Bionicle-2010?

[Aanchir]

That's why I said might.

Lego sometimes returns back to its old themes but I also think Bionicle won't come back .

The "might" didn't help anything. Fact is, we've been told that if Hero Factory fails, there will be no chance for BIONICLE to come back. If Hero Factory is successful, then maybe in several years BIONICLE might be given a second chance. But as it is, Hero Factory's all we can expect for the foreseeable future.

[Erebus]

It would be nice if BIONICLE moved away from sets. Though they certainly closed of the MU, so it lost its potential. Could be fixed though.

[Brickthing]

It would be nice if BIONICLE moved away from sets. Though they certainly closed of the MU, so it lost its potential. Could be fixed though.

Despite Bionicle having a lot of potential when it doesn't need to fit sets, LEGO's main business is in making plastic toys, not stories.

As for the MU, the only part that is truly destroyed is the brains below Metru Nui - the rest is only slightly damaged and in "hibernation". At the very least we would still see the MU in flashbacks/alternate universes, but it wouldn't be that hard to entirely bring the MU back.

[Erebus]

Despite Bionicle having a lot of potential when it doesn't need to fit sets, LEGO's main business is in making plastic toys, not stories.

As for the MU, the only part that is truly destroyed is the brains below Metru Nui - the rest is only slightly damaged and in "hibernation". At the very least we would still see the MU in flashbacks/alternate universes, but it wouldn't be that hard to entirely bring the MU back.

Obviously, but LEGO could sell the franchise too. That's what I was saying.

All could be fixed though.

[Darkness Falls]

Interesting... however, there's one problem with having an opinion like this. You see, regardless of whether you liked Mata Nui being a robot or not, the reality is that he had always been that way in the storyline. We just didn't know about it until 2008 - but it had been planned since the very begining. In fact, if Bionicle had only been a one year line, as it might have been originally, we would have still gotten a similiar ending, with everyone finding out that Mata Nui actually is a giant robot that contains the universe. Other things that you don't like, like the Brotherhood of Makuta, had been planned from the begining as well - the entire story had, actually, up til about 2008. The only years that hadn't been planned were 2009 to 2010 - otherwise, everything that we have experienced was part of the original plan laid out by Bob Thompson and the story team.

On another note, I've never had the opinion that, just because there are other Makuta out there, the one we have known since 2001 is suddenly much less powerful. Makuta was never really as much about power as he was about trickery anyway, and in that sense he has been completely consistent. He tricked the Toa into making him the ruler of their universe, he tricked his brothers and sisters into dying for him - he tricked basically everyone, and it took the Great Spirit himself to defeat him once and for all. That's why he is "The Makuta," not just "a Makuta" - because his intelect is far ahead of almost every other being in the universe. IMO, that makes a far more interesting villian than just "I'm so powerful because I'm the strongest being in the world."

Well then, I suppose I just think the idea of them living in a giant robot is silly and foolish. In fact, when you look at the entirety of the plot up until that point, there were no references to Mata Nui being a giant robot to begin with, except, of course, for the reference of his name. It was also abruptly handled in 2008, with the end of the year culminating into "Surprise! I'm a giant robot! Wait, no... nevermind. It's just me, Makuta." Let me just come out and say it now- I dislike 2008 immensely. The restoration of Mata Nui's spirit was just a way to draw out the "save Mata Nui" storyline considering there was no prior mentioning of a disconnection between body and spirit, the story itself was little more than twelve characters flying around an enclosed area with a multitude of serials with many different things occurring without a conclusion.

Having a character like Makuta and introducing his Brotherhood has a dual effect, actually- when the other members turned out to be throwaway characters with little to no importance you also have to wonder why Makuta is so much better- and if there's an evil organization of beings equal to his power, why the hell were they such pushovers when the Toa could barely stand against the original Makuta? Inconsistent storytelling, that's why. Sure, Arthaka's Armor and Nyra Ghost Blasters and Midak Skyblasters and whatnot, but that doesn't fool me. I do, however, think Aanchir makes a good point with his view on 2008's premise- but it certainly didn't feel that way for me.

