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Aanchir

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Everything posted by Aanchir

  1. Aanchir
    Gali's shoulder armor seems fairly simple to me. Her shoulders appear to be built exactly the same way as Pohatu's, but instead of a regular 1M Technic bushing between the "gearbox" and ball joint, it has a Toa Hordika neck joint with the ball pointed upwards and the shoulder armor attached to that.
  2. Aanchir
    Sadly I won't be able to see it today because I'm just coming back from a long visit with family in Connecticut, so I'll be on the train for most of the day. Some of the theaters in my state are probably showing it next week, but I might just end up waiting for the TV broadcast or DVD release. Korra Book 4 looks very exciting! I hope that it provides a conclusion as satisfying as Avatar: The Last Airbender did!
  3. Aanchir
    I mean, all things considered, the ball joint and ball cup have always been Technic connections, so it makes sense that the CCBS would still be considered Technic-based at its heart even in sets that don't use a lot of pins and axles.
  4. Aanchir
    From a design standpoint, constraction sets have always remained in the Technic "family", but they brand them separately to prevent confusion. It's the same thing with LEGO Mindstorms — even though those never drifted away from relying on Technic building styles, they aren't branded as LEGO Technic. Calling it LEGO BIONICLE is already a change-up, since they originally avoided calling it that so people wouldn't become confused about what it was. "LEGO Technic BIONICLE" would just be throwing a spanner in the works.
  5. Aanchir
    You have to keep in mind that LEGO designers come from all over the world and do not always speak English as a first language, so typos can be frequent, especially in things like concept images that are not designed for the general public to see. Either that, or "Mask Macker" is a nickname of the guy doing these concept images. *shrug*
  6. Aanchir
    Concept art! That's pretty cool! I definitely think the finalized version is best, though.
  7. Aanchir
    Don't get me wrong, it's not the decision not to keep the packaging that seems irrational. Some people just don't care for or have any need for the package's intended use, and that's just as true of the people who throw out the pouches as the people who recycle their canisters. Nothing wrong with that in and of itself (though when the package is stylishly designed and takes up an infinitesimal amount of space, I think keeping it would be much less of a burden than keeping a canister). What I consider irrational is the way some people treat the "softness" of Hero Factory packages as proof of their cheapness and worthlessness. I have heard people say they would consider ordinary, non-resealable, rectangular cardboard boxes like the ones for the 2010 and 2011 Hero Factory villain sets or the 2012 Super Heroes sets better for the new BIONICLE than Hero Factory pouches, when in fact the only thing that ordinary boxes like that have more in common with canisters than with Hero Factory pouches is that they have rigid shapes. Does anybody really consider that factor the thing that made canisters great? Not their sturdiness, or their potential for reusable storage, or their distinctive and eye-catching shapes, or the way they could be integrated with the sets during role-play... but the fact that they held their shape? To me, that seems like the BIONICLE canisters' biggest DISadvantage. I guess arguably, cardboard boxes are also stackable and recyclable, but I don't think these are the characteristics that most BIONICLE fans are really looking for in LEGO packaging.
  8. Aanchir
    Economic cost and carbon footprint are not remotely the same thing. Canisters are wasteful and damaging to the environment, full stop. If LEGO discovers a way to reduce the carbon footprint of high-quality injection-molded plastic, they'll do that for their actual bricks long before they think about doing it for packaging. If people are willing to throw away a pouch that's more useful for storage than canisters in pretty much every way, then I agree that LEGO should stop making them. There's no need to spend money on fancy resealable packaging that people aren't sensible enough to use or appreciate. But that doesn't mean that it would be better for LEGO to invest in packaging that is both more expensive and less environmentally friendly. Not when LEGO has made such great strides in packaging that is good for the environment, and is even experimenting with ways to do the same with the bricks themselves. Can anybody here confirm whether this year's Speedorz packages are resealable/collapsible? Sadly I can't find any reviews of this year's Speedorz that describes their packaging in detail, which is odd since that's one of the sets' most distinctive differences from last year's awful blister packages. They look like they might be both, and in that case, something like that would be ideal for BIONICLE. It'd have most of the same advantages as the Hero Factory pouches (completely collapsible, perpetually reusable unless damaged, printed graphics on every surface, eye-grabbing shape), but people with an irrational disdain for soft packaging might be either more willing to keep them or better able to recycle them. Something else to keep in mind: the original reason LEGO started doing canisters for the RoboRiders theme was that they had an ambitious idea of distributing the sets in vending machines. I don't think they ever actually ended up doing this, so part of the purpose the canisters were supposed to serve never even came to fruition in the first place.
