10497 Galaxy Explorer 90th anniversary set

[technicfanatic]

2 minutes ago, jodawill said:

I've been surprised by how little discussion there is around this set compared to the Lion Knights Castle. I would have thought there would be about the same amount of love for classic space as there is for castle, but apparently not? Personally, I just can't stop thinking about both of these sets. It's all I've been able to think about ever since they were rumored.

What does everyone think of the part selection in this set, particularly the use of the 2x4 tile instead of a slope for the logo? Do people like this choice? Do people like the use of wacky parts like the buckets and barrels for the thrusters, or would you have preferred a more traditional build? Some transparent yellow plates would have been a great choice over that rear windshield. The walkie talkies and metal detectors aren't hard to find, but the glaring lack of them here seems a bit odd.

The funny thing about those new printed 1x2 tiles is that they used to be generic, commonplace elements. Seeing them here as special parts unique to this set feels very ironic, although I'm happy to see them included here.

The 2x4 tile does provide some flexibility we wouldn't have with a slope. It could be used on the side of a wall, as part of a floor, or a billboard. But when it comes to spaceships, it locks us into that angled brick type construction (is there a better term for this?). I wonder if there are any angled SNOT bricks that would provide an appropriate angle to construct the slope. We do have that 2x4 slope still, so I guess some variety is ok. But the printed slope was the number one thing I was looking forward to about this set besides the minifigures, so it's really hard for me to let this go. They could have used this part, as it's nearly identical to the original piece.

How does everyone else feel about this? Do you feel let down by the parts selection like me, or are there some parts here you're really looking forward to?

I look forward to

1. The large canopies
2. The new computer tiles
3. Getting four more spacemen. I have all of mine (I think, unless my daughter lost any. I lent her all my space stuff. Taking them back now that she has so much of her own lego.)

Neutral about

1. The 2 x 4 space tile
2. Steering wheels for the controls

Not so excited about

1. The buckets instead of the original RCS thruster piece. If the buckets didn't have the dimples I'd be OK.

[Elephant Knight]

I think using the buckets as the thruster piece is brilliant. It upscales it just a bit, which works great for this ship. I am excited to get red spacemen again (And more white with nice logos).

The 2x4 printed tile, It's nice. I don't know if I prefer it over a slope, though.

I think this has less conversation surrounding it then the castle because there is less controversy about it. A lot of that thread (That I have read, holy crap, is it long now!) seems to be people arguing over the too many female minifigs in the set. This space set, with just a few exceptions, seems to be universally loved and almost everyone seems to be excited about it.

EKnight

[icm]

I love everything about it, I’ve already written at length about that in this thread. Not much more to say until I have it in hand and put together.

[danth]

1 hour ago, technicfanatic said:

https://jaysbrickblog.com/reviews/review-lego-10497-galaxy-explorer-2022/

Nice link. That reviewer also suspects the black air tank is a possible hint for an upcoming black spaceman GWP!

I didn't notice that the new radar print had a Blacktron "bogie" indicator on it until seeing those pics.

1 hour ago, jodawill said:

I've been surprised by how little discussion there is around this set compared to the Lion Knights Castle. I would have thought there would be about the same amount of love for classic space as there is for castle, but apparently not? Personally, I just can't stop thinking about both of these sets. It's all I've been able to think about ever since they were rumored.

I think a big part of it is that Lego hasn't cultivated their Lego Space fandom at all in recent years. They've neglected Castle too, but Castle has a bit of a revitalization after the Creator 3-in1 Castle and Medieval Blacksmith. And they also got the Forest Hideout reveal leading up to the big Castle. There's just more to talk about over there.

1 hour ago, jodawill said:

What does everyone think of the part selection in this set, particularly the use of the 2x4 tile instead of a slope for the logo? Do people like this choice? Do people like the use of wacky parts like the buckets and barrels for the thrusters, or would you have preferred a more traditional build? Some transparent yellow plates would have been a great choice over that rear windshield. The walkie talkies and metal detectors aren't hard to find, but the glaring lack of them here seems a bit odd.

How does everyone else feel about this? Do you feel let down by the parts selection like me, or are there some parts here you're really looking forward to?

I'm pretty happy with the tiles. I really like the big logo and some of the computer tiles. The tile that's half grate/vent and half control panel is kind of a head scratcher though.

I think there is a walky talky included.

[jodawill]

1 hour ago, Elephant Knight said:

I think using the buckets as the thruster piece is brilliant. It upscales it just a bit, which works great for this ship. I am excited to get red spacemen again (And more white with nice logos).

