VBBN Posted December 2, 2014 Set name: Protector of Ice Set number: 70782 Pieces: 62 Price: $9.99, € Release date: 2015 Packaging and Contents Box Front The Protector of ice can be seen leaping around, with the Skull Spider dangerously close to his head. A lot of the buildings of Okoto seem to be small, round buildings mounted on tall cliff sides or some kind. Box Back As usual, the back of the box shows off the set features. As you'll notice, the top of the box has a flap popped out. All of the boxes, except for the $20 ones, have these tabs at the top. I'm curious to see if any stores actually use that to display the sets. Instructions The instructions show a bit more of the buildings to the left, and a very cool looking bridge that connects them to another structure. New/Interesting Parts Gatling Gun One of the more interesting parts that has made it's way into the Protectors is this new gatling gun. Unlike the Toa who feature gearboxes, these lovely little weapons offer a very awesome new choice of "bionicle launcher" that we have come to expect. The gun is made up of two parts, a dark gray barrel, and a yellow firing pin. Once put together, they do not come apart, at least not without a lot of needless work. The connection is very comparable to the Mata heads with eyestalks. As for the firing power of this new collectible, if anyone is familiar with the minifigure blasters first introduced in Star Wars this year (also seen in wave two of Hero Factory 2014), the force behind the stud is quite similar. New Pieces Protector of Ice here provides a rather interesting assortment of parts. He comes with the "usual" new head and eyestalk, as well as the skull spider legs. You also get the small beast foot in silver, the new technic spacer, and the new piston piece in white. I find it strange that the new piston piece comes in three colors, gold silver, and white. Why is white the only elemental color it was made in? I'm not arguing that we got it in a third color, but still, it's a curious thought. This means he is the only protector to not come with a silver piston add-on (with the exception of Earth who doesn't have one at all), and the only protector to come with three of them. Masks The Protector mask in white with trans light blue looks fantastic, though by this point that color scheme is nothing new. We also get the skull spider mask in silver. Building process Action Frame Like the Protector of Fire, Mr. Ice here doesn't have any elbows. While it's still a strange design choice, it doesn't look nearly as odd here as it does on Fire, because he doesn't have the overly wide torso. Armoring Like most of the protectors, his armor uses a lot of trans-shells. Finished Set Skull Spider The Ice and Water sets all include the Skull Spider in silver. Not the most interesting of the three colors. Front I've always imagined Ice characters as being tall and thin, so this year is quite a stir with the Master of Snowsuits, and this protector who is looking incredibly well armored- or maybe he is in a dapper coat. Who knows. Profile His body actually looks like a little snowball from this angle... Back I've complained a lot lately about the over-use of trans armor on these guys, but I think this guy really nails the color layering properly. Pose 1 To match his snowball-arctic coat-ultra heavy armor, he's also got a mean looking arsenal to boot. You get a spinning shield weapon which reuses the delicious translucent light blue buzzsaw that we got with CHI Vardy, and also has his gatling gun slung under his arm. Once again one of those flame pieces is used in a way that makes absolutely no sense. I think they were going for a bayonet-style attachment, but the execution is is about as effective as placing a scope on a sniper rifle backwards. Pose 2 Funny, the one character to not use silver armor officially makes those silver feet look completely out of place. Oh well, I'm happy to swap those out for one of the 7 pairs of black ones I have laying around. Skull Mask The skull actually looks pretty decent when placed on his head, it balances out the silver feet somewhat. Conclusion These protectors are really difficult to give solid thoughts on. This guy has some great parts, decent weapons, a great color scheme, and of course ice is one of my favorite elements, so that really ramps up his coolness-factor in my eyes. I guess my opinion on the Protectors remains to be the same- If you get their Toa counterpart, you should get the Protector as well. They go well together, and it's always worth it to have the option to use parts from the Protector to improve upon your Toa's design, or vice versa. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
VBBN Posted December 9, 2014 And the final review is finished! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
