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The Space Timeline

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I've been getting into LEGO Space recently, and I'm trying to construct a definitive timeline for all the various subthemes through the years. The original Space line is pretty straightforward, but it gets into trouble after 1998 or so. Here's what I've come up with, but I'm sure other people have their own opinions!

1. City Space? (2011) - Does this even count as Space? I say yes, due to the classic logo. Clearly the most primitive technology.

2. Space Port? (1999) - Again, an iffy theme to include in Space. But it's tied to Life on Mars, which certainly counts.

3. Life on Mars (2001) - Fairly primitive ships stay close to earth. First contact with aliens, who surprisingly turn out to be peaceful.

4. Alien Conquest (2011) - More advanced Earth vehicles, but nothing too outlandish. Why would the ADU exist if humans had never encountered aliens before?

5. Mars Misson (2007) - Humans are still on Mars, now fighting aggressive aliens with better equipment. Mining materials to power interplanetary flight?

6. Classic Space (1978-1988) - Peaceful exploration and colonization of far-reaching worlds.

7. Futuron (1987) - Civilian life in the colonies continues to advance.

8. Blacktron (1987) - Pirates exploit and pillage the Futuron colonists.

9. Space Police (1989) - A law enforcement agency is formed to protect Futuron and deter Blacktron raids.

10. M-Tron (1990) - Roving miners harvest raw materials to power long-range space travel.

11. Blacktron II (1991) - The space pirates continue their dastardly work and upgrade their technology.

12. Space Police II (1992) - The Space Police redouble their efforts (strangely, by removing most of their weapons).

13. Ice Planet 2002 (1993) - Dedicated scientists study the icy world of Krysto and test experimental rockets.

14. Unitron (1994) - A more militant group that shares some similarities with Futuron. This culture did not persist for long.

15. Spyrius (1994) - The heirs apparent to Blacktron, spies seek to steal valuable data and technology from other factions. Possible downfall of Unitron.

16. Exploriens (1996) - Scientists in deep space discover and study strange alien fossils on uncharted worlds.

17. UFO (1996) - Hostile extraterrestrials pose the first significant threat to human space exploration since Mars Mission.

18. Roboforce (1997) - Rather ungainly mecha attempt to maintain ground forces against the alien threat but cannot last.

19. Insectoids (1998) - A refugee race of aliens settle on an arthropod-infested planet and mimic native life. Little evidence that this species interacted with humans.

20. Rock Raiders? (1999) - The LMS Explorer is disabled near an unknown planet. Crew members harvest energy crystals to power their derelict ship.

21. Space Police III? (2009) - I'm not sure where this one fits. Apparently set 30 years after humans traveled beyond Mars. Futuron colors, with diverse (criminal) alien life.

22. Galaxy Squad (2013) - Small bands of color-coded fighters squash Insectoid-like alien invasion swarms.

Whew, that's a pretty detailed history. But I haven't even considered Aquazone yet! Or Exo-Force. Or whatever else people think up...

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It's interesting that you bring this up--I was thinking of posting a similar topic! :)

Producing a definitive Space timeline is quite tricky since there is a ton of story material outside of the sets suggesting that the various space factions are contemporary with the Town sets--in other words, everyone in Space is an alien. For example:

The US Mania club magazines had contemporary criminal Jailbreak Joe attempt to reach Spyrius, and had contemporary Earth invaded by Spyrius and the UFOs.

The comic Jim Spaceborn contains no references to Earth, instead stating that the planet Zonia is the homeworld of the Classic Space Minifigs.

The Clutch Powers movie flits between seemingly-contemporary Earth and outer space, using elements from Mars Mission and Space Police III

I'm not at all fond of this interpretation, but it's worth mentioning because of the sheer volume of story material supporting it. Fortunately, LEGO seems to be going the other direction now, what with the new Space Shuttle and the Mars Mission sets sporting a variant Classic Space logo--indicating a direct, Earth-based precurser to the Classic Space theme from which all others are descended. And there are a few references which place the Space sets in the future:

The comic story “Captain Indigo Sets Out” in the Spring 1983 issue of Bricks ‘n Pieces states that the Classic Space theme takes place in the future.

The new LEGO Ideas Book implies that the Classic Space Minifigs date from the 4000s or so.

The March 1996 issue of Bricks n’ Pieces magazine has a date of 3200 AD for the Exploriens sets.

Given that the 3200 AD date is the only definitive one I've been able to find so far, it's the one I choose to go with. It's relatively unusual for space stories like this to be set this far in the future--Star Trek and Babylon 5 were set within only a few centuries of our time. Given the glacial pace of space travel so far (weren't we going to Mars, guys?), however, I feel like it might be more realistic. :wacko:

Given that date, here's another version of the Space timeline, assuming that the Space series progressed at roughly the same time it was released:

1990

NASA (1990)

At this point in time the US space agency NASA is responsible for launching space shuttles. (1682 Space Shuttle) According to the July-August 1996 Mania Magazine, Dr. Cyber was once a NASA scientist.

1995-1997

Launch Command (1995)

Shuttles are still being used, but there are also missions to the moon. NASA appears to have been replaced by Launch Command.

1999

Space Port (1999)

Launch Command in turn is replaced by Space Port. Shuttles are still being used. Rogue meteors threaten Earth.

Note: Brickipedia says that a storybook has the Life on Mars character BB being trained at Space Port for an upcoming Mars Mission. I haven't been able to confirm this, but it does tie the two themes together.

2000

Arctic (2000)

An Arctic expedition uncovers more meteors, containing the first known example of alien life.

2001

Life on Mars (2001)

First contact with intelligent alien life. This seems to be set in the same year it was released; a comic in the LEGO club magazine has the returning astronauts encounter a Studios film crew and Alpha Team.

2010

Dino Attack/Dino 2010 (2005)

Mutant dinosaurs attack in urban settings. An oddly common occurance. (See below.)

