[Review] 9470 Shelob Attacks

[JackJonespaw]

Name: 9470 Shelob Attacks

Theme: LEGO Lord of the Rings

Year: 2012

Pieces: 227

Minifigs: 3 Minifigures

Price: USD $19.99; £19.99

Flick Set

Bricklink

Brickset

INTRODUCTION

Lego. Lord of the Rings. I had always imagined these two coming together, but I never really much thought about what sets would be released if it came true. In the movie, this scene is in the third movie, The Return of the King. Not only does this set include the two most important characters, and Gollum, the creepy goblin-like thing, but this set also has a giant spider. But is Shelob like the other giant Lego spiders, or is she something different, and better?

THE BOX

The box shows Gollum lurking in a cave, while Sam fights Shelob near Frodo's petrified body. I love the yellow coloring - as non-LOTR like as it seems, I think that it fits perfectly. The map behind Sauron's finger is another great touch.

The back of the box shows different play features and views of the set. The burnt, yellowed papers with nails on them is a fantastic way of showing things. The map shows behind these, too.

INSTRUCTION BOOKLET

The instructions book features the same image as the front cover. Although my set didn't come with the cardboard, my instructions weren't bent or folded in the least - a nice surprise!

The inside has the ever-looming map. Thankfully, there is no trouble telling the difference between dark bley and black - although the dark bley is awfully dark.

THE MINIFIGURES

Frodo, Sam, and Gollum look great. The new Hobbit hair is great, and I can see many future uses for this. The ring is also great, a nice chrome gold, not the pearly gold color. Gollum also looks fantastic. Some people on Eurobricks have said that he looks a bit constipated, but I think that he looks like he is in uncontrollable rage.

The back printing is really fantastic, as are the alternate faces. I really like Frodo's paralyzed face. Sam's other face is interesting.

THE CAVE

An entrance or exit in Shelob's cave. This portion includes a catapult for Gollum to jump Hobbits, and a hole for Gollum to hide in.

The back of the cave shows off some more of the detail. I like how detailed this small part of the set is. The inclusion of all of the cheese slopes make it seem more natural of a cave than a blocky hole.

SHELOB (The Build)

The first ten steps of this model build the inside of Shelob. This will later be covered by slopes and tooth plates.

By the next ten steps, Shelob's legs have been built. This was by far the most annoying part of the build. There's just something I don't like about repetitive building. I really like the printed piece for Shelob's face. If it was a sticker, it would be much less straight.

The third ten step portion builds the inside mechanism for Shelob's string and the bottom of her rear portion. I like the mix of black, dark tan and red-brown.

The build ends by adding the top cover on the back part of Shelob. The gear underneath is for winding up string, but more on that later.

SHELOB (The Completed Spider)

Yes, this is the amazing finished model. I love every single bit of this build. The spider looks real! I had to stop myself from jumping the first few times I walked by it - it is remarkably well done.

As can be seen here, Shelob can roll around on two wheels, giving her smooth movement. I like this better than the boat studs. It makes her move better.

The rear view is the worst view. It shows the light bley gear and the dark red hook. I would have rather had a smaller hook for her; it would have made hooking on to things also easier.

And this is Shelob's one amazing play feature - string. This can stretch out over a foot, and it wraps around a minifig in a nice way.

Shelob's hook can stay put on anything pretty small. It's a kind of morbid move by Lego, but perfect for scaring boys' little sisters, I'm sure.

FINAL VERDICT

Playability: 10/10 (A Gollum catapult and string - genius!)

Design: 10/10 (How could I give anything that scares people by its realism less than at ten?)

Minifigs: 10/10 (Fantastic minifigs, nice, detailed, and recognizable.)

Pieces: 10/10 (Some good pieces, a nice printed piece and the Ring.)

Price: 10/10 (A nice price considering how many pieces.)

OVERALL GRADE: 10/10

The big ten out of ten. This is a great set, and with 227 pieces, I felt like I was finally getting my money's worth in a $20 set. As soon as you can get $20, go out and purchase this great set right away! Great minifigs and great models. I love it.

[just2good]

Nice review, 'JackJonespaw'!

This set is really good, but the build was a bit tedious to me. The figures are probably the best part (I love the Gollum 'figure').

Oh, and I'm done commenting on reviews for the day.

Edited June 18, 2012 by just2good

[jFox]

I agree with your verdict on this, it's a pretty fantastic set, and for only $20 I can't imagine a good reason to skip this one. Maybe if you're afraid of spiders... I really like the string mechanism too. The hook is a little unsightly when it's not attached to anything, but does a good job of securely wrapping up a poor minifigure.

[Lynx]

Nice review!

I voted "Below average" for this set. It is my least favourite of the LotR line, so far (haven't gotten the Orc Forge). I love the three minifigures - but that's about it. I'm not a big fan of brick-build creatures, in general, and LEGO Shelob has a few things I don't like:

- the robotic look

- the flimsy legs which come off too easily when bent

- the size (far too big; larger than Weathertop ruins, and not to scale with minifigures)

Lastly, the price tag (AU$ 40) is horrendous for this set. I understand that this is obviously different in the US, and a price of 20 bucks seems good indeed.

[lightningtiger]

Neat review 'JackJonespaw', I enjoyed building this set yesterday.....I can't wait to place the spider some where are freak out the wife !

This set I vote above average, the spider is better than the last one for HP and the accessories (spare sword and two spare rings) !

Brick On Review On !

[Hive]

- the size (far too big; larger than Weathertop ruins, and not to scale with minifigures)

Too big? I watched the movie yesterday, and I think the size is pretty spot on.

[b0bb33z3r]

Too big? I watched the movie yesterday, and I think the size is pretty spot on.

I agree, Shelob is more in scale than Weathertop. Weathertop is actually too small.

[Kayne]

Great review, and I find myself agreeing with you pretty much down the line. This is actually the one set that I would probably skip. But, my wife bought it for me as a gift. Now that I built it, I loved the build and it looks great. But, I usually tear apart my sets for pieces and when I finally do for this one, I think that some of the pieces in here will be a great addition to my collection for MOCing

[Deathleech]

This set initially didn't look that interesting to me. I usually like the sets with more army building type figures included and structures (like the Uruk-Hai Army set). The only real selling points in my eyes were Sam and Gollum, who are exclusive to the set as of right now. I gotta say though, after getting it and building/playing with it, this set REALLY impressed me. I pretty much agree with your review completely. For a 20 dollar set this one is an amazing value.

Too big? I watched the movie yesterday, and I think the size is pretty spot on.

I agree, Shelob is more in scale than Weathertop. Weathertop is actually too small.

I third that. Shelob's size is perfect. Weathertop on the otherhand, is pathetically small. In fact most of the building sets are. Helm's Deep, the Orc Forge, and Weathertop seem to be roughly 1/3 their real scale. The Mines of Moria and Shelob Attacks seem to be about spot on. I guess that's to be expected since those sets would cost a fortune if they were done more in scale.

Edited June 26, 2012 by Deathleech

[Ceroknight]

Thank you for the review!

Can't wait to get this!

[Torgar]

Thanks for the review! This is a great set, Shelob is awesome!

[Niku]

I just bought this set, is one of the best 20 dollars I have, three iconic minifigures, good accesories, and a wonderfull Shelob.

Thanks for this review it helped me to buy it.

I would recomend to get this set before is discontinued.

[BlueberryWaffles]

I love this set! This was my first LOTR set and I am very pleased with it. The main two, Gollum, and probably the best spider TLG ever made for $20!

[SheepEater]

http://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=74799