Every Bionicle Movie in Order: Mask of Light to The Legend Reborn

There are four Bionicle movies: Mask of LightThe Search for the Avohkii: Takua, the Rahkshi, and the Coming of TakanuvaThe recovery of the Mask of Light, the death of Jaller, and the transformation of the Chronicler into the Toa of Light at the gate of Mangaia. (2003), Legends of Metru NuiLegends of Metru NuiThe chronicle of how Toa Mangai Lhikan passed his power to six Matoran, how Metru Nui fell to Teridax, and how Toa Vakama forged the Kanohi Vahi. (2004), Web of ShadowsWeb of ShadowsThe Toa Metru's return to a Visorak-occupied Metru Nui, their mutation into Toa Hordika, the corruption of Vakama, and the rescue that closed the city's long captivity. (2005) and The Legend RebornMata Nui's Exile to Bara MagnaAfter Teridax seized the body of the Great Spirit, Mata Nui's consciousness was cast into the Kanohi Ignika and hurled to the desert world of Bara Magna. (2009). All four are computer animated, all four went straight to home video, and all four belong to the original story that ran from 2001 to 2010. Two shorter pieces sit alongside them: a two-minute web short for the 2007 sets and a Netflix series for the 2015 reboot. (BIONICLE: Mask of Light; BIONICLE 2: Legends of Metru Nui; BIONICLE 3: Web of Shadows; BIONICLE: The Legend Reborn)

The four films in release order#

BIONICLE: Mask of Light (2003)#

The first film came out on DVD and VHS in the US on 16 September 2003 under Miramax's home video label, directed by Terry Shakespeare and David Molina and made by Creative Capers Entertainment and Create TV & Film with CGCG. It runs about 70 minutes. (BIONICLE: Mask of Light)

On the island of Mata NuiMata Nui (Location)An island created by accident on the Great Spirit's face, home to the Matoran for a thousand years., the Matoran TakuaTakuaAn Av-Matoran hidden on Mata Nui as a Ta-Matoran, who gathered the Toa Stones, served as Chronicler, and ultimately accepted the Avohkii to become Takanuva, the Toa of Light. pulled the AvohkiiAvohkiiThe Avohkii is the Mask of Light, a golden mask that granted its wearer the power of Light and the ability to spread understanding. It was worn by Toa Takanuva., the Mask of Light, out of a lava river, and the mask chose a herald to find the seventh ToaToa Mata and Toa NuvaSix biomechanical heroes created by the Great Beings to awaken Mata Nui and defeat the Brotherhood, transformed once and tested across an entire age.. Takua and his friend JallerJallerJaller served as Captain of the Ta-Koro Guard, led the Toa Inika to Voya Nui, and commanded the Toa Mahri through the recovery of the Mask of Life. set out across the island while MakutaTeridaxTeridax orchestrated a thousand-year scheme that ended with him occupying the Great Spirit Robot itself before his death on Bara Magna. sent his RahkshiBionicle Rahkshi: the Sons of Makuta from Mask of LightRahkshi are armoured hunters made from kraata, the slug-like creatures of the Makuta. Six of them chased the Mask of Light across Mata Nui in 2003. Here's what they are, the different kinds and where they turn up in the films, books and comics. after them. Jaller died protecting Takua, and Takua put on the mask himself, becoming TakanuvaTakanuvaHidden among the Ta-Matoran as Takua, the disguised Av-Matoran who became Takanuva was the sole Toa of Light produced in the Matoran Universe's full history.. He fought Makuta in MangaiaMangaia: Teridax's lair beneath Mata NuiMangaia was Teridax's hidden lair beneath the island of Mata Nui. It held a pool of Energized Protodermis used to make Infected Kanohi and Rahkshi., the two fell into Energized ProtodermisEnergized ProtodermisA sentient substance that could remake or annihilate any being that touched it. One of the Matoran Universe's most lethal hazards. and merged, and the merged being raised the gate and gave its life force to bring Jaller back. (BIONICLE: Mask of Light)

It closes the island chapter of the story and points the Matoran towards their lost home, Metru NuiMetru NuiThe city beneath Mata Nui functions as the Great Spirit's brain, housing the Matoran whose labor keeps the god alive.. (BIONICLE: Mask of Light)

BIONICLE 2: Legends of Metru Nui (2004)#

The second film followed on 19 October 2004, from the same directors and studios, at about 75 minutes. (BIONICLE 2: Legends of Metru Nui)

