Oky

Hello again. Here's one more entry from me. It's a recreation of the opening scene of "Grievous Intrigue", one of the few episodes in the new series where Grievous was actually kind of cool. Together with a squad of commando droids and Magna Guards, Grievous has taken over Eeth Koth's Venator and is about to hold him hostage. Grievous Intrigue by Oky - Space Ranger, on Flickr There are losses on both sides as the remaining horn company troopers take out the commando droids, but are soon killed by the Magna Guards. Grievous Intrigue by Oky - Space Ranger, on Flickr "Your reputation precedes you, General. Reputation of a coward and a murderer." "Murderer? Is it murder to rid the galaxy of you Jedi filth?" Grievous Intrigue by Oky - Space Ranger, on Flickr Admittedly, this is kind of a rehash of an earlier CB entry, but I really wanted to recreate this scene and why make a new MOC when I already have a recreation of that room? I did modify it a bit to suit the scene better though. I hope you like it.

Venom and Human Torch confirmed. There is a picture of Torch, but it's obviously a custom, so I don't know why they bothered to put a picture at all.

Well, Flickr is a social network of sorts (a place to connect with like-minded people), even if it's not affiliated with Facebook, and since Instagram is popular, I guess they decided to emulate that design. Makes sense for the most part to me, even if I may not like it.

I agree! It's even more beautiful, playable, and useful than the previous flagship sets! Hehe, true. As for the beds, I guess the boy can sleep on the couch. And I am really thankful for that! Seems like a rather odd request to me, but alright, here you go! Water Skiing Dolphins by Oky - Space Ranger, on Flickr Well, there is the sonar which I guess could count as a map of the sea, but there is no actual map piece. What I meant was that it was exclusive in that azure color. Sorry for the confusion. Yeah, but unfortunately I don't have Peter, so I can't do that comparison, sorry. Thanks! By the sound of it, I think I know who was responsible...

Thanks everyone! glad you enjoyed it. Well, you earned it since you're one of the most frequent Friends reviewers. Well, you could wait for a sale and pretend it's Bruce Wayne's yacht. And yes, the interior is quite outstanding! As Just2good said, they aren't out yet. This is just an early copy that Lego sent me so that I can review it. But they should be released very soon, so keep your eyes out for them!

Not bad, I do like all the references here and it looks nice and clean like all your other LOD creations... but the whole concept of this room doesn't make sense to me. If these are objects the villains use on a daily basis, why would they put them in a trophy room? This would make a lot more sense as a trophy room in the JL headquarters as a display of confiscated souvenirs, much like the one in the Batcave. Oh well, still nice work. Who is that frozen fellow though? Anybody in particular? And is that supposed to be the large rock that Killer Croc almost got Batman with supposedly?

