2016 Action Figure Wishlist

[MakutaOfWar]

I say less metalics in general. It seems that silver and gold in the early years of G1 were treated as 'special'. The Nuva release featuring silver armor and weapons, then the Bohrok Kal in the same manner, then Takanuva debuts gold, but fast forward 12 years later and it's common place. It doesn't bother me too much but I'd like to see some more solid colors.

[mysteriouspi]

More silver, less gunmetal.

Any reason why? I prefer gunmetal over silver, myself. But onto the next point:

I say less metalics in general. It seems that silver and gold in the early years of G1 were treated as 'special'. The Nuva release featuring silver armor and weapons, then the Bohrok Kal in the same manner, then Takanuva debuts gold, but fast forward 12 years later and it's common place. It doesn't bother me too much but I'd like to see some more solid colors.

It is interesting that metallics are infinitely more common than they used to be. They dominated the Mistika to an extent and were even primary colors for some Hero Factory characters (Bulk and Rocka IIRC). I would say it's not inherently a bad thing. But considering the designers of the Toa Okoto tried to emulate the Mata, the amount of metallic colors is off-putting. Would have been a good chance to get normally metallic parts in elemental colors. I don't see that happening next year, unfortunately.

Edited August 18, 2015 by mysteriouspi

[Lord-Vorahk]

Ooh, wishlist time.

FIrst off, Earth Blue. I've been wanting Earth Blue in CCBS since forever.

Second, I'd like to see the end of a few niggling trends in constraction.

First off, the overpopulation of metallics. I like metallic parts, but their use in G2 is flat-out excessive, to the point that some characters have pointless metallic parts (Kopaka's torso shell. I replaced it with one from Nex 4.0 and it looked a lot better). Gali suffers the worst of it, being festooned with silver and gunmetal (Whereas the other Toa tend to have one or the other, outside of weapon parts), and only having five blue pieces. While she looks alright normally, stick the golden mask on her and suddenly she looks a lot worse.

Next up, the 2.0 hands and feet. The feet have been a point of contention for a while, so I'll sum it up: They're oversized. I mean, they actually look perfectly sized on my self-MOC, who is a lot taller than an Inika build. Meanwhile, the hands have been around for just as long, and they look straight-up ugly from every side view. The Glatorian hands actually look better in many respects.

The next CCBS gripe would be bone colours. So much bley. The characters with black and bley bones always look awkward, to the point that I often replace the bley bones after building, or some cases, I didn't even finish the set before I dug out the black bones and never used the bley ones at all. I'd like to see things like coloured bones (Like the white and red ones in Breakout Breez) again, if only to make them distinct from other bones while still fitting in with a colour scheme.

The next thing would be heads. LEGO need to pick a head design and mask attachment and stick with it. I still think they made a mistake in switching to the Glatorian heads, considering that all of the previous sets connected via the face. They also need to come up with head/mask designs that allow the characters to look down.

I'd also like them to be a bit less over the top with the trans pieces. In sets like Pohatu and Ekimu it works. It doesn't work so well on Tahu or PoF, but both of them look really good if you replace the trans-reddish-orange with more red.

Next up: NAMES. Dear god. So many characters released with generic names, and then got given real ones later this year, and it makes them feel less like characters and more like generic background dressing. The only ones I remember are Kulta, Kivoda, and Korgot, and the latter two are only because they're breaking from the norm in terms of gender, and because the fandom loves Korgot.

Now onto other things.

I don't want more Gen I remakes, beyond maybe something like Takanuva. Let the line do its own thing rather than demanding Bohrok and Rahkshi. The only characters common to the new line and the old one are the Toa. Everyone else is a new character, and even the Toa are different personality-wise.

Definitely agreeing with more female characters (*Tips Kanohi*). Gali and Korgot are nice (It would be nicer if the Protectors had identities and genders and such in the winter of this year, but oh well), but more would be better. Especially if mystery seventh Toa character is a girl.

