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Set Review: 70784 Lewa Master of Jungle


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We're getting closer to wrapping up our 2015 Bionicle reviews. Today it's time to look at 70784 Lewa Master of Jungle, as reviewed by BZPower Forum Assistant Sisen. Will this adventurous Toa swing through the trees and into your collection? Or will he get caught up in the tangle of plants and vines? Keep reading to find out!

 

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Good review!

 

I think Lewa's mask definitely has some similarities to the original Miru and Miru Nuva. I think in some ways it's an improvement, though. The old mask's forehead and nose stuck forward so far that his mask's eye holes didn't match up with his eyes from many angles, reducing his expressiveness. This one's eyes are closer to the face like those of the Miru Nuva. He also still has those sharp corners on his lower jaw, even though from front view it's been made more pointed and less square. And his "grin" feels more playful than ever!

 

I really like Lewa's simian physique, with his shoulders raised up high. I feel like the two battle axes really suit him, and I think they stand out sufficiently from Gali's. They feel more like Lewa's axe from 2001, whereas Gali's weapon is more like her 2002 Aqua Axes. I also love his adrenalin mode. It feels much more substantial than the "dual function" of his Air Katanas in 2002. The feather-like edge of the axe suits his adrenalin mode nicely, giving him a sort of a wingsuit. I think a "Peter Pan" type pose (with one knee raised and arms out to his sides) really suits him in this mode.

 

You can turn his head further to either side if you tilt it the opposite direction. So, if his head is turning to the right, his head should be tilted to the left. Sorry if I'm bad at describing this — you'll be able to see when my review for http://www.newelementary.com/ goes up.

 

For the "Powered Up" mode, you missed one major difference — you're supposed to add the Silver Metallic armor pieces from the Protector of Jungle's torso and shoulder to Lewa's shoulders!

 

I haven't personally had any issues with the legs snapping off due to the friction joints, myself. Not sure why it seems to have been such a big issue for some reviewers.

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You can turn his head further to either side if you tilt it the opposite direction. So, if his head is turning to the right, his head should be tilted to the left.

That makes perfect sense. However, there should be a full range of motion for the head in general. When you turn your head, do you always tilt it in the opposite direction? I was just pointing out how for a constraction figure, the head motion is somewhat limited.
 

For the "Powered Up" mode, you missed one major difference — you're supposed to add the Silver Metallic armor pieces from the Protector of Jungle's torso and shoulder to Lewa's shoulders!

I completely missed that when I gazed at the instructions. Whoops. 
 

I haven't personally had any issues with the legs snapping off due to the friction joints, myself. Not sure why it seems to have been such a big issue for some reviewers.

When the legs can just pop off by bending them, it is a bit unwieldy and tiresome. It does not happen all the time, but you essentially have to hold the leg at the hip connection to prevent it from snapping off.

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If you win, you live. If you lose, you die. If you don’t fight, you can’t win!
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You can turn his head further to either side if you tilt it the opposite direction. So, if his head is turning to the right, his head should be tilted to the left.

That makes perfect sense. However, there should be a full range of motion for the head in general. When you turn your head, do you always tilt it in the opposite direction? I was just pointing out how for a constraction figure, the head motion is somewhat limited.

 

Oh yeah, I understand that it's still a limitation. But I was telling you in case you didn't realize. I found it makes for some awesome-looking poses, which I used some of the photos for my upcoming review.

 

 

I haven't personally had any issues with the legs snapping off due to the friction joints, myself. Not sure why it seems to have been such a big issue for some reviewers.

When the legs can just pop off by bending them, it is a bit unwieldy and tiresome. It does not happen all the time, but you essentially have to hold the leg at the hip connection to prevent it from snapping off.

 

I just haven't noticed having to hold the leg any special way when I want to bend the hip. Maybe that just means I hold it around the hip normally. I don't have the set with me at this moment, and have never paid too much attention to just how I hold the limbs when I bend them — I might do it that way subconsciously. Or maybe there's some other way to keep it from popping off that I do subconsciously. Whatever the case, it hasn't required any special effort on my part to keep the joint from popping out of place, so either the friction joints in your set just randomly had more friction than the ones in mine, or there's something we've been doing differently that one of us isn't noticing. :notsure:

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Out of all the new Toa, Gen 2 Lewa is probably one of my least favorite. And that is painful for me to say because green is my favorite color. But I'm not saying that he's a bad set. His body design looks good, and I really like his weapons. I just like some of the other Gen 2 Toa more than him. 

 

But anyway, thanks for the review!

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Everyone is one choice away from being the bad guy in another person's story.


