LEGO® Bionicle 8998 Toa Mata Nui | Review 

This man legit paid $2000 for a sealed Mata Nui just to crack it open for us and build it. The dedication you have had to this series is unparalleled. As a fellow Bionicle enjoyer who has grown up to be a poor young adult now, though, I wish the best for your finances...💀

Your bank account will never recover. I salute you for making this sacrifice for us

It's really cool seeing this set in motion! I was never particularly impressed by this set's marketing photos but actually seeing how all the limbs articulate and look from different angles makes it way more exciting. Thank you for dropping the fat stacks so we could see this set in all its glory!

it's refreshing to see someone who wasn't disappointed with this set. I've seen almost unanimous negativity about it from the community for years and I just never understood it

I heavily salute you guys on this. This was and IS the Holy Grail of Sets and it’s been a privilege to see this the whole way through

If this video doesn't segment you as the best Bionicle reviewer on YT, idk what will! Didn't even know it was possible for someone to make me respect them even more than I already do, but you went and did it! Christian, you are awesome!

My parents got me this set for my 9th birthday. This was so much fun, i remember even sleeping with that guy like a teddy bear (only one time because it's obviously uncomfortable). And he still stands in my collection, definitely like a holy grail

I cannot believe gen 1 is done... The last few years of sets on this channel went by so fast. I still remember hopping on back when you where still at the late 07 sets maybe a bit later... I have no words to describe how thankful I am to see you open a boxed mata nui set, you didnt have to do it, but you did to show us all. I am truly thankful to have seen a brand new set in a video. You made my day, that set was always a dream set of mine, I dont think I will ever get this close to one, but this will do.

Will always be my most anticipated set growing up. I remember leaving school early and running home after getting the ups notification of its delivery.

As a kid, I was so upset this set was a Toys R Us exclusive set. Because the only Toys R Us within a reasonable driving range my parents would take me too as a kid shut down in 2008.

I remember getting this for Christmas in 2009. I was so excited. This set is really awesome, and definitely worthy of the Holy Grail title!

i have this very specific memory of seeing this set at a toy store that still sold bionicle a year after it got cancelled. tbf in the moment you don’t usually consider a set skyrocketing in value in the future (esp when yr a kid) but i’m right there with you in wishing i had gotten this when i was a kid. awesome video as usual, hoping one day i can pick this one up for my collection 🙏

I got to live vicariously through this one. I went ahead and bought the golden Ignika back in 2020 and display it on my own Mata Nui titan moc but this set has always been the biggest idol to my childhood.

My guy has less than 20k subscribers and is already dropping $2k on sealed Bionicles. I wish I was as confident as you. Great series.

That mask is freaking beautiful, thanks for sharing this it gives an opportunity for many to see this set in detail for the first time.

Dude what a blast, these bionicle reviews are something I've been looking up to in the past months since last year. Even if the series ends in the upcoming video, I'll gladly enjoy watching your newer videos! 😊 Looking forward to your new content!

This is like one of the ultimate Bionicle sets , having this must be a privilege for a Bionicle fan you’re lucky 😂 , and the fact this is a Toys r us exclusive brings even more nostalgia for Bionicle fans

Wait, I have a $200 mask just sitting around?? 0_0 I'm glad you enjoy this set so much! I have a soft spot for it, but it's been on many "top ten worst Bionicle sets" lists over the years. What I appreciate most about it how it recreates some of the smaller Mata Nui's details, upscaled with different pieces. The chest is the best example. It looks just like the smaller figure's chest. Also the abdominal pistons are as classic as Bionicle gets. Even the mask being a pretty MASSIVE Kanohi evens out with the other Mask of Life being rather small. It's hard to believe this journey is almost over. But, if buying up these old sets and making these recent videos has showed you anything, it's that 2009 was one HECK of a year. One of Bionicle's better years, I think. So many new ideas, so many killer designs, so much potential.... but we all know how that went. Bring on the Stars.

Honestly I remember as a kid and then the immediate following years hearing how disappointed people were in this set, but seeing it in play? I'm awed. While yes it would look even more glorious in gold instead of orange/yellow, it's like you said, it looks powerful and wise after culminating pieces from so many generations. As a kid I saw it as the Great Spirit Robot set, and I guess in a way, it kind of is by the sounds of it. Maybe one day I'll try to get this to scratch off the bucket list

I know that you typically sell your sets after you've reviewed them, but I was wondering if you've ever thought of keeping some as a homage to Bionicle. This set may be a keeper imo

If I remember correctly, there was a lego brickmaster set with his beetle Click that could be used with this set to recreate his shield.

