Rufus

Review Review: 21103 Back To The Future Time Machine

  

212 members have voted

  1. 1. How do you rate this set?

    • Poor
      16
    • Below Average
      22
    • Average
      41
    • Above Average
      66
    • Outstanding
      67


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Hi

needless to say i am a big fan of Rufus reviews.That one is another example for a very good and hard to beat review.

Your comparison between the Cuusoo and retail model is a great idea and make most critics shut up (including myself). The alego version is much sleeker, flatter and - as you wrote - looks more sporty! That is important. Showing both side by side was a very good idea! Showing the Volvo was an evil move hrhr.

Dino

Edited by Darth Dino

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Wow, the comparison of the Lego model and the Cuusoo model blew me away. On your pics, the Lego version looks much nicer, even with the hood. Incredible!

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That shield spelling error is very bad... I saw it immediately, maybe since I've lectured freshmen English in high school ;)

Nice Review Rufus :thumbup: The red wheels are very nice in the set (yesterday I noticed they don't exist in any other set, but some german has a bunch of them (1€ per piece)). The set is not that expensive either... 35€ probably as well.

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The set is not that expensive either... 35€ probably as well.

Guess again, it's € 50 in Europe, thanks Lego.

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Great review! Thank you!

But Marty does not seem comfortable to drive this time machine.

small_-_bttf.jpg

Such a shame!

Price on Lego Shop 41,99€

Edited by vean

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Rufus, I just noticed that you left out Mr. Fusion from the BTTF III version of the car. It should be there!

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When I check it out on the Lego site (belgium)it's € 49,99.

Strange and stupid.

edit, Netherlands, Luxemburg and Italy are 49,99 aswell; Germany and France are 41,99; Portugal and Spain are 39,99; but Finland is 64,99, poor nerds.

Edited by Bobskink

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Why don't you phone and ask?

this is exactly what i did :laugh:

according to the woman answering the phone it seams there is already a big run on the deloreans - just to stay save i had one put aside for me.

will pick mine up tomorrow then :grin: im defintly trying to mod it for the sloped hood and maybe make the whole car 1 stud wider

according to the woman in the legoshop and shop@home the price in germany is 39,99 € - which is ok for me

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Awesome review Rufus :sweet:. I'm very happy to see that not everyone just judges the model by the hood and say they won't buy it. I always thought the Cuusoo submitted model wasn't the best LEGO DeLorean I had seen, and hoped LEGO would improve on it when it passed review, which I can clearly see from your review that they did :sweet:. My only regret from this set is that they just tossed in a purple skateboard, instead of giving us the hoverboard. I know the hoverboard wouldn't fit with the version of Marty that they included, but it's just so iconic! If nothing else, they could have used a printed snowboard for it. In any case, I'm looking forward to picking this set up :sweet:

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Regarding the hoverboard, I think the problem is that (due to the Mattel logo used on the board in the film) Mattel owns some rights in the product and therefore LEGO cant make it.

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Now that's what I call a thorough review! Thanks so much rufus for taking such a long time to examine the facts and write a well constructed, balanced piece in the face of such AFOL criticism of the set.

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Wow, what a thorough and well-written review! I'm pleased to say it clearly illustrates the set's many virtues, and the whole thing is now much more attractive than it already was even after first seeing those disappointing photos of the final official model. It's a shame that the primary photo of it, the one adorning the box front (which will probably be the defining image most people associate with the set) shows it from what's arguably the worst-looking angle for the model. The many images in this review make clear that the model does look noticeably better from just about every other angle (something I'd already suspected after seeing the video review linked elsewhere).

TLG did a very classy job on the overall set - prints for all decorated elements including several unique to this set, the lavishly-produced manual and packaging with all the background info, various nifty movie-faithful details, parts and instructions for optional builds to represent the time machine's different configurations for different scenes... even if that darned hood still doesn't look quite right, I have to say TLG's designers did a fine job on the whole.

