Two Matorans living on the island of Mata Nui -- a "Herald" (Jason Michas) and a "Chronicler" (Andrew Francis) -- find a mask of light. This mask seems to prophesize the arrival of a seventh Toa, joining the six Toa who already protect the island from evil. Meanwhile, Makuta -- an evil spirit -- seeks to possess the mask and sends hordes of mechanized warriors to invade Mata Nui. It's up to the Herald and the Chronicler, with the help of the six Toa, to protect both the island and the mask from Makuta's evil machinations.
It's difficult keeping track of who's who, why they're doing what they're doing, and what's at stake for these characters. The confusion is enhanced by the cliched fantasy writing -- characters are frequently saying trite phrases like "fulfill your destiny" and "walk in the light." Arcane phrases are pointlessly thrown out into the dialogue, but the ultimate result merely enhances the confusion for those who aren't especially interested in these toys.
Bionicle: Mask of Light is a 2003 movie and the first of four direct-to-video Bionicle films based on the Lego toy series. The movies revolve around an island called Mata Nui. The spirit protecting the island, put into a deep sleep, has returned and only the Mask of Light, in the hands of two Matoran who are assisted by six heroes, can return it to the Toa of Light and return his mask before it is too late.
The story then shifts to the fortress village of Ta-Koro, located in a lake of lava, as a Ta-Matoran named Jaller is looking for his Kolhii (a lacrosse-like game) teammate, Takua. He soon finds him inspecting a warning totem next to a lava flow. Just before they leave, Takua picks up the totem, unwittingly setting off a booby trap, and dropping the artifact into the lava, revealing a Kanohi mask that was embedded in the totem. At that moment, a wave of lava begins to rush through the chamber at Takua, who throws the mask to Jaller and tries to use a lavaboard to cross the lava. Just as he is about to be killed, he is saved by Tahu, the Toa of Fire. Takua and Jaller then rush to the Kolhii field, and Jaller puts the mask in his pack.
Deep beneath Mata Nui, Makuta is fully aware of what is happening above. Speaking to a large statue of a Kanohi Hau, which he refers to as his brother, Mata Nui, he decides to release three of his spawns of shadow, the Rahkshi, to find and destroy the Herald. On the surface, Gali is meditating at Kini-Nui, the Great Temple, when the Rahkshi burst from the center of the temple and attack her. She narrowly escapes by hiding in the river. Realizing the Rahkshi are headed for Ta-Koro, she hurries there to warn the villagers. The Rahkshi burst through the walls of Ta-Koro, using their powers of fragmentation (Panrahk), disintegration (Guurahk), and poison (Lerahk) to eventually destroy the village. Fortunately, all the Matoran escape unharmed. In the fight, Tahu's mask is accidentally damaged by Gali when she tried to get Lerahk off of him, leaving a sickly green scratch. However, he is more concerned about his village's destruction after he and Gali abandoned the place by lavasurfing.
The Platinum Avohkii Mask of Light was the grand prize in the Cartoon Network's Toonami Sweepstakes in October 2003. An 11-year-old Santa Rosa boy, Chase Koches, won the mask, along with a number of other prizes, including Bionicle toys and Lego sets, a DVD player, Nike Bionicle athletic shoes and a 36-inch flat-screen television.
In 2003, the mask had an estimated value of $7,000. It stayed with Koches until 2012, when he decided to sell it for needed cash. In the fall of that year, he sold it to Raff, who then put it up for auction on eBay.
Hurley said he has been selling parts of his Bionicle collection for the past six months to raise the money needed to purchase the platinum mask. He depleted his collection by about 20 percent, raising $12,500.
Hurley said he was just a young boy when he saw the platinum mask on TV as part of the 2003 Toonami contest. He said he turned to his friends, who were also Bionicle collectors, and said, "There's something we'll probably never see in our lifetime."
Raff said some acquaintances said he was "crazy" for driving to the "middle of nowhere" to sell the mask. But Raff said that in the past few months he had many conversation with Hurley and he knew he could trust the youth. Also, Raff said he didn't want to risk shipping it to someone he didn't know.
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