Aanchir

No, unfortunately I'm back in college now and so my schedule is too tight for me to really plan a weekend trip to New York. Swert, the general manager of BS01 who provided me with my invite last year, is instead offering it to a BZPower staff member. This year, TLG is only sending one invite to every fansite, so since BS01 has nobody to represent them Swert decided it would be better to let two BZPower staff attend, in hopes of more thorough coverage. I imagine there will be no shortage of coverage of New York Toy Fair, so I don't think there's anything to worry about on that front. It may not be as thorough and wordy as mine was, but as a result it probably won't be nearly as delayed as mine was.

He was replying to a comment about the Chima show not having aired yet in Australia, which was given as a possible explanation for why Ninjago sets have been greatly outselling Chima sets there. Of course, another possible explanation is that stores have just bought huge quantities of Chima sets in response to how heavily TLG is pushing it. After all, a huge, brand-new theme with a lot of marketing money behind it might show a little more promise for retailers than a smaller wave of an already-running theme.

They've consistently reiterated that they haven't ruled out the possibility entirely, but I don't think they're planning on one any time soon. And if they were, they would reveal it as soon as they were ready and no sooner. An ambassador can ask, but questions about future products that aren't already revealed aren't very likely to be answered-- the LEGO Group places a lot of value in keeping future plans secret for as long as possible. Personally, I don't think the circumstances are right for a BIONICLE revival. Not yet. But perhaps one day they might be. I'm not going to be standing around waiting for that to happen, though-- not when the potential in current and future product lines is just as exciting.

Well, yeah, Nabii has confirmed that the theme really was ending. Though whether the decision to continue it was "last minute" or not really depends on what you consider "last minute". All we know for sure is that they didn't decide to continue it in time to have a new wave of sets ready for summer 2013, but considering 2013 set design wrapped up many months ago, I'm not sure that's all that indicative of a last-minute decision. I don't anticipate any huge changes (nothing like 2006 Knights' Kingdom where the majority of the main characters were sidelined). Which isn't to say there won't be changes-- however, the overall tone, premise, and design aesthetic should remain fairly consistent.

They did change their policy, slightly. Last year at New York Toy Fair some store exclusives were shown, but mostly just ones from licensed themes. But it's possible that they'll be considering Chima a big enough deal to give it that honor as well.

What makes you think that? I'll admit these mods might be better versions of the sets to some people. That doesn't mean they'd be affordable without bumping up the price points, or they'd be perceived as worthwhile when a lot of kids might prefer the functions. Believe it or not, professional toy design isn't a couple people building knick-knacks and then releasing them just to get a feel for how people like them. It's very, VERY deliberate. There's a lot of research and careful consideration that takes place before and during the design process. There's no doubt that designers occasionally cut corners; however, they don't do that just because they don't know how to make the models any better. They do it because they're working with constraints-- whether those are the expectations and preferences of the audience, or the price points that are likely to bring in the highest profits, or the level of building complexity that's needed to maximize the age range the set appeals to. I don't mean this as a criticism of these MOCs, but that doesn't change that designing MOCs is very different than designing sets. The only things that affect the design of MOCs are the opinions and preferences of the person building them and the level of value they place on the opinions and preferences of the people he expects to show them to. Set design has a lot of other factors involved.

Evolution doesn't inherently mean getting better. At its core it just means changing. That's a common misconception-- a being that stays the same doesn't evolve; in contrast a being that changes evolves, for better or for worse. Also, the animals taking the Chi isn't strictly a bad thing. As a result of it, true, they have war and they have lost some of their connection to nature. On the other hand, they have civilization, which has its own share of positives and negatives. It kind of reminds me of the sealing of alchemy in the Golden Sun games. With alchemy free, some people can become powerful enough to pose a great danger to civilization. But without it, the world simply stagnates, and civilizations no longer grow. I think this is a theme that will be explored more over the course of the series, since the suggestion that the animal people at the theme's core are a perversion of nature isn't going to do a good job selling toys. Incidentally, Chi being a great danger and a great asset is an idea that has been explored in a lot of other media, too-- BIONICLE had energized protodermis, which turned the Toa into the Toa Nuva but also caused a war that destroyed a planet, and has the potential to instantly annihilate those whom it is not destined to transform. From what I can hear these episodes were exposition-heavy, just as Ninjago's pilot was to a lesser extent. Which makes sense. One of the things I've heard from a lot of Chima skeptics is that they just don't understand the concept or think it doesn't make sense (Whereas colorful ninja superheroes is a much easier concept for many people to digest). Exposition helps show that OK, this isn't just a couple random ideas thrown together, but rather something that is structured around its own internal logic. For an adult, this kind of exposition may be tedious and might not clear things up that much in the long run. For a kid, this kind of exposition could easily be enough to convince them that the show isn't just silly or stupid, but rather has a certain enchanting mythology to it. And really that's what I figure the goal of airing these two episodes early is-- get kids intrigued so that by the time the rest of the show rolls around they'll be more easily hooked.

