Ferrik

Oops... Sorry about that. I retook the pictures so many times I must have gotten mixed up the pictures. Thanks for pointing that out. I'll fix it now. Edit: I've fixed the problem. I hope you enjoy the rest of the review.

Oops... I just haven't been keeping up to date with this topic as there are an endless amount of pages. Anyway, sorry for the late post.

It looks stunning with all that attention-to detail! The buildings are excellent and to see that you made the road tile by tile is great.

What's wrong with the ratings?

Thanks. I agree that the underside is lacking in detail.

Thanks TrumpetKing67, I can't wait to make more reviews too.

Thanks, dyntar. And to answer your question, yes I have seen a colour difference between the horse and the 2x1 brick. Although the brick is only slightly darker, it really shows when you look closely.

Sorry if someone already posted something like this, but the Elrond minifigure has been confirmed: My link

This is the smallest set of the new Lord of the Rings wave and has one exclusive minifigure, it's of course... Introduction As soon as I saw the new Lord of the Rings sets, I just knew I had to get my hands on at least one of them, being somewhat of a LOTR fan. In the end, I decided to pick up the smallest of the series and test it out. As stated in the S@H description, this scene depicts the opening scene of "The Fellowship of the Ring" movie, the part where Gandalf arrives in a horse and cart. But does this set really capture the spirit of the scene? Well, there's really only one way to find out... Read on! Set Information Name: Gandalf Arrives Set Number: 9469 Theme: Lord of the Rings Year: 2012 Minifigures: 2 Pieces: 83 Price: £11.99/ US$12.99/ AUS$22.99 Links: Brickset, Bricklink, Flickr From S@H The Box This set was packaged in quite a small box, about the size of a LOTR book (well any standard size book, I'm just saying this for LOTR fans ) or the "Freeing Dobby" set from the Harry Potter line. The box art looks absolutely beautiful with the setting sun hiding behind some hills and trees. The design at the top with a snipet of a map of Middle Earth and the One Ring, is terrific. Overall, it's a very nice box-cover! The back of the box has the usual punch tab found in small sets and shows off some of the play features (or the lack of any). Wow, taking one of the fireworks out of the barrel and feeding the horse a carrot, looks like so much fun! No wonder so many children love Lego. Anyway... There's a small ad in the corner for the new LEGO Lord of the Rings video game coming out soon. Parts There were two bags and the new horse was loose in the box. I will talk more about the horse later on. All the small parts such as the minifigure heads were in a clear bag, while all the larger parts were in a printed bag. There wasn't much extra room in the box after the parts and instructions were placed inside. Whether that's a good thing or a bad thing, I'm not sure. It depends on what you think... As you can see, there is a nice little collection of light and dark tan. After the set was built, there were two parts left: a carrot top and a 1x1 light tan stud. Nothing special about these parts, but then again, what more would you expect from a small set like this? Instructions There is one instruction booklet with 24 pages inclduing ads. It was neatly folded in half to fit inside the box but luckily the pages weren't bent. The front page has the exact same rather pleasant picture as on the box. Here's a step from the instructions. About halfway through, we can see how the base of the cart is made and how the sides of the cart are hinged to create that slanted-side look. There are piece callouts as we are used to now, and there were no colour-differentiation problems throughout the whole booklet. The parts list only takes up one page as there aren't that many pieces in this set. Moving on... On the next page, after the parts list, there is an ad for the Mines of Moria set (AKA the LOTR set with way too many stickers and a big blue troll) Then on the next two pages, to my surprise, there is a list of all the minifigures from the current Lord of the Rings wave. Under each minifigure there is even a box for you to tick off the figures you already have and the set number it comes from. I thought this list of minifigures was a wonderful addition, especially due to the fact that all the minifigures are in poses, ready to fight. Here's the first page. And here's the second page. For close-ups of some of the minifigures, just vist my flickr page. Pippin seems to be the only one not fighting (or trying to do ballet but failing like the Mordor Orc on the right) on this page. He's just happy to smile for the camera it seems (Say Cheese). And on the last page.... You guessed it, the kid we all love to hate (Drumroll please)... the screaming "win" kid. *Groans* When will TLC get rid of this page? Minifigures Now to the part you've all been waiting for... The Minifigures! This set comes with two minifigures: Gandalf and Frodo. Gandalf is exclusive for now, until the Bag End set is released and Frodo in his Shire clothing only comes in this set and the Frodo polypag. Gandalf the Grey has a newly-moulded beard which has more detail than the one Dumbledore from the newest Hogwarts set had, which is terrific as it makes him seem wiser. He also comes with the standard wizard hat in grey, a cape and a staff. It would've been great if there was a new mould for the staff but nope there isn't one, what a shame. He has a nice wrinkled face that gives him this great Gandalf-y feel. The torso printing will be revealed in the next picture. Now on to Frodo. He has the new hobbit hair in brown (I just love that hobbit hair... ) which looks stunning on him. He also has a pleasant smile that fits him well and lovely overalls on the torso. Oh no, it seems Gollum has stolen Gandalf's hat and he had a shave. Anyway, this is how he looks. Great