Assessing The Potential Unestablished Space Factions From Various CMF Series

[SuperSquidman]

(This may have been done before but I’m not familiar with any previous endeavor so I will make and post this nonetheless)

LEGO SPACE, beginning in the 1980s, has had many factions, some being Blacktron, Spyrius, UFO, Space Police and more. Since beginning in 2010, the LEGO theme “Collectible Minifigures” has had many figures belonging to different space factions. However, not all of them belong to a pre-established faction, so this post will be made to not only detail the different space factions that have appeared in the various CMFs but primarily to assess those that are NOT preexisting factions, many of which have still not been given names as far as I’m aware. Since many figures are a part of factions one can posit that all space figures derive from and are representative of a particular faction (they don’t have to be but I will consider them as such for this post.)

 

First, there are the: PRE-EXISTING, ALREADY ESTABLISHED, LEGO SPACE FACTIONS:

 

Standard LEGO Space Agency (identified by the classic space logo): S1 Spaceman, S6 Intergalactic Girl, S7 Galaxy Patrol (dubbed “Space Marine” by some), S12 Space Miner, S15 Astronaut, S21 Space Police Guy, S22 Alien Creature, S22 Robot Repair Tech*, and S24 Brown Astronaut

*The Robot Repair Tech’s look is complete enough and technologically advanced enough that it could not be made by someone or something without the necessary resources (they have a mining operation in space per the S12 space miner (perhaps a space-offshoot of Rock Raiders and Power Miner?)); it has a general, almost “focus-tested” look, like a modern civic/mainstream look (even arguably trying to look “cutesy”), like those of town/city buses, advertisements, maybe even streaming services, etc.; it is not Blacktron, Spyrius, or any other faction as its colors most align with the variety present in the standard space agency’s output; many have theorized that the standard space agency has a very wide reach (S22 Alien Creature shows that non-earth beings are enlisting/joining) and may even be rather fascistic and/or totalitarian (semi-jokingly but Space Police 3, Alien Conquest, S7 Galactic Trooper, and Galaxy Squad do put forth much compelling evidence: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=LQ3lfUxkm90 (some of these elements are now diminished a bit due to the existence of the S22 Alien Creature)); taking all this into account, the faction with the most reach, necessary resources, and that would have presence in the civic sphere, would be the standard space agency.

 

Blacktron: S3 Space Villain, S11 Evil Mech, S19 Galactic Bounty Hunter

Galaxy Squad (presumably an offshoot of the standard space agency but I will include it as its own faction since no such figure has the standard space agency logo): S13 Galaxy Trooper; this figure has on its chest armor, in the same places as all human Galaxy Squad minifigures, the same, exact symbols as them, except the symbol on their left has a gap in the middle of it (this symbol is present on the back of the S13 Galaxy Trooper’s armor as well.) I have never seen this mentioned anywhere before which is a bit disappointing.

Alien Conquest aliens’ faction: S8 Alien Villainess

 

UNESTABLISHED LEGO SPACE FACTIONS FROM THE CMF SERIES (I’m not familiar with every symbol used by a LEGO space faction so some of these may actually be from preexisting factions):

 

S1 Robot: This could just be a helper robot made by the standard space agency. If it is representative of a species or faction, then the colors of their ships and overall aesthetics would presumably be light gray and silver with very plain/non-intricate designs.

S3 Alien: It uses the Sqidman/Squidtron head but doesn’t seem to be of that same species (and according to the lore, Squidman may by the only alien of his kind (which is why he created Squidtron.)) It is most similar to the Alien Conquest aliens’ faction. Assuming it is a part of a faction and like the other factions their outfits and even skin colors match their vehicles and overall aesthetics, the ships for this species would be lime green, purple, gold, light gray and/or dark gray, and maybe silver and a light blue (perhaps just as highlights.)

S6 Classic Alien: Assuming its ships are those of what is commonly ascribed to it, they would be modern-looking UFOs, retro UFOs, or anything apparently sighted.

S8 Evil Robot: This could be an unaffiliated character, perhaps an experiment gone wrong or something of an outlaw, but assuming it is representative of a particular faction, then the vehicles and overall aesthetics would be black, red, and gunmetal. They almost seem like the LEGO space equivalent of the Borg.