It's not due until fall. The show doesn't pick back up until summer. The sets have hardly been out a month. Give it time.

So there's a lot of hubbub in the brony community about this revelation (season finale spoilers). Naturally there have been hints showing up all over the place, but naturally due to Nuremberg Toy Fair they had to let the cat (or the candy-colored pony, as it were) out of the bag before the finale has a chance to air. Personally, I'm excited. It seems like an interesting challenge for the writers of the show to deal with, and one that could provide new storytelling opportunities in the future. I've already heard many people whine that "it's just to sell toys", but, well, you shouldn't be in the MLP:FiM fandom (or the LEGO fandom, for that matter) if you feel that selling toys is incompatible with quality storytelling. There have already been a number of events from the show that occurred "just to sell toys" (the show itself arguably exists for this purpose), and the writers have consistently pulled through to make sure Hasbro's suggestions and mandates are an opportunity rather than a burden. As a BIONICLE fan I also feel a bit wary of those who consider this a "sudden change" in storytelling, because it's perfectly possible for major story events like this to be planned for years in advance and still catch fans by surprise. Naturally, people will complain about the show jumping the shark, just as they've always done about any show that changes in a way they don't like. I don't pay much heed to these complaints, because when and why you enjoy or stop enjoying a show is a personal matter, not some concrete threshold to be crossed. A good show is always changing, but rarely are changes in quality definite and abrupt. So others may complain about the present or worry about the future, but I'm going to enjoy watching the pretty ponies for as long as I can, and if I eventually lose interest, so be it. (I am not, however, afraid to say that many of those tie-in toys are quite awful, and I sincerely hope some of the character molds will appear in better and less pricy products.)

I dunno, again, I prefer the transition to regular plates. If new BURPs could be introduced that are suitable for elevating models, then that'd be great, but as it is baseplates in general and raised baseplates in particular are quite specialized, something that AFOLs normally criticize rather than celebrate.

They didn't really remove Nazis from the Indiana Jones sets, but they basically made any Nazis in those scenes into generic tan-uniformed soldiers without any swastikas or other identifying features. The same was the case in the LEGO Indiana Jones video game (Swastikas were also omitted from level designs even if the corresponding movie scenes had conspicuous Nazi regalia). The reason for this is that it is illegal for video games and toys to be sold in Germany if they feature Nazi paraphernalia of any kind. (films are a different story, I believe, since there are exceptions made for certain artistic media), and Germany is one of TLG's biggest markets. Anyway, I think TLG has made a fairly smart decision by issuing a press release that reiterates the set's intended subject matter and states regret for any unintended interpretations. Overall this should at least keep this hubbub from escalating into widespread hysteria, though I don't doubt that there will still be boycotts from certain communities, but within a year or so the set's intended shelf life will have ended and any lasting repercussions might serve as a learning experience for TLG. They might even take steps to preempt this kind of thing with future product releases... for instance, seeking to include a more diverse group of cultural backgrounds in focus group testing and other market research. Meanwhile, I hope AFOLs also will learn from this that believe it or not, brand image can be tarnished heavily by a set's subject matter. Let's not forget the hubbub that erupts any time a Cuusoo project is rejected due to not meeting TLG's standards for what is "offensive". Certainly, LEGO Star Wars sales may be strong enough that Jabba's Palace will still be massively profitable. But in the meantime, there are now dozens if not hundreds of headlines circulating the internet that put "LEGO" and "racist" in the same sentence, which is not a good thing no matter what conclusions the articles favor. And given how much more of a risk LEGO Cuusoo sets are by the nature of the platform, a poorly-chosen licensing agreement could easily be a costly mistake that might not even pay off in terms of sales.