2011

City Space (2011)

First variation on the Classic Space logo appears--the beginning of that famous space exporation program. Shuttles are still in use, though more advanced craft have reached Mars. (This is not uncommon in sci-fi franchises--both Star Trek and Doctor Who have more advanced space vehicles existing alongside actual spacecraft such as the shuttles in the 20th and 21st centuries.)

Alien Conquest (2011)

The alien forces of Hypaxxus 8 attempt a full scale invasion of Earth.

2012

Dino (2012)

Having failed in his invasion of Earth, Hypaxxus 8 unleashes dinosaurs upon the inhabitants of Earth. (The LEGO Club magazine had a comic tying the two themes together. The LEGO Alien Conquest website had already established that Hypaxxus knew of a planet where dinosaurs still lived.)

2045 (?)

Mars Misson (2007)

An Earth mining expedition, wearing the Classic Space emblem, encounters alien interlopers on Mars. (The date is from this Wikipedia entry. It may not be official.)

2079-3192 (?)

Classic Space (1978-1988)

According the Bricks 'n Pieces Captain Indigo comics, intersteller flight, time travel, and additional alien contact all occur during the period of Classic Space. Earth appears, and is little changed from the 20th century. (This jives with the Clutch Powers movie.) Space exporation appears to be based out of the planet Zonia. Jim Spaceborn and the crew of the Spearhead encounter what appears to be a proto-Blacktron faction in an unknown galaxy.

3191

Futuron (1987)

An update of the Classic Space faction. A mention of "FuturonCorp" in the Space Villain bio suggests that this might be a private corporation. Alternatively, FuturonCorp could be an outside contractor supplying the Futuron faction.

Blacktron (1987)

Strking out from the center of the galaxies, Blacktron appears to be a criminal organization/space empire.

3193

Space Police (1989)

The Space Police appear to be part of the Futuron faction, as they wear the same uniform here.

3194

M-Tron (1990)

By this year, the United Galaxies have been formed. Laws are made by a Galactic Council, according to the 1992 US catalog. There is also a Space Council, according to the Summer 1994 Bricks n’ Pieces magazine.

3195

Blacktron Future Generation (1991)

The updated Blacktron logo will be used by Blacktron affilated individuals for years to come. By this point, the Blacktron forces are led by Commander Beltar. (Feb. 1993 Disney Adventures comic: Encounter at Ice Station Odyssey)

3196

Space Police II (1992)

Now led by Captain Magenta, a new incarnation of the Space Police is born.

3197

Ice Planet 2002 (1993)

In spite of the theme's name, no tie-in material I've found suggests it actually takes place in 2002. Instead, Ice Planet 2002 seems to refer to the planet Krysto itself.

3198

Unitron (1994)

Spyrius (1994)

3199

Aquazone (1995)

As most Eurobricks members know, Aquazone was concieved as a Space theme contemporary with Futuron and was set on an alien world. The final theme was more vague about its setting--it has Earth sharks, stingrays and octopi, but the blue rock formations featured throughout the setting didn't resemble anything on Earth. Aquasharks, a faction of Aquanauts-turned-pirate (according to Issue 1 1995 of Bricks 'n Pieces magazine) appear on Holox with the Insectoids in the Insectoid Puzzle Book, which would seem to indicate that this theme takes place at the same time as the other Space themes. Coupled with its origins as "Seatron", I'm inclined to assume that it takes place around 3199. Where it takes place remains a mystery.

3200

Exploriens (1996)

This is merely the first known date at which the Exploriens were active--they've clearly been around for awhile as of the magazine story.

3201

UFO (1997)

Interesting story point: the droids used by the UFO forces were not built by them! Instead, they were recruited (Bricks n' Pieces August 1997) or abducted and forcibly reprogrammed. (Mania Magazine September-October 1997)

Roboforce (1997)

3202

Insectoids (1998)

The Insectoid Invasion puzzle book describes the Insectoids as refugees fleeing their evil leader. As a kid, I speculated that they were part of the UFO empire, as they wore similar outfits.

3203

Rock Raiders (1999)

Not LEGO's last journey underground, the Rock Raiders would be tough to place just by looking at the sets. Clearly there's some futuristic technology here, such as hovercraft and laser drills, but nothing too fancy. Rock monsters and energy crystals would also be used in the Power Miners theme, which is set on contemporary Earth. (!) It's only the backstory presented in the games and books that indicates a Space setting on another planet. Probably contemporary with other space sets, but with 3000+ years of space exploration, anything is possible.

3212

Star Justice vs. Space Skulls (?)

I'm placing this here based on its year of release, but like Rock Raiders it could go anywhere on the timeline. It's unclear where Star Justice falls in the grander scheme of spacegoing law enforcement (which includes an impressive number of agencies at this point) but its logo is similar to the Futuron affiliated groups. Likewise the Space Skull Gang's nature is undefined: are they aliens who resemble skeletons, pirates wearing masks, or actual animated skeletons from Ashlar or Ninjago?

3213

Space Police III (2009)

The latest incarnation of the Space Police fights alien criminals from the Black Hole Gang in Galaxy City and elsewhere. Definitely set after the two previous Space Police sets, as there is a Classic Space statue in the Galactic Enforcer set. Old Space Police uniforms are also seen on display in the

.

This is also apparently the time of Clutch Powers, who helps out the Space Police in The Adventures of Clutch Powers. Again, Earth seen here is little changed from 21st century Earth, with Power Miners and Agents still active, but this is not inconsistant with the old Captain Indigo comics. Presumably all the advanced technology is on Zonia. :tongue:

3216 (?)

Galaxy Squad (2013)

Galaxy Squad's backstory remains unrevealed, but the LEGO Club magazine suggested that events in the Monster Fighters theme indirectly instigated the insect invasion. The time period of Monster Fighters remains unclear...possibly the 1960s.

The Future

Ninjago (2011-2013)

LEGO Universe (2010-2012)

The backstory for LEGO Universe involved spaceships, and is set around the remains of the planet Crux. It appears to be contemporary with Ninjago, which is set on (you guessed it) the planet Ninjago. The Ninjago episode The Royal Blacksmiths mentions Clutch Powers as having participated in historical events far in Ninjago's past, so barring time travel (which is possible) it seems LEGO Universe and Ninjago take place long after most of the Space themes.

