A canister that inspired a legend

This post shows redrawn concept art from 2000
A lot of elements went into forming the idea of Bionicle but one of the most important one was the canister the heroes came in. The design of the packaging had to be changed from a seed to a canister to make it feasible to produce but the whole idea that became Bionicle had a lot to do with a thing as simple as the packaging. Based on the previous launches of Slizer/Throwbots and Roboriders it was natural to put these products in some kind of canister. I was determined that the canister should play a role in the story so it was not only a plastic tube you threw away after purchase because this was the ancient pod that delivered the parts of the hero. That sparked the idea that the un-build hero was going to arrive floating in a canister. This led straight into the idea that he had been in the canister for a long time and that he had a very important purpose. The seed/canister resembled a big pill or ampoule so that led to the thought that maybe this was the “medicine” that had to cure a very big patient. When pouring the parts out of the canister you were actually already playing out the story and bringing a hero to life, the legend had begun ...the rest is history.

The first Bionicle canister was a seed

This is the first sketch I did back in 99 of the canister in the open sea. The design was originally seed shaped. The coconut was used as inspiration where the nut floats from island to island in the south pacific to colonize new land. In the same way the canister (originally named the “Amphi Seed”) would settle on the beach and at one point it would burst open to release the “bionicle bones”.  The Toa would later assembly itself on the beach.

Turaga Files - Unboxing the Legend - Exhibit 003 and 004

Ok, here you have some really early sketches that were done during a meetings we had with Templar Studios here in Copenhagen. In may 2000 the plans were made for what later became "Mata Nui online game".

Already then we knew that we wanted a web site like nothing else LEGO had ever done and we were very ambitious. We wanted a 1st person feel and I remember we were very inspired by an old classic PC-game called MYST. This game had an mysterious mood and worked as a adventurous puzzle. It had a fantastic 3D environment and a lot of details.

The Toa Nav Gadget was thought to be inside the canister with the Toa and work as the Toa smart device and guide the hero through the adventure. Only a little part of the map would be visible and you would get more and more locations as the site developed and you explored the island. You can see some traces of the idea in the final game but the navigation was done in a more ancient style to fit the islanders.

Turaga Files - Unboxing the Legend - Exhibit 014-017

The Bohrok launch key visual featured a triumphant Bohrok holding the golden Toa mask.
Tahu is on a ledge overpowered by the Bohrok swarm and a Krana is clutching his face.
Behind the scene the mixed Toa/Krana is symbolising the trouble of the heroes.

Below you see 3 examples of launch ads that both showed a piece of story, the product range and a promotional CD-rom that would be inserted in the canister.

2 Early Bionicle villages on Mata Nui

In the early concept stages two main villages were planed on the island. One village to the south and one to the north. The southern village was in a jungle setting close to the volcano. The villagers carried the canister to the village and used it as their main building. The inhabitants of this village were superstitious and frightened of the towering volcano. They were convinced that an evil monster lived in the volcano and decided their bad fate. The northern tribe and their village where in a more rocky and rough setting further from the volcano. This tribe was more practical and at a higher technical state. They were not afraid of the volcano.

On the beach of Mata Nui

These 2 sketches depict the Amphi Seed or canister landed on the beach. In the early concept phase the seed would be raised into a vertical position by a back leg so it could open the hatch towards land. If you watch to the right in the distance you can see the 3-finger island that was first intended to break the surface indicating the robot lying beneath. Oh yes, the robot was there from the very beginning back in 99.

The birth of a Toa

These thumbnails were done early in 2000 and represent my vision of how the first Toa would come to life on the beach of Mata Nui. Imagine it on the big screen in the cinema. The canister drifts in the endless ocean, full of seaweed from its long journey. Washes up on the shore. Small mechanical part registers the location and automatically shoots of the hatch and all the parts of the Toa into the sand. The parts start assembling themselves ending up with the head being put into place. This newly build hero is like a baby at first, unsecure on his feet and aimless in his behaviour. He tries to pick up the sword but his joints are weak and snap off. Finally he finds the first mask lying in the sand. He puts it on and it gives him his first character information. He becomes strong and secure in his moves and picks up the sword again. The sword flames up. Now he knows he is a Toa of fire and he looks towards the volcano and begins his journey.