Worst ever Bionicle design.

[InnerRayg]

Quite frankly everything after Bohrok

Yeah I know I'm probably going to get stoned but thats the truth(especially Gadunka)

You should get stoned man, you honestly think nothing at all after the Bohrok had any redeemable qualities? I mean damn, the 01-02 stuff wasn't -that- well designed.

[Ikki o' Moopyville]

How can you not love the Rahkshi? =O

Honestly, best sets ever. I would say the jump-down in quality happened after the Metru.

-Ikk

[Bundalings]

Erm where were these 70+ piece canister sets exactly? Cause I think I missed out on them!

Yeah, when did that occur?

Quite frankly everything after Bohrok

Yeah I know I'm probably going to get stoned but thats the truth(especially Gadunka)

DON'T BE HATIN' THE 'DUNKA

He's my favorite set -ever-.

Such unique scariness... awesomely bizarre.

But you can dislike whatever you want.

I guess.

~Bunda

Edited December 28, 2008 by Bundalings

[Algernon]

You should get stoned man, you honestly think nothing at all after the Bohrok had any redeemable qualities? I mean damn, the 01-02 stuff wasn't -that- well designed.

02, maybe not, but 01 was definitely Bionicle's best year.

[Zarkan]

And call me crazy but I'm not at all interested in the storyline further than the setting. Lately the writing in Bionicle has been anything but it's strong point.

As opposed to 2001, which had no actual book series to speak of? I mean, yeah, the animations were awesome, and the comics were far better than the current ones in dialogue, but those kinds of storytelling lack the emotion that real books can give you.

But of course, this all comes down to whether you like Greg's writing or not, and that seems to be possibly one of the biggest issues of debate on this forum. Personally, I can't get enough of his writing, while other people here seem to hate it with a passion. Oh well, at least we all can agree that 2009 will probably be awesome!

[Corvus]

The thing that really killed the elemental look was silver pieces and bley...

[KinGanon]

You should get stoned man, you honestly think nothing at all after the Bohrok had any redeemable qualities? I mean damn, the 01-02 stuff wasn't -that- well designed.

Everything after was so poorly made(Rahkshi exempted)

Then they(TLC) got rid of the whole mechanical aspect of the sets, started writing nonsense that a rocket scientist would have trouble following, and started created sets that were filled with giant worthless pieces

So yeah everything after wasn't even worth looking at.....

Ohh, and don't even get me started on the vampiric squid

[Ikki o' Moopyville]

... are you seriously comparing every post-Bohrok set to the squid? XD

Mechanical aspect in sets? Abundant in the Metru. Story? Easy to follow and get into up 'til around 2007. Giant pieces? Definitely, but most are not useless.

-Ikk

[KinGanon]

... are you seriously comparing every post-Bohrok set to the squid? XD

Mechanical aspect in sets? Abundant in the Metru. Story? Easy to follow and get into up 'til around 2007. Giant pieces? Definitely, but most are not useless.

-Ikk

I am saying that the squid was one of the many bad choices made for Bionicle

And for mechanical, Metru were just rehashes of the the first Toa(basic arm movements that were great for the first Toa, not so great for the Metru), also did you ever see anything as mechnically advanced as a Bohrok head to date?(Now they're pretty much action figures that you put together) Sounds a lot like Galidor!(and yes I did just connect Bionicle to the worst them TLC has made.)

Storyline wise I have almost every magazine of Bionicle and I still don't get anything out of them

But that's just my opinion

Edited December 28, 2008 by KinGanon

[Ikki o' Moopyville]

The only thing that the Metru had in common with the Mata was the humanoid appearance. Everything else, from the colors to the construction to the style was different. And it sounds as if by mechanical you mean set functions -- yes, they sadly got rid of those, since constructing them was too hard for the target audience. =/ I strongly miss those too, and let it be clear that I *loved* the Bohrok and Rahkshi like nothing else. Launchers sell better though, and set functions ARE present in the large 2008 vehicle sets.

Story-wise, I always found the comics confusing too. XD Maybe I'm biased since I've followed every year zealously and have enjoyed both the days of simplicity and intricateness. Obviously it can't be that much of a problem since Bionicle is still going strong and there are heated story debates in many a place.

-Ikk

[JINZONINGEN73]

Man I miss the original Kanohi. All other Kanohi have been suck compared to the beautiful aesthetics the 2001 Kanohi possessed.

Same. Well, with the exveption of Kopaka's mask being asymmetrical make it wOrThLeSs for mocing.

And that ugly, Darth Vadery Turaga mask... gyuuh.

