MakutaDreadscythe

That's actually a good point, though a reward that isn't gold masks might have been better.The exclusivity of some masks is also very perplexing given the theme's apparently poor sales. Almost feels like it was treated as this exclusive little club for people wanting some nostalgia, except it wasn't. It's been said before, fans of the line from previously cannot sustain and advertise a product alone. Complete side note, been looking over some of the story again, to be honest I don't think I was harsh enough on it. Especially Journey to One's last 2 episodes.

I think honestly the most frustrating thing about this whole ordeal is that we have a lot of unnecessary guff, as well as content that was clearly cut. Oh, and for the record Ekimu is the worst character I've ever known in Bionicle. Absolute waste.

Gold masks were a neat idea in theory, but they gave them away for really silly stipulations (take a photo of something that kinda looks like a face for a gold mask). Even just chrome-plating them would have been a cool solution.

It's an option. I'm currently using a MoC with some black bohrok teeth for horns, I was more referring to after the contest to give it the mask it deserves!I'm definitely tempted to brick-build a mask though, 80% of the entries use a MoC so I'd imagine points off for that. Not that it looks bad mind, I'm not bashing anyone's entries but I admit it'd be tricky to stand out among the crowd.

Workin on my own entry, going okay so far, really proud of the chest, still workin on the legs. Looks a bit incomplete without that Mask of Ultimate Obscurity though. Oh and though it's slightly off topic really grateful for whoever's workin on that Shapeways MoUP, looks good so far, definitely pickin up a V2, only issue is shipping. That's gonna be hella expensive here in the land of cuppas and stereotypes.

Can't help but feel he hit the nail on the head.And that alt ending would have made everything so much less depressing. Such a simple change and suddenly I realise how backwards the whole thing is. Ekimu's character suddenly is ruined in the space of an episode.

Updating for the sake of updating. After thinking about the line for a bit, something struck me in that I personally think the villains had a big part in it's cancellation. Besides height issues they were really polarising. Even if they were cheaper than most of the sets you still had to put a lot of thought into buying them. I've only just ordered Skull Slicer and Skull Basher myself because the line was being cancelled anyway. If it takes a cancellation to get me to buy something it's probably not too great. Like I said they have their charm and I personally like them even if I wasn't too invested, but a lot of people on the board didn't. If we as adults are picky about sets and their details, imagine how picky kids are gonna be. Might seem trivial but considering the extreme circumstances anything could reasonably be taken as a factor in it's cancellation; sets like LoSS, Slicer and Scorpio all release in line with the estimated time the decision to cancel was made. Just a thought.

Plot twist, the next constraction line is called Makuta and all the sets are Makuta and they all use the MoUP. The slogan is "You asked for it!".

Well yeah I know we're speculating but I feel criticism not only helps us come to an answer, but I personally find it interesting. It's not like we're giving criticism while the line is running, it's had it's run, thus we can look back in retrospect and compare the waves, the story, etc. From what I can tell so far marketing seems a common issue. Makes sense.