Themes that are difficult to place:

Exo Force

I've never seen anything that puts Exo Force in context with any other LEGO theme or time period. It could take place on Earth. It could take place on Ninjago. It could take place on another planet altogether. To those more familiar with the storyline: was there ever any information about the setting beyond some mystical mountain?

TC

Edited by TalonCard

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In order for this to be even possible, we would need to distinguish what is "canon" and what isn't. I would say that a lot of the LEGO Magazine comic crossover threads would need to be considered not cannon, since it makes zero sense (unless indeed, everyone in LEGO Space is an alien).

There DOES seem to be some kind of timeline based on the technology alone. Life on Mars -> Mars Mission -> Space Police -> 90's Space seems to be a pretty safe conclusion in terms of chronological order.

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I have an alternative hypothesis for the timeframe of early Classic Space. Sets 926 Command Centre (1979) and 6970 Beta-1 Command Base (1980) respectively introduced these two printed pieces:

3754p01.jpg?03754pb01.jpg?0

In other sets, the LL markings (such as 3010p918.gif) were used to identify ships and duplicate the set number. Here not only the number does not match a Classic Space set, but it's identical in two different sets and relates to different images/ships. LL-2079 could have been intended here as something else, perhaps a mission number? In any case, it's interesting to note that the number is 100 above the year when Classic Space sets were introduced, 1979. Coincidence? Some might think that it was originally intended for the Space theme to depict space exploration 100 years in the future, which would roughly reflect the near-futuristic technology displayed. :look:

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That's a very detailed history TalonCard! I like your order and dates based off Exploriens. Personally I would discard a lot of the magazine crossovers and conflicting information. I also strongly dislike the idea of Classic Space figs being aliens from Zonia. (Although that would help LEGO's alien discrimination problem. If everyone is an alien, then it doesn't seem so bad when all the "weird looking" aliens are evil. As far as I'm concerned though, canon should be limited to the sets themselves as much as possible.

Fugazi's idea about LL-2079 is compelling. Perhaps Classic Space exploration started that early, but progressed very slowly over the next thousand years. Also, both those images show present-day technology in the form of a rocket gantry and satellite, so they could possibly be displaying historical broadcasts of humanity's first steps. In the same vein, the crowded factions in mid-90's space would then be spread out over several hundred years instead of all being lumped in the decade around 3200 AD. My only concern here is that Classic Space in 2079 would require quite a bit of technological development from the present day. Then again, the Mars Mission set only a few decades earlier would suggest very rapid progress from the City Space days.

I agree that the Seatron prototypes place the Aquanauts/Aquasharks as rough contemporaries to Unitron or Exploriens. The Hydronauts and Stingrays would then be closer to Insectoids. Perhaps they take place on a futuristic earth that still had some present-day aquatic creatures? I could definitely see the Aquasharks transporting Earth sharks to an alien ocean though.

This whole timeline fails to account for the statue inscription in 5974 Galactic Enforcer - "In thirty years we built to the infinite sky." But I think we can safely discount that as an homage to LEGO's own history rather than the fictional society!

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I have an alternative hypothesis for the timeframe of early Classic Space...it's interesting to note that the number is 100 above the year when Classic Space sets were introduced, 1979. Coincidence? Some might think that it was originally intended for the Space theme to depict space exploration 100 years in the future, which would roughly reflect the near-futuristic technology displayed. :look:

Good catch, Fugazi! I don't have any classic space sets ( :cry_sad: ) so I never would have found that piece of information! I added it to my timeline.

In order for this to be even possible, we would need to distinguish what is "canon" and what isn't. I would say that a lot of the LEGO Magazine comic crossover threads would need to be considered not cannon, since it makes zero sense (unless indeed, everyone in LEGO Space is an alien).

A canon is difficult in LEGO, since some interpretations of the world are pretty wacky. After a long time in which I was extremely picky about what to include, I've settled on some personal rules:

Any stories that have the minifigures acting of their own volition without aid from someone like the a LEGO Maniac are "canon".

Any non-anachronistic information (particularly character names) from stories or magazine articles that do have references to pop culture and appearances by the Maniac are also acceptable. (I would hate to discout Beltar as a character even though he only appears alongside the Manaics!)

Crossovers are acceptable only if the themes take place in approximitely the same period (Atlantis/Power Miners/Agents), or if time travel is involved or can be inferred (so no Red Beard getting together with policemen and spacemen to trim a Christmas tree.)

Liscensed themes take place in their own seperate universes that largely resemble the properties on which they are based.

It's a relatively simple set of rules that allow for the maximum amount of information to be used. :laugh:

Personally I would discard a lot of the magazine crossovers and conflicting information. I also strongly dislike the idea of Classic Space figs being aliens from Zonia.

As do I! The way I prefer to see it is that Zonia was originally an Earth colony world, and that by whatever point in the (now extensive) Classic Space period Jim Spaceborn takes place, many (but not all) spacegoing minifigures call it home. Captain Indigo seems to be from Earth, so that is encouraging.

As far as I'm concerned though, canon should be limited to the sets themselves as much as possible.

That's certainly a valid perspective--there are any number of ways of looking at the LEGO Universe. Even the idea that different themes correspond to different eras along a timeline is open for debate, given stuff like LEGO Island, in which each theme appears to occupy an island of its own. For the most part, the story material outside the sets is consistant enough that I enjoy making it all inclusive. It's also worth pointing out that occasionally the tie-in material is the only way of making sense of some of these themes--otherwise we'd have no idea that Rock Raiders takes place in the future on an alien planet while Power Miners takes place on Earth in the present.

Perhaps Classic Space exploration started that early, but progressed very slowly over the next thousand years...i

n the same vein, the crowded factions in mid-90's space would then be spread out over several hundred years instead of all being lumped in the decade around 3200 AD.

