JimBee

Wow, some of these sound really disgusting. I've personally been lucky with bones, but I've had a lot worse injuries. When I was six, I cut my bare lower leg on sharp rocks deep enough that you could see the bone, and I've had my tailbone seriously bruised. 0 broken bones though, that calcium really paid off.

You're so evil you scare yourself? Ever wonder why people who know you behave around here?

To answer your first question: Base plates are so expensive because of how much plastic they use, and I imagine that they would be harder to produce because of there size. But in the big scheme of things, they're not really that expensive. I paid 12 USD for a a 48x48 bley base plate, the largest size they come in (for my super-secret project), and I still don't regret it. And to answer your second question: You're right- base plates are becoming really rare among sets these days. The last time that I can remember a base plate being in a set was in 2004 for a few HP and Spider-Man sets. Who knows what for, but my hypothesis is that they've become too expensive to produce, and sets just look better without it. For example, the Jungle Duel set from the IJ theme was separate components (tent, table, etc.), but I think if it had been built 5 years ago, it would have been built on a base plate.

Another Alpha Team entry- I'm surprised at the theme's popularity. Your Owl looks great- smooth, simple, and with a clever interior, too. Good luck.

I just love that new face (with the beard, and it's nice to see the Starkiller face again, as I never got the Rouge Shadow. I agree that the old ones looked a little better. The design seems... unfinished (the hoods in particular), but who am I to complain about this set? I'm sure that it will be much more impressive when built.

Happy Birthday, Yoda. You are missed here, but have a fun day.

Nice job, I knew it had to be Alpha Team from first glance. Very smooth, and it's sorta "cute". Good luck.

Wonderful review once again, Svelte. But personally, I think this set is the worst of all Indy sets so far. It's overpriced (with 182 pieces, that seems almost reasonable, but a lot of small detail parts could have been left out or not considered when pricing). I really have to disagree with you that this set is better than River Chase- that was a great set at an amazing price. The play features on this are nice, but the set in itself looks slapped together. The accessories and notable pieces are pretty nice, though (excluding the pearl gold chest ). It would have been nice to see something extra, though, like a tree for one of the Cauchilla people to hide in. Then, maybe the set would be better for it's price. As a collector, I'll be picking this up, but I'm not very happy with the set. I rated "Average".

The team walked over to the downed general. "Is he... dead?" asked Thok. "No, but we could kill him" said Jim. Suddenly, the sky turned black like a shadow of the setting sun. Everyone looked up to see thousands upon thousands of droid and Republic ships, with dozens of cruisers above in space. Nobody said anything. A giant battle commenced. The entire sky was soon filled with red and blue laser fire. "This isn't right..." said Jim. "We never called for reinforcements" said Oky Wan. "There must be a half dozen battalions". A regiment of Republic Gunships broke away from the fight and headed towards the team on the surface. They soon landed, and about a hundred clones stepped out of their vehicles. From the Gunship nearest to the group, a figure dressed in a brown tunic stepped out. He seemed to be in his later years, and had little hair except for the grey facial hair and eyebrows. He wore a lightsaber on his belt. But the most striking feature of this Jedi was his extremely tall head, about twice the height of a human's. "Master Mundi!" greeted Jim. "It's a relief to see you. We were just about to pull out. What's going on? We never called for reinforcements". "I'm afraid the situation has become much more serious" replied the Jedi Knight in a grave tone. "The CIS have obviously taken the relic to be invaluable. Worse is that Dooku is here, probably already obtaining the relic". "Wait, what? Dooku's here? And the relic?!" "Yes, I'm afraid so. We'll need to hurry before he gets it". "No need" said a drawling voice. Everyone whipped around. It was Dooku, with the relic already in his possession! "Do you really think that I would fall for such a trick? Charging the replica with force power was a clever idea, but I knew the signature was not powerful enough to be an ancient Sith relic". "Stand down, Dooku. You don't want to deal with the Jedi" said Ki-Adi Mundi. "Master Mundi, you needn't worry. I will have disposed of you and fled much before reinforcements arrive" taunted the Count, drawing his red blade and spinning it in a boasting manner. Clones immediately began firing at him. With a simple flick of his blade, he sent every shot flying back at it's shooter with double the power, killing clones instantly. He spun his blade back and forth with nothing but a grin on his face. "Enough of this" he said after a while. He used his abounding force powers to lift a heap of trash and throw it on a cluster of clones. Most of them were dead by now, and the remaining fled behind cover. Ki-Adi Mundi charged at Dooku, lightsaber ignited. Titans clashed, and the battle was on. Dooku took the offensive, and lashed out. Mundi blocked every one, though, and spun around and swung at Dooku's legs. The Count jumped, and struck Ki in the shin with his boot. Ki recoiled, rubbing his jaw. Jim came forward and swung at Dooku's head. He ducked, and slashed at Jim's torso. He barely missed, but the heat of the blade was enough to tear through Butcher's shirt and alloy vest, cutting his stomach. He continued to fight though, with Mundi at his side. The swung and spun, but Dooku was too powerful. It seemed even impossible that one being his age could be so vigorous with energy. Then Jim thought, The relic! It must be giving him energy! "Oky Wan!" yelled Butcher. "Shoot the relic!" He did so, and before Dooku could react, the ancient relic was spinning across the ground. JD made a dive for it, but Dooku already reeled it in with th force. Before it reached his hand, though, it stopped in mid-air. Ki was using his own force power to try to grab it. The two stood there, locked in a battle of minds for a few moments, until Jim leaped at Dooku. The Count lost his focus, and defended himself against the blue bar of Jim's blade. Ki grabbed the relic, and threw a piece of metal with the force at Dooku. It sent him flying into a trash pile. The group of agents, clones, and Jedi walked over to the pile, removed the top pieces, and discovered the Dooku was gone. When they turned around, they found that Grievous and his Soulless One were both gone. "But... how?" asked Jifel. "There's no time to consider that" said Ki-Adi Mundi. "This isn't over, and we need to pull out and return to Coruscant immediately".

