Aanchir
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I've checked that site's prices for a couple themes and it seems like their prices are just oddly cheap for some reason. Current sets like the Nindroid MechDragon from LEGO Ninjago are also priced way lower than RRP there. Brickshop.nl seems to list more realistic prices for themes like Pirates, Speed Champions, and Elves, though they don't have any listings yet for new sets from certain themes including Ninjago, Legends of Chima, and BIONICLE.
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I don't think the possibility of her having a new elemental power necessarily contradicts anything in the previous story. As far as I know there's never really been anything that says that ONLY the Ninja destined to protect the Green Ninja can have unique elemental powers, even if the other Spinjitzu users we've seen have not been masters of a unique element.
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That, and also this wouldn't make the torso that much less gappy. Part of the reason Kopaka's shoulder armor fits so snugly is that his gearbox is raised up one module, so the shoulder armor is closer to the actual shoulder joints. Tahu's gearbox is not raised up this way. I also don't know how well this would even fit. Kopaka's shoulder armor needs to be angled back to fit over his actual shoulder joints, which looks just fine with those larger shoulder pads but might not work so well with smaller shoulder pads that are supposed to fit snugly over the shoulders themselves. Attaching the shoulder armor to the torso beam would let you make the shoulders two modules narrower, if you wanted to do so, since there wouldn't be a need for the extra ball joints.
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Yep! A lot of people have compared them to the visors from minifigures or the Knights' Kingdom action figures, but they're actually a lot more versatile than that. They can attach to just about anything two modules wide with a hole on each side, provided there aren't any collisions (a Glatorian head won't work in the normal configuration because the circular "bolts" that stick out from the sides of the jaw collide with the inside of the mask). They can even attach to a normal 2M black Technic pin! I discovered recently that certain masks might work well for adding armor to the hips of a constraction model. For instance, Kopaka's mask fits really well on his hips, though obviously its asymmetrical design wouldn't work too well as armor. I haven't tried with all the different masks I have but it will definitely be an interesting technique to experiment with. I think that the Skull Spider mask works great as armor for an 5x6 torso beam, creating a character with a round belly. Other builders have found even more uses for them, like this model's feet or this model's shoulder armor. The silver metallic Skull Spider body is probably one of the most useful masks as a building element since it has the most connection points and is a nice neutral color.
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The first of two articles I wrote for The New Elementary previewing the new BIONICLE parts has been posted! Check it out here! The second post, still to come, will be focusing on the new mask and weapon pieces. And after that, expect some actual set reviews! I've already mostly finished writing the first, and I've recently gotten word that another shipment of sets is headed my way for review. I'm hoping for one of the Protector sets — I could probably spend at least half a post talking about their new blasters alone!
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Kopaka's an awesome set. I really like his heavily armored, "bundled up" design, since it not only suits his cold environment, but also his reserved, heavily guarded personality. In the new BIONICLE, Kopaka really feels like the opposite of Tahu — while Tahu's design seems offensively oriented, Kopaka's seems defensively oriented. I love that he has a spear instead of a sword, because again, it makes his and Tahu's weapons feel less redundant than the classic ones did. The spear goes great with his shield as well as with his skis.
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I'm not sure quite what you mean. They have about the same range of movement in their arms as any other post-2006 constraction sets. Maybe slightly less movement than usual inward (towards the body) since the part connecting the ball joint to the torso is thicker than a Technic axle, but the difference is not that great.
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The new Onua is a great design, and really showcases the diversity of the new Toa. I do find it puzzling that he uses different colors for his upper arms and upper legs, as it seems like it would be cheaper and simpler to include both in the same color. Onua's color scheme is extremely exciting, and I don't even mind the silver shoulder pads too much. It helps that the armor on the lower body helps balance it out. The extra joint in Onua's neck means his height is perhaps the most variable of the new Toa, but I like that he can be one of the shortest if you want him to be. Traditionally he and Pohatu were shorter than the others, and it's cool that the new sets retain that even with such radically different physiques. I actually really like the look of his new mask. Its small size helps Onua feel like a giant despite being one of the shorter Toa when you line them up side by side. Both the gold and black ones look really cool and very reminiscent of the original Kanohi Pakari. Onua's weapons seem awesome to me in both forms, and I love that there's a space to attach the handle of the hammer to his back when he's using the claws/shovels. EDIT: Also, I notice that when you have his shovels out you have the lower part of the handle still in his hand, just like the designers had it at Comic Con, but is it possible to scoot the connector down so it joins the upper and lower sections like in this pic? If that does work, then it's an awesome way to keep his weapon in one piece even when he's not holding it — but I can see how it might be wobbly.
