Random set of the day: Gresh
Posted by Huwbot,
Today's random set is 8980 Gresh, released in 2009. It's one of 30 Bionicle sets produced that year. It contains 55 pieces, and its retail price was US$12.99/£8.79.
It's owned by 1885 Brickset members. If you want to add it to your collection you might find it for sale at BrickLink or eBay.
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20 comments on this article
So Huwbot's on a Bionicle kick, at the moment?
Cool beans. What the heck is this guy?
One of the few Bionicle sets I own, and you know what? All the rumors were true about the joints, all four of the black arm pieces have broken joints, and the dark green hands and connectors have come close. But through just putting the set together once, taking it apart to make some other thing with a few of the other sets I have, and putting it back as is, the joints broke. He's been parted out indefinitely since. Now that's quality...
Is that name just a portmanteau of Green and Fresh? I mean, he’s green, but I’ve seen Bionicle: The Legend Reborn, and while the filmmakers try to make him “fresh” and “cool” and fail.
Hey! it’s Gresh! His sword things could be slapped together to make a Shield thing, that was pretty cool. As for his joints, mine never cracked. They never have on any of my 2008-2009 sets, actually. For me the 2005-2007 ones break easier.
I just like calling him Greg, honestly. It’s something I do with all the Glatorian. Malum is Malcolm, Strakk is Steve, Tarix is Terry, Mata Nui is Matt, Ackar is Arthur, Vorox is Vinnie, etc.
Except for Skrall. I like to call him Betty.
Honestly, Gresh was way cooler in person than in all of the promo materials. The way the chest is built makes it a bit bulky, but somehow he was so much more dynamic and exciting than the other glatorian. Fantastic set. 9/10
Bionicle 2009 gets too much slack in my opinion. I understand that some may have problems with the story but the character designs were excellent.
Fingered crossed that the reason that the Bionicle ideas set wasn’t approved was because something is in the works.
I have the STARS re-release (a re-release one year later, what an excellent marketing tactic), can confirm that nearly all the joints on mine are cracked or broken, after moderate use.
I don't really know what I was thinking in late 2008. It had been a tumultuous year personally and in the world of BIONICLE as well. As I discovered that the very "universe" I was used to living in had turned against me, so too did the denizens of the BIONICLE universe realize that they had all been duped by the Makuta into surrendering the body of Mata Nui (in whose multitudes they lived) to him. The essence, or spirit, of Mata Nui was forcibly ejected from the universe-within-a-universe, and all the Toa and Matoran that BIONICLE fans had come to know over the past eight years suddenly found themselves powerless to do anything to stop the tyrant that now controlled their world. It was a real downer of an ending, and trust me, it did feel like an ending to the BIONICLE story at the time.
Except, even before that final chapter was written for 2008, us BIONICLE diehards knew the story wasn't over. Leaked images of the 2009 winter wave showed how there was more BIONICLE in store for the next year, and consequently, that paradoxically meant that somehow, the story of Mata Nui and his people was going to continue. This would have been good news to me were it not for the fact that the leaked images showed very strange new characters that seemed like there was no connection whatsoever to the BIONICLE we knew. The names were very strange, like Skrall, Vorox, Gresh, and Malum, for BIONICLE. The environment looked suspect, too. Everyone seemed to be at the foot of giant sandstone steps. Were they in a desert? A Roman coliseum?
A fair amount of time was spent scrutinizing Gresh here. His original prototype image showed a wonky pose with a lot more lime green, less-textured helmet, and lots of "leafy" armor. He was built like a Toa set, but he wasn't advertised as one. He was of "Glatorian", whatever that was. Even more Roman coliseum vibes! Maybe he was a Great Being? Were we going to where the Great Beings lived and seeing if there were other "Mata Nuis" being made? The mind boggled at where the story could be going, but I was strangely of a different mind. With all this newness, my own personal struggles, and the pressure of being in college now with the desire to not seem childish to my peers, I was looking for an excuse to say good-bye to BIONICLE and here seemed like as good as any. In 2008, I got my long-desired continuation of the Toa Nuva story, and now that Mata Nui was awakened and everything had gone to pot, I figured my investment in the story was reset to zero. I remember vocally pledging to my mom and sister over Christmas break that I was done with BIONICLE, and that I wouldn't be buying any of the new six canister sets in January 2009.
Well, if you know me, you know that was a lie.
Four months later, as I learned more about the story and got hints of Mata Nui's imminent involvement (in the new DVD movie, The Legend Reborn), the BIONICLE fan in me was coaxed back out and decided to give these Glatorian sets a "try", and settled on Gresh, since he was the coolest looking one. To be balanced, I also got a Skrall shortly thereafter. I must say, once I built them, all worries and personal reservations washed away, and I was in! By now, pictures were leaking of the "Glatorian Legends" line for summer 2009, and among the impressive figures was a Mata Nui one!
