Zarkan

Well, although the words "power miners underwater" were not the first thing that popped into my head, I must say that I'm not too excited about the picture. Honestly, the design looks rather bad and uses Bionicle pieces in an unimaginitive way (which I oppose, even though I'm a fan of the line). And with Power Miners seemingly continuing in 2010, all I really have to say is... why? Okay, I'm really getting sick of people using comments like this to describe Power Miners, whether they mean it or are just posting a tongue-in-cheek message. The official comics posted in the lego Magazine clearly show that the humans are only venturing underground because of strange surface rumblings on the surface that are threatening to shake the planet apart. After they travel down and find that the Rock Monsters are causing this, it's only natural that they would want to keep the crystals away, as those are the source of the Rock Monsters kinetic energy. Not once do the Power Miners ever hurt a Rock Monster, even as their foes are smashing their vehicles and trying to destory them. Seriously, I know I'm being rather passionate about this, but this misconception is really starting to get on my nerves. Research people, research!

Happy birthday, and may the legos continue to rain upon your lives!

Technically, though, when the Inika saw Umbra, they weren't sure what exactly his wheels were, and it was explained that Umbra was from the Great Beings, rather than just being a creation of the Makuta. The general rule for years has been that in the Matoran Universe, wheels are a foreign object to most inhabitants (much like paper and eggs). Unfortunately, this was completely broken when Jetroz showed up with his Destral Cycle, which took away some of the uniqueness of the current Bionicle universe. That's why I'm not nearly as upset about the Kaxium. Since Bara Magna is a totally different world, there's no reason why wheels could not exist. My hatred of the Destral Cycle stems from the fact that it contradicted everything that we knew about wheels in Bionicle, without even a halfbaked explanation (or retcon, as it goes in the comic book world) as to why wheels suddenly existed in the Matoran Universe.

Ah crap, it's back to Fire again. Darn it TLC, why must you continue to put out a new fire theme every two years! I know we had a new firestation every few years back in the old days, but at least then you didn't let it eclipse all the other possible sets and themes! Ah well, at least we are getting a new airport (which I actually wanted), possibly a fuel tanker truck, and another farm set. But still, this is rather disapointing - and also very likely. Klaus Dieter, I don't mean to be rude, but I am really starting to get sick of your excessive use of huge bold fonts and emoticons. I know, I don't like the news either, but your formatting and huge amount of smileys is really making your posts an eyesore. Could you please try to tone both down a bit?

What the....?! This list is easily the craziest Bionicle set list I have ever seen. The two Toa Nuva leaders mixed in with two major Bara Magna characters and the names of two previous set lines? If this wasn't on Amazon, I would have thought some 11 year old was posting his wish list for 2010! But, sadly, the mere fact that it is on Amazon means that there's probably at least some truth in the names, which suggest that, like other people have said, 2010 takes place in the alternate universe that Vezon has found himself in. Seriously, what the heck? I knew Greg said that that alternate universe was going to be important in the grand scheme of things, but I didn't think he meant this important! An entire year set in a totally different universe totally goes against everything that Bionicle has been so far, and smells like a cheap cash in attempt by TLC to bring back all the best selling characters. This, honestly, is possibly the most disapointing news I have ever seen relating to Bionicle, and it totally contrasts how awesome 2009 has and will continue to be. Knowing that this year will only lead into a complete throwaway year with random characters and sets will no doubt help to spoil it for me and others, no matter how cool it may be. Unless, that is, if this is a fake. But I'm afraid that after so many years of leaks, I really am pretty confident in the validity of these set names.

At the time of seeing that alternate model for the first time, I desperately hoped that it was non-canon, but that ended when I saw it had been put up on Biosector. So much for the "no-wheels in bionicle" rule....

