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x-posted to lugnet.reviews 8?)
In lugnet.loc.au, Kerry Raymond writes:
> I just finished building the 6085 Black Monarch's Castle and I was most
> impressed. This is an older set (1988) that I got on ebay and was definitely
> worth getting. I'm surprised it doesn't get more rave reviews in the notes
> on lugnet:
>
> http://guide.lugnet.com/set/6085
>
> I also recently built a contemporary castle 6091 King Leo's Breezeway (as
> someone so aptly named it):
>
> http://guide.lugnet.com/set/6091
>
> and the two are now sitting side by side on my dining room table. It's
> interesting to compare them.
>
> Superficially King Leo's looks bigger than the Black Monarch's being about
> 50% taller, 50% wider, and a bit deeper. However, much of this volume is
> achieved by the use of a fairly high baseplate, whereas the Black Monarch is
> built on thin baseboards. On piece count, the Black Monarch is the larger:
> 665 pieces compared with 524 pieces for King Leo's. The Black Monarch also
> has a lot of castle wall pieces, more than King Leo's. So where are all the
> pieces going in the Black Monarch? Answer: into solid walls. Because King
> Leo's relies on the baseplate to provide the hard-to-scale slopes to keep
> the bad guys out, the upper structure is built in a very open style (hence
> the "Breezeway" nickname). The Black Monarch uses a lot of bricks to create
> a very solid no-bad-dudes-get-through sets of external walls and towers.
>
> As probably comes as no surprise to anyone, the older Black Monarch uses a
> lot more standard parts (well, if you count castle walls as standard)
> compared with the newer King Leo's. For example, the portcullis in King
> Leo's is a single piece, whereas you make it up with plates in the Black
> Monarch. King Leo's has a stained glass window etc.
>
> In terms of looks, King Leo's is more of your fairytale castle whereas the
> Black Monarch has more of a Norman Castle appearance. The Black Monarch is a
> strictly two-tone structure (light grey and black), with the colours coming
> from the "accessories": red and blue flags, red and blue shields, and the
> minifigs and horses. King Leo's is a much more confused colour scheme: green
> base plate with a mostly light grey superstructure, interspersed somewhat
> randomly with black, brown, dark grey, and sand, topped off with mid-blue
> turret towers and some blue flags. The grey on King Leo's just doesn't look
> right for me. I think a fairytale castle should probably have used a lot
> more lighter colours in the main structure (especially the upper parts),
> e.g. white, sand, yellow. I don't think the light grey and blue turrets work
> well together at all.
>
> King Leo's is a strictly look-from-the-front castle. The Black Monarch is
> defended on all sides, although it is designed with hinges and baseplates so
> that it can open out the 2 rear sections to make a very wide
> view-from-front-only castle; a nice piece of design. King Leo's does not
> open out, but instead has a number of moving parts: a trebuchet to chuck
> rocks, a chest that flies off when you hit at the right spot, a trap with
> some falling axes etc. I think this is catering more to the modern
> short-attention-span child who expects an action-response sequence (press a
> button and something happens).
>
> Summary. Overall, I definitely prefer the older Black Monarch. I like the
> more substantive castle look with the more limited selection (much more
> real IMHO); I like the use of more standard parts; I like the opening-out
> design. I hope Lego re-releases a lot more of these older sets as
> "classics", as I definitely like them a lot more than some of the more
> recent offerings.
>
> Kerry
>
> --
> ============
> Kerry Raymond
> kerry@dstc.edu.au
> Proud to be LUGNET Member 599
> www.lugnet.com/people/members/?m=599
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