Clone OPatra

I love 'em all, as usual, but I especially like your Hawkeye and Wade Wilson. I love your face decal for Hawkeye, and, though I hadn't thought of it before, that malfoy head is really perfect for Rian Reynolds (as that chracter anyway). Great job!

Really? You want crappy, translucent Star Wars figures in normal sets just so you can get some damn leg prints? I don't see the logic… I'd be totally pissed if extremely sub-par figures start to show up in normal sets. And, anyway, minifigures that come in normal system sets are not made in the same place as the collectible minifigures, blister-packaging "battle packs" or magnet sets. Even these new leg-printed Clones aren't any different; look at all the other current lines with leg-printed figures and you'll see that it is quite a trend for LEGO these days. Just like they seem to have some new machines in their regular factories that make back-printing easy, they have ones for leg printing too. Secondly, the little bags do not necessarily mean China; there have been sets with those little bags that had no components made in China, and sets without those little bags that do have components made in China. As a trend, things do not come in those bags because the moulds are any more "complicated" than others, but because they have intricate printing over moulded surfaces. It would be a fine assumption to think that the Gungan heads may come in those bags, but leg-printed Clones are not coming from the Chinese "other-figs" factories.

Honestly, I'm not too miffed that the quality sucks on these. After all, they are supposed to be decorations on pens, not minifigures. The human accessories that come with actual minifigures are the watches, and for those the minifigure is just thrown in as a fun bonus. It sucks to me that the minifigures in magnet packs these days, which are supposed to be minifigures, have inferior quality; since these aren't even supposed to be minifigures, what does it matter? I guess if they suck so badly they don't even work on a pen, that would be something else…

Great clear pics (although I still can't wait for grogall to come along and share some super HR ones). All the Mando's having jetpacks is awesome, and this Clone bp rivals the original one in awesomeness-factor. Finally such a good selection of Clones! Now, I know most people think that the Imp pilot is the same one from the Defender, but I have thought for a long time and still do that it might not be. It really looks like the open helmet with some weird printed head beneath it to me, and the little "New Figures" bubble next to it has too many words to just name the astromech. It really looks like it says "Imperial Pilot" as one of the new figures, so either LEGO is just marketing it untruthfully to seem cooler or it is actually different, like I think.

I saw this in my catalog, with a little text saying "before Brickmaster changes next year," or something like that. I wonder what that is going to mean. Anyway, this seems like a nice way for Americans to get 2010's Brickmaster stuff if they missed and want it. This is actually no different from buying Brickmaster at the start of the year, besides for the fact that the magazines are all bound in a single book, which sounds pretty cool if you ask me. Easier to store and keep than a bunch of magazines.

Oh, I always thought it was Vector Vector, since he was trying to navigate something and 'vector' made more sense to me. Anyway, more on topic, I've only ever seen the films really, and bit and pieces of just a few episodes. TV in general really isn't my thing, and the Star Trek shows are no different, but I do enjoy some of the films. The Voyage Home and the Undiscovered Country our my favorites from the original crew films, and I like both Generations and Insurrection from the newer crew. Maybe since I'm not such a Trekkie I found the new film to be absolutely fantastic, and I hope they can keep it up with the following films in the series that have yet to come out. I'm afraid that the new films might just fall off very fast, but you never know. I'll try to stay optimistic until I see the second one.

I've got a quick questions: why is The Embassy now called The Ambassadors' hangout? I feel like The Embassy was a cooler way to say the latter anyway, but I would also think the 'h' should be capitalized in the new title.

Well, if it's really released around the time of the final film than that's only July, not so late 2011. July is only two months later than May anyhow.

Wait, is there different printing on the ARF trooper's body from a regular Clone? Otherwise, what printing are you talking about, just the helmet?

Yes, you're right about that, although 2009 did only have one OT set in the first wave, I believe. Looking at it from LEGO's point of view, perhaps, the divide might be Films/CW, rather than PT/OT/CW. There is at least one non-CW set, though of course that can't appease the exclusively OT fans. Everybody can't always be happy all the time.