printing on the body to make it look like a cloak to match the cape. I didn't mention it yet, but I'll mention it now. Gandalf has a cape that feels softer than normal capes from other themes. More on that later... And the back printing for the two minifigures. Nice detail on the back but nothing too exciting here. The backprinting matches the front of both minifigures really well. Only Frodo has a double head, with his second one being a worried look. Animals There's only really one animal in this set, the horse, but a Ninjago snake is also included. The snake is nothing new as it's very common in Ninjago sets so it's nothing too exciting. Here's a closer look at the new horse. The tail has been extended and the sides of the head actually pop out a bit, giving it this 3D look to it. It looks a lot less blocky when compared the older one so I have to say that I definitely prefer this new horse as it is much more realistic. Of course the head of the horse can move up and down just like the old horse, but one of the main features of this horse is that you can push back the hind legs to make the horse rear up. I could imagine some people just buying this set for the new horse and the minifigures. Accessories There aren't a lot of accessories, but there are enough for a small set like this. There are three fireworks in a barrel, with the Ninjago snake representing the dragon firework from both the book and the movie.. There's also a bag/ sack with a letter, a carrot and a brown book, almost as tall as Frodo, which makes us wonder how he could possibly hold it and smile at the same time. Even though the accesories aren't that special, they're great for anyone who just can't get enough accesories. The Build Here's a look at one of the stages of building the cart. This is the same step as the instructions picture I showed you earlier on, so you can have a little comparison. The Set The set looks superb, especially when placed on an angle like so. I definitely wouldn't mind placing this set on display. You can see the accessories in the back and how the cart is attached to the horse. The barrel and the bag are both placed on brown 1x2 plates with a single stud on top, while the carrot and book are just loose in the back. From the front you can note the printing on the head of the horse and the slanted sides. I like the design of the sides a lot as it just adds that extra detail instead of being just some boring cart. However there is something I didn't like about the design: the fact that a 1x2 piece with one stud was used for Gandalf to sit on. Now he sits to the side which just doesn't look right and the cape gets crumpled quite a bit. Maybe that's why there was a softer cape for Gandalf? However, fellow reviewer, Clone O' Patra did mention to me that if a 2-stud piece was used, it might stick to Gandalf when taking him out of the cart. I have tried using a 2-stud piece and I have to say there were no problems though... The side view... The wheels look just a tad too big, but it does mean that the cart rolls along more easily, so I don't really mind. I like the amount of accessories in the back so the cart looks quite full and interesting at the same time. Something else I noticed was the simplicity of the two 1x1 light tan pieces connected together to form a post of some sort. There are four, one on each corner. They are simply attached to the slanted sides with a "lamp holder" but they still add quite a bit of detail to the cart. Here at the back of the cart, there is (as seen from the side) the light tan posts on an angle. This view isn't too appealing as the grey hinges can be seen but it isn't too bad. And finally the top view. Just imagine you're Smaug the dragon flying around. You can see most of the accessories from up here, except for the bag with the letter. The fireworks looks stunning. Ratings Parts: 7/10 - There are some great parts that you could use for MOCs and quite a bit of accessories, but then again there's nothing too special. Design: 8/10 - The design of the cart was excellent. I liked the slanted sides especially. However, the problem with only having one stud for Gandalf isn't that easy to overlook. But I suppose you could just add your own 2-studded 1x2.. Minifigures: 8/10 - It's always great to get one exclusive and one semi-exclusive minifigure in a small set and this is no exception. There's great printing on both minifigures. I would've like a new mold for the staff, though. Playability: 6.5/10 - You can re-enact the opening scene of the movie but that's not that interesting. I guess this is more of a display set. Value: 8/10 - The price for this set isn't exactly great, but nor is it horrible value, but hey you get Gandalf, the new horse and a cart. What more do you want? And after all, this is a licensed set. Overall Rating: 7.5 Overall, I think this is an small but excellent set. Fans of Lord of the Rings will love this depiction of the first scene in the movie, and even non-LOTR fans will like this set for the pieces such as the new horse. Extra Poor Frodo Frodo looks worried for some reason. Is it because of the mysterious letter Gandalf is holding, what could it be? Or is it because his arm is twisted at such an angle? Magical Transformation "Welcome to another episide of Fashion Mayhem!" "Today we have special guest, Gandalf! As you can see, Gandalf is in dire need of a makeover. Uhhh... That wizard's hat is so last season..." "You shall not pass... and touch my precious." "Don't you worry Gandalf, we have the perfect hat for you. There, you look stunning. And there you have it folks, another magical transformation. Stay tuned for the next episode of Fashion Mayhem." "Wow, this hat sure does look amazing on me. It brings out the colour my eyes." Thank you for reading my third and final Reviewer's Academy bronze review. I hope you enjoyed reading this and look forward to more of my reviews. Until next time, Ferrik out!