Save some sets for other people to review, eh? Great review again, Svelte. This is most certainly a must-buy, especially for only 10 dollars. The purple piece, tan barrel, Tommy gun and figs are all reasons for me to pick this one up ASAP. I'm also looking forward to the return of the turban and head scarf. The only con that I can think of in this set is the use of the Troll swoard instead of the Scimitar. Wonderful set and review.

Yes, very interesting. I have not heard about a secret set until now, but now that I've seen how TLG kept the DS under wraps so well, I can definitely see another big set as a possibility. I'm willing to bet that it's an OT set, but I'm not so sure it will be an ESB anniversary since it's 30th isn't until next year. I'm thinking a Rebel Blockade Runner. Good thinking, but it might just be a coincidence. I would like a Cloud City Duel much better than a RBR. That's a little discouraging.

Haw! Nice collection you've got there. I suggest that if you're going to sell them, do it now before the SW license supposedly ends (2011), and while Lego SW is still popular. Then again, you could save them for the years to come. I know a few people here who have spent small fortunes on old themes. If you like the sets, keep one of each and sell the rest. If not, sell them all and get yourself a Ferrari (or maybe just the door of one). Or, you could just forget all of your troubles and give all the sets to me.

KimT, I think he means that the AT-TE shown was already released (which it wasn't), but we've already seen and heard about it. The MINI Gunship is new news, though. It looks good, I hope this recent craze of SW minis doesn't pull me in.

Wow, thanks Brickster. I am honored to play this mystery game, and I'm anxious to start. I'll be curious to see how this game differs from Dragonator's Mystery Manor. Good luck, everyone.

No, I think not. First of all, I don't really think the show caught on all that well, and I'm willing to bet that no kid has even heard of Young Indy. The only time that I ever heard of it was from previews on an old Last Crusade VHS tape. It may be interesting for some AFOLs, but I doubt any kids will recognize it or buy it. The circus train is probably the closest we'll get to having a Young Indy line, but good idea anyways.

Jim ignited his blue lightsaber. He hoped that he would have enough experience with the blade to stay alive. He charged at Greivous, dodged a swing of the droid's left appendages, and rolled behind him. Jim thrust his lightsaber into the General's armor, but before it could do any damage, Greivous swiftly kicked behind him, cutting Jim in the chin and torso with his talon-like feet. Butcher screamed in pain and jumped away. Meanwhile, Oky Wan and the rest of the team were taking cover behind heaps of scrap metal and taking potshots at the Super Battle Droids, with the help of the ARC troopers. Jifel slashed the air around Greivous with his vibroblades, but he wasn't quick enough. The droid general deactivated one of his four lightsabers, stuck it in its holster on his hip, and lashed out with the free hand, knocking Jifel several feet in the air. He crumpled on the ground, bones aching. Before he could get up, Greivous grabbed Jifel by the neck and squeezed. Those yellow, menacing eyes narrowed as the breath of Jifel left his body. Then, Greivous released his hold as his eyes widened. He swung around to find Butcher pointing the empty barrel of his nailgun at the base of Greivous' skull. "Arrrggg! You fool!" he screamed. The cyborg thrashed about, trying to reach the nail in the back of his neck. He eventually just fled into the depths of Raxus Prime, ordering his droid minions to continue fighting. Greivous was gone for the moment, but matters didn't improve. The orange glow of IG Assassin droid eyes appeared from behind piles of garbage, like horrific monsters in a film. "We can't can't keep fighting" said Oky Wan. "We have to follow Greivous. Why would Dooku order Greivous to distract us on this planet? He could have easily gotten away without us even getting to him in time. My guess is that the planet where the relic is-" "Here." finished Jim. "Alright, lets go. He went that way." "Go, go, go!" ordered Jifel to the ARC troopers. Everyone ran, shielding themselves the best they could against the droids' blaster fire. It was time to end this game of cat and mouse.

