Hero Factory
 Part of a series on: the BIONICLE Franchise
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Hero Factory was a line of constructible figures produced by the LEGO Group from 2010 to 2014. Hero Factory continued the theme of buildable action figures, with an episodic story to support the line and was meant to be a successor to BIONICLE.
History
Development
The Hero Factory line was conceived by the LEGO Group in 2009 prior to the cancellation of the BIONICLE series as a way to attract younger children to the constructible action figure line and renew interest. The Hero Factory sets were designed to be smaller and simpler than the previous BIONICLE ones, and the story was made into an episodic format, with single stories not connected to one another. Releases were planned for every six months in order to avoid drawing out the story, a perceived failure of the BIONICLE line. Sets in the Hero Factory line, while simpler than previous BIONICLE ones, utilize similar pieces and styles to BIONICLE.
Christian Faber, who informed the original BIONICLE concept, also did concept and story work through the ADVANCE ad agency.
2010
Hero Factory was officially released in the second half of 2010. Each Hero Factory set in the first wave was marked with an emblem reading "From the Makers of BIONICLE Characters" as a way to keep the line familiar to BIONICLE fans. The line breaks the traditional BIONICLE set release structure, with smaller hero sets released concurrently with larger villain sets rather than as separate waves of similarly-sized sets. The Heroes, the primary focus of the line, were made more affordable in order to increase sales.[citation needed] These sets resembled the BIONICLE Stars (the final BIONICLE wave) and came in similar canisters.
The Hero Factory website was first released on May 10, 2010, helmed by BIONICLE.com webmaster Kelly McKiernan. Later that year, the website was finalized when a full update was released in July.
The line was supported by a television miniseries titled "Rise of the Rookies," with its four episodes premiering online and broadcast on Nicktoons, directed by Mark Baldo who had previously directed BIONICLE: The Legend Reborn. These episodes were also adapted into comics illustrated by Elmer Damaso and scripted by Greg Farshtey, writer and story team member of BIONICLE (with covers provided Carlos D'Anda, initial comics artist for BIONICLE). The first issue was available physically at San Diego Comic Con, with later issues receiving varied other types of distribution.
2011
In early 2011, a new wave of Hero Factory sets premiered (with a story arc known as "Ordeal of Fire", with a new set design and new structural parts based on ball and socket joints; this updated system was known as the "Creature Character Building System" or "CCBS" and emphasized modular building aspect emulating the traditional System building experience, evolving from the specialized parts of BIONICLE.
In April, the Hero Recon Team website was launched, allowing users to design and purchase Heroes with this new building system as part of the LEGO Design byME service. LEGO Design byME also added a Hero Factory category of parts and four Hero Factory-based starter models to the LEGO Design byME mode of LEGO Digital Designer.
Another television episode covering the Ordeal of Fire arc was released, alongside a comic loosely adapting the same story.
The third wave of Hero Factory sets was released in mid-2011, further expanding the new building system. Unlike most BIONICLE product years, which told a contiguous story, this new wave (titled "Savage Planet") was a brand new episode, with its story unconnected to Ordeal of Fire, and featured a jungle theme and animal-based villains. The Hero Recon team gained a greater palette and allowed for increased parts selection.
More episodes covering the Savage Planet story were released, this time in two parts. A two issue arc of the comics covered these events as well.
2012
In 2012, the fourth wave of Hero Factory (entitled "Breakout") was released. However, this line departed from the traditions set by the previous waves and removed canisters and boxes from the set lineup. Instead, the Heroes and Villains all came in resealable plastic bag containers (except for Black Phantom, the only large set, which was still packaged in a box). The sizes, which were previously the same among the Heroes and standard among the villains, were now varied, with two different sizes in each division, as well as the boxed Black Phantom. Each set also contains a redesigned Hero Core, with a code for a brand new online game Breakout. Two of the sets, Breez and Thornraxx, received a limited release in Europe, with a wider release as an addition to the summer line in the United States and elsewhere. The Hero Recon Team service, following the cancellation of the similarly based Design byME, had the purchasing aspect discontinued, initially in order to focus on the digital experience.
The Breakout theme continued into the fifth wave of Hero Factory sets in summer 2012. Like the previous wave, the plastic bags were retained, with two large sets (Stormer XL and Speeda Demon) released in boxes. Previous set elements, including the new Hero Cores and Hero Cuffs, remained consistent elements of this wave. Hero Recon Team was cut from the website, though a replacement online building system was briefly introduced.
Another two part series of television episodes was released, telling the Breakout story. Comics appeared in the LEGO Magazine, though with a different plot.
2012 also saw the expansion of Hero Factory's character and creature building system across additional themes with the release of "Ultrabuild" action figures in the LEGO Super Heroes licensed theme. This was moving towards a goal which the LEGO Group's community coordinators had expressed at fan conventions, which was for LEGO to have multiple action figure themes running concurrently.
2013
In early 2013 a new series was released under "Brain Attack" branding. This series maintained the Hero Core design of the Breakout series, with the game points of this year's sets for use in a new game Brain Attack. In the Brain Attack series, larger sets began to appear in resealable foil bags just as the small and medium-sized sets had in the Breakout series.
A single television episode was released for the story, although unlike previous years there was no comic directly covering the story.
