128 replies to this topic

[jeffrey]

3D LEGO, on Sep 14 2006, 09:05 AM, said:

I'd say they are a cross between Aquazone and Divers. Very intresting idea. *y*

Frankly speaking,  Aqua Raiders don't catch my eyes as their desgin is not new and cool enough.
I prefer the aqua theme in 1998 more.

[dunamis]

Brick Miner, on Sep 14 2006, 12:37 AM, said:

they have a great 1990's feel to them.  in concept and visual appeal.
- BrickMiner

That's what I was thinking.  Interesting look.  It is starting to grow on me.

[Hobbes]

sasbury, on Sep 13 2006, 11:36 PM, said:

I almost think the hull is too small. Lego fireboats should be more like set 4031.

4031 sure is one of the best fireboats around. I wouldn't call the swimming hull too small, though. I have the police boat and the hull's pretty big for the so called "minifig scale". It's because what you mentioned here:

Quote

It looks like they just took the police boat hull, painted it red, added some some slopes and water guns and called it a fireboat.

I'm disappointed in the overall look, too. Then again, I have 7046 which has enough pieces to make this new one look really good :-)

Quote

Real life fireboats are sooo much more interesting. Let this fireboat and other real fireboats be the inspiration.

Your link gave a "403 forbidden". I corrected it :-)

dunamis, on Sep 14 2006, 07:55 AM, said:

Brick Miner, on Sep 14 2006, 12:37 AM, said:

they have a great 1990's feel to them.  in concept and visual appeal.

That's what I was thinking.  Interesting look.  It is starting to grow on me.

It didn't need growing for me but I agree :-)

[Jipay]

Grevious, on Sep 13 2006, 11:01 PM, said:

Man, talk about a negative post. I guess now I see why you're a "grouchy specialist"...  X-D

That's already snefroe's job, one is enough  X-D

[snefroe]

jipay, on Sep 14 2006, 07:35 AM, said:

Grevious, on Sep 13 2006, 11:01 PM, said:

Man, talk about a negative post. I guess now I see why you're a "grouchy specialist"...  X-D

That's already snefroe's job, one is enough  X-D

hey that makes me unique around here :-P hm... maybe i should ask the boss for a raise :-P  hang on, our chief is so much sitting on his money that we don't get any salary in the first place! damn... :-X

actually, i've been very kind to these sets... and i didn't even say a word about the exo force! I've become a megablocking softy! :-X  :-P

[JINZONINGEN73]

phoinix, on Sep 13 2006, 11:56 AM, said:

snefroe1, on Sep 13 2006, 11:24 AM, said:

well... i'm very happy for you if this is giving you wet dreams, jp,  :-P , however, it was more or less in line with speculations earlier, besides, you haven't heard me commenting on that police ... oops... sorry ... firefighting boat yet :-P

im with sne on this one..
and yes we kind of ecxpected creatures like that crab and yellow aqua stuff..its no big wow and no surpise..

and what the heck is that boat about?they painted the hull red and called it fire..lets paint it white next year and call it hospital!!!

Like heck. We expected red trans, open-to-the-elements canopies like in the aquatic Alpha Team, along with gap-filled monsters made out of reject parts.
These guys are pretty far away from that... the subs being more sane looking (though the tridents need to go on that one...) and the creatures instead being creator set lookin'.
They're not what we expected... they were a nice suprise, considering the gloomy assumptions.

I've seen fire boats with red hulls. I'm not sure what the issue is you're trying to make.

phoinix, on Sep 13 2006, 02:15 PM, said:

Clone comander Nodra 999, on Sep 13 2006, 08:04 PM, said:

Thank you lego for not fudgeing up aquaraiders and not giving us a crapy rehash of alpha team.

so you are telling me that this submarine

http://brickset.com/...aspx?Set=4792-1

dosent remind you at all of that in the 7773 set?

im not saying that the new line isnt better  but lets not say that we have never seen this before!