I don't think we can automatically assume that this is related to the 2014 storyline. While it's definitely set after the "final battle", in general the graphic novels tend to tell "side-stories" not essential to the main continuity. Let's not forget that the second graphic novel, "Mask of the Sensei", was actually released in February 2012 and took place after Garmadon's defeat in the 2011 story, but had nothing to do with the Serpentine or Green Ninja story arcs-- it was a stand-alone story. Of course, we shouldn't rule out that it might be related to the 2014 storyline, either. But frankly, it seems most likely to me that it would be a stand-alone story, since again the graphic novels are non-essential to the overarching story, and that means that the plot of this graphic novel would have to be retold in the show if it were a major story chapter (We can assume that the show will be coming back in some form, whether as an actual new season or a series of webisodes-- after all, if Hero Factory and Star Wars can have webisodes of the quality previously seen in their TV specials, the same would certainly hold true of Ninjago).

You make a good point; I apologize for my insensitive reaction. It is indeed a bigger issue when viewed in that context. My reaction was mainly because I was anticipating an accusation tied to an in-house LEGO brand or to the overall balance of races represented in licensed themes, and instead it turned out to be an accusation tied to a structure that TLG had depicted previously nearly a decade ago ago (not to mention the many more direct and somewhat questionable depictions of Middle Eastern cultures from other licensed themes like IJ) and which they probably could not have anticipated any sort of controversy over. It's not the discontent itself that I found funny, but what it was that prompted the discontent. And in retrospect, while it wasn't as big an issue as what I had been anticipating when I first read "LEGO accused of racism" on a forum thread, that doesn't mean it's trivial in any sense.

My twin brother recently began playing Skyward Sword, and the art direction in it is to die for. That sculpture definitely captures its bold colors and fluid character designs.

I have a very strong feeling that there will be more Ninjago sets in 2014. First of all, continuing a theme for half a year without any new sets is understandable, but continuing the story media longer without new sets is less plausible. The sets don't support the media, the media supports the sets, and without sets to support the media no longer serves any purpose. Thus once the intended shelf life of the 2013 sets (probably about one year) has ended, there would no longer be any need for more story media. Second, Nabii has strongly suggested that the future of Ninjago is going to be more ambitious than just a bit of supplementary media. He says regarding the Temple of Light on the Bricklist of sets he's designed, "I'm really glad there will be more Ninjago - it deserves a bigger bang then this to go out on!" Also, on his Twitter, regarding the possibility of future sets, he says "I'm not allowed to say! It really was ending so there'll be a bit of a gap, we're not going to rush, the story must be right!" The suggestion that "there'll be a bit of a gap" suggests that the absence of new sets in summer 2013 is NOT an indication of what can be expected for the rest of the theme's lifespan, and the suggestion that "the story must be right" seems to hint that the future of Ninjago will continue to have significant top-down story direction, rather than just unguided supplementary media like the BIONICLE serials. Furthermore, the fact that he is still involved in developing the Ninjago theme is a pretty strong indication that the theme still has a need for set designers... not much that could mean other than future sets.

Oh my goodness, the Papercutz site has a page for the eighth graphic novel, due for an October release, with cover art and an in-depth blurb. The premise sounds simply glorious! Haven't managed to find the sixth graphic novel yet (it was supposed to be out nearly a week ago, but the local Barnes & Noble didn't have it in any of the past two times I visited). But overall I'm so glad that the graphic novels haven't lost any steam since the TV series wrapped up.

To be honest, I prefer the trend towards using regular plates in large sizes like 16x16 versus using classic baseplates. Regular plates are inherently far more versatile, and having them in larger sizes like this makes it easier to create varied terrain, like in the LEGO Creator Hillside House. I do, however, wish this concept were extended further to things such as road plates.

This is a gorgeous project. Very well-refined, using only existing molds and yet fully reconciles typical LEGO building with the Poptropica aesthetic. I never played Poptropica myself. Most of my exposure to it comes from the BIONICLE: The Legend Reborn and Hero Factory promotions that were done in 2009 and 2010, respectively. Nevertheless, this project has unmistakeable appeal, and I wish it the best of luck.

Yep, I had this set during childhood (well, technically I got it for my mom, but it "mysteriously" ended up in my collection) and loved this baseplate. Of course, one constant frustration was that its Light Green color didn't match any of the Dark Green (classic green) baseplates I had from Town sets, so it always stuck out like a sore thumb when I tried to create a town layout on my basement floor.