Seeing as the line has been discontinued I think it would be interesting to look back on it and perhaps look at reasons as to why it may have failed to grab the attention it needed. I'm not here to harp on G2, I personally loved it, but I also think it wasn't perfect, it definitely had issues. Me personally, I think it had four main problems that contributed to it's cancellation. Warning, massive wall of text incoming. Will include TLDR at end. 1. Pricing. Inflation exists so having a higher price tag is inevitable, but for many the sets were out of impulse range, where a purchase is easily made without much thought. The 2015 wave was more expensive on an individual basis by UK terms, however the necessity to buy multiple sets in the 2016 wave didn't help. Considering the line is very team based it's not beneficial to a kid having to shell out around £80 for a team of heroes where the same amount probably gets a decent system playset with both heroes and villains, something not present in G1's lifetime. This comes into my next issue and one I feel is very significant. 2. Lackluster Villains. Don't get me wrong, the Skull villains have their charm, Kulta and Umarak are fairly standout for me, and I even like the beasts, but they very much pale in comparison to the Toa, exemplified even worse when they unite with their creatures. There's a reason the Autobots are generally smaller than the Decepticons, why the Rebels are a smaller force than the Empire. Having the odds stacked against the heroes makes for interesting conflict, not to mention had the roles been reversed where the Toa were smaller but cheaper and the villains were larger and more pricey I feel they could generate more interest. Also in terms of the villains whether you like them or not they are quite clunky and in some cases obviously unappealing. Skull Scorpio and Skull Slicer are examples. Point is they're an acquired taste, and not one I feel many kids are rushing to try. 3. Marketing. This issue is very polarising. I think it's spiteful to say that LEGO betrayed us or didn't care, they did put a lot of passion into the marketing, including contests, an entire Panel at SDCC 2014, some TV commercials and stands. I'm not really sure what to say regarding this because for whatever reason it didn't work. I have two younger brothers who didn't even realise it existed, and noone at their school did either. Taking that into perspective it isn't a good outlook if we assume it as an average. Money was spent but perhaps not in the right places. Again it's difficult to say why it didn't strike a chord but it's a possibility. 4. Story. The story of G1 was too complex. In the later years that is, I still have trouble wrapping my head around the whole "planet inside a robot" thing, among other things. In this regard I understand that a less complex story is more appealing to a new generation. Where I take issue is...numerous things. I will admit I haven't read the books or novels but as trivial a point it is, the first books and novels came out right as 2016 was around the corner, so we already knew what happened. Then with the other books Journey to One was out, so I didn't feel I missed anything, until I read the preview with Kulta. It felt like it had a lot more substance to it than the actual story. This to me is backwards as I feel books should expand on the current story, not take the spotlight to it. Inconsistencies are also an issue. Funny accents aside the personalities changed a fair bit between the 2015 animations and the 2016 JtO special. This is a similar issue to Hero Factory where it felt like characters who were already defined as various steriotypes suddenly changed into different steriotypes with conflicting personality traits. Nowhere did I feel this was more apparent than with the main character Tahu. He was fairly straightforward and argumentative in 2015 but he was at least consistent. In JtO he was such a box of nothingness it was almost amazing. Very disappointing. Also something about Skull Slicer's hook blades, past life and connection to LoSS, not to mention that golden Skull Spider mask, all left out in the animations. Not significant but they serve my point that the story was annoyingly and consistently...inconsistent. Biggest gripe with story is the complete lack of world building. In order to have complexity or simplicity there sorta needs to be a world. The main thing that interests kids is the numerous stories and worlds that franchises show off. Some may be simple as suburbia, like Yo-Kai Watch, others have sprawling forests and deserts like in Naruto. My point is people gravitate towards these two shows because the world complements the characters and is interesting in it's own right, particularly Naruto. Okoto isn't a world, it's a backdrop for the Toa to do cool things. I didn't feel immersed or invested, and it isn't just my age either. It's not like I don't find it cool or it's too kidlike, there's nothing there! Like the complexity or not the World and exploration was a KEY factor and part of G1, and why many got into the theme into the first place. Without it the sets are just generic robots to the average consumer, unlike say the Star Wars constraction sets, hence their popularity. TLDR. Due to pricing just out of impulse range, villains too small and alienating, marketing issues and a complete lack of story and worldbuilding, I feel G2 just didn't hit the mark with a majority of consumers. AFOLs who remember G1 or were into HF cannot sustain the line alone, so it's important to branch out to other consumers. This basically didn't work out very early on, hence the extremely sudden cancellation. I apologise if I came off as negative, as again I loved G2. For how I feel the Toa were too big, they were awesome and the villains I liked too, even if they needed extensive modding to coincide with my visions. JtO was actually really cool to see them back in action in an actual TV show, even if I didn't feel the story was too great. I feel they did G2 justice despite the discontinuation and I thank everyone involved for letting me have memories one more time with my childhood heroes. Let me know your thoughts below, I'm very interested in your opinions. Perhaps something I left out? Happy building.

Ah okay, that definitely changes things. Very odd that it happened. In that case I'm not so sour about the lack of a mask or Makuta set, but it's still disappointing nonetheless. Like I said before timing can really change how certain videos come off, now instead of coming off as false hope it now comes off as a fan-interactive celebration. Brings my spirits back up, so thanks for clarifying that!For sake of posting someone is working on a shapeways MoUP on Deviantart ( http://cezium97.deviantart.com/art/3D-Printable-Mask-of-Ultimate-Power-625069022 ) I don't take any credit for this btw. Will order one or two when V2 is released and the compatibility is verified.

In terms of reactions and mulling over yet again I think a key part of why the reaction has been so strong and negative is timing. I guarantee the reaction regarding the MoUP wouldn't be so bad if they revealed the Makuta Contest AFTER the last episode of Journey to One. Seems like a small detail but it makes a big difference, instead of representing a broken hope it would have represented a fan-oriented sendoff with much more enthusiasm.

I wonder if this is actually a marketing strategy to make us think Bionicle is ending so we buy everything in bulk and clearance, then are all like "lol fooled you makin' bank" and unveil G3? Or maybe I watch too much anime.

