Janus Posted May 31, 2006 Set: Air Temple Price: $30.00 USD Elements: 400 Minifigures: 4 or 5 (Avatar Aang, Sokka, Fire Nation Soldier, Fire Bender, and 5 if you count the Momo piece) Blurry Figures Clear Figures + Catapult and Tank Momo! The Momo piece is rubbery, like the Exo Force hair, probably so the ears wouldn't snap off. I apologize for the quality of these first pictures (the ones with Wood Floor and White Background), I took them in a bad location, and then switched to a better place for the rest (White Counter and Blue Background). I was also using a different camera which, when uploaded, made them very large. The rest should be fine, however. Box: Box Front Box Back Inside The Box: Everything Baseplate, Stickers, Plastic Notice the small amount of stickers. This pleased Janus, because Janus is very bad at putting stickers on. The Air Temple: Temple Front Temple Back Temple Back 2 Temple Left Side Temple Right Side Temple Back Close Up: Armory Temple Back Close Up: Air Gate Lock Temple Back Close Up: Mountain/Avatar Launcher This is well done. The mountain peices were done wonderfully, and look great. Many studless white 1x1 plates and 1x2 sloping bricks make it look snowy. The gate itself is also quite nice looking, and I think I've figured out the lock, which is so simple it's complex. It's in the locked position in the picture, and it is unlocked by spinning one of the wheels in front. The Armory was a nice touch, and more katanas and axes are always welcome. The Avatar Launcher...well, let's just say if you are trying to simulate his midair death, it's perfect! Lots of tan pieces in this set, and plenty of white studless plates and slopes (to be exact, 7x 1x1 white studless plates, 5x 1x2 white studless plates, and 12 1x2 white sloping bricks). The Tank, Catapult, and Strange Extras: The Tank The Tank's Winch The Catapult Barrel, Crate, and Tank Top I love this fire nation tank. Spot on to the show (Season 1, Episode 17: The Northern Air Temple), with the nice winch and everything. The Winch actually came fully strung in the package, with rubber bands keeping it together (I don't remember LEGO ever doing that before). It doesn't have a wheel to turn it, but it's interesting because unlike previous winches, this one clicks and holds in place. Perhaps these came out before, during my dark ages, but this is my first fully-strung-clicky-winch. The Catapult is very nice, and uses an interesting mechanism that makes it fire forward by pressing back, unlike and much better than the 'pult on the Fire Nation Ship. It (and the disk launcher) fire fairly well. I give TLC credit also on including the trans green "slime bombs", also from Episode 17. There are 10 of them total in the set, and I don't know if they are available in that quantity anywhere else. The gray Tank Top is an alternate top for the Tank, should you choose to remove the Disk Launcher. The Crate stores your extra disks (because when too many are in the launcher, they fly out of the top when you launch them), and the Barrel...I don't understand. But it's there, it's a barrel, and I guess you can never have too many. I was very pleased with this set. Great design, nice figures, great extras. It even has a wonderful Part to Price ratio, despite the large tower piece. This set, along with the other Nickelodeon license sets, is a step back to classic sets, meaning a step forward to better, less <insert that tiresome argument> sets. Initial Score: 10/10 Minus 1 for Avatar Death Launcher Final Score: 9/10 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sam89 Posted May 31, 2006 Good review. It's good to see that the roof piece isn't a sticker. I probably won't be getting this set (if it's ever released over here), but it looks pretty good. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
eNiGMa Posted May 31, 2006 Thanks for the review! I love this set for the baseplate, the tan slopes, all the different kinds of snow pieces, and the figs. A definite "will buy"! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
oo7 Posted June 1, 2006 good review Janus *sweet* i've never watched Avatar so could someone please explain to me: A. The Significance of the monkey-cat refered to as "Momo" B. why this "Avatar" has a blue arrow on his head and lastly C. what the hell type of religion is "air", they keep an armory in their temple??? :-D Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Janus Posted June 1, 2006 good review Janus *sweet* i've never watched Avatar so could someone please explain to me: A. The Significance of the monkey-cat refered to as "Momo" B. why this "Avatar" has a blue arrow on his head and lastly C. what the hell type of religion is "air", they keep an armory in their temple??? :-D Well, here's the basic plot. This world is divided into 4 nations, Air, Water, Earth, and Fire. Each nation has certain people that can "bend" their element, which basically means control it. For example, Airbenders can move air, create tornados, fly with a glider, etc. To keep peace, there is one person in the world, the Avatar, who can bend all four elements. Each time the Avatar dies, he is reborn to another nation in a cycle (Air, Water, Earth, then Fire.) Aang was an airbender, and also the next avatar 100 years ago (from present story time). When he was told that he was the avatar (they told him prematurely because the Fire Nation had been plotting attacks), he got afraid and flew away on his flying bison Appa. A storm hit, and they got thrown into icy seas, and somehow frozen inside a glacier. One hundred years passed, and Katara and Sokka, a young bender and warrior from the Southern Water Tribe, found him inside the glacier. In those hundred years, the Fire Nation had decimated the Air Nation (also called Air Nomads, for clarification), and every last Air Nomad in existance except him, and were now attacking the other two nations (Earth Kingdom and Water Tribes). Because Aang was frozen, he could not be trained in the 4 elements and could not keep the peace between the nations. Now it is up to him, with the help of his friends, to master the four elements and kill Fire Lord Ozai before the end of the summer, when a giant meteor will be used by the Fire Nation to decimate the last two nations. The arrow on Aang's head is just a tatoo given to monks of the Air nation such as himself. They live in temples like that, with some indigenous creatures such as flying bison and flying lemurs. Momo is possibly the last flying lemur in existance, and he was found by Aang and the others when they visited the Southern Air Temple. That should clarify things. Maybe we should make this it's own topic? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zane Posted June 1, 2006 Nice review. Could you take a pic of the comic on the box, and the one for the ship please? Thanks Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KMOI Posted June 2, 2006 Thanks very much for the review! I've always been curious about this set, so it's good to see that it turned out so well! I'm really happy about the way the figures turned out. I kinda feared Momo wouldn't be coloured at all, but I was wrong! I'm plesantly surprised about the Katanas, as it seemed the ninja pieces died off after Orient Expedition. Thanks to your review, I'll have to pick this one up! Seems Janus took care of the questions, so I don't have to answer those! :P Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