I know, I know, some of you probably think I'm crazy. And back during the last few months of 2008, I would have believed the same thing. When the first clear pictures of Power Miners came out, they were almost unanimously panned (or highly criticized and disliked, if you don’t know what that means). People were simply dumbstruck at how wacky the color scheme was, and they were also worried about the seemingly heavy juniorization and other potential problems. I was among those who were upset – as I have been for years, I was cautiously optimistic that the original blurry photo’s did not do true justice to the kits, and I was shocked when the clear photos made the sets look worse instead of better! (the exact opposite of what happened with the Agents theme) But now, nearly two thirds of a year has passed, and surprisingly, my opinion of the line has turned around completely. In fact, having bought both Rock Raiders and Power Miners sets, I can conclude that in my opinion, the latter, newer theme is better than the former! Now, I know this will seem like blasphemy to some people, but remember that I was once opposed to the theme as well. This complete 180 of my opinion about Power Miners has been a very gradual process, and there are still some things I don’t like. But, there are a variety of elements to the line that I do feel are superior to Rock Raiders, and I will go into detail about them in this topic. Reason #1: Power Miners is less <insert that tiresome argument> than Rock Raiders Just to be edgy, I started off with the reason that may seem the most crazy of them all. After all, when we first saw clear pictures of Power Miners, one of the first things that came to people’s minds after the initial shock at the color scheme was “bleah, specialized parts!” Giant drills, huge wheel pieces, big plastic sides – it seemed like the theme was heavily focused on playability and had in the process sacrificed the building aspect on a giant altar dedicated to the false gods of Juniorization and POOPs (or, Pieces of Only One Purpose). However, what some may not have realized at the time was that they were harboring a complaint that also applied to Rock Raiders! Yes, in reality, Rock Raiders was in fact one of the forerunners in the juniorzation era, taking it to levels that had never been reached before. Although the kit designs were appealing asthetically, they relied on huge pieces like the infamous one piece vehicle chassis and the giant cockpits. Even the smaller vehicles like the Hover Scout and Rapid Rider also were built upon big pre-fabricated bases, and there really wasn’t much substance to their designs. Even though Rock Raiders wasn’t nearly as bad as some of the abominations that would come after it (coughjackstonecough), it unfortunately was filled with designs that were in many cases simplistic compared to what had come before, which may have been one of the reasons why it only lasted one year. Now, of course, I still haven’t proved my point – because even knowning that Rock Raiders is <insert that tiresome argument>, can one actually show that Power Miners is not as well? In a word, yes, or at least I feel that way. Looking over the various kits in TLC’s current future-mining line, it’s actually not hard to see the difference between it and Rock Raiders. Gone are the giant two piece cockpits and one piece bases of the latter, replaced with designs made out of smaller and far more useable parts. Even the bigger molds introduced in the line have more MOCing possibilities than the ones exclusive to Rock Raiders – the big drill pieces have already been engineered to look equally good as wheels, for example, and the roll cages are certainly more versatile than the Rock Raider cockpit. Yes, it may seem crazy at first, but I’m strongly convinced that Power Miner is less <insert that tiresome argument> than Rock Raiders, and in fact is far better in the building aspect than the latter theme. If you don’t agree with me, that’s absolutely fine, but I also hope you’ve actually bought and built some of the sets like I have (or have at least read some of the online instruction manuals). On the surface, Power Miners may seem simplistic, but the models are more complex than you may think. Reason #2: Power Miners has more variety than Rock Raiders Similar to the first reason, my second point is that, in my honest opinion, Power Miners simply feels more imaginative than Rock Raiders ever did. Now, note that this is not relating to the storyline factor (which Rock Raiders always excelled in compared to other lego lines), but to the actual set designs. And, when you compare the two lines, they couldn’t be more different. Looking at Rock Raiders, the first thing that pops out at me is how similar they all look. The Granite Grinder, the Loader Dozer, the Chrome Crusher, the Tunnel Transport – all of them feel like they were created at the same time with not much thought given to individuality. The big reason for this is that they all use the exact same cockpit pieces and share other pieces like the bases, wheels, and drills. It’s not that there isn’t differences between them, it’s just that they don’t feel very creative in comparison to the wide variety found in previous Sci-Fi themes. Then, in contrast, I look at Power Miners, and I see such a huge amount of creativity. All the sets are unique and share little in common design wise. Sure, many of them use some of the same pieces, but they incorporate them in different ways (the new drill parts, for example, are used not only as drills but as wheels, components in the saw on the Crystal Sweeper, etc.). Also, while the Rock Raiders vehicles share the same basic theme, the Power Miners designs each have a unique theme of their own, whether being based on a classic tool (jackhammer, drill, saw, pickaxe, etc), while others are built around a function or playability factor (the folding up tower in the