I like this idea! The name "Blacktron: Future Generation" certainly implies that it is at least a generation removed from the earliest Blacktron sets. There was enough overlap in the Blacktron/Futuron-Unitron period that it would make sense to assume that they all occured within a generation or two of each other, but there's no need to assume that they all existed only within that generation.

My only concern here is that Classic Space in 2079 would require quite a bit of technological development from the present day. Then again, the Mars Mission set only a few decades earlier would suggest very rapid progress from the City Space days.

Considering that the LEGO world seems to comit more resources in general to space exploration (Space Port, Life on Mars), and that their technology in the "present" often seems pretty advanced (Power Miners, Agents, Alpha Team) and that they undoubtedly have access to alien technology (Alien Conquest), I'd say 2079 seems a pretty fair estimation.

This whole timeline fails to account for the statue inscription in 5974 Galactic Enforcer - "In thirty years we built to the infinite sky." But I think we can safely discount that as an homage to LEGO's own history rather than the fictional society!

I wouldn't discount the statue as just a homage--going by what we've established so far, it would appear to have been made in 2109 to commemorate the Classic Space program (and possibly the founding of Galaxy City). Assuming it's over 1000 years old by the time it's stolen is a bit of a stretch, but that would definitely make it valuable!

TC

Edited by TalonCard

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I'd just like to add a few tidbits of information that I haven't seen mentioned yet.

The description of the Space Police III Galactic Enforcer states that the Classic Space statue is a statue of the "first LEGO Space astronaut." This could very easily be a reference to the fact that it is simply designed after the first Space minifigures produces, but it's right in the middle of the description of the set's conflict. Keeping that in mind, this would bring some... interesting complications concerning where Classic Space is on the timeline compared to Space Port, Life on Mars, City Space, etc. We know that Life on Mars definitely takes place in or around 2001 (in the Life on Mars radio logs, Cassiopeia made reference to the The War of the Worlds radio play as being a real Martian invasion happening somewhere around "60 or 70 years ago").

We also know that Mars Mission takes place "in the near future," as stated in a LEGO Magazine comic. This may or may not be after Classic Space. Also, the Intergalactic Girl from Series 6 of the Collectible Minifigures has her Classic Space logo in the Mars Mission colors, where the Spaceman has the original, more familiar colors. We also know that Blacktron is still around, since the Intergalactic Girl has taken down entire Blacktron space fleets by herself as stated in her bio. AND she's battled the Space Villainess, who's the leader of the Alien Conquest invaders.

In set 6704 "Space Mini Figures," Blacktron I and II are shown coexisting with Space Police I and M-Tron. Looks like the late '80s and early '90s sets were intended to be in the same time period.

M-Tron also still exists in Space Police III, as stated in the 2010 police logs.

Just figured I should mention those!

EDIT: did some fact checking about the Life on Mars stuff - I had remembered Arcturus simply talking about the radio play, not remembering it was actually an invasion launched under his rule as Martian leader.

Edited by Play With Fire

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It may be a slightly selective interpretation, but I would argue that the set description means the first Classic Space astronaut as it's clearly modeled after the classic minifigures. (Or at least as much as it can be, given that the helmet mold no longer exists.) Assuming the beginnings of the LEGO Space Program are anything like our own, the first true LEGO Space astronaut would have been in the 60s and would have looked more like the NASA or Launch Command figures than anything else.

Thanks for bringing up those Life on Mars logs--I barely remember those! Do you have access to them? Are they still online somewhere? I'd love to find out more information for the timeline...

And good points on those Collectable Minifigure bios. Just because there aren't any new sets for a given theme doesn't mean they aren't still around. The Space Villainess and Intergalactic Girl bios definitely indicate that the Alien Conquest aliens (who we might call the Xtwoans for short, given that they come from planet X2½) are still a power to be reckoned with in the Blacktron/Futuron era, though it's unclear if the Space Villainess participated in the initial invasion. Hypaxxus-8 has been shown to be involved in events thousands of years in Earth's past, so perhaps they live a really long time. Alternatively, time travel could be involved since they clearly have the technology...

TC

Edited by TalonCard

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Here's those Life on Mars radio logs. A couple are missing though.

I like to assume that Alien Conquest is near-future like Mars Mission, since the human tech, like the weaponry, is just like the armaments of Classic Space's Galaxy Patrol and the Galaxy Squad (but this can just be explained by the fact that LEGO made a cool gun and wants to use it more!). There is a bit of evidence suggesting it's in 2011 though: a summer 2011 issue of LEGO Club Magazine had multiple "news articles" about the alien invasion. I distinctly remember at least one of the articles (printed in a newspaper format on the page) being dated to 2011. However, LEGO is definitely loose with their canon, and they could easily say it is in another time if they wanted to.

Another thing I remembered: Space Police III definitely takes place after I and II. In the stop motion movies for SPIII, the police headquarters has the previous uniforms of the police on display. This seems like something that wouldn't need to be brought up, but in Clutch Powers, it shows a lot of SPIII stuff... and the protagonists have Mars Mission astronaut suits. Also, LEGO Battles has Space Police III active during the Mars Mission, but the events that transpired during that are different than those previously told in the Mars Mission story... hmm...

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Sorry to bump a month-old topic (and as a first post no less), but I'd like to throw some more info into the discussion. Really nice list, but there's a couple things that haven't been brought up yet that might end up changing the order of a few things...

First, LEGO Battles - the Space story arc of the game involves Mars Mission and Space Police 3 happening at the same time. In addition, the corpse of a Blacktron 2 astronaut appears briefly at the start of the story, and the humans use androids very much like those used by the Spyrius and Exploriens factions, just with a a different color scheme. I think we can safely say that both Mars Mission and SP3 take place after Blacktron 2 and SP2, maybe even at the same time as Exploriens, Unitron, and Spyrius. The aliens in LEGO Battles also make use of Exo-Force robot technology, the robots themselves seem to work for the aliens (perhaps they were abducted and re-programmed like the UFO androids?), and the Grav-Runner and Builder alien units are also adapted from Exo-Force robot sets. LEGO Battles also has an unlockable Classic Space astronaut, but seeing as it's only used in free play mode and not the main story, I don't think it has anything to do with the timeline.