Yeah, it is brilliant and it looks good. It makes it less of a "parts pack," but perhaps I'll reuse their technique myself in my own MOCs.

Quote

I think this has less conversation surrounding it then the castle because there is less controversy about it. A lot of that thread (That I have read, holy crap, is it long now!) seems to be people arguing over the too many female minifigs in the set. This space set, with just a few exceptions, seems to be universally loved and almost everyone seems to be excited about it.

There's also just a lot more to talk about. It's such a big set, people have been trying to understand the ins and outs of it for weeks. This set, being smaller, is more obvious in how it's built. I'm surprised though that no one else has tried recreating it in this thread.

4 minutes ago, danth said:

Nice link. That reviewer also suspects the black air tank is a possible hint for an upcoming black spaceman GWP!

If that happens, that might be even bigger news than this set, honestly, especially if it includes a ship.

4 minutes ago, danth said:

I didn't notice that the new radar print had a Blacktron "bogie" indicator on it until seeing those pics.

What is this "bogie" you speak of?

I also didn't realize until I looked at that photo that it has a screen of a live video feed of one of the astronauts. That's a cool piece.

4 minutes ago, danth said:

I'm pretty happy with the tiles. I really like the big logo and some of the computer tiles. The tile that's half grate/vent and half control panel is kind of a head scratcher though.

Huh. For some reason, I thought from previous photos that that piece was a 1x2 tile, almost identical to the original. I'm confused by this as well. The 1x2 version would have been preferable...

4 minutes ago, danth said:

I think there is a walky talky included.

Yeah, but only one. It's not a big deal since the part is widely available. But it's a bit of an odd choice not to have someone for him to talk to. Maybe the other receiver is built into the ship? Maybe it's that video screen tile.

[Lyichir]

To be honest I'm mostly happy with the parts and techniques used in this set. A part of that is not being super-married to authenticity, (only having experienced original classic space stuff secondhand) and a part is feeling like some of the parts usage in the original set had to do more with the limited number of parts available back then anyway. For instance, I've never been super fond of the use of studded plates as windscreens or skylights in the original sets—visibility through them isn't great compared to a dedicated window or windscreen element. And I think the bucket technique for the directional thrusters is extremely clever and works well for the "upscaled" proportions of the ship (as well as allowing the thrusters to pivot). The new printed computer tiles in this are great and I wouldn't be surprised to see at least some of them reused elsewhere.

I do think it's a slight shame that none of the windscreens in this set are genuinely new in Trans. Yellow (especially since I've been trying to MOC a base inspired by this and have been frustrated slightly by the lack of large modern window glass or panels in that color). But for the purposes of this set, the angled double windscreen this set uses is hugely creative and works extremely well for visibility and access to the spacious interior. And we've been lucky to see other Trans. Yellow parts introduced for other themes including Lego Batman, so this is hardly our last chance to get parts like that. Maybe if this set sells well enough, it could even be followed up with by some sort of moonbase set!

[icm]

https://jaysbrickblog.com/news/lego-10497-galaxy-explorer-2022-alternate-builds/
 

The best B and C models in any set in years, IMO!

[jodawill]

43 minutes ago, Lyichir said:

To be honest I'm mostly happy with the parts and techniques used in this set. A part of that is not being super-married to authenticity, (only having experienced original classic space stuff secondhand) and a part is feeling like some of the parts usage in the original set had to do more with the limited number of parts available back then anyway. For instance, I've never been super fond of the use of studded plates as windscreens or skylights in the original sets—visibility through them isn't great compared to a dedicated window or windscreen element. And I think the bucket technique for the directional thrusters is extremely clever and works well for the "upscaled" proportions of the ship (as well as allowing the thrusters to pivot). The new printed computer tiles in this are great and I wouldn't be surprised to see at least some of them reused elsewhere.

You know, the funny thing is that I agree with almost all of the positive things being said about this set. My feelings are incredibly mixed on this one. I hope I'm not coming off as super critical, because that's not how I feel about this. I partly just wanted to generate some discussion because people just weren't talking about the set.

I've never considered the transparent yellow plates to be actual windshields. I've thought of them as just a way to let light through and their main purpose was to look cool. The studded look of the original sets is most of their charm. I was about to say that a large transparent yellow tile would have been a good compromise between the two styles, but the large tiles do have tubes on the bottom, so that probably wouldn't fit the bill. The 8x16 has never appeared in transparent colors, presumably for this reason.

