M'Kyuun

That makes two of us. I suppose our flagging economy, increased unemployment, and a two-front war in the Middle East pale in significance to the improbable, yet highly suspect, lead content in our toys. The old adage, "The road to ruin is paved with good intentions" comes to mind.

Thanks for the pic, Legomilk. As mentioned, the perspective may be skewed. It looks a bit thick in the center; if so, it may have room for a mini-mini-fig scale V-19, which would round out the set much better than another escape pod.

The figs for UFO were probably the most sci-fi-ish figs prior to Star Wars. Very unique, with very intricate circuitry patterns. The helmets were the icing on the cake, so to speak...straight up excellent. I'm glad you enjoy the theme; it's not my cup of tea, but i won't disparage it either, b/c it captures a certain look and feel that appeals to a lot of people. Just like EF appeals to some , and others dislike it. I'm just glad LEGO ventures into these themes and tries different ideas. The same can be said about Agents or the new Power Miners. I love the former and am not too plussed for the latter, but i know there are folks out there with an entirely opposite opinion. As far as robots go, they're a sci-fi mainstay, and in any incarnation, I'm sure there are fans. That said, i'm sure we'll see them in other themes, although, I agree, we may not see a purely robot-based theme again for awhile. I'm still holding out hope for TLG to attempt a transforming mech, although I think it'll be a few more years before we see anything of that complexity in an official product. If they do, i hope it's very well done, b/c the only thing cooler than a well designed transforming robot is a very well designed transforming robot made entirely from LEGO. Til then, I'll remain content with my Vulture Droids and my 2 Hyena Droids...I think they're pretty gosh darn swell.

Oh man, i loved the UFO set..the top lifted off as a separate smaller saucer and then there was the arm to take the wheeled vehicle out of the center cargo area. Just pure plastic awesomeness. And the helmets on the aliens were fantastic, again, unlike anything TLG had ever made before, let alone the unique faces on the alien figs. What a great unsung theme. Yeah, i think they were going for more of a 50's style robot, and this was years before clicky joints, so wheels were the way to go. Still, the bulldozer chain links were around back then, and they could have used those. It's a moot point. TLG didn't gamble a great deal back then; they aimed their products solely at kids, received little to no feedback, and were completely oblivious to their, ahem, more mature fanbase. :) We take alot of the forward strides TLG have made in the last 10 years for granted, I think. How many toy companies, or companies period, aside from Hasbro and TLG, listen to their fans and solicit ideas from the same? As far as Exo-Force; yeah, pretty skeletal and simplistic. But, they were humanoid, and had jointed, poseable legs as well as arms. To me, that was a huge evolution in LEGO design. I was ecstatic when they put 2 hands with moving fingers on the yellow bot (the name escapes me; it was an exclusive, and actually one of the best designs to come out of the line, IMHO). EF to me was simply a stepping stone to what i hope will be improved robots in future lines. I'd venture to guess there are a few anime fans among the LEGO design teams, and perhaps they'll churn out some more "mature " designs that get ok'd for release. After all, TLG have done stuff in the SW theme that i never thought i'd see in an official product, so there's always hope. i keep hangin' on to that thin thread.

I have a difference of opinion on this theme. The base is the best set of the theme (I have it and the Saucer), IMHO. I'm a huge fan of robots, but the robots in this line and Robo-Force just underwhelmed me completely, then and now (the sets, not the figs...robo-figs are excellent! ). Exo-Force, to me, was a big step in the right direction, but still not quite there. If they could make sets that look like something out of Armored Core, or Steel Battalion, now that would be something, not to mention Full Metal Panic or, even better, Macross. UFO doesn't seem to be that popular, but i loved the theme and the figs. It was so different from anything TLG had ever created up until that time, and it had some great playability and features. Space Police, M-tron, Futuron, Blacktron, and the like are easy to love...they were just awesome eye-catching themes. UFO was a little different, but i loved it anyway.

I'll put in a good word for Crystal Reaper and Ultra Drill Walker as well. Both are big, beautiful sets, the gems of the theme , IMHO. The direction of these sets was towards the classic, and i hope we see more in the new space line. i loves me a good robot, and i hope there will be a well designed one in the new line, with a different design aesthetic from EF. Something practical, like a cargo loading bot, or a construction bot, or a space ship repair bot, would be awesome, with an aesthetic leaning more towards industrial than anime. Ripley's loader comes to mind.