One thing I definitely want though is evil Toa. And not an evil group of six beings with similar abilities and colours like the villains of 2006-2008, but honest-to-Mata Nui Toa who turned evil. And give them the different elements from G1 too. So the evil Toa would have Plasma, Lightning, Iron, Magnetism, Gravity, and Psionics. Don't make them twisted, ugly mutants, but reasonably heroic-looking, just with more muted colour schemes. A la Metru colours, perhaps.

[mysteriouspi]

First off, the overpopulation of metallics. I like metallic parts, but their use in G2 is flat-out excessive, to the point that some characters have pointless metallic parts (Kopaka's torso shell. I replaced it with one from Nex 4.0 and it looked a lot better). Gali suffers the worst of it, being festooned with silver and gunmetal (Whereas the other Toa tend to have one or the other, outside of weapon parts), and only having five blue pieces. While she looks alright normally, stick the golden mask on her and suddenly she looks a lot worse.

Too many metallics has not only been a problem for color schemes (in some cases) but it also prevents us from getting parts in more "elemental" colors, which I would love to have happen. So yes.

Next up, the 2.0 hands and feet. The feet have been a point of contention for a while, so I'll sum it up: They're oversized. I mean, they actually look perfectly sized on my self-MOC, who is a lot taller than an Inika build. Meanwhile, the hands have been around for just as long, and they look straight-up ugly from every side view. The Glatorian hands actually look better in many respects.

I feel like the 2.0 feet have to be oversized to make the figures easier for everyone to balance. Yes, smaller feet would be possible to use for posing, but not everyone wants to put in that much effort. At least the Toa are better sized in comparison; some of the HF figures were rather short yet still had the 2.0 feet.

As for the hands, I like them much better than the Glatorian hands. More fingers, and a thumb that doesn't look like it's eating the middle finger. Would it be nice if they were produced in more distinct left and right varieties? Sure. But I won't complain. At least they're not oven mitts.

The next thing would be heads. LEGO need to pick a head design and mask attachment and stick with it. I still think they made a mistake in switching to the Glatorian heads, considering that all of the previous sets connected via the face. They also need to come up with head/mask designs that allow the characters to look down.

I have a feeling the new head was designed to stay, at least for BIONICLE. If all the Gen 2 masks ever made are designed to fit this head, I will be a happy camper.

FIrst off, Earth Blue. I've been wanting Earth Blue in CCBS since forever.

...

I'd also like them to be a bit less over the top with the trans pieces. In sets like Pohatu and Ekimu it works. It doesn't work so well on Tahu or PoF, but both of them look really good if you replace the trans-reddish-orange with more red.

...

I don't want more Gen I remakes, beyond maybe something like Takanuva. Let the line do its own thing rather than demanding Bohrok and Rahkshi. The only characters common to the new line and the old one are the Toa. Everyone else is a new character, and even the Toa are different personality-wise.

Definitely agreeing with more female characters (*Tips Kanohi*). Gali and Korgot are nice (It would be nicer if the Protectors had identities and genders and such in the winter of this year, but oh well), but more would be better. Especially if mystery seventh Toa character is a girl.

One thing I definitely want though is evil Toa. And not an evil group of six beings with similar abilities and colours like the villains of 2006-2008, but honest-to-Mata Nui Toa who turned evil. And give them the different elements from G1 too. So the evil Toa would have Plasma, Lightning, Iron, Magnetism, Gravity, and Psionics. Don't make them twisted, ugly mutants, but reasonably heroic-looking, just with more muted colour schemes. A la Metru colours, perhaps.

Yes to all these.

[Nekchir]

ugh i just wish there was new feet

[DraikNova]

I'm not sure why there's all this hate for the 2.0 feet. They're large enough to keep figures stable with ease, quite neutral in terms of aesthetic and on a Master-sized build they're definitely correct in terms of proportion.

[TheGreatSpirit]

I'm not sure why there's all this hate for the 2.0 feet. They're large enough to keep figures stable with ease, quite neutral in terms of aesthetic and on a Master-sized build they're definitely correct in terms of proportion.

It's been used as the main foot piece for most CCBS sets since 2011, I suppose people are just getting sick of it.

[MakutaOfWar]

The feet look like clown shoes. Enough said. They were especially bad with 2.0 sized figures, proportion wise.

