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The robbers' retreat sits nestled in the heart of a lush valley at the base of
a dormant volcano. Once a temple to the spirits of the sleeping mountain, the
robber Yoshimoto has since turned the abandoned edifice into a hideout and
storehouse of his ill-gotten treasures. Today the temple has an interesting
guest in the form of the kidnapped prince Shotoku. Yoshimoto's minions are off
obtaining food for the evening's festivities when Yoshi senses something behind
him. He turns but sees nothing and remembers peasant rumors of hauntings by
the mountain spirits. "Absurd superstitions" he says to no one, but suddenly a
shadow detaches itself from a dark corner of the room and proceeds toward the
disbelieving (and somewhat inebriated) Yoshi....
Sounds corny, but one of the coolest things I find about the Ninja sets is the
presentation of the boxes. It's probably just the novelty of the subtheme and
all, but I remember how ecstatic I was to get my first Ninja set in the mail
(by way of Shop at Home) and when the all the sets finally came to a nearby
store I went wild at the site of a whole shelf with these brand new boxes.
While I miss a new European medieval castle subtheme, these Ninja sets fill the
void just fine.
The second acquisition to my Ninja collection was the 6088 Robbers Retreat. It
seems to be a base for the bad guys (with the Flying Fortress or Stone Tower
Bridge being bases for the good guys) and while it isn't the same as having a
6078 Royal Drawbridge or 6059 Knights Stronghold, it is still a fun set to
build and for interacting with other sets of the series.
The 6088 is comprised of a three-story construction with the first level being
a large double-door entryway opening into a small foyer with a sword stand
whose base can hide small goodies like coins. The roof of the first floor is
sustained by two large red (square) pillars. A booby trap set in the roof
features a beam (holding four katana blades mounted on one end) which swings
down to skewer and shish kabob any unwanted intruders (though I don't think
I've ever heard of WANTED intruders before). To one side of the foyer a small
second story balcony overlooks the outside of the structure.
A prison/holding cell is the central part of the second level. This
construction (like the towers on the Flying Ninja Fortress) is a unit in itself
that can be removed from the roof of the first floor and interchanged with
other towers in the Ninja theme (kind of neat to see this modularity in the
subtheme). Atop the cell is another small balcony. The entire building is
chiefly built with large dark grey, rocky pieces and some 1x6 brown wooden wall
elements. The set is further developed for interactive play with the inclusion
of a handcart (another hidden compartment for weapons or money is built into
the base of the cart) sporting a small catapult mounted on the top of the cart.
There is also a black-winged ninja hang glider included with the set.
Minifigs include two black ninjas, one blue "good guy" and a red "bad guy".
Weapons include two spears, six grey and two black katanas.
Unique pieces include the green rope with handholds, round plant bricks with
leaves, the red harness piece (used to pull the handcart), large doors in
black, green sloped bricks, grey fish, some dark grey 1x4 wood-shaped bricks
and a red plastic banner. Also, the ninja hood pieces are kind of cool because
they have a small clip on the back of the hood that holds a sword (or other
weapon) so the ninjas' death-dealing hands can be kept free.
To accept reality (and cut down on my whining) I'm refraining from comparing
these sets to the old classic castle sets and in so doing I find that the sets
stand up well on their own. I think that new collectors will be satisfied with
the construction of the 6088 and at the reasonable price of about $30.00 you
get a medium sized fortress with good and bad guys and a couple of ninja
assassins to throw a little chaos into the works!
!!!4x2ReVu Stats!!!
Rating: Five out of eight studs.
Thumbs up for: Fun standalone set with a good structure and accessories.
Wallet-Wise: $30.00 (approx. U.S. retail) for 273 pieces.
Date: 7/19/1998
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