Personally, assuming JtO had a more open ending my dream idea for a final wave pf Bionicle would be...one set. Makuta, obviously, but instead of being a straight up figure, perhaps something akin to the 2002 Master Builder set where it gives you pieces for 3 different variants of Makuta, so that you could build him how you envisioned him from the contest footage. Perhaps a late 2016 or early 2017 as a sendoff.

Apologies for the constant posting, being as this event is causing a massive stir my emotions are all over the place, happy, sad, confused, angry, the list goes on. The fact that it was ending was not the issue but rather the way it was presented. I can't watch JtO without this bitterness that the line had been canned very early on. What could have possibly transpired that caused the line to be cancelled with a lifespan comparable to the Throwbots/Slizers? The finality that we can't even imagine other events transpiring after JtO, the lack of a Mask of Ultimate Power, we don't even get the main antagonist of the series in the reboot? It's almost amazing. It's much worse than the ending of G1 in the sense that it had an amazing run, we were prepared and we had both closure and an open end, that is to say closure to why it ended and an open end to the story so the story could continue. Here it came out of nowhere, slamming the irrefutable end in our faces without saying why it ended. Perhaps it's premature seeing as apparently they haven't released a statement yet, but I can't say I've ever felt so bitter towards looking back on anything, and that's sad. Oh and for the record teasing Makuta and the MoUP in the contest was straight up mean, especially given the timing of it. Timing is a key aspect as to the much more intense reaction I'm both giving and observing.

Calling it now. Constraction Gordon Ramsay. Because I dunno where to go from here. Oh, and you csn use the gear function to chop brick-built fruit.

Honestly wouldn't have been so bummed out if we didn't at least get the MoUP. Sounds like a really small trivial detail but it goes a long way towards satisfaction. The most important feature of a character is the mask after all.

I should probably reiterate as my current posts suggest a negative outline. As a whole I'm really grateful for the run we had, the sets really redefined CCBS and sparked an interest in functionality in MOCs across the board. We even got the TV series and in terms of story it was really cool to see my childhood heroes in action one more time. I only wish to voice my disappointment regarding the lack of a Mask of Ultimate Power. Regardless I wonder what we'll get next year, assuming of course that there is a next year. We'll have to wait and see for the statement.

Wow for serious? They've got a mold for the MoUP too. We're really ending on the Beasts and Umarak? That's just salt in the wound now. Major disappointment.

Well so much for the Sunday statement. Maybe it'll shed light on the cancellation. EDIT - So I've given it a bit of time. Real talk, I honestly don't know how I feel, almost feels worse than when G1 ended, at least that made some sense seeing as it lasted far beyond the normal lifespan of a LEGO theme, here it's sorta the opposite, and unlike something like Chima or Power Miners it had some significant history with the company. The absolute lack of fanfare is what really gets me to be honest and how corporate the cancellation message was portrayed (and yes I understand LEGO is a company and as such communicates in a professional manner but the timing was absolutely horrendous considering the Makuta contest, kinda lost spirit to try but that's just me).

I'm not really sure what to say. All I can say is that statement can't come soon enough because I'm confused. Totally didn't see that coming.

I think the design with the Purple staff and offhand looks interesting enough as we haven't seen a loin-cloth like attachment on a Bionicle set before, and generally the texturing is more appropriate. I think the idea of the chestpiece used in JtO is neat, just not executed too well. We'll see next year. Oh, and I actually really dig the MoUP design, looks really alien and out-there, like it's kinda unnatural, especially considering the theme of Okoto.

For sake of adding something my sets came in today so I can give impressions. Storm Beast is a little bit disappointing. Though the gimmick isn't as frictionless as I thought it's still tricky to work with, and while it's cool isn't really forceful or dynamic enough for the mask game. Friction extenders on the shoulders would help. Quake Beast is honestly pretty cool for how clumsy he is, sorta like he's mashed and stubby to the point that it's charming and interesting. Very solid all things considered. Lava Beast is cool! When you think about it we've rarely got a set that's straight up trans orange and black, and the effect is awesome. He's probably the most intimidating of the beasts so I'd recommend him if you can't get every set. Emimu...man I underestimated him big-time. He doesn't come with many new parts, but to call him refined is an understatement. His blue pops, he's got bulk, and he has two options of gear function. It feels strong and weighty and I can't stress enough how solid he is as a set. It's almost disgusting honestly.

I'm so jealous of your abilities to mod sets. They just inspire so much creativity and sorta show us a what-if of them. Marvelous!

Really cool. Only thing I'd change is to add a bit of trans-orange. I dunno it sorta feels like he's missing something without it. Great job otherwise, love the torso pistons.