The Piraka were Anti-Toa | BIONICLE Deep Dive

[@LakeParkerYT]

I always loved how the Piraka felt like an evil toa team, similar powers and weapons and aesthetics, makes their role as imposters on Voya Nui all the more believable

[@heroranuva8295]

Yeah it really does! They even had main powers and secondary powers, like the Toa had both their masks and elements.

[@charlesbenzkofer5043]

Weren't all the villain groups the opposite

[@Blu3Jao]

​@@charlesbenzkofer5043Not really, the metru nui and g1 adversaries were mostly swarms of mindless drones/ animals. The barraki were a cabal of warlords with slight elemental powers due to their exposure to protodermis in the pit, and the final swarth of makuta each had their own unique motives, personalities, and abilities.

[@HeyHey-sy6sc]

I also think that the Piraka’s story can be a reflection of the three virtues: -Unity is obvious enough with the Piraka constantly backstabbing each other for their own goals and whatnot -Duty is an inverse of the Toa’s duty to selflessly defend the matoran by enslaving them for selfish purposes -The Destiny of a Toa becoming a wise Turaga is subverted when the Piraka are mutated into sea snakes the next year, and only becoming more bitter

[@heroranuva8295]

Oooo I never really thought about it like that. Like I knew they as a team embodied the opposite of the virtues but yeah even their journey in many ways is a reflection of the Toa's journey. Thank for that!

[@jamesmcrae9360]

@@heroranuva8295 I guess that's why so many of BIONICLE's villains were treacherous or traitors, to be in opposition to the three virtues, mostly unity though.

[@heroranuva8295]

@@jamesmcrae9360 Yeah, thematically that makes a lot of sense!

[@jamesmcrae9360]

​@@heroranuva8295 I recently thought of another idea for a video, if you want to continue or further explore how BIONICLE'S villains were antithesis's to The Toa and everything they stood for (namely the Three Virtues) I think a basically near perfect example would be Nidhiki. He abandoned his duty as a Toa and destroyed his unity with his team by betraying them, was later forced into another immoral duty by being mutated against his will and forced to cooperate with a teammate he despised under threat of severe punishment, and finally was forcibly fused with three other beings to give one being a more powerful form, a twisted form of unity and destiny. Almost every aspect of Nidhiki's story is a warped version of or the direct opposite of The Three Virtues.

[@heroranuva8295]

@@jamesmcrae9360 Mm true that’s a good idea. Oh yeah Nidhiki is a great character to analyze, one of my friends on Bionicle tumblr loves Nidhiki as well as his relationship with Lariska, and has a lot of good ideas on them

[@jdpragmatic8644]

Vezok: “And We’ll kill ANYONE who gets in our WAY!!!” Zaktan: “No we’re not.” Vezok: “Okay we’ll kill a few people!” Zaktan: “No.” Vezok: “We’ll kill ONE guy, one stupid guy that no one loves.” Zaktan: “I’m surrounded by idiots.”

[@heroranuva8295]

HAHA LMAO!

[@STICKOMEDIA]

Lol

[@purplehaze2358]

Something worth noting; Vezon could be seen as an anti-Takanuva for more reasons than discussed here. Much like Takanuva he was an unwilling host to a legendary golden mask whose domain is a one-syllable word that starts with “li”, his mount could be seen as some dark and twisted parody of Takua’s Pewku, his weapon of choice - the spear of fusion - shares many aesthetic commonalities with Takanuva’s scythe (including the exact same blade part), and he came from a Piraka whose color scheme primarily consisted of blue in a similar vein to Takua being primarily blue prior to becoming a toa.

[@jacoba6747]

Bro’s cooking

[@IXRollOutIX]

Here's something that kids who didn't experience the way these characters were introduced at the time might not realize: all of the marketing surrounding the Piraka was meant to convince us that these guys were replacing the Toa at the center of the plot. All of the prior canister villains, while some of them elite, had just been drones or footsoldiers; traditionally only Toa got so much spotlight and persona. Just as the Piraka duped the Matoran into believing they were Toa, the audience was intentionally fed into that lie and led to believe these were our new protagonists. I remember being incredibly offput by this in 2006, and I literally thought, "what are they doing? They're ruining Bionicle" before the relieving introduction of the Inika won me back over. Only later did I realize how thematic and clever that marketing angle was.

