Bionicle 2016 Sets Discussion

[DOTM Shockwave]

Toa new forms look interesting, but I'm sticking with their 2015 forms.

Umarak looks neat, except for his lower legs.

I'll wait to see better images of the creatures before I comment on them, but so far I'm not interested in what I can see.

[DraikNova]

I have Skull Grinder by my side right now and I can asure you that Tahu's shoulder armor is the Skull add-on in gold.

Also has anybody else noticed Pohatu's stone ball at the other side of his spear? Nice G1 homage.

Sorry, I got confused with those on his knees.

[Lord-Vorahk]

One thing I haven't mentioned:

I don't like Pohatu's weapon. THe rock is a nice G1 homage, but I've never liked chain weapons on figures, because they just flop around uselessly. I'd prefer it if he had a mace and the sword was a side-weapon like his Gurahk staff in 2015.

Other than that, he's my favourite at the moment.

[MakutaOfWar]

Hm, I fear there will be no day of universal appraise for Bionicle by all communities. Personally, I am loving the way the sets are looking next year. And I'm loving the sets this year. It's Bionicle, just be happy for it(unlessItLooksLike2.0HeroBuildsYesI'mAHypocrite). And what's wrong with more complex builds? More bang fo' my buck(dollars not deer, stop glaring at me, Umarak.)

The creatures are all fairly nice, and from what I've seen on the Tahu pic they have a nicer integration with the Toa Uniters. Although Kopaka's seems kind of a mess proportion wise, but still a nice use of Melum.

Glad to see, from what I see, that the standard Kopaka has captured my love for him once more with the less bulky-armored-coat appearance. Also, new $/€30 box.

Umarak, very ironic how animal like he/she is since he's/she's the 'Hunter'. Swivel function would be great with the bow to use as a melee weapon. Though it appears he/she might have a Skull Villain blade as a secondary weapon.

[GK733]

I'm still bothered by the new dualinjected addon. While the more mechanical shell seems to be absolutely awesome the element "feather" addon is completely different and leaves awful gaps like seen on Gali and Kopaka.

[Fulcrumfan91]

Hm, I fear there will be no day of universal appraise for Bionicle by all communities. Personally, I am loving the way the sets are looking next year. And I'm loving the sets this year. It's Bionicle, just be happy for it(unlessItLooksLike2.0HeroBuildsYesI'mAHypocrite). And what's wrong with more complex builds? More bang fo' my buck(dollars not deer, stop glaring at me, Umarak.)

The creatures are all fairly nice, and from what I've seen on the Tahu pic they have a nicer integration with the Toa Uniters. Although Kopaka's seems kind of a mess proportion wise, but still a nice use of Melum.

Glad to see, from what I see, that the standard Kopaka has captured my love for him once more with the less bulky-armored-coat appearance. Also, new $/€30 box.

Umarak, very ironic how animal like he/she is since he's/she's the 'Hunter'. Swivel function would be great with the bow to use as a melee weapon. Though it appears he/she might have a Skull Villain blade as a secondary weapon.

I'm overall pretty happy with them all....I just wouldn't be able to afford them all :P

[DraikNova]

Hm, I fear there will be no day of universal appraise for Bionicle by all communities. Personally, I am loving the way the sets are looking next year. And I'm loving the sets this year. It's Bionicle, just be happy for it(unlessItLooksLike2.0HeroBuildsYesI'mAHypocrite). And what's wrong with more complex builds? More bang fo' my buck(dollars not deer, stop glaring at me, Umarak.)

The creatures are all fairly nice, and from what I've seen on the Tahu pic they have a nicer integration with the Toa Uniters. Although Kopaka's seems kind of a mess proportion wise, but still a nice use of Melum.

Glad to see, from what I see, that the standard Kopaka has captured my love for him once more with the less bulky-armored-coat appearance. Also, new $/€30 box.