In that it's yellow, yes. But aside from the tridents on that one, they're not slap-in-your-face ridiculous. They look much better. No GIANT monster hands coming off, more convincingly streamlined, "serious" animals instead of... whatever those things were in Alpha Team...  :-D

[snefroe]

JINZONINGEN 73, on Sep 14 2006, 10:02 AM, said:

phoinix, on Sep 13 2006, 11:56 AM, said:

snefroe1, on Sep 13 2006, 11:24 AM, said:

well... i'm very happy for you if this is giving you wet dreams, jp,  :-P , however, it was more or less in line with speculations earlier, besides, you haven't heard me commenting on that police ... oops... sorry ... firefighting boat yet :-P

im with sne on this one..
and yes we kind of ecxpected creatures like that crab and yellow aqua stuff..its no big wow and no surpise..

and what the heck is that boat about?they painted the hull red and called it fire..lets paint it white next year and call it hospital!!!

Like heck. We expected red trans, open-to-the-elements canopies like in the aquatic Alpha Team, along with gap-filled monsters made out of reject parts.
These guys are pretty far away from that... the subs being more sane looking (though the tridents need to go on that one...) and the creatures instead being creator set lookin'.
They're not what we expected... they were a nice suprise, considering the gloomy assumptions.

I've seen fire boats with red hulls. I'm not sure what the issue is you're trying to make.

phoinix, on Sep 13 2006, 02:15 PM, said:

Clone comander Nodra 999, on Sep 13 2006, 08:04 PM, said:

Thank you lego for not fudgeing up aquaraiders and not giving us a crapy rehash of alpha team.

so you are telling me that this submarine

http://brickset.com/...aspx?Set=4792-1

dosent remind you at all of that in the 7773 set?

im not saying that the new line isnt better  but lets not say that we have never seen this before!

In that it's yellow, yes. But aside from the tridents on that one, they're not slap-in-your-face ridiculous. They look much better. No GIANT monster hands coming off, more convincingly streamlined, "serious" animals instead of... whatever those things were in Alpha Team...  :-D

don't tell me the small set does not resemble this one! even the minifig is almost a copy of it... Sure, it's all a lot better than the origenal Alpha team, in fact, the first alpha team looks almost like the prototype team for this team. what surprises me the most is that the designer of this new team was supposed to be a brand new designer... hm... he clearly has all the catalogs of the last few years lying on his desk...

as i said before, the trans red in that space station was not a reference to what we'd get in this theme, it probably came out of a box with all transparent parts of the last several years that's in the designer's shop. We've seen this box in Windsor, heck , i even got blue transparant futuron parts out of it. Besides, 1 section of the old alpha team has yellow-dark grey-black parts with trans-black parts all over it. this is just 'the next generation: alpha team with some new slopes, and newly created monsters, that's it... they did, however,  keep the alpha team's rotors...

about the creatures there... g... i'd be very surprised if they'd gone back to the dreadful 1 piece monsters... i'm just hoping not ALL themes in the future will have a variant of the creator shark, like this theme has, not to mention the crab...

[Hobbes]

snefroe1, on Sep 14 2006, 11:34 AM, said:

about the creatures there... g... i'd be very surprised if they'd gone back to the dreadful 1 piece monsters... i'm just hoping not ALL themes in the future will have a variant of the creator shark, like this theme has, not to mention the crab...

No offense, but is there anything that could "please" you at the moment? Reading your comments over the last few weeks I sometimes think not even a revival of Classic Space would make you happy...