[DraikNova]

The feet look like clown shoes. Enough said. They were especially bad with 2.0 sized figures, proportion wise.

Yes, but with modern figures, like Tahu or Kopaka, they're approximately correct in terms of proportion, while still providing a reasonable degree of stability.

[bidiminished]

The number one thing I want for next year's sets is a new gearbox/torso design. I really don't like how the current one pushes the arms two modules back.

[TheDesuComplex]

The number one thing I want for next year's sets is a new gearbox/torso design. I really don't like how the current one pushes the arms two modules back.

The reason the gearbox has an extra module is to allow the space for the gears to swing, and the extra friction gears in the middle. The only way I could really see them fixing this is making what is essentially a normal CCBS bone torso but with a gearbox replacing most of the upper chest. However, this would dissallow the heights to be different on the Gearboxes, which the 2015 Toa use to their advantage to create varied builds.

Someone mentioned it in the set thread, but I would really like for Pohatu to use some tan now that we are seeing it in the Star Wars figures. He could really benefit from it in the same way Onua has benefited from the addition of Purple, being a brighter color that still fits thematically with his element.

[GK733]

Yeah, I would like some tan on pohatu too and it would work fine dark orange like it does on Huki and some gray and black... but thinking of using tan with phosp. green makes me puke.

[Logan McOwen]

Well, the transparent lime could always be replaced with transparent orange.

[GK733]

Well, the transparent lime could always be replaced with transparent orange.

I didn't mention it because at this point it's pretty much the color for "evil" and fire so I think Pohatu having it is a no go. I only could see them changing Gali's to dark trans blue to differentiate from ice and Tahu's to trans-yellow.

[CabooseBM]

I think light bluish grey would be a much better counterpart to the dark orange used by Pohatu. Also, it's a new shell color!

Olive green also pairs well with dark orange, but not for Pohatu.

[mysteriouspi]

Well, the transparent lime could always be replaced with transparent orange.

Not gonna lie, I stole Kulta's eyestalk to try on Pohatu. Made me way too giddy.

Anyway: am I the only one who does not want colors to change for the Toa? Gali, Lewa, and Pohatu all use new colors this year but in a measly one shell size each. I'd like to expand the number of shells produced in each of those colors before the Toa undergo a color change.

I'm all for different colors on the creatures, though. We're gonna want tan shells in smaller sizes than 6M once the Star Wars line releases in a week and a half.

[Logan McOwen]

We're gonna want tan shells in smaller sizes than 6M once the Star Wars line releases in a week and a half.

:3c

[mysteriouspi]

:3c

No! I will never submit to the clone brands!

All this talk about parts makes me wish CCBS was still in Pick-A-Brick...

[Shakar]

Not gonna lie, I stole Kulta's eyestalk to try on Pohatu. Made me way too giddy.

Anyway: am I the only one who does not want colors to change for the Toa? Gali, Lewa, and Pohatu all use new colors this year but in a measly one shell size each. I'd like to expand the number of shells produced in each of those colors before the Toa undergo a color change.

I'm all for different colors on the creatures, though. We're gonna want tan shells in smaller sizes than 6M once the Star Wars line releases in a week and a half.

I actually agree. The constant flux of new colours has been nice, but I'd rather see it stop for a bit and get more recolours for the Toa you mentioned. Maybe give Gali tr. dark blue to distinguish her from Kopaka, but no need for new colours. More pieces in the secondary colours would be good too, both for shells (tr. purple, tr. light blue in 5M/6M) and bones (tr. reddish orange, tr. dark blue, tr. neon green, tr. purple).

Oh, and I really want a new torso piece, more so than a new foot. The 2.0 shell is incredibly bland in my eyes, and that's why I replaced it with the Breakout one for my Toa. Alternatively, the Brain Attack shell in new colours. But something like this would be the best darn thing.

Edited August 24, 2015 by Shakar

[Onepu the Protector]

The only Toa I'd change the color scheme of is Pohatu. I'm not too fond of the trans. neon green (at least it's not trans. yellow , so that's something) and the amount of silver on him. I like the dark orange, though. It's a nicer and more vibrant alternative to reddish brown.