Gresh had a nice arc to his character as well. He was the young, hot-headed Glatorian warrior for the Jungle tribe of Agori (the little guys, much more capable and badass than their Matoran counterparts). Like the other Glatorian, Gresh possessed only combat skills. Only after crossing paths with the alien, Mata Nui, did Gresh discover the power within him that Mata Nui's mask brought out: the power of the winds, of air. Like the Toa of Air that Mata Nui remembered from his home universe, Gresh learned to use his newfound powers to great effect, helping other Toa-empowered Glatorian that Mata Nui befriended to fight back against the Skrall and their vile leader.
So you see, thanks to Gresh, I managed to stick around to see BIONICLE reach its true conclusion i
...this set. I remember freaking out at my friend’s house when he told me that Gresh (or “the Green Bionicle”, as I called him) wasn’t a Toa. Needless to say I wasn’t the average 5-year-old.
@Lego_Lord_Mayorca was pretty much my story too.
Gresh was a rookie among Bara Magna’s Glatorian, having been too young to take part in the Core War with many of his fellows. He became a resident of the twin villages of Tesara, and was eventually named its second Glatorian. He was more concerned with with the world at large than first Glatorian Vastus, and believed in doing the right thing for its own sake. He believed that being a Glatorian gave him a responsibility to others, which set him at odds with the more profit-driven Strakk and baffled the similarly motivated Gelu.
Gresh interfered when Malum of Vulcanus attempted to kill Strakk, and later helped search for a book written by the legendary Glatorian Certavus. Following a number of adventures, he was present at Atero when the Rock Tribe Skrall attacked the city. Later, he took part in defending Vulcanus from the Bone Hunters, even persuading Vastus to leave Tesara for the sake of their fellow Glatorian. He was later in Tajun when the village was attacked by both enemy groups, and found injured by a party led by Mata Nui.
After being nursed back to health by the Agori Berix, Gresh joined Mata Nui’s party, and was later granted the elemental power of air. After the Agori joined forces, Gresh joined the other Glatorian in mounting anger attack on Roxtus, lair of the Skrall. He subsequently took part in the battle between Mata Nui’s allies and Makuta’s minions when the tyrant arrived on Bara Magna in the robot body he stole from Mata Nui. After a brief altercation with Toa Takanuva, he helped recover a piece of the Golden Armor that proved vital to Makuta’s downfall. He was also present as Mata Nui’s spirit bid farewell to his friends before retreating into the Kanohi Ignika.
For a more detailed history: https://biosector01.com/wiki/Gresh
@MCLegoboy said:
"One of the few Bionicle sets I own, and you know what? All the rumors were true about the joints, all four of the black arm pieces have broken joints, and the dark green hands and connectors have come close. But through just putting the set together once, taking it apart to make some other thing with a few of the other sets I have, and putting it back as is, the joints broke. He's been parted out indefinitely since. Now that's quality..."
I try my best to avoid all the 2008-2010 parts when I am looking through old Bionicle parts being sold in bulk at used Lego stores. I have a few due to the the head piece that is compatible with some of the masks used that year using the cursed socket joint. I have a few heads with hairline cracks in them... still useable but I fear if I take them off my MOCs they will snap again.
Its a shame too. 2008-2010 had some very interesting Bionicle story elements and also saw the end of the theme and the launch of Hero Factory. It was the last time a lot of parts from the Slizer era were still being used before it all got replaced with CCBS in 2011. Its a shame though that the sockets kill the value of a lot of those sets, and in my opinion its the lowest point of Lego's quality control in their whole history. Lego should not be associated with broken pieces... let alone pieces that are almost guaranteed to break due to poor design.
Kudos to the CCBS design team though. Its clear they learned from the mistakes of the 2008-2010 sockets and turned CCBS's socket design into something that is nigh unbreakable. I swear CCBS sockets will outlive us all.
2009 is a very underrated Bionicle year in my opinion. All the sets were excellent with very few exceptions. The vehicles especially where a stand out of that year.
I personally love the Glatorians, and Gresh is no exception. I especially love the dual molded elements he has, which convey a very distinct elemental feel.
I know that some fans had problems with the story, but from a set perspective, 2009 was a pretty awesome year for Bionicle. I got almost all the sets from this year, and I love them all.
I enjoyed 09 for bringing back some of that early 2001-2003 vibrancy with the colors. By then the series got two washed out with "dark" hues and metallics so it was a nice way to shake things up. Marred only by the awful brittle sockets again.
I don't really have much to say about Gresh, since I... didn't get him.
Apart from Kiina (and many years later, quite unexpectedly, Mata Nui), I didn't get any of the Glatorian of either wave. Truth be told, I had kind of got bored of Bionicle by then, more than anything; and the constant recurrence of the Inika and Piraka builds and torso pieces only compounded the issue for me. I suspect that if the Glatorian designs had gone off in a wildly different direction, I may not have been swayed so easily... after three years of those builds, however, I confess they felt just too 'same old, same old' to me.