  9. Aanchir
    I don't think so. Their shoulders are mounted behind their torso beam via Technic rather than attached straight to it, and if they stuck out that far from the torso we'd be able to see them more clearly. I honestly think all of the Toa except for Onua use 90626 (the 7x9 torso beam).
  10. Aanchir
    Depends on the condition of the mold. Once a mold has been used enough times, it wears out and will no longer be able to provide parts that meet the LEGO Group's standard of quality. A great example is this part from the first batch of Exo-Suit sets. As the designer explained on Reddit, it's the exact same steel mold that had been in use since the 80s, and as such its clutch power was not very strong. The LEGO Group has finally created a new mold to replace it (presumably still with the same design). Not sure if parts cast from the new mold have started showing up in sets yet, though. When a mold is worn out or if the LEGO Group otherwise wants to discontinue the mold permanently, their standard policy has traditionally been to encase it in the concrete foundations of a new building to prevent other companies from stealing it and using it to produce their own LEGO knock-offs. But if a mold is still usable and hasn't been retired for some quality reason (like I'm sure a lot of old parts with fragile ball cups might have been), then it's generally just put into storage. That might be the case with this part. It's only been used in five sets, after all. Also, truth be told, there aren't a lot of more recent parts that are really ideal for use as a symmetrical spearhead. And it would have been cheaper to pull an older mold out of storage than to introduce a brand-new one. It's also entirely possible to introduce a new mold that has the exact same design as a retired part. But I doubt that is the case here, because doing so would be about as expensive as introducing an entirely new design, and it's not like the old design is one that people are incredibly nostalgic for.
  11. Aanchir
    In that case, though, it was because the dinosaur legs were designed to use "click points" kind of like the movable jaws of the Hero Factory and Chima constraction sets, so there was no need to incorporate any friction in the design. Since there aren't any visible "click points" on the Mask of Creation in that video, it might be designed with more friction. There are some examples of similar connections that DO have more friction than your typical minifigure visor, such as the classic LEGO crocodile, shark, and T-Rex jaws. Still not as much friction as a Technic friction hinge, but they won't just spontaneously flap open if you flip them upside-down. So if LEGO could design something with a similar amount of friction that attached to regular bar holes or cross axle holes, that might be a pretty sweet way to do things. Really, we're all just speculating about possibilities at this point. There's no way to know for sure how the masks might attach or how much friction they'll have until set reviews start turning up.
  12. Aanchir
    I don't think I've seen anyone implying that they'll be more versatile than a stud or cross axle. I guess you might be thinking of Lyi's comment "At this point if the masks don't attach like I think they do I'll be quite disappointed, since I can't think of any other way that they could possibly be as versatile." But I interpreted that more as saying that if they DO only attach to the sides like the video suggests, they will be most versatile if they snap to regular axle holes like the ones on the Glatorian head, Brain Attack head, and Y-joint. Not that they'll be the most versatile masks ever released or anything like that. There is, at least, some precedent for parts like this being able to attach to regular Technic connections. The old dinosaur legs had little bumps like a minifigure visor, but they were designed to snap to regular Technic pin holes. So it's not impossible to imagine that a design with smaller bumps around 3.2 millimeters in diameter might be able to snap to Technic cross axle holes or System bar holes.
  13. Aanchir
    The announcement has already been made that it's the new BIONICLE theme for 2015, but so far all we've gotten is some teasers that don't specifically refer to sets or media. You can see most of what's been revealed on the new LEGO Bionicle Facebook page. There's also supposed to be something new on that page this Friday, and then more info about the theme at New York Comic Con next month.
  14. Aanchir
    My first BIONICLE set was really my first TWO sets: 8534 Tahu and 8540 Vakama from a special offer in the March/April 2001 LEGO Mania Magazine! My last BIONICLE set was... hmm, not sure. Probably 7136 Skrall or something like that. It's a set my younger brother already had at that point, but I was not that smart with my impulse purchases back then, especially since at that point I was at college and so we couldn't play with each other's sets like we could have when we were all back home.