It is a prequel, set long before Mask of Light, in the city of Metru Nui. Toa LhikanLhikanToa of Fire, leader of the Toa Mangai, and the last Toa of Metru Nui, who surrendered his Toa Power to create the Toa Metru and died defending Vakama. passed his power to six Matoran through Toa stones before he was captured, and they became the Toa MetruToa Metru and Toa HordikaSix Matoran elevated by Lhikan to save their city, mutated by Visorak venom, and restored in time to deliver the population to safety. under VakamaVakamaA Ta-Metru maskmaker transformed into the Toa Metru of Fire, leader of his team through the Visorak war, and Turaga of Ta-Koro for a thousand years.. They were framed by Turaga DumeTuraga DumeThe Turaga of Metru Nui for sixteen thousand years, a former Toa of Fire who saved Lhikan's life and was abducted and impersonated by Teridax., hunted by the Dark HuntersThe Dark HuntersA band of mercenaries and thieves founded on Odina by the Shadowed One and Ancient, hired out across the Matoran Universe, and left a battered ruin by the time Teridax ruled the universe. NidhikiNidhikiOnce a guardian of Metru Nui, Nidhiki traded his Toa honor for Dark Hunter gold and paid the price. and KrekkaKrekkaA brutish but ineffective Dark Hunter with no powers or masks, Krekka was outmatched from his first moments in Metru Nui., and found that Dume was Makuta in disguise. Vakama forged the VahiKanohi VahiThe Kanohi Vahi was the Legendary Mask of Time, forged by Toa Metru Vakama from the six fused Great Disks of Metru Nui during the city's evacuation., and the Toa sealed Makuta away, but only after he had put the city's Matoran into a deep sleep. (BIONICLE 2: Legends of Metru Nui)

The film explains how the Turaga of the first film had once been Toa themselves. (BIONICLE 2: Legends of Metru Nui; BIONICLE: Mask of Light)

BIONICLE 3: Web of Shadows (2005)#

The third film arrived on 11 October 2005, again directed by Shakespeare and Molina, at about 74 minutes. (BIONICLE 3: Web of Shadows)

The Toa Metru went back to Metru Nui to rescue the sleeping Matoran and found the city overrun by the Visorak hordeThe Visorak HordeThe Brotherhood of Makuta's spider-Rahi army under King Sidorak and Viceroy Roodaka, summoned to Metru Nui after the Great Cataclysm to free Teridax and pacify whatever survived in the abandoned city.. The Visorak's venom mutated them into the beast-like Toa HordikaToa HordikaToa mutated by Visorak venom into bestial hybrids, forced to fight their primal nature and hunt for a cure.. Guided by the RahagaToa HagahElite Toa teams appointed by the Brotherhood of Makuta to serve as personal guardians, later rebelling against their creators. under NorikNorikToa of Fire and leader of the Toa Hagah, who broke with the Brotherhood of Makuta to recover the Avohkii and led his team through a thousand years of mutation as a Rahaga before being restored., they searched for the Rahi KeetonguKeetonguThe legendary Rahi who broke the Visorak siege and lived to prove he was worth the legend., who could cure them. Vakama gave in to his Hordika side and joined the Visorak leaders SidorakSidorakHe took credit for someone else's idea, called it leadership, and spent his whole reign as the Visorak's king certain he could not be out-played. and RoodakaRoodakaShe spent the entire Visorak arc letting everyone think they were using her, then walked away having beaten the Brotherhood and the Toa at their own game. before his team won him back. Roodaka had hidden a sliver of the Toa seal in her armour, and when Vakama struck her with his power it broke and set Makuta free. Keetongu then restored the Toa. (BIONICLE 3: Web of Shadows)

It finishes the Metru Nui flashback that leads into the island years of Mask of Light. (BIONICLE 3: Web of Shadows)

BIONICLE: The Legend Reborn (2009)#

The last film came out on 15 September 2009 in the US and Canada through Universal Studios Home Entertainment. Tinseltown Toons and Threshold Animation Studios made it, Mark Baldo directed, and Michael Dorn voiced Mata NuiMata Nui: Great Spirit of the Matoran UniverseBuilt by the Great Beings as a biomechanical guardian, betrayed by Teridax, and returned in a smaller form to reshape Spherus Magna.. It runs about 71 minutes. (BIONICLE: The Legend Reborn)