Yeah, I think one of the weaknesses of the Speedorz gameplay is that the cards and toys are not very well-integrated. That was one of the things I loved about the Ninjago cards which I thought had been lacking in previous LEGO card games-- the cards had a direct influence on how you played with the toys. As it is, the Speedorz and cards are used as two parts of the same game, but they are almost entirely separate "phases", which to me ends up feeling about as disjointed as chess boxing.

Keep in mind that in BIONICLE and Star Wars, actual metal collectible items were always a VERY small fraction of the set's weight/volume. Here, they would be nearly the entire weight/volume of the sets' contents. So warm gold (pearl gold) or metallized gold (chrome gold) would be far more effective in that sense. What I want to know is how counterfeiting will be prevented. Chroming a minifigure has already been done by customizers, and Brassoing a Golden Ninja from Ninjago or Golden King from Atlantis is easy. Thus the only real solutions are a) decorating the fig instead of using a generic one or b) using real metal. Let's not forget the DOZENS of "Green Ninja" figs that popped up on eBay last year, most of which were either complete customs or the (granted, still fairly desirable) classic Green Ninja figs from the turn of the millennium. I've even seen custom "Golden Ninjas" on eBay, made by replicating the design from this year's official set images on a gold or spray-painted minifigure. With a Golden Minifigure, if they're desirable enough, we'll see all that and more. I haven't voted because frankly the last question in the poll has no option for "I'll get just the figs I want, whether or not I get a golden minifigure", and the second question has no option for complete indifference. I suppose I could vote in the second one that I don't PLAN on getting a Golden Minifigure because, let's face it, I don't. If I do get one, lucky me! But if I don't, it's not like it's any worse than missing out on any other CMF. I can't say I'd have much use for a Golden Minifigure anyway; it wouldn't offer too much besides bragging rights and maybe a few nice gold pieces. Regarding the first question, I imagine the Golden Minifigure would just be true for Series 10, but I could be wrong. That just seems like it'd make the most sense.

Well, to be fair, Hero Factory parts have a lot in common with many considered "<insert that tiresome argument>"... one key factor being that "non-<insert that tiresome argument>" parts generally adhere quite strictly to the principle of "form follows function", whereas action figure parts in general (besides the Hero Factory beams used for building a model's skeleton) are rather heavily stylized. However, I think that claims of "juniorization" in general tend to ignore the matter of efficiency. It takes a much more intricate design to make a streamlined action figure model without the use of any specialized elements, and not only would that minimize the buying audience and the ease of building, but it would also cut down on structural stability. The same applies to many "<insert that tiresome argument>" elements in System, like the giant airplane wing. Yes, you could make an airplane wing that size with smaller parts (even, for ideal shaping, with SNOT techniques), but it might not have the same sturdiness during play. It says a lot that some of the most amazing action figure MOCs from a sculptural standpoint also tend to be somewhat fragile, using fiddly connections to work in as much detail as possible. Recently I put together a MOC I'm quite proud of in a sculptural sense, but even it has a few parts which are simply held in by friction and liable to pop out if the model is held in a certain way.

Personally, I have no problem with Light Aqua and Medium Azure, since they are bluish-green colors, which the LEGO color palette had previously had an astonishing shortage of. Back in the 90s and early 2000s the LEGO color palette had a fairly complete spectrum of colors, but unfortunately it started to grow cumbersome with the addition of more and more colors, and when colors started to get the axe, the purple and bluish-green parts of the spectrum suffered the most. I have to say that the color of that popsicle needs to be used less frequently... I can't think of many colors much less appetizing when it comes to ice cream. Reminds me of 7-Up or Mello Yello, some of my least favorite lemon-lime sodas.

Very neat design, but you're going to have to make some careful decisions with the size and placement of the screen if you want it to be fully visible from both the regular and balcony seating.

No, rubbery plastics are used primarily for the reason jonwil described: sharp corners and points could easily break if they were in a harder plastic. Fine detail is thus easier with a softer plastic. In fact, I've read at least one rubber used for LEGO parts is actually considerably more expensive than ABS. The cost of a mold probably doesn't vary much at all no matter what material is going into it, since they'd require about the same volume of steel and the same level of precision either way. Variations in the cost of a mold would more likely come from other factors, such as if it requires "sliders" (seperate sections that allow a part to be molded from more than two sides, as is necessary with headlight bricks, for instance) or if it will be producing co-injected (blended) parts.