S9 Alien Avenger: The “Avenger” in the name relates to this description I found on bricksandminifigsanaheim.com (and the Portland version too) which reads like an official LEGO description so I’m going to post it here: “This alien species is constantly being bullied by others, but enough is enough! The Alien Avenger has bulked up, collected armor, and fashioned his own laser pistol to take out those who would threaten his home world!” It sounds like this species has been hurt by and/or caught in the fights of the standard space agency, Blacktron, Galaxy Squad, etc. This fits in to the overall situation of LEGO space, which is many space factions most of which competing or at odds with each other. This makes this avenger species seem more pacifistic from the start, donning their weapons as a means of defense. I personally am rooting for them. Their ships would presumably be bulky, consisting mostly of dark gray and bronze with silver highlights. Before knowing the figure’s official name and reading its description, to me this figure looked like it could’ve been a part of a species that was the LEGO space equivalent to the Klingons or the Star Wars EU/Legends’ Yuuzhan Vong.

S9 Battle Mech: This figure doesn’t have any of the Galaxy Squad symbols but it looks almost exactly like one and it came out in the same year, included in the year’s first CMF. Though it lacks any symbols, it may be a part of Galaxy Squad and simply something similar to the S12 Dino Tracker, S19 Jungle Explorer, or even S9 Mr. Good And Evil, where the figures either belong to a theme or are remakes of older figures; S12 DT is a part of the Dino theme, S19 JE is Johnny Thunder, and arguably S9 MG&E is Monster Fighters, which is arguably further supported by a cover image used for the LEGO Worlds Monsters pack (even the S2 Witch and a differently-colored variant of the S1 Zombie were arguably, retroactively made into Monster Fighters minifigures with the set 850487 Halloween Accessory Set/Pack, whose box-art is very similar to if not exactly that of the Monster Fighters sets.)

S6 Clockwork Robot and S11 Lady Robot: These are likelier to be none-space figures but they still could be considered or classified as such. The aesthetics of their vehicles would be blockier, feature gears, dials, cogs and lights, and colors such as light blue, red, gray, silver, pink, purple, and yellow.

S15 Laser Mech and S16 Cyborg: These are seemingly both of the same faction/kind. These figures stand out from the others in that they are the only non-established faction to have two, different figures (not counting the possible S6 and S11 clockwork robots, but they are just differently gendered versions anyways) and to have a figure referenced in a rather substantive way; the Cyborg is on the S19 Game Champ’s “Space Game” (for the Game Box) cover. The aesthetics for this faction, assuming they are not a part of a preexisting one (addressed soon), would be primarily light blue and black with lime green highlights and maybe some silver. If these figures are a part of an already existing faction, then they would seemingly be a part of the 90s Insectoid faction in a way similar to the aforementioned S9 Mr. Good And Evil, S12 Dino Tracker, and S19 Jungle Explorer, where they are made intended as certain figures and/or belonging to certain themes but are not explicitly mentioned as being such; the aesthetics of the Cyborg could be considered an updated version of the Insectoid faction’s aesthetics (Roboforce is second likeliest but Cyborg’s aesthetics feel more Insectoids-like.)

S17 Retro Space Hero: This figure is either an unaffiliated hero or a part of an older/retro version of the standard space agency. Its aesthetics, which would carry over to its vehicles, are those of old, science fiction pulps (pulp magazines/comics) and serials.

S21 Alien: This alien appears to be in a prison jumpsuit (it may not be but since it was in the same series as the Space Police Guy and was seemingly intended as a companion minifigure, I assume it’s a prison jumpsuit.) If it is a part of a group or faction, then per Space Police lore, especially that of the most recent incarnation of the theme, this alien is a member of Brick Daddy’s Blackhole Gang.

S24 Robot Warrior: This figure may be Earth-based, seemingly being from an anime-type vein or a Japanese media vein like the S20 Super Warrior (“Super Sentai” it has been fittingly referred to) (both figures are “[blank] Warrior”.) Its aesthetics are those of common, action-oriented anime stories, similar to how the aesthetics of the S17 Retro Space Hero are old science fiction pulps and serials; I don’t think I have to explain what colors or styles it would consist of then.

 

FIGURES THAT DO NOT COUNT BUT WILL BE MENTIONED SINCE THEY ARE RELATED TO WHATEVER DEGREE:

S17 Rocket Boy

S23 Cardboard Robot

 

SPACE REFERENCES PRESENT WITH OR ON OTHER FIGURES:

 

(Already mentioned) S19 Game Champ’s “Space Game” (for the Game Box) cover

S20 Space Fan’s shirt has a classic space spaceship (there is also a saturn planet sticker on the pants which may or may not be a reference to the standard space agency’s logo)

S21 Violin Kid’s shirt is white with a small, black collar (or that’s just the neck opening and a shadow), covered with Blacktron logos

 

 

FIN

 

If there is anything I didn’t mention let me know

Edited January 19 by SuperSquidman
Re-pasted entirety of text to change its size to preferred size

[novareb]

This is an AWESOME writeup! Great work putting it together, LEGO lore has always been something that interested me.