[@heroranuva8295]

Oh I remember the early Piraka promos! I remember at first thinking that the Toa Nuva were going to be the heroes, especially since they came to fight the Piraka in the books. But then they lost bad! This was the first instance Bionicle tried out a villains-first order of set waves, and they did a great job using it to explore the setting and raise tension even higher. One of my early videos was actually about the release schedule of the sets shaped the story, and how they used it as a framework for the plot pacing and structure, if you're interesting in this, you might enjoy it! kzbin.info/www/bejne/qJSaYWOIi72DiZo

[@TFIta369]

They even had their own website and everything.

[@vaimantobe3034]

@@heroranuva8295 in europe the Visorak came before the toa Hordika. But in the US it was the other way around, weirdly enough

[@emblemblade9245]

I never really got the same impression when they were introduced (not that I’m trying to deny others the right) but man, I got chills from the teaser to them in the comics. “But these are not Toa, and this is not Mata Nui. And on this island, the darkness has already won. Welcome to the island of Voya Nui. The Piraka hope you enjoy your stay. Because you won’t be leaving. Ever.” CHILLS

[@fullmetalguy8357]

You made a good point about them being the first canister villains to have distinct individual identities. That's why the Piraka rap, as goofy as it is, was an important part of their release. Giving them their personalities, showing the audience that they were not just part of a swarm of lookalikes. They were individuals. I don't think I ever got the impression that they were going to replace the Toa protagonists though. To me it just seemed like they were taking the route of making the bad guys seem cooler, which was sort of a mid-2000s trend in a lot of fiction.

[@Godzillakingofkaiju1]

I'd also point out that, since you brought up Vezon being the evil counterpart to Takanuva, that would also make Fenrakk/Kardas the dark counterpart to Pewku.

[@heroranuva8295]

Your brain is so huge

[@jamesmcrae9360]

Both also has similar bladed staffs with the same blade piece and both had their fates and/or destinies influenced and/or tied to masks and donning said masks (The Avohkii in Takua/Takanuva's case and the Ignika for Vezon).

[@gregorius9251]

What about Nektann?

[@Yan_Alkovic]

That is so hilarious and precious, because it mentions Pewku!

[@tranqle73]

They both get bigger… QUITE bigger in Fenrakk’s case

[@jamesmcrae9360]

I guess Thematic opposition was a recurring trend in BIONICLE's villains. It kind of started with the Rahkshi and their powers and personalities, and the writers ran with it and continued that theme or motif, It just became less obvious and they weren't as up front and in your face with it as they were with the Rahkshi with "Their unity, can be poisoned..." and so on and so forth.

[@heroranuva8295]

Yeah that's very true! So many of the villains in Bionicle represent the opposite of the Toa's values, its very interesting

[@mitchellbambam5926]

Vezon is also unlike Gali. Gali vouches for teamwork, and Vezok couldn’t truly be the opposite otherwise the Piraka wouldn’t be a standard team of 6. Vezon leaves the entire team in less than 5 minutes, and tries to kill them all later.

[@latergator9622]

The Piraka were honestly super scary. They seemed nearly an impossible challenge for the Toa because they countered them all so well

[@heroranuva8295]

Oh yeah, they were insanely powerful

[@MatiNuva1724]

This could actually help people who want to make Skakdi MOCs. While Toa of Iron would be extremely creative, Skakdi of Iron would like Themselves into destruction and etc

[@heroranuva8295]

Oooo yeah that’d be really cool!

[@bionic-tale4313]

@@heroranuva8295 Nice idea, especially with the secondary elemental Skadi would act in the negatively aspect of the elements they represent.