Also, saying that Mata Nui would create a being with the curse of arrogance and an intellect far greater than his own is something that boggles me- the original idea that Mata Nui and Makuta were brothers suited me far better- in fact, it would explain why he has a brotherhood of underlings that are not nearly as powerful or clever as he is in the first place. We certainly have not experienced everything the way Bob Thompson and the story team had planned it to be, as things were rushed and major and minor changes were made. In fact, the majority of what we have experienced has been on the behalf of Greg, though I won't get into that.

Perhaps the idea of Giant Robot Mata Nui may not upset me as much as the fact that they had a Giant Robot battle at the end of the story. It's just so... stereotypical. So stereotypical that shows and literature have even made satire of it. That is what I truly don't enjoy.

I mean, the sets are really the core of what Bionicle was to me. All I needed to enjoy them was the brief description of the character provided by the Lego Catalog and the premise of the story and my mind was alight with possibilities, and the books, while interesting in their own right, limited that idea. I was an avid fan of the story for a long time but eventually it just lost me with its inconsistencies in the over exaggeration of certain characters and the loss of the core mysticism that made the first five years so successful.

[Brickthing]

Well then, I suppose I just think the idea of them living in a giant robot is silly and foolish. In fact, when you look at the entirety of the plot up until that point, there were no references to Mata Nui being a giant robot to begin with, except, of course, for the reference of his name. It was also abruptly handled in 2008, with the end of the year culminating into "Surprise! I'm a giant robot! Wait, no... nevermind. It's just me, Makuta." Let me just come out and say it now- I dislike 2008 immensely. The restoration of Mata Nui's spirit was just a way to draw out the "save Mata Nui" storyline considering there was no prior mentioning of a disconnection between body and spirit, the story itself was little more than twelve characters flying around an enclosed area with a multitude of serials with many different things occurring without a conclusion.

There weren't many obvious references to Mata Nui being a giant robot, but after 2008's plot twist revealed this to us, it's pretty clear that the giant robot thing was planned from the start. Before the end of 2008 a few people correctly theorized that the MU was within Mata Nui, using hints from previous years (Many locations on the island of Mata Nui translate to parts of a face).

I agree that the double twist of Makuta taking over was pretty abrupt, but that was because the story was changed to simplify the giant backlog of characters/plot-points. Originally the Mahri would've been in Karda Nui bringing Mata Nui back to life, then 2009 onwards would've been about waking him up again. So 2008 shortened the storyline to save Mata Nui compared to the original idea.

Having a character like Makuta and introducing his Brotherhood has a dual effect, actually- when the other members turned out to be throwaway characters with little to no importance you also have to wonder why Makuta is so much better- and if there's an evil organization of beings equal to his power, why the hell were they such pushovers when the Toa could barely stand against the original Makuta? Inconsistent storytelling, that's why. Sure, Arthaka's Armor and Nyra Ghost Blasters and Midak Skyblasters and whatnot, but that doesn't fool me. I do, however, think Aanchir makes a good point with his view on 2008's premise- but it certainly didn't feel that way for me.

As Grevious said, Makuta was so more dangerous and powerful than other Makuta because he was much smarter and deceitful than they were (although all the Makuta in 2008 were quite handicapped in one way or another). As with real life, physically we are more-or-less equally powerful, but it's the smarter people that can apply their physical power much more effectively. (That's the storyline justification anyway, but the story wouldn't work that well if the Toa were up against 6 Teridaxs would it? )

[Strakk]

The "might" didn't help anything. Fact is, we've been told that if Hero Factory fails, there will be no chance for BIONICLE to come back. If Hero Factory is successful, then maybe in several years BIONICLE might be given a second chance. But as it is, Hero Factory's all we can expect for the foreseeable future.

Two series almost identical at the same time? That'd make both fail or one of them at least would be cancelled (remember Exo-force ? ).