 


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The segmented face is easily one of my least favorite parts of the new mask design. It makes it the most over-detailed of the masks, and definitely takes away a lot of resemblance to the original. (Hardly resembling the original is also one of my qualms with this mask.) I'm also really not liking the intakes on the sides of the mask; they give it a strange shape that I'm not a fan of. Overall, it's easily my least favorite mask redesign.

 

My other qualms are that I wish his hands and feet weren't silver (though he's not as over-metalled as Gali and Pohatu) and I just really don't like the decision to use Bright Green over Dark Green. I was hoping this could be Dark Green's triumphant constraction return, but nope, it's just the less-appealing (imo. i feel like i need to say imo or somebody's going to leap in to say "it's not unappealing. i PREFER bright green and you obviously weren't talking about your own opinions here so my input is certainly the correct one") Bright Green.

 

There are also a couple things I'm uncertain about. The color scheme will still take some getting used to. I liked the way lime green and dark green looked together, and it certainly would have been a jungle-y color scheme, but I guess that's not necessarily proof that this new color scheme is bad, just different. I'm also unsure on the arm proportions. Not how long they are (as others have mentions, it's a gangly, ape-like look) but how long the forearms are compared to the upper arms. I guess it was a necessity to make the X-Glider function work, but it also makes for strange proportions.

 

I don't mind the tools not matching the color scheme, since they're tools. Soldiers don't use guns that match their uniforms, after all, and G1 didn't use colored weapons much at all after 2001. (The only other time that comes to mind is the Hordika in 2005.) It would probably seem less out-of-place if Lewa didn't have so much silver, and instead was purely colorful, so his tools were obviously distinct from him. idk. I miss the 2001 bright, pure color schemes.

 

Good review. Disappointed to hear about the gears colliding with the mask.

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The Mask of Air has definitely grown on me since I first saw it, although it's by no means my favorite of the new masks. It is too bad that Lewa's head can barely move, though.

 

Also, good to see he comes with a third of those silver Invasion from Below claws, as those are always appreciated.

 

~B~

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And there goes the last review for the Toa of 2015!  :D 

 

First off, the new Mask of Jungle. Among all the new Toa I had the hardest time getting used to this mask. I used to think that Lewa's new mask looks like a hybrid between Toa Matau Hordika's face and Toa Kongu Mahri's mask  :blink: Now thanks to this review I noticed a bit of resemblance to the Miru and Miru Nuva (e.g. the "cheek holes"), but my mind still struggles to relate the Mask of Jungle to Miru and Miru Nuva, unlike the case with the other 2015 Toa. Bummer :( Other than that, the design of the new mask is fairly ok (after all I have gotten used to it :P ).

 

Similar to the Protector of Jungle, I like Lewa's new color scheme with bright green and Keetongu orange which gives of a "lush tropical jungle" impression.

 

Didn't expect Lewa's whole body proportions to be a highlight (IMO) of this set. It opens possibilities to some really nice-looking poses (just look at Lewa's poses in the review). The amount of armor on the Toa is just about the right amount for our agile, tree-swinging, air-swinging and tree-speach-speaking hero. On the other hand, previously I haven't pay much attention to the silver claw pieces around Lewa's neck. It appears as if Lewa is wearing a fur trim or neck pad around his neck  ^_^ Looks interesting but will pose some limitations to Lewa's head movement. Looking forward to see how Aanchir gets around this constraint (and if possible, the gear axle colliding with the head... ouch!).

 

His new Toa tools look neat. I don't mind the axe/X-glider pieces being of a darker color than the twin blades. They depict some cool, aerodynamic-inspired design details. And it's use as Lewa's "flight/gliding apparatus" is an improvement over Lewa Nuva's flight mode. It's a downer that this weapon piece is also used for Gali (interesting how the air glider pieces also look fitting as swimming fins), but at least they form unique style of weapons for each of those two Toa (dual axes vs one long staff/"trident"). Same case with the weapons of Tahu and Kopaka, in case you haven't notice.

 

On a side note, it may be just me (or just Lewa's poses in the review), but even when Lewa engages in a fight, I find that making him fight in Adrenaline Mode might make him look cooler than using Battle Mode. In conclusion, I still find Lewa to be a decent set. His mask hopefully won't overshadow his pros too much.

 

The whole line of Toa of the coming year overall certainly impressed me  B-) I have my favorites among them, but even my least favorite are not shabby either IMO. I am really happy to see this set of Toa starring the revival of Bionicle. THANK YOU LEGO!  :D 

Edited by Tahtorak ate my house!
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Your left brain contains nothing right, while your right brain contains nothing left.