After Makuta Teridax took over the Great Spirit's body, Mata Nui's mind was cast out inside the Mask of LifeThe Mask of Life (Kanohi Ignika), explainedA failsafe forged by the Great Beings to recharge a god. It curses everyone who touches it, and by the end of Bionicle it had learned how to be a hero. and landed on the desert world of Bara MagnaBara MagnaA desert world of tribal warfare and scarce resources, one of three landmasses that formed Spherus Magna.. The mask built him a new body from the sand. He befriended the GlatorianGlatorianTribal warriors of Spherus Magna who settled disputes through arena combat, until the Skrall conquest enslaved most of them. AckarAckarVeteran Glatorian of the Fire Tribe and prime fighter for Vulcanus, Ackar served from the Core War through the defence of Spherus Magna. and KiinaKiinaKiina is a Glatorian of the Water Tribe who served as the secondary Glatorian for the village of Tajun on Spherus Magna. Colored in shades of dark and light blue, she wielded a Vapor Trident and a Thornax Launcher in combat. Following the reformation of Spherus Magna, she continued to reside on the restored world. and the young GreshGreshA young Glatorian of the Jungle Tribe who served Tesara and later joined the alliance that defended Bara Magna during its final crisis., found the SkrallSkrallA black-armored warrior species from Spherus Magna that dominated northern Bara Magna under Tuma's rule. and Bone Hunters raiding the villages, and persuaded the AgoriAgoriThe villager species of Bara Magna, organised by tribe and settlement, who governed their villages and lived by the Glatorian arena system. to unite. He beat the Skrall leader TumaTumaTuma rose from the survivors of the Baterra massacre to rule the Skrall Empire from Roxtus until Mata Nui defeated him in single combat., exposed MetusMetusMetus was a transformed Agori from Spherus Magna who worked as a Glatorian recruiter. Originally a member of the Ice Tribe, he later joined the Rock Tribe. White and ice blue in coloration, Metus wielded an Ice Axe and an Ice Shield. as a traitor, and led the villages to victory. (BIONICLE: The Legend Reborn)

It opens the final chapter of the original story, which wraps up in the 2010 books and serials covered in our Bionicle ending explainerHow Bionicle Ended: the Generation 1 Story's Final Chapter ExplainedHow the original BIONICLE story finished in 2010. Mata Nui fought Teridax for the last time above Bara Magna, Spherus Magna was made whole again, and a run of online serials carried on until the story stopped in 2011.. (BIONICLE: The Legend Reborn)

Shorter official animations#

Toa Mahri Mini Movie (2007)#

The Toa MahriToa Mahri: The Toa Who Saved the UniverseThe Toa Mahri were the water breathing form of the sixth Toa team, transformed by the Mask of Life on the way down to the drowned city of Mahri Nui. They fought the Barraki for the mask and recovered it at the cost of one of their own. got a two-minute animated advert on BIONICLE.com in 2007 to sell that year's sets, an action piece set around the fight for the Mask of Life. It adds no new story, and you can skip it without missing anything from the comics and books. (Toa Mahri Mini Movie)

LEGO Bionicle: The Journey to One (2016)#

The 2015 reboot got a Netflix series rather than a film. A short prologue and two episodes went up on 4 March 2016, and two more followed on 29 July 2016. It is set on the island of OkotoOkotoOkoto is a world whose known inhabitants include the Toa, the Mask makers, and the Protectors., where the reborn ToaThe Toa of Okoto: The Six Heroes Summoned to Save the IslandThe six elemental heroes summoned by the Protectors of Okoto, who recovered the Golden Masks, woke Ekimu, fought the Skull Army, and twice banished Makuta to the Shadow Realm. bonded with the Elemental Creatures to earn their Masks of Unity and went after the mask of MakutaMakuta (2015)Ekimu's brother and rival Mask Maker, who forged the forbidden Mask of Ultimate Power and was sealed in the Shadow Realm with Capital City., while the hunter UmarakUmarakUmarak hunted the Elemental Creatures of Okoto until the Mask of Control bound him to Makuta's will and remade him as the Destroyer. tracked them. None of it connects to the four films. (LEGO Bionicle: The Journey to One)

Release order vs story order#

If you want the story as it happened, start with Legends of Metru Nui and Web of Shadows, then watch Mask of Light, then jump to The Legend Reborn. The gap between Mask of Light and The Legend Reborn is large: the Toa Nuva's adventures, the Toa Inika and Toa Mahri, and Makuta's takeover of the Great Spirit all happen in books and comics between them. The Mata Nui sagaThe Mata Nui SagaThe recorded chronicle of Mata Nui's deeds in exile on Bara Magna, from his awakening in a Glatorian body in the Bara Magna desert to the reunification of Spherus Magna and his final return to the Mask of Life. page covers that last stretch. (BIONICLE 2: Legends of Metru Nui; BIONICLE 3: Web of Shadows; BIONICLE: Mask of Light; BIONICLE: The Legend Reborn)

Release order still works for a first watch. Mask of Light was written to stand on its own, and the two prequels play better once you know who the Turaga grow up to be. (BIONICLE: Mask of Light; BIONICLE 2: Legends of Metru Nui)