Bionicle 2008 Images and Discussion

[Lord Admiral Helden Ravensdorn]

Yeah, I'd take the guy on the right. In fact, I have a spare of him. Anyone want him? :P

[Zarkan]

Here's an even better idea: buy the new Kopaka and put your spare old one's mask and tools on him. Presto, the very kit we all wanted but failed to get! :-P

Actually, I don't really like the old Nuva as much as the Mahri, because in general they seem really dinky and skinny. That's why I was really disapointed with the poor design of the NEW nuva; we could have gotten great kits that were really just modern, totally upgraded versions of the old Nuva, without making them rehashes at all. Who here would have loved to see Lewa in Metru green and lime with two sick hatchets, or Pohatu in Metru brown and yellow, with REAL hands? ;-)

Edited December 7, 2007 by Grevious

[Ikki o' Moopyville]

After such an uplifting year as 2007 -- Barraki, titans, small sets -- 2008 is looking worse and worse, Bionicle-wise. I'll probably get some Av-Matoran for masks and limbs, Lewa for rebuilding, and that sweet Mask of Life one way or another.

Did I already mention this? :-P Anyway, 2008 looks very economical... I've been needing that.

-Ikk

Edited December 8, 2007 by Ikki o' Moopyville

[InnerRayg]

After such an uplifting year as 2007 -- Barraki, titans, small sets -- 2008 is looking worse and worse, Bionicle-wise. I'll probably get some Av-Matoran for masks and limbs, Lewa for rebuilding, and that sweet Mask of Life one way or another.

Did I already mention this? :-P Anyway, 2008 looks very economical... I've been needing that.

-Ikk

Hear Hear. I know I'm the only one happy about Icarax's old mask (what a pleasant surprise, Lego staying consistent!) but Mutran is a complete failure after the work of art that was Nocturn. I see what they're trying to do with the Nuva, but I just don't understand why they can't give them realistic limbs. Kopaka Nuva looks pretty cool, and honestly in that comparison I might choose him if his limbs didn't look so stupid. Removing his launcher will help, but they really just need to be the old Metru legs like Jaller Mahri had. He had perfect proportions...why Lego, why must you change that? It looks somewhat alright on Pohatu, and while he doesn't look at all speedy now, his "function" is cool. Lewa looks good, but he suffers from the same exact flaw with the arms, and his lack of green and surplus of grey brings him down. I don't know why Lego thinks grey is a good color for sets. They were doing so good in 2007...all the sets were bright and vibrant, and now they're dull.

[dviddy]

Icarax looks like a poorly built MOC.

Silver weapons slapped on everywhere in over-abundance, in such a way to make them completely impractical? Check.

Boring torso taken from a canister set? Check.

TLG based arms? Check.

Everyday 2006+ legs? Check.

Really lame feet, that not only look silly (seriously, Visorak toes aren't flat on the sides, his feet don't even look like they sit flush on the ground. Plus what's with the silver Mahritoran knives on the back? WTF?), but look slapped-together. Wahoo noob MOCery.

No thanks.

I do like that he's supposed to wear the Mask of Shadows, and, hey, he does!

<<DV>>

[Clonie]

Yay for overreacting.

Hey, if you don't like the bayonet, guess where you can put it! X-D

Hmm, Lewa with Metru green. No thanks.

Pohatu with hands? Why does he need hands when he has weapons that function as three seperate things?

Pessimism training:

Assume the Makuta of August will have Tridax pods even if they don't, just to get yourself worked up about nothing.

Assume the Tridax pods are useless even though they surprised me by adding technic plus holes on either side.

Assume the leeches are useless bits of rubber even though they have a plus hole on their undersides to attach to sets like leeches.

Assume Lewa has wings, even though he obviously doesn't, just to pretend they all have wings.

Assume doing sets the way you want will make them sell better, even though they did focus groups and gave them ten weapons to choose from for the main one they all have, not all of them launchers.

Assume giving Kopaka a sword and shield will make him cooler, even though there is already a set of him with a sword and shield which you can buy on eBay. Or you already own him.

