16Jul / 2012

JAY NRG

LEGO Ninjago (2011-2013) is a ninja theme that follows the adventures of four Spinjitzu ninjas, Cole, Kai, Zane and Jay and their foes including the Skeletons, the Serpentine and the evil Lord Garmadon, among others. Check out reviews, sets, and more about the story.

JAY NRG

Jay Walker is Ninjago’s resident Tesla Coil. In his NRG form Jay transforms into pure lightning and electric energy. NRG is the fifth Ninjago variant following on the success of Regular, DX, Kendo, and ZX editions.

Jay NRG is electric blue from head to toe with a good amount of holographic blue, pale yellow and dark blue outlines. As with the other NRG figures, the ZX hood makes an updated appearance. The torso features Jay’s dragon emblem with forked lightning extending diagonally across the chest, hips and legs.

The holographic print looks awesome on this figure and several shades of blue give the lightning a bit of depth. The dragon emblem resembles Cthulhu and / or a tentacled brain…which is kind of cool, but perhaps unintentional. Jay’s lightning bolts are a bit thicker than Kai’s NRG flames, giving the design a more cartoony feel, which isn’t so bad. The back design is filled with more lightning bolts although a lack of yellow detailing on the bolts makes the back torso design slightly inconsistent with the front.

The face shows a reworked version of Jay’s standard scowl and scarred eyebrow. The lightning around the eyes make the face a little cluttered. No pupils and no outline around the eyes and eyebrows means the face print lacks the sharpness that Kai’s NRG print had.

I imagine that for play this figure is pretty cool but he does lack the careful attention to detail that those LEGO designers are known for. Hopefully Zane NRG (released later this year) will combine the best of Kai’s fine detailing with Jay’s reflectivity and outlining.

You can pick up Jay NRG on LEGO Shop at Home: The World’s Biggest LEGO Shop.

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01Jul / 2012

BOBA FETT

LEGO Star Wars (1999-) is a licensed theme based on characters, settings and stories from George Lucas’ fictional Star Wars universe. It was one of the LEGO Group’s first licensed themes and remains one of its most critically and commercially successful franchises. Check out reviews, sets, and more about the story.

Nine variants of the Boba Fett minifigure have been released since 2000. You can grab this latest variant in the 2012 Desert Skiff (9496) set which is based on a scene from Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi.

Notable Fett variants include the rare variant from Cloud City (10123) which sells for USD$250+ on the secondary market. LEGO also gave away a prized, cast bronze variant in a 2010 competition.

BOBA FETT

Mysterious and deadly, Boba Fett was the bounty hunter par excellence in the Star Wars universe, circa Rise of the Empire and New Republic eras.

Trained as a bounty hunter by his ‘father’ Jengo Fett and fellow hunter, Aurra Sing, the identity and exploits of this ‘faceless enforcer’ quickly passed into legend and myth. Following the death of his father at the hands of Jedi Master Mace Windu, Boba harboured a deep hatred for the Jedi and their allies.

In the Star Wars films, Boba is best known for his role in delivering the smuggler Han Solo to Jabba the Hutt, the subsequent battle at the Pit of Carkoon, and his apparent death via the resident Sarlacc.

This variant comes with sand green Mandalorian helmet with range-finder and visor attachments, sand-green jetpack and tattered pauldron cape, light grey torso, sand blue arms and legs, dark green hips, dark grey hands and a suitably awesome, modified black blaster.

The helmet is incredibly detailed and very accurate to the films. It includes some cool printed battle damage, various coloured markings and some moulded marks at the back. The rangefinder attachment fits snugly into the helmet and looks pretty nice. The jetpack is well moulded and designed. The tattered sand-green pauldron cape is a great addition to the figure and matches the films well.

Under his helmet Boba has a confident but battle-scarred face with a five o’clock shadow for good measure. The face print is detailed although not unique to this figure. On my figure the stubble traces an oddly tapered line up the sides of the face.

The torso design is nothing short of amazing, carefully printed with worn, dark green armour plates, silver Mandalorian insignia, clothing folds, dark brown utility belt with ammo pouches, and the requisite Wookie scalp. The hips are printed with a dark brown belt and almost imperceptible black stripes. The super-cool legs incorporate sand blue pockets, dark green cod-piece, orange battle-damaged knee pads and silver capped boots.

This is the nicest Star Wars minifigure I have come across and shows just how much detail those clever LEGO designers can fit on a 1.5″ figure.

Pure bounty-hunting awesomeness!

You can pick up Boba in the Desert Skiff set. Check out other sets on LEGO Shop at Home: The World’s Biggest LEGO Shop.

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21Jun / 2012

FRODO BAGGINS AND SAMWISE GAMGEE

LEGO Lord of the Rings (2012-) is a licensed theme inspired by J.R.R. Tolkien’s epic story. The theme incorporates sets based on Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings film trilogy. Check out reviews, sets and more about the story.

FRODO BAGGINS

Frodo Baggins, a Hobbit of the Shire, is the primary protagonist in J.R.R. Tolkien’s LOTR and was played by Elijah Wood in Peter Jackson’s trilogy. Hobbits are furry-footed halflings with a fondness for unadventurous lives, ale and at least six meals a day. Frodo became the most renowned (and adventurous) of all the Hobbits of Middle-earth after he undertook an epic quest to destroy the One Ring of power in the fires of Mount Doom.

Frodo comes with a head full of tousled dark-brown hair, a grey 3/4 cape, and brown half-size legs. One side of the head shows a wide-eyed but brave expression whilst the reverse shows a poisoned and paralysed Frodo, complete with writhed face and glazed grey eyes (below). Frodo wears a yellow-grey collared shirt under a red waistcoat and medium-brown coat with two pockets. The back shows the outline of the coat with a split seam.

