M'Kyuun

I think you and I stand alone in that opinion. I had all but the largest UFO ship set. The Alien Avenger outshone it, anyway, IMO. I still think the little Cyborg Scout is one of the coolest small vehicles from any theme (the T-3 Trike from Life on Mars was excellent, too). I just love it. The intricacy of the various printed parts/figs was a huge part of the appeal of those and subsequent themes. To this day, I have to scratch my head when folks complain of an official LEGO product being too detailed for LEGO. No such thing as "too detailed" IMO. That's as bad as saying that a model has too much detail built into it. Everyone's entitled to their opinion, however; fortunately for those of us favoring detailed prints, LEGO continues to improve the detailing on both parts and figs. It adds to the quality of their product, which is what makes them stand above the rest, and keeps me loyal and spending my hard earned cash. Earlier in this thread, I believe, someone make a poignant observation that most of the earlier space themes took themselves seriously, whereas the latest batch of themes, i.e SP3, Agents and now Alien Conquest, are demonstrably tongue firmly in cheek. Not a bad thing for a kid's toy; but i like the serious stuff too. The Mars Mission Crystal Reaper has an area on the Reaper where you can connect a hose from the alien to the Reaper itself, as if siphoning its life energy to power the machine. That's how it played out in my mind, anyway. Then again, without ever reading any official backstory, one can easily see the human space miners as the antagonists in Mars Mission. Still, seems a little dark for LEGO, but maybe I'm inferring too deeply. As far as Alien Conquest is concerned, I initially didn't think much of the sets. As I picked them up, however, I came to like them alot, esp the HQ. I love the addition of the viper craft, an excellent tribute to NNENN, as well as rounding out the set. It's not as elegant as the Agents' HQ, but then again the ADU HQ has a nice heavy military vibe to it, and few military vehicles are designed with elegance in mind. I was hoping for a continuation, but I guess it's another come and go theme. If I had my druthers, like many others here, I'd like to see either a limited release of fan-choice Classic Space sets (maybe one a year or every two years), or an updated revisitation of some of the old sets with today's parts, techniques, and aesthetics; perhaps a Galaxy Explorer 2.0.

I think the standards have changed over the years, as well as LEGO's philosphy regarding conflict, and that comes through in the sets. Growing up in the 70's and 80's,I've followed and bought Space sets from nearly every theme, and in my opinion, every theme had its hits and misses. I'd prefer if LEGO would abandon the self-contained conflict and focus on each model for its own sake; alas, I doubt that'll happen again any time soon. Standards are very subjective. Personally, I would put this theme in an action category instead of Space, but it's LEGO's own classification so I'll not argue the point. What I will say is, I would put the ADU HQ set on par with any of the best Space sets I've built in terms of build, colors ( I like the smoked screen over the trans-yellow, personally), aesthetics, and most importantly, functionality. I got a very nostalgic feel building the HQ...the ramp with the little car (love that sort of thing), the blues and grays, the solidarity of the model, all harken to early classic Space sets. I was actually hoping the UFOs in the theme would be closer to the Alien Avenger UFO set, esp the mothership. i still like what we got in the theme. I thought the two small alien ships that combine in the heli set were pretty neat. I love the modularity of the Blacktron sets...always neat to see in newer sets and themes. I find it odd that so many dislike the old UFO sets. It still stands as one of my favorite themes. I like the intricate printed designs on both figs and parts. I absolutely love the alien helmet from that theme...it looked foreboding and wonderful. The Alien Avenger was my favorite set, and I still have it built and stored away. I love how the ground vehicle can be tucked inside, and that the smaller saucer can detach. To me, it was very creative, different, and dark for its time.

I saw Rise of the Planet of the Apes yesterday. Very well done, with a few nods to the original Planet of the Apes. Huge props to the special effects, considering the majority of apes in the movie are CG, but look incredibly real. Where they really excelled, however, is in rendering the facial expressions. Andy Serkis, known for playing Gollum and King Kong, plays Ceasar, the main simian character; his body language and facial expressions bring the character to life.

Agreed! Spot-on, and great details. Those legs are fantastic...best I've seen.

