This one scene has always particularly baffled me. In this scene, Onua and Pohatu manage to take down Tahnok-Kal and retrieve his Krana-Kal, only to learn some disturbing news from it. Then, strangely, Nokama is shown with the same Krana-Kal, and claims that the Boxors were the ones to retrieve it. So, what happened here? Is there a scene missing, or two different scenes that weren’t supposed to go together? Onua and Pohatu taking down the Kal is also mentioned in Makuta’s Revenge, so I’m inclined to believe it’s correct, but…
This isn’t going to sound like a real answer, but I honestly wouldn’t worry about it too much.
The Bionicle comics (especially the early ones) were very prone to errors. These were anything from coloring errors to penciling errors, and even speech bubble errors where the bubbles would be drawn to the wrong speaker.
So considering that fact, it’s very likely the artist just drew Nokama holding the wrong Krana-Kal. I wouldn’t put it past the comics to do that.
[spoiler]Here are some of my “favorite” Bionicle comic errors, by the way:
I’d agree with the idea that Nokama is shown with the wrong Krana-Kal. It seems likely that Onua and Pohatu managed to take down Tahnok-Kal, and then whichever Kal the Boxors managed to defeat corroborated Tahnok-Kal’s story.
Yes, I remembered an issue with that comic (trivial next to Ignition). The krana they captured was supposedly capable of telepathy, and I never figured out how exactly the polished rock defeated the Kal of lightning.
A quick wiki search says Vakama has the captured krana in his possession, like it’s the severed head of Blackbeard or that talking crystal skull the main character from ‘Dresden Files’ had on his desk.
Which is why we use Windows 7!
Edit: The saddest part of this is that my Windows 7 tried to update the same day I posted this. The computer crashed because of it.
I see nobody has provided the correct answer to this so I will do it.
It is really simple @Willess12 I think you simply misunderstood that part of the comic completely. It is no error, Nokama takes the Krana Kal from Pohatu and Onua and tells them that she learned something similar from another Krana Kal, which the boxors acquired. The stuff with boxors is a separate event from the Tahnok Kal trap.
If you want a detailed record of the movements of Krana Kal, I analyzed it here:
“I don’t like the art direction” does not constitute an error, and especially not the Matoro scene—it’s more detailed than everything else because it’s an important scene and needs to draw full focus, unlike the more fast-paced and kinetic story surrounding it.
Even then, it’s certainly not on the level of things that make the story actively harder to follow, like misplaced speech bubbles or plot inconsistencies or characters where they shouldn’t be.
I’m not sure that that was the intention. I agree that it does help draw the focus to specific scenes, and in that sense it works very well. However, in the sense that the comics are supposed to accurately convey the story and characters, it doesn’t work as well when you hit the scenes in Ignition where the art is particularly simplistic. On some of those, it literally looks like stick figures with poorly drawn Cordak blasters and floating weapons.
That does not do a good job of accurately capturing the appearance of the sets, which was the main reason for the existence of the story: to place LEGO’s products in a story in order to sell them to the public. If they aren’t accurate in the story, that can lead to issues when you try to understand the different media (ie. misnamed Toa Metru, wrong speech bubbles at the end of the Mahri arc, scribbled look of Ignition comics).
But thank you, Garry, for your opinion. That isn’t an error, and is more of a stylistic decision by the artist that I, for one, didn’t understand until you pointed it out.
I don’t think anyone’s going to look at this and not know who these guys are supposed to be.
And these Matoran are supposed to be just random people. They could look like whatever the artist wanted to draw.
There are indeed plenty of artistic errors in the comics – misdirected speech bubbles, miscolored characters, characters having the wrong mask – and they can cause confusion. Case in point:
That’s not Nuhrii. That is Kapura using Nuhrii’s character model. That’s a very confusing scene in the comics, because it looks like Vakama finds Nuhrii and rescues him, and then later finds and rescues him again from a different peril.
However, the simplistic art style of the ignition comics isn’t an error, it’s just how Stuart Sayger draws. It’s the same thing for the 09 comic he did.
Since my specific comment seems to kinda be blowing up again, I should lay out this disclaimer:
Please keep in mind that I made that reply 5 years ago, when I was 18 years old. Since then I have, or at least hope I have, matured considerably in my artistic ability, experience, sense of taste, and method of criticism.
Within those 5 years, I also wrote and illustrated my own graphic novel and now have a full-time job in graphic design. So from first hand experience, I know what it’s like to produce these kinds of things.
So, as an addendum to that ancient post, here are my thoughts on all those same points nowadays:
This is still my favorite actual production error, and I think it’s hilarious. Obviously, these kind of goofs just happen, but I cannot imagine how this specific one came to be. That being said, it is a legitimate “error,” and even as a younger kid I remember it actively hampering my understanding of the scene. So I think that’s warranted.
This is precisely the case. Can’t remember at all if I was aware of this at the time. Either way, not a production error but a byproduct of deadlines.
Again, this is another actual production error that’s legitimately confusing. That said,
I didn’t known this, but I’d have to actually look up the comics and read it to confirm for myself. I haven’t actually read it in a very, very long time. If so, that’s again a deadline and reference model availability thing.
I still think they’re kinda creepy, yea.
And while this is true, the fact that the artists did have other Matoran reference models just makes it a weird incongruency.
It’s incredibly likely that the artist in question was on a time crunch and just had to get some figures in. It is just one panel and it’s not that important. But the style he chose to draw them in is very different from the other characters that, to me, these ones don’t feel like Bionicle, or at least not Matoran. They look more like baby Skakdi.
So, understandable in terms of its unimportance and the time constraints that were likely present, but I am still made…uncomfortable looking at them.
I’m going to lump these next few in together:
No, 5 years younger me, it’s because artists, especially comic book artists, work on tight time schedules and need to get drawings made. And when you’re drawing something as complex as a Bionicle character…
Yea, it’s not laziness or a lack of care. It’s efficiency.
Matoro’s death is an important, impactful scene. If I was drawing it nowadays, of course I’d spend the vast majority of my time and effort making it look absolutely stunning (which it does, by the way).
I would not waste time rendering out Matoro’s left arm extremely accurately on a close-up shot of his face that’s there mostly for exposition. I would do what was done here - give the impression that it’s there and move on.
And again, from personal experience, I have done this myself. I have my fair share of comic panels that look like hot garbage because it was 3am and I wanted to sleep, but I need to be done before the sun rises. So, no, I no longer consider these “errors” or “laziness,” and here’s the real kicker, folks:
I actually really, really love the 06-07 Bionicle comic style.
I know, a real spicy meat-a-ball of a take, but it’s true. As my own style and tastes evolved, I’ve come to seriously appreciate the sketchiness, the sheer energy, and yes, the occasional weirdness of Stuart Sayger’s style. Heck, if I were to draw Bionicle characters myself nowadays, I’d probably do a similar thing, and I have.
TLDR here: I was wrong when I made that original post and have since changed my opinion.
And, oh yea, another legitimate error that’s just hilarious and still one of my favorites.
Anyways, I know I wrote a whole book here, but I’ve wanted to clear that up for a long time now.
And just for anyone who happens to read that old post and wants to make a comment on it (which seems to be happening a lot recently):
Save your time and effort. I already know, and I was probably wrong to begin with.
This one part of your comment has made me more upset than anything else you said.
How has it been 5 years since I made this topic.
How
It feels like it was maybe a month ago, I still distinctly remember the thought process behind making it.
I had to check the post dates to be sure because I was like “that cannot possibly be true”
It’s never actually stated in the comics. It’s only confirmed to be Kapura in the Metru Promo CD’s, which also feature this same scene.
