Leakes aside, there is no reason to believe they are working right now on any constraction theme, or that they have any plans for constraction in the near future.
And why is that bad?
WOWOWOWOW
Donât you think that forever is waaay too big of a word?
I really disagree. At least, for your type of intrigue.
The LEGO Movieâs nod to Bionicle is on-par with its not to Fabuland, taking up equal time and being put directly next to each other. Really, itâs ridiculous to interpret this as disrespectful when the film had absolutely nothing to do with either theme.
And the concept really deflates your argument here - that Bionicle got so far as to almost have a main character in a rather large role in the second LEGO Movie, that role being on-par with the raptors of Rex. Yes, it was cut, but the very fact that it was even considered shows LEGO still cares and is acknowledging Bionicle more than they used to.
Who works for LEGOâŚ
Which begs the question:
Possibly three people sitting around a conference table eating steak and wiping the corners of their mouths with Bionicle money?
LEGO is a business first, a toy company second. Theyâre quite possibly the most powerful toy company in the world, and definitely the most powerful with the least production or resources in China. LEGO is a household name and a household product shared and purchased by nearly every age in every demographic. Upholding that is more important that appeasing a few thousand people on the internet demanding necromancy be committed.
Not to mention that some of the largest portions of the community (in LEGOâs eyes, anyway) are repetitive cesspools of toxicity which most people avoid, but LEGO doesnât. Until they die out, or LEGO finally drops them altogether, the rest of the fanbase is stuck with the label of self-centered hypocrites.
This information your ex-LEGO employeeâs cited is entirely true. As well, Kjeld stepped down as president of LEGO directly before that, and hired someone outside the LEGO family to run the company.
Hm⌠What if LEGO decided to bring Bionicle back, with less of a story emphasis and much more of an emphasis on making good sets? sure, they wonât all be perfect, but itâll be a generally good line, and if people like it, it can go past the three year mark. Well?
I recall hearing the same thing from likely a different source. Thereâs no hiding that Bionicle was a real moneymaker and an absolute success in its early years. And, as you suggest, possibly too great. Before 2008 that is
Do you, David, recall how long it took to make the T rex set they just put out? Itâs heavily implied it took the majority of five years, and was entirely thanks to an employeeâs MOC. It takes time to make individual sets, and even more to plan out six waves of a single theme just in the product pitch.
And yet people will, because they need LEGO now. Not tomorrow, now.
I completely disagree. Solely based off the Takanuva concept art, itâs evident someone was thinking of a way to translate that small of as Bionicle character into LEGO format. And if Nick Vas is a LEGO employee, then LEGO is thinking about constraction, and more specifically, Bionicle.
LEGO will never satisfy you if your demands are to do G1 over again, or continue where it left off, or whatever. That Bionicle is never coming back. In kind words, get over it and move on.
Am I saying to move on from Bionicle? maybe. You can keep moving forward in Bionicle, heck, even move forward with G1. But clinging to your crib only makes it harder to let it go. G1 is never, ever, EVER COMING BACK - I can repeat it in bold if youâd like - the exact same as how anything else long gone will never come back. Bionicle G1 is a mix of what it actually was and the conceptualized, flawless version everyone has in their heads, which is different. If LEGO somehow managed to perfectly match one personâs dream with a return they would crush everyone elseâs; it isnât going to happen. If G1 came back exactly the same as it was when it started the charm would be lost, and it wouldnât be the same G1 you had.
If Bionicle comes back a third time - and given how ranting and raving brought it back once, and nobody here is going to stop anytime soon - please, please donât be so greedy for something that will never come back. Be happy with what you get; a third chance may be our last.
As for if LEGOâs disrespecting Bionicle? They dedicated an entire section of their gigantic museum to the theme. Itâs forever engraved in LEGOâs lengthy history of successes and failures. And it will be a double-sided curse to the company for the rest of its days because surely itâs gonna happen again at some point, right? canât it happen all over again, LEGO?
LEGO is no more disrespectful to Bionicle and its community than we are to LEGO. Not even giving it back to us could please us.
@Ghid your entire post is justâŚ
Oh, this is so good. Iâm currently writing a video about this. BIONICLEâs brand has somehow managed to become so much more than the sum of its parts to our small little niche within the niche of the LEGO community (reusing this term from earlier because itâs important to remember just how small a gang we BIONICLE superfans truly are).
