Subject:
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Technic's Dead (was: I need Technic)
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Newsgroups:
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lugnet.technic
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Date:
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Sat, 3 Aug 2002 03:14:48 GMT
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Guys, I hate to break it to you, but Technic as a theme is dead
and it didnt just die all of a sudden due to Lego's 2002 vertical
marketing scheme but has been on a downhill slide for several years.
Alot of the discussion about his topic confuses the theme as a whole with
parts so I'll discuss each separately
PART I - The Theme:
The theme was originally designed to market models with technical functions
to boys who were "too old" for standard Lego sets. It
allowed Lego to enter a market that was at the time dominated
by English Meccano and German FischerTechnik (1).
So the Theme represented technical functions. The sets were representational
but really were never Model Team-like in apperance (that is what Model Team was
for). In other words the Theme represented function over form.
My personal opinion, which I know is shared by others, is that the
theme was at its best from about 1990-1996.
In each of these years interesting sets were released that relied
on increasingly complex technical functions. I dont need to
review the entire list here but some highlights:
1991 8891 Designers Idea Book . Look at this to see a bunch of
intersting designs. The mechnaical bull and Pneumatic walker
are classics. (2)
1992 Air Tech Claw Rig. Easily the most complex "construction"
vehicle Lego has produced. Motorized compressor.
1993 8082 Multi Control Set -- Micromotor steering.
1994 8880 Super Car. Still the best of the large auto
chassis. Probably the most complex mechanically of any
Lego set. Still the benchmark for Technic.
1995. 8460 Pneumatic Crane Truck. You know the drill
on this one.
1996. 8480 Space Shuttle. As complicated as any set Lego
has ever released and the last great Technic set. An
ingenious 4-function selector mechanism.
After 1996 the Theme began to emphasize play value over
technical function. The downward spiral into Dante's
3rd (or was it the 4th) ring of Hell began with CyberSlam then
progressed into Throwbots, Roboriders and finally, Bionicle (which is
essentially CyberSlam and Throwbots combined). What all of these sets have
in common is that Technical function is secondary.
Although the percentage of specialized elements has increased
there has been an overall decrease in the density of
function. Even the sets that were still supposed to be
true Technic became excercises in Form, not function.
Consider the 8448 Super Street Sensation. a good looking
set but not nearly as mechanically complex as it's predecessor.
An UK AutoCar article about the 8448 summed up this new approach
by stating that there was no way they could make the set
more technically complex that the 8880 so they decided
to make it pretty instead.
The large sets after that (8458 and 8466) have been essentially
the same set with different colored body panels.
The only good stuff in the late 90's has been the advent of
Mindstorms, but that too has seemed to devolve into, say,
Spybotics.
So the Theme is over, file it under 'Done'. The parts,
construction techniques, and mechanical ideas have metatisized
across virtually all of Lego's product lines (except maybe Duplo (3)).
And as a result have been diluted.
PART II - Parts
The original Technic beam leveraged all of the wholesome
goodness of the standard Lego brick and added holes,
allowing it to be used as a standard 1 x n brick or as a beam.
It became the essential construction element and to me is
the element that defines the Theme.
Starting in 1996 (8244 Convertables) Lego began replacing
the element with rounded beams. An element with none of
the properties of a Lego brick, just the properties of
a beam. It even has a different geometry. Now, of course
these elements are useful, after all, any Lego element is useful,
but it is not as flexible as the square beam.
Now there have been alot of very useful new elements. But for
every 1 element with truly new functional "Techic-like" uses
there is a whole handful of decorative elements, multiplied
several times over in odd colors.
Of course, like every one else any time I find a part that
is useful in a construction it is a good thing so the more parts
the better. Its just that the percentage of new elements that
fit into this category keeps dropping.
So I still like building Technic models and find many inspired
designs, just none of them from Lego. It used to be that I could'nt wait to see
the next years selection of Technic sets. Now I just wait for Jennifer Clark's
next model instead.
--Jim
http://w3.one.net/~hughesj/
(1) If you want to see a pure Zen-like approach to
Engineering-type construction models check out the
current FischerTechnik selection. Although if you
though Lego was expensive......
(2) Although the best Technic Idea book is still
the first.
(3) But then, of course, there's Toolo!
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Message has 6 Replies:
 | | Re: Technic's Dead (was: I need Technic)
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| (...) Jim, I appreciate your post, and all that you discussed. However, what are your comments on what Brad Justus said at Brickfest: "the Technic theme is not dead". (URL) sad to see things turn out as they have. If Lego are really doing away with (...) (22 years ago, 3-Aug-02, to lugnet.technic)
| | | Re: Technic's Dead (was: I need Technic)
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| I'm not speaking from any real authority here but I seem to remember reading in a F1/Indy car racing mag that Williams had paired up with Lego to produce a more "real" F1 technic car. Meaning, more accurate and thus more complicated technic car. (...) (22 years ago, 4-Aug-02, to lugnet.technic)
| | | Re: Technic's Dead (was: I need Technic)
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| I can agree with your feelings of the Technic theme being slowly diluted with Bionicle, Throwbots and the like and the theme 'Technic' itself may indeed be dead but I am in a huge disagreement with idea that the newer Technic parts are in some way (...) (22 years ago, 4-Aug-02, to lugnet.technic)
| | | Re: Technic's Dead (was: I need Technic)
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| Technic is dead. Mindstorms is alive. However, the first set of the Mindstorms product line -- the original RIS -- is also the best set in the line. Now this worries me a lot. You may still find some of the original spirit of Technic in today's (...) (22 years ago, 6-Aug-02, to lugnet.technic)
| | | Re: Technic's Dead (was: I need Technic)
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| I forget who it was who said ebay is the answer. I do not belive it is. Those models on ebay are great and I would not hesitate to buy them on ebay if I had the money. However there is a major part missing to all these sets. They have been done (...) (22 years ago, 10-Aug-02, to lugnet.technic)
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