[TnB Review] 70816 Benny's Spaceship, Spaceship, SPACESHIP!

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What do YOU think?

SPACESHIP!!! (awesome)
13
100%
Spaceship. (okay)
0
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space... ship? (not great)
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Total votes: 13

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[TnB Review] 70816 Benny's Spaceship, Spaceship, SPACESHIP!

Post by vynsane » Thu Jun 12, 2014 5:10 pm

Name: Benny's Spaceship, Spaceship, SPACESHIP!
Number: 70816
Theme: THE LEGO® MOVIE™
Release Date: June 1, 2014
Piece Count: 940
Minifig Count: 5 (including brick-built Astro Kitty)
Age Rating: 9-14
Cost: US $99.99 - CA $119.99 - UK £79.99 - EUR €99,99 - DK 899,00 DKK

With the imminent release of The LEGO Movie™, we were treated to the addition of three more sets to the tie-in LEGO theme. Thanks to The LEGO Group and the Community Engagement & Events department, Toys N Bricks has the opportunity to bring you a new series of reviews of those sets! Up first is second most expensive set from the series (behind Metal Beard's Sea Cow), 70186 "Benny's Spaceship, Spaceship, SPACESHIP!"

First the official product description:

Count down for lift-off in Benny’s dream Spaceship!

Benny may have spent too much time in space with a lack of oxygen, but this wacky character is also a Master Builder. Help him construct the Spaceship, Spaceship, SPACESHIP! of his dreams then help the heroes to evade the Robo Police interceptor. Open the central roof to access the computers and tools in the control room. Push the middle exhaust to extend the wings, unleash the hidden spring-loaded cannons and fire the stud blasters. Raise the satellite dish to release the spacebots. And if all that’s not enough to fend off the enemy, detach the wing flyers to triple the threat. Includes 4 minifigures with accessories: Benny, Robo Emmet, Space Wyldstyle and Robo Pilot, plus an Astro Kitty figure.

SPACESHIP! (Packaging)

The box is slightly wider than it is tall, measuring about 20" wide by 15" tall, with a depth of about 3". The front is adorned with a depiction of the Spaceship itself in action against the Robo Police Interceptor. The logo for the LEGO Movie is displayed next to the LEGO logo above and to the left of the Spaceship. In the lower right-hand corner are the five characters included: Robo Emmet, Benny, Space Wyldstyle, Robo Pilot and Astro Kitty.

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The back of the box features another shot of the Spaceship in flight with Benny at the helm, hovering above a downed Robo Police Interceptor. Robo-disguised Emmet being chased by the Robo Pilot while Wyldstyle provides air cover in one of the detachable swooshers. The two repairbots are flying in to fix the other swoosher, and Astro Kitty is just sitting there looking adorable.

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The back also features multiple panels across the bottom, looking like a film strip, depicting the various play features of the set.

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The top of the box again depicts the four minifigures and one brick-built figure.

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SPACESHIP! (Parts, Instructions and Stickers)

The parts are separated into seven numbered bags, each about the same size. The instructions and sticker sheet are packaged in a cardboard-backed plastic bag to prevent wrinkling.

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The building steps are separated into two instruction booklets, each about the same amount of pages. Both use roughly the same design as the front of the box, slightly redesigned to remove the corner minifigure call-out and the LEGO and LEGO Movie logos slightly repositioned and scaled down:

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The stickers will be highly sought after, with four rather large sticker versions of the classic Space logo as well as two stickers of the Octan logo. Two pairs of opposing stickers also feature the characters "LL929" in the same vein as Classic Space set numbering. Two long stickers, made for placement on 1x8 tiles, replicate the printing of various old 1x2 tile printing designs used in the Space theme as well.

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SPACESHIP! (Bag 1)

The first bag contains all the parts to build the Robo Police Interceptor and the two detachable swooshers as well as the Emmet, Wyldstyle and Robo Pilot minifigures - basically a tidy "battle in a bag" that means play can start immediately.

Notable minifigure-related pieces include the rifle, head and torso for the Robo Pilot, the hood, torso and legs for Space Wyldstyle, the helmet/hair combo piece (previously only available in the "Hard Hat Emmet" figure from the Movie CMF series), robo-disguised head, legs and the robo-disguised "piece of resistance" (formerly only available in red, this version is molded in Silver Metallic) for Emmet. The 2 x 5 x 1 1/3 windscreen is exclusive to this set in trans-yellow thus far, and the 1x4 inverted bow brick and 1x2 bow brick, while getting more prevalent, are still relatively rare.

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The three minifigures that come from this bag are Robo Pilot, Robo-disguise Emmet, and Space Wyldstyle:

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The build begins with the two detachable swooshers, each built exactly the same. They are constructed using the four inverted 1x4 bows, some hinge plates and 2 x 3 x 2 seat as a base.

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Once the swooshers are finished, it's time to build the Robo Police Interceptor. The build is fairly straight-forward, with a 4x6 inverted hull piece and a few inverted 2x2 slopes as the base.