Also, I don't think I've mentioned it, but I'm really happy with the yellow windows included in this set. It took me a while to notice them. I think it's a newer part, but it has a very old school look to it that I think will go well with more traditional models.

43 minutes ago, Lyichir said:

I do think it's a slight shame that none of the windscreens in this set are genuinely new in Trans. Yellow (especially since I've been trying to MOC a base inspired by this and have been frustrated slightly by the lack of large modern window glass or panels in that color). But for the purposes of this set, the angled double windscreen this set uses is hugely creative and works extremely well for visibility and access to the spacious interior. And we've been lucky to see other Trans. Yellow parts introduced for other themes including Lego Batman, so this is hardly our last chance to get parts like that. Maybe if this set sells well enough, it could even be followed up with by some sort of moonbase set!

Yeah, I hope you're right. I want this set to sell well so we can get more of this stuff. We still need blue and black minifigures, and there's a ton of parts I'd like to see. I always thought we'd see a set like this after they released Benny's Space Squad. I knew they wouldn't just bring that helmet back for a little tease like that. And I can't tell you how many years I begged for that part to make a comeback. People always said they would never bring them back because the chinstraps broke, and my response was always, "Well, why not make them thicker?" I'm really happy we finally have them again after all these years. The modern helmets look good in other contexts, but they always looked strange on the classic space rereleases.

Anyway, I'm sure my thoughts and feelings toward this set will change once I actually build it. I always find that my opinion of a set increases dramatically once I actually have it in hand. I can sit back and criticize sets I haven't built all day, but the reality is, Lego is always fun, even if it's not the best design of all time.

[Lyichir]

51 minutes ago, icm said:

https://jaysbrickblog.com/news/lego-10497-galaxy-explorer-2022-alternate-builds/
 

The best B and C models in any set in years, IMO!

They're great-looking!

Honestly I'm a little unsure which of these I'll build first... as more of a casual Space fan I don't really feel the need to get multiple copies of this set, but I DO want to try building all three models. So should I start with the smallest and work my way up to the main model? Or build the main model first and then take it apart to build these smaller ones (even though I'll probably want to rebuild the main model when all is said and done)? It's hard to decide. I suppose when the instructions are available I can preview all three models by building them on Stud.io to get a feel for how much I really want to build each in real life.

[Aanchir]

14 hours ago, jodawill said:

I've been surprised by how little discussion there is around this set compared to the Lion Knights Castle. I would have thought there would be about the same amount of love for classic space as there is for castle, but apparently not? Personally, I just can't stop thinking about both of these sets. It's all I've been able to think about ever since they were rumored.

I think for me it's partly that the Lion Knights' Castle is a bigger set with more stuff to talk about — including some details that were not obvious in the official pics/videos or Fan Media Days interviews, and thus have only become clear in recent reviews! In the case of this set, there have been fewer new/hidden details to discover after the initial reveal.

The Galaxy Explorer is also a more purely open-ended playset without any implied "storyline", at least from what I've seen so far — whereas the castle has some blurbs in the instruction manual that tease potential storylines surrounding the three factions depicted, and play features that serve as clear "story starters" (like the secret tunnel the Forestmen can use to sneak in and out of the castle, or their hidden "escape route" from the dungeons). So that stuff gives us a little more to discuss around that set, at least for those of us who enjoy that type of thing.

They're both fantastic sets in their own right, though — no doubt about that! And definitely great inspiration and parts packs for "throwback" MOCs of our own!

12 hours ago, jodawill said:

What is this "bogie" you speak of?

"Bogie"/"Bogey" is aviation/military slang for "An unidentified aircraft, especially as observed as a spot on a radar screen and suspected to be hostile." I think this ominous Blacktron indicator on the radar screen fits the bill in that regard!

[TeriXeri]

It's quite interesting, that, for such a known part, the red airtank is only just coming back this year in 2 normal sets after 35+ years (I don't count Service, or Vintage minifig packs as widely sold retail sets)

Red space helmet also has been 37 years.

 

Edited July 20, 2022 by TeriXeri

[jodawill]

I remember seeing a review where someone mentioned that people would complain about the fact this set isn't built on top of a bunch of plates like the original. It does have some innards, but if you look at this photo, you can see the bottom does have that nostalgic plate look, and it includes plenty of wing pieces for MOCs. I'm actually really happy looking at it from this view. And when you look at a profile photo, it appears that the ship is only about 5/3 a brick thick, which is pretty good for a ship this scale so it feels sleek instead of bulky (keeping in mind that most ships back then were just a single plate thick). That also makes me wonder what the landing gear retracts into. Is the landing gear less than a brick thick?