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I really like the new Lewa, the only thing I wish had been done differently is that the shoulder armour was smaller, but that's my only problem. Something I've always noticed with Lewa is that no one can agree on how his name is pronounced, I've heard three pronunciations, I've heard Lee-wa, Lay-wa, and lew-wa, I've always called him Lee-wa but whatever.

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It's time to move on.

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I really like the new Lewa, the only thing I wish had been done differently is that the shoulder armour was smaller, but that's my only problem. Something I've always noticed with Lewa is that no one can agree on how his name is pronounced, I've heard three pronunciations, I've heard Lee-wa, Lay-wa, and lew-wa, I've always called him Lee-wa but whatever.

I call him Lay-wa. I think it sounds the coolest, and it corresponds with things like Lay-Koro and Lay-Metru.

I like the new design for Lewa's Miru. (If its still considered the Miru) Reminds me of the Cybermen head from Doctor Who :P

v18-head.jpg

Yeah, everyone's going on about that. I don't find it a problem, though.

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He probably will be the first $15 toa I buy. His helmet is awesome and I like how they gave it a more mechanical ascetic. I'm not a big fan of bright green, but that only detracts on the mocing side for me because the color is important for the set and character. I think the poses he's in in the official LEGO images we've seen so far are the coolest of the poses we see the toa in, this leads me to hope he's just as cool in the animations.

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And there goes the last review for the Toa of 2015!  :D 

 

First off, the new Mask of Jungle. Among all the new Toa I had the hardest time getting used to this mask. I used to think that Lewa's new mask looks like a hybrid between Toa Matau Hordika's face and Toa Kongu Mahri's mask  :blink: Now thanks to this review I noticed a bit of resemblance to the Miru and Miru Nuva (e.g. the "cheek holes"), but my mind still struggles to relate the Mask of Jungle to Miru and Miru Nuva, unlike the case with the other 2015 Toa. Bummer :( Other than that, the design of the new mask is fairly ok (after all I have gotten used to it :P ).

 

Similar to the Protector of Jungle, I like Lewa's new color scheme with bright green and Keetongu orange which gives of a "lush tropical jungle" impression.

 

Didn't expect Lewa's whole body proportions to be a highlight (IMO) of this set. It opens possibilities to some really nice-looking poses (just look at Lewa's poses in the review). The amount of armor on the Toa is just about the right amount for our agile, tree-swinging, air-swinging and tree-speach-speaking hero. On the other hand, previously I haven't pay much attention to the silver claw pieces around Lewa's neck. It appears as if Lewa is wearing a fur trim or neck pad around his neck  ^_^ Looks interesting but will pose some limitations to Lewa's head movement. Looking forward to see how Aanchir gets around this constraint (and if possible, the gear axle colliding with the head... ouch!).

 

His new Toa tools look neat. I don't mind the axe/X-glider pieces being of a darker color than the twin blades. They depict some cool, aerodynamic-inspired design details. And it's use as Lewa's "flight/gliding apparatus" is an improvement over Lewa Nuva's flight mode. It's a downer that this weapon piece is also used for Gali (interesting how the air glider pieces also look fitting as swimming fins), but at least they form unique style of weapons for each of those two Toa (dual axes vs one long staff/"trident"). Same case with the weapons of Tahu and Kopaka, in case you haven't notice.

 

On a side note, it may be just me (or just Lewa's poses in the review), but even when Lewa engages in a fight, I find that making him fight in Adrenaline Mode might make him look cooler than using Battle Mode. In conclusion, I still find Lewa to be a decent set. His mask hopefully won't overshadow his pros too much.

 

The whole line of Toa of the coming year overall certainly impressed me  B-) I have my favorites among them, but even my least favorite are not shabby either IMO. I am really happy to see this set of Toa starring the revival of Bionicle. THANK YOU LEGO!  :D 

same here about the mask to me it looked more like Matua Hordika's mask mixed with something more hero factory, but in the end i got used to it and now it kind of ( bad pun alert :alert: ) "grows" on me :ahhh: also im still going to buy him first :D

Edited by Squill da squid
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Pink squids are royalty.

 

 

 

 

 

i kind of made this when i was bored hope you guys like it

 

didn't you know!?!

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The mask would have looked a lot more like the Miru if they had removed the mouth circle. That would have given the mask more of a grin, which is to me the most defining feature of the Miru. Other than that, I am looking forward to this set as much as any of the others.

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PSN ID: darthlego
Gamertag: SPARTAN J46
Steam name: jumpy46

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[image Removed]

 

Is it just me or?

I WAS HOPING. HOPING. PRAYING. That someone would post that.