Yes, but you've just said numerous times that you want more OT redos. How are past standalone versions of the A-Wing relevant to his desire to have a current one out for him to purchase? I honestly don't see what that has to do with Pictures & Rumors anyway, since a new standalone A-Wing is neither a picture nor a rumor. I don't see why some people seem to think that just because in the one wave that we are completely solid about (January) and in the current rumors for the Summer there are few OT sets, that means that OT is officially dead to LEGO. Come on people, LEGO will always continue to make some OT sets, even if it's more some years and less the next. The past few years have seen some wonderful redos and brand new OT sets. It makes perfect sense that in a year with no anniversaries LEGO would shift over to focusing heavily on CW (while still releasing some OT as well, I am sure). Fine, if there was no OT at all to come in 2011 then perhaps that would be a surprise, but I'm confident that it's not going to happen.

Just great overall. Everything looks really well done, except perhaps the light blue used for water. I think it looks too solid like that; if you have enough trans-blue, go for that instead. Could you deeplink the pics in the first post? That would make it quicker to view.

Except that Cad Bane's Speeder says 'Special Edition,' and it's a Target exclusive, plus LEGO has never released two sets exclusive to the same retailer in any one line. Unless there are more sets we have not yet heard of, it seems very likely to me that one of these sets will be a TRU exclusive, but I'm certain that they cannot both be exclusives to Walmart.

