Matoran Color And Kanohi

[Circle]

Hello.Well... Mostly, Matoran of a given village have colors to match their village(ex, shades of blue for Ga-Koro). However, Takua had a blue Kanohi even though he was a Ta-Matoran. Why is that?Also, Taipu had shades of tan and black and was said to be often confused with Hafu(who had the same shades, but was a Po-Matoran). This also is a bit weird to me.And about kanohi... Is there a reason each Matoran wears his Kanohi? I mean, is that symboic or something, or just a matter of personal taste?Thanks in advance.

[Harvali]

Hello.Well... Mostly, Matoran of a given village have colors to match their village(ex, shades of blue for Ga-Koro). However, Takua had a blue Kanohi even though he was a Ta-Matoran. Why is that?Also, Taipu had shades of tan and black and was said to be often confused with Hafu(who had the same shades, but was a Po-Matoran). This also is a bit weird to me.And about kanohi... Is there a reason each Matoran wears his Kanohi? I mean, is that symboic or something, or just a matter of personal taste?Thanks in advance.

Takua was really a Matoran of Light. All Matoran of Light can change the color of their armor by reflex, to avoid being identified by Makuta. The reason we don't know this in the early years is because Takua had amnesia, and the Turaga didn't know about his secret. Po-Matoran and Onu-Matoran both deal with the ground, so I can see why there can be overlap. Matoran Kanohi are powerless,at least usually. The point of them as far as I know is simply to not go into a coma, and to have a mask upon becoming a Toa.

[Infrared]

Takua was really a Matoran of Light. All Matoran of Light can change the color of their armor by reflex, to avoid being identified by Makuta. The reason we don't know this in the early years is because Takua had amnesia, and the Turaga didn't know about his secret.

Just to go into a bit more story depth regarding this answer, Takua and many other Av-Matoran were taken away from their homeland in the caves above Karda Nui (they lived there before the Great Cataclysm) during the Time Slip, erasing the Av-Matoran's (and almost everybody other beings') memories so that the Av-Matoran wouldn't remember the fact that they were Av-Matoran and the other beings wouldn't remember the fact that members of the Order of Mata Nui were placing Av-Matoran all around the Matoran Universe (the purpose of this was to make sure that someone couldn't wipe out all of the Av-Matoran by attacking their homeland). Takua ended up in Metru Nui as an amnesiac and thought that he was a Ta-Matoran, and I believe that the reason that he turned his Kanohi blue was actually because he was ignorant and didn't know that Ta-Matoran didn't wear blue armor (or something similar involving his ignorance). This color change would likely have happened before his memory was erased, though, because he didn't know that he was an Av-Matoran afterwards and so would not be able to change his armor color (if I recall correctly, he kept his Kanohi the color that it was after his memory loss subconsciously).Poor Takua. He lost his memory four times (first memories before the Matoran Universe denizens developed consciousness, the Time Slip, the Matoran Spheres, and summoning the Toa Mata).

[Vote Saxon]

I think Takua's color-changing ability didn't work correctly so he had some blue mixed in.Onu- and Po-Matoran are similar in some parts of their colouring due to both of them being ground related.And about the Kanohi: As I understand it matoran simply wear the masks they prefer or to honor a Toa with the same mask or sometimes just because it's the only Kanohi available (e.g. Vakama giving Jaller Lhikan's Hau).

[Harvali]

Just to go into a bit more story depth regarding this answer, Takua and many other Av-Matoran were taken away from their homeland in the caves above Karda Nui (they lived there before the Great Cataclysm) during the Time Slip, erasing the Av-Matoran's (and almost everybody other beings') memories so that the Av-Matoran wouldn't remember the fact that they were Av-Matoran and the other beings wouldn't remember the fact that members of the Order of Mata Nui were placing Av-Matoran all around the Matoran Universe (the purpose of this was to make sure that someone couldn't wipe out all of the Av-Matoran by attacking their homeland). Takua ended up in Metru Nui as an amnesiac and thought that he was a Ta-Matoran, and I believe that the reason that he turned his Kanohi blue was actually because he was ignorant and didn't know that Ta-Matoran didn't wear blue armor (or something similar involving his ignorance). This color change would likely have happened before his memory was erased, though, because he didn't know that he was an Av-Matoran afterwards and so would not be able to change his armor color (if I recall correctly, he kept his Kanohi the color that it was after his memory loss subconsciously).Poor Takua. He lost his memory four times (first memories before the Matoran Universe denizens developed consciousness, the Time Slip, the Matoran Spheres, and summoning the Toa Mata).

You can tell that Matoran weren't meant to develop culture, otherwise the Great Beings would have made better safeguards against memory loss.Edit: I won't say Takua had a flawed power, remember that the power is intended to disguise that he is an Av-Matoran, not to disguise him as a Ta-Matoran. So his reflexes would be more concerned with not being gold and white than being the exact color scheme of a Matoran of Fire. Edited February 29, 2012 by Tanma

[Circle]

You guys have developed a very interesting discussion here.Hmm... And how come the other Ta-Matorans didn't notice Takua's Kanohi?

[Makuta Matata]

Yeah, Takua is an Av-Matoran. It never really seemed like mask color mattered for Matoran, though. As long as it fits the color scheme.

[bonesiii]

Surprised the main answer wasn't given already, but here you go. :)Every element has a standard primary color, and usually a secondary color, but the key here is that each element also has a fairly wide range of alternate colors that fit with it. Tan is within the range of both Po and Onu, as is black, etc.Greg confirmed that blue is within the range of possible fire colors, since fire burning really hot is blue, and this is why the other Ta-Matoran did not realize Takua was an Av-Matoran. So it's a little bit of both; blue is highly, highly rare for Ta-Matoran, but not unheard of -- and Takua got that color to signify that he was different.Also, even before they were sapient (or known to be), having a wide variety of both masks (faces) and color schemes simply made it easier to tell at a glance who was who. In some cases they chose them to honor favored heroes, but that is simply one among a wide range of possible reasons to pick their unique masks, and yes, personality can be another, or just the only spare available when one breaks.Questions answered, topic closed.