[KinGanon]

The only thing that the Metru had in common with the Mata was the humanoid appearance. Everything else, from the colors to the construction to the style was different. And it sounds as if by mechanical you mean set functions -- yes, they sadly got rid of those, since constructing them was too hard for the target audience. =/ I strongly miss those too, and let it be clear that I *loved* the Bohrok and Rahkshi like nothing else. Launchers sell better though, and set functions ARE present in the large 2008 vehicle sets.

Story-wise, I always found the comics confusing too. XD Maybe I'm biased since I've followed every year zealously and have enjoyed both the days of simplicity and intricateness. Obviously it can't be that much of a problem since Bionicle is still going strong and there are heated story debates in many a place.

-Ikk

I assume you are refering to me? Nice to see Bionicle still has dedicated fans(I was obessed with it at one point but the different changes made me slowly detract from it to the point where I just flip through their section in the LEGO magazine) Sorry about the heated argument. Truce?

[Ikki o' Moopyville]

Haha, no, I was actually refering to BZP. I enjoy swapping opinions with people who hold vastly different views than meself -- and I can definitely see where you're coming from with many of those points! I'm curious, though, what do you think of the 2009 stuff we've seen so far?

-Ikk

[dviddy]

As opposed to 2001, which had no actual book series to speak of? I mean, yeah, the animations were awesome, and the comics were far better than the current ones in dialogue, but those kinds of storytelling lack the emotion that real books can give you.

But of course, this all comes down to whether you like Greg's writing or not, and that seems to be possibly one of the biggest issues of debate on this forum. Personally, I can't get enough of his writing, while other people here seem to hate it with a passion. Oh well, at least we all can agree that 2009 will probably be awesome!

I disagree about the emotion aspect. The comics in 2001 did a far better job selling the characters than any book has (and yeah, I've read them all). When you add in the MNOLG, which opened up their entire world for us, gave us consistent characters, and allowed us to become actually absorbed into the island of Mata-Nui, and it's culture, you get a much larger emotional connection than the action-over-packed Scholastic books have ever allowed. Besides, Greg only has like, five basic characterizations, and he uses them for everyone. That's frustrating.

[Algernon]

I disagree about the emotion aspect. The comics in 2001 did a far better job selling the characters than any book has (and yeah, I've read them all). When you add in the MNOLG, which opened up their entire world for us, gave us consistent characters, and allowed us to become actually absorbed into the island of Mata-Nui, and it's culture, you get a much larger emotional connection than the action-over-packed Scholastic books have ever allowed. Besides, Greg only has like, five basic characterizations, and he uses them for everyone. That's frustrating.

Agreed. It's difficult to squeeze emotion out of robotic action figures aimed for preteens, and the only time I've been captivated by Bionicle storyline was when it didn't try so hard to do the impossible- 2001. 2001 was more about exploring the world, which is much more interesting to me than the horribly generic personalities behind the fifth wave of Toa. Instead, it focused on Bionicle's strong point, which is the world.

Edited December 29, 2008 by Algernon

[ShaddowCroc]

Well, it's not Greg's fault that he can't do much characterization.

Scholastic requires that he does more action sequences so that the book sells to the target audience. (AKA: Kids who prefer generic personalities and lots of fighting.) I think he's done well in characterization with the serials. Especially with Lesovikk, Takanuva, Matoro, and Mutran.

[InnerRayg]

You guys are nuts, characterization in the comics? Are we reading the same issues? It was a lot of fancy fireworks and illustration, and it looked beautiful, but personalities weren't exactly the first priority. MNOG is what made the characters of the first year stick in your head so much, I'd say.

[Bundalings]

The thing that really killed the elemental look was silver pieces and bley...

Which are mostly gone next year! Yay!

giant worthless pieces

Mata era had the most worthless pieces, actually. The sets looked great but the giant unusable torsos (yes I know they can be used but it's hard) and pre bent limbs make MOCing with them a nightmare.

I disagree about the emotion aspect. The comics in 2001 did a far better job selling the characters than any book has (and yeah, I've read them all). When you add in the MNOLG, which opened up their entire world for us, gave us consistent characters, and allowed us to become actually absorbed into the island of Mata-Nui, and it's culture, you get a much larger emotional connection than the action-over-packed Scholastic books have ever allowed. Besides, Greg only has like, five basic characterizations, and he uses them for everyone. That's frustrating.

Sad and mostly true. =/

However 2009 looks to be shaping up well, if the new comic is anything to go by.

