feanor

Is there a way we could start a petition for the continuation of Lego Space? I hope SP III sold well enough to make Lego consider it. It's normal that AFOL's, whose childhoods lie in the 80's and 90's, have an interest for the second wave of Lego Space, but what about children? I had a family with children invited for lunch the other day and the children were allowed to play with my Galactic Enforcer and Max Security Transport und they were well aware of the theme even though, to my knowledge, they don't own any Space Police sets. But it's a small indication that the second wave of Lego Space has gained some recognition. Maybe the exhaustion of Lego Star Wars will probably mean that Lego needs to stick to Lego Space... hopefully!

Well, hmm... let me get the set first and then I'll see what fits better to it. I'm pretty confident I'll come up with some solution. Actually I found the set in a German internet shop in a very competitive price (together with shipping costs it would cost me same as list price at Lego Shop), but I'm picky and trying to save money, so I may wait a bit to see how the situation will be once the set is more widely available in Germany. Usually Amazon.de makes good discounts already from the beginning. Then again in such a new and not particularly expensive set, the discount may be no more than €5, so I'm not sure if it makes sense to wait... For serious discounts I'll have to wait maybe 6-12 months, and I don't have sooo much patience I started thinking of trying also the Lunar Limo, but maybe if I saved on Legos I might be able to get a new iphone 4 which would bring me more in line with my physical age

I have loads of spare bricks that do not derive from any specific set. They are from the time I was building a Futuron Flagship. The good thing is that Futuron and Space Police III use the same basic colours which means most of my spare parts fit the Undercover Cruiser perfectly. There is a Lego flagship store in the city where I live and I had already asked a few days ago. They said they are expecting the second SP III wave somewhere in July.

Hehe! I cannot weigh the Lego boxes, they don't sell them in supermarkets together with the minced meat But you are right, there is more detail in new Lego sets which means more smaller pieces. However still, given that the Undercover Cruiser sells with the same price as the Container Heist in Europe, I don't have reasons to complain. Apparently in Australia things are different. Maybe the Container Heist ships in containers to Australia whereas the Undercover Cruiser has to cruise all the way there

Hmm... not a bad idea... not bad at all... Funilly enough, although I have only a handful of 2000's Lego sets, I do own this B-Wing fighter. It was the very first I bought as an adult after a 17 year break But it would take some skill and inspiration to make a landing stand that looks good and doesn't interfere with the design of the main ship. And I don't have so many modern bricks, as most of my Legos are vintage Space from the 80's Anyway, I may give it a try. I first have to purchase the set. I checked all European countries available in LEGO shop and Germany is one of the 2-3 countries only where the set is not available yet!

Thank you for the detailed answer, Artanis I. It goes without saying that I'm a bit disappointed, I think it would look really cool if it could actually stay on its engine module. Maybe it looks ok on it's wings, if they can fold this way, as you describe... But I'd like a suspended look more... I could probably modify the front to make it heavier (though that would be difficult without destroying the nice design and the folding function, or I could mount it on a baseplate, then it might be able to stand. Transparent bricks could be also a solution, but you cannot entire avoid the prop look... I checked the price in LEGO Shop and for most European countries the price is €29.99, exactly same with the Container Heist, but it has more pieces (317 to 282) and a very nice design and function, so honestly speaking it doesn't seem very expensive to me. I mean... hey, with over 300 pcs, in the old Space days, this would be considered a rather large set and nowadays it sells like a below average model

Thank you for the review. This set is the most awaited set for me from SP III 2010 collection. It's clearly the most futuristic and unconventional SP III spaceship. The transformation feature is also something different from the usual split function of many Lego spaceships. However I still didn't understand exactly -when in SP mode- if it can stand on its engine module or it will fall on its back... this is crucial because as an adult collector I would have it displayed and I'd like to know if it can stand with the fuselage in the air and parallel to the ground. I guess that also children after swooshing it around they would want to have it properly landed. Can someone give me a responsible answer to this, please?

To my honest opinion this has to do with the decline of sci-fi themes in popular culture; In the 80's space exploration and science fiction were extremely popular with movies like the original Star Wars trilogy, Blade Runner, Dune etc, and similar cartoons like The Masters Of The Universe, Thundercats, Transformers, Ulysses 31 etc. Classic Space and the first themed Space series were capitalizing on that hype. Since the early 90's public interest in space science fiction has declined and this infuenced negatively also the popularity of Lego Space. I think the new Space Police is indeed part of Lego Space but it takes a shift towards Retro-futurism, using themes of contemporary life, to which children can relate more, now that space exploration is not anymore as popular as it was until the late 80's. And then it sets them in a futuristic background but keeping a continuity with contemporary culture. This is particularly evident at the SP III villain vehicles that always resemble flying versions of motorbikes, muscle-cars, limos etc. The same applies to the Space Police Central which looks like an only mildly futuristic version of a normal police station. Even the SP III flagship, the Galactic Enforcer borrows heavily from a current NASA Space Shuttle like Discovery, Atlantis or Endeavour.

Yes Artanis I, that's exactly how I feel too. The Space Bases of the 80's and 90's looked more futuristic even though made by older pieces. I think that the 'excuse' for the Space Police Central is that it probably belongs to a future city (on earth or more likely on another planet), whereas the old bases where mostly settlements on desolate alien environments, but still, I was expecting something more waky design-wise.

Thank you for the nice review. It was fun to read, and I was looking forward to get some information on this set. However I guess I am too much absorbed into the 80's and 90's Lego Space designs and somehow this retro-futuristic style of Space Police (particularly the villain vehicles) still has to grow on me. This Lunar Limo seems to score high on the 'coolness' factor but design-wise doesn't excite me much. Also I have to notice the lack of any particular functions, no splitting, no transforming, etc... I am much more excited to see in real the Undercover Cruiser, it looks more original and I think design-wise it puts many Star Wars spaceships into shame. And the transformation feature seems really cool!

Thank you for the review, finally we got to see a bit more of the Space Police Central. Now with the Headquarters released, SP III is the only SP series which includes both a big mothership and a large headquarters base. This base is much more in touch with the 80's and 90's Space bases rather than the bizarre Life on Mars and Mars Mission bases. However I still feel that it is lacking a bit in size and innovation. I wish it would be closer in size and piece count to the 7744 - City Police Headquarters. As it is, it feels a bit small, just a garage and a control tower on top. With this futuristic theme I was expecting something more impressive in terms of design, something like a 6987 - Message Intercept Base. the scooters look very cute the police car doesn't fit in the garage, ugh!! But all in all, a nice addition to the SP III series