Greetings, my friends! Summer is finally here, and what better place to enjoy it than on the water? The popular Friends line has had a few beach-themed sets already, but not an actual ship yet. However, this is about to change soon with what is literally the flagship set of this year's Friends sets, and today it is my honor to bring you this exclusive early review of one of the most anticipated sets this summer, the Dolphin Cruiser! Set Number: 41015 Name: Dolphin Cruiser Theme: Friends Year of Release: 2013 Pieces: 612 Minidolls: 3 Price: $69.99 USD Brickset Bricklink Brickshelf The Box A few days ago, I received a package at my doorstep with the Lego logo and an official Lego address label on it. Inside this package was the set, which despite the lack of any cushioning material was still in very good shape! It's a fairly large and wide box with the usual purple frame and the indented side edges. It also has the same updated illustration of the main five girls in the upper right corner as the sets that were released earlier this year. The box art depicts a gorgeous scene of the Dolphin Cruiser swimming by the Heartlake beach and the Friends having fun. As you can see, this is one of the European boxes which are known to have much less text than the American versions. There is not much information about the set other than the set number and the intended age range. There is also a statement below those numbers proclaiming that this "ship does not float". This may be a disappointment to some people, but for those of us who have some experience with Lego ships this was already expected. Aside from the Lego Friends logo and the set number, there isn't anything at the top of the box except for these pictures of the minidolls. It doesn't even mention their names, just that the picture of Mia is at a 1:1 scale, but that's OK since it states their names on the front of the box. I guess in Europe they really let the pictures do all the talking, which is not a bad thing. The back of the box has a picture which shows that the top of the ship can be taken off to reveal the interior and lots of small panels showing various scenes that can be played out with this set. There are also pictures which tell you helpful things about the set as in every Friends set, such as how many bags there are, how many parts the minidolls consist of, or what kind of accessories are included. I kind of wish other Lego sets would have this kind of information. It sure looks like the friends are having a lot of fun. I just hope that dolphin sees Mia coming down that slide in time. Contents Looks like the picture on the back of the box was correct! There are indeed 5 numbered bags and two instruction booklets, along with a fairly small sticker sheet and some loose large parts such as the boat hulls, the water slide, and the flex tubes. The first page of the instructions has a demonstration of a minidoll building a set step by step which is adorable in my opinion. It's a perfect Friends version of that generic City minifig doing the same in other Lego instructions. Here's a random instructions page. All pages have a lavender background and clear part call-outs. Also, every page with an odd page number has a light silhouette of some butterflies and hearts. On the last page of booklet 1 there is a check list of all the minidolls from this year's sets. Towards the end of booklet 2 it shows you where all the summer sets are located at in Heartlake City. That's some pretty neat information which, again, I wish they would have in other Lego themes. There are many other nice pictures and illustrations of the Dolphin Cruiser and the other summer sets which I will let you discover on your own. They sure put a lot of effort into making these sets look good and appealing to girls! These are some of the notable pieces in this set. There are various pieces in medium azure, including skis which have been exclusive to the Friends advent calendar in this color until now. We also get the hair accessories in dark purple which only appear in one other set, the Pet Salon. Other pieces in rare colors include 1x1 round tiles in orange, 1x2 tiles in magenta, and 1x2 bricks in trans-purple. There are some new molds as well, such as a 1x2x2 curved slope, a 1x2 plate with a clip at the center of one side, and the ice cream cone which made its debut earlier this year in the Heartlake City Pool and the Ice Cream Stand polybag. There are some printed pieces too, such as the pink life preserver tile and the 1x1 orange juice box brick which have appeared in a few sets before, but also a new piece which no teenaged girl should be without: a smartphone! Looks like Heartlake City's technology is a few decades ahead of Lego City, who are still using walkie talkies and landlines. Minidolls This set comes with three minidolls: two girls and (gasp!) a boy! One of the girls is Mia the animal lover, who makes a lot of sense to be included in this set since it is named after an animal! She even sports a new summerly outfit with