The second set of the series 3 planets is basically a wrap up of the final scene from Episode II. If you only watch the films, you many remember this ship from your “Hey, that kinda looks like a Star Destroyer… neat” moment. Though it’s really more of a Star Annoyer at best, so let’s see how it shapes up as a set.
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It seems like a lifetime ago when I first saw the very first Ultimate Collector Series set, 7191 X-wing Fighter, on the Toys’R'Us shelf. The silver printed X-wing on a black box looked so slick and looked nothing like the other LEGO sets on the shelf. I was swooning over it and without a second thought bought it, took it home, and built it in a day. And it was awesome. I proudly displayed it on my shelf along with the other UCS set that came out that year, 7181 TIE Interceptor, for many, many years. Fast forward a few years later, and it’s time to pack up our tiny apartment and move into a house and with the amount of LEGO I had at the time, it was no easy feat. Unfortunately, the X-wing along with a bunch of other sets on display had to be taken apart with little time to do it, so I tore it apart and stuffed it inside a couple of Ziploc bags and then stuffed the bags inside a box where they remain to this day. I never bothered to rebuild it for a couple of reasons. It needed and still needs some serious cleaning, and the condition of the stickers was in bad shape. The stickers that LEGO used back then disintegrated over time due to some combination of age, heat, and dust. Try and peel them off and you would regret that action for they would break apart into tiny little pieces and once those pieces got on your fingers, they were really difficult to get off. Surprisingly, the one sticker that survived was the familiar UCS information label. So there it sits in a state of decomposition in box in my office a few feet away from me. Fast forward a few years later, and here we are today on the eve of an epic remake about to be released to the public. Ultimate Collector Series 10240 Red Five X-wing Starfighter is a re-engineered UCS 7191 X-wing Fighter. LEGO has re-released and re-designed several sets before, but this is the first time a UCS set is getting the recycle treatment. There are many fans who fell into the hobby too late and covet the set so much so that it commands a pretty high aftermarket value, ringing up at around $800 at my last check a few weeks ago. So this remake may be welcomed with open arms and smaller budgets, but with 13 years of a legacy to go up against, how does the newer version stack up?
The first of the series 3 planet sets takes us on an intelligence gathering mission to Kamino in a Jedi Starfighter piloted by our beloved Jedi… R4-P17. Well, flying is for droids.
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Ultimate Showdown. The name inspires visions of an epic battle between the Armoured Avenger and his megalomaniacal archenemy that would tax the limits of the two foes abilities and resources, ending in chaos, destruction and a spectacular defeat for one side or the other.
Alternately: This.
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Okay, I originally wanted to get this review done back when the movie was in theaters and fresh in everyone’s mind, but we’re going to have to settle for the upcoming BluRay release to refresh it for everyone! You know, life and what not.
After the achievement that was “The Return of the King,” the standard is set pretty high for The Hobbit. How do you follow-up the first Fantasy picture to ever win best picture? I mean, come on, the Academy didn’t even give best picture to The Wizard of Oz (okay, granted, it was up against Gone With the Wind, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Stagecoach, and Of Mice and Men). More than that, how do you follow-up on the book that defined pretty much the whole of high fantasy after it? While The Lord of the Rings was an epic tale, The Hobbit is the granddaddy of pretty much all high fantasy.
While I reviewed a good number of the LotR sets, a sad confession is that I’ve never actually read the books. I’ve tried before, but I’ve always held that Tolkien was a brilliant linguist and a below-average writer. However, I did read the Hobbit twice… once in High School, and once in college for a Fantasy Literature class (never let it be said that a Creative Writing doesn’t have it’s uses… okay, say it a lot, because it’s very true, but that was a very cool class). And that experience really solidified in my mind that I felt about Tolkien the exact same way I felt about Michael Crichton: great ideas and concepts… but iffy stories at the very best.
Now that I’ve fired a broadside across fans of The Hobbit and Jurassic Park like, let me say that the movies that were born out of those ideas have been fairly awesome. The Lord of the Rings can be called a work of absolute art. It’s one of those movies that actually gets better when you peel away the illusion of how it was done (unlike, say, the PT Star Wars films that are basically a bunch of actors standing in front of a whole lot of green screens). More than that, the LotR trilogy captured the essence of what Tolkien put into his books (at least the stuff that I could bring myself to read), and it remains to be seen if The Hobbit can do the same.
Oh, and obviously, there will be some spoilers ahead. Read at your own risk. Also, there will undoubtably be jokes about walking… and it’s going to be a long, long, review (like a lot of the walking scenes).
I’m very conflicted about this review. I’m going to try very hard to judge this set on it own merits, but I may veer off into a mini rant about the movie from time to time. I’ll try to keep it focused on how the set and flick pertain to one another, but I’ll apologize in advance if when I stray from the path. One way or another, this is going to contain spoilers so keep that in mind before you proceed and once more unto the bricks.
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I’ve said before that I’m no real fan of the Ultimate Spider-man cartoon, but I’m a huge Spider-man fan in general. Seeing last year’s Spidey set got me quite excited, but in the end it failed to impress me and was a real disappointment. 2013 promised two new Spider-man sets in the first half and this one in particular caught my eye the right off, but I’ve been hurt before. I needed a set to come along and make me feel again.
Preferably one with Nick Fury.
I get the honour of doing the first of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles set reviews because I’m not only the sites biggest fan of the comics, but I’m also an expert on the cartoons, movies, toys…. I kid, I kid.
Actually, I’m first because Ace is busier and this is a small, easy set. I really am a big fan of the comics, original cartoon and first movie though and I have to admit that the new Nickelodeon series is now on that list as well. The storyline is quite good for a generational reboot and there are far more moments that throwback to the original comics then most of what has come in between. One of the stand out bits for me are the brief traditionally animated shots and the moments when the turtles eyes go stark white in acknowledgement of their comic book roots. Keen.
However, it could be the finest crafted cartoon of all time and it wouldn’t mean the LEGO sets based on it would be worth my time or money. Luckily, at least with this set, I think they could be.
After reviewing Helm’s Deep, I had fully intended to review the small army-builder companion set, Uruk-hai army. Life (and laziness) are kind of funny like that. Since that time, we’ve gotten a new wave of Hobbit sets, the release of the movie, and renewed focus on the line.
At $30, The Uruk-Hai army is prime army builder fodder. While more expensive than a battle pack, it offers some full set features, and is designed to stick on the side of Helm’s Deep. So, does the value really stack up? (more…)
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