  15. Aanchir
    SK/LoSS looks like one of those sets that will be hard to judge until we get to see what it does. With as much Technic as it uses, it has to have SOME kind of function, especially every other set has a function of some kind (even if it's just a launcher function). But from the pic we've seen it's hard to guess what type of function that might be. A "walking" function like 8595 or 70708 would be cool and would explain the Technic-based construction of the legs, but I'm not sure the set is even big enough for a function like that (and it doesn't look like any part but the feet touches the ground, so the possibility of the legs moving as it "rolls" is out). There looks to be a handle in the back, so maybe you can lower it onto another figure and "grab" it with the legs? Not tremendously dynamic but it's a possibility.
  16. Aanchir
    Yeah, I always found the idea of putting masks over other masks kind of ridiculous. It always struck me as something the movies did just because they were afraid of letting the characters remove their masks and letting the audience see the ugliness of the heads underneath. =/ Honestly, I don't want to make any judgments on how useful/useless the new masks are until we've actually seen more than a 360-degree spin of a single mask. Generally, I don't use masks for things other than masks too often anyway, so it's not a huge concern of mine one way or the other. I'm more interested in understanding WHY they are how they are and what the heads underneath are like. I will be very grateful if the new heads can manage to look robotic without looking quite so off-putting as many of the classic BIONICLE heads.
  17. Aanchir
    I'm sure there are plenty of kids like that, who grew up with Hero Factory and will feel bad about it going away. But to be honest I wouldn't be surprised if that topic was just somebody creating a dupe account to troll people and parody the reactions to BIONICLE being cancelled back in 2010. The fact that the member in question seems to have joined just to post that topic, claims to have only gotten into LEGO in 2013 but has a 2011 set as his avatar, and knows the term MOC but not how to spell it all seem to point to somebody putting on an act. Plus, his poor spelling seems suspiciously consistent.
  18. Aanchir
    As much as I'm sure he'd like to, I highly doubt the LEGO Group would send out review copies this far in advance! But in all seriousness, you can see a Technic contraption of some kind built into the back of MOST of the sets, and in most cases it looks like it could be for a gear function of some kind. If it weren't, then there'd be much simpler ways to achieve the same proportions Of course, what TYPE of gear function each set has is not entirely clear. Gali in particular puzzles me, because she has a two-handed weapon. Do both of her arms move in the same direction (rather than alternate directions like the original Gali and Onua)? Is only one of her arms gear-driven, with the other just on a friction pin? Since she's the one where the mechanism is least visible, it's very difficult to tell what it might do.
  19. Aanchir
    Rather than just friction, CHI Cragger's jaw has locking points kind of like a click hinge from LEGO System. So it has a couple fixed positions. I don't see anything like that on the Mask of Creation. I do not personally expect the new masks to have a lot of friction, but to be honest I'm not entirely convinced that they even actually hinge. It's entirely possible that the new head will be designed in a way that holds them in place, kind of like how this minifig helmet holds a regular visor in a way that keeps it from opening or closing.
  20. Aanchir
    Actually, Toys 'R' Us is a lot better than they used to be about markups. Some sets, like the Legend Beasts from LEGO Legends of Chima, are not marked up, and Toys 'R' Us stores are also now willing to price match pretty much any item carried by their major competitors. Good things to keep in mind if Toys 'R' Us is the only store near you with an extensive LEGO selection! Sales tax is paid separately from the list price of sets, and varies depending on where you buy them from. Some states have fairly high state sales tax, relatively speaking, while others like New Hampshire have no sales tax at all.
  21. Aanchir
    I think that's an autocorrect attack on "Polynesian-esque". Anyway, I have a feeling that might have just been a preliminary concept for the Mask of Creation. But I guess we won't know for sure until the official, finalized sets and marketing materials make their appearance.