I'm keeping my expectations high. TLG has heard the clamoring for pirates for years, and IMHO, they didn't disappoint, and I was never really a fan of pirates. I am now though. I believe TLG is pretty aware of the interest in the various classic space themes, and hopefully, they'll keep the faith with the old while injecting some new life into the theme. I liked Agents from the start, and I'm glad they turned out so well; the same cheekiness in a space theme could make it a another great resurrection of a long retired theme (I don't really count Mars Mission, which was a reinvention of the Life on Mars theme, both of which had a different look and feel from the old classic sets) I'm hoping for an official modern version of the Galaxy Explorer.

Great review of a truly excellent, unsung set. I bought this back when it it first came out, and was amazed the first time I rolled it across the floor and watched it unfold into its combat form. It's definitely a feat of engineering. Mine's still put together in a drawer somewhere. It was too cool to tear apart!

It's exclusively on Cartoon Network, at least in the US, since they produce it. Blitzwing makes me think the alt modes were designed around bot. The fighter mode could have been much better, esp if the lower legs/treads would have been narrowed slightly and turned laterally. I generally keep him in bot mode..I like how he looks. I finally got my hands on Hound and Cyclonus today, and I'm very happy with both. Hound is fantastic in both modes. Cyclonus looks great; my one and only gripe is that his biceps don't swivel, so the entire arm has to be rotated so that his arm can move laterally. Both have good transformations that are unique, but not difficult. Ravage looks good in jaguar mode, and vaguely like a cassette in alt. Still, the 3D ravage is something i've always wanted, and i'm happy with the results overall.The universe line has been hit and miss for me, but these two are definitely hits. Highly reccommended.

I'll venture a second opinion. I got two of these for Christmas and built one so far. I like the set. I like the Vulture droid design (it's a transforming fighter in the SW universe), and this is pretty much a Vulture on steroids. It's pretty solid in all modes, and it's pretty sleek in fighter. The head doesn't rotate right or left, but just pivots straight up; it's a minor design weakpoint on this set. I don't mind the technic connection point for the legs, but to each his own. The firing mechanism allows two bombs at a time to drop. The targeting sensor pivots down, but again, does not rotate. As mentioned, it relies very heavily on stickers to convey detail. I personally find applying the curved stickers to the large curved pieces an exercise in super-human patience if one is trying to get them on there straight and symmetrical. But overall, it's a nice looking model if stickers are applied, and it's pretty imposing when standing over the minifigs. As for the astro-droids, I always like variety in colors on the droids; the binocular jetpacks are a cheap way of rendering the effect..doesn't kill it for me b/c I like the primary model; the astrodroids are icing on the cake. BTW, if anyone is wondering, there's no room in this for a pilot (it's a droid, it doesn't need one).

Thirded! Something like this would be ideal, although i think TLG could produce a mini-AAT , stored in the ship's "foot". I mentioned before somewhere that a droid repair bay would be cool in a ship this size. i really like the overall look of this ship; it's unique, imposing, and the shape is ideal for carrying an army of droids in the "wings". Most certainly, Boba needs a redesign to separate his helmet from his backpack. He'd look pretty awesome with the new rangefinder on his helmet as well. i wouldn't mind seeing the rest you mentioned here, and maybe an Admiral Ackbar. Overall, i wish TLG would redesign the various droid legs into 2 pieces for better poseability, and Greivous could do with a slight redesign, too. All things being equal, i'm just glad they're still making SW sets.

Theme name: Terra-Formers Characters: Terra-Formers, galactic "green thumbs" making space rocks habitable for eons / Cy-Bergs, cybernetic humanoids who will collect and haul anything, for a price Conflict: The Terra-Formers and Cy-Bergs battle for control of Vernare, a planet made of Legonium 17 , a powerful bio-crystal. The Cy-Bergs are determined to get it using their high-tech "realistic" transforming vehicles (ex: shuttle, jet, cargo truck to humanoid robots). Determined to protect this resource, the Terra-Formers create biomechanical transforming vehicles (ex: tank to rhinocerous, fighter jet to wasp, etc). Pushed to the edge, will the Terra-Formers become cold hearted Cy-Bergs themselves? Setting: Earth-like and rocky planets (crater plates) with habitat domes, atmospheric generators for the Terra-Formers, greenhouses, etc / Industrial or Gothic spire like towers on an icy planet, everything non-organic and mechanical, centered around cargo processing and transport. Background: The Terra-Formers use Legonium 17, transluscent red, green, and blue crystals discovered eons ago on a secret planet, to power their vehicles and machines to create atmosphere and plant life on dead planets. But now their secret has been discovered by the Cy-Bergs, who want to plunder the crystals to make their planet, Frigidus, lush again, as well as powering their machines. The peaceful Terra-Formers, in combatting this threat, begin to cyberize themselves to pilot their new transformable machines to fight the Cybergs' own.