~Bunda

[Zarkan]

I disagree about the emotion aspect. The comics in 2001 did a far better job selling the characters than any book has (and yeah, I've read them all). When you add in the MNOLG, which opened up their entire world for us, gave us consistent characters, and allowed us to become actually absorbed into the island of Mata-Nui, and it's culture, you get a much larger emotional connection than the action-over-packed Scholastic books have ever allowed. Besides, Greg only has like, five basic characterizations, and he uses them for everyone. That's frustrating.

I disagree about you disagreeing. But in all seriousness, I have simply never gotten how people can get so much emotion from the 2001 comics, or any bionicle comic for that matter. Dialogue is just simply not enough, especially since Bionicles drawn to set form can simply not show adequate emotion.

And, that applies to the MNOLG too. Yes, great dialogue is all well and cool, but it's hard to really get the feel for it if all the characters speaking it are wearing masks. That is the big reason why I prefer the books and serials over every other kind of Bionicle media. Since they emphasize description, you can really understand the feelings of characters throughout the entire book.

BTW, I really dislike over-generalizations, especially when they involve Greg - mainly because people here seem to make so many about him. It gets really annoying.

[dviddy]

BTW, I really dislike over-generalizations, especially when they involve Greg - mainly because people here seem to make so many about him. It gets really annoying.

I've read the books. I read the comics. When it comes to BIONICLE, Greg has about five distinct characterizations, with small variations within each.

And that's boring.

It's not an over-generalization. (Also, people seem to forget that there's a reason things become generalization, especially ones that are held popularly. There's a bit of truth in them somewhere.)

[hewkii9]

I've read the books. I read the comics. When it comes to BIONICLE, Greg has about five distinct characterizations, with small variations within each.

And that's boring.

What are they, if I may ask? I'm thinking Crazy, Angry, Lewa, Wisdom, and Girl.

[Bundalings]

I would change Lewa to "Air," because Kongu's pretty dang similar.

And there are variations in the girls...

Nokama is Angry/Girl.

Gali is Wisdom/Girl.

And Hahli is... Girl.

XD

But you know there are some other types. I think one of the main reasons the characters get somewhat repetitive is they're trying to keep beings in the same element similar.

Also; villains are more diverse.

That is why 2008 was good.

(Even though the heroes had about zilch personality. Really, after the Mata worked out their differences they got really dull.)

~Bunda

[KinGanon]

Haha, no, I was actually refering to BZP. I enjoy swapping opinions with people who hold vastly different views than meself -- and I can definitely see where you're coming from with many of those points! I'm curious, though, what do you think of the 2009 stuff we've seen so far?

-Ikk

Some improvement, but in my humble opinion it still lacks

Same. Well, with the exveption of Kopaka's mask being asymmetrical make it wOrThLeSs for mocing.

And that ugly, Darth Vadery Turaga mask... gyuuh.

Don't be hating Kapaka! His mask was awesome! I too, miss the simplicity of the masks, each one had a certain power. It seems that idea has drifted off nowadays.

[Capt. Bluebeard]

The Piraka (I hate those spines!)

The Hordika (If you own one, you own them all)

The Mistika (The only good thing about them is that they put me off Bionicle. Now I can focus on the new Pirates )

Bluebeard, out-

[Zarkan]

I've read the books. I read the comics. When it comes to BIONICLE, Greg has about five distinct characterizations, with small variations within each.

And that's boring.

It's not an over-generalization. (Also, people seem to forget that there's a reason things become generalization, especially ones that are held popularly. There's a bit of truth in them somewhere.)

That's not what I see, and I've read all the books and comics too. I can think of a lot just off my head, besides the ones that Bundalings and hewkii mentioned:

Nervous and quiet - Piruk

Unconfident - Vakama, Matoro

Sympathetcially evil - Krika

Speaking in riddles - Velika

Depressed - Nidhiki

Dumb Brute - Krekka, Nocturn

Pathologicaly evil - Makuta Teridax

Zealous for justice - Botar

Good but slightly boastful and bombastic - Jerbraz

Oh, and don't forget all the characters Greg has written that have broken elemental stereotypes or have stayed true to the personalities fromt he early years:

Warrior water type - Helryx, Dalu

Serious air type - Toa Kongu (in line with his original personality)

Calm fire type - Toa Jaller (again, in line with his original personality)

Perpetually positive - Pohatu Phantoka (which stays in tune with his early personality)

Angry and fierce ice type - Mazeka

Evil Ta-Matoran - Vultraz

This is why I called your statement a generalization. On the surface, it may seem like you can divide all Greg written characters into 5 different types, but that just isn't the case if you actually try to get to know the characters.

BTW, I hope you aren't forgetting that Greg also wrote the 2001 comics, which seem to be held in such high esteem here.