Start your engines! Ready, set, go! Join the race with my review of this Speed Slammers set. Introduction Recently, I found three Lego Technic sets just lying around so I thought I'd brush off the dust and review them. That's right, it's Lego Technic Review Time! Over the next few weeks or months I will be posting the other two. Set Information Name: Bike Burner Set Number: 8236 Theme: Technic; Speed Slammers Year: 2000 Pieces:] 60 Minifigures: N/A Price: US$6 Links: Brickset, Bricklink, Flickr The Box Since Lego Bike Burner is quite an old set, I don't have the box or the instructions to show you but I did find these images. The box is square-shaped and displays a nice picture of the bike rearing up in front of a city background. I think that this fits the theme well. Here's a picture of the box from lego Wikia. Sorry if it isn't exactly the best quality, but I did try brightening it in Photoshop. The Build/ Instructions The build was easy enough as there weren't that many pieces. As you can see in this picture of the online instructions, there are piece callouts for some steps only and the steps are slow. There aren't any problems between the different colours because there was only a bit of black anyway and not much bley. (Hey that rhymes. ) The Result After building the set, the result looks quite satisfying but it doesn't exactly blow you away either. Here's the finished set placed on an angle. As you can see, the wheels are the bigger-sized type wheels. All three wheels are the same. With these wheels, this vehicle looks a bit like a quad bike, albeit with three wheels. I quite like this look and I just adore that curved shape of the back seating area (To all those technic fans out there, the technical term is beam). (Note: This is the same picture as the title picture at the top of the review.) The front view of the set. There isn't too much to see from this angle. The green cylindrical-helix (AKA ribber hose) parts connecting the front wheel look excellent and add more much-needed detail to this set. The TLG designers could have just left the long axle piece as it was but they choose not to which really adds colour to the set. Here's the side of the bike. Since the bike is symmetrical, both sides are the exact same. From here you can see some of the detail under the bike like the engine. No dramas here. I think that all that detail on the underside of the bike adds a great effect and prevents the bike from looking bare, dont you? The back is probably the best-looking view of the set. You can see there are six stickers that have been applied. Six stickers is way too much for a small set like this... Printed pieces would have been much better. The stickers have stayed on well except for the stickers at the bottom with the '8' on them. But I guess it's because they were put on about a decade ago... You can also see the engine which is just two tube-like green technic pieces with a smaller white tube inside. This is a simple but effective design and really makes it look realistic, so that's something I liked about this set. So here's a close-up of the back and the bumper stickers. And here's the top view so you can see the whole set clearly. You can notice how simple but effective in terms of looks, the handles are. The handles are simply an angle connector, which is a common Technic piece. Have a look at the stickers closely. This is what I thought: The stickers for the chair were I guess chair-y (Get it? Cherry? Wait... I don't get it. On with the review), especially since one of them was put on the wrong way. I think the gauges and buttons work well and the stickers with '8' on it (from the previous picture) were a nice addition to make it look more like a racing vehicle. Ratings Parts: 6/10 - There weren't really any interesting parts worth noticing. Most of the parts included are quite common to the Technic theme. Design: 7/10 - For a bike, it's a good design. If there were less stickers and more printed parts I guess that would be even better. I do like the design for the engine under the bike, though. Playability: 5/10 - There's not much you can do with a set like this except push the bike around and have bike-tastic adventures. But hey, everyone likes bikes, right? Minifigures: N/A Value: 7.5/10 - At a price of US$6 it's great value especially if you like Lego Technic or vehicles or green or anything in this set. (I won't waste time listing...) Overall Rating: 6.3/10 So overall this is a small but great set. Bike-lovers and technic fans alike will be sure to enjoy building this set. Extra Here's a picture of the underside of the bike, as a parting shot for this review. Stay tuned for the next two Lego Technic Reviews.

