Well, there is a Greg quote that explains the discrepancy… /s
I do /hj
This reply’s not a joke - good. I’ve stated this a lot because I think it captures the spirit of the contests well: these are not MOC contests. It is unequivocally not about what MOC looks the best, it is about which is the best depiction of a character in canon. If an entry is spectacular in its craftsmanship and appearance, but it doesn’t adhere to canon, it definitely should be shot down.
ahhh, it’s a very important question.
Are these tire part connections considered to violate contest rules?
tire part stretches for a while to connect. While passing through ball joint.
but, since it is rubber, there seems to be no permanent damage.
No. You are allowed to use this technique.
Techniques are only considered to be illegal if they hold the piece in a deformed position; temporarily deforming the piece to attach it is not illegal, or else every ball joint and Technic pin connection would be illegal. Even Sahmad’s model requires temporary deformation of his sword to connect it to the Glatorian hand.
And besides, even if the technique was illegal, that’s still allowed in these contests:
(I could have sworn there was a post where Eljay specifically allowed the use of tires, but I can’t seem to find it)
I’m nearly positive that this would be fine. Tires for filler is such a hugely commonplace technique that it would be utterly absurd for it to be against the rules.
to be fair, that particular tire piece (it’s possible the stiffest small tire) on a CCBS bone does technically hold the piece deformed.
But like it’s rubber. Even lego has done that.
Thank both. I can complete her leg now.
I guess all the discussion here has me asking, “what is the point of this community?”
Are we just a glorified Reddit where we talk about how much we love Bonkle?
Are we an art forum of a sort?
Do we just relive the Bonkle glory days or are we somehow shaping the future of the series?
Do we somehow gatekeep the fandom here?
I do not have a definitive answer. Personally, my pipe dream is for Bionicle to be like pre-Disney era Star Wars community, where we have novels and other works (like Mocs) expanding the universe. The G3 story is an interesting idea and I hope it will be one of many contributions to this world we all fan over.
As an addendum to my previous comment, it’d also be nice if someone could figure out what Christian Faber intends with Biovival and his multitudinous cryptic posts. I am fairly uninformed and frankly, somewhat confused on this matter.
It’d be important to figure out the IP stuff too. Are Christian and Greg prevented from doing more by the Lego company? I am not expecting a published book or licensed media for Bionicle anytime soon, but I also want the franchise to live on, even if only informally.
*edit: thanks for fixing that, I was unaware that doubly posting wasn’t allowed
Edited for Double Post - BioKnight
I’m pretty certain that Biovival is him trying to creatively spark the community. The theme belongs to us, really, since LEGO is not using it. We can create our own BIONICLE stories without buying them from LEGO.
I’m not so sure about that. Fans have investment in a theme, but that doesn’t equate to ownership. Just looking through the last five days of posts on this topic, I feel like we hijacked BIONICLE and are in waaaay too deep now.
I think what K means is that we, the community, are the ones who decide what kind of content gets created for this line going forward. Lego’s doing nothing, so every character design, every story told, is ours until they start contributing again. We collectively finish the stories Lego never did, and bring new ones to light–in a sense, following Vakama’s advice at the end of WoS. Yeah, we hijacked it, but if we didn’t, it’d just be forgotten.
I s’pose that makes sense, but is there such a thing as going too far with this sort of thing? Not that I want BIONICLE to be forgotten, but I don’t really want it to get dragged out endlessly either… canon kind of loses its shine for me when we fans adopt its creation for lack of “official” content. Though collaborative worldbuilding is decently cool too.
There are other things to do than canon contests. For example, there’s Myths and Legacy, who are hosting some really good fanfiction set believably in the BIONICLE universe. There’s also Red Star Games, who develop several tabletop games based on BIONICLE as well as create 3D-printable masks. There’s also the two very-well-known 2001 games being developed, Quest for Mata Nui and Masks of Power. And there’s more to explore. Something I’ve been hearing a lot recently is “please no more 01 nostalgia bait” - there’s market space for a game based on Metru Nui, or the Ignition trilogy, or even an original story surrounding new, custom Toa. The point is that the direction of BIONICLE is now in the hands of the community, and we don’t need corporate validation for that. We can love our theme without buying it.
Heck yeah!
I am sick of all the focus on 2001, I think a slightly cyberpunk (Neon signs, tiered city, noir mystery etc.) or “1984” take would be great. It is more of a blank canvas as it was left fairly underdeveloped. Although I would like to see some more natural elements such as the greenery seen in Ga-Metru or more biomimetic designs seeing as it’s part of the processor sort of.
Reading this discussion has been interesting. I more than empathize with those who want to keep the ambiguity of characters. Letting things be is usually where I fall when talking about larger franchises that often twist and corrupt their own roots. But I don’t feel the same need for (extreme) restraint when it comes to Bionicle. I have been with Bionicle since the beginning and it has been with me since I was 4. Despite all its flaws and imperfections, it is so inspiring in a creative sense. It’s that aspect that has especially stuck with me all these years. I really don’t care too much what gets canonized or not. I love seeing how the contests challenge people. Seeing what people produce. I think it keeps the flame alive. It got me to revisit my abandoned Bionicle RPG project with renewed passion. Keeping that creative flame alive is something that defines Bionicle to me. Keeping it going is Bionicle.
Not until one of the following happens:
We’re not a corporation soullessly crapping into Bionicle’s open grave for profit, we’re just taking something that we find fun and doing new things for it.
We’re not really “creating” canon so much as “clarifying” it, tying up loose ends Bionicle has had for years. And these contests–which are already quite like some which Lego themselves have held in the past–have given us something to do, a singular project to focus our efforts on. When they are over, our power over G1 will simply vanish. We’re simply doing something the fandom has done before.
I disagree with this. We can always contribute to G1 on a personal level. It doesn’t need to be canonized.
The righteous order of Gregism, and their occult counterpart, the Solekians.
I was specifically talking about what the official G1 actually is. We’ll always have fanon, I just meant that that’s all we’ll have after this ends.
I think that’s okay. Yeah, fanon is going to be less broadly-accepted and we’ll probably (continue to) see disagreements in TTV and other Bionicle forums, but I think it’s time we stretch our wings a little.
For my part, I don’t love all the fanon content. There’s been pretty decently-regarded works too - like that of Nick from Planet Ripple. The G3 stuff hasn’t caught on with me but by no means do I want to shut it down! Please keep being creative! The more content generated, the greater chance we have to pull in fans new and old.
Even “canon” isn’t set in stone. When Disney bought out Star Wars in the 2000s, a lot of great work was set aside in favor of the Clone Wars and the Sequel series (ep. 7-9). I loved the OG Thrawn trilogy, and the Quinlan Vos comics, but the Mouse House had other plans. I guess my point being even if a work is declared non-canon, that doesn’t diminish its impact or how people enjoy the work.
I’m rambling. I just want to let my hopes for the story and world of Bionicle run wild, with or without Lego’s involvement. If only questions of legality weren’t so fuzzy - maybe with the growing number of AFOLs, we can hash something out in the distant future? But that’s way down the line. For now, I just hope to see people carry the torch like Faber cryptically suggests. If we wait for Lego or a prominent writer to give us more canon or a reboot, I am afraid we will be waiting forever.
Hail Denmark! 
I dunno, Mata-Nuism sounds lame to me. You only celebrate one holiday, and it’s Naming Day of all things.