Bionicle had horrible results in my country in 2009 and from what I have heard it didn't sell so much in the other parts of the world either. So I don't think it'll ever come back.

[Bfahome]

Two series almost identical at the same time? That'd make both fail or one of them at least would be cancelled (remember Exo-force ? ).

Wait, what?

They'd end HF first (or at least put it on hiatus) if they were going to restart BIONICLE.

[Strakk]

Wait, what?

They'd end HF first (or at least put it on hiatus) if they were going to restart BIONICLE.

Yeah, that's what I was saying.

[ultra hamster]

They could possibly put both on at the same time.

It would be great if they had a TV show or something and then made the main charactors sets like they've done with other shows and movies.

It would have to be a good show though.

Don't let 4Kids get a hold of it.

[Zarkan]

They could possibly put both on at the same time.

It would be great if they had a TV show or something and then made the main charactors sets like they've done with other shows and movies.

It would have to be a good show though.

Don't let 4Kids get a hold of it.

Hey, even if 4Kids got ahold of it, it might not necessarily be bad. The recent TMNT show was from them, and that was really awesome IMO. But really, this is all speculation anyway, as I highly doubt we'll get a bionicle television show. Would it be cool? Yes, especially if it was based off of the early years and expanded on them. Just saying it probably won't happen.

[Zip]

I would kill for a Bionicle anime.

Yes, anime, because we already have animations.

[Zarkan]

I would kill for a Bionicle anime.

Yes, anime, because we already have animations.

Ugh, to be honest, I always found that exclusive comic cover rather ugly. It honestly makes the Toa look really evil, and some of the masks look nothing like the ones on the actual sets.

Regardless, I wouldn't really want a Bionicle anime, as my ideal Bionicle cartoon would have really fluid animation. Something along the lines of Transformers Animated or Spectacular Spiderman would work much better for me - simple designs that move really smoothly and also are visually appealing.

[Aanchir]

I'd think a CGI cartoon would be good. Similar in style to The Legend Reborn or the CGI promo animations by Ghost, but maybe with simpler textures. A little less gritty; a little more shiny. Granted, if it were based on 2001 then TLR style wouldn't work quite so well, because neither the masks nor the faces underneath were very versatile in the expressions they could show. But in that case, deviating from set style might simplify things rather than making them more complex.

Typically I'm a bit uneasy about CGI cartoons since typically the budget forces the animators to simply reuse or modify character "templates". But since this is LEGO, where parts are reused in real life all the time, I'm sure it could be managed.

CGI just feels to me like BIONICLE's most comfortable medium. Ghost's animations feel a lot more genuine than Templar animations (MNOLG style), or the styles of any of the comic artists we've seen (as much as I have enjoyed the comics). Simplify the faces and add some versatility, and the setlike style used in Ghost's commercials or TLR would be perfect for telling a BIONICLE story.

[Toa Lahka]

I would like to have an enhanced version of Templar's animations for a series.

[Zip]

Ugh, to be honest, I always found that exclusive comic cover rather ugly. It honestly makes the Toa look really evil, and some of the masks look nothing like the ones on the actual sets.

Regardless, I wouldn't really want a Bionicle anime, as my ideal Bionicle cartoon would have really fluid animation. Something along the lines of Transformers Animated or Spectacular Spiderman would work much better for me - simple designs that move really smoothly and also are visually appealing.

The point wasn't to set off a direct example of what a Bionicle anime should look like; it's merely presenting the possibility that it could be done. I do agree that they look rather evil- but look at the way they're drawn: fluidly, as opposed to their usual blockiness in set form. I could easily see these guys in motion, whereas I can't do the same with the original sets.

Are you implying that anime doesn't have fluid animation? I hope you're not one of those people who stereotype anime as "big eyes, squeaky voices, and moe-moe". You should know that TFA's animation was heavily inspired by the anime Diebuster. I've never seen Spectacular Spiderman, so I don't know about that one.

I'd prefer something animated as opposed to CGI (mainly because the 4 movies' animation wasn't the highest, and CGI series are bound to be lower in quality due to each episode having a smaller budget).

