Henchmen4Hire

Tiger Shark Attack (#7773) - Overview and Photography

Recommended Posts

Being used to reviewing larger action figures, I found that reviewing LEGO sets has proved to be a different beast to tackle. How do you cover everything when there are so many little bits and bobs to play with and modify? It's not possible, so all I can do is give an overview of the set and hope the pretty pictures keep you entertained along the way! So if you can sit through a few generic pictures, you'll be treated to a quick comic. :classic:

Tiger Shark Attack (7773) - Aqua Raiders 2 (2007)

Retail Price: $29.99

Piece Count: 339

Figures Included: Aqua Raiders (x2)

Mini-fig Accessories: Flippers (x4), Air Tanks (x2), Spear Guns (x2), Black Spear, Helmets (x2), Control Panel Tile, Gems (x3), Gold Coins

Helpful Links:

Peeron

Brickset

comic4.jpg

This set's name has no fancy frills (but has a few gills), it gets straight to the point, "TIGER SHARK. HERE. NOW. TIME TO BE EATEN!" I'd love to rename a few other sets to be this concise, for better or worse; I'd rename a lot of them to things like "Ugly Boat Sinks" and "Expensive Ugly Blocky Spaceship is Ugly."

Har har, as you can tell I'm not a fan of everything LEGO puts out, but sometimes sets like these make my jaw drop. I can't remember the last time a set made me think "I would totally pay 30 bucks for that set!", so imagine how happy I was when I managed to get this beefy set for half the price! The two main playthings seem large in my hands and will seem even bigger in those of a child (I've got to work on rewording my sentences...), this set is definitely worth the retail price.

th_sub1.jpg

sub2.jpg

Look how awesome this sub is! It's called a "Battle Submarine", how cool is that? Even if the bumblebee colors aren't your bag, you have to appreciate how much sleeker and sexier it looks than vehicles from earlier diving themes. The cockpit is big enough for one Raider to fit in comfortably, with 2 levers and a cleverly attached fold-out display panel. All 4 turbines and 2 fins in front can swivel to add more realism when on display. To keep that giant shark away from the pilot it has a tough windshield (heh, watershield?) held on by clicky-hinges to add a sense of security. Unfortunately, you'll probably tear the shield off every now and then because the hinges themselves aren't actually secured.

If the unpredictable glass won't save you, there's always that harpoon gun or big cannon in front! It shoots hard enough to knock a few teeth out of the shark's mouth so it's definitely effective! If you don't like it, you can always remove the cannon and replace it with some curved slopes to keep the sub streamlined.

The harpoons underneath can't be fired, you'd probably lose an eye if they were able to :tongue:

th_shark1.jpg

shark2.jpg

Look at it! Look into the face of your doooooom! You not only get a rad submarine, two brave bearded Aqua Raiders, gems, a gold dish, and a harpoon gun but you also get SEAWEED! No, wait, I mean you also get A HUGE MAN-EATING SHARK! Eating people isn't its only good quality, it also has articulation! The mouth opens, the head can swivel all the way around and tilt sideways, the side fins are on clicky-hinges to tilt up and down, the entire back half can tilt sideways via some weird rubber contraction (hey, it works!), and the lower rear fin is on a clicky-hinge. You can get some pretty natural poses with all those joints combined.

The colors go from darker gray to lighter gray to white at he bottom like a real Tiger Shark, all the major fins are present, the head-piece is printed with a silver speckle pattern, some scars that look like they made by Wolverine, and hungry eyes. Building this thing was a joy, I kept saying wow every time I noticed another detail or feature. Take for instance how the tips of the teeth perfectly line-up to fit in the little holes under the red round plate, how do they plan that kind of stuff!? Is it all just happy coincidence? It's amazing what can be made with a pile of bricks and some imagination, I didn't think it would be possible to make a good-looking shark with LEGO bricks, but here we have it! Being wrong feels so good.

A con, the head must be gripped securely before moving it or else it'll explode into pieces (squeeze the top and bottom to keep the bricks together). There are noticeable gaps in the body to let the body parts move, I'm fine with them but my younger sister didn't like them, she also thought the mouth was too blocky.

It's okay Bruce, at least I still love you. :laugh: Whoever designed this shark, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE be awesome again and make a Giant Squid and Killer Whale! The squid goes great with Pirate sets and The Killer Whale can be Sharky's drinking buddy.

Okay, enough yapping, now more pics!

comic1.jpg

comic2.jpg

comic3.jpg

A FEW MINUTES LATER...

comic5.jpg

Edited by DrNightmare

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

So if it isn't a real review, why did you put - Review on it?:wacko:

Nice comic and everything, with some insightful text, but man, I wouldn't call this a review. It is possible, and it can be taught. For example, the Reviewer's Academy. It's a program right here on the website to teach members how to make great reviews. You can find the entry thread here.