I love how Frodo’s expression is so complex; it emotively captures the stress of the journey so far and the timidity and incredible courage (when required) that Hobbits are known for. The zombified alt face is a little too cartoony but still pretty good.

The half-size legs are particularly suited to Frodo’s diminutive size and their dark-brown colour gives the figure a good overall balance. The tousled hair-piece is a new part and the colour and shape similarly balance the figure. Only issue I can find is that the cape should be dark-green as with the other (more expensive) Frodo variant.

SAMWISE GAMGEE

Samwise Gamgee is a secondary protagonist in the LOTR story, played by Sean Astin in the filmic trilogy. ‘Sam’ quickly becomes Frodo’s most extraordinary, loyal, and loved companion on the quest to destroy the ring. In the ‘Shelob Attacks’ scene, Sam fiercely defends a paralysed Frodo (whom he believes is dead) by bravely driving away Shelob the giant spider. Samwise Gamgee is the only member of the fellowship to be with Frodo “at the end of all things” on the precipice of Mount Doom.

Sam comes with tousled hair in light-brown, a grey 3/4 cape, and dark-brown halfling legs. Sam has a determined expression on one side (left) and an angry, worn and bereaved expression on the reverse (above). He wears a stretched, dark-tan collared shirt, dark-brown breeches, leather braces, belt, and medium-brown pouch slung across his chest. The braces, belt, sling and breeches design is continued on the back.

In contrast to Frodo, Sam’s alt face print is the standout one on this figure. It manages to convey a complex sense of anger, sadness and determination. I like the careful use of outline on his shirt to illustrate that Sam is a litte ’rounder’ than Frodo.

Both these figures come with the awesome set, Shelob Attacks.

What do you think of these minifigures? Add your rating below!

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16Jun / 2012

KAI NRG

LEGO Ninjago (2011-2013) is a ninja theme that follows the adventures of four Spinjitzu ninjas, Cole, Kai, Zane and Jay and their foes including the Skeletons, the Serpentine and the evil Lord Garmadon, among others. Check out reviews, sets, and more about the story.

KAI NRG (NJO055)

This “fiery, fierce, friendly” fellow is Kai the fire ninja. The Spinjitzu ninjas transform into their NRG (energy) forms when they find their ‘true potential’. In his NRG form, Kai is enveloped in flames and is able to fly. NRG is the fifth Ninjago variant, following on from the Regular, DX, Kendo, and ZX styles.

Kai is decked out in bright red with dark-orange, dark-red, and gold detailing. The hood mould is inherited from ZX although the printing is unique. The torso displays Kai’s fire dragon emblem with flames extending outward across the chest, down the hips and legs. The back is printed with a similar flame design. Unlike previous variants, Kai NRG does not have a belt print on his waist. Continuing the theme, the helmet is printed with a three-pronged flame.

Kai’s standard expression is recoloured in glowing orange and gold. The scar through his left eye is emblazoned, as are his lips and eyebrows. There are licks of flame vertically down either side of his face (sideburns?).

The human torch design is pretty nice overall…one can never have enough human fireballs. The way the flames extend downward from shoulder to shin are great and incorporate subtle details.

The absence of sash or belt to separate the torso and legs gives this variant a kind of flaming jumpsuit feel. The face is awesome but perhaps a little too demonic for this ‘good guy’ character.

Kai NRG is available in Kai NRG Spinner set.

What do you think of Kai NRG? Add your rating below!

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07Jun / 2012

GALAXY PATROL (LUIZ)

The LEGO Minifigures (aka Collectable Minifigures) theme was introduced in May 2010. Each ‘series’ in the theme include 16 unique minifigures, sold individually in blind polybags. 112 figures and seven series have been released as of June 2012. Series 8 is scheduled for a late 2012 release along with a set of 9 UK themed Olympic minifigures.

GALAXY PATROL (LUIZ) (COL07)

This figure comes with moulded helmet sans-visor and a one-piece armour suit incorporating chest, back, shoulder and neck protection. The armour, torso and legs are decked out in the somewhat rare, earth-blue. Luiz comes with dark-grey hands and a dual-printed yellow head.

The head, helmet and armour are unique to this figure although Lex Luthor will wear a green version of the suit in an upcoming set. A silver version of the classic space logo makes an appearance on Luiz’s pauldrons. One side of the head has dot-stubble with confident expression and silver scope over the left eye. The reverse shows a serious expression under a printed orange visor and heads-up display.

The torso is printed with layered silver armour plates and silver helmet seal. ‘LUIZ’ is printed on the top-left of the torso. The hips are dark-grey and printed with a silver belt and buckle design. The legs are printed with silver detailing and knee plates. The back is unprinted.

Good

This minifigure is a testament to 30 years of LEGO Space design. The intricate and precise printing has a good level of depth and brings an overall balance to the figure. The face designs are spot-on and give the figure two distinct personalities.

What I really like is that each aspect of the design takes its cues from earlier space figures – printed headgear from Space Police II, bulky armour from Blacktron II, the logo from Classic Space, the blue and silver colour scheme from Ice Planet 2000, and the intricate printing of UFO.

Definitely a figure to add to your collection. Here’s hoping he gets his own theme some day! Added to the Hall of Minifigures. What do you think?

Bad

No printing on the back.

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Ministry of Minifigures

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JAY NRG

JAY NRG

BOBA FETT

BOBA FETT

FRODO BAGGINS AND SAMWISE GAMGEE

FRODO BAGGINS

SAMWISE GAMGEE

KAI NRG

KAI NRG (NJO055)

GALAXY PATROL (LUIZ)

GALAXY PATROL (LUIZ) (COL07)

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