This model hit the feed and gripped the mind of every Bionicle fan that saw it. Builder Sandro Quattrini took brick-built figures to the next level with this fresh take on that iconic Toa face, sans Kanohi. The builder’s take on this warrior’s body varies slightly in their recreation of classic figure-building pieces but pays proper homage to the original nonetheless. Nice parts usage abounds throughout the design as Sandro adorns a brick-built Bionicle with the remains of the Jungle Dragon. Surviving the Ninjago apocalypse can be pretty brutal but not so much for the Toa.

Adult fans of LEGO who were kids during the reign of Bionicle were hit with waves of nostalgia looking at Sandro’s near-perfect recreation of the Bionicle head connector block. Though the Kanohi masks usually covered this fantastic piece, everyone that got a figure could expect one of these and their transparent brains. The builder chose to go with some lime instead of the trans-neon green for the eyes which look like 1×1 bar studs. Using the 98313 Mechanical Arm with a technic angle connector creates a pretty convincing substitution for the Toa’s “mouth,” as Sandro shows here. Of course, all this fantastic work on the face shouldn’t detract from the brilliant use of the Jungle Dragon’s head and teal pieces to create a cloak to cover the Toa’s maskless head.

The builder’s ingenuity with character building shines beyond the recreation of pieces. Minifigure accessories add detail to the staff in the form of green and white masks as vines wrapping around the top of the staff to fasten the blade. A trans-green Barraki eye is used in the blade to add a little more mystique. My personal favorite uses are the life preservers and the shovels on the back of the Toa’s thighs.

Of course, it’s great when builders give us a peek inside of their creations. Sandro gives us a nice exploded view of the Toa’s components, though we don’t get too much of a look into its head. Hopefully, Sandro will give us a look at its intricacies soon.

All that effort to brick-build copies of the older parts and Sandro still had to use the classic ball joint Bionicle foot. This is an iconic model that people will be talking about and emulating for a while. The Bionicle fan base is large and hungry for more. Maybe one day will see the return of the Toa from LEGO itself but for now, this will have to satiate our hunger.