Before I start, a word about winter. I'm not talking about some metaphorical thing here, actually the season. When it gets chilly, the heat comes on; and when the heat comes on, the dust flies. I was able to knock out a ton of reviews this year before that happened, but now the dust is flying, and you will be able to notice. So I'm sorry. Fact of life: dust sticks to plastic, does not come off. Ever. Please don't freak out. I'm not some big LEGO-neglecter; there's really very little I can do about it. So, with that in mind, I continue (end, rather) my Harry Potter review series with… Set Title: Quidditch Match Set #: 4737 Theme: Harry Potter Film Connections: Chamber of Secrets Pieces: 153 Minifigures: 5 (!) Year of Release: 2010 Price at Release: USD 20, CAD 27, EUR 26, GBP 20 Buy it? Inventory? LEGO Bricklink INTRODUCTION It was my original intention to pre-order this set along with The Burrow and Freeing Dobby when the Harry Potter sets went up for pre-order, since that was the cheapest way to get me into the free shipping zone. But then a little voice said to me, 'What do you want that for? That's just some random crap, why don't you buy Hagrid's Hut instead?' Hagrid's Hut is more expensive, I replied. 'Suck it up, the Hut is way more interesting,' said the voice. Fine, I said. But of course I still wanted this set, just for the figures. So, after getting the Hogwarts Castle and BLing the figures I wanted from the Hogwarts Express, it was time to get Quidditch Match. The question: is there any draw of this set other than the figures? Let's find out… BOX Very attractive artwork here. Tons of action going hither and thither and whatnot. Now then, do figures actually fly? In Pshop they do. The back features the usual pasted-parchment, a bit more flying, and a demonstration of how a catapult works. Borders likes to slap their big stickers right on the box, but you're not really missing anything. (Don't worry, Americans, I didn't pay that much) This is another set where, just from the box, you wouldn't know that some characters have reverse expressions. Harry's and Draco's happy faces are not pictured on the box anywhere. And, catch the typo? "Oilver Wood" Uh oh. INSTRUCTIONS Quite a small booklet here, but that makes sense. As you could probably already tell, there isn't so much to build. No piece callouts, but they really aren't necessary. So easy a three year old could do it. For some reason, this booklet has ads for a few games, some of which I'm pretty sure have not yet come out in the States. Be advised, the back has the screaming Justin Bieber Jr. MINIFIGURES Following the principle of saving the best for last, this section should be last. But that's not how we do it, ever. Five figures in a $20 set is really unparalleled in licensed sets (or any sets), besides for Battle Pack-type things and a few other oddities. And everybody has a cape too! I love capes, especially when they are in new, cool colors. This is the only set that has dark red capes, drool! Besides that, the figures really aren't too exciting to me overall, since they're just wearing some sweaters, without back printing. I love the Marcus Flint face, though, which is exclusive to this set. (For non-fans: Harry, Oliver Wood, Marcus Flint, Draco Malfoy, Madam Hooch) Three out of five have reverse expressions. I really don't find this Malfoy very Draco-y besides for his hair, but I like scared expressions regardless. Hooch's face is just creepy, even if it wasn't printed a bit too low on the head. Gold eyes with silver dots in them? What the heck is that thing? Oliver Wood Many of you have probably noticed that Wood looks a heck of a lot like another Licensed character: Mutt, from Indiana Jones. 'Son, I'm so proud of your excellent Quidditch playing!' Harry and Draco Whether you knew it or not, this isn't the first Quidditch set. Comparing time! The original Quidditch figs really weren't so bad, but Harry had a normal red cape with his dark red body. Urgh, how I hated that! The new ones look a heck of a lot more like the Chamber of Secrets Quidditch costumes though, and they just look cooler. They could also easily be used as Hogwarts sweaters, if you wanted to. Madam Hooch The truth is, that original torso was extremely detailed. It looks like it would still fit in today! I like them both, but your preference will really come down to if you like that odd curvaceous thing LEGO does on females these days or not. In this case, I think it's a bit odd. The original face wasn't too bad either, but the new one is definitely more exciting. As for the hair, the new one is better, but neither is like Hooch's wacked-out spikes in the films. The biggest perk of the old one is the striped cape, exclusive to that figure. I wish LEGO had replicated it for the new one, but I'll live. ACCESSORIES Quidditch in "real life" requires a lot of accessories, and LEGO supplies them. Everybody gets a broom, there's a Snitch (although not chrome, like the old one), and there are even two quaffles and three bludgers Yeah, I don't understand this selection. Even though none of these characters are Beaters, LEGO also throws in two dark brown carrots and helmets (which don't appear until Half-Blood Prince). That's all cool. Who doesn't like more dark brown carrots for all of your "poop-in-the-middle-of-the-desert" mocs? SET - By Parts Honestly, the build is so simple that I see no reason to show it to you. Also, I'm lazy. Anyhow, I'll show you all of those different things that make up the "set" part of this set. Tower No LEGO, you're wrong, it's not a Hufflepuff tower, it's clearly Ravenclaw. In any case, it's simple and has enough details to be interesting. A snot piece, some wood pieces, a few arches (blue new one, gray old one). Not bad. Hoops Yeah, only three, but I wouldn't expect more. They look pretty cool, but are kind of a pain to build because you have to wiggle in the ends of the flexible gold parts into the brick with holes. It was pretty annoying, even if the outcome is pleasing. Other Stuff This part looks a like a World Racers set, sort of. You get the trophy stand, and two… catapults. And what exactly are all of those color coordinated cones? Weird plants? Ammo? If ammo… why? The box and instructions give us no clues. FUN It's a real shame that LEGO doesn't fly in real life because it's very hard to stage a LEGO Quidditch match without at least four hands (with this number of players). But, with the help of some figures that you undoubtedly have from other HP sets, you can recreate some movie scenes! "We won, Harry, we won!" CONCLUSION Alright, have I actually said anything constructive about this set yet? Probably not. To sum up everything I wrote above in three phrases: stuff looks good, , cool figures & accessories. Honestly, I don't care for the set part of this set in the slightest. Some stupid hoops and catapults and a fine tower; really not my cup of tea. Regardless, five figures and a whole bunch of accessories! They aren't exactly the most exciting figures in the world, but they're still useful. Let me put it this way: I paid $12 for Luna on Bricklink. For just less than double that you can get five figures plus some parts. Why not? RATINGS Pieces: 7.5/10 - Some bricks, some other stuff, and accessories! Not a parts pack, though, this one. Build: 6.5/10 - It's really fast, and putting the hoops together is very annoying. Minifigures: 9/10 - They look nice, but they could've had back printing and Hooch's face is freaky. Price: 9/10 - Even though it is a fig pack, I'd still like to get a substantial feeling set if I'm going to give a set full marks on price, so I docked one. Playability: 5/10 - Really, a Quidditch set is not very playable in my mind. If you're a kid, you end up leaving half the figures lying on the ground, and it really isn't all that fun. Though this is the only HP Sport set, it's more of a display piece. Overall: 7.4/10 - A very average grade. It's true: cool figs, insubstantial set. If you go into buying it knowing that all you want is the figs, then you should be happy. If you expect any more, I'm sure it will be a let down. For this one, the bottom line is keep your hopes reasonable. Well, that wraps up HP reviews for me. It's been fun, and thanks for reading people. See you next time, in this forum or another!