Welcome to my first Reviewer's Academy review! I will be reviewing: Introduction I picked up this promotional set last Christmas and I thought might start with something nice and simple for my first RA review. It's not everday you see a reindeer LEGO set. But is this set just some boring promotional set, or will you experience real Christmas spirit? Read on to find out! Set information: Name: Reindeer Set Number: 30027 Theme: Creator Pieces: 66 Minifigures: 0 Price: Free; promotional Links: Brickset, Bricklink, Flickr Packaging This set just came in a sealed plastic bag with a picture of the set on the front. I don't have the original bag to show you, but I did find this picture from Bricklink. The bag just has the plain blue and yellow creator theme background. Instructions The instructions included was just a folded page. They were folded neatly and weren't too crumpled, which is great. Here's the first page of the instructions, which also have the same Creator background. The second page has a few ads for other Creator sets such as the Log Cabin. There weren't any problems with colour difference and some of the steps with more pieces had call-outs, but they weren't really needed anyway. The Build There weren't any interesting techniques in the building of this set. All the steps were pretty basic. You can see the clips for the head, tail and legs in the picture below. Now here are two of the legs and the head not clipped on. The Result The end result is quite nice. The reindeer looks realistic and it would look great on display at Christmas-time. I really love those antlers! You can see how all the clips are clipped into place. You can also note how the head was made from brown cheese slopes, which as a result makes the head look uneven. Since the head, tail and legs are clipped on, this allows them to move forwards and backwards, similar to on a normal minifigure, without the tail part that is. Here on the side, it looks just as great as from an angle. You can now see the clips better, which means the bley clip used for the head really stands out. The head should have had a brown clip instead, just so that the colours looked right. Now, from a front-view, you can see the head better. Also note how the antlers were made. They were simply L-shaped light tan pieces placed on an angle. I personally don't like the eyes as they protrude out too much, when seen from this perspective. Ratings Parts: 5/10 - There isn't really anything special with the parts. This set is just a mix of slopes, clips and other common parts. Design: 7/10 - It's great that the designers thought of using clips for the legs, tail and head, allowing them to move. This is so much better than just a still reindeer. The actual look of the reindeer is excellent too. Minifigures: n/a - There aren't any minifigures in this set... Playability: 4/10 - There isn't that much that you can do with this set. Sure you can move the clipped parts around a bit but that would be sure to bore any kid. Value: 7/10 - For a promotional set, this is quite good for what you get. This set is available for purchase for £8.99 on the "Daily Brick" website. I guess this is much more expensive and the value has probably changed, but if you really want this set, then go for it. Overall Rating: 5.7/10 I think this is a great promo set. I would recommend this set to you if you just love Christmas, reindeers or just want the parts. Extra "Santa, I think you're too heavy. We can't get off the ground..." "Nonsense, Dasher! I only ate five jars of cookies today."

This looks excellent and would fit into the Friends theme perfectly.

It's amazing that you could create such a thing. Can't wait for more versions.

It's a very nice collection.

It's a great little vignette. The set definitely has a terrific rocky feel to it, which I believe is what you were trying to achieve.

This extension definitely does make Big Ben more realistic. The grills for the detail actually do look better in my opinion.

Thanks for your help, Rick. I'm really looking forward to when the Mafia you and Pandora are hosting starts.

Congratulations for winning the raffle, Jackjonespaw. Does anyone know when Summer of Friends ends so I know how long the raffle will be on for? Thanks

That's an extraordinary MOC. I just love that "old-fashioned" feel of the hotel.

I'm sure the LOTR sets should appear in Wal-mart soon, but I guess it just varies between different stores.

Your comic is excellent, Catanas. Well done to the first winner of the raffle. Does anyone know when the "Summer of Friends" ends along with the raffle?

The pictures are excellent for letting us look at this set. Even without words you have provided us a ...er clear picture of the Uruk-hai army.

This MOC looks great and really sticks with the "Friends" theme.

It's such an amazing representation of the Watchtower. I just can't stop looking at the excellent rugged landscape.