I'm a sucker for shuttles, and the exterior looks pretty good, its having been featured on the show a few times. From the pics, there doesn't seem to be a link between the wings; there's a locking mechanism inboard of the cannon nacelle/wing pivot, and it looks like the wings rotate freely. Just once, I'd like to see TLG invest one of their shuttles with proper folding gear and a boarding ramp. The interior is pretty cramped, and the little chair for Mace looks odd to me, but after the previous shuttle sets, I guess it's par for the course. Overall, I like it. I asked for a CIS landing craft, and I really hope they do make one. Granted, neither the MTT nor AAT will fit inside a System scale set, but I'd be happy if they made a mini-AAT , and filled the rest of the ship with droids and maybe a droid repair bay. the droids could be laid down horizontally in compartments throughout the wing and the wing could hinge up (like a tackle box). The Solar Sailer looks alright to me, but as others have pointed out, it's not the best angle to judge the set. While I doubt we'll get a sail, it'd be nice if TLG threw in a detachable sail. Still, they might surprise us with a folding sail; I try to stay optimistic at this point. I hope the speeder gets a rehash, but stays together a little better than Darth Maul's. TLG should make an element with 2 1x1 plates with open studs connected by a thin vertical piece like that featured on the motorcyle. It'd make a nice base to build any number of speeders.

I've seen a couple eps now, and the overall tone is more whimsical/lighthearted than the previous series. It's not a bad show, although i much prefer a darker take on Batman. B:TAS and JL capture his personality best for me. Kevin Conroy really nailed the part and gave the character some grit. Introducing a lot of obscure characters can be good and bad: good for variety in the show and on the toy shelves; bad because kids may not identify with characters who are introduced in an episode, and never again explored. Characterization and story plays a surprisingly large role in selling toys, as evidenced by the original Transformers back in the 80's: TF started out as several different toy lines in Japan, but none of them had strong stories and the toy lines failed. Hasbro bought the licenses, crafted a decent story, gave the characters endearing personalities, and the rest is history. On the same note, I think JL:Unlimited didn't do as well as JL b/c of all the new characters...it's what turned me off to it, so I speak from personal experience. I thought JL was an amazing show; there was a surprising amount of maturity in the writing at times that is rare in American animation. If the Brave and Bold writers create an overarching storyline and pepper it with various character appearances, I think it will do better than if it becomes the new-character-introduced-every-episode type of show. My $.02 However, for you, sir, I'm glad you like the show and I hope it builds a fanbase; it'll put some variety into the franchise, and Batman is a character that should endure.

Yep, Shoji Kawamori. He also designed two VAN-Force models using existing EXO-Force sets and custom decals, available only in Japan. I've seen a few vids of his LEGO valks; pretty neat how he works out the transformation sequence, although his models are more practical than aesthetic, and he cuts/modifies some pieces to fit the shapes he desires. Over the years, there have been some nice Macross inspired MOCs; I think with a few new smaller ratcheting joints and small ball joints (similar to the old ball and socket arm joints), TLG could produce some stellar models at minifig scale. Honestly, I think LEGO is "missing the boat" by not attempting a transformable robot theme set in the System scale. The Transformers are still incredibly popular, and with a second film set next summer and the Animated cartoon, continues to reach younger fans, as well as the older crowd. EF was cool, but was just a little too ..i dunno, limited, and the mecha were too simplistic. Now if the City Police Van could transform into a decently articulated robot(with hands...no weapon arms, thank you), I think it would sell very well, even better if it could accommodate a minifig in vehicle mode. Although 6 wide vehicles are possible, I think 8 wide trucks and such would be excellent fodder for a transformable theme, giving the designers more room to fit features and joints in there. Anyway, this is and has been my dream theme for LEGO since I was about 11 or 12 years old...I'm 37 now, and I'm still dreaming.

Macross! Transforming valkyries FTW!! I don't see it ever happening, however. It's a niche anime series, and it's fettered by ongoing litigation between Harmony Gold, who claim rights to all things Macross in the US, and the series' creators in Japan. It's an unhappy, and downright expensive, situation for Macross fans in the US. I'd be Bricklinking like crazy if TLG did a limited run in Japan and Europe, however. Somebody mentioned Evangelion...good call. Great series. LEGO Evas would be very cool. Something like this: http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=53172

I would love a well designed transformable robot theme set in scale with other City sets. I'd also like to see smaller ball/socket and ratcheting joints to allow a wide range of motion/articulation in a small model, i.e. a 6 stud wide car. If Tobey MacGuire gets his Robotech movie made and released, I'd be happy to see LEGO pick up the license and produce a transforming Veritech(transforming jet fighter). I would very much, along with alot of other Macross fans, love to see a VF-1 "Valkyrie" realized in an official LEGO set, esp in a highly detailed perfect transformation UCS set. Perchance to dream....