Second, LEGO Universe. Oh boy, LEGO Universe... Well, right off the bat, the first area of the game (the collapsing wreck of a starship) had a character from LEGO Island, Sky Lane, as the starship's captain. Sky Lane seemed to be a young adult or late teen in her LEGO Island appearances, and she doesn't seem to be much older in LEGO Universe. The same area also had a blue Classic Space astronaut drifting through space... In a rowboat. Johnny Thunder also appears in the game and plays a fairly large role, and while he does sort of act like an "old legend", he's certainly not an elderly man either. And later in the game, there's an entire level themed around Classic Space, simply called MoonBase. It's not straight-up Classic Space though, it introduces another faction (Piratron), takes place on a lunar mining site run by a battle-scarred astronaut named Han Nibble, and makes use of many modern pieces and such - sort of neo-Classic Space. Generally, it's sort of Classic Space but even farther in the future, which, given that Sky Lane and Johnny Thunder also make appearances in the game, makes a bit of a mess of the timeline.

Oh, one last thing, the Space Police 3 stop-motion videos (I think they were animated by Paganomation) had a clip where an advertisement for "M-Cola" could be seen. "The only magnetic beverage!" :tongue:

Edited by jamesster

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Well, as to the LEGO Universe question, recall that Starbase 3001 (the access point to the LUP worlds, which include Moonbase) was very, very far away from the "main" areas, both in terms of reaching it and in story terms; I'd find it plausible that the Moonbase faction was in fact an early exploration mission by the Classic Space command, that ended up cut off from the rest of the universe until the time of LU; it would explain why it has a neo-Classic aesthetic (they advanced in technology, but not at the same rate or in the same way as the rest of the universe), and would also clear up any timeline issues. :wink:

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I'm not so sure of that...

:tongue: Set 10029 Lunar Lander, to be precise. Also, the official story of the game says that the base, run by the "Lunar Mining Corps", mined a crystal substance called Imaginatium which provided power for the unnamed planet below. Planet Crux was described as being in a far off corner of the universe (it took months of searching for the explorers to even find it), while whatever moon MoonBase is located on seems to be closer to "home", at least orbiting a civilized planet.

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First, LEGO Battles - the Space story arc of the game involves Mars Mission and Space Police 3 happening at the same time. In addition, the corpse of a Blacktron 2 astronaut appears briefly at the start of the story, and the humans use androids very much like those used by the Spyrius and Exploriens factions, just with a a different color scheme. I think we can safely say that both Mars Mission and SP3 take place after Blacktron 2 and SP2, maybe even at the same time as Exploriens, Unitron, and Spyrius. The aliens in LEGO Battles also make use of Exo-Force robot technology, the robots themselves seem to work for the aliens (perhaps they were abducted and re-programmed like the UFO androids?), and the Grav-Runner and Builder alien units are also adapted from Exo-Force robot sets. LEGO Battles also has an unlockable Classic Space astronaut, but seeing as it's only used in free play mode and not the main story, I don't think it has anything to do with the timeline.

I hadn't thought too much about using LEGO Battles for timeline purposes, as it seems to use a mix of themes--didn't the Ninjago version have characters from a bunch of unrelated themes? I haven't played the game, though; the campaigns may be more consistent. I do know that the Pirate campaign features ninjas, but that's more of a geographic than a chronological stretch.

If LEGO Battles is used, though, it might allow us to date the Exo-Force sets, which up to this point have been a mystery. :)

Second, LEGO Universe. Oh boy, LEGO Universe... Well, right off the bat, the first area of the game (the collapsing wreck of a starship) had a character from LEGO Island, Sky Lane, as the starship's captain. Sky Lane seemed to be a young adult or late teen in her LEGO Island appearances, and she doesn't seem to be much older in LEGO Universe. The same area also had a blue Classic Space astronaut drifting through space... In a rowboat. Johnny Thunder also appears in the game and plays a fairly large role, and while he does sort of act like an "old legend", he's certainly not an elderly man either. And later in the game, there's an entire level themed around Classic Space, simply called MoonBase. It's not straight-up Classic Space though, it introduces another faction (Piratron), takes place on a lunar mining site run by a battle-scarred astronaut named Han Nibble, and makes use of many modern pieces and such - sort of neo-Classic Space. Generally, it's sort of Classic Space but even farther in the future, which, given that Sky Lane and Johnny Thunder also make appearances in the game, makes a bit of a mess of the timeline.

That's interesting; I wasn't aware of the Classic Space faction in LEGO Universe. We haven't heard from Futuron in some time...perhaps they went back to using Classic Space uniforms?

I was under the impression that the remnant of the Imagination nexus or whatever in LEGO Universe drew minifigures from all over space and time to the Crux system, which would account for Sky Lane and Johnny Thunder--was that an incorrect assumption?

TC

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LEGO Battles is comprised of three individual and unrelated stories (Based on Castle, Pirates, and Space, with Ninja and Islanders also playing a role in the Pirates story). The theme mish-mashing stuff and unlockable random characters are saved for free play mode, which doesn't affect the story at all, so yes, the campaigns are pretty consistent in continuity, aside from the whole Pirates vs Ninja thing. LEGO Battles was originally several separate games that ended up getting merged into one, and I assume by that time in development they already had the three separate stories designed.

As for LEGO Battles: Ninjago, I've only played through the first act of the hero side, but from what I've seen so far it seems to be similar to LEGO Battles, but with only one story instead of three - all the theme mixing is done in free play and has no story implications. There are Power Miners monsters in some levels though, themed around the four Ninjago elements (Ice Monsters, Lightning Monsters, etc), but I think it's safe to say they're just a similar species, and there's no direct ties to the Power Miners story.