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As you wish! This color is called Spring Yellowish Green (just Yellowish Green on Bricklink), and it's ostensibly one of the six colors that was introduced for LEGO Friends, though surprisingly LEGO Friends has not used any bricks in this color (it might be used for some printing in that theme, though). Spring Yellowish Green has actually been extremely rare in sets — all twelve previous parts in this color to date can be seen here. It puzzles me a bit why the designers would use this color for the Skull Spiders instead of another shade like Olive Green or Bright Yellowish Green. Anyway, good review! I really like Tahu's new design, though I wouldn't mind if his legs were a module shorter. I actually think the silver feet and hands look pretty cool, though gold could have maybe been cool too. They do match the silver head piece. The shoulders look better than I would have expected, though I'm a little bit surprised the set doesn't use any Tr. Fluore. Reddish Orange bones. Seeing as there are transparent bones on so many of the other Toa, I think it would have been cool for Tahu to use them as well. The glowy look could have been really fitting for a fire character. I actually think it's awesome how the Skull Spider's front legs dangle in front of the Toa's chests, and to be honest I don't quite understand why the packaging designers chose to show them wrapped around the head, which is not only near-impossible but impedes posability and doesn't look that great anyway. Thanks for the side-by-side comparison! Even with so many changes, I think the personality of the new Tahu set feels much the same as the original. The swords on his back do look cool whether they're folded up or down. Down seems like it'd be more practical, though.
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Everything I've ever read says that sales peaked in 2002. But it's true 2003 might have been even stronger if the LEGO Group had been able to predict and satisfy demand for BIONICLE (retailers complained to LEGO the next year that they had been unable to stock as many of the year's most popular product as they needed).
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Well, I do like that the new masks take SOME cues from the Nuva masks, specifically from how they appeared in BIONICLE: Mask of Light (since the masks in that movie had a lot of personality, and were probably the definitive versions of the masks/characters for many people). The Mask of Ice has some of the Akaku Nuva's cowl-like shape and sloped forehead (rather than the dome-shaped forehead of the original Akaku), the Mask of Stone has some of the Kakama Nuva's roundness, and the Mask of Water has the streamlined forehead of the Kaukau Nuva as well as a more pointed chin like it had in Mask of Light and BIONICLE: The Game. I do have to say that in general, the new masks feel more like the originals to me than the Kanohi Nuva did in 2002. This just goes to show how much better the LEGO Group has gotten at maintaining continuity between different versions of characters than they were back in the days of BIONICLE G1, and hopefully it bodes well for whatever new versions of these characters we might get in the future.
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Right! I had forgotten they had those creases around their belt line. I definitely feel like the look of the DX costumes makes sense. I just don't find it as interesting. I might be a bit biased since I've tried multiple times to sketch out what various Ninjago costumes would look like on a human frame (example), and in those cases I feel like more costumes with a more complex "assembly" end up looking more interesting. That's part of why I like the ZX and Rebooted costumes so much. Not only are they extremely diverse (with each ninja having a different armor design), but they also have many different colors, materials, and layers. Their main drawback is that like most Ninjago costumes, they lack detail on the legs, which isn't a huge issue on the minifigures themselves but is more noticeable in drawings or cosplay due to real humans typically having longer legs. The NRG forms are also among my favorites, but for a totally different reason — rather than being just another costume, they feel more like the Ninja have magically transformed into their actual elements, which is pretty darn cool whatever way you slice it.
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I had been thinking we might not need another version of her since (as you say) she's a new character... kind of like how we never got a Kendo version of Lloyd, and the closest we got to an NRG version was the Golden Ninja from 2012. But I hadn't even thought about the fact that getting a sleeveless version would mean getting a version of her with hair. That makes me really hope that a sleeveless version might be coming, either in the mysterious 70751 or in one of the sets next summer!
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Personally, I consider the DX costumes the weakest in the entire theme. They are not printed with any wrinkles or creases or anything to suggest what material they're made out of — they're just flat patterns on an otherwise blank torso. I think the "Rebooted" costumes have been some of the best, bringing together some of the coolest attributes of all the previous costumes. Their only major fault is the lack of leg printing. Next year's costumes also seem pretty awesome to me, especially since each Ninja gets two separate costume designs like they did in 2011 and 2012. The regular hooded outfits have an awesome layered feeling like the classic or ZX costumes, while the sleeveless costumes give me a delightful 80s martial arts vibe. Also, it's cool that printed legs are back for both costume designs. They're not quite as diverse as the ZX or Rebooted costumes, but they still feel really awesome.
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The Nuva masks were definitely oversized. Of course, it worked for them to an extent, since one of the Nuva's defining characteristics was being bulkier than the Toa Mata, so bulkier masks suited them. The size of the Kanohi Nuva didn't bother me so much as some of the other design changes, like how organic they looked or how incredibly different many of them were from the previous versions. In fact, in later years I found their exaggerated size somewhat useful so the faces of larger models didn't seem out-of-proportion.