As far as the 'Metru' colors go, they would suit villains a lot better than the Toa, in my opinion.

Anyway, did someone mention Makuta in his Mask Maker form? I made a MOC of him some time ago.

[Shakar]

I like the tr. neon green myself. But I do agree, more brown and less silver on him.

This reminds me: more hand colours. 12 out of the 19 2015 figures (figueres, not sets, I'm keeping Kulta and Ekimu separate) have silver fists. I'd like more elemental colours, be they solid or transparent. Gold and titanium hands would be great too. More feet colours would be good too.

Metru colours do look more villainous, but I wonder if they could slip one or two of them in the Creature sets. Though it seems that these days some dark colours have been replaced by transparent colours (tr. dark blue is close enough to dark blue).

[Logan McOwen]

All this talk about parts makes me wish CCBS was still in Pick-A-Brick...

Yeah. I wonder why they stopped selling CCBS parts in PaB? Poor sales? Expensive to produce?

I'm not going to buy into the conspiracy that they were taken off PaB due to protest from System fans, mainly due to the source of said conspiracy...

Edited August 24, 2015 by LewiMOC

[Lyichir]

I like the tr. neon green myself. But I do agree, more brown and less silver on him.

This reminds me: more hand colours. 12 out of the 19 2015 figures (figueres, not sets, I'm keeping Kulta and Ekimu separate) have silver fists. I'd like more elemental colours, be they solid or transparent. Gold and titanium hands would be great too. More feet colours would be good too.

Personally, one of the things I've really liked about the sets this year has been the use of silver as a neutral color. For the figures' hands and feet, it spreads the color of the new heads throughout their color schemes a bit more, and on some of them gives the impression of their hands and/or feet being unarmored (which is a neat look for figures like lava-surfing Tahu or jungle boy Lewa).

That's not to say I would necessarily mind new foot and hand colors, though I think gold would seem a little gaudy, especially considering it isn't the main color on any of the six Toa. (EDIT: Just realized this was the main action figure topic as opposed to the Bionicle topic. I'm totally fine with other colors of hands and feet for other themes, INCLUDING gold since it's practically a necessity for a C-3PO figure).

Yeah. I wonder why they stopped selling CCBS parts in PaB? Poor sales? Expensive to produce?

I'm not going to buy into the conspiracy that they were taken off PaB due to protest from System fans, mainly due to the source of said conspiracy...

They weren't taken off due to any sort of "protest", but the truth isn't actually that far off. From what I've heard from sources including Kevin Hinkle, the community manager for the Americas, they were taken off due to confusion from mainstream fans of traditional Lego. It was easy for parents or novice Lego fans to see a neat-looking armor part and order it, only to discover that it didn't fit together with little Timmy's collection of basic bricks at all. Cue confused/angry calls and emails to customer service about why Lego would sell parts that don't attach to anything else.

I'd love for CCBS parts to return to Pick-a-Brick, but to do so they'd have to address this issue in one way or another. I had hoped that when they started labeling certain parts on the physical walls with "Great for [theme XYZ]", that could be the way to do it—just label the CCBS parts with "Great for Hero Factory/Bionicle". But that wouldn't really fix the online issue, and that's where the issue would be most problematic due to not being able to physically examine the parts you're ordering to figure out what they're compatible with. The online Pick-a-brick would need to be updated to provide more information about each part, and unfortunately it's probably just easier to continue providing only basic bricks that have obvious compatibility with traditional Lego.

Edited August 24, 2015 by Lyichir

[Logan McOwen]

That's quite interesting, but also a shame. I don't use PaB, so I don't really know how the system quite works. Are parts separated out into categories? If so, surely CCBS parts were in their own category?

[mysteriouspi]

That's quite interesting, but also a shame. I don't use PaB, so I don't really know how the system quite works. Are parts separated out into categories? If so, surely CCBS parts were in their own category?

They usually are. Unfortunately, separating CCBS into its own category (whether it was or not) wouldn't help the uninformed much. It's a shame because ordering parts through Bricklink is proving quite expensive. Of course, PaB prices are not cheap either, but I prefer to buy directly from TLG when prices are competitive.