  22. Aanchir
    It really depends who you ask. Some AFOLs hate all constraction themes, because they feel like they're "not real LEGO". Some BIONICLE fans dislike Hero Factory because they feel like it doesn't live up to BIONICLE, while other BIONICLE fans embrace it. And I'm sure there's a contingent of people who grew up with Hero Factory and will have lots of nostalgia for it in the years to come, but who simply aren't old enough to be active within AFOL communities. As far as I know, Hero Factory's definitely never been as popular as BIONICLE was at its peak in 2002, but then again, few things have been.
  23. Aanchir
    The pieces of the other robot were on Bara Magna in our very first glimpses of it back in 2008, so I don't think it was the slightest bit "out of nowhere". Granted, the timing of Teridax traveling to Bara Magna was a bit fortuitous... it's a decision he essentially could have made at any time, but he just happened to linger on Aqua Magna fighting the rebellions in his own body JUST long enough to give his bitter rival a fighting chance. I suppose that part of that could be chalked up to the storyline having to kick things into overdrive since its end was coming sooner than expected. Still, all things considered, I think BIONICLE got about the best ending it COULD have gotten, given the circumstances. My only regret is that Greg tried to drag the serials out further and ended up leaving a huge mess behind. If it had been able to bring those to their conclusion in 2010, I'm sure there'd have been some whining from fans that the ending to THOSE was also rushed, but there wouldn't be nearly as many people demanding that the new BIONICLE tie up loose ends that shouldn't have even existed in the first place.
  24. Aanchir
    Well, recommended age ranges are based on more than how much skill is required. They're also based on how likely people are to enjoy both the build and the finished set. Sets from the LEGO Architecture theme, for instance, are not often that difficult to build, but they also won't be as rewarding for many younger builders as a Ninjago or City set because they're basically just static display pieces. And while the Sandcrawler offers SOME play value by comparison, its build is very lengthy. It's easy to imagine a younger kid getting bored or frustrated partway through even if they can handle all of the building techniques. This is also part of the reason why LEGO adds a MAXIMUM recommended age instead of just a minimum. Anybody can build a Duplo set, but if a 14-year-old kid were to get one as a birthday present (and it wasn't a deliberate gag gift) I think they would be somewhat disappointed with that experience. It also shouldn't be ignored that not every kid learns the skills necessary for LEGO building at the same rate. For my seventh birthday party my dad got Throwbots/Slizer sets as party favors, and I quickly learned that not ALL of my peers were quite ready for that type of Technic-based building. Some had a hard time understanding that they had to compare the cross axle lengths with the ones in the instruction manual, and others had difficulty being sure to put axles and pins through the correct holes. Even though most of these kids were six or seven, around the same age that I had first started buying and building Technic sets, and even though Throwbots were among the most basic Technic sets at the time, it was still a much greater challenge for many of them than it had been for me. Some time, as an exercise, look at the instructions of a set and look at all the places where a person COULD make a mistake if they didn't know they had to pay close attention to every detail. This might give you a sense of what kinds of things might frustrate a less experienced builder. LEGO Technic is the most advanced in this regard, because while the connections are simple enough, if you make a mistake you might not realize it until much later, and then it can be tricky to not only locate the mistake but also UNDO everything you've done since then (the parts are connected together at all different angles, not just stacked, so disassembling a specific section of a Technic set can be even harder than assembling it). Even I sometimes encounter issues like this with larger Technic sets. But even System sets that use Technic connections or SNOT techniques, or ones that involve a lot of counting and measuring, can be easy to mess up if you aren't paying the closest attention. And while an older kid will be able and willing to fix their own mistakes, younger kids might have a much lower tolerance for that kind of frustration. I can definitely agree with this! As cool as it is to see fantasy Technic vehicles nowadays when the actual Technic theme is almost exclusively based on real life, I don't think the vehicle sets in Hero Factory have nearly taken full advantage of the building system.
  25. Aanchir
    It's definitely something that can give you a good sense of what audiences sets are targeted at. Granted, not all comparisons are perfect. The LEGO Group's understanding of what different age groups are capable of has evolved over time. So for instance, the first Hero Factory heroes, with a pitiful 18 pieces on average, were recommended for ages 6–16, while current $10 sets with as many as 50 pieces and much more complex builds are recommended for ages 6–12. But when comparing sets within the same year or within a few years of each other, like the current Chima constraction lineup, the current Hero Factory lineup, and the upcoming BIONICLE lineup, it can be very telling.
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