This is a great thread. I'm days away from 40, married with no kids (my wife buys for me and builds a little, too), been collecting since I was 4 years old, and never intend to stop. I MOC from time to time, but mostly I enjoy building the sets. It's such a great hobby, but it can become addictive, and expensive. Moderation's the key. Anyway, Jarrett, I'm glad you got your Slave I, and I hope you have a great experience building it. I love the Star Wars sets, but I buy whatever else interests me, which is alot. :) I don't play with my sets...too much...but I find the process of building to be incredibly engaging and enjoyable, and I genuinely love the LEGO aesthetic. I think you'll find it to be a great hobby for you as well as for your kids...and it's something you can share at all ages. Hopefully, you're wife will recognize that it's a really good passtime and, like my Kelly, become an enabler, or better yet, an AFOL herself. My wife didn't have any LEGO until she met me. She has a nice collection of Harry Potter and other assorted themes now. She has nowhere near the passion I have for the hobby, but it's still something we share. LEGO is the combination of two Danish words "lehg godt", which means play well. So, good luck, and play well!

My fears that this was going to be a copy of the Cruiser, with exception of color scheme and escape pod shape, can be laid to rest. There are plenty of differences. I have to say, i think this is a cleaner looking model than the Cruiser, and i much prefer this color scheme over the red and orange of the Cruiser. The use of the space doesn't look promising, and the Sidious hologram, while lovely, seems out of place on this ship, unless I'm forgetting if it was shown on the ship in an episode. I generally lament the use of space on these capital ship sets. Still, i like this better than what was done with the Venator. The figs are what we've come to expect...very detailed.

I had the same thought about the conveyor; one need only wind in the desired direction. Alas, it looks designed only to feed "grain" to the truck, with no other positioning possible. The conveyor is a great idea for the intended cargo, but i think TLG missed the boat (pun intended) on its utilization. Mounted on a rotating base with a pivot to change the angle of the conveyor, and given the ability to slide on a track would have allowed the conveyor to reach down into the ship's hold to convey the grain up to the truck. As i mentioned, a silo would have completed this set. Given the right placement in relation to the conveyor would then allow the conveyor to be placed below the silo to move grain out to the truck or ship, or placed at a high angle to allow the grain to be passed up to the top of the silo. Those technic actuator pieces would have worked great and given a touch of realism and added functionality to the set. As it stands, the conveyor adds a little playability, but nothing that couldn't be accomplished with the crane alone. I don't have a ship with sponsoons yet, so I'd be happy to have it in green to match the farm sets. :)

I think the aim of this new harbor set was to recapture the feel of the old 80's sets; if you take the 6-wide truck and the modern ship out of the pic, it'd fit right in with classic sets. I'm torn on the set personally. The nostalgic nod is nice, but I'm generally a fan of progress. The selling point for me is that the cargo is now grain, and the set is thus equipped for it. I also have to register some disappointment that the conveyor is a stand alone assembly rather than brick-built. Some kind of grain storage silo would have been nice as well, esp if the conveyor could be utilized to put grain in or take it out. I have the 2007 harbor set, and it reigns as one of my all-time favorite city sets. I love the huge ship hull, and would've liked to have seen it repurposed, perhaps research of large sea creatures, recovery of sunken vessels/aircraft, or as a non-military stylized aircraft carrier...something akin to Agents or the ADU folks of Alien Conquest(secret research on aliens and their tech out on the high seas). Hopefully, somebody at TLG is reading this. Like others here, I'll hold out for a sale on this set. It's ok, but not really worth the price tag.

I also want to tip my hat to you, Rufus, for an excellent review. Very entertaining, in depth, with some great humor, and great exposition concerning the build, the figs, and features with excellent photography to go along. As a very happy owner of 3 copies of 4483 (just in case there was never another AT-AT set), I found this one to be a bit lacking compared to its pedecessor in detail, heft, build, accuracy, and features. Moreover, the inclusion of Han and C3PO raises a questioning eyebrow, esp in light of the new Millennium Falcon set coming this summer sans the golden droid and his astromech pal. Anyway, I still picked up a copy of this AT-AT, more out of morbid curiosity than anything, well that and my love of LEGO and AT-ATs , and overall, it's not a bad set. For those who missed out on 4483, this is still a good representation of the AT-AT, and I'm happy to now have a Gen Veers fig. The walking version just didn't really appeal to me, although it's cool for what it is. Great job, Rufus!