As Obsidian mentioned, those drawings were made in 2015 when Bionicle G2 was in full swing, so it kinda made sense to include them then. However, the actual movie didnât come out until 2018 when G2 had already been dead for about 2 years. While the Lego movies are supposed to be fun and enjoyable, the main purpose of them is to sell toys.
Also, the fact that Bionicle was even considered to be a part of the second movie is still a great thing in its own right. There are some many other themes through Legoâs recent history that couldâve been included like Exo-Force, Agents, etc. but werenât.
Lego isnât really known for making big press releases about themes being discontinued. The fact that G2 got a press release saying âhey, weâre sorry, but weâre going to have to cancel this theme earlyâ is very out of the norm. There have probably been many themes that have been canceled prematurely but never got a press release that they were being canceled early
Also, the fact that we now have set designers like Nick Vas and Toothdominoes that are including references related to Bionicle is a great thing. They probably have to go through some review to make sure prints and stickers are appropriate, which means that if these referential stickers and prints are making it into official sets, then it means that Lego is fine with them being included. If Lego was trying to disrespect Bionicle, then they probably would have rejected the stickers and prints
I donât believe this at all. This is an example of people jumping to conclusions way, way too quickly. With Leaf, we know absolutely nothing about the sets, we only know how many there. We have no names, no piece counts, no price points, nothing. Just an arbitrary number of the number of sets this âthemeâ is going to have. 2020 isnât for another 4 months, loads of things could change before we reach it. Heck, the theme could already be prematurely canceled and we just donât know it yet
Finally, I just want to address the fact that weâve had Bionicle as a theme for 12 years. I canât think of an original IP by Lego (aside from the big three that started it all) that has lasted as long as Bionicle has. Now, Ninjago might eventually beat it, as itâs basically an evergreen theme at this point, but thatâs not going to be for another 4-5 years or so. The fact that Bionicle has been around for 60% of my lifetime (Iâm currently 20) is pretty amazing to me and while I would love for it to continue, I know thatâs probably not possible, at least at this point in time. The fact it even got a second chance after so many years was a great thing for me, as I was just a little kid for most of its original run.
Thatâs where the fans come in. As Christian Faber once said, BIONICLE is now what we make of it. Itâs up to us to build MOCs, write fanfic, draw art, 3D print masks, remake old video games, play RPGs and use our creativity in any number of other ways. Thatâs how we will keep the legend alive.
So hereâs my two cents.
First off, I donât think Lego is in any way being disrespectful. The little hints and nods to the old theme have been nothing but a joy for me.
Now going forward I do have a few opinions. First of all, Bionicleâs 20 year anniversary is coming up. I absolutely think Lego should do something for that. But itâs also likely that they wonât do anything. They donât have to do anything. So the fact that they do what theyâve been doing is fantastic.
Though I think we should try to make a comparison on what Lego could be doing. Lets take a look at Clutch Powers.
The first time that Clutch was referenced after his movie (to my knowledge) was in that one episode of Ninjago with the talent show thing. It wasnât anything more than a simple name drop, but I still really appreciated it. Itâs the equivalent to the quick picture cameo Bionicle got.
But fast forward to now, and good 'ol Clutch is getting a staring role in the next Ninjago season. This would have neen equivalent to Takanuva getting into the movie.
Now lets be honest. The only way Bionicle will get a major reference outside of a set easter egg will erither be in Ninjago or a Lego Movie. (By the way, there was a reference in the Lego Batman movie. Bionicle Man was a movie title above a movie theater)
Now hereâs the thing about Clutch. The target demographic wonât know who Clutch Powers is. His inclusion was entirely to make old fans like us happy.
Now Bionicle is a lot different than most of Legoâs other stuff. They canât just slip it in like they did with Clutch. But it isnât impossible.
They made a brand new gear mold that they only reused twice.
This is misinformation. The gyro gear was first released in 1991 in Technic set 8856 Whirlwind Rescue. It was used in a few other technic sets afterward. Itâs designed specifically for the rotor system found in 8856 and 8412. It also fits a wheel hub in 8880. The curved teeth make it easier for children to hold on to, which is why the Hordika use it.
