pedro

Bit confuzzled as to why these are showing up for EVERY region in the world on S@H... except the UK? What's going on?

Thanks for the new round of pictures Hinckley. This is such BIG news. Some of these minifigs are stunningly good! I'm really excited about this new line. A few thoughts on each of the minifigs... Superman - Looks older a la Kingdom Come. The creases as his eyes lead me to think this. Makes me wonder if they'll cover KC too. That'd be so very cool. Wonder Woman - Hopefully she'll be included with her invisible jet, impulse set. Really nice printed details and I like her lasso prop, though I think it could've been longer to curve down over another minifig - it's a small niggle. Batman - Good 'ole Batman. I've got a few of him already, still a great fig though. Catwoman - They've tightened up the detail on her outfit... and her waist-line! Looks that bit sexier... Joker - Love his new expression, looks more manic/crazed/evil. That hairstyle suits him better too. Poison Ivy - Always felt the original Ivy had a pinched face - this is a huge improvement. Hair and torso pritning look superb. Wolvering - Logan looks great. I reckon he'll come with both hair AND mask... maybe not a cigar. Iron Man - I believe this quote sums it up: "Look at the size at o' that boys heid, it's like an orange on a toothpick!". Normal printed head would be best for this guy. This far into production I doubt it. Hulk - Great decision to make Hulk big methinks - can't wait to see his "HULK SMASH!" exprssion! Thor - Movie/Ultimates version? Looks fine to me though I'm probably least interested in him. Captain America - Very early stage for this guy by the looks of it. Will surely have those wings on the sides of his head. Hopefully LEGO will create the WWII version - I've always preffered that look. Then he can be fighting off some of my IJ Nazi's! I really am SOLD on these. Hope that the models themselves can backup the minifigs nicely. Now that's a fight I'd like to see! I reckon that'll be a given. Spidey's black suit is about as famous as his regular suit! I really like the Wolverine fig - I don't think LEGO will miss an opportunity to provide his mask with the figure. Curses! Foiled again! Back to the Nerdmobile!

Introduction I flew out to Vancouver recently with British Airways on a short business trip. It's a long flight at about 9 and a half hours. It doesn't matter how much diversionary material you pack along for a trip that length, you'll still find yourself perusing the inflight magazines... and possibly inventing amusing scenarios for the chracters that grace the safety card! British Airway's Highlife is the king of airline editions in that they have a rather nice shop selection... stocked with LEGO. Instant win! I hadn't travelled with them for a quite a while I flew at the chance to buy 7688 stunt plane as I flicked through the heavily leafed pages. 3 nights, 3 days and a dose of jet-lag later and I reached for the Highlife magazine to find the newest edition. I didn't think it likely there'd be a new set within it's pages, but was pleasantly surprised to find 7696 landed but ready for take-off from it's pages! Again I dived at the opportunity to get this, the latest arrival to the airline promotional fleet. And very glad I am that I did too... Stats Set name: Private Jet Set number: 7696 Theme: City Release date: 2011 Price: GBP 15 Pieces: TBC Minifigs: 2 Resources: Bricklink Highlife Shop The Box The first thing to notice about the box is that it follows the space-saving dimensions of LEGO's other airline promo sets - here compared with 7688 - and stream-lined so that many can be stocked in limited space. In the past I've still found that the boxes can suffer some crushing, but as you'll see by the pictures, this wasn't so bad this time (the box of 7688 was flawless...). The front of the box features a scene picturing the set in typical LEGO format, with a nice 3-quarter view of the jet and the captain personally greeting the business man prior to the flight. The environment behind them is pictured in typical LEGO cut-out sytle with the indistinct shape of airport and city in the background, completing the scene. The back of the box is split into 3 panes showing various actions and functionality shots such as the opening passneger compartment. As always, a minifig is depicted on the side to give an indication of scale - in this case the jovial, bearded captain. Contents Inside the box there's the instruction manual, 2 un-numbered plastic bags, 2 loose elements and a DSS for the tail fin. I did find it slightly odd that one wedge plate was loose and the other wasn't? There's a fair selection of parts. I hastily counted 110 but I'm not too sure. If anyone wants to count the number in the image above, be my guest . There's no uniques parts, with everything available in other LEGO sets. The instruction manual, folded in half so that it fits snugly into the box. ...and a random page from the manual. The Build There are 2 minifigs are included in the set are standard LEGO fayre: a captain in nicely printed uniform and a young, russet haired business man with suitcase. Both minifigs are composed of commonly found parts but are nice nonetheless, though I think the captian would look better with a black 'police' hat. As always, starting off simple.. ...each step adds only 2 or more bricks, but never more than a handful. I'd imagine this keeps things simple for the young 'uns. Wings are attached... ...and the engines are added. The jet takes on easily identifyable features and begins to take shape. The jet is build to open from the side so that the crew can easily be positioned within. There's even a little space for luggage! Finally the wheels are attached... this bird is ready for take-off! Finished Model The Private Jet in all it's glory. For it's size and parts count, this is a beautifully realised aircraft. Side view: the jet has a nice, aerodynamic shape to it. The details on the wings add to the sleek design. From the rear of the Private Jet, there's a small indent directly behind the engines due to construction constraints but this doesn't harm the overall aesthetic. Mr Entrepeneur embarked and ready for his flight. His suitcase fits neatly in the space behind his seat... though tends to shake around a bit if the flight gets bumpy! There is a small space right at the back of the plane whcih could be used as an alternate storage area or used for additional cargo. The front of the cockpit can be detached to position the captain at the controls. It's a snug fit but there's enough room for some basic posing. Conclusion Over the past couple of years' travels I seem to have inadvertently become a collector of airline promo sets... much to my delight! With the 7696 Private Jet, you get a superb, solid little private jet that's highly swooshable and in my opinion soars above the previous stunt-plane style offerings. It's a simple build, taking around 20 minutes, and reminds me of the classic passenger aircraft that LEGO used to be available but scaled down to a level of neat efficiency - for example it's great to see a modest interior in such a small model. There's even some potential to increase the capacity of the cabin by removing some of the elements that act as luggage storage. For £15 this set may not have the best price to parts ratio, but it's exclusivity and simple yet effective design make it well worth the investment. If you find yourself flying with British Airways then you can't gor far wrong investing in this, whether you fancy some in-flight building or savour it at home. Alternatively you can buy it from the Highlife shop online without having to step on a plane, just hit the link at the top of the review. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed the ride!