[@heroranuva8295]

@@bionic-tale4313 True, though there’s also a degree to which I don’t think this idea should extend entirely to all the Skakdi. The Piraka were evil, and deliberately the antithesis of Toa because that kind of inversion was a huge part of the arc. It doesn’t feel right to label the entire Skakdi species as essentially evil Toa. Even in the civil war on their island, I presume many of them are just trying to survive

[@bionic-tale4313]

@@heroranuva8295 Yeah, it's not the Skadi's fault for being aggressive. That mostly on their creators. I think I took the comment a bit too far, I mean if the secondary element members would added. It would make thinks more interesting. There is a fan named Big Phan that makes up a MOC Toa Mata team that represents the secondary elements. Imagine that with more Piraka members.

[@heroranuva8295]

@@bionic-tale4313 Oh yeah I’ve seen that! Now that would be cool, and expanded Piraka team with a bunch of secondary elements

[@jakharris2021]

Design wise, the Piraka were always my favorite villain set, so I love this look into how they contrast with the toa and tropes of their elements

[@heroranuva8295]

Oh they looked SO cool!

[@genctopallaj6379]

Same here dude👍

[@Dargonhuman]

Yea, that makes a lot of sense - the Piraka being a team of "dark Toa" fits really well with the characters and what they represent, and you also have a great point that the entire island is something of an inversion to the Mata Nui island, right down to the Voya Matoran being broken, run down and forgotten by the rest of the universe where the Mata Matoran were regarded as precious and had to be protected at all cost as they were (almost literally) the lifeblood of Mata Nui.

[@heroranuva8295]

Yeah that's true! These Matoran were left behind for a long time, even though their region was secretly very important.

[@Dargonhuman]

@@heroranuva8295 Arguably the secret of Voya Nui made it the _most_ important location in the entire Bionicle universe.

[@heroranuva8295]

@@Dargonhuman tru

[@thelastcrow5660]

Honestly, never thought of Vezon as an Anti Takanuva, but now that you mention it, I can see that it makes a LOT of sense. Especially the part with "he wasn't supposed to exist", because it's completely true. His creation was an accident and the only big story purpose he ever had was being enslaved to guard the Mask of Life. After the Voya Nui storyline Vezon has absolutely no purpose and is mostly used for comic relief. He is the embodiment of chaos.

[@heroranuva8295]

Yeah, it fits so well with him! I only realized the parallel when making the original post this video was based off of, it just clicked that there was a Seventh Toa and a Seventh Piraka, and they both neatly contrast. Honestly? A fan fiction I dream of writing one day would be of Takanuva and Vexon going on an interdimensional "roadtrip" with each other. They both have experience with other dimensions and have reasons to visit them. Imagine the hijinks when Takanuva of all people is the voice of reason!

[@bestbioplayer8414]

The idea of been passing as Toa was a clever idea to have the villagers at their side, the Piraka`s intentions was only getting the Mask of Life for themselves and even bethaying each other.

[@el_rey_chipinque]

I also noticed that Vezok is the first (and as far as I know) the only blue Bionicle of a team to be a male, as opposed to the vast majority of blue Toas being portrayed as females. Which I think neatly adds to the whole "polar-opposites" theory of yours.

[@Korohpu]

Takadox, Vamprah, & Tarix were also male, but to be fair none of them had elemental water powers like Toa and Skakdi. At least not in the start in Tarix' case lol.

[@heroranuva8295]

Yeah, him being male is also an interesting subversion of expectations

[@heroranuva8295]

True yeah, there were a ton of other blue males, it seemed like it was whenever they were outside of the Matoran species they weren't restricted by the gender-element lore. Though its a shame that more often than not they made more male characters rather than letting themselves have more female characters

[@Korohpu]

@@heroranuva8295 True. Kind of supports your whole "The forced 1-in-6 gender ratio actually increased female representation instead of reducing/limiting it" point tho. 😕

[@nicholasstraehl9344]

Outside of the barraki (which i also believe they too represent what the Piraka did to the toa of their time [in a way]) I feel like you hit the nail right on the head with all of them which also made them my favorite villains from all of Bionicle. I do wish they would have come back in the end instead of them being turned into eel like creatures later on.