I donât understand how LEGO is disrespecting Bionicle. They acknowledge its existence with easter eggs from time to time. It was very popular at one point, I guess, and it sold a lot of toys to children.
If they included Clutch Powers without any intention of promoting anything, why canât Bionicle make a similar appearance? I mean sure, there was that minifigure pack that included him, but I donât think they went trough all the trouble of adding a new character to the show just to promote that.
You might think Bionicle doesnât really work with the rest of LEGOâs themes⌠but we still got the Bionicle minifigures from the playsets and the Invasion from Below minifigures.
CP==Bionicle
Itâs like GI Joe and Transformers. You can make a Joe have a cameo in a TF movie, but you canât shove in a freaking Transformer and ve like âNa na. Itâs still a cameoâ.
What trouble?[quote=âLegoDavid, post:30, topic:50060â]
You might think Bionicle doesnât really work with the rest of LEGOâs themes⌠but we still got the Bionicle minifigures from the playsets and the Invasion from Below minifigures
[/quote]
So what? Even those were pretty⌠Eh.
I was gonna put my thoughts on here, but I think others like @Ghid and @BioKnight have summed it up better. Long story short, no, as many have cited, if they were considered to be shown in TLM2 even if they were cut.
Only the future will tell if the bonks return.
I mean, there could just happen to be a completely normal totally not a robot concept camero in a parking lot in some scene.
That would be more of an Easter egg tho.
Hopes and prayers, Max[quote=âMaxinePrimal, post:28, topic:50060â]
Now lets be honest. The only way Bionicle will get a major reference outside of a set easter egg will either be in Ninjago or a Lego Movie. (By the way, there was a reference in the Lego Batman movie. Bionicle Man was a movie title above a movie theater)
[/quote]
Well that isnât entirely true. But I should probably note that Bionicle has received more subtle hints and nods than any other LEGO franchise. I mean, the amount of references to it is really innumerable.
I mean, just look at this.
Out of context it seems like a really poor edit, but this was actually at the end of one of LEGOâs videos on their site. Itâs been a really long time since I snagged the screenshot but I think the video had something to do with space exploration.
Normal LEGO fans would be interested at the font choice. Bionicle fans would snap to attention. And thatâs exactly what I did.
Thanks for ignoring my and BioKnightâs posts btw
Because Clutch Powers was a one-off character which slips seamlessly into the current LEGO mindset for the vast majority of their current products. Bionicle is buildable space robots on an island; tell me where that fits anywhere.[quote=âLegoDavid, post:30, topic:50060â]
there was that minifigure pack that included him, but I donât think they went trough all the trouble of adding a new character to the show just to promote that.
[/quote]
Yeah iâd like the Minifig pack that comes with Toa Mata Nui pls
Including Bionicle in anywhere near minifig scale means completely redesigning them. And as you can probably guess, thatâs a super risky gamble.[quote=âLegoDavid, post:30, topic:50060â]
You might think Bionicle doesnât really work with the rest of LEGOâs themes⌠but we still got the Bionicle minifigures from the playsets and the Invasion from Below minifigures.
[/quote]
Yes, and they were garbage.
If you want to include one of them in a movie, you couldnât emote them naturally. Their faces are insanely bumpy and the prints are super tiny. They would be the most emotionally dead characters in whatever media they appeared in.[quote=âTraykar, post:33, topic:50060, full:trueâ]
I mean, there could just happen to be a completely normal totally not a robot concept camero in a parking lot in some scene.
[/quote]
Up until Michael Bayâs Transformers, the concept camaro was just a car. Bumblebee became the camaro to help sell the vehicle, and itâs a business move that worked and worked well. And as you may have noticed by reading this topic, Bionicle fans seemed to be intensely dissatisfied with constant easter eggs.[quote=âKardax, post:32, topic:50060â]
Long story short, no, as many have cited, if they were considered to be shown in TLM2 even if they were cut.
[/quote]
I think this is even more of an indicator that LEGO really wants to do something with Bionicle, but canât because theyâre shooting in the dark. Having a major cameo in the lego movie 2 would have been a good way to test that IMO, but I can see why they chose not to.
Clutch Powers was really only able to make an appearance in the recent NinjaGo stuff because of the name drop they gave him back in Season 1 when the straight to DVD movie was more recent and they were planning on doing something with it as a franchise. Obviously this didnât happen.
