---Vertea---

A lone Zesk sniffs the desert air, hoping for the scent of dinner. A slight noise echoes in the distance... But the creature ignores it. As the Zesk wanders on, the noise grows ever louder, sending tiny tremors through the desert. The primal villager turn its head to see what all the ruckus is about and sees... a sandstorm. Way off in the distant heat-and slowly approaching. With utter ignorance, the creature brushes the bother off and goes on its merry way. Then, without warning, a blur whooshes past the confused mutant agori leaving a cloud of sand and debris. The cause is a vehicle both quick and deadly. Armed with spikes, a Thornax turret, and Force Blaster Canons, and piloted by the Glatorian Perditus, this machine is unstoppable. Armored with tan elements to hide itself in the desert, you never know just when it will strike next. Set Name- Thornatus V9 Set Theme- Bionicle Type- Vehicle w/ one pilot Year-2009 Set number-8995 Price: $59.99 US piece count- 438 Today, fellow reviewers, I shall be critiquing one of 2009's larger Bionicle sets. When we first caught our glimpse of this years summer set at the beginning of February, the general thoughts were: "YES! TAN PARTS!" "OOOH! SILVER KRIKA HEAD!" But most notably: "Crap- a Jetrax with wheels... *sad face*" For those of you wondering, Jetrax was a 2008 vehicle set with a slightly similar shape. So similar, in fact, that many believed the Thornatus wasn't anything more than a recolor that could roll. But was this really the case? Was this nothing more than a clone set not worth one's money? I suppose the only way to find out is to read on... We will start with THE BOX The box or container is the first thing anyone outside of the LEGO company sees when they go shopping. And as such, the box must present it's contents well, and must promote them, while not making false claims. The Thornatus box, aside from being dreadfully large, is no different. Front As you can see, the front displays the set in question with a really beautiful background. This is a welcome change, since Bionicle has been a tad lacking in the backdrop art department recently... Back The back shows the rider and his vehicle separately, as well as the various functions included. There's also some advertisement for the other large vehicle sets as well as the BIO code. Do not ask me what it is, please :) Side The side features some screenshots from the upcoming Bionicle: The Legend Reborn. This one is one I find particularly interesting. Run, Mata Nui, run! And now that we have that covered, lets move on to THE PARTS The parts are the bones and meat of the set, as well as incentive to purchase, if one is part- inclined. Ah... the pieces... So many fans were lured by the presence of tan( an uncommon color in Bionicle). But there's more, too! Oh, yes... so much more... Have a look! Paneling This piece is new, I think. It's a sort of pointy paneling that really looks great lots of connection points. Shield The bitil wing/Onua shield. This has now appeared in Mata red, Yellow, silver, gunmetal, and tan. I se much potential for this recolor. Wheel The mega wheel. This has appeared in several sets before I think- definitely in the ExoForce line. I never had any idea just how big it was until now! Just look at that comparison! This is VERY welcome in my collection! Scope The Scope. This part first appeared in the Gali Mistika set last year. I hated the set so never picked it up, though I really wanted this part. Now I do! It's a nice touch and has much potential for mecha-type MOCs Krika Mask The Krika mask. Now this is a piece I will want in any color-regardless. Awesome design, and not only is it in silver in this set- there's two!! Helmet Perditus' helmet. Not the best, bu I'm glad to have something new. Wish it was reversible like the other Vehicle rider masks(Except Sahmad- he has the same mask in orange) But why not see what that helmet goes to... THE FIGURE The figure, when present is normally the focus of everything, bu in the case of the vehicles, they usually are more of an accessory. Unfortunately, we have reached a down for the set. The driver is neither innovative, nor exciting. He has no cool colors or any new parts, aside from his helmet and upper arms. He stinks. But at least it's something. More often than not, though, I think many fans will just as soon make a new driver or use another canister-sized set in place. A surprising lack of creativity for LEGO here. Driver Metru red, black and.. gray? not cool in my opinion. I dislike the use of gray hands all over the place this year. Black would have really saved the driver a point, but unfortunately, the lame color scheme is docking him down to just about zero. And now that we're good and hopeless, let's see if the rest of this set can make up for the pilot... First off, THE BUILD I was pleasantly surprised by the build of this set. It was interesting, and there was little repeating steps throughout. There was lots of innovative techniques, and even some asymmetry in the build! Wasn't expecting that! Even the function was a mystery until I completed it! This