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Sorry for the sketchiness of the price details—I didn’t have a writing utensil,
and I was in a hurry.
BTR sets: the small sets are ~$6.00 (down from about $7.50) and the larger sets
are similarly reduced. BTR doesn’t offer the best piece:price ratio, but some
of the less juniorized elements are downright cool. I’ll post pics of a few of
them tomorrow, if possible.
Now, a very brief review of set 8002, Tonka Search and Rescue.
Price: $6.00
Pieces: 34
Figures: One (he’s 1/18 scale)
Colors: Not terrible. Yellow, dark red, white, dk. gray
Appearance: Okay, but not great. Doesn’t really look like any real-world
vehicle, but YMMV
Play value: Pretty good. Nice whooshability, but see below.
LEGO Compatibility: Excellent. Plates and bricks adhere to the 1:3 LEGO height
ratio, and the add-on juniorized elements have good LEGO-compatible attachment
points.
Instructions: Very good. Easy to follow with a “parts used” inset for each step
Packaging: Good. The box is about 2x6x8 and has a clear window through which
the figure and one sample brick are visible
Overall Value: Not really worth full MSRP, but I didn’t mind paying $6.00 for
it.
As with the other Tonka/GI Joe BTR sets, this is based on 1/18 scale, so the
parts aren’t really minifig scale, but they’re fairly easy to adapt. The model
is basically a small jet with 4 vertical tail elements in yellow and two
horizontal wings in dark gray. The main fuselage is white, and there’s a
tipper-bucket mechanism in yellow and red at the rear of the craft.
The figure wears a helmet (non-removable) and a dark red flightsuit with a
yellow life-jacket or vest. On each forearm and each lower leg he has a
two-stud attachment point like the top of a 1x2 LEGO brick, and the soles of his
boots each have two stud-sized holes so that he can stand on a brick or
baseplate. The plastic of the figure is more flexible than the brick elements,
which appear to be ABS of at least the same quality that LEGO uses.
Some cool parts: Two 1x4 round-ended tiles, each with a handle. Two 1x2
plates, each with one raised, modified stud. One 2x6 double convex 45-degree
slope brick in red with 4 engine ports. One 2x4 tile with round exhaust port,
or something, in red. Two 3x3 plates without corner in yellow, with surface
detailing.
Some not-so-cool parts: The tipper bucket mechanism is kind of goofy doesn’t
add much to the overall appearance of the craft. The fuselage: it’s four
molded parts that really only work in conjunction with one another. The wings,
at least, can be incorporate into other models, but the juniorzied fuselage
really kind of bugs me.
Especially nice aspects: This model, like other BTR kits I have seen, uses
embossed and recessed fetures on certain elements to enhance detail. To me,
this makes the parts more interesting than a sticker or printed image would be.
BTR also has printed elements, but these usually simulate surface printing on a
real-world vehicle, rather than creating the illusion of a computer panel.
Again, YMMV.
On the whole, I like these sets, even if only as a demonstration of what can be
added to the LEGO universe. As far as I’m concerned, the construction brick
market can always use another competitor, and Hasbro has made the effort to
produce high-quality bricks with good ABS and very tight molding. Although the
set doesn’t seem worth the full MSRP, it’s worth getting on sale. I’ll likely
check out the BTR section at Target in the days after Christmas…
Dave!
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