[@heroranuva8295]

Thanks! Oh yeah, you can definitely draw similar parallels with the Barraki, and I may plan on doing that later on. Yeah the Piraka could've been amazing recurring villains for the rest of the story. Honestly I think that might be why they were snakified. They needed a way to deal with them so they wouldn't keep popping up and stealing the spotlight from future arc villains. I've noticed that aside from Makuta, Bionicle didn't really do recurring villains much, probably to keep making new villain sets each year, which is a shame because that could've been super interesting!

[@sebastianthomsen2225]

@@heroranuva8295 how about the piraka become beast-like slaves for the makuta instead of the AV-matoran?

[@ShockMeister01]

These guys were the first villain sets I managed to get EVERY figure for. They had so much personality it was fun just to have them side by side one another as a kid. =)

[@heroranuva8295]

Eyy nice! Yeah the Piraka were so fun!

[@Autisticguywithacamera]

Good point, in many ways the Piraka were foils for the Toa Nuva and by extension, the Toa Inika.

[@heroranuva8295]

Yeah! The Toa Inika also played with the tropes of previous Toa, so the conflict became like a subversion versus an opposite

[@legoroan9866]

A lot of Bionicle villains are like that, especially during the ignition trilogy, lacking unity, duty and destiny, and in the end it’s why they all lose.

[@heroranuva8295]

Yeah, they really made them all oppose everything the Toa stand for

[@raulvidal2343]

Also, there is a comment by Reidak when he says Toa are too weak opponents, and that he has killed so many and so easily it doesn't bring him joy to do it. I don't think there is really that big of a power imbalance between Skakdi and Toa. Instead, I think the difference is that Toa will never use their powers to kill and will always try to avoid hurting third parties or the environment; by the other hand Skakdi will never hesitate to use their powers and take advantage of their opponents. I think that a dishonored Toa like Tuyet or Zaria could kill a Skakdi easily by using their powers in ways no other Toa would ever dare to try.

[@heroranuva8295]

True, and also there's the fact that the Piraka weren't only Skakdi, but were also Dark Hunters for thousands of years, during which they recieved training and missions on how to beat Toa. They weren't just regular Skakdi, they were highly trained and experienced in fighting Toa.

[@FabiTheSnake]

Great video man, I think its reasonable to say the least that the Piraka were mirroring the Toa. also just to mention it, they were always my favorite design.

[@heroranuva8295]

Thanks! And yeah, they were so cool!

[@firewarrior8298]

“He doesn’t smile”, Proceeds to show a clip of Zaktan doing Exactly that. 2:54

[@BigB14]

The Piraka were peak villians

[@heroranuva8295]

Yo Yo

[@axoNNNessj]

Reading through the voya nui chapters, I noticed something similar might be going on for the voya nui matoran as well. Either being strong in their opposite elemental traits, or sort of broken or lacking in their own typical characteristics. Balta appears to be more concerned and caring, being most concerned about Dalu passing out. Velika being the philosopher, but is sl mysterious and doest explain which hinders practicality. Kazi, constantly getting angry and triggered by Velika's comment, and being the one to understand the least of what he says.

[@heroranuva8295]

Yeah very true! In many ways everything on Voya Nui was a subversion of the tropes established on Mata Nui. The other Matoran too. Garan for example was a decisive and bold leader, unusual for Earth, Piruk was very scared and paranoid unlike usual air boldness, and Dalu was an aggressive fighter

[@TikiFoamy38]

You do know the truth about Velika, right?

[@axoNNNessj]

Yeah I do@@TikiFoamy38

[@cannonfodderlord]

I missed these guys for years, how time changed drastically.

[@heroranuva8295]

The Piraka were great

[@_kishken_1595]

This was an awesome essay! Interesting way to get back to Bionicle. Good job!

[@heroranuva8295]

Thanks!