a dolphin and seastar motif on it. The other one is Maya who is a new character. The cherry blossoms on her shirt and her dark hair with bangs make me think she is supposed to be Asian, but I can't say for sure. She has Stephanie's hair in black and the same legs as Isabella. The boy's name is Andrew and he brings some much wanted gender deversity to Heartlake City. He has a surfer hairpiece and a blue shirt with a small sailboat on it, both of which are very fitting for the set. I can't put my finger on it, but somehow Andrew reminds me of another boy who preteen girls like... Well played, Lego, well played. But how is anybody supposed to compete with a guy who looks like a teen idol?! When you look at the minidolls from the side, you'll see that the boy's torso mold is different from the girls. Which is good because it would be quite odd if he had breasts. None of them have back printing unfortunately, but that's common for minidolls. And here are the stars of the set, the dolphins! We get two in different colors in this set, sand blue and light blue. The eye lashes on one of them tell me that the darker one is supposed to be a boy and the other a girl. They are smaller and rounder than the old Paradisa dolphins, and due to that and their eye prints they probably wont integrate into other Lego themes too well, but for the Friends theme they are perfect! They have two anti-studs on their tails and one on their belly, so they can be posed as if they're jumping out of the water or lying on an elevated surface. It's also possible to stick them on a pole. Not sure how that could be useful, but it's good to know. Their fins are shaped so that a minifig/doll can hold on to it and ride them. Also, their blowholes can be plugged up with bows and other accessories. Seems kind of cruel to me, but whatever. The Build The first bag contains Mia, Andrew, the male dolphin, and the parts for the jetski and the base of the boat. First, you build the jetski. It's a quick and simple build, but it ends up looking pretty good. Certainly much better than the one in 41000 Water Scooter Fun. It has some clips on one side, but more on that later. Next, you assemble the base of the Cruiser. Not a lot of details at this point. The second bag contains Maya, the female dolphin, and most of the interior of the ship. The beds and sofa are attached to the ground only by two 2x2 round plates each which makes it easy to put them in and, if you wish, take them back out later. The third bag has most of the pieces to finish off the lower deck. Lots of white and tan here. You almost can't tell this is part of a Friends set! This is the part where you attach the water slide. Bag four contains all the pieces to finish off the second storey. After this part, it already starts looking like a complete ship. The fifth bag includes all the pieces for the upper deck, which happen to be most of the pieces with the girly colors. And here is the finished Cruiser! It looks quite impressive, and not too girly. The overall design definitely makes it look modern and luxurious. It looks great from just about every angle. All those azure pieces give it a cool, refreshing feel. The only thing I find odd is that there seem to be windows missing in the second storey. There is already a sloped window piece that would fit perfectly into those six gaps, so I don't know why they left them out, but if it really bothers you and you have six of those windows on hand, that should be an easy fix. The wave stickers at the front give it a nice dynamic look. One of them reads "HLC" which I'm guessing stands for Heartlake City. There is a large opening in the back that allows you to see right into the interior since there are no doors. Lets hope it doesn't get too windy out at sea! Looking at it from the side, the Dolphin Cruiser looks quite sleek. There is a life preserver on the left side. There is no life preserver on the other side since that's where the slide is. The slide is not too obtrusive and actually adds to the overall dynamic look of the ship. The only thing that bugs me a little here is that triangle-shaped gap between the row of windows and the white slope at the lower front. Again, if you have an extra two of those windows, that should be an easy fix, but it just makes me wonder why TLG didn't include those pieces to begin with and avoided this little flaw.. Looking from above, it just has the usual Lego boat shape. No complaints here. At the bottom it has several of those round slide shoe parts to make it glide over the floor better. The Complete Set Here's the ship with the jetski, dolphins, and minidolls. Now we're ready to go on a cruise! They all look very nice together, don't they? Play Features There is lots to do on this ship! On the top deck, you can seat a minidoll at the steering wheel or serve drinks at the little bar. There is a sonar for finding dolphins and there are two studs on the wall which act as a socket for the smartphone so that you can pretend to play music from it over the speakers