Complain Icarax has the old Makuta's mask, even though he actually has the old Makuta's mask.

Complain about bulk even though they're supposed to be skeletal and it looks cool.

I could go on for ages. But seriously. Don't you think some people LIKE these sets?

[Lord Admiral Helden Ravensdorn]

Yay for overreacting.

Yay for people who actually care about what they are wasting their money on.

Hey, if you don't like the bayonet, guess where you can put it! X-D

Im not even going to acknowledge this lowbrow statement.

Hmm, Lewa with Metru green. No thanks.

Hmm, Lewa with a ton of grey and nothing but Lime - which, if you recall, the original Lewa didnt have. If he had Mata green, I might forgive him.

Pohatu with hands? Why does he need hands when he has weapons that function as three seperate things?

Three? Claws, propellers, what?

Pessimism training:

Assume the Makuta of August will have Tridax pods even if they don't, just to get yourself worked up about nothing.

They'll have Tridax pods. Are you truly naieve enough to think Lego will break the mold, when they put a freakin' Tridax pod on ICARAX?!

Assume the Tridax pods are useless even though they surprised me by adding technic plus holes on either side.

Yay. You can now stick your useless orange blob into your MoCs!

Assume the leeches are useless bits of rubber even though they have a plus hole on their undersides to attach to sets like leeches.

Okay, I will praise this; the un-attachability of the Squids was a letdown. Fact is, squids were just useless. I can see some clever MoCers coming up with something for this, but probably not much more then the Kraata and Krana. But then, at least Krana looked like something other than legless squigs.

Assume Lewa has wings, even though he obviously doesn't, just to pretend they all have wings.

I do not recall anyone doing this? He has freakin' jetpacks. But why does a Toa of Air get jetpacks - which he shouldnt need, since he's the Toa of Air - yet a Toa of Water - underwater! - got wings...?

Assume doing sets the way you want will make them sell better, even though they did focus groups and gave them ten weapons to choose from for the main one they all have, not all of them launchers.

Give me a quote that they did this. Furthermore, they did focus groups on kids like you, which will basically approve of anything Lego throws at them. Lastly, I am a firm believer that you can create sets that will sell well and please both old fans and new fans alike by simply thinking. Nocturn is a great example of a set that pleased everyone; Fanboys, MoCers, and old guard like myself all loved him, and I went out and bought him.

Assume giving Kopaka a sword and shield will make him cooler, even though there is already a set of him with a sword and shield which you can buy on eBay. Or you already own him.

Ah, yes, Kopaka, whos key thing was precision swordsmanship, now has a precision laser-guided sniper CANNON. Change is good. Changing something that was an established character wargear - particularly when changing it into a useless shooter - is not.

Complain Icarax has the old Makuta's mask, even though he actually has the old Makuta's mask.

Eh, I never much liked that mask, but, hey, a Kraahkan is a Kraahkan. I'm good with it. Woulda been nice in a new color or something, like bronze.

Complain about bulk even though they're supposed to be skeletal and it looks cool.

Yes, thin build that makes this guy look like this guy in comparison is obviously a cool look. And mixing super-skinny parts with massive torsos (Lewa) and thick arms and legs (Kopaka) is obviously an A+ design strategy!

I could go on for ages. But seriously. Don't you think some people LIKE these sets?

Some people like these sets. Some people who are not us.

Mutran attempts to overcome his incredibly scrawny build

Edited December 8, 2007 by Lord Admiral Helden Ravensdorn

[Clonie]

Im not even going to acknowledge this lowbrow statement.

Well, it was a joke.

I think I'll quote you on the Tridax thing when pics of the swamp Makuta are released. I'd like to know your reasoning for Tridax pods on the Makuta in the swamp, since there's no one there that they need to use them on, and they'd just fall on the ground anyway -- the sky Makuta drop them, they don't launch them.

Pohatu has propellors/claws/drills. That's three, right? Well, let's just pretend it's two so you can make fun of him.