[@empatheticrambo4890]

One of my favorite things about the Piraka when I read the books was this contrast between Piraka and toa! They were clearly meant as alternatives to the regular Toa, and their powers and personalities made them powerful enough to smash the Toa Nuva

[@fernandoorozco5968]

The gang is on the lose and their is nothing you can do

[@heroranuva8295]

YO YO

[@heroranuva8295]

Trigger, Tracer, Drifter comin' to

[@DingleOo-sp3hq]

Add the snake that makes pirate crew

[@jamesmcrae9360]

Some of the Barraki felt like they had opposite personality traits of some Toa of elements associated with each of their respective color of armor. Tahu was hot headed but deeply caring and protective of his teammates, and would often charge into a situation with little to no forethought, and Vakama became like this for a while as well. Kalmah was cold, calculating, ruthless, and rarely displayed emotion. Kopaka was known for being cool, calm, cold, and collected. Pridak was short tempered and ruled by his emotions, being a word or two away from exploding into a rage and violently assaulting even his fellow Barraki. Lewa, Matau, and other Toa of Air can be wild, spontaneous, brave, reckless, fun loving, and care free. Ehlek was cautious, and nervous by nature, distrustful of any being that was not a natural native ocean dweller and was extremely bitter and angry with the Matoran of Mahri Nui after their city crushed his fortress on it's fall to the seafloor and they begun hunting sea creatures.

[@heroranuva8295]

Oh yeah the Barraki DEFINITELY continued the trend of being subversions of the usual Toa, its really cool! I've actually got plans in the future to do a video on them like this!

[@jamesmcrae9360]

@@heroranuva8295 Nice, I look forward to that video then! Maybe I even gave you some ideas. Thematic opposition is always a neat and fun story telling or narrative tool. Sometimes a Joker is just what your Batman story needs to spice things up and make it more interesting, for probably the most famous and obvious example.

[@heroranuva8295]

@@jamesmcrae9360 Yeah definitely, like some of the ideas you got here! And yeah, opposites can make really interesting dynamics, especially with how it plays into the larger themes of the elements in Bionicle. All these characters embody various cultural associations with the elements, but because there are so many characters interpreted in different ways it makes the elemental tropes very multifaceted

[@jamesmcrae9360]

@@heroranuva8295 I guess Thematic opposition was a recurring trend in BIONICLE's villains. It kind of started with the Rahkshi and their powers and "personalities", and the writers ran with it and continued that theme or motif, It just became less obvious and they weren't as up front and in your face with it as they were with the Rahkshi with "Their unity, can be poisoned..." and so on and so forth.

[@jamesmcrae9360]

@@heroranuva8295 Also, If you want another Idea to lift off of me for a future video, related to themes in regards to heroes and villains, I think a cool idea to explore would be how all the swarm and horde villains, especially the Bohrok and the Vahki, were kind of like perversions or corruptions of the Toa's unity, as they were essentially mindless drones that were identical to each other with a single common function or purpose, and that could also be a corruption of their idea of duty as well.

[@Yan_Alkovic]

Yeah this is a brilliant analysis, I never thought of that! I am so glad that people are giving Bionicle the attention it deserves!

[@heroranuva8295]

Thanks!

[@anastasiaparker9451]

I've been thinking about this concept for a while now, and it's nice to know I'm not just seeing things.

[@heroranuva8295]

Nice! Yeah, its a really cool aspect to their characters

[@xeron_7433]

Just discovered this channel, love your videos!

[@heroranuva8295]

Thank you!

[@axoNNNessj]

Something that just came to.mimd that may also be an interesting twist and contrastimg the toa are their eyes. The toa figures always had light constantly shining through because of the transparant pieces exposed to the light. Bit the piraka skulls are all covered up letting no light in, relying on the button to be pressed to appear light, for as long as you are willing to put in the effort, or as long as the battery lasts. Their light/goodness is not natural but artificial, an act. While.for the toa it is a reflection of their open and transparant nature.

[@heroranuva8295]

Wow, that's a really interesting meta analysis, I love that thank you! Its such a good metaphor!

[@normanclatcher]

Plus, y'know, lasers.

