>>7722261Like others said, it was the combined profits of Bionicle, licensed themes (Star Wars and Harry Potter) and the early-2000s revamp of classic City that saved them. But when they had no licenses to rely on in 2003, it was only through Bionicle that they had pulled through as a company.
But it's also a fact that not just many old school System fans but Lego corporate higher-ups as well disliked Bionicle because it was too different, too story-driven, too dark, and a host of other reasons. I don't put too much stock in the idea that Lego deliberately canned Bionicle because they hated it, but I'm sure its extremely unpopular status among collectors and parts of the Lego staff must have been a factor in how badly handled and ignored it's been, outside of the recent Bonkle references in System sets that probably came from workers who liked the line.