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Once this bag is complete, you have a pretty evenly-sided dogfight ready to go, with the more formidable Interceptor vs. two less armed, but probably more nimble, swooshers:

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The Interceptor is pretty sleek for such a compact build, featuring a clear 4 x 8 x 2 canopy, four trans-red cone weapons and twin rocket engines.

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A very cool feature is the 1x2 plate with vertical shaft that allows you to hang the pilot's rifle on the bag when not in use. The Octan logo stickers look great on the wings as well.

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The two swooshers are comparatively flimsy looking, but are fun and look like reasonable updates to the types of sets you'd find in the Classic Space era. Both feature a HUD sticker on the trans-yellow windscreens.

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SPACESHIP! (Bag 2-6)

With the smaller craft out of the way, the remaining 6 bags are devoted solely to the star of the show. Bag 2 lays the foundation for the tracks that facilitate the wing pop-out action feature as well as the rear where the activator of that feature will be. The pieces are a mixture of Technic frame bricks, and inverted curved and straight slopes in black or gray, standard bricks in yellow, and plates and tiles in gray, yellow and blue.

Notable pieces for this bag include four 1x2 bow bricks.

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At the end of Bag 2, we have the frame on which the rear of the spaceship will sit. Nothing too exciting as of yet.

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Bag 3 contains the pieces necessary to build the rest of the lower hull, including the base of the Engineering compartment and the three-seater cockpit. Notable pieces in this step include the 2x4 slope brick emblazoned with the Classic Space logo (one of three such pieces in this set) and three more 2 x 3 x 2 seats - a total of five in all. There are two printed 2x2 slope bricks as well.

The structure of the hull ism mostly comprised of curved 8-stud-wide "Bow Bottom" pieces - two measuring 8x8 and four 8x2 - with Technic bricks and inverted slopes interspersed between them.

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Interestingly, the process of building bag 3 is a self-contained process until the very last step, where it is joined to the previous section via Technic pins at the rear of the engineering compartment. The long cockpit features three seats, the second and third being raised one plate higher than the first. Small canard wings are attached forward of the cockpit to house the flick-fire missiles.

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At the end of Bag 3, after attaching it to the previous section, nearly the full length of the craft is realized, save for the engines. The swept delta form is taking shape from the conical nose through two sets of 3x12 angled plates. Half of the cockpit and all of the engineering compartment are still mostly hull at this point, and the rear portion is still a rough skeleton.

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Building Bag 4 is relatively quick, comprised of the pieces for the wings and lower rocket engine that activates their slide-out action feature. I don't even have any pictures of it mid-build. The engine is only connected to the rest of the build by two 9M Technic beams and the wings are joined to the undercarriage by sliding pieces.

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Bag 5 contains the pieces to complete both the cockpit and engineering compartment, as well as Benny and Astro Kitty (Unikitty in Space uniform). Notable pieces include Benny's pre-worn helmet, head and torso, Astro Kitty's 1x3 brick with face print, 1x3 arch brick with Classic Space logo, and tail, now in blue. There are two of the 2x2 corner tiles in medium stone gray, two more printed 2x2 slope bricks, two of the new spring-loaded missile shooter 1x4 bricks, and the piece de resistance: That glorious 6x12 windscreen in trans-yellow, formerly only available in transparent, from the new UCS Red Five X-Wing Starfighter. As if that weren't enough, on top of that is a 1x4 tile with a laser-engraved code unique to each individual set.

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Later in the instructions, it shows you that you can use that unique code to unlock a surprise item in the LEGO Movie tie-in videogame:

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Here are the mini/brick-built figures for this bag, Benny and Astro Kitty in their matching Classic Space outfits:

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With the cockpit and engineering compartment complete, the ship is really taking shape. The sides of the cockpit feature 1x4 panel windows inset between 1x4 slope bricks to give it a little bit of visual interest. The engineering compartment has a lift-top hatch with a seat for Astro Kitty, and cool-looking intakes on either side. A smattering of greebles and two pairs of hoses round out the spaceyness.

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Meanwhile, the rear portion is basically still untouched.

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Bag 6 quickly takes care of that, featuring the pieces to build up the rear area, with a box covering the mechanism for the play features, and an inset tray housing two repairbots.

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Finally, Bag 7 finishes off the entire thing. Notable pieces include the other two 2x4 slope bricks with Classic Space logos, some pretty classic-looking bits, two Technic missiles with yellow tips (only also currently available in Gorzan's Gorilla Striker) and three of the new spring-loaded brick missiles.

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In addition, there are four blue tailfins that get the Classic Space treatment by way of stickers. Unfortunately, I have a pretty big gripe with these. The one on the left looks absolutely fantastic, however the one on the right requires that the logo either be positioned too low or be angled the wrong way in order for it to fit. I opted for the more aesthetically pleasing of the two options. It doesn't look horrible, but it could look a lot better - particularly if, instead of four identical stickers, they had printed two pairs of mirror-image logos. I can see why they didn't do that, as that might have upset people, but I, for one, would have been much happier with that.

