Invader Zim

Well that's the funniest damn thing I have ever seen. Tobias absolutely kills me, and thank you for making a Franklin for GOB. I actually live next to Newport Beach and I kid you not, went to Balboa Island this weekend and went to one of the chocolate covered banana stands (thought I just got an ice cream bar instead).

Phew, glad things calmed down there the last couple posts. For a second I thought this was going to turn into a Star Wars Forum style flame war.

The set really reminds me of the somewhat shabby equipment rental places at some beaches in Southern and Central California. In particular stands that are down on the sand at Huntington Beach. There aren't so many true boardwalk areas around here. In any case, it isn't particularly fancy (and calling it Marina is rather regrettable), but looking at it in person always makes me smile, so it is certainly one of the more enjoyable sets I own. Combined with City Corner it really looks like my summers growing up.

The shooting cannon might not be the issue so much as the base. The reddish brown base from the QAR exists only in that set so is very expensive. If you don't mind a slight color difference and want to save some money, the classic brown brown bases are MUCH cheaper on Bricklink. Given how dark the deck is it is hard to notice the difference in there so I think this works well. Also, I don't think pirates are too strict about perfect color matching.

If those roof pieces are dark red, people should have an easier time making Cafe Corner via Bricklink (and not have to order them from Norway like some impatient people). I am excited to see the interiors, the back makes it look like it will be quite filled out.

An employee at a local Lego Store expected them to arrive at the store Friday and then go on sale sometime the week after. It was actually pretty exciting already as they had the new City (Harbor, Marina, etc.), Kingdoms, and Alien Invasion sets already available.

FYI, for those in the US, ToysRUs is starting to sell City of Atlantis even though it it still listed as not available in the US by Lego Shop at Home. Picked mine up today. Price was 69.99.

Great review! This was a set I wanted when I first saw the pictures but then decided against when seeing the price. I ended up buying it anyways on an impulse, and though I do not like the pricing, it is indeed a very fun set. For the size the build was fun, it looks nice, and has fun play features. While I cannot recommend it at full price, if you can pick it up on sale it would definitely be worth it.

Wonderful MOC. I particularly like how much sense of motion pervades the entire display, especially the statue/creature.

Coincidence indeed. My local one had two of them sitting in a cart behind the customer service desk while every other item had been sold.

Thanks for posting this last set of pictures Brickster. I think they look great together . . . I just wish I had the floorspace (and beautiful white carpet) for such great pictures.

Andybear, Completely amazing! HK seems to have the best builders per capita on Eurobricks. I'm looking forward to your future posts.

Interesting renaming. I suppose that will appeal more to the primary audience than the Captains Cabin. When I picked up my sets at TRU both the boxes and the store labels were using the 'old' name. Zombie Pirates may not really be my favorite name ever, but with those bottles, globe, and new map they could call it just about anything and I'd get it.

The July sets don't really have very cheap sets with a bunch of knights. The cheapest set Blacksmith Attach (US $10) only has one knight in addition to the blacksmith. The Escape from Dragon Prison is supposed to be US $20 and has 2 Lion Knights and 2 Dragon Knights as well as a Dragon Knight Horse in battle attire. That may be the best of the new sets if you are primarily looking for knight figs.

Amazing work again JaredChan! I am always excited to see your MOCs. In particular the way the essence of a place is captured in your work.

Amazing! The onion domes still have me scratching my head trying to figure it out.

Great vig! I am also impressed by how well and how quickly you used the PotC elements in this. Oddly enough, what really makes this set realistic for me is the ground clutter. Nice touch.

Nice review WhiteFang! I agree the minifigs are great as they are on the other PotC sets. On the other hand, if you are going to buy some of the other sets I'm not sure this one will be quite so essential (well, unless you NEED an Elizabeth Swann). That being said it is a good intro to the theme if you are not interested in shelling out big bucks for the larger sets at first.

Great review! I finished mine this morning and agree with your pros and cons completely. The pictures are good, though I have to say even very good pictures can't capture the ship's aura. It just has a lot of personality that you need to see in person. As far as the interior, it is definitely as described, but with the very tall back and the rear sail overhead, it would be hard to notice if the interior was better decorated. I was going to purchase the Captain's Cabin to spruce up the interior but now I am a bit hesitant since I might never notice again. In any case it looks great and has a lot of personality. Given the piece count I think the price is reasonably for a licensed product. In comparing it to other pirate vessels, as my wife put it "It looks less Mardi Gras and more Halloween". It looks like a more serious rival for the Imperial Flagship than the BB or BSB in that sense.

Regarding the spare interior of Borgin and Burkes, I've found the accessories from the 7955 Wizard impulse set from Kingdoms look good added to the interior and fill just the right amount of space. I'm sorry I don't have the set up right now to take a picture in place.

I just called my local Lego store and they are as confused as the website seems to be. They first said mid May and then when prodded to double check found something that said April 16th as well as the mid May info. So even the Lego employees have conflicting information. She said they will have the packing list of the incoming April 16th shipment by Friday or Saturday. Once they have that they can definitely verify what is coming.

Last I heard pirates don't respond well to regulation. I hope you have better luck than Governor Broadside and his bluecoats.

Oh . . . wow . . . seems like you have to be careful but what great prices.

Everything is amazing. I particularly like how you successfully use PQ elements that I thought looked too . . . fantasy. I was definitely wrong on that one. For the columns at the front door, have you tried the 2x2 round profile bricks in tan (like in City of Atlantis) ?

With a previous South American jungle sets from Adventures and Indiana Jones, I wonder about jungles elsewhere in the world. Southeast Asia might be an interesting location as you could combine the natural jungle elements with very cool ruins ripe for exploring a la Orient Expedition. Angkor Wat type structures and abandoned Buddhist Temple type structures would be pretty neat in 'taken back by nature' sort of way.