arc Posted December 9, 2014 I'm not real interested in this one. shield is pretty cool, and the color scheme is nice, other than that there's not much I have to say honestly. Also, now that all the reviews for 2015 are done, can we expect an update for the review index? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kalhiki Posted December 10, 2014 Not bad, but not the best. I think the color scheme is the biggest thing he has going for him. No matter how much it's used, I don't think white and trans light blue will ever stop being beautiful. That mask is gorgeous. The Gatling gun-sword combo is odd. Since the whole assembly can rotate about the hand, I'm thinking about having the sword face backwards so he can have a gun, and then flip it around to have a blade. Also, sad to see it's the last review. I really enjoyed reading them and looking at the pics. You've done a fantastic job, VBBN! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Aanchir Posted December 10, 2014 Good review. I think this Protector is definitely a nice design. The lack of forearms doesn't bother me really, since the length of the arm is still decent relative to the torso. I think what makes the Protector of Fire's arms look so awkward is not so much that they're spread apart as that they're raised up one module from the torso beam's native shoulder joints, and as such you'd expect them to be one or two modules longer. The "bundled up" look suits this fellow just as well as it suited Kopaka, and the color scheme is very stylish. He looks very different from Kopaka on account of the lack of gold. I don't have any problem with the way the ice energy piece is attached to the blaster, personally. It's just a shame that the "powered up" Kopaka is so inelegant... I'm SURE there's a better way that the Protector of Ice's creative weapons could have been integrated with Kopaka's. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rayskull Posted December 10, 2014 definitely my favorite Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The Kumquat Alchemist Posted December 10, 2014 (edited) After having seen multiple reviews, the Protector of Ice and his counterpart, Kopaka, are some of my favorite figures yet. The POI's weapons are both interesting and provide a wealth of parts, and his color scheme, as VBBN mentioned, is one of the best examples of good transparent element use. Even his lack of elbows I can forgive, as his bulky upper body gives the impression that he's wearing such heavy garments that his elbows would hardly be visible, and the shorter arms make him more evenly-proportioned. As for his silver feet, though unfitting, they seem less inappropriate than black feet would have been; his otherwise light color scheme would be imbalanced without a light feet. Edited December 10, 2014 by The Kumquat Alchemist Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rayskull Posted December 10, 2014 (edited) After having seen multiple reviews, the Protector of Ice and his counterpart, Kopaka, are some of my favorite figures yet. The POI's weapons are both interesting and provide a wealth of parts, and his color scheme, as VBBN mentioned, is one of the best examples of good transparent element use. Even his lack of elbows I can forgive, as his bulky upper body gives the impression that he's wearing such heavy garments that his elbows would hardly be visible, and the shorter arms make him more evenly-proportioned. As for his silver feet, though unfitting, they seem less inappropriate than black feet would have been; his otherwise light color scheme would be imbalanced without a light feet. That's why I worked on new shoulders, so we can extend his arms and legs slightly perhaps adding silver to the lower legs as well...hopefully giving the boot effect. http://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=102632#entry2069245 Edited December 10, 2014 by Rayskull Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DalekSram Posted December 10, 2014 I like his circle saw type shield. It look even cooler with the transparent blue, looks like it's made out of ice. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Logan McOwen Posted December 12, 2014 While the arm structure is disappointing, this guy makes up for that with sheer bulkiness. Check out those guns! He's a neat little set. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Aanchir Posted December 12, 2014 Even his lack of elbows I can forgive, as his bulky upper body gives the impression that he's wearing such heavy garments that his elbows would hardly be visible, and the shorter arms make him more evenly-proportioned. I agree with this sentiment. I designed my own CCBS Matoran concept without elbows with this same idea in mind. This is why I feel the Protector of Ice is fine without elbows, but the Protector of Fire needs them more. The Protector of Fire's shoulders are raised, so his arms really do need one or two additional modules in length. It's also worth noting that forearms aren't as important to the Protector of Fire and Protector of Ice from a functional standpoint as they are for the Protector of Water, Protector of Stone, and Protector of Jungle. Those three sets all have two-handed weapons, meaning their articulation would be much more limited if they didn't have forearms (or even if their elbow joints were of the guided sort used for the Protector of Earth). The Protector of Fire and Protector of Ice both have separate weapons for each hand, so they can still be put in plenty of different poses even without forearms. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bjj8383 Posted December 13, 2014 Not sure I like how short/stocky he seems. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Maxiboy136 Posted January 19, 2015 This is the first CCBS set I ever bought, and it was really satisfying in a number of ways. The proportions are just right, the colour scheme is lovely and the weapons are fantastic. He isn't too stocky and his excessive armour makes it looks as though he's wrapped up against the cold. Great stuff! Hope all the other sets are as good as this! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Logan McOwen Posted January 20, 2015 Y'know, since I got this guy, all I've done with him is modify him. I've given him elbows and legs like PoS's, built alternate versions of his weapons... I just can't really be 100% satisfied. But, it's fun to tinker! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
