The Dor

Links? Because the most recent pics we have of the actual set are from Toy Fair, and it's to be expected that they have preliminary pieces. @VBBN: You'll need to rehost those images, you need to be a member to view them as is :)

That link didn't work for me, but I got the video number. It's just a longer version of one of the promo videos. Nothing major, but it's pretty cool.

Could you possibly get some pictures of Corroder and Meltdown? There are reviews of XPlode and Thunder on YouTube now, although they are pretty low-quality video-wise (like I said they are on YouTube. Ha ha, etc), so the only Hero Factory sets we don't have (fan taken) pictures of are Corroder and Meltdown :)

An apparently new shade of silver (not really that different, somewhere between the Mistika and Bohrok-Kal silvers).

Well, you can already order them off of TRU's website, assuming you don't have a problem with TRU :) Also: Party line????????

So do Thunder and Meltdown. However, I think that it really won't be an issue, I have constructed Meltdown's torso, and the joint isn't sticking out very much at all. It doesn't look nearly as bad as I initially thought it would.

14 Time: Evening Forecast: Light meteor shower Message: Hero Factory Operational Status: Nominal

Yeah, I'm still up in the air on whether or not to get this set. Considering that I already have Bulk, I think that takes away quite a bit of the appeal. It would have been awesome if it had been a new hero, even if it just had recolored helmet and armor. Oh well, at least Bulk *is* cool like that. I built him w/ Jimi's weapon arm and the jetpack and it is pretty sweet. And I think Vapour has the potential to be pretty cool, but I'm not too sure. So how long until the rest are in stores / on S@H?

It's raining now! :D Hero Factory Operational Status: Heightened alert- Stormer's in a bad mood. Dusk Rain off and on throughout the day and into the night

Just the background image on the home page. Right click the background image and click "View background image" and there you go.

Cloudy and chilly, evening Hero Factory Operational Status: Abby Normal. Paging Abby Normal to the Lobby, you have a visitor.

Actually, it just returns the first 200 posts, seeing as I got the exact same number, and I believe VBBN did as well.

Sure does.

About Von Nebula's Black Hole Orb Staff: Well, at least they're admitting it. Also, background of the HF website has changed to a sunset in the city. Might change depending on time of day, that would be cool.

Yeah, there were a lot of people that seemed to have misunderstood that. It really wasn't very clear, but it did get clarified repeatedly afterward :) It does, that is the major problem with the set, as far as I'm concerned. Thankfully it's easy to hide the hollowness. The Heroes are certainly worth it, definitely more so than the Stars. Stormer certainly is my least favorite of the Alpha 1 Team, both Bulk and Stringer are better, IMO.

The only one that works on without modification is Stringer. However, both Bulk and Stormer can have it attached to their arms using two of these to separate it from the arm a little.

Thanks for pointing that out, just a typo on my part. Sorry about that. It is frustratingly close. The hollow cavity isn't the right shape, and the "arm" part is actually shorter than a regular arm. Flexible as far as the story goes. The line itself IS much more flexible- no real set of rules like BIONICLE had. ... What do you mean also hollow on the other side? The hollowness was one of the main problems I pointed out with the set, what other part is hollow?

There really is almost nothing new with these sets- I agree. I find the Hero Cores interesting, and reminiscent of the Kanohi of BIONICLE to a small degree. But I don't think that the sets are supposed to be that innovative, other than in aesthetic, which I feel is incredibly innovative. BIONICLE was simplistic- 6 basic elements, 6 basic colors, and pieces that could be used anywhere. These sets have more individualized pieces, and more detail in each. I think that makes them look better than some of the simple designs (not necessarily all, simplistic beauty is still beauty after all). The weapon arm really is a drawback as far as MoC potential is concerned, but it contributes to the overall appearance of Stormer so much, it practically defines him. Having a great amount of detail sacrifices customization in order to create a better individual figure- and that's what these excel at. Well, if it is a step backwards in some cases (which I agree with), it is also a step forward. I have Tarduk and Stars Gresh here next to Stormer- and I can tell which will sell the best. These sets look like what they are: constructable action figures. Tarduk and Gresh both look like they were only looking for something that can be built and still look decent, while Stormer is designed to be a toy that makes legitimately great shelf candy. I think that the aesthetic appeal should not be so easily thrown aside. When looking at Stormer, no, ANY of the Heroes, there is PLENTY of "elemental" flavoring and great piece design. Simply because they are not BIONICLE elements does not mean they aren't as good. What piece design of the Glatorian Legends or Stars was more innovative in comparison to the rest of BIONICLE than the new Hero Cores or the impressive weaponry of the Alpha 1 team? If BIONICLE had continued on it's same path- it would have ended up looking like this except with an emphasis on the mystical and fantastic as opposed to the more technical (or pseudo-technical, as is the case with the Heroes so far). BIONICLE was by far my favorite LEGO theme (until now :3). The Glatorian Legends were possibly the best of the sets, as far as I'm concerned. I think the issue is caused by what YOU want in a set, as opposed to what someone else does. I like a good looking figure, one that has good articulation and a great overall appearance. I'm not much for creating my own characters, as you apparently are. The greater detail really does make these characters pop- and when used with other HF parts, they will eventually be able to look good on any of the figures (assuming stylistic consistency, at least as much as BIONICLE was- compare a Bohrok to a Glatorian).