Templar's animations are, IMO, too goofy looking; while Ghost's are too realistic. On TV, none of these two would fit.

[Zarkan]

The point wasn't to set off a direct example of what a Bionicle anime should look like; it's merely presenting the possibility that it could be done. I do agree that they look rather evil- but look at the way they're drawn: fluidly, as opposed to their usual blockiness in set form. I could easily see these guys in motion, whereas I can't do the same with the original sets.

Are you implying that anime doesn't have fluid animation? I hope you're not one of those people who stereotype anime as "big eyes, squeaky voices, and moe-moe". You should know that TFA's animation was heavily inspired by the anime Diebuster. I've never seen Spectacular Spiderman, so I don't know about that one.

I'd prefer something animated as opposed to CGI (mainly because the 4 movies' animation wasn't the highest, and CGI series are bound to be lower in quality due to each episode having a smaller budget).

Templar's animations are, IMO, too goofy looking; while Ghost's are too realistic. On TV, none of these two would fit.

No, I'm not one of those people. I realize that there are anime that have very fluid animation - however, anime series aimed at kids generally seem to have a lot choppier animation than western series. Or at least, the ones that make it over to the United States (Pokemon, Yugioh, etc). However, if a Bionicle series was made with animation that took inspiration from anime (Avatar: The Last Airbender comes to mind), then I would probably like it.

My point is, my prime concern about a Bionicle series is that it would animate well. I want the character designs to look good, of course, but the level of detail or design don't matter if the characters don't move smoothly. A series based on Bionicle would need animation on par with the series I have listed, otherwise it wouldn't achieve the level of excitment that it should.

[ultra hamster]

To be honest, I really don't care what style it was, or how it looked, as long as it kept true to the feel and general storyline of bionicle.

I'll take any kind of animation.

[Zarkan]

New Sahmad's Tale is now up.

Man, when the chapter first started, I was afraid the serial had gone the route of Brother In Arms, plunging the title character into another wacky alternate universe. But, as the serial went on, it became far more apparent that something else was afoot. It's obvious now that the being that captured him in Part 3 pulled a trick similar to the trick Makuta pulled on Vakama in Time Trap - making Sahmad think he was in an alternate reality where everything was peaceful. The question now is, why did this new being go to such lengths to put Sahmad in an illusion, when it seems that he only cares about feeding on his soul? I eagerly anticipate finding out the answer.

Oh, and Sahmad still rocks as a nararator.

[Refia]

I agree with Grevious about the new Sahmad's Tale. It's kind of refreshing to have the story narrated by a being not good but not fully evil either. It was a good chapter, and it makes me wonder how much more there will be.

[Brickthing]

I came into the chapter thinking the tentacled monster was Tren Krom (seeing as Greg says he has disappeared from the MU), although the spirit eating desire confused me at the end. Aside from that, Tren Krom has the mind powers and the knowledge of MU beings to create a New Atero illusion in Sahmad's head.

[Erebus]

I know some members were asking how many names you got back. Do you think you can reveal that number? Assuming you name the 6 Toa from the new Toa Team serial' date=' the new Toa Team name, the Golden being, Sahmad's lover, and the Stasis Toa, that's 10 names gone.

Also, isn't Sahmad's lover dead? Is there a reason why she is going to be named?[/quote']

She may be named because it would make sense that he would refer to her by name at some point in the story.

I haven't counted the number of names up myself yet. They are all I am going to have probably for the rest of BIONICLE, so I need to be a little judicious with them. And I may not need a name for the new Toa team -- it is a team that is going to be formed on Spherus Magna, so they have no real need for a naming convention. The whole "we're the Toa (blank) team" was meant to differentiate teams, but since most Toa will be working with Glatorian now, there won't be other active just-Toa teams for the most part.

I was really hoping for a name for the Toa Team.

Anyways, if you haven't noticed yet, GregF's blog was updated with an entry on the stasis Toa who appeared in BIONICLE Legends 4: Legacy of Evil. The Toa's name is Varian.

