VBBN

Bionicle 2016 Sets Discussion

Recommended Posts

...Am I the only one who likes Umarak's legs? While they seem a little bit unfinished, I feel like the look works for him (especially with the effect it has on his posture), and having built a mock-up in real life I was impressed by the range of motion they allow for (which exceeds most older Bionicle titan legs that had their articulation limited by pistons) as well as by their stability.

Nope, you're not alone there. I very much like his legs.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Are you telling me you didn't love works of beauty like Brutaka's and Takanuva's upper legs? I bet you like MegaBlowks too, kid *obvious sarcasm*

Brutaka's legs were decent, Takanuva rocks in all forms (except Stars). And BTW - Megablocks was awesome; Not is, but was.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Before people continue the fighting over the new "shell" I'd like to point out that the leg bone is a new recolor of the 6-module bone on Kopaka and hopefully on Gali's lover legs too.

2d95866a6dfec0745a35d0a2fb5690aa8e3455a0.png

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

...Am I the only one who likes Umarak's legs? While they seem a little bit unfinished, I feel like the look works for him (especially with the effect it has on his posture), and having built a mock-up in real life I was impressed by the range of motion they allow for (which exceeds most older Bionicle titan legs that had their articulation limited by pistons) as well as by their stability.

I was about to say the same thing. Umarak's lower legs are definitely non-traditional, but they are fairly simple and efficient, adding support and allowing for a wide range of poses. With a better kneecap I'm sure they would be even better.

I'm also fond of some of the other creative techniques we've seen, like Lewa's lower legs. The only issue I have with them is that this construction comes apart more easily than a normal leg built from CCBS beams But their proportions are quite charming and I really think they suit Lewa quite well.

And again, regarding the new shell used for the creatures' torsos — it seemingly has to use Technic pins to allow the creatures to connect to the Toa. It is as much a connector as it is an armor piece. I'm not so fond of it on Kopaka's lower legs, but we're seeing that set from a somewhat bad angle anyway.

There are things that DO bother me, of course. It's hard to understand the purpose of Kopaka's weird shoulder construction, which just seems to give him bony upper arms. Or for that matter the decision to give him black shells on his lower arms. I dislike Onua's more generic-looking physique, which loses a lot of the originality that this year's Onua brought to the table. The number of different textures in Tahu's design is somewhat alarming. And I'm not sure just what kind of functions to expect with the Toa's torsos, or how compatible they will be with things like Lewa's weapons. And finally, all the Toa appear to use friction joints on their ankles, which pretty much always looks weird. If ever there were a reason for a new foot piece, it's how awkwardly high the ankles of almost all current feet become when a friction joint is attached.

But overall I see a lot that interests me, and look forward to further details. It can't be denied that the designers are trying new things and exploring new types of building techniques, and we'll see how some of those pan out. Overall, I prefer the Toa's current (2015) designs, but some things like the new blended add-ons and the idea of each Toa having an animal companion appeal to me greatly, and we'll see if the new sets can win me over when all is said and done.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

And finally, all the Toa appear to use friction joints on their ankles, which pretty much always looks weird. If ever there were a reason for a new foot piece, it's how awkwardly high the ankles of almost all current feet become when a friction joint is attached.

I don't think they all use friction joints on the ankles....Pohatu definitely doesn't from what I can tell....if they do use those on the ankles, I would be very annoyed. I personally despise friction joints...I just don't like them, they take away a lot from the ability to move the Toa's legs. I can see that the joints are used by all the Toa in order to connect legs to torsos (not a fan) but the ankles would really annoy me.

Also, any ideas anyone as to when official pics might come out??? I would assume three months prior to release...which would mean sometime soon!

Also, not sure if this was mentioned already, but Lewa's weapons spin around....like helicopter blades. I think that's impractical...but Lewa's already growing on me a little bit. Still hate the lack of keetorange..but ah well. Also, everyone seems to be talking about Lewa's leg design and I'm not particularly clear on why it's a cool design...I can't make it out from the pics at all...could someone clarify how the legs are apparently built please?

Edited by lambda_cla3391

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I can't really understand why people dislike the fact that we're getting an armour piece "too much" similar to G1 aesthetics.