Titanium Command Rig, the crystal processing feature in the Underground Mining Station, etc.). It just feels like the Power Miners designers really had fun seeing how many different ideas they could think of that would both fit the theme and give the theme variety – a feeling that I don’t get from Rock Raiders. Of course, I’m sure people can think of logical arguments against this claim, but I just don’t think I’ll ever truly get over how creative Power Miners seems to me, and I don’t know if I’ll ever attribute the same characteristic to TLC’s first mining theme. Reason #3: Power Miners has better Rock Monsters than Rock Raiders Another factor that, while not as major in my opinion as the first two, is still important is that of the two mining theme’s “villain” - the ever ferocious and loveable Rock Monsters. Okay, maybe not loveable, but you’ve got to admit that Sulfirix, Meltrox, Boulderax, and the rest of the gang are rather cute, as rocks go. And that’s another reason why Power Miners triumphs over Rock Raiders in my view. Because, seriously, when you look at the latter theme’s rock monsters, you really can’t even compare them to the current iteration. Ugly, single colored, and having practically no poseability or functions, they really have no character at all in my view. Also, they were seriously underexposed in the line, and they lacked the variety that they could have had. The official game and books released alongside the Rock Raiders kit has not only monsters made of rock, but also ice and lava. This was always a big disappointment to me as a kid – why couldn’t have TLC made those monsters as well, by simply casting the rock monster mold in more colors? In contrast, the Power Miners rock monsters not only have character, but also variety. In the first wave, we got a total of five different mini rock monsters, each with a unique color and a surprising amount of poseability. Moving arms, opening mouths – stuff like this would have been amazing in the Rock Raiders line! In the second wave, we also got two new giant rock monsters that were essentially better versions of the ones in Rock Raiders, adding color, printing, and better poseability to the basic formula. In just one year, TLC has managed to fix all the problems of the original Rock Monsters, and has also given them far more prominence in the line. They don’t just appear in the largest two sets, but in EVERY set! How cool is that? Reason #4: Power Miners has more detail than Rock Raiders One of the things that I’ve never liked about older kits is that, no matter how good the designs were, they just don’t have the level of detail that many of the more recent kits have. Things like greebling and complex cockpits just weren’t seen as much as they are now, although this only applies to certain themes. And in my opinion, Power Miners is one of those themes. Just looking at some of the kits like the Crystal Sweeper and Thunder Driller, it’s easy to see how much more detailed they are than the Rock Raiders kits. Things like smokestacks, big headlamps, chains, mudguards, and multi-piece engines grace almost every kit, and the cockpits in some cases are much more detailed as well (the Thunder Driller, for example, has not only joysticks and a control panel, but also cool details like a furnace, control levers, and even a storage box with dynamite in it). It’s stuff like this that make the building process more enjoyable and that make the finished models seem more alive, which is something that I wished I had seen in the Rock Raiders line. Reason #5: Power Miners has better functions than Rock Raiders And finally, my biggest reason for liking Power Miners better than TLC’s first mining theme. Simply put, Power Miner’s play functions are simply miles better than Rock Raiders. This is something that I think will be harder for anyone to argue against than all my other reasons combined, because there’s simply no escaping how much effort the Power Miners designers put into making their kits alive and enjoyable. A perfect example is the new Granite Grinder – it is honestly one of the best small sets I have ever bought, simply because it has a surprisingly complex gear-driven function in the form of a jackhammer that moves back and forth as you drive it across the floor. The functions only get better as you go onto bigger kits - counter-rotating drills, spinning saws that collect crystals, a transforming vehicle that turns into a giant tower – it’s amazing at how well thought out these play features are. Even some of the more disliked additions like the dynamite launchers and net launchers add playability to the kits – at least for the kids, anyway. And that’s what TLC is all about, isn’t it – making sets that will attract kid with the promise of lots of playability. I don’t doubt that some kids from 1999 would have given a lot to have spinning drills on the first Granite Grinder and the Chrome Crusher – but instead all they got was a lightup laser and walking legs and magnets that had already been seen in kits from years ago. Power Miners, on the other hand, is filled to the brim with interesting and original play features, and I suspect that those will be some of the biggest reasons kids will be asking their parents to buy them kits from the theme. Okay, so you may disagree with me on some of this, you may be opposed to everything I’ve said, or you may wholeheartedly agree with me, but whatever the case, I think we can all agree that Power Miners has merit. The color scheme may be a bit gaudy, a few of the sets may be poorly designed, but there’s still a lot of good things about the line as well. You may still like Rock Raiders better, but I’m simply saying that we shouldn’t automatically view the old mining line as the superior theme. Because, when it all comes down, Power Miners is yet another example at how first impressions are not the final say on whether a line is good or not.