Kopaka should really go back to swordsmanship, because that will help against Makuta more than light-energy blasters. And a targeting light beam, especially when you're fighting beings who have natural dodge abilities, is immensely impractical.

Hang on, when did he do swordfights? It was to channel his ice power. Sword fights were too violent, remember?

Hmm, Lewa with a ton of grey and nothing but Lime - which, if you recall, the original Lewa didnt have. If he had Mata green, I might forgive him.

Well, he has new armour, which explains the colour change, which I happen to like. It's personal taste whether you like lime-grey. I'd say you only don't like it because 1 -- grey is used a lot, and 2 -- Lewa Mata didn't have grey. As opposed to whether it's a good colour scheme or not. Well guess what, I didn't like how 99% of socket joints in 2001 were black, but I didn't go on about it.

Yay. You can now stick your useless orange blob into your MoCs!

Exactly. :-P Although technically it's not useless if you can use it, is it?

Okay, I will praise this; the un-attachability of the Squids was a letdown. Fact is, squids were just useless. I can see some clever MoCers coming up with something for this, but probably not much more then the Kraata and Krana. But then, at least Krana looked like something other than legless squigs.

And Kanohi. They had one connection point as well. Well, the Mahri Kanohi had more.

Not that I don't like Kanohi, I'm just saying.

Give me a quote where they did this.

Why not? Here:

[O]ur focus groups of kids were given 10 weapons to choose from, some launchers, some not, and Cordak is what they picked. When you run a business, you give people what it is they say they want. Otherwise, there is really no point in doing market research.

Logic would dictate that they did the same for the Midak Skyblasters, would it not?

Now you give me a quote where he said the Ignika talks in baby gibberish. Oh wait, you made that up.

I do not recall anyone doing this?

I just made that up. It's alright when you do it, so why can't I? We're even now.

Some people like these sets. Some people who are not us.

Yeah, I just said that.

Yes, thin build that makes this guy look like this guy in comparison is obviously a cool look. And mixing super-skinny parts with massive torsos (Lewa) and thick arms and legs (Kopaka) is obviously an A+ design strategy!

Yay for overreacting.

They don't look that skinny to me, it's just that you expect them to look like this guy. But I don't know if they're skinny, I don't have them.

Furthermore, they did focus groups on kids like you, which will basically approve of anything Lego throws at them.

If I didn't like them... why would I buy them? Do you think I'm that dumb?

Hey, I see their flaws, they're just not flaws I care about. I don't care about complexity or proportions. I mean, they could do better, but meh. Still fun either way. Am I wrong if I care about different aspects of Lego than you do, and I play instead of build?

Oh by the way, I didn't like Nocturn as much as other sets last year. He was near the bottom for me.

Edited December 8, 2007 by Clonie

[Lord Thrawn]

Although I'm interested in both your ideas I don't think we should be getting in personal insults and jabs against each other. That's just getting a bit too far.

I personally will be getting Lewa to mod. I like his colour scheme but he needs more lime underneath the armour and a custom torso.

[Clonie]

I'm just being humourous. I have nothing against Helden, although he obviously wants to argue with me so he can if he wants.

[Lord Thrawn]

Normally it's best to avoid being humourous without a :-P or ;-) smilie on forums because it's hard to tell when people are joking or not. One of the few disadvantages here.

I think Mutran looks the best out of the Phantoka Makuta as we can only really judge him on a canister set level. Vigan or whoever is the best of the Shadow Matoran too. So I think I'll pick that set up.

[Lord Admiral Helden Ravensdorn]

Humerous? Lay off it and stop trying to make yourself smell like a rose here, Clonie. We both well ruttin' know that you enjoy picking fights with me, as you've been doing it since long before you joined Eurobricks. While I am fine with a difference of opinion, after seeing your personality up close for several months, this:

I have nothing against Helden,

Is completely wrong.

If you would refrain from bringing personal grudges into open forum debate, I would highly appreciate it. As it is, I grow tired of your twisting facts and logic so as to "debate" my points, and I will not continue further, as this will only get worse for the both of us - And I have no interest in getting suspended.