What made G1 so great to my eyes was the mix of different pieces with different origins: that was original, and helped creating the idea of a coherent universe with the same basis. Just like we have bones similar to those of monkeys, foxes etc. in the BIONICLE world we had Brutaka using the same calf of Vezok, or Roodaka using Rahkshi legs as arms. That was FASCINATING, and while different textures in the same set may trigger some people, it amazed me.

I really hope we continue down this road in G1: while I think 2015 was on of the best waves in the entirety of BIONICLE's history, this 2016 wave (and less beautiful, I admit it) may bring even better sets in 2017.

Edited by TwistLaw

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Pohatu most certainly has friction extenders on his feet. You can easily see it, as there's a darker part above his silver feet, which wouldn't have been there if there wasn't a friction extender there.

Overall, one of my biggest complaints is actually about the weapons. I didn't mind that the 2015 Toa re-used the same weapon pieces, as they were varied enough to work with. Gali and Lewa are an excellent example of this. However, this time, the sword piece is really over-used. The only Toa not to have that sword is Onua, and even 3 of the creatures use it. If they were trying to save costs by using the same weapon pieces over and over again ( I don't really care that they are in different colours, I honestly don't like the swords that much ), then I would have preferred it if they had used different head-pieces for each animal.

Yes, I know, giving them all the same heads is a cost-saving method, but while it worked for the Protectors, I don't really think it works for the creatures. The half-bat vibe Terak has works perfectly with his headpiece, and I can live with it on Ikir. However, I would have liked it if they gave Ketar and Uxar an insect/scorpion like headpiece kinda styled like Savage Planet's scorpion. Melum and Akida could have used the same head-piece too, with enough connection points you can transform certain looks.

Although I'm not always equally impressed with the sets so far, I must say that there are a BUNCH of parts that I really want. More different transparent purple bones and shells, more short bone/joint pieces in transparent colours, all of these are things we really needed. I really hope we'll get more different coloured bones in the future, they are an essential part of the colour-schemes and Lego should really use that more often.

-Iben

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I can't really understand why people dislike the fact that we're getting an armour piece "too much" similar to G1 aesthetics.

I'm still on the fence about the piece. I think I'm just so used to CCBS at this point that a G1-esque piece throws me a curve. Especially one that has Technic connection as opposed to the normal ball socket.

It's not a bad piece by any means, and I'm sure it'll come quite in handy. It's just... A bit of a shock.

Also not sure about the aesthetic. Compare it to our other 'G1' CCBS piece, the piston add-on. That has a good mix of detail and flat surfacing to have it fit in with other CCBS parts while still retaining some of G1's detailing. This new piece has a little too much detail, for my taste. For G1 and G1 parts, it's great. But for fitting in with CCBS, I'm not so sure...

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Wow, these look neato.

General thoughts: I positively adore the mixing of the new and old systems! While I may be in the minority, I don't mind having complexity for complexity sake as long as it isn't every set that does this. To me, "Unitied" Kopaka is the only one with the overly complex build, but I haven't built the sets yet so only time will tell.

Creatures:

Glad they aren't clone sets, for the most part. The new shell looks interesting with all the technic pin hole attachment points. As for them sharing the same head, this seems like a cost-cutting measure as well as a practical one. They seem to be able to attach to the Toa's masks, created a helmeted effect as seen on the Kopaka set.

Toa:

Tahu;

Don't like his mask that much. Nice to get the Skull armor in gold. I like his swords.

Onua;

While I liked his super-wide, bulky chest, it's good to see the bulk isn't gone entirely-just spread out.

Kopaka;

Lovin' Kopaka XL. Went from my least favorite to my favorite set. (When comparing 2015 Kopaka to 2016 Kopaka)

Pohatu;

A solid set, not much to say about it. Is that trans-yellow I see? It's probably just trans-neon green..

Gali;

Orange? An odd choice for sure, but I'm not disappointed with it. I almost thought she had a disc launcher when I saw the first prelims.

Lewa;

His mask is another strange one, but not in a bad way. It's odd how different it looks to his 2015 variant, but how similar it is to his Mata mask. Which, the 2015 variant was similar to the Mata one as well. Interesting how one mask can produce many similar enough evolutions, but the evolutions look vastly different to each other.

Villain;

Umarak;

Never skip leg day. I'm thinking this MoC is a destroyed version, it looks like parts of it are missing. He's creepy, spooky, and fairly well armored. I don't know why, but his mask gave me a good chuckle.