[@anamericangrizzlybear8315]

Love this, played Bionicle heroes for the PS2 growing up and own all 6 Piraka, I never thought of them as the Anti Toa, but I love this idea and it holds a lot of water Very great vid

[@heroranuva8295]

Thanks

[@DingleOo-sp3hq]

I love the piraka storyline because there's SO many times when they all betray each other, but at the end of it they get back together immediately

[@jamesmcrae9360]

"He doesn't smile," *Immediately shows clip of Zaktan smiling after that*

[@genctopallaj6379]

Here is my opposite personalites of real toas, the Barraki and the Pirakas An toa of fire-Bold, honorable, charismatic passionate but also hotheaded with a strong sense of duty and caring of others. Hakann-Narcissistic as hell Kalmah-Very cold, calculating and incredibly calm as the same time despite trying to plan to the take over the matoran universe An toa of water-Calm, kind and peacemaking. Vezok-Very impulsive, violent and insane. And before he got splitted into two peaces he was very dangerous and unpredictable. Because of he was then a psychopath. Takadox-Very manipulative towards everyone around him, especially to Carapar. Who he treated like a robot of a dog, when he was sent to the pit and when he lived in the bottom of the Sea of the Southern Continent. Which also shows that he was a psychopath like Vezok and Thok as well. An toa of earth-Very smart and strong, were they think more before they make any decisions to attack their enemies. Reidak-Loves to use his brute strength rather than thinking and planning. Before he is taking any action, which is a typical toa of air or stone would do. Mantax- Are secretive when he decides to investigate things. An toa of ice-Quiet, calm, collected, very intelligent and very independent as well. Thok-Very manipulative towards everyone around him like Takadox, and likes to bully the rest of the Piraka with his so called “Jokes” towards them. Pridak-Very aggressive and violent despite being a leader. An toa of stone-Strong, independent, practical and direct. As well as dependable. Avak-Very creative, smart and hates to fight psychically. Carapar-Use to be a dominant and smart conqueror, until he was sentenced to the pit. Were he was hypnotized by Takadox so much that, he became too obedient to him and sometimes very dumb because of this. An toa of air-Very lighthearted, and relaxed. But also hates sometimes to think before taking action. Zaktan-Are very serious and scary. Ehlek-Very angry and because of this gets very irritating towards things. Takanuva-Mata Nuis great hope of defeating Teridax and his evil at that island. Vezon-An copy of the Joker from Batman. Were he is insane and unpredictable because of this. Nocturn-Aggressive, with no impulse control what so ever but dumb as the same time.

[@purplehaze2358]

“In addition there is no way LEGO would actively delve into religion like that” He says about a property whose story is focused on waking up god after the devil put him to sleep.

[@heroranuva8295]

"As long as we don't explicitly call them god and the devil, there's no way religious parents will get upset about it right? Right?" -Lego

[@normanclatcher]

Worked in my household. Got a good-and-evil paradigm that scared the _heck_ outta me growing because the Makuta could be watching me out from any of his shadows... To this day, I respect that depiction of a malignant, ever-present evil every bit as much as I do any real or implied demonology or purported spiritual presence. A great truth was hidden in that tale, one that we can't destroy, for it is Nothing.

[@axoNNNessj]

Ooh I love that observation!

[@fernandoorozco5968]

this is great idea

[@heroranuva8295]

Thanks!

[@ThomasMurphyCosplay]

The Rivalry between Tahu and Nektann has remained me of Charizard and Blastoise

[@jamesmcrae9360]

Thok was also the opposite of the archetypical Toa of ice in that while Toa of ice were sometimes quiet and reserved and/or intense and serious, or at least Kopaka was, Thok was a snarky dick who would often make jokes and remarks, some at his fellow Piraka's expense.

[@heroranuva8295]

True, you’re right!

[@GrizbyK72]

Don’t forget Toa of fire have a strong sense of protecting those weaker than them. Hakann derives joy from hurting and dominating lesser beings.

[@heroranuva8295]

Very true!

[@scorpiothk307]

Another minor detail you didn't include: Matoran/Toa of Earth prefer to live underground; Reidak is claustrophobic

[@BovineDesigns]

While the points on Reidak, Vezok, and Hakann, are pretty similar, the other comparisons are a lot more strong.

[@heroranuva8295]

I'd say my points for those ones are pretty strong, they all embody the polar opposite of the personality and values of the Toa of their element

[@user-ti2xs6iz5w]

(Someone else might’ve already said this) Vezon having the Staff of Light piece in his spear could be meant to show his connection to Takanuva.