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With the final pieces in place, the Spaceship is ready to blast off. The engines, radar dish, and Technic shooters, as well as their concealment, are all added in these final steps to round out the build. In my opinion, this craft is a wholly worthy successor to those from the Classic Space era, updated for the modern times. The wedge shape that was a trademark of those sets is in full effect here, but elongated and more narrow for a sleek look. There are, however, many, many pieces used that were mainstays of Space sets, including the 2x3x2 seats, webbed parabolic dish, and multiple rocket engine pieces. The only thing missing, though, are landing gear. The over-all effect keeps true to the essence of Classic Space while updating it with modern techniques and pieces.

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SPACESHIP! (Minifigures)

All in all there are four minifigures and three brick-built figures including the two repairbots:

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Three out of the four minifigures (Robo Pilot, Robo-disguise Emmet and Wyldstyle) feature back printing, and three (Benny, Emmet and Wyldstyle) also feature printing on the rear of their heads. Benny and Wyldstyle both have alternate face printings, while Emmet features more "robo disguise" printing. I'm not certain why one repairbot has a yellow 'face' while the other has a red one, but the set provides extras of each, so you can decide to make them both yellow or red if so desired.

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SPACESHIP! (Ratings)

Design: 9/10
As stated above, the heart of Classic Space meets modern design and build techniques. One point is removed for the issue of the Classic Space logo sticker positioning, lack of landing gear, and the fact that the engineering compartment can't close when any minifigures are sitting inside it.

Build: 7/10
While using a few SNOT techniques here and there, the construction is relatively straight-forward. Though relatively simple, the engineering of the slide-out wing play feature is solid.

Minifigures: 10/10
This may be Benny's ride, but that doesn't detract from the exclusive Robo Pilot, Wyldstyle, Astro Kitty, and Emmet figures. I appreciate that Emmet was included in a form we've not seen before, since he's in roughly 90% of the sets in this line.

Playability: 9/10
Three different types of missiles - flick-fire, spring-shooter, and Technic means this craft is ready to dish out some punishment on Lord Business' minions. The opening engineering compartment is fun, but there's not much to do there, though the hinged radar dish that allows access to the two repairbots makes up for it.

Parts: 9/10
Some magnificent, exclusive pieces, particularly the main cockpit canopy, the two swoosher windscreens, and the three 2x4 slopes with Classic Space logo printing, surely made Classic Space fans salivate when this set was first unveiled.

Price: 9/10
At 940 for $100, it's only slightly higher than $0.10/piece. The size and rarity of some parts definitely offsets that ratio.

Authenticity: 10/10
Like most of the vehicle sets from the LEGO Movie line, this is a direct translation from the model on the screen. It's as if Benny was able to break through the barrier from their reality into ours.

Overall rating: 9/10
The highest rating I've bestowed on any set I've reviewed here yet (just edging out Parisian Restaurant by 0.2 points at 8.8/10). What can I say? I tried to be as objective as possible, but Space was one of my main collections as a child. Still, I don't think it's an unwarranted rating. Tell us what you think by voting in the poll!
ALL HAIL THE BLACTRON EMPIRE!

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Re: [TnB Review] 70816 Benny's Spaceship, Spaceship, SPACESH

Post by vynsane » Thu Jun 12, 2014 5:10 pm

SPACESHIP! (Bonus Features)

I figured some comparison shots would work as "bonus features" for this review. First, let's see how this set stacks up against the most recent Space-related flagship, 70709 Galactic Titan. Weighing in at 1002 pieces and five minifigures, it's relatively comparable, even though the insectoids' base and centipede are much larger than this set's Robo Police Interceptor. When the Galactic Titan is in combo mode, it's length is much shorter, but its height is more than double.

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However, when decoupled and laid end-to-end, it's roughly the same length:

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There is a similar amount of large pieces and windscreens between the two, but Benny's Spaceship features many more exclusive or rare pieces, and the Galactic Titan features no printed pieces at all. I'd say the two are tied, value-wise.

All the figures in this set, save for Benny himself (being available in Metal Beard's Sea Cow) are exclusive, either featuring alternate colors or printing from their 'standard' counterparts. Wyldstyle gets a snazzy blue Classic Space-inspired version of her normal black hoodie and pants combo:

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While Robo Emmet features a completely unique head, the helmet/hair combo from the CMF series, and slightly different printing on the legs as well as gray hands instead of yellow:

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The only color Astro Kitty has in common with Unikitty is the 1x1 round plate w/hole in white that holds her horn in place. Otherwise, she's a completely different color. The face printed 1x3 brick is even a slightly different design:

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Finally, I have compared Benny to his real-life 1980something spaceman counterpart, being the single piece of my childhood LEGO collection to survive. Despite the missing airtanks, he's in much better shape than Benny, don't you think? It's interesting to note that the "classic" smiley imitation on the left is slightly different than the original - the eyes are a bit closer together and larger, and the mouth is smaller. The replica helmet with fake crack is also thicker all around.

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ImageWelcome home, brother!
ALL HAIL THE BLACTRON EMPIRE!

Flickr Photostream | Dropbox - LDD files and instruction archive

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