I really did like your comic, by the way. Funny!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Hilarious! Very unique review. I wish this set was still available though, it looks great

"Unique" like a tasty new juice-blend or "unique" like the cute pink fuzzy fungus that grows on spoiled fruit? :tongue:

It is still available by the way!... on ebay. xD Ask sellers to ship it loose without the box and you can shave money off shipping, the pieces all fit into a flat rate envelope ($5-$6, it's too heavy to ship first class). If the box is important to you, then you'll have to suffer the crazier prices.

So if it isn't a real review, why did you put - Review on it?:wacko:

Because then someone would complain "why izn't dis labeled a revieewww since you'r reviewing it sort of!"

I can't win! :laugh:

Nice comic and everything, with some insightful text, but man, I wouldn't call this a review. It is possible, and it can be taught. For example, the Reviewer's Academy. It's a program right here on the website to teach members how to make great reviews. You can find the entry thread here.

I really did like your comic, by the way. Funny!

Nnnnnaaahhhhhh, I'm okay doing these fake reviews :laugh: I've seen the lengthy ones with a million pictures of instructions and slightly different angles of the set, I'd rather show off the features/flaws in comic form (yes, which granted, I didn't do much of here!).

But yeah, I completely agree this isn't a magnificent review, I could have gone into more detail like the minifigures' design, the cavity in the shark's mouth that lets you stuff a figure in there, alternate builds, how easily the teeth can get knocked-out etc., that'll be for next time.

And thanks for reading!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Here we go, more pics :laugh:

comic6.jpg

comic7.jpg

I absolutely love this new AquaRaider design, snorkels on a helmet still look weird to me but the colors all mesh together nicely. The large manly zipper is useful for using while wearing gloves (a real-world feature) and the silver utility pouches remind me of the pouch-obsessed '90s comic book characters we all love so much :tongue: The silver probably suggests they're supposed to be metal compartments, which makes them even cooler.

The beard and stubble only add to the badassitude, and kinda makes sense that they would have them, who has time to shave when you're fighting giant sharks every day?

Oh yeah, and I don't even mind the powder blue of these uniforms, if the new Alien sets have designs as smart as these, I'll definitely give them a second chance.

Edited by DrNightmare

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Lol, it is a review (though not a very thorough one xD ), it's just not what you guys are used to I guess. I'll work on it

Edited by DrNightmare

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Well, Eurobricks has a standard for reviews, one which even those who are not members of the academy conform to. This is more of an Overview of a set than a review. Or even a collection of quite sharp photos.

I can re-title it if you like. Overview or Photography would give the intent of your first post in a much better manner than Review currently does.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

If it helps everyone sleep easy, then fine, change the title :tongue:

I can't help myself xD

comic8.jpg

Clearer shot of the front and back, they really are handsome little devils.

Edited by DrNightmare

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

You can create the illusion that two minigs are seated in the sub at once by removing the legs from one of them. There's a 1x2 space behind the pilot's chair where you can stick the torso.

cp1.jpg

cp2.jpg

cp3.jpg

cp4.jpg

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

It sure seems you've been really having fun with your Tiger Shark Attack set DrNightmare! I never knew this set existed, so somehow even if this is not a formal review, thanks for sharing. BTW, good job on the comic strips! :thumbup:

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I actually really like your approach to a review. It kind of makes me want the set more than some of the real reviews out there. Great photography and hilarious comics!

Enpaz

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Best review of years. All years.

I demand more reviews from your hand!

Now about set- Great pieces and great models. As you say very "sexy". I hate fact this series was not available in Poland :sceptic:

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

It sure seems you've been really having fun with your Tiger Shark Attack set DrNightmare! I never knew this set existed, so somehow even if this is not a formal review, thanks for sharing. BTW, good job on the comic strips! :thumbup:

Yarrr! It's a fun set! The shark from the Atlantis set looks cool though kind of thin compared to this beefy cousin of his :tongue:

Reading some of the stuff on here, I too found some sets that passed me by.

And thanks!

I actually really like your approach to a review. It kind of makes me want the set more than some of the real reviews out there. Great photography and hilarious comics!

Enpaz

Inspiring words! I don't have a good lighting setup (I'm used to taking very dark pictures) so I'm glad you folks still like the pictures and comics!

Best review of years. All years.

I demand more reviews from your hand!

Now about set- Great pieces and great models. As you say very "sexy". I hate fact this series was not available in Poland :sceptic:

Give this man a cookie! :laugh: I'll be reviewing a few more sets though they'll be about the same size or smaller than this one. (The light box I have isn't big, have to make a new one) I was going to help start a LEGO review site a few months ago but the idea fell through :(

Sometimes I take for granted how readily available most LEGO sets are to us in the US, makes me appreciate them even more.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Yeah, I deleted most of the stuff where the pictures were hosted, so they were probably deleted too. Kind of a shame really, I had a few reviews like this one and now they're gone forever. Meh. lol

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    No registered users viewing this page.