on the sides. The only thing that I don't like here is that the steering wheel is way too far for a minidoll to reach, but that's a common issue with the Friends sets. On the main deck, you can have the girls relax on the sun loungers and enjoy a drink or a banana. Also, the big window in the front can be opened to see inside. In the back of the ship, the friends can climb up the ladder (which has a similar design as the one in Olivia's Tree House - plus points for consistency!) and slide down the water slide (which is the same as in the Heartlake City Pool from earlier this year) or feed the Dolphins with the bucket of fish. There is also a life vest sticker and a shower with a shampoo bottle and knobs for hot and cold water. The use of a frying pan as a shower head is quite clever here. Also, as you can see, the jetski's clips can be used to attach it to the bar underneath the life preserver in order to store it. Neat! The top of the Cruiser can easily be taken off to play inside the cabin. There are cheese slopes and arches which help it slide back into place easily. The interior is surprisingly well furnished! Inside the first room there is a plant and a big couch for relaxing. The next room is a restroom with a toilet and a rack of towels. I guess there is no such thing as privacy in the world of Friends, though, because there are no doors and one of the walls is transparent. On the other side of the couch, there is little kitchen area with a sink and a small fridge where the orange juice can be stored. On top of the fridge there is some ice cream, one for each of the friends. I think this area is a little dark and boring and doesn't quite fit with the rest of the set. I would have prefered it if they would have included two more cupboards instead of these black bricks. There is another sink in the bathroom, along with some Technic beams where you can stick the combs, hair dryer, and mirror. It's kind of tough to put them there since it's such a small space, but maybe it's just because I have such big manly hands. I think it would have been nice if they would have included a mirror sticker to put behind the faucet, but not necessary I guess. Did I mention I'm manly? In the back, there is a bedroom with two beds with brick-built flower patterns on the sheets. It's nice that they didn't use a sticker for these, and that they made the beds different. There is also a lamp, a box to store the hair accessories in, a TV, and a pin board with pictures. Seems quite cozy! And just for fun, here's a comparison to my Friend Ship. They look quite similar, don't they? Either Lego stole my idea or I'm really good at predicting sets! Spare Parts There are various 1x1 pieces left over, along with a string and the brick seperator. Ratings Design: 5/5 - Aside from some missing windows and doors, this ship looks beautiful! It's mostly white and doesn't have many parts in girly colors, so it will appeal to boys and girls alike and will easily integrate into Lego City as well! It's sleek, modern, and luxurious. What more could you ask for? Build: 5/5 - Aside from the boat hull and the slide, there aren't many large pieces, so there is a lot to build, and the build is diverse enough to keep it interesting throughout. Minidolls: 5/5 - All the minidolls are exclusive to this set and have very fitting outfits. Maya and Andrew are both new characters and it's great to finally get some more males in this theme! And do I even need to mention how cute and awesome the dolphins are? Playability: 5/5 - There is a lot to do in this set! You can drive around, look for dolphins, feed them, ride the water slide, take a shower, take a nap or freshen up in the cabin, serve drinks at the bar, ski on the water, and much more! There are hours of fun to be had with this set! Parts: 5/5 - There are several parts in rare colors or molds and not many of them are in Friends-specific colors, so most of them are reusable in other themes. The azure pieces are especially nice to have. Price: 4/5 - $70 for 612 pieces does seem a tad much, but considering that there are some very large pieces like the hull and the slide included, it actually seems fair and it's well worth it for such a great set. Overall: 5/5 - Lego has got a real winner on their hands here! I was not very interested in the Friends line when it first came out, but I find myself liking it more and more, whether it's for the rare parts or for the thoughtful designs. This is a beautiful and fun set that will appeal to most people. It has a ton of play features and some nice exclusive figures, including dolphins! It's a perfect summer time set and I'm sure every girl would love to have it. I would recommend it to anyone. Well, that's all I have to say about this set. I hope you enjoyed this exclusive early review. If you liked it and would like to learn how to make reviews like this, join us in the Eurobricks Reviewers Academy! Now if you'll excuse me, I feel the need to go grill a steak or wrestle a bear or do something else manly.