Thanks, Captain Zuloo! You've convinced me to get the non-motorized version of this set. It has a nice, smooth design, and I can't wait to get my hands on those dark green pieces. I wonder if TLG will add on to this set with modular cars.

Jedi Temple Several hours ago A hooded figure stepped from an air taxi outside the Jedi temple on Coruscant. Would the Jedi recognize a disturbance in the force? No, thought the hooded figure. He had been careful in masking his signature of the force. The mission was simple, walk in, retrieve the parcel, and walk out. The mysterious silhouette seemed to glide to the doors. It stepped through, and made its way up to the council chambers undetected. It swiftly moved, dodging cameras and any Jedi passing by, hiding behind pillars, dips in the walls, and busts. The Jedi couldn't even sense its presence. At last, it had made it to the chambers. The shadow walked in, and strode over to the center of the room, where the prize was placed on a stand. The holocron. Count Dooku lowered his hood, and reached for the ancient artifact. But before his fingers clasped around their prey, a figure jumped from behind one of the council member's chair, a green bar flashing in the corner of Dooku's eye. Amazing. Dooku didn't detect this one's presence, either. The Count reacted quickly, drawing his own lightsaber and parrying the attack. The attacker was a middle-aged Jedi, a Yuuzhan Vong, from outside this galaxy. He attacked aggressively, making every swing of his lightsaber count. Dooku blocked every blow, though, and easily outmaneuvered the heavy being. Within seconds, Dooku jumped over the Jedi and stabbed him in the back. The battle was over, and Dooku wasted no time in seizing the holocron. The alarm would be rose, and he would have to escape. He called his speeder by remote. Waiting precious moments for his bike to arrive, he prepared to reflect anything thrown at him. Finally, the speeder bike appeared at the chamber window. Dooku quickly smashed the glass and hopped on, just as three Jedi rushed into the chamber and ignited their lightsabers. They were too late, though, and could only watch as Dooku sped away. One hour ago Dooku's Solar Sailer Dooku activated his hologram projector, and called Greivous. The droid general appeared as a flickering blue 3-D image and knelt before his master. "Yes, master?" said Greivous. "General, I need you on the planet surface. Take care of all ground forces" "As you wish, master", the image Grievous said before flickering out.

I kind of like it, and I'm the least bit disappointed. Come on, did you really think that they would be giving away chrome Vaders for free? I was thinking a keychain or a magnet at the most. I won't bother ordering just to get this, but I would like to see a pic of the poster. All that hard work on the minifigure indexes for nothing.

Wow, it looks like you've justt had bad luck surrounding you're Lego hobby. I recently got the IJ Shanghai Chase, and I was utterly disgusted to see that most of the bley pieces were all different colors. One was a light-ish hue, with a marble pattern, while another had a gross, soft, glow-in-the-dark gray color, that looked exactly like a Megablock. The set as almost completely ruined for me.

Aw, I don't want to miss out on yet another Mafia/Mystery game, so start it when I'm online. Looks neat, and it will be interesting to see how a game like this works in such a small place. Not many places for murderers to hide, I suppose. Count on my sign up if I get there in time.

He was kidding, and I edited that post long ago. Let's just say you were with the rest of us the whole time. JD, I don't think I'll be able to record my lines. You or someone else may. Sorry about that.

I've been saving for my trip to the Lego store in Shaumberg (spelling?), Illinois. After two months of saving, I'm finally done, and I can now purchase the Medieval Market Village and Count Dooku's Solar Sailer for much cheaper than a local store or S@H. I've become quite the penny-pincher just to get this set. Not to the extreme, though.

Same here... it was the exact same survey as last time.

Because Star Wars would get so many votes, the server would crash. Excluding SW (and Exo-Force- isn't that considered licensed? Note that I like it, but...), my favorite licensed theme would definitely have to be Indy. It has such wonderful figures, accessories, and sets... I could go on and on about how great Lego Indiana Jones is. This year is really expensive, but I think the creativity and craftsmanship of the sets is worth it. Also, in more ways than one, I like Indy even better than SW. Mainly because I love to set up and rearrange my sets to relive great Indy moments. Currently, I have eight poison ants devouring a flailing Col. Dovencheko with a petrified Spalko hanging from a (Lego) tree. This I can't do with my SW ships.