[@heroranuva8295]

True! That’s a good connection in the sets! Probably a coincidence, but it’s awesome! Also just realized his set has another parallel to Takanuva and that’s Vezon’s arms have the same build as his legs, just like Takanuva does

[@sahilhossain8204]

Hmm yes the lore of the Piraka

[@TikiFoamy38]

Not many people know this, but I'll say it. The Piraka are evil, but it's not their fault. An experiment done to them, and other Skakdi, by Makuta Spiriah made them the way they are. They used to be peaceful.

[@heroranuva8295]

Their species were definitely victims of the Makuta, though I personally might not go that far, they are still responsible for their actions. A person can be both a victim and a perpetrator at the same time

[@TikiFoamy38]

Very good analysis by the way :) @@heroranuva8295

[@normanclatcher]

They were also under the psychic influence of Makuta's Antidermis after Takutanuva unfused. The six of them visited Makuta's old lair in Mangaia and took their green crystals with them in Toa canisters to wash ashore on Voya Nui. Zaktan was most influenced since he was the one who knew the most of The Plan and was most protective of the Antidermis vat. But nevertheless, Makuta was what kept that team together, right until they were no longer needed...

[@cathleenmoyle1476]

There's one thing I don't understand. Vezok poses as a Toa of water, right? And all Toa (or most) were once Matoran on. And all Ga-Matoran are female. What's a male "Toa" of water doing on Voya Nui?

[@heroranuva8295]

Maybe they thought he was trans, and didn't discriminate. There were a lot of things off about the Piraka that the Matoran of Voya Nui were willing to look past because they were so desperate for help, like they didn't wear masks, so I imagine something like gender wouldn't be as big. Especially since they hadn't seen Toa in their region for possibly tens of thousands of years even before their island broke from the mainland Greg Farshtey also suggested that its possible for Toa and Matoran to in rare cases not be their assigned elemental gender. While the gender rules are there, we do see at least one exception at the very end of the story.

[@cathleenmoyle1476]

@@heroranuva8295 Trans? *bursts out laughing* In all seriousness though, your suggestions on why Dalu and any other Ga-Matoran ignored that red flag are true, but still...

[@GogakuOtaku]

Good stuff man! You just earned yourself a new sub! I mean, a new gathered friend! :D

[@heroranuva8295]

Welcome aboard Gathered Friend 😁

[@akumaking1]

Is Zaktann still “alive” by the end of the series? (Even if he’s still a giant cloud of bugs)

[@heroranuva8295]

Depends on how you define "alive". During Dwellers in Darkness, the water globe holding his mutated sea snake form was shattered, but it appeared he survived as a cloud of protodites. He then entered a pool of Energized Protodermis along with the other Piraka, and a few others, and came out fused as the "Golden-Skinned Being" a powerful entity who had the ability to bring dreams to life and who began leading a cult of Skakdi. So he's kinda sorta "alive", in that he didn't die, but he was no longer his own being at the point the story ended. maybe

[@jamesmcrae9360]

To add two more parallels between Takanuva and Vezon, both had a similar staff with a blade at the end of it, and both had their fates dramatically influenced by a mask, but whereas Takanuva realized his destiny and willfully accepted it by putting on the Avohkii, transforming him into who he was meant to be, Vezon was cursed by the Ignika after touching it in an attempt to use it for his own selfish ends, having his fate forcefully bound to the mask by it fusing to his head and making him a slave to it and forced to protect it as its guardian for all time, having the mask use and wear him in a way, Ironically.

