Brick Miner

these are different than stickers... more like "window clings" because they are removable and replaceable plastic sheets.and i wouldn't take this product too seriously, and call it "not cool"... it was supposed to be a fun activity-styled product, based on the WW LEGO theme. not actual LEGO product... but "based on" the highly conceptualized ideas LEGO had developed. i think these products (both roseart products) are a result of licensing... very similar to movie licensing. in this case, roseart licensed the WW concept LEGO had developed. actually pretty cool when you think about it, that LEGO had developed a theme with enough story and character worth licensing !!! actually, these "extra-curricular" board-game-based activity products are good representation of the effort that went into developing the WW theme. i only wish there would have been some new intellectual ideas presented in these products... like figure names, or additional WW story... that would have added so much to the LEGO WW world, more than just a cardboard cutout mountain anyway ;-) :-D - BrickMiner

yes, except that your star also got bigger...you must have been trying to divert us from your true secret (or should i say, identity ;-) ) :-D :-D :-D - BrickMiner

this set seems to have some well designed models... the two hobbes pointed out as his favorites are very well designed... and i agree they are my favorite, too. i think it is interesting LEGO is testing this type of set with the "hobby trains". i think a "Basic"/"Freestyle" themed set like this one has good appeal. however, i hope that this is not the only future outlet for 9v (as discussed when the RC train was introduced). i would like to see some more traditionally styled sets. because, i think the two main marketing problems behind this concept were brought out in the review... and in summary, the designs are well executed within the constrants of this interesting concept.i hope it is successful. however, as many have said, CC is going to take a lot of interest away from this set, expecially since they are generally in the same parent theme of city/trains, and are both marketed toward the same fan base, within the same price range. - BrickMiner

ah, i thought your mind might change alex, after opening these sets for yourself ;-) i remember you wrote this is one of my other AR topics: it's funny cause i thought (before building these sets for myself) that the lobster was my favorite !!! and i liked the shark the least... very similar to your experience :-D i still preach that the box art for the AR sets is very deceiving, and not very well done, at all... these creatures and vehicles need to be build first hand in order to appropriately judge them. this is one thing i don

here are a couple of my favorite towers, which i think are masterpieces...Kingdom Center, Saudi Arabia (great placement): and the burj al arab tower in dubai has always facinated me (again, great placement): however, my favorite architecture is american 1930s... of which chicago has some good examples... both the tribune tower and wrigley building: - BrickMiner

emporis.com is the internet source of everything that is "skyscraper". their definition is any building with at least 12 stories. however, i don't think a LEGO skyscrapper would have to be that tall. it's all about relationship anyway, and even a building of 6 stories would seem like a giant tower compared to what we are offered now. - BM

yes... im yet to reflect on the eiffle tower, as i haven't seen it yet. - BM

happy birthday, my graphics buddy !!!

well put...if this CC is really the first in a new line of "AFOL 2000+ parts line, town building sub-line" then i should have saved my aquaraiders money :-D :-D :-D ;-) further more, i will buy this if it is part of a new line (with at least 8-10 releases)... but if it's a stand-alone, it doesn't really fit my current collection. - BrickMiner

with the revelation of the cafe corner... it seems skyscrapers are very possible... in fact, that is exactly the type of set i was envisioning when i first posted this topic. only less european in architecture, and more generic (one of my few grips of the CC). it does seem like some of the remedies mentioned in this thread, are were put to use in the CC set... interesting. i'd like to see the cafe corner expanded into an entire theme of it's own, which would include some skyscrapers ;-) - BrickMiner

:-D ;-) but in all seriousness... sure, im so glad this is minifig scale... but come on, those tiled sidewalks just wont blend with classic LEGO studedness. maybe its just me, but i have to have a seamless blend in my set-ups. - BrickMiner

very perceptive darthking and xenologer... i agree with you, and im glad these points were mentioned.i think it also has a LDD feel because it is fan built... these type of constructions seem to be the focus of the AFOL hobby, currently. because i think it is awe inspiring and reletively new to the hobby. personally, while i think this style of building looks spectacular, (as many know) i prefer smaller models. i do hope the AFOL hobby comes back around, to an appreciation of simple, perfect, and precise models of 300 pieces or less (as seen in the 90's). trends go in tides... high points and low points... im sure we will see many as the AFOL hobby continues. -------------------------------------------------- all that said, this model is very nice *y* *y* *y* im just glad i don't collect town/city, so i don't have to figure out the unanswerable task of mixing this set with my already established collection *wacko* - BrickMiner

i went to TRU today and picked up the aquabase for 55 dollars 8-

:-D i assume is in reguards to my post HLC ;-) on closer inspection it appears the right train doors were already in production, and are quite plentiful at 3 bucks each here. however, the left train door seems to be the gimic piece for the set at 8 for a new one here. however, there are 28 available new ones, so im not sure if this piece was already in production or not... im just happy i don't need red train doors, so i don't have to spend 100 bucks on 2-4 pieces :-D -------------------------------------------------- all that aside, i think my comment was that there are not too many new-to-the-hobby exciting chase pieces in this set. and, being both an aquaraiders fan and train fan, i would rather have all the new fun pieces in 7775 @ $70 than this (for even the same amount). - BrickMiner