So far, my wife has the Shipwreck Hideout, which, a week after purchase, remains unopened on the shelf to date( and much to my temptation), and I have Brickbeard's Bounty, sailing the dangerous seas of my dining room. This is my first Pirate set ever in over 30 years of collecting LEGO, as I've never had much interest in the line, but I have to say it's a pretty sweet set...I was downright giddy when she was all done. I actually bought it as a surprise Christmas gift for my wife, but I couldn't resist when I got home, so I'll probably get her the Soldier's Fort instead. She heaved a bit of invective my way when I told her my true intentions, but I've since been forgiven..at least that's what I keep telling myself as i look over my shoulder.

CopMike, I recognized the foul stench of your teasery the moment I opened this thread. Not really a stellar set to celebrate 10 years, but I'm glad they made it grey, and the new improved Vader is a bonus. And, it's much better than the previous versions, which were little more than black and blue cubes with add-ons.

Right on! You've got the essence of the original, but with your own touch. I feel you as far as colors go...LDD is pretty limited, but you did very well with what's available. Nice SNOT on the tail, BTW. Given the popularity of Star Wars, I wish TLG could approach Lucasarts about including SW elements into LDD, esp figs and droid parts. I doubt it'll happen, though.

Thanks for the kind words. Well, it was my intention to put the X-Wing/Shuttle set up in the Factory gallery so anyone could buy them if so desired; however, TLG rejected them due to trademark infringement. The mini-Millennium Falcon is on Factory gallery under Space, going by the name Space Freighter, so it's actually available to buy. I bought the X-Wing and shuttle (still waiting for them to ship), but I haven't ordered my Falcon yet.

Wow...whatever happened to 'patience is a virtue'? (Runs, ducking the hurled MegaBlocks)

- Droid Landing Ship (http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/C-9979_landing_craft), with a miniturized MTT that can carry 6 droids on an extending pallette, and 2 additional battle droid pilots and a droideka. I love the shape and look of that ship. - Amidala's ship using the new shiny silver pieces, close in size to the Sith Infiltrator. - A new System AT-AT, non-walking, but with improved head accommodating 2 pilots and commander, with a stonger neck connection and slightly larger proportions overall. - UCS or System Republic Star Destroyer -System Tantive IV in red or blue color scheme (or with parts to make either version) Figs= Bail and Leia Organa, Capt Antilles, Rebel troop, R2-D2 and C3PO Great idea! The mini-TIE in the DS playset opens the door to the realization of a lot of iconic ships done in this style, at a much reduced cost..perfect, as you've said, for battle packs, and a great opportunity to give us rarer figs.

Resizing them surely made it difficult to see anything. If you want to then I'll cut and resize them for you. Just post the big picture again and I'll do it. (Thursday or Friday - I am off for a small vacation in a few hours) If you want to, then I'm agreeable. Since I'm posting these as attachments (all pics are saved on my PC), I'll have to delete one or the other to make one of them normal size. With the two resized pics I have up now, my attachment space is maxed out. I finished my mini YT-1300 freighter (Millennium Falcon inspired). (Note to purists, my version is predominantly black due to the limits of the color pallette in LDD. As with my other models, I've taken some liberties, but the essence of its inspiration is still there.) The model has extending/retracting tricycle landing gear and the side hatches are hinged as well as the entire top of the ship. The main body of the ship features engine/hyperdrive detail and a cargo area. The top and bottom cannons can rotate 360 degrees. I had no preconception of how I was going to build this; I just wanted to capture the basic shape, and I think I managed to do that. Despite some frustrating quirks of LDD, it was alot of fun to build. I'll let you guys be the judge of how I did. Just checked My Factory page, and my mini X-Wing and Shuttle sets are flagged as being in trademark violation. I changed the name to mini-ships; hopefully that'll be sufficient to allow placement in the gallery. Granted, they look like Star Wars ships, but I've seen other Star Warsy ships and such in the gallery.

Great find..kudos aplenty to the builder. That's a lot of LEGO. I have the UCS Tantive IV, and it was a good set for a model. Seeing this, I hope for a System set, in either classic dark red or the dark blue, in similar proportion to the UCS set, but with some nice interior detail on par or superior to the Republic Cruiser, complemented by 2 Rebel soldiers, Capt Antilles, C3PO, R2-D2, and Princess Leia. Realistically, if TLG makes it, I know it'll be about the same size as the RC, with limited detail like the RC and ISD, but I'm dreaming a little.