Valentin, this is easily one of the most impressive reviews I have ever seen done by a fairly new member (and when I mean new, I mean that you haven't spent much time posting yet ). The pictures are clear and fairly high quality, and the commentary is brief but thoughtful. I especially love the ending scene - great idea of you to recreate that part of the movie in lego form. If I could give one suggestion as how to improve your next review, I think it would be good to use a white background so viewers aren't distracted by the background clutter in your reviewing setup. As for the set itself, I gave it an above average. As a set, it's fairly good but not spetacular - however, the five exclusive minifigs (including the most wanted Mon Calmari) boost up the rating by another point. Overall, I'd give this set a 4.5 out of 5, rounded down to a four. As much as I like this set, I can't justify giving it a perfect rating, especially since I would have rather had a to-scale starcruiser model to go along with the playset versions of the Imperial Star Destroyer and Tantive IV. Fortunately, it's still a great set - just not exactly what most would have wanted.

Christmas, yes, but this set (and all the other lego holiday sets) really isn't Christian in the least. Unlike Playmobil, which has done products with both secular and religious themes, TLC only has ever done sets that are based around the non-Christian symbols of Christmas (Santa, christmas trees, etc). But really, lets not try to get into a detailed debate about this, and just comment on the set. Oh, I agree. It would be great to see a big Christmas set every year, alongside the usual advent calender. And if this new set sells well, than we can probably expect that.

Wow, another one? Makes sense, I guess, since Eurobricks continues to grow with each passing month. Congrats, Stash!

Excellent short story, Nuju Metru. It's easy to determine the identity of the protagonist almost immediately, but I don't think you were really aiming to keep it a secret anyway. The description of the Olmak's powers is very vivid, and I like how you you sprinkled all the details about Vezon's appearance through the story, instead of just gicving all the info right at the start. Also, the former seventh Piraka continues to be hilarious (at least to me), and you've captured his personality very well.

Don't ever again mention that horrible possibility, Alchemyst. Maybe, except that since Mata Nui has Inika limbs for lower legs (which are longer than the Metru limbs that are used for his lower arms), the short measure of his upper legs is kind of offseted. As far as I can tell, his arms and legs are exactly the same length because of that, although I could be wrong.

Another excellent MOC, Ralph. The working doors are very nice, and the color scheme is beautiful. I think that a lot of older lego fans would buy this if it was an official set.

Wow, This looks like a really great set! Making a toy shop instead of just another boring advent calender was a wonderful idea, and the end result is very cute and packed with cool acessories and decorations. I especially love the tree and the lamps, and the new caroler faces are just simply fantastic. Man, the exclusives just keep getting better and better each year. I can't wait to see what's in store for 2010. Actually, I think the decoration is made up of two of these in grey:

Really? Wow, than I guess that's another sign that I should consider buying more stuff on S@H. I rarely ever did before because of the shipping costs, but since there's not many stories near where I live, I might have no choice. Getting sets really quickly should make that more worth it, I reckon.

Actually, Mata Nui's arms are shorter than Kiina's, as they use the smaller Toa Metru legs instad of the Rahkshi legs. Another factor that makes Mata Nui better than Kiina is that unlike the latter, the Great Spirit doesn't have an incredibly tiny body. Overall, I'd say that Mata Nui's proportions are pretty much average as Inika builds go, while Kiina is far worse.

Thanks for the nice review, Zourceman. While this set is a bit overpriced (much like most of the big power miners sets), it still is very nice. The functions are excellent, the model looks good, and it comes with a really cute little automated vehicle. The only thing I'm upset about is that, as I stated in another topic, the kit really could have benifited from a big rock monster in an exclusive color. That would have made this kit truly "exclusive," and would also probably justify the price in the minds of many. Alas, this did not happen, however. Worse than the slapped together Rock Wrecker and the gosh-awful Crystal King? I'm not so certain about that....