i think story lines are great... visually implied stories are what made the LEGO themes of the 90's great... you could take on look at any of the WW set and get a sense of the story at hand (maybe with the exception of 6709 which had a very weak story).this castle theme implies that same visually story telling... you don't need to read anything, because basic themes from classic or popular literature are explored. i think that is part of the charm to this theme. however, the more i look at it, the less i like it... it seems i might be the only one though. - BrickMiner

one thing im not feeling about this set is that there are no gimic pieces. as snefroe said no minifigs... but more importantly nothing unique.i can get (or already have) most of the elements in the inventory. it seems to me, i'd be buying my collection twice. id rather have some new (or at least exciting/rarer) elements... i think i have come to a concusion for me on this set... i'll pass this one up to an AquaBase Invasion any day - BrickMiner

:-D this is really fun... it's like the first video game i've played in years :-D the beginning reminds me of oregon trail... if only you had to do some hunting :-P it's also like a choose-your-own-adventure book, and those are a neat idea too... but just like them, it's also frustrating when you make the wrong choice or get stuck |-/ i don't know what to do next |-/ and i still don't know who the murderer is :'-( -------------------------------------------------- BTW, this is a great way to "review" the playmobile WW sets. i think they are fantastic toys in that they really get me inspired to build some WW legos *y* there are some really neat things PM did with the theme. - BrickMiner

you know, i've been thinking more about this set... and thought about it quite a bit before going to bed last night... and came to the same conclusion.this set is more in the vein of the "basic" sets of the 90's... very very low in conceptual design. but high in buildability. it's interesting to think about these two options for a LEGO sets... do they inspire creativity more, or less. personally, i get inspired to expanded a very conceptualized theme, like the WW or (recently) aquaraiders (both themes are very high conceptualized themes). however, i could see this type of set going "back-to-the-basics" of LEGO per se. were you are just building things you see in life, like mimic/model building. maybe this is what train fans want :-/ but for me (going back to my original post) i'll have to see what pieces are included in the set. because for me, this is just a parts pack for other themes/sets/MOCs. however, it seems to me, these are pretty basic elements, so i could probably just get them off of BrickLink... the elements may even be basic enough to get them from (gasp :'-( ) www.LEGO.com PaB. -------------------------------------------------- yes, train and WW are a great mix, yet browsing through Brickshelf i see few MOCs in this genre... most common is the 4534 or 4535 engine (non-modified) in WW settings.for me, trains is one of the factors that enticed me to leave a life of full LEGO pirate fandom and hop over to WW... yet only since november of last year have i started to put my own 9V system together. for starters i got the 4534 LEGO express kit, then expanded with track from www.LEGO.com (cheapest place for old gray ;-) ). and my next MOC LEGOREDO STATION is coming along very well... it's nearly done, except im trying to configure a freight crane for lifting logs from the wagon to the station. and it's just not coming easy |-/ no designs are working out, and i can't find many similar MOCs on Brickshelf to get me off the ground. - BrickMiner

ah, i must have read one step too far (the wrong way *wacko* ) into your post hobbes :-D all that aside, the fact remains, LEGO is still hiring/appliying fan designs... whether the communicaiton was through the ambasador program or not (mike walsh ???). -------------------------------------------------- thanks for pointing out the corner cafe phoenix... now that you mention it, your right, fan designs are nothing new. yet, im still surprised by each one i see. -BrickMiner

are we saying ambassadors built these sets ???i didn't realize that was one of the duties *wacko* and to think, i had little interest in the program ;-) - BrickMiner

:-D just make sure the next time you make a typo, have it come out "Brick Major" :-P - BrickMajor

hmmm... i'll have to see what piece are included in this before i get too excited abou the set. though the concept looks enticing 8-

ok, gottach guys... i stand corrected on my initial post in this thread :-$ now we have some kind of definition to "<insert that tiresome argument>" (a topic sometimes in question) by determining its origin... thanks for the enlightenment X-D - BrickMiner

yes, L2K i was especially happy with the MOC regulator and space mod symbols myself :-$ those were my favorites X-D - BrickMiner

thanks guys !!! and just so that you can see them all together with design concept descriptions: GIGA ADMINS: EB logo w/ original and official EB color logo ADMINS: EB logo w/ appropriate color coding -------------------------------------------------- SPECIAL MEMBERS: EB logo w/ gold color logo -------------------------------------------------- MODS: coded w/ yellow star or specialized iconography -------------------------------------------------- REGULATORS: coded w/ orange star (note: there are no global regulators) or specialized iconography -------------------------------------------------- FELLOWS and LADYS: coded w/ green or pink star -------------------------------------------------- MEMBERS: coded w/ color spectum blue to red stars. -------------------------------------------------- BAD KIDS and BANNED MEMBERS: w/ "unapproved" stamp :-D and of course all other (non-concept-design) descriptions are here. -------------------------------------------------- the idea behind the EB stars icons was a color spectrum of blue to yellow. citizen starts at one end of the specturm (light blue) and moderator is at the other end (yellow). it goes as follows: citizen and knight (blue) - count and duke (purple) - grand duke (red) - regulator (orange) - moderator (yellow). get it... blue to yellow ;-) with special green and pink stars for special member groups. - BrickMiner