Thanks everyone! Glad you like it! Of course not! That's why I provided the close up picture, in case anyone wants to recreate it. Yeah, but putting a cape on this new Grievous looks kind of silly.

Yeah, or you can just click the Edit button. It's good that they still give you the option to switch to that view. And I agree with all your other complaints. Yeah, looks like they do, but it seems that a Pro account is still better than a free one since you get unlimited storage, no ads, and more detailed stats, so I guess I'll just keep my Pro account until it expires. I tried that, but the picture I wanted to use still didn't show up. Oh well.

Fullerton in sunny California!

I don't really like it. It takes longer to load, there is much less of an overview, and it's just not as convenient to use as it used to be. The new free space is nice of course, but a little annoying for me since I payed for a two-year pro account less than a year ago which is pretty much pointless now. And why can you only use recent uploads as your cover photo? That said, I think many people are overreacting and should give the new layout a chance. I for one will keep using it as before and try to get used to it.

Yes, seriously, "man". That's what separates the heroes from the villains, having the power to hold back. Why do you think Superman never just instantly annihilates any of his enemies when he clearly easily could? Because he's a good guy and that's a line he won't cross. It's a common trope in comics and other fictional media, and it certainly applies to Star Wars as well. Besides, Vader and the Emperor are some of the most powerful force users in the galaxy, so it wouldn't be as easy as you say. Granted, things like that are definitely over the top, but I'm a sucker for over-the-top action and it doesn't violate any cannon, so I'm totally fine with it. I mean, if Yoda can lift an X-Wing out of a swamp, why not push some C-9979s together? That's a very good point. In the Clone Wars, the Republic won way too many battles already, so seeing the rebels win almost every battle would be even more unrealistically one-sided. I hope they handle this well by having the rebel victories only be small victories and letting the empire win from time to time. I disagree about the character designs. I for one really hope that the characters will look a bit more realistic and polished this time around. They have always done a great job with the environments, but the characters looked so wooden and cartoony that they didn't seem to fit into the scene sometimes, especially towards the end of the show. Plus they make for some pretty ugly minifigs. And would it be too much to ask that C-3PO is actually chrome? Even the LEGO Star Wars specials have a more movie-accurate looking 3PO than the Clone Wars. As for Ahsoka, yeah, it would be interesting if she would become the Jedi guardian of Leia. It would make sense, too, since she was friends with Padme and probably knew Bail fairly well too.

Not very high since this series will probably take place after that story. Because you choose not to. With great power comes great responsibility, and when it comes to the Force, size doesn't matter, remember? Quite frankly, I don't see what's so stupid about that story.

Hello again, everyone. If you have been on this site for a few years, you may remember my first Battle of Hypori vignette. Back then I only had the boring old Grievous fig and none of the Jedi masters to recreate that scene from the original Clone Wars series properly. However, after five years of Clone Wars sets, we finally have all of the characters from that battle, and what better time to build a new vignette based on it than for this community build! And so, here it is: During the Battle of Hypori, General Grievous reveals himself to the Jedi, killing several of them. While Ki-Adi Mundi, Aayla Secura, and Shaak Ti are barely defending themselves against the ruthless droid general, Captain Fordo and his ARC Troopers of the Muunilinst 10 come to their rescue. Battle of Hypori by Oky - Space Ranger, on Flickr As you can see, Commander Fox is standing in for Captain Fordo and Captain Rex is playing the role of the ARC lieutenant and heavy trooper. And in case you're wondering who that pair of legs belongs to, it's Tarr Seirr, the Jedi who Grievous smashed into the ground. Battle of Hypori by Oky - Space Ranger, on Flickr And for those interested, here's a close up of the reciprocating quad blaster. Cip-Quad by Oky - Space Ranger, on Flickr Reference image:

Yeah, me neither... By the way, here's a new trailer for Planes. This one actually makes me a lot more optimistic about the movie. Some of those scenes are actually shot quite nicely, plus that forklift version of Lady Liberty is just hilarious.

No problem! It's my duty as EB's resident Pixar nerd. What's wrong with the DW holiday specials? I LOVE the Kung Fu Panda holiday special (probably my favorite special ever! Seriously, if you haven't seen it, check it out!) and the Madagascar and Dragons ones weren't bad either. Yeah, like a Toy Story edition of the Monster Fighters Haunted Mansion! Well, we can dream anyway...

Sorry for the double post, but I just learned that there is going to be a special on ABC this October called Toy Story of Terror! That awesome title and the mere fact that this is going to be 30 minutes of Halloween themed Toy Story goodness directed by CudeDude inventor Angus MacLane already make me extremely excited for this!

Well, they will probably use the same technology, but the art style is going to be based on the McQuarrie art as they said. I just hope the characters wont look so wooden in this new series. That would be AMAZING, but yeah, very unlikely.

