Review: 3834-- Good Neighbors at Bikini Bottom

[Still Raindrop]

So, after getting the new Krusty Krab set, I decided to pick up the new set of SpongeBob's pineapple, as well (if you recall, my dark ages were happening during the release of the first house). I was pleasantly surprised--this is almost the exact opposite of the Krusty Krab! That is, it has added more detail to the original, and a few more fun little features. I don't really miss Squidward's and Patrick's houses, as I think those were rather poorly made. So, without further ado, here we go!

The pieces (minus the minifigs):

And here are the figs:

That new Squidward minifigure is wonderful. The earlier one was good, but I think that, after giving Sandy a molded head, TLG saw the need for a Squidward mold. I'm very glad they did, as it captures Squidward's look brilliantly.

The set from the outside, and all its outside features:

SpongeBob's reef blower is pretty cool, and the way it's connected to SpongeBob is clever. The boat is OK, but the "marshmallow launcher" is rather dumb. The grill is nothing special. I do, however, like Squidward's beach chair--more on that later.

The house itself looks better than the last one, I think--it looks more full. This is achieved with just a few simple pieces: extra slopes to make the top look more rounded, another leaf for the top of the pineapple, and the plants/flowers that line the bottom of SpongeBob's house in the show. Though these are only a few pieces, they really add a lot to the overall effect.

Squidward's beach chair:

This set has more printed pieces than I had expected. I knew that the lifesaver pieces were printed, but I didn't know about anything else. But not only is Gary's shell printed, so is the umbrella! The design of the beach chair is pretty cool, too--it really captures the feel of an actual beach chair.

Inside the house, minus all the features:

Much better than a giant basketball hoop, I think

Here's the chair and TV:

The TV really does look like a diver's helmet, as it is in the show.

The bed, which I modified to make the lifesaver a bit lower:

Unfortunately, the door can only open this far:

I know the review was a bit scattered, but there are just so many cool features here, and they don't really follow a pattern that lends itself to easy reviewing. I was much more pleased with this set than I was with the Krusty Krab, and would recommend it to SpongeBob fans everywhere. Let's end with another picture of that wonderful new minifig, shall we?

Edited February 6, 2009 by Mariko

[Skinny Boy]

Wow, this looks so much better than the previous sets! Thanks for the 'eye-opening' review Mariko!

[prateek]

i need money to get this!!!! my sister would love this set

[gladiator]

Nice rewiew again Mariko

I really love it,

1000 % better than the previous sets. No doubt !

[Darth Legolas]

If you ask me, the only real true improvement hear is that they changed the Squid's face from a smile to a frown. He's not supposed to smile, if I recall. It's still a little good, but it's not too different from the other one they released. Not a buy for me.

But overall it's better from the last one!

[eti]

I haven't even seen one episode of Sponge Bob (after five minutes I'm bored and zap away... sorry) but looking at these pictures I agree it looks like a fabulous set to me. Gotta love all that orange! Lots of nice features.

Only thing I don't like is how it appears to rely on stickers. Even stickers over several bricks - the horror! I normally don't apply stickers but that would take much detail out of this set.

[Justin]

I tried making a review for this set, but my pictures turned out blurry, even when I made closeups. I might just convert my review to a text-based review.

This set is a great improvement over the last one. I especially like that the interior of his house looks more like his living room, rather than a basketball court. I also like that they included portraits of Patrick and Gary. The only downside is that the stickers on Gary's bowl fall off (something that can be fixed with a little Scotch Tape). I also like the inclusion of furniture. The new Squidward head mold looks great, too, as does Gary, with his shell colored correctly this time (itwas orange in the first set, now it's pink, like in the cartoon). I also like the reef blower.