What a great statement. I absolutely agree. Given the choice to buy a LEGO set or a Hasbro version of a SW ship, I'll always take the LEGO set. I think the Hasbro toys are quite brilliant in their own right (I only own the Deluxe AT-AT and newer AT-ST), but I'd rather build mine in most cases. And the figs are the icing on the proverbial cake, now more than ever. Given the constraints the designers labor under, I think most of the sets are well done. And, unlike a Hasbro product, you can mod the crap out of the set much more easily without the fear of damaging your toy irreparably. My non-AFOL friends are always amazed by my sets...they can't even conceive how they are made from just LEGO bricks. They're just cool as-is. In kind, I try to enjoy them for what they are, flaws and all. I still remember when there were no SW LEGO sets and fervently wished there were. So, I'm thankful, and try to keep my criticism at bay.

Wow, tough crowd on this board. I'm 39, and have been collecting LEGO since I was 5. I hoped for Star wars LEGO for years, and was thrilled when they picked up the license. Then I saw early pics of the X-Wing, Hoth Speeder, and a couple other sets in '99, and was vastly disappointed. I still bought the sets (I own nearly every SW set since '99), and I have to say that, despite some inaccuracies and a few exceptions, the sets TLG are putting out now are vastly better, and have been getting better over the years. The last AT-AT set was really a step down from its predecessor, but this new Millennium Falcon is a step up from 4504, which itself was a Huge step above 7190, with its many red and blue parts showing through the grays. That's not to say I don't see the inaccuracies; I certainly do, but I also realize it's LEGO, it's scaled to mini-figs, which themselves are in a scale all their own, and ultimately these things are targeted at the 8-12 year old demographic. That we get the accuracy and detail we do get is amazing to me, and I think much of that is due to the awareness of the designers, many of whom are AFOLs themselves, of the AFOL community and their own desire to make these sets the way they would want them to be as a fan and customer. Unfortunately, they're limited by cost and safety restrictions, and ultimately the models are not always what we would like them to be. That said, I'm looking forward to most of the 2011 lineup, most notably the new Falcon. The Nightspeeder and Ewok Attack are probably the most mediocre sets IMO, although the new ewoks look great. I like the new Sith Infiltrator; it's the most accurate version thus far. The cockpit area finally looks round. Perhaps we'll finally get a round TIE-fighter someday. My fingers are crossed. Initially, I thought the Republic Frigate was going to be a carbon copy of the Republic Cruiser with a few exterior differences, but recent Toy Fair pics are proving me somewhat wrong. The interior is a bit different, and there's a little gunner pod between the main hull and the engine section. I still wish they'd made the cockpit area 6 wide instead of 4, but whaddaya do? I normally don't mod my sets, or I buy a copy to mod. But that's the beauty of LEGO..you can mod it as opposed to buying Hasbro products where you have to accept any imperfections, unless you have modeling skills, but that's a whole other topic. Kudos to TLG on the new figs. Overall, I think they're doing a great job. I applaud the effort into making headpieces and such to increase accuracy. They don't have to, but I'm glad they do.

Of the new sets, I think the Dathomir Speeder is probably the least interesting, aside from the figs. Although there are mixed felings about the new MF, I like it. I can accept the cockpit section being out of scale to the rest of the ship; it's not a deal breaker, and I like that Han and Chewie can both sit in there. Until this set, 4504 was my favorite version (the UCS is awesome, but it's more model than playset, and I think 4504 was a good compromise for System playability and aesthetics). This new set builds on that design, fleshes it out considerably, and adds quite a bit more exterior detail. From preliminary pics of the interior, it looks to have been improved as well. I'll concur with some other who've commented on the left mandible's outboard angle not really meshing with the rest of the ship. I can live with it, though. I have the Republic Cruiser, and the Republic Frigate is pretty similar, although I see a few differences outside of colors. I'll still probably get it. :) The new Podracer set is a nice change from all the CW sets, and we haven't had a podracer set since 1999 or 2000, IIRC. Nice to see a proper Sebulba. The care and attention to detail on figs over the past couple years has been excellent and , IMHO, a long time coming. If it took outsourcing to accomplish, then I'm not complaining. I'm enjoying the benefit of having new alien figs with molded heads and well done art on the torsos and legs in SW and other themes. More reasons to love this hobby.

Love it! Great "chibi" model. I built a "chibified" X-wing and Lambda shuttle years ago in LDD (http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=348505)when the Death Star playset came out, to match the awesome mini-Tie-Fighter in that set. This model makes me wish LEGO had continued the minifig sized mini-ships as maybe a stand alone SW line. If this was an official set, I'd scoop a couple up. Again, great job!