Umarak, very ironic how animal like he/she is since he's/she's the 'Hunter'. Swivel function would be great with the bow to use as a melee weapon. Though it appears he/she might have a Skull Villain blade as a secondary weapon.

More complicated, but uglier. That's my problem with the new sets. Technic isn't well suited for situations in which it is completely exposed, because the net result looks incoherent and unfinished. If you're building a robot with the same range of motion as a human, would you really forget to put a dust cover over its parts? The thing would seize up within a couple of months or even a few weeks.

[Mandate]

This wave is better than the one in 2015.

DEAL

WITH

IT

inb4 '08 socket syndrome is back

Yeah, I'm... not too impressed with this new armor piece. I was hoping they would stick to CCBS and not make armor pieces that attach via Technic. Can't say that I am impressed with the chest armor either, it looks pretty cluttered, moreso than the Breakout and Brain Attack shells.

I was actually for armor with pinhole attachments but it looks so ugly and has one of the most obscure and useless designs. edit: I've looked over the piece again. It's got more connection points than I noticed at first glance. Still a bit of an oddball piece when it comes to new sets.

Anyway:

Pohatu

LEGO somehow managed to make his colorscheme even worse than this year's, how is that possible? His mask is recognizably the G2 Kakama, but the rest of him is completely different. Unless his color scheme changes, I definitely will not be buying him.

Lewa

I'm amazed at his lower leg design, using a Glatorian neck and the Vorox armor is especially neat. I'm worried about how much that's going to stick out in front of him though, and I'm not terribly fond of his mask. His weapons aren't anything to go on about, every single one of the Toa bar Onua uses that piece an they're not similar to this year's version in any way. I'll probably buy Lewa when I get the chance.

Gali

Blue, trans blue, silver and... trans neon orange? Blue and orange worked for the Bohrok, but I'm not sure it will work here. Best to wait for pictures on that, but I hate the new Kaukau and I think her weapon looks dumb.

Tahu

Could it be? Could LEGO have finally made a consistent metallic colorsche- oh wait there's silver on Tahu's mask . That'll probably be changed when sets come out, so I'm not going to go on about it. How is the Skull armor attached to him though? It's floating in mid-air... also, his weapons seem to have a "strike" function. The Hau is lame though. In spite of his problems, I like him.

Onua

Better here than he was in the other photo. I like the idea of his weapon, but knowing LEGO it's going to be awful in execution. I like his color scheme, but I think there's way too much gold. He's significantly less bulky compared to his 2015 version, and his Pakari is uglier and almost unrecognizable (also, silver frill). Don't like him a lot, he just doesn't look that great.

Kopaka

Original set looks pretty bad, but I can't make out much of it. I'm curious about his shoulder, though. They're almost entirely Technic... what's going on, LEGO? People called this year a transitional year, and I'm finding it hard not to see next year as one with how much Technic is being integrated.

The Creatures

All of them have those out of place silver/gold faces, and I hate that. Walking bear traps are dumb, but I can forgive all that if the sets have functions (which they seem to). Have to wait for people to actually get them before I can comment too much on them

Umarak the Hunter

I don't like him at all. He looks like something a cult would worship. His shoulder armor confirms that the bear traps are functional, but I just can't get over how over-the place he is.

Edited September 21, 2015 by Mandate

[The_Fiery_Rooster]

I think these sets look great! The new pieces really fit ,in my opinion. The masks look good to, still is obvious that it is an evolution of the 2015 ones, but still different enough.

I don't get all the negativity. The balance between complexity and smoothness is done well. I'm really exited for next years sets.

Edit: looking at Umarak, I'm pretty sure there is a swiveling function instead of a gearbox, which will work well with the bow and the two handed weapons

Edited September 21, 2015 by NetherCreeper

[MakutaOfWar]

More complicated, but uglier. That's my problem with the new sets. Technic isn't well suited for situations in which it is completely exposed, because the net result looks incoherent and unfinished. If you're building a robot with the same range of motion as a human, would you really forget to put a dust cover over its parts? The thing would seize up within a couple of months or even a few weeks.