As my first purchase in my new home state of Tennessee, I bought the Power Miners Thunder Driller from Walmart for a reduced price of $21. Even though I got the four smallest sets in the theme a long while ago, I had been holding off on buying this particular set because it was a bit overpriced. But seeing it on clearance spured me to splurge the money I had on hand at the moment, and I can say now that it's totally worth the price I paid for it.

Well, that's exactly why I did not totally dismantle my lego sets. Instead, I broke them into small sections that would both be easy to store and easy to reasemble, which I loaded into a variety of plastic containers and lego boxes that I've saved. The sorted parts were far easier - since all my extra pieces are already in boxes, all I had to do was to tape them shut so they wouldn't open by accident. In fact, in some of the larger ones, I had leftover space, which I used to put most of the components of my town display in. Overall, it wasn't nearly as bad as you might think. It will take a while to get everything back in order, of course, but that's more because my display shelves aren't up yet then because of the effort it will take. My town display will take the most time, but since I know the layout by heart, it won't be a terrible pain.

The number one addition to the Pirates line would obviously be a ship for the Imperials. I expect that it would probably be smaller than the pirates flagship, as this has always been the trend for the "good guy" ships, and I bet it would include at least four figures. Next on the list would be a large port, which would be compatible with the earlier Soldier's Fort. It would probably include a small, brick built ship and a crane, as well as a building or two and several docks. Other great set ideas would be a new hideout for the pirates that centers on a cave rather than a shipwreck, as well as a small Imperial outpost and a couple new impulses. All of these sets, while already done before in the classic Pirates line, would be great additions to the current pirates line as well. The trait of having no civilian figures is hardly exclusive to the 2009 Pirates reboot. Unlike Castle, which had average citizens like maidens and blacksmiths early on in it's 20+ year history, Pirates has never had a single civilian figure - with the possible exception of the Governer's daughter, who is part of the very 2009 pirates line you are criticizing. Nevertheless, this doesn't excuse that disapointing trend, and if we do get a large port in 2010, it would be ideal for TLC to break the pattern and add one or two civilian figures.

Incredible new clip. Finally, we have fighting that is comparable to an average action cartoon, complete with clashing weapons, acrobatics, and characters being slammed against rocks. I am curious as to why the arena has lava in it, and I don't like that there's three Agori who look exactly the same, but it still was really great. And, unlike almost everyone here, I like both of the new voices we have heard. Strakk sounds awesome, and Raanu's british accent is certainly interesting (and IMO not anywhere near the badness that is Berix). Overall, I'd say that this is the best clips we've seen of the new movie yet, and it shows more than ever how awesome this new movie is going to be. Also, Riddle of the Great Beings continues to be interesting, as do the Element lords. I really hope we get sets of them in 2010, if we're staying in Bara Magna as I hope.

Update two: The traveling is now completed - we have been in our new house for two days and have done a lot of unpacking. The computer is now set up and I am back in buisness, although the work here is far from done. It's good to be online again...

Update: First day of the two day trip down to Tennnesee is done. We checked into a hotel at around 8 o clock after bring on the road from 8:30 am until then with only three short stops for lunch, dinner, and refueling the moving trucks. My dad and my uncle (who flew down on Friday to help) each drove one of the two moving trucks, while my Grandpa drove the family van. I spent most of the trip in the truck my uncle was driving, which was very, very bumpy (couldn't barely even play my Nintendo DS with all the shaking), but I switched out to the van after the second stop. I am writing this from a hotel computer, so apologies if it's a bit below my usual post quality. I'll be fully back online in a few days, but until now this is all I can manage.

Well, needless to say, after my dad had a falling out with some people and resigned from his job, my whole family has decided to move from Connecticut all the way down to Tennessee. We've been getting ready for the move for months now, but the big day is finally coming this Saturday. Since we'll be on the road and the family computer will be packed up, I won't be available for contact for at least 5 days or so, but probably not for at least an entire week. So, my apologies if someone needs to contact me and I won't be able to answer (although I doubt anyone will during such a short period). For now, this is Grevious, signing off.

Not just Strakk. Strakk fighting Ackar. It's the details that make this scene far more interesting than just about everything in the first three movies - namely, that we're actually going to see two Bionicles dueling it out with weapons, rather than the Kohlli match and ground blasting trash we've gotten up till now.