It was a great exhibition with plenty to see - I was happy I managed to get along. I must say all the MOCs and UCS sets were so much more impressive in person - as you'd expect - and it was really nice to meet everyone. Though only after leaving did I realise I'd not seent he new minifigs with the Executor! Nevermind... I've taken a few photos too so will post them when I get the opportunity.

Nice review - emphasises all our thoughts and feeling on this set. The minifig line-up is pretty good; the model itself incredibly mediocre. It really is just a mash-up of fragemnts from different scenes with no decent amount of attention given to any - and a few completely RANDOM bits thrown in. Glad to see that the stickers sheet is transparent (a small mercy). I spoke to soon about those aforementioned slopes which DO appear to be grained. Shame on you, LEGO. I really do wonder: who at LEGO HQ signed off on this one? There appears to have been a fair lack of accuracy control! I think the figures are one of the most appealing components of this set: new(ish) Han, new(ish) Leia, R-3PO, med droid... Luke in a nappy. Where it falls short on Hoth rebel troopers can easily be addressed by picking up aone or more Hoth rebel battlepacks of which there are plenty still on the shelves. You're NEVER going to get all the figures you think there should be in one set (Rieekan is so obscure I had to look him up - and I know my Star Wars) - case in point: there was much complaint about he lack of gunners in the 24+ strong Death Star!

My Mum told me to NEVER eat yellow icicles/snow... As much as I hate DSS (very much part of a club there), the transparent stickers are slightly more tolerable - I've not had quite the same degree of problems with them as with the paper variety. Seeing as there are transparent elements present this would seem to indicate designers have opted for those - it's a lesser of two evils! Hopefully the use of the slope you mention is just an oversight Anio and the production set will include smooth elements. Something like that! As others have mentioned maybe in form the 2x2 round brick represents a magnet/clamp os some kind; but also note that all the containers have jumper bricks which will easily attach to this. Cheers! Think I'll go and check it out right now...