So? Could be story related. Sure, maybe that doesn't mix well with 2015, on that note, but maybe the designers are going for the G1 look of semi-unfinished cyborgs. And it adds detail because personally, and I love CCBS, but just shells and bones in a generic figure don't necessarily cut the steak for me. Something the 2015 gearbox and armor add-ons eliminated was the fairly bland look of the standard '2.0 build', IMO. Nobody wants a system set that only comprises of 2x2, 3x2, and 4x2 bricks, do they? That's what I saw 'primarily' in the 'majority' of HF sets.

[The_Fiery_Rooster]

I just realized. The base of the new feather add on has pistons, so that it doesn't stick out so much. That's a nice touch.

[DuckBricks]

I was hoping for a bit more individuality with the Creatures (Akida and Ketar are really the only unique ones with two flying ones and two bipedal walking ones that look really similar), but it's certainly a lot more individuality than the Protectors.

[Toa of Gallifrey]

I'm loving how these sets look. Can't wait to see the finalized pictures when they eventually are unveiled!

[arc]

Ehhh. I don't know about these. Being prelims I won't make a call just yet, but I'm not liking the look of these.

[One Very Agile Cat]

Kopaka's upper arms are so very technic. I'm only worried that he may have limited articulation. But they really seem like they want to go more OG Bionicle.

[NanoxVox]

Noticed something about the leaked sets that I haven't seen mentioned yet. It looks like that as part of the "Unity" function, the heads of the creatures are able to attach on top of the masks as helmets. I noticed this with Kopaka and Melum though it is hard to notice since both parts are the same color.

[Lord-Vorahk]

Here's something i dont' think people have noticed: The Toa have their Nuva symbols in their chests... but what does Umarak have? A mouth. Okay, yes, you could say that it's a bit of bone that he's wearing, but it has a black void inside it.

Umarak isn't a simple undead warrior. He's a freaking Eldritch Abomination. And this is the part where I have a favourite G2 villain at last, because this is awesome.

Also, confirming that Onua has a rear-gear too, so he's probably got the same function as Umarak. Same with Kopaka.

And I'm notsure if anyone picked up on this, but Kopaka having Melum on his back, with his head on his mask and paws on his shoulders makes him look like he's wearing a pelt.

Tahu: Brother, you are supposed to fuse with the creature, not skin it!

[YellowCorvette]

Now the 2016 sets are grown on me, but I still prefer the 2015 version because of their originality. The only sets I interested are Umarak, but the others...... not so much.

Edited September 21, 2015 by ArmstrongYong

[Darking]

Now the 2016 sets are grown on me, but I still prefer the 2015 version because of their originality. The only sets I interested are Umarak, but the others...... not so much.

Same here. I've almost finished my revamps/mods of the 2015 toa, and before leakes surfaced I had planned to upgrade them later with the pieces that the 2016 ones would have. But given they are so different in shape, proportions (Onua shares the same body build as the others) and their bland weapons, I think I'll just leave them in their 2015 form.

Will surely pick Umarak up though because I'm also revamping the main villains of the story (LOSS, Kulta and him for now), and also because MoCo.

Maybe this isn't as bad as it looks. If future waves look better, I'd prefer to save some money on this one.

[MakutaOfWar]

Uh, Umarak has teeth on his chest. Looks like fangs, too.

[Vinyl Scratch]

Umarak is all I wanted from a BIONICLE villain.

Thank you LEGO.

[Ikaatril]

Thoughts:

Onua: I like it. Colour scheme works better than in 2015. So much more purple. And it's great. Onua pulls that look off very well, and this is probably the biggest improvement over a 2015 set, IMO. Also, anyone notice the 'construction' just below the end of the torso armour? It's sticking out the back and the front, all the Toa have it... is this a new CCBS torso piece? Possibly a lower and upper piece to allow for an incorporated gearbox?