Final Thoughts;

Overall, I like most of these sets, I just don't care for Tahu that much. Being only one set, I think I'll just get him to complete the collection so to speak.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
I'm thinking this MoC is a destroyed version, it looks like parts of it are missing.

You mean the gold one? It doesn't look like it's damaged at all IMO. It's not quite accurate to the animation (which is a shame, since Ekimu's was pretty much spot-on), but it still looks like a whole mask. I just sort of wish they hadn't shoved that "beard" spike on it. I love the animation's one, heck, it's my profile pic, but I'm kinda meh about the physical one. I'm thinking Umarak's upgrade may be a gold armoured from where he actually wears that mask.

Edited by Timeline15

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

All the fuzz about Kopaka's lens made me wonder: why on earth did they swap the lens with its Phantoka form? That was just plain stupid.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Okay, like I said, I'll give my opinions on the sets. There's a lot of them, however, so I think I'll split this into different sizes and characters.

First, the individual creatures (and beartrap thingies):

  • General: they look varied enough, and have interesting builds. Using the exact same headpieces (from what I can tell, that's not a mask) is a bit underwhelming, but given they all must connect to the Toa's masks, I understand it was a simple and cost-effective way to maintain the same function across the sets, and to me they're so generic they easily fit most Creatures (MOST; but more about that later); my sole complaint is that some of them are silver when they're all meant to fit with golden masks. I also like the new piece and custom built torsos; I miss some of the complexity and challenge of the old Bionicle. But that's just me. The beartraps (can't wait to know the official names) are neat in their small variations; them having eyes, however, is a bit weird.

  • Ikir: so far, my favorite Creature. Interesting build (especially the talons), very fitting colors, and the helmet piece fits it better than all the others. The beartrap is a bit underwhelming, though: all the others have cool leg variations, and this one has...red claws. Some old rocket/missile pieces would probably be more fitting against a firebird.

  • Uxar: my second favorite, another solid flyer set, though for some reason (probably the posing), it doesn't seem much like an insect to me, but more like a dragon with insect legs. The helmet still fits him, but not as well as Ikir. The beartrap, however, is a bit more interesting than Ikir's, with its vine legs and chain tail (I wonder if it has something at the end like Ketar's).

  • Ketar: this one is a bit disappointing; mostly because they replaced the claws with the new sword piece (wouldn't those make more sense in the stinger?). The helmet doesn't fit as well as the others, but it's still passable. The saving point is the beartrap: the legs are a cute reminder of the Sand Slizer, and the chain tail stinger is a neat addition.

  • Akida: second weakest to me, and I can see why some people complain about adding more Technic; the custom torsos look real ugly from behind. The helmet fits a lot better than Ketar, but the stud shooters, though neat, are a weird addition: why is this the only Creature that doesn't rely on "natural" weaponry? That was clearly though for Gali's combination more than anything else. I can't see much of the beartrap, but the spider legs are a weird choice. One could see them as crustacean legs, though.

  • Terak: the weakest of them all to me, mostly because I have no idea what it is! People keep saying it's a mole, but moles don't walk upright; someone compared it to a bat, but it doesn't have wings. To me it looks more like a bear, but that's a big stretch; it's just some generic bipedal creature with huge claws. The helmet fits the worse compared to the other creatures, and though the drill legs on the beartrap are fitting, I can't help but laugh at the idea of it moving with those tiny things.

has anyone noticed how Melum's "mask" attaches to Kopaka's like a helmet? How do they do that, and do they all do that for each toa?

Yes, we noticed; and yes, they do. We'll probably only know the "how" when we get them in the plastic.

Now, has anyone noticed that there seems to be symbols marked on the Creature heads? They're starting to seem more mystical.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

has anyone noticed how Melum's "mask" attaches to Kopaka's like a helmet? How do they do that, and do they all do that for each toa?

It's believed that it is a theme across all the Unity models. We are not sure how the heck it connects. I suspect a new eyestalk that lets the Creature's head mount in the back, like this. There's also the possibility it hooks onto a loop on the back of the mask akin to how the Brain Attack visors attached.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

All the fuzz about Kopaka's lens made me wonder: why on earth did they swap the lens with its Phantoka form? That was just plain stupid.

All the fuzz about Kopaka's lens made me wonder: why on earth did they swap the lens with its Phantoka form? That was just plain stupid.