set will keep you going for a good hour or so. The basic front This is the very beginnig of what will be the opening/closing function. The long tan section with the nose is actually loosely held in for now. The finished front The completed front half is epic. Almost enough to be it's own vehicle! The only bother was the repetition of the wheel attachment, but other than that, the build was nice. The Takanuva blades seem a bit slapped-on, though... The inner workings of the back half This is the skeleton that will later house the wheel quite nicely. LOTS of angling with the Technic beams. Another thing to note is that the beam lengths are well-separated by either color or bag, so there's little confusion. Some Thornax Turret detail Not a very clear pic, but I thought this part was really neat. Angled for a tapered look, I suppose, depending on how one uses it. The Thornax turret has VERY good movement. Finished side Ah... that's hot. The use of the paneling, Force Blasters, and piping really complete the back. The pipes are actually crucial, because without them, the whole thing just looks... wrong. This side actually gave me a bit of trouble, since I had put one of the rods a stud back and completely screwed myself up. Beware! Know the stud distances between pins!!! As I said before, the build was very entertaining and gratifying. The finished result was always nice to look at, and I was never bored or annoyed (except when I mis-spaced my pins) So what have we now? Complete Set Ah... the finished product... It seemed like only last hour I was putting the first pin into it's respective socket... *snif* But now we come to another VERY crucial part of the review: PLAYABILITY After the build is done, we immediately get out our other figures and start playing. But is this set playable- or is it just an item for the collector's shelf? On the playability I can safely say that this is a very good set. This is rated(for vehicles) by a how 'swooshable' it is, and the Thornatus rates a solid 8.5/10. The whole thing, despite it's size, is very fast, and looks very cool while moving. On top of that, there's the Thornax turret(which can double as a seatbelt) and the "Force Blasters" which one can use to shoot other sets, pets, people, or anything else. Unfortunately, unless you have wood, tile, or concrete, turning is a real pain. Carpet is the ultimate in hindrance, though it's still possible. The attack mode function is pretty nice too, though it's also hard to do on a cloth surface. A cool thing I noticed was that when the side things are in attack position, ramming into a wall will trigger the thing to shut. Don't worry, kids- it doesn't damage the set in the least. And for those of you like me who really don't like the current designated driver, I have some good news for you! Other Glatorian sized sets fit, too!!!! That would be Toa Mata Nui driving while Perditus hangs on for dear life. And now that we've explored each individual aspect, let's see WHAT IT ALL BOILS DOWN TO This is the part of a review where we really look at the set and see if it was really worth it. While I've heard many different opinions on the set in question, I must say, first off, that having it in hand is VASTLY different than seeing pictures. For one, I noticed that aside from shape, the Thornatus is NOTHING like the Jetrax set. Another note-worthy thing is that the set is GIGANTIC. You don't really think about it until you finish and realize you might need both hands to pick it up. I liked this set- a lot, and I think that even the good reviews do it little justice. The color scheme is great, the build is fun, the design is almost perfect, and it is very much swooshable like a good vehicular should be. But there ARE still problems. For one, the Takanuva olda blades look really out-of-place and should have been replaced with more paneling, or something tan. For another, while the back of the vehicle is solid and has dimension, the front seems very flat in comparison. Another thing that bugs me is the windshield that looks far too big and makes the front half seem short. And, of course the rider. FRONT was nice enough to listen to our nagging in the Bionicle subforum and is suggesting some changes in future sets, so I can only hope that the next riders we get are at least colored interestingly, if not completely cool. I have my fingers crossed. Overall, I think you can see that the complaints are few and far between and nothing in comparison to the great amount of awesome packaged in the set. Design:9/10 Color:9/10 Driver:0.5/10( the mask is still kinda neat) Playability: 8/10 Price: 9/10 Build:9/10 Overall, the score is 44.5/60. If the driver weren't present, the score would be much higher, so one might just ignore that aspect and see that for sixty bucks plus tax, this set is worth it. I personally recommend it to anyone who has the money. And with that, and a very good feeling in my heart, I go off to run over Stronius with a Mata Nui piloted Thornatus. Until next time, ---VERTEA---

I've got an Empire drone ship and a rebellion fighter, if y'all wouldn't mind seeing.