Anyway, about Pohatu: I was unaware that those also functioned as drills. While I am still against building them into his arms, I actually quite like those over Pohatu Nuva's "Kodan Claws", which I never saw much point to.

So yes, if you could at least stop trying to publicly make me look like "the bad guy", I'd really appreciate that, too.

Cheers,

- Helden

[InnerRayg]

I've actually thought about it, and maybe some clever switching of limbs might improve the Phantoka quite a bit. Give Kopaka Pohatu's legs and use his long arm peices to lengthen up Pohatu, and then do something with Lewa, although he's really not that bad.

[Ecto]

I wholeheartedly agree with everything Helden has said.

Clonie, *n*

[Kahgarak]

Lord Admiral, I have said this many times, and I now say it again (respectfully): If you do not like the 2008 Bionicle sets, why even BOTHER posting in this topic? You don't like Bionicle, that's cool. Then find a theme that you like more- but, please, do not keep on bashing Bionicle. It is pointless.

[KMOI]

I wholeheartedly agree with everything Helden has said.

Clonie, *n*

I agree with Ecto. There's never been room here for petty insults and quote-twisting and there's not going to be room for it any time soon.

Lord Admiral, I have said this many times, and I now say it again (respectfully): If you do not like the 2008 Bionicle sets, why even BOTHER posting in this topic? You don't like Bionicle, that's cool. Then find a theme that you like more- but, please, do not keep on bashing Bionicle. It is pointless.

I'm starting to have the feeling I'm always constantly ignored. So I'll have to quote myself from what I've had to say over and over and over, time after time again. I'll speak on behalf of the good Admiral.

I comment because I care.

Just because Bionicle has soured in recent years doesn't mean it will tarnish memories of what it used to be. That's why I spend time to protest how far it's deviated off its course. Bionicle doesn't need to have a so-called "modern" tone that many believe it's supposed to gave. Bionicle started as a simple legend on a tropical island with robots. Robots with masks. Robots with masks who defend smaller robots from a large and very present evil. Bionicle has expanded far beyond what it used to be with mixed results. I like some parts and I dislike others. And here, I voice all of my opinions in the most calm and collected way possible. Why?

This is EUROBRICKS.

Here, we're free to voice our concerns, disdain, praise and joy in a civil fashion. There's no need to automatically praise sets. We can express our true opinions without being persecuted, so long as they fall within the rules and guidelines. You don't like it? Well, you can always find another board that unconditionally praises Bionicle in its current direction.

Voicing concerns does bring alot more attention than you think. We can change the future. Opinions hold far more power than you could even possibly imagine. Eventually, some things that we bring up will bring about significant change. And that is why we contribute our opinions. So we can better a theme beyond what it can do today.

Edited December 8, 2007 by KMOI

[Ecto]

Yet another situation where I completely agree with someone. Thank you, KMOI.

[Darkness Falls]

I agree with Ecto. There's never been room here for petty insults and quote-twisting and there's not going to be room for it any time soon.

I'm starting to have the feeling I'm always constantly ignored. So I'll have to quote myself from what I've had to say over and over and over, time after time again. I'll speak on behalf of the good Admiral.

I comment because I care.

Just because Bionicle has soured in recent years doesn't mean it will tarnish memories of what it used to be. That's why I spend time to protest how far it's deviated off its course. Bionicle doesn't need to have a so-called "modern" tone that many believe it's supposed to gave. Bionicle started as a simple legend on a tropical island with robots. Robots with masks. Robots with masks who defend smaller robots from a large and very present evil. Bionicle has expanded far beyond what it used to be with mixed results. I like some parts and I dislike others. And here, I voice all of my opinions in the most calm and collected way possible. Why?

This is EUROBRICKS.

Here, we're free to voice our concerns, disdain, praise and joy in a civil fashion. There's no need to automatically praise sets. We can express our true opinions without being persecuted, so long as they fall within the rules and guidelines. You don't like it? Well, you can always find another board that unconditionally praises Bionicle in its current direction.