Words escape how dissapointed I am that a set of this size carrying a price tag like this lacks a reasonable selection of unique printed elements. I wouldn't be half as disappointed if the quality of these stickers was any good, but after a few years they crumble and flake becoming a useless mess (and a bugger to remove). Maybe not. But maybe this should have been a serious consideration when it came to the creation of this set. Look at the Cars 2 theme: low cost sets with printed elements everywhere. It can be done. All the same, I still like this set. If I have the oppotunity, I'll head down to see the model in the flesh next Sunday.

Great scene Davor, sums up much of the battles we've become accustomed to in the Clone Wars with the few valiantly facing off the many! The setting looks very solid, nicely detailed and I like the splash of colour you've used in the markings. Brickdoctor made a good point about adding some kind of dynamic feature or event to the sceme - it's worth considering and would add that extra area of interest or excitement to the scene.

Nice link cavegod, cheers! That's a definite choice to buy someone for Christmas (myself included!). This'll be the start of a whole series probably.

Fantastic entry Matn, you've really set the scene: suitably overgrown, dank and menacing. Your Tia Dalma custom is wickedly great too. Best of luck in the contest!

It's a great entry, for sure! Nice work, Sebeus. I had actually considered an entry show-casing Jack vs. Kraken myself but alas, I've been unwell these past few days. When I saw this that ruled out any aspirations! Your Kraken maw looks great and I like the way you've gone the whole hog and built the cross-section of the ship complete with crew feverishly scurrying to their stations. Good luck in the contest matey.

Well, all in all this is a sterling effort. I'll look forward to seeing what you bring with version 2!

Congratualtions on your efforts all of you! Amazing and inspiring. So much detail, so much to see and so wondefully built. I'd just love to see this in person but alas, probably never will.

Plans yestreday, model today - you made quick work of this Stoutfiles! This is looking great so far. If you follow what has been suggested and remove one of your snowspeeders, you can always place it in the 'outside' section, crashed into the ground. If I could suggest anything further, it'd be to lighten up the floor in the hangar area: lighter shades, more patches of snow.

Aye, I read this too... was just poking fun at the fact. Celebration Chewie would just be... Chewie! Doubt that will happen. Does it matter if Chewie got a medal? Beating down Stormes and shooting up the place? They could never have infiltrated/exited the Death Star as succesfully as they did if it wasn't for Chewie! Maybe we should start another topic on this. With a poll: does Chewie deserve a medal? Swiftly moving on... as mentioned, Jan Dodonna is another character that falls within the celebration theme. That'd be quite cool. But is he as popular a charcter on his own as Luke, Han and Leia though? Definately not. If we get a celebration Leia I think she'll be the last of that mini-theme.

Hopefully this means we'll get a celebration Leia too at some point. That'd be fantastic. Poor Chewie didn't get a medal... so no special celebration minifig for him!

Haha, that's right - the Royal Mail's "handling" fee!

Aye, that's it: post in the Character Records and find yourself an opponent!

Aye we've seen it already (Kims slackin' off with the frontpage update!). I'm personally liking the this new celebration Han.

Looking foward to seeing it filo!

Kids will love this for sure! It'll have the same popularity as the Endor playset I reckon. AFOLs expect more out of these releases though. You said yourself, this will be a heavy mod job. I just can't understand how we get beautiful scenic creations like MMV, Mill Raid, the Winter Village series, etc. and when it come to Echo Base this is so far off the mark. O well, complete AFOL as I am - I'll probably still buy it!

Wow, I just flew on this on few weeks back! Ran into all kinds of trouble... Another superb mini Legostein - the accuracy you achieve at this scale is stunning. Great work!

Love that Reek filospinato, very solid, formidable looking beastie! Have you attempted to build it yet? Would be great to see pictures of the real thing. The Acklay is not bad but it's face could do with some improvement: the teeth look more like mandibles and together with the stud eyes give it a more insect-like appearance than it should have. The Acklay has 3 eyes too! I think to get the most out of these details the scale would need to be upped somewhat.

Impressive model with some nicely captured details. I like the building solution and accuracy of the engines, works great at this scale. I can't fault it much really... if anything I'd say the fore section/bridge (when compared to the engine size) looks like it could be slightly bigger. Regardless, great work all in all. The mini JSF gets a thumbs up from me too!

Interesting plan! I'm keen to see how this turns out, especially incorporating both 7666 and 7869. Will you be including a Tauntaun pen (doesn't look so at the moment)?