 

It was the entire reason I said it would be cool if the mask retracted. 

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If you win, you live. If you lose, you die. If you don’t fight, you can’t win!
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Nice! Lewa was my first set and I feel like it is only appropriate for him to be my first set next year too. A cool re-imagining of our favourite wind (I guess now Jungle) character. Excellent review highlighting a lot of aspects. :) The bright green looks snazzy and I love the keetorange and gunmetal grey. The twin hatchets are so sweet and adrenaline mode is great as well. The shoulder armour may be intrusive but it does add a lot to set him apart from the other Toa. Love the set, great review with a professional set up (though the fact the video doesn't fill the whole 16:9 ratio kind of bugs me) and I am more than sold on this awesome rebooted version of Lewa.

 

Thanks again!

 

-NotS

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Thanks for the review, have been waiting for this one as Lewa has long been one of the sets I was unsure about. Now I've seen them all I like him a little more than I thought I would so not only is he breaking 4th place (ahead of anime Onua and alien Gali) he's actually now in joint 3rd place with Pohatu. Given that I can't decide between Tahu and Kopaka for 1st place either I guess that makes Lewa joint 2nd! Although that would make Onua 4th and he doesn't deserve to be so high :P

 

I was waiting for this review to decide where to place Gali though and this closer look has definitely set Lewa above her. The mask is NOT a Miru, looks like IronMan with intake vents, but it's a nice design which I'm sure I'll get used to! I think the weapons and colour scheme both work well and I'm even kind of digging the Lekku things (wierd neck armour bits...) now I can see it for real. It's a shame there's so little head movement but I'm a displayer first and a player second so for me it's not a huge issue at least! 

 

One of my favourite things is probably the bow. I hadn't seen the protector review so it's all new to me and I think it should come with Lewa as standard. It just looks great and I'm amazed it took 14 years to come up with such a cool yet simple weapon. 

 

Was disappointed there was no build in this review but the pics of it were good so thanks for that! Now my list is finalised I guess it's just a matter of time till release day now!


Check out my Bionicle store on Bricklink here!

> > > Bionic Bricks < < <

 

Let me know if you can help me find these last few collectibles!

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Also looking for WILD KRAATA and a VMKK Yo!!!

 

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I really like the new Lewa set, but only from the neck down. :P His swords and weapons are pretty decent. If/when I buy him though he might permanently have a skull spider attached to his head, just so I don't have to stare at his mask. :P I think the yellow, green and silver combo works well, too, although I kind of wish the Protector's bow was either all green or green-yellow or green-transparent because the added blue doesn't gel with Lewa's colour scheme. But I'm just nitpicking. :P

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This set and Tahu are by far my favourites. Tahu has been my favourite since 2001, but this new lewa almost made me switch favourites. Mostly because of the awesome colour scheme and the cool shoulder armor. But after seeing Tahus new mask (and buying a clear version), how his lava board becomes swords and how cool that set really is, I have to say Tahu is my favourite once more, but I believe I may like this lewa just as much as Tahu.

 

Great review, I always enjoy seeing such high quality pictures of new sets.

Edited by TheSpecial

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Ehhh...

 

The mask just seems still too off to me. It's too busy and while in a tiny way you might be able to draw comparisons to past Mirus, the new Jungle Mask really is entirely its own thing. It leaves Lewa being the only Toa - in mask anyways - not reminding me of his old self. He feels like a new person and it's just awkward.

 

Having axes again is still awesome. Didn't realize they were gunmetal until now. A unique weapon would have probably been nicer, but at least it does mean getting the new part in multiple colors (unlike, say, Onua's four claws all being silver...).

 

And so the neck really is awkward and limited? Shame. The unique look it all gives him is nice, but I'd also be preferring some natural neck movement.

 

~|ET|~

E-T... Phone home.

 

"He walks among us, but he is not one of us."

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Well, this is strange... Just watching some Toa pics over the last few days, I changed my mind and I dont even know why. Lewa is my no. 1 Toa to get, with Onua being second and Pohatu third. I do have to say, the colors are really sweet looking (though I wish axes were in the same color as swords/handles), mask is very cool looking and that shoulder/collar armor is original and very fresh.

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The set looks cool! The axes and swords are a great combination. Putting the ax parts on Lewa's arms and make him fly with his swords are a good way to him fly. I can see that Lewa also has some elements of the 2001 Lewa and 2002 Lewa Nuva: carrying and using axes and swords and flying with swords. Classic!:) Anyway, Lewa's mask kind of looks like Stormer's 1.0 mask.

I like Lego, Bionicle, and Hero Factory!:)

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