Hi everyone! This is the last official set entry in my 25th Anniversary BIONICLE project: the fearsome Manas.
While not being remote controlled like the original, these massive builds instead boast a working claw snapping function, rotating middle section, and greater articulation throughout. From the outset of this project, I knew the Manas would prove to be a bit of a challenge, and they certainly were that! They are incredibly heavy, but sturdy and can stand up to lots of movement and play. I wanted them to maintain the treads and boxiness of the original, but with a stronger crab motif, hence the heavily armored shell and giant claws. The heads were probably the most fun, and thought you cannot see it in the pictures, I used glow in the dark ball joints to pay homage to the glowing, dead-eyed look of the MNOG Manas.
This is probably the first time I’ve ever seen a moc of the manas with a separate, articulated head instead of being built into the body, like an actual crab. The design as a whole seems to blend elements of the Mana Ko throughout, but the aesthetic kinda breaks at the claws, which feel extremely flat and cartoonish on the giant, gristly model.
Not having any remote-control feature on such a complex, technic-heavy model is kind of a bummer, but the menace these two have on display makes up for it. Quite the impressive project you’ve got going on!
@Ghid Thank you for the feedback! I have always preferred the Mana Ko design to the Manas, so I will admit, I did lean into that design a bit throughout, as you obviously noticed. I tried not to have the heads jut out too much, but you’re correct, it’s a strong departure from the true crab. The claws are a bit tricky, as weight became a problem for the snapping function. They were originally a bit longer and beefier, but it kept causing he gears to skip or get jammed entirely.
I like all the teeth and gears around the mouth, reminds me a bit of the Visorak from the movies, or that one snake thing from Hero Factory. The masks are also integrated well, I like how they’re roughly in the same place as before but they actually look like armor instead of random eye things.
@Minethuselah Thanks for the praise! I also was thinking of the Visorak for the mouth, but it is one of the few areas that is also a direct callback to the original set, as the Manas had this little gear ‘mouth’ that would deploy when battling each other. The masks were, as always, fun to do. Thank you for commenting!
I love how much these truly feel like imposing nightmares, more like their appearance in Tale of the Toa than in the hordes of the Mata Nui Online Game. I definitely wouldn’t want to be a Toa facing them outside Kaita form! Looking back at the original set, it’s clear from just a glance which is the superior Manas. Great work!
@Zhyndea From the outset, I really wanted to make them as imposing as they are supposed to be, so it is very gratifying to have that come across in the feedback! Thanks for commenting and the praise.
@Au-Plau-Se Thank you kindly! Yes, I used the big CCBS shell from Stormer XL and the same piece from Umarak the Destroyer to cover the front of the Manas. I’ve been using a little bit of CCBS throughout this project. I like blending the the two eras of constraction when I can, though I lean most heavily into the G1 aesthetic.