The image is flipped; you can tell from the main set form

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

These... initial impulse is that they feel like a step backwards in every way. Like they took the bad parts of the original BIONICLE line's visual cues and used them all at once. Especially noticeable in that clustercuss of a lower leg design on the villain. Yeesh.

Disappointed in single-piece torso armours too. I like the nuva symbol, but I liked how the HF torsos and the superhero plates looked a lot better, and having those designs on the superhero chests would have been fab.

Otherwise... definite meh at the moment. We'll see how they look in final shots.

I agree with this. The structure is there, but a few parts molds and prints are such turnoffs.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Yes, I know, giving them all the same heads is a cost-saving method

Actually, it's that the head is designed to slip over the top of the Toa's masks when the creature is snapped onto the Toa's back. With that in mind, making two different head molds that would still need to generally be the same shape in the front would be a waste.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I'm going to be one of those weird people that like Umarak's legs, aren't I?

I mean, a montrous, skeletal creature with twisted, broken legs, spikes growing out of it, huge antlers, and a chest-mouth sounds good to me.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Guys can you please not spam the chat discussion. My mom bought me this new laptop and it gets really hot when the chat discussion is being spamed. Now my leg is starting to hurt because it is getting so hot. Please, if you don't want me to get burned, then dont spam the chat discussion.

Just a relevant copypasta. 7 new pages in one day, goddammit.

Finally some HQ photos. In general I really like the Toa, the creatures I like less. Not sure what I should think about Umarak and what is probably Mask of Control - mask looks great but very different from the one in the animations.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Are you telling me you didn't love works of beauty like Brutaka's and Takanuva's upper legs? I bet you like MegaBlowks too, kid *obvious sarcasm*

Yes, I am telling you, sarcastic as you are, that I didn't like Brutaka or Takanuva08. I think they are both poorly-designed sets with awkward construction. In fact, Brutaka is my least favourite "titan" set in the entire BIONICLE run. He's everything I hate about BIONICLE's decreasing set design quality in the latter-years. Complicated for no reason, random spikes and teeth pointing everywhere, giant, over-complicated blades, massive over-detailed mask, massively competing visual textures, dumb wrists and hands, etc. It's literally the set I use as a poster set for where the line went wrong when it comes to visual design. It's a bad set and I have zero problems saying so. Following Brutaka's lead is exactly the worry I have with the randomly over-designed technic parts and constructions these new sets are showcasing.

You may not understand the criticism, but some of us enjoy sets with a unifying visual aesthetic more than ones with random competing textures and visual cues. The reason I think, so far, that the 2015 Toa worked better than these is that the new parts, even the piston add-on, were clearly designed to match the CCBS aesthetic while providing visual homages to the original line. The parts, including the masks, all worked to unify the toa with the CCBS system and create a compelling and striking visual design. These seem like a strong step backwards. Maybe final designs will change that, but preliminary images have me delivering a strong "meh". You're welcome to disagree and that's fine, but you asked why people didn't like this, so I'm explaining.

G1 MoCs =/= G1 sets.

Weird, you're the first person to bring up MOCs. I'm talking about sets, too.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I'm also on the boat of liking Umarak's lower legs. I really like it when they do weird stuff like this, it's part of what made me fall in love with Bionicle in the first place. I'm also happy about the G1-ish shells, though that's just me liking G1's schizo-textures.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

*stuff*

Weird, you're the first person to bring up that you hate Brutaka.

Lego knows better than you know anything about their business stop acting like you know.

I'm also on the boat of liking Umarak's lower legs. I really like it when they do weird stuff like this, it's part of what made me fall in love with Bionicle in the first place. I'm also happy about the G1-ish shells, though that's just me liking G1's schizo-textures.

They give that zombie feel, on extreme conditions the dark red bohrok-eyes could be taken as muscletissue, They give nice posability too but due to ankles being what they are the balance could be a problem.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Weird, you're the first person to bring up that you hate Brutaka.

Lego knows better than you know anything about their business stop acting like you know.

He was talking about aesthetics, not business. Though I dare say he's knowledgeable in that area as well.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

He was talking about aesthetics, not business. Though I dare say he's knowledgeable in that area as well.

I got the sense that he was using Brutaka as an example of an aesthetic failure, failure that was part of Bionicle's downfall buy affecting sales, thus business in his opinion.

Edited by GK733

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    No registered users viewing this page.