BIONICLE WORLD , the latest guide to BIONICLE ® by Greg Farshtey, reviews the places we have been and introduces some places where we have not been previously. Never before has so much been revealed outside of the BIONICLE comics and book series. You may know of Artakha and Karzahni, but are you familiar with Daxia, Xia, Odina, Zakaz, and Destral?
The book is purportedly by members of The Order of Mata Nui, put down on stone tablets because “never have we seemed so close to the end of all things.” Each of eleven locations, both the familiar and unfamiliar, is described briefly in terms of where it is located, what the terrain is like, and who the inhabitants are, along with the area’s history and present state. There are numerous illustrations throughout the book, most of them new (to me, anyway), and all of them uncredited.
I have no quibbles with the book. In fact, as far as the guides go, BIONICLE World is probably the best one so far. My problems are with where the story is going.
I have not reviewed BIONICLE Legends #5: Inferno or BIONICLE Legends #6: City of the Lost for three reasons. Reason #1: I am currently student teaching and I barely have time to breathe, let alone eat or sleep or get online to write a book review. Reason #2: Although the books are excellent, I really don’t have anything new to say about them. Greg Farshtey is in fine form with both, but nothing special caught my eye with either of them. (Keep in mind, I am sleep-deprived, so I might have missed something. See Reason #1.)
But Reason #3 is the worst: I don’t like where the story is going. Ever since “The Order of Mata Nui” made the scene, I have been more and more agitated by what is going on in the BIONICLE universe. This is not to say that I am not going to continue to read the BIONICLE books and comics or that I don’t enjoy reading them. I am and I do, but I just don’t like where the story is going now in terms of back-story.
In Inferno , we had all of the ingredients for a great apocalyptic battle. Instead, we got a Mask of Life that is not all that it is cracked-up to be (pun intended). First it wants MATORO, but then no, it would rather fling itself into the depths of the ocean.
City of the Lost is a fine introduction to MAHRI NUI, but nothing much takes place in the story. This despite all of the excitement of having the Mask of Life come floating down. Everything that happens in the book is setup, presumably for the next book and for the emergence of the “new” TOA MAHRI.
I recommend reading all three books, but that does not mean that I necessarily like them. Now excuse me while I go get some much needed sleep.
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