It's not really explained when or where the minifigures in LU came from. The four explorers that found Planet Crux came from multiple other developed planets, and the narrator did say they traveled "through space and time" to find Crux. Similarly, after Crux exploded, they used what remained of the Imagination Nexus to signal for help, but it's not explained where that help came from either. The game starts with the player on a spaceship that was bringing minifigures to the remains of Crux, but it's not stated where the spaceship came from... So it's actually quite open-ended, the characters in LEGO Universe really could have come from anywhere and any time. Huh, I guess I never really thought much about it before.

Another thing about Crux - the game's backstory says that it was the first planet with minifigure life, the minifigures simply being called the "First Builders". The descendants of the First Builders, minifigures made of pure imagination called Mythrans, still lived on the planet when it blew up, though it seems they just sort of stood in the Nexus Temple like statues, watching over the big beam. In the game itself, the game masters and moderators usually took the form of a Mythran when appearing in-game - a pretty fun idea, making the game's real life staff members mystical beings in the story. :laugh:

One thing LU never really explained, though, was the presence of ancient tombs in the ninja themed planet chunk. What are they? Remains of the First Builders, or other long-gone minifigure life?

But now this is turning from a LEGO Space timeline topic into a general LEGO timeline topic... So, back to LEGO Space. The first boss of LEGO Stunt Rally, Radium, was a former Rock Raider who got kicked out after performing radiation-related tests on other crew members. Additionally, in the Arctic segment of Stunt Rally, one of the scenery elements you can place is a UFO ship (I think the Alien Avenger or something similar) frozen into the ice. But the game also makes use of Adventurers (both desert and jungle), with Johnny Thunder and Sam Sinister appearing in the intro. The Arctic area also has Arctic sets (obviously!) and Extreme Team tents. And on top of that, Barney (one of the drivers in Stunt Rally) and Axle from Rock Raiders are both playable characters in LEGO Racers 2, which also involves Arctic, Adventurers, and Life on Mars... And Soccer Mania involves everything from Life on Mars to Pirates and Knights Kingdom 1, all at once.

Oh heck with it, let's just say that those games are all the Time Cruisers' and Time Twisters's fault. :tongue:

Edited by jamesster

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Oh heck with it, let's just say that those games are all the Time Cruisers' and Time Twisters's fault. :tongue:

And now in my personal canon, Baron Typhonus from LEGO Universe was a Time Twister. Thank you.

At first I wasn't sure what to think about LEGO Battles' placement in the timeline, since the Mars Mission was supposed to be an expedition for alternative energy to provide to Earth, and LEGO Battles had it start accidentally. But it shows that they were originally on course to one of Saturn's moons (probably Titan) so I assume that the original plan was to mine resources from there instead of Mars.

So, just to write down what I have in my head, here's how the timeline goes:

Space Port (takes place somewhere close to Life on Mars, maybe at the same time)

Life on Mars (takes place in 2001)

City Space (modern space program, probably 2011)

Alien Conquest (confirmed to be set in 2011)

After this point, continuity gets a bit tricky to place. Everything between Classic Space and Space Police III takes place within 30 years, if a certain statue's inscription is to be trusted.

Classic Space (space explorers/whatever you want them to be)

Futuron (space explorers), Blacktron (space pirates) and Space Police I (space law enforcement) all take place at around the same time.

Blacktron II and M-Tron (civilians that produced advanced computers and technology) very shortly after introduction of the previous three, as they coexist at this time.

Space Police II formed shortly afterwards to deal with the threat of the advanced Blacktron II.

Ice Planet mission is launched on Krysto to use it as a communication hub (I think). Blacktron II still confirmed to exist. No sign of Futuron or M-Tron.

Spyrius (space criminals specializing in espionage) and Unitron (militaristic coalition of united galactic people) now exist during the Ice Planet mission.

Exploriens (scientists researching alien civilizations) are formed and exist alongside Spyrius. Space Police II, Ice Planet and Unitron are seemingly unaccounted for. Exploriens are a bit iffy if you're going by UK continuity.

Roboforce (defense and colonization group that uses piloted mecha) and UFO forces (aliens) do battle as UFO attempts to attack Earth. Also iffy if you're using UK continuity, as Bricks n Pieces says that UFO is a group of heroic crusaders from across space, robots and organics alike, united against an unseen mechanical empire that threatens to destroy the galaxy.

Insectoids (cyborg aliens) now suddenly exist alongside Roboforce, Exploriens, UFO, Spyrius and... Aquazone. If the re-release of certain small sets are to be trusted, then Space Police II, Spyrius and Ice Planet still exist at this time.

At an unclear time after all of this, the Mars Mission (quest for alternative energy for Earth) is launched. It is confirmed to: a) take place in "the near future," b) take place after Blacktron II, and c) take place alongside Space Police III. This retroactively places all other space themes before this in the near future, showing that the advancement of LEGO technology can happen rather fast. Just look at the ADU tech they had in 2011!

The beginning of Space Police III operations marks the 30 year anniversary of mankind ascending to the stars and colonizing new worlds.

At an unknown point in time, a continuity headache involving Monster Fighters happens humanity is threatened by an alien race once more, the buggoids and mosquitoids. The Galaxy Squad is assembled against this threat.

I guess it's not a whole lot different from other time lines presented here, but it takes into account some of the facts presented in this topic.

Edited by Play With Fire

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(Hooray for discussion that's more detailed than a typical LUG meeting can support!) I'm sure everyone's already resigned to it, but however entertaining this exercise, there's no reason to assume a single consistent timeline can be created; Agatha Christie isn't dropping carefully-crafted clues that a sufficiently clever reader can assemble. Perhaps you thought untangling Star Trek or Doctor Who was a headache? :wink: TLG has been spinning fragmentary stories for almost as long, without (I assume) any sort of chief story editor, and with a strong preference for "if it looks whimsical, do it." (Basically the same philosophy as in any AFOL collaborative display.)