Some good points there, although I wouldn't hold my breath about Jar Jar. And I disagree on the Thrawn part. That's a post-OT story, and seeing how they butchered a lot of EU stuff in The Clone Wars, I would prefer if they wouldn't touch that masterpiece. As for Leia's guardian, Bail promised to protect her, and if you think about it, he's probably a better person to keep her safe than a Jedi would since those are being hunted.

Yeah, it's interesting how cancelling the Clone Wars and 1313 was the worst crime ever to many people until a few hours ago, then they announce a new series and suddenly everything is forgiven. Yeah, probably, but perhaps they will make use of the ideas they had for that series in this show. Well, I'd be surprised if they wouldn't include those two highly marketable characters and I usually don't mind them being around, especially R2, although I certainly hope there wont be any more episodes solely centered around them like in TCW. That was just terrible. True, I guess they could still be using this series to set up the events of Episode VII, but I don't think it will be the main focus of the series as I had originally expected.

GREG WEISMAN! YESSSSS!! Any cartoon he has been involved with in the past has been absolutely great, so I'm very happy to hear he'll be working on this too! I too am surprised that this isn't set after the OT since I thought the point behind cancelling Clone Wars and everything else was to draw attention to the new movies, but I guess moving away from the PT era and closer to the OT is good enough I suppose. Dave and his team have shown that they can use McQuarrie's designs to good effect in The Clone Wars, so it will be interesting to see them do more of that. Not to mention that we'll probably get Lego sets based on those! I wish they would have talked a bit more about what the story is going to be about, but I guess it's safe to say that it will be about the Rebel Alliance forming and start fighting the Empire while Vader is hunting down Jedi. Should be promising!

Thanks! It's been too long without funnies here, so here's a new batch: Han Bieber by Oky - Space Ranger, on Flickr Clone Armors by Oky - Space Ranger, on Flickr Princess TamiLeia by Oky - Space Ranger, on Flickr

Two words: Sweet trailer! I believe that's Azrael, but I could be wrong. Well, a screenshot of him is as good a proof as you can get. Sorry. And if you ask me, more Joker is never a bad thing, especially if he is voiced by Hamill!

True, but I'm not sure if this is a good thing. It's probably good for the franchise as it makes it popular again, but I think the fact that it was so "nerdy" is partly what Star Trek fans liked about it. Making the movies lighthearted popcorn flicks instead of the more serious suspense movies they used to be probably makes them more appealing to casual viewers, but it may not be what the true fans like, and I think I would feel the same way too if I was one of them. Except for Han's sarcasm, humor has never really worked in Star Wars, so I can't see the same working for that franchise. I mean, could you imagine Luke or Obi-Wan joking around as much as Kirk does in these new movies, or C-3PO being even more clumsy than he was in Episode II? I think not. Therefore, I hope he wont take the same approach for the new SW movies as he did with Star Trek and will keep them as serious and nerdy as the OT. Star Wars doesn't need a popularity boost like Trek did, it just needs new stories to keep it interesting. That's just my theory/opinion though.

Yeah, I just returned from seeing it. It was indeed pretty good, but keep in mind that there are also many hardcore Trekkies who don't like the new movies. Chances are high that if you are an OT fan and didn't like the PT, you wont like the ST (sequel trilogy) either because it will probably try to appeal to a newer generation, much like the PT and these new Trek movies did. However, JJ has stated in several interviews that he has never been much of a Star Trek fan, but always a big Star Wars fan, so it is likely that he will try harder not to piss off old fans. I think as long as he doesn't reboot it like Star Trek and learns from Lucas' mistakes, I think we'll be fine. Then again, some fans are never pleased, and trying to please everybody usually doesn't turn out well. I guess we'll just have to see what direction Abrams and the people at Disney will take the franchise, but so far things are looking up in my opinion. Well, he could reprise his role as Dengar from The Clone Wars.