[natelite]

calm down everyone. if you finish stating your opinion, then move on. let's not turn this into an opinion war, ie my opinion is >>> your opinion. maybe people like the first alpha team. maybe some folks like some bionicle parts in their monsters. i certainly think some bionicle parts doesnt hurt. the ball joints are great for articulation. i rather have those than to have my system monsters fall apart with some handling. some folks prefer new ideas, new designs. to see 80-90% reiteration of past designs may make them sick  :-X  some folks ACTUALLY prefer old designs and would like a revival of older themes. let's just focus on what you like and dislike about the set and not force your view on others.  *y*

my opinion (doesnt mean you share them too):
shark is in better size than the 1 piece. finally a great white. pity the shark's eyes are decal.
crab is much better than the shark. nice use of click joints and some old system joints.  *n* on the use of transparent parts for shell.
underwater vehicles - not my cuppa tea. too futuristic. i prefer less aerodynamic types. any of the design from 4888, minifigurized is better imo. i like those designs which used the TIE windshield piece, and i actually like hands on my UW vehicles. much more realistic of a deep sea sub.

eg:
http://www.brickset....aspx?Set=4888-1

http://www.brickset....aspx?Set=6560-1

minifigures: meh....doesnt really stand out. cant say much, it's just an average mf.

[alex54]

So much comments since yesterday!

Well, after seeing the new pics for some minutes yesterday, this is what I think about:

- the fireboat looks like the boats that TLC made in 2000-2002. It have a 4+ look and don't look so exiting. The technics parts propably are a system to put the zodiac in the water... If this boat is a 20euros set like the police version, it will be mine (I will made some boats for the day when TLC will seld a seaport. One silver helmet is a good thing and hope some different heads from the old 2005 firemen.

The new aquaraiders look like some divers who have fusioned with aqua alpha team. Not so good for a town add, but it will be worts!
- the small subvehicule looks simple and has nerly the design of the smaller aquashark subvehicule. But
the colorscheme has more a realistic touch. And it is nice to find some golden pieces (my lego bank will be happy!)
- the big shark set have a submarine with an alpha team design, not so goos for a realistic submarine expedition. And this crapy laucher! The building shark looks more terrific than the classic two-pieces-made-one, more in the spirit of the line. I don't like how TLC made the eyes. But maybe it is not a definitiv set that we see. The harpoon post looks cool like the new alga pieces, with a really lego design.
- the crab set with the big submarin is the best of the 3 that we can see for an afolcity because the submarin looks more realistic. The big crab looks not so bad (I will think that it will be more bioniclish). And there are
some good accessories like the small robot near the skeleton. And I like when TLC put some touches from other themes in a set (when it makes sens of course!).

To conclude, those new aquaraiders sets are better than I have imagined. It's sure that there are not some new divers sets, and even if they have an alpha team design, they can be a good addition after some few modifications. And the yellow scheme is a very good thing for that! However, like a 90's nostalgic, I regret to see that the raiders are too much armed and fight so big seacreatures.
But it is what the boys want today, so...

[phoinix]

Hobbes, on Sep 14 2006, 10:43 AM, said:

snefroe1, on Sep 14 2006, 11:34 AM, said:

about the creatures there... g... i'd be very surprised if they'd gone back to the dreadful 1 piece monsters... i'm just hoping not ALL themes in the future will have a variant of the creator shark, like this theme has, not to mention the crab...

No offense, but is there anything that could "please" you at the moment? Reading your comments over the last few weeks I sometimes think not even a revival of Classic Space would make you happy...

so we dont like it that much so what? its not like we will affect sales !!  *sweet*

and yes there is something that would make me happy a civilian city theme! (and a martini!!  :-P )

[Cutty]

AQUARAIDERS! WHOOHOO!!
I'm so going to get those!

(and while I'm at it: some of the new E-F thingies look goodie-goodie as parts supply as well! mini-yeah!)

[Aredhel]

These sets look really great! I like the animals most!  *wub*

[snefroe]

Hobbes, on Sep 14 2006, 10:43 AM, said:

snefroe1, on Sep 14 2006, 11:34 AM, said:

about the creatures there... g... i'd be very surprised if they'd gone back to the dreadful 1 piece monsters... i'm just hoping not ALL themes in the future will have a variant of the creator shark, like this theme has, not to mention the crab...