But here are two thoughts that could add some flexibility when stacking the clues:

1. The Space themes need not be sequential. They can be parallel if we posit they represent:

  • Different jurisdictions (Colony World 1 vs. Colony World 2, with local choices of livery)
  • Different areas of responsibility (civilian law enforcement vs. power crystal trafficking)
  • Public (government [1]) vs. private (corporate) security forces

2. When they are sequential, they need not be monotonic. That is, technology [2] (or its appearance) can run backwards:

  • A civilization falls and must rebuild.
  • A colony world doesn't have the natural resources or manufacturing capability of its parent [3].
  • "Retro style" becomes popular.

[1] Assuming modern minifigs have a government: it's not like the City theme includes Parliament and Judiciary sets -- unless 10224 Town Hall counts? The heroic organization (i.e., the LEGO Company) in Clutch Powers (2010) appears to be a corporate do-gooder. (Not minifig, but thematically similar is Hero Factory in the eponymous episodes (2010 to present).)

[2][3] Not to put too fine a point on it, but the usual signifiers of "technology" and "parent" gets a bit confusing :wacko: when the characters and their constructs are all made of (as usually depicted) rebuildable plastic bricks (as opposed to humans depicted with a particularly squarish artistic style). How exactly does a population of minifigures increase? We've seen short-legged minifigures identified as children (most unambiguously, in the recent Ninjago TV show -- but on the flip side, it didn't have the harmless-combat reattach-your-limbs of the Star Wars minisodes or LEGO Universe) but are they born [4]? Molded in a factory? Delivered by storks? (The same questions might be asked of Pixar's Cars. In Blue Sky's Robots (2005), familial groups explicity assemble their progeny from factory-made and -delivered parts.)

[4] So, who wants to build a maternity ward extension to a City hospital set? :classic: Wait, I see that somebody created just that in July 2012.

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Perhaps you thought untangling Star Trek or Doctor Who was a headache?

Doctor Who is a good parallel for the Space themes...trying to make any kind of sense of the "future" stories makes headaches inevitable, particularly since a number of the then-future time periods explored by the show in the 60's and 70's have already come to pass. :tongue:

But here are two thoughts that could add some flexibility when stacking the clues:

1. The Space themes need not be sequential. They can be parallel if we posit they represent:

2. When they are sequential, they need not be monotonic. That is, technology [2] (or its appearance) can run backwards:

Those are both good points, particularly since the Minifigures line continues to reference older themes that haven't been used in decades.

[2][3] Not to put too fine a point on it, but the usual signifiers of "technology" and "parent" gets a bit confusing :wacko: when the characters and their constructs are all made of (as usually depicted) rebuildable plastic bricks (as opposed to humans depicted with a particularly squarish artistic style).

That is the most common depiction...Pirates and Exo-Force both had a lot of stories where the minifigures were depicted as being more-or-less regular cartoonish people, but those are only two examples I can think of. We do see minifigures have descendants, grow old, and die in the various LEGO stories--the Clutch Powers movie refers to death as having one's "creation spark" extinguished.

But now this is turning from a LEGO Space timeline topic into a general LEGO timeline topic... So, back to LEGO Space. The first boss of LEGO Stunt Rally, Radium, was a former Rock Raider who got kicked out after performing radiation-related tests on other crew members. Additionally, in the Arctic segment of Stunt Rally, one of the scenery elements you can place is a UFO ship (I think the Alien Avenger or something similar) frozen into the ice. But the game also makes use of Adventurers (both desert and jungle), with Johnny Thunder and Sam Sinister appearing in the intro. The Arctic area also has Arctic sets (obviously!) and Extreme Team tents. And on top of that, Barney (one of the drivers in Stunt Rally) and Axle from Rock Raiders are both playable characters in LEGO Racers 2, which also involves Arctic, Adventurers, and Life on Mars... And Soccer Mania involves everything from Life on Mars to Pirates and Knights Kingdom 1, all at once. Oh heck with it, let's just say that those games are all the Time Cruisers' and Time Twisters's fault. :tongue:

I'd tend to group most of the games under the LEGO Island universe, which has its own backstory and where every theme seems to happen at once... I've also often wondered what would happen if the Time Cruisers happened upon this more bizarre version of the LEGO World. ;)

I have drafted a general LEGO Timeline, in the format of the Star Trek Chronology. It's really rough, but if anyone wants to take a look, PM me--I'd love some feedback.

After this point, continuity gets a bit tricky to place. Everything between Classic Space and Space Police III takes place within 30 years, if a certain statue's inscription is to be trusted.

I'd still argue that the statue doesn't really tell us much, as it was showing some age as of Space Police III. We know it was made to commemorate 30 years of the Classic Space program, but not how old it was as of whenever Space Police III takes place.

Roboforce (defense and colonization group that uses piloted mecha) and UFO forces (aliens) do battle as UFO attempts to attack Earth. Also iffy if you're using UK continuity, as Bricks n Pieces says that UFO is a group of heroic crusaders from across space, robots and organics alike, united against an unseen mechanical empire that threatens to destroy the galaxy.

I kinda like both interpretations--the UFO aliens see themselves as heroic crusaders; their robotic allies see them as liberators--but they still come into conflict with Earth forces. It helps that Commander X of the UK story and Alpha Draconis of the US version are different minifigures--perhaps Draconis is the ruthless Emperor, and X the more idealistic military leader?

TC

Edited by TalonCard

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That is the most common depiction...Pirates and Exo-Force both had a lot of stories where the minifigures were depicted as being more-or-less regular cartoonish people, but those are only two examples I can think of.

Drome Racers did that too, but aside from being mentioned in the online bio of the Detective from Minifigures, I'm not sure it has any real ties to the main LEGO continuity. If it does, then it's also worth noting that the theme was said several times to take place in the then-futuristic year of 2015. :tongue:

I'd tend to group most of the games under the LEGO Island universe, which has its own backstory and where every theme seems to happen at once...