Thank you for making this series, this was a blast of nostalgia. Interestingly, I remember the reviews being more mixed back when it came out - and I followed whatever Bionicle related content was available on RU-vid religiously back then. So I strongly recommend everyone to check out older reviews of the set that you may find. Both to hear the opinion from back then and to compare how far along content has come in terms of production quality.

I feel so grateful for this! The whole review series led to this moment and it's absolutely amazing to witness it. Thank you!

This is pure insanity! Your dedication is just crazy... but thank you for doing this series, and giving me immense nostalgia every video!

Waiting for this review from you.. Insane set. Nice review!! Keep up Good work. Thanks!!💯

This set is really underrated! I can't wait to hear your thoughts on it.

I remember seeing this on shelves and thought that it was just way too expensive for a single set. You took one for the team and bought it for 2k brand new for us old boys to see. Mad props man.

Back in august '09 I made my parents choose Denmark for our summer vacation, so that I could visit Legoland, hoping to find this "exclusive" set. All Bionicle sets were sold out, the largest Lego store in Europe at the time, had no set left. I was gutted. Two months later, lo and behold, as a birthday present I got Toa Mata Nui. My father found it in my hometown in Italy. The toy stores didn't have it however... it was chilling in a normal supermarket! Yeah, "exclusivity" was never a thing in the european market for Lego back in the day. Anyway, what a journey, it's been almost three years from the Toa Mata review. So much has changed, we've all grown up a little, but this shared passion remains as strong as ever! Also, I guess you're one of the fews, like me, that actually loves this set: most people, ever since its release, never hyped it too much and I could never figure out why. To me, as a single set, it's the crowning jewel of any Bionicle collection.

Thank you for creating this archive for the community and everyone just discovering Bionicle

Absolutely love this channel subbing I love bionacle miss it thank you I also wanted this as a kid

This is so much fun to watch. I had a couple of sets as a kid. They didn't ship them all to my country, so watching your video series is the first time I see most of these Bionicle sets. Keep up the great work! Thank you!

Dude was smiling ear to ear frame 1 of the video. This is a child hood dream come true and it shows.

Had this set when I was a kid. Ah this video brings back memories

Great video as always!!! And now we're gonna wait for the infamous Bionicle Stars xDDD

Very nice set indeed and the holy grail of Bionicle series, I happened to get him Christmas of 2013 used/2nd hand complete with instructions no box for $86, it was the best Bionicle set I've ever had and to this day I always admire him everyday I see him in my cabinet, as a fellow Bionicle fan/collector Toa Mata Nui is a must to have, to care and to love. Thanks for this wonderful review Sir, you did a great job and keeping the spirit of Bionicle alive.

Thank you for showing us an absolute legend! Oh, and Mata Nui is nice too

I was waiting for this to break the trend, but you GOT IT NEW! I’m so impressed- this is one of the few Bonkle sets I’ve nEver seen in person

This is the best bionicle review I've ever heard! I'm in awe with Mata Nui! All hail the Great Spirit!

So happy to say that i got this set for free along with like 50 other bionicle sets from my cousin back in like 2014 or so. Thankfully most of the parts were there and it was only missing a few non exclusive parts.

i love how you have not given up on this very long series

Damn brooo you really got the sealed one... you're a madman, but one i can support all the way. The only thing i wished for was more gold on the body, since it was a rare titan set they could've gone the extra step for just golden colored pieces. I am so happy to see more lego from you, keep up the good work man

Your are great man, ur contents are great, love you. Hope you having a good life.

Been waiting for this review

looking at this set makes me want to be a kid again and play with it. it just sparks so much imagination. if i had gotten this as a kid, i can tell it wouldve been my favourite. sadly, like many others, i fell off bionicle right before it released.

I remember I was in toys r us with my friend and his mom back when this wave was out, saw it was THE Mata Nui, and practically begged for it, that I'd pay the 50 back out of my little savings bit when I got home. Needless to say, I'm very thankful that I was able to get it at retail, and kept the box in my closet too. Algorithm will gain back something out of the expense for the new box!

This review channel is phenomenal! As sad as it is that g1 is almost up i must say that i am thrilled with excitement to see what you will do in the future on this channel. A suggestion of something i really would like to see is if you did reviews of mochs and such that people send in / that you find online. I know it wouldnt really be the same as actually holding and showing of something in your hands. However i really think that your commentary abilities is enough to make it work just as well with pictures and videos. And i know that there is some amazing bionicle focused moc builders out there. Jayfa, Djokbuild and Alex Mertens are some of my favourites Again. Amazing stuff Christian. Keep it up

Holy shit that is such a baller move to buy this brand new and open it for the channel. Mad respect to you for keeping this series going in spectacular fashion. Gonna be here to the end o7

The main uncanny element of this set is the lack of the muscles in the back of the neck, which a quick google search tells me is called "Trapezius". This has the head feel tacked on rather than a part of the whole body. Also I'm waiting out for a 3d printed replica of the mask from Socketball, which would be about as good but at a fraction of the price.

