Seconded. Though, this being BIONICLE, those masks probably have powers of their own depending on their shape and name. For example, the Skull Masks might animate humanoid "golems" made of random bones, the Bull Skull Masks might animate more animalistic creations, and the Spider Skull Mask animates actual corpses (at least I'm sticking to it until an official description comes along).

On another note, what do you think will be the site updates for the summer? We'll obviously get bios for the Skull Creatures and Ekimu and new webisodes, but what about character videos or a map of the City of Mask Makers?

New character videos would be interesting, since obviously they'd have to have a different format than the Toa's character videos. A map of the Ancient City would also be quite cool. Honestly, I don't know quite what to expect, but I've been pretty pleased with what story info we've gotten on the characters, tools, and regions of Okoto so far so I hope there's more in that vein.

"If I pull your kanohi off, would you go into a comatose state?"

(in all seriousness, we still have no news about any health problem the Toa/villagers may suffer related to masks. Ekimu "died", but what was it actually? A canon-coma?)

Edited July 6, 20159 yr by TwistLaw

Who here can list the eight types of Krana, and what powers those names each signify, without looking them up?

I do. :P Don't ask me about Kraata, though. :P

A map of the Ancient City would also be quite cool.

This is the kind of things we could expect in the graphic novels :

On the mythical island of Okoto, the forces of darkness are on the move. To defeat evil, the island Protectors call on the help of six elemental heroes known as the To a. Join Tahu, Kopaka, Onua, Gali, Lewa, Pohatu, and Ekimu as they discover their powers and gather together to fight the hordes of Skull Spiders and the oncoming darkness.

Also includes a never-before-seen look into the secret world of Bionicle in THE OKTO PROTECTORS GUIDE.

The first in an epic graphic novel series of new stories and action-packed adventures following the heroes of Okoto. Features exclusive content that provides maps, myths, and more!

"If I pull your kanohi off, would you go into a comatose state?"

(in all seriousness, we still have no news about any health problem the Toa/villagers may suffer related to masks. Ekimu "died", but what was it actually? A canon-coma?)

"You look like a pretty big set."

"For you."

I dunno, man. I think they're just masks these days. Ekimu's comatose state/death was caused not simply by losing his mask, but from the shockwave that came from striking the MOUP.

Thebrickfan covered the San Diego Comic Con 2015 Schedule and unfortunately Bionicle is not listed under the product reveals. While it may still appear there i think the main interest to us will be the chance for more Star Wars Ultra Build Force Awakens figure reveals on Saturday, which could hint towards pieces we may get in the 2016 Winter Wave.

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As far as the mask skull situation is concerned, given they are indeed masks it seems they either;

- Gained new masks that look like skulls after being resurrected, which raises the question of where/how they got the masks and who made the masks given Ekimu and Makuta are out the picture

- Always had masks that look like skulls, which would mean they always had a skull vibe even when they were alive

- Had masks that decayed leaving the skull-looking masks, though that means masks can decay over-time raising the question of how long a mask can last before its decayed and what they looked like before the masks decayed

Either way feel it leaves a bunch of questions to be answered and i'm not sure we'll get an answer

(in all seriousness, we still have no news about any health problem the Toa/villagers may suffer related to masks. Ekimu "died", but what was it actually? A canon-coma?)

Not sure if this helps, but a qoute from Merlin was the following;

"So the protectors we see in the present are descendants of the ones laying Ekimu to rest."

The wording 'laying Ekimu to rest' i guess could be taken to imply he died when the explosion hit him. Though that doesnt explain the mask replacement and his communications with the Toa.

As for whether a mask removal can kill a Bionicle character - i doubt it as the Toa remove there masks to switch to the golden masks. Then again it could be like the Bane meme floating around where they need a mask to provide something that keeps them alive and must have a mask on a majority of the time, prolonged exposure leading to them falling into a coma which could be another way of explaining Ekimu's situation.

This is the kind of things we could expect in the graphic novels :

Seems like we won't be learning much about Okoto. Only this strange land called "Okto" and the elemental heroes the "To a." Sounds like a ripoff.

In all seriousness, glad to hear there'll be more info in regards to the society and culture.

As for whether a mask removal can kill a Bionicle character - i doubt it as the Toa remove there masks to switch to the golden masks. Then again it could be like the Bane meme floating around where they need a mask to provide something that keeps them alive and must have a mask on a majority of the time, prolonged exposure leading to them falling into a coma which could be another way of explaining Ekimu's situation.

My understanding is that that's a Gen 1 thing: IIRC, Matoran shut down after not wearing a mask for too long, while Toa have their power significantly reduced though they still function. So not death, but a huge reliance. So far the issue hasn't specifically come up in Gen 2 so we're not sure (though my guess is that not wearing a mask has no effect).

Regarding Ekimu and Makuta, the story trailer specifically says "a shockwave rolled across the land and sent both brothers into an endless sleep." So it's not the mask removal that made him comatose, it's the shockwave. I mean, yeah, the shockwave was created by Ekimu removing Makuta's mask, but I'm guessing that's specifically an effect of the MoUP, since the Toa removing their own masks don't experience this issue.

I do like your idea of decomposing masks, that sounds really cool. Not sure it's true--the summer skull masks have features of the skull spider masks, indicating they are offshoots thereof--but still, cool.

Not sure if this helps, but a qoute from Merlin was the following;

"So the protectors we see in the present are descendants of the ones laying Ekimu to rest."

Out of curiosity, where did this quote come from? I don't remember this being mentioned anywhere.

Y'all are really overthinking the whole Ekimu thing. The Legend, the first bit of story we got for this reboot, deliberately states "A shockwave rolled across the land, and sent both brothers into an endless sleep."