[SuperSquidman]

3 hours ago, novareb said:

This is an AWESOME writeup! Great work putting it together, LEGO lore has always been something that interested me.

Thank you! 
 

I don’t know to what degree it’s intentional but it’s amazing how much of it can be pieced together to form a cohesive progression of events and world/universe. At the very least, even if it is not officially acknowledged or supported, I wouldn’t be surprised if the designers keep track of things and design accordingly

[Oky]

Interesting analysis. However, I don't think all figs can really be put into one specific faction, and I think some of them don't even really count. Some thoughts:

S1 Robot: There is nothing to suggest that he is affiliated with any faction, or that he is even in Space. In fact, it has been said that the Deep Sea Diver saw him walk across the sea floor once. While it doesn't specify if it was Earth's ocean, it stands to reason that he is an Earth robot.

S8 Evil Robot: Based on his description, he seems to be an unaffiliated character who gets hired by various evil factions. And if the S1 Robot isn't a Space character, neither is the Evil Robot.

S9 Alien Avenger: A lot of what you said about him seems like pure speculation. Bricks and Minifigs is a secondhand Lego seller that has no official ties to LEGO as far as I know, so anything they put in their made-up descriptions isn't canon. The official description of the Alien Avenger goes:

Quote

The Alien Avenger is part of a team of rough, tough space warriors assembled from all across the galaxy. With armor and weapons scavenged from the battlefields of a hundred war-torn worlds, he may lack military discipline, but he makes up for it with brute strength and eagerness to charge into battle no matter the odds.

As one of 5,000 identical siblings, the Alien Avenger is used to not standing out in a crowd. But it doesn’t bother him that some may see him as just another nameless, faceless trooper – give him a planetoid beneath his feet and a disintegrator blaster in his hand, and he’ll take on anything and everything that comes his way!

While I agree that the "Avenger" in the name seems to imply that he was a victim of some sort, nothing in his description confirms that he was wronged by any of the Space factions. He's just part of an unnamed ragtag group of warriors. Given that they're scavengers, this team may not have a clear color scheme, but rather a cobbled-together look.

S9 Battle Mech: Like you said, while it looks similar to a Galaxy Squad figure, it lacks their logo, so is likely not affiliated with them. The Battle Mech's description seems to indicate that it is an unaffiliated hero similar to Voltron or the Megazord. Perhaps it is a Galaxy Squad robot that got repurposed by whoever is controlling it.

S16 Cyborg: The fact that she appears on a game cover pretty much confirms that she is just a video game character, or at least someone from (a future) Earth that the game is based on, so I don't think she's part of any Space faction.

S17 Retro Space Hero: His description heavily implies that he's just an actor in a cheesy TV show, so I don't think he counts as Space.

S24 Robot Warrior: All we know about it is that it defends its world and is ready for battle. While its world could be Earth, it sounds more like it has its own world to protect, so I would argue that this one is actually its own Space faction. It even has its own logo.

 

We'll have to update this list when the Space CMFs release!

[Artanis I]

Post would benefit from using pictures!

 

For the cyborg & laser mech, I just gave them vehicles from Ultra Agents sets!

 

My own personal version of Space includes many minifigs from both CMF and other themes (primarily Nexo Knights, Ultra Agents, Monkie Kid, Stuntz, Vidiyo, Marvel, but a few others). Every alien that looks a bit suspicious has joined the Black Hole Gang. Anything that could be considered a bounty hunter or mercenary is one. Then there are some groups based on multiples of the same minifig like the moon protector knight thing, space troopers etc (a few different ones as you've mentioned), Nexo villains, Ironclad villains, and Nexonauts... and a big band based on Eternals. But many of these required donning a suitable helmet and/or other part-swapping.

[PRbrickbuilder]

Nice work!

If the Lego Movie CMFs counts, there is Apocalypse Benny from TLM2 CMF, which also belongs to the Classic Space Agency.

 

I wonder what is the backstory on the fig from 31111, though: a spyrius looking robot with the Classic Space logo. Was he reformed? Or is he the first of its kind, built by the Classic Space agency intended for good, then later was stolen and reprogrammed by the Spyrius spies?

Edited January 22 by PRbrickbuilder