Algernon

You're new to these boards aren't you?

Yeah seriously! We don't discuss the 2011 Space Theme in the 2011 Space Theme topic. It's not like people use internet boards to express their opinions. You better make sure you've read through the entire 20-page topic before you post just to make sure you don't bore the lurkers with a common opinion. For shame. ...on a more relevant note, is anyone else bothered by the overly cartoony look to the aliens? I know I mentioned this before but I just feel like the play value is seriously hindered by the somewhat childish vibe to them. The humans look more serious than the aliens. As epic as that Tripod is I have trouble seeing an army of those things on the march when they're being piloted by a big green square with eyes and a purple skin suit. This is a pretty minor hindrance though. I'm still going to be buying MANY of these. The Tripod and Abduction set being obvious must-haves.

Am I the only one who likes the human defense force sets?

I disagree. Although there is a lot of empty space in the mothership, that allowed LEGO to make the set much bigger than it probably would have been. Lower piece count. And I actually like the design of the mothership a lot better than the smaller UFO piloted by the alien soldier; it looks more like a UFO to me instead of a cone-shaped rocket. Although a lot of these sets look great the mothership is actually one of my most anticipated.

I think the Defense HQ has some potential to be a decent set; I like the rotating fighter lauchpad on top of the truck. But its also clearly the most expensive one, and the alien mothership looks much better to me. As others have said, I'm really loving the B movie vibe to these. In particular, I like how the alien designs appear to vary. If you look close you can see the heads are a little more elongated and generically "alien" as opposed to the grunt worker we saw in that catalog shot, so I'm guessing there will be different varieties. Personally I'm hoping for some kind of alien emperor for the mothership set, which is growing on me rapidly. It's been a long time since I've liked a LEGO theme as much as I'm liking these. I've never picked up an entire theme before but I just might this time.

These look fantastic. Way better than I hoped for. The Tripod set in particular looks like a gem. The alien mothership looks amazing as well, and I'm loving the aesthetics on the Defense HQ. I can't see the jet chopper too well but it looks like it has potential. I am REALLY stoked for this now.

Wait, what "classic" theme? I seriously doubt LEGO would release two Space themes in the same year, especially with these NASA sets... but that trooper minifig does look a little "classic" oriented. That's actually kind of intriguing.

You're probably right.

It's DEFINITELY just preliminary. God I remember the huge clamor SP3 caused when people noticed that the early pics showed sticker decals on the minifigs. Why would LEGO spend money on printing the figs when the designs are still subject to change? Makes perfect sense. Although I was pretty fond of SP3, I kind of hope that these sets have more of a (dare I say it) Mars Mission vibe. As bad as the aliens in MM were, at least they were somewhat menacing. These guys look like they were pulled straight out of the 80s. Not necessarily bad mind you, I just have trouble taking them seriously, which could be problematic for an "alien invasion" type of theme. Personally though, I'm hoping for a Roswell vibe. As in, alien spacecraft in a run-down 60s-style town. That would be awesome.

Hmm. I'm not sure what to think. I don't dislike the alien but I'm not crazy about him either. Looks VERY cartoon-ish to me which may or may not bode well for the theme... I prefer more "serious" Space themes. The space girl isn't terrible either but she's a little bland in terms of design. Lets hope the sets are a little more impressive than the figs so far.

I'm liking those NASA sets a LOT more now, although I'm not sure why. That moon buggy is a must-buy for me.

An undead dragon would be cool.

Anyone seen that large-ish sub set in stores yet?

The new skeletons are really weird. I'm not sure if I like them yet. This really is the strangest thing LEGO's done in awhile... I DO like the biker skeleton though.

Some really great aesthetics here. I'm especially loving the submarine it comes with. I doubt I'll be picking this up unfortunately, but it's still a nice looking set. Awesome review!

So I'm deciding between buying some of these Pharoah's Quest sets or getting a few Space Police III sets that I missed before they get discontinued. PQ looks good but after the reviews some people seem kinda lukewarm to it. Any recommendations?

Lol. Yeah, I kind of agree with you. This is the strangest theme we've gotten since that bizarre time-traveling one from the 90s. But I have to say it's been growing on me, too. Some of the models are actually pretty nice. Some great new Asian-themed parts such as the hats and wall panels, and even if the high-tech Skeletons are strange, the models are definitely the coolest this theme has to offer. ...but I also would have preferred a more generic Ninja theme in vein of the 1998 wave you mentioned. Ninjago is just too strange for me to think of it as a true Ninja theme.

Ahh there we go. I like that set a lot. Really digging the clean SNOT construction methods being used here. Do we have prices on these yet?

Looks good. Lots of useful parts and neat construction. I can't seem to shake the "Spongebob" vibes though, for some reason. Personally I'm more interested in the big sub. Do we have any high-res pics of that yet?

The awesome figs and bike alone make this worth picking up. Looks great. Thanks for the review!

This set is just fantastic. Awesome figs and great shape. The only downside is that it is quite expensive, which means I won't be getting it for some time. Great review!

I don't know if I'd go that far. The Pyramid looks less impressive from the back, yes, but all other things considered it still works perfectly well. The "lazily built walls" are pretty logical since using a boatload of slopes would result in a really blocky structure that would be even harder to decorate the interior of. I'm not surprised with that one. The entrance looks great, too. It's just a little sparser than it appears on first glance.

The Sphinx just isn't doing it for me, although the car is quite snazzy. Has anybody gotten their hands on the giant stone snake yet?

Looks GREAT... shame the inside is so sparse though.

Now that's rather silly. Power Miners is clearly a fantasy theme so why would LEGO have to base the color scheme off of real vehicles? Especially when it's so... strange looking. Rock Raiders wasn't lime green and orange... It's still LEGO's aesthetic decision. That said, Mars Mission is another reason why LEGO's not the greatest with color combinations. I don't find it at all surprising that these new sets involved a "disgusting color of green". But still, if this is legit, I think it could be very interesting. I actually liked UFO.