No offense, but is there anything that could "please" you at the moment? Reading your comments over the last few weeks I sometimes think not even a revival of Classic Space would make you happy...

1) if Lego were to create a galaxy explorer with new grey wings or just another type of canopy, i'd be just as pissed. i'd be very happy with any space set in the Legend program, but i'd be a LOT happier with space ships that are completely new, innovative and creative. I don't even have to like them, just as I don't like many old space sets, as long as they add something to the world of Space. Just as long as i don't have the feeling that ship B isn't the same as ship A from last year but only with a 12x6 wing insted of two 4x8 wings. That's what lego used to do: they used to stimulate individual creativity, not by rehashing old models, by replacing a few parts here and there, by releasing in an alternative model as new sets, but by releasing new models, based on new designs, new ideas,... i don't want a revival of old themes/sets, i want a revival of how they used to develop new models/themes, and how they used to think about lego. To them, lego these days, no longer is a construction toy, it's a set that you build and then play with for the rest of it's life. you don't design new models with these parts, you just "play" with it, as if it were hasbro models...

2) what's pissing me off seriously, is the lack of creativity and originality of the themes/sets. It seems these designers are only allowed to follow very strict rules of what can and what can't be done. There's no one saying: 'hey let's not give this submarine a yellow color, cos we've been doing that for the last few years now'; or 'let's not go for an underwater theme or firestation or a policestation, cos we've really done this several times before; let's try to build something else, something that would really surprise the costumer...' They used to do that in the past, now they're so scared of taking any chances with something new that they're just following the guidelines of what was successful last year; then they just pick out the best elements, put them together in a theme and voilà: there it is: your new theme. nope, no dark blue sub, or a plane instead of a sub, no new hull for the fireboat or instead of a fireboat, a coastguard boat or a cruiseship/yaught... just follow the lines... any boy who bought the sets of last few years can practically already create these 2007 sets. there's nothing really new in there, it's just another version of a yellow sub, sure that may be nice, but it is just that. Lego used to create actual new sets every year: new parts, new color combinations, new ideas, new techniques, ... take all space ships of classic space between 1979 and 1986 and you'll see a diversity in any aspect of which you can only dream these days...

[Hobbes]

phoinix, on Sep 14 2006, 01:20 PM, said:

so we dont like it that much so what? its not like we will affect sales !!  *sweet*

and yes there is something that would make me happy a civilian city theme! (and a martini!!  :-P )

I didn't mean you. And I don't have a problem with different oppinions on sets. There's lots of themes I don't like, either.

;-)

snefroe1, on Sep 14 2006, 03:27 PM, said:

i don't want a revival of old themes/sets, i want a revival of how they used to develop new models/themes, and how they used to think about lego. To them, lego these days, no longer is a construction toy, it's a set that you build and then play with for the rest of it's life. you don't design new models with these parts, you just "play" with it, as if it were hasbro models...

OK, accepted. That play-toy-thing isn't really new, though. And I think the Aqua Raiders is a step in the right direction. Of course they could have been way better. Every set LEGO ever produced could have. But with the designs we have seen in the past these new sets are pretty OK, I think.

Quote

2) what's pissing me off seriously, is the lack of creativity and originality of the themes/sets.
[...]
nope, no dark blue sub, or a plane instead of a sub, no new hull for the fireboat or instead of a fireboat, a coastguard boat or a cruiseship/yaught... just follow the lines... any boy who bought the sets of last few years can practically already create these 2007 sets. there's nothing really new in there, it's just another version of a yellow sub, sure that may be nice, but it is just that. Lego used to create actual new sets every year: new parts, new color combinations, new ideas, new techniques, ... take all space ships of classic space between 1979 and 1986 and you'll see a diversity in any aspect of which you can only dream these days...

OK, also accepted ;-)

As for the boat specifically: I think it was a logical step that a policeboat-turned-fireboat came out. So the use of the same hull in a different color is, too. I mean, the boats in the 1980s also used the same (modular) hull over all those years...