2014
2014's line, "Invasion From Below" introduced an overhaul in the style of the series; Heroes were re-imagined as mini-figures, similar to (and compatible with) the standard minifigs as seen in most of LEGO's other lines, while the constraction aspect was found in mechs that held the minifigs as pilots; the villains retained the typical constraction design, though several minifigs of villains were also included. Like the previous two years, the theme extended into the summer releases.
One episode was released for the 2014 story, this time animated and directed by ADVANCE.
In late 2014 the LEGO Group announced plans to reboot the BIONICLE franchise, making Invasion From Below the final wave of Hero Factory.
Since being discontinued, Hero Factory has been referenced by Christian Faber, who has said that an initial concept for Hero Factory would see the iconic factory itself revealed as a spaceship.[1]
Story and Setting
Hero Factory is set in Makuhero City, home of the titular Hero Factory. The Hero Factory was built by Akiyama Makuro, who realized that the universe needed a resistance against the growing villain threat. In the Factory, Heroes are built each day and sent on missions around the universe, dealing with a variety of galactic problems such as alien infestations, natural disasters, and criminals.
The series protagonists are Alpha 1 Team, which is composed of William Furno, Natalie Breez, Mark Surge, Dunkan Bulk, Jimi Stringer, and team leader Preston Stormer.
Rise of the Rookies
In 2010, Alpha 1 Team is challenged by a gang of henchmen formed by XPlode, Rotor, Corroder, Meltdown, and Thunder, and led by the evil Von Nebula, a former Hero that has a grudge against Stormer. The team manages to defeat the villains, and Von Nebula is trapped inside his Black Hole Orb Staff by Stormer.
Ordeal of Fire
A group of corrupted mining robots led by the villain Fire Lord attack the fuel depository Tanker Station 22 in search of energy. Alpha 1 Team is sent to defeat the villains, but are defeated in battle; they return to factory in order to receive an Upgrade, gaining enhanced power and new forms. Joined by new heroes Julius Nex and Nathan Evo, they defeat and apprehend the fire villains.
Savage Planet
A new Hero called Daniel Rocka responds to an emergency call made in the natural reserve planet Quatros; the signal is a trap, and Rocka is ambushed by the exiled Professor Aldous Witch, who has transformed into the evil Witch Doctor. The Alpha 1 Team is upgraded once more and are sent to rescue Rocka and see the situation of the planet. When they reach Quatros, they find it corrupted and in a fragile state, and manage to rescue Rocka, giving him an upgrade to his armor and weapons.The Heroes manage to beat the Witch Doctor after Rocka is upgraded once more, saving the planet.
Breakout
A villain called Voltix is captured and locked in the Hero Factory prison. Once inside, Voltix initiates a mass breakout resulting in all the villains in captivity escaping through a black hole. The fugitives head to various locations in the galaxy, forcing the Hero Factory to send individual heroes to capture them all. The Alpha 1 Team are equipped with new armor, weapons and tools, with each Hero being given a pair of Hero Cuffs which can immobilize any villain, and are sent to track down villains from around the galaxy, while Rocka stays behind at the Hero Factory. The Alpha Team manage to defeat Black Phantom, the true mastermind behind the breakout, but not before the villain transmits schematics of the factory to an unknown threat.
Brain Attack
An army of Brains, evil slugs that can take control of any living being in the galaxy against their will, are heading to the Hero Factory. The Brains take over thousands of the planet's wildlife, who mutate into terrifying beasts and begin marching to the Hero Factory. The Alpha 1 Team is equipped with anti-Brain armor, weapons, and shields, and begin their defense of the city. The Heroes realize that the Brains are controlling the creatures and manage to defeat all the Brains by getting them off the animals, who return to normal. Surge is briefly possessed by a brain, but also rescued as Rocka defeats the mighty Dragon Bolt.
Invasion from Below
Workers of Antropolis City accidentally awaken giant beasts sleeping underneath the city while drilling a new tunnel system. Antropolis is soon overrun by the beasts, and the Alpha 1 Team is called for assistance. The Heroes arrive and construct giant mechs called Battle Machines to combat the creatures. The battle moves underground, where the Queen Beast of the horde lives. The Heroes attempt a peaceful resolution with Queen, but are ultimately forced to eradicate the beasts.
Hero Factory Recon Team
A facet of the Hero Factory storyline is the Hero Recon Team, based around a web application that allows users to design products using LEGO's Design byME service. The Recon team was founded shortly after the inception of the Hero Factory, with one of the Factory's top Heroes, Merrick Fortis assigned as its head. The intention of the organization, as envisioned by founder Mr. Makuro, was to study the criminals of the galaxy and gather intelligence in order to gain an understanding of them.
List of Sets
2010
| Hero Factory Sets of 2010 | |||||
| Small | Medium | Large | Limited Edition | ||
2011
| Hero Factory Sets of 2011 1HY | |||||
| Small | Medium | Large | Special Edition | ||
| Hero Factory Sets of 2011 2HY | |||||
| Small | Medium | Large | |||
2012
| Hero Factory Sets of 2012 | |||||
| Small | Medium | Large | Promotional | ||
2013
| Hero Factory Sets of 2013 | |||||
| Small | Medium | Large | Promotional | ||
2014
| Hero Factory Sets of 2014 | |||||
| Small | Medium | Large | Promotional | ||
References
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