Well, BIONICLE has ended. No more comics. No more sets. So, its responsibilities now lie on the shoulders of its successor: Hero Factory. To help introduce the new line, I bring you a review of the leader of the "Alpha 1" team of Heroes: Preston Stormer. Name: 7164 Preston Stormer Theme: Hero Factory Pieces: 17 Price: USD$7.99 Packaging: The packaging of Preston Stormer (as well as all of the Heroes of the Hero Factory line so far) consists of a large CG image of a close-up view of Stormer's (or the respective Hero's) upper body. With Stormer, most of this picture is composed of his large weapon. The upper left corner has his "signature", along the side is his last name in large print, and at the bottom is his name once again. It's pretty hard to misunderstand what his name is by this point. In the lower right corner, you will notice it has a small image reading: From the makers of BIONICLE characters". I think this little addition is unnecessary, as it's apparent that this is essentially BIONICLE with just some minute differences. The back contains the usual legal text, as well as a translation of the BIONICLE reference. However, in a fashion similar to the Glatorian, Agori, Mistika, Phantoka, and Av-Matoran of BIONICLE, there is a small "battle scene" featuring Stormer and Von Nebula. Also, it is noteworthy that Preston Stormer can be contained inside of the canister. Pieces / Construction: Stormer, as an impulse set, only contains 17 pieces, as shown below. Now, these may not seem like a lot, but 12 of them are new. The new Hero Core, torso piece, feet, limbs, and leg armor are consistent throughout all of the Heroes. All the members of the Alpha 1 Team, Stormer, Stringer, and Bulk, have customized "weapon arms" as can be seen in the previous pictures. Now, as should be expected from a set with such a small piece count, the construction is simple. The instruction packet is mostly for show, I assume, as I didn't even touch it until I started making this review. Mostly, it consists of attaching limbs, and then adding armor to them. Actually, that's ALL it is. (Obligatory instruction image) (As well as construction image) The Completed Figure: Preston Stormer looks great as a complete figure. He has a solid color scheme, great general aesthetic, and looks good from most angles. Even from behind. Articulation wise, he's basically an Agori / Matoran / Stars set. Except for the lack of one hand. The new foot piece, along with the leg armor, creates a more realistic range of motion for his feet. The cuffs do limit side-to-side motions, but not very much. And the angle of the socket only allows it to point so far. But feet will no longer bend beyond physiological possibility. Also of note is the fact that the joints seem to have been designed to absolutely avoid breakages. Very well. Like, incredibly well. I disassembled all of the Heroes fully TWICE, as well as tried some alterations, including removal and reattachment of the joints. Zero breakages, for the first time in almost two years of faulty BIONICLE joints. However, there is one major design flaw. The inside of his weapon arm is completely hollow. However, this only rarely is visible and doesn't effect his appearance when viewed from the other side, or when he's in an action pose. Overall: This set is a great impulse buy. Better than the Stars. Better than the Agori. Better than the Av-Matoran. Better than any impulse BIONICLE set I can think of. And, at the same price as the Toa Mata, I think these are even better than the early canister sets (excluding the Bohrok, MAYBE). If the rest of Hero Factory is this great, well, I hope the rest of the BIONICLE community likes them as much as I do!

I find this much more interesting.

No. An anime was never announced. There was word of an animated series of 4 approximately 30 minute shows, but never was it stated to be an anime. It could easily be animated BY Tinseltown Toons. Anyway, I'm currently taking pictures of all the Heroes, expect reviews of them up pretty soon.

I think the better one would have been this one.

I realized that after looking over some of the Toy Fair pictures-- they have the same MSRP. So, that website does just have wrong prices. See, considering that Hero Factory is being marketed as a "constraction figure" line, I would consider his value, as a figure, to be heavily based on his articulation and construction. Yes, a figure's appearance DOES make a big difference, and YES, the overall effect is good. Great, in fact, but he also has a lot of holes and he looks like he'd only be visually pleasing from a handful of angles. Also, I seem to have done the same thing I hated so many of the people on BZP for doing: calling a recolored mask a bad thing! Man, I really am tired today. I agree completely about the black Hydraxon mask being awesome. And I like the way the Mantax claws work with the mask as well, hope this concept is used again.

Another site w/ HF sets for pre-order. Also, CGI pics. Woot. So. Rotor costs less than Von Nebula. Which makes sense, because looking back, VN has more pieces. Which means he is even more worthless as a set, IMO. He's just such a tragic figure: no elbows, reused mask, oddly constructed legs (that look very restricted range-of-motion wise to me)... he just doesn't look like he's worth anything other than the beautiful blue / black blended parts. :\ Also, I have yet to figure out how Thunder's chest armor is stabilized. It only has one axle connecting it to the torso, and it's through a slot that (on the torso) is a pin hole, so it would be loose there. I've thought of a lot of ways, but none match up w/ the piece count. Hopefully these guys come out soon because I'm super excited for them. Hopefully they don't ACTUALLY come out in August for like the first time :P

Well, see, I was quite a fan of the fact that he could be referred to as "Billy Blaze," which Bfahome made into a lovely little signature which can no longer be used, unfortunately, because of the name change. This is one of the reasons I like the Hero Factory concept. It focuses more on imagination, and more of an individual experience. When I was younger-ish and playing w/ BIONICLE, I didn't like how the story put pressure on me to stay within the BIONICLE world. I think that kids will like this more than BIONICLE (hopefully, because I want LEGO to keep up the "constraction" figure concept), and that this line will expand. I don't like the fact that there isn't any way to save your villains, other than screenshots. Also, I find it pretty boring. Maybe that's just me. ALSO, am I the only one who wants an Akiyama Makuhero set? I think he looks pretty awesome, and more than a little sinister.