So, again, I wasn't attacking anyone because of their different opinion, it just seemed that your comments (anywhere on the boards) were tinted negatively somehow ;-)

[Mister Phes]

I don't get how futuristic sea exploration can be classified as part of Trains and Town...

[Jipay]

well it is kinda futuristic, but not futuristic enough to go to space. It's also greatly inspired by actual submarines.

[gusmoore17]

The Shark and the little sub really rock!! *wub*

The minifigs are just like Divers theme, so they're fine to me. *y*

The aqua plants included also really work well. *sweet*

The design of the subs also really sucks, jajaja  *sweet*

Really a great step for TLC for what they're doing (or did?) with the animals (except the crab, it's more an spider than anything else) and the subs are the less juniorized I've seen recently (the 90's ones are the best) but seriously, it's obvious that the subs are from the Alpha Team sets and that really makes me  :-X

No matter, kids will love them as long as they're a better version and of course for an AFOL like me, the animals, the "Atlantis" details and the minifigs really make me buy at least the two little ones.

[dillthepill]

Those are pretty cool. Anyone know when they come out?

[Hobbes]

dillthepill, on Sep 15 2006, 04:53 AM, said:

Those are pretty cool. Anyone know when they come out?

According to Amazon Germany on March 1, 2007. But we've seen those dates vary in the past, so it's more or less a timeframe, I'd say...

City sets are scheduled for January, but they could pop up in the States earlier like last year.

[alex54]

Does anybody have the bionicle piece which is used here as an alga and post a pic to show how it looks? I've searched on peeron without result...

[xwingyoda]

alex54, on Sep 15 2006, 12:17 PM, said:

Does anybody have the bionicle piece which is used here as an alga and post a pic to show how it looks? I've searched on peeron without result...

Just ask me when you have a request  :-P
I was the first to point out that weed was a Bionicle Pirake MF spine but nobody seem to read my posts  :-D
Anyhow, here is a pic of that part which is "soft" plastic



Enjoy the current waters of AR  :-P

*yoda*

[Cutty]

This part is DAMN PERFECT for cthulhoidish-tentacly monstrosities! I'll sure get a load of those!
Thanks for pointing this out, yoda!

[Shakar]

My first reaction is positive. I'm liking this line. I'll be sure to buy the smallest set, it's cheap and cool. I'll think later about the other 2.


Shakar

[Zarkan]

Time for a more detailed review from me of the Aquaraider set pictures...  ;-)

Deep Sea Treasure Search: This is one of the best small kits TLC's made in a while. The minisub is small, yet very effective, and the diver is pretty cool (like a slightly fiuturistic version of the old divers). The great acessories and neat little plant are also great additions. This kit really reminds me of 6555 from the old diver series. ;-)

Tiger Shark Battle (not sure on the name): I am loving the shark.  ;-) A meancing design for sure, and it isn't a repeat of the Designer shark at all. As for the sub, let me say that I don't see much Alpha team in it at all, other than the launcher, propellers, and tridents (which still aren't bad looking). Looks much better than the Alpha Team 2002 crud.  X-D  The hapoon and plants look cool, too.  :-)

Crab Set (really not sure on the name  X-D  ): Awesome! The best of the lot, especially since it has an awesome sub. Looks really like a slightly futurised version of the Deep Sea Expedition sub (which was really well designed). The crab is cool, also, although I'm not sure on the green color scheme.  :-/  Great acessories, especially!

Man, Aquaraiders is easily one of TLC's best moves yet. The theme is very origanal (aside from the yellow color), and has a cool near-future-diving look to it...

Quote

but seriously, it's obvious that the subs are from the Alpha Team sets and that really makes me :-X

Which is why I can't understand what you are saying. Are you suggesting that THIS is simalar to THIS, or THIS?

*Thinks for a minute*

I see no resemblance.  *wacko*