wonderful thing, but it's not, and it's still bizarre to me that people would rather have a story slapped across several different mediums that don't even bother to make sure they tell the same story than have one consistent medium.

 

We don't need more content, we need better content. The animations shouldn't need to be supplemented by comics and games and books; they should be able to tell their own story alone. The issue is they just haven't been given the time to do so.

 

As for the site's character descriptions, I can't find any sort of archive of the 2001 site, but I doubt its personality descriptions were any more complex than the current ones, especially since I can say for a fact the characters themselves weren't any more complex. I don't doubt there were more characters, and I don't doubt they had longer mask descriptions since elemental powers weren't mask-based in G1 (which I'm not sure the change is a bad thing like you seem to be insinuating), but I doubt the 2001 site had any more complex profiles than the current profiles on Bionicle.com.

[Bfahome]

It's not a question of thinking everything would always go the Toa's way, but a question of whether they'd win in the end.  Had I bothered to think about it, I wouldn't have doubted that by the time the series had wrapped up Mata Nui would be safe and the good guys would have won.

 

If I may draw a comparison, the second season of Avatar: The Last Airbender ended with Zuko becoming an antagonist again, the city of Ba Sing Se finally succumbing to Fire Nation control, and Azula literally killing Aang (though he gets better).  What makes the story compelling is not the belief that that was the end and the villains had won, but the desire to see how the heroes would come back to save the day after such a catastrophic defeat.  Because, in the end, the protagonists are pretty much always going to win.  There may be struggles along the way, but they'll ultimately overcome them because these are stories for kids.

 

Heck, we've already seen shades of the challenge in the few months we've had the story.  The Toa got their masks, but the Protectors were overwhelmed by the Skull Spiders, so the Toa had to rescue them.  And then there's the fact that the summer villains seem to have some kind of connection to the golden masks, so it may not even be that cut-and-dry.

 

Also, instead of looking back at the sum total of all the media in a year, think about how it was distributed.  At this point in 2001, there were only like two places accessible in the Mata Nui Online Game.  And at this point in 2002, there were, what, one or two Bohrok animations up?

 

I can look back on 2001 objectively

 

No you can't.  None of us can.  Anyone who followed the 2001 story as it happened was fifteen years younger than they are now, so their experience is going to be vastly different.  Coupled with the fact that we now know all the story that followed it, it is extremely difficult to look at it "objectively".  Like I said above, you bring up the numerous animations and expansive game.  At this stage, they were neither numerous nor expansive.  They're only so substantial in hindsight.

[Nidhiki of the Shadows]

I wish this was the first time I saw G1's multiple, often conflicting sources of story presented as a wonderful thing, but it's not, and it's still bizarre to me that people would rather have a story slapped across several different mediums that don't even bother to make sure they tell the same story than have one consistent medium.

 

We don't need more content, we need better content. The animations shouldn't need to be supplemented by comics and games and books; they should be able to tell their own story alone. The issue is they just haven't been given the time to do so.

 

As for the site's character descriptions, I can't find any sort of archive of the 2001 site, but I doubt its personality descriptions were any more complex than the current ones, especially since I can say for a fact the characters themselves weren't any more complex. I don't doubt there were more characters, and I don't doubt they had longer mask descriptions since elemental powers weren't mask-based in G1 (which I'm not sure the change is a bad thing like you seem to be insinuating), but I doubt the 2001 site had any more complex profiles than the current profiles on Bionicle.com.

 

The story being "slapped" across different mediums was effective for promotional purposes - it spread Bionicle and its basic concept and story to a wider audience than if it was just told in a singular source. That being said, there was really no way to tell if the different storytelling devices in 2001 were inconsistent with each other until we got the first Bionicle Chronicles book, because they all told different parts of the story. It's the same with the Bohrok Animations - the story in those follow the Matoran, while the comics follow the Toa. They told their stories separately but they all amounted to stronger storybuilding. 

 

And by "character descriptions in full detail" I meant we ACTUALLY had characters. The Toa are probably around the same (minus more specific power sets in the older line) but the side-characters (Turaga and Matoran) had actual profiles instead of the copy-paste descriptions the Protectors have. 

 

No you can't.  None of us can.  Anyone who followed the 2001 story as it happened was fifteen years younger than they are now, so their experience is going to be vastly different.  Coupled with the fact that we now know all the story that followed it, it is extremely difficult to look at it "objectively".  Like I said above, you bring up the numerous animations and expansive game.  At this stage, they were neither numerous nor expansive.  They're only so substantial in hindsight.

A fair point. However, at this point in 2001 we had promise of much more content, be it Bioniclemusic.com or the ever-growing Mata Nui Online Game, as well as the PC game (that was sadly cancelled). There is no promise of additional content for this year minus "Summer will bring new sets". 

 

Also, yes there was no doubt good would succeed in the end (this is a kids line!), but I think what Toa Chuck wanted to say was that there are no stakes and no real threats to grip the audience at this moment and create a memorable conflict where the Toa actually struggle. That can be attributed to the length of the animations for sure. Hopefully summer's villains will change that. 

 

-NotS

Edited March 9, 2015 by Nidhiki of the Shadows