And as far as Clutch is concerned now, heâs a completely different character with just a few aspects of his original incarnation present. The old movie might as well not exist and itâd matter just as much with the current incarnation in Season 11. They donât necessarily need to promote anything Clutch Powers related because he was already established in the world of NinjaGo and could therefore be used without needing to cross promote anything.
BIONICLE was a successful theme for years before they chose to end it and save the brand name (only to bring it back years later and damage it anyway, but thatâs besides the point). Having a BIONICLE character cameo in NinjaGo or Hidden Side outside of stickers in the sets wouldnât make any sense since thereâs not a theme to cross promote. If G2 had been successful and was still going, then it might make sense to have another jont through the realms like in Possession when Chima got a small cameo and quickly pass through Okoto, but since G2 only âsold wellâ thereâs no reason to do that except by doing the sticker Easter eggs that set designers have been doing recently.
And thatâs all those are, theyâre Easter eggs.
I can safely assume they donât mention BIONICLE because the LEGO group is a company geared entirely towards selling toys. Never under any circumstance would LEGO want to take attention away from their current product.
It should also be noted that a very large majority of the people who originally worked on BIONICLE are gone. Having most likely moved on to other opportunities outside of LEGO. The people you donât see now making all those cheeky references to BIONICLE & GALIDOR are employees of LEGO who grew up playing with BIONICLE. Even then, the only references they can do are whateverâs in the budget for the set theyâre designing.
Without a doubt thereâs probably any number of people within LEGO who donât care for BIONICLE, but doesnât it seem counter intuitive for a company to disrespect its own intellectual property?
Now, finally, regarding Takanuvaâs cut appearance in The LEGO Movie 2.
I donât know how or why he was in that concept art, being that itâs concept art I assume it is used to generate ideas and anyone can draw anything there. Donât assume someone at LEGO slammed their fist on a table and demanded Takanuva not be in the movie.
It is my assumption that when considering what would fit into Rex Dangervestâs niche of of that edgy teenage demographic, of course BIONICLE would be considered.
Iâll even let you in on a secret. Do you want to know what Takanuva wouldâve looked like in the movie?
Here you go.
Some people assume that this is a mech suit, and you can see Takanuvaâs legs sticking out on the bottom there. Personally, I donât believe that. Maybe if G2 had continued, maybe this prototype would have CCBS elements in there. One thing to bear in mind though is that CCBS is gone. Retired. All those parts arenât being produced anymore so making this Takanuva out of bricks and technic shouldnât be mistaken as any sort of dis towards BIONICLE. If Takanuva had been in the movie thereâd have simply been no BIONICLE elements to make him with available to the set designer.
I personally assume that this is just something along the lines of a drone, and the name Takanuva is in the same vein as The LEGO Movieâs and The LEGO Batman Movieâs BIONICLE references. Just that, a reference. I.E. a blink and youâll miss it easter egg thrown in by people at LEGO who love BIONICLE just the same as you and I.
Why wasnât it in the movie? Well, itâs a movie, and they mightâve wanted to focus solely on the raptors. Having Rex have robots and mech suits and spaceships would dilute the raptors, which have much more joke potential. Also a name like Takanuva would be weird to put in the LEGO Movie 2, obscure reference or not.
Thatâs a thought Iâve had too, but donât really consider that due to the importance behind that name. If they wanted a random drone to have a BIONICLE name as a reference, they couldâve easily gone with Bohrok. It probably wouldâve been easier to translate to system in some capacity and they were literally drone characters. I think using the name Takanuva for a random drone, even just as a reference, would be something that they wouldnât do because it dilutes the importance of the character in their lore.
If they were to do that, then you could make the argument that they wouldâve possibly been disrespecting BIONICLEâs memory.
The problem with this is that literally all of Rexâs vehicles had a âRexâ pun in it, so even if they hadnât come up with the idea yet would mean that they would have to discard the reference.
Do we know this for certain? Are there no sets currently in production that use even a few CCBS parts? Even Ninjago dragons or mechs?
Yeah, sorry about that. I love looking up part origins but somehow missed this. I guess it serves me right for having used Bricksetâs incomplete inventories this time around instead of Bricklinkâs fan-curated database. Thatâs a lot for the catch man!