Onepu the Protector

I don't like the new skin. While I'm sure the most obvious issues (like dark grey font agains dark blue background in some places) will eventually get fixed, I'm not too keen on all the white... Maybe darker grey between the posts in a topic would be better?

I don't understand why MoF'15 is so popular... Sure, it maintains some iconic traits from the original Hau (such as the protruding, roundish mouth-piece and the vents on the cheeks) and I appreciate that but the eyeholes being so close-set and the wide, roundish shape with a chin so big it actually hits Tahu's chestplate make the overall design uglier and less dignified than the original Hau.

Excuse me for asking, but what's mismoulded about it?

The worst: 2015 Mask of Fire, Sanok, Elda, Suletu, Kakama Nuva, 2008 Pakari Nuva, 2008 Kaukau Nuva, Brain Attack Bulk Helmet. The best: 2001 Pakari, 2001 Kakama, 2001 Kaukau, 2001 Hau, Lhikan's Hau, Mask of Creation.

Meh, I still think 'special' is a terribly broad term... Anyway, I bought the Poisoned Hau Nuva some time ago but I didn't mention it in the topic, so... I do it now.

It doesn't really change anything about The Outsider's post, he still brought some good points about G2 ending and pointed out things that bothered me as well.

Dume was a red and black jerk who owned a giant vulture and used it as a pet/spy. There's hardly any twist to him being evil in one way or another. I'd even go as far as to say that the only thing that was remotely surprising in this case was the fact that he was being impersonated, instead of being flat-out evil. The actual twist here was that a character who seemed obviously evil was revealed to be a good guy. And while Makuta's jealousy might've been justified, it doesn't make unleashing bloodthirsty monsters to attack innocent villagers any more forgivable. Ekimu might've seemed somewhat morally ambigous due to the bad writing but at least he didn't command an army of sick abominations like Makuta did. I know Bionicle always seemed to have that unwritten rule saying that most of the time when there's some kind of conflict, war or danger, everyone is fine, unless stated otherwise... But I find it hard to believe the Skull Spiders and the Beasts were so utterly ineffectual that there weren't any casualties among the Okotans. To me, it seems that the Bionicle fans are just being desperate for any kind of shocking revelation. There's nothing wrong with wanting the story to be deeper but unpredictability alone doesn't make for a good plot twist.

Why does Bionicle fanbase seem so obsessed with the idea of the 'archetypical elderly mentor being secretly evil all along' revelation? I can't help feeling like they imply this kind of twist every time a local mentor figure happens to be harsh or secretive...

Well, while HF failed to live up to its potential, it didn't exactly fail as a LEGO theme - it lasted for four and half a year, which isn't that bad for a LEGO line. BIONICLE G2, on the other hand...

SirPuddings' post wasn't that bad - sure, it was pretty heavy-handed but I'm sure he didn't mean to offend the author of the MOC. I've seen worse things in this fandom.

I'd even go as far a to say that the Mask Hunt contest was the only Bionicle G2 contest that was done RIGHT. I mean, it was accessible to kids (and they're, obviously, the target audience and not aiming the advertising campaign specifically at them was the reason why G2 failed) and that was a good thing even though they might not be aware of the golden masks' value and their parents will probably sell them to a jeweler. The sets might've been a better prize for children but I still think the contest itself was a good idea.

The main difference is that you're able to build that inspiration models, while you can't make a new mask mold yourself (unless you happen to own a 3D printer, which still isn't the same as having an officially manufactured Lego piece).

I was going to say that LEGO didn't want to ruin our weekend by making us wait but they kinda ruined it anyway, so...

Elemental-colored spikes is an interesting idea but the only realistic way to achieve it would be having separate pieces that connect to the mask because a six-color blend (well, seven if you count black) just isn't technically possible and even if it was, I'm pretty sure it would look pretty gaudy. Not liking the design of MoUP is fine but basically insulting the designers' work because they didn't meet your unrealistic expectations is just childish.