@Shakar: Why not Yellow and blue? When used correctly and with a well-designed set, that color combo could kill.

Thornatus. I just got it yesterday and damn. The back wheel was as big as my hand. The review pics all over the web do no justice. Also- For those of you still bugged by the lack of Skopio Tail in the movie, the screenshot on the front of the box shows him with full thornax and force blaster stuff. The driver is meh, but the mask looks cool from the back. It could make a really cool face if used properly.

I saw him too- along with ALL of the vehicles at my Toys R Us. I got Thornatus.

It could be like that small exclusive prequel comic packaged with Transformers. If that's the case, then I'd prefer Click, but comics are still nice. Definitely worth adding to the comic collection.

I wonder if we'll get any winks to older fans in the movie- like easter eggs that only we would know.

Oh, god no! Matau you should burn i hell for what you started!!!! ....But whoever does Ackar should get an award or something. I think I could actually see the character moving as he talked.

doubt it. That's the same voice that fellow uses for a cartoon character. I think, though, that he can work with the voice well and make it serious if need be.

Much as I'm disappointed in the lack of a Zorox fight, the chance to hear voices is great. Ackar is spot-on. no questions there. Kiina is more excited than I imagined her, but I like it. Berix... is okay. I thought he'd sound older. Gresh... Will do nicely. Not what I imagined, but it fits. MN, of course, is another perfect voice. ...And BZP is giving away prototype parts.

3) That's cool. I like opinions. :) But yes... Vocals always ruin a good tune. I've actually never been one for lyrical songs- more orchestral or instrumental. Though Creeping in My Soul had some VERY wicked lyrics. It fit the dark nature of the Barraki perfectly. After that, they just couldn't invoke the same emotions and should have left it purely music-no lyrics. The beginning of the Mistika one was another favourite, but once again ruined with singing. This one isn't too bad, but they should have gone for something more deserty and less rock. And on the subject of orchestral... I've noticed that in the recent Sneak Peek, the music is VERY epic and more cinematic than the crash music. I hope there's more like it in the rest of the movie.

Anyone thrilled to get a new Sneak peek tomorrow? And I'm not quite sure why everyone is complaining about Cryoshell. For a very new band, they're not bad. There are better, to be sure, but considering they're especially doing music for a toy line, it's really very impressive. Bionicle would have to exist longer to get bigger bands like Transformers does.

yeah... now that you mention it, she DOES sound like she needs to blow her nose. I think she's trying to hard to sound like something she's not. She should just do what's her and the songs will sound better. Personally, I also find the guitar sections out of place and like a bit of annoyance in an otherwise wicked tune. We need another creepy year so she can make another Creeping-esque song. And for the record: Amy Lee is the best.

I have to say- Bye Bye Babylon was a darn good listen. No where near as cool as Creeping in My Soul, but still epic. I wonder if it will play in the movie credits or something, since the commercials aren't having any non-movie promotion. ... Unless they do a Ghost classic with the Cryoshell song playing in it....

No way! that's exactly the scenario I was thinking of!

And one will prolly be FATE Another might be LIFE

They needed a creature that looks vastly similar to the set based off of it, so it kinda has to look set-like. No prob, though, since it looks way cool. And it was nice to get a glimpse of action, finally. The Rock Steeds are awesome.

not if it used them to dig into the ground. I imagine the blades would help keep footing in most terrain.

there is a summary on bs01

Check 9Experiment. There's a typewriter and letters hidden around the room that when clicked on show their corresponding symbols. You put them into the typewriter and get exclusive stuff. The word right now is HOPE. It unlocks a cool alchemy image showing a scientist using a talisman to make a creation come to life. Can't wait to see what else I find!

would you recommend her over Ackar or Gelu?

Prolly is, but I'd check just to make sure. Any sale is worth taking advantage of these days...

2G 3A |||||| 1G 3A 3G 2A

I thought the vote was that the Glatorian and agori get separated by being snatched away by the creatures? And I agree with Bfahome- the refugees should be later. The beginning should just be a big surprise, a sudden loss of members, and total shock leaving the remaining protagonists confused and without much bearing.

Well, you always have EuroBricks!