So that's it. That's all there is to know. He's in an endless sleep. If you want to frame it in real world terms, then yeah, a 'coma' would be the closest approximation. But keep in mind this is a fantasy and stuff isn't always going to makes sense in terms of how things function in the real world.

Not to derail this pleasant conversation but uh, any states residents check Target for dem summer sets lately(I'm too lazy)?

Y'all are really overthinking the whole Ekimu thing. The Legend, the first bit of story we got for this reboot, deliberately states "A shockwave rolled across the land, and sent both brothers into an endless sleep."

So that's it. That's all there is to know. He's in an endless sleep. If you want to frame it in real world terms, then yeah, a 'coma' would be the closest approximation. But keep in mind this is a fantasy and stuff isn't always going to makes sense in terms of how things function in the real world.

To be fair an 'endless sleep', 'endless dreaming' and 'eternal sleep' have also been used to refer to death many times in the real world. I guess the 'endless sleep' in G1 was a Coma, though with the mention of 'laying Ekimu to rest' in G2 there is a bit of debate as to whether it is another Coma.

Out of curiosity, where did this quote come from? I don't remember this being mentioned anywhere.

I enquired with him about the nature of the Protectors, the chronological progression, and things about the timeline structure with Merlin when i was working on Bionicle Abridged with him in February. The full interaction concerning the previously qouted segment was the following;

"In addition, I have a query, not sure if you are allowed to answer due to story information... but just wondering; Are the Protectors that summoned the Toa the same ones that are helping the Toa, or are they descendants?" - Me

"As long as it's part of the story that's already been released, it should be fine for me to answer. And yes. The story states that at least a thousand years have passed, and thus several generations of villagers. This is also why the legend talks about passing the prophecy. So the protectors we see in the present are descendants of the ones laying Ekimu to rest." - Merlin

Just clarifying the current story aspects really.

Edited July 7, 20159 yr by Scarilian

"In addition, I have a query, not sure if you are allowed to answer due to story information... but just wondering; Are the Protectors that summoned the Toa the same ones that are helping the Toa, or are they descendants?" - Me

"As long as it's part of the story that's already been released, it should be fine for me to answer. And yes. The story states that at least a thousand years have passed, and thus several generations of villagers. This is also why the legend talks about passing the prophecy. So the protectors we see in the present are descendants of the ones laying Ekimu to rest." - Merlin

Just clarifying the current story aspects really.

I figured that was the case. Besides, What would be the point of hunting down Ekimu's body if the Protectors were the same ones who put him to rest. Shouldn't they know where they put him if that was the case?

In regards to the 'endless sleep' I figure that since magic is a thing in G2, I'll blame any unexplained thing on magic until we potentially get an explanation. How did Ekimu survive this long? Magic.

http://www.bzpower.c...ory.php?ID=7755

There IS an exclusive mask!

Edited July 7, 20159 yr by AyliffeMakit

http://www.bzpower.c...ory.php?ID=7755

There IS an exclusive mask!

Yesss, another thirty bucks I'll be spending.

Oh come on, out of all these badass trans masks I've got the one out of four. .__. Release mask packs already, dammit.

Very cool mask. I'm not attending SDCC and probably won't go out of my way to get this one, but it's cool that Bionicle will be getting some more exposure at SDCC, and that some fans will be lucky enough to bring one of these home with them! After so much radio silence about further exclusives I wasn't sure there'd be any Bionicle exclusives at SDCC.

I'm sure some people might not be as interested in this as the transparent Tahu and Gali masks, since as the mask of a brand-new character it doesn't have nearly so much nostalgic value attached to it. Nevertheless, I'm sure it'll fetch a pretty penny on the aftermarket and will look incredible on MOCs. I look forward to seeing what sort of packaging it comes in! I expect it'll be a reclosable blister pack like the other exclusive minifigures and masks use.

http://www.bzpower.c...ory.php?ID=7755

There IS an exclusive mask!

I can hear the rabid screams of System fans who think that Lego is 'shorting them a minifigure'. I find this mask an interesting choice (I would have done a Transparent Yellow MoCr, for example), but it might make Scorpio look a bit better. Wonder if it is in homage to the Miru?

I am very excited to get the summer wave in-hand, and am looking forward to getting news about where they will pop up in the US. My guess isn't that Target will leak them like last wave, but they will see a normal early-TRU-release.

http://www.bzpower.c...ory.php?ID=7755

There IS an exclusive mask!

*drools*

That was unexpected, but that mask looks fantastic. I hope lego will eventually release mask packs so I won't have to pay through the nose for glorious colors.

it might make Scorpio look a bit better

It can hardly look worse.

Looks like they're offering an exclusive mask to promote the weakest set of the year. I'm glad they chose this mask, and not the MoCr, because I won't feel bad if I don't have it.

Woah, I couldn't even tell it was the Skull Scorpio mask. Very cool. Hopefully this means there will be more than 200 copies and not be stupidly expensive to acquire secondhand.

Not to derail this pleasant conversation but uh, any states residents check Target for dem summer sets lately(I'm too lazy)?

I went through a Target, a LEGO Store, and another store on the first. No sign of them. Although it's been a week I doubt luck will be much better.

Also the trans mask looks pretty great. Won't get it unfortunately, but still.

I don't care much for exclusives, honestly. It IS a pretty cool mask, though.

There IS an exclusive mask!

That makes the third, the first being the clear hau, the second being the trans gali mask and now the trans scorpio mask. While i like exclusives, i fear its putting off collectors as its going to get more difficult to get a complete set.

Wonder if we'll get transparent masks for the rest of the summer villains also then?

Edited July 7, 20159 yr by Scarilian

Aw crap, that looks so cool. Not sure where I'd use it, but it's really cool.

Still, too bad the possibility of a more widespread Mask of Water recolour seems less likely the day that passes.