Algernon

I suppose, but I feel like steampunk is more of a visual style than a term for the actual functionality of bizarre Victorian-era airships.

I forgot about the mechs in Life on Mars - they were actually quite nice, as I remember. The more recent ones didn't impress me too much, though, since they're still a pretty far cry from anything in Mech Warrior, but point well taken. And yes, Megabloks is obviously a relatively poor manufacturer. Despite my aesthetic qualms I'd still much rather buy Exo-Force than anything Megabloks has come up with. I really don't see the appeal of Anime-style mechas, though. A personal preference, sure, but I feel like you can get the same "cool" factor from Bionicle. After all they were basically human-sized mechas with a needlessly complicated backstory. I just enjoy the concept of a walking tank, after all that's what made Mech Warrior so much fun back in the day. I'd love to see a LEGO iteration of that.

It looks good all right, but the minifig assortment seems a little random to me. And it will probably be way out of my price range. Still, I love the UCS series. It'll be fun to see the reviews.

I played Mech Warrior 4 religiously as a kid, but this theme just didn't do it for me. The anime vibes and skeletal models are huge turn offs. When I think Mechs, I think of hulking metal war machines designed to soak up artillery and dish out a battalion's worth of ammunition, kind of like this: http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTgfkoUIerKgfENfzixSLp9U1yJiWkj_BM85eYrvOCD2ZhFFDogvA&t=1 That looks much more like a walking tank to me than anything in Exo-Force. And the death of Exo-Force more or less nixes the possibility of a more Mech Warrior-like theme later on, so the whole thing is kind of a disappointment to me. As much as I hate to say it, I think Mega Blocks nailed the aesthetic much better than LEGO did, with the Warrior Future Force line awhile back. Yes, I know, don't stone me- I'm not saying I'd buy that line before Exo Force, I'm just talking aesthetics.

True enough. Well, chances are we'll get at least a winter wave of AC - maybe we'll get another small fighter, a la Mars Mission or Space Police wave 2.

I'd like to see another Orient Expedition type of theme. But really, I just want to see the Adventurers throwback continue, I'm not too picky about the locales.

I don't see why people don't want to just buy the entire set. It's a nice model, and priced fairly.

Wow, I didn't know people were already getting their hands on these! This set looks great, although the biggest selling point is definitely the minifigures for me. The light tower is nice but the detail is a little sparse for the price point. Still, it's not a bad set. Nice review!

I actually like that- excellent army builder and pretty eye-catching in general.

Lol- why? It wouldn't make them any more money. I can promise you that more kids buy LEGO than AFOLs, so pandering to us (as nice as it would be) would be the equivalent of corporate suicide. There's not a reason on the planet why they should do that. And they do listen to us more than a lot of corporations do, if you think about it. For example, Space Police got closed helmets in the second wave, a primary complaint among AFOLs. And Mars Mission aliens got updated after the extreme hatred they drew from most AFOLs. LEGO listens, but they don't lose sight of their target audience, which is what a smart business would do.

I had to stare at this set for a good 30 seconds before I realized that it was for real. Good review though. XD

Great review, and the set is pretty nice too. I've always eyeballed this set but I never wanted to shell out the cash for it. It's nicely designed, for sure, but just a tad too military for me. Still I wouldn't mind it for a display piece. Too bad it goes for $100 on Ebay now.

No love for the jet-copter. Am I really the only one who thinks it's outstanding? I'm probably gonna pick up everything but the Mothership... although I really want that alien emperor! I wish it wasn't so pricey.

I think Pharaoh's Quest has a TON of potential to continue into a variety of new Adventurer's-esque themes. Personally, I'd be much more interested in an Oriental theme than a Jungle one- I was never a huge fan of the jungle Adventurer's sets- but I'd love to see what LEGO does with either direction.

Colour'd! I think the spikes kind of help the consistency, really. Although I'll agree that it could benefit from a few mods. I kind of wish the "body" was tilted forward more like the actual tripods from the movies: Although I'm not surprised that the menacing look was toned down a bit to keep it kid friendly. The 2005 War of the Worlds may have been a crappy movie, but the tripods themselves were terrifying. I'd love to see a more "serious" alien invasion theme sometime.

I don't see that at all, and I'm usually the one who gets in a tizzy about aesthetics. I think the tripod has a great look. But of course you're entitled to your opinion. I wouldn't be surprised if the tripod could separate from the body, after all it's a pretty logical feature considering that the cockpit looks like it could be a standalone vessel. The thing that bothers me most about the tripod invader is the trans-neon-green bubble sitting directly behind the trans-clear cockpit. It feels... inconsistent. But I can easily get over that since it's still one of the theme's standouts (and who doesn't want a War of the Worlds-esque invasion force? I'll take four.) As others have said, though, the Earth Defense HQ has been growing on me and it's probably my most-anticipated set. June can't come quickly enough.

I don't usually comment on MOCs but these are simply brilliant. I love the designs on the walkers and that brown assassin minifig is really cool. Great work on this, I'm jealous of your skill.

I think I'll probably cut back on some of my other Summer LEGO purchases for the sake of the HQ. It's really got a lot going for it. Even though I usually wait for reviews first, I know I'll probably be skipping some of my Star Wars purchases to pick up that beauty.

Agreed. The sturdy and complete look of the HQ really makes it stand out from the HQ sets from other themes (Power Miners and Mars Mission come to mind). It's rapidly becoming my favorite.

I really like that Windmill set. Do we have a price for that one yet?

This theme just looks so damn good. Every set looks phenomenal in those pics. This is gonna be a fantastic summer for space fans. The mothership looks quite a bit better, too. I wish it wasn't so pricey.

Pretty much this. I expect LEGO to make another wave of Egyptian sets, which I don't mind at all, but I hope that they'll (at some point) go the Johnny Thunder route and keep making new themes using the same character. Personally I've got my fingers crossed for another Oriental theme.

I think this theme needs better mid-sized sets. I have the sub-$19.99 ones and I really want the pyramid, but it's too pricey and the Cobra and Sphinx aren't impressing me enough for me to shell out my limited amounts of cash. I hope the second wave has more interesting mid-sized models.

That occurred to me too; in the likely event of a second wave, a stationary command center for the EDU would be pretty standard given the route of Space Police, Atlantis, and even Power Miners. That doesn't necessarily mean it'll be a better purchase than the Earth Defense HQ (who knows?) but that's a ways off anyway; I'll probably have more than enough money to handle a second wave by the time it's even worth thinking about. What makes ME hesitant is the price tag. Fair, yes, but $90 is still $90 and I'm just as tempted by the smaller sets as I am by the Defense HQ. It's a rare occurrence when I pick up the biggest set in a theme (I really wanted to get that Pharoah's Quest pyramid, but alas, not enough dough) so when I do shell out my ~$100 it had better be on a real gem. I really like the Defense HQ but I'm gonna wait until I see some reviews before I make up my mind. Either way, it's looking like an expensive Summer for me.

I shall call you Rainbow Man The Earth Defense HQ is really growing on me. I'm not even a fan of classic space but I can definitely feel the classic vibes. It's built like a rock, too, or at least it appears to be. And I REALLY like the fighter jet mounted on top of the truck. Definitely the best mobile HQ LEGO's come up with, and the price is pretty fair... this one's going to be hard to resist.