Insane that you have this

Christian, thank you for your sacrifice... I was expecting a high price tag for a new set, but not *that*. Well done

Hi. I was lucky enough to have bought this set back when it was avaliable in toys r us. At the time I was 16 so not playing with toys any more but bionicle was my absolute favourite toy brand and as you said yourself, mata nui was the most anticipated toy we all wanted. Okay I didn't have every single bionicle set but again like you said any fan owes it to themselves to have this set so that's what made me go out and buy it! I even built and improved on it too, because I agree with you on the lack of back detail and also there are parts on the set that I thought could have done with a bit more added to it to make it looked filled in. I also went as far as to building a moc of makatu to stand eye to eye with this mata nui set, tho in the end my moc of makuta ended up being a hell of a lot taller then this mata nui set. I still have this set, still built with all my improvements I thought it needed along with all my other sets I have and mocs. They are all in a big box in my loft which I'm sure you and most fans will think is a shame but know I don't think I will ever get rid of them dispite knowing I have 7 of the 10 rarest sets they made and knowing how much a lot of these sets can go for. They mean more to me than money ever will. Looking forward to the rest of your content whatever you have planned

I'm sure you're aware of it, but that "bright light orange" is known as Keet-Orange. The color was first used on the Keetongu titan set from 2005 and thus how it gained its name within the community

I appreciate you man, to the ends of the matoran universe, I appreciate you! 🎉

Salute! For the brand new sealed condition Mata Nui opened and reviewed!

Youre the don son, fantastic commitment. Reminds me of when i was a young warthog.

My favorite part of these sets is that the Mata Nui mask has a symbol of a Toa with outstretched arms

I once built this set using sets I actually had. Even using my used (sometimes crudely repaired even) pieces, the articulation was amazing. They really did design the ideal set with this guy, if it can be successfully duplicated with just a hodgepodge of sets' pieces.

I'm surprised to hear you like it the most out of any set so far. I actually think the Bionicle community hated this set because of the lack of gold, the exclusivity, its scaling, being non-canon, etc. I think its a like a UCS style set. Great display pieces if you ignore the small issues here and there. Would have begged my parents to get it for me if i ever saw it in stores. Adult me would get it only out of collective obligation. Its a rare bioincle set that alone would be amazing to own like the karzhani set.

You're an absolute legend for buying this set, we salute you sir.

I got this set Along with many others when I was a kid, but I didn’t realize it was worth so much nowadays. Still have my gold Ignika, even made a little stand for it.

Ik this isn’t much, but I wanna give back to you for making a high quality review for such a sought after and legendary set anyways. May your bank account recover someday!

This is a great set and it was awesome to get a representation of Mata Nui, but it came out so late in the line. Several years earlier I had built my own version of The Great Spirit using the Makuta instructions with white and gold pieces. I originally gave him the sparkly Takanuva mask, then the silver Mask of Life. So, when this set came out, my Mata Nui got this golden Mask of Life, since he was my Mata Nui by that point.

Bro Opend Up 2000 USD set and recorded it in 1080p Instead of 8K :D GG All-Out Brick.

"The proportions were absolutely nailed" I think most Bionicle fans would disagree lol

The set was amazing, i got it a few weeks ago piece by piece from bricklink for around 150-200€ since i was ok with some pieces being off-colour. like the mask being pearl light grey instead of pearl gold and the sides of the legs being pearl light grey instead of yellow. honestly i like how the legs look with the pearl light grey there. makes its legs look sturdier imo. i also had around half the pieces already in my collection (sorting your pieces by type makes checking that trivial. i've separated my bionicle parts into weapons and armor, and then the rest are more specialised with a few feet grouped together, 2-long x pins, 3-long x pins, 4+ long x pins, 2-long o pins, 3-long o pins, modified o-pins, x-o pins, and so on. it's separated my bionicle/technic parts in around 40 bags and when i take them out i can easily see which pieces i need instead of having to search trough the entire pile for one x pin that has hidden inside an o-receiver) Also. for the mask i'll be attempting to create a handmade copy of it and paint it a similar gold to the pearl gold pieces so that i can have the set look more like the real set with the pearl light grey mask being there somewhere, probably used for the toa set that used it.