Personal preference only, of course! I don't want to knock anyone who likes them ^^
I mostly took the setting / cast / world change as a good point to jump off the train with regards to Bionicle. I still lurked, still kept an ear to the fandom news, but just no longer got excited about it. I got a small handful of sets from after that point, still (Fero & Skirmix, Kiina, Click and Tahu Star), but my interests were going in other directions by then; and, naturally, so was my money!
Most appealing thing about Gresh here, to me, were easily his swords, with their blended colouring; they look like really neat pieces :D
On the one hand, some of these figures (like this one) look really cool and have a few faszinating pieces.
Otoh I still don't get what this has to do with LEGO. I mean, these are action figures that look somewhat like the Masters of the Universe line of the Eighties that my friends and I used to play with endlessly. But it is so totally different from anything else in the LEGO lineup.
@AustinPowers said:
"On the one hand, some of these figures (like this one) look really cool and have a few faszinating pieces.
Otoh I still don't get what this has to do with LEGO. I mean, these are action figures that look somewhat like the Masters of the Universe line of the Eighties that my friends and I used to play with endlessly. But it is so totally different from anything else in the LEGO lineup. "
I mean branching out into moulded plastic instead of carved wood is what got Lego kickstarted in the first place, are you really going to moan about them getting creative?
Rest in Peace to all green Bonks from 2007-2010.
It's amazing how Gresh is easily one of the coolest Glatorian, yet one of the weakest Stars. I think the excessive amount of lime in his redesign ruined it for me.
@Brickalili said:
" @AustinPowers said:
"On the one hand, some of these figures (like this one) look really cool and have a few faszinating pieces.
Otoh I still don't get what this has to do with LEGO. I mean, these are action figures that look somewhat like the Masters of the Universe line of the Eighties that my friends and I used to play with endlessly. But it is so totally different from anything else in the LEGO lineup. "
I mean branching out into moulded plastic instead of carved wood is what got Lego kickstarted in the first place, are you really going to moan about them getting creative?
"
I'm not moaning at all.
I'm just generally curious what some people find so faszinating about Bionicle as I just don't get the appeal. Meaning as a LEGO fan I know it doesn't matter what I buy I can always use the pieces to build everything out of everything. I can take a Friends set, a Star Wars set, a Super Hero set and a Classic Space set, mix the pieces and build a Monkie Kid set. Or I can take a Classic pieces box and build a Minecraft set. And so on.
With Bionicle I can't use the pieces for anything else. I can build the action figure and play with it, but that's the end of it, isn't it?
I bought loads of Bionicle pieces on Bricklink a while ago because they came in cool colours and cost next to nothing, and I thought I could somehow integrate them into some space MOC, but tbh I haven't actually found a way to make use of the pieces yet. Plus, the plastic used seems far cheaper than normal LEGO, somehow more "rubbery" and generally more like Chinese clone brand pieces of years ago.
@AustinPowers said:
" @Brickalili said:
" @AustinPowers said:
"On the one hand, some of these figures (like this one) look really cool and have a few faszinating pieces.
Otoh I still don't get what this has to do with LEGO. I mean, these are action figures that look somewhat like the Masters of the Universe line of the Eighties that my friends and I used to play with endlessly. But it is so totally different from anything else in the LEGO lineup. "
I mean branching out into moulded plastic instead of carved wood is what got Lego kickstarted in the first place, are you really going to moan about them getting creative?
"
I'm not moaning at all.
I'm just generally curious what some people find so faszinating about Bionicle as I just don't get the appeal. Meaning as a LEGO fan I know it doesn't matter what I buy I can always use the pieces to build everything out of everything. I can take a Friends set, a Star Wars set, a Super Hero set and a Classic Space set, mix the pieces and build a Monkie Kid set. Or I can take a Classic pieces box and build a Minecraft set. And so on.
With Bionicle I can't use the pieces for anything else. I can build the action figure and play with it, but that's the end of it, isn't it?
I bought loads of Bionicle pieces on Bricklink a while ago because they came in cool colours and cost next to nothing, and I thought I could somehow integrate them into some space MOC, but tbh I haven't actually found a way to make use of the pieces yet. Plus, the plastic used seems far cheaper than normal LEGO, somehow more "rubbery" and generally more like Chinese clone brand pieces of years ago. "
Moaning may not have been the right word, I just wasn't sure what word I should have used and that was the best I could think of.
I mean Bionicle pieces use standard technic connections, all the usual pins and axles. And if you can connect them up with Technic you can connect them up with Lego. Off the top of my head, Bohrok eyes found popular use as teeth in animal builds
@GSR_MataNui said:
"Rest in Peace to all green Bonks from 2007-2010.
It's amazing how Gresh is easily one of the coolest Glatorian, yet one of the weakest Stars. I think the excessive amount of lime in his redesign ruined it for me."
Maybe he got stuck in a Matoran Sphere...