I want to mention my particular joy over the alternate expression for Doc Brown; his panicky look is just perfect. I find it incredibly endearing - it reminds me of how charmed I was years ago by how LEGO perfectly captured Han Solo's lopsided cocky smirk / smile, back when licensed characters were still yellow like any other minifigure, and how some years later they even found a way to translate the nightmarish shrunken head on Mola Ram's headdress to the adorable LEGO minifigure aesthetic. Doc Brown looks similarly great here, and his "Aiieee!!!" face is so winning I find it a tough call which face I'll use as the default display face.

Like others, I do intend to mod the set, but perhaps not so much as I intially thought I'd "have" to in order to be satisfied. I do want to also do more configurations than the three represented by the official set, though, like the alternate original configuration (with the long lightning rod antenna), or the very final configuration (with train wheels).

Regarding the hoverboard, I think the problem is that (due to the Mattel logo used on the board in the film) Mattel owns some rights in the product and therefore LEGO cant make it.

I suspect it's more a case of the hoverboard being used only when Marty and Doc are dressed differently from how he is here (Marty in his 2015 outfit disguised as his son, in the black leather jacket in '55, etc). Since the set includes minifigures of the characters as they appear only from the time machine's initial appearance, it doesn't come with all the other stuff they pick up and use over the course of their adventures. They could always have included the hoverboard and just not put Mattel's logo on it (like how the minifigure Short Round's cap doesn't have the NY emblem on it).

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Regarding the hoverboard, I think the problem is that (due to the Mattel logo used on the board in the film) Mattel owns some rights in the product and therefore LEGO cant make it.

That sounds about right. Isn't that the same reason why certain Toy Story characters couldn't be made as they were owned by other companies? Two examples being Mr Potatoe head and Slinky.

Looking at the model the only thing I think LEGO need to put on it would be the DMC logo.

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Three you say .... any special reason :laugh: ?

Good find!

Well i need one of each version on display :D

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Thanks for this wonderful review. Seeing a side-by-side comparison of the original proposed version and the final released version makes me quite impressed with the final model. As far as authenticity is concerned, neither is perfect (I think one of the greatest flaws with the final version is how the black stripe on the sides begins and ends on the doors, rather than continuing along the sides like on the original), but the finalized version just looks better... less like a big box, more like a sports car. Furthermore, I have no doubt that the final model offers a more enjoyable building experience. So no, many of the changes from the original proposal probably weren't necessary, but they improve the model considerably, and with TLG's policy of "only the best is good enough", it would have been irresponsible to settle for a simpler build that sacrificed accuracy, building experience, and aesthetics.

I will definitely be picking up this set!

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WTF Lego Australia?! $70?!?! It's cheaper than the Minecraft set in New Zealand!!!

Yeah WTF, LEGO sets are usually more expensive in NZ than in Oz (if you convert the $34.99US price into $A and $NZ the $NZ figure is a fair bit higher than the $A figure)

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It hasn't popped up in the USA site yet. In The Brothers Brick review it claims it will be on sale today in the US, everything else doesn't seem to say that though so we shall see! Terrific review also! I love the comparison between the original and the now released one. Reading it definitely got me over the hood of the car issue. I'm looking forward to getting my hands on this and adding it to my Delorean collection.

Edited by jneuman13

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Very good review, Rufus ! The comparison with the original MOC was a very good idea, and the final product is far better. Compromises had to be done, and sometimes people seem to forget it. The price, though, made me quite reluctant to buy it : 42€, even if it's lower than in some other European countries, is still quite high. x/ But at least we don't have Australian prices (which are a shame).

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It's out in Germany brand shops. Got mine 2 hours ago.

But there seems to be a box variation. There's no french writing on the box. It says "Back to the Future" on the left side...

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This set looks good, but I am not a big fan of car models. I am more interested in the minifigures that come with this set :classic:

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