[@heroranuva8295]

Oh that’s very interesting, especially how both of their fates were tied up in the masks they wielded. And yeah you’re right Takua rejected the destiny that was always meant for him, while Vezon reached out and grabbed what he was never supposed to have. Plus! I also just realized they share the experience of traveling through many alternate dimensions, and seeing the morally grey side of things. A cool fanfic idea might be the two of them on an inter dimensional “road trip” together, showing how these too chaotic oddballs on different sides of destiny interact

[@jamesmcrae9360]

@@heroranuva8295You kind of swapped the destiny point but you're still right, the difference being Vezon was accepted by Ignika at first before it grew to hate him and desire Matoro as it's guardian and/or possibly it's bearer, while as you said Takua rejected his destiny initially before ultimately accepting it, but I guess that's not really the flipside of that as Vezon grew angry when he learned the Ignika planned to abandon him, which implies he grew a strange sort of attachment to it and being its guardian, and sort of accepted his role and was hurt at the revelation that it wished to leave him, which is strange considering he was basically enslaved by it, but to be fair Vezon is insane and many things he does don't make much logical sense and I guess he got a form of Stockholm Syndrome, which I guess just further proves the point by illustrating more similarities between the two, but actually now that I think of it it is similar in a way because Takua found the Avohkii himself due to his own actions. I Guess this ramble was meant to show how they were opposites in more ways at first but I ultimately realized they were more similar that I thought XD

[@jennieesaltzgiver2925]

Do you know about the webcomic slightly damned

[@heroranuva8295]

No I don’t, what’s it about?

[@jennieesaltzgiver2925]

That's about demons and angels lock in a never ending war and team and people are trying to end it peacefully

[@jennieesaltzgiver2925]

You should check it out after all it is a webcomic

[@jennieesaltzgiver2925]

@@heroranuva8295 do you love it oh also do you know twokind

[@heroranuva8295]

@@jennieesaltzgiver2925 I haven't read it, I was just responding to the description you gave it sounds pretty cool. And no I don't know that one either

[@Joob_Toob]

0:25 Who represents lust? lol

[@heroranuva8295]

Yeah see that’s one of the areas it all falls apart 😅😆 I’ve seen someone put Hakann as lust and like?? I don’t know if it works, but I also don’t know if it works for any of em

[@normanclatcher]

We'll just say Roodaka is an honorary Piraka and leave it at that.

[@a-10warthog90]

i feel like avak or thok would be the least evil of the piraka. and it 's worth mentioning about zaktan that, according to greg i believe, he was one of only like two or maybe three piraka that didn't kill any matoran for no reason. i know thok was the other and MAYBE avak also another general way in which the piraka are mirrored is that their elements are not significant to them at all. they don't define their lives of dispositions in any way, as opposed to toa and matoran

[@sleepyboxboi7163]

You said that visakh would kill and fight and being violent and paranoid and angry does that mean he’s a sin of wrath you said that Piraka look like a the seven deadly sins? Right or wrong I’m just saying

[@heroranuva8295]

Yeah true, and when I've seen people make the comparison they usually put Vezok as wrath cause it does fit him

[@iiTzLurks]

Who's the white bionicle not the piraka one the other one I forgot it's been so many years

[@heroranuva8295]

You're probably thinking of Kopaka, the original Toa of Ice! He's the other white one I showed in the video. Though there were also a couple other Toa of Ice who were the white armored heroes of their arcs, like Nuju and Matoro.

[@templebeast1324]

Me, myself and I.

[@heroranuva8295]

Man those are some great virtues, you should build a temple to them

[@templebeast1324]

@@heroranuva8295 I can't remember which Piraka said it but that quote always gives me a chilling feeling.

[@heroranuva8295]

@@templebeast1324 I believe it was Hakann. Even more chilling since he said this right after burning down one of the few stretches of fertile land to build his "temple"

[@kuddlykraken2157]

I hear creaking plastic through your microphone. I'll bet you were playing with a Bionicle while making this.

[@heroranuva8295]

Lol, I wish! My desk chair is kinda creaky

[@emenefer]

It kinda sounds like you're squeezing a piece of plastic in the background. Are you playing with a Bionicle in this recording? 😂

[@heroranuva8295]

Lol, I wish, my desk chair is just super creaky

[@NebLleb]

*YO YO PIRAKA*

[@heroranuva8295]

GANG ON THE LOOSE, NOTHING YOU CAN DO

[@marukinSFM]

I had the hakann Shit was badass

[@heroranuva8295]

Hakann was very cool!

[@Däl-user]

Yo yo pirakkaaa

[@nyan_katz]

woah