Voicing concerns does bring alot more attention than you think. We can change the future. Opinions hold far more power than you could even possibly imagine. Eventually, some things that we bring up will bring about significant change. And that is why we contribute our opinions. So we can better a theme beyond what it can do today.

EUROBRICKS...?

THIS IS SPARTA!

Sorry, couldn't resist.

And... I faintly remember Greg saying the Titans were going to be "Master Builder" quality...

To that I say, "HA."

Bionicle has always been about introducing a concept with canister sets and then taking that concept to a new level via the Titans. Unfortunately, these past three years have had a problem... there is not new concept to be found. This year, they take something interesting-like the trydax pods- and they destroy the idea by integrating it into the titans.

Instead of getting sets like the Bahrag, which took the concept introduced by the Bohrok to a whole new level, we get sets like these.

HA.

Edited December 8, 2007 by Darkness Falls

[Ecto]

I would cry tears of joy if they made a set like the Bahrag.

[Darkness Falls]

I would cry tears of joy if they made a set like the Bahrag.

Who wouldn't? The Bahrag were probably the pinnacle of set design and function.

[Lord Admiral Helden Ravensdorn]

Thank you, KMOI. You summed up much of what I felt and put why I still protest the issue perfectly.

You see, Kahgarak, its not that "I don't like Bionicle". That is the furthest thing from the truth you can possibly say on the issue of Legos. Furthermore, I do not think of myself as "bashing" Bionicle, but criticizing it.

I will acknowledge that I have been far harsher in pointing out what I dislike then what I like. For example, I have heavily critcized some of the 2007 sets - the Mahri in particular - yet have not pointed out the sets that I do greatly like, such as Takadox and Nocturn. Despite the easily-removeable squid launchers, I find absolutley nothing I dislike about either set, other then that I personally do not care for lime - yet the lime actually works pretty well on Nocturn.

Even 2006 - the worst year of Bionicle, IMHO - had sets I liked and bought - namely, the Titans and the Voyatoran. Axonn and Brutaka mix the build quality of a Rahi with the functionality of a canister set - I love it! Of course, I found the names (Axe-Onn and Brute-aka) irritating, but thats easy enough to fix. (I personally refer to them as Nomir Dorn and Naladwor, respectivly.) I even ended up buying 5 of the Inika, and though I replaced Jaller Inika with Jaller Mahri and dissassembled my Kongu to improve on my Ehlek, the others still serve an active roll in my Bionicle adventures. They are inferior set design, but work well in my own Bionicle universe - as they are not the characters they are supposed to portray. As far as portraying Jaller and company, I find they do not evoke one bit of their previous characters.

2008 is the first year of Bionicle to make absolutley NO sets I have any interest in buying. Some sets are okay - such as Lewa - but absolutely none of them hold any real interest for me, and I find some of them - such as Icarax - downright poorly built.

I do not "bash" Bionicle because I hate it. I "bash" Bionicle because I love it. I have devoted hundreds of hours and hundreds of dollars to Bionicle over the years. For the years of 2001 and 2003, I lived and breathed Bionicle. This is not to say I had no gripes then; for one, I found the Nuva to be horrible (I still do, actually... the sets brought nothing but new armor and weapons to the table, the revamped legs were terrible, and the masks were hideous.) Also, I found the Bohrok Kal worked much better as Bohrok captains and that the "Husky" Matoran were just silly.

I originally protested 2004, but more for storyline reasons then set reasons. As it is, I regard 2004 sets as the best of the Bionicle line, and approve of the entire years sets. The Matoran were a letdown, but, they were at least cute, and offered recolored 2001 masks. Originally, I was confused at the past being more advanced then the future, but as the plot was layed out, I went from disliking it to loving it. I have expanded the Metru Nui mythos for my own use and have lived in it since 2005. (2001>2004 I played with my Toa Mata and Bohrok and all that. I finially retired them for the fresh world of Metru-Nui and the superior set build.)

I did not care for 2005, as I found the set build crude and the storyline erratic. It was a very nice concept but was excecuted with mediocre intensity at best; the highlight of the year was probably the beutifully done movie. While it does not evoke the same feel as LoMN, WoS is definetly worth a watch, IMHO.