Ok, so trying this again with pic... I can't get the technic beam with socket on either end to swivel in any direction, despite the fact that it is completely unobscured and should move forward and back easily and rotate. It does neither. It doesn't move at all. I also have a small structure at the forward end of the model made of hinge plates attched to the model by 1x1 tiles with clips. The assembly should rotate in the clips, but it doesn't move, even if I remove one of the hinge plates thus reducing it to a single point of rotation. I have to remove the entire assembly from the model, remove a clip and plate, affect rotation on the isolated parts, and then grab the rest of the assembly and attach it to the singled out parts to place the entire assembly in a desired configuration. It is needlessly time consuming, inefficient, and just plain frustrating. Funny that the wheel and tire work for you. I even imported another model in which they do work (built in LDD3), copied the tire, and it did not work with the hub in LDD4. Update: I got it to work. The program evidently had a problem with the current hub I was using; so I deleted it, respawned a new one, and voila, it worked with the tire.

Tire part# 42611 will not attach to wheel hub part# 42610 Also, I have a suggestion: Add a grouping option to the hinge tool. I'm building a complex model using a variety of hinge parts, ranging from ball and socket, technic pins, and hinge plates. I tried to post a pic, and despite trying to resize in MSPaint, it still comes up too large, so I gave up. However, none of my hinges in the model move while attached to the model proper. I have to remove the joint or hinge plate, move it separately, and place it back into the model. It's beyond frustrating...it sucks the joy out of using the program. However, if there was a grouping option, whereby an assembly could be assigned to a particular hinge point, perhaps it would be more efficient. As it is now, I have to copy my model in various configurations in order to adjust part fit and such. Too, I think the LDD guys may have overdone it when tightening up the allowances, as I have little to no success moving hinged elements within a tight confine where the hinge would have complete freedom of movement in a real model. If it can be done with real bricks, then surely a digital model should be just as functional, if not even a little more forgiving. To close my post on a positive note, and to temper my Extreme frustration, I have to say the program is much improved in its aesthetics...the shading is absolutely wonderful, esp when comparing a previous LDD3 model with one done in LDD4. Very pretty, but, IMHO, much more limiting than its predecessor.

Thanks for the tips...the pics looked fine to me, as far as size goes, when I uploaded them. However, I'm not savvy with manipulating photos, as I rarely post them. I'll be more diligent about checking sizes of pics next time. Again, thanks for the help. -M'Kyuun

Looking through the various topics, i wasn't sure where to post. I'm trying to deeplink, but I keep getting a message saying I'm not permitted an image extension. I've deeplinked pics before without issue; it's not working for me today. Got it! Mods, feel free to move this to a more appropriate venue. Thanks.

Back in July, I picked up a couple of Hasegawa's Eggplane models, essentially super-deformed versions of modern fighters where the fuselage is, well, egg-shaped. So, I started designing eggplanes of my own in LDD, using part# 47755 (http://www.bricklink.com/catalogItem.asp?P=47755)as the main fuselage components to give it that nice round appearance and still allow for the minifig to fit inside. I refined the model a bit more after I took the screenshots in my folder, Bricklinked the necessary parts, and built the thing for real. I noticed that TLG incorporated the same hull design idea in the sub that comes in the upcoming Atlantis Temple set. I've updated my Brickshelf account, when made public: http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=453240 As always, comments are welcomed. Advanced warning: I have no photography skills at all. Here are a couple pics: http://www.brickshelf.com/gallery/MKyuun/MOCs/002.jpg http://www.brickshelf.com/gallery/MKyuun/MOCs/003.jpg Ready for takeoff! http://www.brickshelf.com/gallery/MKyuun/MOCs/120.jpg Pre-tweek LDD design: http://www.brickshelf.com/gallery/MKyuun/MOCs/lddscreenshot127.png

