![]() The story of these warriors would be called Bionicle, a portmanteau of ‘biological chronicle.’ Faber imagined this group of disease-fighters arriving on an unknown beach with no memory. To him, his every-other-week injections seemed like sending in a new wave of protectors to battle his tumor with every dose. “It should be a big, full universe.”įor the storyline, Faber drew on his experience with prolactinoma. “After being on Star Wars, I was thinking that the only thing to do from here is our own stuff, but it should be as big as Star Wars,” Faber says. Faber, fresh from working on Star Wars LEGO sets, imagined something massive. Faber and LEGO design manager Martin Riber Andersen were joined by former BBC film and TV executive Bob Thompson and writer Alastair Swinnerton to refine the Voodoo Island concept and pitch a new story. The plan was to take a more holistic design approach with these new toys than with craze products, but LEGO extended that comprehensiveness to the worldbuilding around the toys, too, a new strategy for the company. Among the drugs’ side effects, however, were severe nausea and dehydration, effectively sidelining Faber from social activities.īone Heads of Voodoo Island was a bust-focus groups demonstrated kids didn’t respond well to detachable heads-so that same year, LEGO pivoted to focus on Bionicle. Doctors said the tumor was maybe in the least accessible spot in the body for surgery, so they prescribed Faber daily medication to keep the tumor from growing. A doctor found a benign tumor inside Faber’s pituitary gland that was impeding his sight, a condition called prolactinoma. But shortly after his career began, Faber’s vision began to falter. In 1986, Faber began working for Advance, a Copenhagen-based marketing firm that partners with LEGO. ![]() If Faber’s long-time illness dimmed his appetite for play, you wouldn’t know it. The 54-year-old embodies the unchecked enthusiasm you’d expect from a 28-year veteran of LEGO projects. His youthful smile pairs well with his genial nature, which one might mistake for meekness until he starts talking about his creative projects. Today, Christian Faber looks a bit like a Danish Paul McCartney. They’d pioneer innovations that would transform LEGO and rescue the company from possible doom.Ĭourtesy Andre Hurley/The Bionicle Archives Inspired by co-creator Christian Faber’s battle with a tumor at the base of his brain, the toy warriors of Bionicle wouldn’t just conquer their fictional enemies. It’s hard to conceive of now, but at the turn of the millennium, beloved LEGO might have been headed toward a pitiful end.ĭuring this fallow period, one product line stood apart with startling, consistent success: Bionicle, a series of buildable action figures backed by rich worldbuilding and cross-platform promotion. All that misguided development time slashed profitability, and even Star Wars and Harry Potter sales shriveled between movie releases. Some blamed poor strategic choices in the 1990s-Legoland theme parks, forays into digital products-for LEGO’s hemorrhaging. But unbeknownst to many-even those inside the company-sales were plummeting, and there were only guesses as to why. In 2003, LEGO seemed to be riding high after shrewd licensing deals brought Star Wars and Harry Potter sets to the masses. The Platinum Avohkii mask, a rare one-of-a-kind piece made of solid platinum purchased by Andre Hurley, who has The Bionicle Archives collection Courtesy Andre Hurley/The Bionicle Archives
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