Ikaatril

Do they? I don't think the jaws are there for knocking the Beast's heads off, I think the eyestalks are there to allow the jaws to snap shut and open, and to do that by pressing the jaws instead of an eyestalk would be horribly awkward.

I can't help but notice that the Lava Beast's and Storm Beast's jaws aren't dropping down like Quake Beast's - friction? Ekimu's shield is also popping out way too far. I think they use the old eyestalks because of their jaws, it's kind of hard to use the new eyestalks, since they don't extend far out enough to be easily pressed. Glad to see they've dropped them. I'm also not sure what Quake beast's shoulder is meant to be - it looks like a bunch of parts lazily slapped together. That exposed gear.... Lava Beast's transparent black spiky things look horrible - they'd be better off solid black. The glatorian necks in the legs are also the shade of brown Pohatu's mask uses, not transparent orange. Like the ones Pohatu has. Umarak's mask also appears to be gunmetal and trans-orange.

This is why the beasts are so disappointing - they had the chance to be like the creatures, but larger, but instead we have humanoids with slightly bestial gaits and big teeth & claws. Such a good opportunity for something new, and it was wasted on cookie-cutter humanoids.

What would you like to see in future sets? I'd like to see something less humanoid and more 'alien', something that's not really any existing creature nor resembling a humanoid.

While it's possible to continue past 2017, given the fact that the sets are very limited in Europe right now is significantly lowering the chances of it continuing past 2017, let alone 2016. G2's in a dire situation, and it's showing - if it repeats last year's performance of shelf-warming, there will certainly be no more BIONICLE in 2018. And, given the limited availability of this wave of G2 in Europe, it'll be hard to make sales outside North America, and you don't severely limit a theme from an entire continent if it's doing well. Like how the second wave of Chima ultrabuilds were only available on the Eurafrasian supercontinent because the first wave didn't sell well, and then stopped completely. So there's a significant amount of evidence that G2 isn't doing well at all. And, considering how much money LEGO seemed to sunk into G2's launch... I think using the same theme name and character names for the Toa for G2 was a mistake. also. Added a lot of unneeded baggage and confusion to G2, shooting itself in the foot from the start. Not enough time had passed.

I think 2017 could do with being like 2003, having two waves of villains instead of one, and making the Toa the creature/protector sized sets for once. LEGO once said that small sets, impulse sets, sold the best, so why not make the protagonists the best-selling level of sets while also giving them villains which would then in all likelihood be larger and thus more threatening? Might increase the sales, too, seeing as apparently they're selling poorly enough to almost entirely pull them from Europe. Not even HF sold that badly...

What about the lithe limbs and shoulders of Lewa? The broad shoulders of Pohatu, who is still among the shortest? The tall, but thin Kopaka? To me, there is a clear variation to the overall shape of the Uniters. Only the torso is shared between them, and that was the same case for the Masters. I hardly see how the Uniters have less variation than the Masters. Each has a different silhouette, just as the Masters did.

Frankly, I don't see how even half of last year's sets have more 'personality' than this year's sets. What do people mean when they say that? I don't particularly see how 2015 Tahu, perhaps one of the more boring Masters, has more personality than Uniter Tahu, who at least looks a lot more fire-based - unlike Master Tahu, who only had his weapons to signify that. To me, it's just people getting nostalgic, except for 2015 instead of 2001. and being contrarian for the sake of being contrarian. Things are different, the sets aren't exactly the same as they were in 2015, so it's bad, obviously. Just like how anything that deviated from 2001 BIONICLE in G1 was bad. You ask me, the Uniters have far more 'personality' than the Masters ever did. That's not say some are better designed, it's just that half the Masters didn't do a very good job of looking like they were the masters of elements.

How so? I feel that, with the exception of Pohatu, the unification thing brings more to the Toa than it takes away, especially in the cases of Tahu, Lewa, and Onua.

Perhaps Storm Beast's hands are intentional, and the designers are going for a 'long, extended, unnerving hands' look on Storm Beast? Just to emphasise the beastliness of the hands? Only explanation that makes sense to my mind.

The skull sets are still being sold, aren't they? Could be a new strategy to advertise the previous wave as well as the current wave. They do it in the summer wave often enough (at least with constraction) having both the winter and summer waves, so it could be that LEGO's decided they'd like to advertise the previous summer wave during the next winter wave as well. But I do like that the Skulls are sticking around. Nice to see we have more opponents than just the beasts and Umarak this year.

I think Dorek's right about the jaws - which also means the 'knock-mask-off' feature is being used in a rather creative 'make the jaws close' way instead. Would add functionality to them and not make them completely in place. Only problem is that means they have no friction, unless we're getting a new eyestalk piece as well?

Might it be possible that we might get a Umarak/Onua combiner this year and that's just advertising it?