Tahu: Those weapons, due to the technic, look like they belong on a bad MoC. Also, the lower flame pieces are really reminiscent of the 2001 flame piece.

Gali: Worst of the wave, IMO. Seems the dullest, and most boring set.

Lewa: Very interesting. Legs might not work well though.

Pohatu: I like it. Probably also the one most similar to their previous form, except without asymmetry this time.

Small sets, like last year, shine again.

Terak: More purple is always nice. Liking the design.

Ikir: Works well from the front, but I see a (relatively) large amount of technic for a small set that's going to significantly detract from the design when looked at from the back or side. Guessing the wings are taken off and added onto Tahu for the unity.

Akida(?): Can't really get a good like but that's a lot of blue. Looks like the weakest barring Ikir.

Uxar: I spot system integration.

Ketar: Interesting.

Kopaka & Melum: Kopaka is disappointing. Those are some horribly constructed and non-obscured shoulders that are going to bug a lot of people. He also suffers from 'no upper limb syndrome' PoF and PoI suffered from. The random black shells don't help. Really, LEGO? You already had them in white. Also, if anyone still doesn't understand how the new armour piece attaches, you can take a look at his left leg - it isn't via a ball joint? Seems an odd decision, and that will severely limit the part's usefulness if it can't attach to ball joints at all. And also a huge negative because this is CCBS, not G1. I'd rather a regular shell than an overdetailed waste of money. Think of all the WASTED, WASTED, WASTED money that went into designing that stupidly overdetailed part that just doesn't get along with the other CCBS parts, Versatile? Definitely not - it can't even attach to a ball joint. If more parts like this come in summer then we are witnessing the downfall of CCBS as designers begin to misunderstand their own building system. Melum is just a recoloured Terak with less claws.

Umarak: 'Custom legs are good' until you see the gappy and hugely out-of-place lower legs of Umarak. Plus, what is even the point of the extra foot-leg connection? It doesn't make the legs more stable since it doesn't even reconnect to the torso or upper legs, it just connects to the lower legs...that's hardly going to prevent Umarak from falling over if his/her thighs are to be placed in some positions. The legs are Evo XL bad. And the bow.. what kind of bow has a shape like that? Completely impractical. Horrible colour scheme too - thre's no order to it, it's just a mish-mash of silver, trans dark green, dark red, burnt orange, brown, black, and grey. Umbra, wheel-less dark colour edition is what we have here. If that's the best set of the wave to most, then wow, this wave is utterly abysmal to most people.

I guess BIONICLE's getting abandoned considering Star Wars will be more profitable, will get a higher budget. Goodbye BIONICLE, this seems to be your last year considering we're already getting the Mask of Control. Guess you sold really poorly in year 1, huh?

[Vinyl Scratch]

I guess BIONICLE's getting abandoned considering Star Wars will be more profitable, will get a higher budget. Goodbye BIONICLE, this seems to be your last year considering we're already getting the Mask of Control. Guess you sold really poorly in year 1, huh?

I remember DV saying that G2 sold good enough for LEGO to move on or something?

Or am I misremembering.

[MakutaOfWar]

I guess BIONICLE's getting abandoned considering Star Wars will be more profitable, will get a higher budget. Goodbye BIONICLE, this seems to be your last year considering we're already getting the Mask of Control. Guess you sold really poorly in year 1, huh?

No. These sets weren't designed in the last two months, you know. These were probably already in a design phase when the first 2015 wave was just released, maybe even earlier. 2015 hasn't affected these sets in any way other then a continuation in story.

[Quisoves Pugnat]

No. These sets weren't designed in the last two months, you know. These were probably already in a design phase when the first 2015 wave was just released, maybe even earlier. 2015 hasn't affected these sets in any way other then a continuation in story.

Indeed. Keep in mind that Gen1 was cancelled in 2008, which didn't affect 2009 and its promise of "a new era of BIONICLE glory." The designers were working on the original 2010 sets (the Baterra, etc.) when the announcement came.