Has anyone else seen the back of the ship as a face? It's pretty funny once you notice it.

 

I also just noticed today that the set has 1x2 transparent yellow bricks. I didn't realize that part is still in production. (Apparently it never disappeared - it's 7 cents on Bricklink.) I'll need to buy some more of those. Those will go great with the windshield from 70821.

 

The asteroids tile is pretty cool. I imagine people will very quickly use it to make an arcade MOC. That would be really cool. You could even combine it with the classic space tile from this set.

 

49 minutes ago, Aanchir said:

"Bogie"/"Bogey" is aviation/military slang for "An unidentified aircraft, especially as observed as a spot on a radar screen and suspected to be hostile." I think this ominous Blacktron indicator on the radar screen fits the bill in that regard!

Ok, I see it now. I've never owned a Blacktron set, so I forgot that they had that triangular logo.

[Lyichir]

22 minutes ago, jodawill said:

I remember seeing a review where someone mentioned that people would complain about the fact this set isn't built on top of a bunch of plates like the original. It does have some innards, but if you look at this photo, you can see the bottom does have that nostalgic plate look, and it includes plenty of wing pieces for MOCs. I'm actually really happy looking at it from this view. And when you look at a profile photo, it appears that the ship is only about 5/3 a brick thick, which is pretty good for a ship this scale so it feels sleek instead of bulky (keeping in mind that most ships back then were just a single plate thick). That also makes me wonder what the landing gear retracts into. Is the landing gear less than a brick thick?

Yeah, the landing gear uses some of the tiled bases from the Super Mario sets, so it's 2 plates thick at the corners and one plate thick in the middle. That allows it to fold up nice and snug into the body of the craft. You can get a good look at the underside of it with landing gear folded out in this picture from Brickset:

[danth]

1 hour ago, Aanchir said:

"Bogie"/"Bogey" is aviation/military slang for "An unidentified aircraft, especially as observed as a spot on a radar screen and suspected to be hostile." I think this ominous Blacktron indicator on the radar screen fits the bill in that regard!

Oops, looks like Bogey is the correct spelling so I messed that up. Thanks for clarifying.

[danth]

4 hours ago, icm said:

The best B and C models in any set in years, IMO!

Thanks for the link!

Interesting...the pilot in the smallest ship is leaning back a bit. In the original set, the pilot sat down between the wings, which isn't duplicated here. You can see the bottom of the pilot compartment here; it's the grey inverted slope bricks under the wings:

I might need to modify the new 918 build to lower the cockpit, which would match the original and get that pilot more room to sit up.

[icm]

Yeah, I think I will too.  I hope it'll be as simple as shifting the seating position back by one stud, there seems to be enough depth in the structure to accomodate an upright or nearly upright seating position.  For example, the pilot in the 75301 X-wing leans pretty far back, but it's really easy to shift the seating position back by one stud and then the pilot sits close to upright.  I'm also going to want to install some kind of minimal retractable landing gear on the 918, hopefully using leftover parts from the set.

Edited July 20, 2022 by icm

[jodawill]

I've never seen anyone talk about this before - I'm really glad they don't make those wedge plates with the corner cutout anymore. As much as I love the look of those classic sets, those pieces always drove me nuts. As a kid, I always had a hard time getting them to fit together in the way I wanted. I'm not sure what the point of that was. It's being used in 918 as a way to make the red lights flush with the plate, but that's pretty unnecessary. I wonder what the designers had in mind when they made that notch.

[icm]

I agree with that.  Modern wedge plates without the corner notch are much better.  Also modern wedge plates have angle ratios that are easier to work with: 1/1, 1/2, 1/3, 1/4, 1/6.  The old wedge plates are 3/7, which is between 1/2 and 1/3.  Every now and then, though, I wish there was a modern 3/7 wedge plate with stud notches, because sometimes I just want something in between a 1/2 angle ratio and a 1/3 angle ratio ....

[jodawill]

2 minutes ago, icm said:

I agree with that.  Modern wedge plates without the corner notch are much better.  Also modern wedge plates have angle ratios that are easier to work with: 1/1, 1/2, 1/3, 1/4, 1/6.  The old wedge plates are 3/7, which is between 1/2 and 1/3.  Every now and then, though, I wish there was a modern 3/7 wedge plate with stud notches, because sometimes I just want something in between a 1/2 angle ratio and a 1/3 angle ratio ....