With that same logic, we could also say that the Skeletons of last year are undead versions of the Toa. Which wasn't the case. Let's not jump to conclusions while we have literally no information. I don't know about you, but I don't think it's the best explanation either, considering that none of the beasts look like their corresponding creatures. Surely Lava Beast would have corrupted wings? In sets that are meant to be new forms of previous characters, there tend to be hints of their previous form. Shadow-trap shoulders on Umarak the Destroyer, for example, and I don't need to speak about the Toa. Whereas, in the beasts, there are no hints of Ikir, Melum, or Terak asides from one or two shared colours and weapons, but if we go by shared colours and weapons then Tahu is also Ikir because Tahu also has trans-orange and the new blade pieces in orange. I think the best explanation for the appearance of the beasts is that 'The set designers designed them to be beasts'.

Nothing indicates that the Beasts are corrupted creatures, though...? That was just speculation before we even had pictures.

I'm loving that torso print on Ekimu. Not so much the shoulders. Those look rather awkward from the front. Doesn't seem to have a piece of unification on his back, looks more like a gear box except missing the gears.Not sure what's going on there. Also, is that trans-red on Umarak's mask? Lava Beast certainly looks much better. Hands and weapons especially. Interesting that Lava Beast is the only beast with the geared lower-torso. Also seems that the crystal-seeming add-on piece isn't an add-on but an entirely new shell - which is disappointing, as it would be more useful as an add-on. Storm Beast looks horrible. Awkward claws, awkward arms, awkward legs, and seems to have the same function as Skull Basher. Quake Beast definitely looked much better when you could only see one side of it. The shoulder trap doesn't really work well. And the black's really out of place. Umarak's clearly the best set of the wave. Which isn't saying much. The skull armour on the hands is too far away, the hands look really awkward with the gears, and that back is a huge mess. Not to mention that the lower jaw really doesn't work. On all of the sets, to be honest. How did we go from the posable jaws of the HF beasts to the ugly, stationary piece that are these jaws? The crystal armour piece really doesn't work well, does it? It barely covers the arm and sticks out so much it looks awkward, and, given the track record for these things, be forgotten about after this wave. Should've been an add-on. Reminds me, always hated that about BIONICLE, both G1, and also G2: it introduces many new pieces yet never ever uses them again. Of the pieces that were introduced last year, only three or so are still being used, and that's the skull ribcage piece, the skull limb armour add-on and the piston armour add-on. The axes, Onua's claws, Pohatu's boomerangs, the skull weapons, Tahu's swords, the skeletal bones, they've all been forgotten about. Wastes of molds and plastic. With few exceptions, LEGO was far more efficient with molds and pieces in HF: almost every piece was used more than once, for more than one purpose. This seems to have gone with BIONICLE. Why? Why waste the money on molds that'll only eve be used once? It'll add up in the long run, LEGO - please stop wasting money on one-use, one-note molds.

Not too sure of it, but Umarak the Destroyer looks to be a head taller than Umarak the Hunter, and Umarak's alread pretty tall... very disappointing that it's not trans-yellow, either. Trans-neon green is by far one of the most overused trans-colours at this point, it really needs to be retired for a while. Let it rest, so to speak. Hard to make out details on the beasts, and they look equally awkward to me. The foot-hands of Storm Beast don't work well at all IMO, and the thumbs on the bottom side don't help. Interesting that Ekimu comes with a black-and-red blend of Umarak's mask. Wish it was dark red, as Hunter has dark red, not bright red, which Destroyer doesn't have either. I know it's extremely unlikely, but is it possible the beasts have a unity feature to unite with their respective creatures? Though it's unlikely - gotta say I'm a bit disappointed they dropped the unity mechanic for the summer sets in the year that's supposed to be about unity. Ekimu might have it, but a. The Mask of Creation's upper half is too long to allow for a creature head to fit over, and b. Ekimu looks to have a gearbox on the back, by the virtue of his arms being further back - same with Destroyer. Ketar's also mysteriously absent from the photo. Also, those larger-Toa masks with trans-neon green blends...those are near useless. Tahu's is especially ugly. Red doesn't go well with neon green at all.

Something's bothering me - we know that the creatures give the Toa bonuses story-wise. Setwise, we can tell that Tahu and Lewa gain wings from the creatures, that Onua and Kopaka gain extra shoulder armour, and that Gali gains dual gatling guns... but set-wise, what in the world is Ketar supposed to add to Pohatu? Extremely unwieldy blades? Extremely unwieldy extra torso armour in the form of Ketar's legs? Part of me thinks that Ketar was the first creature designed, before they came up with the unity gimmick, which would partially explain why the Pohatu+Ketar unity feels so forced.

Exactly - the mask in the comic has both the eyebrows and more pronounced 'forehead circle' of the MoCo, and the markings are too wide to be those of the MoCr, not mention they start far too low for that as well. On the bottom left (our left) of the mask, you can also see the start of more markings, equivalent to where they would be on the MoCo (MoCr has these too, but they're on a more pronounced ridge). There's also the teeth at the bottom of the MoCo, which you can just barely make out, and the only version of the MoCo to have that is UTD's mask. Plus, it would be incredibly bad form to suddenly switch from Umarak to Ekimu without any explanation, implied or otherwise. Before this, the comic is showing Umarak's transformation. Makes literally zero sense for it to be Ekimu.