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The larger Toa are definitely not as tall as Hero Factory XL heroes tend to be. Onua is 23–25 modules tall (depending on how you have the 3M joint in his neck oriented), Kopaka is 26 modules tall, and Tahu is 27 modules tall. By contrast, Furno XL is 30 modules tall, and Rocka XL and Stormer XL are even taller (it's hard to be specific about their heights because like Onua, they each have an extra neck joint). Of course, Stormer XL and Rocka XL were both $25 sets rather than $20 sets, so the fact that they are bulkier is not really any surprise. My favorite of the new masks is Gali's Mask of Water. Definitely a lot more feminine-looking than any previous mask she's had in sets, IMO. But the one I'd say is closest to the original is probably either Kopaka's Mask of Ice or Pohatu's Mask of Stone. In general, I feel like the masks bring together some of the best aspects of the characters' previous masks, including the Kanohi Nuva as they appeared in BIONICLE: Mask of Light.
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Considering Onua is actually one of the shortest Toa (despite also being the widest) I think the size of his mask looks fine. I worry that if you made it wider it would feel less like the original Kanohi Pakari.
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Tahu's "larger than he's ever been" by exactly one module, since the new Tahu is 27 modules tall and the 2008 one was 26 modules tall (not counting the stabilizer on the top of the head). Furthermore, if I'm not mistaken, the new Hau is actually wider than the Stars version, just not nearly as long. Bear in mind that its appearance in VBBN's pic appears to be a bit distorted because the 2001 and 2010 versions are tilted forwards, towards the camera, while the 2015 version is tilted backwards, away from the camera. VBBN, you can correct me if I'm mistaken on any of these points.
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He has all three of the larger Toa. It's only a matter of time before he finishes reviewing them!
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Nobody at the LEGO Group has called those models combiners. Then again, they hardly ever call ANYTHING a combiner, since "combiner" is a counterintuitive Transformers term that BIONICLE fans basically co-opted for their own use. Officially those kinds of builds are called combination models (can be abbreviated to combi or combo). And no, none of the Toa+Protector combi models seem to use the Protectors' body parts, and given their role in the storyline, they shouldn't. These models represent the Toa using the Protectors' equipment to "power up", not literally fusing with the Protectors. If there are any combi models that represent actual fusions (which there very well might be), THEN we'd be likely to see the actual figures' parts being combined into a larger model.
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Nothing besides a very slightly extended version of the comic from the back of the box (with an additional panel at the beginning and an additional panel at the end).
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The boxes are cool designs, but the one I received to review for The New Elementary left me somewhat disappointed. It was shipped in a padded envelope rather than a cardboard box, so the package inside the envelope arrived with some considerable damage. Thanks to a tear and various creases it doesn't actually like to stand upright or hold its shape. The parts and instructions were in fine condition, and so my review should be able to take place as planned. And to be honest, I would normally just blame this on carelessness during shipping and not on faults with the package design itself. But then I remember that the Hero Factory and Legends of Chima sets I've won from BZPower and Eurobricks all arrived in padded envelopes, and in pristine condition at that, and I realize it will now be harder than ever for the new packages to actually live up to the flexible foil pouches in my eyes. Like the pouches, the new boxes are a distinctive shape, with beautiful graphics on every surface and the ability to collapse flat (though since mine was damaged to begin with, I can't really attest to how well they can be reused as storage afterward). Also, like the pouches, producing them presumably requires a low carbon footprint. Those features alone definitely set them above classic canisters in my eyes. But they already seem weaker than the foil pouches in one significant capacity, and I can't help but be a bit disappointed. EDIT: I've unfolded the box and left it under some heavy books in hopes of flattening out some of the creases. Hopefully in a few hours I will be able to fold it back into shape and it might actually be able to stand upright like it's supposed to.
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I actually wouldn't be surprised if the set used 4M shells instead of 3M shells. You can compare his animated counterpart with the animated counterpart of the Protector of Fire. Animated shells look 3M, but the ones in the set use 4M. Also, if his torso is in fact built like that of the Protector of Fire, the torso shell should just be attached directly to the torso beam. Of course, that image of the Protector of Fire also shows us that there are some things we CAN'T anticipate based on the animations alone, due to good old fashioned creative license. The actual Protector of Fire set doesn't have forearms, but the animated version does.
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That little red dino guy is cute!
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Yep, fits just fine! And the shoulders would not need to be any higher or wider than those of the Protector of Fire. Well, there's no reason to assume his transformation would have been undone when the mask was removed. Also, I have a feeling that reclaiming his Mask of Control would be easier and more effective than going straight for the Mask of Ultimate Power. Obviously a pre-corruption Makuta set would DEFINITELY have the Mask of Control, but a post-corruption Makuta could realistically have either one.