[Aanchir]

Just got the new graphic novel about a week ago, and thought I'd share my thoughts (without major spoilers):

The Skrall-focused comic is entertaining, and has some lovely art. It's a pity that much of it is obscured by atmospheric effects. Zanier's colors are crisp, and the detail of the shading makes you almost think it's a 3-D render sometimes.

The comic about Malum's exile is cool, and well-written, even though there's a Paradise Lost reference that feels somewhat stale and inappropriate. The art is very comic-y, with bright colors and exaggerated shading, but it still feels very appropriate to the story.

The last comic, Sayger's, is kind of hit-and-miss (isn't most of Sayger's stuff?). He handles unnamed background characters well, although one of the named characters does not match the official depiction (only fair since the official depiction was decided by a contest only recently). He also makes a major slip-up toward the end in a certain character's depiction. Nevertheless, his work is as always very expressive and conveys the emotion of the piece quite well.

I've already expressed my feelings on the Element Lords, who I feel were handled well considering how impossible the written descriptions we've encountered have been for me to visualize. The Baterra also look amazing.

I wouldn't be at all surprised if the Baterra were based on a prototype set design, and the ELs on concept sketches in the very least. As much as I love Sayger, he doesn't necessarily have a mastery of making custom or background characters look like official BIONICLE sets, and the Baterra are certainly that, using recognizable parts in several places. Makes me wonder how far the development got for 2010 before the decision was made to end BIONICLE (surely there were some concepts established, if not any set-in-stone plans for sets).

Interestingly, GN #9 was also at the same bookstore I picked this up on. Guess there wasn't much hype about it since it didn't have any new comics. Plus, I haven't been spending nearly as much time on BS01 as I should. Hope GN#10 makes it to market and is as impressive as this one was for me.

[Nightmare]

Just got the new graphic novel about a week ago, and thought I'd share my thoughts (without major spoilers):

The Skrall-focused comic is entertaining, and has some lovely art. It's a pity that much of it is obscured by atmospheric effects. Zanier's colors are crisp, and the detail of the shading makes you almost think it's a 3-D render sometimes.

The comic about Malum's exile is cool, and well-written, even though there's a Paradise Lost reference that feels somewhat stale and inappropriate. The art is very comic-y, with bright colors and exaggerated shading, but it still feels very appropriate to the story.

The last comic, Sayger's, is kind of hit-and-miss (isn't most of Sayger's stuff?). He handles unnamed background characters well, although one of the named characters does not match the official depiction (only fair since the official depiction was decided by a contest only recently). He also makes a major slip-up toward the end in a certain character's depiction. Nevertheless, his work is as always very expressive and conveys the emotion of the piece quite well.

I've already expressed my feelings on the Element Lords, who I feel were handled well considering how impossible the written descriptions we've encountered have been for me to visualize. The Baterra also look amazing.

I wouldn't be at all surprised if the Baterra were based on a prototype set design, and the ELs on concept sketches in the very least. As much as I love Sayger, he doesn't necessarily have a mastery of making custom or background characters look like official BIONICLE sets, and the Baterra are certainly that, using recognizable parts in several places. Makes me wonder how far the development got for 2010 before the decision was made to end BIONICLE (surely there were some concepts established, if not any set-in-stone plans for sets).

Interestingly, GN #9 was also at the same bookstore I picked this up on. Guess there wasn't much hype about it since it didn't have any new comics. Plus, I haven't been spending nearly as much time on BS01 as I should. Hope GN#10 makes it to market and is as impressive as this one was for me.

Just telling you, on the Skrall story, there are some Skrall renders used. Look at the smallest ones xD

BTW, Greg got back 23 names. But Tuma's level of detail was just awesome. Really awesome.

[Malum_King_Vorox]

New spoilers about The Yesterday Quest!!!!

The first chapter is done, and Bink will be posting it as soon as he can (he is traveling for work, so it may be later this week). This chapter features three new Toa -- Psionics, Lightning, and Iron -- and a new villain.