I very much doubt that that's Ekimu at the end of the comic, given that the previous panels are showing Umarak's implied transformation from Hunter to Destroyer, and that it's the Mask of Control, not the Mask of Creation.

About Umarak's lower legs - is that a trans-green bone going between the technic liftarms? If so, that's... an interesting design. The Mask of Control on Destroyer is also lacking the ram horns it used to have - they've been replaced by Umarak's own antler/horn/things...

So, Ekimu's basically another Toa in terms of build. But trans-blue Mask of Creation? Yes, please! I'm assuming Ekimu has a build similar to Tahu given the armour on his shoulders. Also - he has no friction extenders on his feet! I think Ekimu makes a better Toa set than some of the Toa. His hammer seems to be very similar to Onua's, except witha crystal thing on the front instead of a gatling gun. He appears to have retained last year's shield, except it's turned trans-blue. It wouldn't be far-fetched to say he could probably combine with the creatures, either... although I doubt the MoCr would allow for that. So maybe not? His shoulders seem to be a bit further back and there's something filling in the space between the torso and his upper arms - I'm assuming Ekimu has last year's gearbox as well as this year's geared torso, so he has two gear functions. I know this is a weird thing to say, but Umarak (Destroyer) doesn't really convince me that it's the same being as Umarak (Hunter). Everything's... too different? The trans-green looks to be trans-neon instead, the antlers have become horns and look less impressive IMO. The only thing Destroyer and Hunter share seems to be the lower legs + feet and trap halves on their shoulders. But that Mask of Control isn't the same as it was. Nice claws, though. Also, on the box art of Umarak, you can see Ekimu kneeling with his shield and hammer, using his hammer almost like a third leg. It's a very... knight-like pose? At least, a pose that you'd expect a medieval knight to do. Beasts: Uh. What? What are they supposed to be? I'm getting MAJOR HF Brain Attack vibes from these guys. Is anyone else getting major Brain Attack vibes from these guys? I know I am. It also looks like we're getting silver/trans-green versions of the larger Toa's masks...??? But none of the larger Toa have trans-green???? Onua has no silver???? What is the reasoning behind this...??? Their upper heads are reminding me of the Creature heads, but not by much. So far, I think these guys are a bit of a wasted opportunity. Look at the creatures - mostly all based on existing or mythological creatures. These beasts would have been great to do some larger sets based on mythological creatures, IMO, but right now they resemble Brain Attack 2.0. I can't say I'm impressed by any of the beasts. Maybe that'll change in time, what with the cycle of leaks and all. Ekimu, to me, is the stand-out. Hunter Umarak is more distinctive and more impressive than Destroyer, much in the same way that many of the 2015 Toa are more distinctive than the 2016 Toa.

I suppose HF's mere existence for four years or so refutes my point. But then again, Exo-Force went out wth a whimper rather than a lot of trying to be milked... and I suppose I can see how and why people like the 2016 Toa. Tahu, who in some ways looks more regal and a more of a master of fire than his 2015 incarnation, how Kopaka is now more lithe and more resembling of his G1 form than his Master form, and how Onua is still bulky, but less ridiculously so and thus somewhat more realistic and less 'toy-ish'. At least they're taking risks, unlike the latter years of G1 which were filled with Inika and Piraka clones.

Between generation 2's 2016 wave and its reception, and the fact that the Star Wars figures exist, it seems the Star Wars figures are both selling better and getting more funding. Now, people will say that both can exist, but these are constraction figures, not regular LEGO sets, and constraction figures cost more to produce than system sets, meaning that the existence of SW Constraction sets making a dent in BIONICLE. Not to mention the extra work set designers will inevitably go through, having to make the SW constraction figures as accurate as they can - something they don't have to do with BIONICLE. On top of that, people have noticed that several sets are missing from several regional variations of the LEGO Catalogue. It's now clear BIONICLE clearly isn't doing very well, and it may be possible that this is its final year. You can say it's planned to go on until at least 2017, but the key word there is 'planned'. That is in no way a confirmation, just what would have been planned if BIONICLE sold well. And everywhere I've seen, BIONICLE has been something of a shelf warmer, whereas the SW constraction sets are flying off the shelves. Which means that BIONICLE isn't continuing past this year, hence why we already have the Mask of Control in Umarak. Does anyone really think BIONICLE will continue past this year, what with Star Wars existing? Why go for the riskier and less profitable beast that is BIONICLE when Star Wars will inevitably sell better simply because of the name 'Star Wars'? This is BIONICLE's last year, I'm certain of it. It didn't sell anywhere near enough in its first year, and it won't this year. Look at the lack of effort put into designing more than half the sets this wave, such as Tahu, Kopaka, or Pohatu. The set designers know it's ending. So they've given up.