Thanks. As I've said before, if you want to send it to me, I'd be more than happy to review it. Really, I'll make it my top priority. I'm glad my review has helped some people make up their minds about this set. That's what I try to do!

[words under picture-thingy] - because that's what this is! Who gave it to me? Hinckley, Shadows… who knows. I'd guess Hinckley.

There are too many awesome entries, dang it! After some deliberation: 1 - Darkblane 1 - Morgan19 1 - Minion And, no, I wasn't inspired by Kiel's votes above. I didn't even see he'd picked the same ones.

What are you talking about SW Episodes 7,8 and 9? There's nothing about that. Where did you get that information? As to Indy in 3D, I think it's dumb. Converted 3D movies really don't look all that good, it's the ones that were shot in 3D that are actually something spectacular. I can see why they're doing it ($), but it's not going to draw me to the theater to fork over the cash. What's more, there is an edit to the story saying that the information is false. I can certainly still see it happening someday, though.

Happy birthday! Try to avoid ! signs on your birthday, Hinckley, they seem sort of dangerous. You've probably gotten used to them now, though. And Corvus, I've heard Death Watch recruits on people's birthdays. Seeing as they're based off of your homeworld and all… oh, wait…

I about 7 pages back and didn't see them deeplinked. All I saw was links and more links. Good to keep it fresh anyhow.

It's nice to see everybody is taking the "no posting confidential pics" to heart, but these don't have the stamp, guys! Let's do some deeplinks, as long as nobody quotes this whole post. Don't quote pics unless it's a few pages later and you just want to make a comment about one to keep it fresh! Even without Vos, you must admit that LEGO is really going to town with new figures in this wave. I count at least fifteen brand new figures, including Clones. Yeah, they're Clones, but they are newly styled. Still, some of the sets like the Battle for Geonosis annoys me in the same way that others have before. The only thing I like about it are Luminara and Rex, and that's really not enough to buy the set. Oh well, that's why I don't really buy Star Wars much anymore, I suppose.

Quality is totally normal. The only figs like those in the collectible series are the ones in the magnet packs.

Did I spy somebody writing 'Ginnyfig?' Why, yes! Your second version of the MOC looks better; it's nice to see all of that stuff on the shelves. I was very disappointed with the kiss in the movie, since Harry had made out with Cho in the previous film, but his kiss with Ginny was just a little peck. Hopefully the Deathly Hallows film will make amends for this. But that's all a discussion for Culture and Multimedia… Perhaps you could think of adding the vanishing cabinet which was behind Harry and Ginny in the film when they kiss.

Well, I didn't mention the other versions very much at all, partly because I only own the original one, besides for this one. The style of the 2nd and 3rd are just so different from this one that I didn't think I should compare them too much, to be fair, and because I can only judge them from pictures, which, as a reviewer, is really not a fair judgment at all. The first version is the most comparable to this one because it depicts some of the same buildings, like the Great Hall, which the subsequent two did not include at all. You know, the cat certainly does seem much more like Crookshanks, although not quite right even then. I called it Mrs. Norris because that is what LEGO intended it to be, at least in their write up on their website: "…Argus Filch and his cat, Mrs. Norris…" You never know though if the set designers thought they were designing Crookshanks, and the people doing the write-ups thought it was Mrs. Norris. I have found that LEGO does not always get its facts perfectly. (Hufflepuff Stand, anyone?)

The alternative build is something that was mentioned in the LEGO catalog (U.S. edition anyway), but I don't think anybody ever got it. The catalog said that you would get the instructions if you preordered all six sets, but people who did so have said that they didn't receive any instructions.