Ah, but there's a catch - the video game LEGOLAND uses the more "realistic" LEGO timeline. The game's story revolves around a LEGOLAND park's inventor, Professor Voltage, traveling through time to duplicate castles and temples and western saloons and such to turn them into rides/attractions for the park, and visiting the Rock Raiders in the future to learn how to use Energy Crystals to power them. The park's chef is Rosie Brickolini - and the LEGOLAND manual states that she's the cousin of Mama Brickolini from LEGO Island. On top of that, two more characters from LEGOLAND (Bob Longtree the park gardener and JP the park mechanic) appear in the Game Boy Color version of LEGO Island 2. And it doesn't stop there: Professor Voltage was also stated in the manual to be the grandfather of Veronica Voltage from LEGO Racers (who invented the time portal that allowed the game's theme cross-overs to happen within the "realistic" continuity, there's even a whole magazine comic showing her activating it for the first time, with Captain Redbeard and Basil the Bat Lord coming through it and challenging Rocket Racer on the spot). Professor Voltage was also

, but was cut from the game for unknown reasons (though as my video shows, it's possible to play as him via Cheat Engine as the game developers didn't bother to actually remove him from the game's coding and assets). And while he didn't physically appear, Professor Voltage was mentioned in the LEGO Island webtoon "The Stolen Painting", where Pepper and Luna Rom borrowed his boat to go to Knights' Kingdom Island and visit King Leo... All in modern times. Good luck figuring that one out! :laugh:

I have drafted a general LEGO Timeline, in the format of the Star Trek Chronology. It's really rough, but if anyone wants to take a look, PM me--I'd love some feedback.

I certainly will, as soon as I've made enough posts to enable the PM system.

I kinda like both interpretations--the UFO aliens see themselves as heroic crusaders; their robotic allies see them as liberators--but they still come into conflict with Earth forces. It helps that Commander X of the UK story and Alpha Draconis of the US version are different minifigures--perhaps Draconis is the ruthless Emperor, and X the more idealistic military leader?

Something funny about that... Notice anything about Commander X and Techdroid 2? They're the same minifigure - Techdroid 2 is just Commander X without his helmet.

Edited by jamesster

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Drome Racers did that too, but aside from being mentioned in the online bio of the Detective from Minifigures, I'm not sure it has any real ties to the main LEGO continuity. If it does, then it's also worth noting that the theme was said several times to take place in the then-futuristic year of 2015. :tongue:

The reference in the detective's bio went over my head...I had to learn about Drome Racers from the LEGO Book! I made sure to put it on my timeline, but I can't find much trace online of the comics and such. :(

Ah, but there's a catch - the video game LEGOLAND uses the more "realistic" LEGO timeline. The game's story revolves around a LEGOLAND park's inventor, Professor Voltage, traveling through time to duplicate castles and temples and western saloons and such to turn them into rides/attractions for the park, and visiting the Rock Raiders in the future to learn how to use Energy Crystals to power them. The park's chef is Rosie Brickolini - and the LEGOLAND manual states that she's the cousin of Mama Brickolini from LEGO Island....Good luck figuring that one out!

I was aware of most of the crossoverness, though I'm surprised that Professor Voltage shows up in so many other stories. LEGO has a surprising number of time travelers: the Time Cruisers, Time Twisters, Professor Voltage, Captain Indigo, Max Timebuster...and yet so many comics show themes interacting without the aid of time travel. ;)

I would say that while there are many different ways of looking at the LEGO Universe, the LEGO characters exist in all of them. The Brickolinis would exist both in the LEGO Island universe and the "timeline" version of the LEGO universe.

Something funny about that... Notice anything about Commander X and Techdroid 2? They're the same minifigure - Techdroid 2 is just Commander X without his helmet.

I noticed that, and had to laugh a little Maybe Techdroid 2 is just emulating his hero. ;) Also, somehow the red alien never got a name at all... :(

TC

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You guys have given this a ridiculous amount of thought. Bravo for that. I'm afraid that my interpretation is much simpler though. I generally follow the timeline given by the thread's creator, ignoring and expanding upon various aspects as I see fit to create my own personal canon. One thing I'd like to propose is that the Nineties stuff could have occurred mostly simultaneously, other than a degree of time to allow for Classic Space to evolve in to Futuron and for Space Police and Blacktron to advance somewhat. I thick that everything from '92 through '98 happened at the same time, but at different locations in the universe. I even think that Futuron, which I personally consider to be the primary human government in LEGO Space, still exists during that time, but we just don't see it, instead focusing on explorers like IP2000 and the Exploriens, who are bravely exploring frontier areas of space. (IP2000 seems to be closer to civilization than the Exploriens were as they were still under the protection of the Space Police, whereas the Exploriens had to rely on Roboforce.) This is totally my own interpretation of things. It's not based on some obscure comic or anything; it's totally from my head.

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I don't think anyone interested in a possible LEGO Space timeline was really looking to the game LEGO City Undercover to provide much in the way of new information...but (spoilers ahead)

it appears to provide a backdoor origin story for Blacktron, of all things!

TC

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Very cool. I've always loved space by never thought about the "real" time line.

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Interesting stuff here, but I'm a bit skeptical of any real "canon" when it comes to this stuff. When a property is based on a preexisting story, sure (e.g. Star Wars), but it seems like Lego played loose and fast with any kind of storyline. Classic Space set in the 4000s??? Nah...

Personally, I like to think it's more of a "what if" contemporary (or near future) scenario. I mean, CS was pretty much relegated to the Moon, after all, and putting rockets into orbit and what not. I like to think of it being a sort of jumping off point for interplanetary exploration and colonization, which is hinted at a lot more heavily in stuff like Futuron and Space Police, but I think most of these can all co-exist within the same period, except when you get into the "sequels" like Space Police III, etc. But that's just me.

Good conversation going on here, though. I like hearing everyone's ideas. :)

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4. Alien Conquest (2011) - More advanced Earth vehicles, but nothing too outlandish. Why would the ADU exist if humans had never encountered aliens before?

Because the governments of the world knew about the aliens and started to prepare for their arrival secretly. :)

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