I just built this last night, and I'm pleased with it overall. It's a nice, classically styled set that makes sense in its own context..the flying Horus-helmed mummies placed their treasure too high for Jake, who, in turn, must make a go at it with his little modified bi-plane. IMO, the stickers bring out a little more character to this set. I love ancient stonework, so placing the heiroglyphics on the tower was a no-brainer for me. Jake's bomber jacket is a great period detail; however, it seems to be the only thing he wears throughout the entire theme. Some diversity in torso designs would have been nice, but I digress. While the Spirit of Luis , barring no better explanation, may be a tip of the hat to Charles Lindbergh's famous plane, the wing markings are clearly classic British, and look great against those dark red wings. I'm also curious about the "SMH" on Jake's jacket. With any luck, the theme will continue, hopefully into Greece, and perhaps some of these little details will be revealed. Overall, I like the little bi-plane for the rounded-ness in the design. The upside-down mounted tommies don't bother me much, as it lends itself to the extended barrel design. It's a cheap design that's easily modded out if one chooses. The two, make it three, areas I'm not crazy about are: 1) no clearance between upper wing and fuselage to allow Jake to see where he's flying; 2) the prop design just doesn't look right to me..it juts too far forward and just doesn't really complement the rest of the design, IMHO; and 3) no instrument panel..instead, Jake gets to look at a yellow technic brick with a + shaped hole, simply b/c it was probably cheaper for LEGO to put two of that piece in the set rather than putting a regular brick in there in a more complimentary color. I'm not a fan of yellow, and I really dislike TLG's annoying use of inappropriate primary colored bricks as structural parts when they clash with the model's overall scheme, so it bugs me a little. He does have a control stick, however. While small stickers don't bother me, some of the odder shaped stickers , i.e. the rudder stickers in this case, would make life much grander if they were printed. Attempting a symmetrical application on both sides is a maddening task at times. Thanks to my wife, I have the entire collection. Having not bought any of the original Adventurers Egyptian sets, I've anticipated a return to Egypt for quite some time. Despite a minor irk here and there, IMO, TLG have done a good job.

His was a remarkable, if brief, yet triumphant life. I'm incredibly thankful for Bricklink and the joy it has brought me over the years, and deeply saddened that one so young and full of potential has passed. I humbly pass on my condolences to his friends and family, and thank them in turn for maintaining his legacy for all of us to share. Rest in Peace, Dan

I agree with your ideas. Hopefully, TLG will consider automating the whole Design by Me process; they already use the requisite technologies for assembling their production sets. If DBM models can be assigned a code, or the parts list made available to a computer, and subsequently communicated to a robot to gather the parts, the entire process could be made far more efficient, and hopefully, cheaper for us and TLG. Moreover, if TLG uses a cataloging system whereby each DBM model is assigned a code, anyone can order anyone else's, or multiples of their own, models, since the entire parts pallette would be attached to that model's code, and robots could gather the neccessary parts much quicker than a person. Granted, there goes somebody's job.

Thank for the nice remarks. I'm not a fan of transforming mecha that looks like a transforming mecha, if that makes any sense. So I do my best to hide the various hinges, and apply as much of a realistic aesthetic to the vehicle mode as possible without compomising the bot too much. I'm a stickler for articulation, and I managed to preserve quite a bit of it in this model, while still capturing a believable forklift form. Fortunately, the arm joints can be utilized in both modes for movement. I may have to someday gather/order the necessary parts and actually build the thing to see how it translates to the real world. It may end up being a flimsy piece of rubbish, once gravity and friction, and possibly poor design on my part, have their way. It'd be neat to play with,though, methinks. Lately, I've been designing mini-fig scaled airplanes, inspired by the "Eggplane" models by Hasegawa. I've been thinking about applying some of my ideas to building a transforming shuttle, similar to the Macross VB-6, or possibly a transforming cargo plane, keeping the C-17 and the V-22 Osprey in mind for design ideas. I'm fascinated by VTOL aircraft, so that's probably a direction I'll end up taking.

This is great news, as I missed out on the Egyptian themed Adventure sets, and have been hoping for a new Egyptian theme, whether set in ancient times or modern era, ever since.

Great review of an excellent looking set. They packed alot of detail as well as set pieces into this castle set. Dumbledore's office would have been complete with a pensieve and Fawkes, but is pretty neat as is. I wish TLG made regular castle sets more along the lines of this set, with all the excellent structural elements and details, after all, not every castle was designed as a fortress, and a palacial castle would be nice to break up the monotony. Anyway, it's a great rendition of Hogwarts with lots of neat quirky details, awesome figs and creatures, nice playability features, and lots of rooms to play out scenes. Good job, TLG! This almost makes up for the terrible looking Aragog that's coming out this year.