What started in 2005 really fell on its face in 2006, IMHO. This is when the set designers lost their touch and Greg took over, and I watched as something I had loved for years and was a passion of my early teen years turn into mud. The epic Toa turned into a vast police force; the bad guys turned into stereotypical comic book villians; the Makuta himself turned into an entire species and he himself became a generic "Grr, you've foiled me again! I'll be back! Rawr!" bad guy, rather then the all-encompassing evil he was portrayed as in 2001. Gregs quotes - such as "The reason 2001 and 2002 were so simple to understand because there was no storyline outside the comics" infuriate me, as he blatantly disregards all the work of Templar studios as it wasnt "canon". I watched as the sets went from detailed mechanical robots to giant, unwieldy and usually poorly designed lumps (Piraka, anyone?) I watched as the Bionicle music - a long time favorite of mine - went from the simple yet intriguing tunes of Templar composer Justin Luchter to the all-time low of "Piraka Rap".

In short, I watched my very favorite toy line of my life die.

I have wondered if I should stop complaining about it, but every year has always brought new ideas and sets that I could then build in to my Metru-Nui storyline. As it is, I still semi-actively play with my Bionicle sets, and I am still persuing over a dozen sets I still want. Yet still, every year brings more dissapointment; I am incredulous at how Greg can sink the storyline to ever-new depths and the designers can come up with bigger and bigger guns. Shooting powered disks at each other has turned into shooting light energy cannon balls out of weapons that remind one more of an 18th century Carronade then anything I would expect to see in the Bionicle universe.

In short, Bionicle is something I am very passionate about, and my memories of playing the MNOLG, watching the beutifully-excecuted Bohrok webisodes, and playing with my sets are some of my fondest memories. I cannot bring myself to just shut up when I watch something I view as being almost holy get desecrated year after year.

In the future, I will try to keep my commentary more level-headed and balanced; I find myself complaining about what I dont like yet not praising what I do like, for example. Furthermore, I will try to restrain from getting too agitated or sarcastic, as is my wont to do :P

Thanx,

- Helden

Edited December 8, 2007 by Lord Admiral Helden Ravensdorn

[Zaktan of the Shadows]

No... Eurobricks? SPARTA?

THIS IS CAKETOWN!

...

Yay.

Anyways, I don't see how robots on an island fighting animals while saving midgets appeal to you all. 2001, to me, was about the sets, not the story... then 2002 was better, but 2003 was when the villains actually had minds of their own. But they sucked as hell...

EDIT: Woah, Heldon loves Bionicle. Cool!

-ZotS

Edited December 8, 2007 by Zaktan of the Shadows

[Clonie]

Okay, I'm the bad guy, if it makes you happy.

I don't know about me being serious about the insults -- I didn't actually mean for anyone to stick a bayonet up -- well, you know.

Look, I really don't care about arguing with you, Helden -- if you noticed, you weren't active in the current discussion until I posted.

What logic twisting did I do? You're the one who said the Ignika speaks in gibberish, Idris is black, etc. At least I have proof of my statements, such as the Cordak thing.

[Darkness Falls]

No... Eurobricks? SPARTA?

THIS IS CAKETOWN!

...

Yay.

Anyways, I don't see how robots on an island fighting animals while saving midgets appeal to you all. 2001, to me, was about the sets, not the story... then 2002 was better, but 2003 was when the villains actually had minds of their own. But they sucked as hell...

EDIT: Woah, Heldon loves Bionicle. Cool!

-ZotS

He doesn't love Bionicle. He loves it for what it was- not what it is. And that's perfectly fine. However, if, each year, you're going to protest the same stuff... it gets old, eh?

And I'm only interested in one, perhaps two sets of this year. They are the only one's I would buy, unlike 2006-07, where I was open to most of the designs. No more. It's either unique, or it's a Toa Inika with a new mask and tool.

[Dino_Bot]

The Toa look nice. Everything else is a little strange, including the theme.