I'm honestly suprised you like it, most people I've seen consider the set as awful for all the mismatched colours as we as the build bring a insult to the character

Funny thing is i bought a custom grey and black version of this set for my nephews birthday awhile back he couldn't stop messing with it XD

i had this as a kid! mines in pieces now though

HE DID IT!!!!

Kinda wish the Great Spirit Robot looked like this but I do enjoy the Giant Mata Head design too

The Toa Metru have been dethroned! XD

You're a legend

Thank you for helping me relive a big part of my childhood! This series was the best

I never saw this set and thought it was great

I have this set and a gold chromed out version of that mask of life i never understood the hate this set got this is actually one of my favorite titan sets oh and made a more movie accurate sword for Mata nui.

He did it boys, he finally got the holy grail of bionicle.

Man. Can't believe Gen 1 is already wrapping up 😔 Great video, as always! Another reminder that I need to grab the bionicles from my parents' place! I'm pretty sure this set is in their garage.

A legend is born...

I have this set from when I was a kid! My parents usually didn't buy me big sets just because but this and the Star Wars Mustafar set from 2005 were the only two times I can remember that my mom decided just to get me a big set because I thought it was so cool. I am unfortunately missing the mask but hopefully that turns up one day haha

Best bionicle youtuber

I have no idea where you've found this set in sealed condition. That alone is insanity to me. Awesome set, great review, everything's great, thank you for reviewing all of BIOINCLE G1. See you next week for the midget counterparts from BIONICLE's past.

I managed to snatch it without the box, without the instruction, with one broken scarab claw piece for PLN 20. And when I was picking it up from the seller, I missed to get the Thornax, as it was laying in the loose parts. As for lore, people say it would have been cool, if this appeared in canon, like in the film fight with Tuma, but the film was probably alerady made by thet point, and it would take away from the small vs big guy fight. Personally I believe that the appearance could have been put in the follow-up storyline that got cancelled.

Even though this was a Toys R Us exclusive, it's interesting that I never saw it when I was there during that year. But then again, I also don't remember being there between August and December of that year. As this is the last non-promo Bionicle set in numerical order released in 2009-and of the 2000s decade, every part in Keet-orange (flame yellow) makes its final appearance here, as do a few of the parts in the standard shade of yellow. Except for the pinchers in yellow, which appeared in an "Exo-Force" set (8117) from 2008. One other example is the Technic 3x5 curved half-beams in that color, which debuted in a set (8238) from the "Speed Slammers" subtheme of Technic in 2000, and also appeared as part of the Manas (8539) from back in 2001-when even Bionicle itself was still a subtheme of Technic All of its other appearances were in Technic sets, until it was phased out in 2017, last appearing in the "Ocean Explorer" (42064) in January of that year. Some other Technic elements in yellow-such as the 7M beam continue to be used today. In addition to being the last set to have the Toa Metru style of head, Toa Mata Nui is the last set to have the Hordika lower arms in dark stone gray, and the only set to have Technic 7M wings in that color, also appearing in the concurrently released "Titanium Command Rig" (8694) from the "Power Miners" theme. This set also marks the final appearance of the "Power Sword" from Jaller Mahri (8911), the silver 7x11x2 shield from Onua Mistika (8690), the weapon from Makuta Bitil (8696) and also of the "Magnetism Shields" from Gahlok-Kal (8578) in their origin color of silver. But it isn't the last appearance of that part as a whole. It is also the second and final appearance of the Inika knee armor in "warm gold"-which debuted as part of Tarix (8981) and is also the final set to have the shorter style of eye stock, which debuted in Kongu Mahri (8910). But more minutely, the Glatorian neck piece would continue to be used until 2021 oddly enough...

Lo mejor de lo mejor felicidades yo tengo el mio de recién también ❤❤❤

If these guy was solid gold like his mask I’d say this set would be legendary, I just can’t get behind the yellow

I am so so so incredibly jealous of you having that beautiful box 😭

HE DID IT BOYS!! HE DID IT!!

I was like this wacthing the video 😍😭

Legend

Two grand, holy piss. Awesome set though, thanks for bringing it to us

Holy Mata! The Great Spirit defeated Brutaka! If only this was canon!

The final titan set of Bionicle Gen 1. I always kinda dug how this looked, even if most of the value was in the mask.

the set of all time

i never had any sets from the last era or gen 1 but this set is Awesome, Someday ill get one, no matter the price

Makes me wonder how this set would look if ya added the golden armor pieces from Bionicle Stars to it.

You're the GOAT mate

amazing.

I got this set when it frist came out. Opened up and played with 😅

Man, I remember seeing this set in toys r us when I was younger. The biggest mistake I ever made was not buying it

I love this set so much but my mom never got it for me when it was retailing 😭