Hey, I'd like to see that fake boxart, why do I always miss the coolest stuff here? T_T (Well, I'm not saying that fake boxarts are cool, most of them are really shoddy but it's still fun to see what people can come up with)

The friction of a ball joint/ball socket piece usually varies from piece to piece and often depends on how much it was used.

I know MOCs don't have to be 100% canon-accurate but for some reason I really like the fact that Artakha was supposed to be green because we didn't have any titan-sized green good guy in Bionicle.

Artakha is officially grayish-green in color. :P

Huh, I thought that was a wheel from that Cindirella set and Ekimu's shield.

Sure, some people don't like modified pieces and some of them react strongly to them but this statement just comes off as passive-aggressive and immature, sorry. Anyway, the MOCs are interesting (especially Kintok but that's mostly because I miss the classic brown-and-tan color scheme) but I can't help thinking they don't fit with Lhikan's aesthetic too well (but I know that having 11 Toa with the Toa Metru build would've a bit boring ).

Correct me if I'm wrong but wasn't Hydraxon an anti-villain of sorts? Sure, he was a former member of the Hand of Artakha and he was bent on capturing the Pit escapees but he was advertised as an enemy of the Toa Mahri, right? Oh, I forgot about one thing about Brutaka that's obviously evil - his name. Hey, it's ironic that you mention this, because, as a kid, I always considered the teeth-like structures on Lewa Nuva's mask peculiar... They looked more derpy (in a good way, fitting Lewa's lovable klutz persona) than monstrous to me, though. Anyway, the Toa Nuva are similar to the Toa Inika in this regard - some of their mask designs might be a bit weird and ugly but it's still pretty clear that they were intented to be the good, relatable heroes. And people generally excuse Skull Creature's gappy design by pointing out that they were supposed to be undead and the gaps probably had been filled by organic tissue that has since rotten away... Yeah, that makes some sense but I just don't buy it.

I don't know, Brutaka looked pretty obviously evil to me. Sure, his blue and gold color scheme isn't stereotypically associated with villains, but he does have red eyes, a lot of spikes and sharp, pointy shapes, as well as clawed hands and a fanged mask. It becomes more apparent when you contrast him with his rival, Axonn, who's got more rounded contours instead. Roodaka wasn't that subtle either. Her seductive lizard-faced queen shtick and dark color scheme both make it pretty obvious that she's a villain. Sure, you can argue that the Hordika and the Rahaga, who were the good guys, looked monstrous as well but it was because they were mutated and they have been turned back into their humanoid forms since then. Vahki had fangs, bladed hands, Kanoka launchers that looked like the insect's mandibles and arachnoid alternate stance. That's evil enough for me, especially when you contrast them with the heroic and regal design of the Toa Metru. Sure, some of the Toa Inika look creepy (Kongu's Suletu is arguably one of the weirdest and creepiest Kanohi in the theme's history) but they were clearly intented to be more humanoid and relatable than the Piraka. I don't think there's anything wrong with incorporating traits stereotypically associated with evil into the villainous sets' looks. We have to remember that Bionicle is a toyline for children after all and children tend to be somewhat simple minded (and I don't mean it as an insult). Being counterintuitive doesn't make for a good character design, especially when you're dealing with children's action figures. Personally, I don't have anything against villains looking monstrous as long as they're good sets. What annoys me, though, is when people use the figure's monstrosity to excuse its poor design. However, I do agree with you on one thing - heroes having lime eyes and villains having red/orange eyes was stupid. A character's eye color should be chosen based on their overall color scheme, not their affiliation.

I like your mods (and the fact you changed these horrid Technic lower legs in particular) but the custom gearboxes appear a bit wobbly. Also, is Quake Beast's clawed hand intended to hold some kind of tool? Because the axle sticking from its palm is just asking for connecting some sort of secondary weapon to it.

^ This. Plus, I didn't really say that Bruizer is a better set than the Quake Beast. Technically speaking, Quake Beast obviously includes much more content and has better poseability but Bruizer represents the idea of a bulky rock golem more effectively in my opinion.

Because addons are made out of softer plastic that wouldn't look as glassy and would be closer to Barraki's armor pieces or the Brain Attack blade instead.