Wow. That explains a lot. I never thought about the angles. It's been a long time since I tried to build with one of those plates. I just remember I got really frustrated with them as a kid. It seemed like they just never worked. I'm sure it was related to the angles.

[icm]

It wasn't just the angles.  It was also because of the 1x1 notch at the wider-angle corner.  But mostly it was because they didn't have notches for studs along the edge, so they couldn't be layered on top of each other or other plates.  The notched edges of modern wedge plates are the real game-changer in use case compared to the old wedge plates.

[jodawill]

1 minute ago, icm said:

It wasn't just the angles.  It was also because of the 1x1 notch at the wider-angle corner.  But mostly it was because they didn't have notches for studs along the edge, so they couldn't be layered on top of each other or other plates.  The notched edges of modern wedge plates are the real game-changer in use case compared to the old wedge plates.

You're bringing back some really bad memories. I'd also forgotten that they couldn't be layered. I'm wondering now how long it's been since I've tried to build with those. I really don't spend enough time appreciating how much better the modern wedge plates are.

[technicfanatic]

23 minutes ago, jodawill said:

I wonder what the designers had in mind when they made that notch

I thought that notch was very useful. It allowed me to chain wedge plates together to make a wing and to join wedges of different angles. I suppose they aren't strictly needed - all you need is the wedge to end pointily, rather than flat. It is possible to chain wedges and plates with a single 2 x N join plate to make a large wing when the notch is there, because the wedges overlap. Without the notch you need more join plates.

[TeriXeri]

Old wing plates were revolutionairy at the time, but I do like the modern versions a lot more for building.

Old versions of wedges include the old 7x12 wings or 3x4 wedge without notches which you could not put fully on studded areas.

 

[Lord Insanity]

 

23 hours ago, jodawill said:

What does everyone think of the part selection in this set, particularly the use of the 2x4 tile instead of a slope for the logo?

The logo printed on the 2x4 tile is one of my favorite parts of the set.  I find tile logos far more useful than slope logos.  Beside we have lots of slope logos already, we have never gotten a good tile logo print of the classic space logo.  The same applies to the computer tiles.  We have tons of computer slopes (surely you have "bricklinked" a lot of those over the years right?)  but we have very few tiles that work as displays and screens.  One of my favorite legacy tiles is the "M-tron computer" 1x2, so getting three of the the modern "almost the same thing" is really nice too.  The classic space legacy 1x2 tile remake being combined with a 1x2 grate is the biggest miss of the new prints for me.  I mean it is better than not having the print at all, but they really should have just dropped the grate and made a straight up 1x2 legacy computer print.

 

6 hours ago, danth said:

Interesting...the pilot in the smallest ship is leaning back a bit. In the original set, the pilot sat down between the wings, which isn't duplicated here. You can see the bottom of the pilot compartment here; it's the grey inverted slope bricks under the wings:

I might need to modify the new 918 build to lower the cockpit, which would match the original and get that pilot more room to sit up.

I noticed that too.  Seems like minor miss.  I dislike how flat all three versions of the ship are.  I always saw the wings as being low but not the actual bottom of the ships.  918 looks really off because it wasn't just landing struts and downward rocket cones causing an optical illusion.  918 actually has part of the ship below the wing line.  An excuse to build and modify, oh darn. 

 

Minor nitpicks aside, this is still easily the best Space set in years.

[CP5670]

12 hours ago, Lord Insanity said:

 

The logo printed on the 2x4 tile is one of my favorite parts of the set.  I find tile logos far more useful than slope logos.  Beside we have lots of slope logos already, we have never gotten a good tile logo print of the classic space logo.  The same applies to the computer tiles.  We have tons of computer slopes (surely you have "bricklinked" a lot of those over the years right?)  but we have very few tiles that work as displays and screens.  One of my favorite legacy tiles is the "M-tron computer" 1x2, so getting three of the the modern "almost the same thing" is really nice too.  The classic space legacy 1x2 tile remake being combined with a 1x2 grate is the biggest miss of the new prints for me.  I mean it is better than not having the print at all, but they really should have just dropped the grate and made a straight up 1x2 legacy computer print.

Agreed, tiles are generally more useful than printed slopes or bricks, especially since you can always set them at an angle to get the same look as slopes. I hope they offer that tile on Bricks and Pieces (or whatever it's called now), so we can get them in decent quantity.